Coach Flip Naumburg's Journal

Saturday, July 17, 2004

I have created controversy on my own team. This doesn’t seem like very good coaching, now does it? I have basically called out a few returning players for one reason or another since our last game, back in May. I have issued a demand that they change or not play. These are stars, popular players on the team. I might be crazy, but I felt a tremendous need to make a stand now and not to wait until my little problem stands over me like a tall tree waiting to topple.. I have my reasons for changing the seasons.

DIRTY LAUNDRY FLAPPING IN THE SEA BREEZE

I dared to "publicly" air our private stuff so others on the team might know about it. Well, yeah, that’s what I do when I have left as many messages on the "machine" as I could without getting a "call back".

This leads me to the feeling that I am perhaps not the most popular coach with my team just now. My butt is hanging out of the boat and in the wet and potentially dangerous sea gails. I should have been content with another great season (2004) at CSU. Everything would be cool and calm if I would be. Unfortunately I hadn’t been just "sailing" along. My mind churned and rechurned, and some of my blood boiled over what took place in St. Louis.

Then, just when I began to get over the spring of 2004 , Vail came along as summer refocus and it re-fortified the things I want in a team that is about to go on a search, and some other things that I don’t. I am sure we don't need to carry any extra emotional baggage. In fact we need to travel lighter (emotional baggage) and carry more weight (spiritual impact) in the process.

I desperately need change in order to hope to find more treasure in the shark infested waters of the MDIA.

DEPLONKIFYING

Mark Plonkey (#17) pretty much defined who we (CSU lacrosse) have been for the last 3 or more years. He is gone now (except for Vail, Hawaii, etc.), and the last thing I want to do is try to go about business as usual at CSU. I want to "seize" this day and this opportunity to change a bit of our identity as well as some of our approach. To carry on by simply trying to "replace" Mark with Adam (#34) to me is missing a chance to perhaps create something new, something that might change the ways of our powers or the overall resources of our team.

I MUST BUILD A BOX COACH, etc.

We are likely losing all of last year's assistant coaches this year as well. Life would be so much simpler if I could have Kale, Alex and Schmiddy for one more year. Change is part of the challenge, no more and no less. Someone will come or someone will come back. I have coached alone before.

PUT THE TRASH WHERE IT BELONGS, IN THE TRASH

The first part of my team catharsis plan is to eliminate trash talking. I’ve had it. I am done with the Bull you-know-what, period. I want to put that dogfight attitude on the field and between the whistles. If the team is to reflect some of the animal that is me it must do that. If we can’t do that (reflect a little of who I am) then I don’t see the point in coaching at this level. I am not getting rich and famous here.

I was never a trash talker as a player. They (other teams) may have had reason to hate me, but it wasn’t from verbal provocation. When I got knocked down, I jumped up and got back in the game. When we scored I wanted only to do it again, not to celebrate at length about the one lousy goal, no matter how big it was. Making my opponent angry, upset, embarrassed, or even noticed for that matter was not part of my plan, whether or not it became the result.

THE HIPPIE/JOCK BACK IN THE DAY

When I played at CC in the seventies, the thought of wasting time taunting my opponent never even occurred to me, although I was amused by watching Dick Hoyt (College teammate) do it in a really light hearted way. I was way too busy looking for the Zen athlete inside me to be bogged down with all that energy wasting razz matazz. At least that was my take on it all.

Do everything you can to make yourself capable of summoning your BEST energy for the biggest game moments. That’s what I thought about and told myself. I was already desperately trying to make up for lost time as it was (lack of extensive high school lax experience). I used diet, routine, yoga, karate, and a lot of other weird stuff to help me get where I wanted to athletically go. Steroids were something only the Russians and East Germans used, and mostly by their women.

KUNG FU (TV) WAS LIKE RELIGION FOR ME

I loved to watch David Carradine reverse the powers of evil on Kung Fu every week. He disarmed. He never dismantled. He dodged bullets or kicked butt only when he had to.

I can still remember a CC lacrosse teammate laughing at me while I was doing yoga breathing exercises as we bussed up to play the Air Force Academy Falcons one day way long ago. I didn’t care then (laughing) and I wouldn’t care now. I only know who was more prepared to play that day.

There is a lot of me that still wishes I were the "grasshopper".

ACH TUNG BABY

Meanwhile, back at the dumpster, there is something inherently noble in competing at this violent sport so many of us love so much. I try to respect all my "enemies", both individually and collectively. This does not mean I don’t almost instinctively search for the other team’s weakest player (potential prey) the second I see them start to warm up or whatever. I can respect that thing I also wish to devour. Eskimos do it.

I do not mind if we (CSU lacrosse) are portrayed as appearing somewhat undisciplined. When we play and act that way, however, it does concern me. I much prefer for us to look like we don’t need a coach than for us to act like we don’t have one.

I do not see how trash talking can ever make a whole team or an individual coach look or feel better or more in charge.

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Flip Started Blogging Before it was Cool, Read Over 400 of His Entries Since January 2001
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