Do you know someone who is football crazy? Is your Dad a footy nut? Is your brother a soccer Fanatic? This is possibly the bestest Crimbo pressie you can make them. You can make it fit any football team of your choosing, or add an assortment of football teams. You could also adapt this idea to make a net-ball, basketball, or rugby clock.
To make a Football Crazy Wall Clock you will need...
Paint, thick card or an old grocery box, a clock mechanism and clock hands (you will find these at craft shops) and a print out of pattern of football shirts which is available at the link below.
Colour the football shirts in the team’s strip you choose. You can colour them randomly if you wish. Number each shirt 1 to 12.
To make the clock face, draw around a large dinner plate or a tea tray onto some card. An old grocery box is great. Cut out two identical circles, and glue them together so that the lines in the cards structure cross, this will give the clock face extra strength.
Once the glue is dry, paint the clock face green. Again leave to dry. With white paint, paint on a centre line through the middle of the clock face, and paint a kick off circle in the middle of the clock.
Push a pencil through the centre of the clock face ready to attach the clock mechanism. Be very careful and use the old Plasticine trick - Put a ball of Plasticine on the table, put your card on top of it where you need the hole to be, and push the pencil through the card and into the Plasticine.
Arrange the football shirts on the clock face and stick them down.
Push the clock spindle through the hole and push on the hands. The mechanism has a hole for hanging the clock on the wall.
Put a battery in the clock and set the time.
About The Author
S. Roberts
Football shirts print out
http://www.santaspostbag.co.uk/football-crazy-wall-clock.html S. Roberts is one of Santa’s Helpers and writes for www.santaspostbag.co.uk a Christmas educational & activity website. For more festive ideas & gifts to make visit http://www.santaspostbag.co.uk/homemade-christmas-gift-ideas.html
SantasPostbag is in association with http://www.bigboystoyz.com Together keeping Christmas Magical
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Benefits of a Football Sportsbook
If you were to look at a football sportsbook, it would show you many things. Many of these things and key pieces of information are very important to gamblers and people involved in the world of gambling. Sportsbooks exist for all kinds of sports, and one of those sports is football. In the football sportsbook there is a list of games, lines and odds, and all of this information is very important when considering making bets. Gamblers should carefully analyze the information found in these books because this information could be used as part of an approach to make them money, so that when they gamble they are making a profit instead of losing money.
A football sportsbook would list all the upcoming games so that betters, gamblers and other people involved would know who was playing when. This way, bets can be placed on the games set up to a specific date. The football lines show then these games and names and lists, as well as showing the point spread. In this way, all of the information is kept neat and safe and organized in the football sportsbook. Odds are shown in the football sportsbook so that the people involved will know when they are thinking about placing their bets which teams are expected to win which games in the realm of football, but this approach is used in many other sports as well.
A football sportsbook is a tool used to look into the games to help gamblers see the positives and negatives about games, players and outcomes. When utilized properly, it is very likely that gamblers and players will be able to make more scientific, resourceful and accurate bets on games like football.
Professional SEO. He helps a number of online gambling sites like:
Sportsbook Since 1997, Hollywood Sportsbook has provided millions of internet sports betting enthusiasts with a secure internet sportsbook experience.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Anthony_LeMaire
A football sportsbook would list all the upcoming games so that betters, gamblers and other people involved would know who was playing when. This way, bets can be placed on the games set up to a specific date. The football lines show then these games and names and lists, as well as showing the point spread. In this way, all of the information is kept neat and safe and organized in the football sportsbook. Odds are shown in the football sportsbook so that the people involved will know when they are thinking about placing their bets which teams are expected to win which games in the realm of football, but this approach is used in many other sports as well.
A football sportsbook is a tool used to look into the games to help gamblers see the positives and negatives about games, players and outcomes. When utilized properly, it is very likely that gamblers and players will be able to make more scientific, resourceful and accurate bets on games like football.
Professional SEO. He helps a number of online gambling sites like:
Sportsbook Since 1997, Hollywood Sportsbook has provided millions of internet sports betting enthusiasts with a secure internet sportsbook experience.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Anthony_LeMaire
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Off-season Football Conditioning
Football is definitely a sport that requires a combination of skills and athletic ability. This is why it's so important to develop a football conditioning program that would help you improve in every aspect of the game. These aspects include: strength, cardiovascular, and cardiorespiratory training. All of these areas need to be improved upon and directed towards skill improvement that mimics what takes place on the football field. Football players often require endurance, strength, flexibility, coordination, and explosive speed and acceleration.
The purpose of this article is not to give you a blueprint of an exact conditioning program but instead to give you what you need to know to design one for yourself. This is because one program will not necessarily work for everyone. Schedules sometimes need to be adjusted and programs need to be flexible when necessary.
A good preseason football conditioning program should begin 8-10 weeks before the season and should take place six days a week. The seven day should be used for resting and recovery. If you train too hard and do not rest your muscles you will almost certainly receive an injury. During the course of your work out stretching is one of the most important things you can do to avoid injury. This will also help you promote muscle growth and flexibility if done over a period of time.
Day 1: Run 3-5 miles
On day one you should run three to 5 miles in order to promote endurance and your cardiovascular systems. Each week of training start off with a three-mile run. If this is not enough then do an extra mile or two but don't become too excessive because you'll certainly run more later in the week.
Day 2, 4, and 6: Work on Speed Training
On these days your focus should be on speed and acceleration. The best way to work on speed and acceleration is doing some form of sprinting. Remember to stretch between sprints and at the end of your work out.
Day 3 and 5: Work on skills that are specific to your position and strength training
You can develop position specific skills by doing a variety of practice drills. Obviously because each position has different skills we cannot go over them all here. If for example you are a running back, you want a practice run blocking, ball handling, receiving, pass blocking, and agility drills.
After position specific training, focus on strength training. Focus on those areas which are specifically needed for your position. Finish off with a three-mile run.
Your football conditioning program should be approached with caution. If you overwork your body you may end up injured and not able to play at all during the season.
Therefore is important to take it slow careful and do plenty of stretching. Finally it is always important to your diet high in protein and carbohydrates to keep yourself energized. This will also help your body perform at its best. By following a strict football conditioning program you should have a great season.
The purpose of this article is not to give you a blueprint of an exact conditioning program but instead to give you what you need to know to design one for yourself. This is because one program will not necessarily work for everyone. Schedules sometimes need to be adjusted and programs need to be flexible when necessary.
A good preseason football conditioning program should begin 8-10 weeks before the season and should take place six days a week. The seven day should be used for resting and recovery. If you train too hard and do not rest your muscles you will almost certainly receive an injury. During the course of your work out stretching is one of the most important things you can do to avoid injury. This will also help you promote muscle growth and flexibility if done over a period of time.
Day 1: Run 3-5 miles
On day one you should run three to 5 miles in order to promote endurance and your cardiovascular systems. Each week of training start off with a three-mile run. If this is not enough then do an extra mile or two but don't become too excessive because you'll certainly run more later in the week.
Day 2, 4, and 6: Work on Speed Training
On these days your focus should be on speed and acceleration. The best way to work on speed and acceleration is doing some form of sprinting. Remember to stretch between sprints and at the end of your work out.
Day 3 and 5: Work on skills that are specific to your position and strength training
You can develop position specific skills by doing a variety of practice drills. Obviously because each position has different skills we cannot go over them all here. If for example you are a running back, you want a practice run blocking, ball handling, receiving, pass blocking, and agility drills.
After position specific training, focus on strength training. Focus on those areas which are specifically needed for your position. Finish off with a three-mile run.
Your football conditioning program should be approached with caution. If you overwork your body you may end up injured and not able to play at all during the season.
Therefore is important to take it slow careful and do plenty of stretching. Finally it is always important to your diet high in protein and carbohydrates to keep yourself energized. This will also help your body perform at its best. By following a strict football conditioning program you should have a great season.
About The Author
Robert Michael is a writer for Football Cube which is an excellent place to find football links, resources and articles. For more information go to: http://www.footballcube.comUsing Motion in Youth Football
Jet or Fly Motion: Full speed shallow motion usually by a wing, slot or flanker. Quite often this is quite long and can be run just behind the quarterback in indirect snap offenses or in front or behind a quarterback in direct snap (shotgun) offenses. In jet or fly motion the motioning back has to run close enough to the quarterback to receive a direct handoff or fake handoff.
Orbit or Rocket Motion: Similar to jet motion but it is deeper, often 4-7 yards deeper than the quarterback. The motion back is in a position to receive a pitch or fake pitch from the quarterback often taking the pitch well to the playside of the designed play. This type is often used in indirect snap offenses (QB under center) to get outside quickly with depth.
Wyatt Double Wing Motion: Out of the Double Wing Offense made popular by Hugh Wyatt, a very short deliberate motion just before the snap. This is often just three steps and used to put the wingback in a position to receive a very short toss from the quarterback just behind a very tightly aligned fullback. This unique style is used to give the back some momentum, put him in position to get a very easy to receive toss, set the defense up for counter and trap plays and square his shoulders to the line of scrimmage as he runs to the off-tackle hole.
Reset motion: Nearly full speed and used by a back to realign himself to a different part of the field. Quite often used in various passing sets to isolate good receivers on weak defensive backs or to help free receivers from strong pressing defensive backs.
Flow Motion: Slow and deliberate and used to put the motion back in a more strategic position or to get the defense to flow in a specific direction. This motion is often no faster than a slow jog.
The keys to using motion in youth football are take off cadence, speed and landmarks.
When youth football plays are designed with motion you have to determine what type, it should be based on what you are trying to accomplish with it. Next it's important to teach when the motioning player will start. We get very specific with this, if our cadence is Shift, Down, Ready, Set, Go, we may tell our wingback on our spinner series plays to start his flow on the "S" of "Set". This is a football play where we are using flow to both put the motion man in a position to receive a handoff as well as to get linebackers flowing away from two possible ballcarriers on the play. The speed of this wingback is a slow deliberate jog on all spinner series plays.
The motion man has two landmarks on this play, the first landmark is his endpoint, the point he will be at when he either gets a handoff or fakes getting a handoff, this aiming point determines his path. On the spinner plays, the motioning wingbacks landmark is the back heel of the right foot of our fullback. The flow mans other landmark is where he will be at the "G" of go, the point where we snap the football. At the "G" of go we want the motion back to be right behind the right guard, but of course at the depth that allows him to be at the heels of the fullback. The second aiming point gives the motioning back a landmark that tells him if he should quicken or slow up his motion.
As most of you know, the landmarks must be arranged in a way that guarantees the motioning back is running in a path that never takes him toward the line of scrimmage before the snap, his motion path must always be parallel to the line of scrimmage or away from it. Many times in youth football games you see a motion player move toward the line of scrimmage before the snap and the team gets flagged 5 yards for illegal motion.
Jet or fly motion is something we added this year and it was a huge success. The full speed jet allowed us to stretch the field horizontally and gave us a much faster hitting sweep play as well as gave us another option to run our base plays out of. The jet is the most difficult motion I have taught in youth football, this is the second team I've been able to use jet motion with. If you don't have a well executing team with good ballhandlers, this is not the series of football plays or flow you want to use. This is NOT the answer to the struggling team that can't execute their base plays, this is something a very good or at least well executing team adds to it's arsenal to get them over the top of late season hurdles. The motion is much longer as the motion men are 7 to 14 yards from the end man on the line of scrimmage. The motion is at 100% full speed, hence if the timing is not perfect the motion man can overrun the mesh point of the handoff or the snap occurs well before the motion man arrives and you lose the deception, head start, and timing that this motion is supposed to provide you with.
We start the motion of our jet motion backs on the "R" of ready. Their landmark is the front foot closest to the motioning back of our "Quarterback". We want the motion man to be at the midpoint of the second offensive lineman to his side at the "G" of go, his second landmark. This landmark is wider than our spinner series because our snap is about a yard deeper, it takes the ball longer to get to the "Quarterback" and because the motion back is at full speed he gains ground much faster than when we run our spinner series.
The jet takes a considerable amount of time to get the timing down well. That's why we don't suggest putting it in until your base "Sainted Six" plays are down perfectly, maybe it's something you add in midseason for that bully opponent or late season playoff run. For many youth football teams, it's something you don't add at all, if your base football plays aren't perfect, don't bother with it.
When repping the jet motion plays its very important that the cadence stays constant. If the cadence is varied the timing will be off, it has to be the same every time. You will also see that the variances in your motion players speed will throw the timing off as well. You will have to vary the distance the players are split out to insure they are at their landmarks at the right times. The faster players split out a little further, the slower ones a little tighter. If your motion man on the jet is not running at full speed, the series just isn't very effective. You will see from our 2007 Season DVD that the first game we had the jet series in we weren't nearly as effective as we were later in the year when our players were 100% confident in going full speed.
Another thing to keep in mind when running any plays in motion; your motioning player has to be set for one second before he goes in motion. Your cadence has to allow for him to be set for a full second before he motions. If you put him in motion after a shift, he has to be set for one second after the shift. Some youth football coaches think that a player has to be in motion for one second before the ball is snapped, that is not true, a player can motion a nanosecond before the snap and still be legal.
You can't however go in motion in a way that somehow simulates the snap. I always demo the jet motion to the referees before the game. One required our motion to be a bit more deliberate as to not simulate the snap. In that case, we just had the motion back slowly drop his inside foot back 2 feet while facing the opposite sideline as he started his motion, we adjusted his takeoff as well to be at the "N" of down. Here is the ruling on that, Federation book (7-1-7):
"After the ball is ready-for-play and before the snap, no false start shall be made by any A player. It is a false start if:
a. A shift or feigned charge simulates action at the snap.
b. Any act is clearly intended to cause B to encroach.
c. Any Team A player on his line between the snapper and the player on the end of his line after having placed a hand(s) on or near the ground, moves his hand(s) or makes any quick movement.
Use motion wisely in youth football, make sure it makes sense for where your team is at from a development and execution standpoint. When used wisely it is a tremendous weapon.
For 150 free youth football practice tips from Dave or to sign up for his free newsletter: Football Plays
Dave Cisar-
Dave has a passion for developing youth coaches so they can in turn develop teams that are competitive. His teams have won over 94% of their games in 5 different leagues. He is a Nike "Coach of the Year" designate and his book has been enforsed by Tom Osborne.
Clips of his 2006 team in action: Youth Football Plays
Copyright 2007 Cisar Management and winningyouthfootball.com Republishing this article is allowed if all links are kept intact, without them it is copyright infringement.
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How To Train For The Football Combine Tests
ow an athlete performs at a football combine can be critical in their football career. Football combines consist of the following tests: 40 yard dash, vertical jump, broad jump, bench press, pro agility shuttle, three cone agility, and 60 yard shuttle. The better the athlete can perform in each of these 7 tests the better their chances of playing football at the next level whether that is high school to college, or college to the NFL.
Football combine performance enhancement is twofold. The athlete needs to train to enhance their raw strength, speed, agility power and flexibility. The athlete also needs to master the proper technique for each test, ensuring that the test is performed in the most efficient manner. This will lead to a knockout football combine performance.
Football Combine Training
Training for the football combines obviously is different than training for the sport of football. The athlete needs to be a polished blend of speed, agility, power, quickness, and athletic fluidity. Training must reflect these qualities.
Movement skill training, encompassing speed, agility, quickness and foot speed are major areas of focus when training to test at a football combine. These components can be enhanced with training using ladders, speed chutes, speed resistors, and various cones drills. This will allow the athlete to move more efficiently allowing the athlete to perform the tests with better technique.
Developing and enhancing explosive power is also a very important aspect of an athlete's combine training. Plyometrics are a training method that I use when preparing athletes for the NFL Combine. They help enhance the vertical jump, broad jump, and the 40 yard dash.
Strength development is important as it is a component of increasing explosive power. For the bench press test, both max strength and muscle endurance training should be performed to increase reps performed.
Flexibility training should be performed daily to help increase range of motion. An increased range of motion will enhance speed, agility, and power development.
Football Combine Technique Training
Regardless if you trained to enhance your speed, agility and power, technique training specifically for the combine tests can greatly lower testing times and increase jump height and bench press reps.
Specific test technique cues can limit extra steps and decrease times. By working and refining the specific proper technique for each test you will perform the test more efficiently.
When training the technique for each test, breaking the test up into phases and refining each phase is the best way to make the biggest gains to the whole test. Perfect each phase the move to the next.
Having a systematic step by step protocol for each test is essential to performing at your best. This decreases your nerves as the test becomes a routing that you have repeated hundreds of times during training.
Mental thought processes prior and during each test can limit nerves and increase performance. One two or three simple thoughts provide focus and helps block out negative thoughts and distractions.
By working on the physical and mental technique cues, perfection in each of the tests can be achieved.
Football combine training is twofold. For a knockout combine performance both training and technique refinement should be performed. By training both of these areas you will ensure that you are fully prepared for the biggest test of you life.
NFL Combine training expert Mike Gough, CSCS specializes in 40 yard dash training and football combine test preparation. Mike has just released his football combine training DVD entitled "The Combine Freak" and is available at http://www.combinefreak.com where you can signup for his free 40 yard dash and combine training newsletter.
For more information on Mike Gough's NFL Combine Training Program please visit his website at http://www.procombinetraining.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mike_Gough
How To Make Your Football Players Faster
Most football players can be taught and trained How To Run Fast!
Again, in case you forgot, true speed work is defined as 2-8 seconds of full speed, full intensity running with full (minimum of 3 minutes) recovery.
If your 'football speed workouts' don't fall under that category, then you are not training your football players to improve their ability to accelerate effectively or develop faster top speeds.
Because running fast is, without question, a skill. And there are certain elements of running that need to be developed in order to get consistent results.
And those results come from a focus on the following five areas, in no particular order.
Speed Fundamental #1: TEACH PROPER ARM ACTION
Ultimately the role of the arms is to stabilize the torso.
In doing so, it allows for greater power transfer and force application, factors critical to speed.
All arm action should take place through the shoulders. Cue athletes to keep the elbows locked at approximately 90 degrees. In front, the hands should not cross the midline of the body.
Hands should come to cheek height in front and clear the hip in the back. Also, focus on driving the elbow or the hand down and back, keeping the elbows close to the body throughout the entire range of motion.
You'll be surprised how difficult this is for many athletes.
Speed Fundamental #2: TRAIN FAST, RUN FAST
I don't care what sport you coach. If all your training is at a submaximal pace, then you are not going to develop faster athletes. It's just that simple.
This principle is not just for track sprinters. From soccer to football to lacrosse and everything in between, athletes need to train fast if they want to be fast.
I'm not saying a football player shouldn't do aerobic work, but they spend a great deal of time accelerating to a ball and to/from a defensive player.
To get where they want to go faster, they must have faster acceleration speed. And this comes from doing acceleration work at full speed with full recovery as I mentioned above.
For some people this is difficult to comprehend. 4 second sprints with 3 minutes rest seems like a waste of time.
Believe me, it isn't.
But if you're coaching true speed/power athletes like sprinters and football players, high intensity sprints with full recovery *must* be the *foundation* of training.
Aerobic work serves as recovery from speed work, it does not get them 'in shape' specific to the demands of football.
This is not even a debatable concept.
Speed Fundamental #3: BE PATIENT
I'm not just talking about being patient with your athletes as you break them down to build them up.
I'm talking about being patient within each repetition of speed work.
Speed can't be forced. Athletes must learn to override the voice in their head that says 'try harder, run harder, push, strain, hurry up'.
Instead they have to let the speed come to them.
During acceleration, ground contact time goes from long to short. But most athletes are in a big rush to get up and into their 'normal' full speed running technique.
This is the equivalent of shifting the gears of a sports car as quickly as possible. It will not maximize performance.
Athletes need to be patient. Spend more time on the ground as they overcome inertia and accelerate. Stride length and frequency should increase naturally, as a result of efficient force application, strength and mechanics. They should not be forced.
Athletes should reach triple extension with each stride, fully completing the action of driving down (and back).
Instead I see athletes trying to shift gears too quickly. This results in reaching a slower top speed earlier in the run.
Since an athlete can only maintain top speed for 1-2 seconds before deceleration begins, impatience during acceleration will cost them speed and time with every step they take.
Speed Fundamental # 4: GET STRONGER
If you work with athletes, particularly teenaged athletes, then time spent developing physical strength in the weight room should be a fundamental part of your program.
Athletes who do not focus on strength development have a very low glass ceiling that will prevent them from making significant gains in speed.
It's just common sense - the stronger you are, the faster you can propel your body forward.
But this doesn't mean going into the weight room and lifting like a bodybuilder.
When I go in the weightroom I see athletes doing pointless training.
Here are some examples of lifts that, for our purposes, are a waste of time:
- anything on a machine such as hamstring curls, leg extensions
calf raises, Smith Machine squats, etc.
- single joint movements such as bicep curls
- chest flies, tricep extensions, etc.
While these are all great movements for looking good at the beach, I cringe when I see in-season athletes doing these lifts as part of their training. And I see it more often than not, sadly enough.
If you want to know exactly how to develop strength in your football players (even your pre-teen athletes) that will transfer to the football field or track, I recommend going to either of my websites listed below and check out the NFL Speed Training DVD's! by San Diego Chargers running back LT and the Denver Broncos D-Back Champ Bailey!
Speed Fundamental #5: STEP OVER, DRIVE DOWN
The ability to apply force to ground and, more specifically, mass specific force, is the primary mechanical consideration you must spend your time on during each speed session or drill session.
Athletes have a variety of issues adversely affecting their lower body mechanics.
But the vast majority of them stem from lack of physical strength and the inability to recover the heel underneath the hips, step over the opposite knee and drive the foot down into the ground so that it lands beneath the hips and not out in front of the center of mass.
If there is one topic of discussion that I get the most questions about it is the concept of 'step over, drive down'.
If there is one topic of discussion I get the most emails from satisfied customers about, it is the positive results gained from teaching athletes how to 'step over, drive down'.
And this is the case at every level of sport.
I've written about this extensively in the past. So if you're interested in reading more, check out my football websites and read the football coaching or football training articles.
Todd Krueger is a former 8th round draft pick in 1980 with the Buffalo Bills and also played with the Houston Oilers and Minnesota Vikings and the Arizona Wranglers in the USFL. He runs a football coaching website at http://www.footballtools.com and quarterback training website at http://www.playqb.com There you will find low cost football coaching products such as NFL Football Playbooks, Youth Football Practice DVDs, Quarterback Training DVDs, Football Scouting Software, Football Playbook Software, Free Quarterback Drills, Football Special Teams DVDs, Football Workout DVDs, Football Practice DVDs, and a free football newsletter and a free quarterback newsletter.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Todd_Krueger
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Developing Mental Toughness in Youth Football Players
As a youth football player I was one of those odd kids that loved to go to football practice. We all have some of those type of kids on our teams every year, but in todays world of unlimted choices and instant gratification, we see less and less of these kids these days. As a youth football player, I dreaded those first few weeks of torture and deprivation, but knew in the end that we would eventually get into learning the game and actually playing. Other youth players on my teams often never got to that point, they didn't know there was an end result that was worth waiting for, some would sour on the game or quit during those first miserable 2 weeks.
As time went on, I ended up playing High School, then College Football. The physical portion of the game became less important than the mental toughness needed to perform well. Being perfect with technique and assignment as well as the "mental toughness" of the individual was more important than just dominating physically at these upper levels. As a player moves up the ladder of competition, the disparities in talent are less and less pronounced and the mental portion of the game becomes more important.
At the youth level, the higher the level of competition the greater the importance of mental toughness is to the success of your team. If you have a stud player or two that has carried your team all season, when you get to the upper levels of competition, the other teams are going to have two to three studs as good or better than yours. You can rarely get by on talent alone when you play at the highest levels of youth football especially when you got to the playoffs or travel out of town to play. Your team has to be prepared to play in dogfights where they may have to play from behind or be matched up against far superior teams.
Many youth coaches that are now in their playoffs or traveling to National Tournaments are looking for edges, physical, emotional and mental edges. Traveling out of state to play games against unfamiliar teams can be very challenging mentally for your football team. Maybe you are from a primarily white suburban area and you are matched up with an all-black inner-city team or you play a team that outweighs your offensive line by over 60 pounds per player, it happens all the time in playoff and tournament games. If your kids don't have a lot of mental maturity, it's going to be very difficult for them to succeed in these type situations. Often when faced with this type of challenges, many youth players develop mysterious illnesses or injuries. In boxing terms we call this "looking for a soft place to land". Many of you youth coaches that have not gone to these tournaments would be surprised at how poorly some teams perform. Teams that have been bullies in their own leagues face adversity or a quality match-ups for the first time and fold like a cheap deck of cards. I'm speaking of teams that come in with amazing records, but get smacked in the mouth for the first time and crumble. But there are techniques you can use when coaching youth football, to prepare your team for these inevitable challenges.
I've found there is no last minute magic bullet or speech that can help your kids over this type of hump. There are some pre-game tips listed here on the blog that can help lessen some of the stress, see "Beating the Bully Team" entry. But helping your kids develop some mental toughness throughout the season is what's needed to tame this ghost. We try and create pressure situations during practice all year that will show our kids they can perform well under lots of pressure.
Some of the tactics we use:
20 Perfect Offensive Football Plays in a row. We run our offensive plays out on air. Our backs and pullers run everything out 20 yards, our linemen take their first two steps and freeze, then on a whistle sprint 20 yards to a designated spot for the next play. Needless to say the kids get pretty winded as I'm calling out both the plays and cadence to keep the pace very fast. Each play must be executed flawlessly for it to "count" and we don't quit until we get 20 perfect plays in a row. Perfect means the alignment and stances of all the players is perfect, each linemen has led and finished with his correct foot, each back has performed his responsibilities either blocking, faking or running perfectly and that we have 100% effort from everyone on the play. This includes the back-ups running with the group at full attention and effort. If one player breaks down, we start over again at 1.
The kids need to understand that this is an 11 player game and if one player fails his responsibility, our football plays will fail and then our team will fail. The kids need to be trained that every detail is important and non-negotiable. Peer pressure is a very important tool in youth football, the kids will police themselves in this drill, they don't want to have to run endless 20 yard sprints.
After a few start and stops, eventually the kids will embrace this drill as a challenge and look forward to it. Kids on our team actually ask for this drill, they like to see how many perfect plays they can do in a row, they want to set new records. After you've run this drill for 20 minutes in 90 degree heat there is no greater pressure than to be on play number 18, the kids don't want to start over again at 1. To add even more pressure to the situation, call a pass play on the 20th play. You never know when a game can come down to a very last second pass play that you have to make under huge pressure.
Another great way to build mental maturity is to Scrimmage against teams that are out of your league. There are multiple youth football leagues in our area and we try and develop relationships with teams in all of them. Set up mid-season scrimmages against teams that are the exact opposite of your team or the teams you typically face. If you are an inner-city team, scrimmage a rural or suburban team. If your league is a run dominated league, play a spread passing team. If your team is good but small, scrimmage a huge team or even a team that is an age bracket or classification higher. Doing this shows your kids you can play against anyone, the more extreme the differences, the better it is for your football team.
We also like to create pressure situations for our kids during practice. We will often wrap practice up by practicing field goals. In our youth football league the extra point kick is worth 2 points, the run or pass is just 1 point, hence the kicks are very important. If you play a team that can't kick extra points and your team can and you score a touchdown, you in essence have a 2 score lead if you can make your extra point kick. We put our field goal team on the practice field then put all the other kids on the team opposite them, they jump up and down, yell, scream etc to distract the kicker. After a few kicks we then tell the kicker if he makes the next kick, we get 10 minutes of "game time", if he misses we will run plays out 20 yards for the next 10 minutes. Obviously he's under a lot of pressure here, we may even add a player or two behind the line of scrimmage near the holder spot and have them yell at the kicker as well.
We do the same with some of our pass catching drills. We will line up our offensive formation right in front of where the parents are that have come to watch our football practice. We let the kids and parents know that if we complete the next pass, practice is over, if we don't complete it, we get 10 more minutes of team offense with 20 yard football plays being run out. Again we are creating pressure situations with positive and negative team consequences based on the results and effort of the team. We may even place 4-5 players at the catching point of this pass, having the kids yelling and waving their arms to distract the reciever to train him to handle pressure.
When doing team offensive reps on air in practice I often require that we get a play off every 20 seconds. I will call the cadence to set the pace and tempo. Getting everyone into position and running a perfect play every 20 seconds creates pressure, but also shows the kids they can run lots of plays quickly in time sensitive situations. Since we are always a no-huddle team, we are always in hurry-up mode.
While my teams over the last 7 years have rarely trailed in many games, we have had a number where we did and had to make a comeback. We often scored right before the half in time sensitive situations. This season my age 7-9 kids scored on the last play of the first half in 3 separate games and in the last minute of the half in 5 of 9 games. We all know that scoring right before the half is a back breaker in youth football. We did this by running a lot of plays in a small amount of time, our kids just didn't panic when the clock was winding down, they fully expected to score.
We have played out of league and out of state tournament games against much larger and more athletic competition. Our teams mental maturity is what helped us compete in these games. Don't neglect developing mental maturity with your kids especially if you expect to play in a big game or travel out of town to play in one of the many youth football tournaments out there.
For 150 free youth football practice tips from Dave or to sign up for his free newsletter: Football Plays
Dave Cisar-
Dave has a passion for developing youth coaches so they can in turn develop teams that are competitive. His teams have won over 94% of their games in 5 different leagues. He is a Nike "Coach of the Year" designate and his book has been endorsed by Tom Osborne.
Clips of his 2006 team in action: Youth Football Plays
Copyright 2007 Cisar Management and winningyouthfootball.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dave_Cisar
As time went on, I ended up playing High School, then College Football. The physical portion of the game became less important than the mental toughness needed to perform well. Being perfect with technique and assignment as well as the "mental toughness" of the individual was more important than just dominating physically at these upper levels. As a player moves up the ladder of competition, the disparities in talent are less and less pronounced and the mental portion of the game becomes more important.
At the youth level, the higher the level of competition the greater the importance of mental toughness is to the success of your team. If you have a stud player or two that has carried your team all season, when you get to the upper levels of competition, the other teams are going to have two to three studs as good or better than yours. You can rarely get by on talent alone when you play at the highest levels of youth football especially when you got to the playoffs or travel out of town to play. Your team has to be prepared to play in dogfights where they may have to play from behind or be matched up against far superior teams.
Many youth coaches that are now in their playoffs or traveling to National Tournaments are looking for edges, physical, emotional and mental edges. Traveling out of state to play games against unfamiliar teams can be very challenging mentally for your football team. Maybe you are from a primarily white suburban area and you are matched up with an all-black inner-city team or you play a team that outweighs your offensive line by over 60 pounds per player, it happens all the time in playoff and tournament games. If your kids don't have a lot of mental maturity, it's going to be very difficult for them to succeed in these type situations. Often when faced with this type of challenges, many youth players develop mysterious illnesses or injuries. In boxing terms we call this "looking for a soft place to land". Many of you youth coaches that have not gone to these tournaments would be surprised at how poorly some teams perform. Teams that have been bullies in their own leagues face adversity or a quality match-ups for the first time and fold like a cheap deck of cards. I'm speaking of teams that come in with amazing records, but get smacked in the mouth for the first time and crumble. But there are techniques you can use when coaching youth football, to prepare your team for these inevitable challenges.
I've found there is no last minute magic bullet or speech that can help your kids over this type of hump. There are some pre-game tips listed here on the blog that can help lessen some of the stress, see "Beating the Bully Team" entry. But helping your kids develop some mental toughness throughout the season is what's needed to tame this ghost. We try and create pressure situations during practice all year that will show our kids they can perform well under lots of pressure.
Some of the tactics we use:
20 Perfect Offensive Football Plays in a row. We run our offensive plays out on air. Our backs and pullers run everything out 20 yards, our linemen take their first two steps and freeze, then on a whistle sprint 20 yards to a designated spot for the next play. Needless to say the kids get pretty winded as I'm calling out both the plays and cadence to keep the pace very fast. Each play must be executed flawlessly for it to "count" and we don't quit until we get 20 perfect plays in a row. Perfect means the alignment and stances of all the players is perfect, each linemen has led and finished with his correct foot, each back has performed his responsibilities either blocking, faking or running perfectly and that we have 100% effort from everyone on the play. This includes the back-ups running with the group at full attention and effort. If one player breaks down, we start over again at 1.
The kids need to understand that this is an 11 player game and if one player fails his responsibility, our football plays will fail and then our team will fail. The kids need to be trained that every detail is important and non-negotiable. Peer pressure is a very important tool in youth football, the kids will police themselves in this drill, they don't want to have to run endless 20 yard sprints.
After a few start and stops, eventually the kids will embrace this drill as a challenge and look forward to it. Kids on our team actually ask for this drill, they like to see how many perfect plays they can do in a row, they want to set new records. After you've run this drill for 20 minutes in 90 degree heat there is no greater pressure than to be on play number 18, the kids don't want to start over again at 1. To add even more pressure to the situation, call a pass play on the 20th play. You never know when a game can come down to a very last second pass play that you have to make under huge pressure.
Another great way to build mental maturity is to Scrimmage against teams that are out of your league. There are multiple youth football leagues in our area and we try and develop relationships with teams in all of them. Set up mid-season scrimmages against teams that are the exact opposite of your team or the teams you typically face. If you are an inner-city team, scrimmage a rural or suburban team. If your league is a run dominated league, play a spread passing team. If your team is good but small, scrimmage a huge team or even a team that is an age bracket or classification higher. Doing this shows your kids you can play against anyone, the more extreme the differences, the better it is for your football team.
We also like to create pressure situations for our kids during practice. We will often wrap practice up by practicing field goals. In our youth football league the extra point kick is worth 2 points, the run or pass is just 1 point, hence the kicks are very important. If you play a team that can't kick extra points and your team can and you score a touchdown, you in essence have a 2 score lead if you can make your extra point kick. We put our field goal team on the practice field then put all the other kids on the team opposite them, they jump up and down, yell, scream etc to distract the kicker. After a few kicks we then tell the kicker if he makes the next kick, we get 10 minutes of "game time", if he misses we will run plays out 20 yards for the next 10 minutes. Obviously he's under a lot of pressure here, we may even add a player or two behind the line of scrimmage near the holder spot and have them yell at the kicker as well.
We do the same with some of our pass catching drills. We will line up our offensive formation right in front of where the parents are that have come to watch our football practice. We let the kids and parents know that if we complete the next pass, practice is over, if we don't complete it, we get 10 more minutes of team offense with 20 yard football plays being run out. Again we are creating pressure situations with positive and negative team consequences based on the results and effort of the team. We may even place 4-5 players at the catching point of this pass, having the kids yelling and waving their arms to distract the reciever to train him to handle pressure.
When doing team offensive reps on air in practice I often require that we get a play off every 20 seconds. I will call the cadence to set the pace and tempo. Getting everyone into position and running a perfect play every 20 seconds creates pressure, but also shows the kids they can run lots of plays quickly in time sensitive situations. Since we are always a no-huddle team, we are always in hurry-up mode.
While my teams over the last 7 years have rarely trailed in many games, we have had a number where we did and had to make a comeback. We often scored right before the half in time sensitive situations. This season my age 7-9 kids scored on the last play of the first half in 3 separate games and in the last minute of the half in 5 of 9 games. We all know that scoring right before the half is a back breaker in youth football. We did this by running a lot of plays in a small amount of time, our kids just didn't panic when the clock was winding down, they fully expected to score.
We have played out of league and out of state tournament games against much larger and more athletic competition. Our teams mental maturity is what helped us compete in these games. Don't neglect developing mental maturity with your kids especially if you expect to play in a big game or travel out of town to play in one of the many youth football tournaments out there.
For 150 free youth football practice tips from Dave or to sign up for his free newsletter: Football Plays
Dave Cisar-
Dave has a passion for developing youth coaches so they can in turn develop teams that are competitive. His teams have won over 94% of their games in 5 different leagues. He is a Nike "Coach of the Year" designate and his book has been endorsed by Tom Osborne.
Clips of his 2006 team in action: Youth Football Plays
Copyright 2007 Cisar Management and winningyouthfootball.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dave_Cisar
Football Jerseys - the Great Transformation
Football Jerseys have undergone a complete change in its image, appearance and usage patterns. In the yesteryear sports jersey was just a part of the official sports equipment, nothing more nothing less. The jerseys meant for football players had long sleeves, were plain and their material was heavier than today's National football league jersey. Their simplicity and plainness has been a reason for many comments. Reason for their plainness was that jersey was the team gear with no frills or designing. According to legendary football coach Darryl Royal, they were "working clothes".
Custom Jerseys- A new Era in Sports Equipment
The growing popularity of National Football League (NFL) and advent of custom jerseys in the football teams has transformed the team gear. Team gear including the jersey has become trendier. Jersey has transcended its "working clothes" impression. Custom jerseys for today's NFL football players have shorter sleeves, vibrant colors and attractive patterns. The football teams now pay considerable attention towards design and appearance of their team gear.
Wearing replica jerseys for NFL football matches to support their team has not been a new phenomenon for the football fans. However, now the jersey has taken a step ahead and you will find many people wearing NFL authentic jerseys even out of the football arenas. Wearing national football league team-jersey of their favorite football team or player has become a personal style statement of the younger generation. This transformation is the reason for increasing demand of sports equipment in general and jersey in particular.
Moreover, the extreme popularity of football as sport in America has further popularized the jersey. There are too many avenues for football fans; some of them are NFL Football, College Football, NCAA Football and very popular Monday Night Football. These events have added to the growing demand for football jerseys and team gear. Many people have a passion for collecting authentic jerseys (game worn) and replica jerseys of NFL stars.
Football Jerseys, Hockey Jerseys, Basketball Jerseys, Baseball Jerseys, Soccer Jerseys and Throwback jerseys. Visit http://www.a1-jerseys.com, your online resource for sports jerseys.
Related Articles
Throwback Jerseys- Treading Down the Memory Lane
Hockey Jerseys - One Jersey Many Uses
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Leo_Cuccione
Custom Jerseys- A new Era in Sports Equipment
The growing popularity of National Football League (NFL) and advent of custom jerseys in the football teams has transformed the team gear. Team gear including the jersey has become trendier. Jersey has transcended its "working clothes" impression. Custom jerseys for today's NFL football players have shorter sleeves, vibrant colors and attractive patterns. The football teams now pay considerable attention towards design and appearance of their team gear.
Wearing replica jerseys for NFL football matches to support their team has not been a new phenomenon for the football fans. However, now the jersey has taken a step ahead and you will find many people wearing NFL authentic jerseys even out of the football arenas. Wearing national football league team-jersey of their favorite football team or player has become a personal style statement of the younger generation. This transformation is the reason for increasing demand of sports equipment in general and jersey in particular.
Moreover, the extreme popularity of football as sport in America has further popularized the jersey. There are too many avenues for football fans; some of them are NFL Football, College Football, NCAA Football and very popular Monday Night Football. These events have added to the growing demand for football jerseys and team gear. Many people have a passion for collecting authentic jerseys (game worn) and replica jerseys of NFL stars.
Football Jerseys, Hockey Jerseys, Basketball Jerseys, Baseball Jerseys, Soccer Jerseys and Throwback jerseys. Visit http://www.a1-jerseys.com, your online resource for sports jerseys.
Related Articles
Throwback Jerseys- Treading Down the Memory Lane
Hockey Jerseys - One Jersey Many Uses
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Leo_Cuccione
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Football - What Makes It So Special
The football game is commonly known as ‘Association Football’ around the World. This name, however, means a lot to various countries. The terminology used by Americans is ‘American Football’.
In America, the football started with the variation of the game 'Rugby'. It is believed that the first game that was played in North America was based on ‘Soccer’ rules and it was played between 'Princeton' and 'Rutgers', however, it is widely known that this game in America was started with rugby not soccer.
After two years another modern game was reported to be played by 'McGill University' and 'Harvard University'. After this, it became easy to adopt the football as rugby type game. These universities later adopted most of 'Rugby Union' football rules that time. That was the time American football was usually called as 'Rugby' there.
No matter how interesting the game is, it always has some pros and cons with it and American football has it too. When people started to play American football, a lot of serious injuries were observed that time. This resulted a Ban on this game in America for a long time. Universities tried to gradually change the rules so that game could be played with much more safety, but number of demises did not decrease and reached to 33 in number.
These incidents however were reduced in forthcoming years. Football, today is commonly known as 'Association Football' which describes a common term for football. The governing body for football is 'FIFA' which organises a 'World Cup' every four years.
Free Football Picks -Football : What Makes It So Special
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sumit_Bhatnagar
In America, the football started with the variation of the game 'Rugby'. It is believed that the first game that was played in North America was based on ‘Soccer’ rules and it was played between 'Princeton' and 'Rutgers', however, it is widely known that this game in America was started with rugby not soccer.
After two years another modern game was reported to be played by 'McGill University' and 'Harvard University'. After this, it became easy to adopt the football as rugby type game. These universities later adopted most of 'Rugby Union' football rules that time. That was the time American football was usually called as 'Rugby' there.
No matter how interesting the game is, it always has some pros and cons with it and American football has it too. When people started to play American football, a lot of serious injuries were observed that time. This resulted a Ban on this game in America for a long time. Universities tried to gradually change the rules so that game could be played with much more safety, but number of demises did not decrease and reached to 33 in number.
These incidents however were reduced in forthcoming years. Football, today is commonly known as 'Association Football' which describes a common term for football. The governing body for football is 'FIFA' which organises a 'World Cup' every four years.
Free Football Picks -Football : What Makes It So Special
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sumit_Bhatnagar
Fantasy Football League Plays for Incredible Prize
Fantasy football league enthusiasts play for different reasons. Some play for pride, while others play for money. Some fantasy football league members play for mega money, though, and the money is all these fantasy football nuts care about. Witness these two amazing fantasy football leagues.
A fantasy football league in Las Vegas pits players from 12 different leagues in a World Championship Fantasy Football league. These guys compete for a grand prize of $200,000. Other huge monetary prizes are handed out as well. This quest to be a fantasy football league world champion illustrates what this game does to people.
Further witness a differend kind of fantasy football league. In The League, first-ever published work of fiction based on a fantasy football league, sixteen wealthy, powerful men from Wall Street, create a unique fantasy football league. This remarkable group plays for a winner-take-all fantasy football league championship trophy of $30 million.
The idea for The League was born from conversations between the author and other fantasy football league participants who believe that the lust for power and money can get out of hand, if people are not careful. Fantasy football makes a great vehicle for this hunger for money.
The League is a fictional work that has been called a cautionary tale about what can happen, if fantasy football league enthusiasts are not careful to keep their competition and desire for prize money in check. Anyone participating in a fantasy football league can learn a great deal about how the game can get out of control by reading about a fictional fantasy football league in the novel, The League.
Read some of Mark's novel, The League at http://www.sportsnovels.com.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mark_Barnes
A fantasy football league in Las Vegas pits players from 12 different leagues in a World Championship Fantasy Football league. These guys compete for a grand prize of $200,000. Other huge monetary prizes are handed out as well. This quest to be a fantasy football league world champion illustrates what this game does to people.
Further witness a differend kind of fantasy football league. In The League, first-ever published work of fiction based on a fantasy football league, sixteen wealthy, powerful men from Wall Street, create a unique fantasy football league. This remarkable group plays for a winner-take-all fantasy football league championship trophy of $30 million.
The idea for The League was born from conversations between the author and other fantasy football league participants who believe that the lust for power and money can get out of hand, if people are not careful. Fantasy football makes a great vehicle for this hunger for money.
The League is a fictional work that has been called a cautionary tale about what can happen, if fantasy football league enthusiasts are not careful to keep their competition and desire for prize money in check. Anyone participating in a fantasy football league can learn a great deal about how the game can get out of control by reading about a fictional fantasy football league in the novel, The League.
Read some of Mark's novel, The League at http://www.sportsnovels.com.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mark_Barnes
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Buying Football Gifts for the Men in Your Life
Once you start looking for football gifts for your brother, son, father or partner, you soon discover that there is absolutely no dearth of football gifts whatsoever in the market. Items ranging from the cheap to the exorbitant and from the tacky to the exquisitely classy can all be found jostling for space in a shop selling football related gifts. However, while there is no shortage of the kind of gifts that you can give to a football fan, remember that it is not a one gift suits all kind of world, and you should definitely put some thought and planning in order to buy something special for someone who is special for you.
Given below are some football gift ideas that should help you choose your gift better:
Think of Something Suitable: Football gifts ranging from NFL key chains, jerseys, bath mats, coffee mugs, towels, lighters, watches, flasks and so on make up an endless list of gifts that can be given to a football fan. However, everything might not be of use to someone and some gifts might be unsuitable for some people. So giving a whiskey flask emblazoned with an NFL logo is as unsuitable for a non-drinker as is a logo-ed lighter for someone who does not smoke. Before selecting a gift, take some time to think about what the receiver of your gift might need or be able to use.
Keep Age in Mind: While a kid might appreciate getting an NFL bed set or posters for his room, a grown man might not be able to appreciate a gift that comprises of a bed sheet and pillow covers printed with the logo of his favorite team. Similarly, posters, key chains and other football related knick knacks are ok if your receiver is not beyond his teens, but you can always come up with something better for your husband, partner or father.
Consider Your Budget: It is all very well if you decide to buy some special football memorabilia for your boy friend as a gift, only to find out later that it is way beyond your budget. Therefore, always consider your budget before narrowing down on a gift item. However, if you have the time to go through numerous stores, then you might end up finding exactly what you want at a price that you can afford. The Internet is also a great place to find sport related gifts at great prices, provided you have the time and patience to look for them.
Get it Personalized: The best way of making your football gift special is to get it personalized. Giving a drinking mug, flask or even a key ring with the name or initials of your receiver along with his or her favorite team's logo is a great way of making the receiver of your gifts cherish and like your gift.
Never Forget Clothing: Football related or logo-ed clothing is the most popular football gift because of a number of reasons. After all, everybody wears clothes and nobody minds receiving an item of clothing with his football team's logo on it. So in case you cannot think of something suitable, then remember that an NHL jersey, cap, T-shirt or any other item of clothing will any day make a great football gift for the football fans you love.
Article written by Cassaundra Flores, owner of http://www.skyfireproducts.com. Please check out these links Fan Sports Shop & Sports Page
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Cassaundra_Flores
Given below are some football gift ideas that should help you choose your gift better:
Think of Something Suitable: Football gifts ranging from NFL key chains, jerseys, bath mats, coffee mugs, towels, lighters, watches, flasks and so on make up an endless list of gifts that can be given to a football fan. However, everything might not be of use to someone and some gifts might be unsuitable for some people. So giving a whiskey flask emblazoned with an NFL logo is as unsuitable for a non-drinker as is a logo-ed lighter for someone who does not smoke. Before selecting a gift, take some time to think about what the receiver of your gift might need or be able to use.
Keep Age in Mind: While a kid might appreciate getting an NFL bed set or posters for his room, a grown man might not be able to appreciate a gift that comprises of a bed sheet and pillow covers printed with the logo of his favorite team. Similarly, posters, key chains and other football related knick knacks are ok if your receiver is not beyond his teens, but you can always come up with something better for your husband, partner or father.
Consider Your Budget: It is all very well if you decide to buy some special football memorabilia for your boy friend as a gift, only to find out later that it is way beyond your budget. Therefore, always consider your budget before narrowing down on a gift item. However, if you have the time to go through numerous stores, then you might end up finding exactly what you want at a price that you can afford. The Internet is also a great place to find sport related gifts at great prices, provided you have the time and patience to look for them.
Get it Personalized: The best way of making your football gift special is to get it personalized. Giving a drinking mug, flask or even a key ring with the name or initials of your receiver along with his or her favorite team's logo is a great way of making the receiver of your gifts cherish and like your gift.
Never Forget Clothing: Football related or logo-ed clothing is the most popular football gift because of a number of reasons. After all, everybody wears clothes and nobody minds receiving an item of clothing with his football team's logo on it. So in case you cannot think of something suitable, then remember that an NHL jersey, cap, T-shirt or any other item of clothing will any day make a great football gift for the football fans you love.
Article written by Cassaundra Flores, owner of http://www.skyfireproducts.com. Please check out these links Fan Sports Shop & Sports Page
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Cassaundra_Flores
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