Makings of a Great Player

[Bear78]

What is it that makes a great player?

 

I have read about QB's or RB's that get a lot of air time for their accomplishments. Some are truly great, when you know they are going to get te ball and they make their play anyway.

 

Some have been labeled great, have good stats, accomplished a milestone, but overall may not be that much different than the average player that doesn't throw as much or get handed the ball as much. Is 1000 yds rushing for the year with an avergage of 1 yd per rush great?

 

What is the distinguishing characteristic?

[Ram]

Football is such a different sport then all the other sports. It is truly a team sport and there are so many positions that do different things.

 

A great basketball player scores, rebounds, handles the ball, and creates assist. A great basketball player can play any position. A great baseball can hit and play the field, they can play virtually any position needed.

 

This is not true for football, you may have the greatest back ever, but he would be a terrible lineman, or the best lineman ever, and he would be a terrible quarterback.

 

So, in football it depends on what position you are talking about. There are several things that all good football players have. They all have a competitive nature, they all do what ever they have to do to accomplish what is expected of them, they all are tough, and well conditioned, they are coachable, they all have leadership qualities.

 

For a great running back, I think what makes them great, is what they do on their own. Everyone expects them to gain yards up the middle when they have a great line, but what do they do after they get in space and have to create their own running room. A couple things that will not make it in the stats are how well do they block when they have to, how well do they fake. Those are two intanglibles.

 

Receivers, what do they do after the catch? How well do they block? Are they sure handed? Those are things I look for.

 

Linemen, how consistent are they? Do they have good feet? Can they get to the second level to provide a block? Do they use their hands well?

 

Quarterbacks, do they make good decisions? What do they do under pressure? Do they get the ball to play makers?

 

Defensive players, do they attack the ball? Are they sure tacklers? Do they pursue the ball well? Do they locate the ball well? Can they shed blocks? Are they under control?

[oldonetechnique]

The biggest thing that makes players great is the two C's Commitment and Courage. You

[Bear78]

Stat-less intangibles are what you two are saying. Why is it the D1 schools continue to confound me with their interest in stats and size. I'm not saying those things aren't important, but like your saying - there is more to the story.....:irked:

[Ram]

Size is a factor. If you are an offensive lineman under 6'4", it is going to be difficult to get a D1 scholarship.

[DMZ76]

Stat-less intangibles are what you two are saying. Why is it the D1 schools continue to confound me with their interest in stats and size. I'm not saying those things aren't important, but like your saying - there is more to the story.....:irked:

 

UNFORTUNATELY...you can teach football...you can't teach size! And no matter what the ladies tell you, size matters! :cry: I would like to see D1's take more chances with "tweeners" that are proven winners who can play the game!

[papa22320]

What is it that makes a great player?

 

I have read about QB's or RB's that get a lot of air time for their accomplishments. Some are truly great, when you know they are going to get te ball and they make their play anyway.

 

Some have been labeled great, have good stats, accomplished a milestone, but overall may not be that much different than the average player that doesn't throw as much or get handed the ball as much. Is 1000 yds rushing for the year with an avergage of 1 yd per rush great?

 

What is the distinguishing characteristic?

 

Heart! Can't teach it. Got to have it.:fight:

[Bear78]

UNFORTUNATELY...you can teach football...you can't teach size! And no matter what the ladies tell you, size matters! :cry: I would like to see D1's take more chances with "tweeners" that are proven winners who can play the game!

 

I am interested in seeing how players like Doug Beaumont and Victor Anderson perform at U of L. Beaumont and Anderson are a little on the small size. Both have great speed. IMO Beaumont definitely has the heart and a good football sense.:thumb:

[JoeFan]

I agree with Ram that different characteristics are needed for different positions. I would like to see if there aren't certain traits that we can agree on that apply to every position.

 

For example,

 

Leadership. To me this means more than vocal encouragement or chastisement of team-mates. A good leader is always one who leads by example. Players respect a team-mate that always gives 100% of what they have to give. Some very fine leaders aren't the best players. However, their example challenges the rest of their team to measure up.

 

Courage. To me this means confidence + performance when it counts. Great athletes who don't come through in the clutch don't add much to their team. Some players disappear when the game is on the line. A player with courage wants the ball thrown/handed to him; wants the ball thrown to his receiver or run to his side of the defense; wants to kick the field goal; wants to have the key block; or any other key assignment on the last play of the game to win it.

 

Consistency. This goes back to the Leadership quality. A great player has to put it on the line each play of each game and each drill in practice.

 

Enthusiasm. Not the vocal kind. Some kids just act like they would rather be somewhere else. Maybe I'm just getting old (in fact I know I am), but it seems there is less and less enthusiasm. Our society is turning our kids into teenage cynics. They don't want to be seen to be overly invested in anything. They have to be cool. (Even though they would never use an outdated term like "cool" on penalty of death). But if one kid shows genuine enthusiasm for the game, gets excited at big plays, acts as if the football field is the place he most wants to be, it is contagious.

 

Aggressiveness. Football is a hitting sport. Except, maybe a kicker, I don't think any football player can be great if they don't like contact.

 

Just some random thought, in no particular order. I'd like to see what others think.

 

P.S. Regarding the discussion of size and stats, its true that big schools often overlook good players because they are undersized or a step slow, but not always. Every so often a D1 school will find a gem that slipped through every other program's cracks because he didn't measure up.

 

However, the maxim is true that a good big man will beat a good little man more times than not. The same is even more true for speed. And at each level the bar gets higher. Size and speed matter more the farther up the ladder you go. In high school it simply isn't as important. Some of the finest high school linemen I have seen have been undersized. That doesn't mean they could have competed consistently on the D1 level.