Dr. Raymond J. Petras specializes in elite sports performance and injury management.  He is an international lecturer, author, professor, researcher and world cup team doctor.  His work encompasses most sports from young amateur athletes, Olympic and professional, as well as the business and the medical communities. Listed below is the first of a five part series on health and injuries and how football coaches—at all levels–can benefit.

Injured? Safe Technique to Speed Recovery

Safe, Effective and Long Lasting
By Dr. Ray Petras

Poised To Win
Have you ever been in a situation where you thought that your team was in a position to win a big game and then injuries derailed the team? Ohio State was in this very situation playing at USC on September 13, 2008. Their Heisman candidate, Chris “Beanie” Wells, was out with an injury. Have you ever dealt with injuries that took up an inordinate amount of time? Is there anything that can get players healthy more quickly? The answer, in most cases, is YES.

Athletic Trainers on Sport Psychology in the Training Room
In her paper, Sport Psychology in the Training Room: A Survey of Athletic Trainers, Dr. Diane M. Weise, surveyed athletic trainers on the use of psychological strategies with injured athletes. These trainers felt that the athlete’s recovery could be facilitated by using a positive communication style, strategies for setting realistic goals, methods for encouraging positive self-thoughts and understanding individual motivation. Trainers also felt that recovery could be facilitated by the use of psychological techniques of good interpersonal communication skills, positive reinforcement, coach support and keeping the athlete involved with the team throughout rehabilitation.  And, may I add, visualization.

After an injury, the athlete and coach should:
1.    Obtain all the information that you can about the injury.
2.    Sit down with the team physician or trainer and obtain the diagnosis and prognosis of the injury.
3.    Find out how long the recovery period “generally” is for your injury.
·    I say “generally” because some “heal” faster than others, and you may be one of them.
4.    Put a plan together to contribute to the team while being rehabilitated (attend practices, offer support, study films, etc.).

Once you have the above information, you can embark on a program to determine if it is possible for you to safely “heal” more quickly than thought possible for your condition.  The steps to determine how you will progress are below.

Technique: 4-Steps To Speed Injury Recovery
(Note: There is no substitute for the proper medical attention. The following steps are to be used in conjunction with conventional, standard medicine (CSM) for the injured athlete. They are general because all the variations cannot be recorded.)
1.    (Re)Define pain. What is the purpose of pain?  Write your own definition before proceeding.
a.    Pain is the body’s mechanism to let you know that there is a problem.  However, once the problem has been correctly diagnosed and is being taken care of, theoretically, there is no longer a reason for pain.  Make sense?
i.    You still have to heal and may not be able to play.
2.    Sit in a chair and close your eyes.
a.    Imagine a clocklike pain dial, on a scale from 0 – 10.
i.    What is your pain number?  Put a mental mark on that number.
b.    Now imagine a range-of-motion (ROM) dial, if there is a ROM problem.
i.    What is your ROM number?  Put a mental mark on that number.
c.    Mentally move the mark indicating your pain level down toward 0.
i.    Does your pain get less?
d.    The same goes for your ROM.  Move the marker until it reads 10 or is as close to 10 as you can get it.
i.    Does your ROM improve?
3.    Whether you move your mental markers a little or a lot, it’s important that you do so. Keep practicing.
a.    If you can not move the marker or it moves for awhile then moves back to its original position, it does not mean that this technique will not work for you.  What it means is that you may need more guidance than this very basic outline.
4.    Finally, visualize yourself as pain-free and with 100% ROM just before going to sleep and upon arising in the morning.

This very basic technique has been found to be of great assistance in returning injured athletes to the field of play much sooner than thought possible with just CSM.

Tight End’s Amazing Story – Broken Wrist
Jim, a senior tight end, broke his wrist in the first game of the year.  He landed on his wrist early in the game. His physician told him that he would be in a cast six to eight weeks and unable to play.  He was obviously disappointed because it was the first game of his senior year. To see if he could speed up his recover time, Jim decided to enlist the help of the team’s “mental” trainer (MT).

“Mental” Training
The MT told Jim about a safe mental technique that could speed the healing of his broken wrist (PNPR™)*.  Jim was interested.  So, the “mental” trainer instructed Jim to visualize workers inside his body plastering and fixing the cracks in his wrist everyday at bed time and upon awakening.  He laughed at the thought, but decided to give it a try.  In four weeks, Jim played and scored a touchdown on a pass reception. (Jim’s interview is available on you tube (www.youtube.com/watch?v=EelhrOpQ-9Y)

For the Coach
How to Help Your Injured Athlete Return to Play More Quickly*
1.    Show support.
a.    Meet with the athlete.
b.    Communicate positively and often.
2.    Encourage the athlete to engage in positive self-talk.
3.    Agree on realistic goals for rehabilitation.
4.    Make sure ALL coaches, team members and parents support the athlete during recovery.
5.    Keep the athlete involved with the team.  Give him some meaningful job.
6.    Have them define pain.  What is its function?
7.    Have the athlete follow the 4-Steps to speed injury recovery.
8.    Work closely with your trainer and physician.

Back to Ohio State
If Ohio State’s “Beanie” Wells had used this technique, would he have been ready to play?  Experience says, “yes.” Even if he played, would Ohio State have won?  That is unknown. But, as a coach, you want to give your team the best opportunity to win by having your best players available.  This technique can help.

Healed or Not
If an athlete uses this technique, will his injury be healed and the pain gone?  It’s possible, absolutely possible. But how probable it is I cannot answer. Some heal faster than others. Your athlete may be one of them.  Let me know how this works for you.  Give your permission to get better.

About the Author:
Dr. Petras can be reached at 888-447-1429 or by email at drpetras@reliefforyou.com. More information is available on his web site www.reliefforyou.com, blog.reliefforyou.com or YouTube.com (type relief4u2 in the search bar).

*PNPR™ (PsychoNeuro Pain Response™) also called Talking Away Pain™ (TAP™) http://www.reliefforyou.com/page7.html

On November 8, 2003, Saint John’s University football coach John Gagliardi became America’s winningest collegiate coach. St. John’s of Collegeville, MN defeated Bethel College, 29-26, giving the Johnnies the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title and Gagliardi his 409th career victory. The win broke the record of 408 by Grambling’s Hall of Fame Coach Eddie Robinson.

Now, fast forward. Seven years later—heading into the 2010 season—Gagliardi has a career record of 471-126-11, 27 MIAC Championships, four national championships and 42 years without a losing season (1968-present). Gagliardi’s 61 years of collegiate coaching is the most in college football history, surpassing the old record of 57 held by former University of Chicago and Pacific coach Amos Alonzo Stagg. He is the first active head coach to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame (Class of 2006).

Gagliardi’s coaching career began when his high school coach at Trinidad Catholic (CO) was drafted into World War II. Captain of the team, Gagliardi took over the reins at 16 in 1943. His teams won four conference titles in six years of coaching high school football. After graduation from Colorado College in 1949, his first collegiate coaching position was at Carroll College in Helena (MT). He arrived at Saint John’s in 1953 and they won their first MIAC conference title in 15 years that season. This fall he enters his 58th campaign in Collegeville.

Gagliardi’s success is attributable to more than football strategy and tactics. His coaching methods have been distilled into a series of ‘Winning With Nos’ which include:

·    No blocking sleds or dummies.
·    No scholarships.
·    No compulsory weightlifting program.
·    No whistles.
·    No ‘coach’ (players call him ‘John’).
·    No tackling in practice.
·    No long practices (90 minutes or less).

Each year over 150 students turn out to be part of the Johnnies program. John Gagliardi has built a legacy that is unrivaled in college football, and, he’ll be 84 on November 1st.

Kevin Donley has established himself as one of the most successful head coaches in the country. He has taken two different programs to national prominence and, in the process, won a national championship and national coach of the year honors. This fall he begins his 13th season as head coach at the University of Saint Francis, an NAIA college in Ft. Wayne, IN.

Donley played as an undergraduate at Anderson College (1970-1973), returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach a few years later and, in 1978, at the age of 26, was named Anderson’s head coach. At the time, Donley was the youngest head coach in the country. Donley’s four year record at Anderson was 28-9. He then was named head coach at Georgetown College and compiled a 75-43-1 mark over an 11 year period (1982-1992).

After four years as head coach at California (PA), Donley was then hired to start the Saint Francis program from scratch with their inaugural season in 1998. After a 2-8 campaign that fall, the Cougars have gone 119-18 and had three straight 13-1 seasons (2004-2006). Donley’s teams have set national offensive records in points per game (59.5), rushing touchdowns (69), and total offense per game (541.4). He owns the title of most points in a season (744) by any college team in the 20th century at all collegiate levels.

It looks like Donley will be staying at Saint Francis for awhile. Last month he signed a contract extension that will ensure his tenure at USF until 2016.

He simply has the highest winning percentage of any coach in modern college football history. Here is Larry Kehres’ resume:

*His overall record: 289-22-3 over 24 years, 1986-2009 (.925%).

*His teams have won 10 NCAA Division III Championships.

*His teams have had a 54 game winning streak (1996-1999) and a 55 game winning streak (2000-2003).

*His teams have won 20 conference titles in 24 years.

*His teams won 100 consecutive conference games (1995-2005)

*His teams have a record of 139-5 over the last decade with six national championships.

Larry Kehres begins his 25th season this fall as head coach at Mount Union College in Alliance, OH. A former quarterback for the Purple Raiders, Kehres became an assistant at his alma mater in 1974 and became head coach in 1986. The rest, as they say, is history.

He believes a successful football program is built on organization and consistency. “Part of our success is because our coaching staff has remained intact and committed to our system,” said Kehres. “We feel our program is well-organized and the players know what is expected of them.”

Kehres believes in an attacking offense. “We like to attack the defense and make them cover the whole field. Defensively, we want to create big plays. As for the kicking game, I believe in being aggressive and winning the field position battle. Being consistent in all three phases and being well-conditioned puts you in a position to win games in the fourth quarter.”

Kehres was named the school’s athletic director in 1991 and has overseen and aided in the expansion of the school’s varsity sports. He also is an associate professor of physical education and, if that isn’t enough, Kehres is serving as the current president of the American Football Coaches Association.

Bob Jastrob has completed five seasons as head coach at Mt. San Antonio, a junior college located in the town of Walnut in California. Each season during Jastrob’s tenure the Mounties improved their performance and last fall won the California State and JUCO National Championship with a 7-6 win over the College of San Mateo in a driving rainstorm.

The year before, Jastrob’s Mounties finished second in the state, capturing the conference and Southern California Football Championship. In the State Championship game, Mt. SAC lost to Butte College, 17-9, the undefeated Northern California Champion. In 2007, the Mounties upset undefeated Bakersfield College, 47-42, in the Southern California Championship game but lost to the City of San Francisco in the State Championship Bowl, 31-28.

After serving as an assistant coach at Mt. SAC for 11 seasons, Jastrab was appointed head coach in 2005. He began his coaching career in 1989 at Mt. SAC but accepted a graduate position at UNLV in 1993. After leaving the Rebel program, Jastrab became offensive coordinator at Damascus High School (MD) and helped lead them to the 1996 Maryland 3-A State Championship. He returned to Mt. SAC in 1997 and helped the Mounties to an undefeated season, capturing the National and State Community College Football Championships.

Jastrab played for two seasons at Mt. SAC and then received a scholarship to the University of Miami in Coral Gables and learned under coaches such as Jimmy Johnson, Howard Schnellenberger, and Butch Davis. Meanwhile, Jastrob is slowly building a dynasty in Walnut.

For those of us that live and breath for some form of football, February was just about the cruelest month. The Super Bowl ended the season and the NFL Players Combine seemed like more hype than substance.

March is not a lot better but at least most colleges have spring practice under way. You can follow your favorite team via their web site even though when it comes to the annual ‘spring game,’ the event itself is usually nothing more than a glorified scrimmage.

April is not only the first sign of spring but also the long-awaited NFL Draft. This year, for the first time, the event begins in prime time, Thursday, April 22nd and continues through the weekend. Only one thing is certain in this year’s draft: no matter who the Giants and Jets select as their first round picks, the local fans are sure to boo.

A few states allow spring high school practices in May and most NFL teams conduct their mini-weekend Organized Team Activities in May and June. For those waiting for NFL camps to open in July, the NFL Network may be a way of surviving to that first NFL Pre-Season game on August 8th.

Anyway, the countdown is on…only 150 days to go.

Villanova was losing to undefeated Montana last December, 14-3, midway through the second quarter when the Wildcats rallied and then held on to win the Football Championship Subdivision National Championship, 23-21. In the process, head coach Andy Talley reached the pinnacle of his profession in his 25th season at the school.

The Wildcats finished 14-1 and for Talley, an assistant and head coach for over 40 years, it was a special moment. “It’s hard to explain how much this means, not just to me, but to the entire program,” Talley said. “We have been close before but I knew this was a very good team and had a chance to go all the way. For me, you don’t get a chance to come through on the national scene very often. It is extremely special.”

In his quarter century on the Main Line, Talley’s overall record now stands at 179-102-1. He is the winningest coach in Wildcat history. In fact, Talley has won everywhere he’s coached and helped turn around a number of programs. After graduating from Southern Connecticut State, his resume reads as follows:

1967-1968: Assistant Coach, Simsbury High School (CT)

1969: Secondary Coach, Springfield College (MA)

1970-1973: Backfield Coach, Middlebury College

1973-1978: Backfield Coach, Brown, 1973-1978

1979-1983: Head Coach, St. Lawrence University, 1979-1983

1984-Present: Head Coach, Villanova

While at Brown, Talley helped the Bears to an Ivy League title in 1976. At. St. Lawrence, with Talley leading the team, the Saints won the Lambert Cup in 1982. Talley now has over 200 wins as a head coach but the crowning achievement was last December.

Patrick Ross was hired as the head coach at Lindenwood University in the spring of 2004. In the three previous seasons the NAIA college in St. Charles, MO had won a total of seven games. There was really only one way to go.

Not only did the Lindenwood Lions move in the other direction, they won their first ever conference championship in Ross’ first year as their head man. Lindenwood has been in the conference picture each year in Ross’ six years at the school and have improved in each of the last three seasons: in 2007, the Lions finished 10-2, losing in the first round of the playoffs; in 2008, Lindenwood completed the season 11-2, losing in the NAIA National Semifinals; and this past fall, Ross’ team completed an undefeated season but lost to Sioux Falls in the NAIA Championship game, finishing 13-1. His six-year record at the school stands at 57-17.

Probably Lindenwood’s most impressive performance this past season was a 42-35 win over perennial NAIA power Carroll College in the semifinals. The Lions snapped Carroll’s 24 game home winning streak, amassing 570 yards of offense against the #2 ranked defense in the country.

Ross credits his team’s success mainly to two things: a consistent staff of assistant coaches and team chemistry. “It’s important to have continuity with your staff,” said Ross. “That factor and having team chemistry, especially when there is some adversity, can make the difference.”

There’s more good news in St. Charles. Lindenwood’s starting quarterback and leading rusher both return for next season.

American Football monthly was a proud participant in this year’s annual AFCA Convention that took place in Orlando, January 10-13. We were able to meet many new coaches and revisit with those we’ve gotten to know over the last few years. Similarly, AFM met with all of our current advertisers and sponsors and began developing relationships with new ones. AFM’s new College Directory was introduced, as well, at the convetion. The directory is the most comprehensive listing of all football staffs across the nation encompassing nearly 900 programs. Take a look at it: www.AFM CollegeDirectory.com.

The convneiton was considered a huge success with estimates of between 6,000 and 6,500 attending the event. In talking to a number of coaches at all levels it became clear that there are many outstanding coaches that for the most part go unnoticed. We asked a number of them what they woulod like to see more of in upcoming issues of AFM.

The one topic almost overwhelming brought up by many coaches was drills. More specifically, detailed position drills that coaches can use right away. We plan to include a detailed drills report in every future issue. The second topi cmentioned by many coaches was off-the-field subjects such as off-season conditioning and motivation. Future issues will include both and concentrate on coaches’ different methods to motivate players.

Veteran football coach Lou holtz once said that fear is the greatest motivator. “If a player fears something–his life, his family, even his position on the team–you know he’ll give you 100%.” Let us know your thoughts on the topic of motivation. That is, what’s worked and what hasn’t. We want to hear from you.

American Football Monthly is about to release the first ever AFM College Football Directory. Published online, this complete listing of football contacts throughout the country is now available for only $49.00. No organization has ever compiled a more comprehensive college football resource. Consider what it includes:

*A complete directory of all 841 colleges that have football programs (FBS, FCS, Division II, Division III, NAIA, and NJCAA colleges) which translates into a listing of nearly 9,800 coaches.

*Contained within each college listing are web sites, complete coaching staffs, athletic directors, recruiting coordinators, and sports information directors along with phone numbers and email addresses.

*A specific coach, recruiting coordinator, athletic director, of SID can be searched by name, college or conference.

*The directory’s most unique feature is that it will be updated WEEKLY! With changes in both coaching staffs and athletic department’s happening as we speak, you are assured of the most accurate and up-to-date information available.

All this…all online…for $49.00. If you’re a high school or college coach, a football advertiser or supplier, or a member of the media—you can’t live without it. It’s also the perfect directory for high school players who want to get noticed by recruiters at all levels or coaches that want the latest information related to coaching changes.

Just go to www.AFMCollegeDirectory.com….talk about one-stop shopping. Wait a minute—there’s been another coaching change…