Youth Football: Practice Mode vs. Game Mode Mindset

Practice Mode vs. Game Mode

The athlete needs time to work on technique, to sweat the details on footwork, route breaks, and focused skill development (that is practice mode).  The athlete also needs to be able to shut down all the heavy thinking required in practice mode during the game. 

A different mindset is required for practice mode vs. the game mode.  Practice, “purposeful practice”, is the time to breakdown all the required skills for whatever position your athlete plays.  And this is why, when engaged in practice, it is purposeful, focused and isolated on specific skill sets. 

Practice mode is when the coach and athlete spend time thinking through what is being done while simultaneously doing that task.  It involves walk-thrus, rewinds, and some tedious, minor adjustments to motor functions while thinking through the “what, why and how” of those adjustments. 

“Game Mode,” on the other hand, relies entirely on instinct and confidence.  When in game mode, the last thing the athlete should do is get back up in his/her head and start questioning their abilities. 

And this why all that prep work, (physical and mental), ahead of time is so critical.  Game mode requires a short-term memory (the delete button) so the athlete can stay focused on the most important play of the game – the next play. 

Understanding the developing the “mental silos” of Practice Mode and Game mode is not a magic formula.  It doesn’t prevent slumps, exhaustion, physical mistakes and shortcomings, or remove costly mental lapses. 

Practice/Game Mode is simply a tool for the athlete to create separation between the mindset required for effective practices vs. effective games.  It helps the athlete avoid physical and mental whipsaw adjustments – the athlete understands that today I am in practice mode mindset so I’m allowed to question the (what, how and why) of my golf swing.  And tomorrow I will be in game mode mindset so I’ll be allowed to let go and confidently rely on today’s practice preparation and adjustments.

And keep in mind that minor adjustments will always be required during a game (the opposition gets a vote, after all!)  The point is the 7^th inning of a state baseball championship is probably not the time for a struggling fastball pitcher to lose confidence, retool and transition into a knuckleballer.

Coach John Wooden on Winning and Success - TED Talks

UCLA's legendary Coach John Wooden on the difference between winning and succeeding.  From TED Talks.

https://www.ted.com/talks/john_wooden_on_the_difference_between_winning_and_success

NCAA Scholarship & Recruiting Webinar

Good, free NCAA Scholarship & Recruiting webinar for both sports parents and high school coaches.

www.freerecruitingwebinar.org

Some Well Known Bench Players

It's tough ridding the bench as a student-athlete.  But as a youth football coach it is amazing the changes every season with developing players - the star one year is a role player the next, the role player becomes the star.  And back and forth it goes.  When in a supporting, bench role, remind the player that sometimes the experts, well they just get it wrong.

Some examples:

The Portland Trailblazers passed on Michael Jordan
Tom Brady was a 6th round draft pick
Apple fired Steve Jobs
Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper for being...."unimaginative!"
Anaheim first rejected Disneyland as a stupid idea
and on it goes.

Find ways to use examples of how getting "passed over" is just part of the youth sports journey. 

Student-Athletes and Child Support in "Move Away" Cases

Raising student-athletes in CA is expensive.  Very expensive.  So let's say you are the custodial parent and wish to move out of state to a less pricy part of the country.  Keep in mind that there may be a "move away" adjustment to child support in this kind of situation.

Child Support is designed to reflect CA's high cost of living compared to other states.  If the custodial parent moves out of state to a location with a lower cost of living, the non-custodial parent may bring an action to reduce the monthly child support payment (lower cost of living = less need for child support).  The moving party must bring evidence showing the lower cost of living in comparison to where the custodial parent previously lived with the student-athlete.

Also, when the custodial parent moves far away, requiring an increase in travel cost to the non-custodial parent for visitations with the student-athlete, this additional travel cost may also be a basis to reduce monthly child support payments...

NCAA Athletic Scholarships & Recruiting Services

Pretty good article from a while back re: "pay for play" recruiting services.

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2011/jan/31/trying-win-scholarship-game/

Wide Receiver Offseason Drills

Teaching Progression:  heart surgeons don’t bang around the chest cavity on the first day of med school, and fighter pilots don’t land $40M jets on aircraft carriers following boot-camp. 

Skill development requires sequenced steps of progression.  Start at the end and press rewind.  Map out the skills required (and the “why”) to achieve the goal and work backward.  For a WR to get separation from a DB he needs a clean break at the top of the route; to get a clean break at the top of the route a WR needs to be under control with proper balance, speed and leverage against the DB…and continue working backwards to stance and start.

Again, start at the end and press rewind.  Explain the desired end result.  Then explain the steps required working backwards from Z to A.  Then get to work, moving from A to Z, in sequence and developing those skills in isolation.  Once all the skills are learned, put them all together:

Stance and Start à

Release vs. Press Coverage à

Route Stem à

Route Break à

Hand Placement à

Ball Control à

Yards After Catch à

and……Touchdown Dance. 

Well, maybe Act like you been there…not like you just arrived!