Sports Coaching – Page 12 – The Sport Journal

The Interrelated Back Stories of Kenny Washington Reintegrating the NFL in 1946 and Jackie Robinson Integrating Major League Baseball in 1947

Submitted by Raymond Stefani, Ph.D*

1* California State University, Long Beach, USA

Dr. Raymond Stefani is an emeritus professor of Engineering at the California State University, Long Beach, USA. His more than 120 sports publications are evenly divided between individual and team sports. He seeks a fundamental understanding of the physics, physiology, causes of gender differential performance, rates of improvement, effect of historical events and effects of performance enhancing drugs related to Olympic gold medal performances in athletics (track and field), swimming, rowing and speed skating. He has analyzed Olympic home nation medal advantage He developed a least squared team rating system applied to predicting the outcome of more than 20,000 games of American football, basketball, European soccer, Australian Rules football, and Super Rugby. Home advantage has been studied in those contexts. He has contributed to the understanding of the types and application of 100 international sport rating systems (both for individuals and teams) and their ability to predict the outcome of world and Olympic championship events. He contributed to the millennium edition of the New York Times. He has presented his work to 10 organizations conducting conferences in eight nations on three continents. Dr. Stefani invites collaboration with colleagues from around the world.

ABSTRACT

In 1946, Kenny Washington reintegrated the National Football League (NFL). In 1947, Jackie Robinson integrated Major League Baseball. Those two iconic events initiated an era of opportunity for black athletes wanting to compete at the highest level in professional sports. In fact, both events terminated two interrelated (and largely forgotten) back stories from 1936 to 1947, covered in detail in this paper. The back stories include two second-tier pro football teams, a narrow escape from Honolulu before Pearl Harbor by Robinson and the creation of a rival league to the NFL. Had it not been for the cancellation of the 1940 Olympics, Robinson might now be known as an Olympic medalist in the long jump. Had it not been for an ankle injury in 1944, Robinson might now be known as a former professional football player. Had it not been for Kenny Washington’s success in pro football from 1940 to 1945, Robinson might not be known for breaking the color barrier in major league baseball. These back stories form a fascinating, inter-twined chain of events upon which depended the signing of Washington and Robinson.

Key words: integration, pro football, major league baseball, NFL, Kenny Washington, Jackie Robinson

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U.S. Sports Academy2015-04-16T16:07:41-05:00March 17th, 2015|Sports Coaching, Sports History, Sports Management|Comments Off

Kinematic Analysis of the Slap Hitting Technique in Division I Softball Players

Submitted by Robin Lund1, Ph.D.*, Travis Ficklin2, Ph.D.* Mr. Johnathan Faga3*, Ms. Cassie Reilly-Boccia4*

1* Assistant Professor of Physical Education at University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA 50614

2* Assistant Professor of Physical Education at University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA 50614

3* B.A. in Movement and Exercise Science from the University of Northern Iowa.

4* Director of Research and Development at Athletes Warehouse in Pleasantville, NY.

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to provide a kinematic description of the phase parameters of the slap hitting technique and the interrelationships that may exist in Division I softball players. Video data were collected for all swings during a 15-game softball tournament in which six NCAA Division I teams played. A high-speed video camera filming at 300 Hz was located along the third base line recording every pitch. Only data from trials in which a slap swing attempt was made were kept, resulting in 200 trials. Three phases were identified; preparatory step, wind-up and swing. The duration of each phase (t_PREP, t_WIND-UPand t_SWING, s) as well as the duration of the entire technique (t_TOTAL, s), the forward velocity of the hips (v_HIP, m/s) during the wind-up phase and the velocity of the bat at contact (v_BAT, m/s) were obtained for each trial. Descriptive statistics were calculated for each of the variables and Pearson product moment correlations were used to examine the relationships among the variables. Several significant relationships were identified (p<0.05). The duration of the preparatory step phase has a direct effect on v_HIP and v_BAT. The duration of the wind-up and swing phases appear to be related to the timing of each individual trial and do not appear to play a role in v_HIP and v_BAT. Coaches should consider the role of the preparatory step phase on v_HIP and v_BAT when coaching different techniques such as the soft slap and the power slap.

Key words: softball, kinematic, slap hitting. (more…)

U.S. Sports Academy2020-10-21T08:24:27-05:00March 17th, 2015|Contemporary Sports Issues, Sports Coaching, Sports Studies and Sports Psychology|Comments Off

Teaching & Coaching: The Challenges and Conflicts of Dual Roles

Submitted by Dr. Christopher Saffici*

1* Department of Education, Florida Memorial University, Miami Gardens, Florida 33054

Dr. Saffici is an Associate Professor at Florida Memorial University in the field of Education, with a specialization in Physical Education. He serves as President Elect of the Faculty Senate. He has served as Vice President of the Midwest District of AAHPERD as well as Vice President of the Ohio Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance.

ABSTRACT

Individuals hired typically in high school and junior high school health and physical education positions are asked and/or required to coach a sport or more than one sport a year. Many of these individuals are drawn to physical activity and are excited to teach and/or coach. Some see themselves more as teachers and some more as coaches. The conflict to perform both roles can cause conflict, either with alliances to one versus the other, or in finding the time and energy to perform both tasks well.

Key words: teaching, coaching, dual roles (more…)

U.S. Sports Academy2015-04-16T16:18:06-05:00March 10th, 2015|Sport Education, Sport Training, Sports Coaching|Comments Off

The “Football Family” as a Supportive Academic Environment: A Study of Varsity Athletes

Submitted by Dr. Francois Gravelle, Ph.D., Dr. George Karlis, Ph.D., and Ezechiel Rothschild-Checroune.

Dr. François Gravelle P.h.D., University of Ottawa, School of Human Kinetics, 125 University private, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1N 6N5. E-mail: fgravel@uottawa.ca. Tel.: 613-562-5800 (2442) Dr. Gravelle is also an adjunct professor at the “Département d’études en loisir, culture et tourisme” at the University of Québec in Trois-Rivières.

Dr. George Karlis, University of Ottawa, School of Human Kinetics, 125 University private, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1N 6N5. E-mail: gkarlis@uottawa.ca. Tel.: 613-562-5800 (2452)

Ezechiel Rothschild-Checroune, M.A. PhD Student, University of Toronto, Department of Exercise Sciences, 55 Harbord St., Toronto ON, M5S 2W6. E-mail: zeke.rothschild.checroune@mail.utoronto.ca.

ABSTRACT

The challenge of adjusting from secondary school to a new university setting and adapting to the dynamic systems of academic and athletic programs can be overwhelming. The supportive interaction between athletes and coaches may play a key role for academic success. These important considerations encouraged this study to examine the perceptions of varsity athletes toward the “football family” as a supportive academic environment. The intent of this study was to examine the influence of the “football family” – rookies, veterans, and coaches – on academic success. Phenomenological qualitative research was the approach employed to examine the perceptions of 12 first year university football student athletes at a Canadian university toward the “football family” as a supportive academic environment. The results indicated that the “football family” provided a supportive academic environment for the varsity football players. Specifically the results revealed that: (1) rookies share the most experiences with other football rookies at university, (2) rookies engaged academically with each other by going to class and working on academic projects together, (3) rookies vicariously learn from each others’ mistakes, (4) veterans helped rookies with both athletics and academics, (5) veterans’ experience provided unique learning opportunities than those gained from other rookies, (6) veterans acted as role models, (7) coaches were viewed as fatherly figures in the football family, (8) coaches have greater academic influence towards engagement than professors, and (9) coaches acted as life coaches pushing a family first, school second, football third mentality. It was concluded that the “football family” can provide a supportive academic environment for rookies adjusting to university.

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U.S. Sports Academy2016-04-01T09:09:00-05:00October 2nd, 2014|General, Sports Coaching|Comments Off

Coaching Efficiency and Team Performance: An Examination of Texas Class 5A High School Football

Submitted by Scott J. Callan, Ph.D. and Janet M. Thomas, Ph.D.

Scott J. Callan is a professor in the Department of Economics at Bentley University. Janet M. Thomas is an Emeritus Professor of Economics at Bentley University.

ABSTRACT

In this research, we contribute to the literature on amateur sports competition by empirically estimating a production frontier for a sample of Texas high school football programs. Modeling a production frontier in this context allows us to empirically isolate the influence of offensive and defensive inputs on a team’s overall performance. In so doing, we are able to predict a measure of relative production efficiency for each team. Research-based estimates indicate that, on average, Texas high school football teams play well below potential, which in turn is linked to coaching inefficiency. Each team’s predicted efficiency level is then used in a salary regression and is found to be an indirect determinant of a head coach’s salary.

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U.S. Sports Academy2020-06-02T11:25:00-05:00September 16th, 2014|Sports Coaching|Comments Off