The Player-Driven Culture Study

The 6 behaviors that create and sustain player-ownership of football programs

“This study should be read by every coach in America. We're always trying to get better, 
to modify, create, and expand. This study does an awesome job with that.” 

--Chris Creighton, Head Coach, Eastern Michigan

The motivation for conducting this study was simple…

For the past 10 years, we’ve heard and seen the word “culture” being thrown about arbitrarily. In conversations with coaches, in reports we’ve published, in clinic talks we’ve attended, in the posters and t-shirts we see in programs and in sports “culture” books we’ve read…

Athletes and coaches praise it when things go well and cite it as the primary catalyst for things going wrong. It is the most hackneyed phrase in sports, yet no one doubts that it is the most powerful factor when it comes to building a football program.

There were things we already knew about building culture. We knew it was the bloodline of any program and it had to be all-inclusive in order to be effective. We also knew that it had to continually be re-evaluated and re-aligned based on changing dynamics like environment and personnel. Coaches can never allow a culture to grow stagnant. 

Most importantly, we knew that the healthiest form of culture is one that is completely player-driven, where players are empowered with ownership in creating and defending a program’s core values. The generated ownership and accountability that comes as result is invaluable to a program’s success, often producing achievements significantly above talent level.

But how do you get to player-driven culture? How do you make the transition from being coach-led to being player-led? And how will it take? These were the questions that was the driving force behind our research.

How Is Culture Created?

What our research found was clear. All of our interviews, visits, studies, calls, and notes kept re-centering us back to one definitive: At its core, culture is created through behaviors.

West Virginia head football coach Neal Brown told us, “behaviors are the intangible attributes that allow one to improve skill and achieve optimal potential.” The right behaviors create habits that become instinctual and those habits build and sustain successful culture.

But what are those behaviors? It was through our research of over 40 collegiate and high school programs that we were able to identify the specific six behaviors that are essential in building and sustaining a player-driven culture.

Programs like LSU, Clemson, Cincinnati, North Carolina, Stanford, Arizona State, Iowa, Wake Forest, Florida State, Navy and many others.

We observed how each of these programs teach these behaviors and the methods they are using to do so. By simultaneously observing these programs and interviewing their coaches and staff, we were able to identify the behaviors that build healthy cultures—and quickly eliminate the behaviors that sabotage player buy-in and responsibility.

The 6 Behaviors That Create and Sustain Ownership of Culture

What we found early on, is this process begins by implementing a “system” of teaching the six behaviors. This system is “ground zero” in building culture and it’s a system all of the sources in this study would argue is more important than any offensive, defensive or special team’s system you will install in your program next fall.

"Culture is made up of specific behaviors that create habits. Like any other football discipline, 4-3 Defense, RPOs… culture must be installed as a system.”

–David Shaw, Head Coach, Stanford

It’s a continual, 12-month operative centered on empowering players to understand that mastering these six behaviors, or competencies as they are referred to in this study, drive culture and generate player ownership of culture. It’s a system that begins with the “what,” transitions into the “why” and culminates with the “how” (the methods used to teach and protect these behaviors).

In order to make the shift from coach-driven to player-driven, you’ll need to continually infuse these six behaviors into every fabric of your program. And while there are several pathways to attain these behaviors—all which we illustrate in this study—these behaviors must continually be messaged, demonstrated, evaluated and protected. 

What Happens When Your Players Protect Your Culture?

When a program has a culture that is coach-led, player-driven, it’s the players that are the ones protecting the culture. Coaches are able to focus more of their energies on management, the day-to-day operations of running a program without having to worry if players are motivated.

Once players own the culture and standards, conversations between coaches and players shift to a football basis like technique, scheme and adjustments.

"When you have a team led by players, your coaches can actually do their jobs and just coach."

–Breiden Fehoko, Defensive End, LSU

Where Can You Access This Study?

X&O Labs has published this entire study into a 246-page book called, The Player Driven Culture System: A Study of the Six Behaviors That Create and Sustain Player-Ownership of Football Programs. 

And best of all, you can get a FREE copy of this book mailed directly to your home or office.

Yes! When you join X&O Labs, you’ll receive a FREE copy of this 246-page study mailed directly to the address you provide (even shipping is free).

Here’s What You’ll Find in Your FREE Book

This 246-page book includes X&O Labs’ entire study on culture. The Player Driven Culture System is a step-by-step guide to implementing coach-led, player driven culture in your program. This is the same culture installation system the most successful football programs at the college and high school level use…

When you read this book, you’ll see…

• How to determine the current ‘health’ of your football program’s culture…
• You’ll see how to create and continually message your core values. Hear Coach Orgeron tell how he made the biggest mistake of his career by simply using the wrong messaging...
• You’ll see all 6 behaviors needed for the healthiest form of football culture—with step-by-step instruction on how to install these behaviors within your program.
• You’ll go behind the scenes and see how some of the most successful college and high school programs implement these behaviors… see how one coach resisted the transformation, before seeing the tight bond his o-line made with their ‘brothers’ on defensive line…
• You’ll get the inside story of why Coach Urban Myer failed to install his culture… and the one thing he did to correct it—with years of success that followed…
• When a player doesn’t perform on the field—9 out of 10 times—it has nothing to do with their knowledge of the assignment, but it has everything to do with something very personal to the player (see how coaches should address it to resolve this issue)… this might be the fastest way to correcting on-field issues…
• You’ll see inside one nationally ranked high school and how they stopped their players from giving excuses by installing responsibility habits…
• See how one offensive line coach gets 100% buy-in from his players by having them scout upcoming opponents… see how his players are now empowered with contributing to in-game adjustments… and the on-field success they’re now having…
• How one high school program has grown their freshmen participation numbers by 148% since installing coach-led, player-driven culture… and their fundraising is spiking as well…
• Go inside one program’s positional meeting room and see how making one simple change to seating can create strong, healthy competition within position groups…
• See how one ACC program monitors and corrects body language… and why body language is the key to quick recovery on game days (and in life)…
• How various colored jerseys drive player focus and accountability every day in practice…
• Why having difficult conversations is the key to player responsibility…
• Teaching resilience through putting players in difficult situations… forcing grit…
• Why not talking about football in team meetings has a greater impact on game day performance…
• How the 3rd year of a head coach will tell you everything you need to know about the health of their team’s culture…
• WARNING: Your players will comply with your requests early, but they’re watching to see if you live up to the same standards… see how long it takes to get to player-driven culture status…
• See real-world examples of how players police themselves in player-driven locker rooms… this is how to make peer-pressure work in your favor…
• Why player-driven culture works great with young people who’ve never been held accountable, rarely take responsibility and give countless excuses… It’s when they feel they’ve added value to the program, they leave a legacy behind…

The coaches in this study have built a system around intentionally teaching the 6 specific behaviors daily. It’s a system all of the sources in this study would argue is more important than any offensive, defensive or special teams system you will install in your program next fall. It’s a continual, 12-month operative centered on empowering players to understand that mastering these competencies generate player ownership of culture.

And with your FREE copy of The Player Driven Culture System, you get a step-by-step guide on how to successfully implement coach-led, player-driven culture—and details on how to continually maintain your culture once you have it established…