Whitwell Football

[TheAmbassador]

Correct, this year we will do baseline testing February 29th and March 1st. Then we get into our Base Hypertrophy Mesocycle.

Oh wow.

[possum]

Coach Helton I would like to talk to you. I am a social studies teacher who has learned weight and speed training through trails and errors. Been in the Army learned a lot there. I have no idea what you are talking about. Hyper trophy Mesocycle . However interested. I always started right after Christmas break if we went two deep in playoffs. If we did not make it we started right away. Your kids looked like they were in great shape at beginning of season. I am sure the kids and coaches like the extra time off. Go Tigers!

[TheAmbassador]

Tiger Town

[CoachRCHelton]

Coach Helton I would like to talk to you. I am a social studies teacher who has learned weight and speed training through trails and errors. Been in the Army learned a lot there. I have no idea what you are talking about. Hyper trophy Mesocycle . However interested. I always started right after Christmas break if we went two deep in playoffs. If we did not make it we started right away. Your kids looked like they were in great shape at beginning of season. I am sure the kids and coaches like the extra time off. Go Tigers!

Coach,

Stop by any time. The Mesocycle is a time period reference in the Strength Program. Usually, it is between 4 to 8 weeks (depending upon programming). The Microcycle is typically a week. The Macrocycle is, in our case, the Annual Plan (think Microeconomics and Macroeconomics). They are descriptors utilized in Periodization.

 

Our program is written by Coach Mike Anderson-USAW-SPC, CSCS. The CSCS is what most Division I College programs consider the "Gold Standard" with respect to certification for Strength and Conditioning/Speed Personnel. Coach Anderson came to Whitwell last year and spoke at our Strength and Speed Clinic. He will be visiting again this December during Christmas Break. He tailored our program specifically to accommodate our schedule (including the two week dead period during the summer). 

 

Coach Anderson is very familiar with the way I organize our practices and the style of play as he was my Strength Coach in Phoenix. He has his Bachelor's in Kinesiology from Arizona State University and interned under Joe Micela and also studied under Joe Kenn. 

 

We collaborated on a system approach to create a model of efficiency for the weight room in his second year with our program in Phoenix. The result, was a template system that incorporates ground-based movements that utilize a total body approach, as opposed to a "heavy day" and a "light day" that also alternates Upper and Lower days. Instead, we utilize the total body approach so that each day there is a posterior chain activation in our plan. It is theoretically based upon the Joe Kenn tiered system model. Coach Anderson put together a lift video for our program. It can be viewed at R.C. Helton on you tube. It is about 45 minutes. If you get a chance to watch it, you will see it is very detailed with respect to teaching proper technique.

 

When I spoke with Boyd Epley at the Glazier Clinic in Mesa, Az, he told me that the best measure for explosiveness of a Strength and Power Athlete was the Vertical Jump. That is one of the key measures that we look at when we re-test to see the specific athlete's progress. We had some significant gains last year. We started on March 2nd last year. One of our incoming Sophomores (Class of 2018) gained 6" on his vert in a 6 week Mesocycle. The average gain was 2.4" for that cycle.

 

The NSCA has a Basic Manual (105 pages) that has some good information and provides some basic plans that are sound doctrine. If you join NSCA you will receive an electronic copy of it. They also have their Annual Conference this January in San Antonio (7-9th). They usually precede the AFCA and host in the same town each year. Since I am going to AFCA again this year, it's difficult to get more time off to attend the NSCA deal, but it has some excellent training and information if you have the time and $ to go. I prefer to do the AFCA because I make a lot of contacts to try and build my network to get my guys recruited (and also learn from the top coaches in the country).

 

Last year, we had 7 players start both ways. We had 3 Freshmen start on Defense every game. One of those Freshmen started both ways on OL/DL. Most people would characterize us as a physical team. We had one minor injury all season (AC Joint separation) that occurred early in the 3rd Qtr. against SPHS. The player never told us about it until after the game, but his performance in the first half was in stark contrast in the second half. He's a tough kid and didn't want to come out of the game. He talked his Doctor into releasing him for the Sale Creek game the next week. I held him out and wouldn't let him dress. So, in theory, he was medically cleared, but it wouldn't have been the right thing for him, or for the team. He later scored all three TD's against Moore County in the playoffs. The only other injury all year was during Moore County (mild concussion) that prevented one of our OL from playing in the second round of the playoffs.

 

I am not sure about the other teams in Tennessee, but I know our injuries were minimal within the context of the workload on our kids, and the style of ball we play. Usually, there is a correlation to the Strength Program with respect to injury mitigation. Obviously, we were fortunate this year, but we are going to stay with our program as it has proven fairly solid considering what we have to work with and our numbers we have in the program.

 

We averaged 301 yards offense per game this past year. Considering we had a Sophomore at QB who replaced a QB that was very good and got a scholarship to play in college, we did pretty good. That's not a knock on our Sophomore. He got better each game this past year, but he didn't get a lot of reps as a Freshman (we don't have a JV Team because we have Freshmen and Sophomores who start and don't have enough Freshmen/Sophomores to safely field a JV Team) so the speed of the game was a big adjustment for him this year. We expect him to be a lot better this upcoming season. He got more confident as the season progressed. He works hard in the weight room, and he's coachable, he's extremely tough, and he's a great young man.  

[PiRaTe._.MiKe]

Offseason means the world in high school sports IMO. However, when I played at SP early 90's we never had time it seemed like. We went from football to basketball to baseball then summer baseball. If you didn't play basketball, you started baseball almost immediately. We never did anything in the mornings before school, and I'm not sure if they do now. Other than conditioning, how can a kid be part of a really good weight lifting program while trying to balance practice for all 3 sports and even more so academics? I'm sure you have run across that in all your studies and would like to hear your thoughts Coach.

[CoachRCHelton]

Offseason means the world in high school sports IMO. However, when I played at SP early 90's we never had time it seemed like. We went from football to basketball to baseball then summer baseball. If you didn't play basketball, you started baseball almost immediately. We never did anything in the mornings before school, and I'm not sure if they do now. Other than conditioning, how can a kid be part of a really good weight lifting program while trying to balance practice for all 3 sports and even more so academics? I'm sure you have run across that in all your studies and would like to hear your thoughts Coach.

Pirate Mike,

There is a significant physiological load on athletes that you have to take into consideration. Specialization is a concern (see any of Dr. James Andrews discussions on the topic) and that can be problematic.

 

One primary discussion regarding football is the active rest issue. Active rest varies, depending upon your own program's philosophy, but in reality its for what all of us know as "burnout". It's up to the coaching staff to monitor the player-personnel (and coaches) for signs of burnout. The immediate off-season for us is a time when I want our guys to rest and regenerate because once we start working, it is a grind. I actually had to back off a bit about mid-season because I have a tendency, when we are not experiencing the type of success that I believe we should be, to ramp up the intensity of our training and time spent in practice. The players plateau and no significant gains can be achieved when that occurs. The theoretical approach of the General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) is to create some variation in the programming to offset that. 

 

Tuesdays are generally a very intense day for us (In addition to our practice periods we lift immediately after practice which adds approximately 50 minutes beyond our practice time) Our staff had a discussion mid-season and I modified our practice plan from a 154 minute plan to a 90 minute plan in order to "deload" some of the stressors.

 

Our start in March is precipitated by two factors:

1) Half of our returnees are in other sports

2) When we do start, I want as many of our guys in the weight room working out together (we have a couple each year that play baseball).

 

Note: Active rest does not imply being completely static. We want our guys active and engaging in various healthful activities that introduce mechanical variation (basketball, biking, tennis, jogging, etc.), but we do want them to regenerate from the extreme load that they've endured during the season. In that Basic Manual that I referenced to Possum, there is information regarding the Principle of Diminishing Returns on Page 9. In a nutshell, you can only train so long before you don't realize any gains. We begin on a 3 day a week cycle in March, Progress to 4 day a week during Summer (and we also integrate the agility and speed phase during this Mesocycle), and move to a frequency of 2 day a week lifts in-season. We also may have to monitor and adjust depending upon individual stressors or other variables that may impact the group. That's up to our staff to monitor and adjust if warranted. 

 

One other thing, testing should be a part of every strength and speed/conditioning program. This provides a measurable to assess gains and also allows your athletes to set goals and have specific landmarks of progression for the realization of those goals. 

[TheTruthPrevails]

Since coach ross has been at marion i think the early morning workouts have been key for the boys. Also, practice is structured and fast paced and there is no three hour practices like some programs. Seems to be getting the most out of the kids.

[rikberry]

Since coach ross has been at marion i think the early morning workouts have been key for the boys. Also, practice is structured and fast paced and there is no three hour practices like some programs. Seems to be getting the most out of the kids.

If practice is more than an hour and a half, your wasting your time.

[MarionMadness]

Since coach ross has been at marion i think the early morning workouts have been key for the boys. Also, practice is structured and fast paced and there is no three hour practices like some programs. Seems to be getting the most out of the kids.

He will always get the most out of our players. That is why he is feared by all other coaches.

 

FEAR THE BOSS & FEAR THE ROSS!

Edited December 10, 2015 by MarionMadness

[TheAmbassador]

Again Mr. Madness, he is a good coach, but I can guarantee Coach Grider doesn't fear him. He's beaten us both times, but both of those teams were two of our weakest teams while your last two have been two of your strongest ones since we left the old 3 class system.

[Astimeexpires01]

I would love to see Whitwell get back on track. BUT... I just don't see that happening anytime soon! They have some great talent coming up.. I just see one very important piece of this puzzle missing... COACHING! I'm not being rude or disrespectful, just my opinion. I lost faith as did others when I heard that punting shows weakness! I guess kicking a field goal, PAT and/or kicking off does too?

[possum]

Coach,

Stop by any time. The Mesocycle is a time period reference in the Strength Program. Usually, it is between 4 to 8 weeks (depending upon programming). The Microcycle is typically a week. The Macrocycle is, in our case, the Annual Plan (think Microeconomics and Macroeconomics). They are descriptors utilized in Periodization.

 

Our program is written by Coach Mike Anderson-USAW-SPC, CSCS. The CSCS is what most Division I College programs consider the "Gold Standard" with respect to certification for Strength and Conditioning/Speed Personnel. Coach Anderson came to Whitwell last year and spoke at our Strength and Speed Clinic. He will be visiting again this December during Christmas Break. He tailored our program specifically to accommodate our schedule (including the two week dead period during the summer). 

 

Coach Anderson is very familiar with the way I organize our practices and the style of play as he was my Strength Coach in Phoenix. He has his Bachelor's in Kinesiology from Arizona State University and interned under Joe Micela and also studied under Joe Kenn. 

 

We collaborated on a system approach to create a model of efficiency for the weight room in his second year with our program in Phoenix. The result, was a template system that incorporates ground-based movements that utilize a total body approach, as opposed to a "heavy day" and a "light day" that also alternates Upper and Lower days. Instead, we utilize the total body approach so that each day there is a posterior chain activation in our plan. It is theoretically based upon the Joe Kenn tiered system model. Coach Anderson put together a lift video for our program. It can be viewed at R.C. Helton on you tube. It is about 45 minutes. If you get a chance to watch it, you will see it is very detailed with respect to teaching proper technique.

 

When I spoke with Boyd Epley at the Glazier Clinic in Mesa, Az, he told me that the best measure for explosiveness of a Strength and Power Athlete was the Vertical Jump. That is one of the key measures that we look at when we re-test to see the specific athlete's progress. We had some significant gains last year. We started on March 2nd last year. One of our incoming Sophomores (Class of 2018) gained 6" on his vert in a 6 week Mesocycle. The average gain was 2.4" for that cycle.

 

The NSCA has a Basic Manual (105 pages) that has some good information and provides some basic plans that are sound doctrine. If you join NSCA you will receive an electronic copy of it. They also have their Annual Conference this January in San Antonio (7-9th). They usually precede the AFCA and host in the same town each year. Since I am going to AFCA again this year, it's difficult to get more time off to attend the NSCA deal, but it has some excellent training and information if you have the time and $ to go. I prefer to do the AFCA because I make a lot of contacts to try and build my network to get my guys recruited (and also learn from the top coaches in the country).

 

Last year, we had 7 players start both ways. We had 3 Freshmen start on Defense every game. One of those Freshmen started both ways on OL/DL. Most people would characterize us as a physical team. We had one minor injury all season (AC Joint separation) that occurred early in the 3rd Qtr. against SPHS. The player never told us about it until after the game, but his performance in the first half was in stark contrast in the second half. He's a tough kid and didn't want to come out of the game. He talked his Doctor into releasing him for the Sale Creek game the next week. I held him out and wouldn't let him dress. So, in theory, he was medically cleared, but it wouldn't have been the right thing for him, or for the team. He later scored all three TD's against Moore County in the playoffs. The only other injury all year was during Moore County (mild concussion) that prevented one of our OL from playing in the second round of the playoffs.

 

I am not sure about the other teams in Tennessee, but I know our injuries were minimal within the context of the workload on our kids, and the style of ball we play. Usually, there is a correlation to the Strength Program with respect to injury mitigation. Obviously, we were fortunate this year, but we are going to stay with our program as it has proven fairly solid considering what we have to work with and our numbers we have in the program.

 

We averaged 301 yards offense per game this past year. Considering we had a Sophomore at QB who replaced a QB that was very good and got a scholarship to play in college, we did pretty good. That's not a knock on our Sophomore. He got better each game this past year, but he didn't get a lot of reps as a Freshman (we don't have a JV Team because we have Freshmen and Sophomores who start and don't have enough Freshmen/Sophomores to safely field a JV Team) so the speed of the game was a big adjustment for him this year. We expect him to be a lot better this upcoming season. He got more confident as the season progressed. He works hard in the weight room, and he's coachable, he's extremely tough, and he's a great young man.

 

Coach,

Stop by any time. The Mesocycle is a time period reference in the Strength Program. Usually, it is between 4 to 8 weeks (depending upon programming). The Microcycle is typically a week. The Macrocycle is, in our case, the Annual Plan (think Microeconomics and Macroeconomics). They are descriptors utilized in Periodization.

 

Our program is written by Coach Mike Anderson-USAW-SPC, CSCS. The CSCS is what most Division I College programs consider the "Gold Standard" with respect to certification for Strength and Conditioning/Speed Personnel. Coach Anderson came to Whitwell last year and spoke at our Strength and Speed Clinic. He will be visiting again this December during Christmas Break. He tailored our program specifically to accommodate our schedule (including the two week dead period during the summer). 

 

Coach Anderson is very familiar with the way I organize our practices and the style of play as he was my Strength Coach in Phoenix. He has his Bachelor's in Kinesiology from Arizona State University and interned under Joe Micela and also studied under Joe Kenn. 

 

We collaborated on a system approach to create a model of efficiency for the weight room in his second year with our program in Phoenix. The result, was a template system that incorporates ground-based movements that utilize a total body approach, as opposed to a "heavy day" and a "light day" that also alternates Upper and Lower days. Instead, we utilize the total body approach so that each day there is a posterior chain activation in our plan. It is theoretically based upon the Joe Kenn tiered system model. Coach Anderson put together a lift video for our program. It can be viewed at R.C. Helton on you tube. It is about 45 minutes. If you get a chance to watch it, you will see it is very detailed with respect to teaching proper technique.

 

When I spoke with Boyd Epley at the Glazier Clinic in Mesa, Az, he told me that the best measure for explosiveness of a Strength and Power Athlete was the Vertical Jump. That is one of the key measures that we look at when we re-test to see the specific athlete's progress. We had some significant gains last year. We started on March 2nd last year. One of our incoming Sophomores (Class of 2018) gained 6" on his vert in a 6 week Mesocycle. The average gain was 2.4" for that cycle.

 

The NSCA has a Basic Manual (105 pages) that has some good information and provides some basic plans that are sound doctrine. If you join NSCA you will receive an electronic copy of it. They also have their Annual Conference this January in San Antonio (7-9th). They usually precede the AFCA and host in the same town each year. Since I am going to AFCA again this year, it's difficult to get more time off to attend the NSCA deal, but it has some excellent training and information if you have the time and $ to go. I prefer to do the AFCA because I make a lot of contacts to try and build my network to get my guys recruited (and also learn from the top coaches in the country).

 

Last year, we had 7 players start both ways. We had 3 Freshmen start on Defense every game. One of those Freshmen started both ways on OL/DL. Most people would characterize us as a physical team. We had one minor injury all season (AC Joint separation) that occurred early in the 3rd Qtr. against SPHS. The player never told us about it until after the game, but his performance in the first half was in stark contrast in the second half. He's a tough kid and didn't want to come out of the game. He talked his Doctor into releasing him for the Sale Creek game the next week. I held him out and wouldn't let him dress. So, in theory, he was medically cleared, but it wouldn't have been the right thing for him, or for the team. He later scored all three TD's against Moore County in the playoffs. The only other injury all year was during Moore County (mild concussion) that prevented one of our OL from playing in the second round of the playoffs.

 

I am not sure about the other teams in Tennessee, but I know our injuries were minimal within the context of the workload on our kids, and the style of ball we play. Usually, there is a correlation to the Strength Program with respect to injury mitigation. Obviously, we were fortunate this year, but we are going to stay with our program as it has proven fairly solid considering what we have to work with and our numbers we have in the program.

 

We averaged 301 yards offense per game this past year. Considering we had a Sophomore at QB who replaced a QB that was very good and got a scholarship to play in college, we did pretty good. That's not a knock on our Sophomore. He got better each game this past year, but he didn't get a lot of reps as a Freshman (we don't have a JV Team because we have Freshmen and Sophomores who start and don't have enough Freshmen/Sophomores to safely field a JV Team) so the speed of the game was a big adjustment for him this year. We expect him to be a lot better this upcoming season. He got more confident as the season progressed. He works hard in the weight room, and he's coachable, he's extremely tough, and he's a great young man.