COVER STORY
STOPPING
A SLUMP Veteran coaches share their advice on turning things around when players, or even whole teams, are struggling to perform their best. | By Patrick Bohn
Tim Scannell, Head Coach at Trinity University (Texas), has had a lot of success during his time with the Tigers, winning six Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference championships and making seven trips to the NCAA Division III baseball tournament. But even thriving programs like his aren’t immune to stretches of bad play from time to time. During one losing streak a few years ago, Scannell was frustrated as his team struggled to get back on track. Rather than pushing his squad even harder to eliminate mistakes, he chose a different approach for a midweek practice. When the players arrived for their workout, they found the field set up for a Wiffle ball tournament. “Sometimes, when you’re struggling and the changes you make to the lineup aren’t working, you need to hit the reset button,” Scannell says. “As a coaching staff, we
thought the guys needed to get away from the game and relax. We knew playing Wiffle ball would accomplish that. The players had a lot of fun, and we won our next game to kick off a long winning streak.” For coaches, one of the biggest keys to continued success is turning their team—or individual players—around when they’re struggling. But doing so can be a challenge. Some players may try to do too much when things aren’t going well, while others may lose focus and intensity. Losing can put
University of Louisville players congratulate each other following a win. Their coach, Dan McDonnell, likes to focus on effort and energy when he feels his team is struggling. Photo by Jeff Reinking/Louisville Sports Information