Fitness and Conditioning

Question
I am 15, going on 16 years old.  My coach is playing me at tight end this year because of my size and my ability to catch the football.  I am 6ft. 5in. tall and about 260lbs.  My school's population is about 600 studants (in the 6th-12th grade all together) so our players are really small.  I have to work on my speed, agility, and mostly on my fitness to get into shape. I also will be starting varsity basketball this year so i have to work on basketball skills.  I would appreciate it if you could send me some advise on how to develope these skills and how to get into shape fast. Thank you.  

Answer
Dear Alex,
You are on the right track by playing basketball. Basketball is a great sport to play and it will help you get into football shape. You will be doing a lot of running back and forth, and side to side. This will help your coordination, quickness, conditioning, and help improve your foot work.

You also might want to add handball to your workout schedule. Just like in basketball, handball forces you to run back and forth and side to side.
Handball can be of great help, to a football player, for all the same reasons as basketball.

Try playing these two sports, on regular bases, and you will get into fantastic shape. And your foot work will look great for the up coming season.

You must run your pattern as fast as you can, while still keeping under control, and let the quarterback lead you. It is up to the quarterback to get you the ball when you are open.

Quick out (1):
This is a 5-8 yard route forward then the receiver cuts out towards the sideline then looks for the ball.

Slant (2):
This is a 3-5 yard route forward then the receiver breaks towards the middle of the filed on a 45 degree angle and looks for the ball.

Seam (3):
This route is run straight up the field with the receiver looking for the ball after he gets past the line of scrimmage.

Let me know if you would like to know more about the technique needed to play tight end.

Your friend, Coach Louis