Coach Sal
09-14-2007, 11:19 AM
One of the main principles I've learned in my one decade-plus of coaching high school football is something that now relates to the Bills and their current situation, and that is this:
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No matter what their talent level is, no matter if you think they'll ever help you now or in the future or not, you coach every single person on your roster the same! Because they actually may have to play for you at some point. In fact, they may even have to play a big role for one game, a stretch of games, or a complete season. And if you don't coach them the same as the starter in front of them, be sure they know their keys, their reads, and their assignments, they are almost surely going to fail without you giving them even a chance to succeed.
Which means you have failed in doing your job.....and it means the team will fail.<o:p></o:p>
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Sure, some don't get the same amount of reps in drills and practice depending on if they are first, second, or third string, but that doesn't change their jobs once they do have to play, whether it be in practice or a game.
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I bring this up because the Bills are now faced with playing guys who thy most likely didn't plan on having to play - much less start - this early in the season and for the length of time they will be expected to play. Well, guess what? That's the way it goes. And if the coaching staff hasn't prepared them properly by now, they'll never be fully prepared, and they won't be successful.
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Guys make a 53-man roster for a reason. Not just to be a scout team player who gets the starter ready to play.......but to actually be a part of the team and be one of the troops who has to be ready to put his boots on and go into battle. And the front office and coaches wouldn't keep him around if they didn't feel he could do that. Sometimes their call to duty happens quicker than expected, but coaches know that can happen. So, from day one they prepare them for what they need to know. They coach them. They teach them. They give them the tools they need to succeed no differently than the starter in front of them.
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Guys like Ashton Youboty, Jim Leonhard, and John Wendling (among others) have to play now. Maybe they're less talented than the guy they are replacing (that's up for debate). But whether they are or not, I'm confident they'll be fully prepared and ready to go. They'll at least know they’re assignments, even if executing them on Sunday isn't guaranteed.
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Dick Jauron's a smart guy. I'm confident he knows that "He who fails to prepare, prepares to fail."<o:p></o:p>
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<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p>
<o:p></o:p>
No matter what their talent level is, no matter if you think they'll ever help you now or in the future or not, you coach every single person on your roster the same! Because they actually may have to play for you at some point. In fact, they may even have to play a big role for one game, a stretch of games, or a complete season. And if you don't coach them the same as the starter in front of them, be sure they know their keys, their reads, and their assignments, they are almost surely going to fail without you giving them even a chance to succeed.
Which means you have failed in doing your job.....and it means the team will fail.<o:p></o:p>
<o:p></o:p>
Sure, some don't get the same amount of reps in drills and practice depending on if they are first, second, or third string, but that doesn't change their jobs once they do have to play, whether it be in practice or a game.
<o:p></o:p>
<o:p></o:p>
I bring this up because the Bills are now faced with playing guys who thy most likely didn't plan on having to play - much less start - this early in the season and for the length of time they will be expected to play. Well, guess what? That's the way it goes. And if the coaching staff hasn't prepared them properly by now, they'll never be fully prepared, and they won't be successful.
<o:p></o:p>
<o:p></o:p>
Guys make a 53-man roster for a reason. Not just to be a scout team player who gets the starter ready to play.......but to actually be a part of the team and be one of the troops who has to be ready to put his boots on and go into battle. And the front office and coaches wouldn't keep him around if they didn't feel he could do that. Sometimes their call to duty happens quicker than expected, but coaches know that can happen. So, from day one they prepare them for what they need to know. They coach them. They teach them. They give them the tools they need to succeed no differently than the starter in front of them.
<o:p></o:p>
<o:p></o:p>
Guys like Ashton Youboty, Jim Leonhard, and John Wendling (among others) have to play now. Maybe they're less talented than the guy they are replacing (that's up for debate). But whether they are or not, I'm confident they'll be fully prepared and ready to go. They'll at least know they’re assignments, even if executing them on Sunday isn't guaranteed.
<o:p></o:p>
<o:p></o:p>
Dick Jauron's a smart guy. I'm confident he knows that "He who fails to prepare, prepares to fail."<o:p></o:p>
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