Teams need more than just talent to win

ome teams may have everything they need physically to be great but are missing one big thing, the mental aspect. Teams need mental strength to succeed, and there are ways for the athletes to gain it, according to Norwich University's associate athletic director.

"It's important that athletes have a level of confidence and believe in themselves and this in turn helps them to train hard," said Amanda Cuiffo, associate athletic director. "Teams need to be aware of where they are in that level of confidence."

There are different kinds of mental blocks that teams experience. A common one is where they play weaker teams, ones they are expected to beat, and for some reason they don't play to their own level. They end up playing down to the weaker team's level. The next thing they know, they are either close to losing or actually losing to that weaker team.

"One thing that happens is just general overconfidence and this leads to a more lax performance," Cuiffo said. "You think you don't have to work as hard and because you start to relax, your performance starts to take a toll."

On the opposite side of the spectrum, teams also struggle with believing they can beat better teams, even when they have the talent to do so.

"When you go into a game you have to challenge yourself and if you go into the game expecting to be challenged, the game becomes a lot tougher on the opponent," said Jaren Jeffcoat, 23, a senior communications major from Dallas, Texas. "It makes sure that your team is prepared and that they are doing everything they can mentally in order to win that game."

But there is a solution to "good team" mental blocks as well.

"I think it boils down to preparation, confidence, and going in and actually executing in a competitive situation," said Paul Booth, head coach for the Norwich men's basketball team. "But ultimately it comes down to learning how to win; you have to at some point actually win, to gain the confidence of your team."

Some coaches argue that is preparation. Others say it all has to do with the team.

"One important thing is that they come together and do it as a team," Cuiffo said. "Even if you have great stud athletes on your team, they can't win any matches for you. It's really got to be that team coming together."

Rivals are another thing that can severely hinder a team's mentality. Teams can get so caught up in the rivalry, they can't focus on the things they need to do.

"In that situation you just have to break it down and remind your players that they're just another team," Jeffcoat said. "You are playing the same sport, you are doing the same things that you would do in any other situation."

Not every team has these problems. In fact, some teams may never experience mental blocks as far as the team is concerned. Sometimes it can just be a matter of one individual with the mental block but that one individual could have a huge impact on the team.

"If an individual starts to have a mental breakdown during the game it then starts to take its toll on the team and vice versa," said Austin Hall, head coach of the Norwich women's rugby team. "If there's a disconnect that is not working for us it could trickle down to the other players."

These kinds of situations have been a problem in sports for a long time. In fact, because this has become such a common problem, the practice of sports psychology is continually growing.

"It (mentality) definitely has a large impact on performance," Cuiffo said. "I think that's why the field of sports psychology has grown so much."

There are different kinds of sports psychologists, according to the St. Louis Psychologist website: clinical sports psychologist and educational sports psychologists.

Clinical psychologists deal with emotional disorders of athletes like substance abuse and anorexia. Educational psychologists deal more with psychological skills and developments.

Educational psychologists are the better known psychologists. They are the ones who help athletes get over those blocks that they experience frequently. They help athletes fix their mental problems.

But how often do these problems occur? It's hard to say if the problem is recurring or if it tends to be more unexpected. Booth sees it more as unexpected because "it's never something I anticipate going into a season."