Fighting The Heat Was Stupid
August 7th, 2016
In the past, Bucs coaches embraced the heat of the Central Florida summer believing practicing in the middle of the day would prepare the team for gamedays when opponents would wilt.
Since Chucky was jettisoned, this theory proved to be laughable (almost as laughable as watching the immortal Canton-bound quarterback Austin Davis tear apart Lovie Smith’s pass defense) . Opponents dominated the Bucs at home, physically, at the Den of Depression early in the season.
When Dirk Koetter took over as coach, per Emily Kaplan of theMMQB.com, he quickly stopped this nonsense and saved players’ bodies. In fact, as Kaplan writes, practicing in the brutal Florida sun did more damage to players than it did helping them build stamina.
“The truth is, that just never proved to be an advantage,” Licht says. Exhaustion led to injuries. “With a mid-day walk-through standing in the heat, we had players that literally got dehydrated from that,” he added. “We had guys who needed IV’s from a walk-through.”
Koetter proposed the change: a walk-through begins at 8:30 p.m. the night before, with installations following the next day. Players are now off the field by 11 a.m.
Joe could be wrong on this, but Joe swears he remembers Father Dungy having night practices when the team used the facilities at the University of Tampa as its training camp site.
Seems the Bucs did OK playing games in the heat back then.
Joe understands Koetter gets embarrassed when Joe writes about all the differences in the team’s regimen this summer compared to previous coaching staffs. Hey, each coach has different ideas. And if these new ideas work (night walk-throughs, morning practices, controlled scrimmages with other teams, etc.), why be embarrassed?
After all, after a total of 22 losses the past two seasons, something had to change. Why not embrace the change and try new things instead of the old get-clobbered-at-home rut the Bucs have been in far too long?
August 7th, 2016 at 1:13 pm
Not to pick nits but, it was actually 24 losses the past 2 years.
I watched every single one of them.
August 7th, 2016 at 1:39 pm
BAIT TO THE THIRD DEGREE! I ain’t hungry!
August 7th, 2016 at 1:55 pm
I will keep posting this as long as Joe will allow it. I set up a Pigskin Pickem league for us JoeBucsFan readers and Joe as well if he is inclined to compete with us. I think it will be fun to pick against you guys. Fair warning I went 71% last yr.
http://games.espn.com/nfl-pigskin-pickem/2016/en/group?groupID=99276
August 7th, 2016 at 2:03 pm
Since we only practice once a day the heats a none issue.
Now two a days are a different story
August 7th, 2016 at 2:03 pm
Can’t wait for that Glazer indoor facility. Think it was suppose to be complete back in 2012. I did see at practice that they built a roof to cover their cars. Thanks!
August 7th, 2016 at 2:12 pm
Yes I remember evening practices at UT. Those pretty cool over there. Actually the last times I attended Bucs training camp unfortunately.
August 7th, 2016 at 2:26 pm
White uniforms don’t help either. I hate looking like the road team at home games. Gives us our pewter and red!
August 7th, 2016 at 2:27 pm
Living here is acclimation enough.
August 7th, 2016 at 2:28 pm
Correct, if other teams were doing two-a-days. But they are not.
August 7th, 2016 at 2:30 pm
theodore:
Bucs have been doing that for almost 20 years.
August 7th, 2016 at 2:37 pm
Hey Joe is my Pigskin Pickem league ok ??? Are you gonna enter?
August 7th, 2016 at 2:41 pm
Wont have to worry once that indoor facility is finished, better for the players, and eliminated the chance of practices being cut short from lightning/storms. Cuter is the man!!!
August 7th, 2016 at 2:43 pm
I wish they would replace the white jerseys with black. Play with the reds at home and the blacks away. Tired of the white jersey white pants crap. Looks like a giant surrender flag to the other team!!!
August 7th, 2016 at 2:47 pm
With away games…night games and the NFL scheduling games at 4pm……there is very little, if any, advantage….I think we don’t have a 1pm game until October 30 this year…
What advantage the Bucs do have is that they are accustomed to the heat on a daily basis.
August 7th, 2016 at 3:30 pm
Don’t see anything wrong with it. Nah, not much of a fantasy guy. You know Joe: “Joe’s idea of fantasy has nothing to do with football and everything to do with Rachel Watson.”
August 7th, 2016 at 3:44 pm
Koetter respectfully does not want to say Lovie was incompetent and clueless but his actions speak volumes.
August 7th, 2016 at 3:47 pm
He must be speaking in tongues ^^^^
August 7th, 2016 at 3:55 pm
Unfortunately, Practicing in the middle of the heat as stupid did not even make the incompetent’s top 10 list for stupid!!!! After all the transgressions that buffoon of a head coach caused, its amazing some of the sheep wanted to watch another year of the Bucs finishing last in the division again!!!! Seriously with all the stupid things coach my scheme did, he could of parked in the handicapped parking spot and no one would have thought twice about it!!!
So glad in 4 days to turn from one of the worst chapters in Buc History!!!!
and just like lovie’s reputation, Class is Over!!!!!!
GO Bucs!!!!
August 7th, 2016 at 4:35 pm
:sigh:
Rember Perkins 3-a-days?
Back in The Day before Gatorade replaced salt tablets, football training camp meant 2-a-days, initiation to the football season…
August 7th, 2016 at 4:43 pm
I just recently got into FF Joe but this is not Fantasy. It is just a “Pickem”
You pick the winners of all games for the whole yr. No fantasy
August 7th, 2016 at 4:47 pm
C’mon DB, Realist, Nole, Luv, 87, TBBF, SPBF.
Join the league and lets pick against each other. I will prolly pick the Bucs to win more than I should but who cares. We are all Bucs fans
August 7th, 2016 at 4:53 pm
Cobraboy Says:
August 7th, 2016 at 4:35 pm
:sigh:
Rember Perkins 3-a-days?
Back in The Day before Gatorade replaced salt tablets, football training camp meant 2-a-days, initiation to the football season…
…………………….
Perkins’ results were enough to tell you about 3-a-days. Remember before plumbing when we had Outhouses?
August 7th, 2016 at 5:01 pm
Sweeeeet there are 4 of us in the League so far!
August 7th, 2016 at 6:55 pm
SB, im down
August 7th, 2016 at 8:14 pm
I like the morning practices. Its still hot as hell out there by the end of practice so we’re still getting the one up on most teams with the weather conditions since thats what they’ve been trying to do all these years
August 7th, 2016 at 8:16 pm
Finally, finally, there is some sanity for the players and the fans. There have been several September games in the past few years where it was unbearable in the stands. I can imagine what the players were feeling. I notice the first two games this year are away, followed by two 4 PM games. Finally.
August 7th, 2016 at 8:49 pm
It will be nice when they finally get their indoor practice field built. They should have built it after The Chucky Disney camps. It would have been much less costly then too.
August 8th, 2016 at 6:39 am
Thank you Dirk Koetter!!!
Global Warming and the Increased risk of skin cancer are real!!
Thank you Dirk for treating our players like people and not cattle!
These guys needs to be taken care of!
We need to scientific if we want to make it to the Super Bowl!
And thank you Dirk for bringing MUSIC back to the Bucs!!
I am so happy Lovie and his close-minded christianity are GONE!!
August 8th, 2016 at 7:27 am
The Buc Realist Says
“Unfortunately, Practicing in the middle of the heat as stupid did not even make the incompetent’s top 10 list for stupid!!!! After all the transgressions that buffoon of a head coach caused, its amazing some of the sheep wanted to watch another year of the Bucs finishing last in the division again!!!! Seriously with all the stupid things coach my scheme did, he could of parked in the handicapped parking spot and no one would have thought twice about it!!!”
It must be nice to live in your revisionist world.
Your “boy” Jon Gruden started the tradition of practicing in the heat, pal.
You know, they same guy you profess to love but threw under the bus when he was actually our head coach? Some of us remember, regardless of your revisionist claims now.
😛
August 8th, 2016 at 7:29 am
@billbrandi
Heat lamps will be directed at the fans so that they are too busy wiping sweat to notice how bad some of the players are.
August 8th, 2016 at 7:34 am
@Realist
Oh, btw…I’m talking about those of us who knew you before JBF 😉
On topic, I never really saw the point in the heat practices. I mean, okay, once in a while might be okay just to test their stamina, but other than that, why bother?
Every year the defense starts off unable to finish games. Without fail, this has been a problem that takes the first 2-4 games to fix (mostly on the line). This was an issue even back in the Dungy days, and it was an issue the year we won the superbowl (we lost our first game that year as a result).
So anything that keeps our guys fresh (but limber & prepared) I am in favor of. Maybe it will cut down on all the injuries, or at least delay them a bit longer.
August 8th, 2016 at 7:55 am
@Buc Bonzai is Bananas
I would love to see all these post of me slamming Coach Gruden!!!! Believe it or not, Not every negative post on JBF was not from me!!!!! But seeing your other post and how you seem to blend stuff together to come to a wrong conclusion it is not surprising anymore!!!!
August 8th, 2016 at 9:14 am
You seem to have missed the part where I mentioned “before” JBF. You were on the Buccaneers forum, were you not?
Or was that someone else?
August 8th, 2016 at 9:21 am
That was someone else unless you knew me as “Put me in coach” but that was not on the “bucs forum”
was there a ” The Buc Realist” on the bucs forum???? I will be very upset as I thought it was MY creation!!!!