Keeping score at practice suggests an emphasis on instantaneous feedback

by Joel Hollingsworth on Mar 24, 2009 9:31 AM EDT in Tennessee Volunteer Football

Much of what Lane Kiffin is doing this spring is simply readjusting the collective attitude of the players. We've mentioned this before, but it bears repeating: the Kiffin Chimera is keeping score at practice.

This is certainly good news, and maybe for more reasons than you might think. Yeah, it makes the practices more competitive. Sure, it motivates players to practice well from the first whistle to the shower.

But an added benefit that hadn't occurred to me until now is that it provides instant feedback to players. How many times in prior seasons were we told that the coaches would have to wait and see the tape before coming to any conclusions about a player or a game? How many times do you think the players were told that as well? There is some prudence in that philosophy -- you don't want to misjudge anyone, and video provides a better vantage point -- but I'm guessing that the emphasis on waiting also wasted days at a time.

I'm assuming a player would have been brought into a post-game or -practice meeting, made to watch the tape, and then receive his feedback while sitting there in street clothes when there's nothing he could really do about it except nod and say, "Yes, sir." He was probably given a list of things to do better next time, which he may or may not have remembered.

With the instant feedback approach, though, I'm assuming he has a coach in his earhole correcting him as he goes, and he's given an opportunity to correct mistakes right then, right there. And if he did something else wrong, he could correct that on the very next play.

Sure, the former regime was likely providing some immediate feedback during practice, but the emphasis really seemed to be on what they could learn from the post-practice video. And sure, there is a danger that a coach might miss something or see something incorrectly and therefore give some incorrect coaching. But even that could be corrected on the next play.

If a player has to wait to get the majority of his feedback until after practice, he can't correct it until the next practice. Or next game. Or the game or season after that.

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There are a lot of good things that practice scoring can accomplish.

Like you noted, it gives immediate feedback. Not only does that allow for some process improvement in the middle of the practice, it gives the players information on the actions that are freshest in their minds. It’s a lot easier to build up the correct muscle memories and mental routines when you’re not digging into the long-term memory banks to remember the things you’re trying to correct.

It also translates performance into a quantified result, which is the ultimate goal of football (and most sports) anyhow. When handled properly, practice scores reinforce the notion that every action on the field (and many off the field!) have an influence on the scoreboard. Working just a little bit harder or getting that technique down just a little bit better might be the difference between winning or losing the “score” for a given play/drive/whatevs.

It can also help the coaches judge performance. By translating the actions of a player into a perceived contribution to a final score, it can be easier to see how much of an impact a player has had on the game.

And it just seems to be helping the players work harder, which is always a good thing.

by David Hooper on Mar 24, 2009 10:19 AM EDT reply actions

that made absolutely no sense

Jealousy is the thread that holds TET threads together!

by The Voice of Reason on Mar 24, 2009 12:08 PM EDT up reply actions

Explain how that made no sense?

Was it too long and you didnt read? Or not comprehensible? Because it made perfect sense to me.

now with less meyton panning.

by Pride of the Southland on Mar 24, 2009 2:07 PM EDT up reply actions

too many multisyllable words?

The Dual Threat, Official Enforcer/Stat Geek of MCM.

by hal41605 on Mar 24, 2009 5:12 PM EDT up reply actions

MONEY!

Excellent observations, Joel!

by Aerobab on Mar 24, 2009 10:19 AM EDT reply actions

Tangent:

Are you going to the O&W?

by David Hooper on Mar 24, 2009 10:20 AM EDT up reply actions

Possibly

I graduate from a training school on 4/17 and will be passing through Knoxville on the 18th. If you’re going to try to organize another shindig, I’ll most likely attend that. As for the game itself…still unsure.

by Aerobab on Mar 24, 2009 5:47 PM EDT up reply actions

All I took from this is that the Offense is 0 - 3

Just kidding, but seriously, I hope they win one soon.

now with less meyton panning.

by Pride of the Southland on Mar 24, 2009 10:23 AM EDT reply actions

If the offense goes 0-15 this spring

A. Would you really be surprised?
B. Would they actually admit that to the media?

by Will Shelton on Mar 24, 2009 10:30 AM EDT up reply actions

My answers:

A. No

B. Yes

That having been said, I don’t see 0-15 as an indictment against the offense necessarily. Defense almost always pick up new systems faster than offenses; even with a simpler offense than last year, it will take them more time to build up the coordination they need.

And I can’t see this coaching staff not being honest about the results. They seem to be stopping short of posting the playbook in Wikipedia, but they’re as media-happy as I’ve ever seen.

by David Hooper on Mar 24, 2009 10:42 AM EDT up reply actions

A: No, not with Berry and the T2.
B: Maybe, so far Kiffin has been pretty honest with the performance of not only the team as a whole but what we lack at offense. If he did admit to it, there would probably be some caveat to mitigate it, as in they put up a good fight, fought a lot of close ones against a really good defense, and something about how we’ll be surprised come season opener at their progress.

now with less meyton panning.

by Pride of the Southland on Mar 24, 2009 10:45 AM EDT up reply actions

I must have missed something....

Whats the T2?

by jimvols on Mar 24, 2009 2:30 PM EDT up reply actions

Tampa 2 defensive scheme

now with less meyton panning.

by Pride of the Southland on Mar 24, 2009 2:35 PM EDT up reply actions

It belongs to us now.

(T)ampa 2; (T)ennessee 2… —> T2!

by David Hooper on Mar 24, 2009 2:44 PM EDT up reply actions

gotcha

Speaking of the T2 and Monte, I saw Monte at the Waffle House around 2 in the afternoon the Saturday after the open practice at Neyland Stadium. I was too starstruck to go up and say anything to him (also I didn’t want to bother him although now I regret not saying anything) but my friends and I did manage to get the booth next to his and I snapped a couple pictures of him on my cellphone! (And no I’m not a weird stalker or anything). He is a badass though, conversed with the cooks and the cashier. Go Monte and Go Vols!

by jimvols on Mar 24, 2009 3:06 PM EDT up reply actions

Fair enough. T2 officially now the Tennesse 2.

Ha!

now with less meyton panning.

by Pride of the Southland on Mar 24, 2009 3:54 PM EDT up reply actions

It's interesting to me because

Last year they structured the Orange and White Game to produce confidence in the offense, both for the players and the fanbase, I guess. It would be interesting to see how this staff handles that situation if the defense continues to routinely dominate spring practice, and if confidence is an issue there again. Offense sells tickets, and if the O &W is something ends with something like a 7-6 final score, the ratio of “Our defense is awesome” to “Our offense is still horrible!” won’t be good.

But I expect Kiffin/SuperStaff to continue to be direct and up front, whatever the product looks like in four weeks.

by Will Shelton on Mar 24, 2009 11:06 AM EDT up reply actions

No surprise for me

Considering that we should have one of the top 5 secondaries, if not the best. If our offense had simply not played to not lose, that would’ve been the difference in 2-3 wins last season. This doesn’t surprise me at all, nor does it worry me.

Wanna hear some music?

by samhitch on Mar 24, 2009 11:15 PM EDT up reply actions