Art of Smart Football

With The Essential Smartfootball, it was satisfying to see Brown's selection compiled and presented to a larger audience. This time around, The Art of Smart Football, takes many of Brown's contributions from his blog, Yahoo Sports and Grantland and presents them as he typically does, with a welcoming dialogue of mature reflection and clear analysis.  The content of this book is a complete package of contemporary football trends to afford the fair-weather fan to seasoned coach a competent perspective to fully appreciate what you'll see on the field this season.

As we explored when assessing his last book, Brown is the pacesetter of intellectual football discourse today.  There is no reason sports analysts should continue in the morass of the old media storylines (dumbing down what is delivered to their audience), when Brown has been showing how it can be done without losing the reader's interest.  The book is not heavy on football jargon or diagrams (though there are some great illustrations), so it is an easy read that one can digest quickly or casually pick up at their leisure.  This would be a great read in the coming weeks as everything he covers here, will be the narrative every weekend from the college to pro level.

There's no reason you shouldn't have this offering in your library.  Grab it at Amazon today....the electronic version (Kindle app for mobile) is as easy as it gets.

Future of Football

I attended an interesting debate regarding the (legal) future of football at Tulane the other night.  I find the changing landscape of the sport an interesting study that attempts to balance perception, neuroscience, liability, performance improvement and [game] fundamentals.  This discussion attempted to focus on using "what we know now" about the physical impact of football participation with the financial recourse of the NFL (and more importantly the 32 franchises that assume legal risk) and how this will shape the game in the coming decade.

DISCLAIMER: For what it's worth, I really don't have any preconceived notions on the issue. I find the NFL's legal finagling (and analyst reviews of hits) unrealistic, though I do understand the position they are coming from.  What interests me most is understanding the physical toll of the game, particularly in areas we have been ignorant up till now. I think we all would like to ensure the safety and well-being of players.  I don't see this impacting how the game is taught; an emphasis on proper fundamentals (separation/extension in line play - striking with the chest in tackling) has to be grounded in everyone involved.  This does not make the game less violent or aggressive. However, this issue is certainly bigger than collisions and contact.  Examination of these trends cannot be addressed with singular solutions, thus requiring us all to get the full picture and keep an inquisitive open mind.  It's also important to delineate our emotional response to providing safety to the game; blowing out a knee is worlds different than bruising your brain.

The event was moderated by Tulane Law professor, Gabe Feldman, with panelists Andrew Brandt (ESPN), Mike Pesca (NPR) and George Atallah (NFL) and delved into a very academic discussion of where the game's current momentum is leading it. Steve Gleason and Scott Fujita also joined in the dialogue.  

Yes, it is NFL-centric though the trickle-down impact and dilemmas are brought up late in the discussion.  Also, the "bounty" issue is belabored a little too long at the opening remarks.  That being said, this was an extremely worthwhile and mature discussion without the typical rhetoric.

Short rundown of discussion points:

• Bounty Issue
• Safety of the playing game vs ethics of watching the game
• Role of the player union in ensuring a safe work place
• Safety vs the momentum of revenue
• No one solution to CTE issue; exploring how to reduce it
• NFLPA's role in championing safety and influencing the NCAA 
• Role of a football player's in society
• Safety rules are lopsided against defensive players
• Dilemma of PED testing in the NFL

For audio only - listen/download here > "Future of Football @ Tulane Hillel"

For video - please visit Robert Morris' work at the Uptown Messenger 

"Regarding the evolution of the NFL, I believe the greatest asset the NFL has is the talent. The game will not, in my opinion, change because of viewers or governance.  The evolution of the game will come from the talent pool.  The safety measures, despite comments like Pollard's have primarily come from the talent pool (the players).

I do not feel the viewers will ever stop watching because they are put off by violence.  More likely, the talent pool will diminish because a six year old kid says he wants to be like Junior Seau when he grows up.  Now that kid and his parents do not want to grow up like Junior.  As a result, the talent pool has diminished, and thus, the game slowly becomes less relevant.  Obama, with his hypothetical comment, in his own way, diminished the hypothetical talent pool, which again, is the greatest asset the NFL has."
-Steve Gleason


UPDATE: Another timely piece that is worth reviewing

related:
http://www.aspeninstitute.org/events/2012/11/09/playing-safety-future-youth-football

http://theconcussionblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/nfl_notification_02.pdf

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/concussion-watch/

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/01/the-nfls-response-to-brain-trauma-a-brief-history/272520/

http://davepear.com/blog/2013/01/that-new-nfl-neuro-cognitive-benefit/

Making a mark

Finally got through the Chris Brown book....I'm surely missing the boat on the many fine reviews that were offered when the book was published months ago.  Its exactly as you think it would be; clear, articulate and entertaining football dialogues from the creator of Smartfootball.  Brown does what he does, easily better than anyone else, covering the ever evolving world of football, schemes, and the players and coaches that shape it's landscape.  It would've been easy (and acceptable) if Brown simply republished many of his fine works, but he goes above and beyond by taking his great articles and further researches and defines narratives.

Smartfootball: The Book

The prevailing thought I had when breezing through this extremely easy to read paperback is the depth and distinct flavor Brown provides that is so lacking in any other mainstream football publication available.  To think how much Brown has obviously labored over these writings, collecting data, outling and refining the message, diagramming, etc.....and you've been reading his stuff for FREE for years!  Then you figure how many bullshitting sportswriters that are getting fat book deals to pour out some narrative drivel that doesn't give you any insight to the game at all (what a crime).  Brown should be getting paid to do "his thing" full time because he clearly is an industry leader.

Chris Brown for nearly the past decade (and easily the past 4 years) has truly shaped how coaches, fans, and passers-by engage in football discourse.  He has single-handedly raised the bar from spastic Chris Berman inspired dogshit to dispassionate, analytical reflection.  Go to any fan site or SBNation blog and you'll see the people regurgitating Smartfootball and doing their best to talk his talk (how many times did you see "Constraint theory" before it was on Smartfooball?). Enough cannot be said about his impact on the game (in my opinion) and how we all see football today and in the future.



Leave something behind

I'm not sure if I've ever addressed this before, but this site started years ago as a lark, but with the intention of giving something back to the many coaches who have embraced electronic media.  In particular, Tom Brandow, architect of the old AOL site, "Tobyz Football Site" that spearheaded much of what you see about (coaching) football online today.  This spawned the Hugh Wyatt blog (OG of football blogs) and Jerry Campbell sites. Now we have the Huey's message board (and weekly whiteboard sessions) and various spinoffs.

As a newer project, here is a url you can reference that should become a repository of sorts.  Game film for historical archives (you can really learn so much from the older film).  Nothing from the NFL and all film will be greater than three seasons old.  Bookmark it or set up an RSS feed from the link, but it is something that will grow each week.  Do what you will with the video, it's there to stimulate thought and increase the knowledge base.
Football Video Files for downloading

Assorted Football Documents / Templates for downloading

What I’m Reading….

I’ve been enjoying an immersion of academia into the strata of meta themas

Whilst exposing my spiritual synapses to paradigms of Dostoevsky proportions, this blog may abide bereft tides of vacuity.

THE YEAR'S WORK IN LEBOWSKI STUDIES

Yeah, man……I’m taking a break for a while.

IDENTIFYING AND IMPLEMENTING ESSENTIAL SKILLS

Selection taken from the coaching canon , "Finding The Winning Edge".

A critical part of the game planning process is to identify the skills each player needs to perform the steps (tasks) involved in a particular play or play sequence. After identifying the skills needed by the player, a team must have a process in place for ensuring that their players develop these skills so that each play or play sequence is productive. Taking steps to develop these skills in every player occurs in two stages: isolating the skills and teaching the skills.

• Isolate the skills. The first step in the game planning process should be to analyze the tasks involved in the assignment of every player. Next, a decision must be made regarding whether the players have the ability to master the necessary skills. If it is determined that the ability of the players does not mesh with the skills required for a specific task. If they do not, the head coach must either discard this part of his offensive plan or alter the play or play sequence to fit the level of talent.
  
  Whatever the head coach’s decision, his decision can be made easier if he strictly adheres to one of the cardinal principles of training – specificity/ Specificity refers to the fact that “an individual gets what he trains for. “ All factors considered, the more specific his players’ preparation for a particular game, the better their performance.
• Teach the skills. Collectively, teaching players the skills they need involves an evolutional process of promoting, enhancing, practicing and refining each facet of the capacity being developed. In this regard, the rudimentary teaching progression of “hear it – see it – do it” is as applicable as it ever was.

Employing the proper teaching sequence is possibly the most viable way a coach can impact the game, certainly at the position level. Accordingly, as the head coach, you must make a decision as to what level of the teaching hierarchy you wish to utilize.

For example, with regard to teaching skills to your players, you must decide whether to rely on having the players learn by rote memorization or to require them to utilize critical thinking skills and acquire a more comprehensive knowledge of the offensive system. You should keep in mind that the more players are taught to critically analyze their responsibilities and to understand the relationship of these responsibilities to the total structure of the offense, the more productive the system will be.


Walsh, Bill - "Finding The Winning Edge", 1997, pg 210 - 211

BOOK: Dr.Ravitch

I've been looking to get back to reading again, but haven't found a substantial resource to delve into. I think I may have found it in the following book by Dr. Ravitch:

I've read nothing but glowing reviews of this practical exposition of our current education system here in the states. Though I AM NOT A TEACHER, being a coach, I am involved quite intimately with how schools operate. Now, that we're beginning to witness the true wake of NCLB on "failing schools", this book seems to address the fundamental errors in its assertion (an inescapable black hole based on economic demographics).

Possibly unrelated (as the book has little to do with teacher critique), I often ask my son at the end of a school day, not "what did you learn (today)?", but "did your teachers try to get you to THINK or BELIEVE today?". A stark difference between the two.

Well, that sucks.......

Not to be a downer, as I'm usually rather laissez faire about everything, but a really good book by Michael Lewis (among many) looks to be shat upon.

completely ripping off the awesome of EveryDayShouldBeSaturday here

Yes, that appears to be the long and short of this movie, when you reduce Lewis' book down to Michael Oher's personal story made to play up the sappy "white benefactor" mercy on the "poor black kid". Probably the most disingenuous parts of the book are the depictions of Oher's story (though vital to the conclusion the author presents) and the maudlin under current that the made-for-Lifetime film version of this is hitching its wagon to.

If you enjoy sports, sociology, history, or just football trends....(hey, do you like smartfootball.com?) do yourself a favor and read the book.

The author asserts, and his entire focus, is essentially about the rise of the dominant pass rusher.

The ushering in the era of SPEED into the game that has quickened the pace of Darwinian law in this sport.

Somehow, I don't see Sanra Bullock being able to drive that salient point home. Although, I don't recall Michael Lewis detailing any debased love scenes in his book, I'm more than willing to concede "creative-license" to be taken by John Lee Hancock, the director of the movie. I am not even sure how this movie works out with cameos by Lou Holtz, Nick Saban, Tommy Tubberville, ....Fred Thompson...er...Phil Fulmer,...............but no ED ORGERON!?!

Football Must Reads

Throwing this out there for any coaches.
Here are some books that you MUST have in your football canon