What to do to move up to the next level?

[Joshua Rutsky]

This year was an excellent year for my teams. We had a record number of players in our program, we swept the state in varsity and JV events, and we qualified three teams for NAQT nationals. I'm returning all five members of my Varsity squad for next year, and they've had two years of nationals experience. We've won at least one of the state titles in Alabama for the last six years, and we have a very high winning percentage against Alabama teams.

Here's my problem: Where do we go from here? I felt like we were well-prepared for HSNCT, but both our varsity teams finished 5-5. We didn't play poorly--we just got beaten by teams that were better than us. How do we start preparing players to become top caliber? Any rational coach knows that if he or she is doing everything he/she knows, and if that's not enough, it's time to find someone who can give you insight into what you aren't doing correctly.

We are hampered by one major obstacle, and that's location. We have to travel 3 hours to Atlanta in order to compete with nationals-quality teams in more than one or two matches. That usually necessitates an overnight stay, which is a killer for me with two kids under 3. I know that getting better means playing the best teams you can on a regular basis, but finances will also limit the number of such trips we can take. We plan to go to HFT this year, for example, as well as a few Georgia tourneys.

I am thinking of playing our team as often as possible in local college circuit events to try to up the level of competition they face, and force them to play more aggressively. Any advice on this?

I am also looking for any players from top teams or coaches from those teams willing to share their advice on practice strategies. "Read more" is great, and of course, I encourage that, but that's somewhat out of my control and in the hands of the players. I want to know what a COACH can do to help, if anything.

All input is most welcome. Thanks!

[Down and out in Quintana Roo]

Something i had the kids to this year was give PowerPoint presentations on topics they liked during practice. Alexa did 2 presentations about art and a literature one too, Lexi did 2 huge ones about all the non-Greco/Roman myth out there, Julia did one about said Greco/Roman myth, Pratyusha did one about random physics stuff. They loved giving these presentations and the kids who were there loved hearing about it. (Our biggest problem is turnout, and running up against the incredible sports culture of our school which takes away about half the kids i have might most of the year).

It's a thought. Again, we were one of those middling 5-5 teams... so maybe i'm not the best one to listen to.

[Tanay]

I am thinking of playing our team as often as possible in local college circuit events to try to up the level of competition they face, and force them to play more aggressively. Any advice on this?

My high school tried this. The Bay Area circuit hasn't been all that populated in a couple of years, so we faced this sort of bottleneck you describe. In 2010, a cross-section of Bellarmine A attended a local T-Party mirror at which people like Andrew Yaphe, Jeff Hoppes, and Mike Bentley were playing. Bellarmine finished 2-8 at the mirror, but 4th at HSNCT that year after sending two teams that tied for 46th the year before. I believe these two events were heavily correlated. Even though there may not have been much of an overlap in terms of what got asked at each of these events, there's value in watching players who have been at it for years (or decades) and in experiencing high-pressure rounds against players who almost always take quizbowl pretty seriously. I rather enjoyed my first college tournament, Regionals in 2011, because over the course of the tournament, I felt like I got noticeably better at synthesizing information in questions and making educated guesses.

In all, I think the higher level of competition at college events forces high school teams to play "smart quizbowl" with greater consistency in order to win. Additionally, a lot of the harder questions at high school national tournaments can be found, unsurprisingly, in different forms but with greater prevalence in college sets. I think a college tournament or two to complement a schedule that focuses on high school sets is a great way to go.

[David Riley]

One thing I found with my teams a few years ago is that they were stuck in the belief that every question is going to be American/Western European. Convince them through practice on high quality questions that quiz bowl is much more global.

Georgia is certainly a great place for tournaments. HFT is great, but there may be a mirror closer to you which would cut down on expenses. I would also check the MOQBA website for competitive tournaments in southeastern Missouri, which would also be close to you. And if expenses permit, you would certainly be welcome at any of our Illinois tournaments!

[Rococo A Go Go]

WKU is also not terribly far away from Hoover, and we generally have a high quality field for our tournaments, so we'd love to have you up here for an event. It would be a great idea to go to more collegiate tournaments as well, especially since Alabama usually hosts an event or two each year, and other area schools will probably do so next year as well.

EDIT: I can't read properly.

[alexdz]

I would also check the MOQBA website for competitive tournaments in southeastern Missouri, which would also be close to you.

We would certainly welcome your presence at any events in Missouri! SEMO is one of our areas we are hoping to make some more inroads into in the upcoming year. Definitely check every now and again and see if we've got anything for you!

[1992 in spaceflight]

I would also check the MOQBA website for competitive tournaments in southeastern Missouri, which would also be close to you.

We would certainly welcome your presence at any events in Missouri! SEMO is one of our areas we are hoping to make some more inroads into in the upcoming year. Definitely check every now and again and see if we've got anything for you!

Like Alex said, we would more than welcome the presence of Hoover at any event in Missouri. If you're looking for any immediate events, I am fairly positive that St. Louis will have plenty of tournaments to offer, if you and the team are willing to make the journey.

[Stained Diviner]

I think Tanay's experience is very important. Teams need at least a little exposure to top rate quizbowl to know what they are getting into, and even doing it once in the fall and once in the spring can be a big deal.

Of course, your team won't get as good as Bellarmine unless it has a few very talented students willing to work obsessively at getting better. That's the combination that needs to be in place--students willing and able to do what it takes, and a coach (or community) that gives them enough exposure so they know what they are aiming for.

[The Atom Strikes!]

I might be able to chip in something based on my own high school experience here. Our coach didn't always handle all of the chaperoning/transportation requirements for getting teams to tournaments by himself. My father often helped to take the team to some tournaments-- committed and supportive parents can be a huge asset.

Also, 3-hour drives can be handled in a day tournament, especially if you can split driving duties. When I went there, Charter often did day tournaments in Long Island area that were that distant or further. It's hard, tiring, and I suspect that it would be super-difficult if you don't have an extra driver to help you out (full disclosure: our six to eleven teams usually took a school bus), but it can be done.

Also, in the collegiate game, Rice faces a lot of the same disadvantages that yours does. Thanks to the heroic efforts of Chris Romero, Texas has a thriving high school circuit, but thanks to the relatively low density of universities in the region (a simple consequence of geography), we only have three schools that regularly frequent events in our area-- us, UT, and A&M. We get a lot of our experience playing against unconventional opponents-- often talented high schoolers who attend college tournaments.

Edit: We're just a middle-bracket ACF nationals team, though, so you might want to take my collegiate-inspired advice with a grain of salt.

[Joshua Rutsky]

Thanks for the responses so far.

Also, 3-hour drives can be handled in a day tournament, especially if you can split driving duties. When I went there, Charter often did day tournaments in Long Island area that were that distant or further. It's hard, tiring, and I suspect that it would be super-difficult if you don't have an extra driver to help you out (full disclosure: our six to eleven teams usually took a school bus), but it can be done.

The 3 hour drive isn't the killer, and I went ahead and got bus certified last year to make this sort of trip possible for multiple teams, but the main issue is that going from Birmingham to Atlanta involves a time zone change into Eastern from Central, effectively making it an hour later when we arrive. Thus, to make a tourney with check in at 8:30 AM, we need to leave Birmingham at 4:30 AM. That's tough on me, and even tougher on volunteer drivers. Sigh.