Is there really a true need for them in High School Football. What difference would or do they really make. Lets say a promising QB goes to a Big Time camp and learns the things that would take him to a much higher level on the football field. What happens when they go back to summer practice. Does the coach run with what the so called EXPERTS taught his 6'-4" QB or do they just keep the kid from showing his true ability. I know first hand that when Jared Lorenzen returned from Kentucky's camp the first thing Dale asked was, what did they teach you in Lexington. The rest of the story goes down as the 1998 Highlands team as being one of the most prolific offensive teams in Ky high school history. Back to the reason i started this thread is because i think High Schools do need a true position coach no matter who the school is. Maybe that school has a player that doesn't get the same chance as Jared did. There are too many High Schools out there that have the proper resources to help their football programs that don't.

All schools have position coaches. Some are a little more specialized then others but they are there. You also get people coaching positions that may not be their strong suit. Not all coaches spend the time to get better at the position they coach.

I think that there are a lot of para-professional assistant coaches involved in Ky. High school football. Even though they are quality coaches, its hard for some of them to devote the required time for them to educate themselves to help train the players at the highest quality. I think anyone that volunteers and offers their time is showing great character by doing so. But I know in other states, such as Georgia, they have 10-15 paid coaches on staff and all are in the school as well. This creates a great advantage with the players being in the school because it allows the coach to connect with the kids off the field and creates a bond of trust that goes to the football field. Either way ANYONE that is part of coaching kids in athletics has a great responsiblity to get the most from the kids they are coaching.

All schools have position coaches. Some are a little more specialized then others but they are there. You also get people coaching positions that may not be their strong suit. Not all coaches spend the time to get better at the position they coach.

 

All schools do(?) have position coaches, just sometimes those coaches are people who meet the minimum requirements to be football coach in their district (or state whatever the case may be). some smaller schools are lucky to have a single position coach for two positions! (Some coach OL-DL, DB-WR). Also, meeting minimum requirements to be a coach does not always translate into a football coach all the time. I know of some position coaches who have taken a job just to get a supplement to their salary (most of the time that is a very minimal sum). Some teachers step up to coach a girl's track team, volleyball, cross country team just because they can make an extra $1200.00-1500.00 per year. There are qualified coaches who would coach (for little or nothing) but they may not meet these minimum requirements in their states.

 

Now about some coaches who may not put in enough time to be better coaches, I think this is the biggest problem. Coaches get very little pay for the time required of them to spend on the practice field, weight room, game prep, film, game nights, etc. The more they work, the less their pay actually becomes. Not making an excuse, just stating that there may be this very large obstacle to get around for coaches to be willing to put in even more time. The hourly pay for most would average less than a nickel per hour!

I have said many times before that every time I am with a player (group of players) or a coach (group of coaches) I learn something. That is the best part of being involved in football (especially at the High School level).

How much you get paid should not be an issue. If you are coaching to just collect pay check then your doing a diservice to your players. Not sure what requirements past maybe taking a test a coach has to do here in KY for football. I am not even sure if you have to do that. Other states I know have a class or test you have to take and that comes down to how bad you want to coach. A coach can gain knowledge through a number of things from coaching forums, magazines, clinics, videos, visiting other schools and more. Most of those are not huge time investments.

 

The original poster asked about position coaches. He did not say anyhting about it being the ONLY position a coach is in charge of. So yes it is very common for someone to be the DB and RB coach but you still have a position coach. Unless you can 2 platoon there is no reason to have a coach that all he does in RBs or LBers ect. Trinity, and ST X I would not be surprised if they have position coaches that coach only one position.

Trinity, and ST X I would not be surprised if they have position coaches that coach only one position.

 

At St. X., we platoon on offense and defense, so we do have position coaches at the freshman level and varsity level who specialize. The JV's work with the varsity coaches. On offense we have a coach for QB's and RB's, a coach for OL, and a coach for WR's, plus an OC. On defense we have a coach for DT's, and coach for DE's, a coach for LB's, and a coach for the DB's, plus a DC.

I thought Chitwood was the OC and the OL coach. If you are going to go 2 platoon then you need those extra coaches. This is one reason St. X is as good as they are is because those players get more focused work.

There are many coaches at smaller schools who work for free. Many of them are really good coaches as well.

There are two MUSTS in football that are needed to win. You MUST have the players first. Without them, the best coach is not winning and GREAT players have made coaches appear 'great'.

Second, you MUST have the coaches. They can develop the great to be greater, the good to great, the average to good, the poor to contributers. The Head Coach cannot do it all himself.

Anything and everything else is a bonus. Heck, we used to put rocks in milk cartons and used them to play football everyday before school and at lunch time. We've used towels to run the option drill. We even used babydoll heads to; oh wait, we played baseball with those!!!:jump:

There are two MUSTS in football that are needed to win. You MUST have the players first. Without them, the best coach is not winning and GREAT players have made coaches appear 'great'.

Second, you MUST have the coaches. They can develop the great to be greater, the good to great, the average to good, the poor to contributers. The Head Coach cannot do it all himself.

Anything and everything else is a bonus. Heck, we used to put rocks in milk cartons and used them to play football everyday before school and at lunch time. We've used towels to run the option drill. We even used babydoll heads to; oh wait, we played baseball with those!!!:jump:

 

I have seen alot of GREAT coaches make something from nothing. It takes a coach that has the ability to check their ego at the door and admit that they arent talented. Then finding a way to get the most out the players that they have. This happens at all levels of football. Even in the NFL.

Is there really a true need for them in High School Football. What difference would or do they really make. Lets say a promising QB goes to a Big Time camp and learns the things that would take him to a much higher level on the football field. What happens when they go back to summer practice. Does the coach run with what the so called EXPERTS taught his 6'-4" QB or do they just keep the kid from showing his true ability. I know first hand that when Jared Lorenzen returned from Kentucky's camp the first thing Dale asked was, what did they teach you in Lexington. The rest of the story goes down as the 1998 Highlands team as being one of the most prolific offensive teams in Ky high school history. Back to the reason i started this thread is because i think High Schools do need a true position coach no matter who the school is. Maybe that school has a player that doesn't get the same chance as Jared did. There are too many High Schools out there that have the proper resources to help their football programs that don't.

 

The QB position requires more specialized time than other positions in my mind. You can have a good QB but if he doesn't continue to work on his foot work and mechanics throughout the season he will not be as effective as he could be. There is more to this position than just throwing the ball 300 times a practice. Even the great QB's go over the basic fundamentals, it starts at the feet and works its way up. One also must study the game and understand defenses.

Trinity, and ST X I would not be surprised if they have position coaches that coach only one position.

 

Are you kidding, they have coaches that coach only 1 player.

Are you kidding, they have coaches that coach only 1 player.

 

:laugh::laugh::laugh:

The QB position requires more specialized time than other positions in my mind. You can have a good QB but if he doesn't continue to work on his foot work and mechanics throughout the season he will not be as effective as he could be. There is more to this position than just throwing the ball 300 times a practice. Even the great QB's go over the basic fundamentals, it starts at the feet and works its way up. One also must study the game and understand defenses.

 

I think that depends on what you are going to ask your QB to do. If you are going to throw the ball 30+ times then he is going to need more one on one/specialized work. It is one of the easier positions to mess up. There is a good deal of stuff you can do to make it easier on your QB. Make it easy on everyone and take the kid to a Darrin Slack camp and just use those methods.

Is there really a true need for them in High School Football. What difference would or do they really make. Lets say a promising QB goes to a Big Time camp and learns the things that would take him to a much higher level on the football field. What happens when they go back to summer practice. Does the coach run with what the so called EXPERTS taught his 6'-4" QB or do they just keep the kid from showing his true ability. I know first hand that when Jared Lorenzen returned from Kentucky's camp the first thing Dale asked was, what did they teach you in Lexington. The rest of the story goes down as the 1998 Highlands team as being one of the most prolific offensive teams in Ky high school history. Back to the reason i started this thread is because i think High Schools do need a true position coach no matter who the school is. Maybe that school has a player that doesn't get the same chance as Jared did. There are too many High Schools out there that have the proper resources to help their football programs that don't.

 

I think a high school team needs several position coaches to be successful. I would say a good number would be around 10 coaches with most having duel duties. What would be the “norm” for most schools in terms of number/title of coaches? A typical team might look something like:

 

Head Coach

Offensive Coordinator + 1 position (say RBs)

QB coach (JV Head Coach)

O-Line

Receivers

 

Defensive Coordinator + 1 position (say LBs)

D-Line

Defensive Backs (Freshman Head Coach)

 

Special Teams/Kickers

Conditioning