By Ron Cook, Defensive Coordinator
Lumberton High School (NC)
I am only going into my 12th season as a football coach on the college and high school levels, but since my first time on the field with a whistle to today I have noticed more than changes to the game. I have noticed a significant change in the kids who play the game. The change is more mental than physical and more personalized than when I or many other coaches played the game. Players today need more attention, motivation, and extrinsic rewards to feel noticed and significant in being part of the team than ever before. Like many other coaches who played the game when two-a-days were and three-a-days still existed, I showed up for every practice, workout, meeting, and game because I wanted to be the best, I wanted to win and I love the game. That was my motivation and winning games was my reward. Today, that just doesn’t seem like enough for the next generation.
Just last year I didn’t see a reason for me to have a twitter account until I was given an Ipad and found out how often my players “tweet”. I read then the diverse content that is posted in those tweets. I saw everything from how they feel about teachers at school, what they do on the weekend, to how they feel about girls. They express themselves in ways that they may never do in person and you would never know otherwise. They tell you what makes them tick and give you an up to the minute report of how their day is going with every tweet. This is just one of the ways they cry out for attention in ways that we never could when we were players. They also have facebook, instagram, and whatever other social media I haven’t caught up with yet. My point is that today’s generation of players have a constant need of attention, appreciation, and that pat on the back to let them know that you care as coaches and that they are doing something well. They need a reason why to keep coming to 7am workouts during the summer when they could be sleeping in like their buddies.
There are coaches on the college level that have already begun to address this issue of giving players a reason to put their bodies through the strain it needs to go through to be a football player by providing extrinsic rewards or motivation. At Lumberton High School, we provide several rewards to motivate our players to attend workouts and practice with a purpose. During the second semester most of our players are in a weight lifting class and if they do not miss one class and receive an A grade, then they will get their name on their away jersey. During the summer we have 32 volunteer practice days. Any player who makes all 32 volunteer practices gets his name on his home jersey. On the defensive side of the ball we have a goal of gaining three takeaways a day for practices and games. If we have a practice where we do not get three, we have some form of extra conditioning after practice. But whenever a player gets a takeaway in practice (even if the defense doesn’t make it to three) he is recognized in front of the entire team after practice and given an ice pop (summer) or whatever the reward is for that day.
The point is that today’s generation of players may love playing the game but they need love from the game and its coaches to stay motivated to work and win. If you haven’t already, get on twitter, follow your players and allow them to follow you. You will get to know more about them then you ever thought you could know and they will get to know that you are actually a human being off the field!