So last week I got super pumped about prepping my amateur football team for the 2024 season. Figured a slick Phoenix-themed checklist – you know, rising from the ashes stronger – would kick things off right. Man, was I naive about finding a good one.
The Wild Search Begins
Grabbed my phone first thing Tuesday morning. Hit up all the usual spots:
- Opened that big sports forum app. Scrolled for ages. Found checklists alright, but they were either ancient or full of weird ads for protein powder. Total junk.
- Jumped over to that social site with the bird logo. Searched hashtags like #PhoenixFootballChecklist and #2024Prep. Saw shiny pictures, but clicking led mostly to influencers flexing, not actual usable lists. Frustrating.
- Even tried the app store. Downloaded three different “football manager” apps promising checklists. One barely opened, another demanded payment upfront, the last one had checklists so basic they were useless. Uninstalled all of them before lunch.
The Tipping Point
Wednesday night rolled around, coffee cold, patience thinner than worn-out cleats. I was ready to just scribble notes on a napkin. Then, bam! Remembered Old Coach Miller mentioning a grassroots coaching community last season. Dug through old texts, found the group name.
Punched it into a niche sports forum search late Wednesday. Hit a thread buried pages deep. No fancy graphics, just raw text uploaded by some high school coach in Arizona who runs a Phoenix program. Called it his “2024 Desert Rise Master List.” Looked promising.
Making It Mine
Thursday was assembly day. Opened my trusty spreadsheet software. Copied the coach’s core structure from the forum post – solid foundation with phases for pre-season conditioning, tryouts, skill camps, league registration deadlines, and even team bonding stuff.
But here’s the thing – his list was built for high school kids. My squad? Beer league warriors pushing 40. So I started hacking:
- Deleted the “GPA check” section. Added “Confirm everyone still has health insurance.” Real priorities.
- Replaced “Mandatory study hall sessions” with “Monthly team barbecue – mandatory.” Morale matters.
- Scaled down the conditioning drills big time. “Running 5 miles” became “Running 1 mile… maybe.” Added more dynamic stretching for creaky knees.
- Pasted our actual league’s key dates straight from last year’s emails.
Spent hours tweaking, reorganizing, adding inside jokes to the notes column. Got my hands dirty customizing every row.
The Finished Thing
By Friday afternoon, I hit save. No magic online template, no perfect pre-made list. What I have now is this rough, Frankenstein’s monster of a spreadsheet. Parts from an unknown coach in Arizona, fused with my team’s reality, splashed with cold brew stains and desperation. It ain’t pretty, but it’s ours. Printed out copies, handed ’em out at practice Saturday. Few groans, mostly nods. Feels real. Lesson learned: the “best” checklist isn’t out there waiting. You gotta dig up the decent bones and build it yourself.
