FOOTBALL: St. Mary Central Catholic football offseason

SANDUSKY
It’s fitting in many ways the St. Mary Central Catholic football team houses its weightroom in space that used to be a bus garage in a narrow section of the Sanford building just inside Mills Creek cemetery.
Much like a ride on the school bus to a football game is considered a time to get serious and focused, that is the main objective of the SMCC offseason workout program.
“It’s about working your partner and working yourself with full intensity,” SMCC coach Jason Ziegler said. “We try to stress that once you get in here and that whistle blows, all that laughing and screwing around is done.
“It’s a work atmosphere, and we talk about it being like a bank. You’re putting money into your savings, and we’ll cash out at the end of the season. The more money we put in, the more results we’re going to get.”
As one of nine area teams that had a losing season in 2009, the limited number of football players not in winter sports at SMCC look to the cold months of winter to become better players for the 2010 season.



Self-evaluation
Ziegler is a big fan of taking notes throughout a season, with a purpose of using them to decide what his program needs to focus on December through July.
“The biggest thing I noticed was our lack of team speed,” Ziegler said. “Our team speed was just putrid, and at times I felt like we were one of the slowest teams in the state of Ohio.
“And I know we weren’t, but it just feels that way when you’re out there going against the competition we face.”
The Panthers, a Division VI program with just 77 boys at the school, had a schedule that did them no favors. SMCC opened with the Division VI state champions at St. Paul (15-0) along with playoff teams at Fremont St. Joseph (9-2), Perkins (9-2) and Edison (8-3). The Panthers also faced Sandusky Bay Conference co-champion Clyde (6-4).
“I realized in my first year that strength and speed-wise we’re nowhere near where we needed to be,” Ziegler said. “We had to go in another direction. We changed our program around last year and saw incredible gains switching to more powerlifting sessions and doing a lot more explosive lifting.
“But, again, right now our team speed is nowhere near where it needs to be in general, top-to-bottom at every position, and we’re stressing that this winter, along with the attitude. We’re focusing on speed drills and our core strength. We’re getting better, but it’s going to take some time.”
While Ziegler thinks the Panthers have something to focus on, the program was also in dire need of basic lifting fundamentals.
“A lot of these guys don’t know the proper techniques,” he said. “So what I’ve done is start to lift the fifth- through seventh-graders and just teach them the techniques so when they get to the high school, it will be that much easier. There is a good commitment there thus far.”

Getting results
Achieving noticeable gains after an offseason of weightlifting is one thing, but keeping it going often is another issue at a program the size of SMCC’s.
“Too much in the past you lift your tail off the entire summer, and you get into the season and maybe lift once a week and you’re losing your strength,” Ziegler said. “With so many of our kids in other sports, if they are losing that strength, they are going from sport to sport losing more and more strength, and by the time summer comes they are not where they need to be.”
Ziegler’s players are being joined in the weightroom by players from the school’s other programs, and it’s helping the cause.
“We only have 10 guys right now who aren’t doing another sport,” he said. “But they’ve been committed to coming in here four days a week doing everything it takes to get better and be where we need to be.
“On top of that, coach (Lyle) Falknor has the basketball team lifting, and they go through a routine to give them core strength so when the next sport comes they will be continually strong.”
But when a team goes 1-9 like the Panthers did after devoting eight months to getting stronger, it can be tough mentally.
“Honestly, the results weren’t all that great,” Ziegler said. “There is a saying that as many sophomores as you start that’s how many losses you’ll have ,and we had a lot of sophomores playing last year. But strength-wise the majority of our kids got stronger. We just have to continue going in that direction, and I think we are.”

Winning starts now
Ziegler likes to think of each month in the offseason as working toward a victory in the fall.
“That’s something we’ve really focused on,” he said. “Our first year was toughness and attitude. I didn’t feel like we had the mental toughness. I think we were a tougher team this past season because as I look back on about seven games last year, we’re in those games until the third quarter and we just get worn down.
“Our season will depend on what we do now. As a player, sometimes you hear that and it’s in one ear and out the other and you’ll say ‘Whatever, Coach,’ but it’s the honest truth. The amount of time we put in now, the easier it’s going to be. If you have that confidence, you’ll play better, and to me that battle is won right now.”
Another key for Ziegler and the Panthers is depth. With a roster in the mid-to-low 30s each season, SMCC is an injury or two from disaster.
“We’re looking at those kids getting stronger, and they are,” Ziegler said. “We focus on working the muscles in their ankles and neck to try and help avoid injuries, but obviously they are part of the game.
“I feel good about where the weight program is headed. I’m real excited with the progress we’ve made.”