How Poland Regional HS Turned Their Football Program Around with the Flexbone Offense
September 15, 2024
In 2009 and 2010, Poland Regional HS (ME) won a grand total of two games. The school hired Head Football Coach, Ted Tibbetts, less than two months before the start of training camp.
In 2011, after running a camp with Lou Cella as Camp Director, Poland Regional HS (ME), earned the best winning percentage in school history, won twice as many games as they had the previous two seasons and broke school records for rushing, passing, and points scored.
“Our Flexbone camp had a tremendous impact on our record setting season. A developing program less than 9 years old, we have never been able to score enough points to beat the better teams in our league.
Coming into this season we knew that we needed to make some changes if we wanted to emerge as a one of the dominant teams in the league. The camp changed our program in many ways. First, players really knew their assignments and how to execute them effectively. Second, as a coaching staff we significantly increased our understanding of the offense and how to teach it. Most significantly, however, our kids now love the system. In the past, because we haven’t been a strong team, getting the players and the community to see the power of option football was a challenge. However, this year, even experiencing a setback from a penalty or an unexpected defense, our kids just shrugged it off. ’No big deal,’ they would say. ’We can break one at any time.’ And often times, we did.
We set program records this year in yards rushing, passing, and in points scored. Our quarterback alone had over 1000 yards in total offense. While we finished 4-4, narrowly missing the play-offs, our record doesn’t fully reflect our growth. The two prior seasons we were a 2-14 combined. Moreover, this year we steadily improved beating playoff bound teams at the end of our season. Our kids can’t stop talking about getting back on the field next year.
We are thrilled about our experience! Lou did a great job preparing players and coaching staff for the season. I’m most impressed with his personal touch and commitment to our team. He welcomes any questions at any time and often asks about players that he worked with by name. We feel that our growth as a program has just begun and that the camp was a vital catalyst in the process.”
– Ted Tibbetts, Head Football Coach
How Poland Regional HS Turned Around Their Football Program with the Flexbone Offense
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