Texas Coach Brought Humor to Pandemic with TikTok

Lead with Humor

South Texas Coach Becomes TikTok Sensation During Pandemic At the start of the coronavirus outbreak in March, everything came to a halt from a high school football perspective. We know how valuable those relationships can be during the high school years, and in many cases, players look to their coaches and teachers for leadership. A South Texas led with his humor.

BY DAN GUTTENPLAN

During the pandemic, many of us in the coaching community followed Marco Regalado on Twitter. The South Texas coach offered some levity during an otherwise serious time.

Regalado is the special teams coordinator and linebackers coach at PSJA Memorial High in South Texas. He recently shared his social media strategy during the pandemic with FNF Coaches. f The TikTok video that caught our eye was the one about forgetting the inflatable tunnel during your first year as a coach. Was your story true?

“It’s a funny story. My first year coaching, one of my coaching duties – along with many others – was packing the inflatable into the trailer before the game. We were going to play the No. 1 team in the state. I thought everything was good to go; this is before we had a coaching checklist in place. I started unloading the headsets and getting everything ready to go. One of the boosters asked, ‘Where is the tunnel?’ I said, ‘It should be in the trailer.’ I forgot it. I had to break it to the head coach. He had 100 other things on his mind. Surprisingly, he didn’t rip me a new one. He just gave me a look like, ‘Are you serious?’” f Is your humorous style on social media in response to people being bummed out by the pandemic?

“It’s definitely in response to everyone being bummed out. I had an occasional fun tweet before this. I’m a light-hearted person, and I like to make people laugh when it’s appreciated. I never anticipated it blowing up this big. I thought it was funny when I saw the students using TikTok. They said, ‘You’re funny, you should download the app.’ I was so bored the second or third week, I downloaded it. I started with 2,500 followers, and now I’ve accumulated 12,000 with 3 million views on Twitter.” f Do you attribute the jump in followers to anything other than the TikTok videos?

“It’s definitely the videos. You’ve got to do something to stand out for that to happen. I made a couple of videos, and everyone was asking for the next one. People follow just to keep track of when it’s coming.” f Was it easy to figure out TikTok?

“I’m pretty good with technology. I’ve always edited videos and produced highlight videos for school. Once I understood the effects and how to use the green screen, I mastered it.” f Do you find yourself writing down more ideas for TikTok videos when they pop in your head?

“If anybody has a video they want to see, reach out. I’ll never say no unless it’s absurd. One guy suggested I do one about principals. I said no, my bosses are principals. I like my paycheck.”

Podcast Alert

Marco Regalado joined FNF Coaches podcast host Dan Guttenplan on the FNF Coaches Podcast in May. Visit fnfcoaches.com to listen to the pod.

10 more Coaches who Shined on twitter during the pandemic

COACH JASON GLENN KLEIN OAK (TEXAS)

COACH CHRIS VASSEUR FORMER SERRA HIGH (CA.)

COACH DONALD LITTLEJOHN MALLARD CREEK (S.C.)

COACH AARON KUNZ WILLIAMSVILLE HIGH (ILL.)

COACH DARRELL KEITH CLINTON HIGH (TN.)

COACH RODNEY WEBB DENTON GUYER HIGH (TX.) COACH JASON REYNOLDS NATALIA HIGH (TX.)

COACH KENNY SIMPSON SEARCY HIGH (ARK.)

COACH JEREME HUBBARD BROOK HILL (TEXAS) SCHOOL

COACH BRANDON CLAY HALTOM HIGH (TX.)

5Daily Solutions for Locker Room Sanitation

One potential positive to take away from the coronavirus outbreak has been the way in which coaches have prioritized sports hygiene by adopting protocol for all athletes to follow at home, in the locker room and on the field. In order to combat the spread of the virus this fall, set up a daily locker room sanitation plan.

1Clean surfaces with soap and water.

Wear reusable or disposable gloves for routine cleaning and disinfection. Clean surfaces with soap and water before disinfectant to reduce the number of germs, dirt and impurities on the surface. Disinfecting kills germs on surfaces.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

2Use disinfectants.

The Global Cleanliness Council is requiring the use of “hospital-grade” disinfectants in public spaces and guest rooms. Use alcohol-based wipes or sprays containing between 70 and 75 percent alcohol. For a list of products that fit this description, visit www.epa.gov/pesticide-registrationlist-n-disinfectants-use-against-sars-cov-2-covid-19

Also check out the EPA’s six steps for safe and effective disinfectant use. www.epa.gov/pesticide-registration/six-steps-safe-effective-disinfectant-use

Source: Environmental Protection Agency

TIPS FROM A CLEAR GEAR SPRAY REP

Clear Gear has demonstrated effectiveness against viruses similar to COVID-19 on hard, non-porous surfaces. Clear Gear Spray is perfect for a coach’s daily sanitation routine because the spray eliminates odors and kills harmful bacteria.

Clear Gear representative Margaret Mason offered these tips for a daily sanitation plan. ■ Anything worn or sweated in should be disinfected after each use and allowed to dry. ■ High touch areas in a facility should be disinfected daily. ■ Facilities should be disinfected weekly. Why is it so important to disinfect equipment – particularly given all that is going on in the world?

“Sweat, bodily contact between athletes, open wounds, and shared environments (weight room, door knobs, etc.) all contribute to germ proliferation. Infection control is like a spider web. It must be attacked and managed at multiple entry points to truly keep athletes safe.”

3Set up hand sanitizing stations.

One of the best ways to keep the virus out of locker rooms is preventing it from spreading. That means making hand-washing easily accessible for players. Keeping gloves at the sanitizing station is also a good preventative measure. Remind players to clean hands after blowing one’s nose, coughing, sneezing, and using the restroom. Restrict food from the locker rooms.

Source: Dr. Bruce Sherman, inventor of GymValet

4Do the laundry after each practice.

Launder items in the warmest appropriate water setting and dry items completely. Wear disposable gloves when handling dirty laundry from a person who is sick. Do not shake dirty laundry. Clean and disinfect clothes hampers. Remove gloves and wash hands right away after handling laundry.

Source: Alliance Laundry Systems

5Consider a disinfecting robot or misting service.

Consider using electrostatic sprayers and testing ultraviolet-light technology on locker room items. Robots can deliver up to 4,300 times more germicidal UV pathogen killing intensity than UV-C mercury vapor and can disinfect an entire locker room room in as little as 20 minutes. A new, promising technology in this industry is the application of EPAapproved disinfectants utilizing electrostatic application systems for proper surface disinfection. Electrostatics is a proven technology in the agricultural and automotive industries.

Source: LightStrike GermZapping Robots

Stay Informed & Engaged Through the FNF Coaches Podcast “I always enjoy the opportunity to talk high “ school football on the FNF Coaches podcast. It’s a fun, relaxed environment that allows me to reflect on my experience as a coach and share it with other coaches.”

– SLIDELL HIGH (LA.) COACH RYAN DIECK

WHAT: The FNF Coaches Podcast is a half-hour program

(think: radio interview). The podcast gives coaches and industry experts an opportunity to speak to our audience of coaches from 16,000 high schools across the country.

WHEN: The podcast is produced twice a week. HOW: FNF Coaches will handle all of the technical aspects of

the podcast — recording, editing, producing. For coaches, it’s as easy as connecting on a Zoom call.

WHAT DO WE TALK ABOUT?: Dan will interview the guest

on the subject of his expertise. This could be X’s and O’s, technology, a product, coaching philosophy, etc.

WHERE DOES THE PODCAST APPEAR?:

It will be catalogued on www.fnfcoaches.com/category/fnfcoaches-talk-podcast/

HOW DO WE PROMOTE IT?: We promote the podcast on

Twitter to our 9,000 followers.

HOW DO WE SHARE IT?: Spotify, iTunes, Simplecast & Twitter

Q&A with North Carolina coach mack Brown

With Mack Brown, 68, closing in on the final years of his Hall of Fame career at University of North Carolina, it’s sometimes easy to forget he is the same coach that led Texas to a national championship in 2006. In fact, during his 16-year tenure at Texas (1998-2013), he posted nine consecutive double-digit win seasons, two Big 12 titles and a national title.

Now the man who has amassed a record of 251-128-1 over 31 seasons as a head coach is looking to leave one final mark on a program he turned into a legitimate ACC powerhouse in his first stint from 1988 to 1997.

Brown recently joined FNF Coaches for an exclusive interview.

f What inspired you to get into coaching?

“My father was a coach. My grandfather left Putnam County (Tenn.) as the winningest coach in Tennessee history. The stadium is named after him. He was the Superintendent then. My father became a Principal. My grandmother was the Assistant to the Superintendent. I’ve been in schools for my entire life as well as the sports business. My mother was All-State in basketball and volleyball. My dad owned a local sporting goods store. I had knee surgeries at the end of my playing career, so I went into coaching.” f Was it something you always wanted to do after playing?

“I actually wanted to be a lawyer. I didn’t like to read, so I realized I’m not going to be a lawyer unless I read. I went to Vanderbilt and they told me I had to read all of these pages and go to more years of school. Nope. I transferred to Florida State. I hurt my knee and started coaching. I turned a negative into a positive by starting to coach at a young age.” f You’ve had to establish a winning culture in a couple of spots throughout your career. How is that done?

“Going through the difficult situation at UNC the first time ended up being the best thing that ever happened in my career. You have to have a plan and continue to tweak the plan and grow from other people who are successful. Have confidence when things are bad and you’re not winning games. Find places to win small victories. Maybe you force more turnovers or finish with more rushing yards. I knew if enough things went right, the scoreboard would take care of itself. We told them, ‘Don’t look at the scoreboard, just give us everything you’ve got.’ When I was asked about the future, I said, ‘I know we’ll be good, I just don’t know when.’ A lot more people talked about the 2-20 start than the 10-2.” f Those Texas teams that you coached were so talented. You must have done a great job recruiting and then building team chemistry. What advice would you give for coaches of talented players who are trying to build a team-first environment?

“Well, you have to remember that Ricky Williams won the Heisman my first year there after a 4-9 season. We felt high school football was the lifeblood of a college program. We had to have players who were taught right and wanted to continue to grow. So, we had to do a great job of evaluating 20 million people in Texas. There were an average of 375 players who signed with Division 1 programs, and we could take 25 or fewer. We had to play the other 350, and they didn’t like that they couldn’t play for us. They expect you to win every week at Texas. If you’re not prepared for the pressure of 120,000 people watching and a media situation like the NFL, you shouldn’t be there.

“I think the biggest thing is finding people who fit at Texas. It’s the same thing here. Who do you like? If you don’t like them, they won’t like you. And then they’re not going to play very hard.” f I think everyone remembers that classic national championship game between Texas and USC. How did you feel in-game when it was going back and forth?

“When you’re in a game like that, you’re coaching like any other time. You don’t think about the crowd or the score

except for strategy purposes. Even when we scored with 19 seconds left, I was thinking about how we had to kick to Reggie Bush, and USC has a timeout and a real good field goal kicker. People said I showed little emotion, but I was working. You don’t appreciate it until you look back.” f What made you decide to come out of retirement and return to UNC?

“We interviewed for jobs every year, and it wasn’t right for them or it wasn’t right for us. Nothing connected. When they told me I had been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, I asked why it took a year after the announcement. They said you should go say thank you to all of the players that made it possible. I connected with former players and coaches, and my wife said she’d never seen me happier since I got out of coaching. She said, ‘If the perfect spot opens, we should go back and do this again.’”

BROWN RETURNS TO UNC

BROWN, WHO WAS INDUCTED INTO THE NATIONAL

Football Foundation’s College Hall of Fame in December of 2018, won more college football games than any coach in the country over a 24-year period from 1990-2013. Still, he wasn’t sure he’d get another chance before he got back into coaching after a five-year retirement. “When this job came open, I said I wouldn’t interview and be one of five candidates,” Brown said. “They said, ‘No, it’s you.’ I called my wife in Austin. She had said jokingly, ‘I’ll let you coach in Hawaii, the Bahamas or Chapel Hill.’ I said, ‘Honey – You said I could go back to Chapel Hill.’ She was silent for 30 seconds and said, ‘Yeah, let’s do this thing.’” For Brown, the hardest part was getting started. “I stayed involved with coaching through TV, and I was at spring practice. I’d visit campuses days before games every week. If the game changed, I changed with it. Early Signing Day was the biggest change for me. I took the job on Nov. 26, and I had 19 days to hire a staff, learn my team, see who’s in academic trouble, get medical information, see who’s leaving early, see who’s in the Transfer Portal, figure out your position needs for recruiting. So, the most difficult thing for a new coach is early Signing Day. You have to multitask and move very quickly.”

Now more than ever, it is paramount that coaches are using technology to their advantage as they try to reach players in unique and innovative ways.

High school football is constantly evolving. Whether you are “old school” or “new school”, tech-savvy or computer illiterate, the coach at a small-town school or one at a powerhouse school with a college-style campus, you need to invest resources into keeping up with products and companies that are helping to improve the game.

In the current age of high school sports, as we sift through a pandemic with social distancing restrictions, masks, video conferencing and at-home workouts, the coaches who adapt to the new landscape the quickest will be best prepared for the 2020 season.

We understand the challenge of the current situation, and that’s why we’ll be presenting you with various options. Technology is changing the profession of coaching. It’s altering the world we live in, and also the way the game we love is played and coached.

Technology is not just about spending money; it is about investing in the future and finding ways to better relate to players. We’ve all seen the way student-athletes learn these days – with devices and visual aids. Meet them where they are, and teach more efficiently.

Read on to learn about which products and companies are paving the way for the future of football.