When Locust Grove (Okla.) head coach Matt Hennesy meets with the coaches of his youth football feeder programs, his message is clear.

The U.S. National Team coach and Regional Development Camp director establishes two simple goals for the coaches who will be laying the foundation for his future high school football players: having fun and learning fundamentals.

“The first job and the most important job is teaching a love of the game,” Hennesy said. “I want your kids having a great time and having fun and loving football. The second thing is teaching fundamentals along the way.”

Hennesy, a recent guest on the USA Football Coach and Coordinator podcast, is not concerned with the sorts of things that a coach at the high school level might worry about.

He believes the critical aspects of a positive youth football experience are having fun and learning the basics.

“I don’t care what offense you run. I don’t care what defense you run. I don’t care how many games you win. I don’t care what the score of your game is,” he said. “I just want to make sure these kids are having fun.”

Hennesy said that youth coaches enjoy being able to look at a successful high school football player and reminisce about having the opportunity to coach that player in youth football.

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But he thinks that youth football coaches should also consider the players they coach that never move on to that level because they don’t have a positive youth football experience.

“How many (coaches) are willing to sit there and watch the big 6-4, 220-pound tuba player and say ‘Oh yeah, the reason he’s in the band is because I ran him off when he was in fourth grade?’” Hennesy said.

Listen to the full episode of the USA Football Coach and Coordinator podcast here.