Woodstock Boys’ LAX 2015
Coach Whitaker
On the Run Up Tempo Lacrosse
• We believe in the speed of the game and want to be the fastest
team in the state.
• Our number one tenet is that it is extremely difficult to score
goals in settle, 6 x 6 situations. We put a great deal of effort
into attacking all other situations, especially transition.
• We have to create transition and unsettled play.
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“FIGHT AGAINST WE NEED A POSSESSION AND
INSTILL WE NEED GOALS”
Up Tempo Lacrosse
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We push every even, fast, slow, man-down situation and
attack our opponent in space.
We do this by giving our athletes space and confidence to
attack in all situations and put pressure on our opponent to
defend our athletes in space and in non-traditional sliding
scenarios.
Playing the game this way wears down opponents and
excites our players.
Up Tempo Lacrosse
We do not need to win possession time or shots on
goal, we need to SCORE MORE GOALS TO WIN
We do not want to have a possession just to have a
possession—we want more possessions and scoring
opportunities.
Season Expectations
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Focus on Energy, Execution, and Effort
Academic and Behavior Accountability
Great character, attitude, and be coachable
Work ethic and effort
Be an unselfish teammate
Be on time to practices, games, etc
Lead by example
Embrace mistakes—Get it Back
Most aggressive and fastest team in the state
Earn respect
Program Philosophy
Put forth a winning effort
 Practice as you play
 Play together
 Play with passion
 No team out hustle or out works us
 All players have a role, embrace it and do everything to help our team
win
 This team is not about you, it is about us
 Work hard to improve everyday
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Player Values
Effort and hard work
 Team above me
 Deny selfishness
 Accountability and discipline
 Motivation and enthusiasm
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Coaching Philosophy
Accountability and discipline
 Enthusiasm and motivation
 Hard work and effort
 Fast paced practices
 Aggressive, fearless, up tempo, attacking mentality
 Competition
 Statistical analysis
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Style of Play
 Maximize
transition and unsettled scoring chances
through aggressive/physical defense, rides, face offs,
and clears
 Attacking mentality in aspects of the game
 Play fast and generate tempo
Eight Goals of Practice
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Fun
Excitement to come back
Development/improvement
Intensity
Play fast
Repetition
Core of drills
Competition
Practice Layout
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Practice Procedures
 Be on time and ready to go at the start of practice
 Practices are highly competitive with quick transitions—no walking
allowed
 100% effort and concentration is expected and demanded
 No talking while be instructed or addressed as a group
 Keep your eyes on our coaches
 Huddle in formation properly when feasible
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Practice Procedures
Think positive! When faced with a new challenge, embrace
the opportunity to grow mentally and physically
Film study and grading is conducted as if it is a practice
Players will be expected to clean up the field after practice
Players will wear ONLY Woodstock lacrosse pinnies
Warm ups, stretching, calisthenics will be done correctly
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Game day Procedures
Be on time to pregame meetings and give your
undivided attention.
 All players will dress and look the same
Pregame warm-ups are to be taken seriously and
executed as an extension of the game
When substituted out of a game, during a time out, or
any other reason for stopping play, RUN to the sideline
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Game day Procedures
 During half time and timeouts, all players are in the huddle listening to
coaching instruction
 We win and lose as a team and we accept responsibility for mistakes,
learn from them, and strive to improve
 We display great sportsmanship, attitude, and respect to officials,
coaches, and opposing teams at all times
 After all home games, all players will assist in picking up balls, pylons,
goals, etc
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GAME TIME
Playing Time
Our program is all about competition and players should
compete daily for playing time regardless of what grade
you are in
Film grades, player efficiency ratings, and hustle and gut
points will factor in playing time
It is the responsibility of the player to first discuss playing
time issues and not the parent.
Lack of playing time is not personal; we as a team strive
to place our players in the best chance to be successful
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Offense
Our primary offense is generating as many transition
opportunities and unsettled situations possible
Our base offense are motion offenses ran out of a 2-31, 3-3, 1-4-1, and 2-2-2
The 2-3-1 and 3-3 share the same basic motion
guidelines
We will have some quick hitters as well
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Defense
Base is called “30”
Lock
In bound double
Rock
Dog
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WOODSTOCK LACROSSE DEFENSIVE
PHILOSOPHY
RELENTLESS- We are focused and attacking every second the ball is on our end. TAKE PRIDE IN OUR EFFORT IN
EVERYTHING THAT WE DO! WE LOVE EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO PLAY DEFENSE! EMBRACE IT! WE LOVE THE
CHALLENGE!
CONSTANT COMMUNICATION- Listening as well as talking. If you are not talking, you are more worried about individual defense
than team defense.
DISCIPLINE- POSITIONING, OFF BALL D, APPROACH, CHECKS.
Our attention to detail will be unmatched. It is exciting that we are surrounded by people who care about us and want to see us improve.
Take advantage of it. Do not be stubborn; there are no egos here.
TRANSITION- We take pride in our stick skills and expect to be involved in scores. CLEAR THE BALL. First player without the ball
crashes the crease, second player without ball supports the ball carrier. WE ARE THE AGRESSOR IN TRANSITION AND NEED
SOLID DECISION MAKING!
PLAY HARD - You have the rest of your life to watch lacrosse. When you are on the field, play like a wild man. WHAT IS
PLAYING HARD? CONSISTENTLY DOING THE LITTE THINGS CORRECTLY!
“Training prepares you for the expected, but education prepares you for the unexpected.”
GREAT TEAMS CONSISTENTLY PLAY GREAT DEFENSE!
EVERYTHING WE DO WE DO TOGETHER!
Statistical Analysis
Hustle and Gut Chart
1. Shows how active and valuable each player is during
the course of a game
2. The chart directly relates to what we emphasize as a
program during the season
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Statistical Analysis
Hustle and Gut Formula
 There are fifteen categories with different point values that player can
accumulate during a game.
 Each time a player performs one of the fifteen categorical things in game,
the player will receive points for each thing they do in a game
 For each game, the players will be given a hustle and gut score to see
how much they meant to their team during each game
 The score will be charted by game kept by game and season totals
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Statistical Analysis
Hustle and Gut Categories
 goals (2)
 assists (3)
 hustle plays (3)
 forced TOs (3)
 forced TOs/GBs (5)
 gbs (2)
 faceoffs won (1)
 good defense (1)
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 good defense (1)
 blocked shots (2)
 shot backups (1)
 transition starts (1)
 man down stops (1)
 ride tos (4)
 sideline hits (3)
 big legal checks (3)
Statistical Analysis
Player Efficiency Ratings
 Gives players feedback how well they played in a game or how efficiently they
played.
 Quantitatively gives each player a game score based on seven positive and
seven negatives positional categories that the player can obtain during a game.
 Helps to justify playing time and determines how valuable each player is to our
team.
 Tangibly shows how every play (not just goals scored) in the game of lacrosse
matters in the final outcome of the game.
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Statistical Analysis
Player Efficiency Formula
 The rating score is derived from taking the seven positive categories added them
together and subtracting that number from the seven negative categories added
together. That number is then divided by the total number of minutes played in that
particular game and produces a rating score for that game.
 A seasonal rating score will be averaged from each game as well to show player
improvement and gives the coaches the ability to give player's feedback on what
they need to improve in order to get better or get more playing time.
 Rating scale--.40 and above (All Region) .25-.39 (Starter) .10-.24 (Solid
Contributor) .10 or below (Role Player)
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Film Study/Grading
Film study/grading is one of the biggest things we do to
increase our LAX IQ
Each player will grade themselves or by position by a
series of plus and minuses
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Team Rules/Consequences
See website
www.woodstocklacrosse.com under the
tab Player Expectations
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Coaches Contact Information
 Head Coach Keith Whitaker
Phone: 770-845-9410 Email: keith.whitaker@cherokee.k12.ga.us
 Assistant Coach Mark Keels
Email:
 Assistant Coach Zach Nellenbach
Email:
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