Hello Everyone!
Friday July 26th, 2013 marked the final day of the 3-week summer training program at the University of West Florida hosted by One On One Kicking. Our staff had the opportunity to work with over 70 NFL, college, and high school kickers, punters, and snappers from all over the United States, training specialists who have been with us for years, as well as many newcomers experiencing the One On One training style for the first time. They’ve spent these 3 weeks of hard work on the field and in the pool, lifting weights and watching film, and our staff is excited to watch everything pay off for our guys this fall season.
The following were some of the NFL teams and universities represented at One On One Kicking’s summer training program: Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Ole Miss, Miami, Notre Dame, Ohio State, California, Texas, UAB, Michigan State, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech, Louisville, Oregon State, Clemson, Houston, Boston College, Minnesota, Tulane, East Carolina, Rice, Texas State, Louisiana Tech, Georgia State, Georgia Southern, Elon, Stony Brook, Jacksonville State, and New Hampshire.
This event epitomizes what separates One On One Kicking from everyone else: the training. Our staff believes in order to be the best, you must train with, compete, and learn from the best. This is evident in the numerous accolades our athletes have received. In 2012 alone, our year round trainees signed 4 NFL contracts and earned All-American honors at all levels of college football, from Division 1 to NAIA. Additionally, One One One Kicking produced Lou Groza and Ray Guy Award winners at the ESPN college award ceremony, as well as high school All-State and All-American recipients from various regions of the United States.
A testimony to the environment everyone helped create, the hard work of our guys and the dedication of our staff, a kicker from the University of Texas had this to say about the event:
"Hey Coach McCabe. This is ___ from Texas. I never got a chance to thank you for everything the past three weeks. I can honestly say the camp was one of the best experiences of my life. I am so thankful I got my first coaching from you and I feel like I made some great strides. I now have a solid foundation which to build for both kicking and punting. And picking the brains of everyone else around also helped so much. I'm more comfortable heading into camp because of you. I would like to keep working with One On One in the future if that's possible. Thanks again for an invaluable camp and we will be in touch soon."
In addition to addressing all phases of kicking, punting, and snapping, our summer program provided weight training, speed and agility drills, and pool resistance exercises to teach each athlete how to incorporate additional methods of development into their workout routines. Our intention for providing supplemental training for each participant is to create a professional atmosphere where everyone leaves our training more mentally and physically prepared to perform at the highest level. Our specialists don’t come down to Florida to simply kick, punt, and snap. They come to learn ways to master their craft, both mentally and physically, and to leave with the mentality that they are more than just specialists. They are football players.
Training with One On One Kicking translates into athletes learning what it takes to execute in the most competitive environments. Our trainees leave with the understanding of what it means to be "game ready," prepared to step up and make a play that could be the difference in winning and losing. Our staff addresses pressure and how to prepare for and respond to every possible game day scenario. Our emphasis in training and competing under constant pressure allows for our trainees to perform to the best of their abilities regardless of the situation. For example, Lou Groza award winner Cairo Santos and California Kicker Vince D'Amato were paired together on several occasions throughout the summer training program, and each were asked to execute in various game day situations. Both players pushed one another, as well as the others in their designated group, to be the very best they could at any given moment.
One of the things that made our camp this year such a success was technology. Our staff made sure to use a number of tablets and iPads to provide instant feedback on technique and form. As coaches, we were able to see any technique issues and quickly relay that info to each trainee. But more importantly, we were able to show our guys themselves on film; it’s one thing to tell a specialist they are doing something wrong. It’s another to provide actual evidence that whatever they are doing needs some tweaking. The technology we used also allowed guys to compare their current, improved form against previous videos of themselves days, even weeks earlier to show improvement. In breaking down film with our staff, our specialists learned the importance of film and how use it in their own practice sessions—a vital component of mastering their craft.
Perhaps the most important thing stressed to our guys during camp? DRILLS. Drills separate the mediocre from the elite. Ask Ray Guy award winner and New England Patriot Ryan Allen who continues to do drill work everyday. Whether you are a punter, kicker, or snapper, drills should be the most important part of your practice. Drills change bad muscle memory into perfect muscle memory. As you perfect the drills, your muscle memory improves, and so will your technique when it matters. The number one aspect of becoming a great specialist? DRILLS. Every day.
The trainees worked incredibly hard for three weeks in Pensacola, Florida. But with hard work came some quality down time. On one of our off days we took the trainees down to the beach, as well as the Pensacola Air Show. On another off day, the trainees had the opportunity to visit the Naval Air Station in Pensacola, FL, home of the Blue Angels. Lt. Mark Tedrow, opposing solo pilot for the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels, gave us a tour of the facility and even let everyone take part in a lesson called the Anti-Gravity Strain Maneuver. Our guys loved seeing the similarities between one of the highest-skilled units in the military and their own game when it comes to muscle memory, technique, and practice.
We’ve seen the testimonials, the tweets, and the Facebook comments. Everyone had a great time at the camp, and everyone is already missing it. And that includes our staff. We’re already looking forward to an even better year next year. We would all like to say thank you to all who attended, and thank you for giving us the opportunity to help you grow and get better. Also, a big thank you to the staff at the University of West Florida. And a huge thank you to Strength and Conditioning Coach Kent Morgan for doing an awesome job with our specialists. Again....thank you to everyone, and we can’t wait to watch our guys compete this year!
