These young guys won King of the Hill on Wednesday.  We try to pull the younger guys for this drill and the North Carolina Drill to give them more live reps but in a controlled/condensed environment to protect their bodies.  Also, gives them a chance to WIN because the older guys are at another part of the field. I take the young guys and do this work while the position coaches have their older guys. I really enjoy this and I like for the head coach to interact more with the young guys than he normally gets to do so. 

 

We finished with our spring red-white scrimmage yesterday. In the past, we did Top 22, Best Offense, Best Defense and depth or each set of scrimmage groups. This year, we did four groups and did the best we could getting everyone work on both sides of the ball. It was ugly, as you can imagine. But, believe we have some good pieces and can develop some others by the time we get to 8/21.

Every time MOST HS guys can get live & tackle to the ground, 11 v. 11 reps, they will improve. Spring is the best time to do that. We go live all season, 11 vs. 11, in the summer and inseason, but try to stay on our feet (most of the time) to avoid injury. 

We had 38 guys participate in the scrimmage. By the time you add our baseball guys and the guys banged up, we are a little above 45 Varsity guys which is what we are after. 

Next spring, will try to be more deliberate...

Practices 1, 2, 5 & 8... the non contact days... will be fundamentals & individual.

Practices 3, 4, 6, 7, 9 & 10 will be almost exclusively 11 vs. 11 live reps. 

 

I was sad to see it end yesterday. At my age, you just don't know how many more of these you have left. As I have said, hopefully I can squeeze out 20 more springs.

But, the huge positive is the AWARENESS that what you are doing in the moment is absolutely incredible. You value each day significantly more when you realize you are rapidly approaching the end. 

If he BGPreps crowd wants to make the trip to Bob Ware Field this fall, you will see an improved Bearcat Football Team. Thank you to @theguru for giving us a great way to celebrate KY HS Football. 

Alot of the speed we have on our team is in our young guys and they play baseball as well. It was fun to see those guys get a win. Our bigger guys went to Bryan Station today and competed with them in the bench and the deadlift. Thank you to Coach Davey McCann & Don Miller (Bearcat Alum & Bryan Station Assistant) for putting that together. Coach Hicks got the youngest Bearcats out on the field today. It was a good day for the Bearcats. We've got several really good guys/coaches putting in work for our program / kids and they are making a difference. 

 

9 hours ago, ChiefSmoke said:

Alot of the speed we have on our team is in our young guys and they play baseball as well. It was fun to see those guys get a win. Our bigger guys went to Bryan Station today and competed with them in the bench and the deadlift. Thank you to Coach Davey McCann & Don Miller (Bearcat Alum & Bryan Station Assistant) for putting that together. Coach Hicks got the youngest Bearcats out on the field today. It was a good day for the Bearcats. We've got several really good guys/coaches putting in work for our program / kids and they are making a difference. 

 

We had a blast competing yesterday Coach! You have a strong, hardworking group. Your son is an absolute UNIT! Wishing y'all the best this season!

2 minutes ago, JagNation said:

We had a blast competing yesterday Coach! You have a strong, hardworking group. Your son is an absolute UNIT! Wishing y'all the best this season!

Coach McCann’s son is Eli, and he is a beast! Thank you! 

2 minutes ago, ChiefSmoke said:

Coach McCann’s son is Eli, and he is a beast! Thank you! 

Ah ok I thought your last one had graduated. I was confused by that so I just misheard. I was starting to think you had a lab somewhere Coach haha.

We have had a strong offseason. Spring break begins tomorrow. We will hit it hard when we return. Final Truck Stick testing for the school year is May 14. We will have a weight meet, here, with Taylor County, Monday, May 18. After the 18th, the guys will be off until June 1, 7 am. 

The quality and quantity of hard work, going back to April of 2023, has been significant. I feel great about the foundation. Still, that is no guarantee on results. Hopefully the results will follow. But, without question, we are a much better football program now than we have been over the past 3 years. 

Our strength coaches still track bench, clean & squat numbers. For me, for our rewards, recognition, etc.... my preference is Truck Stick ... Mass x Velocity. It translate better to on field success. And, our biggest issue has not been, "Are we Strong?" Our biggest hurdle has been, "Can we RUN & MOVE?"

The answer to question number two is, "Better than any other time the past 3 years... as a TEAM." We have had some individuals that could run, but very few. 

Recruiting for our guys has picked up, substantially, the last 3 weeks. That is encouraging. This winter was the TOUGHEST I've ever seen it for HS guys getting recruited. Glad to see things improving in that area. 

 

 

Our admin at Anderson County is super to allow us to do this. This camp took 30 minutes, but the kids had a blast. Edmondson Supply provided the t-shirts for 4 camps. 5th grade at Turner, Saffell, Emma B. Ward. 6th grade at ACMS. This was year 3 of the camp. 

Coach Derek Shouse is an old Bearcat. We played against each other in 1982. Don't ask me who won. 

We had 3 seniors come help with camp also. Nothing to gain other than to help others and help their football program. 

My experience at Mercer County (1974 thru 1987: Dad was HFC, played for Coach French, then coached there w/ Coach French) was great, but it was tough. Many similarities to what we do everyday at Anderson County. Would not trade my Mercer experience for anything. Great time with wonderful people... but very difficult and a ton of hard work. Helps me appreciate what I get to do everyday as a Bearcat.  We have a big mountain, and we are having a blast attacking that mountain, one day at a time.  Easy days... never. Great,  tough days...YES. 

Last thought... it was a warm spring day in 1974 when Coach French drove up to our house in Danville in a white Corvette. Wednesday was a warm spring day and we loaded a casket into a white Cadillac hearse for his body's final trip to Berea. How did all of this happen so fast? Life is a vapor. Don't waste a day. 

 

 

If a head coach is having parent issues, the first place to look is...

1) Are we being fair?

2) Are we communicating standards, procedures, accountability & the schedule up front?

At four different places (Paris, Mason County, Mercer County, Anderson County) the parents have been super. Once everyone knows what to expect, it eliminates alot of drama. 

People still may not like the decision or outcome, but most of the time, it doesn't become a problem. 

Wish we had thought of this in 1992. We paint blocking assignments on pavement for some of our base runs and one screen. 

LT = Blue

LG = Gold

Center = White

RG = Green

RT = Red

Requires no equipment and no teammate. A young offensive lineman competing for a starting position can practice all 5 spots as many times as he wants to do so. 

If we don't know who to block in July, we just look at the guy in the mirror!

 

Got the quiz out yesterday after lunch. By 3 pm, Clayton had scored 100/109. He has also lost 13 pounds of bad weight while getting stronger (another reason I love Truck Stick). Very proud of this young man. Honor student. 

 

 

It's been a good 24 hours. Former Bearcat Nemo Wilson had a TD in the Georgetown Spring Game. Clayton Stratton, Eli McCann & Wyatt Shouse were invited and attended the Centre College Spring Game. Hudson DeGarmo had a visit to Maryville today. It has been tough to be a Bearcat the last few years.  These guys have worked their tails off and hung in there for each other. Happy for them. Excited for the future. 

 

 

 

Life Lessons & Wisdom from Bearcat football!

 

 

1 minute ago, ChiefSmoke said:

Life Lessons & Wisdom from Bearcat football!

I watched it, Anderson County is developing fine young men. 

We love guys playing spring sports. But, the ones that have not , grades 7 thru 12, have been able to get some good work on the field. Our varsity coaches have been working with the young guys as well. 

 

Our guys are continuing to get stronger, faster and more muscle mass. The Truck Stick approach has been good for us. 

 

 

Monday night before our player-parent meeting, Mitch Crawford, the QB from the 1968 team, invited our staff for a fish fry. The 1968 Bearcats were very good. We had a blast.