The Building of an Attitude
The following information will be the norm for how we establish our football program and a winning attitude. We must demand from our athletes and from ourselves the strength from within to be the difference maker.
MENTAL PREPARATION THE UNKOWN INGREDIENT – must win the mental battles.
ATTITUDE and EFFORT IS OUR FOUNDATION FOR SUCCESS – and is
the 150% vehicle in which our staff and athletes must ride to make the difference.
The following numbers add up to 100, which equal 100% effort. The letters represent their placement in the alphabet. We must find away within our program to generate another 50% effort to be the best and it will come from talking it and demanding the best possible effort from our coaches and players. Each and everyday that teams take the field, coaches demand and expect that their team give 100-110% effort. We must distance our self’s from that in order to make a difference. Our ability to give 150% effort equals the difference maker. Dare to be different. Our success is not about any one persons ego and what he wants, it must be what’s best for the group (Church, family, coaches, players, school, community, etc.).
If The Dream Is To Become a Reality:
The Building of a Championship Program
1. Expect it to Happen – 150% Effort
• Talk and think in terms of success – believe it will happen
• Dream Big – Stay Focused
• Develop a Plan – Believe in It – Improve it Constantly
• Analyze and Make Our Plan Fit; It Must fit our personnel
• No One Person More Important Than The Team
2. Develop a Great Learning Environment
• Involve Everyone in the Community
• Develop Players Who are Dedicated and Unselfish
• Sacrifice – Team – Hold the Rope – Stay Focused
3. Always Stay Positive
• Always look for good – Attitude, performance, work habits, etc.
• Have discipline and be consistent.
• Make each player on our team understand that they have a role in the success of our team whether as a starter or as a back up.
• Accountability both coaches and players the key ingredient.
4. Have a Great In-Season
• This is where we must maintain the edge i.e. classroom, weight room, conditioning.
• Our season must also be determined by the amount of work and sacrifice we develop in the in-season programs.
• Develop great Team Leaders, lead by example.
• Maintain Speed – Quickness – Strength – Unity – Mental Toughness.
Main Objectives of the In-Season Program
1. Mental Toughness
• Never show pain or defeat. Do all the little things right all the time.
• Defeat all negative thoughts. “When your body says no – your heart says, “go”!
2. Physical Strength and Quickness
• Weight Room, Classroom – “Championships are Made and Maintained here.
• Strength and quickness drills must compliment the schemes.
3. Intensity
• Everything is done at a high level of enthusiasm and competitiveness – Push each other.
• Never be satisfied.
• All out effort – All the time – 150% of every minute
• Coaches and players must expect more of themselves and players
4. Unity – Coaches and Players
• Always “US” and “WE” not “I” and “ME”. Make being on the TEAM the greatest experience of our athlete’s life.
• We are fortunate – God gave us the ability to coach and our athletes the ability to play.
• Hard work together + Unity of Team. Encourage each other to work harder – the harder we work, the harder it is to surrender. Remember, if you don’t invest very much then losing doesn’t hurt very much, this applies to both players and coaches.
• Players want coaches that care about them, become apart of your position players lives.
5. The Difference Between Us and Them
• We do work harder – 100% them / 150% us.
• Discipline
• Never walk on the practice field, don’t be the one we must wait on.
• Never Bend Down – resting hands on knees
• Never Lean on Equipment
• Always on One Knee
• With hard work we can accomplish it – it will be done. Football is no sport for a lazy
coach or athlete.
• We will sweat the small stuff. The little things we do will make us champions.
• Our success – Our attitude – Our work habits. These are the choices we make. CHOOSE SUCCESS!
Educational, and Coaching Philosophies
Academics
One thing can be said: “You can take football from me, but you can never take my education away”.
The talk of getting an education will always take precedence over athletics. I believe that athletics and academics can and should work hand in hand. Establishing discipline in any program starts in the classroom. There is no reason that we should not strive to be champions in the classroom, as well as champions on the playing field. Discipline in the classroom means discipline on the playing field.
In order to ensure that our student athletes understand our belief in academics, we will adhere to the following policies:
1. Academics shall and will be made a priority, discipline and winning starts in the classroom. As the head coach I will make this evident to players and coaching staff. The coaching staff will assume responsibility of motivating their respective players and monitoring their success, as an example making use of 3-week progress reports.
2. Each position coach will continually monitor the academic progress of his position athletes to ensure that they are striving for the best possible education that they can get presently but also in the future.
3. We will work in conjunction with the school faculty and administration to provide study hall, tutoring and an open line of communication with parents and all those directly and indirectly involved with the football program..
It is very important to see athletics as a part of the total educational program. It should both compliment and contribute to the overall educational process. For many students it is the most effective climate for learning the invaluable lessons of personal integrity, determination, selfconfidence, and proper mental attitude. Individual and group responsibilities along with the desire to achieve high goals should be basic objectives of any sound educational system.
What You Can Expect From the Head Coach
To be accountable for all actions. When we win it will be because of our assistant coaches and players. If we lose it will be because of the Head Football Coach. To make necessary changes to the program if needed.
To deal with all coaching situations with honor and integrity. If we as coaches need to discuss potential problems and or disagreements it will be behind closed doors. To let you know privately when you have been derelict of duties.
To run an organized program so that we will be able to function efficiently. I want our coaches coaching our athletes first and foremost.
To maintain an atmosphere that is conducive to work.
To listen to your suggestions.
To give you ownership, responsibility and authority.
To work and provide leadership to win.
To treat you like a man with dignity and respect.
To be totally concerned about you and your family, regardless of what problems confront you.
To be very loyal to you and do everything a head coach can do to help you grow professionally.
To sell you to our players, the community and other coaches.
To let you coach on the field, within your personality.
Expectations of an Assistant Football Coach
To be the very best classroom teacher, and on the field coach that you can be.
Never use profanity around our athletes and never allow our players to.
Never use tobacco around school at anytime or on the practice fields.
Don’t worry about what your fellow coaches are doing. Just do your job and do it well. When hanging out around the field house and our kids are in the locker room and you find yourself with nothing to do please go and visit with our players. This will be strictly enforced.
Don’t leave the locker rooms unsupervised when our athletes are still inside.
Don’t keep score.
Coaches will be expected to be on time for all staff meetings and practices, unless you have notified the head coach of a problem. Follow the fifteen-minute rule, if we expect our athletes to follow this rule then we as coaches need to follow it also.
To be a positive role model.
To sell and defend the program.
To do everything you can do to develop a winning attitude.
To study and work hard to make yourself a great coach. Educational growth is a must for any coach in order to maintain, sustain and develop new innovative ways of coaching, new teaching techniques, and better ways to improve teaching.
To be professional in attitude, responses, work and personal appearance.
Never involve your spouse in the coaching situation in a negative manner.
To be sincerely interested in the success of our players and other members of the coaching staff.
Never give up on a player. He can always change and likely will if given the chance by you.
To be positive and never doubt that we will be successful.
To be loyal. If you have problems with the head coach or any of our other coaches please keep your comments in house they don’t belong out in the community.
To be creative and have the ability to think on your own and apply gained knowledge of the game. Please don’t wait to be told what to do.
To be on the same page with each other (offense, defense) when taking the practice or game field. Never take your disagreements to practice.
Don’t get complacent as the season goes on. Don’t let the little things slide in the discipline of our players, this will lead to bad habits.
Have a plan for everything. Be organized.
Do not choose favorites. Work with every player on the squad.
If you are leaving campus please check in with Peggy Warren if on the Memorial campus and if at the Stroman campus the appropriate staff member in charge of teachers..
When taking the field know where you belong, be waiting for your players.
Utilize time before and after practice. As a rule of thumb use the “15 minute rule” if I arrive 15 minutes before the scheduled meeting time then I’m on time; if I arrive 10 minutes early I’m 5 minutes late; if I arrive 5 minutes early then I’m 10 minutes late; and if I arrive on the scheduled time then my players are waiting for you.
Have something to say after each effort. Remember, this is coaching and “don’t coach out of frustration.” Don’t just tell an athlete what he is doing wrong, show him how to correct it; this builds credibility.
Stay alert for players with injuries or heat problems. Refer to trainer.
Strive to make your group the best on the field, take pride in your work. Do not experiment with drills during practice, have your work thought out, and make sure it fits the scheme.
Always strive to improve your individual technique that you are teaching your position athletes.
Never lose your poise or confidence, coach those things that you know how to fix.
As a position coach expect to be talked to if something avoidable goes wrong.
Our practices must be organized; talk in meetings not on the field, repetition is the most important key, repetition instills learning. Don’t hold clinics on the field. Players must perform on the practice field with a since of urgency, hustle is the key ingredient.
Pay strict attention to the scheduled time segments.
Don’t relax during any segment. All segments are very important, or they would not be
included.
Breed confidence into our team.
Gain the respect from your players, don’t demand respect, you must earn it
Coach our players all year long, “talk football”. Encourage them to “hang around the field house”, to work on a position specialty skill, and to work in the weight room.
Talk the importance of classroom demeanor, doing well in class, staying current on all classroom assignments and homework.
If you get tired pray for strength, because as a staff we are only as strong as our weakest link.
Always be optimistic. The glass is half full.
What We As Coaches Will Expect From Our Athletes
Not to do anything wrong that will harm the integrity of the football program.
To give their very best effort towards receiving a quality education.
Do the right thing, make good decisions that won’t effect them and our their families and or the football program.
Always give their best effort for the team, teammates, and themselves.
Treat others the way you want to be treated.
To be prompt, don’t be the player we all have to wait on.
To hustle, give the best effort possible.
To know their assignments, be students of the game. Abide by team and school rules.
Sacrifice for the team, each individual is only as good as the team.
Be the best person that they can be, be a role model for others.
To play with Character – “Play as well as you can for as long as you can.”
To play with Pride – “Know that you won’t quit when it gets tough.”
To be Mentally Tough – “Accept discomfort and live with it.”
About the Author of this post:
Jerry Campbell has over 30 years of high school and college coaching experience. He has experience as a head coach, offensive coordinator, and various position coaches. He has written numerous football coaching articles in various publications, is the author of over 30 books on coaching football, and has produced 12 coaching video series. Additionally, he is a nationally sought after speaker on the coaching clinic circuit.