Nebraska’s Offense is a Game-Changer

Nebraska is currently ranked #2 nationally. They have a young group of athletes that incorporates the backrow attack in their offensive system at a tempo that will be challenging to defend.

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Statistics-One Size Does Not Fit All

I am an information fanatic on many fronts. I especially relish diving into a statistical match analysis, picking up on player or team tendencies, determining strengths and weaknesses, developing game plans, etc. Many software programs provide detailed analysis of a team’s performance. As much as I enjoy detailed information, the most valuable statistic(s) is the…

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Keys to Developing a “Slide” Attack

In a previous post, we looked at the fundamentals of attacking a 1 or 31 set (terminology can vary) with the middle attacker. These sets are designed to provide a quick middle attack in front of the setter. In this article, I’ll examine keys to facilitate your middle attacker attacking the zones behind the setter.…

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Passing Techniques and Systems- One Size Does Not Fit All

Coaches must guard against automatically mirroring other teams’ or coaches’ techniques and tactics. Many factors should influence how the skills are taught and the systems implemented. The game is different at the collegiate or national team levels compared to a 14-under club team. The men’s game at the international level is a beast unto itself—the…

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Considerations for an Effective Offense

Any successful venture will possess core values. Decisions are made, daily activities are designed, and time is allocated based on the pillars deemed the backbone of a company, team, or collective group. All coaches should have core values that impact daily activities and decisions. These values must be visible to all team members with an…

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My Evolution to Constraint-Led Teaching

Without much effort, I can reflect on my coaching career and create a lengthy list of on-court and off-court mistakes. One of these blunders would manifest daily in how I taught volleyball skills. I was the guy on a box hitting balls at players so they could work on digging skills. Or I was tossing…

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A Painstaking, But Worthwhile Evaluation Tool

Hall of Fame coach Mike Hebert told me that one of his most valuable tools to develop as a coach was recording video and audio of himself during multiple practices. My first reaction was my fear of what I would see or hear if I tried this self-improvement tactic. I did summon the courage, and…

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There is Value in Both Internal and External Cues When Teaching

A group of people playing volleyball Description automatically generated with medium confidence

Of the many things that, in retrospect, I wish I had done better in my career is giving more thought to how I provided feedback to players. I knew what behavior I wanted from a player or team, but I was uncertain about transmitting the information in the most impactful fashion. I’m better now because…

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