Year End Youth Football Party

It is never too early to plan for the year end party for your youth football team. The Team Mom should be able to help you make the arrangements. I have had parties that have been as simple as a pizza party and as formal as a banquet. It is best to get a read on the team (especially the parents) before you decide how fancy the party will be. The age of the team will also help in your decision.
The one main tip I can give you is to make sure the Team Mom collects the entire amount of money that the party will cost in advance of the event. Make sure all siblings, parents, grandparents and friends are accounted and paid for. Too many times I have seen the party end and someone (me) winds up settling the bill for quite a bit more than was collected.
I also try to see if there is a local place where some of the other youth football teams use annually. Another option is if any of the parents own or have a contact with a restaurant.
The main thing is you want to make sure there is enough room for all who attend.
As fare as the youth football banquet goes we usually start with the meal. When all have finished eating I start the festivities. If you have a parent who likes to video tape or take a lot of pictures and is good with a computer you might be able to have them put together a slide show. I have done this a few times and it is a blast. This is optional and very time consuming but if you decide to have it done make sure you get a lot of help and work on it all year.
The next thing I do is give a small recap on the team. I make sure all is positive. This is the end of the year so there’s no reason to anger anyone.
Next I hand out the individual youth football player awards. You will need to check with your league on what kind of medals or trophies they will be providing. I have made it a long standing rule not to give out any special individual awards for MVP, Offensive Player of the Year or any other type. I usually split the names on the roster up among the coaches and have all of us take turns speaking about the kids. Please keep everything positive. Try to talk about something personal that the player did making his night extra special.
I am not a big fan of the year end party but I do make sure it is a great time for the kids who really love it.

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I am a believer in positive influence to get the players to respond to your teachings. I believe in being firm, but fair and I believe the kids appreciate this. I think it is important, especially early in the season, to reward the players for their hard efforts during the month of August. I have found that no matter age level the kids are at, they love PIZZA!
This tradition I have done for 20 years and it has been a big winner. Once you have been working with your youth football team for about three weeks it s time to reward the kids. After 4 weeks of five days a week practice the kids are tired and ready for their first game. I like to have this pizza party after a practice the week before our first game. I usually have this the same day I pass out uniforms.
A parent will usually be able to pick up the pizzas for you and bring them to the field. I serve juice boxes and use paper plates and napkins. I make sure the field is clean after we are done. I like to have the players spend some time together and this is one of the best bonding experiences of the year for the kids.
Don't forget you assistant coaches! Make sure you get enough pizza for them as well as the appropriate beverages. By appropriate I mean NO ALCOHOL, especially on the field near the kids. There is no place for beer or any other alcohol.

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Coaching Youth Football Making it Fun

This could easily be the first and last chapter of this book. While coaching youth football you better make it fun for the players and coaches involved. The parents will fall in line if they see that their kids are having fun. Please remember most of these kids will not go on to play high school sports. It is very important that you give them a memorable experience while you're coaching them.
I have seen way too many coaches have the military approach, which we strongly disagree with for youth football. There's a big difference between running a strict disciplined team versus a military operation. Useless conditioning and exercises prove that the coach does not know what he's doing and covers it by running these ridiculous "boot camps." Please remember to keep it light, and have fun.
The same thing goes for your coaches. Coaching youth football needs to be fun for all. You will be dedicating many hours over the course of a season so you should make it fun for all. I am so close to my coaches that we socially get together with the wives on a regular basis. You can take it serious and try to win but do not take a win at all costs approach. The parents, kids and assistant coaches will hate you for it. The league will also be happy if they do not get complaints from parents on you or your staff throughout the youth football season.

Attend Clinics and Camps

One of the very best things you can do in the off season is attending the many different youth football clinics and camps. There are the major camps that have huge sponsors like NIKE and a variety of coaches from youth sports to college will be giving lectures. Some of these camps last over a few days and can be expensive but if you look at the itinerary and plan your days you should get a lot of information. Just remember that any of the High School and College information must be modified for the youth football level.If you are not into the big major events the local Community Colleges and High Schools will be running some kind of clinic or camp. If you are on the board for your organization you can probably get one of the local High School coaches to come by and give your league their own private clinic.
A few of the youth football organizations are starting to run their own camps. This can be for the kids as well as the coaches and if do right can be a fundraiser as well.
It is best to check in the local papers for the camps closest to you or the internet if you don’t mind traveling.

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Youth Football - Check out the Monthly League Meetings

It can be extremely valuable to go to your monthly youth football league meeting. If you have the time and desire, volunteer to be on the board. You can gain a lot of knowledge from the veteran coaches. Many coaches and board members have been at this game for many years. The experience of these guys at the different age and skill levels can be a great source of information.
You will feel better by helping out your youth football league with other important issues than coaching. I do not believe in "playing politics” to help you secure the team and level you prefer to coach. If you have a kid you will be coaching or helping with the team is playing on. If you are a non-parent (like me) coaching you may want to consider staying at one level or helping out where the league needs the most help. I prefer to stay at one level for many reasons including
New kids each year keeps things interesting
Your “stuff” doesn’t get old
You become an “expert” at this level
It makes following years easier since you have a template to follow

Just make sure you do not over extend yourself when volunteering your time. Make sure you can complete any job you commit to. The youth football organization can use as much volunteer help as possible.

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Youth Football Coaching - Increasing your football IQ

Learn, learn and learn some more. One can never have too much knowledge. You'll be amazed at how much information there is regarding youth football.
I have either run or defended many kinds of offenses including Power I, Single Wing, A11, Multiple Pro, Double Wing, Wing T and Run and Shoot. I pride myself on having a complete understanding of the offense and defense I will be running for the current season.
Since scouting is a very important aspect of the youth football coaching year you will want to have an understanding of a variety of offense and defense schemes. It makes it much easier when you are on the field scouting a team if you are familiar with a variety of schemes.
The defense we have started to rely on is a base 3-4. We also use a 10-1 with a variety of zone blitzes. We will mix up man and zone overages in the secondary depending on the scouting report.
It is important to understand that everything you read or watch must be modified for the age group you'll be coaching. There is a big difference in what schemes you can run especially with the younger kids. These are kids and need a basic understanding of what you are trying to teach them. Please do not satisfy your own ego by showing what a great coach you are by running something too hard for your kid’s age group.
Other ways to increase your youth football knowledge is to attend local high school meetings, go to clinics (Nike has a big-time clinic that travels), go to camps and continue to pursue knowledge from every available source, including books and DVDs.
There is even a website (www.jimoddo.com) that covers youth football coaching in great depth. Yes this is a shameful plug but it does get great reviews.

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