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Home | The Staff Report
| Feb 2003
The Staff Report
Career: 8 Guidlines for
the High School Assistant Coach
So you
dream of becoming the head coach someday? Well, there are a few
things you need to know and do that will help you earn that dream
job you’ve been looking for.
Anyone who wants to be a successful assistant coach and eventually
a successful head coach must have certain qualities that set them
apart from the other coaches in the game.
Here are the eight qualities an individual must have before taking
the next step:
1) Loyalty - This does not make
you a “yes” man. “Yes” men are worthless and
do not make the head coach better. You need to have an opinion and
express it, just make sure to do it in the right context. You cannot
start questioning the head coach in front of the players. You cannot
be seen as a problem. Remember, good coaches are costly, but bad
coaches cost much more.
2) Balance - An assistant coach
must nuture his relationship with his family at home. Your family
must be understanding of the time you are putting into your job.
Sometimes they make a bigger sacrifice than you. Coaches usually
spend more time with other people’s kids than their own. It
is a difficult statement, but it is true. Don’t forget in the
end you are playing for the team at home.
3) Willingness to Learn - You have
to possess the desire to improve yourself and become a better coach.
The only way to achieve this is through hard work. You need to attend
clinics and hear other coaches that you respect teach you new things.
Make yourself an expert at something and you will then become more
valuable to your head coach and your school. You need to be a 12-month
coach, not just a four-month coach.
4) Willingness to Sacrifice - You have to be willing
to sacrifice as an assistant coach. Most good coaches do not go
fishing and golfing during the season. Your sacrifice as a coach
may help make a player - who is also sacrificing - better. If you
are only concerned with rewards, you are in the wrong profession.
5) Willingness to Teach - If you
do not do a good job in the classroom, you will not do a good job
on the field. Your class work cannot suffer because of your coaching.
In most cases, your job is as a teacher first and coach second.
6) Role Model - Always set a good example. Coaches
are often the father figure many athletes never had. Assistant coaches
are often closer to the players than the head coach. Athletes should
look to a coach for guidance. Coaches cannot expect players to avoid
smoking and drinking if the coaches are seen doing this. Never miss
a team function.
7) Preparation - Strive for perfection. Never present
an idea to the head coach, team or administration without proper
consideration and thought. Be proud of who you are and your team.
Always wear clothing with your school’s logo and never hesitate
to make your coach or administration proud to have you on the staff.
8) Love - The last and most
important step for high school coaches looking to become head coaches
is to love your job. When your coach assigns you a duty, do it with
a smile. Perform tasks with enthusiasm because if you do, your players
will as well.
By Tony Johnson
Offensive Coordinator, Graceland University
Steps to Building a Championship
Staff
I-AA Schutt Sports Coach of the Year winner: Dave Clawson, Fordham
Under
fourth-year head coach, Dave Clawson, Fordham finished with its
best season in 60 years. The Rams, the 2002 Patriot League co-champions,
garnered its highest I-AA win total and advanced to the I-AA playoffs
for the first time since moving to I-AA in 1989.
According to Clawson, who won the 2002 Schutt Sports Coach of the
Year award, it takes a complete coaching effort from the entire
staff to attain a championship season. Here are four tips from Coach
Clawson on selecting a championship staff:
1) Hire people you know - Whenever a new staff comes together,
there is always a transition period. By hiring someone you have
worked with - the quicker you can reduce that transition period
by hiring someone you know or worked with - the better off you and
your program will be.
2) Hire people with good reputations - Hire someone with
a good reputation as a teacher and as a recruiter. These people
will help you attract a better quality of student-athlete.
3) Hire people with good work ethic - The number one thing
is they must have a good work ethic. Building a successful program
takes a lot of work. Most programs will take 3-4 years of hard work
to reach a championship level.
4) Hire people with good character - You must hire coaches
that are loyal and that have good character. They must share the
same vision as the head coach.
Special Teams: 3 Keys to the
2-Point Play
Nothing says college
football like the 2-point conversion, yet it is one of the hardest
plays to successfully convert. In Part I of this two-part series,
we will show you how to make it happen next time you go for two.The
2-point philosophy at Kent State is to accomplish three things:
1) Create confusion on the defensive side of the football by:
A) Shifting
B) Motioning
C) Creating an undefined formation from game alignments
D) Or combination of the above
2) Get the ball into the hands of your best player or players.
3) Give ourselves more than one option in having the play succeed.
With today’s modern defenses, it is often times difficult to
predict exactly what you’re going to see defensively on the
goal line, so you need to have plays designed to be successful versus
both man coverage and zone coverage or a combination of both. You
need to game plan your 2-point play just like you would any other
situation play based on what you have seen in previous games from
the goal-line defense.
The simplicity of the play will greatly determine its success, but
the complexity of adjustments forced on the defense will more clearly
define your advantage.
By Dan Kratzer
Assistant Head Coach/Receivers Coach,
Kent State
NOTE: Look for Dan Kratzer’s 2-point clinic in the April 2003
issue.
How Will Digital Editing
System Give Me A Competitive Advantage
Coaches are coaches
because they love to coach. As much as some like to analyze video
of either themselves or their upcoming opponents, they still would
rather be on the field with the players. Coaches watch video to
prepare themselves and their players for the game-and that game
is played on the field, not in the meeting room.
Time spent watching video will be more productive because using
an integrated digital video editing system combines both the video
and the data so any combination of data can be searched and retrieved
instantly. For example, you could search for all run plays on 3rd
and long, from the right hash in the I-formation...from one game
or a group of games. With one more click of the mouse, you could
either view the video or print the report. You can also save the
template of the search and use it from week to week while you are
preparing for different opponents. Guaranteed you will be better
organized and better prepared...and in a shorter amount of time...so
you can do more coaching!
Another intangible in being more efficient with your players’
time is that it will be easier to hold their attention. They grew
up with fast-paced, entertaining video. We all live in a “sound
byte” world. They will appreciate your efficiency and also
your use of cutting edge technology. Because of how you are presenting
the material you want them to learn, they will subconsciously also
“buy into” what you are teaching. As a result, you can
do more effective coaching and gain that competitive advantage!
Defense: Texas-Sized Defensive
Musts
Defensive football
starts with attitude. The attitude grows from what it takes mentally
and physically to be successful in a short-yardage/goal-line situation.
As a player and as a coach, you have to be fearless, frantic, emotionally
out of control and anger driven top put the offense on their back.
You need to be the bully on the block with a chip on your shoulder,
and on the snap of the ball, go get it done.
Be the hammer, not the nail.
Below are defensive drills that must be the primary focus of every
defensive coach at every practice:
Defensive Front:
On air - On spots
Alignment
• Strength calls
• Work on stems
Stance & Start (Ball get off)
• Use ball - false cadence
• Step leg - key leg back
• Tighter the key, shorter the steps
• Gap leg - adjust leg - on LOS
Read on the run
Linebackers:
Alignment:
• Give strength calls
Stance & Start
• Key - second move
• Weight change
• Mug Technique - read step
• Marriage principle
Secondary:
1-on-1 drills
• Bump & run
• Soft
• Bail
2-on-1 drills
By Carl Reese
Defensive Coordinator,
University of Texas
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