Since I began coaching football in 2008, I’ve had the opportunity to work with quarterbacks at every level. I’ve coached youth and travel quarterbacks, as well as a player who went on to win multiple national championships and became the NAIA Player of the Year. I’ve coached quarterbacks who have both won and lost state championships, players with arms strong enough to get drafted as Major League Baseball pitchers, and even a quarterback with torn muscles who could barely throw a forward pass but willed his team to a state championship with incredible leadership on the field. Playing quarterback is one of the toughest jobs in sports, and having a plan to control both your mind and body is not just helpful—it’s essential.
As a quarterback, it’s essential to recognize the specific moments that tend to throw you off track. These are the instances when you find yourself struggling to stay focused, to keep your cool, or to execute as well as you know you can. Maybe it's stepping onto the field against a highly-ranked team, where the pressure feels like it's doubled. Perhaps it’s dealing with the emotional aftermath of a tough interception, where doubts start creeping in. It might even be physical—like after taking a hard hit, when you notice yourself getting a bit jumpy in the pocket. Or maybe it's those intense, down-to-the-wire situations, with two minutes on the clock and the responsibility of leading a game-winning drive. Whatever your big moment is, it's crucial to know exactly when it happens. Take a moment to think about your own experiences and identify your big moment. Write it down on a piece of paper and keep it close, because understanding your trigger is the first step to mastering it.
Now that you’ve identified your big moment, the next step is to understand what naturally grabs your attention in that situation. Sometimes, your focus shifts to external things—like worrying about what recruiters, coaches, or teammates might think. Other times, it’s about your own high expectations, driven by the hard work and preparation you’ve put in. You might even find yourself replaying past mistakes, or getting caught up in the “what ifs” of the future, wondering about the outcome of the game or whether you’ll make the winning play. Take a moment to reflect on what tends to dominate your thoughts when you’re in your big moment, and jot it down. Whatever it is, simply acknowledging it is a crucial step on your path to taking control.
Once you know where your focus goes in those critical moments, it’s time to tune into the little voice in the back of your mind. This is the self-talk that often shows up uninvited, and it can play a significant role in how you handle pressure. Ask yourself: is that inner voice supportive, or does it tend to be negative? Sometimes, it might bring up doubts, like wondering if you’re really good enough to handle the moment. Other times, it might question your ability to succeed or cause you to second-guess your skills. Maybe it’s saying things like, “What if I don’t have what it takes to pull this off?” or “I’m not sure I’m ready for this.”
Whatever that voice is saying, take a moment to write it down. Don’t worry about fixing it right now—just recognize and acknowledge it. Knowing what your self-talk sounds like in these big moments is a crucial step toward reshaping it into something that can help you rise to the occasion, instead of holding you back.
In these big moments, it’s not just your mind that reacts—your body often gives you signals too. Stress and pressure can trigger a range of physical responses, each one a reminder of how our bodies gear up to face challenges. You might feel butterflies in your stomach, as blood is diverted away from digestion, causing your mouth to go dry. Or maybe your muscles start to tighten, a classic fight-or-flight response that gets you ready to react. Some quarterbacks notice shaky hands or weak knees, signs that adrenaline is coursing through their system. Even your body language might change—maybe you tense up or hunch your shoulders without realizing it.
Take a moment to reflect on what physical reactions you often experience in these big moments. Jot down any changes you notice in your body and body language. This awareness will help you understand how stress affects you physically, and it’s the first step toward learning how to manage those reactions when it counts the most.
In these big moments, it's also essential to recognize the emotions that rise to the surface. Stressful situations can bring up a wide range of feelings, and they often impact how you play. Some athletes feel a wave of doubt, suddenly feeling unconfident about their abilities. Others get angry, channeling frustration into the game—or, at times, letting it distract them. There are also those who feel anxious or worried, as the pressure builds and the stakes seem higher than ever.
Take some time to reflect on what emotions typically come up for you in these big moments. Are you feeling unconfident, angry, anxious, or something else entirely? Write down whatever emotions you experience, even if they’re hard to put into words. Understanding the emotions that accompany these moments is an important step toward managing them effectively.
Everything we've identified so far is a reaction. But the key here is awareness—recognizing that we're getting off track in the first place. It’s like this: right now, you’re probably not paying attention to what the bottom of your feet feel like. But if I ask you to wiggle your toes, suddenly, your brain tunes in to that sensation. In a similar way, we can start to notice when we’re going off course during competition. The next time you experience any of these four things you’ve written down, you can take action to regain control, which we’ll explore in a moment.
Now, let's take a step back and understand that these reactions don’t have to control us. Think of it like this: if you’re looking at your phone and step off a curb, and a car honks, you don’t have to think—you just react, jerking back to safety. It’s an automatic response from the part of your brain that’s focused on keeping you safe. But once you’re aware of the situation, you can take a deep breath, put your phone away, and look both ways to make sure it’s safe to cross the road. Just like in that moment, you don’t have to stay in a state of fear. You have the power to take back control.
So, let’s think about where you play your best. Do you perform at your peak when you feel confident? Or is it when you’re calm and in control? Think back to a time when you were at the top of your game. How did you feel emotionally in that moment? Take a minute to write this down. Once you know what emotions you need to feel to perform your best, we can focus on creating those emotions intentionally.
The first step to taking back control is to start with your body. If you stay in a heightened fight-or-flight mode, blood flow is diverted away from crucial areas of your brain, making it hard to think clearly. That’s why we start with diaphragmatic breathing—a technique used by the U.S. military. Here’s how it works: inhale for four counts, hold for four, exhale for four, and then pause for four. Let’s break down each step.
As you inhale, focus on expanding your belly so that your lungs reach full capacity. Inhaling through your nose helps you take a big, slow, deep breath. Then, hold that oxygen in your lungs, giving them time to fully absorb it. Next, exhale slowly to get rid of carbon dioxide, and then pause. By increasing the time between breaths, you can lower your heart rate and help your body settle down.
The second technique is called forced muscular relaxation. Just as the lower part of your brain automatically controls your lungs, it also influences muscle tension. But, just like with breathing, you can use the top part of your brain to regain control. Try this exercise: make a tight fist and hold it as you inhale for four counts, then hold it for four. As you slowly exhale, begin to shake out your hand and relax your muscles. Continue with your breathing cycle, tightening and relaxing different muscle groups. This process shifts control over your muscles back to the intentional part of your brain, helping to reduce those shaky feelings and muscle tension. Instead of letting your subconscious hold onto that tension, you’re taking active steps to release it.
Now that you’ve taken control of your body, it’s time to take control of your mind. Instead of just listening to that negative voice in the back of your mind, you can flip the script and start speaking positively to yourself. I remember back when I was working on my master’s degree and taking a sports psychology class. That week, we were up against a very strong team, and their defensive coordinator had been coaching longer than I’d been alive. My self-talk wasn’t exactly positive—I found myself thinking that we didn’t even belong on the same field.
Then, I read about something called a “go-to statement,” a tool you can use anytime negativity starts to creep in. The first step is to write down things you know you’re good at, the skills and qualities that are always there, even on your worst day. For me, I knew I watched a lot of film and was well-organized, so I started there. Next, you write down something you’re aiming to achieve—something bold, phrased as if you’ve already achieved it. I wrote, “I’m the best coach in the state.” As I wrote that, I felt that little voice laughing at me, telling me it wasn’t true. But then I combined the two, and I came up with: “I put in the time, I put in the work, I’m the best coach in the state.”
The trick is to say your go-to statement 50 times a day. At first, it didn’t seem to make a difference, but by the middle of the week, I noticed a shift. By game day, I actually believed it! This tool helped me get out of my own head, and the following week, I introduced it to my position group. Each player came up with their own go-to statement, and it became a game-changer for our program.
So let’s create yours. Start by writing down what you know is always true about you. Avoid things that could change, like, “I throw an amazing spiral,” or "I am incredibly accurate" which might not hold up on a windy day. Instead, go for qualities like, “I work hard,” or “I never quit.” Next, write down what you’re striving for, phrased as if you’ve already achieved it—like, “I’m the best quarterback in the state,” or “I belong on this field.” Some athletes prefer a reminder of their resilience with statements like, “I’m an unshakable force.” Play around with it until you find a statement that resonates with you. Now, you have a go-to statement, a powerful tool to use whenever negativity starts creeping in.
Now that you’ve developed a go-to statement, let’s get even more specific about where to direct your focus. In these big moments, it’s easy to get stuck thinking about past mistakes, future outcomes, or things beyond your control. But we’re going to simplify this by breaking it down into four categories: things you can control, things you cannot control, things that matter right now, and things that don’t matter right now. Draw four boxes on a piece of paper and label each one with these headings.
In the “Things I Can Control” box, you might write down items like attitude, effort, and focus. These are within your power, and they are where your attention should be. Next, in the “Things I Cannot Control” box, list out everything beyond your control—things like the weather, bad calls from referees, the coach’s play call, who’s on the field, injuries, and opponents. These are distractions that, while they may affect the game, shouldn’t affect your mindset.
Now, let’s consider “Things That Don’t Matter Right Now.” Imagine you’re about to throw a seam route, and you’re still dwelling on an interception from the last drive where a linebacker dropped into coverage unexpectedly. While it’s essential to learn from that mistake, focusing on it during the current drive can prevent you from progressing through your reads properly. Yes, you should address mistakes—but that’s a task for tomorrow’s film session, not this moment. In this box, write down things like previous mistakes or situations that you know you can’t influence at this moment.
Finally, in the “Things That Matter Right Now” box, focus on what’s immediately ahead: this play or the upcoming play. This simple focus can be a game-changer. By filling out this chart, you’ll see that many things you worry about during a game don’t actually help you. If they don’t matter right now and you can’t control them, it’s time to move on and refocus. A lot of quarterbacks like to remind themselves with a simple cue like “this play” or “next play” to stay locked into the moment.
Now that you have your plan, it’s a good idea to finalize it on a separate sheet of paper. On the left side, list things you need to be aware of or watch out for, like triggers that could throw you off track. On the right side, list what you’re going to focus on instead, like your go-to statement or your specific game cues. Remember, if you want to feel confident and in control, don’t just hope for it—actively do the things that will create that feeling.
Want some additional help with your game? Feel free to reach out to Ben to find out how you can incorporate tools like this into your game or with your team: ben@mentaltrainingplan.com
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