December 17, 2015

Chris LeGates, Tackling College Sports Co-Host

Mark and I recently interviewed Ashley McDonough, head volleyball coach at Knox College on our podcast – she reminded me of all the things that are great about college coaching.  Ashley had a positivity and vigor about her that made you never doubt that she is going to be successful and get the most out of her program.  She mentioned her training techniques and how her players should be able to “parrot” her training sessions.  She said this because the players have been conditioned through repetition to know where they should be, how they should play, etc… It was great to hear that because I know her players will be disciplined and focused if they want to succeed. 

As I have mentioned many times, I am a college soccer coach and also help run a premier soccer club in CT that has about 240 players. These experiences allow me to interact with coaches of other sports and parents of student-athletes. The last few weeks are a big recruiting time for soccer and I love being able to stand on the sidelines at these showcase tournaments and soak in parent conversations. An inordinate amount of money is spent on training techniques that are gimmicky, unnecessary, and in some cases, unhealthy. In speaking with colleagues from other sports, the case is the same with them. The technical aspects of soccer are still very simple – It requires players to have good touch on the ball, good dribbling ability, vision, and spatial awareness, passing and shooting proficiency as well as mobility. However, these techniques take time and repetition to master. I hear parents say, “well this clinic is awesome they teach the players a-move-minute and they can do a rainbow!” That is awesome, but I can tell you that in my 40+ years in the game, I have seen a rainbow done maybe three times in any level of matches. As for the move-a-minute stuff, what if the players are doing the techniques wrong and they are not corrected, and then we move on because we have to cover another move? What has the player learned? The wrong way to do something. Where is the repetition? When I was a kid, if I spelled something wrong, I had to write the correct spelling 100 times. You best believe I know how to spell Mississippi correctly now. Athletes cannot expect a one-hour clinic a week to make them better. They can’t expect their shooting coach, pitching coach, or whatever coach, is going to make them into the best they can be. We rely too much on coaches or specialists in the pursuit of greatness.  Student-athletes need to do more on their own when no one is watching – when there is not a coach around or a structured environment in place. Their future success must be theirs to take ownership in. Take your soccer ball in the backyard and work on your juggling to develop touch. Hit the ball off the wall 100 times and work on your passing and receiving as well as your moves on any patch of grass you have around. Go to the park and take 300 jumpsuits, work on your handling and become a good free-throw shooter. They say that it takes 10,000 hours to achieve mastery in a field. One hour a week at a clinic and four hours a week of practice will take you 2,000 weeks to master your sport. This means if you started playing soccer at 10 years old, you could be a Division I player by the age of 49! There is certainly a place for supplemental training sessions, there is no doubt about it, but, they can do little if you do not go out on your own and master your skills. It is achieved through repetition! Coaches are not exempt from this either. There are so many coaching symposiums, clinics, videos, magazines that coaches are inundated with drills, exercises, and topics. In my travels, I see coaches not spend enough time on an exercise. They often want to move ahead before the group has fully grasped the concept. Thinking that they have to show a new topic to avoid boredom from the players, or, to show off something new that they have just learned. However, coaching is foundational, and if we cannot get from point A to point B, then how can we introduce point C?  It has always been my opinion to have teams be fluid in a six, seven, eight drills than introduce 20 drills that are performed in a disjointed fashion. Success will come individually and collectively when we realize that repetition is the key. 

Have a question or concern? Please do not hesitate in contacting me at info@tacklingcollegesports.com

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We at TCS would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and for you to BE YOUR BEST in 2016!

Good Luck and ALWAYS #BeYourBest

Chris