by MICHAEL RAMOS
"What's it like coaching women's football?"
Every Falconz coach has been asked this question more than once.
There is a strong urge to say, "Well, their shoulder pads are different, and they don't wear cups."
But there are certain advantages to coaching women.
Coaching adults is great. There are some fond memories of coaching little league and high school players, but it's nice not having to field angry calls from parents in the middle of the night. Mom's not calling about the number of plays. Dad's not calling about the position his kid plays.
As adults, any issues that arise can be dealt with directly with everyone involved. No need for a middleman, nothing gets lost in translation.
Players listen. We've all coached that "one guy". The one, who, though you tell him to use a certain technique, or to watch for a reverse, has to do it his way. As a result, he uses the wrong technique, or gets beat on the reverse, and the team suffers.
Yeah, we don't have that.
Our players follow their assignments. They follow the team's game plan, not their own. We're successful because they listen during practice and film sessions. When I tell a player what her assignments are, I know she won't try to do it her way.
The reason they don't go rogue is because they get to hear why. It's not a bunch of coaches barking orders and saying "because I said so". We explain to them why they've been given a certain responsibility. They're told why they shoot the A-gap. Since they understand the meaning of the instruction, they won't deviate from it.
That's something that I-can-do-it-my-own-way guy will always struggle with.
Falconz players have a thirst for knowledge. Thanks to modern technology, I'm constantly in contact with my players, sending them videos and updating play books. Whenever they have questions on them, they send an email or text message to their coaches.
Our team has access to a film-sharing site. This allows players and coaches to log on, and study their opponents. They ask about the best ways to defend certain formations, or what our game plan is for Saturday's game. During practice, they're not afraid to ask questions, and we'll stop whatever drill we're doing to address it (chances are other players are wondering the same thing). I'd rather they ask me a question on the practice field than learn the hard way during a game. By then, I usually have a question of my own.
What the hell was that?
Players are encouraged to ask questions on anything they don't understand, no matter how trivial it may seem. I often have to be reminded that some players are still new to the game. It takes them a while to learn what the line of scrimmage is, or where the flat is. The more questions they ask, the better we become as coaches.
In all other respects, the women play much like the men.
They hit hard, and rally each other up with pre-game chants. They even talk smack (some better than others).
And they definitely stink. After workouts or games, they're as funky as my old high school locker room. Thankfully, since we've been so successful, the post-game speeches are relatively short.
Most importantly, these ladies are as competitive as the guys. We challenge each other. While we're one team, one family, the secret to our initial success has been that we push each other. The offense pushes the defense, and vice-versa. Starters don't rest on their laurels, because the scout team is always hungry. At practices, they go at it.
So my response when asked about coaching women's football?
We're not women's football coaches.
We're just coaches. We coach football players
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