Some say a football team is a family.
And Land O’ Lakes High coach Dan Goodspeed knows that a football family includes the moms, sisters, grandmothers and aunts. In the case of the Gators, specifically, the Women of Blue.
The Gators coaching staff and football team hosted nearly 65 women for its first ladies clinic, which is expected to become an annual event. The clinic is part of an initiative to include, and educate, women more about the game, by discussing topics such as play calling strategies, player safety, equipment, nutrition and hydration.
Goodspeed, a former NFL lineman who played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when they won Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003, borrowed the idea from the Bucs, which has the Women of Red. That version does a similar event and also provides in-season exclusive content and team updates.
“I used to go speak at (The Women of Red Ladies Clinic), and (owner and president of Tampa Bay Buccaneers Foundation) Darcie Glazer (Kassewitz) always does a great job with it,” Goodspeed said. “It’s held in the Club Section at Raymond James Stadium, and the women would go from station to station, learning different aspects of the game.
“My station was describing the playbook,” he added. “We would show there’s rhyme and reason to what we do — like a chess game, that we’re not just out there trying to run into each other. We show the real reason why we play football.”
Although Goodspeed set out to emulate the Buccaneers, his initial source of inspiration was his mom — especially because she was concerned about his safety when he began playing football in high school.
“It is a violent sport,” Goodspeed said. “She thought I would just get all crunched up, but we wanted to show that we make sure their boys are safe. They’re young adults, and we want them to make it through the season.
“Football is the greatest sport,” he added. “Many of these guys aren’t going to play football in college, but we feel (the clinic) lets (the players) be able to sit down with parents on the weekend and tell them exactly what they did or have a conversation about what is happening when watching games.”
The Gators had stations at its Ladies Clinic, but there was a heavy emphasis on player safety. Goodspeed and his staff brought in old and newer equipment — helmets and shoulder pads — to show how it has improved over time and how it will protect the players.
Additionally, an anonymous donor gave the team 85 guardians caps – the new padding that goes outside the helmet that is designed to cut down up to 12% of the force of a hit. The women also were invited to try on the equipment to find out how it feels inside the helmet.
“Honestly, my biggest take-away was feeling very comfortable that my child was in good hands,” said Lisa Campbell, whose son, Zach, is a junior tight end on the team. “We got to meet all the coaches and each was more caring than the next, so I know when I’m not there, they are in good hands, whether he’s 5 or a junior.
“So, you can see that they’re not all about win, win, win,” she added. “They care about safety and are concerned with making things better, and as safe as possible.”
Campbell said she enjoyed hearing coaches at the stations addressing various aspects of the sport, such as playcalling and designing plays with X’s and O’s.
She especially enjoyed the clap cadence drill, with the coaches trying to get the women to clap at the same time like in a huddle.
“They got all the moms, grandmoms, sisters, aunts, neighbors — all the women and gave us a run down on all the positions,” Campbell said. “They showed us that football is great and that they love it, but they love also developing the man, the full student, the full player — to become a good man. I think we were all very impressed.
“Many of the women were pretty comfortable in their knowledge of football coming in, but they then saw what we were trying to do on both sides of the ball,” Goodspeed added. “They’re very sharp and picked it up and understood it all very quickly, but still had plenty of questions. … As parents, when (the kids) get to high school, I think they know time is running out, and they’re going to go out on their own lives, so this really lets them still be a part of their lives, just on the football field.”
And that is important to Campbell, a bookkeeper at Sanders Elementary, who knows full well how quickly time at school can go. To her, she feels every team should have its own version of the Women of Blue.
“I don’t know if everyone could do it, but it is a real bonus,” Campbell said. “We’re appreciative of it and had a great time with it and learned why our boys are passionate about football. It gave us a real look of what happens behind the face mask.”
Land O’ Lakes High Football 2023 Schedule
Aug. 18 at Lakeland Victory Christian (preseason, 7 p.m.)
Aug. 25 at River Ridge
Sept. 1 vs. Anclote
Sept. 8 at Williston
Sept. 15 vs. Zephyrhills
Sept. 29 at Mitchell
Oct. 6 vs. Nature Coast
Oct. 13 vs. Springstead
Oct. 20 at Sunlake
Oct. 27 vs Wiregrass Ranch
Nov. 3 at Pasco
* All games start at 7:30 p.m.
Published August 16, 2023
