Program Manual

Jason Compton

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Table of Contents

Introduction 4

Philosophy 5

Coach/Player Expectations 6

On the Field 7

1st Year Plan 9

“Excellence in Everything” 10

Having Vision and Building a Brand 11

Winning with People / Getting Players to Buy In 13

Intrinsic Motivational Programs 14

Increasing Numbers 16

First Team Meeting 17

Team Letter Sample 18

Parent Information Meeting 19

Player Information Sheet and Questionnaire 22

First 30 Day’s Checklist 24

Incoming 9th Grade Letter 25

Administration 26

Limiting Liability 27

Team Rules 29

Discipline 30

Coach / Player / Parent Code of Conduct 31

Academic Plan 35

Recruiting 38

Community 39

Fundraising 41

Facilities 43

Football Program Structure and Philosophy 45

Expectations of Head Coach 45

Responsibilities of Head Coach 46

Coaching Staff Positions and Duties 47

Additional Responsibilities and Support 50

Staff Time Commitments, Policy, and Dress Code 53

General Coaching Expectations 55

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Assistant Coach Responsibilities and Program Goals 59

Coaching Principles 63

Coaches as Leaders 65

Buccaneer Practice Philosophy 68

Drill Creation and Implementation 69

Practice Plan 71

Game Day 73

Travel Checklist 74

Halftime Organization 75

Offense Philosophy and Install 78

Defense Philosophy and Install 86

Special Teams Philosophy and Install 97

Weightlifting and Offseason 102

Weight Room Training Method and Philosophy 103

Offseason Program Structure and Schedule 106

Sample Weight / Power Training Week Schedule 107

Speed Mechanics and Development Program 112

Speed, Agility, and Plyometric Plan 121

Agility and Power Plan 122

References 123

Letters of Reference 124

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Introduction

My name is Jason Compton and I am currently the Special Team's Coordinator, Strength and Conditioning Coordinator, Defensive Line Coach, and a Head Boys/Girls Weightlifting coach at Tavares High School in Tavares, FL. Prior to coming to Tavares I was an Offensive Line and defensive line coach at Matanzas High School where I was a part of a staff that changed the culture of a perennial 3-7 football team into a team that went 8-2 this season. Prior to arriving at Matanzas I have served as the Varsity Defensive Line coach at Clay High School in Green Cove Springs, FL where we finished our season as a Class 5A State Finalist, Region 1 Champion, and District 4 Champion. I have had the opportunity to work with several great programs, a multitude of great players, coaches, and wonderful supporting staff.

Football is a vessel for great personal growth. It can inspire young men to reach beyond their expectations, it shows them the work ethic required to accomplish their goals, it teaches them how to work with others to carry out a mission much greater than themselves, and it instills the values of building great character that can last a lifetime.

There are not many professions out there that can have the range of lifetime positive impact that being a coach can provide. There aren’t many jobs that can provide all of these services that stretch virtually all cultures, socioeconomic statuses, races, and religions; while also building bonds that last a lifetime. As a coach I firmly believe in the motto “together everyone achieves more” and know what it takes to build successful football players and exceptional young men.

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Coaching Philosophy

MISSION STATEMENT

“As a coach I believe that it is my firm responsibility to provide an environment which promotes personal growth in all aspects of a student athlete’s life by instilling a

foundation of self-discipline, positive attitude, and a winning spirit”

ALL IN

The "All In" Philosophy means that I expect my players to be "All In" on everything. If something is worth doing it is worth doing to standard of excellence. That doesn't just mean on the football field or in the weight room, the "All IN" philosophy carried over to all aspects of life. Giving it everything that you've got in the classroom, being the

best you can be as a student, as a teammate, as a son or daughter, and as a friend; and not being satisfied with being average in anything you attempt. 

FOOTBALL IS LIFE!

What I mean by “Football is Life” is that football is a great metaphor and tool for building necessary life skills such as discipline, character, work ethic, team-work, and family; which will become the foundation for the student athlete to lead to a life with

great integrity and purpose.

As a coach it is my job to ensure that my athletes are not just fundamentally sound football players, but they learn how to navigate the ups and downs of life. If all that I

have taught a player is how to play football I have failed him as a coach. 

WE ARE A FAMILY!

Everyone holds a piece to the puzzle. Everybody’s contributions are important. Take pride in being a part of our football family.

“They don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care”

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A COACH’S JOB IS…

“To take an athlete and/or a team to a level that they cannot get to by themselves.”

As a coach I believe that a team is foremost built on a foundation of strong fundamentals. If we aren’t physically, technically, fundamentally, and tactically sound

we have little to no chance of success.

I believe that along with being fundamentally sound, a coach’s job is to ensure that his players are mentally, emotionally, and spiritually coached as well.

As a coach I strive to instill confidence, focus, and a sense of pride in every athlete. I strive to provide an environment that is process and goal oriented.

Confidence is an individual’s belief that he or she has the necessary skills to produce a desired outcome.

Everything a coach does either builds or harms confidence.

The confident athlete who isn’t afraid to make a play will always beat the athlete who is scared to make a mistake.

WHAT I EXPECT FROM MY PLAYERS

“The two things every player can control are his attitude and his effort.

Great Attitude and Effort – I expect every player to be coachable and give 100 percent of their focus and effort in anything we do.

Pride – I expect our players to take great pride in being a part of the program, everyone’s contributions are essential to the success of the team.

Accountability – Be on time with a focus on our purpose. No excuses, make a commitment and follow through. Do your part and be determined to become the very best you can be.

Respect – Respect your coaches, your teachers, your team-mates, and your family. They are all here for you, have belief in you, and want to see you succeed.

Toughness – Physically and mentally. Physically, accept that there will be pain and take pride in working through it. Mentally, accept that you will make mistakes, you will be held accountable, and it will make you better!

Have Fun! – Bring great enthusiasm with you every day. Enthusiasm is contagious. As a player you may only have one more play to enjoy this game.

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WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM ME

Dedication – I will tiresly devote as much time as possible to my players, my fellow coaches, and to the program. As a coach I am committed to excellence and I understand that excellence can only be achieved through time, effort, and attention to detail.

Loyalty – I pride myself in being a loyal person. I will do all that I can for my players, fellow coaches, and for the program. I am committed to our cause, I am passionate about what I do, and love my football family! I will always sell and defend our program.

Enthusiasm - I absolutely love what I do. There is nothing I enjoy more than to be on the gridiron with my players, fellow coaches, and my team teaching this great game. You can always expect great energy and enthusiasm from me.

Honesty –I will always be honest with coaches and players.

Committed to Learning: - I am open to change and I am a diligent student of the game. I am always open to learning something new, a different way to do things, and new methods of teaching skills.

Committed to Excellence – Everything I do, I do in attempt of reaching a standard of excellence. I am driven to be the best coach I can be and am committed to prepare my athletes for success on and off the field.

Program Expectations

- I will devote all the time and energy possible to make sure that we are excellent in all aspects of a football program. I will borrow ideas from the best minds in football and motivate resources to help us become a premier program on the field, off the field, academically, socially, and in overall program quality. I will relentlessly fundraise to help our program get the things it needs to be considered premier.

- My student athletes will be raised to be positive, disciplined and respectful young men. They will be taught character daily and they will be recognized and loved as a part of our family. I will protect our program from issues that hurt our program’s culture. We will emphasize academics and get our players to graduate.

- We will teach attitude daily, I’m a firm believer in THOUGHTS lead to WORDS which lead to ACTIONS which lead to HABITS which determine LEGACY. Our athletes, coaches, and staff will learn to control these aspects to help our program achieve to a standard of greatness.

- We will be phenomenal in the weight room and the practice field. We will fly around and get a lot done. Nobody will out work one of my teams. We will physically get better than our opponents. We will film everything and make corrections at meetings; we will never sacrifice our tempo.

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ON THE FIELD

We will be a fundamentally sound football team. Football isn’t all about X’s and O’s it is about execution. I strive for all of my players to master a skill set before moving on

to more complex techniques. We will be excellent in the little things!

Each player will understand his job and his role in the scheme. If we all do our job and execute, we will be very successful!

I believe every player needs a chance to experience success. Correct mistakes and give positive feedback. Confidence is key!

I believe in maximizing repetitions. The classroom is for meetings, the practice field is to develop skill sets by performing the skill correctly as many times as possible.

However the quality of reps will not be sacrificed for quantity.

CHALK IT – TALK IT – WALK IT – RUN IT: Explain in meetings, execute on field.

Great teams close games. In order to be close games we must be the best conditioned. Take pride in being tough and the best conditioned team.

Offensively we want to physically and mentally dominate our opponent. We will out-hit, out-hustle, and out execute the defense on every play.

Games are won up-front, we will know our assignments, communicate, and play with an intense desire to be perfect at our skill-set and our job.

Defensively we will know our alignments, our assignments, and play with a defensive mentality. Penetrate-Pursue-Punish! We will take great pride in being physical,

violent, and relentless. Defense is all about an all out effort to get to the football and being fundamentally sound enough to bring him down when we get there.

Turnovers win and lose games. Defensively we will strive to gang tackle, punish ball carriers, and create turnovers.

Special Teams are the X factor. When a team scores a touchdown on Special Teams that team wins 80% of the time. We will pay great attention to special teams and

strive to win that phase of the game every day.

Play together! Be a team, have fun, include everybody. There is no room for factions and separation of one’s self or others. The team that loves each other, believes in

themselves, is the team that will constantly rise to the occasion.

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1st Year Plan

Upon being hired, on of the first things that I will do is hold a team meeting to introduce myself to players, staff, administration, and anyone else who wishes to attend. In this first meeting I will set out my vision for the football program and let my expectations be known from day one.

"We Will Aspire to Reach a Standard of Excellence in EVERYTHING"

If something is worth being done, it is worth doing well. Our students will be held to a standard of excellence in everything, we cannot let mediocrity thrive in any aspect of our program. Ordinary people don't play football. Ordinary people don't give up four hours a day to go sweat in the hot sun and bust their tail. If we are going to sacrifice all that time, effort, and energy lets sacrifice it at full speed, foot on the throttle, and with a determined spirit to win every rep, every practice, every day.

If we are going to do something we are going to attack it with an all out effort and determined resolve to be the best at it. This standard is applied to everything that we do. In the classroom, we want to be the best student we can be; and we will push to compete with ourselves and others to achieve the highest team GPA possible. Getting a B is great! It's awesome! But we aspire and work even harder to earn that A. We will celebrate the kid who gets straight A's. We will also celebrate the kid who brings all failing grades up to C's. Our mission academically is "Every player who plays for this program will graduate".

We will attack the weight room every day, with excitement, enthusiasm, and energy. We will hold ourselves to a higher standard and be a leader in the community, we will not claw and act out for attention, because we are stronger than the ordinary temptations. We will be people of high character. We will be dependable, reliable, and people who grow up and dominate their jobs. We will never be satisfied with being ordinary in anything; and because of that we will have the will to believe more and push harder for the things that we want and the things that are right. We will pay attention to every detail, we will dominate the little things, and do them right 100% of the time. We will all dress the same and be together as a team. We will talk together, we will eat together, and we will win together.

Our Standard of Excellence will not be sacrificed for anything. As a coach it is our job to set the vision and expectations of our program and to hold our students accountable to those expectations. Our expectation is

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"EXCELLENCE IN EVERYTHING"Building a Winning Culture

"Players Don't Care How Much You Know, Until They Know How Much You Care"

Things are different in our day and age. There is a lot to compete with. Have you played video games lately? They are EXCELLENT! It's no wonder that so many kids want to go home right after school where they can soak up air conditioning, eat whatever they want, and be whatever / whomever they want on a video game console. Playing football is hard; in order to compete we have to give our students something that they aren't getting through a game console or a cell phone.

WE MUST BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR ATHLETES

Some athletes have extraordinary home lives, great parents, who teach them right from wrong and give them plenty of attention and praise. However, there is a growing trend of students who have single parents who are stretched too thin; multiple family homes, parents who work all the time, some whose parents aren't involved, or live with an aunt/uncle/grandmother or someone else. I've had so many students who have had one or both parents pass on, that I cannot list it. There is a lot of pain out there.

In the past three years I have had an entire starting offensive line unit with no father figure at home. I've had a students father commit suicide in the middle of the season. Multiple students who have lost their homes, folks who have been unable to pay bills, a student whose parents were both arrested the night before a game, and a student athlete who's home burned down.

That student athlete still showed up to work; because we had built a culture in which he knew where his family was and he wanted to be with his football family and friends that badly.

As Head Coach it is my responsibility to establish that culture. The culture is established by greeting your players everyday, by letting them know that they are not just important but they are critical to the success of the team weather they are a 1st team all American or the 3rd string kicker. It is created by building their self esteem, letting them know what they do well and letting them know that you care enough to see them grow in all areas of life. It is established by showing them how it will help them for the future and by being a positive voice in their life when they think they can't accomplish something or when they do something wrong.

It comes from doing the little things. Knowing when their birthdays are, celebrating them, and acknowledging their existence. It comes from getting to know who is in their family, who is at home; who their parents are, who their siblings. What they like to do when they go home. By inviting them out in the community and doing things together as a football family.

Being a Head Football Coach goes well beyond playing football, we must raise these kids to be responsible adults. You can only do that by developing significant relationships. Once you establish a relationship with every player in the program kids will be bought into your culture; and it will run itself like a well oiled machine.

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Having a Vision and Building a Brand

In order to change the culture of a school that may need a culture change it is important to build your own brand. At Matanzas High School, a perennial 3-7 school since it's inception, we worked extremely hard to successfully change a losing culture and it started with building a brand.

The name Matanzas stunk. Anyone that saw that name knew that it was the name of the school who had a losing record every season. One of the first things our Head Coach Robert Ripley did was change the program identity from Matanzas football, to "Pirate Football!" He would refuse to say the name of the school and constantly tell the kids, you aren't apart of that old culture, that losing culture, MATANZAS football is dead, you are PIRATE FOOTBALL. You can now make your own legacy. Pirate Football has never lost a game.

Despite knowing that we would have a rough first year, he kept the Seniors bought in by telling them; "This is the group that changes the whole deal. This is the group that changes the culture. This is the group that when you come back years from now and we are winning district, regional champions, you can look back and say we started that; we are the reason that this program is successful; because we bought in when everyone said that we couldn't do anything."

That first year we went 3-7. The next year 8-2. The kids bought in, invested themselves, and it was all because of developing relationships and branding.

Along with changing the identity of the football program; Ripley had the vision to be excellent in everything. That meant having the best and being the best. Ripley knew that the kids would buy in more if they had a coach who was willing to make the program look like a first rate program. For 5 years they had some 3rd rate uniforms from a company you never heard. He went out and fundraised and got all new 3 sets of College Level Adidas Jerseys and undershirts. The kids showed up to practice wearing highlighter orange/green anything that wasn't a team color. Ripley fundraised and got the kids all new team apparel. The locker room was plain, he brought in a consultant to put wall wraps; locker tags/stickers/name plates on everyones locker. The stadium was bare; he brought in a consultant to wrap the whole stadium in "PIRATE NATION" and put up flags on the press box. He got the kids hats, sweaters, gloves that he gave out for attendance and fundraising. Senior banners went up around the stadium, photography crews took and distributed pictures, he did everything that he could to make the players feel that their coach cared about them, their program, and it's image.

After an 8-2 season the work was not done. Brand new field equipment (sleds/chutes) and a redesigned weight room. The kids literally go from the outhouse to the penthouse in terms of their football programs image. Do you think they are willing to sacrifice more for him, their coaches, and their program?

At our program we will build a brand and a culture of winning. We will be excellent in everything we do from the way we look, to the way we dress, to the way we practice, to the way we play.

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Developing A Plan of Action

Upon entering a program among the first tasks I will accomplish is to gather as much information about the football program as possible. I will interview and work closely with administrators, athletic director, current staff, players, and parents to find out what the program already does well, where it needs to improve, and where we are just completely inept.

I want to know the history of the program, records, alumni, old weight room numbers, how practice was structured, how meeting were conducted, traditions, was practice filmed, how was scouting done, everything that we can find out about the program good and bad. From there we will develop a positive/negative board to go in conjunction with our dream board. Every problem that we identify through our interviews with our staff we will research and have a measure in place to help alleviate that problem and evaluate the results of our measures at the end of the year.

If numbers in the program are an issue we would first find out why and then develop a plan to increase our numbers and assign a goal to that problem. If team academic performance was poor, we would research a plan that has worked elsewhere and implement that plan; monitoring and tracking results. We will repeat this process every year. We will be excellent in everything!

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Winning With PeopleThe Head Football coach cannot do everything himself, he needs a quality support staff around him in order for the program and school to be as successful as possible. As soon as I get on staff I will work relentlessly to bring about the best football and support staff that we can put together. I have had the opportunity to work with staffs from Central Florida, North Florida, and the Atlantic Coast. The staff that I put together will be strong dedicated professionals who first and foremost care about the success of our kids. I cannot have someone who is selfish or who is only a quarter of the way in or a game night coach on my staff. The staff I put together will be excellent communicators, excellent teachers, and will understand how to teach the game. I am always open to retain quality people, recruit coaches from within the school, and will place coaches in the position that best helps the program.

I am also dedicated to assembling a fantastic support staff that can be made up teachers, students, parents, volunteers, and anyone who wants to help make our football program great. I will emphasize how we need everyone; how everyone has different skills that they can offer, and no matter how minimal they feel their contribution is it serves a huge role. These people include filming, sideline video, photography, media, equipment, stats, website, recruiting, boosters, concessions, and anyone who can help make our program great.

Getting Players to Buy InIt doesn’t really matter what your plan of action is, but the most critical aspect of success is getting your athletes to buy in. They must believe it’s going to work in order for them to be willing to sacrifice for it. We will constantly reinforce how and why the things we do have benefits for them. We will show them we care about our programs image and the things they like. We will love them like our own. The following strategies are things that we do that help our players buy into our program. The majority are intrinsic motivational drills but more importantly are things that YOU HAVE TO DO if you want your young people to grow up to be well rounded adults. With so many broken families and broken homes kids want to know that you care about them as people and see them as a person rather than a number on a jersey.

Spotlight

Spotlight is an intrinsic motivational drill that we often do at the end of the practice before wrapping up for the day. We spotlight a different player every day. The player will stand up and we cannot leave until that person is told 5 things that the players love about that player. Some of our players never get 5 things told about them over the course of a year by people. But everyday we will ensure that a kid goes home feeling great about himself, knowing that his team-mates and coaches care and appreciate him. And that player will want to be apart of what we do even more and will sacrifice more for the team.

Love, Honor, Respect

After the games we encourage our parents and our fans to come down on to the field to join us in our post game huddle. After the coaches address the team we will have nominees for love, honor, and respect. This is the opportunity for any coach or player

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to recognize the efforts of others on the team. This could be a player that had a phenomenal game, a player who provided support, or to a whole unit, or to our fans.

Weight Room Progress

We keep records of our players progress in the weight room from put them on a bar graph so players can physically see their progress. When we retest we update the graph. The visual representation lets the players “see” how much they have improved and builds positive reinforcement for hard work.

Character Recognition

We routinely recognize the good actions of our team members. Anytime we get a positive e-mail from a teacher or somebody tell us something positive about one of our students we try to bring it up post practice. Character is such a big deal that it is one of our Weekly awards and has almost nothing to do with the game itself. It's about recognizing someone who is doing right in the classroom and community.

Senior Letters

On Senior Week we will have our seniors write a letter telling what it has been like playing football for four years; how important the team and the game is to them. How much they are going to miss it, and advice to a future player. Once the player graduates and a new player moves up to take his jersey, he will receive the letter. We want to create a running history and to emphasize to young players how important it is and how grateful they should be to be able to put on the jersey.

Mock Signing Day

Upon completing their Freshman season one thing we like to do is to do a mock signing day with our Freshman athletes. We collect hats, print mock offers, and during the banquet we have each Freshman student come to the table and "commit" to the college team of their choosing. We want everyone to the experience that the majority of athletes will never be able to experience, it also gives Freshman the opportunity to realize that in 3 more years that this goal could be realized.

Daily Gratitude

One thing we will do in the first year is "Daily Gratitude." Before a player is allowed to address the team they must tell the team something they are thankful for. We want it to become second nature for our players to be able to give thanks for the things they have and the people who care about them.

3 Lift and Leadership Board

All of our kids names will go on our 3 lift board for Bench, Squat, and Clean. Upon entering our program all of those names will be listed in black. After two weeks of practice we will take nominations from the team for a couple of players who deserve to move up a level (into green) and down a level (into red) or stay where they are. Players who move up are players who show up every single day, are always early, who are always positive, always looking for work, and go above and beyond what is expected of them as a teammate. Kids in black are the kids who always show up and do what is expected. A kid who falls to red is someone who is failing to show up, or

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needs extra attention, motivation and someone we will focus more on to keep them bought in.

Weekly Goal Sheets

On Mondays after practice students will be provided weekly goal sheets. These goal sheets will have goals listed for

PRACTICE GOAL "I will help the team win this week by..."

ACADEMIC GOAL "In order to be outstanding academically this week I must..."

FAMILY GOAL "I will help my family this week by..."

GRATTITUDE GOAL "I will show appreciation for ______ by doing ________ for this person.

ATHLETIC GOAL "I will improve my athleticism by _______.

GAME GOAL "I will help my team win on Friday by _______.

Our players are partnered up with a team-mate to help hold each other accountable to their goals. Players are responsible for their own goal sheets, are presented the following Monday and checked off by positional coaches.

Victory Monday

After Victories we have some form of extrinsic reward for the kids on Mondays. Sometimes this is pizza, freezer pops, burgers, etc. Obviously this is a budget permitting type deal but it is something that we find important.

Player of Week Awards

We do previous games player of the week awards on Thursday before the next game as a bit of confidence boost and reminder. We do awards for O player, D player, Money Down, Hammer, Nail, Unsung Hero, and Character. These players we award with a McDonald cheeseburger.

Offseason Olympics

In the time between seasons end and the start of spring football we do offseason Olympics. We elected a few captains, 8 or so to draft teams. We have a scoring system in which teams get or lose points for attendance, playing another sport, adding a new player, new pr on lifts, positive email, grades, fundraising, and anything that we see fit. The winners each week are rewarded with an extrinsic reward and recognition. The losers are responsible for clean up for the next week. The overall loser gets field clean up for all of spring practice.

Burning of the Shoe

Thursday before Senior Night we do the burning of the shoes, where we will gather some old cleats and have a bit of a bon fire. The shoe represent the seniors who have given four years of service to the program and how their time with the program while coming to an end will be a legacy that is forever with them and with our program. The Seniors get time to give a speech and tell the team how much the playing experience has meant for them, advice for the future, and is culminated with taking a final lap around the gamefield.

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Increasing Numbers

The key to any program’s success is recruiting athletes. Building our brand and being ambassadors for our program should help immediately. Our efforts must be diligent in nature to let all neighborhood young men know that we want them attending our high school. Our neighborhoods must become UNTOUCHABLE to all prospective athletes. We have to make them want to be here. Our recruiting program is three-fold: immediate recruiting, short term recruiting, and long term recruiting. The following is our breakdown to help us build a consistent and solid foundation.

Immediate Recruiting (returning players and on campus students)1. Individual interviews2. Strength & Conditioning program3. Team meetings4. Athletes in other sports (basketball/track/baseball/golf)5. Football players as recruiters (peer pressure/program promotion)6. Correspondence.

Short-term Recruiting (Junior High/Middle school Athletes)1. Local 8th grade program and correspondence2. Non-school feeder programs (TYFL/YMCA/youth leagues)3. Flag football program4. Future Football Camp5. Halftime recognition6. “Ball Boy for a game”, ‘Recruits of the Week’ Varsity sidelines, etc.7. Attendance at football practices/games8. Attendance at basketball, baseball, track games and practices9. Correspondence: recruit letters, ‘attaboys’, etc10. Team apparel11. Game passes12. Newsletters13. Team website (player/team recognition)14. Coaching/parental contacts; school PE teachers

Long-term recruiting (Grade school students)1. Futures Football Camp2. YMCA/Youth league flag football3. basketball, wrestling club, etc4. Attendance at events5. Correspondence6. Game passes7. Coaching/parental contacts

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First Team Meeting

At the first team meeting I would have the following agenda:

Introduce myself, tell the students about my background.

Share my excitement for being named head coach.

Tell the students about the plan and expectations for the program.

“Excellence in Everything” – “All in Culture”

Attitude – Academics – Social – Weight Room – Practice - Football

Inform the students of the workout schedule and the spring schedule.

Hand out the parent/player welcome letter (See Next Page).

Hand out player information cards to be filled out.

Inform the players what is expected of them going forward.

Read of the new Player Code of Conduct policy.

Set up individual meetings with players to get to know them better.

Have each student introduce himself before he leaves.

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The Following letter would be sent home following the first meeting.

Dear Players and Parents,

My name is Jason Compton, I have just been chosen as the new head football coach at Gulf High School. I am very excited to get to work in building a championship program and being a part of this wonderful community. Allow me to share with you what will become the cornerstones of our program.

1. We’ll do everything, from the way we dress, the way we act, our grades, the way we practice, the way we stretch, the way our locker room looks, the way we coach, everything the right way. We will live the motto “Excellence in Everything.”

2. We’ll be disciplined and respectful of the game and the attention to detail that it takes to win.

3. We’ll treat our players like men and hold them accountable. 4. Everyone involved in the program will be held to high expectations including our

parents, we will not stand for any negativity and everything we do will be positive. 5. We will be ridiculously fundamentally sound. 6. We will be consistent in what we do from the bottom up. 7. We will coach our coach’s and we will be one big coaching family. 8. We will be overly prepared as coaches and players for games. 9. We will represent ourselves, our community and school the right way. 10. And most importantly, our off season work will be purposeful, intense, and create

tremendous athletes. It will drive the program.

After school workouts will begin soon. We will workout for several hours Monday-Friday. Spring football will begin in May. Prior to April 28th I need the following for your son to be eligible to participate in spring football.

A completed and current physical form. If you had this turned in prior to last football season you should be ok.

A signed parent consent form. We also ask that parents let us know of any other special medical issues such as

allergies, asthma, or sickle cell. Keep in mind that all students need a 2.0 GPA to be eligible.

We will have more information closer to spring football beginning, and will hold a parent meeting and meet and greet in the near future. I look forward to working with the players and I look forward to meeting our parents. I can promise that I will devote every ounce of my heart and soul into the success of this program. I simply cannot wait to get started and I so proud and grateful to serve as your new head football coach.

Coach Jason Compton

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FOOTBALL PARENT INFORMATION MEETINGDear Parents,

As the new head football coach of Gulf High School, I cannot express enough how thrilled I am to have your child apart of our football family. I want to have an informational meeting for all prospective parents of student- athletes that will be playing football for the Buc’s next fall. At the meeting we will introduce the coaching staff, share our expectations, schedules, and crucial information heading into the season. A sample of frequently asked questions:

How often do they get water?

What are practices like?

What is the summer program like?

What about his grades during football season?

What times are practices?

Who are these coaches anyway?

What is the discipline like?

What is the protocol if my child is injured?

I am worried about concussions?

How can I help my child get recruited?

These are just some of the questions that you may have and we will do our best to tackle them! Come meet the coaches and ask your questions.

WHEN?

WHERE?

HOW LONG WILL IT BE? 30 minute presentation and Open forum Q/A presentation

Please let me know if you have any questions!

- Jason Compton, Head Football Coach

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The Following would be included with the letter

GULF BUCCANEER FOOTBALL PLAYERS/PARENTS F.A.Q.

What is the coaching staff’s philosophy regarding the hydration of players?

The most important time of the year for us to properly maintain guidance of hydrating our players is during practice in the summer and August. Traditionally, this is the hottest time of the year for us. Water will always be available to players during practice at drill stations. During the regular season, players are given water breaks every 20-30 minutes. We try our hardest not to go for more than 30 minutes without a water break ever.

What about his grades during the football season? Year round?

Each player needs to have a minimum 2.0 GPA in season and year round to be eligible. Our Coaching Staff will stay on top of the grades of our players. Our team will have a program goal of 3.0 for the football program.

What is the discipline structure?

We are very structured with our discipline. Every athlete is treated the same; it doesn’t matter if you are scoring touchdowns or not even a starter. You must be consistent when working with teenagers and more importantly, in this sport of football! Our players are expected to exhibit exemplary behavior and be leaders in the classroom, on and off the football field. Players are expected to show up everyday, on time, prepared to dominate their job. If a player cannot attend he must contact a coach the day before he misses, we will teach them responsibility. Unexcused absences, poor behavior, and being late will result in disciplinary actions.

What are the expectations of the parents?

Parents are critical to our success there are lot of support roles that go a long way to help the overall success of our program. Volunteering for concession stand, pre-game meal, chains, media etc go a long way for our overall success. General guidelines include 1. Support your child in his pursuit of being a student-athlete. 2. Support the coaching staff in their day to day operations of the football program. 3. Pick up your child from practice on time. 4. Follow up with proper medical attention (see trainer first) if your child gets injured. 5. Help reinforce positive habits and attitudes at home (we ask that you do not bad mouth playcalling, coaching, other players etc in front of your child. This leads to negativity creeping into a child’s thoughts and hinders our ability to stay together as a team. We are a family!

What about injuries?

One of the biggest myths about football is that every boy will be hurt. Because we will have injuries in our football program, we have a certified Athletic Trainer here on campus part time. He is the first one to see our athletes that become injured if he is here. He is usually here during the school year when we practice. He also travels to our games to serve our students. Several coaches are CPR/First Aid certified. Both the Head Coaches and Athletic Trainer work hands on daily to communicate about injuries. They are documented and track for the best possible care we can give our players.

Do you make cuts?

No. If you are here in August for Training Camp, you will make the team. The only time a kid gets “cut” is if he is an inactive participant (is willingly not participating in team functions) or does not meet the expectations of our team rules; at which point the team leadership council will help decide if they want the player to continue to be a part of the program. We are diligent to do everything we can to keep everyone, because everybody is critical to the success of our program.

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What about family vacations?

We encourage family vacations during the summer, but obviously want your child here to get his team better. Your child will not be disciplined for if he misses parts of our Summer Program. Some examples of when we excuse players from our summer program - family vacation, a mission trip, participating in another football camp. We ask that all family vacations be notified to a coach prior to a vacation and to complete vacations before our Training Camp begins. It is important for your child to be here to continue to improve and to bond with team-mates.

What do they need to be cleared to play?

Every athlete needs a physical, Parent Consent Survey, and to let us know of any special medical conditions such as asthma, sickle cell, or any allergies. There are forms that the Athletic Office needs on file for every athlete.

What are the off season expectations? Playing other sports?

Our coaches encourage our players to participate in other sports at our school (club/year round travel teams are discouraged unless special circumstances). Many of our kids do play basketball, baseball, golf, track, etc. Our off season weightlifting program begins the first week of February. If a player is not participating in another sport, they are required to be in the off season program with his teammates.

How can I be involved as a parent?

The best way to get involved is through the Booster Club. We are always looking for parents to help out with gameday operations such as pregame meal, concessions, and ticket takers. We have a variety of other support roles and we value anyone who can bring any area of expertise to our program.

What about practice attendance ?

We are very strict about practice attendance once we get to Training Camp and the regular school year. 1 unexcused practice will result in you missing a game. Two unexcused absences will result in missing two games. A third unexcused absence may result in removal from the team. An “excused” absence is during Training Camp is: family emergency or a doctor’s note to miss practice. There may be other instances that need to be cleared with Coach Fore. During the school year, an “excused” absence is: absent from school, family emergency, or a doctor’s note to miss practice

What about college recruiting?

I understand that part of my job as the Head Coach is to assist our players in getting to that next level of play if: 1. They desire to play college football. 2. They have the grades to play college football. 3. Their parents want them to play college football. 4. Our coaching staff believes that they have the ability to play college football.

What kind of workout program do you use? Do you recommend any kind of supplements for my child?

We workout diligently and our training is influenced by Westside Barbell. There is absolutely no need to workout on your own or to hire a personal trainer. We highly discourage any sort of workouts on your own without the consultation of our coaches, because often players when they work the same muscle groups daily do more harm than good. Rest is necessary to let the body recover. It is expected that your child will be with US his TEAM in order to get our TEAM better. Our coaching staff does NOT recommend any kind of supplement for your child.

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FOOTBALL PLAYER INFORMATION SHEET

Name: Cell: Email:

Grade: Age: Date of Birth:

Twitter: Facebook: Instagram:

Parent Name: Cell Number:

Parent Name: Cell Number:

Parent's Email: Parent E-mail:

Locker #: Locker Combo:

Spring/Summer Spirit Pack:

Shirt size: Short size:

Positions you played last year:

Football Goal: Weightroom Goal:

Academic Goal: Social/Family Goal:

I can best help the team by:

What do you like most about football, weightlifting, and workouts?

What do you like least about football, weightlifting, and workouts

I need to improve at:

I am most worried about _____________ for this upcoming football season.

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Player Questionnaire

1. Who do you live with at home? Please list names and ages of those you know.

2. Do you stay in more than one place?

3. What does your parent(s) or guardian(s) do for a living? What hours do they normally work?

4. What is the most important lesson you have learned from your parent or guardian?

5. What football teams have you played on before? How did those teams do?

6. What is your favorite part of football practice and why?

7. Write a paragraph about yourself to introduce yourself to others (who you are, what you are all about, what is important to you).

8. What are the toughest problems you face at home?

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First 30 Day Checklist Contact coaching staff Meet with players (As a team and individually) Have players fill out information form Check grades and eligibility Equipment inventory Inspect facilities, recommend improvements or repairs. Meet with Athletic Director Meet with faculty Meet with principal Meet with community and businesses promote our program Make Spring Calendar Make Summer Calendar Organize coaches office Schedule Spring game and any open dates in the Fall. Create Master Calendar (May-Dec) Make the Budget Create fundraising plan Establish Discipline plan Offensive/Defensive/Special Teams package for spring Review FHSAA rules/regulations Establish Player Committee Order Business Cards, hand out to parents with my contact info Make Promotion schedule Meet with custodial staff Lines on field Booster Club Meeting w/ parents Program for season Setup team HUDL account Website development Put out ad to hire new assistant coaches (If needed) Schedule 1st staff meeting. Create Twitter/Facebook for team promotion. Create theme for year Send out emails to college coaches with our athlete list. Plan Football camp for kids Order Coaches apparel Make Directory of league coaches Start character program and study hall Begin off-season workout immediately

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Incoming 9th Grade Letter

I want to take this opportunity to WELCOME YOU to Gulf High! You are about to embark on a great four years! Some say that your high school years are the best years of your life and here you are, getting ready to begin!

I don’t know if you have any experience playing football but if you have any level of interest we would love to have you come on out and give it a try! I am sending a letter to every freshman to invite all of you to play football next year for the GULF BUCCANEERS. Our football program will only get stronger and stronger with each one of you that decide to play. Every freshman class is different! What will your freshman class be like? What can your legacy be after four years?

We want you to be a part of this amazing opportunity. Our football program prides itself on being a family! We desire to be excellent in everything; from the way we look, to the way we play, to the way we treat each other. Whether you have 7 years playing experience in Pop Warner Football or no experience ever playing, we want you to apart of our TEAM!

Please stop by my office or send me an email if you have any questions! I really look forward to hearing from each one of you.

If you plan on playing football for us next year, we would like to see you out this summer preparing for the upcoming season!

Best of luck finishing your eighth grade year and graduating from Junior High School!

Coach Compton

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AdministrationAs Head Football coach my biggest obligation is to foster a safe environment

that promotes growth and well being in our student athletes and to protect the integrity of our football program, our students, our community, and our school. The last thing that any of us want is to have an incident bring shame to our school. As a head coach you must be prepared and have a plan to deal with disciplinary issues, liability, and safety. You must be able to manage a budget, deal with player eligibility, make sure students are physically cleared to play, and be able to communicate with players, parents, and administrators.

As a coach I have seen numerous incidents play out at some schools I have been at and in the news. We must be prepared to deal with issues that are potentially season and program killing or that risk an athletes safety. In Florida alone over the past 5 years we have seen schools go through the following situations; student struck by lightning waiting for a game to come back from rain delay, "hazing" in the locker room resulting in charges being filed on a player, rape charges on 5 football players in one program, multiple students arrested for felonies, a football player shot during a fight off campus, on field fight resulting in multiple players suspended and being suspended from post season play, and playing an ineligible player who met the age of 19.5. These are just a small list of things that are a head coaches and an athletic director’s worst nightmare.

While some of these things may not have been able to be prevented when we hear of cases such as these we will make a plan in order to make sure that our players, coaches, and support personnel understand why these issues are important and how we can prevent them from happening. We will discuss these issues and practice any situation that we can in order to give students the tools to avoid these situations. We must coach character daily! We will hold players accountable to a standard of excellence. They are representatives of our football program and if their character does not match the expectations of our program they will not be apart of our team.

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Limiting LiabilityLightning Policy

One of the biggest threats of liability for a sports team is lightning. At Wekiva High School a few years ago a student was struck by lightning while waiting by a fence for a football game to resume. We will be mindful of state policy in terms of inclement weather and specifically lightning. The best course of action is of course to have a Lightning Guardian alarm in order to be safe as possible. Having a certified trainer or a administrator in charge of monitoring lightning is also recommended to keep coaches bias from getting involved. As coaches we will do our best to monitor thunder / lightning and provide alternatives in these situations arise.

Social Media Policy

Student athletes will be required to follow or friend our coaches page on Facebook or Twitter if they have a social media account, if they lie to us and tell us they do not have a social media account that player will be subject to our team discipline policy. Our players are representatives of the football program. If a player gets arrested or is bullying via social media the paper will not say a "Gulf High School student" it will say "a Gulf High Football player arrested." As coaches it is our primary job to protect the integrity and image of the program and protect the safety of our students. We will monitor their social media interactions and ensure they are presenting themselves in a good light. Twitter in particular is used by college recruiters and can negatively affect a players ability to play at the next level. Social media bullying is also one of the leading causes of teenage suicide, we will ensure that our players engage in none of those behaviors and conduct themselves in a self respectable manner.

Dehydration / Heat Policy

Exertional Heat Stroke is the leading cause of preventable death in high school athletes. In Florida our risk is greater. A wet bulb globe of 92, equivalent to a heat index of about 105 practice should be cancelled. Anytime the Heat index is creeping into the 100 degree range we should consider modifying practice or have alternative placements for practice. Restricting Access to Water is forbidden. We will always allow our student athletes access to water. We constantly remind our students to drink water throughout the day and encourage them to carry a gallon of water with them. We have worked with schools and teachers to allow athletes to drink water during class time.

Physical, Injury and Concussion Policy

Students are required to clear a physical and go through concussion testing before being cleared for football practice. In addition players are required to go through a state mandated number of non contact practices in just helmets and jersey and in shells in order to acclimate to heat.

A student will not be allowed to participate in practice without a physical or concussion testing. The head athletic trainer will be in charge of concussion protocol's.

Should a player get hurt or injured he should report the problem to a coach or the athletic trainer first. Going to the pediatrician, doctor, or ER for an ankle sprain can

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result in the player needing doctor clearance to get back on the playing field which can take weeks or months.

Always see the athletic trainer and allow him to evaluate and recommend the next step.

All coaches will be trained in identifying concussions. In the event that a concussion is suspected, the trainer will monitor and evaluate the athletes readiness to return to play via the concussion protocol. We will never risk an athletes long term health for football. As soon as symptoms are observed or an athlete takes a shot to the head he will be evaluated before returning to play.

MRSA Policy

MRSA Infections are a growing problem in locker rooms and weight rooms. We will always keep sanitizing spray in our locker rooms and weightrooms and will encourage our students to use them daily. We encourage students to take home their cloth and wash it as often as possible and will sweep the locker room before the weekend or anytime after a rain soaked practice to ensure that student's take their cloth home and wash it. Students will be assigned to clean and sweep out the locker room daily. We will take pride in our environment and we will take care of our equipment. We must prevent cleanliness issues.

Hazing and Other Situational

Any form of hazing / bullying will not be tolerated. This includes name calling, exclusion, actions to be accepted, harass, and humiliate. We will coach our players relentlessly on treating others with respect and not violating a player privacy, personal space, or dignity. Any violation of the hazing and bullying policy can result in immediate dismissal from the team and will reported to appropriate authorities.

In addition we will discuss and practice other situation events that can "kill a program" this includes things such as: Fight between two players on the field/sideline, stealing or policy if someone steals from you, handling disrespect, handling injustice, off the field conduct (alcohol/drug policy/drinking driving/fighting/taking advantage of people; especially women)

All of those situations and more can bring great shame and destroy peoples lives, and destroy a football program. Our players will firmly understand their responsibilities. We will father these children and guide them. We cannot assume they know better. We will hold them accountable.

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Team RulesTeam First

Every decision and reaction you make think about how it will affect the team. Always put your team first, don't be selfish.

Respect Everyone (Especially Women)

Display respect to everyone that you meet. You don't always have to be right, have the last word, or let your opinion be known. Treat women as if they are someone's mother, daughter, or sister; because they are.

Be On Time to Everything, Everyday

Be committed to what you do. Show up on time to everything, everyday prepared to compete. Treat school and football as if it were your job. No calls, no shows in real life are a ticket out the door.

Be Prepared

Come to work with the tools you need to be successful. Most importantly come mentally prepared with a positive attitude. Don't forget your equipment.

Control Your Surroundings

Do not hang around people who don't have your best interests in mind. Those you surround yourself with are the reputation you will gain, good or bad. Don't put yourself in poor situations.

Make Good Choices

Every decision you make has a long term impact. Make sure the decisions you are making are decisions that you can live with years from now. W.I.N.

Dominate Your Job

Always have your job in mind. If you are a student, an athlete, and a son. Dominate your job and be excellent at all three. If your job is to hit a new clean max, dominate the weight. If your job is to spill a pulling guard, dominate with technique. Know your job and execute it! All the time!

Accept Responsibility

No excuses. Be prepared to accept responsibility for your actions and never place the blame on somebody or something else. You can control your thoughts, words, actions, and habits. Don't let someone or something take control from you!

Have a Positive Impact on Somebody Else Everyday Be gracious! Be a positive impact on somebody else. Help someone out, go out of your way to help others. Pay it forward!

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Team Leadership CouncilWe will establish a Team Leadership Council. This Leadership council will be

based off nominations from the team on our Big 3 Board and will be co-signed by the coaching staff. Our council will have input on team rules, discipline, apparel design, and other decisions regarding the team. These student athletes will be made up of players who show up every day and routinely go above and beyond to make the team better.

When our student athletes are given a voice they quite often go above and beyond the expectations that the coaches would put forth. Allowing the students a spot at the table when it comes to rules and discipline makes those rules much easier to enforce; as they were made by their peers and the coaches together.

Team DisciplineHolding the team accountable is an area in which many struggling programs fail at. It is a difficult area because there are so many moving parts, but it is one of the most crucial in running a successful program. The kids must be committed and held accountable or they will do whatever they want. Humans are inherently lazy and it takes strict standards in order to push them to get somewhere extraordinary.

Workouts/Practice

• Excused – Coaches discretion. May need make up conditioning

(Excused by Coach Compton; player/parent contact reported a day before directly to a coach. Telling a coach the day after is NOT excused. Typically only excused practices are sick, death in family; participation in an on campus sport; coach approved camp/combine/recruiting trip. Doctor visits/dentist, family vacations, watching siblings etc would need parental contact preferably before hand to arrange. If a student has a job it is expected that he work his job around football schedule. Any excessive absences will be dealt with by the leadership council)

• Unexcused Missed Workout – 15 sets of stadium steps.

• ISS/OSS/Detention – Will be punished twice. Once for a referral, once for everyday late or miss. Can result in suspension or removal from team depending on nature or frequency of offense.

• Late to Workout/Meeting – 2 sets of rolls, can increase for repeat offenses or how late.

• Game Week, No Call/No Show - No Dress/No Travel

• 3 Unexcused Absence-Removed from Football Team.

Out of school suspension: Coaches discretion, possible removal from team.

Study Hall•Late to Study Hall – 10 up/downs per minute late

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Considered Absent after 15 minutes

Conduct•Conduct in class – Coaches Discretion

•Bad Language – Roll 1 length of the field.

•Unclean Locker – 2 sets of grass drills or rolls.

T⃰Habitual Offenders- Optional to double and triple disciplines

T⃰All Discipline must be completed before allowed to play in a game

On/Off Campus BehaviorOur players are expected to be excellent examples and role models in the school and the community; they represent our program, their families, and themselves. The following behaviors are not the behaviors that represent our program and they are behaviors that will not be tolerated. All are discretionary offenses but can result in suspension/expulsion from team.

Disrespecting school staff. Skipping class Cheating. Inappropriate actions with female students or staff Drug/Alcohol use. Hazing/Bullying. Arrests Repeated Suspected Criminal Activity

Engaging in these behaviors will result in immediate suspensions and possibly being removed from the football team permanently.

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Coaches Code of Conduct

Winning is a consideration, but not the only one, nor the most important one. Care more about the student athlete than winning the game. Remember that players are in

sports for fun and enjoyment.

Be a positive role model to your players, display emotional maturity and be alert to the physical safety of players. Do not use foul language! Model the behavior you wish

your players to engage in. If they see you do it, they will think it's okay for them as well.

Be generous with your praise when it is deserved; be consistent, honest; be fair and just; do not criticize players publicly; learn to be a more effective communicator and

coach, don’t yell at players.

Adjust to the personal needs and problems of player, be a good listener, never verbally or physically abuse a player or official; give all players the opportunity to

improve their skills, gain confidence and develop self-esteem; teach them the basics.

Organize practices that are fun and challenging for your player. Familiarize yourself with the rules, techniques and strategies of your sport; encourage all your players to

be team players.

Maintain an open line of communication with your players’ parents. Explain goals and objectives of your organization.

Be concerned with the overall development of your players. Stress good health habits and clean living.

To play the game is great; to love the game is greater.

We will coach the game with the principles of sportsmanship in mind.

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Parents Code of Conduct

Do not force your children to participate in sports, but support their desires to play their chosen sport. Children are involved in organized sports for their enjoyment.

Make it fun.

Encourage your child to play by the rules. Remember, children learn best by example, so applaud the good plays on both teams. Do not embarrass your child by

yelling at players, coaches or officials. By showing a positive attitude towards the game and all of its participants, your child will benefit. Emphasize skill development

and practices and how they are beneficial.

Know and study the rules of the game, and support the officials. This approach will help in the development and support of the game. Any criticism of the officials only

hurts the game.

Applaud a good effort in victory and defeat and enforce the positive points of the game.

Recognize the importance of volunteer coaches. They are important to the development of your child and the sport. Communicate with them and support them.

If you enjoy the game, learn all you can about the game, and volunteer.

Practice good sportsmanship with the players and the coaches from opposing teams.

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Players Code of Conduct

Play for fun!

Work hard to improve your skills.

Be a team player – get along with your teammates. Learn teamwork, sportsmanship and discipline.

Be on time for practices and games.

Learn the rules and play by them. Always be a good sport.

Respect your coaches, your teammates, your parents, opponents and officials.

Never argue with the official’s decision.

Practice good sportsmanship with the players and coaches from opposing teams.

Never let your emotions get the best of you. Conduct yourself in a manner that other people will respect you and the program. Do not use foul language, subject matters, or negligible conduct. Do engage in demonstrative actions on the sideline, arguing,

pushing, slamming the helmet, etc.

Always be mindful of your thoughts. Thoughts lead to words, words lead to action, actions become habits, habits become your legacy. Make sure that your thoughts are

always positive!

Be mindful of body language. Be confident not cocky in your approach. Do not use negative language; turn everything into a positive (ex: Don’t say “James can’t block”

say “James I need you to give everything you got to get him out of the way”)

Do right rule is always in effect!

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Academic PlanAcademic success is one of the biggest things we emphasize in our football programs. We must do everything we can to ensure that our kids have the best opportunity to maximize their potential in life by making sure they graduate. Not every athlete is built the same, and not every student is built the same. Some get passed through the system, some have learning disabilities, and some need the support in order to be successful academically. Our Coaches will celebrate the kid who has a 4.5 weighted GPA, but we will also celebrate the kid who was a perennial F student who brings his grades up to a passing level. Our goal is to make sure they stay on track and graduate.

Daily Contact

In my opinion this is a thing that has to happen in order to run a program successfully. Coaches need to have daily contact with their team members to ensure that they are doing the right things on campus daily. Having a "football class" is more about having the opportunity to see and address our student athletes daily, to monitor their grades effectively, and provide them additional support where need.

Weekly Study Hall

On Wednesdays we have done team study hall for schools who have early release on Wednesday. We do grade checks on Monday to ensure if there are any issues the kids can get with teachers and get them resolved at study hall. After our first 9 weeks students who do not have D's or F's and are doing the right things will be released from study hall.

Goal Sheets / Positive Reinforcement

We will celebrate the student who gets a 4.0 and we will celebrate the kid who busts his tail to receive a passing grade. Part of our academic plan includes weekly goal sheets which includes an academic goal. The student will write their goals for the week, and a team-mate will be partnered up to check in to make sure they achieve their goal. The goals are student made and gives them ownership / responsibility for their own success. Peer's check in to make sure they are able to achieve their goal or help to get it done. Position coaches check off goal sheets on Monday's; students write new ones before they leave for home on Monday.

Weekly Skyward Checks

We typically do this on a Monday; sometimes we will do it twice a week on Monday and Thursday. We are typically concerned with one Skyward number, which is missing assignments. We will not tolerate missing assignments in class. It is the single biggest factor in determining academic success. Poor test/quiz grades we can get help for; but not attempting the work is unacceptable and our athletes will be held accountable for it.

Classroom Issues

Our student athletes are expected to be leaders in the classroom, on the field, and off the field. Our players are expected to sit up front, be yes sir/no sir, yes sir/no maam

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and do everything they can to help the teacher. Classroom issues will not be tolerated. Any negative e-mail, contact from teacher, or a referral about a football player causing issues in a class will be handled promptly by the head football coach; and any subsequent issues will result in disciplinary action up to and including suspension from games / practice or removal from the team.

Academic / Recruiting Coach

Some schools that have been very successful at retaining athletes and getting athletes to the next level have utilized a coaching supplement to have an academic / recruiting coordinator. This person can be a guidance counselor / teacher / coach who would be responsible for skyward checks, teacher/parent contact, and helping promote student athletes to colleges. Having a guidance counselor trained in NCAA eligibility is also advisable, because some things such as certain credit recovery classes are not accepted by the NCAA and can result in a student athlete being ineligible for offers they may receive.

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BUCCANEER FOOTBALLWEEKLY GOAL SHEET

Written By: __________________ Held Accountable By:_________________

PRACTICE GOAL: "I will help the team win this week by

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

ACADEMIC GOAL "In order to be outstanding academically this week I

must________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

FAMILY GOAL "I will help my family this week by

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

GRATTITUDE GOAL "I will show appreciation to _______________ this person by

___________________ for _____________________________________________

ATHLETIC GOAL "I will improve my athleticism by

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

GAME GOAL "I will help my team win on Friday by

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

COACH SIGNATURE

x____________________________________

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RecruitingOne of our greatest responsibilities as coaches is to get our athletes to the next level. While the vast majority of our athletes will never play a down beyond high school football, it is our duty to ensure the kids who can; have every opportunity to reach the next level. Some coaches view getting to the next level as the athletes/parents responsibility. It is my view that getting athletes to the next level is the coaches responsibility; because you cannot rely on inexperienced high school students or inexperienced parents to manage and navigate the intricacies of recruiting.

It is our responsibility because a lot of the athletes who can go on to play college football may not have the means or support necessary to go to college and advance their education on their own. Many of the players I have coached may not have had that opportunity if a coach hadn't been in their corner working for them. If we can get a kid to a better stage in life by promoting him, then we will do everything that we can. 

It has been my privilege to work with some fantastic student athletes and the extremely hard working fantastic coaching staffs. As a result I have worked with over 20+ athletes who have received college scholarships to play at the next level and receive a college education. As a Head Football coach I will tiresly promote our players. If they have a desire to play at the next level we will do the best we can to find them somewhere to go

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Community Involvement

Our program will be a pillar of the community and our players will be expected to give back to their community. One of the first things I would do is to try to create partnerships with businesses, churches, and charities in the area. I would introduce myself to as many of these places, explain the mission of our program, and inform them that our football program would like to create a partnership to build community pride and to support our local businesses. I would offer a sticker, flag, or some piece of promotional item that these businesses could post that would let the community know that they support our high school and in turn I would encourage our players and our parents to support those local businesses. The most important part of this process is to get the foot in the door, leave a good impression with people who are invested in the community, and network for potential sponsorships, event opportunities, promotions, donations, and volunteer opportunities.

These relationships are not one sided; our players will be expected to give back to their community by volunteering to help wherever we can. Volunteering at a shelter, habitat for humanity, volunteering to help run a local event, visiting a hospital, wounded warrior, etc. Anywhere that we can help. We want the image of our football program to be that of one that goes above and beyond. A perfect example of this is the football program at Clemson University. Dabo Sweeney took his team out for a movie night; when the movie was over the football team walked all the aisles and picked up all the trash they could from other people who has left it on the floor. Without a doubt this made an impression on the community, these were players who were learning to go above and beyond to be a beacon for their community. 

Promoting Our Program

Foster relationships with community members and businesses by introducing ourselves and making the program visible in the community.

Give out promotion items (stickers/flags/helmets/jerseys) to community partners.

Assign coaches to attend pop warner / youth football games and athletic events. Foster relationships with young athletes

Youth camps for our feeder schools

T-shirts, hats, stickers, other promotional items to feeder schools. Player visits to read or assist at feeder schools (Reading Program).

Alumni Flag Football Game at Half-time

Fan / Teacher Of The Week, can be sponsored

Volunteer at local charities, Special Olympics, and other community events.

Meet and greet events, Fall Gala to meet and great community members

Fundraisers such as Golf Tournament, 5k , and other events

Encouraging players and parents to support businesses with our sticker/signs/etc

Be seen! Let players know to wear their gear; but understand the expectation that when they wear the gear they represent our program and when they wear their gear to go above and beyond to help members of our community.

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FundraisingSchools are facing ever more pressure financially and while football is typically the sport that brings in the most money, football is also the most expensive sports program to run, and the money brought in is also used to fund other athletic teams. Some districts are facing budget constrictions so tight that they are even having to fundraise to cover travel costs. In order for a football program to reach a level and a branding in which can improve team, school, and community culture and pride being able to raise money is without a doubt one of the most important aspects of a football program.

I have lots of experience putting on fundraisers as the executive director for the UCF Sports and Fitness program I've had to lead a team of 100 plus student to put on a successful golf tournament, 5k road race, and senior banquet. All three events were a monumental success and brought in $20,000+ for the UCF Sports and Fitness program.

Golf Tournament

A Spring Golf Tournament if promoted and run correctly can raise upwards of 15,000 dollars for a football program. Additional fundraising opportunities exist at these events such as raffle, silent auction, and purchasing mulligans.

Pancake Breakfast

Before our first spring scrimmage we have done a pancake breakfast where our players will serve pancakes to community members, we sell tickets for the breakfast, and can also offer combination deals for gate for spring scrimmage.

5k Road Race

We have done a 5k road race typically in early January. Important to advertise and get the message out there, takes a little more man power to get this done; but when done correctly can raise around 5,000 dollars.

Student Faculty Games

We have done numerous student faculty games including Basketball, Flag Football, and Dodgeball. At Tavares we were able to do basketball and flag football during the last hour of school and were able to offer students to buy a $3 ticket to attend.

Liftathon

Before the start of weightlifting season we do a lift-a-thon where students will go out and find sponsors for them lifting weight per pound.

Team Store

Some schools I have been at have been able to run a team store during lunch hours, we have gotten ESE department or volunteers to run it.

Hosting Events

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We've hosted movie night in the stadium, 7 on 7 tournaments, combines, district weightlifting tournaments. Anything where we can sell/split gate and sell concessions.

Bowling Night

Before the end of the school year we host a bowling night with faculty members, students, coaches, and parents. We typically don't make too much money off this event but its a nice culminating the school year activity; that ends the year with some funds coming in.

Fishing Tournament

Some schools in quality fishing communities have been able to raise 10,000+ dollars off a fishing tournament. Not a lot of schools or communities do this fundraiser and children, parents, and outside community members get excited about it.

Fall Community Rally

The weekend before our fall classic we have hosted a fall rally for football at a community center with some foot traffic. We sell hamburgers/hot dogs/bbq, sell t-shirts, promotional items, silent auction, raffle, and a couple carnival style games.

Youth Football Camp

Before football season we host an annual football camp for pop warner and middle school football players. At Clay this was hosted by NFL Player Cliff Avril. The registration fee is around $20, includes t-shirt and is a low cost to run event.

Dodge Ball Tournament

We do an annual dodgeball tournament before Winter Break in which the students pay a $30 team fee, the students create their own t-shirts/jerseys, and then we sell gate tickets and concessions. Another low cost event.

Advertising

We sell advertising in program, stadium signs, banners, golf tournament, 5k, sponsor a player of week, faculty member of week, fan of week.

Discount Cards

Everywhere I have been we have done some version of the discount call, usually once in the fall.

Bike Safety and Ride

After Christmas we have done a bike safety and bike ride event at local elementary schools. We typically have mascot come out, have fun carnival style games, sell food, and charge a small fee for attending.

Team Calendar

Typically our team photographer, a parent, or our team media coordinator will handle this. They will create a calendar of team images from our early games and the years events and put it together in a team calendar. We will do pre-sales, we try to have them ready by November for the Christmas season and then will sell some remaining at games.

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Ford Drive 4 UR School Event

At schools where this event is possible, it is a great fundraiser. Ford will come to your school or host at the dealership and pay money for everyone who test drives a vehicle up to $5,000 dollars. Students recruit parents, family members, community members etc to come test drive a Ford. At Clay we did this at the Ford Summer Carnival and were able to raise $5,000 dollars doing a very minimal amount of work and planning.

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Facility Planning / MaintenanceIn college I had the distinct pleasure to be in charge of a facility planning and funding project which included coming up with a mock plan to design a field house, new track, and field turf at Lyman High School. My team was responsible for drafting designs, finding costs, and working with officials to set a plan as if this facility were to really be built. We worked with contractors to determine the cost of the projects which would have totaled in the 2 million dollar range. We provided flooring, lighting, tile, and wrapping examples and also came up with a plan to maintain the facility. Our administration team determined that hiring a certified strength and conditioning specialist / nutritionist to run the sports programs off-season programs and to be in charge of maintenance would be the best course of action in order to keep our facility as one of the nicest facilities in the nation. Below are some of the examples of how the facility would have been laid out; all of which I painstakingly designed using Google Draw. 

I have also been apart of several weight room redesigns and as well as smaller facility renovations including restructuring the weight room at Winter Springs High School, facility upgrades (wrapping locker rooms / stadium / flags / weight room) at Matanzas High School. 

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Expectations of the Head CoachDevelop the Best Program Possible

Run an Organized and Disciplined Program Have both short-term and long-term goals for the program that everybody knows

and understands so that everyone can work towards those goals. Have a hierarchy of communication so that all program communication is efficient

and clearly understood. Be prepared for every meeting, drill, practice, day, week, month, and season. Keep an inventory of all equipment that is used by the program. Be prepared for almost every contingency. Limit liability! Have clear expectations and standards for student athletes and enforce team rules

Have A Vision and Execute the Plan Sell the vision of our program to everyone, especially the kids Fundraise relentlessly to help build our brand and be a source of community pride Identify problems, research and execute solutions.

Raise Our Student Athletes into Quality Adults The most important thing we do is to raise our kids. We must love them, honor them,

recognize their progress and be a part of their lives. They are not just football players but a part of our family. I will treat every player as if he were my son.

We will teach them character daily. They will understand right from wrong; and discipline when necessary.

Be a Great Leader Have clear and demanding expectations of coaches, players, and support staff. Treat everyone in the program with honesty and respect. Delegate responsibility and authority when appropriate. Open door policy for all aspects of the program. Conduct all hiring and firing of coaches and support staff. Develop excellent assistant coaches. A head coach is only as good as his staff. Motivate the young men to want to play for the program.

Rigorous Work Ethic Work hard with the administration, assistant coaches, players, boosters, and

community to build support for the school and program. Demonstrate the hard work and determination that is expected of the coaches,

players, and support staff each day. Develop academically, physically, mentally, and emotionally strong players.

Be the Face of the Program Respond to all media inquiries. Communicate with administration. Deal with all parent issues and concerns. Develop relationships with colleges and universities for player advancement.

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Head Coach’s Responsibilities

Oversee the Entire Football Program Make sure all aspects of the program are run smoothly. Develop better coaches through training and experience. Develop better players through training and teaching.. Fundraise relentlessly and organize support professionals in order to

build a brand that is to a professional quality

Develop and Maintain a Positive Relationship Between the Program and the Community Plan and organize fundraisers with boosters. Involve alumni and local businesses in events and activities. Interact positively with the media at events and activities. Be seen and do acts for others. Contribute to charity and public works

Teach Character and Develop Relationships of entire program We must teach our athletes to be young men, we must do this daily We will be the biggest supporters of our athletes, we will love them beyond football Show gratitude to everyone, develop relationships with other sports, academics, and

clubs. We want everyone we meet to have been affected positively by our program.

Limit Liability Ensure that there is adult supervision before, during, and after all team events. Foster a safe environment, be able to forsee issues before they happen Practice and talk about things that happen in news and how we eliminate those things

from happening here.

Practices & Equipment Plan, organize, and implement all aspects of practices. Oversee issuance, keep an inventory, and organize the storage of all equipment. Repair and replace field equipment in need of repair or replacement.

Coach/Player Evaluation & Development Evaluate coaches/players each week, game, season, and year. Hold meetings with coaches and players to discuss areas of strength and

weakness. Help assistant coaches develop into better coaches, which will lead to better

development of the players.

Recruitment of Feeder Programs & School Attend all freshman and JV games possible. Attend and correspond frequently to feeder program athletics. Recruit in classes and hallways for possible players.

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COACHING DUTIES

A. FIELD RESPONSIBILITIES

VARSITY

OFFENSE DEFENSEOL Coach DL CoachQB Coach ILB CoachWR Coach S CoachRB Coach CBs CoachOff. Asst. Coach

KICKING GAME

KOR Coach - Coordinator KICKOFF Coach - CoordinatorCoach – 1, 2 Left 1, 2 – CoachCoach – 3 Left 3, 4,5 - CoachCoach – 4 Right 3, 4,5 - Coach

Coach – 5, 6Right 2, 3 – CoachRight 1 - Coach

Coach – 7, 8Coach – 9, 10Coach – Scout Team Scouts – Coach

PAT/FG Coach - Coordinator PAT/FG BLK Coach - CoordinatorC, G – Marinis, J. DL – CoachT, TE – Marinis, P. ILB – CoachWings – Phillips S – CoachHolder – Cole CB – CoachKicker – Cole Scouts – Waskiewicz, CollinsScouts – Waskiewicz, Collins

PUNT Coach - Coordinator RETURN Coach - CoordinatorLT, LG – Coach L1, R1 – CoachP - Coach L2, L3, L4, L5 - CoachRT, RG – Coach R2, R3, R4, R5 - CoachGunners – Coach Return Man - CoachShield, LS – Coach Scouts – CoachScouts – Coach

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COACHES RESPONSIBILITIES

B. PRACTICE ORGANIZATION

Defensive Practice Schedules

D. CoordinatorDefensive Scout Team

CoachDepth Chart

D. CoordinatorOffensive Practice Schedules

O. CoordinatorOffensive Scout Team

CoachDepth Chart

O. CoordinatorStrength & Conditioning

S+C CoordinatorFields

All CoachesEquipment

Equipment ManagerManagers

Equipment ManagerStudent Assistants

Equipment Manager

C. GAME DAY ORGANIZATION

Sideline CoachesPress Box CoachesSideline Control CoachKicking Game Control St. CoordinatorOfficials Head Coach

D. ADMINISTRATIVE DUTIES

Director of Football Operations CoachRecruiting Coordinator CoachStrength & Conditioning CoachVideo Coordinator CoachEquipment Manager CoachAcademic Coordinator CoachStudy Table All CoachesBooster Club CoachFundraising and Event Coordinator CoachCommunity Relations CoachSummer Camp Coach

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Future Buc Coordinator CoachMedia Specialist CoachTrainer CoachAssistant Trainers All CoachesPractice Fields All CoachesGame Field All CoachesWeight Room All CoachesNutritional Coach CoachPractice Organization CoachAway Games Coach

Bus Transportation CoachHome Games CoachHead Phones Coach

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COACHES RESPONSIBILITIES

StatisticsGame Day

CoachOffensive Goals O. CoordinatorDefensive Goals D. CoordinatorSpecial Teams Goals ST. CoordinatorDefensive Goal Boards

CoachOffensive Goal Boards

CoachPlayer of Week Pictures

CoachRules & Regulations

CoachBanquet

CoachInspiration, Motivation & Pride

CoachTeam Manual/Calendar

CoachPlaybooks

Defense

CoachOffense

CoachSpecial Teams

CoachScouting Reports

Defensive D CoordinatorDefensive Copies

CoachOffensive O CoordinatorOffensive Copies

CoachCoaches’ Video Cut-ups

Defensive D. CoordinatorOffensive O. CoordinatorKicking Game ST Coordinator

Players’ Video Cut-ups

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Defensive

CoachOffensive

Coach

All Coaches are to help with:

Recruiting SaturdaysLocker room supervision & maintenanceWeight room supervision as assigned by Strength CoachStudy table supervision & academic grade checks as assigned by Academic Coordinator

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Equipment issue, maintenance and collectionCafeteria supervisionDorm supervision and bed checks Mass communicationNotebook revisionGolf Outing, fund raising and organizationLaundry

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COACHES RESPONSIBILITIES

E. SUPPORT COORDINATOR JOB DESCRIPTIONS

1. Recruiting Coordinator• Database Maintenance

(Current ACT/SAT; height weight, core lifts, speed)

• Supervise Highlight Tapes• Master List• Contact college coaches

for prospective athletes (twitter)

• Newspapers• Magazines and recruiting

services• Area organization• Game Day Visits• Weekend Visits

2. Academic Coordinator• Advise and assist in

counseling players towards degree

• Obtain current schedules• Player eligibility• Summer school• Freshmen Orientation• Approval of all drops and

adds• Pre-registration• Liaison between teachers

and football office (check with teachers for struggling students)

• Academic Awards• Monitor academic progress• Get mid-semester and final

grade reports• Study table organization:

Attendance, Location, Make-ups and discipline, Who is on

• Academic Top Ten• Senior graduation check

3. Strength and Conditioning Coordinator• Organize off-season and in-

season weight training, conditioning and speed program

• Attendance & Tardiness• Keep records on body

weight, strength test results, and progress charts

• Recommend purchasing of new weight equipment

• Recommend and facilitate the refurbishment of weight equipment

• Motivate the players in the program

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• Summer conditioning test• Provide individual coaching

in the program

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COACHES RESPONSIBILITIES

4. Director of Football Operations• Supervise and direct student

managers• Assign laundry duties• Assign practice duties such as

running the period clock, water distribution, equipment repair, ball spotting, officiating, and field apparatus set-up and take down

• Assign varsity home game duties such as equipment repair, head phone cord holders, ball boys, and water boys

• Maintain accurate records of lockers, locker combinations, jersey sizes, and issued equipment

• Maintain accurate records of player address, telephone, and emergency contact information

• Track equipment inventory and recommend new purchases

• Reconditioning• Organize and facilitate the annual

player and coach Adidas order

5. Incentive, Motivation & Pride (IMP)• Weekly awards• Season awards• Records• Trophies, decals, T-shirts, etc.• Locker room décor• Coaches offices and meeting

rooms• Picture Day• Help with signs and posters• Control and direct helmet award

stickers system and distribution

6. Fields & Facilities• Fields lined, marked, cut & cared

for• Field equipment• Game practice and field

equipment maintenance

7. Video and Projectors• Coordinate filming of practice and

games• Load practice game film into Hudl• O/D/K• Coordinate video crew members

– practice & games• Responsible for video equipment• Charge cameras, ensure batteries

for remote• Purchase & maintain all video

equipment• Maintenance of video equipment• Coordinate and direct film

exchanges

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COACHES RESPONSIBILITIES

8. Media Specialist • Coordinate with gameday

photographer and videographers• Update team website, social

media, and update statistical information

• Graphic designs, posters, and game hype.

• Coordinate with other media, newspapers and high school websites such as Maxpreps

9. Community Relations• Meet with community members

and promote our program, games, and community projects

• Set up community projects, arrange for guest speakers, and others who can help the program.

• Instruct recruiting staff on office recruiting duties

• Assign recruiting staff members to coaching staff

• Obtain recruiting staff uniforms• Sign co-curricular credit forms for

recruiting staff• Creatively exhibit appreciation to

recruiting staff for their hard work

10. Nutritional Coach• Monitor and advise athletes in

their nutritional habits• Check teams food logs and calorie

counts• Ensure Athletes stay hydrated and

are putting right things in their bodies

• Advise on supplement use and keep our athletes clean of illegal supplements.

• Nutritional seminar for parents/athletes

• Work with community relations to try to get food donated to our players

11. Equipment Manager• Manage equipment room,

maintain inventory of equipment• Fix equipment issues, during and

after practice• Responsible for extra man bag

and tool kit

12. Booster Club / Fundraising and Event Coordinator• Plan and manage fundraising

events, get them scheduled on calendar

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• Work with media coordinator in order to get flyers, web promotion etc.

• Contact our friends of the program in order to help

• Work with community relations manager in order to take advantage of resources to help us put on successful events.

13. Future Buccaneer’s• Correspondence with our feeder

schools.• Recognition for athletes and

teams at our feeder schools and the club level

• Work with our gameday coordinators to get recognition at games

• Responsible for promoting and coordinating the Future Buc Football Camps

• Run Future Buc social media, communicate, events, dates, etc.

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COACHES RESPONSIBILITIES

COACH TIME EXPECTATIONS

A. OFFICE HOURS

IN SEASON OFF SEASON SUMMER

SUNDAY8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Off Off

MONDAY 2:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

TUESDAY 2:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

WEDNESDAY 2:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

THURSDAY 2:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

FRIDAY GAMEDAY 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

SATURDAY Off* Off* Off*

*HUDL Breakdown at Home / Visit and Correspond with Feeder Sports Programs

During the season we may have to stay until all of our duties for the day are done. Some duties can be completed independently at home. Additional time expectations for special events such as fundraisers, banquets, coaching retreats, clinics, and camps.

B. DRESS

Academic School Year:Business casual. Collared shirt, dress pants (Khakis, Dockers, etc.).

Formal Functions:Business formal. Suit, shirt & tie. Dress pants with a collared shirt, tieOr a sweater vest are acceptable.

Practice Field: Gulf High School coaching gear. Do not wear other colors.

Game Field:Gulf High School coaching polo and pants/shorts as directed by coach.

Summer: Casual. Gulf High coaching gear. Nothing else.

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COACHES RESPONSIBILITIES

C. LANGUAGE

Speak like the educated, intelligent person that you are. Avoid cursing and foul language in the office, in the meeting rooms, and on the field. Model the behavior you want the kids to demonstrate.

D. CONDUCT

Treat all student athletes, co-workers, students, staff members, administrators, the media and the general public with respect. Always portray a positive image about Gulf Football. If you don’t have anything good to say about someone, don’t say anything at all.

Do not abuse the student-assistant coaches. Although they may often be called upon to perform menial duties, they too should be treated respectfully.

Habitual fraternization with the student-athletes is not advised. An occasional social experience with student-athletes is acceptable.

If you have a problem with a student-athlete or a co-worker, you are expected to address the problem by sitting down with that individual and calmly discussing the situation while seeking to reach a resolution interdependently. If the problem persists please notify the Head Coach.

E. MEETINGS

Be early for meetings. If you have a problem or are going to be late please call ahead. Show respect and courtesy to all members of our coaching staff when presenting a point of view.

Meetings will usually be structured and organized, however each staff member should be prepared to report on any aspect of his duties at any meeting.

When given an assignment, please carry it out as soon as possible with thoroughness and pride, as it is a reflection of you, the program and the Head Coach.

F. DISCIPLINE 62

It is expected that all student-athletes will conform to the team rules. Position coaches will be responsible for enforcing team rules for their position. Special attention should be paid to consistency and timeliness. That is we should treat all similar situations similarly and immediately.Coaches will be responsible for disciplining players when an infraction occurs, do not look the other way, correct bad behavior. In addition, position coaches will be responsible for enforcing disciplinary actions (running, etc.). The Head Coach will decide what course of action will be followed. It is strongly recommended that Coaches maintain a discipline file on student-athletes with discipline problems.

G. DIVERSITY

Diversity is right. It is good and benefits all. No prejudice will ever be tolerated.

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COACHES RESPONSIBILITIES

H. DEMAND EXCELLENCE

We need our coaches to be positive and enthusiastic. Our players will give us what we expect if we are positive in our approach. Set high expectations and goals for your position, draw the line on what is or isn’t acceptable. Be consistent and your players will perform up to those expectations.

“It’s a funny thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything but the best, you very often get it.”

W. Somerset Maugham

I. PLAYER-COACH RELATIONSHIP

Have a positive regard for each individual player.• Begins with getting to know them, take interest in their lives.• Become familiar with family and background.• Support them off the field, do things together, go see them compete in other things.

Be honest with each player.• Players want to know where they stand.• Players should be informed of strengths and weaknesses.• The dignity of all players must be preserved. Positivity sandwich (2 positives for every negative)

Communicate with players.• Let the squad know what they should expect of you as a coach.• Make sure squad knows what you expect of them as players.• Be sensitive to their needs.• Have an open ear.

Be yourself.• Enthusiasm is the key.• Off-season involvement in activities can help.• Allow players to get involved with your life.

Let players know what to expect in way of rules.• A team can’t function without discipline.• Be fair but remember that all situations are unique.• The key to discipline is respect, come at them with respect. • The ability to mold a unified team takes a certain amount of conforming by all parties.• Both Coaches and players should be held accountable for their actions.

Love and help them like they are your own, respect and treat them like they are someone else’s kid. Don’t cross the line!

GENERAL COACHING EXPECTATIONS

1. Love our players.

2. Be demanding on our players and yourself.

3. Be on time. This includes practice, all meetings, game night, Saturday staff meetings.

A. PRACTICE—We will begin 25 minutes after the final school bell. Coaches are to be on

the field by the time we hit pre-practice.

B. GAME NIGHT—Coaches should arrive 20 minutes before our scheduled team

meetings; coaches are expected to travel to and from games with the team; all coaches

are to participate in post game activities; coaches must be present at GHS for

approximately 30 minutes after post-game.

C. Due to the unique makeup of our staff, there will be times when coaches cannot be

present or may need to be late because of commitments to their jobs. This will be

especially true for our lay coaches. Clear and frequent communication is necessary to

insure that the head coach is aware of any difficulty that a lay coach may have. If you

are unable to make practice on time, contact Coach Compton ahead of time.

4. When you reach the practice field, set up your drills. If necessary, you may require your

position group players to be on the field early for special instructions.

5. If you jump a player during practice, talk to him after practice.

6. All coaches must have a completed practice plan in their possession before going to the

field. The amount of time for each segment will be determined by the head coach or

coordinator. This is a general organizational plan for you to follow. All coaches must plan

and organize individual drills for each segment that is not a team segment.

7. All coaches must have the following equipment for practice: a practice plan and script, a

a whistle, a pen, and team apparel.

8. After practice, meet with your position group daily. Even if just briefly to talk about the

day. Monday’s Goal Sheet Signoffs and evaluation.

9. Do not accept less than the best effort of your players at practice. If one of your athletes

is not giving his best, find out why.

10. Force your players to encourage others and recognize great effort.

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11. Never argue with another coach on the field.

12. Do not use profanity in front of the players. We expect discipline from our players, and

we will expect nothing less from ourselves.

13. Utilize consistent vocabulary. All coaches should use the same terms to describe

techniques, formations, and responsibilities.

14. Give the players secrets and nuances to help them. They will respond to you best if they

are convinced that you can and will help them reach their full potential. They play and

practice the hardest when they know that you really care for them.

15. Potential means nothing. We are looking for performers with attitude and hustle.

16. Always make your players finish drills, use cones, coach the burst. Utilize a whistle.

17. Pay strict attention to the practice plan times. We cannot waste any time switching

stations. Synchronize your watch with the clock in the office.

18. The enthusiasm of the team must come from the coaches.

19. It’s all about the ball preach ball security and takeaways. Creating takeaways can be

coached and we will finish drills with a ball. Defense needs to score

20. SPECIAL TEAMS EXCELLENCE IS VITAL TO SUCCESS, if you score a touchdown you win

85% of the time.

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COACHES EXPECTATIONS

What I Expect in an Assistant Coach

1. To be the best teacher/coach that he can be.2. To be a positive role model.3. To sell, defend and be loyal to the Gulf High Buccaneer football program and the

school itself.4. To be dedicated to the Athletic Department5. To do everything possible to develop a winning attitude in themselves, the staff, the

school, and the program.6. To be seriously interested in the success of our players and staff, on the field.7. To know the entire offensive and defensive schemes and game plans.8. To have a thorough knowledge of all fundamental techniques employed.9. He is thoroughly prepared for carrying out his responsibilities on the practice field.10. Not to be a ‘YES’ man, but to effectively communicate their ideas.11. To attend all staff meetings when called.12. To study and work hard to make him a great coach. Professional growth is a must for

any coach in order to maintain and develop new innovative ways of coaching, teaching techniques, and stay abreast of any rule changes.

13. He is willing to devote his time tirelessly to all phases of the program, practice, film review/breakdown, scouting, strength & conditioning supervision, recruiting, etc.

14. Above all, an outstanding coach is 100% loyal to the other coaches on the staff. There is no place on our staff for a disloyal member.

What coaches can expect from me:

1. To run an organized program so that they will be able to function efficiently.2. To maintain a positive atmosphere that is conducive to teamwork and continuing to

develop all assistant coaches.3. To sincerely listen to their suggestions.4. To give responsibility and authority.5. To work and provide leadership to win.6. To treat them with respect and dignity.7. To sell them to our players, the community, and the other coaches.8. To let then coach on the field within their personality.9. Maintain an open door policy.10. To be the spokesman for the entire staff.

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ASSISTANT COACHES RESPONSIBILITIES & PROGRAM GOALS

VARSITY

A. In Season

1. Assist with the planning and preparing of practice plans. This can include scripts and scout cards.

2. Be available for meetings with players to review assignments, opponents, etc.3. Prepare weekly information sheets for players and positional tests.4. Attend staff meetings as assigned by the Head Coach.5. Assist with extra duties as assigned such as meeting with managers, pre game speeches,

player of the week awards, equipment issuing, weekly stats, grade checks, parent contacts, etc.

6. Be the best position coaches in the state, master your subject area. 7. Assist with Saturday player workouts, film review of previous game, film breakdown of

upcoming opponent, development of game plan, preparation of scouting report, etc.8. Prepare travel roster to be handed in to office by noon, the day before game.9. Represent the school and program with class at all times.10. Constantly push your athletes to get better.11. Each position coach is responsible for the maintenance of his position players’ equipment.

B. Post Season

1. Assist with equipment collection.2. Assist with equipment inventory/ordering of new equipment.3. Prepare post season program evaluation, group and player evaluations.]4. Assist with preparation and planning of Awards Banquet (player awards, banquet program,

speeches, etc.)5. Be available6. Promote our athletes to recruiters.

C. Off Season

1. Help as assigned with off season strength and conditioning program.2. Master your position asap, master the concepts behind the offense and defense and all

terminology asap. 3. Take advantage of professional development opportunities as determined by head coach.

This includes attending clinics, visitations to successful programs (both high school and college) and viewing tape.

4. Prepare skills checklist for your positional area.5. Prepare drills and teaching progressions.6. Constantly promote the program and keep your athletes motivated. 7. Monitor your position athletes for academic success at all times.

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D. Summer Program

1. Attend pre summer practice staff meetings.2. Help run summer program as assigned (strength & conditioning, team practices, 7 on 7

sessions, 7 on 7 scrimmages/tournaments, Line Competitions, etc.)3. Assist with planning for our own 7 on 7 tournament and Line Competition.

E. Varsity Program Goals

Success is measure by accomplishing the following:

1. Develop each player in at least one offensive or defensive position.2. Develop leaders./Find new leaders3. Players get stronger each test phase4. Graduate all players5. Win sportsmanship award6. Increase numbers (50 in 5 for small programs)7. Teach advanced techniques and schemes.8. Represent the school and program with class9. Play as many kids as possible without sacrificing wins10. Strive for championship level. Focus on performance and execution.

JUNIOR VARSITY

A. In Season

1. Assist with the planning and preparing of practice plans. This can include scripts and scout cards.

2. Be available for meetings with players to review assignments, opponents, etc.3. Prepare weekly information sheets for players and positional tests.4. Attend staff meetings as assigned by the Head Coach.5. Assist with extra duties as assigned such as meeting with managers, pre game speeches,

player of the week awards, equipment issuing, weekly stats, grade checks, parent contacts, etc.

6. Bring a white board and markers to your practices, chalk it, talk it, walk it , run it, rep it!7. Video tape your jv practices and games, I will watch film with you.8. Observe the program mission, purpose, vision and priorities at all times.9. Assist with Saturday player workouts, film review of previous game, film breakdown of

upcoming opponent, development of game plan, preparation of scouting report, etc.

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7. Prepare travel roster to be handed in to office by noon, the day before game.

B. Post Season

1. Assist with equipment collection.2. Assist with equipment inventory/ordering of new equipment.3. Prepare post season program evaluation, group and player evaluations.]4. Assist with preparation and planning of Awards Banquet (player awards, banquet program,

speeches, etc.)5. Be available

C. Off Season

1. Help as assigned with off season strength and conditioning program.2. Master your position assignment, master an understanding of the offense and defense and

the philosophies behind them.3. Take advantage of professional development opportunities as determined by head coach.

This includes attending clinics, visitations to successful programs (both high school and college) and viewing tape.

4. Prepare skills checklist for your positional area.5. Prepare drills and teaching progressions.6. Promote and sell the program7. Build your core, build our core.8. Prepare the freshmen to move into jv football9. Be available10. Be active in getting kids into P.R.I.D.E11. Work with varsity in spring ball.

D. Summer Program

1. Attend pre summer practice staff meetings.2. Help run summer program as assigned (strength & conditioning, team practices, 7 on 7

sessions, 7 on 7 scrimmages/tournaments, Line Competitions, etc.)3. Assist with planning for our own 7 on 7 tournament and Line Competition.4. Prepare the jv to be an outstanding representation of the program. Out prepare all other

coaches in the county. Winning attitudes, refusing to lose, expecting to win starts here.

E. Junior Varsity Program Goals

Success is measured by accomplishing these goals.

1. Teach players responsibility, integrity and commitment.2. Continue to develop concepts of proper sportsmanship.3. Develop each player in one offensive and defensive position.

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4. Discover leaders/ Develop leaders5. Teach advanced techniques and schemes.6. Celebrate all players who move up to the Varsity Team.7. Represent the program with class.8. Play as many players as possible without sacrificing team success.9. Strive for championship level. Focus on execution and performance and winning will take care of itself. 10. Take pride in being a feeder program for the varsity.

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COACHING PRINCIPLES

1. Blocking and tackling are the two most important fundamentals of the game of football. Teach them everyday.

2. Discipline must be emphasized at all times on and off the field.

3. Always be fully prepared for a day’s work before you go on the field.

4. Check after practice: attitude, effort, and accomplishment of each player.

5. Spend time on and off the field with freshmen and sophomores — our inexperienced players—they are our future.

6. Morale is our most important objective. It starts with you and is largely stimulated by individual effort

7. To do a good job, you must teach physical aggressiveness (toughness) as well as technique.

8. Never loaf or allow players to loaf in any football activity— if too tired, rest Be sure to give plenty of liquids.

9. Use professional courtesy, but never fail to talk with any coach involved, about anything that will aid our football team.

10. Seeing a mistake does not constitute coaching. What matters most is knowing why it happened, how it happened, and how it can be corrected. Of course, even this information is useless if it cannot be effectively communicated to the player. When correcting, focus on why it happened, how it happened, and how it can be corrected.

11. Each assistant coach is responsible for the mistakes of his position players. The head coach is responsible for the mistakes of every player and all assistant coaches.

12. Perform actions on the field—not talk. Lectures are for the meeting room.

13. Do not bluff— know what you are doing. Admit when you do not know the answer and research it

14. Constantly build and emphasize—THOUGHT-WORDS-ACTIONS-HABITS-LEGACY

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15. Constantly look for better ways to motivate and teach your players. Help them in setting and monitoring their goal pursuit

16. Repetition is the best form of learning, provided you can keep it from getting too boring.

17. Belief and action=WINNING

18. Develop “Unconscious Competence” in yourself and your players.

19. Teaching progression: Explanation, Demonstration, Walk-through (if necessary), Practice, and Correction. (CHALK-TALK-WALK-RUN)

20. HAVE FUN!

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Coaches As Leaders

The coaches are the leaders of the team.

A coach should never complain that he has no leadership in his group. All he is truly saying is that he is not leading. While it is popular among - some coaches to excuse the poor performance of their team by pointing out that the team has no leadership, any coaching staff making this statement is a staff of poor leaders.

If the team performs poorly, it is the coach’s fault. In order to lead, a coach must set the example. If a coach wants his players to work

hard, he must work hard. If a coach wants his players to be enthusiastic, he must be enthusiastic.

A coach must expect excellence from himself and from his players. He must be demanding of himself.

A coach must always be in control of himself. Great leaders are at their best under pressure. When pressure is applied, what a person really is tends to come to the surface.

If a coach thinks that his players need to improve, he should look for ways to improve himself.

Trust is the foundation of leadership. Our players will do anything we ask them to do if we know that we care about them; the

same will be true for each assistant coach and his position players. If you tell your players that you will do something, do it. Your players are counting on you. Always be prepared and go the extra mile for them.

Leadership is about sacrifice. One sacrifice seldom brings success. Sacrifice is an ongoing process, not a one-time

payment. The higher level of leadership people want to reach, the greater the sacrifices they will

have to make. Our leadership role on this team is one of service. How can we help? We are not serving

our players by being permissive with them.

People buy into the leader and then the vision. “When people respect someone as a person, they admire him. When they respect him

as a friend, they love him. When they respect him as a leader, they follow him.”—John C. Maxwell

Our players must believe in us; WE ARE THE LEADERS OF THE TEAM. Your players must buy into you if you want them to buy into your ideas. The respect of the players must be earned; it does not automatically come with the

position. “The leader must know, must know he knows, and must be able to make

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it abundantly clear to those around him that he knows.” — Clarence B. Randall How do leaders earn respect? By making sound decisions, admitting their mistakes, and

putting what’s best for their followers and the organization ahead of their personal agendas.

Leaders find a way for the team to win. “No matter how tough, no matter what kind of outside pressure, no matter how many

bad breaks along the way. I must keep my sights on the final goal, to win, win, win— and with more love and passion than the world has ever witnessed in any performance.” — Billie Jean King

We must do whatever we can in order to give our players the best chance to succeed. In preparing for opponents, give your players any possible advantage you can. “We will either find a way, or we will make one.” — Hannibal “What is our aim? I answer in one word: Victory—victory at all costs, victory in spite of

all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival.” — Winston Churchill

Victorious leaders feel the alternative to winning is totally unacceptable, so they figure out what must be done to achieve victory, and then they go after it with everything at their disposal.

Leaders touch a heart before they ask for a hand. Our players won’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. Find a way to make a connection with every player. The best way to make a connection

is to love him. A coach should treat each player as if he is his son. Just as a loving father would not be

abusive to his son, he would also not be permissive with him.

The true measure of leadership is influence — nothing more, nothing less. Often times, leaders complain that the people in their charge are acting incorrectly.

While this is often true, all that the leader is pointing out is that he is leading incorrectly. Our leadership is not measured by what we do, but rather, by what our players do. A coach is not a leader simply because he is a coach. A coach only becomes a leader if

he actually coaches. “It’s not the position that makes the leader; it is the leader that makes the position. “—Stanley Huffy

One who thinks he leads, but has no followers, is only taking a walk What you see your players doing is what they are learning. “You get what you tolerate.” — Chris Geesman

Leadership develops daily, not in a day. Consistency, consistency, consistency. Set the example everyday. “You have to go back out there tomorrow.” — Bill Parcel’s father Leadership and trust can only be developed everyday. Unfortunately, they can be

destroyed in a day.

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Champions do not become champions in the ring — they are merely recognized there.

Leaders multiply their effectiveness and influence not simply by leading followers, but developing other leaders.

“It’s my job to build the people who are going to build the company.” — John Schnatter To make his group the best, a coach should work to develop leaders. If the coach is able

to lead and his players can follow, that is positive. If a coach can lead and his players can also lead, that is powerful.

The only true discipline is self-discipline. A coach must work tirelessly to develop this in his players.

A coach can only develop his players into leaders by building them up. Unfortunately, when many players join our football team, they are asking the question:

“What’s in it for me?” As the leader, the coach must work to change the attitude of the player to one of asking: “How can I help the team?” Of course, the coach must have this attitude to instill this attitude.

“People cannot give to others what they themselves do not possess.” —John C. Maxwell

Leaders should endeavor not only to develop a productive team, but also, good people~ A coach cannot develop his players into better people if he is not a good person. “No man can climb out beyond the limitations of his own character.” —John Morley While we are focused on winning football games, we are concerned with developing

character. Character is the greatest possession a man can have. When a player exits our program, character must be the product that he carries on with him.

“The only thing that walks back from the tomb of mourners and refuses to be buried is the character of the man. This is true. What a man is survives him. It can never be buried.”—J. R. Miller

Everything rises and falls on leadership. The success or failure of our team will depend on the leadership of our team. Any endeavor you can undertake that involves other people will live or die depending on leadership. As the coaching staff leads our team toward The 2004 IPSAC Championship., the following points should be kept in mind:

Personnel determine the potential of the team.

Relationships determine the morale of the team.

Vision determines the direction of the team.

LEADERSHIP DETERMINES THE SUCCESS OF THE TEAM.

THE BUCCANEER PRACTICE PHILOSOPHY

1. Practice begins on time for players and coaches.

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2. We will hustle everywhere we go. Make your group the best.3. We will be enthusiastic. Make your group the best4. Practice will be conducted at a fast tempo. However, walk-through segments will

be scheduled from time to time.5. All players will be actively involved in practice at all times. No one standing

around!6. After the first two weeks of practice, our heavy hitting days will be Tuesday,

Wednesday and Thursday.7. During the season Monday and Thursday will be non-hitting days.8. Hitting will normally occur during technique and team periods.9. Team periods will be done against dummies and live.10. There are only two ways to do anything — the right way and the wrong way. Do

things the right way.11. Be prepared — have a great practice plan— use variation.12. Stay on time. Use all the time and nothing more; if we have to move on we move

on. 13. Conditioning will come in your technique work if you force your players to hustle.

Demand that they jog back to the end of the line upon completing a drill.14. Coach with intensity and your players will play with intensity.15. Name every drill; get a stable of drills and use them. Get kids in a routine. 16. Practice situations in your drills. Make your technique drills actually simulate

game situations.17. Help each other. Volunteer to help other coaches with projects for which they

are responsible.18. Sell toughness to the players. Build confidence by being positive.19. Preach precision in execution from day one.20. Say something positive to each of your players every day.21. Make sure that all drills relate directly to Gulf offense, defense, or special teams.

Do not just run a drill for the sake of running it.22. If possible, match varsity players against others of comparable ability in contact

drills.23. Be actively coaching during special team segments. If you are not directly

involved in the special team being practiced, find one or more of your players who are not involved and work with him/them on some technique related to your position.

24. The use of profanity is prohibited on the field.

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DESIGNING & IMPLEMENTING EFFECTIVE DRILLSCreation of Drills/Position Manual

It is critical that you understand why and also how it is we do what we do. You have to understand your role in the big picture. It’s equally important that the athletes understand the concepts and the purpose for the drills and techniques we use. Get them beyond execution into the understanding of the concepts.

Athletes learn best by doing; they obtain skills through repetition. Therefore drills are the most effective tools the position coach has at his disposal. A coach's ingenuity and creativity are best used in designing drills, which will teach his athletes the skills they need to perform in competitive situations. Every drill must meet the need of the athlete in relationship to our schemes. I want each athlete to know when and why each skill is needed. During the off-season our staff will use time to review the drills we use in order to determine their effectiveness. Additionally, through clinics, etc. we will have the opportunity to design and add new drills. We will work together to put together effective drills that will be used from Varsity down to Mites. We will video tape the drills and also create a position manual that you will be responsible for maintaining.

Designing Drills:

1. Assess Needs - Start by compiling a list of fundamental skills required playing the position. Area coaches will complete a comprehensive list of skills his athletes will need to know in order to execute the system. Many skills are fundamental to the position while other skills are unique to very specific plays and situations. All, however, must be drilled and learned. We must make sure there are drills in place to teach each of the skills.

2. Name the Drill - Each drill must be named. This is essential in ensuring effective communication when discussing the drill with staff and players. Giving the drill a catch name ie. “pancake drill” lets us move fluidly from one drill to the next in addition to giving us the ability to walk onto any practice field at any age group and say “pancake drill” and every coach knows what that is. Always know what equipment is needed for your drills before hand. Record this information in your position manual.

3. Be Specific - Each drill must teach a skill, or part of a skill, required by the system. “No Stupid Drills!” We must ensure that we know what the specific purpose of the drill is and that the drill is accomplishing its purpose. We do not do drills just because “Notre Dame does it’ or whatever.

4. Be Focused - Each drill has a specific purpose. While more than one skill may be involved in the drill, there must be a single focus. Isolate specific skills so the athletes can concentrate on and learn the relevant task. Be sure that the athletes and coaches understand the point of the drill, why are you doing it???

5. Maximize Repetitions - The more repetitions, which occur for each athlete, the more learning happens. If the position numbers are large or if each repetition takes a long time to run, it may be necessary to modify the drill or run it in a way so that more than one player can perform it at a time. Try to structure drills with as many players working as

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possible. Try our best to eliminate standing in lines and waiting; partner drills, split drills are effective for maximizing reps. We must also take the flow of the drill into account. For example, if a ball is being used, make sure there are enough balls available to keep the drill moving and there is a procedure for getting the balls back to the point of origin without interrupting the drill.

6. Finish – Try to make all drills have a defined finish through a cone, a bag, or with a ball. We want to get our players in the habit of accelerating and finishing through the

Implementing the Drill:

1. Describe, Name & Explain Why - The first time a coach implements the drill he should describe the activity and the "coaching points" that will be emphasized. The name of the drill should be given in addition to why we are doing the drill. Why is it important? . Use the white board when needed.

2. Define the Area - The area being used must be defined - point of origin, direction you are moving in, the size limitations, etc. Be aware of fences, ditches, holes and any other safety hazard. Once a repetition is complete it is important that the athletes know how to get back into line without interfering with the next repetition. Walk thru the drill if need be.

3. Start Properly - Make sure it is clearly defined how each repetition is to be set in motion. Whether or not they begin to move on the basis of a verbal cue (snap count) or a visual cue (move on movement) may be critical to effective preparation for the actual game situation.

4. Provide Constant Feedback - Feedback is necessary if we wish to see improvement in a particular skill. It is important to do it in a way so we do not interrupt the flow of the drill. The use of cue words to correct errors must be used as the athletes are executing each repetition. If they are executing the drill perfectly lets let them know it! This is especially important the first time it is done properly.

5. Monitor - Make sure the drill is doing what it is designed to do and make sure it is not teaching negative habits. Coaching is about constantly evaluating and adjusting. TEACH!

6. Revise if Necessary - If you are experiencing frustration with a particular drill or if you find that you are constantly interrupting the drill in order to correct inappropriate behavior, change the drill! Do not however change the players’ alignment, assignment or technique because you are having difficulty teaching it.

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Practice PlanThe goal of our practices is to be as efficient as possible, and for everything we do to mimic a game situation. As coaches we never have enough practice time, EVER! As teachers we never have enough time with our students. So it is crucial that every minute of practice be structured and every drill have a purpose. As coaches we will meet routinely after practice and discuss how the day's session went and what we need to rep the next day to make sure that our kids are fully prepared to succeed on the football field. We will practice with high energy and high tempo. We will NEVER walk on the practice field. We will run from drill to drill and get water on the fly. We do not want to be out there for 3.5 hours running 25 plays at team; we will be on the timer and we will hold ourselves accountable to get what we need done on the field. Everything we do will be filmed and if things need to be corrected it will be corrected on the fly or in the meeting room. There is one thing as a coach that I can't stand and that is people standing around talking and wasting valuable time and reps. It's all about making sure drills are structured to get as many kids as many repetitions as possible.

As a staff we will meet daily to evaluate practice film and structure which drills fit into the skills and schemes needed for the week. Every drill will have a name and a purpose. We will have every day fundamental drills and skills, we will build in circuits, and have cross over periods; such as Richochet Drill (option force), Bloc Rec, and 2 v 2. We will be great on the practice field, how we practice is in direct relation to how we play.

MondayLift                   1:50-2:20

Meet/Film         2:30-3:15

Practice           3:30-4:45 (Uppers)

Periods 1 & 2 KO Circuit and KO

3                      Indy

9                      Punt

11-17               Team vs Scouts 

 

5:00                  Victory Monday

TuesdayLift                   1:50-2:10

Meetings         2:20-2:50

Practice                3:00-5:00 (Full Pads)

Period  1              KOR

Period 2               Punt Return/Block-- 4-3

(Return Left) and 5-3 (Block left, return right)

3                              Indy

11                           Block Rec/2 on 2’s

13                           Water

14                           Punt

15                           Inside/1 on 1’s ("O" first)

18                           Skel (D first), OL/DL Pass)

21                           Team vs Scouts

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WednesdayLift                   1:50-2:10

Meetings         2:20-2:50

Practice           3:00-5:00 (Shells)

Period 1           KO (Sky, Stampede, Squib)

Period 2           Punt Block/Return (3-5 and 3-4)

3                      Indy

11                    Block Rec/2 on 2’s

13                    Water

14                    Punt (Rugby and Shield) 

15                    Inside/1 on 1 (Defense first)

18                    Skel (O 1st, OL/DL Pass)

21                    Team vs Scouts (3rd down and Red

Zone Emphasis, put on script)

Thursday

Study Hall: 1:50 – 2:40

Team Meeting: 2:50 – 3:10

3:30-Dynamic Warm up

3:35-Kickoff (Sky left, Stampede, Squib) & Onside Kick 

3:40-Kickoff Return (Alley Rt 4) & Hands Team

3:45-1st Offense on field

4:00- Punt Team. 1st Offense on Field, 4th Down, Punt Team called out/Punt In,

Punt Coming Out, Rodeo, Regular, Tight

4:05-Punt Return (3-4, 3-5). 1st Defense on Field, 4th Down Called Punt Return

team called out, Returner comes in for Nose

4:10-Extra Point(on 2)/FG/FG Block (Nose off, Howard on)-All called from

sideline

4:15-2 Minute Offense vs Defense (Ball on 35, 1:30 Left, 1 Timeout, Down by 6

points)

4:30-Team O and D

5:00-Off the Field

Player of Week Awards 

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GamedayOn gamedays our goal is to keep the time as structured as possible and create a sense of focus

that can carry over to the game. The students cannot be allowed “free time” as they will wander and will have their mind everywhere else but on football. We will structure with

meetings, quiet time, pre-game meal, and preparation for the game.

2:00                        Special Teams Meeting, then Quiet Time in Media3:00                        Pregame Meal 3:40                        Team Meeting and Call out Special Teams3:50                        Split O and D Meetings4:30                        Coaches Meeting  / Tape in Gym5:30                        Off and Def Walkthrough in Gym5:50                        Specialists out6:05                        Rest of the team out6:10                        Indy6:22                        Come together for Team (D first, 2 pursuits, then O 3 plays on air, then vs each other) Ends with punt team entire team covers to 20.  PAT 2x and then form lines to walk in.6:30                        Off the field6:50                        Pre-Game Talk and Captains to the field. Team after. On Field at 6:55 for Anthem

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Travel Checklist Be sure to waterproof your bags (esp. for balls, towels, toilet paper, etc.) or have garbage bags

to put around them.

Medicine kitEquipment kit (spare parts - straps, screws, spikes, etc)Tool kit (screw drivers, pliers, air pumps, tape, etc)Extra cleats (maybe 3 pairs - size 9, 11, and 13)Extra shoulder pads (at least 1 pair, but maybe a lineman and a smaller one)Extra helmets (at least 1)Extra padsMouthpiecesPaper, pens, clipboards and scout sheetsWhiteboard and markers, erasersTowels (lots)Balls - game and warmupExtra kicking teesWater coolers (fill up beforehand if you are unsure of being able to get good water at opposing field)Gatorade cooler(s) for halftimeWater bottles and six-pack holdersInjury iceRain gearToilet paperEmergency cardsContacts list - players, travel providers, coaches, and home team's game day contactKicking netWhiteboards for during game and halftimeWhiteboard markersWhiteboard eraser or towelChairs for o-line around whiteboardHeadsets (make sure they are charged beforehand and tested before the first game)Video camera and accessories (extra mini-tape, extra battery, extension cord, covering in case of rain)Video filmers and one backup filmerGame plan/call sheetsCleat cleaners (depending on weather)Dry Ball kit (plastic bags)IpadsSkyhawk

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Halftime Organization1. Players must be given time to rest. 2. All injuries evaluated by medical staff and reported directly to Coach Compton3. All equipment problems taken care of by Equipment Manager 4. Coaching staff must analyze the first half and make plans for the second half. 5. Players must be re-motivated to play the final part of the game. 6. Players and coaches re-hydrate themselves with Gatorade and water.

Halftime divided into four periods:

First period (3 minutes) Coaches circle up Team rest Injury and equipment care

Second period (3 minutes) Offense and defensive position coaches meet with position groups

Third period (3 minutes) Offense and Defensive Coordinators address appropriate teams

Fourth period (3 minutes) Head coach addresses team Return to field for warm-up The time that we leave the locker room will vary depending on where our halftime location is and what school we play at. Our goal is to be on the field with 1:30 left on clock.

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Period One – Half Time Organization The first period is a critical one for the staff. At this time you should be involved in an analysis of what has taken place during the first half and deciding what your plan of attack will be for the second half. The information that you should consider includes:

Offensively Fronts and coverage that are giving us a hard time Who is making the tackles? What plays had the most success? Your play selection by success and failure.

Defensively Plays by formation. Plays by down and distance. What run play is hurting us the most? What adjustment needs to be made? What pass play is hurting us the most? What adjustment needs to be made? Your defensive calls by down and distance.

Special Teams Has there been any assignment breakdown in any phase of the kicking game. Is the fake punt possible? How is the kick-off coverage and punt coverage? Personnel adjustments because of injuries or other reasons. Any possible playing conditions such as wind, rain, and so on, affecting the play.

Period Two – Half Time Organization The second period of our halftime is for each coach to meet with the players of his position. During this period, you hope to do two things. First, you quiz your players as to what is happening to them on the field. Our staff should be made to feel that it is extremely important to have open communication with their players. Many times you will find that one of your players will come up with information that turns out to be very helpful the second half. Also, the coach

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needs to know, for instance, if a receiver can beat a corner on an out route or a streak, or if an offensive lineman can reach a down defender on outside plays.

Period Three – Half Time Organization As soon as each position coach has met with his players, both the offense and defense meet with their coordinators to tie the schemes together. Only the coordinators address the team at this time.

Period Four – Half Time Organization With about 7 minutes remaining on the clock, A Coach will give a 5-minute warning. At this time coaches with press box responsibilities and your team captains should leave the locker room for the field. The head coach will take control at this point and the offense and defense join together for final instructions. It is the job of the head coach to finalize all strategy and goals and to motivate the squad for the second half. This time period lasts usually not more than 3 to 4 minutes. The team then departs for the second half.

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Offensive PhilosophyAs a coach I have had the opportunity to work with some prolific offensive attacks. At Clay High School in 2013 our offense rushed for 4,696 rushing yards for 58 touchdowns and averaged 313 yards per game and scored 30 points per game. At Winter Spring High School in 2010 our offense rushed for 2,876 rushing yards in 10 games for 28 touchdowns averaging 230 yards rushing per game.

Our offense will be a multi-tempo, primarily 20 personnel two back spread. We will use multiple tempos, automatics, unbalanced formations and check with me in order to keep the defense on it's heels and to get us in the best play possible. Our personnel will obviously dictate what we can and cannot do. In a perfect world I would like to have one of our best athletes at QB; somebody who can direct the offense, get us into the right play, can make the explosive runs, and make all the necessary throws. Our tailback would be a guy who has explosive running ability and a tough inside the tackles runner. He needs to be a guy who can get a minimum of 5 yards a carry and have the ability to outrun safeties. Our "Z" slot receiver we want a guy who has great speed who can handle the jet sweep and make plays in space on a now screen. Our X and Y receivers we want guys who can reliably catch the football and block on the perimeter. The offensive line has to be able to move, get off the football, and have hip power to dominate the defender in front of them.

Our goal is to control the clock and dictate the pace of the game to the defense. Being multi-tempo allows us to slow the game down or speed the game up. We never allow the defense to get comfortable. We can go no huddle and run plays at a lightspeed tempo; we can line up fast with a dead call, and try to get an easy 5 yards or reset and get into the best play based on alignment. We can huddle and slow the pace of the game in tight games.

Note: All of the following listed is not the terminology we will use. Every tempo, formation, playcall, and motion will be built on various code words and signals in order to eliminate unnecessary verbiage, but the concepts remain the same.

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Tempo 1: HUDDLE - Our slowest tempo, we will use the huddle tempo if we need to make special adjustments, slow the pace of the game, or when we feel the defense may have a handle on our signals, calls, or if we just need to change it up.

Tempo 2: FAST - Our fastest tempo, we want to line up as fast as we can with the exact same play in mind. As soon as the ball is set we want to snap the ball. We like to use this tempo with combination calls in mind; run choices (check with me at line, run the ball no matter what), a run with an access throw (run + x solo) or (run + quick screen choice). This allows us to run plays as fast as possible but gives us multiple options that the defense cannot adjust to. We can also issue a dead call at the line of scrimmage allowing us to simulate the snap to try to get the defense to jump; from there we can automatically check with the coach to get us in the correct play.

Tempo 3: NO HUDDLE - Our medium tempo we will not huddle, but we will make a significant formation change, motion or some other tag. We can couple this with a dead call in order to try to get defense to jump or a clear call in order to line up and run the same play like our fast temp.

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Day 1 Install

Twins Open Stack Weak (Will be a one word call)

Twins Open Stack Strong (Will be a one word call)

We will primarily be a two back 20 personnel spread football team. We can get into a number of different backfield sets that will give us plenty of run options to stretch the defense. We can also incorporate shifts from a split back formation to keep defense's from gaining pre-snap tendencies. Other shifts and changing formations with tempo can provide us with numbers advantages that the defense will struggle adjusting too. The following would be an example of our Day 1 install and would be the bread and butter of what we do. We would later add on, King/Queen/Over/Trips/Full House, additional formations, additional run plays (Trap/Jet/Power/Jet Power/GT/Jet GT/Draw etc), additonal screens, 2 man concepts, 3 man concepts, play-action passes, and specials. We will not install more than we have to. We will become great at a few things and make adjustments week by week. The following are some of our core beliefs.

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We will throw to uncovered and soft covered receivers on now screens, x under, to keep defenders out of the box. Once defenders creep up we will throw now-go, x-under go, and double move routes. We will identify fronts and force defenders in order to take advantage of any defensive misalignment. We will run a combination of gap and zone schemes in order to maximize our offensive lines abilities against different types of personnel. We will get the ball into the hands of our best athletes.

Our installs will focus on one to three plays or concepts in each category and we will never install anything beyond what our students can handle. We want them to be able to master a skill before moving on to the next. We feel confident that with our first week of install that we will have 85-90% of our offense in. Everything else would be game week adjustments. In day one we would focus on one receiver set, and two back field sets. 3 run plays. 1 run check. 3 pass concepts. 2 quick screens + tag. 2 protections. 2 play action passes, solo side concepts/access throws and 1 open you choice. From this list with two formations we feel that we can run our offense at a lightspeed tempo, make adjustments, and keep defenses on their toes; all while being incredibly simple for the kids. Since every kid is only responsible for learning 2-3 concepts and every concept is just one word, we will be able to be play fast and efficiently.

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The play above is a run (weakside iso) with a built in automatic flash screen if uncovered. There are a number of different ways we could address the play call. We could call the weakside iso with a solid call (meaning that we will run the play no matter what), we could make a FIVE CHOICE call (meaning we would line up and check into one of the our preferred run concepts at the line of scrimmage OF, ISO, VEER), we could make a YOU CHOICE call (allowing our QB to take his pick between the X solo (Hitch/Out/Go/Slant), the 2 man screen concept, or the Five choice run. When we get good at it we can run "YOU CHOICE" at FAST tempo right down the field and it could look like we are running 10 different plays. We can also limit choices, such as we could call our preferred run concept in this case Iso and tag X solo (The OL and back are ready to run iso, if the QB gets a look from the defense that would be conducive to throwing the ball we can get a big chunk of yardage). We could call our preferred run concept and tag a check. There is a ton that we can do to stretch the defense, limit or expand QB decision making, and get us into a play where we can take advantage of a defense. Obviously we would not ask our QB on day one to do everything. We would limit his decision making, but at the same time if over the course of the year we can open up the playbook, be fast, and get into the right play; we can be downright unstoppable on the offensive side of the ball with minimum concepts.

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An example of this at high speed for a series could be as follows. We call OPEN STACK WEAK, FIVE CHOICE firm at the line of scrimmage and the QB knows that he has his choice of any of the following run concepts VEER WK, ISO WK, and OF STRONG.

The QB comes to the line of scrimmage with a 4-2-5, two high shell. He notices there is a one and a five to weak side, with a read force defender. He knows the defense is in poor position to defend veer. He comes to the line calls our signal for VEER LEFT; and we run the play. A coach will be assigned to watch the BS corner to see if he is honoring the hitch, out, slant, fade; another coach will be watching the two man side to make sure the defense is honoring our quick screens.

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We go fast tempo, the defense responds to veer by dropping a force defender into the box weak. While we could still run VEER it may not be the best play choice based on personnel. We still have a one and a five to the weak side, the QB checks ISO weak into the bubble.

We continue with our fast tempo coupled with a dead call to try to get the defense to jump offsides. The defense doesn't jump and adjusts by shifting the three technique to the weakside. We still feel veer is not a great concept against a in the box force defender and while we could still run ISO into the A gap, we feel that we have a nice matchup at the 1/5 bubble. QB Calls OF Strong.

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The defense has been screaming downhill, the safeties are quick into the box trying to prevent the run. As we are running with fast tempo we check from the sideline to OF screen. The will and mike scream downhill following their guard key and the FS cheats down for cutback giving us an alley with our X receiver in space.

Keys to Offensive SuccessMultiple Tempos

Being able to switch up the speed at which we get to the line of scrimmage and runs plays allows us to dictate the flow of the game to the defense. It makes it extremely difficult for them to sub, slow to get off on the snap, and difficult for them to make adjustments once we catch them in a bad defense.

Flexibility

Our offense will be adaptable to the kids that we have to coach. If we have a pure athlete at QB we will be able to do more read option / QB runs. If we have a stud receiver we have built in receiver checks. We can limit the flexibility within calls, we can have total control by a coach on the sideline, or we can open up the full playbook to allow our QB to have multiple options at a blinding tempo.

Simplicity

The athletes will master a few schemes and be able to run them with blinding speed and accuracy. The athletes will be confident in what they run and only have to be great at a few things. We will be able to make small adjustments to give defenses multiple looks.

Move the Chains

Our offensive goals are as follows. We must get one first down! (this allows us to control the clock). We will not turn the ball over! (Win turnover margin win the game). We will flip the field (If we must punt, make the offense earn it against our defense). We will take shots downfield when necessary. We will score points once we get in the redzone (preferably touchdowns

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Defensive PhilosophyDefensively our teams will be characterized by their relentless pursuit to the football, their ability to punish

ball carrier, and our ability to generate takeaways. We will be sound fundamentally and give our kids a

few skills to master. We will primarily base primarly out of the 4-2-5 and be a quarter/quarter and half

team basing out of the under. Depending on our personnel we will periodically move to our Okie Defense

which is a true 3-4 which will allow us to slant and get into multiple looks while being essentially the same

for our athletes. In the secondary being two high allows us to disguise coverage and gets us a potential 9

in the box against run. We will dominate the run game!

Above all else our athletes will understand their responsibility and their job on every play, we will

communicate effectively with each other (constantly talking, each player will be assigned a different

aspect of the defense that he must communicate), we will be an excellent tackling team that understands

our force and leverage responsibilities. We will understand our coverage responsibilities and become

effective in all phases of defensive play. We will blitz frequently and keep offenses on their toes. 

We will rep tackling circuit at least twice a week and takeaway circuit at least once a week. We will drill

block recognition at least twice a week against every major run scheme we face; and we will rep option

force at least once a week. We will do pursuit drill at least twice a week. We must be able to stop

opposing teams offenses and we will be very successful. We will emphasize and award players who are

able to get to the football and generate takeaways. We film practice everyday in order to correct effort

issues. All defensive players are expected to dominate their assignment, get to the football, punish the

ball carrier (gang tackle) and finish every rep with the ball. Any ball that hits the ground, wether a fumble

or dropped pass we pick up and attempt to score to get in the habit of scoring points on defense. A

defensive touchdown leads to a win over 80% of the time. 

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Base Under vs Pro I

SAM - 9 Technique playing primary force (D-Gap): TE blocks out we force the ball immediately back

inside, TE blocks down SAM spills the ball outside. vs. Pass plays coverage rule. In this look he is playing

quarters with a 3/2/3 rule. He will carry #3's route anywhere he goes outside, from there he will redirect

back to number two and carry any deep our outside breaking route. If #2 release inside he will reroute

and get into the hook curl window on #1.

END - 7 technique keying the v of neck of the offensive tackle (C-GAP). If tackle blocks out attacks with

hat and hands, keeping outside arm and leg free. If  tackle blocks down end is looking to spill first cloth.

Vs. Pass becomes contain rush. 

NOSE - 2i technique keying the v of the neck of the center (A-GAP). If center blocks out, he attackes with

hat and hands and wins the gap. If center blocks down Nose squeezes hard anticipating a downblock by

the center. 

TACKLE - 3 Technique, keying the block of the offensive guard. Any out block he attacks with hat and

hands keep outside arm and leg free. Any downblock he squeezes inside and locks to spill first cloth. vs.

pass becomes a pocket collapser. 

BUCK - Wide 7 technique, keying the block of the offensive tackle. (C-GAP) Any out block he attacks with

hat and hands, keeping outside arm and leg free. vs. Pass becomes a contain rusher. 

MIKE - 30 technique: Is primary B gap player on flow to him; flow away fills over the top to backside A-

gap. Guard, key flow. On pass is low hole defender keying the release of near threat ready to re-route

crossers, gaining depth to get into deep windows, not breaking until ball is thrown. 

WILL - 30 technique. Is a primary A gap player but is an alley player on outside runs. Guard, key flow. On

Pass is 3/2/3; will take any vertical or outside the release of #3 or #2 out of the backfield. If not keeps

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eyes on near threat and looks for crossers. 

FS - Inside leverage #2. Alley fitter, will make the SAM right. Pass first responsibility in quarters will take

#2 vertical, upon any outside or inside release by #2, the FS will turn his attention to robbing #1. 

WS - Read force on the backside, will make the Buck linebacker right. Must check the cut back first, do

not get impatient. On Pass will play coverage based on call. Can play wildcat (check #2 and rob #1), true

quaters, 2 read, or cover 3. 

CB - Has all of #1 except for on shallow releases inside. #1 releases inside looking for the next near

vertical threat typically #2. 

 BS CB - Becomes a fence player on run away. 

The corners and the safeties will both key the release of #2. The general rule of thumb is if two commits

to going vertical he is going vertical. Quarters give us a great opportunity to be phenomenal against the

run while still providing 3 vs. 2 pass support.

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In this example the offense tries to run stretch to the strongside. Our SAM linebacker does a great job of

forcing the ball immediately and our Mike Linebacker gets off on the snap and is able to beat offensive

lineman over the top to help with alley support.

Versus weakside run our WS safety becomes the primary force defender, the buck does his job of fighting

through the out block of the OT, and our WS screams downfield and forces the ball back into the will

playing the alley. The free safety must check cut back and be ready to pursue. 

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Versus inside run to the strong side the Mike will spill the ball to the outside where the Free Safety should

be waiting to run the alley. The free safety must make a form tackle in order to stop a minimal gain. 

Versus weakside inside run our will backer becomes the spill player and spills it outside to the WS who

should be filling inside on read force to make the tackle for a minimal gain. 

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Versus strong side power against a down TE the SAM backer spills the football to an awaiting FS running

the alley. The Mike linebacker should have a cloudy read and shuffle over the top to get in on the action

as well. 

Versus weakside power the buck linebacker now becomes the spill player, the weakside safety playing

read force is able to come down in the box and make the play for a tackle for loss. 

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Twino O causes the sam linebacker to back up and ply sky force, but essential not much has changed in

the terms of our scheme. 

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Versus the pass we anticipate getting some form of out route by #2, we make our call to trap #2. CB

reads #2 vertical. As long as #2 stays vertical the corner caries the route of #1 vertical. As soon as #2

breaks on the out the corner is taught to drive through the ball carrier. 

Since the coverage is split we field it gives as a number of different options for how we want to play

personnel. Playing 3 weak in this instance allowed us to drop a better athlete into the box on the

weakside and also provided us an opportunity to confuse the offense and potentially get a takeaway. 

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One of the ways offenses try to gain an advantage is by going to their trips packages. In our defense we

simply bump the mike out to help on #3 and can drop the weak safety to get into a true cover 3, or 3 auto

look. The Will must make a "Tam" call to the tackle to help force the ball out to the force/alley player on

run. 

One simple adjustment against trips is to play SNIPER. Many offenses want to take advantage of the

middle of the field and try to attack the seems. We move to the look and play regular 2 read on #1 and #2.

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With the Sam and the Weak Safety we bracket #3. Upon the vertical release or any release that threatens

the middle of the field or the part the WS is assigned, the WS will drive to finish the receiver. 

An example of SNIPER against the stick concept. 

One other way that we can deal with trips is by going MINI on the strong side. This coverage allows us

get a combo on the #3 reciever. The corner to the strongside has MEG responsibility (man everywhere he

goes). The Sam and the Free Safety are simply playing two read against #2 and #3.  3 is the primary key.

If 3 carriers vertical the same would carry #2 vertical any out route by number 3 would immediately be cut

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by our sam linebacker and our FS would drive on top of #2 or the deepest threat. On the backside we can

play any concept that we choose. 

An example of MINI vs. SNAG. Corner has #1 everywhere he goes. SAM - carries vertical until he sees

the out then cuts the route of #3 while maintaining outside leverage. FS upon seeing the outroute by #3

drives over the top of #2.

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Special TeamsSpecial Teams are one of the most important and overlooked aspect of football gameplan and practice. A

study has been done that shows that if a team scores a touchdown on special teams that team will win

the game 85 percent of the time. It is our goal to be the very best on special teams that we can. We must

be solid in the kicking game so we can score points, flip the field, and have the potential to make big

plays. 

Kick Off Return

The best kickoff team is the kickoff team that can kick the ball in the endzone everytime. Unfortunately we

don't all have the luxury of a fantastic kicker, we will be multiple in our kickoffs from Deep Middle/Pin

Right/Left/Sky/Squib/and Onside. We will rep kick off at least twice a week and we have a kickoff circuit

built in to practice to get our kids ready for the skills necessary to play in space.  

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Rugby Punt

Rugby punting allows us to use a variety of different athletes and allows us to have time in order for our

coverage to get downfield. If we have a traditional punter it is easy to adjust to regular shield punt,

however, we feel that rugby punting gives us better coverage downfield and the more options when it

comes to fakes or choice plays in which we can either take off and get a first down or kick it downfield.

 

Field Goal

We rep. field goal twice a week. Our lineman all step inside and reach for the adject offensive linemans

leg. We have several fakes that we routinely run in practice that give us the opportunity to score a

touchdown or a 2pt conversion when the time calls for it. We have also ran muddle huddle in the past, but

we typically save it for a rainy day. 

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Kickoff

Our Kickoff returns have been very successful at all the schools I have been at, we have a number based

blocking system and a few different returns at our disposal. We use trap based blocking the majority of

the time and try to get down the sideline. Every year we have had at least one kick off return for a

touchdown. 

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Punt Return

We have had a lot of success with Wall Punt returns. We feel the wall gives us one of the best options

because we get a full rush by the front side who are then able to set up the wall for a return. We also have

several pure blocks and can also play punt safe if we expect a fake.  

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Field Goal Block

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Weightlifting and Offseason Program

"Where Winners are Made"

The weightlifting and off-season programs are perhaps the most critical element of a successful football

program. Football is won with the "Jimmies and Joes" not the X's and O's. In the weight room is where we

cultivate, grow, and turn young men into quality athletes. Those athletes become the building blocks of

championship programs. 

The weight room is the great equalizer. In football it is no secret, typically the team that is faster and

stronger wins. Football programs that are great in the weight room, that are committed to developing the

mobility, flexibility, and power needed through the weight room are the programs that compete every

single year and are tough to beat. 

Bottom line is if you want to be successful you must dominate in the weight room and in your off-season

program EVERYDAY! My football programs will attack the weight room relentlessly. 

In my time at Clay, Matanzas, and Tavares High schools we have consistently seen gains of 30 - 40 lbs

per 12 week cycle. Resulting in dedicated lifters who go from benching 150 lbs at the end of Freshman

year to reaching close to 180-190 by midway through their sophomore year. 210-220 by end of

sophomore year. 240-250 midway through junior year, 270-280 by end of junior year. By the time they

reach their senior year the majority of our dedicated lifters are 300 lbs plus.

At Clay High School where the program has been implemented for a full four years and beyond we have

seen results with as many as 22 athletes reach 300lbs+ on cleans and around 15 over 300 lbs+ on bench

with the largest lifter reaching beyond 400 lbs on bench and 375 lbs on clean. 

The Westside method has been proven time and time again, it has been picked up and incorporated by

top strength coaches such as University of Alabama's Scott Cochran. Every school that I have been to

that has incorporated this program and has been dedicated to it and coaching with energy, tempo, and

technique has seen these type of gains

The Westside Barbell program is the brainchild of powerlifter and strength coach Louie Simmons. The

program's principles are borrowing from Soviet and Bulgarian weightlifting training techniques and

ingeniously adapted to powerlifting. The Westside Barbell philosophy challenges popular beliefs about the

way we think, how a strength training program should be structured and implemented.

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Westside MethodWestside Barbell in Columbus, Ohio is the only gym in the world to have two powerlifters with over 2700 pound totals, five over 2800 pounds, and one who has the biggest total of all time at 3005 lbs. Ever since incorporating Westside methods into our periodization and our workout programs our staffs have been able to produce consistent gains and lifters who never seem to plateau.

The method breaks down as follow. 

Overview

The Westside method incorporates 4 workouts per week, training: Upper body and bench press related exercises in one day Lower body, including squat and deadlift related exercises the another day. Mobility and Technique work are repped in our program every single day. We

have broken up advanced vs. intermediate lifters but the majority of the staffs I have been on have not been deep enough to accomplish this. 

In a football environment we do everything on the whistle, 15 seconds in between to change weights, and stress energy, excitement, and tempo. We do "sudden change" drills in order to be alert to any sudden changes that occur on the field. 

We will also assign a failure drill if an athlete fails or gives up on a weight to stress the importance of winning every rep. 

WorkloadsWorkloads incorporate:

'Maximum Effort' methodo on the main lift which are trained with a large number of sets (8-12 sets)

and very few reps (1-3 reps)o progressing from light to a very heavy weight (90-100 1RM for the last 3-5

sets) 'Dynamic Effort' method

o on the main lift(s) which are trained with a large number of sets (9-12 sets) and very few reps (1-3 reps)

o utilizing 40-60% of 1RM in addition to 25-30%1RM load from accommodating resistance

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accommodation resistance involves increasing the resistance as the movement progresses towards completion by use of chains or anchored bands attached to the barbell.

Repetition methodo After the main lift(s) on both Maximum Effort and Dynamic Effort days,

accessory exercises are performed with more conventional loads (Repetition Method) mostly utilizing 2-4 set of 6-10 repetitions.

o Every fourth week, 'Maximum Effort' work on main movements is replaced by 'Repetition' work for restoration

Maximum Effort and Dynamic Effort workloads on the Main Lifts are alternated within 72 hours of each other.

ExercisesWestside Barbell implements Conjugate System where exercises are cycle frequently, depending on experience level. Exercises or variations are changed every 3 weeks for intermediate trainees and every week for the elite lifter.To train the 3 powerlifts, Westside tends to rely heavily on dozens of subtle variations of the Main Movements:

Box Squat Deadlift Bent-knee Goodmorning (about 40% of time) Bench Press

Exercises variations may include: Grips width

o narrow, medium, wide Stances width

o close, wide, ultra-wide Specialty bars

o safety barbell, cambered barbell, etc Depths and various ranges of motions

o deep, parallel, off floor, on rack, boards, and other elevations Accommodating resistance (contrast method)

o bands and chains alter resistance curve, making it more difficult in range of motion

that is normally easiero two light chains, one for each side of the barbell that hang down and hold

other heavier chains. Heavier chains should be about 5’ in length and weigh about 20

pounds.

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Adjust chains so about three links are on the floor for squat and good morning type exercises

A group of accessory exercises are performed after the main lift(s) for the day. Accessory exercise can be classified into 4 groups depending on their purpose:

Supplementalo Addresses individual weaknesses of athleteo Eg: Glute Ham Raise, Partial Deadlift, Seated Leg Curl, Pull Through,

Zercher Squat, Box Jumpso Others: Sled Pull, Wheel barrel push

Low Backo Eg: Reverse Hyperextension

Abso Eg: Incline Sit-ups, Weighted Crunches, Standing abdominal movements

Pre-habitationo Strengthens stabilizing muscles to decrease injuryo Eg: Lat Pulldown, Seated Row, Reverse Curls, Dumbbell Rear Lateral

Raise, Cable External Rotation

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Power Program Schedule and Structure

January – February

Daily after school weightlifting. Monday and Wednesday. Speed Progression / Load Mechanics / Short Run.

Tuesday and Thursday Football specific drill work. Friday Speed / Agility / Plyometrics.

February – April

Daily after school weightlifting. Mon, Wed, Friday. Speed, Agility, and Toughness Program.

Tuesday, and Thursday Football Specific

Spring Football Schedule

Spring Football. Quick lift Mon, Tue, Wednesday after school and before practice.

Summer Schedule

8AM-12PM: Open in the weightroom;

10AM Field work. Speed/Agility/ Circuit followed by football specific and 7 on 7.

Regular Season

Quick 30 min lifts on Mon, Tue, Wednesday before practice

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Sample – Monday Offseason / Competition WeightliftingUpper Dynamic Focus

Dynamic (See Dynamic)

Mobility- Saigon Squat- Partner Squat- Ankle Stretch- Overhead Squats- Reverse Lunge- Spiderman- Leg Swings (Forward / Side)- Tricep/Lat Stretch- In Rack Clean Stretch

Clean Progression- Shrugs x 10- Above Knee Power Shrug x 5- Clean Pull x 5- Scarecrow and Shoot x 10- 3 Position Clean x9- 3 Position Clean w/ Front Squat x9- Full Squat Clean x9

Bench Tech(Pre Bench)

- Tuck Feet- Roll Chest (Sternum to ceiling)- Heel to Floor – Compress Down- STRANGLE THE BAR

(Bench Set)- PULL BAR OUT (Don’t Lift)- Set the bar (wrist straight/all in line)

(Bench Descent)- Break and Tuck at Elbows- Control descent- Flex Lats on Contact- Push Yourself into The Bench

Flare elbows, drive to eyes, squeeze to finish

Bench – 9 x 3 55% w/ chainsDrop Chains 70/5, 85/3, MAXSS: Bent Over Row 4 x 8SS: Seated Lat Pulls 4 x 8SS: Hammer Curls 4 x 8

Clean Pull and Clean w/ FS 4 x 60%SS: Scarecrow and Shoot 4 x 5Clean Pull and Hang Full Clean 4 x 55%SS: Window Drill 4 x 5Extend Clean and Full Clean 4 x 50%SS: Split Jerks 4 x 5

Landmine Pulls 4 x 8SS: DB Floor Bench 4 x 10Close Grip Incline Bench 4 x 10SS: DB Roll Backs 4 x 8ITY 4 x 15 (5-5-5)Skull Crushers 4 x 10

Ab Circuit 2x Through

On Chest – CrunchesBehind Neck – CrunchesPlate RaisesRussian Twist

BicyclesFluttersLeg DropsLateral Leg Drops

Dynamic Dog – Eyes to SkyMountain ClimbersOpposite Knee Mountain ClimbersButt Kicks

PlankSide Plank

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Sample – Tuesday Offseason / Competition WeightliftingLower Dynamic Focus

DynamicDynamic:

- High Knees- A Skip- B Skip- B.S. - Drop Skips- Lunges + Burst- High Knee Carioca- Skaters- Fast Hands + Bursh- Single Leg Knee Drives + Burst- Starts 1st 5, 1st 5, 1st 10, 1st 10, 40 x 2

Mobility- Saigon Squat- Partner Squat- Ankle Stretch- Overhead Squats- Reverse Lunge- Spiderman- Leg Swings (Forward / Side)

Clean Progression- Shrugs x 10- Above Knee Power Shrug x 5- Clean Pull x 5- High Pull x 10 fast elbows- 3 Position Clean x9- 3 Position Clean w/ Front Squat x9- Full Squat Clean x9

Jerk Progression- Drop Squats - Line Drills - Window Drill- Eye Jerks- Pop Jerks

Back Squat – 11x2 70% (Chains) *THEN NO CHAINS MAXSS: DB Military Press 4 x 5SS: DB Reverse Fly 4 x 5SS: DB Floor Bench 4 x 5

Clean + Jerk – 70/2, 80/2, 85/2, 90/2, 95/1, 100/1, 105/1, 95/1, 90/2, 80/2, 70/2, 60/2SS: Reverse Lunges 4 x 5 each legSS: Partner Band Tri/Curl 4 x 5 eachSS: Calf Raises 4 x 10

Sumo Deadlift – 70/5, 80/3, 90/1, MAX, 90/5 85/10SS: Partner Ham Glute Raise 3 x 6SS: Reverse Hyper Extension 3 x 6

Step Ups 6 x 5 Each LegSS: CG Pushups 3 x FailSS: Kettlebell Pulls 3 x 5 each arm

Front Squat 6 x 5 60% of B.S.SS: Tire Flips 3 x FieldSS: Resisted Backpedal 3 x Field

Ab Circuit 2x Through

On Chest – CrunchesBehind Neck – CrunchesPlate RaisesRussian Twist

BicyclesFluttersLeg DropsLateral Leg Drops

Dynamic Dog – Eyes to SkyMountain ClimbersOpposite Knee Mountain ClimbersButt Kicks

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Sample – Wednesday Offseason / Competition WeightliftingUpper Power Focus

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Dynamic

Mobility- Saigon Squat- Partner Squat- Overhead Squats- Reverse Lunge- Spiderman- Leg Swings (Forward / Side)- Tricep/Lat Stretch- In Rack Clean Stretch

Clean Progression- Shrugs x 10- Above Knee Power Shrug x 10- Clean Pull x 10- Shoulder / Scarecrow / Shoot x 10

fast elbows- Triple Extend / Scarecrow / Shoot- 3 Position Clean x9- 3 Position Clean w/ Front Squat x9- Full Squat Clean x9

Bench Tech(Pre Bench)

- Tuck Feet- Roll Chest (Sternum to ceiling)- Heel to Floor – Compress Down- STRANGLE THE BAR

(Bench Set)- PULL BAR OUT (Don’t Lift)- Set the bar (wrist straight/all in line)

(Bench Descent)- Break and Tuck at Elbows- Control descent- Flex Lats on Contact- Push Yourself into The Bench- Flare elbows, drive to eyes, squeeze

to finish

Bench – 70/5, 80/3, 90/1, 95/1, MAX, MAX+5, 90/FAIL, 80/FAIL, SS: Rear Delt Lat Raise: 4 x 8SS: ITY 4 x 5-5-5

JM Press – 70/5, 75/5, 80/3, 85/2, 90/1, 85/2, 80/3, 75/5SS: Bent Over Row: 4 x 8SS: Hammer Curls 4 x 8 ea. arm

CP and Cleans 12x4 @ 70% chains(2 CP/2 Cleans)

Landmine Pulls 6 x 8SS: Bradford Press 3 x 8SS: Triceps Extension 3 x 8

Incline DB Press 6 x 5 (Heavy)SS: Front Squat 6 x 3 (Clean MAX)

Ab Circuit 2x Through

On Chest – CrunchesBehind Neck – CrunchesPlate RaisesRussian Twist

BicyclesFluttersLeg DropsLateral Leg Drops

Dynamic Dog – Eyes to SkyMountain ClimbersOpposite Knee Mountain ClimbersButt Kicks

PlankSide Plank

Sample – Thursday Offseason / Competition WeightliftingLower Power Focus

Dynamic- High Knees- A Skip- B Skip- B.S. - Drop Skips- Lunges + Burst- High Knee Carioca- Skaters- Fast Hands- Single Leg Knee Drives- Starts 1st 5, 1st 5, 1st 10, 1st 10, 40 x 2- One Knee Lateral Starts 40 x 4

Mobility- Saigon Squat- Partner Squat- Ankle Stretch- Overhead Squats- Reverse Lunge- Spiderman- Leg Swings (Forward / Side)

Clean Progression- Shrugs x 10- Above Knee Power Shrug x 5- Clean Pull x 5- High Pull x 10 fast elbows- 3 Position Clean x9- 3 Position Clean w/ Front Squat x9- Full Squat Clean x9

Jerk Progression- Drop Squats - Line Drills - Window Drill- Eye Jerks- Pop Jerks

Cleans (No Jerk) –55/3, 55/ 3, 65/3, 65/3, 75/2, 75/2, 85/1 (6 sets), 90/1, (6 sets)SS: Box Jumps 3 x 3 HEIGHT! SS: Broad Jumps 3 x FIELD DISTANCESS: Drop Raises in Rack 6 x 1 MAX + 10SS: Partner Band Tri/Curl 3 x 5 eachSS: CG Push Ups 3 x FAIL

Back Squat – 9x2 70% (Chains) *THEN NO CHAINS MAX, MAX+5SS: DB Military Press 5 x 5SS: DB Reverse Fly 5 x 5

Box Deadlift – 70/5, 80/3, 85/2, 90/1, 90/1, 85/2, 80/3, 70/5SS: Partner Ham Glute Raise 4 x 6SS: Reverse Hyper Extension 4 x 6

Step Ups 8 x 5 Each LegFront Squats 8 x 5 (Clean Max +15)

Ab Circuit 2x Through

On Chest – CrunchesBehind Neck – CrunchesPlate RaisesRussian Twist

BicyclesFluttersLeg DropsLateral Leg Drops

Dynamic Dog – Eyes to SkyMountain ClimbersOpposite Knee Mountain ClimbersButt Kicks

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Sample – Friday Offseason / Competition WeightliftingUpper Power Focus

Dynamic

Mobility- Saigon Squat- Partner Squat- Overhead Squats- Reverse Lunge- Spiderman- Leg Swings (Forward / Side)- Tricep/Lat Stretch- In Rack Clean Stretch

Clean Progression- Shrugs x 10- Above Knee Power Shrug x 5- Clean Pull x 5- High Pull x 10 fast elbows- 3 Position Clean x9- 3 Position Clean w/ Front Squat x9- Full Squat Clean x9

Jerk Progression- Drop Squats - Line Drills - Window Drill- Eye Jerks- Pop Jerks

Bench Tech(Pre Bench)

- Tuck Feet- Roll Chest (Sternum to ceiling)- Heel to Floor – Compress Down- STRANGLE THE BAR

(Bench Set)- PULL BAR OUT (Don’t Lift)- Set the bar (wrist straight/all in line)

(Bench Descent)- Break and Tuck at Elbows- Control descent- Flex Lats on Contact- Push Yourself into The Bench

Flare elbows, drive to eyes, squeeze to finish

Bench – 70/5, 80/3, 90/2, 95/1, 97/1, 80/FailSS: Tricep Extensions 3 x 10SS: Hammer Curls 3 x 10

Incline DB Bench 6 x 5SS: Diamond Push Ups 3 x FailSS: Extra Wide 3 x Fail

Cleans 12x2 @ 60% chainsSS: Clean Pulls 12 X 2 @ 60% chains

Landmine Pulls 6 x 8SS: Behind the Neck Press 3 x 10SS: In Front of Neck Press 3 x 10

Weighted Dips 3 x FailSS: Pull Ups 3 x Fail

Band Lat Pull Downs 3 x 10SS: Seated Band UG Lat Pulls 3 x 10

Ab Circuit 2x Through

On Chest – CrunchesBehind Neck – CrunchesPlate RaisesRussian Twist

BicyclesFluttersLeg DropsLateral Leg Drops

Dynamic Dog – Eyes to SkyMountain ClimbersOpposite Knee Mountain ClimbersButt Kicks

PlankSide Plank

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Speed Development

The following is Phase 1 of our running program where we will emphasize speed mechanics and proper running technique.

The element of speed is the most common denominator for success in most sports today. Although there are certain hereditary aspects that limit an athlete's speed potential (limb length, muscle fiber ratio, neuromuscular characteristics, etc.) we can develop a number of components that increase sprinting speed. These are:

1. Strength2. Flexibility3. Motor Behavior

a. Body positionb. Recovery mechanicsc. Ground preparationd. Impulsion (ground contact)e. Arm action

Sprinting includes a number of phases, but the development of the maximum velocity phase is the most important in increasing speed. There are two components of the maximum velocity phase; stride length and stride frequency. Stride length may be improved by increasing the strength, power and flexibility of the lower extremities. A comprehensive weight training program that includes a variety of Olympic and power lifts will provide the means to strengthen the legs. Flexibility is best improved by a combination of static, ballistic and PNF stretching routines, with emphasis on the hip, knee and ankle joints. Stride length is also increased by greater knee lift, which can be enhanced by form running, resistance running and uphill running.

Increased stride frequency may be achieved by retraining the nervous system with proper sprint mechanics. For example, improving recovery leg mechanics increases the angular velocity at the hip joint. Stride frequency improvement also has been obtained through overspeed running (downhill running, towing, parachute drops) which force the legs to move faster than normal.

The following technique guidelines and drill have been designed to improve your range of motion, explosiveness, running mechanics, etc. Follow them exactly and diligently. Along with plyometric training, these drills will help to improve your speed.

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Sprint Technique

Upper Body1. Head - Head should be upright.

2. Eyes - Eyes should be focused on the horizon.

3. Jaw - Jaw should be relaxed; do not grit teeth.

4. Torso - Stomach and back should be tight, requiring strong abdominal and lower back muscles. Hips and shoulders should be tucked under, with pelvis titled forward. Lean the upper body slightly forward ("run tall"), with the shoulders directly over the balls of the foot on the ground. Any forward lean in excess of 6, however, is detrimental to running performance.

5. Shoulders - Shoulders should be relaxed, resting just in front of the hips. Keep the shoulders down, and allow the arms to swing and rotate fully without extension.

6. Arms - Arms should balance the action of the legs. Drive the arms in one direction i.e., the elbows drive backward ("hammer the nail"). Elbows should be fixed at a 90 angle. Do not allow the arms to swing across the body. Fingers should be relaxed, palms facing inward.

Upper Body7. Legs - Concentrate on accelerating thigh down and back during the ground preparation

phase ("claw the ground underneath"). During the recovery phase, concentrate on the "toe up-heel up-knee up" technique.

8. Feet - Feet should make the initial plant slightly in front of the center of gravity (approximately at he hip) and no out in front (over-striding). Keep the foot as straight as possible when pulling the ground behind. The inside of each foot should contact the ground on the same line. The heel should be allowed to ride up toward the butt unrestricted. As the leg moves forward, the foot should pass alongside the knee of the support leg ("step over the opposite knee").

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Corresponding Drills

Upper Body1-3 Concentrate on running relaxed "in and out" sprints (stride-sprint-stride).

Torso4. Too much forward lean: run downhill (no more than 10 grade). Too little forward lean:

run uphill or tow a sled or tire. To get the feel for proper body posture, carry someone on your back (piggy-back). The angle of your torso will be the angle needed when sprinting.

5. Arm swings in front of a mirror; arm swings with dumbbells; bounding with vigorous arm action. Emphasize elbow drive when towing sled or tire.

6. When practicing arm swings in front of a mirror, make palms face inside when the arm is forward. Drive the elbow downward, and at the same time rotate the palm until the palm faces down. Try to touch your pocket with the backside of your thumb. Continue the arm swing until the hand is behind the body and the wrist is flexed.

Lower Body7. Lean forward against a wall or fence. Step back with one foot and quickly bend the knee

and drive the leg forward. This drill may be done with resistance or assistance by using surgical tubing.

High knee running or power skip.

8. Power skip; "Line-buster" one-legged power leg drive; step-ups on box or bench; hip extension machine; glute-ham raise.

Line running drill; heels up drill; hip flexion/extension machine.

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Running Mechanics Drills

Toe Up1. Stand with arms outstretched supporting the body against a wall and assume proper

forward lean2. Bring right foot up to level of opposite knee, maintaining toe-up position3. Return to staring position4. Repeat 15 times, and then perform with left leg

Step Over1. Stand with arms outstretched supporting the body against a wall and assume proper

forward lean2. Bring right foot up to level of opposite knee, then step over knee and return foot to

ground3. Repeat 15 times, and then perform with left leg

Fast Claw1. Stand with left arm extended to side and supporting the body against a wall2. Assume proper forward lean and start with the right thigh parallel to the ground

(blocking position)3. Snap right leg down so it meets the ground at mid-body position (claw the ground

behind you), then recover leg to the starting position.4. Maintain toe up-heel up-knee up cycle5. Repeat 10 times, and then perform with left leg

Seated Arm Swing1. Sit on the floor with the upper body erect and legs outstretched in front of the body2. With the shoulders relaxed, concentrate on driving the elbows (bent at 90) back so the

hand is driven back to the buttocks3. The stretch on the shoulder muscles resulting from this backward drive will naturally

cause the arms to swing forward so that the front hand reaches the level of the chin4. Arms must not cross the body but stay in line with the shoulders

Standing Arm Swing1. Standing with a slight forward lean, swing the arms alternately as in the seated position2. Have a partner stand behind you with his or her hands slightly below the level of your shoulders3. Attempt to hit your partner's hands with your elbows with each backward drive of your arms

Piggyback Drill1. Place a partner on your back (piggy-back style)2. Walk with high knee action and proper arm swing3. The weight of your partner will force you to utilized proper running posture

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Running Mechanics Drills

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Start/Acceleration Drills

Hop-Hop Start1. Assume a four-point starting position2. Kick legs into air twice. When feet touch ground the second time, accelerate from

stance and sprint for 20-30 meters3. Concentrate on coming out low and hard. Initial steps should be short and should

lengthen as you accelerate

Push-up Start1. Assume a four-point starting position2. Perform push-up by touching nose to the ground. When arms straighten, clap hands,

accelerate from stance and sprint for 20-30 meters3. Concentrate on coming out low and hard. Initial steps should be short and should

lengthen as you accelerateLean and Go1. Stand on toes and lean into partner's hands2. After 4-5 seconds, partner will let go and step to side3. When partner lets go, immediately drive arms and run feet underneath you4. Accelerate for 20 meters

Drop and Go1. Stand on toes and lean into partner's hands2. After one second, partner will let go and step to side3. When partner lets go, immediately drive arms and run feet underneath you4. Accelerate for 20 meters

Scramble-up (Push-up)1. Assume a push-up position2. On signal from coach or partner, immediately drive arms and run feet underneath you3. Accelerate for 20 meters

Scramble-up (Prone)1. Assume a prone position2. On signal from coach or partner, immediately drive arms and run feet underneath you3. Accelerate for 20 meters

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Start/Acceleration Drills

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R.A.RE Speed Drills

Uphill Run/Stadium Steps1. Run up a hill (10-15% grade) or a flight of stadium steps using proper sprint mechanics2. Use extreme caution when running stadium steps as tripping may cause serious injury

Harness/Parachute/Sled Drill1. With resistance applied by a harness, parachute or running sled, sprint for the designated distance using proper sprint mechanics2. Start off with short, chopping steps (acceleration phase) and build up into more

powerful strides

Downhill Run1. Run down a hill with a 1-2% grade (the crown of a football field is excellent) using

proper sprint mechanics2. Start off with short, chopping steps (acceleration phase) and build up into more

powerful strides

Harness/Parachute Drill1. Using a partner to tow you with a rubber cord or releasing the parachute after reaching

full speed will allow you to run at a faster speed than you are able to attain under normal circumstances

2. Emphasize proper sprint mechanics throughout drill

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R.A.RE Speed Drills

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SPEED, AGILITY, AND PLYOMETRICS

After the weight room; Athletes will go through our daily dynamic. Then we will begin speed progression; after speed progression we will do load-deload mechanics for the first two weeks.

For the second two weeks we will do our short run program.

Dynamic Warm-Up- High Knees- Butt Kicks- A Skip- B Skip- B.S.- Drop Skips- Lunges + Burst- 1 inch- High Knee Carioca- 1 inch lateral shuffle + burst- Lateral run

Speed Progression- Knee Up, Toe Up, Down- Step Over, Knee Up, Down- Knee Up, Extend, Claw- Claw Drill- Arm Action on whistle- Arm Burst- Wall Runs (1,2,3) *2sets- Burst *2 Sets- Lines: (Form Run, Falling Starts, and 4

bursts) ***If no short run program

Load Mechanics and Plyometrics (2 sets) - Drop Squats and Hold- Deep Squat Jumps and Land- Skaters and Hold- Lateral Hops- Scissor Jumps- Tuck Jumps- Single Leg Forward/Backward Jump and

Hold (Both Legs) - Single Leg Lateral Short Hops

Short Run- Arm Action + Burst x2- Single Leg Knee Drives + Burst x2- Form Run x2- Single Knee Starts x 2- Mountain Climber Start x 2- Butt Kick Starts x 2- Prone Start x2- Single Knee Lateral Start x4- Falling Start x2- 1st 10 x2- All Go

Team Pro Agility- 5 Up at time (at least 10 sets)

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AGILITY AND POWER CIRCUIT

We will conduct agility circuit twice a week. We will rotate between the exercises every 2 weeks to emphasize different muscle groups and explosive movements to make sure the body never adapts. Our Agility and Power Circuit will consist of 5 stations. These can be done either indoors or outdoors; in the summer these will be performed outdoors and be followed by football specific agilities and 7 on 7.

Dynamic Warm-Up- High Knees - Butt Kicks- A Skip- B Skip- B.S. - Drop Skips- Lunges + Burst- 1 inch - High Knee Carioca x2- 1 inch lateral shuffle + burst x2- Lateral run x2- Falling Start x2- Regular Starts x2

Agility and Power Circuit - Pro Agility *We will always do this- L Drill *We will always do this - Star Drill- 10 to Win (Matt Drill)- Tire War- Tire Flips- Sled Pull / Partner Pull (w/ rope) –

Forward/Lateral/Backwards- Sled Push / Partner Push (manual)- Box Jumps and Drops – Lateral Box Jumps

and Drops- Broad Jumps - Med Ball Slams (Down/Lateral)- Med Ball Throws (Vertical/Out)- Medball Jumps - Partner Log Lunges- Farmer Carry- Barbell Lunges- Stadium Runs- 40 yard runs and backwards runs

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References

Dave LaMarre Head Football Coach, Tavares (407) 808-3222Matt Yancey Head Football Coach, Pine Ridge (850) 447-1710Don Mathews Head Weightlifting/DC, Matanzas (386) 503-8130Josh Hoekstra Head Football Coach, Clay (904) 234-5455Tom Carlsen Head Football Coach, WSHS (321) 278-1693Bob Nocella Former Athletic Director, Matanzas (386) 503-4251Jay Stilianou Athletic Director/DC, Clay (904) 445-1028

Jeff Duke Program Director, UCF (321) 278-0495

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Monday, January 18, 2016

To Whom It May Concern,

I am writing to you because I have the pleasure to recommend Jason Compton for the position of Head Football Coach at your school. I have been coaching high school football for almost 25 years, most recently as Head Football Coach at Tavares and St. Francis Catholic High Schools, and I have coached with Jason for several of those seasons.

I have known Jason since 2010, when we first coached together at Winter Springs High School. Jason coached the Defensive Line for all three of the seasons that we were at Winter Springs, and did a great job developing our young lineman. He also helped with the Offensive Line and in the Weight Room with our Strength and Conditioning program. Jason went on and served in similar capacities at Clay and Matanzas High School over the next couple of years.

This past season, Jason was our Special Teams Coordinator and Defensive Line Coach here at Tavares and was a great addition to our staff. Almost immediately, our defensive line improved their techniques, keys, and attitude. Jason also ran all of our Special Teams Units, created our schemes, scouted opponents and prepared our players accordingly, and overall greatly helped to improve our team.

Jason has a tremendous knowledge of the game, and is always eager to learn more. As long as I have known him, he has always attended coaches’ clinics, read books, subscribed to coaching websites, in short, anything to learn the newest techniques and innovations. He understands every aspect of a football program from coaching at each level and the experience that he has gained in his career.

Jason also has a great rapport with the players, and gets along well with everyone. He knows when to praise the players, when to push them or even get on them when they aren’t performing as they should be. Jason also worked well with all of our staff, cooperating and sharing ideas and duties, and adding to what was a very good group of coaches.

He also is an excellent ESE teacher. Like coaching, Jason is up-to-date with and uses the latest learning strategies in Special Education with his students. He is an educator first and foremost, and makes sure that all of his students and players are successful in the classroom so they can move on from high school to college or whatever comes next for them.

In conclusion, Jason Compton is the right person to fill the vacancy that you have at your school. He has all the attributes, knowledge, and experience necessary, in addition to, a passion for what he does, high energy, and an overall concern for the student-athletes. He is ready to be a Head Coach and I know that he will do a great job for you. If you have any further questions about Jason, please feel free to contact me, (407) 808-3222. Thank you for your time and consideration. Sincerely,

David LaMarre

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To Whom it May Concern,

I am writing you in regards of Jason Compton and his candidacy for your position of Head Football Coach. As a coach with many years of experience including playing in college under Rex Ryan and winning a National Championship as a pop warner coach, I could not recommend a better coach for your football program than Coach Compton.

When I worked with Coach Compton at Matanzas High school he demonstrated the vision and leadership necessary to lead a group of young men to goals they never thought they could achieve. He is completely devoted to the success of his students and works religiously to be the best coach he can be. He will work endlessly to promote the growth of your football program and will do the little things the right way. He is a lifelong student of the game, excellent on the whiteboards, and was an integral part of our staff.

He was a crucial part of helping us change the culture here at Matanzas and has the vision necessary to carry a football program to great heights. He is outstanding at preparing his players for the football field and for life. His voice, his character, and his innovation are sorely missed at Matanzas High School.

Sincerely,

Don MathewsHead Weightlifting CoachAssistant Head Football CoachDefensive CoordinatorMath Teacher at Matanzas High School

(386) 503-8130

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