They likely took some other things away with them about Trask’s coaching approach.
“It’s a player’s game,” he said. “I have a role in it, but I’m kind of like a traffic cop. At the end of the day, they drive the bus. That’s something we’ve handed back over to the players; ownership.”
Film study, a valuable teaching tool, is an integral part of Trask’s game plan. “Everything is being filmed,” he said, “so these guys know the microscope is being turned on them.”
There have been positive early signs that Trask’s methodology is catching on. “We haven’t overwhelmed and tried to teach everything in 15 minutes,” he said. “It has been a good progression.”
As such, the players have progressed in retaining most of what they’ve learned.
“We feel like the culture is a little better this year after being with them last year,” he said. “We’re able to get more specific on what we’re doing in certain instances.”
There’s no ambiguity on Trask’s commitment to weight training.
“The weight program is not an option here,” he said. “It’s not a three-month program. We believe in four-year growth and that’s a year-round development program on and off the field.
“It’s tough to add weight training on top of games. But if you do it and it becomes the culture and everyone accepts it when they walk into the door, you’ve got a better athlete by the age of 20 or 21.
“In soccer, not 100 percent of the people believe in weight training. We believe in it for injury prevention and, more importantly, for developing the total athlete, especially in the Big Ten.”
There are three components to Trask’s formula for success: Ambition. Integrity. Talent.
“We have ambition,” he said. “I will treat you with integrity. And it’s my job to get the talent. If we get those things right more often than not, that will equal success.”
Trask was mentored by a soccer icon, Jerry Yeagley, the former IU coach. Trask was a Yeagley player and a Yeagley assistant. In sum, Trask is a Yeagley guy; a proponent of defensive principles.
“I think it starts with the foundation we all got from coach Yeagley,” Trask said.
By his own admission, Trask is also a “possessions” guy.
“I believe the other team can’t score if you have the ball,” he said. “On top of those defensive principles, can you keep the ball? Is there a rhythm to your team? Whatever that rhythm may be.
“Maybe it’s fast, fast, fast. Maybe it’s slow, slow, slow. What is that rhythm?”
Trask’s wife, Jela, recently watched some video of the Badgers.
She then shared her observations with her husband.
“Wow, that looks like your old UIC teams,” she said.
