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Drops.


WM drops like no other.
We lose games because we drop.
What in the hell is the point of running hard, playing smart offense, playing shut down defense, if we just drop? It's frustrating to watch us play so well, other than drops. And we drop on everything. Not just bladely highly contested hucks. Not just throws that are almost out of our reach that people have to lay out for. We drop it on goddamn, everyday ordinary well put in cuts. On dump throws. On swings. Honestly, if we cut out half of our drops, we would have won probably 50% of the games we lost last season. And its not any one person, for the most part. It's an entire team of drops. Everyone has one drop, but the result is not too hard to imagine...

So now what? What's the remedy for a team with drop troubles? Well, the cure obviously lies in the root of the problem. Once a wise man said to me, "Drops in practice are drops in games." What he meant by this is not simply in scrimmage, but rather in drills, when throwing around, etc. Every time you are catching a disc, you should be focused on catching the disc. Drops, under no circumstances, are acceptable. What I see is a team-wide culture of lackadaisical catching, ah hah, the root of the problem. The team, as a whole, must come together and provide a culture that focuses on catching. We (the seniors) probably were too lenient on drops; we all went through dropping spells ourselves because of the culture our freshman year that abhorrently looked down upon drops. Basically, it got to our heads. But last season, we let it slide too much perhaps?

One person said:

Sumon: i used to drop shit tons freshmen year

at the time, the captain practiced with me one on one

and just gunned the disc at me for an hour straight with me running straight towards him

full speed

Niji:

Then you stopped dropping?

Sumon: yeah

like my hands hurt but it helped


So this might sound kind of laborious, but hey, if it gets rid of the drops, why the hell not? Now, obviously this would be sort of a waste of time to take up valuable practice time away with this drill since you can easily do it with just a friend on your own time. But sometimes, its okay to do that to set a precedent.


Your thoughts?

6 comments

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6 comments:

  1. Bobby May 30, 2010 at 11:26 AM

    yea i would have to agree with the general idea of the post, lingering in the back of all the improvements that I want to make with my game is the fact that I still am not a 100% catcher when it comes to easy throws (let alone the hucks that I have missed), i still find myself making stupid ass drops all the time and I hate it. Up until now I didnt really think about how to fix it, just thought it would come with playing more/maybe it was unfixable or that it was all about a lack of concentration (which it kidna is) but considering you kinda laid out a way to try to quick fix it I think I'll probably try that out next year, Sean you up for throwing/catching lasers?

  1. Sean May 31, 2010 at 9:26 PM

    Yeah definitely up for throwing and catching lasers. Might improve our hucking distance in the mean time. I dont want to make a habit of throwing lasers tho, but i think i can trust myself not to make it a habit haha.

    I believe that there are people that are fun to throw with and people not fun to throw with. The greatest defining factor between the two is level of intensity. If a person is letting a pass go by them just because they are lazy, thats annoying as hell. If a person uses one hand out of laziness to catch all passes, thats annoying as hell. Especially if they laugh off drops. Its no fun to throw with people who dont care about improving themselves in an active and aware manner, because it can rub off on you whether you like it or not.

    As a team we should bring back pushups for dropped passes in drills AND scrimmages. Negative punishment right? Negative act is met with a negative response. Train it out of us.

  1. Niji May 31, 2010 at 10:39 PM

    "If a person is letting a pass go by them just because they are lazy"

    I do that when I throw alllll the time, ahahahahahaha

  1. Shu June 1, 2010 at 12:43 AM

    it's fun to force the other person to catch a certain way, like:

    *throws backhand at eye level* "Catch it without clapping!"

    i also feel that some people lack the focus when the team is just throwing around. every throw, every catch, every drill should be done like a simulation of a game- which is probably why the laser drill worked. not all throws are perfect, you hav a defender on you, your teammate might be streaking deep for the huck from you. when i practice throws with my team on campus, it never ends up as "throwing around"; i dont want to look like those goons who just throw around frisbees for fun. (we're ultimate players for christs sake- we're better than that) hence, i always end up pivoting, bending my knees, faking for every throw. i feel like its the same for catches- even when ur just throwing around in a circle, i think it helps to "meet the disc". this helps you get into the habit of catching the disc while ur in motion, and i think it helps lessen the number of drops in in-game situations.

    i guess its all about mentality and how much focus you put into every catch.

  1. Sean June 4, 2010 at 2:05 AM

    To Shu:

    One bad habit Ive created for myself during "throwing around" sessions is that I dont put hucks to space. I tend to aim right for the person. And when I have a split second to put up a huck, it goes right over their head.

    I totally agree that we're better than that, better than dickin around. Besides its more fun to be serious.

  1. Niji June 4, 2010 at 2:14 AM

    Yeah, every time I'm throwing, I imagine a certain cutter, in a certain situation and envision where and how I'm throwing it. I specifically pay attention to which side the disc ends up on, relative to the receiver. OI flicks, always are caught to the person's left (if they are facing me), and yeah you can figure it out, you're all smart boys.

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