Excitement is a powerful force.  It can fuel a program, and drive it to new heights.  Excitement is what draws people in, and keeps them around.  We make building and maintain excitement in our football program one of our highest priorities.

Football has been under the microscope for a few years. In some areas, the excitement took a hit. The work USA Football has put into safety and education has not only solidified the game, but bolstered it as well. We are a small southern Minnesota community in the shadows of the Mayo Clinic. We have a high school football team that is one of the smaller 4A squads (6A is the highest classification) in the state. In order for us to be successful at the high school level, we need the excitement in our football community to keep as many people involved as possible and have good numbers in our program at all levels. This starts at our youth level.

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Since we instituted the USA Football Heads Up Football program four years ago, our numbers have increased every year.  This is great, but since we don’t rest on our laurels, we strive to keep football at least a part of our community’s mind throughout the offseason. 

Here is what we do in the offseason that keeps football in the forefront and events that keep excitement in our youth program.

1. Coaches clinics.  We conduct a youth coaches’ clinic at our high school. A Saturday is set and all the present and future youth and middle school coaches are invited and encouraged to attend a clinic presented by our high school coaches. We have different segments, which include a leadership seminar. The youth coaches play such a vital role, so we want to give them all the tools possible. We will talk on some of the basics of our offense and defense. It is important to have continuity from the varsity team down through the youth program. We also provide lunch for all the coaches as we try to build a bond with every coach in the system. 

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We also welcome these coaches to attend any other coaches’ clinics that the high school staff does. Although many clinics do not cater to the youth programs, there are always some topics on youth that will benefit these coaches in their craft.

2. Recruiting days. Recruiting sounds like a bad word in youth football, but this is just the opposite. We try to emulate a high school kid on a recruiting trip for our eighth-graders. We have a meeting for all who are interested in possibly playing football next fall. We will speak about our program, show them the facilities and a highlight video from a previous season. We want to make all of the kids who may want to play feel welcome and part of the football family.

3. Spring passing league. For any of you who have followed my blog, you may remember that as the offensive coordinator of our high school team, we run a very run-orientated offense, the flexbone triple option. A passing league may not seem like it should be a top priority. However, the opposite is true. At the high school level, it gives us time to work on things we don’t always have time to do. At the youth level, we get the opportunity to provide these young athletes with five Sundays of touch football where they can get coached by some of their favorite high school football players and have fun in a non-contact game. There are no practices, just five games. This format is set up to develop some skill, but most of all, have fun playing the greatest game on earth.

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4. Youth football camp.  This is another great way to get out message out to our youth. We run a football camp in the summer, typically a few weeks before the high school camp opens.  This takes place at the same time our youth registration is open, and hopefully drives some of the players who are on the fence about participating to join our program. The main goal of the camp is to be fun and make sure every kid has a great experience. The high school coaches and players work with the youth athletes in different stations honing their skill and finish each day with fun competitions. The camp and the passing league provide shirts, so kids are always wearing our gear. 

5. Moms clinic.  There is no one of more importance in our community than that of the football moms. Moms are oftentimes provide the final verdict on if the children play football. We want to make them feel part of the program. Our clinic will cover the Heads Up Football safety program we follow. We will familiarize them with all the components, such as equipment fitting, heat and hydration preparedness, emergency response and concussion recognition. We want them to know that even though there are some inherent risks of any sport, the benefits of football outweigh those risks. We also do an actual shoulder tackle station where the moms get to do some of the same drills their children will do. We are big on recruiting our moms to be the Player Safety Coaches for their respective teams.

Football is an exciting game, and excitement builds and sustains programs. Try some of the ways we use to keep excitement infused in your programs. If you have any other ways that keep your players wanting to come back and always looking forward to playing football, let us know. Good luck to your offseason endeavors.

Terry Donovan is a Master Trainer for USA Football’s Heads Up Football program. He is the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for Kasson-Mantorville High School in Kasson, Minnesota. He has coached with the U.S. National Team Program. He is also a youth coach and Director of Youth Development in the Kasson-Mantorville Youth Football Association.