REPLACING THE EXISTING FOOTBALL MODEL: A FIVE-MINUTE READ
“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.” ~Mark Twain
“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” ~R. Buckminster Fuller
Football is the most traditional sport. So much so, the dogma of football is comparable to a religion. In football, “faith in the unknown” is replaced by “trust the process”.
THE TRADITIONAL PROCESS
Traditional football programs start offseason preparation with “THE GRIND”. In the dictionary, grind (noun) is defined as hard dull work. Football programs spend weeks, if not months, building a huge aerobic engine so players can recover from high outputs once the season starts. This requires large volumes of high-effort sub-max work… gassers, stadium stairs, constant hustle, “no standing around!”, and generally speaking, maximum effort through high fatigue. It’s no different in the weight room. Athletes become accustomed to being sore every damn day. The mission is to increase the CAPACITY to do hard work when the season starts. In simpler terms, football teams do hard work to prepare for hard work.
To motivate players to buy into the offseason process, a conditioning test must be passed by every player. If players fail, some programs have consequences that include pre-dawn retests until the player eventually passes the test or quits the team.
The first two weeks of the season were once called two-a-days. Many state organizations have been forced to regulate this to literally prevent deaths. Think about that for a minute. In traditional football, the first two weeks remain a “right of passage”, turning boys into men by pushing them past their mental and physical limits. Players learn they are capable of high effort in spite of a sore body and no gas left in the tank.
When the first game is finally on the horizon, coaches turn from focussing on hard work to winning the game. It’s like the first game was never on the radar for the past nine months (winter, spring, and summer, and preseason).
To prepare for opening night, football coaches make sure their FASTEST and MOST EXPLOSIVE athletes are in the starting lineup.
If the first game results in a loss to a faster and more explosive team, traditional football coaches double down on the only thing they know… THE PROCESS. There’s only one answer to losing… WORK HARDER.
If the first game is a glorious win, the process was a success, even though it may have been a case of dumb beating dumber. Dumb is undefeated against dumber.
THE FEED THE CATS MODEL (AKA, SPRINT-BASED FOOTBALL)
In a feed the cats off-season, athletes get into aerobic shape by doing anaerobic work.
Coaches prioritize speed and explosive power with consistency, starting on day-one. Entire teams improve their max velocity by more than ONE MPH per athlete. Never let today ruin tomorrow. Tired is the enemy, not the goal. Don’t burn the steak.
As the season approaches and speed has been amplified, some sprint capacity work is added in small clusters. This can be as simple as running five plays at game speed, then recovering enough to do another five. If your players can’t handle five, start with four. You don’t have to practice 15 play drives in order to accomplish a 15 play drive in a game. You need to work on GAME SPEED. My track team does sprint capacity training by spiking up and running 10x 40m flys (10m run-in), 55 second recovery (walk back), all timed by Freelap. BTW, guess who always shows the best sprint capacity? You guessed it, the fast guys! Speed creates capacity.
FTC teams play at game speeds (“performance days”) three times per week (including the game). They use don’t-burn-the-steak “fundamental days” to set up performance days. Players are given Saturday and Sunday off to create a joyful eagerness to get back to work on Monday. Coaches are allowed to work on their own and communicate as needed without a six hour coaches meeting on Sunday.
FTC teams let the games be the hardest thing they do.
FTC coaches surrender to the result. If you win, celebrate and get back to your mission. If you lose, put it behind you and get back to your mission. “They wanted it more than us” is so cliche that it’s laughable. “We aren’t in shape” is a dumb take on losing a football game.
Let the new model replace the old model. Feed the cats.
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Tony Holler
@pntrack
630-849-8294
tony.holler@yahoo.com
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♦ RESOURCES ♦
The 2019 Three-Part Football Series
♦ Football Coaches: Too Many Priorities
♦ Football Coaches: Stop Doing Mindless Conditioning
Feed the Cats:
♦ Origin and Philosophical Basis of Feed the Cats
The Football Articles:
♦ New Ideas for Old School Football Coaches
♦ Football Dosage and Approach ⇒ FAQ
♦ Football: Differentiating Sprint Practice and Non-Sprint Practice
♦ A Football Coach’s Guide to Feeding the Cats
Football Podcast
♦ Run the Power with Tony Holler #1
♦ Run the Power with Tony Holler #2
♦ Coach and Coordinator Podcast #1
♦ Coach and Coordinator Podcast #2
♦ Mahoney Advanced Training Podcast
Brad Dixon:
♦ They Just Want the Damn Recipe
♦ Run The Power Podcast with Brad Dixon
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Feed the Cats Football Bundle – 50% off the Feed the Cats Football Package
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