Minnesota's Football Coach Analysis

Coaching philosophies differ all over the world, from one sport to another. They are the central foundation to any good coach’s success in his/her respected programs. A coach’s philosophy does not only guide and lead the other members of the staff in the right direction, but it also allows each athlete to know what is expected of them, and how they should behave. By being aware of a coach’s philosophy, the athlete is fully responsible for his/her actions both on and off the field of play. In the words of the great Nick Saban, "It 's about what you control, every minute of every day. You always have to have a winning attitude and discipline, in practices, weight training, conditioning, in the classroom, in everything. It 's a process."

Certainly, not all coaches could fulfil all these philosophies at once; some qualities would be more evident in some coaches than others. I could relate, what I considered the most important aspects in relation to the coaches I experienced in my junior football. However, I needed first hand information regarding AFL players and coaches. Therefore, my interviews became an important part in answering my question.

Coaching happens all over the world and for all sports and at any age. With coaching being everywhere there will be bad coaches. One instance was when coach Raul Aragon got frustrated with an umpire at a baseball game and was thrown out. He than chased the umpire around until police arrived, he was coach of an 8 year old baseball team. Another experience with a bad coach is when Kevin Pope, an assistant football coach, was pointing a bb gun at a player for having bad grades. (Mark McCarter, 'Terrible Coaches' has too many unbelievable stories even for

Coach King was one of the greatest coaches I have ever had. He came off as this mean and grumpy old man at first but we ended up changing how we viewed him. He made it clear to us that we just had understand his meaning of the word GAS. GAS meant grades, attitude, and then skill. Grades of course were the most important thing because no pass no play was the rule. Most of the guys had no problems with this but there was quite a few that had some trouble. When one was struggling we all had to step up and help if we wanted to have a full squad for our next few games. We did many things to help them including getting help from tutors or teachers when in danger of failing. As the year went on, many obstacles were thrown at us and we counted on each other to get through them.

With the right influence, communication and skill development is the key to a valuable coach. Without my two outstanding high school coaches, I wouldn’t have the love for basketball and track the way I do today. They have taught me everything I needed to know for the present, along with tips for the future. Coach Lewis and Coach Kohler have done more for me than what I’ve ever deserved and I will never be able to pay them back for all their help and encouragement. But I hope they have understanding of how much of a change they can make on someone's life, someone's life like my

Joe Ehrmann describes how he has developed his philosophy of coaching by relating the story of his life in his youth, high school and in college describing two different types of coaches he had played for. The first are coaches who were impersonal, authoritarian, and sometimes abusive which he calls transactional coaches; this is in contrast to the humane coaches he calls transformative coaches. Coaches must face this responsibility because we all remember our coaches. “This is the awesome power and responsibility of coaching: You give your players memories, for better or for worse that stay with them until the day they die” (Ehrmann, 2011 p 46-47). Joe Erhmann goes on to ask, “What is the moral and ethical composition of their program?

Coach Dix believes that this style of coaching helps him motivate his young team. Being that crazy, funny, heady, and intense coach gets the young teens pumped and ready to run through a wall for him. When we talked about the difficult situations he has had to endure while coaching, Dix described two situations that occurred during his tenure at East Hall; Coach Dix mentioned a time when his star player who happened to win the Georgia Player of the year the previous year, kicked a ball during practice and broke out a window in the gym. He stated this was a difficult and sticky situation because the team played its big rival in two days. He said he did not sleep well the next few nights because of the impact a suspension would have on his squad. Another situation Dix had to deal with was a parent during a game, walked to the bench, grabbed their son and told the player to get dressed, we’re transferring from this school. Dix said that this was new territory for him and at that time he did not know what to do. To conclude the interview, I asked Dix two final questions. I asked him what were his ultimate goals for his team and what advice would he give to a first year coach? “Championships and graduation,” Coach Dix stated. As for advice for a first year coach, Dix said “Preparation was KEY.” “Great coaches are always prepared for anything and everything!”

He is a terrific Defensive Line coach where he pushes kids to the best of their abilities. When I got hurt last year, Coach Payne was the first to visit. He also then assisted me in my pursuit of a coaching career. He taught me everything I needed to know in order to embark on my journey. He also has assisted me and so many others in loving the game of football. One way he gets players to love the game is simply by having a voice for the players. He will always tell you how he truly feels about your situation and how to exceed the limitations you have. His attitude and voice will always push you to the maximum of your abilities. One such moment was against Iowa Central, He comes in and says the prayer before the game. Normal stuff until he says a few key words after we break. He said, “Are you ready to earn a bowl game. Are you ready to win this rivalry?” At this time the team in unison, “Yes sir!”

The Flour Bluff varsity coach is like no one I have ever met before; to say he is not the typical coach would be

As the movie progressed and Coach Boone’s vision came together, Coach Yoast slowly but surely began to show more support. Coach Boone’s consistent preaching, that he did not view the team as black and white players, but instead, simply as football players who must form cohesion and take actions not for self, but for team, eventually rubbed off on Coach Yoast. This is where the culture in the coaching staff began to form. Trust also began to build and the three coaches, now more cohesive themselves were able to accomplish much more in order to coach their players much more constructively. By the time the Titans had made it to the championship, all three coaches had put their differences aside, bought in to the vision and culture, and were able to coach their players to victory.

They Call Me Coach is a book written by a coach, as he remembers some of the stories, people, and lessons from his years of coaching. He spends time teaching the importance of the relationship a coach has with his players. For example, in chapter 1, he recounts a situation in which he had to pull one of his great players from a big game because of the player having a rough performance, despite the fact that he had been an excellent player throughout the season. Even though the team won their big game, Wooden seemed unable to get over the concern he had about pulling his player from the game as he thought about the player’s disappointment. His concern for his player was greater than the joy he experienced over the win.

His non-verbal communication was just his facial expressions that his players and assistant coaches can see. His team was losing for most of the game and you could tell he was not happy. Penn State returned the opening kick off and he looked disappointed, but he kind of kept his composure. Later in the 2nd quarter during another kick return that was returned pretty far by Penn State his anger was a little more visible as he was yelling and appeared very angry. Later once Ohio State started to play better you could see his attitude change and he got happier. I’m not sure if his negative attitude made his team play worse, it is just something to think about whenever I am a head coach.

In Case 7 “Perceptions of Leaders Following Public Failures: A Tale of Two Coaches”, two leaders both college football coaches of their respective teams were encountered with scrutiny, as they lacked a certain level sensitivity regarding serious incidents within their program. The case study talks about both Mike Leach and Gary Barnett’s background as coaches and progress to the events with their program that lead to them being involved in the public failure. This eventually led to people having various perceptions of both coaches based off of how they dealt with the incidents. As a result of both programs image being tarnished, Mike Leach was fired, however; Gary Barnett’s job was retained.

Coaching, however challenging, is a great way to influence the lives of others while also building their character. For as long as there have been sports, there have been people teaching the sport to the players and making them better at it. Coaches must have certain qualities in order to obtain success. One must also look at a coach’s motivation for his job, his passion for what he does, his methods for coaching, and how he became a coach in order to fully understand him. There are many questions someone may want to ask a coach about his profession if they are interested in coaching. Some questions would include: Why did he choose this as a profession? How did he get into coaching? What does one have to do to get a job as a coach? How

Coaching a football team can be and become very stressful. Coaches normally strategize and research other teams that they previously played or have not played, but becoming aware of their many technigues used on the field. The coach can also make the wrong call that would interfer with the plan that they originally set out to accomplish. The coaching staff have to be on one accord when drafting players for their team, if the coach put the wrong group of players together, it could destroy the team as a whole.