Football 101. Michael Ashley
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Ninth Commandment
Know Your Enemy.
Key players, plays and defenses help coaches build their game plans and set the agenda for the week of practice. There should be no surprises on game day.
Tenth Commandment
Inspire and Have Fun.
Joe Namath was going to quit his high school team until his coach said “he saw something in him”. The rest is history. Inspired players will run through walls for their teammates and coaches.
Eleventh Commandment
Manage the Game With a Calm Confidence.
Players get emotional, coaches need to stay focused on managing the game and the clock. When I die, I want to have two time outs left!
Twelth Commandment
Discipline and Focus Beat Bigger, Stronger, Faster.
Disciplined teams eat bigger faster teams for breakfast. Know who to hit and how to hit them.
Thirteenth Commandment
Show Class in Victory and Give NO Excuses in Defeat.
Coaches with class, attract players and parents with class. Giving excuses for losses shows a lack of class.
Fourteenth Commandment
Extra Points Win Championships.
Ask any coach that has lost a championship by an extra point.
Fifteenth Commandment
Communication is Key!
It doesn’t matter what you know if you cannot communicate the plan to the players and coaches. Parents will eat you alive if you can not communicate with them.
I didn’t run over, I evolved.
It’s like the old saying: When you wrestle with a gorilla, you don’t stop when you get tired, you stop when the gorilla gets tired.
Story Behind The Third Commandment
Thou Shalt Keep It Simple
In 2006 we were stacked with experienced, talented players. Jimmy Boone at QB Darius Smith at WE and Ronnie Cooke pounding guys as our FB/MLB We expanded our playbook and went places we had never been able to go in the past. We were undefeated and about to take on the other undefeated team at Waters Field on a Saturday night. They were very good and had a QB who would later be the All Metropolitan Player of the Year for the entire Washington DC area.
They came out and executed as we knew they would. For some reason we were not clicking on all cylinders. In fact, we sucked. We were “throwing up on the field”, which is a term for a team with information overload who can not even run their most basic plays. We had broken the Third Commandment.
“Oh, we played like three tons of buzzard puke this afternoon.”
- Spike Dykes/Texas Tech
Luckily there was a photographer there that night, and we got a good look at the problem. The other team’s defense was where we thought they would be but our linemen were blocking the wrong people, our backs were going to the wrong hole or our QB was turning the wrong way.
We went back to the beginning, back to the basics. We worked on basic dive, ice and bam plays. We practiced simple dump passes and flag routes that have been a staple of our program.
We met the team in the playoffs. They were the #1 seed with a 7-0 record. We started running our basic plays. An Ice up the middle that required the center and guard to block away from the open A gap. Ronnie, the fullback, would lead the 2 back through the gap and crush the linebacker. They ran it to perfection, 8-0. When we got the ball back we ran a dive play to Ronnie. This time the MLB stepped out of his way, only he had the ball. 50 yard TD, 16-0. 4th and 2. The linebackers are crowding the line trying to stop us. Jimmy throws a dump to Darius, 24-0. By halftime we were winning 32-0. We ran probably 4 plays out of different formations. We dominated them by “Keeping it Simple”.
Story Behind the Fourth Commandment
Dance With What Brung Ya
In 1982 our high school team was ranked #1 in it the Washington Metropolitan area by George Michael, America’s best sportscaster. They were playing another powerhouse in the regional playoffs. In the pouring rain, the team was behind by 4 and driving down the field 6-8 yards per run using two running backs that would both play at D 1 colleges. When they got to the 12 yard line, with 1:30 to play, the team began to pass. After 3 pass attempts, it was 4th and very long. Needless to say the team lost the ball on downs, the game on points and the confidence of the players and fans.
Even the greatest team in a school’s history can be brought down by breaking rules.
Player’s Ten Commandments
First Commandment
Take Personal Responsibility for Yourself
Players need to take responsibility for being at practice on time, with equipment ready and giving 100% to lock down their game responsibility.
Second Commandment
Work Hard
Some kids were born on third and think they hit a triple. Players need to develop a strong work ethic if they are to proceed to the next level.
Third Commandment
Put Team First
Every body wants to run, catch and play QB. Players need to assume the position the coach assigns them and play it with pride. Our best kids are on our offensive line.
Fourth Commandment
Listen To and Follow Directions
There is no one right way to do things. Many coaches will have different philosophies of what works for their team. As Cliff would say: “If we are going to tell a lie, we are all telling the same lie”. Listen to the way your coach wants it done and do it!
Fifth Commandment
Show No Fear, No Mercy
Football players need to keep their emotions focused on accomplishing the goal: Perfect execution.