Coach Hugh McCutcheon on Coaching

Hugh McCutcheon is now the coach of the US Women’s national
team, he was the coach of the men’s Olympic team in Beijing that won a gold
medal. I had the opportunity to have lunch with him in November at a conference
at the USOC. I was very impressed with his ideas. In this piece he is obviously
focused on volleyball, but you can tell he is grounded in principles that apply
to any sport. I think in this country coaches have the attitude that each sport
is unique and different, when in fact we can learn from other sports. Today the
Scum coach for the New Zealand All Blacks is coming to watch out volleyball
conditioning workout. He is in the states for professional development. He told
me yesterday how important it is to learn from other sports. We can’t figure
that out. There are S&C coaches that are trying to make their players
faster who have NEVER walked across campus to talk to the track coach. Whats
wrong with that picture. You have know what you don't know in order to learn.

The following was taken from a blog by John Keseel of USA Volleyball, Apparently some people felt that I was representing this as something I have written. This was written by John Kessel.

When asked about the differences between the men's and women's  game,
Hugh replied  "What is the difference? Don't we live on planet Earth
and the laws of physics apply? I am approaching it as volleyball, whether you
are a woman or a man. The idea of 'women's vs. men's' volleyball is doing
nothing but stereotyping. Guys have issues too. We are going to do everything
we can to be great, based on science and principles."

Later on Hugh and Peter Vint did a myth buster segment. There was some
lively discussion on these, among others, which Peter used the science from the
Biomechanics lab studies to dispel these…

Myth: The wrist snap is important in attacking

Myth: An athlete's ability to read the game/make correct
decisions is unalterable

Myth: Toed-in base positions are best for passers and
defenders (and/or blockers)

Myth: Starting a move on the balls of the feet results in
faster movement times than starting flat footed

Myth: Piking at the instant of ball contact is a good thing
to do

and a bunch more….

 The closing session Hugh spoke about the need for "generalized
specialists" who are good in all areas of the game but really good in 1-2
skill sets. He noted how we are specializing too early in volleyball. There is
not rocket science, the way you get good at passing is by passing, and the way
you get good at the game is by playing the game. Trying to teach the game from
a generalized basis, you will be better at working together as a team, and win
more of the little things that are being lost. "When you start teaching
the game, the most important thing is to make it fun…for if at the end of the
day if the game is not fun, it will be really hard to keep them
around."  Our opponents in other volleyball nations can

1.       Execute all of the fundamentals at a
very high level

2.       Have correct technique and are
biomechanically efficient

3.       Make all the little plays – they
cover, can set out of system, can dig, etc.

4.       Make all the right choices about
where to stand, who to set, where to block etc.

If I am going to ask my kids to work hard, I need to work hard too. We
should connect as best we can to our kids…they should not be berated to get
good, we are service providers to facilitate the hours of each players live to
something they enjoy, so when we do what we do, we need to ask if this is right
by the team and the individuals. Coaching is a valued career in our nation
amazingly, but it is something you earn, not something you require. We have to
be into best practices from ourselves, making it a good and positive experience
(not all rainbows and ponies), and not beating up on the kids, for ultimately
we want to grow the game…positive reinforcement has longer effect on players
than negative, so I want to catch them doing it right a lot, right Kess?