Nestled in the rolling green Malibu hills, a short gaze from the Pacific Coast Highway lies Pepperdine University. Stand on the soccer field and you can see the Pacific Ocean the length of your peripheral vision. Tucked back into campus is the Firestone Fieldhouse. There, on a breezy Tuesday afternoon, the Pepperdine men’s team was at it. Blocking drills, serve and serve receive, the team going through the paces, surfing a six match winning streak with #8 USC coming to town that Thursday, and Cal Baptist on Saturday.
The practice settled into Coach Marv Dunphy’s pace: lots of contacts, lots of motion, concentrated feedback and no coach talking for more than just a few seconds.
Then came the USA Drill.
Teams start with a serve but must get three points in a row. Dunphy keeps things game-like by tossing balls off the court, at player’s feet, out of the net and even into the rafters: if it happens in a match, Dunphy wants his boy’s to see it in practice. The balls are entered quickly and without feedback because it’s more important to get the reps. The teams are totally engaged, chasing balls, figuring out how to get a swing out of a ball that was held captive in the rafters for a delicious few seconds. Finally, the team that scores the three points in a row: U-S-A gets to receive a serve from the other team to keep their point, or lose it under the duress of pressure.
At one point during the drill, Dunphy tosses a ball 25 feet off the court. The left back player gets a late start on it and while he lays out and dives for the ball, misses. Dunphy walks over to him and says, “You got that up the other night, you have to get that up here.” Dunphy trots back and launches the ball 30 feet off the court. This time, the player runs it down, brings it back, and a long set and a big swing later, the ball meets floor on the opposite side with a resounding thud. Mission accomplished.
We’ve written here before about Dunphy. He is a legend and if you don’t know of Marv and his accomplishments, you are in dire need of a Google search and 20 minutes. He probably had a hand in inventing this drill and he comes to life even more than usual while running it.
His team would pop USC in straight sets two nights later, handle Cal Bap and is playing well. “Yea, I like this team” he says in a confident but reserved tone. The Waves are poised to challenge for yet another National Championship.
Coaches come to Dunphy’s practice all the time and he welcomes them with open arms, telling them to come into the player huddles and watch video with the team. Marv is an open book and the Pepperdine Waves are an extension of his commitment, hard work and love of the sport.
While you may not be able to venture the third of a day it takes to battle the traffic to the Firestone, reach out to coaches you can get to. University and College coaches are usually very receptive and often times happy to meet with you, discuss what they do and why. It may not always be what you do or say as a coach, but hearing all points of view is a valuable coaching tool unto itself.
There’s a lot to learn and see, you just have to search it out.
Teams start with a serve but must get three points in a row. Dunphy keeps things game-like by tossing balls off the court, at player’s feet, out of the net and even into the rafters: if it happens in a match, Dunphy wants his boy’s to see it in practice. The balls are entered quickly and without feedback because it’s more important to get the reps. The teams are totally engaged, chasing balls, figuring out how to get a swing out of a ball that was held captive in the rafters for a delicious few seconds. Finally, the team that scores the three points in a row: U-S-A gets to receive a serve from the other team to keep their point, or lose it under the duress of pressure.
At one point during the drill, Dunphy tosses a ball 25 feet off the court. The left back player gets a late start on it and while he lays out and dives for the ball, misses. Dunphy walks over to him and says, “You got that up the other night, you have to get that up here.” Dunphy trots back and launches the ball 30 feet off the court. This time, the player runs it down, brings it back, and a long set and a big swing later, the ball meets floor on the opposite side with a resounding thud. Mission accomplished.
We’ve written here before about Dunphy. He is a legend and if you don’t know of Marv and his accomplishments, you are in dire need of a Google search and 20 minutes. He probably had a hand in inventing this drill and he comes to life even more than usual while running it.
His team would pop USC in straight sets two nights later, handle Cal Bap and is playing well. “Yea, I like this team” he says in a confident but reserved tone. The Waves are poised to challenge for yet another National Championship.
Coaches come to Dunphy’s practice all the time and he welcomes them with open arms, telling them to come into the player huddles and watch video with the team. Marv is an open book and the Pepperdine Waves are an extension of his commitment, hard work and love of the sport.
While you may not be able to venture the third of a day it takes to battle the traffic to the Firestone, reach out to coaches you can get to. University and College coaches are usually very receptive and often times happy to meet with you, discuss what they do and why. It may not always be what you do or say as a coach, but hearing all points of view is a valuable coaching tool unto itself.
There’s a lot to learn and see, you just have to search it out.
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