(The Case For) Shutting up in the Corner
Photo: Harvey Levine-FOS/247
This is what Cael Sanderson looks like 95% of the time when he’s coaching. Go pull up a Penn State dual and watch. He is immaculately calm no matter the situation. I enjoy watching Jason Nolf highlights and paying attention to Cael. Nolf does the craziest things and Cael does not jump up and down nor does he scream-count back points for the ref. Is this because he doesn't care? Does he not have advice for his athletes? Of course not.
So what gives? Why are the rest of the wrestling coaches of the world leaving meets with sore throats exhausted from screaming meticulous instructions while the most dominant coach of the past 10 years just claps 90% of the time?
I, like many excitable coaches, have started down the path of constant screaming. When I began coaching I got riled up and upset every single match with refs, my own wrestler, opposing coaches, and the like. But over the years I’ve realized the value of calming down. and I think I finally understand why. If you pay attention to any coach who has been in the sport for a long time you will notice that almost every single one of them calms down in the corner over time. Some may say those coaches are “getting soft” but I think what is happening is that they are getting wise.
Simple reasons why we all need to calm down in the corner:
1. They can’t hear you.
Most of us coaches were athletes and most of us wore the same Cliff Keen “Signature” headgear that our athletes wear today. I think we all know that those 8 little holes don’t allow much sound to come in. Not to mention the fact that in every match there are at least a dozen voices at any given time. Head and assistant coaches yelling instructions, your bench filled with teammates yelling, as well as the fans in the gym. Not to mention the other teams' coaches, teammates, and fans are all also yelling. Combine all these voices with the just plain exhaustion accumulated in a match, there just isn’t the real ability to listen and cognitively react to every piece of advice shouted out.
2. You can’t do and listen at the same time.
Humans are notoriously bad multitaskers. Even if/when your athlete can hear you- do you really want them to take a moment out of the match to stop and really listen to what you’re saying? Think about it. If they do, knowing how bad of multitaskers humans are, they’re taking his focus away from the match. Which is probably not a good idea.
STORYTIME: My college coach was the late great Mike Duroe. He had an exchange with his athlete that I think illustrates the whole multitasking issue really well:
Duroe: "McAuley!"
…. McAuley keeps wrestling
Duroe: "MCAULEY!"
….McAuley looks at Duroe and immediately gets taken down.
Duroe: "McAuley what are you doing?!"
Moral of the story: Don’t distract your athletes.
3. You aren’t showing that you trust them.
This last idea is the most important. When you are constantly yelling instructions to your athlete you are both consciously and subconsciously telling your athlete that they don’t know what they’re doing. That they’re doing something wrong. It shows that you don’t believe your athlete knows what they should do.
Making your wrestler question themselves is the exact opposite of what we always preach as coaches. We preach confidence. “Let's go stud”, “Trust your stuff”, “Hit your moves hard knowing they will work”.
If In the heat of the moment you tell your athlete to do something they aren’t confident in or don’t see, you make them question everything in the exact moment they need to trust everything. Your job in the corner is to inspire confidence- not undermine it.
If you sound like these guys, it’s a bad sign
Let me, before you get a chance, nip a few arguments in the butt.
1. Look, I get it, you may say that it is easy to trust your athlete when you’re coaching Nick Lee, Cenzo, and RBY on the daily but trust in your athlete is helpful for every athlete at every level- not just with the best in the country.
2. Yes, I know Cael does get animated at times. But that is one of the key details- he doesn’t do it 100% of the time. He picks his spots which allow for his voice to have more meaning.
Tips for cornering your athlete:
1. Show focus and confidence even in silence.
Silence cannot mean apathy. Pay attention to what is happening and show confidence in your athlete even when things are going bad. And for God’s sake, don’t get upset with your athlete within the match- it is clearly not productive.
2. Watch your tone!
Be careful not only in what you say but how you say it. Any nagging or negative tone of voice is going to be picked up by your athlete and undermine confidence.
3. Only give advice when your athlete is willing to take it.
Blanketly giving advice all the time undercuts your own advice. It’s hard to pick out the important and useful from everything else when it’s a constant stream. If your athlete doesn’t want advice, don’t beat your head against the wall trying to scream till steam comes out of your ears. It also definitely doesn’t help to yell the same advice or technique over and over. If they didn’t see the elbow pass the first time, they’re not going to do because you yelled it 12 more times.
If your athlete doesn’t want advice, don’t give it. Just tell them they’re a stud and let them go.
4. Stop yelling at fans and opposing coaches.
Ooh, this one grinds my gears. Talking to anyone other than your athlete in a match tells both your wrestler, your coaches, and your other athletes watching that it is okay to take your focus off the match. Yelling at a dumb fan makes you look just as stupid. Let them be.
Focus on what matters.
5. If you have to yell, find a good cue for the individual.
Talk to your athlete and find a cue that he wants to hear. I liked to hear “move your feet” from Coach Duroe. He knew that I liked it. Talk to your athletes and fine the phrase that he wants to hear. Avoid a cue that you think they need but actually annoy your athlete.
Being quiet in the corner is a great tool.
When you’re quiet in the corner 90% of the time and then your athlete hears your voice every once in a while he’s going to know you mean it. It gives weight to your voice as opposed to something they just want to tone out. It goes doubly for the ref. Why do you think Cael gets all these calls reversed when he makes a stink? Cael gets the calls when he gets upset because he doesn’t badger the ref about every little thing. He doesn’t try and count back points for them or yell stalling every 10 seconds. When Cael does get upset and talks to the ref at the table, the ref instantly knows he messed up because he knows Cael doesn’t do this constantly. Your voice has more substance when it is not continuously heard.
Do you agree? Disagree? Think I’m a dope? Let me hear it in the comments below.