Photo by: WVU Athletic Communications
Improved Team Chemistry Could Hold The Key To Successful Season For Mountaineers
May 11, 2022 09:05 AM | Football, Blog
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – What in the old days used to be called "team chemistry" is today known as "team culture" and whether then or now, it remains one the most underappreciated and misunderstood aspects of team sports.
When my buddies text me wanting to know about the latest recruit they read about on the Internet, they ask how big and how strong he is, how fast he runs and how many offers he has.
They never ask whether or not he's a good teammate.
Is he selfish?
Is he willing to accept coaching?
Can he handle constructive criticism?
Is he considerate of others?
Is he willing to work hard?
Locker rooms today are much, much bigger than they once were, for sure, but no matter how big locker rooms grow, they will never be big enough to filter out all of the dirty air that flows from a team full of complainers and second-guessers.
When I was in school, the most prized possession for anyone associated with Don Nehlen's football teams was those drab gray t-shirts with the word "TEAM" emblazoned in blue across the front. It meant something to wear it because Nehlen made sure owning one meant being part of something much bigger than yourself.
That's what Nehlen first brought here from Michigan – a positive, can-do attitude that always filtered from the top on down.
The best West Virginia football team these eyes have ever seen – Nehlen's undefeated 1988 squad - was unbelievably talented and deep. And oh what chemistry it had!
Jim Carlen's 1969 squad that won 10 games and beat South Carolina in the Peach Bowl was before my time, but I know it had great chemistry because to this day those guys find any reason they can to get together for reunions. The brotherhood and camaraderie they share is readily apparent for all to see.
The same can be said for Bobby Bowden's 1975 Peach Bowl team, which was not nearly as talented as his '74 squad that won just four games and nearly got him fired.
Some of Rich Rodriguez's best West Virginia teams had good chemistry, too. Does a team with bad chemistry rebound from the Pitt upset to do what it did to Oklahoma in the 2008 Fiesta Bowl?
Of course not.
I bring this up because we have heard numerous times from everyone associated with Neal Brown's program about the positive atmosphere and environment in the Milan Puskar Center this spring.
It began with Brown's first post-practice comments back on March 22 and continued a couple of days later when defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley took his turn on the dais.
"This is a fun group to coach; they really are," Lesley said, adding the first two days of practice were among the most fun he's had coaching at West Virginia because of the guys' eagerness and willingness to learn and grow.
It's like a team full of volunteers - not hostages – to borrow a Mike Tomlin phrase.
Senior offensive guard James Gmiter admits this is unquestionably the closest squad he's been on since his arrival four years ago.
"I got here in '18, and we really didn't do much team (activities)," he recalled. "We had events like watching the Super Bowl together, but ever since coach Brown got here he kind of brought in that family aspect to the team.
"The guys that left didn't really buy into that all the way, and now we have a locker room full of guys who are 100% in with it," Gmiter added.
But why?
Why is team chemistry so much better now than it was last year, or in 2020, or 2019 or before?
"I don't know," running backs coach Chad Scott said. "That's a great question. It might be maturity. Some of the guys that have been around now for a while have seen where some of the negativity and the complaining took us, which is nowhere.
"They've seen it when it didn't get us the results that we wanted, and now we've got our best players who are well-respected beyond the football field in how they work, how they carry themselves and how consistent they are day-to-day," he continued. "When those guys do it on the field and their play backs it up, then the younger guys want to do it as well."
Safeties coach Dontae Wright believes chemistry is the most important aspect of team sports. Good chemistry doesn't always guarantee success, but it's usually a pretty good indicator.
"That locker room and the chemistry you have in that locker room … if it is good then you have a chance to be special. If it is average or poor, you've got a chance to do nothing at all," he admitted.
Wright tells his guys all the time that playing on good football teams creates a win-win situation for everybody.
"It's not about you and it's not about an individual. It's about a team and buying into each other because when the team wins, everybody wins," he explained. "If you want to go to the league, well, it's easier to get to the league off a 10-win team. It's really hard to get to the league off a five-win team.
"Can you still do it? Sure, but (NFL) people come around more," Wright continued. "There are more eyes on you when your team is really good. If you make it about us, now we all have a chance. If you make it about you, good luck to you."
To Wright's point, the Cincinnati Bearcats won 13 games this past season, made the College Football Playoff and had a school-record nine players drafted, including five picked in the top three rounds. Over the last two seasons, UC has lost just two games and has had 13 players selected by NFL teams.
Good players? Absolutely.
Great team culture? I'm a willing bettor.
"That's what I'm excited about most, and I hope you can hear it in my voice; these guys are growing together," Wright said. "They hang out with each other outside the locker room. Did we hang out outside of the locker room the last two years? Yeah, but it wasn't in a pack of 30 or 40 of them. It was a five or six-person clique, and when you get cliques you get separation. Am I saying we're going to have a special season? I can't say that, but I can say that locker room is growing to a point where we're going to give ourselves a chance."
Gmiter agrees.
"We're always together. We have such a good chemistry from defensive back all the way to running back … it's just a different chemistry," he said. "You don't want to let that guy down. You want to do everything you can to make the job easier for them and to win games."
Gmiter admits it can be exhausting listening to a room full of locker-room lawyers and complainers all of the time.
"I think a lot of those guys are gone now," he said. "I honestly don't think we have any, so it's all just everybody enjoying being around each other. All of that negativity is gone, and there is no concern at all about a culture problem or anything."
Regarding some of the outside noise, which the players and their families frequently read on social media, Gmiter said that's a different matter altogether.
"You've always got to remember the things people say about you and keep your receipts; that's something we talk about all the time," he concluded.
When my buddies text me wanting to know about the latest recruit they read about on the Internet, they ask how big and how strong he is, how fast he runs and how many offers he has.
They never ask whether or not he's a good teammate.
Is he selfish?
Is he willing to accept coaching?
Can he handle constructive criticism?
Is he considerate of others?
Is he willing to work hard?
Locker rooms today are much, much bigger than they once were, for sure, but no matter how big locker rooms grow, they will never be big enough to filter out all of the dirty air that flows from a team full of complainers and second-guessers.
When I was in school, the most prized possession for anyone associated with Don Nehlen's football teams was those drab gray t-shirts with the word "TEAM" emblazoned in blue across the front. It meant something to wear it because Nehlen made sure owning one meant being part of something much bigger than yourself.
That's what Nehlen first brought here from Michigan – a positive, can-do attitude that always filtered from the top on down.
The best West Virginia football team these eyes have ever seen – Nehlen's undefeated 1988 squad - was unbelievably talented and deep. And oh what chemistry it had!
Jim Carlen's 1969 squad that won 10 games and beat South Carolina in the Peach Bowl was before my time, but I know it had great chemistry because to this day those guys find any reason they can to get together for reunions. The brotherhood and camaraderie they share is readily apparent for all to see.
The same can be said for Bobby Bowden's 1975 Peach Bowl team, which was not nearly as talented as his '74 squad that won just four games and nearly got him fired.
Some of Rich Rodriguez's best West Virginia teams had good chemistry, too. Does a team with bad chemistry rebound from the Pitt upset to do what it did to Oklahoma in the 2008 Fiesta Bowl?
Of course not.
I bring this up because we have heard numerous times from everyone associated with Neal Brown's program about the positive atmosphere and environment in the Milan Puskar Center this spring.
It began with Brown's first post-practice comments back on March 22 and continued a couple of days later when defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley took his turn on the dais."This is a fun group to coach; they really are," Lesley said, adding the first two days of practice were among the most fun he's had coaching at West Virginia because of the guys' eagerness and willingness to learn and grow.
It's like a team full of volunteers - not hostages – to borrow a Mike Tomlin phrase.
Senior offensive guard James Gmiter admits this is unquestionably the closest squad he's been on since his arrival four years ago.
"I got here in '18, and we really didn't do much team (activities)," he recalled. "We had events like watching the Super Bowl together, but ever since coach Brown got here he kind of brought in that family aspect to the team.
"The guys that left didn't really buy into that all the way, and now we have a locker room full of guys who are 100% in with it," Gmiter added.
But why?
Why is team chemistry so much better now than it was last year, or in 2020, or 2019 or before?
"I don't know," running backs coach Chad Scott said. "That's a great question. It might be maturity. Some of the guys that have been around now for a while have seen where some of the negativity and the complaining took us, which is nowhere.
"They've seen it when it didn't get us the results that we wanted, and now we've got our best players who are well-respected beyond the football field in how they work, how they carry themselves and how consistent they are day-to-day," he continued. "When those guys do it on the field and their play backs it up, then the younger guys want to do it as well."
Safeties coach Dontae Wright believes chemistry is the most important aspect of team sports. Good chemistry doesn't always guarantee success, but it's usually a pretty good indicator.
"That locker room and the chemistry you have in that locker room … if it is good then you have a chance to be special. If it is average or poor, you've got a chance to do nothing at all," he admitted.
Wright tells his guys all the time that playing on good football teams creates a win-win situation for everybody.
"It's not about you and it's not about an individual. It's about a team and buying into each other because when the team wins, everybody wins," he explained. "If you want to go to the league, well, it's easier to get to the league off a 10-win team. It's really hard to get to the league off a five-win team.
"Can you still do it? Sure, but (NFL) people come around more," Wright continued. "There are more eyes on you when your team is really good. If you make it about us, now we all have a chance. If you make it about you, good luck to you."
To Wright's point, the Cincinnati Bearcats won 13 games this past season, made the College Football Playoff and had a school-record nine players drafted, including five picked in the top three rounds. Over the last two seasons, UC has lost just two games and has had 13 players selected by NFL teams.
Good players? Absolutely.
Great team culture? I'm a willing bettor.
"That's what I'm excited about most, and I hope you can hear it in my voice; these guys are growing together," Wright said. "They hang out with each other outside the locker room. Did we hang out outside of the locker room the last two years? Yeah, but it wasn't in a pack of 30 or 40 of them. It was a five or six-person clique, and when you get cliques you get separation. Am I saying we're going to have a special season? I can't say that, but I can say that locker room is growing to a point where we're going to give ourselves a chance."
Gmiter agrees.
"We're always together. We have such a good chemistry from defensive back all the way to running back … it's just a different chemistry," he said. "You don't want to let that guy down. You want to do everything you can to make the job easier for them and to win games."
Gmiter admits it can be exhausting listening to a room full of locker-room lawyers and complainers all of the time.
"I think a lot of those guys are gone now," he said. "I honestly don't think we have any, so it's all just everybody enjoying being around each other. All of that negativity is gone, and there is no concern at all about a culture problem or anything."
Regarding some of the outside noise, which the players and their families frequently read on social media, Gmiter said that's a different matter altogether.
"You've always got to remember the things people say about you and keep your receipts; that's something we talk about all the time," he concluded.
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