Coaching football requires a variety of skills.  Coach Melnitsky’s favorite aspect of the job is teaching.  He strives to make his students the best football players they can be.  Almost every player he has coached wants to be successful.  Most of the players who attend Trinity College are attracted by the football program’s incredible winning tradition.  They want to win, but, in most cases, they do not fully understand what it takes to consistently win.  As Vince Lombardi once famously quipped, “You’ve got to pay the price.”  This is where Coach Melnitsky comes into play.  His job as a coach is to teach the players the process it takes to be successful.  While his teaching is typically geared towards becoming a better football player, he firmly believes the lessons learned can be applied to other endeavors in life.

In addition to the strategic and technical aspects of the game, there are several core values Coach Melnitsky seeks to pass along to his players - a great work ethic, an appreciation for commitment, the ability to overcome adversity, an understanding of teamwork, good sportsmanship, and taking pride in doing things the right way.  He is a demanding coach and frequently places his players in difficult, worst-case-scenario situations.  His goal is to make the practices as difficult as possible so that the actual games seem less challenging and chaotic.  Football is a physical game where the action occurs at a frenzied pace.  Players must be confident, make fast, firm decisions, and play with a high degree of intensity and focus.  His teaching methods and expectations are therefore shaped by these demands.  In meetings and on the field, he is constantly pushing his players to work harder and get better.  Off the field, he makes a concerted effort to get to know them as people.  He takes an interest in their academic achievement, frequently asking them how they are performing in the classroom and offering to provide them assistance if they are having difficulty in a course or with a specific assignment.  He takes an interest in what their hobbies are and what they enjoy doing with their free time.  He cares about his players and he wants them to know he does.  He strongly believes the players he coaches are willing to go the extra mile because they know he truly cares about them and he has their best interests in mind.  The level of interest and passion Coach Melnitsky brings to his profession enables him to demand more from his players which, in turn, helps them become the best players they can be.