Offensive Line Coach Pete Metzelaars Will Be Keynote
Speaker
The Indianapolis Colts and USA Football will host a coaching clinic for youth football coaches on April 17 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Indiana Farm Bureau Football Center.
"There are a lot of great reasons to come, but the main one is to become a better coach, to be able to coach at a higher level, knowing that this is all about the kids. That it is all about them having fun," said Colts' Youth Football Commissioner Mike Prior. "If you become a great coach, it doesn't matter about wins or losses, it matters that you're affecting these young people's lives forever."
Colts Offensive Line Coach Pete Metzelaars, who is entering his seventh season with the Colts after playing 16 seasons in the NFL, will deliver the keynote address at the clinic.
"It's an event to build the game of football by empowering and teaching and helping coaches to become better coaches," Metzelaars told 1070-The Fan. "I'm going to be talking about being a coach and what you should bring to the table: passion, organization, drills and doing all those kind of things to make it fun for the players. (I'll talk) about different aspects of coaching that you can use to help build your younger players, to make the game fun, to make it interesting, to make it exciting and to help build the game of football."
The clinic incorporates lectures and demonstrations to help give youth football coaches the tools needed to teach the game of football to young children.
"It's all about learning how to keep the kids safe, keep them having fun and teaching them fundamentals," Prior said. "We want to give the coaches the ability to go back into the community and help give the young student-athletes the desire, discipline and dedication to play football."
The one-day event is led by area high school football coaches, including Indiana Football Hall of Fame inductee Dick Dullaghan, who won eight Indiana high school state championships in his coaching career.
Camp attendees will start the day with demonstrations on stretching and speed development. The coaches then will go through four rotations that emphasize defensive fundamentals. After eating a lunch provided by McAllister's Deli, the coaches will learn how to best fit equipment to their youngsters and how to effectively plan and organize practice. The coaches then go through four rotations that emphasize offensive fundamentals.
"I think this is really one of the most interactive coaching clinics around," Prior said. "It's very hands-on. The coaches will go through the rotations and they will be out there physically learning the drills they need to teach. They will get a workout. I think it is imperative that they learn about these drills and how difficult they can be. It will help them relate to their youngsters when they have trouble learning them."
The cost to attend is $40 and interested parties can register at usafootball.com. For more information please visit: http://www.usafootball.com/schools/details/2923
