Coach Hall addressed the capacity crowd tonight at the Amvets Post #6. Some items of note:

Hall plans to start from the ground up for Youth Football league in grades 1-8. He says potential coaches are being screened now and he wants the best possible people around the kids. He is passionate about having all kids running the same system so it will be easier as they advance levels and make for one solid program. The 5-6 and 7-8 grade teams will be combined into four equal teams, with teams playing each other. He says it will make them more competitive, maximize participation and teach the right way to play. He encourages children in grades 1-4 to play flag football to work on fundamentals. Grades 5-8 should all be on the same practice field. He is also advocating an educational component, which will include a minimum of two study tables or tutoring sessions each week.

At the varsity level, the team will focus on lifting plyometrics and conditioning now through the end of June. This was prompted by the OHSAA reducing the number of instructional days (to seven) for the month of July. Hall would like to have one day each week where players all wear black shirts with "TEAM" written on them. He says a united team almost always beats a team with great individual athletes. Several players have already adopted this approach and have been seen wearing the shirts to conditioning and lifting sessions. A video was shown of the workouts and Hall says he expects some changes to be implemented as needed, especially in the area of plyometrics. He says turnout has been solid, attendance has been taken and the kids have been working very hard. Several assistants worked with the kids of the past few months in this area, including Partridge, Palma and Kovacs. Shawn Crable was also shown on video at one of the workouts.

Hall says his philosophy is, "Players, Formations, Plays." He says the key is play fundamental football and putting players in positions to be successful. On offense he will stress formations over plays. On both sides of the ball it will be dictated by personnel. He says he will only discuss playing time with parents or those directly involved with the athletes. But he says many players will learn and be worked out in two positions in an attempt to build depth. If possible a two-platoon system will be used. He encourages students to play multiple sports. He was a three-sport athlete and sees the benefits. Although a lifting class is available, he will encourage more athletes to participate in track in the spring.

Hall says he is an advocate of using technology to track tendencies and weaknesses of both his players and opponents. He compares football to a "chess match." He says the keys will lie in the ability to adjust during games and how to handle adversity. He says preparation and practice will accomplish more than yelling and screaming.

He is not ready to announce his full staff until they're approved by the Board of Education. However he says he's making a full effort to build from the ground-up at the youth level and feels people will be satisfied.


Some dates of note:

5/17-Various team members, coaches, boosters, etc. will be in the community selling fundraiser cards and Booster Club memberships.

5/24, 9 AM-The annual Lift-a-thon will be held.

7/19-A 7-on-7 will be held at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. Several teams have been invited to participate, including Brunswick & North Royalton.

July-A three-day team camp will be held at Mount Union College. Various team-building activities will be held.

The new coach is in place and we are all excited to see what Jason Hall will bring to our storied program. As we have mentioned before in our previous blogs we expected to see a change in the look of the Massillon Tiger Helmet for the 2008 season.