re: Saban comments on his radio show tonight

quote:

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Sports psychology is just such an unknown science, it's just hard to know what is the best advice to give to each and every athlete.

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You have really hit the nail on the head here.

My son pitches at the college level. I’ve seen him go through times when he’s trying to manufacture confidence, but I know he has none at that moment. I’ve seen his teammates blow-up and not be able to throw strikes as well. Usually, it has to do with coaches who harp on the negatives. For example, pitcher throws a change up in bull pen with good speed reduction and movement, but up just a bit, and coach says “Nope. I need that ball down and away. You just gave up a bomb.” Or a coach who freaks out over walks or hit batsmen. I can guarantee you that such a coach is not going to have pitchers who play to their ability.

At the same time, trying to immediately build up and praise a guy who has just failed can have a negative effect, as it brings a sense of, “Oh crap! Coach feels like I just really screwed up.”

Our kickers have what is called the yips. They are brutal, and despite what fans sometimes think, they are not a moral failure. If anything, they come from caring too much and trying too hard to do well.

I think we all know deep down that the coaches and players care more than we do about what happens, and nobody wants to succeed any more than they do.

I really hate that we were uptight, but experience goes a long way towards getting rid of that. Coaching style helps too. I am willing to wager that CNS knows this and is doing everything he can to try to make needed changes.