Time Spent with GCU Men's Volleyball

Joshua Meyer is the girl's head volleyball coach at Sunrise Mountain High School and has written the following guest blog for the Region.

I've been blessed with the privilege to spend time with the Grand Canyon University (GCU) Men’s Volleyball team and coaching staff. In my hunt to learn more and more about the game of volleyball, Jeremy Price opened up his gym so I can see how men’s volleyball is played and coached at the NCAA level. When starting my observation I was looking forward to getting ideas for new drills and new techniques to use. Instead I received affirmation of the importance as a coach to understand the pulse your team.

From the start of my coaching experience I've understood the importance of managing the highs of attitude, energy, etc. Understanding this and being successful at managing are two completely different skills. Talking with Jeremy Price, GCU Men’s Volleyball coach and his staff they explained how they not only identified their team’s moods from day to day but also how they manage it. Being able to understand the energy a team has during a practice or during a particular drill can lead to have a successful week or not.

This is the case in any sport but in volleyball the importance is amplified because of the 6 moving parts we have on the floor at the same time all working towards the same goal. Volleyball is a true team sport where individuals don’t exist. Sitting down with the coaching staff we talked about how managing the emotions and energy of a team can dictate whether a team will be successful or not. As coaches we must be identify the pulse of a team and make changes accordingly. While observing a practice the team as a whole was playing flat. Not showing a lot of emotion and went through the motions during warm ups. Talking to Coach Price and his assistant Ryan Woodworth they knew they had to make a change. “If you see a team is flat or if practice needs to change tempo we (coaches) need to be prepared to change plans to make it a better practice.”

In both the high school season and club season there are times where we walk into practice and we can tell that the energy or the tone of practice is not going a productive one. The ability to quickly identify this and change up a practice plan is essential. In the example with the GCU Men’s team they went quickly into a 6 on 6 competitive drill to drive up the tempo of practice.

Sometimes a competitive drill may not work. We've all been in a gym where sometimes a little fun is needed to get a team going. Understanding your team and what they need is a learning process with ever new team but should not go overlooked. Don’t walk into each season thinking you can do the same thing to get a team working together or motivated.

While there are clear differences coaching the Grand Canyon University Men’s Volleyball program and a junior girls club team I was able to draw some very clear similarities. 

Understanding tempo and how to manage the pulse of a team is vastly important no matter what level of volleyball you are coaching. Being able to adjust a practice with a new drill or changing a lineup in a match to pull a team together is one of the most overlooked coaching skills that are needed. Being able to do this is not found in a book or learned from a class but instead by in person experiences. Watching the GCU Men’s Volleyball program manage this during their fall season has shown me a lot regarding these skills and I strongly recommend spending time with other coaches to not just steal drills from each other but gather a greater understanding on how to manage the ebbs and flows of your team.