Watch as Coach Mike Candrea, the winningest softball coach of all time, discusses some of the life lessons he has learned during his illustrious career. Coaches should understand that when someone calls you coach, it […]
Our Mission Coaching/Leading/Teaching Girls with Meghan Orgeman – Alexandria Area High School (MN)
Coach Meghan Orgeman discusses the mission of coaching, leading, and teaching girls. The highlights include these key points: Socialize our girls to be imperfect within a supportive network of people who care deeply for them. […]
Leadership is Authentic, Relentless, Selfless Service to a Cause with Colonel Craig Flowers – Sideline Leadership
Watch as Colonel Craig Flowers explains that the term leadership is often clouded by clichés. He explains that in its simplest form leadership is service to a cause. Many times, Coaches fail to define leadership, […]
6-Spot Challenge Pitching Drill with Marissa Young – Duke Univ.
Watch as Coach Marissa Young explains, and a pitcher demonstrates this 6-spot challenge accuracy drill. The drill focuses on the quality of command per pitch, and highlights what pitch they are most accurate with and […]
Student-Athletes and the Media
By: Carolyn Peck Originally Published in: Winning Ways of Women Coaches Provided by: Human Kinetics Inviting the media into your sports program means they have access to the student-athletes. I highly recommend, before you allow media […]
Three Impactful Ways to Help Athletes Build Mental Strength Right Now
By: Julie Hatfield-Still Athletics are about more than just winning games or improving physical skills, it’s also a critical time for building the mental strength athletes need to succeed in sports and life. As a […]
Pitching: Reverse J-Bands Drill with Paige Cassady – North Carolina State Univ.
Watch as Coach Paige Cassady explains, and pitchers demonstrate the Reverse J-Bands Drill. The pitchers are creating a force forward and the J-Bands are pulling the back leg in the opposite direction. This allows the […]
Pitching: Split and Get Drill with Norie Mueller – Veritas Preparatory School (SC)
Watch as Coach and AD Norie Mueller explains, and a pitcher demonstrates the Split and Get pitching drill. This is an everyday drill that helps pitchers get off the mound with a sprinter’s lean into […]
Being Recruited Guidelines: Jerry Grasso – Wilmington Univ.
By: Jerry Grasso - Wilmington University One of the best resources for a student-athlete is their school counselor. The school counselor can help the student-athlete with signing up for the NCAA Clearinghouse and help with other NCAA […]
Hula Hoop Hitting Drill with Josh Bloomer – Arizona State Univ.
Watch as Coach Josh Bloomer explains, and a player demonstrates this hula hoop hitting drill. The drill works on sequencing within the swing, allowing the hitter to feel the sequence of the swing, pelvis, torso, […]
PVC Pipe Middle Infield Drills with Colby Corn – Greenville Senior High School (SC)
Watch as Coach Colby Corn explains, and infielders demonstrate these PVC pipe middle infield drills. The Step-Over Drill helps the players when moving through the ball and throwing to 1st base. After working on footwork, […]
Practicing Passed Ball Flips to the Pitcher with Kelly Inouye-Perez – UCLA
Watch as Coach Kelly Inouye-Perez explains that the catcher has two options on a passed ball. Depending on the situation, the catcher can use either an under-hand or back-hand toss. Be sure to open up […]
Holistic Coaching for the Benefit of All Players
Originally published in an Adam Sarancik Book “Never confuse winning with succeeding. A successful league and team is one that inspires its players to want to come back again tomorrow.” Too often, leagues and teams […]
The Set-Up: The Hitter’s Contact Points with Rachel Lawson – Univ. of Kentucky
Watch as Coach Rachel Lawson explains that the set-up of the swing involves the start of the swing, all the way through the load into separation and toe touch. She discusses the adjustments a hitter […]
Best Versus Worst Performances
By: Dr. Colleen M. Hacker Originally Published in: Achieving Excellence Provided by: Human Kinetics By examining your best performances and comparing and contrasting them with your worst performances, you can identify the key elements of […]
Levels of Commitment with Jeff Janssen – Janssen Sports Leadership Center
Is your program comprised of people who see the work they put in as an investment or a sacrifice? Watch as Jeff Janssen discusses seven levels of commitment that exist within every program and how […]
Pocket Drill for Catchers with Lee Murphy – Berea High School (SC)
Watch as Coach Lee Murphy explains, and a catcher demonstrates this pocket drill that focuses on preventing a catcher from having a sore thumb. The drill works on catching the ball in the pocket, starting […]
Be Able to Lead Yourself Before You Try to Lead Others with Jeff Janssen – Janssen Sports Leadership Center
Watch as Jeff explains how kids can start to ‘check out’ if their expectations are not met and how this can make it hard for them to demonstrate leadership. He discusses that kids need to […]
The Mental Approach to Coaching
By: Adam Sarancik Author of: Coaching Champions for Life “When evaluating your team, look first in the mirror with honest intent.” What is your mental approach to coaching? By your mental approach, I’m not asking […]
Infielder’s Hot Wheels Drill with Kat Ihlenburg – Georgia Gwinnett College
Watch as Coach Kat Ihlenburg explains and shows video of this infielder’s hot wheels drill. The drill consists of 4 players who start on a base and covers the 6 most common throws that occur […]
Empowering Coaches: Strategies for Supporting Youth from Struggling Homes in Athletics
By: Scott Garvis, CMAA Provided By: NHSACA As a coach, it’s essential to support students who come from struggling homes. These kids may face various challenges, and coaches can play a vital role in providing […]
Throwing Drills with Karen Weekly – Univ. of Tennessee
Watch as Coach Karen Weekly explains and shows video of these practice throwing drills. The Knee Drill works on keeping the hand on top of the ball in a continuous fluid motion. Make sure the […]
Feet in Cement: Top & Bottom Hand Slapping Drill with Kenzi Corn
Watch as Coach Kenzi Corn explains and demonstrates the Feet in Cement Slapping Drill. The batter’s feet should be set up as if they were in a contact position and they will not move throughout […]
Small Plate Pitching Day with Paige Cassady – North Carolina State Univ.
Watch as Coach Paige Cassady explains, and pitchers demonstrate small plate day which means there is a tight strike zone. Pitchers want to throw competitive pitches that put pressure on both the hitter and the […]
Coaching Yourself: Managing Your Emotions
By: Rainer Martens & Robin S. Vealey Originally Published in: Successful Coaching Just like athletes, coaches must manage their emotions to perform effectively. Your personal example of managing your anxiety is a powerful model for […]
There Is Nobility in the Struggle with Dr. Colleen Hacker – Team USA / Pacific Lutheran Univ.
Watch as Dr. Colleen Hacker discusses mental toughness and how today’s environment and culture do not value and respect the struggles and difficulties that athletes encounter. Not achieving in any form of athletics may be […]
A Hard Conversation
By: Adam Sarancik Author of: Coaching Champions for Life “Face toward the problems” Sports afford coaches a wonderful opportunity to teach life lessons within the game for beyond the game. The first step in this […]
Coaching First Base with Tim Walton – Univ. of Florida
Watch as Coach Tim Walton explains how you need to develop a philosophy on what role your base coaches should play. He describes that he likes to position himself as a 1st base coach, behind […]
Do or Die Drill with Michele Biffle – Langham Creek High School (TX)
Watch as Coach Michele Biffle explains, and players demonstrate this ‘Do or Die’ partner throwing and conditioning drill. The 1st round involves throwing the ball up in the air as high as possible then backpedaling […]
Improving Your Players’ Confidence with Zack Etter – Univ. of Massachusetts
Watch as Zack Etter discusses improving your players’ confidence. It is key that the players understand that the conversations they have in their head (self-talk) can be either beneficial or detrimental. The words you use […]