Good Ole Boys

I watched a little bit of the Boise St./Arizona St. game the other night and I’m sitting there thinking, “ What the heck am I doing watching Boise play a 6-6 team?” Nothing against ASU, but they simply were not up to taking on Boise St. Boise won the game 58-26 or something like that. Boise had a record of 11-1.

Boise St. lost one game this year to a very good TCU team and they got banished to Siberia in the bowl matchups. Why? Because they are not part of the BCS, that special group of college programs from the “power” conferences. They’re not part of the good ole boys group. If I was Boise St. I’d be really ticked off. Yeah, I know, they’re going to the Big East next year so it will all be all right. But they shouldn’t have to. If you’re good, you’re good. And these guys are good.

“They don’t play a tough enough schedule,” some say. So, they go to a bowl and beat mighty Oklahoma. “Oklahoma didn’t want to be there,” some whined. Baloney! They went to Virginia Tech last year and beat the Hokies. “Luck!” they cried. “Let’s see them schedule the SEC”. So they scheduled Georgia, went TO Georgia and beat them. “Well, they couldn’t do that week in and week out,” they declared. By the way, Georgia was in the SEC championship game.

So, I’m fed up with this BCS system. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a Big 10 fan and they are a BCS conference. But right is right. And who would I like to see Boise play? Oh man, how about Boise vs. Arkansas, Notre Dame, or Michigan? Now that’s what we should see. But to watch a great team play a 6-6 team, just wasn’t right.
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Pujols to Angels

I admit, I was very saddened when I heard that Albert Pujols was leaving my beloved St. Louis Cardinals to sign with the L.A. Angels. I wasn’t sad for the Cards, heck, they will be fine. I was sad to see the best player in baseball, a Cardinal icon, and great humanitarian leave St. Louis. It was so enjoyable to watch Pujols play. Not only is he one of the best hitters of all time, he plays excellent defense, runs the bases well, and makes smart plays. He is also a great team leader. The Angels are getting a heck of a player.

But I was uneasy with the amount of money it was going to take to resign Albert. The Cardinals were offering $200 million over ten years. That was too much for too long. Only because Albert had become the face of the Cardinals, second only to the great Stan Musial, would have I and apparently the Cardinals paid so much. Now that he is gone, I’m ALMOST relieved the Cards didn’t sign him. I can’t believe I’m saying that! But it frees up money to sign other players for a more balanced team.

Consider, in baseball, no matter how good you are, a player usually gets four at bats per game. And the worst hitter on the team also gets four at bats per game. It’s the same for everyone, superstar or not. So, Pujols could only hit four times, the same as Skip Schumacher or Yadier Molina. In football, I can get my stud thirty carries a game. In basketball the star can shoot twice as much as the entire team (or more). Thus, the star can only do so much. And Pujols, the biggest star of all, can only do so much.

I will miss Sir Albert, we all will, but the Cardinals will be OK. They won nine World Series titles without him and they’ll win more without him. He can’t be replaced but someone else will get their chance. Isn’t that what we tell a kid in football? When a starter goes down, we grab that young back up, look him in the eye and say, “It’s your turn man, you’re ready, get in there and play hard”. And that’s exactly what the Cardinals will have to do.

LSU - Alabama II

About a month ago I wrote a blog of the LSU – Alabama football game that ended 9-6 in overtime. I thought it was a great game and said so. Not everyone agreed. Seems the definition of a good game these days is 52-35. Now we are faced with a rematch for the national title. Good idea? Talk about controversy! This BCS season is full of it.

I saw a poll on CBSsports.com that indicated that only 34% of fans favor this matchup and a whopping 66% believe Oklahoma St. deserves a shot at the Tigers. I’m not sure where I stand on this one. Yes I do. I really think LSU is the best team in the country and Alabama is a very close second. Okie St. is right behind them. Based on that and the BCS system, it has to be LSU vs. Alabama. But I would RATHER see Oklahoma St. in the title game. I would compare it to boxing in the old days; when a contender got beat by the champ, they got the next contender in line to challenge. Alabama had their chance, AT HOME no less, and got beat. Let’s give someone else a shot. But that’s not how the BCS works. According to the rules, it must be BCS #1 against BCS #2, end of story. So, like it or not, that’s the matchup.

That brings us to the subject of a playoff. Seems everyone wants a playoff. You know, if we had a playoff it would probably end up with Kansas St. vs. Boise St. for the championship, which is OK with me, but not glamorous enough for the masses. Anytime you have a tournament there are upsets, that’s how I came up with Boise against KSU. Hey, who could’ve predicted UConn vs. Butler for the round ball championship last year? One way to do a playoff would be to take the top eight in the BCS standings and have a tourney. These would be the eight teams:

1. LSU
2. Alabama
3. Oklahoma St.
4. Stanford
5. Oregon
6. Arkansas
7. Boise St.
8. Kansas St.

Nope, no one from the Big Ten. And in a seeded tourney #2 always plays #7. That would put Alabama against Boise in the first round. Alabama would be out because we know none of the “big boys” can beat Boise. If we had a tourney for conference champions, these would be some of the teams:

Clemson Northern Illinois
Oklahoma St. Oregon
Wisconsin Arkansas St.
West Virginia
Southern Miss.
TCU
LSU

Which would you favor? Frankly, I could go with either.

Finally, how about the bowl matchups? I feel bad for Boise. Everyone knows how good they are but they continue to get robbed. Same with TCU. How did Virginia Tech get a BCS bowl after a beat down by Clemson? And Michigan? What’s with that? Sometimes I really dislike this BCS stuff.

Well, there you have it. Coach Grant’s take on the state of college football. There will be some good matchups, and I’m going to enjoy them. I’m looking forward to Stanford vs. Oklahoma St. the most. How about you?

Hey, if you like free football instruction, visit Chiefpigskin.com everyday!

Me and Uncle Bill

My uncle Bill passed away about a year ago; he was only about 68 but had been in failing health for a couple of years. At his funeral I couldn’t help but think back about all the time we had spent together. I was pretty close to all my uncles but probably closer to my uncle Bill than any of the others. He was a good guy, very patient, kind and generous. I used to go squirrel hunting with my Dad and uncles and sometimes I’d tag along and hunt with Dad and sometimes I’d tag along with Uncle Bill. He was always willing to take me along. But our favorite activity to do together was to go to a high school football game every weekend. Starting when I was about 11 or 12 we would pick out the local game that we thought would be the best and then we’d go. We saw some great games over the years but the one that stands out the most took place on Friday night November 5, 1965 at Peoria Public Schools Stadium in Peoria, IL.

Spalding, the city of Peoria’s catholic high school of about 900 students and tough every year, came into the game at 7-0 and was coached by feisty, little Merv Haycock. Pekin, a nearby community of about 30,000, coached by veteran Joe Venturi, also came in at 7-0. Pekin had roughly 3,000 students. They were tied for the conference lead and this game figured to determine the champ. There were no playoffs in those days so winning the conference championship was the ultimate goal of every team. Pekin was a big strong team with talented skill players. Probably their best team ever. Spalding was smaller, quicker, and although undefeated also, the underdog. This game had been anticipated for the past month by the entire Peoria area. Uncle Bill and I knew which game we were going to that weekend.

The game started at 8 p.m. and we knew we had to get there early. Peoria Stadium held about 7,000 people and we figured it would be a full house. By 5 p.m. about 200 persons were waiting outside the ticket windows, which opened at 6:30. That’s when we got there. The stadium was already half full but we got a decent seat. By 7 p.m. it was full, but the crowd kept pouring in. It was a calm, cool night, perfect for football. By 7:30 there was a thick haze that hung over the field like a heavy fog. It was cigarette smoke! Heck, everybody back in those days smoked and there were no restrictions as to where smoking was allowed. I had never witnessed such a site in my life nor have I since. Finally, in front of an overflow crowd of 10,100 the game started at 8. I was pumped.

Spalding struck for a touchdown on the second play from scrimmage, an electrifying 62 yard pass play from QB Dick McQuellon to halfback Bob Beckman. As the clock showed 10:42 to play in the first period Beckman kicked the extra point through. Spalding had another first quarter assault underway after forcing a Pekin punt, moving from their own 32 to the Pekin 16. Pekin’s defense toughened up and stopped them cold. Pekin came back to tie the score in the second quarter, Steve Tumilty climaxing an 80 yard drive with a one yard plunge. Dennis Hurley kicked the extra point and with 4:16 to go in the second quarter it was tied 7-7. That’s how the half ended. The game was living up to its billing.

The second half was dominated by Pekin as Spalding rarely got the ball. Pekin played ball control and was able to move the ball well. Their best drive came at the end of the third quarter when they got the ball on their own 3 yard line after a 63 yard Spalding punt. As the quarter changed Pekin moved from their own 3 to the Spalding 8 before stalling at that point. Spalding was held to a three and out and punted out to the 40. There were 4 ½ minutes to play. After trading turnovers, a fumble and an interception, Pekin had one last chance. They reached midfield and ended with a swing pass to the flat. The headline the next morning of the Peoria Journal Star read:

Spalding 7, Pekin 7 in Thriller
Beckman, Tumilty Score
As 10,000 See Game

We couldn’t believe it. A tie. We drove home talking about the game. Uncle Bill figured Pekin outplayed them but Spalding held when they had to. Both teams went on to finish 9-0-1 and shared the conference title. There were no playoffs in those days so when the season was over that was it. By the way, could one of the teams gone for two after their touchdown? Nope. That was before high school had the two point conversion. You could run or pass it in but you still only got one point. We saw a lot of games, my uncle and me, but that one was the best. Thanks once again to www.chiefpigskin.com for providing a place for my stories and more football news. Happy Thanksgiving.

LSU - Alabama

In my last blog “When There Were Ties” I wrote about the epic 10-10 tie that #1 Notre Dame and #2 Michigan State played to in 1966. I watched that game and 45 years later I watched #1 LSU play #2 Alabama. To my amazement I watched another tie. This one was 6-6 at the end of 60 minutes. The difference between 1966 and 2011 is that we now have overtime. And in that overtime LSU’s defense stopped Alabama cold and forced them into a 52 yard field goal attempt. It wasn’t even close. LSU took the ball inside the 10 and kicked the game winner for a 9-6 win over the Crimson Tide.

This game featured the best college defense by two teams I’ve ever seen. Both teams had a ferocious defense and I thoroughly enjoyed the game. It was well played and not sloppy. Any turnovers were caused by great defense and not by poor offensive execution. Man oh man, these guys hit and neither team blinked. So, I’m wondering how so many people found the game boring. Not enough scoring! Are you kidding me? This was great football. They hammered, hit, scrapped, clawed, and made each other EARN every inch of turf. That’s football. Although I enjoy high scoring games I don’t need them to appreciate football. Sometimes I get bored watching teams score TOO much in this day of high powered offenses. Guess I’m showing my age.

On a side note, do you remember the rest of the story in 1966 when ND and MSU finished 9-0-1 and shared the national championship? Neither team went to a bowl game that year. That’s right, no bowl game for either team. Prior to the 70’s Notre Dame did not accept bowl invitations. Why, you ask? I don’t know, you’ll have to ask them. The Big Ten only participated in one bowl-the Rose Bowl. And that was reserved for the Big Ten champ. No other teams were allowed to play in a bowl. Michigan St. was not allowed to go to the Rose Bowl because the Big Ten had a rule that a team could not go to the Rose Bowl two years in a row, and MSU played UCLA the year before in the Rose Bowl. The 2nd place team went instead. Hard to believe, but that’s how it was. Not like now when everyone and his brother goes to a bowl game. Just for the fun of it, let’s take a look at the ’66 bowl games. There were only ten of them.

Dec. 10 Liberty Bowl Miami FL 14 – Virginia Tech 7
Dec. 10 Tangerine Bowl Morgan St. 14 – West Chester 6
Dec. 10 Camellia Bowl San Diego St. 28 – Montana St. 7
Dec. 17 Bluebonnet Bowl Texas 19 – Mississippi 0
Dec. 24 Sun Bowl Wyoming 28 – Florida St. 20
Dec. 31 Cotton Bowl Georgia 24 – SMU 9
Dec. 31 Gator Bowl Tennessee 18 – Syracuse 12
Jan. 2 Sugar Bowl Alabama 34 – Nebraska 7
Jan. 2 Orange Bowl Florida 27 – Georgia Tech 12
Jan. 2 Rose Bowl Purdue 14 – Southern Cal 13

That’s it. Bowls were very special and some good teams were left out. Keep checking in on www.chiefpigskin for all your football needs and I’ll be back with more stories soon.

When There Were Ties

How many of you are old enough to remember the 10-10 tie Notre Dame and Michigan St. played in 1966? Probably only a few of us. The game was played on November 19, 1966 at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan. I waited and waited for that doggone game and I sat there and watched every minute of it. You see, back then there was only one college game televised per week. That’s right, ONE! There was no ESPN, FOX, TNN, BTN, or anything other than the big three - ABC, NBC, and CBS. Only one had the rights to the game of the week. So, I looked forward to that one game on TV every week and it was just about always the premier game in the country. They could afford to be very picky.

Notre Dame and Michigan St. were ranked #1 and #2 all season. Notre Dame was ranked #1 in one poll and #2 in the other. MSU was ranked #2 in one poll and #1 in the other. So, who was really #1? This game would decide it. They both came into the game undefeated, ND 8-0 and MSU 9-0. The buildup for the game was tremendous; this was the first time in 20 years that a college football game was given the "Game of the Century" tag by the national media. The Spartans were coached by old Duffy Daugherty, the veteran coach of the Big Ten. The Irish were coached by the legendary Ara Parseghian, one of the best. I was about 15 years old and a football junkie. On Saturday mornings I played on the high school sophomore team, Friday nights I went to the varsity game, Saturday afternoon I watched the college game of the week and on Sunday I watched the Bears or Packers. Homework? I don’t remember doing it-I disliked school work very much. I’m not proud of that, but that was me. Oh yeah, no girlfriend either. Got in the way of football. So, there I sat in front of that TV with my Pepsi and snacks.

Irish quarterback Terry Hanratty was knocked out after getting sacked in the first quarter by Spartan defensive lineman Bubba Smith. Michigan State jumped out to 7-0 lead early in the 2nd quarter. Later in the half they added a field goal for a 10-0 lead. But the Irish came right back scoring on about a 35 yard pass play. MSU took a 10-7 lead to the half. I was enjoying a great game. Notre Dame tied the game early in the 4th quarter on a field goal. Who was going to get the winning score? I was ready for an exciting finish. Late in the game, Notre Dame had the ball on its own 30-yard line with 1:10 to go. They needed about 40 yards for a game-winning field goal. But Coach Parseghian, not wanting to risk a turnover that could hand the game to the Spartans, chose to run the clock out, preserving the tie and Notre Dame's # 1 ranking. The last play of the game was a QB sneak by Notre Dame that gained 5 yards. Game over. I sat there, Pepsi in hand, staring blankly at the TV. A tie? I waited and watched all that for a tie?

For over 40 years, Parseghian has defended his end-of-the-game strategy, which left many fans feeling disappointed at the game not having some sort of resolution. Michigan State fans and other Notre Dame detractors called him a coward, and college football expert Dan Jenkins lead off his article for Sports Illustrated by saying Parseghian chose to "Tie one for the Gipper." In that same article, Parseghian was quoted as saying, "We'd fought hard to come back and tie it up. After all that, I didn't want to risk giving it to them cheap. We get reckless and it could cost us the game. I wasn't going to do a jackass thing like that at this point."
The tie resulted in 9–0–1 seasons for both Michigan State and Notre Dame. The final AP poll put the Irish and the Spartans at #1 and #2, ranking both teams above the undefeated and two times defending national champion 11–0 Alabama. Both schools shared the MacArthur Trophy, while Alabama was denied recognition for its accomplishment.

We no longer have ties, and I’m thankful for that, but we do have the BCS and so controversy remains a part of college football. But I’ll never forget that game and in fact was the 2nd greatly anticipated game for me in less than a year. I went to local high school game that was dubbed “Game of the Century” in 1965, but that’s another story. I’ll share that with you soon. Right now, its playoff time in Illinois and I get to watch more football. The fun just never ends. Keep following the documentaries on www.chiefpigskin.com and enjoy the greatest team sport ever.

Patience

There was a kindergarten teacher who was getting her students ready to go home for the day. She noticed that one little boy was struggling with his cowboy boots. He was having a hard time getting them on, so she decided to go over and help him. She pushed and pushed, he pulled and pulled, finally, she got the boots on. The little boy looked up at the teacher and said," They’re on the wrong feet." So she took the boots back off of the little boy. She pulled and pulled, he pushed and pushed, and finally they got the boots off. She switched the shoes to the other feet and pushed and pushed as the little boy pulled. Finally, they got the boots back on. The little boy looked at the boots, then looked at his teacher and said, “These are not my boots." So, the teacher helped him get the boots back off with much pushing and pulling. When they finally got them off the little boy looked at the teacher and said, "They are my brother’s boots. My mom told me to go ahead and wear them today”. So the teacher helped the little boy put the boots back on. She pushed; he pulled until they got the boots back on. She took the little boy over to get his coat on and helped him with his coat and put on his hat. "Where are your mittens?" she asked. "They’re in my boots," replied the little boy.

Patience is required of a kindergarten teacher. Heck, patience is required of all of us. We need to have patience with our own children, our spouse, friends, and coworkers. And we certainly need to have patience with our team when the season is not going as planned. Or, maybe the season is going like you thought it would. You knew it was going to be a long year. Either way, this is the time of year when we are tested. Not everyone is undefeated or only has 1 or 2 losses at this point. For every 7-0 team there is an 0-7. For every 6-1 team there is a 1-6, and so on. I’ve been on both sides and believe me; I know how tough it is to hang in there with many disappointments.

But the fact is we have to keep coaching, keep teaching, and keep doing things the right way. The kids deserve that, and they’re watching us. So my encouragement to you is to be patient and stay the course. When all is said and done, you won’t be sorry. By the way, I’ve noticed on Chiefpigskin.com that some of the teams doing documentaries are struggling. Not all are winning every game. Real teams, real life, and we’re all in it together.

For the teams that are winning, it’s getting exciting. The playoffs are just around the corner and I can’t wait. Good luck down the stretch!

Wildest Night Ever!

Mind you, I’ve been a big baseball all my life so I’ve witnessed a lot of baseball. But last Wednesday night was the most exciting night I’ve ever seen in baseball. I heard one sportscaster compare it to March Madness and I thought that was a fair comparison. Now, I know I usually write about football so a baseball story might be a bit unusual, but the name of my blog is Footballfathershusbandsandlife, which under the life part means I get to write about anything. Anyway, what a great night of baseball.

I’m sitting there Wednesday night to see if my beloved Cardinals could win the NL wildcard outright or at least force a one game playoff with the Braves. That was excitement enough right there for me, especially since they had stormed back from 10 ½ games out on August 25. They blasted the Astros and retreated to watch the Braves on the clubhouse TV who were hanging on to a one run lead over the Phillies going to the 9th. But the other games for the AL wild card were crazy. Tampa Bay had come from 9 ½ back to catch Boston. They were playing the Bronx Bombers and were down 7-0 going to the bottom of the 8th-game over, right? Then on the other channel I saw the Red Sox clinging to a 1 run lead over the Orioles in late innings (with a rain delay) hoping to hold off the Rays. Three games were still being played to determine playoff spots. I watched in disbelief as the Rays got 6 in the bottom of the 8th. I thought, “They darned near pulled it off”. The Braves then blew their 1 run lead in the 9th and went to extra innings. The Red Sox/Oriole game restarted and the Sox stopped them in the 8th. Meanwhile, it was the bottom of the 9th in Tampa with 2 out and two strikes in the bottom of the 9th. What happened next caused me to almost fall out of my chair. A player from the Rays, I can’t even remember his name, hits a shot down the right field line that just gets over the wall and the Rays are goin’ nuts! That game goes to extra innings. The Braves then gave up a run to the Phillies in the 9th and lost in the 12th losing a heartbreaker 4-3. Season over. As happy as I was for my Cards, I felt bad for the Braves. Blowing a big lead is tough. So, the Cardinals were in. Several minutes later I watched Longoria hit a walkoff homer against the Yanks and the Rays had won! Unbelievable. Three minutes later I watched the Orioles rally for two in the bottom of the 9th to sink the Sox. Another blown lead. If I hadn’t seen all this happen with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it. Other than watching my favorite team win world series titles, it was the most exciting time in baseball I ever witnessed.

I don’t know what’s going to happen in the playoffs but one thing is sure. The regular season ended with a bang. The Phillies are the clear favorite, their starting pitching is ridiculously good and their offense is solid. The Yankees will be hard to beat in the AL and are probably the favorites there. But I’ve played, coached, and watched sports my whole life and one thing I’ve learned-ANYTHING, and I mean ANYTHING, can happen. So, let’s enjoy the playoffs, and in the meantime, football is heating up as well. Keep checking out the documentaries on Chiefpigskin.com to see what’s happening in high school football in North America. Good luck down the stretch of another exciting high school football season.

Uniforms Gone Wild

I like Boise State and I like Georgia. I like their coaches and respect their programs. But when I turned on the TV on opening night I had a hard time watching the game because of their uniforms. Their UGLY uniforms. In a game of the “ugly uniforms”, Boise St. won 35-21. I thought I had seen the ugliest until a few days later I saw Maryland play and, oh my, Maryland topped them all! In a mosaic of the state flag, the Maryland team was really a sight to see. I couldn’t watch the game. Am I overreacting? Perhaps, probably, but that’s how I feel. Yeah, I know, I’m showing my age.

Who started this ugly uniform trend? I think it might have been Oregon. And the thing about Oregon is they have several different ugly uniforms with different colors and designs. An array of ugliness. Now many teams have jumped on the bandwagon and it’s like they are trying to outdo each other. I think the idea is to be modern and flashy but sometimes modern isn’t so cool. It reminds me of the 70’s and 80’s in baseball. Remember those blue collared uniforms with shorts that the White Sox broke out? Yeah, I’m trying not to remember either. Or how about the rainbow striped orange uniforms of the Houston Astros? Ugh! The Padres had some awful uniforms too. For awhile major league baseball was adorned in wild colors, polysester, and elastic waistbands. It was all very modern. But a few years later, by the late 80’s, most teams were going back to their old, traditional uniforms. Nearly all have stuck with the traditional look and they look sharp. I’m hoping football learns their lesson soon.

What uniforms do I like? Well, in college it would be Ohio St., Iowa, Alabama, and Texas. Wisconsin looks sharp and there are many others. Pennsylvania State is about as plain as you can get but I like them OK. In the pros I like the Bears, Packers, Colts, Browns and Dolphins to name a few. When I was a kid the Bears had all black (very dark blue) helmets. Then they got fancy and put a white “C” on the side. Then they REALLY got fancy and colored it orange several years later. Simple but cool.

Okay, I got that off my chest. Now for all you coaches, who have gone modern, go ahead and shake your head at my traditional ideas. I can take it. As always, feel free to give me your opinions here or on Chiefpigskin.com. By the way, we’re getting deeper into the season already! Isn’t it crazy how fast the season goes once we get started? Good luck to all.

It's Time for a Rule Change

You’re going to think I’m nuts. You’re going to think I’m advocating football blasphemy but it’s time to keep the clock running on incomplete passes. Oh, not completely keep the clock running, but start the clock once the ball has been spotted in place for the next down. Exactly the way we do the clock for setting the chains. Hear me out, my friend.

We have to think logically. Think back to the games origins (imagine) and try to figure out WHY the clock was stopped on an incomplete pass. They had to have a reason. The only logical answer is they stopped the clock to chase down the ball. The thinking must have been, “Let’s not run the clock while we’re retrieving the ball”. They probably didn’t have as many refs as we do now nor as many footballs and ball boys. It may have been time consuming to chase the ball down. Now, why the rules makers didn’t restart the clock when the ball was ready for play from the very beginning, I don’t know. Help me on that if you can. At any rate, there is no reason why the clock can’t be started when the ball is ready for play.

Why do we need this rule change? Because with passing attempts going up at all levels it’s starting to take too doggone long to play a game. Particularly at the pro and college level once you add in TV timeouts and the like. A team that throws three incomplete passes in a row might burn ten seconds and that in turn extends the game too much. I propose stopping the clock on an incomplete pass and then restarting it once it’s ready. Will that change some strategy? Sure, but so what? A good coach can still manage the clock with timeouts and utilizing the sideline. Remember, the clock can be stopped by going out of bounds although I can’t think of the reason for that. Another story some day. And what about spiking the ball? That will make that strategy useless you say. Good. I think it’s dumb anyway. Spiking the ball looks like a fumble to me. My proposal would speed up the game and still allow for strategy in stopping the clock.

Well, there it is. What do you think? Let me know by replying here or get on the forum on Chiefpigskin.com and give your opinion there. I’d like to hear from you. But you can’t say, “That’s the way it’s always been.” Give me a logical reason to keep the clock stopped until it’s snapped for the next play. Food for thought, huh?

Why Boys Love It

What is it about football that guys love so much? If you have a love for football it probably started when you were just a kid. Now, the reasons you love it at this point might be somewhat different than when you were six, but never the less, the love never goes away. My love for football and all sports is what motivated me to be a teacher and coach. But most of all, it was my love for football.

I recently just finished writing a book about the basics of football. It’s called “Understanding Football and Why Boys Love It”. My primary motivation in writing the book was to provide Moms a short book that gave a big picture of the game their boys (sons, husbands, grandsons, nephews) love. It had always been an interest of mine to give my views on the basics of the game. I didn’t want to delve into too many rules, penalties, and terms that would be boring and cause the book to be too thick and intimidating for the novice to read. I have seen a few books out there that explain the basics but they are 200 plus pages. I asked myself, “Who’s going to read that?” So, my book is under 70 pages with a lot of diagrams to help get my point across. With the help of my family, I think I ended up with the result I was looking for.

Understanding Football, not only gives the novice a basic understanding of the game but also some of the reasons why we boys/men love it. I know why I love the game and I figured most guys share my feelings based on what I’ve observed and heard from others. When we were kids any kind of rough housing was fun and football gave us a chance to run around, tackle, spin, fall down, and get dirty. As we got older those same things still appealed, but now other things probably drew us to the game. The strategy and preparation for “battle” can really get guys juiced.

Right now the book can be bought on Chiefpigskin.com. The cost is $8.95 for a single copy and for reduced prices when bought in multiples for a team. One of my ideas is that coaches can purchase them for their freshman moms as a gift at the beginning of the season. Whatever the reason you have for purchasing this book, just click on www.chiefpigskin.com to check out the book and see what you think.

It was a fun project and I’m really hoping that a lot of moms (and others) benefit from it. I’d love to get feedback from anyone who reads it and let me know what you think. I’ve never attempted anything like this before and would like to get your reaction. By the way, I learned that anyone can write a book if you’re willing to put the time in. Pick a subject that you’re passionate and knowledgeable about and jump in. It’s a lot of work but when finished, it feels pretty good. Enjoy the upcoming season. I can’t wait!

I Know You Know

Therefore, I will always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them. 2 Peter 1:12a

Peter wanted to remind a group of believers of some important truths that they had been taught. He knew they knew, but reminded them anyway because of the importance.

So, even though I know you know, let’s remind ourselves anyway. It’s gonna be hot. It’s gonna be grueling. It’s gonna be tough as ever as high schools all across the country get two a day’s started in just a few days. What does that mean? Don’t forget to monitor your players closely. Make sure they have plenty of water, rest when needed. We live in a different time than 20 or 30 years ago. For a little humor and a look at the past on hydrating during practice, see the August 12, 2010 blog, It’ll Make you Sick, in the archives. I think you’ll get a kick out of it.

Also, allow me to remind you that as coaches it is up to us to build up our athletes not only physically but mentally, socially, and spiritually. What does that look like? Well, that’s a lot but let’s look at mentally real quick. Make sure your players are getting some sort of positive feedback every day. Even the annoying ones? Yes, even the annoying ones. Even the “trouble makers”? Yes, even the trouble makers. Remember, we don’t know everyone’s home life. We might be the most important influence in their lives. It’s up to us to build our athletes up.

There are plenty of tips on www.chiefpigskin.com for coaches to help their athletes in all areas so be sure to take advantage of all there is to offer on that site. OK, I’m done with THOSE reminders. Now, good luck to everyone as they begin practice this week and good luck on your upcoming season. This is an exciting time!

Let's Play a Game of Scrub

“Let’s play a game of Scrub.” That would be my old buddy, Bernie Lee, who probably taught me more about baseball from the time I was 6 years old until I was 8, when Bernie moved away, than anyone else. Bernie wasn’t the only one that taught me baseball. There were brothers Fred and Rudy Brewster, Steve Hicks, Danny McAvoy, Steve and Leslie McKimmson and many others. But Bernie was the main guy. He had the greatest passion for the game and was always thinking of a way to play ball in the summer. In the fall, of course, it was Bernie that taught my brother Dan and me to play football.

Bernie was 2 years older than me and he was kind of my neighborhood hero. Whatever Bernie did was good enough for me. Remember when you were 6 or 7 years old and an 8 or 9 year old seemed like practically a teenager? Well, that was Bernie. And boy was he good at sports. I figured he was ready for the pros any day. In the evenings I would go to the Little League Park and watch Bernie play. He was a stocky kid and was the catcher for his team. Back in those days the catcher turned his ball cap around and wore it backwards so he could put his catcher’s mask on. I thought wearing your cap backwards looked really cool, but only catchers did it. That was before the day when catchers wore protective helmets. I could only watch because back in 50’s there was no T-ball or anything like that for 6 and 7 year olds. Little League started at 8 years old, period. You just had to wait until you were old enough to play. But that was OK because as I’ve mentioned before, we played sandlot games all day anyway. Heck, I could get in 20 or 30 at bats on the sandlot.

Anyway, Scrub was a really fun game of baseball that we could play for hours. I think Bernie said he learned it from his dad, who played ball in the 30’s and 40’s. Scrub was also called “Workup” by some of the guys. The rules were simple and it worked best when you had 12 or 13 guys. Here’s how it went. We would fill in all 9 positions on the field then let the extra 3 or 4 guys be the batters. Everyone wanted to hit (although I loved playing the field too) so the incentive, or goal, was to work your way up to be a batter. Batters got to stay at bat as long as they didn’t make an out. If you made an out, you went to right field. The right fielder went to center, center to left, left to 3rd base, 3rd to shortstop, short to 2nd base, 2nd to 1st base, 1st to pitcher, pitch to catcher, and the catcher got to be a batter. We just rotated and we would sprint to our new position. A special rule was if you were playing the field and caught the batters fly ball or line drive you just switched positions with the batter. This made for great catches of liners and fly’s since you got to be a batter immediately. Guys would let it all hang out to catch a fly ball.

When I became a PE teacher later in life, I introduced this game to some of my classes. But since my classes usually had 25-30 kids it wasn’t always best. (Unless I had two games of Scrub going on at once). It worked great with my elementary classes because I would throw an orange disc on the ground to show them where they were to be for their position. Once I taught ‘em the rotation, the kids would hustle to the next disc.

Looking back, I realize it was a terrific way to learn the game. I got to play every position on the field and learned how to cover each base, take relay throws, and be the cutoff man. I learned all that from my buddies, and most of all, Bernie. Wherever you are today, thanks Bernie. And thanks to www.chiefpigskin.com for allowing me to tell my stories.

When Baseball was King

I love football. I've always loved football, ever since I was about six years old. And I love getting on www.chiefpigskin.com to see what’s new. But let me tell you, baseball has always been a close second. You have to remember, I grew up in the 50’s and 60’s when baseball was still king. Especially in the late 50’s, when I was just starting to learn the game, baseball was truly the national pastime. I first became interested in the game in 1957 when the heroes were guys like Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Mickey Mantle, Stan Musial, and Warren Spahn. Collecting baseball cards was something every little boy did, and every boy had his own glove.

How many of you older fellas out there can remember this? When I was a kid I rode my bicycle everywhere and I never went anywhere without my glove. I always hung my glove on my handlebars, so that if I saw a game going on in a vacant lot or on the school grounds I could just get off my bike and join the game. I would get up early in the morning, eat some cereal, and tell my mom, “See you later.” I was off to join the local baseball game. How did I know there would be a baseball game going on? Are you kidding me? There were always some games going on. I would play ball all day, come home at night and eat my supper, then put on my Little League uniform to play more baseball.

Regular baseball games are not all we played. We played games of workup, sometimes called scrub, or we played games of 500, wiffleball, cork ball, or any other game we could make up. We didn't need adults, and we didn't need their supervision, telling us how to play the game. We just played. We played “right field is out” if we had to, and we had invisible base runners if we didn’t have enough players. We did whatever it took.

The game of 500 was a good learning experience for all of us. How many of you remember that? One guy would toss the ball up and hit it out of his hand to the rest of us five or six guys playing out in the field. If you caught a fly ball it was worth 100 points, a one hopper was worth 75, a two hopper worth 50, and ground balls worth 25. The first guy in the field to reach 500 or more points got to be the new batter. We use to fall all over each other going after that ball. It taught me how to get a good jump so that I could beat the other guys to the ball and it taught me how to catch fly balls and grounders. It taught me to be aggressive and out jump the other guys in trying to catch the ball. Heck, it was just a lot of fun. If you dropped a fly ball, you lost 100 points. And if you dropped or muffed a one hopper you lost 75 points, and so on. So you had to make sure that when you got to the ball, you fielded it cleanly. We could play 500 all morning and all afternoon. As long as it was some form of baseball.

I realize that these days kids are a lot different. I'm not going to criticize them for playing video games all the time. I probably would've done the same. So as I look back I'm glad we didn't have some of the things that kids today have. I don't think I would've had as much fun. It was a different time, wasn't it? By the way, if you’re not sure what a game of Scrub is, I’ll tell you about it next week. Catch you later.

Let The Games Begin

Did you hear that there is a pretty good football tournament going on right now? The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) is holding its Senior World Championships (20 and older) in Austria July 8-16. Three cities are hosting the games, Innsbruck, Graz, and Vienna. I had not even heard of this organization until a year ago and am surprised at how little publicity this organization and its events receive. For a nation that loves our football, this gets overlooked completely. I see nothing on ESPN, other networks, magazines, or newspapers.

There are levels of competitions, Senior and Junior (19 and under), flag football , and women’s flag football. It’s all actually pretty cool and you can check it out on their website at www.ifaf.org. There are more countries from around the world than you might think playing American Football (is there any other kind?) and at the international level the United States is a relative newcomer. That’s hard to imagine, since it’s our game.

Japan became the first ever World Champions of American Football in a 6-0 overtime victory over Mexico in Palermo, Italy in 1999. Four years later in Frankfurt, Germany, Japan again defeated Mexico, 34-14. Japan hosted the 2007 Senior World Championship as the United States entered for the first time and outlasted Japan 23-20 in double overtime to return home triumphant from Tokyo.
As you can see, Japan and Mexico are extremely competitive. Here is the schedule.

2011 IFAF Senior World Championship Schedule

Date Game Time Venue
Fri July 8 USA vs. Australia 61-0 Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Fri July 8 Germany vs. Mexico 15-22 Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Sat July 9 Austria vs. Japan 3pm UPC Arena, Graz
Sat July 9 France vs. Canada 7pm UPC Arena, Graz
Sun July 10 Mexico vs. Australia 3pm Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Sun July 10 Germany vs. USA 7pm Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Mon July 11 Japan vs. France 3pm UPC Arena, Graz
Mon July 11 Canada vs. Austria 7pm UPC Arena, Graz
Tue July 12 Australia vs. Germany 3pm Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Tue July 12 USA vs. Mexico 7pm Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Wed July 13 Canada vs. Japan 3pm UPC Arena, Graz
Wed July 13 Austria vs. France 7pm UPC Arena, Graz
Fri July 15 Seventh Place Game 3pm Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna
Fri July 15 Bronze Medal Game 7pm Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna
Sat July 16 Fifth Place Game 3pm Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna
Sat July 16 Gold Medal Game 7pm Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna


Defending world champion the United States kicked off the fourth IFAF Senior World Championship with a convincing 61-point shutout of Australia at the Tivoli Stadium in Innsbruck on Thursday. Mexico joined the U.S. atop Group A with a 22-15 win over Germany. The teams are in two pools and medal games will be played next week. The two group winners will meet in the Gold Medal Game in Vienna on Saturday, July 16 at 7pm. The two group runners up will meet for the Bronze Medal at 7pm on Friday, July 15. Third place finishers (3pm on July 16) and fourth place finishers (3pm on July 15) will also progress to placement games in Vienna.

The majority of games will be aired on ORF television in Austria and across the European continent by Eurosport 2 and some games will be available via a webcast on www.IFAF.org. For football fans unable to access either the TV coverage or webcast due to international broadcasting restrictions, a daily highlight show focusing on each day's games will be available, along with previews and features at the IFAF YouTube site www.YouTube.com/IFAFinsider. Live scoring updates and details of key plays from all games will keep fans informed through www.Facebook.com/IFAF.org and Twitter @IFAFinsider.

I’m going to follow the games as close as I’m able to and try to have a little fun with this. Football is just around the corner and this is a great warm up. Have fun and continue to visit www.chiefpigskin.com for more football resources.

How To Survive an Anaconda Attack

From a 1970’s Peace Corps Manual

1. Do not run. The snake is faster than you are.
2. Lie flat on the ground, put your arms tight against your sides and your legs tight against each other.
3. Tuck your chin in.
4. The snake will begin to nudge and climb over your body.
5. Do not panic.
6. The snake will begin to swallow your feet first.
7. You must lie perfectly still. This will take a long time.
8. When the snake has reached your knees, reach down, take your knife, slide it into the side of the snake's mouth between the edge of its mouth and your leg. Quickly rip upward, severing the snake's head.
9. Be sure you have your knife.
10. Be sure your knife is sharp.

I like those last two instructions. Be sure you have your knife and be sure your knife is sharp. Now I really don’t know if these were authentic instructions from a Peace Corp manual but it illustrates one thing; when going into the jungle, you’d better be prepared. You’d better be prepared for being a coach, for being a father, for being a husband – heck, you’d better be prepared for going to the grocery store. And you’d darn well better be prepared for the season coming up just around the corner in August. Players are in the weight room, camps are rolling, and coaches are meeting. Everyone is in preparation mode and I always found it kind of exciting just getting ready for the season. In fact, there were times as I began to prepare and thought of all the scenarios we had to be ready for, I sometimes got overwhelmed.

We can’t be prepared for everything, there are situations that come up that no one could have anticipated. But how we react to those situations can be the difference between a win or a loss. Especially in high school if a starter gets injured we may have just lost a position on offense and defense. We may have just lost our wing player on the PAT team and we may have just lost our contain man on the kickoff team. By losing one player we just had to replace four spots on the football team. You get the idea.

Here’s hoping that all of you coaches out there are having a wonderful summer and that all preparations are being made. Take some time with the family and don’t neglect those opportunities that come along at improving yourself and being prepared to being a better father and husband as well as a coach. We’ll talk about that sometime and don’t forget to check out www.chiefpigskin.com for more ideas on being prepared for the season. By the way, has anyone out there ever had to follow those instructions to survive an Anaconda?

Staying on the Trail

I take no pleasure in watching any good man take a fall-I still believe coach Jim Tressel, the former Ohio State coach is a good man, but he made some obvious mistakes. I am saddened by the resignation of Tressel at OSU. How the heck does a guy make such poor decisions and lose his dream job? I can imagine his thoughts and tears as he cleans out his office. Does he have to pay the consequences for his actions? Oh, sure. But I'm not going to criticize, there will be plenty of people that do that. Besides, I’ve made my share of mistakes, worse than Tressel’s. I'm not going to rant about all of the other issues that come up with this subject. Yes, the money in college football has become too big. Yes, there is too much pressure on college football coaches to win. The pressure to win overcame Tressel’s good judgement. Yes, the recruiting has become ridiculous. But those are all other stories.

The point is this; we are all one bad decision from losing our dream job or our steps to our dream job. We're all one bad decision from losing our reputation. We are all one bad decision or step away from losing our family. Don't take anything for granted, don't get complacent in where you are.

We've all got to stay on the trail, the good trail of life that God has intended for us. Off the trail is all kind of temptation, glitter, and shortcuts. After Tressel made a mistake (or two) he tried to fix things by taking a shortcut instead of being honest. Shortcuts are tempting. The short cut led to a disastrous patch of underbrush and thistles that became so entangling it cost him his job. We've got to stay on the trail-not get sidetracked-not take shortcuts. When we do get off the trail, and we all do at some point, we must admit our blunders and honestly get back on the trail. We won't be sorry.

North River

North River Campground in the Cherokee National Forest in Eastern Tennessee. I found it in a book that listed campgrounds in the Smoky Mountain area of the Appalachians. It was highly rated for its beauty, quietness, and solitude. Exactly what I was looking for. You see, I had missed my opportunity to take my son on a camping/baseball trip when he was younger (see my past article, "The Trip That Never Was" in my archives). Now it was nine or 10 years later and I got another idea. I wasn't going to miss this one!

In the fall of 1999 I started thinking about a trip my son, Nathaniel, and I could take together that would allow us time to ourselves. I enjoy the outdoors and camping. So I started thinking in that direction. He was a junior at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois, and his spring break would be in late March. So would mine. Hmmm. Maybe a camping trip in the secluded areas of the Appalachian Mountains would be a good idea. I settled on North River Campground and ran the idea past him. Thankfully, he was all for it. While most college kids were thinking about going to Florida or Cancun over spring break and getting drunk every night, my son was willing to go on a camping trip with his dad. How cool is that for a father?

When the time finally came, we loaded up the pickup truck with our camping gear and headed off from Illinois. The trip out was smooth sailing and it took us about eight hours to get to the Cherokee National Forest. Even though it was too early for the spring growth of leaves, the Appalachians were still beautiful with an eerie grayish-brown appearance. Once we got to the entrance of the national forest, we drove another 8 miles or so on winding, narrow roads deeper and deeper into the forest. Finally-there it was! North River Campground. Nestled in a valley between three mountains and next to a babbling North River it was better than I expected. We had our pick of about nine or ten campsites since we were the only ones there and picked a site about 15 yards from the river. We got our tent and the rest of our gear up and spent the next five days of some of the most relaxing, peaceful times I ever had. The nights were cold -30°- the days were warm -70°- and at night there were so many stars it looked as though someone had sprayed the black sky with dense white glitter. Nathaniel kept a pellet gun at his bedside in case of a bear attack. (I know - the pellet gun wouldn't have stopped a squirrel, but it made him feel better.) And although it was cold, I slept great.

A typical day went like this:

Wake up around seven or 7:30 AM and wash up.

Cook and eat breakfast - hearty bacon, eggs, potatoes and toast every morning.

After breakfast, do the dishes.

Around 9 or 10 AM we opened the Bible and read about the life of David from the book of Samuel.

After a little reflective time and discussion, it was time to gather wood for the evening fire.

Around noon we had a snack and relaxed a bit.

Afternoons were spent hiking and exploring. We climbed nearby mountains, found waterfalls, and hiked the trails.

Suppertime consisted of hot dogs or hamburgers.

As the sun went down, we started our campfire and stayed up under the stars just talking. I don't even remember what about - we just talked. This was probably the highlight of the day. There is something about sitting by a campfire on a cold night.

After five days we broke camp and headed home. All in all it was a wonderful , memorable trip and we will never forget it. I learned a lesson too. It's never too late to spend time with your kids. Thanks to www.chiefpigskin.com for letting me share once again.

Tips for Communicating

In the Old Testament book of Nehemiah we find that Nehemiah had become so exasperated with some of the men under his leadership that he finally decided to write a job description for those that served the people of Judah. In Nehemiah 13:30 we read, “So I…assigned tasks to the priests and Levites making certain that each knew his work.” Why did Nehemiah give them a job description? So that “each would know his work”. Pretty good advice 2,500 years ago and still good advice today.

When I first began my coaching career, I worked for some good coaches and a few not so good. However, none of them gave me a formal job description. I was simply told, "You're the assistant freshman coach." So, I did the things I thought I should do and tried to watch and learn. I can remember being very unsure sometimes about exactly what was expected of me. I think I would've benefited from having the head coach or the head freshman coach sit down with me and explain expectations. A written job description along with that would've been very helpful. In my second school I taught at I even had the head football coach give me no direction at all. His strategy was to sit back and see what kind of initiative I had. I found that out after I had been at the job for a couple of years. Whether right or wrong-I'll let you decide.

In my years as a head wrestling coach I'm afraid I didn't do very well at communicating my expectations. Oh sure, my assistant would coach the JV team at wrestling meets and help run practice. But there is so much more to being a good assistant coach. Sit down sometime and write down all the duties of a coach and the list will be long. I had one assistant coach who just sat against the wall in the practice room. I would get steamed at his lack of energy, but you know what? It was partly my fault because I did a poor job of communicating my expectations. It's a lot like coaching your players, you can't hold your players accountable for something you didn't coach.

These days I'm seeing more coaches, going to a detailed job description for all coaches, including the head coach himself. I think it's a great idea and I wish I had been exposed to it as an assistant and utilized it as a head coach. By giving your assistant coaches a job description, they can have a clear idea of what is expected of them. At the end of every season it can also be used as an evaluation tool-whether self-evaluation or by the head coach.

Whether or not a written job description is used, I'm convinced that clear, concise expectations should be made available to everyone involved in the program. You won’t be sorry. And make sure you keep checking www.chiefpigskin.com for more great coaching tips.

Lone Wolf

Some time ago, an old acquaintance of mine told me a story of a police officer who served in a northern native settlement in Canada. One day a rabid wolf wandered into the aboriginal settlement. The police officer eventually shot it, but not before it attacked a young man and his grandmother in their home making kindling out of the chair the young man used to protect himself and his attacker.

There were about 150 sled dogs in the village - more than a match for one sick wolf - yet the intruder was left alone to do its work. Why? My friend explained that in order to prevent the dogs from fighting and wounding each other, they had been tied to wooden stakes spaced far enough apart to prevent them from reaching any neighboring animal. Because of this the wolf walked freely among the dogs killing some and badly wounding others. In isolation they were no match for their foe and they suffered terribly for it.

What a picture for the need for every man to be a part of a bigger body of like minded men. (PreachingToday.com, Awlwyn Balnave, Calgary, Canada) As football coaches, husbands, and fathers, we need other men in our lives for accountability and support. We all share ideas about football. That's part of what www.chiefpigskin.com is all about. Football coaches are very generous in sharing ideas and techniques with others. That’s how we continue to improve. Do we also share ideas on how to be a better husband?

A few years ago I began meeting with a group of men on Monday mornings for a bible study. Before beginning the meeting we ask each other how the “Trail” has gone the past week or so. We get varying answers as each man has the freedom to share as little or as much as he likes. This has been a great opportunity to learn from other men on many subjects including such topics as being a better father or husband. It also serves as a certain degree of accountability with each other. It’s been my experience that most men aren’t crazy about sharing such personal subjects. We like to “go it alone”. I don’t think we were made that way; we need the support of others.

Whether it’s through a group of friends, joining a bible study, joining a church, or just getting together with another guy for a cup of coffee on a Saturday morning, I would encourage all of us to have one or more men in our lives that can ask the hard questions, not just, “how about that game Saturday?” Let me know what you think, or better yet, give it a try and let me know how it’s going. I’d love to hear from you.

The Trip That Never Was

I think for the most part I did a pretty good job of spending time with my kids and family and doing some fun things. I suppose we could all do better, but there is one particular instance that has always bothered me. In fact, it’s bothered me a lot over the years. I have always been a big baseball fan and my son also loves baseball. The idea came to me one time that my son and I should take a baseball trip for about a week or two during the summer. Now this was when my son was about eight years old and I figured we had the next few years to make this trip. He would be the perfect age. This was back in the mid-to-late 80’s and baseball games were still much more affordable than they are now. Here was the plan. We would travel during the day from baseball town to baseball town, get tickets and see a ball game, then spend the night in a nearby state park campground. By leaving early in the morning we could travel to the next city, get a campsite, and then head to the ballpark. After the game, go to our tent (yes, tent) get some sleep, then do it again the next day in another city. This way, we could catch a lot of ballgames in different cities, see a lot of different parks and spend the night camping. The whole idea, I thought, would be an affordable trip. Not only affordable but a lot of fun too.

I figured we would head out for the East from central Illinois and then loop on back to the Midwest. As I looked at the map it looked like we could hit cities like Detroit, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Boston, New York, and come back visiting St. Louis and then back home. Oh yeah, we could visit Cooperstown in New York and see the Hall of Fame. In this way we could get some good father-son time together, travel to some great cities and ballparks, and campout at night. I thought it was a great idea and really believed we would get it done someday.

Of course we all know how busy football coaches can be in the summertime. We had our summer camp, we had weight room supervision, seven on seven games, and of course coaches meetings. On top of that, if www.chiefpigskin.com had been around, I would've been learning more football. Besides all this I was a driver education teacher and so I taught a lot of driver ed. in the summer. Some people think that teachers have the summer off but I sure never did. I was always very busy with other things.

Before I knew it my son was 10 and we still hadn’t taken the trip. But I told him someday we would. And I meant it. Before I could blink he had turned 12 and we still hadn’t taken the trip but I assured him that SOMEDAY we would. The next thing I knew, you guessed it, he had turned 14 and it was his turn to start playing high school football. Now he was just as busy with football as I was. And guess what? We didn't take that baseball trip I planned on all those years. By this time we were in the early 90’s and it just didn't get done. It's one of the things that I look back on now with regret. We should've taken that trip and I’m still convinced it was a great idea. I guess the moral of this story is to take time out from that busy schedule to do something different and fun with kids.

Years later when he was in college, my son and I took a cool trip together over spring break and had a great time. Maybe I’ll tell that story sometime. But you know what? I’ve got three grandsons now and I’m starting to get this neat idea…

Short Yardage Defense

Back when I was a defensive coordinator we played a pretty basic 4-4 defense. Over the years we tweaked it a bit here and there and we came up with a quick call that was easy for the kids to get into in short yardage situations. I realize it’s pretty simple and we all have good schemes but if you’re like me you just like seeing other methods. That’s what’s cool about www.chiefpigskin.com, we get to share and just talk about football.

Now, in this case I’m talking very short yardage defense out in the middle of the field, not goal line. If we had our opponents in 3rd and 1 or less or 4th and 1 or less and we just knew they were going to sneak or dive, we would get into our “tight 22 up”. Let’s take a look at our base D.

.................O..O..O..X..O..O
..................E.....T.......T......E
...............B...........B.......B.......B

Our tackles lined up in what we called a 2, 3, or 4 alignment. We would make the call from the sideline. 2 is inside shoulder of the guard, 3 is head up and 4 is outside shoulder. If we called a 33, they would both be head up, 42 was outside-inside, etc. with A or B gap responsibility. Our ends would be in a 5 technique if no tight end and in a 7 technique if there was a tight end with C gap responsibility. Our outside backers would be in a 3 x 3 alignment outside the last man on the LOS. So, for our short yardage defense 22 meant both tackles get into inside shoulder of the guards. “Tight” meant to tighten up. Our outside backers would walk up to the line, get into a 9 technique of the tight ends and kick the D ends to a 5 technique, or “tighten” up. Our inside backers would line up in B gap and move “up” closer to the LOS. Thus, the tight 22 up call.

...................O..O..O..X..O..O..O
..................B..E......T...T......E....B
.............................B........B........

The less the offense needed for a 1st down, the more our inside backers moved up. For example, if it was 4th and inches, they would get into the B gap almost on the LOS. If it was 4th and 2, they might be about 2 yards behind the D line. This D had to: 1) stop the QB sneak and 2) stop the quick dive. Tackles were responsible for A gap and stopping the sneak. Inside backers had B gap, tackles C gap, and outside backers the edge and alley. We had great success with this simple adjustment and the kids had confidence they could make a key stop.

My best story, (I always have a story), was from 1997 and we were playing a very good Maroa-Forsyth team at our place. It was early in the 2nd quarter and they had the ball 4th and about half a yard on their own 30. They decided to go for it. We had a real good team too, one of our better ones. They had confidence they could get half a yard. We got into our tight 22 up and stuffed a QB sneak for no gain. It was very emotional and our guys were pumped as they came off the field. Me too! I think I was yelling “How dare they? How dare they?” as our guys were getting to the sideline. Before I could look up, on the very next play, our head coach John Beccue called a skinny post pass and we connected for a score. He was good at taking advantage of opportunities like that. What a turnaround! We went on to get a hard fought 16-14 win and those two plays were a great lift.

So often a tough game comes down to making one or two key plays at just the right time. It’s difficult to be ready for everything but that’s the task we are called to do, as much as possible. And I’ve learned you’ve got to have “playmakers”, those kids who just have a knack for making big plays when you need them. You can’t coach that and sure is fun to watch.

Boy In The Ring

Have you ever participated in a sport before you've even seen it played? I mean, before I played my first baseball game I'd seen a lot of baseball games. Before I played my first football game I'd seen a lot of football games in person and on TV. Before I went golfing for the first time I had watched it on TV many times. But for me, that's not how it was for my first wrestling match. Here's how it went down.

It was the day of our first meet and I was nervous. We were to wrestle Peoria Manual that night and I had no idea what to expect. All I knew was I was the 95 pound varsity wrestler. Now my normal weight was right around 97 or 98. All I had to do to make weight that night was to skip lunch and go easy on the water. The match was scheduled for 7 p.m. and weigh in was at 6 p.m. Well, I made weight with no problem; I think I weighed about 94 1/2. But when Manual weighed in I noticed that they didn't have a 95 pounder. My teammates told me that meant I was going to win by forfeit. I was a little disappointed because I was ready to wrestle, but at the same time relieved because I had been pretty nervous. Everything was a new experience for me, from team warm-ups to introductions. As we were warming up on the mat my coach, Mr. Gross informed me that he was bumping me up to wrestle at 103. He was moving me up to 103 because since I could beat our 103 pounder he figured I had a better chance to win. My first thought was, "I could have eaten lunch".

Okay, now it was time to get nervous again. My teammates informed me that my 103 pound opponent was a junior named Steve Empson who was the conference champ last year. "Conference champ?” I thought. "You've got to be kidding me." So here I was, a freshman with two weeks practice under my belt, weighing 95 pounds, and wrestling up a weight class against a junior who was the defending conference champ. I knew I was in trouble. "Oh well, maybe not too many people will watch my match". You see, I thought wrestling matches would be like practice. In practice everybody wrestled at once, 20 or 30 guys on the mat. I figured there would probably be four or five matches going on at a time and maybe no one would notice me. That's how naïve I was.

The mats were cleared, coach told me to take off my warm-up top, and shook my hand. He gave me a slap on the rear and sent me out to the mat. As I went out to the mat I turned back to look at my teammates. I noticed that no one was following me. It was then that I realized I was going to wrestle out there all by myself! Well, me and my opponent. As I walked out to the mat, I took a good look at my opponent. He was muscular, had hair on his chest and shaved a full beard. Heck, I had barely reached puberty. I was a baby faced freshman boy going against a hardened, veteran young man. We stepped to the circle, shook hands, and waited for the ref to blow the whistle. Everything was a blur in my mind, I couldn’t think. I was trying to remember the few moves I had been taught. The sound of the whistle interrupted my thoughts and I instinctively began to shuffle stiffly in my stance. Before I could blink, wham! He was in on my legs and taking me to the mat in an instant. As we hit the mat I turned to go belly down but he caught my shoulder and I couldn't get off my back. The gym was roaring with cheers and I was fighting for my life when the whistle blew. We had gone out of bounds and the ref was taking us back to the center for another start. The whistle blew again and he was in on me before I could move, this time we landed in the center of the mat. Again I was on my back fighting for my life. I struggled to keep at least one shoulder up so I wouldn't get pinned but he kept tightening up his hold on me. As I battled I could faintly hear the crowd and my teammates urging me to get off my back. Suddenly the whistle blew and I heard the ref slap the mat. I had been pinned in 56 seconds. We shook hands and I walked dejectedly off the mat. There had been nowhere to hide; everyone in the gym saw it. That’s when I learned it takes a special person to walk out on a wrestling mat.

I sat down on the bench and looked at the mat. Our 112 pounder was getting ready to wrestle. I was finally going to get to see my first wrestling match of my life. I can’t remember if he won or lost, I was still thinking of my disastrous start. As the meet wore on it was a back and forth battle between us and Manual. The meet came down to the heavyweight match with us trailing 27-25. Our 180 pounder and one of the studs of the football team, Larry Elmore, had been bumped up by coach to wrestle Manual’s heavyweight. Elmore was one of my heroes. I didn’t think anyone could whip him. He won a hard fought 3-2 win and we beat Manual that night 28-27.

Many years ago President Theodore Roosevelt gave a cool talk about “The Man in the Ring”. He talked about how people on the sidelines can talk all they want but until you’ve been in the ring yourself, you can’t really understand what it’s like. Well, I got a taste that night, even if I was just the boy in the ring.

Check out www.chiefpigskin.com for more good stories about football and life.

Gladiator

Mr. Gross, the high school wrestling coach, had done a pretty good job of recruiting me for the wrestling team. Mr. Gross was also the varsity line coach for the football team. He knew that wrestling and football went hand-in-hand, although at the time I had no idea. Even though www.chiefpigskin.com is a football site, I’m sure that more than a few of you football coaches out there are familiar with wrestling and its benefits for football players. So when I was recruited for the high school wrestling team, it made no sense to me. (Please see my last column to learn of my recruitment for wrestling) My two favorite sports were football and baseball, but I always enjoyed playing basketball also. So much so that I played on the grade school basketball team from fifth through eighth grade. Now back in those days where I lived we had a lightweight team and a heavyweight team. Since I was a little guy I always qualified to play on the lightweight team but tournament time I also played guard on the heavyweight team. Well, there was no lightweight team in high school so I had already decided that I wasn’t going out for basketball in high school; I saw the writing on the wall. I was an okay basketball player but very small and knew that I would never make the high school team. I figured I would just take the winter off, perhaps play baseball in the spring or perhaps just focus on football. I certainly didn't envision myself being a wrestler, but Mr. Gross had different ideas and he did a great job of recruiting me to be his 95 pounder on the wrestling team.

So here I was, football season was over, and I was in the wrestling room. Now if you've never been in a wrestling room you can't quite imagine the atmosphere. The ideal wrestling room is kept warm and in the case at our school, very warm. I found out wrestlers liked it that way so they could sweat off more weight. Mr. Gross would wrap a cold towel around the thermostat every day before practice. This would ensure that the heat kept running the entire time practice was going on. I never knew how hot it was in that room, it felt like 100 although I'm sure it was only around 80 to 85. It was almost like a steam bath sometimes. By the time you got 30 to 35 guys in there working out hard and sweating you could almost see the steam on the walls. Guys that were cutting weight would wear those old rubber suits which would make them sweat even more. We would all be soaked in sweat, beat up, bloody, and battling each other on the mats. It was a bit crowded in the room and guys were always running into each other and tripping each other up. If a couple of the heavier weights got out of control and were really in a scramble, they would fly all over the mat knocking us little guys down. It was a pretty rough environment, to say the least. The smell of the mats with all that sweat also made its own unique smell. So there I was, steamy, smelly, bloody and tired. If you’ve ever seen a movie about gladiators training for the arena, that’s what I felt like, a gladiator. I was learning a few takedowns and some counters, which simply means ways to stop takedowns by your opponent. I had also learned how to line up in the referee's position, top and bottom. I learned a few pinning combinations from the top position and a few escapes and reversals from the bottom. And after the first practice or two, I didn't throw up anymore when I got tired. But after the first week, I was still wondering what in the world I was doing in this strange new sport. Although it was the hardest sport I had ever tried, there was something about it that appealed to me. For one thing, I was beating the other 95 pound candidates and also beating the 103 pounder. So it gave me a sense of accomplishment, toughness if you will. My dad had been a good boxer, maybe I could be a good wrestler.

Week two, Mr. Gross announced that we were going to have challenge matches. I asked the upperclassman what challenge matches were. They explained to me that we would have matches, “wrestle offs”, to decide who would be in the starting lineup against our first opponent. The coach wouldn't decide the starting lineup; we would by our performance in our challenge match. Whoever won the wrestle off was the starter. I liked that idea. I felt I deserved to be getting a little more playing time on the freshman football team but the coaches decided I was too small and not good enough I guess. Now I had a chance to earn a starting spot by simply winning. It was in MY hands.

On Tuesday night it was time to begin challenge matches. Our coach had written all the pairings on the board and I was scheduled to wrestle Jim Thompson for the starting spot at 95. Since we were lightweights, we were up first. However, it wasn't just us wrestling our challenge match, there were about four others going on at the same time. You had to conduct your match in just one little section of the mat. There would be two of us wrestling and an experienced, veteran wrestler was the official. So there were always probably about four or five matches going on at the same time. I was ready to go. I had been practicing against Thompson for the last week and knew that I could dominate him. This was the first wrestling match of my life, and I wasn't even sure how they conducted these things. Our ref had us shake hands and gave us the command, “Ready, wrestle!” After a little bobbing and weaving, I found a good opening and shot in for a double leg takedown, the only takedown I really knew. It was just like a tackle in football and I hit it deep and took him down to the mat. Two points for me. I controlled the match the rest of the way and wound up winning 4-0. The starting spot was mine. I was completely exhausted but happy. Simply put, wrestling was the most physically demanding sport I had ever attempted in my life. I know what you're thinking, "Heck, it's only three two-minute periods, six minutes. Should be easy”. Well, let me tell you, it's the longest six minutes of your life.

The rest of the week we continued our gladiator type training preparing for our first match the following week against archrival Manual High School. All I knew was that Manual was from the south end of town and had a reputation of being a bunch of tough kids. They had whipped us in football, but our upperclassman told us this was our chance to get them back. I could tell this was going to be a big deal. I hoped I was ready and now I was getting nervous. I mean, come on, I was big time. I was the starting varsity 95 pound wrestler!

My Recruitment!

You wouldn't think that a freshman in high school standing 5 feet tall and weighing about 95 pounds would be a recruiting target, but I actually was. No, I was not being recruited by Michigan to play tailback, although I sure would've liked that. After all, football was my favorite sport. And I wasn't being recruited by UCLA to play basketball, although I sure would've liked that also. So who in the world would recruit a freshman who weighed 95 pounds for anything? I was being recruited for the high school wrestling team. You see, 95 pounders were pretty valuable guys to have on the team. Some schools didn't have a 95 pounder on the wrestling team and they would have to forfeit that weight class. Meaning, you got an automatic win in that weight class if you had a guy on your team that weighed 95. One of the most basic ways to have a competitive wrestling team is to make sure that you fill all the weight classes. Well, they had their eye on me for that 95 pound spot.

Now of course, there aren't too many guys walking the halls of high school that weigh95 pounds. So early in the fall when I was on the football team I became the target of the wrestling coach. Mr. Gross was his name and he was the line coach for the varsity football team. He was an older coach, had a big barrel chest, and always looked mad. Every time he saw me out on the practice field, or coming in or out from practice, he would always stop me and say, "NL,” in that nasal voice of his, "are you gonna come out for wrestling?" At first I ignored him because I have to admit I was a little scared of Mr. Gross. Secondly, I had never wrestled in my life. Oh ,I had wrestled in the backyard with my buddies and with my brothers, but not this kind of wrestling with rules. In fact, I didn't even know there was such a thing as a high school wrestling team. I played basketball in grade school and although I wasn't great, I started on the grade school basketball team and had a fair amount of success. We didn’t have a wrestling team. So when Mr. Gross started asking me if I was going to wrestle, my response of course, was no. Now I didn't tell HIM that, because as I said, I was a little bit afraid of Mr. Gross. So my strategy was just to pretend like I didn't hear him or duck him whenever I could. Eventually, I had to answer because he continued to ask me if I was going to wrestle. My response was a very definite, "ummm maybe." Why couldn't this guy just take a hint? There was no way I was getting talked into this.

Toward the end of the football season, one night after practice, one of the captains of the wrestling team who was not playing a fall sport, grabbed me and brought me into the wrestling room. In the room was a handful of guys practicing takedowns. At least that's what they said they were doing. I believed them because I didn't know what a takedown was. Well, Mr. Wrestling Captain paired me up with another little freshman and said, "You guys are going to go takedowns for a little bit. Mr. Gross said you were interested in wrestling." "What do I do?" I asked. “Well”, the captain replied, “You just try to get a hold of him and take him down to the mat.” He looked at my opponent and winked. I wasn't sure what I was going to do, so I just figured I'd try to tackle him just like I did on the football field. The captain blew his whistle, and I charged in low and hard, grabbed both legs and took the guy to the mat. The captain was in disbelief! He had been working with this other little guy for the last two weeks and I walked in to the room and took him down in about 5 seconds. After chastising my opponent, he told us to try again. Again I tackled my opponent to the mat in about five or 10 seconds. Now the captain was really chastising my opponent. His protégé had just gone down twice in 30 seconds. He told me that was enough, and sent me to the locker room.

Mr. Gross must've gotten wind of what happened, because the next day he told me that I was definitely going to wrestle. I finally said, "Mr. Gross I've never wrestled in my life, I don't think I can do it." Well, he had a good answer for me. The old coach said, "Are you tough?" "Yeah, I'm tough." I said. "Are you a good athlete?" “Yeah, I'm a good athlete.” “ Then you can wrestle!” growled the old coach, and that was that. He sure knew how to appeal to my cockiness.

When the football season got over, I figured I'd give wrestling a try. So on the first day of practice I reported to the team. I walked in to see about 30 other guys in the practice room. Most of them were football players so I felt right at home. I didn't know the rules, I didn't know any moves, and I had no clue what was going on. The one thing that I can remember about my first wrestling practice, is that about 20 minutes into it I threw up. I thought I was in good shape. After all, I had been playing sports my entire life. But I wasn't ready for this. It took only a few minutes and I was so tired I could barely get off the mat. After barely making it to the bathroom I threw up in the toilet, wiped my mouth with my t-shirt and headed back into the room. What had I gotten myself into?

Thanks again to http://www.chiefpigskin.com for letting me share.

My Heisman Vote

I don't have a Heisman vote and it’s probably a good thing that I don't. My vote would be much different than everyone else's. I was watching the Orange bowl the other night between Virginia Tech and Stanford and one player stood out to me all night long. He played for Stanford and I was very impressed. No, that player was not Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck. As good as he is, and I was impressed with him, the player that stood out to me was not Luck. The player I was impressed with was playing inside linebacker for Stanford and he was making plays all over the place. He was standing running backs up in the hole, sacking the quarterback, and knocking down passes. Oh, wait a minute, it wasn't the inside linebacker I was watching, it was the fullback. On power running plays he was colliding with linebackers and standing them up. He also ran the football on the goal line and scored a touchdown. Was this two different guys? Nope, it was the same guy. His name was Owen Marecic and he went both ways for Stanford. This guy not only played both ways, but he did it very well. It was one of the most impressive performances I've seen from a college football player in a long time. I mean, guys just don't play both ways anymore. It was like watching Bronco Nagurski from the 30s.

Of course, I realize that most Division I college football programs don't need guys to play both ways. They’ve got plenty of scholarship players that can do the job and there's really no reason one guy needs to play both ways. We all know the benefits of having one way players. It keeps your players fresh, is great for team morale, and allows guys to focus on just one position. But still, you have to be impressed with what Marecic did. I know I was, and he gets my vote for the Heisman trophy. He is a FOOTBALL PLAYER.

My question is, why doesn't this guy get more publicity? A few guys got all the publicity this year and he was not one of them. I think that's a shame because our focus is on the wrong places.
We focus on the guys with the big stats, and if players don’t have the stats they don't get much attention. I’d like to see it changed a little bit, but that's just my opinion. It seems as though if you're not on everyone's preseason Heisman list, you don't get much of a look all season. No one would ever go for this idea, but I think there should be no Heisman talk until at least halfway through the season. Let's find out who's really having a good year instead of just hyping a guy at the beginning. Having said all that, do I think Cam Newton deserved to win the Heisman Trophy award? Yes, I do. You can't argue with the season that he had, and he is a deserving winner but I sure did like the way this Marecic played.

Thoughts on the Rose Bowl

Let me begin by saying that TCU is a very good team. Let me also say that Wisconsin is a very good team. I really enjoyed this year's Rose Bowl, I thought it was a great matchup between two great teams. One of the things I like about college ball and high school ball, is that you get to look at different types of offenses go at it. On one side we had the spread offense of TCU, and on the other side the power offense for Wisconsin. Each team pretty much said, “ this is who we are and this is what we do, and you're going to have to stop us.” Last year I wrote an article about having an identity and I think these two programs fit the bill perfectly. TCU says, "We're going to spread you out and use our speed and quickness and passing attack to beat you." Wisconsin says, “We're going to line up in our power formation with tight ends and we're going to run the football with play action passes and that's how we're going to beat you.” Have an identity and stick to it.

A lot of people questioned whether or not TCU could handle Wisconsin’s size, but let's face it, all football teams are big. It's not like TCU was a bunch of small guys out there. They were big, Wisconsin was just bigger and probably bigger than most teams. But people forgot that TCU plays very good defense, and good defense is good defense whether you're playing big teams or not. The player from TCU that stood out to me was a guy named Tank Carder. He was all over the place, making tackles, sacking quarterbacks, and knocking down passes. He was the epitome of what TCU football is.

The biggest surprise of the night for me, was when Wisconsin scored a late touchdown to cut the lead to 21-19 late in the game. When they lined up to go for two, they lined up in the shotgun and I about fell off my couch. I couldn't believe that Wisconsin was lining up in the shotgun in such a crucial situation. This is not what Wisconsin does, this is not their identity. I fully expected them to line up in their power formation and either run the football, or throw a play action pass. They had just run the football right down TCU's throat on the last drive. If they had come out in their power formation, I have to believe that TCU would've been very, very worried about having to stop the run. Also, in the back of their mind, they had to know the play action pass was probably coming. But of course, in that situation you must stop the run first. That's why I believe that a play action pass on the goal line would've been the best choice. But instead, Wisconsin lined up in the shotgun and the pass was batted down. In Wisconsin's defense, they did have a man open in the end zone. And I am not about to question the Wisconsin coaches, I have a lot of respect for what they do and it's their team. They know what they're doing, and they've been with the guys in practice and games all year. But it certainly did surprise me.

Between the bowl games, and checking out what's new on www.chiefpigskin.com, I'll get plenty of football. Now it's on to that time of year when we begin preparing for next season, working the weight room, going to clinics, and encouraging our athletes to be the best they can be.