Recently an athlete, a prospective college bound football player, Jervon Graves, came to me for training to get faster and develop his agility. As a junior he was an All-State selection in the state’s largest school classification, but said he was determined to “get better”. He and his father wanted him to qualify for a NCAA D-1 football scholarship.

After our initial meeting I felt I could and wanted to help him.  Physically he was 6″1″ and near 300lbs, however he did not look to be a D-1caliber athlete. In our first training session, he did not demonstrate good footwork which of course limited his agility.

In that first training session as we prepared to pull speed sleds, I asked him if he was ready. His response to me was “Coach, I was born ready”! I wasn’t facing him and nearly laughed, but when I turned and saw his face, the determination and passion was transparent. I didn’t laugh! I knew then I had one of those unique athletes that would do whatever they could to reach their optimum capability.

That proved to be true. Following a tough summer, it felt I could not work him hard enough, training specifically for speed, quickness, improved footwork and agility, he entered his senior year prepared to excel. He not only was named to his school’s classification All-State team, he was selected by the State Coaches to their top eleven team. His school retired his football jersey number, only the second jersey number to be retired in the school’s history. Wow, what he did for himself to reach that level.

He did receive a NCAA D-1 scholarship and started their first game at nose guard. That 800 hp “hemi diesel engine” he demonstrated, according to him at birth……set him apart, even when he did not initially look the part. Jervon was and is an inspiration! Some young athletes simply “get it done”. 

 Naturally coaching does not have a corner on behaving like an idiot. Business, goverment, education [well thats a government institution], politics, law, medicine, etc. and so on each have their moments. The bigger the institution, the potential to behave like an idiot exponentialy grows. A false sense of empowerment due to size, lack of oversight and a culture of “cirlcing the wagons” generally well rehearsed, prevails. Although infrequent, there is a redeeming factor available. If willing to face consequences, there usually is enough time and opportunity to make the ” bad”, good”!

However, when a young athlete is subjected to “stupid”, the importance to participate and play and the window of opportunity so small [for most a very few years], “it drives me crazy”. In some cases the opportunity to play up from high school with a scholarship to help pay for their continuing education is at stake!

Recently I was visiting with a junior college quarterback from a large Florida high school. As a junior he was a legitimate D-1 prospect [6'3', 215lbs]. His junior year against an opponent in the spring game, he threw 5 TD’s in the first half. Several D-1and D-1AA universities were looking.

In the fourth game his senior year, their was a fumble on the center/QB exchange. This athlete leaped for the ball with his right arm fully extended and an opponent drove into the back of his right shoulder. An unaviodable shouder injury resulted. It was thought not to be serious and he continued to play with the pain. There were university scouts in the crowd!

Now the idiot part! His coached believed QB’s should particiapte in tackling drills. After resting/icing his shoulder a few days the next week, on Wednesday, the coach puts him in a tackling drill against their best running back. Three painful right shoulder hits later, the right shoulder [throwing arm] collapses, and is significantly injured! The possibility of never throwing like before is real. No more D-1 interest. The coach should have been dismissed/fired within 24 hours.

After laying out a year, X-rays, MRI’s, orthopedic doctors opinions, etc. with not much progress, he is at a junior college trying to regain his previous throwing ability. Now a second set of tests, X-rays/MRI’s are inconlcusive. What, he can’t regain his throwing ability and the second diagnosis is inconclusive!

How many high school football coaches, if they have a D-1 prospect QB, or any QB critical to their offense and success would put them in tackling drills? Go figure! If there are any, they all should be fired! 

Football was a sport I coached in College. The recent evolution has been to taller bigger quarterbacks, assuming they can easily see over taller O-Lineman, locate their throwing lanes, find their receivers and be more resilient on impact when being sacked. Some have been successful, some not. Bill Parcells simply said, “It’s the quarterbacks job to win the game.” I presume he is referring to eliminating mistakes, making good decisions and being an accurate passer.

Naturally throwing mechanics and throwing velocity are two issues in accuracy. In a recent article, Skip Stitzell, founder of Quarterback Edge and a coach for the national Elite 11 camps pointed out that three successful Quarterbacks in the Big 12, Chase Daniels, MU, Todd Reesing, KU and Cody Hawkins, CU, were shorter than six feet, a couple quite a bit shorter, yet they win! What does that mean to trainers? Make sure the QB develops throwing velocity and foot speed! Do you know how to weight train an athlete for throwing velocity? There are seven specific weight training methods and three training  techniques that can put ”smoke” on the ball! A demonstration CD is in the making!

Track and Field in the United States is not considered a “major sport”. Do you feel that way? Football was the sport I coached in college, but track and field is my favorite sport. The multiple events in track and field is the best sport to determine ones knowledge and effectiveness for training athletes, our business! There is a stop watch and a tape measure. 

It Is the most difficult sport for irritating influences [favoritism, politics, poor subjective judgment and game losing decisions]. The pace of a track meet as compared to other sports does not surface the constant pressure for quick decisions. 

In Track and Field, with the exception of 1600 meters and above, speed and power prevail, regardless of the event, period. There is no better sports venue than to determine the understanding of the physiology and bio-mechanics of speed and power, the proficiency of the training methods and the coaches and athletes knowledge of the technique of the event. 

Coaching of track and field at the high school level it is ridiculous. Few coaches have the passion and motivation to learn and evole with the events for which they are responsible.  In the throwing events, speaking here only of the discus and rotation method in the shot put, it is absurd! [most states do not allow the javelin or the hammer in high school]. 

I have been to multiple throwing camps, some D-1, and watched too many videos to count,  generally by “experts” or successful international competitors. Interestingly, the most effective throws coach I know is a high school coach and the best pole vault coach I know assists at a junior college. They are passionate and knowledgable!

There will be more information on the five elements of teaching throwing the discus and rotation shot put later. For now, the first thing to know is that you throw with your feet. It is an advantage if the athlete gets involved early. While it is hard for some to execute, the discus and shot put are not that difficult to coach and start the athlete properly in mastering the events.

It is diffcult not to image that it is not a  reflection of other interscholastic sports, or the passion in the classroom, and the knowledge and effectiveness of the instructor, which we are unable to observe? As with gifted athletes, the gifted students excel regardless of the influence of the instructor in the classroom.

I am aware of a situation in which the weight training coach had “max outs”, testing for maximum lifts the day before a track meet. The weight training coach was also one of the track coaches. Go figure!