Wednesday, September 30, 2009


Shawn Walker getting ready to pass.
Ammon McKinlay in the background.

Monday, September 28, 2009

BLUE RIDGE GAME OVERVIEW

Nobody wants to lose but, if you do lose, it's nice to be able to walk off the field with your head up. 

We learned something about ourselves and how fast we can play the game.  We learned something about how far our program has come.  I'm not going to spend too much time doing "If only..."  because we learned what we needed to learn and we walked away from the game with respect.  Self respect. 

We now are very confident in our abilities.  We made mistakes in alignment that we can fix.  We made mistakes in execution that we can fix. 

I'd expect to see a much improved team for homecoming.   

Thursday, September 24, 2009

STATS, RECORDS, AND RUNNING UP THE SCORE

I've never been one to put much stock in stats for high school players.  If it were up to me we wouldn't keep track of any of them because they turn the game into a horserace.  Everybody worries about who's ahead and who's behind.  I was raised in the John Wooden camp of, "play every down hard and the score will take care of itself."  Having said that, I believe that creating a winning program is important.  It reflects the skill level, hard work and mental toughness that you've taught your young men.  Besides, it's fun. 

The really fun games are the ones that take all your skills to win.  The coaches use strategy, the players use skill, the fans cheer their brains out and win or lose you come away better for it.  On the flip side, we've all been a part of boring blowouts where the game is out of reach by the end of the first half.  In my opinion this is where you utilize a totally different set of skills as a coach and try to keep the game fun and interesting. 

I've run all my linemen as running backs and receivers.  I've played the kid that has never played and helped him get 50 yards.  I've let the worst kickers kick.  I've even had the majority of the freshmen team take the field.  I've kept my third string in at the expense of a shutout. 

I've also been on the other side of the blowouts.  You just try to survive.  I've always appreciated the coaches that have realized that the game was over and tried to work on their plays without humiliating me and my kids. 

Those experiences, both the good and the bad, have helped me to keep a little perspective. 

The bully wins the games when he plays the 1st graders.  He should!  He's more skilled, bigger, and faster.  But no matter how much he tries, he'll never win the respect from his peers for wins, records, or stats he gained playing the little kids.  No matter how many newspapers cover it. 

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

REPUTATION CAN'T TAKE THE FIELD

This is the week of the question, "Well coach, how are you guys going to do against Blue Ridge?" 
I love that question because I get to talk about how good we've been practicing and how much I enjoy a good game. 

I spent a few minutes at practice this week teaching the kids about reputations.  I thought it might be worth repeating what we talked about.   

Blue Ridge has a great reputation as a winning program.  You've really got to give their coaching staff and kids credit for creating and continuing a great tradition.  Their kids are fast and strong.  I have a lot of respect for all of them. 

Over the past three years I've watched our program turn a huge corner.  The athletes enjoy playing and THEY AREN'T AFRAID OF A REPUTATION.  Our athletes have earned the right to line up against a great team and believe they can win.  We're just as fast if not faster.  We're just as strong if not stronger. And we are just as big if not bigger.  

So, when you ask me how we will do, don't be surprised when I say, "We're going to win!"  

Congrats to the Freshmen

I forgot to give congratulations to the Freshmen team who played Show Low on Saturday and won 30-14.  Great job guys!

FINALLY COMING TOGETHER

In our game against Globe we finally got it all together.  Our running and passing game were clicking and our defense was dominating.  With more practice we'll be able to take our program to the next level of execution.  I'm looking forward to playing a great team like Blue Ridge.  They are a great opponent and that will bring the best out of us. 

Friday, September 18, 2009

CONGRATS TO THE JV

The JV had a great game last night beating Globe 56-0.  Congratulations guys. 

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

WINSLOW GAME IN REVIEW

The game against Winslow showed us that fixing a few things can make a huge difference.  We ran the same plays against Holbrook but with one more week of experience and a few more reps we were a lot more successful.  Everyone is excited about the turn around we saw in one week but nobody's more excited than I am.  Great win guys. 

Friday, September 11, 2009

CONGRATS TO THE JV AND FROSH

The JV team beat Winslow 57-0 last night and the Freshmen beat St. Johns 44-48.  Great job guys. 

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Week 2: HOLBROOK GAME IN REVIEW

We learned a lot from a very good Holbrook team.  We are definitely still working out the kinks of our offense but I think the potential is there to be explosive.  Overall I was pleased with the intensity we played with and the effort the atheltes put out.  When we watched film there were very few, if any, times that our players weren't hustling.

With a few more reps and more game experience this squad will do very well.  Take my word for it. 

Friday, September 4, 2009

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE JV/FROSH

It's great to see the younger teams succeed.  Everyone played well.  This game was unique because we combined the JV and Freshmen teams.  It presented some challenges for us because we wanted to give the Freshmen team an opportunity to have a game experience this week but we knew it would be hard to get them all in the game.  I have to applaud the coaches at making such an effort.  For those that didn't get to play, we're looking forward to the game against St. Johns and Winslow next week.