Building Football Relationships with Asst. Head Coach Lamar Univ. Coby Gipson
45 min readBuilding Football Relationships with Asst. Head Coach Lamar Univ. Coby Gipson with Coach Schuman and Coach Depascale
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Coach H here we're back we got a great Episode today with Coach Kobe Gibson From Lamar University uh FCS program uh on the rise He's the assistant head coach there Coach has been obviously as a lot of uh College coaches have been some different Places he was uh high school wise he at Bishop Gorman for a while where he Coached ton of division one kids um you Know really moved up in the ranks and And has really grown uh as a coach and He's assistant head coach there at Lamar Um really starting to build the Foundation there and you know he's been At East East Baptist University he's Been at um uh East Tennessee B A Baptist Um you know he's really been in a lot of Places East Texas Baptist I said Tennessee East Texas Baptist University Um he's been a Grace Community so Coaching really really uh and he's Coached a lot of different positions as Well and I think you know that's that's The uh uh the fortitude and perseverance You needing coaching to really fight Through it in college coaching and now He's the assistant head coach um really A fast rising coach within the industry Let's bring on Coach Kobe Gibson coach What's going on all good morning guys Appreciate you having me on appreciate You coming on Coach we know it's a busy Season so I appreciate you taking the
Time absolutely nothing more nothing Better to talk about than uh this great Game of football and building Relationships and what it can do in a in A young man's life absolutely yeah and That's you know that that's been I went Through a lot of your Twitter and stuff And that's that's a big theme with you From from a coaching standpoint um I Touched a little bit on your background If you could go a little bit more in in Depth on your coaching background your Journey and then and then we'll roll Sure um really my first uh full-time Coaching job was uh at Grace Community And I met a guy there named Mike Maddox That uh had just started the program There so that was that was a startup Program and uh that would will continue A trend throughout my career of um you Know programs that I've been to have Either been in a situation where you Need to put a foundation down or you Needed to tear down what was already Built on a on a foundation and rebuild Um that's what I I've really enjoyed Doing uh throughout my my career so far So Grace Community I was there for six Years I was the offensive coordinator There really moved AC cross town to the Cross town rival U Bishop Gorman after That where I was the head coach for five Years and gained some really really Valuable experience there and two really
Great communities and uh at that time I I could probably still be there doing That and really enjoying that but I just Had a really uh burning drive to be a College football coach and uh my wife And I we sat down probably a couple Years two or three years before I went To Howard Payne and we're just like if This is an opport opportunity that uh Needs to present itself we would really Enjoy that and uh if not we're just Going to be where our feet are and Continue plugging along and uh braxon Harris called me when he got the job at Howard Payne and he's now the head coach At Campbell University and asked me to Come be his offensive coordinator Assistant head coach and um what a what A move that was and uh very positive There and then moved on to my first Recruiting coordinator job at East Texas Baptist and I really learned a lot there And uh I've been able to work for some Really really good head coaches that Really invested in me uh as a young Coach and even as a middle- ag coach I Guess so um for me that was uh a great Beginning to my college football career At those two spots and then I've been at Lamar since uh 2020 and seen a lot here Learned a lot here grown a lot here had Some great experiences here built some Really good relationships and uh now I'm The receivers coach I'm the recruiting
Coordinator and I'm the assistant head Coach so um we've really enjoyed our Time in Bowmont Texas Yeah and and bont Texas is East Texas Correct that's y Southeast Texas right Right right exactly and and the head Coach there is is that is that Pete Rosamond it is Pete Rosamond he came uh This will be his second season coming up Okay yeah so he he I think he's an East Coast guy Northeast guy originally right Um I I he was remember where he was head Coach before I want to say it was Somewhere in the Northeast uh yeah he He's actually from Long Island New York And he's maybe New Haven he's been he's He was at at Albany OH Aly Y and I think University of New Haven before that yep Okay now yeah yeah y was a Ruckers maybe For a while or he was at Ruckers and uh Coach there and then I believe he was at Central Connecticut state where he Really uh turned that program around Yeah yes yes that's right he was in the Northeast conference in Central Connecticut state that's right and and He probably brought uh that's probably How he got will Fleming over there too To to Lamar from uh because I think he Was at Rhode Island or something like That for for a while um yes yeah yeah so That that's that's really interesting so Um East Texas uh which is just to for For people to to be familiar on on on
The podcast East Texas a Southeast Texas Southwest wait Southeast Texas Southeast Yep yeah Southeast Texas is on his way Towards Louisiana right on the way Towards like uh weport and um um uh and And and so the difference in in where Everything is like where people are Familiar from a Texas standpoint um you Know that's that the old Fame Tyler Texas is East Texas and from a high School standpoint but there's lots and Lots of space in between so talk about Um you know what what the Texas football Landscape is white like because it was Just a question I had the other day you Know wow there's a lot of great football Players in Texas yeah yes and there's a Lot of schools for them to play in in Texas and the answer is yes there is a Lot of places for them to be able to go Um talk about the landscape of Texas College football you know um as far as Texas college football and where we are Like you talked about being really close To the Louisiana border in East Texas um I saw a graphic the other day in Dave Campbell's Texas football magazine where 332 FBS players came out of the state of Texas and that was number one in the Country and the Really the hot beds Spots of being Dallas Houston East Texas On into Central Texas Austin San Antonio And so we are in a really great spot Because there is not a long drive to get
To a lot of really good players and so Uh so for us uh it's it's a great Recruiting ground we can be a regional Recruiting School maximize our resources And really play in a Regional Conference Which we really like where families can Be with us every Saturday uh there's not Really a long drive there's not really a Two-day trip for a conference game and So in the Southland Conference where we Are we feel like it's it's a great Regional division one conference with Great matchups every Saturday uh and We're right in a recruiting hotbed uh Where these coaches are are are coaching These kids really well they're really Developing their players uh 12 months a Year essentially and so football is Really important here and uh for some Kids in uh in the area that I recruit Specifically East Texas football is what Has allowed them to get a high school Diploma and so and kept him off the Streets and kept him making good Decisions and so with football being so Important more than just the scoreboard Um this is a really great place to build A program because they understand what The impact is and we have great High School coaches uh that that prepare them In a way that they can handle college Football Dave Campbell's book uh his Magazine is the going back to when I was A kid it was the like the first magazine
I couldn't believe that a I'm sure most Of it's digital now but Uh I couldn't believe that a magazine Could have an indepth analysis of every Single high school program in the state And from from a recruiter standpoint Obviously you open up that magazine and And uh you literally have a listing of Every single player because he's Breaking down every single School the Whole entire state it was amazing it was It's it's one of the things that I Always thought I we used to order it When I was in high school and I mean Maybe when was in Middle School just so I could read through all the I'm from New Jersey just from what so I could Read through all the different Texas Players it was it was such an amazing Amazing thing um and to this day Obviously it's it's now been bought up By bigger companies but um it's it's an It's an amazing thing the way they cover Texas football um T talk about kind of Your journey so you you talked about how You were at Bishop Gorman which Everybody knows Bishop Gorman in you Know in uh in in high school football Landscape Um and the transition from going from a High school really to University what What was that transition like for you And your family as a coach and and what Were some of the things that you really
Had to get up to speed on yeah some of It was really tough and some of it was Uh really really positive as far as that Goes um you know it is it is different For a family when you go from um you Know we had games every Thursday night We had games on Friday night in football I coached the second sport I was also The head track coach um and so that took Up two nights a week in the spring and I Also taught American history which I Love American history and I love Teaching but that was just still Something else on my plate um so as far As that goes uh and I ran out our summer Strength and conditioning program I was The director of strength and Conditioning there as well so um so the First time I ever had a spring break was When I was a college football coach and So that was different and that was that Uh you know really it's allowed us to Have more family time my wife and I have Three children two two young boys and Then a teenage girl and so that aspect Has been really good and so you know Every Thursday night as a high school Football coach you're your football Marathon and uh love that love being Part of the younger kids's life but as a College football coach you get Thursday Nights with your family and so uh those Things have been have been really nice You know you have to adjust the
Recruiting side of it I'm going to be Gone eight weeks a year um you know Looking to find players and build our Program and um fortunately for me I have A wife and a family that's very Understanding of that and uh they know That that is the lifeblood of what our Program is and so yeah those eight weeks Are going to be tough but it it's just It but it's different because it's Allowed us more other opportunities uh For our for our family to grow and to to Have experiences together so yeah there Was an adjustment period uh but the Recruiting side of it specifically was Really the draw in the first place so we Kind of knew what that meant um we had Sent some players to college in the Programs that I'd been in and just felt Like there was a way maybe to do things Uh relationally where um a player could Really still feel their value as a Person and as a player at the college Level and maybe had some players that Didn't quite experience that when they Did go to the next level so um it it's Been a great move we really enjoyed it And uh you know it's just again be where Your feet are and it can be an amazing EXP experience wherever you are whether You're coaching seventh grade football Uh Southland Conference football in the NFL you coaching's coaching and uh There's people people that need you that
Need you in their life a absolutely and And you guys play a pretty good schedule There you know you got you got some Really good teams on the schedule some Some traditional Powerhouse teams you Know the old the old MCN and Stephen F Awon Central Arkansas and um you know South Eastern Louisiana I mean there There's a there's a a gauntlet of Different School you're playing in Division one team in Texas state in in In the first game um talk talk about What you know you said recruiting was The big big allore for you talk about What what gets you so excited and what You Joy most about recruiting because You always hear in coaches you know There are coaches that love recruiting And there coaches that that want to Coach coach the kids like that as their Only thing there're guys that love both Right talk about what it is for you yeah For me it's this it's uh a kid young man Has put in a lot of work a lot of his Time in high school has been spent being Developed as an athlete being developed As a student and then they come to love And respect this game of football well For most players that are entering their Senior year of high school for 90% 94% To be exact players that are entering Their senior year of high school they're Going into their last year to ever do This and so for me it's not like
Basketball or baseball and I I love Baseball I was a baseball player growing Up and I love basketball I love all Sports but you can you can be in a wck League and still play basketball you can Be you can go play baseball you cannot Just put on the pads and go play Football once it's over when it's over It's over so being able to sit down on a Couch in a in a living room with a young Man and his family who aren't quite sure Of his next spot or his next destination Or his next move they've always got kind Of know what grade is next now I'm going To go to 10th grade now I'm going to go To 11th grade I'm going to go to TW and Out here there's like what am I going to Do next year so you know no matter the Level it is always a rewarding Experience to offer a young man a chance To play football at the next level Because so few do it and they've been Dreaming about doing that for a long Long time so having that conversation is A really rewarding thing when you can Say yes you are going to get to play the Sport you love another four years All right and then obviously moving to Lamar where you can say and we are going To pay for your T tuition fees room and Board and you see uh the emotion that is That that generates because they go from Not knowing how we're going to pay for This or even if you can go to college to
Football has paved way for you to create Value in your life for another four or Five years that is an awesome Conversation and that fires me up and That gets me up in the morning gets me Going to go find the next best fit for Lamar University and to be able to bring Someone in that can have a life-changing Experience on and off the Field yeah that's a great point that you Brought up you know football obviously Is not something that's given beyond Beyond High School in the overwhelming Vast majority 95% of them don't ever get A chance to go on the ones that do it's Really you're really in a elite player And and Derek talks about this all the Time right no matter what the level is To be able to get an opportunity and Obviously to be able get a scholarship Uh to place like Lamar makes makes a Huge difference talk talk about how um The transfer portal you know I see you Guys have you know some guys that that Have come from other places you know on Your roster talk talk about how your Recruiting mix goes from that standpoint Between transfer Porter and high school Players and we just saw that there's you Know the NCA is going to add you know uh 100 to go up to 105 105 yeah Yeah so um uh and so that's really Interesting talk talk about though the Mix of what you guys have you transport
On high school kids kind of how you guys Approach it yeah okay and so in the last Cycle here and here I would tell every Single high school coach that I've been In their office and every single high School player this is you need to know The ratio of high school to transfer Players especially in this whole Camp Season this whole Camp thing has a Bown Up right so everybody everybody that Comes into that high school is gon like Come to Camp come to Camp come to camp We are no different we are big Believers In Camp we are big Believers that what You can see some of the layers you can Peel back by being on the field with a Young man can reveal a lot about him and Whether he's a good fit or not for the School so if I'm going to pay gas money To drive somewhere or I'm going to go Spend an afternoon then I have a cost For going to the camp whether that's the Entry fee the time spent food on the Road whatever it is so we want to really Educate our student athletes that when You are doing that you better do your Research and you better have some Statistics to prove this is a great use Of my time so last year we signed 21 High School football players one of the Tops in the state of Texas all right we Signed seven transfers so we are a three To one high school to transfer Recruiting team and that is something
That every player every parent every High School coach needs to know before They arrange a summer schedule or a fall Game day visit schedule or just when They're talking about where are my real OPP opportunities because we all know There's a lot of offers out there that They can pick up the phone and they're Going to be told n well we're smoking so Um so for us it's about educating those Student athletes and about being Committed to the high school recruiting Process we are a recruit a re-recruit And developmental team and I hate to I Hate to use the word retain retain just Means I feel like retain just means see If you can hold on to them uh I like the Term re-recruit I mean my energy when They enter the building as a player Should be the same as my energy when They enter the building as a recruit and If I can't get that done then I need to Go sell insurance and so for for me that Is where the whole the whole thing is is About uh developing players making sure They understand before they make Decisions as a as a high schooler where The college are that are offering still Offering scholarships to high school Football players so we're a three to one High school to transfer recruiting team Right now and let me ask you a question Is is that because are you CU that's Obviously you know as we can see this
Whole transfer portal process you know We see guys and and we've talked to a Bunch of coaches and it's hey you know We're not recruiting as many high school Guys anymore it's mainly a lot of Transfers and whatnot is is it because Your geographic location of some of Those top high school players that You're a three to1 Ratio or is that just The staff mentality I think that's I Think it's a combination of both yes we I mean we have access to a lot of high School players that are really good good Football players and really good people And so we've enjoyed that aspect of it I Think we are uh reaping some of the Fruits of our labor and our plan oh yeah Um and so you know we we had and I I'm Not saying this as in oh look how great Our players are and how good we're going To be I'm not saying that we had 12 Players on the preseason Southland All Conference Team eight of those 12 were High school freshmen two of the others Are going to exhaust all their Eligibility with us and we had two Junior College transfers so uh so so two Portal transfers two Junior College Transfers eight high school players of Our 12 preseason allconference players Um so I think there is a I think there's A lot of fruit out there in in high School recruiting um I think there's a I Think the portal can be really good I
Don't I don't see the portal as negative I see the portal as being able to give a Fresh start to someone who needs it Maybe they don't fit the scheme of a new Coach uh maybe a family Dynamic has Changed they need to get closer to home Uh maybe they just uh need a fresh start For whatever the reason is and I think As long as you vet the the the player And you do your background work then you Can find good fits in the transfer Portal because if you lose someone that Has experience then chances are you need To bring someone in that has some College experience and we've been able To do that Strategically and Lamar is a public University right so for yes sir so for Tech to Texas players oh yeah that's That's a smart move that's an in state Universal so that those relationships Really um are are are really valuable Talk about how and and you and you Touched upon it and I hav run a lot of Camps in Texas you know and seeing what The high school facilities are like They're they're Second To None uh Especially at the big schools um Texas Football what is it that they do in Texas to develop Players um that is really really unique That makes it a situation where you Could continue to grab high school Players and know that they're going to
Be able to come in and do the job and be Ready to go uh you know you mentioned That like the the facilities all right And there's especially at the uh upper Echelon of of high school football in Terms of school size and resources you Can walk into some great facilities like Uh football stadium weight room setup Indoor stadiums and some of those Schools have it in actuality the Percentage of those that have those that You see pictures of on Twitter uh when You take into consideration all the Schools in Texas it's probably a pretty Low percentage still really high Compared to other states but still Pretty low but what Texas has done that Is really really good is to me they have Taken care of coaches which allows Coaches to coach High School football at A full-time level be there in the Hallways with their players every day And then they've given them the athletic Period And so with the athletic block They have at school they have an hour to And a half hour and a half daily all Year long to invest in the physical Development of these student athletes And most of the coaches I know uh in Texas have really done a great job of Promoting multisport athletes with a Foundation of strength and conditioning Development in the athletic block so These kids are being developed where
They can play and recover and they can Continue to gain strength continue to Maximize their speed and and Explosiveness and to me uh what that has Done with the multiport approach and the Strength conditioning approach it has Really been able to max out the Potential of the athletes in the school Because now you have a guy that maybe Basketball is his number one sport but He knows his buddy whose football is his Number one sport is going to go help him On the basketball court so he's goingon To go help him on the football field and Really from the 4A 3A 2A 1A level that Is that is uh Priceless to have that Type of setup in Texas High schools have Done a really good job of doing that Yeah we talk about it all the time too Like I mean you look at you know here in You know if we're in you know talking Our Northeast Corridor you know coaches Have so many other things on their plate Right and it's you know you like you Said you know you were coaching track You're teaching you know subjects and Whatnot and that stuff all matters here Where you know football is kind of like Oh oh you know well you know it's kind Of just like a hobby or something else That you can add on for a stip in Position in terms of you know gaining That extra income you know from being a Teacher um but we talk about it all the
Time if you want to be a true High School football coach you know you go to Texas where like you said the they're Allotted extra time to put into those Student athletes in order to make you Know them reach their full potential no Question it's just something that we Always battle back and forth with in Terms of you know I mean how many times Do you see the football coach who's you Know he's coaching another he's coaching A winter sport coaching a summer sport But at the or a Spring sport and at the Same time he's got to handle all of that Other recruiting stuff that goes along With his football team you know I just Think that with the way so many so many More things have now been added on to You know a head football coaches uh Plate you know for him to not be allowed That time is just doing such a Disservice where you know even and we Also see a lot now like your assistant Coaches here they may not be in the Building right they may be doing Something else and you know you can't Give them the responsibilities that Another assistant coach in the building You know and then just the kids in General like they want to see their Football coach out there doing more for Them you know and investing in them the Same with the parents it it's just we Talk about it all the time it's just
Such a disservice I wish there was Something to be done I hope that moving Forward we can all kind of look at Texas High school football and say hey this is A model that we need to kind of follow In terms of whatever but you know I Think that's also something that's you Know we're wishing for and hoping it Happens but I don't Yeah I mean you you go to the smallest Schools of Texas and the football coach Is the football coach rarely will they Have any other responsibilities you move Up higher in level and you're going to Start getting head coaches and Coordinators maybe even a special teams Coordinator maybe even a recruiting Coordinator that is out of the classroom And but they're there all day long and So that that really allows you to Develop your program yeah and build Relationships right because you Absolutely that's just relationship with The players right like now you can build Those relationship with those college Coaches that are calling on the regular Or a strength guy it allows you to go You know uh just further your you know You can go to football clinics you can Go to strength and conditioning clinics You can get out there and do other Things that now you can bring back to Your program to just kind of improve it You know
Absolutely uh as as far as like what you Guys how you kind of approach camp and How you guys approach your season uh how Do you guys structure because things Have changed so much over the years with Respect to coming into camp and what you What you do versus you know 20 years ago Um H what is LaMar's approach to camp And how how do you guys uh um put them Through it and and what's the approach Through Camp as opposed to a recruiting Camp or like a fall Camp Fall Camp full Camp when when your players come back on Campus right um so you know to me that's Just the most crucial three-week period Uh of the entire season and to to me it Is it's where Yes it's about spending time together Yes it's about getting better at Football but ultimately it's about Building your team and so there's no Other time of the year that they're Going to be able to spend as much time In the building as they are during those Three weeks and so what we do is we we Do because we're in Southeast Texas we Have a morning practice and you know we Are in a situation where um here as far As following protocol about 10:30 in the Morning morning is going to be where we Are told by our athletic trainers that We can't be on the field so um we are Going to do that in the morning so we're Going to start out with h we're going to
Provide breakfast we're going to uh get Taping going and and weigh-ins and Things like that and we're going to have A position meeting and then we'll go hit The field for practice uh right after Practice our players are released to go To the dining hall uh to eat lunch and Followed by a little bit of time off uh While the coaches are grading the the Practice film and getting ready for the Afternoon meeting they come back uh with Work with our director sport performance Pat Walker who's an incredible uh Director in that area and then we'll go Right into a position meeting and then We'll go into a special teams meeting Before dinner H when we come back from After dinner uh we we get into um a Special teams meeting again right before We go for a uh walkr on the field and so That's how we have uh been able to get a Little more filled time and then we Finish off with a a meeting at night so Uh we have two different schedules that We we juggle every other day but all Those factors that I mentioned will be In that in that period so uh we're on The field probably 7:30 in the morning And 8:30 at night uh to try to take care Of our players and give them uh a chance To to recover and so uh during the Course of the day we'll have three Different position meetings a team Meeting a special teams meeting and then
One of those nights tonight we don't go On the field uh we'll have some team Building some team camaraderie Introduction of the Freshman oh yeah you Know comp competitions among position Groups uh things of that nature yeah I Think that that's a big shift obviously That's happened in in the last decade Which is really um much more in meetings Time uh than on the FIA a lot more Mental Preparation um uh H and how does that uh How how is how have you had to adapt so I mean how do you get players and Obviously you guys do a walkth through At at night and before right before They're probably going to do the the the Install of whatever the next day right But um H how do you go and get them to To retain things when you don't have as Much on the field time and H how do you Get them to really kind of get focused On that is is is technology a big part Of that talk to me more about that yeah Technology is not obviously a big part Of that because they can they can bring Up practice on their phone they can Bring up drills that we've done we are Very fortunate to where we can get all Of our IND visual drills filmed and we Can point out this was a good drill this Was not a good drill um and so we will Watch that in the me room but we'll send It to them as well um I'm in a situation
Where uh I would be remiss if I didn't Mention the fact that I have an Incredible uh assistant receivers coach Typically know as a graduate assistant But I I don't I don't like referring to Him as a ga I like referring to him as My assistant because he's really sharp And really strong in the area that You're talking about so uh one of his Jobs every day is to make a cut up of This is what was this is what went well This is what did not go so well this is What we need to improve on tomorrow and So um I preparing him for his NE for his First full-time job I like to give him a Piece of the meeting and that's his Piece of the meeting is to hit The Good The Bad and the Ugly uh and so everybody Sees yes this is what we want this is What we don't want this is how we can Improve um so to me that's that's really Important to be very and you you can't Just you can't just let's be honest I Mean I can't you can't just roll into a Meeting and and wing it you you better Be really intentional with your planning Of what you want to talk about and what You want to accomplish so one of my Goals for a meeting is to be able to hit Every type of learning style and um for Me that I'm a very visual learner when I Was a young coach I probably coached Visual Learners really well and the Others probably not very good so uh
That's that teacher in you coach that's Teacher that's right that's right I Think and I think you got to have that So uh I don't ever let him sit down very Long in the meeting room um you know I'm A I'm a grown adult and it's really hard For me to listen to Somebody talk for 20 Minutes so uh you know I don't want to Stand up there and ramble and lecture Them that's not what they're looking for So we want to be really interactive we Want to really get the kids involved in The process we want them to talk we want Them to draw we want them to move so They can get it an auditory view a Visual View and a kinesthetic learning Option and so our meetings are going to Be really interactive uh the guy NE that Meets next to me probably wants to bang On the wall and say hey can y'all quiet Down in there but when we we we get up And we're going it's not just me up There talking right and I think that's That's like you know but that's also Knowing your players right and knowing Exactly what they need to be at their High to perform at their highest level You know I saw an interview the other Day with Aaron Rogers you know and he Was talking about that whole thing like Training Camp's not hard anymore right And he was talking about you know back In the day physically it was so Demanding that it was you know this way
And now just with the way things are now It's you know now it's demanding but in A mental way so the physicality of Camp Itself and look you also know you're Trying to bridge a gap between a guy Who's you know he's a fifth year guy and He's been through it a whole bunch and Then you got a freshman coming in that's Like shell shock trying to just get Adjusted away from being home now he's Sitting through meetings right and all Other kind of stuff if you can hit on Every one of those you know ways of Learning that now you know we all know You do one way you you get you know that Percentage of the room you do it another Way you get that percentage of the room And you got to hit on every one of those Guys now you're getting them up they're Moving right they've been through it's a Long day and now we're sitting through Meetings they're trying to retain this But I think you know one of the great Things and fortunate for you having that Assistant slga guy and kudos to you for Allowing him you know to get up there And do his thing where now not only is He presenting it but now your players See him as more of an like you know a Formal coach and not just some guy Drawing up cards yeah you're right and Uh I very very fortunate to have him and Um you know I think you I think you said A lot right there it's and I would
Encourage anyone listening if you have Someone in that spot sometimes you got To let them sometimes you got to let Them make mistakes on the fly but in the End they're going to be better for your Group's going to be better for it and uh You know that that's part of this job Too is it's not just about developing Players it's about developing coaches we Need to absolutely we need to keep this Thing going in the right direction uh For a long long time because there's no There's nothing like this game of Football but uh some of that is on us That have been coaching for a while to Be able to develop and bring those guys Along so we can keep this game going Absolutely there's no doubt goe yeah Yeah no I think when you talk about the Intentionality of everything that you do Um whether it's on the field or in the Meeting room I think that's a huge thing That coaches have changed dramatically Over the years where everything has a Focus right no there's no there's not a Generality to to your practice there's Not a generality to what you do and Where one of the things that athletes Who may be listen to this and parents Maybe listen to it um now in Texas Obviously you have a lot of great Coaching but throughout the country um There's a lot of great coaches but there Are things that are that are very
Different in the fact that um there's Different levels right High School is Different level than college and the but The more the coaches start to go to Intentionality and everything they do a Focus and a plan in everything they're Doing at the high school level players Will be better prepared for college Because that's the biggest theme that I've know like the meetings um we talked About the meetings having them draw on The board having them talk about what They see and and why it's a mistake or Why it's good um and and that that that Engagement makes a huge difference Because this is this is who the kids are Now they're they're that's what they Look for is engagement that's what's on Their phone that's what's you know what They're doing when they go play video Games that's what how you have to teach Them if you're in the classroom because Engagement is the big thing that keeps Them uh drawn in and I I I think that's A huge thing that's changed over the Years with coaches uh and and and Relating the players is that Intentionality because it keeps it Focused and it keeps it Lively and and And it keeps guys like because that's That is the hardest thing about college Football and the hardest thing about Transitioning from being a a really good High school player you know they got a
Scholarship to go to college to becoming A great player in college is the be the Ability to leverage the physical part of It the demands on that and the mental Part of it and to be able to stay Engaged because and and the coach that Help help the players along figuring That part out on their Road really get The most out of the players that that That's what I've seen you know like you Go back you see like old videos of uh Nick Sabin right when he's running Around when he's with the DBS how Engaged he is right you know this is the Head coach right legendary not just Legendary arguably the the greatest College football coach of all time so um You know but engaged with them holding Them accountable and that's a word that Gets thrown around a lot but like the Intention I love that word Intentionality holds them accountable Because you they they have to know the Things that they have to know and They're engaged to do so um talk about How how important that is in everything You do yeah I mean for for me it is About having uh great clarity and uh you Know for me when I if if I was hiring Coaches and ranking coaches or whatever Uh you know I try to determine someone 's strength and so to me like Clarity Competency and connection those are Three ways that you can rate yourself as
A coach and you know for me uh I believe Through the years I've been able to Evolve into having really good Clarity With my players and so they know the Expectations they know the standards and They know exactly what is supposed to Happen on the field and you know we so We've tried build the room like that and I think that's one thing that Pete Ross Amondo does an incredible job of in this Program is the standard is a standard The standard is that every day and if You don't meet the standard then there's A consequence for not meeting the Standard and we're going to have great Communication and what that is and what That looks like and so uh one of the Ways that we try to be really Intentional and bridge that gap between Those fiveyear players and the first Year players is uh my assistant and I Are going to grab a freshman maybe two After after each practice of fall Camp We're going to keep them for three Minutes I mean nothing long nothing but We're going to we're going to pour into Them oneon-one get them a ball catching Drill get them a stance and start drill Get them an angle blocking drill if They're strugg something they're Struggling with so they know hey that Coach took time he was intentional with Me to help me get better and now I have A great clarity of what that expectation
Is for the next practice and then Sometimes I will dismiss my veteran guys At at the night meeting and just keep my Freshman around for 10 minutes and say You know how you doing how is this Transition going for you uh is there Anything you want to talk about is there Anything that's tough for you there's Something going on back at home that is Causing you to have a distraction and so I think being able to do that is uh has Really paid dividends through the years And yes we want to be very confident in Our jobs we want to have great Connection with our players but we want Them to have great clarity in what the Mission is right and I think coach Ultimately like you know and you kind of Set that from the jump right like with In recruiting itself hey if you come to This program this is what's going to be Expected of you and you know if not we Need to have a conversation right and Then once you get them in the building Hey you continue to develop that Clarity With them and the open communication Because this is you know these are the Players and this is what we're dealing With now we're dealing with kids you Know with kids who have been Communicated with from the jump through A screen right and you know that's just How they communicate and we we need to Kind of open that up a little bit Sit
Them Down have those conversations with Them and like you said I I just feel Like this new level of you know player That's coming out now you know these are Guys that have been talked to they've Had those extra conversations you know They've asked why questions they're not Just the hey coach told me to do this I'm gonna go do it just because right Right they're very much more aware of Everything else that's going around them And that's why I love that you brought Up the clarity aspect of it too because You know we're in a why generation these Guys ask why for everything and if you Don't have the right answer they're sure As hell going to go right to their phone And find the right answer and now who Looks dumb you know what I mean or or Who looks like they're incompetent so You really like you said you got to have Your your te's crossed your eyes dotted You know to to really kind of focus on You know more of just them as a player Uh the off the- field stuff that I Really think brings them in and I think That's what ultimately develops a Relation ship where they can Thrive I Agree 100% um as much as I get Frustrated with players sometimes Because they don't run a comeback the The right way uh on the first try I know What they do on the first try they see Right through your heart the first time
They talk to you they know whether You're authentic or whether you are fake They know whether you are promoting them And developing them or using them they Know and you can't escape it Y and look And that and that's that's from college All the way down you know mean I mean You can just those guys know you know When you're quotequote like hey this guy Is you know he's full of [ __ ] like he's Got no clue what's going on right Absolutely you know that's why you can't Like you said like you got to understand Going into those meetings or going into You better be on point because they're GNA see right through you whether you Understand it whether you don't and you Know and those days of you know pointing Fingers and all that other kind of stuff In terms of like you know oh hey he Didn't know or this guy didn't know That's what my taught me and it's you Better be on point because they know They know H how do you communicate so The depth chart which is always you know A difficult thing right with players and And sometimes you have guys that are Really close and in a receiver you're Using more guys but but still you might Have guys that are pretty close one Guy's ahead of another um how how do you Explain to them like how to dep Especially with obviously with Transferring and those kind of things
Which um when when kids gets frustrated How do you communicate to them the depth Chart and what it takes to be number one On the depth chart where they stand Those kind of things yep I think number One that you have to be willing to have Hard conversations and so um you know One of the things I express to my Players is um if I'm going to tell you That I love you then that means I'm G to Tell you the truth and sometimes the Truth isn't always what you want to hear But it's what you might need to hear and You need to know what I believe and what I think and why and if you disagree with Me that's fine we can have a Conversation about it but you're going To know what I see and why I see it that Way and I'm going to have statistics to Back that up and video to back that up And be able to for you to understand why I see it that way so our depth chart is Posted every day um without fail and you Know kind of a a rule of thumb that I've Used throughout my career is if someone Changes on the depth chart they don't Need to find out about it in the meeting Room they need to find out about it in Your office going up or down and you Know if they went up the depth chart you Know bring them in say hey you've been Doing a really good job catching the Ball you've been really precise on your Routes uh you've blocked really hard and
Been really effective in the Run game so You're get a chance to go run with the Twos today and if somebody's going down Hey you know uh out of your five Contested catch opportunities yesterday Four of them ended up on the ground and I'd like to see you make more contested Catches it's not because I don't like You I love you but at the same time this Is a this is a production uh business And we need to make sure that Um you understand this is this is not Personal but this is a reflection of What you've put on the field and you're Going to have another opportunity to Make the most of it but this is this is The why of why you're gonna go with the Threes today and not the twos right That's a great point so you'll bring Them in beforehand and just let them Know which I think is Really that's hate that when you show Chang a lot too that's another thing Changed a lot which is great which is Really great that and and those are the Things actually I guess that are Positive about the transer portal and The way recruiting is now because it Does force you hey to to to really Communicate not shy away from Communicating something things Le less Of a surprise on everything the last Thing you want to be as a coach is you You're surprised at them and the next
Thing they turn around they hit you with A surprise I'm out of here right so you You you you don't want to you know Everything is being open and and Communicated in in um just shifted a Little bit gears one of the last Questions I had uh was in recruiting Like uh what because because you guys Are the first of all is there any is Lamar going to continue to because it Really grown the program in the last few Years is it is it going to continue to Go is it could it go to FBS is is that Something that's in the works or or South L kind of where they're kind of Staying home for now I believe that the South and conference is our home and I Believe FCS football is a great Niche For us uh yeah there's been you know Talks of that outside this building but I think we're in a really great spot and I think we're really happy where we are I think everybody looks at that as like Hey that's everybody's goal is to Texas State and UTSA I get it and I get it but Why not but for them for for Lamar why Not just be the best FCS program in the State of Texas like why not just go Dominate that go win the Southland Conference every year you know play your One FBS game or you know make the Sam Houston game something like a little Bigger than it is or whatever you know CU look we've seen a lot of we've seen a
Lot of upsets come and now you know but I do see now that the trend is you know A lot of these team you know you see Your James Madison's going up your Delaware's going up right uh all these Teams going up to FBS but you know for Me if you're if you can be a dominant FCS program you're going to I mean we Know we both know some of these FCS Programs some of the players on these Rosters it's it's FBS guys right the Level of football just because it says FCS is no different so you know just I Love the fact that you know within that Building you guys have a common goal and A focus on hey this is where we are Boots on the ground and let's rock with That I think that's great mentality yep Let's go we're gonna go go win the Southland Conference and make a run in The playoffs let's go what is what what Type of player do you guys look for what What is like the um and obviously every Position is different but what what is Really a great what kind of player is a Great fit for Lamar uh uh you know for Me is is this Lamar is Lamar produces 75% of the American military's auto fuel All right interesting 50% of the Commercial airline fuel is produced Right here in Bowmont Texas Exxon Mobile The third largest oil refinery in the World is right next to our football Stadium this is a place where hurricanes
Have hit and you know the people have Stared down these hurricanes and risen Up from some some pretty bad stuff and So uh we want our football players to Mimic this community as being this is a Bluecollar Hardworking High character no Flinch and Adversity community and so uh bont has Uh really been good to us as far as my Family loves it here because of the People that are here um and so with our Football program we want to create we Want to find great people and you know I Will tell you this and this is part of My recruit talk with players this is not A party school can you find a party if You want to sure all right you can at Any college campus but are there going To be nightclubs and bars all around Bowmont Texas for college kids there's Not so if you want to if that's what Your big deal about if you want to go be A part of Fraternity Row and and go to Bars every night it's probably not your Place but if you want to come work hard Every day get a great education that is Going to serve you well for the rest of Your life and play a big time brand of Division one college football this is a Good fit for you all right so um so we Are a good fit for people who love Football and love to work and want to Come get a a a college degree we are not A great fit for people are looking for
The next college town uh with with the Next Party that makes a ton of sense and your Recruiting base uh Beyond Texas OB Louisiana I'm sure is part of the Recruiting base Beyond Texas well how Far do you guys really reach I mean Obviously all recruit nationally now and You do you do to extent I looked at your Roster you you know you do but where Where is like the the major hub for you Guys you know I I would say that starts With the Golden Triangle being right Here locally we have a number of local Players on our team in a really rich Area of football then you know to me we Get to to Houston really well uh we get To East Texas really well and then Probably second would be the the the Dallas area and into Louisiana we're Trying to stretch to Austin and San Antonio because there's some really good Football players there uh past that it Will probably be more of a um coach Relationship type recruiting so you know You see some players on our roster from Very far outside the state of Texas and Chances are with that there there hasn't Been just a random hey that guy's in the Portal let's D DM him on Twitter and see What we can that's that's a a coach I Recruited him when I was you know here Or you know something yeah I see I you Know I see you see a couple you know
There's a jersey couple Jersey guys for You know couple Boston like you know From Boston College and whatnot and then To see you know I'm sure your ties back To you know Gorman and whatnot have Helped uh in certain ways grab a guy Here or two and whatnot so I'm question I it's like that's what goes back to why Relationships are important with high School High School coaches who when They're when a kid's not happy and Looking in the P who the first person They're going to call their High School Coach well he Pete Ros amondo may have Been in that High School coach as office Seven years ago recruiting as the offens Line coach at ruter and they're like man That guy was sharp he's in Texas now let Me give him a call 100% 100% and that's Why look and i' you know I preach this Nonstop even with you know look as upset As we might be when it when we lose a Recruit or a guy doesn't come our way You know you always you never burn that Bridge right especially with the way This is now because two three years Later you know when that guy's unhappy Or there's a coaching change and whatnot If you were that guy always kind of had His back and were very supportive of him You know and not only him but mom and Dad as well right and they understood Like oh you know that was a good guy Right they're going to give you a call
And be hey guess what you know and now You who you're reaping the fruit of your Work that you did three years ago it was Like I lost that guy but because you Kept that relationship now you can move Forward in the process and and maybe Land a a pretty big time player yeah I Mean really at the end of at the end of This thing um it is obviously really Good professional to keep good Relationships and to handle an ending Well when a kid tells you he's going to A different school but really if we're All involved in football and when I was A high school coach I was really happy For all my players that were able to Have an opportunity to play college Football if I've changed that then I'm a Hypocrite so AB for a kid to get Chance Play college football whether it's for Me or the Rival uh I still gotta be Really happy that that kid has a chance That a lot of people don't get 100% Coach playing football it's that's that That's the key coach I can't thank you Enough for coming on today oh thank you You know I'm looking forward to Following you guys in the season you got A fantastic staff there and um uh so It's only going to continue to really Rise and rise and Rise so I'm looking Forward to seeing you guys compete for That Southland Championship thanks much Coming on Coach very excited thank you
Very much appreciate you guys coach Appreciate you the game of football all Right that was great that was great it's Great for us to get guys too as we get Guys around the country to get on um and Talk more football outside outside of The Northeast and Florida and you know The southeast which we we've talked a Lot about you know but Texas's football Tradition is just second to none so you Know it's it's it's really incredible But um well I love that you got to touch On that aspect of it you know because You know how many for how many years We're constantly talking about you know Everybody wants to talk about how do we Get better at football how do you get Better at football how do you get better At football well you get better when you Invest in the guys that run the football Programs and your coach And when we have coaches that are Leaving this profession because you know They just can't even they can't handle The the amount of workload right and now You're in comparison you're talking to Texas high school football coaches that Literally that is their job that's all They do you know they're not wearing 50 Million hats coaching 50 million Sports You know while trying to juggle Recruiting and doing all this other Stuff like no the focal point is we are Going to invest in this High School
Football coach and allow him to do what He does and only that and you know You're seeing the fruits of their labor With you know the level of high school Football in Texas absolutely and that's The truth they they invest in football All right well let's jump off and and uh I think tomorrow we we have one maybe Two so I'll let you I'll let you know we Definitely have the Harvard coach on for Former Harvard head coach Tim Murphy Coming on Legend uh so we'll talk about That um but yeah we'll enjoy en jooy Florida and I'll talk to you real soon
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