Dowling Set for a Big Year

     Brian Dowling has wanted this his entire life. As a young kid, he grew up watching and emulating the great football stars playing for Wayne Hills Football. He knows and remembers almost every athlete to play for Hills since he can remember. And he has been working his tail off to be one of those names. So far he has not dissappointed. Without getting specific with stats, lets just say that Brian has had as good of a sophomore and junior season as anyone has had at Hills. But what makes Brian tick is that this isn’t good enough. He just doesn’t want to be remembered as “one of the great players” in Hills history. He wants to be in the argument of having one of the best season ever. And he has a great chance.
     His recent performance at the NIKE Camp at Penn State where he walked away with Running Back MVP Honors shows his ability and drive to be great. Even though Brian is a integral part of the Hills Baseball Team, Brian has continued to train and get better whenever he has a breather. His training regimen will intensify after baseball and into the summer.
     Every so often athletes like Brian come through and just get it. He sees the light at the end of the tunnel. Brian understands that he will be good next year, but thats not good enough for him (or Coach Olsen). Brian will do everything he needs to do in order to get where he wants to be. I’m very interested to see where that is.

ANTHONY GOMEZ, SS, VANDERBILT

Anthony Gomez had finished his high school career as good as anyone can, he left Don Bosco as an All-State selection on the number 1 team in the country.  He was the MVP on a team that didn’t lose a game his senior season.  “Go Go”, as he if often referred to as, went to Vanderbilt with all the confidence in the world, but even still no one could have predicted his start to his collegiate career.  http://www.tennessean.com/article/20100402/SPORTS0602/4020333/Vanderbilt-freshman-Anthony-Gomez-adds-pop-to-baseball-lineup

This may surprise others but it doesn’t really shock me.  Anthony is a great athlete that listens to instruction and immediately incorporates it into his athletic repertoire.  He has great control of his body and quickly implements what he learns in the drills we perform and then translates it to the field.  I was very impressed with his body control and understanding of the need to be an efficient athlete. 

It obviously translates to the field.  Great job Ant!  Keep up the good work!

Keep Gettin Better!

Don

     I think most people agree that kids don’t play like they used to.  For a bunch of reasons the old days of kids going out to play until the street lights went on or their father whistling out the door for you to get homere are long gone.  As a parent, I could understand that the times have changed and that even though my son is only 5, I am a little wary of sending him out and not worrying about his safety.  I’m sure some neighborhoods are different than others but I have a feeling that this feeling is pretty common.  

     Consequently, there is this big push by parents to get their kids involved in some type of  organized sports.  My point lingers on the word organized.  Everything has become so organized that kids have not learned hot to create and play their own games.  And I feel this step in the growing up process plays a large part in how they view physical activity the rest of their lives.  Will they view it as “physical activity” or “fun”. 

    Then you have to throw into the pot what is going on in the “organized sports” these days.  My point is not so much against the idea but just to open some eyes on what these kids are being exposed to.  Unfortunately, with the increase in all of these new leagues and programs, kids start as young as 3-4 in organized sports.  Also, with more programs there is a  greater demand of  coaches.  Because of the great demand, most of these young teams are headed up by the only volunteer parent(s) that can contribute their time to these programs.  And as much as I praise parents and other coaches that volunteer for these positions (because they are a big committment), I have seen first hand how these coaches can become the beginning of the end for many kids going out for sports for the first time.   It should take a lot more than “whose got the time to committ to this?” when it comes to coaches dealing with young kids, many of who are playing a sport for the first time.

    Many times it isn’t even the coaches fault.  Coaching young kids that really have no idea of what they’re doing and have such a huge  discrepancy in size, speed, skill level, coordination, and focus levels is not easy.   Than you throw in parents who think their kids are the next coming of Derek Jeter, Peyton Manning, or Lebron James and you have the perfect storm for coaches that let the “power of the coach” get to their head and become the Vince Lombardi to a bunch of 5 year olds.

    It is obvious that we have a problem when in a time when we have more information, sport programs, training programs, and advances in sport and training equipment and we are still seeing more and more kids become obese because of their non-participation in sports or any athletic activities.  And my theory is simple.  It’s not the huge advances of video games, use of computers, or fact that there is a McDonald’s’ on every corner.  Our society places too much pressure on kids, especially at a young age, that they are turned off from sports and would rather play video games than get yelled at to get in the huddle or to keep their eye on the ball.   It’s not the more advanced kids that are suffering, its the kid that isn’t an elite athlete.  The kid that may not know how to catch that well or is a little wary of contact (which is about 75% of the youth population).  These kids are thinking to themselves that it’s not worth the abuse and I don’t blame them.

   It stems from the lack of education/ awareness of coaches and/ or parents to understand that it’s not only the physical component of athletic development for a child but the mental component.  Kids don’t understand or need to focus on the little details of sport skill development.  If one kid is better than another is doesn’t matter, things will change 3 times before they get in high school.  The important thing is to provide a positive experience for young athletes.  Teach them the basics of the game.  It’s not about who wins or loses but the experience that they will keep with them forever.  And I am not understating that.  There are probably deep rooted issues between all of us that stem from something done in our growing years.  Keep kids excited about playing games and they will grow up active and confident in themselves. 

   Now, I also understand there is an importance to provide discipline, learn the concept of practice and perseverance, and abide by rules while playing on a team.  But these values can be taught through positive reinforcement and redirection.  There is a strong need to improve the quality of teaching and coaching the youth of today.  And there are many movements to increase this type of awareness through youth coaching organizations, certifications and local clinics (www.iyca.org).  The  more that people, parents and coaches are aware of the problem the greater opportunity for your kids and their kids to become fit, active, and hopefully successful athletes in their lives.

Make A Change

DS

For great youth programs visit www.sports-u.com.  All programs are designed and overseen by Don Sellari, CSCS.

The main issue is that athletes and their parents are not properly educated about the recruiting process.  Also, colleges often give athletes a false sense of hope early in the recruiting process.  Questionnaires, team programs, and letters from coaches informing athletes of their being on the radar can easily begin to blow up an athletes head along with their parents.  Athletes need to understand that every star athlete from every HS  team is receiving the same letters. 

The key for athletes looking to play at the next level is to seriously look at what they have to offer and see where they fit in both an academic and athletic collegiate setting.   As an athlete these are the physical attributes considered:

1.  Height-  I can not even describe to you how negatively short athletes are looked at.  I’ve seen the most talented athletes ignored by college scouts because of the their height.   It’s unfortunate but true.

2.  Speed-  speed is right there with height in terms of what college scouts are looking for.  Obviously certain positions look at speed more but as a rule of thumb, unless you are a lineman or have great size you better run at least a legitimate 4.6 to get serious looks.

3.  Mental Component-  this is the intangible category that recruiters are looking for in athlete.    Sometimes this can be seen in films or in speaking with the athlete.  Many times coaches gather information from the athlete’s HS coach or opposing coaches/ players.  This can be the deciding factor on athletes that are borderline in size and speed.    This is what they are looking for:

-  Do athletes look like they are having fun?  Are they playing with passion?  Do athletes play every play and do they finish plays?  (don’t get caught taking plays off)

-  Do athletes play through pain and show toughness during the season?

-  Do athletes step up when the game is on the line?  Do they understand the game?  Do they do the little things to help a team win?

-  Is the athlete a leader?

-  Does the athlete play the game ferociously?  (does he make tackles or try to rip the head of ball carriers?)

Athletes with both height and speed usually get a pass on the third component.  However,  if an athlete has 1 of the first 2 attributes than the mental component can be the breaker.  And for the most part, if the athlete lacks height and exceptional speed it really doesn’t matter how good, tough, or strong of a player he is.  He really is fighting the odds. 

Estimated Min. Ht.  (DI/ DIAA)-  OL 6’2/ QB-  6’0/ RB- speed/ WR-  5’10 & hands/ TE 6’0

DL- 6’0/ LB’s- 6’0/ DB- 5’10

Now the second thing and often overlooked is the academic component of the recruiting process.  Many athletes become a victim of the process instead of using it to their advantage.  I don’t think people understand that the chance for athletes to receive an athletic scholarship is about as easy as hitting the lottery (seriously).  

With that said, its even more ridiculous when you see the odds of playing professionally.  So, why not use football as a springboard for a better future.  Colleges do not hold athletes to the same academic standards as the normal student body.  So athletes can usually attend a school that would otherwise never admit them into their esteemed facility.  Use this fact to upgrade your college of choice and pick a school that offers the level of football that you know you can participate in and handle for 4-5 years.

The bottom line is to not get caught up in the recruiting mind games.  Keep your head, evaluate your situation, and use the recruiting process and don’t let it use you.

DS

When it comes to conditioning for sports the main rule of thumb is simple-  condition your athletes to simulate the demands of their specific sport.  Ask yourself these questions:

1.  How far do your athletes run each play?

2.  Are they doing anything else during these plays?

-upper body involved/  physical contact/ pressure…

3.  How long are the periods of downtime and what are the athletes doing during this time?  (rest periods)

4.  In what patterns are the athletes moving?  What type of movements are going on?  (sprinting, changing direction, shuffling, sliding, jumping, crawling…)

5.  What is the intensity of the movements?

Answering these questions should give you a pretty good idea of how you should condition your athletes.  Most sports involve short, explosive bursts of actions that are anaerobic in  nature.  That means that they should train in a similar fashion.  It really doesn’t help to train an athlete’s aerobic energy system (long distance runs) if they play an anaerobic sport.  If anything it may inhibit their development of the explosion needed in their sport and the ability to quickly recover from these short bursts.  

To sum it up, when conditioning your athletes, try and copy what your athletes are doing when playing.  Be creative and mix it up in order to keep it fresh and fun.  The days of gassers and full field up/ downs are long behind us.  Or at least should be.

A good idea that I’ve done is developed specialized, standardized conditioning drills that I’ve called finishers.  I’ve also named them scary names like the Grim Reaper or the 2 Minutes of Hell.  I time my athletes as often as I can and place the top times on a board to exxagerate the importance of being in the best shape possible.  This usually makes things more interesting and more competitive.    I will share with you a few of my “Finishers” in future blogs.

Get Better Today

DS

1.  Keep your feet on the ground  (flapping around like a fish doesn’t help the bar go up).  Using your legs should help you drive the bar up.

2.  Grip the bar so that when the bar hits your chest your forearms are perfectly vertical (keeps from having hands to wide or too close).

3.  Don’t put on too much weight .  No one is watching you.  Do less weight and better reps.

4.  Keep your butt on the bench, pinch your shoulder blades back, and stick your chest out.

5.  Eyeball the bar on the rack before starting.   If you grab the bar to high on the bench, you will wind up hitting the rack hooks on the way up.

6.  Bring the bar down in a controlled fashion, tap the chest, and explosively drive up.  Do not bang the weight off your chest. 

All in all, you have probably heard most of these tips.  The key is to not let your ego get in the way and focus on what your goal is.  Honestly,  unless your being tested for the bench at some time or playing a sport competitively you probably be off using db’s for a chest press.  Db’s allow for more free movement and take away from the whole Bench Press Ego Disease.   Everyone has caught this disease at some point in their life.

For more info check out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6s_yMJIgJ8&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Eyoutube%2Ecom%2Fuser%2FNorthJerseySports&feature=player_profilepage

Get Better Today

DS

http://highschoolsports.nj.com/football/

Hills boys- the Mighty Quinn and Spowling Dowling squeak one out against arch rival Valley.  55 in a row and counting is an amazing feat.  Big test looms when St.  Joe’s comes to town. 

Old rommies down in Union pulls out a big, come from behind win against ranked Ridge.  Nice job Coach Sheridan and LOUIE GEE!  3-0 and looking good.  Bringing back tradition at Union.

West Essex boys turn a game into the tale of two halves and came back to pull out a big victory against Belleville.  Coach Droz went into the locker room and instilled the will and Mikey Cimiluca used his will and speed to lead the team to their first win of the season.

Houston Texans WR Kevin Walter had a big day in his ’09 debut.    Sign of big things to come.  Keep it going buddy!