Walter camp is popularly known as the father of American Football. And Pudge Heffelfinger is universally known as the first professional in American football. This sport originated from two different Sports one is Soccer and another is rugby. Walter camp had altered some rules and creatively presented them.
American football – a good spectacle
Yes, we all know about the sport of football. But, are we confident enough about the football that is being played in other parts of the globe, especially in countries like America? The Sport of football has a multi-part series that explains various codes of football, its location or the origin of it, current state, and the future of it. Generally, being a football fan, we follow a single code but the series aims to expand our knowledge in exploring various types of football Sports that are being played.
American football is also known as Gridiron football or Pigskin. This is also the national sport for the United States of America. Currently, it has been the most popular sport in this part of the world.
NFL – Winning is not everything
Vince Lombardi, one of the legends of the Sport once said “WINNING is not everything–but making the EFFORT to win is”. It was rightly said, as a lot of effort is being used to uplift the standard of the Sport. Today, the Sport is being attracted by a huge number of people from not only within the country but also from other parts of the globe. The reason for such attraction is the passion that the players put on to showcase their talent.
The players do put on a lot of effort and as we know that an effort in the right area can push a player by a long distance. Hence deciding the right area to enforce the hard work is decided by the trainers. Trainers are considered to be the backbone of a player and a stronger the backbone can have better performance on the field.
Now, in every sport, we do come across a coach or the coaching staff but there are good coaches and bad coaches. It is not a coincidence that a team or player with good coach wins and the ones with a bad coach loses. Therefore, we often simply conclude that coaches are good because they win and bad because they lose.
But it is a sort of amazing events to which we rarely look. There are a lot more events that go into to decide what makes a good coach especially in the Sport of American football.
What is 1 on 1 football coaching?
1 on 1 coaching is seeking guidance personally from an experienced player within the sport. In American football, 1 on 1 coaching is a common concept and that helps in improving the standard of the Sport. Working with a 1-to-1 coach cannot be the end of a coaching manual for a player, apart from the personal coach, a regular team training under a coach is the most effective way of improving the standard of a player. There are a lot of positives of having a 1 on 1 coach. Some of these benefits are listed in the points given below:
- When the team players are equipped with a 1 on 1 coach then he or she can complement the coach of the entire team. It will help to fill in the gaps that were created at the time of group instructions. In most cases, it is witnessed that the team coaches are struggling to pay attention to every player but the players truly need some specific attention to work on their skills and develop it. 1 on 1 coaching puts the player at the center of the learning rather than the team. Consequently, every player is therefore engaged at the center of learning and more likely to learn.
- Based on the lack of skills that players are facing, the training session can be scheduled and the players can individually work on their drawbacks and improve their skills. Useful instructions would be provided to the players that will focus on an individual’s technique at a pace at which they can understand. A private coach is well equipped and experienced in the field of coaching at various levels to uplift the skill to a certain level. Therefore, they will have the best approach and way of practicing to get the best out of a player.
- Certain approaches can adhere which can help the player to progress quickly. The coach can plan for a tailored coaching session that will focus on specific areas where the particular player needs attention and can help to overcome the obstacles.
- Certain mistakes that a player is committed to, can be instantly corrected, eliminating any such risks of developing bad habits. Such techniques can be more flexible and help the player to develop a habit of responsibility which can help the entire team at the time of performing with other players.
- The technique of 1 on 1 coaching can have a long-term impact especially on the career of a young player. But, with such technique, we do see a lot of improvements in players within a few sessions, such improvements are noticeable in individual performance and competitive effectiveness which results in high confidence.
- Sometimes a player can be frustrated for some reason. With 1 on 1 coaching, the coach can become a mentor figure and a sounding board for frustration. More often than not, a coach who was already a player does come across a lot of frustrations and knows the best remedy to get rid of such difficult situations especially for a young player. Coaches can help them to overcome these tough times by equipping them with the right thoughts and techniques. That is how several American football greats are created.
Importance of 1 on 1 coaching in Football
The sport of American football is distinct in the world of football. Though there are two types where it is considered as not a free-flowing Sport and on the other hand, it is about gaining territory by scoring goals as much as a team needs by field goals or tries touchdowns. Both teams playing against each other try to dominate the territory of the opponent team while defending their territory until eventually, they get hold of the entire territory of the opponent side by getting to the other sides’ end zone which is known as a touchdown, which was from early days of rugby, a misnomer. The reason is that in American football one need not touch the ground with the ball. Whereas the other scores by kicking the ball into the goal.
The ball shapes like an oval and size range between 11-11.5 inches in length, the field is of 110 m in length and width of 49 m and is partitioned into a gridiron shape with markers every 10 yards.
Now, with the 1 on 1 coaching, the coaches get to know the actual capability that a particular player possesses for any particular position. Hence it allows the team to have better balance. Moreover, with the position marked for each individual, it becomes easy for players to discuss their difficulties or challenges. Hence the coaches will have sufficient time and proper pieces of training for the individual to over the challenges.
General coaching techniques in American Football
Every sport does have certain exercises that are common for all coaching manuals irrespective of the place. Similarly, the American football trainers do follow certain manuals and these are especially followed at the time of 1 on 1 coaching. Such techniques point out the areas that need to be emphasized for a coach to uplift the skills of the player.
Here are some of the basic techniques:
- Increasing the speed: quick acceleration is important in the sport of American football. The moment a player snatches the ball needs to run with increasing acceleration.
- Squat for Single-leg. (by sprint) Dumbbell bench step-ups: squats help the players to get rid of the hamstring injuries and other muscle injuries that common during the Sport.
- Weight carrying: carrying weight helps to develop the strength which is essential at the time of defending.
- Run-on treadmill: continuous running on trade mill helps in increasing the ability to run for a longer time.
- Push-ups: It helps in strengthening the solders. This is essential for defending.
- Hurdle Sprint: It increases the running velocity. Thus, one can move quickly on the field.
Final verdict
The competitiveness of American football is creating popularity among football lovers. The level of sport is rapidly increasing and that is attracting sports lovers from various countries. We prefer to look at the close finish in Sports and the players establish it with a competitive attitude. Every player is trained under 1 on 1 coaching systems which reduces their weak links and that is resulting in players to support their teams from various positions when the team needs them to perform.
Recommended Read:
7 Offensive Line Blocking Drills for Youth Football | Offensive Line Drills