Coach ,

“We have always done it that way” might be one of the biggest red flag phrases in coaching. If you find yourself saying it, I suggest you pause and ask yourself, “Why?”

Kevin Kelley, the 9x state champion at Pulaski Academy and now head coach at Presbyterian College made a successful career by asking “Why?” and changing everything he did, like never punting!

Another group of guys who are doing it better than most could be found at the Track Football Consortium Virtual Clinic this past off-season. One of those guys is Brad Dixon.

Coach Dixon is the Head Football Coach, Head Boys Track Coach, Strength & Conditioning Coordinator, and Physical Education teacher at Camp Point Central High School in West Central Illinois. He currently is 84-19 in his nine years.

In this video he identifies 10 things that football coaches do wrong. I humbly admit that at one time or another I made these mistakes as well (click on image for video).

With about a month to go until camp starts, it is not too late to correct some of the mistakes to get better results. We can do that by focusing on what is essential.

As coaches, it is our duty to boil it down to what is essential. Coach Dixon talks about “essentialism” and explains the Pareto Principle which states 80% of the results come from 20% of the effort in this video:

Let’s make this practical. One coaching practice I believe all of us have partaken in is the “Long Warm-up.” Coach Dixon explains the mistake and how he fixed these next two videos:

Here is the fix:

We all want the winning edge in our programs and we can get there quicker by laserlike focus on what is essential.  Coach Dixon has figured it out through his research and work with Tony Holler (Feed the Cats) and he is seeing the results on the field.

Before you jump into the grind today, pause for a moment and find something you do as a coach and ask “Why?” It could make a huge difference for you and your team this fall.

Always be growing!

Coach Grabowski

PS Coach Dixon’s clinic talk “Ten Things Football Coaches Get Wrong Coaching Speed and How to Fix It” is discounted for a short time at 50% off.

PSS If you live near Texas or Iowa you can see not only Coach Dixon but the guys who train players like David Montgomery, Patrick Mahomes, and Christian McCaffrey

Texas - July 9-10 at McKinney Stadium

https://trackfootballconsortium.com/tfc-texas-2021/

Iowa - Ankeny, July 23-24

https://trackfootballconsortium.com/tfc-iowa-2021/

You can also see last years replay here---->