The Turnaround: A Good Sign

The Turnaround
gamestrat high school football sideline instant replay

You know you are heading the right way when….

….The coach tells the team good job after practice and they DISAGREE with you.
They told me, no, Tuesday wasn’t good and that Wednesday would be better. I was
floored! I left feeling good about practice, but felt even better just because of their attitude. It was awesome!

So there you you have it. Today was not good, according to my team. I will go to bed happy about that. I love the world I work in. You just can’t beat this stuff.

I don’t have anything else to write now about practice. I am leaving it at that.

Special Teams

We got Special Teams cranked up this week with my two favorites: PAT/FG and KOC. There is nothing like lining-up for an extra point. It means your offense was
clicking. Then, you send down your meanest, fastest guys on KOC. I love that entire sequence right there. Gets my blood flowing.

KOC has long been a favorite of mine. It gives kids a chance to show me what they’ve got. If you can cover kicks for me you will eventually increase your playing time on offense or defense. You cannot hide on KOC, just like you can’t hide on O or D.

All the talk about about possibly doing away with kickoff return to start games
irritates me. It’s is the most exciting part of the game to start. Gets you into the
flow. A big play sets the tone with the crowd and it can be a momentum swing. That’s why KOC is so important. Stifle your opponent. Get down and cover! It’s exciting.

I hope the soft approach to life being demonstrated in our world today does not
permeate into our game. Keep KOR and KOC. It’s football!

The Staff

It is 2017 and I have, by a wide margin, assembled the best coaching staff I have
ever had as a head coach. Do you know why? It’s not all about X’s and O’s. The
biggest part, in my opinion, is chemistry and cohesion. We are solid together and
that is a key component. Togetherness gets you through the tough times and it makes the good times that much sweeter.

These guys show up every day and work. The ego’s are checked at the door. We work well together, offering various opinions and constant collaboration. We devise the best possible plan daily for our kids. It has been awesome.

Randomness

-ESPN continues to be awful. In every facet. Their latest gaffe, pulling an announcer off of a game because his name is that of an old general, is off the
charts. Just fold up and give sports back to the people. You are ruining it.

-People watching: it is crazy the amount of people who cannot put their phones down while they eat breakfast, lunch or dinner. They can’t put their phone down and just eat. It’s disturbing. Unplug yourself for 20 minutes and enjoy some life.

-This “fight” coming up this weekend needs to get here and be gone. Fast. Ridiculous shenanigans. Give me Larry Holmes fighting George Foreman. Not this rubbish on Pay Per View.

-I never liked black licorice. Yuk.

-Now, give me some Swedish Fish and I am happy.

-Coach Garfield finally figured out FIO. Made my day!

-I work for great people. I am thankful for that.

Until next time…FIO.

Jason Strunk

Lubbock head coach Jason Strunk celebrates after Lake View win in 2016 with quarterback Kwami Wilborn. Photo courtesy of Lubbock Avalanche-Journal.

 

by Jason Strunk
Lubbock High School Head Football Coach
Follow @WestTXCoach

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About the Author

Jeff Fisher
Jeff is an award-winning journalist and expert in the field of high school sports, underscored with his appearance on CNBC in 2010 to talk about the big business of high school football in America.Jeff turned to his passion for high school football into an entrepreneurial venture called High School Football America, a digital media company focused on producing original high school sports content for radio, television and the internet.Jeff is co-founder and editor-in-chief of High School Football America, a partner with NFL Play Football.