Monday, August 30, 2010

Joe Ehrmann and Building Men for Others

If you follow the Patrick Henry Freshmen Football Team, you hear it being said during practice, before and after games. What's the coach's job? "To love us!" What's your job? "To love each other!"

People looking from the outside would look at us with a quizzed look on their face. But in reality, we are building a community of men that trust each other, work with each other and grow a brotherhood that can't be broken.

I have been using this philosophy in coaching since 2004 when I was the JV Head Coach at the Bishops School in La Jolla. I took it with me to Southwest HS and to Hilltop HS before coming here to Patrick Henry.

I saw a news article on Joe Ehrmann, a former player for the Baltimore Colts (Yes, Baltimore Colts was before Indy) and I did some research in the style of coaching he used. I have attached a video for you to see what I am talking about.

Enjoy!


http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-game-highlights/09000d5d801c52e2/NFL-Films-Presents-Joe-Ehrmann

Battle of the Bands this Saturday 9/4/10

It has come to my attention that we have to members of the band Oculus Sinister on the Freshman team.

RB Colton Ledford and LB Nick Sullivan are in the band Oculus Sinister and they are in the finals in the Battle of the Bands this coming Saturday 9/4/10 at 6:00 pm. The location where the band will be playing is:

Queen Bee's
3925 Ohio St.
San Diego, Ca. 92103

Tickets are $10 and you can buy them from Colt or Sully. Their music can also be bought on iTunes. Here is their web site on myspace: http://www.myspace.com/oculussinister4

Queen Bee's is an all age venue in North Park, one block north of University Ave. I plan on being there to support our boys and I welcome everybody to show their support.



Team Photo for Football Program

The Booster Club is putting the final touches on the Football Program (Program as in the book with team photos, shout-outs, ads and Varsity player photos).

The Freshman team will be taking a team photo on Tuesday 8/31/10 at 4:00 in the Staduim. I will be handing out the game jerseys to our players for the photo at 3:00 pm in the team room.

The Freshman team will be using the current practice pants at the game pants until Nike finally sends us the new game pants in a month or two. After the team photo, I will take the team back up to the team room and collect the game jerseys and suit up for practice in their practice jerseys.

Practice will follow at 5:00 pm.

As a note everybody: THIS PHOTO IS A TEAM PHOTO FOR THE PROGRAM ONLY. THIS IS NOT THE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS FOR PURCHASE.

Assessment of the Mission Bay Scrimmage

I have three words to describe the Scrimmage last Friday against Mission Bay: Not too shabby!

I was happy with the level of competition that all the players put forth during the scrimmage. I didn't ask for much. As a matter of fact, all I asked was that each player gave me his best. And each one of them did just that. They gave me their best effort.

I can truly say that our players showed a tremendous amount of hustle, knowledge and passion for the game of football. At no point did anyone get down and we bonded together as a team. The team met the goals I set out from the beginning of the scrimmage: COMPETE.

We still have some work to do on both sides of the ball and we will address them during this, our bye week. Our next game will be on Saturday 9/11/10 12:00 noon at PHHS against the Pointers of Pt. Loma HS.

Labor Day Weekend

For those of you planning your Labor Day weekend, I would like to pass on some good news...

There will be no practice on Friday 9/3/10 thru Monday 9/6/10. Basically, the Freshman team will have a 4 day weekend. School starts on Tuesday 9/7/10 and we will be practicing after school.

It is a reward to the players, parents and the coaching staff to enjoy the holiday weekend and the end of summer. We all deserve the break from football. Because when we come back, it will be time to get to business and start the regular season.

Stadium Clean Up a Success

Stadium Clean Up Day was last Saturday and it was a huge success. Along with the JV and Varsity Teams that were there at PHHS for their Saturday weight training session, we had 35 Freshmen football players and their family members come to help out and clean the Stadium for the upcoming season.

I was impressed at the final product of how the stadium looked at the end of the day. It's the small details that give our football program a professional feel. I want to extend a huge thank you to all the players and family members that came out to help in cleaning the Stadium.

As a reward to all the Freshmen football players, for showing up to the Stadium Clean Up, those players get a free pass on one conditioning session of their choosing at the end of practice. Getting out of the stair workouts is a very strong motivator!

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Stadium Clean-up on Saturday 8/28/10

I strongly encourage all of our football players and families to attend the Stadium Clean Up this coming Saturday (8/28) at 9:30 am.

I will make the following offer to all the Freshman players and families: Those that attend and help with the beautification of the stadium on Saturday, I will give each player a free pass to get out of conditioning at the end a practice of their choice. So if you want to skip a day on the stadium bleachers, or a day of game winners, I will mark the player's name down as having a free pass on conditioning.

Players have to check in with me so I can mark them down as attending the Clean Up.

The following is the e-mail sent out to the parents from the Booster Club:

PHHS FOOTBALL FIELD CLEAN UP
Saturday August 28, 2010 9:30AM
We need to get our field, concession stands, and bleachers ready for our Home Opener.
We want all players and their families to attend, so that we all can BUY IN to our program.

Here is what we need:

3-5 Blowers (Gas or Electric) 3-4 Weed Eaters (Gas or Electric)
3-4 Leaf Rakes 3-4 Push Brooms
3-4 Brooms 2 Whisk Brooms
2 Dust Pans 5-10 Paint Brushes
3-4 Rollers 3-4 Roller Pans
2 -Power washers w 100’ hose 2 6’-8’Ladders
2 -Extension Ladders 3-4 5 Gallon Buckets
Windex Disinfectant for buckets
2 Mop buckets 2 Mops
Rags Trash Bags
HOPE IT HAPPENS - WATCH IT HAPPEN
MAKE IT HAPPEN

For more information: 619-459-9208
Email: phhsfootballbooster@gmail.com

Upcoming Scrimmage vs. Mission Bay

We will scrimmage the Buccaneers of Mission Bay HS on Friday 8/27/10 at 2:00. Players will need to be in the team room no later than 1:00 pm. I will be taking roll in the room at 1:00 sharp. QB's and WR's will warm up at 1:15 and the rest of the team will join them on the field at 1:30.

It will be hot. Be sure to bring some shade. The snack bar will be open and be selling burgers, hotdogs and drinks.

We should be done around 3:30.

Practice Schedule Changes

I'm sorry folks for the changes... But I am tired of fighting over the use of the stadium with other teams. Coach Martinez and I set our schedules for the Football Stadium back in January and now we are caught in a tug-o-war over the use of the Stadium. I want to have some consistency for my players and parents so we all know what time we start and what time we finish...

With that being said, we will be practicing of the baseball field for the remainder of the year. Practice will start at 5:00 pm and will run until dusk or 7:30 pm Thursday 8/26 and Monday 8/30 thru Thursday 9/2. If things go well for our team and I am happy with our progress, I will give the players Friday 9/3 off giving them and you parents a 4 day weekend for the Labor day weekend.

Parents are welcomed to bring lawn chairs and sit off to the side of the scrimmage to see what is going on. Some coaches feel the need to treat practice as a Top Secret event tied into the National Security Council by keeping parents away from the team during practice. I feel the opposite. I want parents to see how their sons are progressing as football players.

Once school starts, we will practice on the baseball field Mondays and Tuesdays 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm. On Wednesdays we will be in the Stadium practicing our Special Teams.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Building Men for Others: Community

After Monday night's practice, I gave the players a homework assignment. They were to look up the word community.

As we huddled up after the end of practice on Tuesday, Mr. Cummins shared with the team meaning of community: A group or class of people having a common interest.

For those of you that were at Monday night's practice, the offense looked out of sync. They had limited success during the team period of Monday's practice.

On Tuesday, the offense took the meaning of community to the next level and worked on making the offense work. Coaches and players had a common interest: Let's get better.

Sure enough, the offensive community came together and scored on a 70 yard TD run on the first play of the evening scrimmage.

The thing I see with these young men is the fact they bond and work together in a common interest. They want to get better as players and better as men. They compete, they support and encourage each other. That is a strong foundation in building a team and a community of men.

Time Change in Individual and Team Photos

There is a time change on team and individual photos...

I will be handing out photo order forms after the Green and Gold game on Friday.

Because I will be out of town on a previously planned occasion, I will be back to San Diego on Tuesday 8/24/10 at 10:00 am. I will hand out uniforms in the team room at 10:00 on Monday the 24th and individual photos will be taken.

Since the coaches do not get off of work until after 3:30, the team photo will be taken at 4:00 pm. There will be no practice after the team photo.

I have already assigned jersey numbers according to position and according to jersey size. So please, don't ask what number you may have. I have made that decision for the players already.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Schedule Changes

Friday August 20th: We will be having our annual inter-squad scrimmage this coming Friday the 20th. We call it the "Green and Gold" game and it will be int the Stadium starting at 4:00 pm.

We will be playing all players and expose them to different game situations and we will finish off the scrimmage with a 2 minute drill. We should be done and off the field by 5:30 pm. The Varsity and JV will follow us and they will have their "Green and Gold" game at 6:00 pm.

During our game, I will be at the BBQ cooking up hamburgers and hotdogs for our players following the game. Life is about competition. The winning team will get hamburgers and losing team will get hotdogs.

The team BBQ is a time to fellowship and get to hang out with one another. To see each other in a different light than that as football coach and football player. Also, for you parents, it gives you a chance to meet the coaches.

Monday August 23rd: The PHHS marching band will be using the stadium for their band camp. We will practice on the baseball field and we will practice from 5:00 pm to 7:30 pm. Please make a note of this change.

Tuesday August 24th: Once again, the band will be using the stadium for band camp. We will not be practicing that day. Tuesday will be picture day. We will be handing out white game uniforms to the players and we will have the opportunity to have team and individual photos taken and ordered. I will be in the team room handing out uniforms at 10:00 am on Tuesday and individual photos will be taken at 11:00 am. The coaches won't be available until the afternoon and team pictures will be at 4:00 pm. We will not have practice following team photos.

Wednesday August 25th and Thursday August 26th: Practice will return to normal and we will be back in the stadium with practice starting going at 6:00 pm to 8:30 pm.

Friday August 27th: We are scheduled to scrimmage the Buccaneers of Mission Bay HS at Patrick Henry HS at 2:00 pm. Players need to be in the team room at 1:00 pm to get suited up. (We will be wearing our practice uniforms). We head down to the field at 1:30, stretch out and we start the scrimmage at 2:00 pm sharp. JV will be at 4:00 pm and Varsity at 6:00 pm.

Monday August 30th and Tuesday August 31st: Practices will be on the baseball field at 5:00 pm and end at 7:30.

Wednesday September 1st: Practice in the stadium 6:00 pm to 8:30.

Thursday September 2nd: Practice on the baseball field 5:00 pm to 7:30.

Friday September 3rd: The last day of football camp. We will be in the stadium at 6:00 pm and we finish at at 8:30.

Monday September 6th Labor Day: Day off!!! This is the last vacation before the start of school. Enjoy your family and have a nice 3 day weekend!

Tuesday September 7th: First day of school! Our practices during the school year will be on the baseball field. Most of our players will be in 6th Period and we will start practice at 1:45 and we will be done at 4:00 pm.

Saturday September 11th: First home game vs. Pt. Loma at 12:00 pm.


Thursday, August 12, 2010

Building Men for Others: Empathy

As a part of Building Men for Others, I gave the players a homework assignment on Tuesday night. They were all to look the meaning of the word empathy.

Webster's Dictionary describes Empathy as: Identification with and understanding another's feelings, situation and motives.

Identifying with another persons feelings or situation. I want our players to put themselves in the shoes of another person. Think outside of the norm and think about what other people must be thinking or feeling. To show empathy for another team mate puts us all in a position not only to understand others, but to build a bond of trust with one another.

That is what building a team is about. That is life.

Last night's conditioning session was a good lesson in empathy. Some players had a hard time getting their conditioning done in the allotted time limit. Failure to do so would result in having to do more sprints.

A group of lesser men would have yelled at the perpetrators, blaming them for the extra sprints. Not our players. They sucked it up, encouraged one another and gave their best effort. They put themselves in a position to think of the other person's feelings and situation. That is all I can ask of our players.

Winning is not the top priority with Freshman football. Learning the fundamentals of football and building men are my top two priorities on this team. We are building a good foundation with our players. You parents should be proud of your sons and their development not only as football players, but being a man.

Football Equipment

Some of the players have come to me about issues they are having shoulder pads, helmets and other football gear issued on Tuesday.

For the next two weeks, I will be in the Team Room everyday but Wednesdays at 4:00 pm to help players make adjustments on their gear or to switch gear out. I will be closing the Team Room every day at 5:30 to head down to the field to start practice.

Last night, I went over the "extras" that some players like to have to play football. Stuff like visors, gloves, rib pads, tape, elbow protection and spaghetti pads for under the shoulder pads.

I had two sons play at Monte Vista HS and I know the costs of buying all the "extras" can add up. Other than the items I spoke about last night, I strongly suggest that if you are about to buy gear for your son, please feel free to call me and ask if what you are about to buy is needed. I want to help you save some $$$.

Also, Friday's practice will be in full pads. Players wanting to store their gear in their locker will have to buy a combination lock to secure their gear. The locker room will be open an hour before practice and for 15 minutes after practice.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Date and Time Change in Registration

Hopefully, most of you got the e-mail from the Booster Club on the change of Football Registration for the Freshman Football Team.

Freshman Football players will be required to register on Monday August the 9th at 10:00 am. The remainder of your paperwork and the balance of the Spirit pack money will be due at that time. Players will receive their Spirit Pack at that time. (Practice jersey, shorts, socks and girdle)

All football players will then have to get their "Athletic Clearance Cards" on the same day between the hours of 2:00 - 3:00 pm. The coaches will meet with the players in the Team Room at 3:00 and we will hand out football gear to all the players that have been cleared.

Freshman players will have to share lockers in the Team Room. It is a good idea to have a locker partner and to bring a combination lock to store your equipment on Monday the 9th.

Our first practice will still be on Tuesday the 10th of August at 6:00 pm in the Stadium. Players will suit up in helmets, shoulder pads, practice jerseys, shorts and cleats for the first three days of practice.