I likewise won't comment on whether Bridgett etc weren't used to their full potential. Again, those statements are sort of silly in my opinion and nothing more than conjecture. Sorry if that hurts, but its the way I feel. Furthermore the only way to refute them is to point out players "imperfections" which I will not do on here.

I would love to discuss it sometime with you.

But do you think the Highlands kids are just born with speed? What are they genetically different that the other teams' players?

 

Of course not. That speed comes from some rather intense conditioning and a training emphasis placed on speed. Overweight, out of condition players don't see the field and Dale makes that very clear to the players. I know that for a fact: he made it very clear to my son his sophomore year that if he wanted to see the field, it was lose weight, get faster and quicker, or forget about it. Because my son did it, he started last year. If you observed the Birds spring football you would have seen how intense it was and the premium placed on conditioning.

 

Lots of teams have some quick kids on their team. Dale seems to have more because of his emphasis on quickness in the way the Birds condition and his tendency to use quick small players over big, slow players. We had big, slow players on the team last year, but they did not start.

 

I won't comment on whether he gets more out of his players than any other coach because it simply a statement that cannot be proven or for that matter disproven.

 

I likewise won't comment on whether Bridgett etc weren't used to their full potential. Again, those statements are sort of silly in my opinion and nothing more than conjecture. Sorry if that hurts, but its the way I feel. Furthermore the only way to refute them is to point out players "imperfections" which I will not do on here.

 

Dale's not going to keep every player and even fewer parents happy which will result in second guessing and sour graping. We all think our sons' are the best thing since sliced bread. And I'm as guilty of it as the next guy. But I rationalize my "issues" by telling myself that every coach has bad games now and then, and all and all, Dale had done pretty dang well coaching at Highlands. He sure has a better record coaching than I did in the Ft. T Junior League:banana: And the Birds went a lot further this past year than just about everyone not a Birds fan thought they would go.

 

Back to spring practice, I thought it went very well. Draper looked very good running the offense. All and all I thought the d looked better, but I attribute that in part due to the fact that defenses are normally ahead of the offense at this time of the year, in part to the fact Dale was breaking in a new qb and in part to the fact that Dale concentrated more on passing (which makes sense trying out a new qb) and less on running the ball which will be the Birds strength this year. Mr Reality, glad you enjoyed watching the Birds and were impressed. Now if we could just get you to start cheering for the Birds, it would be a good day.

 

And finally Quickslick, I totally agree that there are a lot of coaches that do a great job of coaching their players.

 

Speed can be improved! Quickness can be improved!

 

Yes, Highlands players are born with speed. Yes, the young men of Ft. Thomas are privileged to eat better diets which contributes to speed and strength gains. Parents in Ft. Thomas pay for extra training with Dave Guidugli or other speed and strength training. That is the culture.

 

The weight program is not an outstanding weight program. The success of Highlands players in the weight room comes from wanting to become the next state champion for the 'birds. The players are not products of DM's weight program. I know you have seen the speed throughout the youth football program. The Kramer boy has always been lightning fast. The players are a product of a lot of things but mostly self and family driven hard work. The young men love Carrying on the "family tradition" of being a Highlands football player.

 

In reality, from preparation standpoint, DM is one of the best coaches around. His kids are prepared in every big game played. One bad thing he does is he tends to overlook less fortunate teams and prepare for the next week because he does have superior talent. Example is South Oldham this past year...

 

Dale has more talent year in and year out than any other team in the state(barring maybe X and Trinity). Highlands was better than Lex. Cath. this past season, but were outcoached. Not in preparation, but in making gametime adjustments offensively.

 

Dale does a great job, but so have multiple other coaches at Highlands. The key at Highlands is to prepare your already football minded kids well and let them play. Put them in position to win and the players will find a way to win!!! Look at the very FEW losses throughout the past 11 years. Most of the time the birds were outcoached!

 

I am very glad the spring game went well. Good Luck to the Birds!!!:thumb:

But do you think the Highlands kids are just born with speed? What are they genetically different that the other teams' players?

 

Of course not. That speed comes from some rather intense conditioning and a training emphasis placed on speed. Overweight, out of condition players don't see the field and Dale makes that very clear to the players. I know that for a fact: he made it very clear to my son his sophomore year that if he wanted to see the field, it was lose weight, get faster and quicker, or forget about it. Because my son did it, he started last year. If you observed the Birds spring football you would have seen how intense it was and the premium placed on conditioning.

 

Lots of teams have some quick kids on their team. Dale seems to have more because of his emphasis on quickness in the way the Birds condition and his tendency to use quick small players over big, slow players. We had big, slow players on the team last year, but they did not start.

 

I won't comment on whether he gets more out of his players than any other coach because it simply a statement that cannot be proven or for that matter disproven.

 

I likewise won't comment on whether Bridgett etc weren't used to their full potential. Again, those statements are sort of silly in my opinion and nothing more than conjecture. Sorry if that hurts, but its the way I feel. Furthermore the only way to refute them is to point out players "imperfections" which I will not do on here.

 

Dale's not going to keep every player and even fewer parents happy which will result in second guessing and sour graping. We all think our sons' are the best thing since sliced bread. And I'm as guilty of it as the next guy. But I rationalize my "issues" by telling myself that every coach has bad games now and then, and all and all, Dale had done pretty dang well coaching at Highlands. He sure has a better record coaching than I did in the Ft. T Junior League:banana: And the Birds went a lot further this past year than just about everyone not a Birds fan thought they would go.

 

Back to spring practice, I thought it went very well. Draper looked very good running the offense. All and all I thought the d looked better, but I attribute that in part due to the fact that defenses are normally ahead of the offense at this time of the year, in part to the fact Dale was breaking in a new qb and in part to the fact that Dale concentrated more on passing (which makes sense trying out a new qb) and less on running the ball which will be the Birds strength this year. Mr Reality, glad you enjoyed watching the Birds and were impressed. Now if we could just get you to start cheering for the Birds, it would be a good day.

 

And finally Quickslick, I totally agree that there are a lot of coaches that do a great job of coaching their players.

 

 

Nice to finally meet you leatherneck down in Fla...... you are a wealth of knowledge and insight....I will disagree though on one point... although speed can be increased with specific training... 90% is genetic....if you are born with flat feet.... you will run with flat feet....trust me...it happens.

Speed can be improved! Quickness can be improved!

 

Yes, Highlands players are born with speed. Yes, the young men of Ft. Thomas are privileged to eat better diets which contributes to speed and strength gains. Parents in Ft. Thomas pay for extra training with Dave Guidugli or other speed and strength training. That is the culture.

 

The weight program is not an outstanding weight program. The success of Highlands players in the weight room comes from wanting to become the next state champion for the 'birds. The players are not products of DM's weight program. I know you have seen the speed throughout the youth football program. The Kramer boy has always been lightning fast. The players are a product of a lot of things but mostly self and family driven hard work. The young men love Carrying on the "family tradition" of being a Highlands football player.

 

In reality, from preparation standpoint, DM is one of the best coaches around. His kids are prepared in every big game played. One bad thing he does is he tends to overlook less fortunate teams and prepare for the next week because he does have superior talent. Example is South Oldham this past year...

 

Dale has more talent year in and year out than any other team in the state(barring maybe X and Trinity). Highlands was better than Lex. Cath. this past season, but were outcoached. Not in preparation, but in making gametime adjustments offensively.

 

Dale does a great job, but so have multiple other coaches at Highlands. The key at Highlands is to prepare your already football minded kids well and let them play. Put them in position to win and the players will find a way to win!!! Look at the very FEW losses throughout the past 11 years. Most of the time the birds were outcoached!

 

I am very glad the spring game went well. Good Luck to the Birds!!!:thumb:

 

I agree with some of what you posted. You seem to know the Birds pretty well.

 

However, there are lots of communities privileged enough to eat good diets (Dixie, Scott, and CovCath in N. Ky. quickly come to mind) that have not had the overall quickness and speed the Birds have had over the last 10 years. So it has to be something other than nutrition.

 

Yes, Kramer has always been lightening quick. I remember one play in Jr. League that he ran for about an 80 yd td. He cut back so many times I think all 11 of my players got a shot to tackle him and several got two shots. My defensive coach was fuming, until I asked him if he thought he could have tackled Kramer on that play. He thought about it for a second, stopped fuming, chuckled to himself and then told the kids good job and patted them on the helmet. It was a phenomeonal run. Kramer has always been quick and fast, I agree. But don't you think every team has several naturally quick and fast players?

 

I believe that because of Dale's and Weinrich's emphasis on speed and quickness training, more fast and quick players are developed and that overall team speed and quickness is what separates Highlands from a lot of programs (although I have to admit that LexCath's overall team speed on defense was equal to or better than the Birds overall team speed on offense last year and that, in my opinion, was the difference in the game).

 

Having coached for more than just a couple of years in the Jr. Football League, I've watched a lot of kids change dramatically for the better ,speed and quickness wise, once they got to Highlands. Whereas, some of the kids that have gone to other high schools, because of the style of play at that high school, have focused more on size and strength. At a lot of programs the smaller, faster and quicker players may not even play football because their coaches emphasize a more physical, pound it football style. The smaller, faster, quicker kids at Highlands know that they will get a real shot of playing a lot because of the style of play Dale and Weinrich favor. And the big, heavier kids know that they better lose weight and get faster and quicker, or they'll be looking at the game from the sidelines. So at the end of the day, I think its the style of play and a conditioning program that focuses on the style of play that has more to do with it than genetics and nutrition.

 

And the kids also know that Dale has no problem benching a returning starter if he gets beaten out by an underclassmen who is more talented, faster and quicker. It keeps them on their toes, it keeps them running and it keeps them away from the junk food.

Not to mention "other" reasons.

I think Dale Mueller is a great coach but I am not sure he gets the most out of his players in the state, the cupboard is by no means bare in fort thomas.

Nice to finally meet you leatherneck down in Fla...... you are a wealth of knowledge and insight....I will disagree though on one point... although speed can be increased with specific training... 90% is genetic....if you are born with flat feet.... you will run with flat feet....trust me...it happens.

 

Glad to meet you also. Perhaps I am not making myself clear. I realize that genetics has alot to do with speed. But to suggest that the genetic pool in Ft. Thomas is superior speed wise, compared to the rest of N. Ky or all of Ky, is a bit of a stretch don't you think? Good lordy, if I posted what quickslick posted about the speed gene pool in Ft. Thomas being superior to other communities, I'd have been torn apart for being an arrogant Ft. Thomas snob.

 

What I've been trying to say is that Dale, more than a lot of coaches, puts more of an emphasis on quickness and speed because of the style of play he prefers. That attracts more of the quick and fast kids to the program. Which makes the team comprised of more fast and quick players. Furthermore, his conditioning program is focused on improving speed and quickness. And speed can be improved. When's the last time you saw Highlands starting offensive or defensive linemen with big food guts? If they can't move, they aren't on the field. And by losing 30 pounds of fat, you'll be faster and quicker and have better endurance. And I'm sorry but a big player not carrying an extra 30-40 pounds of fat in almost all circumstances will be faster than he was when he was carrying 30-40 pounds of fat.

 

Now if all of Highlands players are in really good shape, don't carry around a bunch of extra fat, train for speed and quickness, utilize offensive and defensive systems designed to emphasize speed and the program is attractive to fast, quick players, then the overall team speed is going to be better than programs that don't emphasize those same things. Which was the point I was making in response to quickslick's original point that Dale was blessed with kids with speed and that speed can't be coached. The gene pool in Ft. Thomas is not different than other communities right down the road and speed can be improved and utilized better by coaching techniques in my opinion.

 

Conversely, while the Birds generally are more quicker and faster than most of their opponents, they are also generally much smaller. Watch the Colerain, DeSales and St. X games. Speed didn't beat us, their size and strength did. Admittedly, Colerain had both, but in reviewing the game tape, we weren't a whole lot slower than they were (don't get me wrong, we were slower, and at some positions we were a lot slower), but they were much, much bigger than we were. So Dale's emphasis on speed and quickness comes with a trade off, that at times can be exploited, particularly by big physical, well disciplined football teams.

 

Some coaches emphasize strength and their players look like bulls. Some coaches emphasize speed and their players look like gazelles. Sure it would be great to have really big players that are really fast, but how many Micah Johnsons are out there?

I think Dale Mueller is a great coach but I am not sure he gets the most out of his players in the state, the cupboard is by no means bare in fort thomas.

 

 

Agreed.

Glad to meet you also. Perhaps I am not making myself clear. I realize that genetics has alot to do with speed. But to suggest that the genetic pool in Ft. Thomas is superior speed wise, compared to the rest of N. Ky or all of Ky, is a bit of a stretch don't you think? Good lordy, if I posted what quickslick posted about the speed gene pool in Ft. Thomas being superior to other communities, I'd have been torn apart for being an arrogant Ft. Thomas snob.

 

What I've been trying to say is that Dale, more than a lot of coaches, puts more of an emphasis on quickness and speed because of the style of play he prefers. That attracts more of the quick and fast kids to the program. Which makes the team comprised of more fast and quick players. Furthermore, his conditioning program is focused on improving speed and quickness. And speed can be improved. When's the last time you saw Highlands starting offensive or defensive linemen with big food guts? If they can't move, they aren't on the field. And by losing 30 pounds of fat, you'll be faster and quicker and have better endurance. And I'm sorry but a big player not carrying an extra 30-40 pounds of fat in almost all circumstances will be faster than he was when he was carrying 30-40 pounds of fat.

 

Now if all of Highlands players are in really good shape, don't carry around a bunch of extra fat, train for speed and quickness, utilize offensive and defensive systems designed to emphasize speed and the program is attractive to fast, quick players, then the overall team speed is going to be better than programs that don't emphasize those same things. Which was the point I was making in response to quickslick's original point that Dale was blessed with kids with speed and that speed can't be coached. The gene pool in Ft. Thomas is not different than other communities right down the road and speed can be improved and utilized better by coaching techniques in my opinion.

 

Conversely, while the Birds generally are more quicker and faster than most of their opponents, they are also generally much smaller. Watch the Colerain, DeSales and St. X games. Speed didn't beat us, their size and strength did. Admittedly, Colerain had both, but in reviewing the game tape, we weren't a whole lot slower than they were (don't get me wrong, we were slower, and at some positions we were a lot slower), but they were much, much bigger than we were. So Dale's emphasis on speed and quickness comes with a trade off, that at times can be exploited, particularly by big physical, well disciplined football teams.

 

Some coaches emphasize strength and their players look like bulls. Some coaches emphasize speed and their players look like gazelles. Sure it would be great to have really big players that are really fast, but how many Micah Johnsons are out there?

Good post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:thumb: :thumb:

I agree with some of what you posted. You seem to know the Birds pretty well.

 

However, there are lots of communities privileged enough to eat good diets (Dixie, Scott, and CovCath in N. Ky. quickly come to mind) that have not had the overall quickness and speed the Birds have had over the last 10 years. So it has to be something other than nutrition.

 

Yes, Kramer has always been lightening quick. I remember one play in Jr. League that he ran for about an 80 yd td. He cut back so many times I think all 11 of my players got a shot to tackle him and several got two shots. My defensive coach was fuming, until I asked him if he thought he could have tackled Kramer on that play. He thought about it for a second, stopped fuming, chuckled to himself and then told the kids good job and patted them on the helmet. It was a phenomeonal run. Kramer has always been quick and fast, I agree. But don't you think every team has several naturally quick and fast players?

 

I believe that because of Dale's and Weinrich's emphasis on speed and quickness training, more fast and quick players are developed and that overall team speed and quickness is what separates Highlands from a lot of programs (although I have to admit that LexCath's overall team speed on defense was equal to or better than the Birds overall team speed on offense last year and that, in my opinion, was the difference in the game).

 

Having coached for more than just a couple of years in the Jr. Football League, I've watched a lot of kids change dramatically for the better ,speed and quickness wise, once they got to Highlands. Whereas, some of the kids that have gone to other high schools, because of the style of play at that high school, have focused more on size and strength. At a lot of programs the smaller, faster and quicker players may not even play football because their coaches emphasize a more physical, pound it football style. The smaller, faster, quicker kids at Highlands know that they will get a real shot of playing a lot because of the style of play Dale and Weinrich favor. And the big, heavier kids know that they better lose weight and get faster and quicker, or they'll be looking at the game from the sidelines. So at the end of the day, I think its the style of play and a conditioning program that focuses on the style of play that has more to do with it than genetics and nutrition.

 

And the kids also know that Dale has no problem benching a returning starter if he gets beaten out by an underclassmen who is more talented, faster and quicker. It keeps them on their toes, it keeps them running and it keeps them away from the junk food.

 

Dixie and CovCath both have a lot of success due to their nutrition and privelege. Open enrollment in Kenton County kills Scott. Otherwise, they would be successful also. These are not the only factors, but look at other championship teams in the state. X, Trinity, Beechwood, NCC, Boyle and many others. Those kids are more priveleged to better diets and training outside of football training.

 

I agree that they do a good job emphasizing speed and quickness. They are not overly strong though which causes problems. There is no doubt that speed kills!!! They have the right idea. I just do not think that the players speed and quickness is a result of the weight program.

 

Other teams have some speed but not every school. It must be developed throughout the lives of each and every athlete. Playing sports outside school sports. Parents that drive to every athletic event and the kids play every sport they wish. THis does not happen everywhere. In this sense, Ft. Thomas, Ft. Mitchell, etc are very special places.

 

You said it best that kids understand they must lose weight and become faster and quicker to play football at Highlands. I am from that same philosophy. If you cannot run well you will not play, unless I have no other players to use. Speed is the name of the game.

 

I just really believe that at Highlands the chance to play football is so enticing that the kids will do anything and train their bodies to the max. I really feel that this fact has very little to do with the coaches and a lot more to do with the tradition of the program.

The quickness part can be improved (you are correct with that point). That can be improved through drills, weights, etc. I also agree that the quickness advantage that Highlands has had in the past should be attributed to their offseason program.

 

Speed on the other hand--is genetic. Whether you think it is or it isn't--there is no getting around it. You can improve your mechanics, running technique, etc to see an improvement in your overall output (not to mention proper training to maximize speed)--but it CAN NOT be improved or changed (the best way to put it--so it is explained with separation--is that the "speed that a person is born with" can be maximized. Thanks to the usatf for that level 3 certification!). There is plenty of scientific data surrounding that.

 

To answer your question--yes--Highlands has a large number of players who were "born" with speed. I have no clue how that has happened (and quite frankly--I don't care). Whether you agree or disagree this isn't the most common thing in the world. But it also happens in other areas, locations, etc. To your point--they do a lot of things that may improve their quickness.

 

(Leatherneck--the part below isn't about responding to the rest of your post--it is for anyone who wants to read it:)

 

As far as the rest goes--Highlands does a great job. But they are not the only program in the state that does things the right way. And I think that it would be hard to quantify one versus the other.

 

As far as Dale goes (and the way that he handles his players)--it sounds like he is just like every other coach I have ever heard of. He makes decisions that others may/may not agree with. I think that is probably why he is paid to be the coach. You would think that people would quit questioning his thought process after the amount of success that Highlands has had.

 

Everybody does have a genetic limit to how fast they can run,even with

all the training in the world Carl Lewis would never run a 8 second 100 meters.

I would consider him fast but with the training he did he get faster.

But he also would not reached his full potential if he did not train properly.

 

So if the proper training and hard work is put forth the players will get faster

obviously there is a limit to how fast they can be.If HHS as a team works

and trains for speed and agility then as a team they will get faster and

quicker especially compared to teams that dont.

 

For teams that to a lot of weightlifting to get stronger and bigger

--you cannot get bigger or stronger the size and strength you are born

with can only be maximized--thanks high school and college health science

classes.j/k:banana:

Dixie and CovCath both have a lot of success due to their nutrition and privelege. Open enrollment in Kenton County kills Scott. Otherwise, they would be successful also. These are not the only factors, but look at other championship teams in the state. X, Trinity, Beechwood, NCC, Boyle and many others. Those kids are more priveleged to better diets and training outside of football training.

 

I agree that they do a good job emphasizing speed and quickness. They are not overly strong though which causes problems. There is no doubt that speed kills!!! They have the right idea. I just do not think that the players speed and quickness is a result of the weight program.

 

Other teams have some speed but not every school. It must be developed throughout the lives of each and every athlete. Playing sports outside school sports. Parents that drive to every athletic event and the kids play every sport they wish. THis does not happen everywhere. In this sense, Ft. Thomas, Ft. Mitchell, etc are very special places.

 

You said it best that kids understand they must lose weight and become faster and quicker to play football at Highlands. I am from that same philosophy. If you cannot run well you will not play, unless I have no other players to use. Speed is the name of the game.

 

I just really believe that at Highlands the chance to play football is so enticing that the kids will do anything and train their bodies to the max. I really feel that this fact has very little to do with the coaches and a lot more to do with the tradition of the program.

 

Agreed as to most. But I do believe that the coaches do play a greater role in their success than you seemingly do. But other than that, I agree with your post.

Agreed as to most. But I do believe that the coaches do play a greater role in their success than you seemingly do. But other than that, I agree with your post.

I agree. I am really not trying to discredit the coaches. I just think Ft. Thomas has a special kind of kid willing to do anything. If the coaches focus was on strength and size. The players would be big and strong. The focus is now on speed and quickness so the kids are fast and quick. Duffy focused on size and strength and the speed was still there with Grimm, Galichio(SP), Scarlotto among many, many others. I just think the kids in Ft. Thomas are naturally fast based on a lot of factors other than the weight program.

I agree. I am really not trying to discredit the coaches. I just think Ft. Thomas has a special kind of kid willing to do anything. If the coaches focus was on strength and size. The players would be big and strong. The focus is now on speed and quickness so the kids are fast and quick. Duffy focused on size and strength and the speed was still there with Grimm, Galichio(SP), Scarlotto among many, many others. I just think the kids in Ft. Thomas are naturally fast based on a lot of factors other than the weight program.

 

 

It is definitely a mixture of coaching, training and genes. Lets face it, HHS has more coaches than most college teams and they are specific to various positions and this is definitely an advantage. The training is year round and with the kids growing up in the Jr. League watching the older Birds and their success, there is ttremendous incentive there also. Dale gets to the kids early and many of the kids have older siblings who have been through the program so they learn by example. I saw many of the players this past week on the beach and I will say that they are all in great shape, very athletic and most of all just good kids. I wish them all the best.

I think Duffy emphasized strength and CONDITIONING. The only team he had with size was the '92 team. Other than that year he was lucky to have 5 kids that weighed more than 200 pounds on the roster.