Find drills for your next practice, fun games for volleyball camp, and articles covering topics like visualization and playing time philosophy!
Passing is arguably the most important skill in volleyball. Young players cannot get a rally going unless they receive training, and older teams will struggle to compete against a tough serve or offense without lots of reps and game-like drills. This is why it is so important to teach your team the basics! Give them a good foundation to build from when you teach them how to pass a volleyball. Check out this short video and get started!
Read MoreDoes your team need to work on moving their feet, communication, and teamwork? Want to add a competition to practice early on? Run the Passing Ladder Challenge at practice tonight! The Passing Ladder Challenge works best in groups of three but can be altered depending on the number of players you have and the group size you’d prefer. In this example, let’s use 3 groups of 3.
This drill is best for players who are beginner-intermediate skill level from 1st grade to 8th grade and can be changed by using the variations listed at the end of the article.
Read MoreOne of the most exciting parts of being a coach is when you finally see a concept “click” for your players. Younger teams who are used to just rotating around the court and playing the position they are standing in always seem to take FOREVER to understand the concept of playing defense at the net in the front row, and then transitioning off to play defense for a freeball.
Setters, too, will often hang out in backrow for too long before they realize that they should be moving up into the setter position in order to set at the first hint of a freeball. Although the concept seems simple to the experienced coach, this is one area that teams need to practice in a game-like drill in order to comprehend what is actually being asked of them.
Read MoreTournament days can be looooong days. Whether you'll be in the gym from 7:00am to 7:00pm, or if you're only going to half-day tournaments, the time spent under the fluorescent lighting found in big warehouse gyms can take its toll on you.
As a coach, there are a few volleyball tournament essentials that, if forgotten, will definitely ruin your day. And even though it seems like a no-brainer to pack a water bottle, I can't tell you the number of times I've had to pay for overpriced water because I left my personal one at home (usually on the coffee table right next to the front door, of course).
Read MoreDo you remember playing musical chairs as a kid? How everyone was nice and getting along walking around a circle of chairs until someone cut the music and you raced to grab a seat? It was fun, right? Got your competitive juices flowing? Well that was the inspiration for the most recent drill I created for my team’s practice to work on ball control as well as their competitive nature.
Read MoreTeaching middle school players how to set a volleyball can be challenging. Often times, there are only one or two players who show a natural inclination towards setting, and the rest are, more or less, hopeless. Or at least that’s how you feel at tryouts!
Training setters can be very time consuming, and when you are coaching by yourself it can be hard to justify spending practice time running a drill which is designed for only one or two players. But setters make or break a team! Spending time during practice working on their skills will only help you in the long run. Even better, you will likely see dramatic improvements right away.
Read MoreTeam rules can make or break a season. There are two important factors in whether or not team rules make an impact on your team:
1) Everyone has to know the rules, and
2) You have to enforce them.
While I can only encourage you to hold your players accountable and cheer you on for sticking to your guns, I CAN provide you with a list of broadly applicable team rules which any coach can implement.
Read MoreThis weekend I was working with young players (7th graders) during club volleyball tryouts. At this age, there are going to be a few players who stand out that have played club before or are just naturally athletic. There are also going to be a few people who have never played before and are just mimicking what they see others doing, even though they’ve had no formal training. My court was no different, and there were plenty of times I saw the opportunity to tweak a player’s movements or form to improve their performance. While this takes some one on one time with a player, it is definitely worth it to step aside for a minute or two and help them (read more at the bottom on why this can work to your benefit, even during tryouts).
Read MoreWhile I love creating my own drills, sometimes you just need to peruse the internet and find some new inspiration. Two weeks ago I was looking for high-intensity drills and found “Vegas.” While the title was intriguing, it didn’t really explain what the drill focused on. Strictly out of curiosity, I watched.
My initial reaction was that it looked fun, but was nothing too special. It had competitive elements to it that was something I felt my girls needed a big dose of, so I added it to our practice plan with 20 minutes dedicated to learning and finishing the drill.
Read MoreIs your team struggling to communicate, cover, or celebrate? Read how I run the 3 C's Drill (presented by Judy Green, video in article) and try it out for yourself! It seriously impacted my girls and we have been a different team ever since!
Read More"You're not ready for that yet." Have you caught yourself saying this to your team when they ask about more advanced skills? Plays, jump serving, swing blocking, etc? I heard myself say this exact phrase, and then had a small meltdown that I was not looking out for my girls.
Read MoreI realized something this weekend; I have not written a post which discusses my blog's namesake! So without further ado, here is how to teach your players to pancake a volleyball!
A pancake is one of the greatest game-changing moves which can be found in the sport of volleyball. When a team is able to execute this skill properly, a great deal of excitement is usually generated. Especially if you are able to sideout or win the point, your team's energy will spike, guaranteed!
Read MoreThinking about coaching club volleyball? Get a better understanding of what you'll encounter by reading this article which compares and contrasts coaching school volleyball and club volleyball.
For many of us, the school season has just begun and we have only a few matches under our belts. We've finally gotten into a groove and are seeing our players grow and progress from those first hectic days of practice. Even though the end of the season seems ages away, it will be here before you know it. And that brings a scary realization: It's almost time to start coaching club volleyball!
Read MoreLooking for a way to measure progress over the season? Stat sheets are the perfect way to measure not only strengths and weaknesses, but growth too!
Read MoreThe season has started! This means two things. 1) We're all scrambling to figure out what our teams' strengths and weaknesses are, and 2) I will have a lot of practice plans that I'll share with you! The beginning of the year is the best time to review basics with your team (although they should constantly be enforced throughout the season).
I recommend ALWAYS beginning with passing and serving, as these are the two most fundamental skills one needs to play volleyball. This plan is for our second practice of the year, so we've progressed to setting and attacking.
Read MoreCreate your personal volleyball coaching goals through my reverse engineering template! I give my own goals as examples to help you out.
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I'm getting ready for tryouts, and I know a lot of you are too! While I think it is important to know who will be on your team before you come up with team goals, coming up with coaching goals for yourself will help you focus on what you're actually looking for during tryouts!
Read MoreAre you a new volleyball coach who doesn't know where to start? Instead of looking through more drill books, check out "Coaching Volleyball: A Survival Guide for Your First Season." I explain all of the ACTUAL work you have to do! There's more to volleyball than just running a good butterfly drill.
Read MoreHOW you teach passing is just as important as the mechanics! This post addresses both, so you know your young players are learning how to pass correctly and to appreciate the foundation of the sport.
Read MoreIf a player knows you will support them through the learning process and their failures, they will reward your trust by exceeding expectations. All volleyball coaches should read this! It will help you develop your coaching philosophy.
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