The 2024 season is fast approaching and I suppose it is my turn to join the rest of the Wisconsin football content space and release a preview. But let's face it there are so many writers out there who have already covered all the ins and outs of the program from the depth chart to the big questions heading into fall camp. In an effort to not just regurgitate what has already been said and to bring a fresh perspective I want to tackle the idea of a preview from a different angle. So I want to take it from the angle of I am walking into Day 1 of planning for an upcoming season. What are areas I want to see my team improve at? What type of planning is it going to take to achieve those goals, and better yet how can I take advantage of this new found improvement.
A Coach's Perspective on Team Preview
By identifying issues, devising a plan to fix those issues, and using the newfound skills as an advantage, we as fans can gain deeper insights into the team's potential. This approach moves us to focus on the performance of the position groups and/or the team as a whole and its strategic evolution rather than something as simple as player performance. I know what you're thinking. "Coach it's the Jimmies and Joes that matter not the X's and O's." Players are the fuel that drives engine. Distilling a better fuel source, tuning the engine to peak performance, and doing so as efficiently as possible is total football.
Identifying and Categorizing Areas for Improvement
Once identified, it all can be put into three categories: fundamental, execution, and tactical.
Fundamental improvement changes the way you play for the better. This includes refining basic skills such as footwork, hand placement, and points of contact which form the foundation of effective play.
Better execution simply means being more effective and efficient. This involves not just performing plays correctly, but also maximizing the efficiency of each play, minimizing mistakes, and ensuring every player knows their role and executes it perfectly.
Tactical improvement brings it all together and directly to the opponent. Having a team that is more sound fundamentally and executes at a higher level gives a coach a lot more to work with when it come to devising better schemes.
Anticipating Offensive Evolution
With all this in mind, we can look ahead to the evolution of the offense in Year 2 under Phil Longo. Approaching offensive evolution will be an interesting when you also take into account Luke Fickell's approach to systematic growth within a system. He didn't improve Cincinnati by making wholesale changes every season he grew his system by asking and answering questions. So we'll apply idea to the offense and asking question and identifying key problems that need solutions and how to approach those solutions.
But soon the time for talk will all be over and we will FINALLY be back to playing football. I'm looking forward to my second season of breaking down games for you and giving you a different perspective that will hopefully improve your game day experience.