Do Your Players Want to Win Football Games?

Every once in a while I ask our subscribers the biggest problem they have. One answer always surprises me: “My players don’t want to win football games.”

How can that be true? Coaches often follow that concern up with something about how all these kids want to do is play video games, where the entire object is to win the game.

No one likes losing. 

Studies do show that younger athletes are not as concerned with winning. Youth coaches find their players care more about having fun. Youth football coaches serve athletes better when they focus on fundamentals and fun.

That doesn’t mean winning football games doesn’t matter. But it is not the primary goal.

As athletes get older, winning becomes more important. At the High School Varsity level, the top focus for many players is to win football games.

Again, that does not mean Vince Lombardi is right. Winning is not the only thing. At least not for High School.

But absolutely no one, ever, likes being a loser.

Your players want to win football games.

On an episode of the JDFB Quick Clinic, I talked about how to motivate athletes. A huge goal like winning the State Championship does not keep athletes motivated.

Instead, players keep pushing because of little victories. Small successes.

It is actually the feeling of success that motivates us to chase more success. Not the pursuit of the goal.

The coach gets to decide what success is. If winning is the only thing, and your kids are not very talented, it is hard to create success. 

But if your kids are not very good at football you can frame winning as learning new skills. Then winning at football becomes pretty easy. They are starting at zero.

Those successes drive the players to get better. They work harder to have more success and eventually, you win football games.

Win football games by learning from losing.

Losing is an opportunity. You don’t want to lose, but it is inevitable. What matters is how you respond. 

“Losing is only temporary and not all encompassing. You must simply study it, learn from it, and try hard not to lose the same way again. Then you must have the self-control to forget about it.” – John Wooden

When it seems your players don’t care about winning football games, study it. Learn from it. 

How can you make them care? Get them excited? Provide a spark?

There’s some interesting research on the behavior of coaches and how players react. That is for another day. 

The key takeaway is that you have control. Coaches can change the way players respond.

You have one major advantage for changing how your players respond to winning and losing. 

No one likes losing. Your players want to win football games.

Where to go from here…

Keeping it simple is the best strategy for creating those small successes. Especially with young athletes struggling to win.

JDFB Coaching Systems has detailed coaching systems for any level. They are built on the Coach Simple, Play Fast, Win philosophy. Get instant access with a 7 Day Trial right now at https://join.joedanielfootball.com.