The Mental Aspect of Winning in the Trenches

All defensive line coaches have been embedded to believe that games are won and lost in the trenches. We would love to have that 6’ 8”, 290 lb. defensive end who runs a 4.5 40-yard dash and benches 500 lb. But for most of us that is not reality. As the old saying goes, “The game of football is 90% mental and 10% physical.” All coaches believe that the team that is most prepared will win the ball game. Here at Florida A&M University, we are fortunate to have a head coach, Rubin Carter, and Defensive Coordinator, Charles Huff, who emphasize the importance of covering all possible aspects of the game with our players. We feel there are five components to our “game week” mental preparation. They are 1) Scouting Report, 2) Offensive Line Evaluation Form, 3) Reminder Sheet, 4) Assignment Recognition, and 5) Skull Session. I. SCOUTING REPORT It all begins on Tuesday with our unit