By Bill Walsh, Consultant, Former Head Coach And General Manager,
San Francisco 49ers, San Francisco, Calif.
MOST COACHES DILIGENTLY prepare to teach techniques and install plays for the early practices. From a technical standpoint, coaches usually enter the season well prepared.
One area most of us don’t prepare nearly as well in is indoctrinating players mentally into the philosophy and parameters of our programs. The lack of attention in this area shows up all the time.
Coaches must condition the minds of their athletes, and it’s an ongoing process. You cannot read 8 to 10 rules before a team practice or include a type-written page in the playbook and expect your responsibilities in this area to be complete. As coaches, we need to constantly teach and reiterate the necessary framework for the entire football program.
Preparing Players To Learn Your System
Early on, coaches should highlight some of the main teaching points that are “must-haves” for their program. These are items so important to your program that you want them to become second-nature for your athletes. To do so, you must craft your thoughts on each point and say it many different ways, many times a season. Below is a sample of some of the things we’ve held up as important to our program.
Standard Of Performance. First and foremost, a clear expectation of your program is absolutely critical to any football team. This standard should be understood by players and encompass everything that your staff feels is important, from how your players wear their uniforms to how they behave and communicate. The very basis of your program, this clearly defined expectation should be known and acknowledged every time your players take the field.
This standard also can serve as a “behavior guide” for things such as how to play the game when your team is up, or down, by 20 points. A standard of performance still demands proper execution from the first to the last series of a game, regardless of the score.
The greatest coaching example I’ve ever seen was Jimmy Johnson in his rookie season with the Dallas Cowboys in 1989. Even at the end of a 1-15 season, Johnson’s players continued to give absolute effort and played their hearts out for each other. This high standard carried Dallas through to a Super Bowl four seasons later.
The standard of performance is the fiber that holds a team together, particularly in rough times.
Academics. You can’t just talk once or twice a year talk about the importance of academics. It must be addressed continually and in different ways so that your players won’t tune the message out. Discuss how players should get help before it becomes a problem. Dealing in this area needs to become a “science” for coaches.
Sacrifice. Football requires year-round sacrifice for success. One inspirational talk won’t get the job done. Sacrifice needs to be repeatedly emphasized, and players must understand the point of sacrificing themselves for the benefit of the team and each other.
Skill Development. The very essence of coaching is isolating the skills related to the program and then finding an efficient and practical way of teaching them. That’s the toughest job. The best coaches impart their knowledge to the team and know how to fully develop players.
Players must be reminded that every position comes down to a game of skills. That’s why you’d see Joe Montana, at age 38, working on his mechanics and footwork every day after practice and why Jerry Rice, at age 40, would continue to refine his patterns — without a ball on the field.
Team Roles. Every team has numerous roles, including freshmen, backup players (some temporary and some permanent), starters and outstanding players. A coach should work to develop an appreciation within the squad for each team member’s role. As an example, a coach should discuss with the whole squad how important the freshmen are to the program and how to help them, motivate them and keep them focused on developing and enhancing their skills.
Backup players must always be ready to play. We say that every player on the team can win or lose the next game for the team. That’s true whether the player is a starter, special teams player, backup or even a scout team member.
Team Execution. The great teams have beautiful execution, and they practice the same things over and over with enthusiasm. Winning teams explode off the ball and beat the other team to the punch. Players need to learn to hit the opponent before he’s ready to get hit, to nail the guard before he can block someone. A team doesn’t need to be fast, just move and explode.
Group Combinations. There are certain position combinations, such as the quarterbacks and wide receivers, which must rely on each other to succeed. Back when I was a high school coach, two of my players worked the entire off-season on our passing game. We won the next season because these two players worked together, understood each other and could make the plays.
Team Relationships. In an increasingly multicultural and diverse environment, it’s absolutely vital that coaches enhance communication and speak openly of players working together. Players must know and understand each other. This can be done at meal time and in certain activities before and after practice. Do everything you can to “tighten up” your football team. The last thing you want to see are cliques forming, but it tends to happen if a coach isn’t on top of the situation.
Communication. Communication among the staff is very important. Coaches work tremendously long hours in close quarters and there will at times be fatigue and the flaring of nerves and tempers. The head coach must be in constant communication with assistants and work to defuse conflicts before they occur and limit such problems because these things detract from the program’s goal. The coach must also work on communication within the game itself.
Players must feel comfortable talking with each other, and a presence of open communication off the field pays dividends on it. At Stanford, after each practice, we’d select two players to say a few words on what the upcoming game meant to them. We’d include everyone throughout the season, including players who’d never see any playing time. Again, others can’t help but appreciate a guy who’s working hard when he might not ever play.
Intensity. Expected intensity levels must be understood for practices and games. Players must learn your expectations for practice and know when to control their intensity and emotions. Talk about it with the team as a group.
Personal Problems. There are things that a coach always finds out too late, such as difficulties at home, girlfriend problems, partying and other things. Make an effort to cultivate a relationship so players feel comfortable coming to you when they need help and guidance.
While a coach needs to be trusted not to share someone’s problems with others, talking generically in front of the group can head off others’ problems too.
School Tradition. There’s something good to say about every program. Former players can help with this, too. This should be talked about throughout the year, including after practices and on the bus before games. The whole program should take pride in the school and its tradition.
Dealing With Injuries. Procedures and expectations need to be continually addressed. Beyond being visible in the training room, coaches should also discuss issues regarding doctors and trainers, expectations, who is and is not taking treatment, and returning to practice.
Inspiration. A coach may have an inspirational message, but it’s often forgotten by the time the kids run onto the field. On my best teams, the inspiration came from the players, and often the ones you wouldn’t expect it from, like quiet individuals and backup players.
Regulations. Like the standard of performance, your team’s Code of Ethics and Conduct can’t be relegated to a page in the playbook. The responsibilities for each team member must be seen as meaningful by players.
The CEO/Coach
The head coach is like a CEO who has number of expert people working for him. The job relies heavily on orchestrating, organizing and communicating the vision. It’s full time work and requires methodical, well-orchestrated thinking on numerous levels to prepare a team for success over a sustained period of time.
This responsibility is significant to your program’s success. How you train and develop your players, both mentally and physically, create habits for their behavior that they will adhere to on and off the field.
Bill Walsh is the Hall of Fame coach who won three NFL titles and compiled a 102-63-1 career record. He also coached Stanford University for five seasons. Formerly VP/GM for the 49ers, he is now a consultant to the team.
Venues for Effective Communication
How and where your lessons are conveyed is as important as the message itself. Beyond the traditional ways like the bulletin board and playbook (don’t rely on it, by the way), here are several other venues for communicating to your team about vital issues.
Team Meetings. Keep your discussions in meetings brief and succinct. You generally have 5 to 8 minutes on a topic you start to lose players and begin repeating yourself.
On the Field. Telling players to take a knee after practice is the best time to talk to team, but the discussion should last no longer than 5 minutes.
Group Unit Meetings. Stopping at a group unit meeting is a good place to communicate a brief message about one of the categories. The head coach should be certain to take a visible role in both offensive and defensive meetings, even if a certain side of the ball is not his specialty.
Individual Exchanges. Certain players respond better from one-on-one discussions. Know each player and call him by name. You must show interest in the player if you expect him to sacrifice for you.
Team Leaders. Players can be effective teachers of sacrifice, commitment, focus and communication. Leadership comes from the group, however, and some players that coaches wouldn’t readily identify as leaders, are the real team leaders.
Outside Speakers. The athletic director, academic counselor and health expert can be effective choices for quick, 10-minute speeches on certain topics.
Parents. Know when and why to call, including the positives. Know that players will hear everything you say to their parents.
