Jamboree

What a wonderful time of the year, week 0. It’s jamboree week, affectionately called the jambo. A jambo is a scrimmage between three or four teams. In most cases, plays are limited to 15 or 20 on offense and 15 to 20 on defense against each team present. There are tons of benefits from teams participating in the jambo. Whether it is working out some of the kinks, getting those lower classmen in for some reps to be prepared for the bright lights, or even testing out new players in new positions, coaches will not want to waste a rep. Coaches want to understand how their team measures up against some varsity talent and test some areas on their team that could be areas of concern. You never know what the jambo will showcase either, shenanigans will be ever-present. Coaches have different approaches to handling jambos since it is not a traditional game.

Of course, there are many benefits to playing in the jambo. Knocking off the rust in a live(ish) scrimmage is super beneficial for starting the season. Who wouldn’t want to test out the new lambo at the jambo full throttle to assess what is under the hood? This allows coaches to evaluate the progress that has been made or players that are in new positions. Since July, most teams have been practicing, participating in 7on7 events, and hosting or attending camps. Getting the chance to scrimmage and display the hard work put in during the summer can provide valuable insight into the team’s progress before facing the week 1 opponent.

Coaches are often preoccupied with addressing the flip side of the situation, which can keep them awake at night. They are constantly evaluating not just what they are confident they have in their team, but also what they are lacking. Coaches are skilled their ingenuity in identifying areas of vulnerability and devising innovative strategies to mask them. Jambos are a great way to test their theories in a live setting to evaluate their effectiveness.

Another great aspect of the jambo is to provide an opportunity to get lower classmen the chance to play at a varsity level. Super important to give those players this experience because, as we all know, it is not if you get dinged up in this game; it’s a matter of when. Getting these players some experience of those bright Friday night lights can help ease some anxiety of running out there in a time of need. Furthermore, it is a great way to create buy-in and engagement of those lower classmen, creating an appetite for wanting more. This can take the sophomore corner and push them to be a starter by the end of the season, ya never know!

Oh, the many strategies of the jambo. There are so many insights that coaches must consider when they are taking their team to a jambo. How many snaps are my starters going to take? What plays am I going to put on film? Player management, subs, and who is running what plays? And many, many more questions that they must have answers to. All are very valid questions and for each team, a different response could be beneficial to them based on the team that they believe they have. There are coaches who have the jambo down to a science. Their philosophy is that they have been here and done it. they know what works for them and how it provides them with the best evaluation of their team. However, there could be a team who has newly starting junior quarterback wants them to take as many snaps as possible for the experience. But the team who started the sophomore quarterback last year and is coming into the season with a ton of experience may want to hold them out to develop their backup. Not to mention that there is always that balance of injury management in the minds of the coaches.

Competitive advantages, always! Football coaches are some of the most competitive people that you will ever meet and creating advantages for their team is a must. As I mentioned earlier, figuring out a way to hide the weak point on their team, is a way to have a competitive advantage. But…there is always more, and you will never know what you see at the jambo. Do you think that coaches would potentially showcase a couple of different formations to put it on film… it’s rhetorical. Will they put players in positions that they will not play during the season…no doubt. What about number swaps, oh yeah. What does this do? This will create a whole lot of extra work for the coaches who are going to review the film to prepare for them next week. Having to scheme and prepare for different potential formations, plays, players, positions, tendencies, so on so on and on. This can drive coaches nuts and create some sleepless nights. Oh, and then there are the other coaches…this is what we do, here we are, we’re not changing, come and get it, try to stop us…if you can!

The bottom line, the jambo is great for teams. Getting that opportunity to go live against another varsity team to test all the hard work before the season starts is so important in the process. Players get playing experience full-go, full speed before week 1 can help with the anxiety of taking the field for their first varsity game or get them back into the groove of varsity play. Coaches get that last-minute opportunity to adjust, evaluate, scheme, showcase, and test. Also, it is never a bad time to compete and test what is under the hood of the lambo, full throttle. Let’s go!

It is time, it’s here! Man, sitting here writing this, and listening to my playlist thinking about the pads popping; butterflies, electricity, I am fired up! Such a great time of the year as the season is getting ready to kickoff, everyone is 0-0 and the potential is endless.

May everyone have a healthy and productive season, good luck high school football programs!

Thank you!

Wanted to take a moment to thank you for investing your time in my blog! We live in a world where time is a precious commodity and you taking a few minutes to read my blog will not ever be taken for granted. I am excited about the journey and continuing to provide new content for you.

I would be thrilled if you would leave a comment and interact with other readers. It’s always an exciting opportunity to engage with the football community and share thoughts and ideas. Looking forward to some great discussions!

Stay tuned for my next blog! Going to be a great ride, ready to bring that boom.