Sports for Your Child

Whoa!  This is truly a sensitive subject!  I’m sure to lose some friends over this post.   

Certain parents love their children so much that they think they should get the most playing time on the team, whether they deserve it or not.  If this is you, I apologize for being so blunt with my statement. 

OK, you’re right, on a recreational team playing time shouldn’t be withheld from any player.  This post only addresses competitive teams in competitive situations.  If your child is on a “rec” team and they’re not getting playing time then talk to the coach.

My boys have been in both situations (lots of playing time and not so much) and I agree that it hurts to watch your child sulk on the sideline.  It’s no fun watching unless the player just wants to be on a team to hang out with the other players and say that they were a part of something.  I’ve watched my oldest son ride pine (sit on the bench), in baseball, on the 4th ranked team in the country.  When my youngest was just starting in football, he stunk up the joint and earned plenty of time watching from the sideline.  He was the most polite player on the team . . . on defense! 

I don’t fault those coaches.  When you’re playing to win, and you know that losing sucks, a coach will put his best foot forward every time.  In both of those situations, the downtime just served as a catalyst to incent my boys to work that much harder going forward.

As a caution to parents and kids when they get to high school (actually on any competitive team); don’t ask for playing time; earn it!  Chances are that if you ask for more playing time, you’ll spend more time on the sideline than you would have.  Would it be fair to take playing time away from the kid who earns it?  The answer to that question should be obvious!

As Mike Green, founder of The Sports Family Club, said very eloquently on Twitter “hard work and a desire that can’t be measured or created are the true differentiators of a pro athlete”.  This applies to athletes at any level.  The harder you work and the more desire that you have, the better you’ll be.  If you improve from working hard, you’ll get serious playing time.  That’s what it’s all about!  You’ll be proud of the playing time that you receive.  Oh, by the way, when you get playing time, make plays so that you continue to be in the mix in the future.

Best wishes to all players as they strive to achieve! 

Rich Rosdal Parents Parlor, Player's Panacea baseball, catalyst, caution, desire, football, hard work, high school, parents, Players, playing time, sports

Winning coaches understand that they need conditioned, strong athletes to win.  When you watch your child practice and you see that the coach is having the kids do pushups, run laps or run sprints just understand that they’re doing that to get the team in tip-top shape.

If you have a football player for a son, you should be aware that when they get to high school, weightlifting becomes an integral part of many days.  It’s important for your child to pack on muscle if they’re going to be able to endure the physical pounding that is a part of football.

What if your child plays another sport like: soccer, basketball, baseball, lacrosse, swimming, tennis, golf, rugby, softball, wrestling, volleyball, badminton, ping pong, etc? Did I say ping pong?  They should do anything that will make them stronger, have more endurance and realize greater speed.

Working hard can make up for deficiencies.

Rich Rosdal Parents Parlor Add new tag, athlete, badminton, baseball, basketball, football, golf, lacrosse, ping pong, rugby, soccer, sports, swimming, tennis, volleyball, weightlifting, wrestling

Players, listen up.

It’s important that you understand exactly what you want to be as an athlete.  Are you most interested in just having fun?  There’s nothing wrong with that, but this article won’t be very interesting to you.

If you want to compete at the highest level available to you then I have one word for you: Work . . . hard.  OK, I know, that’s two words.  The message is simple.  If you want to be the best, no matter how much talent you have, you’ve got to work harder than anyone else.

What’s an important attribute for an athlete?  Strength, endurance, speed, quickness, balance, hops?  All of these can be improved with exercise, stretching and practice.  If that’s sounds boring to you, then be creative and find a way to love working hard.  If you don’t work hard, someone else will.  The only way an athlete can excel in today’s competitive environment is to strive to be the best that they can be. It takes to the right attitude to exceed others.

Be smart about what you’re doing, also.  There are books, videos and articles available in hard copy or on the web, that can show you how to improve.  Find out what you need to do to get better and be persistent.  Stick with doing what will make you better.

Just know what you want!  If you don’t want to work hard, then don’t maintain high expectations for yourself in athletics.  Find another hobby.  It’s an expansive world and there are many things you can do that will be fun and challenging for you 

Rich Rosdal Coaches Corner, Parents Parlor, Player's Panacea athlete, attitude, ball, competitive, fun, persistent, player, Quick, Speed, sports, Strong, work hard

Most americans understand the game of baseball, right? Maybe not. This blog is a brief, easy to understand overview of America’s Pastime.

In baseball, each team fields nine players on defense. There are three outfielders, four infielders, a catcher and a pitcher. The pitcher throws balls from the pitching mound to the catcher who is positioned behind home plate. The batter from the other team, who is standing next to home plate, attempts to hit the ball.

There is an imaginary rectangle which is the width of home plate and extends from the letters on the jersey down to the knees of the batter. This rectanglular area is called the strike zone. When the pitcher throws the ball, to the catcher, if it passes within the strike zone and the batter doesn’t swing it is called a strike by an official called the home plate umpire. Also if the batter swings and doesn’t hit the ball, no matter where it is pitched, it’s also a strike. Three strikes and the batter is out. If the pitcher throws four balls (outside of the strike zone and the batter doesn’t swing) the batter goes to first base on a “walk”.

If none of the defensive players can catch the ball on a fly or field the ball and throw to first base before the batter can reach the base, the batter has a base hit. If the batter tries to extend the hit by running to second, third or home plate and gets tagged out when they’re not planted on a base or having touched home plate they are out. The last base they reach determines the type of base hit that is recorded.

At the youth levels, different age groups play a different number of innings and with different rules. Additionally, there are different sponsoring organizations in the United States that have different rules.

An inning is when each team has an opportunity to send at least three batters to the plate with a chance to get on base. Each teams “at bat” is not complete until three outs are recorded. The other team tries to get three outs as quickly as possible. The object for the defense is to limit the number of runs that score.

There are four types of base hits:

1) Single – The batter reaches first base safely
2) Double – The batter reaches second base safely
3) Triple – The batter reaches third base safely
4) Home Run – The batter reaches home plate safely

Whenever a runner circles the bases, either on their own hit or after reaching base and then being “driven in” by a teammate, their team scores a run. The team with the most runs at the end of the game wins.

There are many more intricacies to the game, but this is just a basic overview.

Rich Rosdal Parents Parlor athlete, baseball, catch, Child, defense, hit, Kid, player, position, run, sports, throw, youth

America loves football, as evidenced by the fact that, according to Reuters, the cost of a 30 second Superbowl commercial reached $3 million dollars in 2009. Wow!

How did American Football evolve to the game it is today? There are many historical references on the web that differ in their facts, so the dates will be somewhat vague intentionally.

This series of posts, will provide an overview of the history of American Football. You’ll be able to read about youth, high school, college, and professional football. Since the amount of information about American Football is so vast, the subject couldn’t be covered, successfully, in one blog post.

We’re interested in your opinion on this subject. Please feel free to comment.

Rich Rosdal Sports History athletes, attitude, ball, block, catch, Child, children, Coach, College, football, high school, hit, player, position, primer, Quick, sports, youth

The first person that was paid to play the game of football was William (Pudge) Heffelfinger in 1892. In 1896, the first completely professional team played a two-game season.

The National Football League (NFL) was established in 1902; with Connie Mack, the manager of the Philadelphia Athletics Baseball team, contributing to it’s formation. The rules were continually refined over time, while the NFL initially mirrored rule changes made by colleges. In 1933, the NFL made a departure from college rules and began molding the professional game to reflect the style of play that they felt was most exciting.

In 1959, the American Football League was created and began a serious rivalry with the NFL. Throughout the years many leagues were formed to compete with the NFL, but not until the AFL was there such serious contention for players, fans, and interest. Finally in 1967, the Green Bay Packers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs, 35-10 in the first Superbowl. The game was televised by CBS and NBC.

In a process that began in 1966 and was completed in 1970, the AFL was merged into the NFL. Besides expansion teams, that merger represented the formation of the NFL that we know today. Two conferences were formed, the National Football Conference and the American Football Conference which closed resembled the two merged leagues.

The game is still refined every year at the professional level (the NFL Competition Committee at the Annual Owners Meeting) to protect the players from career or life threatening injuries. There are many dissenters among the ranks of pro football alumni, but football is a great game and will not be harmed by an emphasis on safety.

References:

There are excellent historical videos that can be seen on the NFL Network on Television.

The most detailed historical reference, that I found, for American Football can be found at: http://www.nfl.com/history Just select a decade and enjoy the mounds of information.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Football_League

We’re interested in your opinion on this subject. Please feel free to comment.

Rich Rosdal Sports History Child, football, formation, NFL, refined, Rules, sports

High School football was established around the late 1890s to early 1900s and took its lead from college football. As rules were changed at the college level, they filtered down to the high school level. High school football is, of course, the feeder program for universities around the country.

While larger high school divisions particpate in the 11 player game, smaller high schools can play with 6, 8, or even 9 players. Rules and field sizes vary depending upon the number of players.

References:

While not current, a very detailed history of American Football, and a reference for this article, can be found at: http://www.essortment.com/all/americanfootbal_rwff.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_school_football

Rich Rosdal Coaches Corner, Parents Parlor, Sports History athletes, College, divisions, football, high school, sports, university

Please Note:  These position primers are intended for the youth level of lacrosse only.

A seventh grade defenseman with his long pole.

There are three dedicated defensive players positioned on the field when a team is at full strength. Now this isn’t totally true as the three middies also play defense and they should be dedicated. The distinction is that the three defenseman primarily play defense. In most cases these defensemen will use a stick that is longer than the other sticks on the field. This longer stick is, fittingly, called a long pole.

The primary responsibility of the defenseman is to prevent the offensive team from scoring. The defensive player can be positioned on any offensive player in a man to man scheme. In a zone defense, the player will be responsible for an area or zone and will do their best to guard that territory.

Very often, coaches will place less athletic players on defense. This doesn’t work out very well since a good defender should have quick feet and be able to mirror the offensive player’s movements. As kids get older, it becomes apparent that good, athletic long poles are critical to the success of the team.

Strength is very important, as the defenseman will want to check the opposing player to disrupt the flow of a play. Since lacrosse is a team sport, it is necessary for a long pole to “slide” over when a teammate loses control of the offensive player. The sliding player becomes the secondary defender when this occurs.

Defensemen Attributes at a Glance:

Quick
Strong
Adaptive
Selfless
Physical
Aware

Rich Rosdal Lacrosse Positions aggressive, athlete, ball, block, catch, Child, defense, Fast, hit, lacrosse, pass, Play, player, position, Power, primer, Quick, reflexes, run, skills, sports, Strong, throw, tough, vision, youth

The attack player is primarily responsible for offensive production. There are three attacks on the field when the team is at full strength. Two of the attack players (wings) are usually positioned on the imaginary line from the front of the goal toward each sideline, which is called the Goal Line Extended (GLE). The other attack player should be at the X position, which is behind the goal.

The wings can be used to get an angle on the goal and score when they have an open shot. The X Attack player is similar to a point guard in basketball because they can create goals by finding the open player. It could be one of the wing attack players or one of the middies. This doesn’t mean that the X player can’t score, but it will be the second option after finding the open player.

Another responsibility of the attack player is to run after the ball, after a shot, since the closest player as it goes out of bounds will maintain possession. If the ball goes out of bounds on a pass, the last player to have touched the ball inbounds will forfeit possession.

There are many potential formations in lacrosse and the locations mentioned above, for the attack players, will be different in some other formations.

When the ball is turned over to the other team all offensive players become defensive players. If the attack players excel on defense there is an opportunity to recover the ball.

Attack Attributes at a Glance:

Quick
Great Stick Skills
Excellent Shooter
Good Passer
Vision
Tenacious

Rich Rosdal Lacrosse Positions athlete, Child, lacrosse, pass, Play, player, position, Power, primer, Quick, run, skills, sports, throw, vision, youth

The goalie is the last line of defense in lacrosse. This position requires a courageous player with a temperment durable enough to accept that goals happen sometimes regardless of how well the goalie plays.

The goalie must have quick hands and feet in order to stop a speeding bullet (the ball). The ball is made of rubber and while it is about the size of a baseball, it is heavier. Getting hit by a lacrosse ball can hurt and certainly can cause a bruise. At younger ages, goalies can be found wearing shin pads and every other kind of pad imagineable. I have seen goalies that resemble Robocop, but they were slowed by all the padding. Competitive goalies in field lacrosse typically do not wear shin pads, although they do protect themseleves with a helmet, gloves, shoulder, a mouthguard, elbow pads, a cup, a chest protector, a short stick with an oversized mesh head.

This player must be aware of the location of the ball at all times which can be challenging. It’s important for the goalie to cut off angles and minimize the visible area where the offensive player can shoot. For instance, if the attack player at X comes around the right side of the goal, the goalie should move to that side and position their body right next to the goal post. It would be very difficult for the attack player to score from the side of the goal since the open area of the goal would be very narrow.

There are times when the offensive player is shielded, from sight, by the defensive player. Since shots can come from many angles, it becomes very difficult for the goalie to stop every shot.

Goalie Attributes at a Glance:

Quick Hands and Feet
Courageous
Short Memory
Aware
Leadership Abilities
Ability to Meet an Offensive Player

Rich Rosdal Lacrosse Positions athlete, attitude, lacrosse, pads, Play, player, position, primer, Quick, reflexes, save, sports, tough, vision, youth