AGC #036 - Preparing for freshman realities

Last week, FH College Path put together a practical article on “freshman realities”, outlining what players can expect in their first year playing NCAA field hockey.

The lessons are applicable across all sports, and the piece struck me as relevant and necessary - and not just because they were kind enough to quote me in it!

This week’s newsletter is a response of sorts.

Their piece focused on what to expect; now that has been outlined, here are 4 ways to prepare for those freshman realities.

Guard against entitlement

High school players who go on to play in college are usually among the cream of the crop in their sport.

They’re used to getting minutes, accolades, compliments, and success, all while playing within their own age group for the most part.

Arriving in college is often a huge reality check. The pace of the game is faster, and the tactical acumen required increases significantly.

You also may have to compete for playing time with internationals who have been playing for longer and are used to playing with adults, so have more experience.

If playing time or success doesn’t come as easily at the next level, it can be a blow to the ego - especially if your identity is too closely linked with your sport.

The easy defense mechanism is to blame everyone except yourself.

To convince yourself that your coach has an agenda, that the team-mate playing over you is a terrible person / doesn’t work hard as hard as you / isn’t good enough etc.

You have two choices when you don’t get what you want: get busy playing the victim, or get busy getting better.

You can also spare yourself the heartache ahead of time by acknowledging three things, then training accordingly:

• Playing time is earned, not given

• You are not the finished article, and must take responsibility for your own learning and growth

• All you can control is your effort, energy, and attitude

If entitlement is the disease, discipline can be the cure.

Demand higher standards

There is a natural lull between the end of an American’s high school playing career and the start of their collegiate one - especially for fall sports.

Your recruiting process is wrapped up, academics have mostly been sorted out - and there’s a victory lap to be had around your school in senior spring.

Club sports will continue, but motivation can wane as you’ve reached the top of the tree, and the environment likely doesn’t challenge you like it used to.

It’s easy to take your foot off the gas during this time and let your personal standards slip: I call this senioritis:

agood.coach

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The best way to guard against it is to consistently push the tempo and drive standards at practice.

Be the first to arrive and the last to leave.

When you sense your teammates aren’t trying as hard as they should be, call them out.

Whatever your sport’s basic technical elements are, demand that they be done at speed without sacrificing quality.

When your teammates give you the stinkeye, remind them why they’re still doing club practice: to prepare to play a faster version of the game with and against older athletes who don’t care what you’ve achieved to date.

This won’t make you popular, but it will help you be as ready as you can be for college ball.

I delve deeper into this idea in The Resilient Athlete, a series of mental conditioning exercises for teenage players.

Learn how to defend 

No, really.

Maybe this isn’t as true in other sports, but in my experience, the biggest technical and tactical gaps field hockey freshmen have are defensive.

Much of the training done at the high school and club level focuses heavily on in-possession skills.

This is despite the percentage of time you’ll spend doing something defensive (pressing, marking, positioning, 1 v 1 duels, etc) far outweighing the 2-3% of the game you’ll individually spend on the ball.

Therefore, learning how to defend properly can give you a huge advantage going into your freshman year.

Think about what defensive skills are most needed relative to your position, and ask your coach to help you work on them.

For example, in many team sports, forwards must understand different approach lines for their role in the press, midfielders need to know how to triangle mark, while ball-side-goal-side marking is a key skill for defenders.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

But the more you know coming in, the quicker you can adapt.

Seek out truth-tellers

Hopefully, the mentors in your life - parents, teachers, coaches - aren’t coddling you.

They should be telling you what they believe to be true about your strengths and weaknesses as both a human and a player.

If all you’re hearing from them is sunshine and rainbows, then there are dark clouds on the horizon.

Ask all of them to write down the top three things about you that might hold you back from being a successful contributor to a collegiate sports team.

You’ll get varying answers, depending on the mentor’s role in your life. Coaches may focus on sport-specific things, while parents might have something to say about how you respond to adversity. Or perhaps the inverse! 🫣

You may not agree with the responses, but you should be able to ascertain trends and where there’s overlap so you can direct your energy appropriately.

It’s also good practice so that when constructive criticism comes from your college coaches, you will have practiced responding productively.