Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Using a Games Based Approach and Bench Depth

Using a games based approach over the last few years has given us an advantage that I really didn't even consider until recently. A coaching friend made a comment to me that he had not seen many teams who could sub the way we did and still be successful. With our team we play all 13 guys and many times play them almost equally without much drop off. I have to admit a big part of it is I am completely spoiled by having a really, really darn good group. But I also believe that taking a games based approach to practice helps to build that depth over the course of the season. We've had a lot of different guys step up in a lot of different situations and I think that some of that can be attributed to our practice structure.

I believe that it's a key because you've created an environment where every player is constantly playing in game situations. No one is stuck doing a "dummy offense or defense", everyone is constantly working on their skills and abilities to function in a game setting. Player are always competing for wins and losses at a high level and that carries over when it's game time. I believe our players are less "game shocked" when they finally get in because they have spent many hours competing and playing in practice already. Just one more reason that I really like a games based approach.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

I agree with you 100%. We have had the same kind of experience since using SSGs in practice. And it's true even if you second group isn't as good. They get far more reps to get better than they would in other types of practices.