Institute for Sport Coaching

Coaching, how to talk to players

Paul McCaffrey — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 17:04:20 +0000

A coach is recorded in uncontrolled rant. Saying nasty and hurtful things in the locker room.

She took her team’s effort a personal insult to her and wigged out. She lost her job and the player that recorded her received a two-day detention.

The important lesson is not that she got caught, but how she spoke to her team. We do have to be cognizant that more and more of life is recorded and can be played back and edited on a whim.

Listen to the recording what do you think?

How Tom Brady thinks-why it is important not to write a kid like him off

Paul McCaffrey — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 21:25:07 +0000

I have met Don Yaeger, read his work and follow his blog. He is insightful as a moto speaker, author and journalist.

He take a few snapshots from Tom Brady’s life to illustrate how Brady thinks and evolves.

Read before the Super Bowl, follow Don on Facebook and his blog.

http://donyaeger.com/chasing-greatness/entry/chasing-greatness/what-we-can-learn-from-patriots-quarterback-tom-brady-on-success#comments

Virginia Tech study of youth football hits-must viewing

Paul McCaffrey — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:01:41 +0000

Awesome report by Stone Phillips. Football, hockey & lacrosse players, parents and coaches. You need to watch this about concussion study of E team Pop Warner players out of Virginia Tech. They followed seven players during practices and games. Over 700 hits happened over course of a season with most of the head hits came during practice.

Keeping Aware of New Sports Research–New Service for Coaches

BetterCoaching — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 02:21:14 +0000

The Institute is proud to announce the launch of its newest service, the Sport Coach USA Intelligence Update. Based upon successful efforts in Australia and the United Kingdom, the Sport Coach USA Intelligence Update is designed to keep sport coaches, whether you are youth or high school coach, up to date on the latest research in sport. Produced monthly, the Intel Update is created by the Institute’s Research & Information Team who monitors and reviews over 100 leading sport journals, magazines, websites and databases.

Topics covered in the Intel Update include:

Sport Psychology
Sports Nutrition
Sport Biomechanics & Physiology
Strength & Conditioning
Women & Girls in Sport
New Technology for Coaches
Youth Sports
Drugs In Sports
General Coaching
Sport Specific (to be added in later in 2012)

Check out the three free issues posted online on the Institute’s website.

Please feel free to send me feedback on this new exciting way for coaches to stay up to date on the latest in sport science and research.

Simple Observations of A Div 1 Women’s Basketball Coach

BetterCoaching — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 22:21:00 +0000

We often drive into Boston to watch sporting events at Boston College, my wife’s alma mater. We like to watch the female sports with our teen daughter as a way of reinforcing in her mind that it is okay to be physically active.

So this past Sunday, we caught BC Women’s Basketball vs. Georgia Tech. As you can imagine, when I got to games, at any level, I tend to watch the coaches as much as the athletes. Hey, what can I say, it’s free research!

The BC coach, Sylvia Crawley, has a great reputation on and off the court among, at least, this BC household. It was great to observe her and how she engaged with her team and her coaching staff during the game. Coach Crawley was calm throughout the game right up till the end when the the BC loss was evident. She clearly communicated with her players and assistants. Of note, I found of great interest was the manner in which she ran her timeouts. First, the defensive coach, Timothy Eatman, talked to the players while Coach Crawley met with the other assistants to the side. Only in the last part of the timeout did she engage her team.

This struck me as very interesting. My first assumption would be that Coach Crawley is confident enough that she does not have to be in control at all times, and does not have a mega ego to feed. The second assumption I made is that she is investing in her assistants. She clearly engages them for input and allows them to coach. Of course, this all has to be based upon trust that has been built over months and years of work.

Mentoring Assistant Coaches

BetterCoaching — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 21:59:35 +0000

I recently came across a nice article by Dina Gentile regarding the mentoring of assistant coaches in youth soccer programs. Dr. Gentile is a Professor of Sport Management at Endicott College. A volunteer youth coach herself, Dr. Gentile understands from both practical and theoretical experience what happens on the soccer field.

Mentoring of sport coaches has been a long time topic of serious interest here at the Institute. We have a page dedicated to gathering information about coaching mentor programs and provide a few good resources on the topic too. You can check it out here online.

Basically, mentoring is a very effective means of keeping coaches involved in sport long-term. Mentoring today is best defined as a developmental, caring, sharing and helping relationship where one person invests time, know-how and effort in enhancing another person’s growth, knowledge and skills, and responds to critical needs in the life of the protégé in ways that prepare that individual for greater productivity or achievement in the future. In short, mentors help coaches to recognize and maximize learning opportunities.

Kids play sports for fun

Paul McCaffrey — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 19:29:46 +0000

As the new year begins, we take this opportunity to relook at a Mark Hyman article in the NY Times from Jan 2011. Mark discovered a high school sophomore in Connecticut researching why kids play sports using a survey from the Institute for Youth Sports @ Michigan State Univ. His findings? Kids play sports to have fun. Imagine that!

Jan 2012 — Resource of the Month

BetterCoaching — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 03:46:03 +0000

If you are interested in learning more about sports nutrition–one of the secrets to athletic success–then I suggest you check out the published research at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute. Obviously, Gatorade has a business interest in the hydration component of sports nutrition but the studies available were conducted at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute or at universities around the world. In addition to the research, Gatorade has an extensive sport science library for coaches to utilize as well. Lastly, Gatorade, in conjunction with many sports organizations, offers continuing education credits for coaches and athletic trainers.

Sports Psychology – strength coach for the brain?

Paul McCaffrey — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 04:05:42 +0000

I am brainstorming an article and would like your help. Please send me your answers and thoughts.

1) How have you worked out non-athletic problems with your team or player?

2) Have you employed the services of a Sports Psychologist?

3) What kind of situations have or would you use their services?

4) Situational question, ” You have player that has a season ending injury, what is your responsiblity during their recovery? What are the issues you foresee for the athlete and rest of your team?

5) Do you see a Sports Psychologist as part of your staff now or in the future and why?

Springfield College’s Triangle magazine has a great article on Don Kalkstein who has worked with a number of teams, he calls himself a “strength coach for the brain” Would you welcome someone like him onto your staff. Check the article out here.

December Resource of the Month

BetterCoaching — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 02:18:36 +0000

This month’s resource continues our look at coaching-related information available on YouTube. We discovered the Coaching Education Staff at the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS) has a nice YouTube presence with three channels of videos for coaches. While mostly focused on highlighting the various courses available via NFHS’ Coaching Education Program, it does provide some good …