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Should Coaches Consider Taking Time Away From Football?

By
Darrin Sheffer

Last night I was laying in bed with my Wife Heather and 1 month old son Soren sleeping on my chest.  We were winding down from a long Summer day watching Last Chance U on Netflix (my wife tends to feed my football obsession sometimes).  I quite enjoy the series, especially because it gives people insight into the lives of these young men and the hardships that they have been through. If one thing really sticks in my head though, it is how the head coach of EMCC treats his players and fellow coaches.  I'm going to be honest, I would not want my son playing for someone who coaches like Buddy Stevens.  Heck, I would not work for someone like that either.  I understand that he is under extreme pressure to win and win big, but the way he goes about it does not seem like the best possible way to handle things.  

Image result for angry coach
https://www.reddit.com/r/CFB/comments/36j83w/what_are_your_favorite_angry_coach_moments/

My wife said something to me that really got me thinking. The episode we were watching was one where the team was struggling on defense to stop a team who was physically inferior to EMCC's players, but scheme wise was pretty sound.   The HC was screaming bloody murder and cussing everyone out that he could find.  The one disturbing scene was between the HC and his Defensive Coordinator when the HC continually lambasted the DC and his scheme/players.  My wife turned to me and said "I think that Coach Stevens needs to take some time away from football."

What did she mean? To some people, taking time away from football means the off season.  No, she meant that the coach needed to take Significant time away from the game, perhaps a few seasons. This got me thinking about me, and other coaches as well.  Should we coaches think about taking significant time away from our favorite sport?  My answer: YES

Image result for time out 
http://ssagara.blogspot.com/2015/05/timeout-and-circuit-breaker-pattern-in.html

Let me explain my stance here.  I made the decision to Not coach at my high school this season.  I will tell you that it was a very difficult decision, but here is why I made it.  

First, my Wife and I just had our first baby, a healthy baby boy named Soren.  With a new baby comes sleepless nights and lots of exhaustion.  Being a teacher at a school where I see countless boys with poor examples of father figures at home I did not want to miss a thing with my boy.  

Second, I'm a science teacher at my high school that just switched subjects.  I was a Biology teacher but now I am duel certified in Biology and Earth Science.  Since I am teaching a new subject I need as much time as possible to become familiar with it.  Plus, let's be honest, teachers who are also coaches are Teachers First!  That is my most important job.  

Third, I had just come off a rough season as the HC of the Freshmen Team (find out more about that in other blog post 0-8 how a losing season made me a better coach).  The HC of the Varsity team, a man I came to trust and admire, resigned from his post after a 3rd losing season.  The school took a long time to hire a new coach.  They ended up hiring a former youth coach from the area who would not be working in the building (mistake in my opinion).  At first I was excited to see the program go in a new direction, but the new coach ended up bringing in other guys outside of the school and placing them in positions of power above me and other coaches in the building.  The new coach did not seem to be interested in any input that I had, plus we had differences in philosophy so I did not believe it was in my best interest to coach with this current staff.

Related image
http://gulagbound.com/31201/who-is-the-white-house-mole/

The decision to take this season off from coaching was not easy, it's hard for me to tell someone NO.  However, when I did make the decision and called the HC to let him know I actually felt relieved. At the moment I am currently putting off the decision to get back into coaching until I know for sure if I will be moving to a school closer to home or staying where I am now (want to be closer to home).  

What does any of this have to do with other coaches?

 I want you to take a good look at your coaching self.  Are you a coach who gets stressed out?  Do you yell at players a lot?  Are you engaging in any unhealthy habits?  Do you feel that coaching is taking valuable time away from your family?  If you said yes to one or more of these questions I think you should think hard about maybe taking some significant time away from football.

What are your priorities in life?  For me they go something like this:  Family, Students/Players, My Job, My Health, etc... then Football.

Is this going to be an easy decision? NO.  It will be one of the hardest decisions you will ever make.

Am I saying that every coach should do this? NO.  I do believe though, that there are many coaches out there who probably should take significant time away from the game.  It might not suit a HC to take time away, especially because that would mean giving up being in charge.

Image result for lounging
http://blog.teamcocktail.com/2011/06/we-like-to-party-6/

I want to hear your thoughts.  Please comment below, or follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DarrinSheffer

Stay Obsessed.  

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