Recap: The 2019 USA Football National Conference

Session 3 — The Bond Between Youth Leagues and High School Programs

We kick off the second day with a session on how youth and high school programs can work together. It was led by Rob Leach, head of the house travel and flag football leagues for Park Ridge Sports (Illinois) and Dave Inserra, head coach of the Maine South High School (Illinois) football team.

Inserra: our HS program embraces the youth program in our community. We know without them, we’re not going to have the success we want. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Leach’s goals for his youth program: have fun; develop skills; safety; education. Winning is not one of them. Youth programs are about development. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Leach: overarching goal in youth programs is getting them to play one more year. Keep them invested and interested in the sport. Develop a passion. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Inserra: we run a summer camp for the youth program. Coaches and about 14 HS players join up to help teach the kids. It’s all part of building that relationship with the youth players. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Leach’s program has 935 youth players, up 70 from last year. They start with flag to introduce them to the basics of the sport before they progress to contact. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Leach: I hate the term “feeder” program. It’s s narrow view of what we do. My job is to develop kids to play the game, love the game. Not to “feed” a single program. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Inserra: HS coaches do a clinic with youth coaches every year. Teach more about practice planning and drills than Xs/Os. Understand that youth players can’t do what HS players do. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Keynote: Jeremy Pruitt & Mike Tomlin

The second day keynote kicked off with University of Tennessee head football coach Jeremy Pruitt and followed with Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin. The two talk about how football helps develop young children and the lessons they learned from the game.

Pruitt says of the 11 coaches on his Tennessee staff, eight of them started as high school coaches. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Pruitt started out as a teacher-coach in elementary school. Said it provided great perspective in his career. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Pruitt: I don’t know what the right age to play football is, but I know the sport impacts a lot of people. We must continue to help it grow. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Pruitt: Football is a developmental game. You don’t teach little kids how to block, back pedal and tackle. Teach fundamentals, have patience to keep kids interested. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Pruitt: If you’re a HS coach, get your jr high, youth leagues involved and see how they do it. Connect with your youth leagues. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Pruitt: We don’t think we have all the answers. We steal from anyone whenever we can, and that’s where clinics are important. Learn from anyone you can. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Pruitt: I’m a big believer that to be good on defense, you learn what plays the other teams runs and learn to defend the plays. Don’t make it harder than it needs to be. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Pruitt says he wants to make Tennessee the most accessible football program for HS, jr. high, youth coaches everywhere. If you come to Knoxville, coaches will show you how they do it. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Next up: Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin: I have benefitted from football in ridiculous ways my whole life. I can’t sit quiet. I need to advocate for this game. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin: Our game is under attack in ways it’s never been attacked before. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin: Youth Football nurtured my growth as a man. The game is a “teaching tool,” it’s life related, adversity related. The best lesson is battling fear. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin: “There are a lot of fear opportunities and fear lessons in the game. Tell your players how they’re going to relate that to life.” #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin: teach kids to master anxiety. Teach them to shape it, use it as a tool to attack the challenges in life. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin: Football is a game that has something for all young people. Short, tall, skinny, husky, fast, slow. Everyone can play it. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin says basic core lessons like community, brotherhood, facing obstacles were all taught to him through playing football. “Stand boldly for this game.” #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin: I laugh when I talk to businesses and they use terms like “teamwork.” They’re building businesses off of basic core principles they learned in jr high football. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin: my son is committed to the game, so he’s not out there making those tough, sometimes bad decisions that teenagers make. Football has those unintended consequences and instills commitment values. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin talks about the beauty of football in opening kids up to new cultures. Introduced him to country music, and now he’s been to 3 of last 5 CMAs. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin: I look forward to the lessons Football will teach my son. I learned time management, full-time work and it served me throughout my career. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin: “If you love the game, advocate for it. This game needs us.” #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Tomlin asked about breaking into coaching. He says you need to get on the camp circuit. Get involved in teaching, network, help out. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Session 4: Culture and Execution

Led by Focus 3 CEO Brian Kight, coaches learn about building a healthy culture and strategies to get support from those around them.

Kight: coaches must effectively communicate with athletes where they’re at. You can’t get them off Instagram, but you can strategize ways to developing relevant messaging on that platform. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight: How much easier would coaching be if you didn’t have to account for culture? A ton. In some ways, culture is something you deal with because you have to. Culture has a responsibility. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight: Culture exists to drive expectations that wins. To produce behavior that produces results. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight: culture is not what’s written on a wall. It’s not a quote or to say words. It’s to live behavior out, behavior that works. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight: To love honestly is painful, and to hear honesty is painful. But you can’t say your honest without being honest. That’s not integrity. It’s a misalignment between what you say and actually believe. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight: You don’t get credit for creating great culture statements. You get credit if it produces the desired behaviors. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight: The behavior we observe from others reinforces the culture. Whatever is seen or observed becomes the standard. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight: When I see coaches getting fired it’s never because the lost their football knowledge. It’s because they lost the locker room or their staffs. They couldn’t evolve. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight references this tweet. Most of the coaches here agree. https://t.co/omAPKH3sjl

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight: If avoiding criticism is one of your objectives, you can forget about being elite. Because it’s just not possible. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight: The shortest path between where you are and where you want to get is discipline. Discipline is the shortcut. Don’t turn a 10-year path into a 20-year path. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight: Investing in culture is like investing in the weight room. You go in, do work, get sore, get better. There are no guarantees, but it will create opportunities. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight on getting buy in from parents: Don’t ask their opinion. You were hired to do the job. But don’t put up a wall. Educate them on your culture and give them a role to contribute to it. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Kight on sustaining a strong culture: (1) staff must develop culture, not just head coach; (2) leaders must not be just seniors, that’s an outdated idea (3) have a training development model. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Session 5 — Planning, Practice & Preparation for Friday Night Lights

Beaumont High School (California) head football coach Jeff Steinberg walks coaches through his planning and organizational strategies during each day of the football season.

Steinberg shares what he values most in assistant coaches. #USAFootball19 pic.twitter.com/C1EvKqHZ9F

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Steinberg: The one thing all teams have in common is time. It’s how you use that time that determines success. You must outwork your opponents. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

After a game, win or lose, Steinberg has only a brief team meeting and makes few comments. No critique of the game. Emotions are too high. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Steinberg leaves players alone on Saturday. It’s a long season and he looks for any opportunity to keep his players fresh for the stretch run. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Steinberg provides a great list of what he looks at when creating a scouting report for his upcoming opponent. #USAFootball19 pic.twitter.com/gMRmzfkO74

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Steinberg keeps a goal board in the locker room with 10 keys to winning the game. Includes winning turnover margin, fewer penalty yards and 100% scoring in the red zone. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Steinberg each week asks players to fill out commitment cards identifying 3 measurable things they can do to get better that week. #USAFootball19

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

Steinberg offers some self scouting points he keeps in mind throughout the season. Just as important as scouting opponents. #USAFootball19 pic.twitter.com/CwWVS2m4Ec

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019

@PreventBio awesome head impact monitoring mouthguard. Go check them out at booth 422! #USAFootball19 pic.twitter.com/c6C5mOHRSV

— Brian (@brianv0420) February 23, 2019

If you’re still around #USAFootball19 find @POWERHANDZ at booth 322. We wore these weighted gloves for 2 minutes and you could feel the difference. Great for any sport! pic.twitter.com/e9WCf8qr3I

— Coach & AD Magazine (@coach_ad) February 23, 2019