Coach Phil Whitman has been coaching for 20 years, but that doesn’t mean he has stopped learning.
The Lions coach has been the team’s head coach for the last six of those 20 years. Now entering his seventh season at the helm of the Lisbon football team, he has learned to go with a bit of a lighter touch.
“Something I learned in the last couple years is I don’t have to beat the kids up in practice to make them be better football players on Friday night,” said Whitman. “I want those kids close to 100 percent fresh on Friday night, and ready to go.”
Come to one of his team’s practices, Whitman said, and “you’re not going to see us butting heads. You’re not going to see us going after each other full-contact all the time. That’s just not going to happen.”
In Class A, the classification the Lions compete in, “we can’t afford to lose kids to injuries. Especially not during practice,” Whitman said.
“I have to do whatever I can to keep them healthy, and but also have them as fresh as they can be for Friday night,” said the coach.
If he has a well-rested team, Whitman reasoned, the team will be a lot quicker on the field on Fridays.
The approach seems to be paying off.
“Last night I was talking to the parent of a senior, and she said her son has been in a great mood coming home from practice. And that hasn’t been the case in years past.
“So, the kids are having fun, and that’s what football should be about — having fun,” said Whitman.
That, of course, Whitman indicated, and trying pretty hard to win.
“I think we’ll see what we have,” he said of the team’s first game against West Branch.
“Quite honestly, every game matters, but I’m not every going to look past the next game. Our goal is going to be 1-0 every week, and the only game that matters on my schedule is the first one. And after next Friday, it’ll be the second one.
“We can’t look past” teams or “down the road,” Whitman said.
“I think this group is very cohesive, they’re in it for each other, and they play for each other, and they have this will and want to win. They’ve given us everything they have out at practice.”
“I really think they just are out there in practice enjoying the game of football. It’s light. They have a want and a will, and I think everybody on the team is pulling in the same direction,” said Whitman.
“I think they’re just enjoying the process.”