How About a New Years Resolution

Well here it is a few days left of 2009. I have to ask, "where has the time gone!" The old kliche that the older you get the faster time goes is amazingly true. This time of the year, is when we all decide what we are going to do to make 2010 "the best year yet." I am still trying to decide what to do with 2009!!
One thing is for sure, I think I'll try to divide my life up into needs and wants...I think that would be a good start. Regarding the old blogg, I guess it's time to restart that also. I think that writing a blogg can be a nice and relaxing thing to do. I will use it as therapy in what will be a hectic 2010..So I hope it goes good with the posts and I hope I can keep it interesting.

LETTING GO:
After much, much contemplation, I have decided to take a "time out" from the Swedish National Team. It is due to some personal issues we as a family are dealing with. I can tell you that I have never anguished over something for so long. I have been involved in either the Senior and/or Jr National teams since the fall of 2002. I have served as everything from a position coach to Head coach and enjoyed every minute of it. One thing that led to the decision to take the time out was my experience as HC. When I was HC, my son was born and spent 2 months in intensive care. I was given the opporutnity to take a time out and come back when everything was better. I did not do that, because, right or wrong, I was too pumped about getting to be HC for Team Sweden in the world championships. Long story short, I don't feel like I was as focused as I could have been during the early camps and that will always bother me. Now the second time around, I know that it is better to make this decision now, deal with the situation of my Father-in-law be sick and then move on later.
All that being said, I will go on record as saying that the direction the National Team is going right now is the best direction I have seen it go in all my years of being involved. The National Team Acadamies that are held once a month is the best thing to have happened to National team football in my time here. We always worked hard in the "old days" and the players were good and the coaches were good. The EM championship in 2005 was not an accident. But with the acadamies, players are given an incredable opportunity to develop. Both physically and mentally. Also, in regards to football itself , they are given opportunities to train one time a month. This should lead to a faster development and a more technical and fundamentally sound football player. I expect this to show in the EM 2010 in Frankfurt. We (Sweden) will be defending EM champs, but having lost in the VM to Germany in the bronze medal match. Then getting drummed by them in 2008, we (Sweden) have alot to prove. But the acadmies are a great thing and Janne Jemnert should get the credit to pulling it off. Now we'll see how it goes this summer. Heja Sverige!!
HAVE YOU READ:
Got my autographed copy of the book by Peter King "Monday Morning Quarterback." I would highly reccomend this book if you enjoy sports journalism. I couldn't put the book down and I can tell you that you will laugh out loud and you will wipe a tear from the corner of you eye as you read this book!!
HAPPY NEW YEAR:
OK, B.D. is back in the blogg business....hope you all have a Happy New Year and I hope that 2010 beats your own expectations!!

One step closer to the Swedish drivers liscense

Well I spent three and a half hours driving a little car and trying to control on the classic halkbana course on Friday afternoon. I now am one final step from getting my Swedish drivers license. It has been a long process, but I hope that it is soon over. I can say that all the people that told me I would have a blast at this course were right. I hadn't done stuff like that since a high school lunch trip with two of my buddies driving all over town like crazies at the first snow fall my senior year. Gotta say that the teacher was a blast. He was full of comments for us when we messed up and was not shy with his congratulations when the car actually stopped as it should....

We (the Jets) have booked a pre-season game against the Helsinki Roosters. We take the big boat over to Finland and play them on April 25th. Should be a good test for us to see where we are at.

Hope all the players are working hard in the weight room. I read a quote written on a white board in our weight room. If I translate it correctly it said "strength is good, Explosiveness is everything." I am pretty sure Coach Oud wrote than down as a message for our young guys in the gymnasium program. As a football player, you just need to think about how you have to move and play in a game. Very seldom are you in one spot exerting energy and trying to move something while your feet stay flat on the ground. You have to use ground based traditional exercises to build strength and at the same time exercise in movements that simulate game actions. I think there can be a great marriage between the MAQ training that is taking over Sweden and the traditional training in the core lifts. Not to mention training speed and agility by mimicking movements that you do in the game. When you tie all those things together AND work-out on a regular schedule, you will develop into a good player.

Tip to the young coach---Never tell your players to line up alphabetically by height. It creates a lot of confusion!!

Until next time...understand leverage...be first to strike and first to drive...

Back again

Well I found this blog spot and thought I would try it out. It is a little easier to run because the instructions are in english...that can be both good and bad for me. Lots of cool computer talk that might as well be in greek for me...but I'll try to manage.

I thought the Super Bowl was a really good and exciting game. The Steelers were excellent, the Cardinals kept killing themselves with penalties. The Steelers seemed to get comfortable, made a few mistakes. Kurt Warner did his magic and Larry Fitzgerald lost the MVP award on the Steelers last play. All in all it was a fan friendly game and we (the Jets) had about 100 people sitting and watching the game.

I renamed me blog to the Linemans dream....So I'll talk a little football and maybe even unleash some good old BBQ recipes from time to time.....

Here in Sweden, football is starting to role into the pre-season....We just had our first camp over the weekend and it was a great camp. We had 6 practices in two days....took just an hour and a half each practice and did nothing but the five fundamentals of football---blocking, tackling, running, catching and throwing....the weather was below freezing and the turf was froze in some spots...it was great to be outside and practicing football again...

The Super-Series is shaping up to be the Stockholm district with special guest, the Carlstad Crusaders....I personally feel that it is time to look at moving to some sort of district play within the country and moving into the play-offs from there....

Cool to see the Junior National team getting reading for the Junior World Championships...that should be a great trip for the guys that make the team...Should be a great motivator for the guys trying to make the team....

Old news is that there will apparently be a change in the Senior staff...tough to take for me...I really thought that we could get somewhere special in 2010...I feel that the national team experience is a great thing...

Was home visiting the family in the States in December through the first of January...it was great to be back home and see the family...My grandma (we affectionately call here Nanny) is 90 and still driving a car and doing her own shopping. It was great to visit with her about all the things she has seen in her lifetime...kind of makes my obsession with winning football games seem kind of small....

College football ended with my Sooners falling short of another national title...It was a good game and I would love to have seen them score on the first possession...Holding on a long completed pass kind of took the air out of them a little....along with the int before half...along with the goal line stand by the Gators...It will be a very interesting season next year with Sam Bradford, Tim Tebow and Colt McCoy all coming back for another season...I'm not sure if it has ever happened in a season that the three top vote getters and two previous winners have been back for one more year at the same time.....should be interesting to see how it shapes up...and BOOMER SOONER!!

When I was home in enjoyed a great meal with three old Washburn Ichabods...Jared Barge, Joey Hoytal and Buck Rueter...it was a great time for this old coach to re-hash old stories and catch up with these guys who have gone on in life and are doing well....Caught up with another one of my old players, Joe "Mauler" Busby....he was truly a "Mauler" on the field....Great to hear he is doing well....

I'll finish up with tips for the young coach---
Never look at your players as just players....you can never forget that, you, as a coach, may not concentrate on much else, but they have lives outside of the game....Guide the gifted....lead the over achievers and you will be successful...the key will be that you can tell who is really gifted and who is really the over achiever...that is not always easy...
Until next time...Fire out low...bring you hands and feet...when all else fails...cut 'em...