Written by:
4/30/2009 7:55 PM 

Here's a message from the Down Set Hike Camp Director, Mike Beaver...

Welcome to 09 Football Season!!

My name is Mike Beaver and I’m one of the 12 year old CFA football coaches.  I’m in charge of a football camp called Down Set hike.  It’s part of a non-profit organization. The camp is not owned by the CFA but, if the camp is profitable, the proceeds go to the benefit of the CFA and it’s teams. Last year we were able to donate $2000.00 to the CFA.  You can go to www.downsethike.com to register. The dates are June 1st-4th for the general camp and June 8th-11th for the position specific camp. The location is Rockwood Valley Middle School off of 109.  The time is 9-12 in the morning.

I’m very passionate about teaching young kids sports.  One of the keys to reestablishing football in West County is developing passion for the game with young players.  When I was a kid all the youth sports started when I was 7.  Now days Soccer and Baseball start at age 5.  It’s important to help teach youth players the keys to success at football.  The challenge is most fathers and coaches football memories are when they played in high school, college, or watching pro and college football on T.V.  Teaching a youth football player and a high school football player is very different.  Most of the camps and training materials you’ll find are designed for older players. 

When we started the CFA I recognized the need to help teach youth football players keys to success.  When a youth player enjoys some success they tend to build confidence, have fun, and tap into their potential.  When a youth player is confused, experiences failure, they don’t have fun and usually don’t enjoy the sport. 

For many of you this will be your sons first year at football.  They may be a good athlete in other sports and your assumption is they will be one of the best kids on the team.  Football is very different.  Any of the coaches can give you examples of kids who are great athletes not taking to the game. 

One of the biggest myths about youth football is when someone tells you that you can’t teach a kid to be physical.  They either have the instinct or they don’t.   With young players that is not always true.  Many times the youth player will tell you what they think you want to hear when the reality is they have no idea what you are talking about.  When a player is confused it leads to passive or hesitant play because they don’t want to make a mistake.

Here is what your son will be faced with this fall:

- Practice starts Wednesday, August 1st.
- The average team will have a total of 11 practices before the first practice game.  They will have a total of 20 practices before the first regular season game.
- They will be practicing in 90-100 degree heat while learning.
- They will assume football is what they play in the backyard.
- They will be wearing pads and getting hit.
- They will have coaches trying to get eleven 8 year olds to start at the same time on a play and have all of them do what they are supposed to do.
- The kids will be faced with learning where to go on plays, new terms, and new fundamentals.
- All this time other kids will be hitting them.

All of these variables will cause kids to be confused.  When kids are confused they get hesitant or passive because they don’t want to make a mistake.  This actually causes mistakes which can embarrass them and cause them to lose confidence. 

Most coaches make up their starting lineups by the end of the second week of practice.  If you can help get a player comfortable before those first two weeks, he will have a more productive pre-season. 

The twenty practices before the first game make up almost half the practices for the entire season. 

I’ve found there are some simple keys to success at the youth level in football.  If you have a son who is willing to fire out low and hard from his stance for two steps and be willing to make contact, he will have success on the football field. 

With all this in mind I developed a football camp to teach CFA players.  The camp is open to the public, but I don’t really market it and 98% of the attendees are CFA players. 

At this age it is critical to make it fun, and keep them moving.  We design the camp for ten minute segments on fundamentals combined with contests and flag football for fun. 

In the general camp we concentrate on three critical fundamentals.  Proper stance, proper blocking technique, proper tackling technique, and developing a passion for the game are the foundation for success with a youth football player.  If they learn those three fundamentals quickly, they will have a great fall.

The method we use is a progression teaching method.  The key thing with young players is to get them comfortable before they hit.  We will break each of the key fundamentals down into pieces. We teach each component.  We then walk them through the technique.  We then work backwards.  The final step is to go full speed on dummies.

We take the same approach in the position specific camp except we work on the core fundamentals required for that position. 
 
Good luck in football this year and I hope you have a great season.

To register for the camps, please visit http://www.downsethike.com/campregistration.html

Thanks,

Mike Beaver
mike@downsethike.com
636-795-9521
www.downsethike.com

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