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["I want the players
to step out on a limb and become leaders." –
Coach Tomczak]
The
welcoming committees
Q:
Some of your assistant coaches have been here for a while. Tell us
how they have received you and your thoughts on them at this point.
A:
We’re in a grace period. I’m figuring out who they are and what
they’re doing. I have seven assistant coaches, and six of the seven
were here last year. The newest one is Kurt Roberts, who is the girls
soccer coach. I’ve had good feedback from them, and most of them
have taken the bull by the horns already, especially some of the older
or more experienced ones. I’m sure it’s still a feeling-out
process for them with me.
Maybe
I need to delegate more and say to one: Take the defensive backs over
there and do this with them. Some coaches, like Coach Spears, may
already have 12 drills in his head to use during the allotted time.
Other coaches I may sit down with and say: This is what to...here are
four drills that will take five minutes each; keep ’em moving and
keep the practice flowing.
I
don’t know where I’m going to put everyone at level-wise. You have
to have a taskmaster at each level – someone that is willing
to crack the whip and make sure that [players are] working and
improving. He’s going to have to be organized, and the kids are
going to have to respect him. Other assistant coaches include Joe
Ryan, Brad Gardner, Chris Hammer, Mike Spears, Joe Vasquez and Steve
Parrot. These are the kinds of guys you need. It’s hard for one guy
to handle 40 kids. If you’ve got one guy giving directions and
another guy making sure that we’re lined up right, that’s what I’m
looking for. I’m hoping to decide where I’m going to put these
coaches by the end of the month, and they know that I want them to be
able to work together.
So
far, it looks like we should be able to work together well. I told
them that they are free to come to me at any time to give me input on
what I should do. I told them to feel free to call me. I had a meeting
with them on Wednesday and asked them to air out any concerns, even
though it’s hard to air things out in a group setting. I told them
that they could write out any complaints and stick it in my mailbox,
and that they didn’t even have to sign it if they didn’t want to.
I don’t want things going on behind closed doors or behind people’s
backs; I want them taken care of. With a bigger staff there will be
some minor disagreements, but I’m only as good as my coaching staff
is. They’ve got to relay my message – whatever I’m trying
to get across to the players. All the coaches that helped out with the
mini-camp did a nice job for us.
In
addition to my staff that’s in place, I’d like to add some grad
assistants from Illinois State and from Illinois Wesleyan. They're
fresh out of the system, and many of them want to be coaches anyway. I’m
still trying to see if I can swing something like this. Graduate
assistants can bring in some fresh ideas. I think the kids also see
them as only a few years older, and it gives them some hope and
motivation on what they can become.
I want the players to step
out on a limb and become leaders. If they see something wrong going
on, I want them to take care of it. I want to build their respect and
their pride for what they are doing. Everybody doesn’t have the same
attitude as everyone else. If they see a guy or a group taking these
principles wholeheartedly, then they respond to it.
(To
top of second column)
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