AFM RSS Feed Follow Us on Twitter       
AMERICAN FOOTBALL MONTHLY THE #1 RESOURCE FOR FOOTBALL COACHES
ABOUT |  CONTACT |  ADVERTISE |  HELP  



   User Name    Password 
      Password Help





Article Categories


AFM Magazine

AFM Magazine


Letter From the Publisher

The Value of Networking
© More from this issue

Click for Printer Friendly Version          

Pop quiz. Name as many coaches as you can from your coaching network that you could call in the next five minutes and talk X’s & O’s.

Times up. How many names do you have? Fifteen? Ten? Five?

If you were able to quickly open your address book or recall from memory the contact information for coaches that you’ve developed a relationship with to talk X’s & O’s, it will certainly bode well for your future.

It’s no secret. Being successful in the coaching profession takes hard-work, dedication, intelligence and, some would say, most importantly – a great network of coaching colleagues.

Ask any successful coach (regardless of how long they have been coaching or how many championships they have won) at the high school, college and pro levels and they will tell you that one of the biggest keys to their success have been their network of trusted coaching contacts.

Need proof? Consider this – Texas Tech, head coach, Mike Leach, director of one of the nation’s most potent offenses, meets twice a year with a high school coach, a Division-II coach and a Division-IAA coach to share ideas on the spread offense. Granted, these aren’t just any coaches. These are some of the best offensive minds in football – Southeastern Louisiana’s Hal Mumme, Valdosta State’s Chris Hatcher and the subject of our feature article on page 16, Russ Propst of Hoover (AL) High School.

Probably one of the best examples of the benefits of developing a network of colleagues is that of our cover story, Juan Castillo of the Philadelphia Eagles. As a young offensive line coach at Division-II Texas A&M-Kingsville, in an effort to become a better coach, Coach Castillo set out to learn from the game’s best offensive line coaches. Coach Castillo traveled the country on a shoestring budget, never wavering from his objective, even sleeping in his car to save money. It’s important to note, Coach Castillo developed his network based on becoming a better coach, which was evident when he sent four offensive linemen to the NFL in five years.

However, it was Coach Castillo’s drive to become a better coach that excelled his career to the NFL. As an assistant coach at the small college level, Castillo was able to develop his network of coaches from some of the best coaches at the collegiate and professional levels by focusing on becoming a better coach - not networking for a job. It is this small detail that played a big role in Coach Castillo making the jump to the NFL.

As you look to develop your network of coaching contacts, one of the best ways to add coaches to your address book is American Football Monthly. If you have not yet noticed, we’ve been publishing the e-mail addresses of the coaches that write clinic articles in recent issues. Remember, AFM was developed to provide football coaches a forum to share ideas and concepts. So, if you have a question or would like to share your ideas with our clinic writers, please feel free to drop them an e-mail.

As always, if there is anything that we can do for you, please do not hesitate to contact us at 561-355-5068. Thank you.

Respectfully,

Travis H. Davis
Publisher
American Football Monthly
American Basketball Quarterly
tdavis@lcclark.com





NEW BOOK!

AFM Videos Streaming Memberships Now Available Digital Download - 304 Pages of Football Forms for the Winning Coach



















HOME
MAGAZINE
SUBSCRIBE ONLINE COLUMNISTS COACHING VIDEOS


Copyright 2024, AmericanFootballMonthly.com
All Rights Reserved