End of Training Camp

As previously mentioned, the last day of training camp started off a little later since we had our team barbecue the night before. We slept in and then had to pack everything up to clear out from the hostel and head to the Hockeypark for our team scrimmage.

The scrimmage was a “controlled” offense versus defense scrimmage (a game simulation); what that means is that there were no referees but the coaches controlled the scrimmage by whistles and also had the opportunity to talk to the players in between plays to correct things if necessary. The practice consisted of a warm-up, and an individual period (when the team divides by position with their positional coach to go over specific positional drills) then the team proceeded to play 48 plays.

The scrimmage was broken into four quarters and each “quarter” was at different locations on the field, using down and distance at each location just no punting or special teams. The offense would start 12 plays on their own 20-yard line; the second group of twelve plays was on the offense’s own 45-yard line, the third on the defense’s own 45-yard line and the fourth grouping would be on the defense’s 20-yard line and I think we may have done a few on the actual goal line as well.

Training camps are an all-consuming ordeal; from sunrise to sunset; it is football all the time and no time for you to take a moment and breathe. It is a very exhausting undertaking, not only for the players but also for all involved; from the coaches, to the support staff (equipment, video, food), the physiotherapy and doctors staff and so on. Once the practice was completed; I was excited to grab my things and head back to the apartment and get a chance to relax.

I want to reflect a little bit about the concept of training camp.

Training camps are a part of football; but most players have mixed feelings about them. We all know and understand how crucial it is to develop chemistry between players and prepare and evaluate players for the new season but there are always some downsides as well.

Personally, I don’t mind training camp; playing on offense it is very important to develop chemistry with your quarterback to understand how he thinks and reacts in certain situations. It is very important to be on the same page and the best way to do that is repetition and believe me there is a lot during training camp.

Some people could counter that point of view by saying that would only be the case if you were playing with many new players. They would say that if you have played with the same quarterback for many years that wouldn’t be as necessary since you already know each other’s tendencies.

I use the example of quarterback and offense because it is the most common one for me but I believe the same tendencies and concepts apply for defense as well.

When I think of training camp the only concern that I always have is the fear of injury.

You may ask why am I only concerned about injury during training camp and am not as worried about it otherwise. I am not as concerned about injury at other times during the season because I play football and when you play a contact sport, injuries will occur.

In training camp however, in my experience, is when you see the most players succumb to injury. It is a terrible thing to see a teammate get hurt by a teammate or just get hurt in a non-game situation. Training camp is a time period with such high intensity; injuries are almost unavoidable.

Every year that I have been in training camp there always seem to be a player get hurt and miss a significant amount of playing time and that is always a depressing thing to see. Football is played for about 4 or 5 months a year and the rest of the time is training; the preparation lasts for the rest of year. When you see a teammate get hurt; you feel for him; you know the long, tough hours he spent preparing to be ready for game day.

Another side affect that is also very common during training camp is the development of nagging injuries. These injuries aren’t bad enough to take you out of the game or practice but they are still there and a pain to deal with since you never feel like you can compete at your best potential. I know that more than once I have dealt with one of these injuries and they are no fun but a part of the game.

Many times these injuries develop or begin to appear during training camp because of the high number of practices (usually twice a day, for two hours or more) and the amount of running that takes place during camp. The toll that these hours of high intense practice place on your body often result in the development of tendonitis, shin splints or muscle strains that often will remain until the end of the season.

There are many more pros and cons involved with training camp that I could go into but I wanted to highlight a few and try to get your opinions. I have had the pros and cons discussion with coaches, players (veterans and rookies), therapists, and doctors, all in an effort to gauge a general consensus about training camp. What is your opinion? Should practices be shorter? Longer? Less intense? Less contact drills? Should there be more involvement with the therapy staff? How do you think it differs in other sports? Let me know what you think.