Coaching Mental Toughness on the Court: Strategies and Drills

with Russ Rose,
Penn State University Head Coach;
2007 & 1999 NCAA Champs,
2007 AVCA D-I Coach of the Year,
over 900 career coaching victories,
recognized by USA Volleyball as one of their All-Time Great Coaches in 2005

The goal of developing a culture of mental toughness in your team is a tall order given the fact that mental toughness cannot be measured or charted like other aspects of the game. Coach Rose views mental toughness on the court as "aggressive attitude with confidence and all of the skills to play the game." Skill-confidence leads to mental toughness and Rose feels it is essential to devise and conduct aggressive practice drills that repeatedly put each athlete and your team under challenging and stressful conditions. This will result in making high stress situations more familiar with the goal of "hardening" your athletes to stay on task during game duress. Rose's drills focus on developing mentally tough servers, passers, setters, hitters, competitors, back row players and the team as a whole. All of these drills provide unique challenges that will encourage your players to rally around their teammates in tough, competitive situations. Creating a mentally tough culture has earned Rose two national titles and it will give your team a new, competitive edge.

59 minutes. 2008.

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