As a youth football coach your goals should be making sure the players are having a good experience and are learning the game of football. A solid repetition of the fundamental skills should be carried out throughout the year, helping each player reach his potential for that season.
That being said, I have the theory of why not try to win while you're accomplishing the above goals. I'm not talking about the very young flag leagues where no score is kept. We all know every parent on the sideline and most of the players keep the score anyway. I do not endorse keep score, counting wins or losses and acting like Vince Lombardi in these developmental leagues. Move the players around, giving everyone a chance, and ignore any type of record keeping.
I do believe in having all teams prepared, so even if you are coaching in a developmental league, do not embarrass the kids. Have them ready to play and make sure their fundamentals are solid. When you get to the keeping score level with records and playoffs, by all means try to win. Try to win, but noty at any costs.
Winning the championship, even at the Pop Warner level, feels great and will remain with you forever. How many chances you get to play for the title will depend on many factors. The main factor is the size of the town you are coaching for (if it is a travel team) and more important is how the players are divided up. If it is a draft and the teams will be split evenly you will have less chances of building a powerhouse. If you are fortunate to live in a large town who plays smaller towns, chances are you will play for many championships. I coach in the second smallest city in our conference yet have made the title game in two of the past three seasons. Over the twenty years, my teams play for the title about every three years. Unlike the higher levels of football, youth football does not see many upsets. The bigger towns with a larger number of players win the majority of the games.
It is not a common occurrence for my town to win titles. The city I coach for has been crowned champion only four times in the past two decades. It seems the only city with a longer dry spell is the New Orleans Saints. They arrived at the Super Bowl being victorious in only two playoff games in forty two years. The 2010 Saints team won their first two playoff games, equaling the all time win totals, and finished the job by winning the Super Bowl. You could visualize the confidence of the entire organization, particularly following the second half onside kick to open up the 3rd quarter. Talk about a bold move, proving the Saints showed up to win the game. The Saints were not shy, stating late in the season their goal was to go undefeated, unlike the Indy team who openly quit on the NFL, fans and themselves once they had secured home field advantage in the playoffs.
Enjoy the thrill if you ever get the opportunity to compete for a title as it is one of the most electrifying experiences you can have in youth football.
