QB Camp & Instruction: 2019

In February and March, we've had over 40 QB's come to Harrodsburg for camp and small group instruction. Tyler Mattingly (Central Hardin), Boone Goldsmith (Lincoln Co.), Josh Painter (Mercer Co.), Josh Davis (Campbellsville U.) & my youngest son Trosper (will be a sophomore at Mercer) have all helped with the instruction.

We've had guys from Mercer, Boyle, Central Hardin, Bardstown Bethlehem, Barren, Rowan, Harrison, Lexington Catholic, LCA, Lou. Holy Cross, North Laurel, Russell Co., John Hardin, Simon Kenton, Collins, Frankfort, South Laurel, Ballard, Dunbar, Madison Southern and more schools (can't remember all of them as I type this out).

As an entire group, the level of QB play has improved over the years. More kids are doing more in the offseason than in the past.

Over the past two weekends, we have been to the KFCA/KY Fellowship of Christian Athletes Clinic at UK, and then the Notre Dame Coaches Clinic. 

We have picked up some stuff to make our QB Camp better and worked some of that in this past weekend. We will have a camp in Pikeville on May 11th and again in Harrodsburg on June 14th. Individual instruction & group instruction are available also. 

If you have a young guy that wants to attend one of the camps or get some small group/individual instruction, email me at coachdavidbuchanan@gmail.com. 

This camp started in 2002. We try to make each session the best one ever!

Here are some pictures:

                                     

Spring practice 2019.... #23 and counting

All guys with no unexcused absences got a spring football t-shirt

We shut down spring practice today for the 2019 season with a team meeting, followed with video by position. The state of Kentucky brought back spring football practice in 1998.  Counting the spring of 2015 when I was at Mason & Mercer both for spring practice, this makes the completion of 23 "years" of spring ball.

Today's itinerary

I believe we do a better job coaching spring practice each year. We constantly try to fine tune what we are doing and improve our methods. This year, I thought we did a better of adjusting when we would have to be inside than we have in the past. We were more deliberate in picking what we would work on and trying to stay on track in regards to new learning.

In the spring scrimmage, we tried to do better with the young guys. They got 20 plays and then we tried to make sure they had our attention today in position video meetings. Going forward, I hope we can continue to do a better job each year in how we coach the youngest guys on our team and those that are further down the depth chart.

Discussion topics for team meeting

So... where do we go from here?  We talked about that substantially today. We are excited to return an experienced football team for 2019. That is a huge positive. But, older guys also have access to cars, more "stuff" to get into, and can escape supervision more easily than younger players.  Doing "what is right" is important to the safety and well-being of our players. But, it is also important that they make good decisions because the little ones in our community look up to them.

I am excited about our team going forward. I believe our guys will make the most of the next few months to get stronger and earn the right to be champions by working hard and going above and beyond what is required of them. We also discussed that on a daily basis to seek improvement in regards to being unselfish and serving others. Great teams have guys that put the team first. We can "practice" that attitude and skill.... every day!  

If you have ideas to make spring football practice more productive, please send those to me at coachdavidbuchanan@gmail.com

Titan Football Spring Practice- 2019

We will begin our spring practice on Monday (3/4). We can adjust from day to day, but every practice schedule is completed and reviewed by our staff before we begin. All offensive period & some scout offensive scripts are done ahead of time as well. The planning ahead makes sure that we get everything covered and we don't leave anything out. 

Our first two days are almost exclusively individual/fundamental work by position and special teams.  The 3rd day we will go 11 on 11 scrimmage. Regardless of how many days we go, the first scrimmage is usually rough and ugly. I like to get that done and start building on the mistakes/corrections ASAP. We have good video to help us get started on what needs to be addressed. 

 Our spring scrimmage will be on Friday, 3/15 at 3:30 pm.  Spring practice is the time that our guys will get the most live reps. It is an important time for us. But, we also want our guys to run track. It helps them in football, we have a great track program/coach, and this is their time to be a kid. 

Any HS coach that wants to visit a practice is welcome to attend.  If you see something that will make us better, that helps us. If you want to come by practice, email me at david.buchanan@mercer.kyschools.us.

Following the examples of Charlie, James, James & Henry....building relationships & healthy attitudes about ethnicity

Charlie Mayfield running for a Touchdown, early 70's

We started this in Mercer County Schools a couple weeks ago and are off to a really good start. 

Goal: To help form & promote positive attitudes about ethnicity for our youngest students in Mercer County Schools.

Action: Every Thursday morning, 2 or 3 football players (and include possible expansion to other student-athletes and potentially all students) will eat breakfast with students at MCES.  The high school students that attend the breakfast will be of diverse ethnic backgrounds. The topic of conversation does NOT need to be about ethnicity or “race.”  What we want is very simple… friendly conversation and acts of kindness between the elementary students and the football players.

Rationale: We want to promote positive interactions and attitudes for our youngest students, before their heads are filled with stereotypes and negative messages regarding people of other ethnicities. The basis of this goes back to my experiences with my Dad’s players when I was 4, 5, 6 & 7 years old. Before my brain was tarnished by prejudice & false information, guys like Charlie Mayfield, Henry Ewing, James Tarrance & James Scruggs taught me the truth through their kindness, friendship and positive words to me at a very young age.  If we ever discussed racism or ethnicity, I don’t remember that. But, what I DO remember is how they treated me and that is what has made all the difference!

For me, one of the biggest highlights was the reaction of our players. One afternoon I explained to some of our older guys what we wanted to do and why.They immediately began to speak up and volunteer. I am exceptionally proud of their leadership and their willingness to help and serve others.

We have much work to do at Mercer County, on and off the field. But, we are working at it and I am blessed to be coaching wonderful young men who want to serve others and make our community better now and in the future!

Xenith Shadow- new helmet for 2019

Here is the new Xenith Shadow helmet for 2019. I've been a fan of Xenith from the beginning. The helmet works with shock absorbers instead of padding. Also, the shock absorbers are in a bonnet that is pulled around your head when you fasten the chinstrap, separating your head from the helmet shell.

Mercer County HS became the first Xenith Elite football program in the nation last spring. Ron Tanner is our rep and has been outstanding. Ron played DB for Ohio State's National Championship team, coached by Urban Meyer.

If you want to get Xenith Shadows for your team this season, you can contact Ron on twitter or his email at rtanner@xenith.com.

We are fired up for spring practice and to begin using the Xenith Shadow!

The Trade Off

Every summer when we get a family beach picture, my initial reaction is "great looking family, but who is the old, bald fat guy?"  Sadly the answer is me. 

I am not a fan of getting old. Gaining weight is balanced out by losing hair. Aches & pains replace energy. But, there is a silver lining. One of the overwhelming positives of getting older is gaining experience. Another huge positive is the building of relationships over a long period of time.  

Yesterday, we had our BEST Quarterback Camp ever. The camp began in 2002. Why was it the best?  One reason is that through trial & error, the drills, process, fundamentals, etc have been refined and improved over a 17 year period. When we have camp again on June 14th, that will be our best camp. We always use what we learn to improve.  As a head football coach, the 2019 season should be the best job I've ever done as a head coach. I've never gone into a season with 27 years of head coaching experience a long with 6 years experience as an assistant coach. There is no replacement for experience and what you learn as each day passes.

Another reason we had our best camp ever is the staff we had. The Quarterback Camp staff has expanded from one (me) to six of us yesterday.  All six of those guys are the son's of football coaches. One of them, my son, Trosper, is the GRANDSON of a football coach.  Four of the six staff members had been through the camp.  We were incredibly efficient yesterday and the kids got a boatload of reps. We transitioned through drills very quickly and there was no wasted time. You have to do camp for several years to have alumni coaching it. The guys on our camp staff yesterday love kids and football. The campers responded extremely well to our guys coaching them. I was exceptionally proud and pleased with the overall efficiency, productivity, and improvement the kids made through out the day.

By now, I've been fortunate to coach several hundred football players at Mercer County, Mason County, Paris, the Kentucky All Stars and Quarterback Camp. I really enjoy the relationships I have with many of those players today. It is fun to follow their success and see them become husbands & fathers. 

QB Camp yesterday physically kicked my tail. We worked very hard to do a good job for the kids.

As much as I hate the negatives of getting older, I would not give up the benefit of experience and what goes with it.  The relationships built with players and coaches over all of these years ... no, I would not trade them to be younger. 

This summer, maybe I can be the one BEHIND the camera for the family beach picture.  Or, I will wear a hat and stand in the back. 😀

Parents... what do you praise in your children...Process or Results?

For this blog entry, I could have used some pictures of my kids and their achievements or accomplishments.  All parents enjoy those times with their children and could do the same as me. Those are great moments....results!

Instead, here is a picture of one of Trosper's 2018 Christmas gifts, a weighted football. I took the picture on Friday night, 2/1/2019, after another one of his extra workouts he does on his own.  The football is filthy and already showing signs of wear. He is working his tail off to be the best he can be as a quarterback and football player.  This particular workout on this Friday night, I really enjoyed watching him. In addition to his passing work, he ran the same play over and over on air. First to the left. Then to the right. That type of dedication and focus gets me fired up as a coach. 

I have tried to make a conscious effort to praise my kids for the character traits that lead to success. When they are working hard, being kind to others, being unselfish, being determined, etc. I praise that behavior. I praise them for things that are in their control. 

When they have success, we celebrate it. It could be a victory, an A, getting a job, making all state, winning a pageant, etc. Results are celebrated and that is ok. But PRAISE is for their character and the things they can control. 

I communicate this directly to them and tell them why I praise what I praise. They need to know that. 

Now, I LOVE them no matter what they do. Why?  The same reason God loves me. I am a child of God. He loves me no matter what I do. These are my children.  I love them no matter what they do. 

Part of my strategy in doing this is that I want them to ENJOY what they do. When they play a football game, I want them to know I am already proud of the effort. My sons don't have to earn my praise or approval on Friday nights. If they play well, that is great and we will celebrate it. But, I am proud of the effort that goes into being the best they can be. 

I also have an ulterior motive in this approach... I am trying to eliminate the pressure of pleasing me or making me proud so they can perform better. Often, they will do that on their own and I try to get them to get that out of their head. But, I also know that if they will focus on playing the game and enjoying it, that will improve their performance. 

As a coach, I tell our players the same thing. The pressure is to PREPARE , Monday through Thursday the absolute best they can. Friday nights should be fun!

Watch your kids this week. Catch them doing what is right, and make sure they know you saw it! Often times, it is like pouring gasoline on a fire. The results will follow when you praise the process and the character.  It works, and it is right for your kids!