BUILD YOUR SHIELD: TRAIN YOUR NECK BY JOSH BRYANT & ADAM BENSHEA

Build your Shield: Train Your Neck

By Josh Bryant & Adam Benshea

In the ancient Mediterranean world, there was a prominent city-state known as Lacedaemon which rose to military prominence because of their fiercely trained warriors. We know them as the Spartans.

Upon completion of the agoge—the rigorous education and training required for every male Spartan citizen—the young Spartan was eligible to become an active member of the Lacedaemonian army.

Conflict inside of Sparta (as Lacedaemon became known based on the name of its main settlement) and between other Greek city-states was frequent. The historian Thucydides tells us that before a Spartan man went off to war, his wife would hand him his shield (hoplon) and say: “With this, or upon this.” In other words, a warrior could only return to Sparta with his shield in hand or dead upon it.

The idea was that in the midst of battle, should fear overtake a Spartan and he run from the fighting, the first thing he would drop would be his shield. Coming home without his shield would be a telltale sign that cowardice had broken the Spartan warrior. This was unacceptable.

We all struggle with fear, but we cannot abide by the willingness to be bent, bowed, and broken by cowardice.

So, never leave your shield.

Now, a developed and muscled neck serves to safeguard your body, back, and brain from trauma, damage, and injury. Like a shield, your neck protects your body.

So, your neck is your shield. Build it, develop it, and don’t leave home without it.

Of course, neck training is a necessity, not a luxury, for football, wresting, or any contact or combat sport.

In fact, recent research has shown that there has been a dramatic rise in the number of sports related concussions. One study found that “SRCs [sports related concussions] were determined to be a major health concern as diagnosed concussions have increased by 43% over the past 5 years. More significantly, there was a 71% increase in concussion diagnosis for patients who were 10-19 years old. The rate is even higher among younger populations involved in contact sports” (Toninato et al., 2018).

Unsurprisingly, the same study also found that “this drastic increase in SRCs has raised concerns for both parents and youth involved in youth contact sports” (Toninato et al., 2018).

When it comes to safeguarding the physical health and the athletic capabilities of high school athletes, these are frightening statistics because it tells us that the still developing bodies of young athletes are particularly vulnerable to concussions.

Although we can never completely prevent injury, we are able to reduce the risk of injury with neck training. For instance, one study found that “for every pound of neck strength, odds of concussion decreased by 5%” (Collins et al., 2014).

Therefore, with the right approach to strength training, coaches can extend the competitive careers of their athletes and, more importantly, increase the safety measures for their physical health.

Your neck supports the weight of your head and safeguards the nerves that transmit sensory and motor information from your brain down to the rest of your body. In an ideal world, your neck would be extremely flexible, sturdy, and strong. But, your neck doesn’t get that way just by chance. You need to train your neck. You need to build your shield.

Let’s talk about how you can do that. More specifically, we will go over strengthening flexion, extension, and lateral flexion.

Now, here is a brief overview of each dimension and a routine for how to strengthen them.

For completing all of these, use an innovative and ingenious training tool called the Strong Neck. This is an affordable device that can be used to easily load more or less weight, while providing a high level of comfort during the workout.

With a shallow learning curve, high school athletes can quickly adopt this training tool and the routine described below into an established strength program. This routine can be done 1-3 times a week.

First, NECK FLEXION is tilting your head forward. The chief muscles involved are the longus colli, longus capitis, and sternocleidomastoid (anterior fibers).

To strengthen neck flexion, lie flat on a bench with your back flat on the bench and your feet on the floor. Place Strong Neck on your forehead. With your head hanging off the edge of the bench, flex your head up until your chin touches your upper chest, then extend your neck backward to a comfortable stretch.

Repeat for three sets of 20 reps.

Second, NECK EXTENSION refers to the action of moving your chin away from your chest. The mainstay muscles in this action are the splenius capitis, semispinalis capitis, suboccipitals, trapezius, and sternocleidomastoid (posterior fibers.)

To strengthen neck extension, lie face down with your whole body straight on a flat bench while holding the Strong Neck behind your head. Position yourself so that your shoulders are just above the end of the bench, with your upper chest, neck, and face off the bench. This is the starting position. From here, holding the Strong Neck securely, lower your head to a comfortable stretch, then extend your head up briefly in a controlled movement and hold the extended position.

Do this for three sets of 20 reps.

And, third, NECK LATERAL FLEXION in lay terms means tilting your head to the side. The primary muscles involved in this function are the sternocleidomastoid and scalenes.

To strengthen neck lateral flexion, lie on your left side on a flat bench with your legs on the floor and your left forearm on the bench. Position the Strong Neck on the right side of your upper head. Hold the Strong Neck on the right side of your head with your right hand. Place your left hand on the floor for support. From here, move your head up to your right shoulder by laterally flexing your neck. Then lower your head to the left side and repeat; do the opposite for the left side.

Complete two sets of 15 for each side.

This neck training program with the Strong Neck device does not require much space and can be done without fancy, high-cost equipment. Moreover, the time investment is minimal because it can be done as a staggered set between sets of core movements.

The bottom line is that the proper approach to neck training can reduce the likelihood of a high school athlete becoming another statistic of the concussion age.

So, build your shield. Train your neck.

Long Term Athletic Development

By Raymond Tucker, University of Houston-Victoria

As athletes develop from pre-athletics through middle to high school athletic programs, long term athletic development is a process that requires patience and time from the coach. It should be carefully managed for each athlete in the program. Rushing this process will not develop a robust athlete and should be avoided at all costs. According to Brendon Rearick from Michael Boyle Strength and Conditioning, your program should slow cook your clients (athletes) like a crock pot and not zap them like a microwave for quick gains. Your pre-athletic and middle school strength and conditioning programs lay the groundwork for the success of your high school athletic program. These programs should allow male and female athletes to participate in a strength and conditioning program overseen by a certified strength and conditioning professional if the athletic program's goal is longterm athletic development.

Because so many athletes participate in a strength and conditioning program during the athletic period or after school, some athletic programs adopt a one size fits all or cookie cutter strength and conditioning program to save time. This strategy may be advantageous if the strength and conditioning professional has developed a regression and progression exercise list to reduce or increase the exercise demands or movement patterns. For example, if an athlete can't perform the hang clean with the correct technique, what exercise would the strength and conditioning professional prescribe in the place of the hang clean to get the same performance outcome until the athlete has mastered the correct technique.

One of the requirements for long term athletic development is to identify the differences between an athlete's biological and chronological age. For example, two athletes who are both 13 years old chronologically may be in various stages of their development. An athlete who is less mature and has developmental delays at the same age will have less body weight and muscle mass. An athlete's strength, speed, and power will be limited by this lack of body weight and muscle mass, making it more challenging to perform specific weight lifting exercises and explosive movement patterns. Coaches sometimes make the mistake of prioritizing these mature athletes and ignoring the underdeveloped athletes, leading to underdeveloped athletes who become discouraged and leave the athletic program. Athletes still developing will mature later and hold the key to the athletic program's ultimate success. The following steps should be taken into consideration by the strength and conditioning professional in the long term development of the athlete.

1. Before having your athletes perform any weight room exercises or movement patterns, use a screening tool to see what movements they can perform correctly. The Functional

Movement Screen is an excellent tool for determining whether your athletes have any asymmetries between the left and right sides of the body, as well as any weaknesses that may be affecting their performance.

2. What warm-up routine will you employ to ensure that your athletes' flexibility and mobility allow them to move actively through a range of motion?

3. What multi-joint and weightlifting exercises will you include in your program at each level, and how will you teach them to ensure mastery

before moving on to more advanced exercises? How would you teach the proper jumping and landing techniques used in linear and lateral lower body plyometrics and throwing, catching, and passing exercises used in upper body plyometrics?

4. How will you teach the correct body position and proper mechanics for acceleration, maximum velocity sprinting, and multidirectional speed?

5. Before prescribing any exercise or movement pattern to your athletes, determine their training age. For example, if you use the hang clean in your program and have an athlete who has never performed this exercise, they will have a training age of 0, indicating that they have no experience performing this exercise.

This athlete should regress to learn the proper technique with a PVC pipe and then progress to a bar before adding an external load.

6. Put your athletes in groups based on their ability level and training age so they can learn and develop confidence in their abilities. It's simple to put them in groups with more advanced athletes in the hopes that the advanced athletes will take a leadership role and coach them, but in some cases, these athletes are bullied and picked on because they don't meet the advanced athletes' standards. Allow your athletes to train while you serve as the coach.

7. Meet with your parents and explain your strength and conditioning program and the importance of recovery. Inform your parents that more is not always better and that they should not lift weights at home or hire a personal trainer. Overtraining, a lack of recovery, and overuse injuries will result. What your athletes do at home and in their spare time is just as important in their training program at school.

8. Before creating your program, consult with your sports coaches. You want to ensure that whatever you do in your strength and conditioning program is in line with the goals of the head coach for that sport. You also want to ensure that the program complements rather than competes with the upcoming practice or game. If a basketball coach wants to condition their players after practice or do a lot of jumping, you don't have to do the same in your strength and conditioning program.

9. Making someone puke is simple; improving someone is a skill. There is a significant difference between discomfort and pain, and coaches should listen to their athletes before pushing them beyond this point. The no pain, no gain philosophy is antiquated and should never be applied to any athlete's training.

The strength and conditioning professional's goal is not to turn your athletes into strongmen, powerlifters, bodybuilders, cross-fitters, or Olympic lifters. The goal should be to develop a strong and resilient athlete with good mobility, efficient movement patterns, the ability to convert strength into power when needed to jump, accelerate into a sprint, and the appropriate motor control and movement patterns to accelerate, decelerate, and change direction, all of which are required for team sport athletes.

We are thrilled to announce the start two new thsca awards programs for 2022-2023... thsca Super Elite Teams and Texas Farm Bureau Insurance Coach of the Year

The THSCA Super Elite Teams consists of high school players nominated by professional members of the Texas High School Coaches Association. The player must meet the THSCA award criteria to be nominated. The award recognizes student athletes across the state of Texas for their exemplary athletic achievement in their respective sport. (Do you have highlights of athletes you think are Super Elite? We would love to

see you post them on social media and tag us @THSCAcoaches and #SuperEliteTeam.)

All eligible nominations will be collected and sent to the S.E.T. (Super Elite Teams) Committees to be evaluated. The S.E.T. Committee will submit the finalists to the advisory committee for their respective sport for final approval and decision on who have made the Super Elite team in each classification. Super Elite teams will be recognized after the state championships have been announced. This award will begin in the Fall of the 2022-23 school year. See the chart below for nomination windows for each sport.

CRITERIA FOR NOMINATION:

1. Be of good moral character 2. Varsity sports only 3. Have been a member of the team in good standing at the time of nomination 4. Player has excelled as an elite member in their respective sport

SUPER ELITE TEAMS BY THE NUMBERS:

► There will be 101 Super Elite Teams covering all 23 sports throughout the state. ► There will be over 1,800 student-athletes recognized on the Super Elite Teams. ► We will have 808 Coaches (on S.E.T. Committees) that will select the Super Elite Teams.

Super Elite Team Timeline by Sport:

SPORT NOMINATIONS OPEN NOMINATIONS CLOSE

Team Tennis 8-Oct 24-Oct

Water Polo B/G 8-Oct 21-Oct Cross Country B/G 26-Oct 11-Nov

Volleyball 29-Oct 9-Nov

Football 5-Nov 7-Dec

Wrestling B/G 13-Feb 23-Feb

Swim/Dive B/G 6-Feb 23-Feb

Girls Basketball 11-Feb 23-Feb

Boys Basketball 18-Feb 2-Mar

Soccer B/G 21-Mar 5-Apr

Tennis B/G 14-Apr 1-May

Golf B/G 21-Apr 26-May Track & Field B/G 1-May 18-May Softball 25-Apr 24-May

Baseball 2-May 31-May

THSCA along with our partners at Texas Farm Bureau Insurance, want to give recognition to our Texas high school coaches for their accomplishments on and off the field/court with an opportunity to be honored nationally. We will be presenting various types of awards which will include:

Award Requirements:

Nomination Process:

The nomination process will be open to every member of THSCA after the state championships in each sport. Each THSCA member is offered a chance to nominate a head coach and/or assistant coach to submit through the Member Portal. Nominations will cease after 2 weeks. Nominations will then be handed over to the Awards Committee for scoring (by region).

SPORT NOMINATIONS OPEN NOMINATIONS CLOSE

Team Tennis 28-Oct 11-Nov

Water Polo B/G 30-Oct 13-Nov Cross Country B/G 6-Nov 20-Nov

Volleyball 20-Nov 4-Dec

Football 18-Dec 1-Jan

Wrestling B/G 19-Feb 5-Mar

Swim/Dive B/G 19-Feb 5-Mar

Girls Basketball 5-Mar 19-Mar

Boys Basketball 12-Mar 26-Mar

Soccer B/G 16-Apr 30-Apr

Tennis B/G 27-Apr 11-May

Girls Golf 10-May 24-May Track & Field B/G 14-May 28-May

Boys Golf 17-May 31-May Softball 4-Jun 18-Jun

Baseball 11-Jun 25-Jun

TRANSITIONING FROM ASSISTANT COACH TO HEAD COACH

By scott spanton - football coach

I have written several articles for the THSCA magazine over the course of my 30 years of coaching high school football in the great football tradition rich state of Texas. The majority of these previous articles dealt mainly with the X's and O's, techniques, and schemes. This particular article will focus on my own personal experiences during the transition from an assistant to a head coach.

It was my life long goal to become a successful head football coach at the high school level in the highly competitive state of Texas. That is what drove me to Texas after my graduate assistant days at the college level in South Dakota. After researching where high school football was the most competitive I narrowed it down to three states, California, Florida and Texas. I reached the conclusion that Texas was where high school was more than just another sport, rather it was a way of life. I always felt that if you are going to be the best you have to compete against the best.

After accepting my first job in Texas I loaded up my little pick-up with an old cover along with everything I owned at the time. Coaching school was in Ft. Worth that year so I drove there and parked in the lot and was introduced to the coaching staff for the first time. Those few days illustrated to me just how big of event this was as there were coaches attending from across the entire state.

Fast forward 20 years and several schools later all in the capacity of an assistant coach. Sure some of those titles included coordinator status along with other titles. I was very fortunate over this course of time to work for and learn from some very successful head coaches that had built winning programs. Each one had their own style, philosophy and expectations. One head coach I worked for early on in my career had mentioned it is not always a bad thing to move around every few years until you find the ideal job. In looking back it made sense as it allowed me to experience how there can be more than one right way to do things in order to build a successful program. On the flip side I also worked for head coaches that had been at the same school for over 20 years.

It was evident after a while in my quest to become a head coach something had to change in my approach. Working hard and doing things the right way were not always enough to get noticed. Therefore, I had realized in many cases the guys who were getting head coaching jobs had the coordinator title behind their name. In doing so I went from a school of around 800 enrollment to one of over 3000. It was definitely an eye opening experience in the enormity of it all. In the long run though it was still about building relationships with young men, all be it just more of them.

Over the course of time at a few big schools I was able to manufacture several interviews for the position of head coach but never able to make the final cut. I made it a habit of going back and speak with someone on the interview panel to ask what I could have done better during the course of the interview. In the early stages of my interviews I made the inexperienced mistake of always trying to provide answers in the form of what I thought they wanted to hear rather than speaking from my own beliefs, philosophy, and blue print for building a winning football program. I guess my advice for younger coaches going through the interview process would be to just be yourself and be prepared and confident in how you present yourself. Sometimes it is more important about how you say things rather than what you say. Do it with conviction and sincerity that comes from your heart.

The obvious big difference in stepping into the role of head coach from that of an assistant or coordinator includes all the other things (besides the X's and O's) and the in house matters that come along with the position. In learning from my personal experience as well as learning from being around many of those successful head coaches it boiled down to the following points: One, the ability to be a great communicator. This involves many avenues ranging from parents, boosters, players, administration, support staff, custodial and maintenance staff, just to name a few. In order to have success everyone from the top to the bottom must all be on aligned in order to achieve success in keeping the lines of communication open. Especially in the areas of schedules involving meetings, practices, games, travel and game intineraries, weekends, treatment just to mention a few. Two, be organized and prepared. This includes in the areas of staff or player meetings, practice planning, game planning, upcoming meetings with a parent(s), to mention a few. In doing these items mentioned it will help to alleviate some of the issues that may arise into bigger ones if these details were overlooked. With today's technology and social media there are more avenues than ever to communicate many of the prior mentioned items. Three, expectations is another key ingredient when conveying exactly what it is you want to accomplish and how you will go about doing so. Communicating these to the staff, players, and parents allows them to paint a better image of the direction you are trying to take your program. All of these areas are crucial in building a culture that is conducive to success and allowing everyone to be made well aware and being on the same page.

The next item relates to the expectations and what you are trying to accomplish. This comes in the backbone of what your program stands behind. We would call them the "four pillars of success.” As I mentioned earlier you must have a blueprint of what you are trying to build. The following includes our core values: One, CHARACTER, which has several different spin offs or definitions but the easiest way to sum it up comes from a coach I worked for who stated, "do the right things when no one else is watching". This encompasses just about everything when it comes to your expectations of your program. No matter it be in the classroom, out in the community, or on the playing field. It is the staple or backbone of our program. You want to surround yourself with people of high character and be able to trust that they will do the right thing. In today's society and many temptations for our youth this is not easily accomplished. The second involves COMMITMENT. There are many different angles in the use of this word as well. What it boils down to is what are you willing to do daily to improve not only yourself, but all the others around you. How important is it to be 100% bought in to what we are trying to accomplish. The third involves ACCOUNTABILITY. During our trying times in society today for teenagers, this is another very sensitive issue. Times have changed where it very easy to pass the blame, point fingers, or make excuses. Rather, what we want is each and every student/athlete is to hold themselves accountable for their actions before they can ever expect to hold each other to this standard. The fourth and final value involves LEADERSHIP. Once again, this can be a very difficult thing to accomplish when it comes to

the fear of what your peers may think. Whether it be the debate of whether leaders are born or built it still boils down to one of the most important ingredients to whether you will have a successful program or not. In my years of experience and pinpointing one of the biggest factors from within the make-up of a successful versus unsuccessful team and program involves that of leadership. I am not solely speaking of the coaching staff but rather the individuals that comprise your team. If this characteristic is absent then what will be the result when the tough times hit whether it be in practice, game or in life. I truly believe that today's players take it more to heart when this comes from within rather than from always hearing from a coaches mouth. I strongly believe in these four pillars, and I wish I had been more organized and mature in believing and adhering to these when it came to many of those interviews I went through regardless if I were to get the job or not. I feel these need to be embedded in the minds of all those who are involved within your program. There are obviously many other traits or values that could be utilized in your programs, but these are four that I felt encompassed everything that were important ingredients to allow our athletes a chance to be successful not just now but in their futures as well.

In closing, I can only hope that to the young coach who is sitting out there wondering about how to advance their careers with the ultimate goal of someday becoming a head coach this gives them some sense of direction in how to go about it. I would like to thank all the coaches that I have had the privilege to work under and with over the course of my career in helping me to be a part of the greatest profession on earth for over the past 38 years. There is no more universal word that impacts so many lives than that of being called "Coach".

By Cassi Dunnam, Dumas Demons Coach's Wife Connect with Cassi on Instagram @CassiDunnam

You know who is just as invested as anyone during football season? A coach’s wife. I don’t care what colors you wear, or what team you cheer for…. In the big picture, we are in this crazy and wonderful life together. We should support each other and be able to talk about real feelings. This one is for you!

For all the days you didn’t know how you’d get your kids to all the places, but you did. How are you?

For all the times you dealt with unexpected issues by yourself. How are you?

For keeping up with all the chores. How are you?

For all the long trips you made by yourself to the middle of nowhere. How are you?

For the times you sat in the stands and heard people literally yell the most ridiculous BS at your husband and/or son. How are you?

For all the meal planning, grocery shopping and cooking all the meals not only for your family, but also your football family. How are you?

For the 90+ mornings you woke up alone.

How are you?

For the negative Facebook posts you read.

How are you?

For all the meals you ate by yourself. How are you?

For the dateless season. How are you?

For the nights you fell asleep crying worried about the team, your family, and felt the weight of the world on your shoulders. How are you?

For never hearing congrats on a great season, and thank you for your investment. How are you?

For all the love you have and give to your favorite team. How are you?