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Two of my biggest passions are technology and American football.
When I get the chance, I do everything in my power to connect those threads.
Nottingham Caesars U19 won back-to-back northern championships in the UK while using a range of Microsoft apps and services.
I’ve stood in the rain on the sideline with anAcer Enduro rugged tablet.
I even usedChatGPT to create a gym planthat’s helped shape team fitness plans.
But throughout the years, one of my most consistent technological partners has been Microsoft 365.
Each offensive player on Nottingham Caesars U19 has a wrist coach created with Microsoft Excel.
Nottingham Caesars U19 is an American football team based in Nottingham, England.
Specifically, we play in Division 1, which is the highest division of play in our age group.
After a couple of years of rebuilding, the team hit its stride.
Tracking attendance through Excel helped transform my team’s practices.
We were #5 in the UK in 2022.
I use it for some standard stuff, such as keeping track of my budget.
My team has had over 50 players this season and over 10 people help in coaching or support roles.
Microsoft Forms allows me to keep track of release forms, player feedback, and other key data.
As a result, our catchment area is rather large.
Our season also runs through several exam periods, such as GCSEs, A-Levels, and university exams.
To stay on top of things, I have an attendance tracker for the team.
OneDrive is a great place to back up and share photos and videos.
I use this to see who has been at sessions leading up to a game.
Our lineups are then shaped by this data.
I sharedhow I track attendance with Excelearlier this year.
Many people ask me about which program I use to create my American football highlight reels. Most of them are made with Clipchamp.
Microsoft Forms
With dozens of players on the team, there’s a lot to manage.
Microsoft Forms is one of the tools I use to keep track of important data and forms.
The ability to use a wide range of media types in polls and quizzes is very useful.
One of the keys to success for Nottingham Caesars U19 has been our use of technology.
I also use Forms to get votes for our annual awards, which is quite the undertaking.
Forms simplifies the process of nominations and voting.
OneDrive
I back up all the team photos and game film on OneDrive.
I also back up archived footage on a hard drive.
One of the biggest advantages of OneDrive is I can create folders for simple sharing.
OneDrive also serves as the back end for many of the other Microsoft services I use.
Excel syncs across OneDrive, which lets me edit wrist coaches and spreadsheets on all my devices.
Clipchamp also plays nicely with OneDrive content, making video editing easier.
Clipchamp
Clipchamp is a video editor that’s preinstalled on hundreds of millions of PCs.
Clipchamp features a simple interface and has quite a few features that lower the learning curve of creation.
But Clipchamp has been a great tool for the team and takes some work off my plate.
Its templates and interface are straightforward and easy to tweak.
I also give credit to the Clipchamp team for listening to feedback.
We’ve since migrated toWhatsApp communities.
Merging the virtual and the physical
Several moments I’ve shared with Caesars U19 have felt surreal.
As you may expect, having a team win two northern championships brings waves of emotions.
To be honest, at times it almost feels like a dream.
Each night before a game, I make a wrist coach file in Excel.
Those plays were picked by my offensive coordinator, coaches, and players based on film we watched online.
I then print out the wrist coaches, laminate them, and cut them to size.
Those physical objects are essential for on-field performance for the offense.
It’s all a bit wild to me.
