USA Football recently continued its long-standing relationship with the Big Ten Conference by attending the conference’s 2023 Football Media Days held at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. The quotes in this story were produced from a series of one-on-one sit-down interviews with the head football coaches responsible for programs in the Big Ten.  

Since USA Football began certifying coaches, more than one million coach certifications have been completed by dedicated supporters of grassroots football in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and 15 foreign countries across six continents. USA Football’s accredited certification is a best-in-class resource to train coaches in football skill development, athlete health and safety and more.  

The Big Ten’s head football coaches are supporters of youth coaches completing certification to better understand how to teach their players age-appropriate skills and protect young athletes. Youth football is a significant mental, physical and social learning experience for kids. It's important the game is taught the right way to maximize those opportunities.  

“Having a son who has recently gone out into youth sports, there are times when I think that our youth coaches need almost more training than high school and college coaches. Their responsibility to keep young athletes healthy and bring them up in the sport is critically important.” 

– Ryan Day, Ohio State University 

“I think certification is key. I think it’s vital. If I send my kids somewhere, I want to know they are being taught the right things the right way from the right people, and that’s what certification allows.”  

– Matt Rhule, University of Nebraska 

“It’s critical for coaches to be certified to demonstrate a willingness to continue growing, educating themselves and learning new techniques that will put young athletes in a position to stay safe while growing the game … 

“I’m inspired and excited by how USA Football is rooted in teaching the game the right way because this game is unmatched when it’s done right.” 

– David Braun, Northwestern University 

“I think you need to be certified. Why? Because you're taught as a coach the correct way to do things fundamentally and from a technique perspective. Anytime you have a standard that is set, and you want to make sure people are meeting that standard, you can't assume things. Getting certified takes the assumption out, and you know that this individual coach has been appropriately instructed in how to best teach the game of football.” 

– Tom Allen, Indiana University 

“You’re trying to protect the young athletes. You’re trying to protect the game as well. When contact is involved, it’s magnified. Being able to have a certification system where the volunteer coaches and youth coaches can go through some training [is important]. There’s nothing more important than working with young people. To be able to have training and to be able to have a format that is easy to follow and easy to teach is really important.” 

– James Franklin, Penn State University 

“There are a lot of people that are youth coaches who haven’t played the game. There are proud parents that want to get involved to be around their son or daughter. It’s important that they have a background and basis to make sure they’re doing things the right way.” 

– Bret Bielema, University of Illinois 

“Parents have an incredible impact on their kids. Obviously, they only want the best for their own. When they recognize the care, expertise and training a coach has, they feel much more comfortable ... Coaches need to be able to communicate with parents so they recognize and understand that it’s not just about playing time and winning or losing at a young age. It’s about the development of so many things in our sport so that we keep many of these young kids in the sport as they grow.” 

– Luke Fickell, University of Wisconsin