Basic Information

Full Name: Zach Allaben

UC Email: allabezg@mail.uc.edu
College: College of Business
Major: Finance
Title of Project: Leadership in Sport (Coaching Football)
Thematic Area (choose only one): Leadership
Expected Project Date: TBD
Expected Project End Date: TBD
Project Information
1. Provide a detailed abstract of your proposed honors experiential learning project
WHAT?
I have always been very interested in sports, especially football since I played the sport
throughout grade school and high school. I am not playing football in college and want to stay
connected to the sport through other means. I think that coaching would fulfill my passion for
football and give me a different perspective on the game. My goal is to develop as a leader
through coaching on the grade school level and understand how to lead a different demographic
of people in a role I have never played before. I want to understand effective leadership through
observation of more experienced coaches.
WHY?
Leadership is a huge component in any sport. Coach leadership is extremely important and can
motivate a team to be successful. There are many different types of coaching styles, all with a
slightly different type of leadership. I feel that leadership is not fully understood in this
particular field and through research and observation of the coaches on the team, I will be able to
better myself and others on the topic.
HOW?
There are many methods of studying leadership, and I feel that the best way for me to have a
well-rounded knowledge base on the topic is to conduct my research in a few different ways. I
have chosen the following methods to conduct my leadership research:
- Overseeing the coaches and their leadership styles
- Looking at my own leadership style and skills
- Conducting online research on past and present leaders who have been both
successful and unsuccessful
- Reading a book on leadership in sports
TIME?

My research will be ideally conducted during the fall football season of 2015. I plan on spending
six hours per week researching. Presently, my time schedule looks like:
- 6 hours per week
- 24 hours per Month
- Months of August, September, October, November
- Total Hours: 96
Clearly and thoroughly address how each of the following elements will be exhibited in
your work:
2. Connection to Learning Outcomes within the Honors Thematic Area (identified
above)
Possesses knowledge of various leadership theories and identifies with the characteristics of
leadership.
There are many resources available for study on leadership, and my plan is to look at as many as
possible so I can have a diverse range of information. One book I want to read that shows a
particular coachs leadership style is Junction Boys, which explains the leadership style of Paul
Bear Bryant, a legendary coach for the University of Alabama. In addition, I also want to
research the current coach of Alabama, Nick Sabin, as well as the NFL coaching legend Vince
Lombardi. I believe that research on these three individuals will give great insight on successful
and effective coaching. Furthermore, I will conduct very thorough research on the six different
leadership styles:
- The Pacesetting Leader
- Authoritative Leader
- Affiliative Leader
- Coaching Leader
- Coercive Leader
- Democratic Leader
Identifies the various characteristics of a leader in a given situation/role.
There are various leadership positions individuals can hold within sports. I will focus mainly on
the large leadership positions in football that I feel have the most impact on the game. One
position I want to focus on is the leadership through coaching. This will involve me looking at
the traits of football coaches and how these traits and leadership styles contribute their overall
success. Another position I want look at is the individual players themselves. The players are
each a leader in their own unique way. They contribute to the team and have leadership traits
that allow for the overall success of the team. Additionally, the team chemistry and how the
team reacts to the leadership of the coach as well as the leadership of each other is an aspect of
the game I want to observe from an outside perspective.
Has the ability to relate, communicate, and work effectively with peers.

A major factor in the success of any leader is their ability to connect and communicate
effectively. Especially in football, a coach has to have the ability to understand those he is
coaching as well as effectively communicate his vision for the team. Once the vision is
established, a coach must connect with the players on an emotional level and make the team
come together into a cohesive whole. Throughout my research, I will especially pay attention to
how the players react to the coaching style of the coach and how the coach works to effectively
relate, communicate, and work with the players to achieve the common goal of success.
3. Connection to Goals and Academic Theories (include reference list, as appropriate)
a. This project relates to my development in many ways such as:
There are many ways that leadership development through coaching football contributes to my
personal development. In the short term academic sense, leadership research is essential for
successful work in group settings. Understanding the different types of leadership and being
able to apply them to an academic setting will allow me to take the lead in group settings and
help create the best product the group can possibly create. In the long term, looking at job
placement, leadership qualities and development are crucial for professional advancement.
Especially in a business setting, leadership research will put me ahead of the competition and
allow me to personally advance at a faster rate because I will be able to understand how to relate,
communicate, and effectively work with peers.
b. Theories and Readings I plan to explore in my project:
Theories:
Having already been exposed to a few leadership theories through leadership conferences I have
attended, I was able to discover five theories that will be the basis of my research. I will delve
into each theory and try to understand how each of them creates a leader able to achieve success.
These theories are:
- Great Man Theories Are there people out there who are born to lead?
- Trait Theories What type of person makes a good leader?
- Relationship Theories How does the leader connect to their followers?
- Behavioral Theories What does a good leader do?
- Contingency Theories How does the situation influence good leadership?
Readings:
Currently, there is one book that really gives good insight to leadership through coaching
football. Junction Boys tells the story of Paul Bear Bryant, one of the most legendary coaches
of all time. His story revolves around the football team of the University of Alabama and how
they started from nothing to become a national championship team. I will try to relate come of
the characteristics of Coach Bryant to the coaches of my team and see if they possess leadership
traits that Coach Bryant used to take his team to the national championship.
4. Initiative, Independence, and/or Creativity

I have a very well rounded background in leadership, everything from academic to

extracurricular leadership. I feel that I bring a very unique experience to the project and I can
hopefully be able to impart some of my leadership qualities to others while coaching. I want to
test my leadership abilities in a coaching setting, where I have not been before. Coaching is a
realm that I have not been involved in, but I bring perspective to the coaching table as a former
player than just finished his last season. I can relate to the players really well and understand
how they feel about the team because I was in their position not long ago.
5. Reflection
My reflection during this experience will revolve around a journal that I will keep on my
computer. Throughout the coaching experience, I want to be able to document the direct
interactions and observations I had while coaching. In addition, I want to document and reflect
on the leadership research I would be conducting outside of coaching the team. A few core
questions I will be focusing on are:
- What makes a successful leader?
- What did I experience that was positive leadership and what did I experience
that caused a negative reaction?
- How do the players react to the different types of leadership from the
coaches?
- How are the researched leadership theories applicable to the team?
- How have the coaches and players reacted to each other throughout the
season?
6. Dissemination
I want to share my coaching experience and leadership research firstly with the team I am
coaching. I think they will greatly be able to appreciate a look on the progress the team made
from the beginning of the season. In addition, I think it would be good for them to understand
the different types of leadership and real world examples of leadership so they will be able to go
forward from the season with a better leadership knowledge base than before. Additionally, I
want to possibly be able to present to my social fraternity and help them understand how to apply
leadership experiences and theories to their experience on campus.
7. Project Advisor (list the persons name, title, and contact information)
I am currently contacting St. Ignatius, my former grade school, about coaching opportunities.
8. Budget
No budget is required.