Pat Woodcock is the Co-Owner and Director of Athlete Performance for Elite Performance Academy. He is also the Co-Director of Football Operations for Elite Performance Academy. Woodcock was also the 2016 Grey Cup Champion Strength Coordinator for the Ottawa RedBlacks. Growing up, Woodcock attended Holy Trinity High School in Kanata where he played basketball and ran track. He also played football for the Kanata Knights, Myers Riders and Ottawa Sooners. He also played soccer for the Kanata Falcons and Eastern Ontario U14. Woodcock was a 3-year letter winner and Team Captain while attending Syracuse University. He went on to play in the NFL as a wide receiver for the New York Giants and Washington Redskins and in the CFL for the Montreal Alouettes, Ottawa Renegades, Edmonton Eskimos and Hamilton Ti-Cats. After finishing with his own athletic career, Woodcock turned to coaching. “I wanted to be able to share the knowledge and experience that I had gained with the next generation of athletes, and help them achieve their goals and dreams as I had.” says Woodcock. Woodcock says that his favourite thing about coaching is “when an athlete has that "Aha" moment, and the lessons we have been teaching just start to click for them. After that moment, their training and development as an athlete and a person takes on a whole new trajectory.” The most rewarding moment to Woodcock has been helping young athletes fulfill their vision and goals. “There have been a number of athletes who have started working with us as young teenagers, and we have seen them come up through our program and move on to the university level, to Canadian National Teams, and now even to the pros.” he says. Woodcock says that his biggest challenge as a coach “is a constant one - how to best apply coaching and programming to different athletes. Each one is different and will respond in a unique way, so it's imperative that we get to know our athletes and pay attention to how they respond to different stimuli.” Do you know of or are you a coach in the Ottawa area? HESN wants to hear from you, contact us at mia@houseedgemedia.com.
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Allan Tremblay is currently a coach for the Orleans Red Sox Senior baseball team. He is also the Field Scheduler for Orleans Little League Baseball and serves as the Convenor for the Junior division. Apart from coaching, Tremblay also volunteers with various teams in the CCHL and CCHL2. His family has been a host billet for the Gloucester Rangers Jr A team of the CCHL for the past 4 years. Tremblay grew up playing hockey with the Cumberland Minor Hockey Association as well as some baseball. Tremblay started coaching when his son started playing hockey at the Atom level. “That summer he also took up baseball and I helped out on that team as well. As he continued to play, I continued to volunteer as a coach. A couple of years ago, he decided that baseball was his sport of choice and that’s when I became more involved with Orleans Little League baseball.” explains Tremblay. Tremblay says one rewarding moment was winning the baseball District Championship last year and going on to represent their District in the Provincial Championships in Windsor. However, Tremblay says that his most rewarding moment is in the simple moment, “my most rewarding moment as a coach is pretty well anytime a player comes up to me, shakes my hand and says “Thanks coach” with a smile on their face.” Tremblay says his biggest challenge as a coach is “dealing with the different personalities of all the players in order to ensure that there is some kind of team cohesiveness, especially at the age that I’m currently coaching at, the 2000/2001 birth year. Not all of the players have the same interests, not all of the players have the same demeanour. Trying to ensure that they are all on the same page when they get to the ball diamond and trying to get them to understand that every player plays a specific role on the team so that the team can succeed is a constant challenge that most coaches face. The way that I’ve found to pull out the best in each player is to simply talk to them. Open and continual communication is something that I like to see. Whether it’s about the game or even something like what’s going on in their everyday life, it’s always good to make players feel like they are part of the team.” Allan Tremblay is a coach who is very active in both youth baseball and hockey in Ottawa. He truly cares about making all of his players feel included and coaching them to the best of his ability. Do you know of or are you a coach in the Ottawa area? HESN wants to hear from you, contact us at mia@houseedgemedia.com. Ron Raymond will be joining the St. Matthew Tigers this coming Fall as their Offensive Coordinator. He was previously the Offensive Coordinator for Franco Cité High School. Raymond grew up in Overbrook and played minor football mostly with the Ottawa Minto Colts. He later played for an All-Stars team that played in the Quebec Midget league and the the Ottawa Trojans in 1987. After that, Raymond had the option to continue playing at Acadia University or with the Ottawa Sooners, but decided to join the Canadian Armed Forces. Raymond still wanted to be involved in the game after finishing as a player so he turned to coaching. “I still had that competitive fire and wanted to help our organization get better. I love the game of football and I wanted to learn as much as possible about systems, position fundamentals, team building and giving back to the sport that has given me so much. However, I found my coaching philosophy changing year after year and soon realized, coaching came down to 2 things for me; teaching ‘life lessons’ and ‘development’.” Raymond compares football to the military, “you need to be structured and disciplined and I’ve used my military experience in the same approach I’ve taken to coaching football.” Raymond says he can’t name just one thing as his favourite part of coaching, “I have many things I love about coaching football. Being a coach means you have responsibilities and it’s not always about the X’s and O’s. It’s about doing the right things at all times. I love the process of recruiting, training camp and playing for a championship. I’ve coached at many levels, and I can tell you from a coaching perspective, there’s nothing more rewarding watching your players having no confidence in their abilities, to reaching their goals. Coaching is about giving your players and team confidence in knowing, they can reach their potential, by believing in themselves and their teammates. Life has the same rules; it’s just a different playing field. Another thing I love about coaching, you get the opportunity to meet other great coaches and the friendships you make can last a lifetime.” Raymond has been coaching since 1988, and has won championships, travelled to the United States, played in the Youth All American Bowl and networked with many inspirational coaches, but these are not his most rewarding moments. “the most rewarding moment for me is when I’m on the field with our team. Whether, it’s at practice, team function or a game, being in a team environment is one of the most rewarding in sports. Ask any coach and they will tell you they are most happy when they are on the field. Furthermore, when you have an opportunity to make a difference in a player’s life and help them through a difficult time, that’s what it’s all about. Keep in mind, when you’re a coach, players look up to you for guidance and that’s a privilege you can never take for granted.” says Raymond. Raymond says that biggest challenge he faces as a coach is “to make sure we never turn away players from playing football. Unfortunately, lots of players don’t have the resources to play football, so you have to be creative and find a way to make the finances work. You overcome these challenges by doing a lot of fundraising and finding any way possible, so players are not left behind.” Do you know of or are you a coach in the Ottawa area? HESN wants to hear from you, contact us at mia@houseedgemedia.com. |
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