How AI soccer cameras transformed high school coaching

"I'm thoroughly satisfied with Veo. I recommend it to everyone in the area ... I'm immensely impressed by everything... I think it's a phenomenal product," says Garry Preece, varsity soccer coach at Ballston Spa High School.

Preece's enthusiasm reflects a complete transformation in how he approaches game analysis and player development. After 16 years of coaching experience, he discovered that automated video technology could solve problems he didn't even realize were holding his program back.

This challenges the assumption that traditional coaching methods provide adequate feedback for modern player development.

A teacher’s influence in the suburban athletic conference

Garry Preece has been coaching varsity soccer for 16 years while working as a high school math teacher. His dual role gives him unique insight into how students learn and process information both in the classroom and on the field.

His school serves the suburban athletic conference, where soccer programs compete at a high level. As an early adopter of video analysis technology, Preece became an informal ambassador for effective solutions among his coaching peers.

The combination of academic teaching experience and athletic coaching made him particularly aware of the gap between traditional feedback methods and what young athletes actually need to improve their performance. His influence extends beyond his own program, as other coaches regularly seek his advice on technology adoption.

The problem with outdated recording systems

Before discovering automated video solutions, Preece struggled with outdated technology that created more problems than it solved. "I started probably 5 or 6 years ago with another technology – I don't remember the other company – but it was cumbersome," he recalls.

Traditional video recording required constant manual adjustment and often missed crucial moments. "Some schools use the old cameras where they have to constantly move the cameras around and they don't get all the action, and then they'll ask us to share our videos with them," Preece explains.

The manual systems demanded someone's full attention throughout every game, pulling staff away from actual coaching duties. Players would miss opportunities for college recruitment because the footage quality was inconsistent or incomplete.

Without reliable game footage, Preece couldn't provide the visual feedback that helps players understand tactical concepts or create highlight reels for college recruiting. The competitive disadvantage was clear when other schools regularly requested his footage because their own systems had failed.

How Veo solved it and spread everywhere

Preece learned about Veo through other coaches in his conference who had already made the switch. The automated tracking capabilities immediately caught his attention because they eliminated the constant manual adjustments that plagued previous systems.

"You just turn it on and it goes. You just gotta make sure you have a hotspot on your phone and get your internet to work, and you're all set to go. The whole game goes, you don't do anything. It follows the game everywhere," Preece explains.

The transformation was so dramatic that adoption spread rapidly across his region. "Since I started using it, I think almost every school in the suburban council... I'd say 95% of them are using Veo now, and the basketball programs and lacrosse programs too now," Preece notes.

Customer support exceeded his expectations with response times that impressed him. "Yesterday or the day before, I emailed about the subscription, and within an hour, someone emailed me back. Within an hour, it was resolved," Preece recalls.

The platform's ease of use enabled students to create their own highlight reels for college recruiting, with one goalie successfully getting into Harvard using footage from the system.

Ready to discover insights like these?

Preece's experience shows how the right technology can transform coaching effectiveness and create viral adoption across entire athletic conferences. Ready to discover what video analysis can do for your team? Veo experts are standing by to help you get started.