Coaching Staff Management & Development Insights
A head coach is only as strong as their staff. Building, managing, and developing a cohesive, skilled, and motivated coaching and support staff is paramount to achieving sustained success in any football program. Effective staff management requires strong leadership, clear communication, and strategic planning.
This page brings together American Football Monthly's expert articles focused specifically on Coaching Staff Management. Whether you're a head coach assembling your first staff, an athletic director overseeing personnel, or a coordinator leading a position group, you'll find valuable resources here.
Discover insights and practical advice covering essential aspects of managing your football staff:
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Defining Instructional Principles for Your Coaching Staff–
Strength Report: Football Specific Conditioning, Part II
E very head coach desires to have traction. While performing speed training, to sprinting because unnecessary tension mechanics can be improved solely by run- team speed; that is, players that in the body will restrict the speed of limb movements. can run fast at every position on the field. Heavy squats are used to increase ning at faster speeds. The knees will lift It is a common understanding that higher and a desirable forefoot strike oc- force output;
Over Ten Years of the Strength Report
Nebraska's Boyd Epley is generally regarded as the father of collegiate strength and conditioning. Epley convinced Nebraska Head Coach Bob Devaney in the late 60's that a strength and conditioning program would make the Husker players bigger, faster, and stronger. Devaney approved the program but he told Epley, 'If any of our players get slower, you're fired.'With a strength and conditioning program in place, Epley helped Nebraska become a national power in the 70's. He premiered s
Fire Zone Blitz
The following is an overview of how we play our fire zone coverage concept. We utilize several different blitz patterns but our coverage rules remain consistent throughout. We use this exact information to teach our players not just to do their job, but the overall schematic of the coverage and why we do what we do. Fire Zone Blitzes consist of any 5 members of the defense rushing the passer, and 6 members of the defense dropping into pass coverage. Essentially:5 Rushers
Off-Season Drill Work for Offensive Linemen
The off-season, specifically the cycles around spring football, January through March and May through August, are absolutely vital to the growth and development of an offensive lineman. It is when they make the most significant gains in upper and lower body strength, speed, conditioning and explosiveness as well as continuing to develop and improve position specific technique. We preach the concept of doing it harder and better than it’s ever been done before. It is a constant strain to imp
State Champions 2015 – The Best of the Best
Gary Rankin – Alcoa High School, TNSpread Offense • 4-3 Defense• Tennessee’s all-time winningest high school coach.• Won 7 state championships in his 10 years at the school.• Averaged 32 points in playoff games last fall, surrendering only 4.5 ppg.• Defeated Christ Presbyterian Academy in 3A state title game, 20-0.Chris Wolfe – Male High School, L
Leadership Strategies: How to Develop a Steady Stream of ‘Championship Level QBs in Your Program, Part I
There is not much argument in any level of football that to win consistently and compete for championships you need strong quarterback play. So what defines ‘strong quarterback play’ and how do you develop that consistently within an organization? This series of articles will lay out a clear path that can easily be followed in any program given the proper attention. Let’s first discuss what goes into the makings of a great quarterback. From there, you’ll be in a better posi
Coach to Coach: Coaching Staff Self-Improvement from the Inside-Out
Self-evaluation can be incredibly important for professional development, yet so often we make evaluation sterile, boring, and too driven by numbers. I will not focus on that type of evaluation for several reasons, not the least of which is that you probably already have a way to do that type of evaluation or have easy access to such an evaluation by performing a quick internet search. I’m going to propose a different type of self-evaluation, one that I believe is superior to the
Drills Report: Special Teams Organization for Competition Drills and Circuits
One of the greatest challenges for coaching special teams at all levels is how to get maximum quality reps in the most efficient manner possible during practice. Teaching multiple skills and techniques to 60+ players takes the combined effort of the entire coaching staff. I rely on all our coaches to help teach our players different aspects of the kicking game. It also takes a great deal of planning and organization so that your time on the field is efficient.One organizational con
Strength Report: Football Specific Conditioning, Part I
Football is an explosive sport requiring power and speed in linear and non-linear sport specific movements. With the average time per play lasting 6 seconds and a 40 second play clock, football is an interval based sport switching from high intensity bursts of about 6 seconds and low intensity active-recovery periods of about 40 seconds. Due to the high intensity nature of each play, one goal of the off-season conditioning program is to train the capacity and efficiency of the short duration,
Creating Turnovers Through Ball Disruption
As a head coach for 11 years, I have also worn the title of the offensive coordinator and defensive coordinator, and even though I am an offensive coordinator by heart, I realize more and more in this profession how important your defense is to your program’s success. As a defensive coordinator, one of the things I like to do after every season is review each game film and try to see what made us successful and what hurt us each game. Defensively, the main things I like to focus on while wa
Missouri Protection - Teaching Pass Blocking Fundamentals to Running Backs
Using the right technique, four protection drills will help your running backs protect the quarterback.When we teach protection, there are a variety of drills that I use. I start with the base of the body, which are the feet, and I work my way up to the hands and the upper body. I start with the feet because that is where everything begins. A phrase I use a lot when coaching is get the right “Body Position.” I talk to running backs about blocking the defender with their feet.
Post- Season Priorities - Wrapping up one season and transitioning to the next are critical times for successful programs
When your season ends, do you kick back, relax and get away from the game for a couple months? Of course not. Whether it’s formulating and implementing an off-season strength and conditioning program, ushering in a new group of players and preparing them for the following season or putting together motivational exercises, every successful coach knows that winter presents an opportunity for physical and mental team building.To find out how the best coaches approach the post season
Leadership Strategies
Jeff Hancock is the head coach at Vidalia High School in Louisiana. He recently took part in AFM’s “Leadership Survey”. Included are his responses:How do you develop responsible and respected team captains?This question is best answered by talking about my Senior Leadership Council. For our program, the seniors are the leaders and sometimes decision makers for the program. Bringing them in for meetings to discuss policy, setting standards, and letting them know what I am
Priorities For a Championship Off-Season
Great programs realize that getting better every single day is a key to winning championships. This is as true in the off-season as it is during the season. Thus, establishing off-season priorities often helps programs move forward consistently. Here are some suggestions for establishing off-season priorities that will help any and every team move forward this off-season.Use Data WiselyLook at your season stats. Where do you want to improve? Create a specific plan for addressi
Linebacker Movement Drill Progressions
When developing drill progressions for your position group, it is important to break down the points of emphasis that you want to develop on a daily basis. Since individual period time is so valuable at all positions, it is crucial to stay organized to maximize the efficiency of the drill work you accomplish with your position group. By breaking down a position through film study we are able to create drill progressions that fit our scheme, personnel, and practice scripts to accomplish proper
Conditioning for an Aggressive, Up-Tempo Offensive System
Up-tempo offenses have become more and more popular at all levels of football and whether this is your team’s offensive philosophy or not, chances are that there are several teams like this in your conference or on your schedule that you must prepare for. Before we can begin to discuss the particulars of conditioning for an attacking, fast-paced style of play such as the up-tempo offense, we have to take a look at the dynamics of a typical football game and how we try to alter those dynamic
Every Program Needs a Speed System Like the One at Southeastern Louisiana
For the past 20 years it has become understood that football speed training is beneficial. However, what’s often missing in speed programs is the lack of a technically sound system. According to the definition of the word ‘system’ it’s “a group of related parts that move or work together.” This is the very essence of what makes a speed program viable. Many organizations throughout the country address the issue of speed training but may not be aware they could be missing the most i
A Little Help From Your Friends
The Beatles told us that you can Get By With A Little Help From Your Friends……And nothing could be more true within the world of coaching football. Your Membership in American Football Monthly provides you with a golden opportunity to submit YOUR EXPERIENCE to be shared with your fellow coaches. We want you to consider contributing and helping your peers become better coaches. Do you have ideas you always wanted to share? Do you have t
A Quick, Simple, High Rep Progression for Defeating Blocks
Repetitions with four different ways to defeat blocks – the rip, punch, slip and cut techniques – will help improve your overall defense.One of the many great things about being at Butler University is being centrally located and having so many terrific football programs very close to use as professional development resources. Let’s be clear, no one is inventing a new defense. However, there are many different schemes, philosophies, fits, terminology, etc. This is where I think a
Why Coach? Being Compassionate, Optimistic, Attentive, Confident and Humanistic are Some of the Qualities a Coach Should Possess
When I was invited to submit an article to AFM, I figured I would simply put some drills together, share some concepts, propose a few diagrams and maybe even talk about the transition of players from high school football to college competition. After all, that’s what we, as coaches, would need for personal or professional development, right? I shared my ideas with colleagues in the office and even surveyed some young coaches who were helping with our sum
RAISING THE BAR - Transforming your Training Facility
Master Strength & Conditioning Coach Troy Jorgensen of Missouri Southern State University has transformed his training facility – with the help of Samson Equipment.Top collegiate programs are well aware of the importance of having facilities that will impress recruits and give their athletes an edge. That’s especially true with strength and conditioning facilities.But what about smaller colleges – those non-FBS schools that generally operate with much smaller
Ways to Turn a Season Around – Four Coaches Have Proven Ways to Help Turn a Season Around After a Struggling Start
Dan Rohn Grand Rapids West Catholic High School (MI) In 2013, Coach Dan Rohn’s Grand Rapids West Catholic team started the season 1-4 – and went on to win the Michigan state championship. In 2012, West Catholic started 1-3 – and reached the state championship game. In Rohn’s first eight seasons, West Catholic won its season opener only three times. It’s all part of the plan. “We gear everything toward being the best football team in
ALL IN: Prevention and Psychological Treatment of Football Injuries
Injuries are inevitable in football and too often when injuries occur, coaches are at a loss for how to deal with it. If you pursue an ALL IN philosophy and follow the acronym ALL IN after an injury, you will prevent as many injuries as possible and skillfully handle the unavoidable injuries that do occur. Before the InjuryBegin building an ALL IN culture before injuries occur. ALL IN means you are devoted to the whole person, not just the football player part of the person. M
AFM Subscribers Ask with Shawn Liotta Offensive Coordinator, Clairton High School (PA)
Shawn Liotta is the offensive coordinator at Clairton High School (PA), a team which averaged 59.9 points per game last season. Clairton also averaged 12.8 yards per play and 510 yards in total offense per game, even though the PIAA Mercy Rule was in effect in the second half of 12 of the 16 games his team played. His offense is aptly named the ‘No-Huddle, No Mercy’ offense.Along the way, Clairton’s quarterback, running back and wide receiver each set school records last fall
3-4 Front with Quarters Coverage: Base Front Variations – These four variations of the 3-4 defense may help your defense with one more player having ‘drop skills.’
Over the past two and a half years of being directly involved with the 3-4 defense and through doing our research, we have encountered several different ways to adjust the base 3-4 look and play a multiple quarters coverage behind it.Some form of the 3-4 defense is being increasingly implemented at all levels of football. There are many reasons for this but the fundamental premise that our Head Coach Mike Archer and Defensive Coordinator Jared Backus always hangs their hat on is th
The Drive Series – It is critical for the QB to read coverage early for this series of plays to be successful.
One of the pass series in our playbook that allows us flexibility and options vs. defenses is the Drive Series. The Drive encompasses concepts that can be successful against most coverages. The routes within the series also create some big play chances if the quarterback can recognize the coverage early. We install the three main plays of the series in the first two days of our August camp because, in addition to the fact that these plays are good for both first down and third downs, they als
Warhawk Special Team Play – Technique and Drills
Special teams are a major determining factor in the outcome of football games at any level. It is fundamental that you stress not only the importance of special teams to your program but also continually drill them and show them the results that you want. This is our philosophy for special teams play:• We use the KISS principle – Keep It Simple Stupid – which allows you to focus on fundamentals.• Give the illusion that you do a lot of different formations, moti
Having a Dominant Defense at the Point of Attack – URI uses a four word progression every snap to maximize the play of their defensive line.
URI uses a four word progression every snap to maximize the play of their defensive line.Coaching a defensive line to be dominant is based on consistency in coaching. The players standard of performance begins and ends with their coach. We believe if players don’t understand their assignments, we need to change the way they are taught. Consequently, if drills aren’t showing up on tape, the drill needs to be adjusted. There is no such thing as “dumb players”, ju
Texas Legend Phil Danaher
Phil Danaher has been the head coach at Calallen High School (Corpus Christi, Texas) since 1984. He is one of two coaches in the history of Texas high school football that has amassed over 400 wins. Danaher has a chance in 2016 to surpass the all-time leader – G. A. Moore – who won 426 games over a 44-year career. Danaher’s career record is 407-103-4.Danaher’s teams have made the playoffs every year since he arrived at Calallen. Before he took over the program, Calallen had
Leadership Strategies: In Need of a New Direction
Coaching staffs should not expect seniors to lead simply based on their age. So, the ultimate goal of our program became to build better men, to help them to grow individually, and eventually teach them how to lead other young men. The result of our emphasis on leadership has been impressive. In 2014 we had a 13-game winning streak that included a #1 Missouri state ranking, a top 150 national ranking, and a narrow defeat in the Class 5 State Semifinals. Provid
An In-Season Strength and Conditioning Strategy
After completing a successful summer off-season program, I began to look at our in-season training and evaluating what we wanted to accomplish. The typical goals for an in-season program are to keep the players healthy and maintain what we achieved during the summer training. Not only did I want to accomplish this, but I also wanted our players to feel energetic, explosive, and powerful come Saturday. Since the beginning of my career in strength and conditioning, it has been common for footba
Developing Physical Linebacker Play
From my standpoint, the greatest compliment our defensive staff can receive is at the end of the game having the opposing coach say how hard and physical our guys played. Playing hard is something that every coach demands from their team. Playing a physical style necessarily is not. If we do not practice being physical, how can I expect my guys to come out on Saturday and play physical? We try and recruit naturally physical kids, but we all know sometimes it does not work out that way. Over t
AEMA Report: Challenges Female Equipment Managers Face Working Football
Female equipment managers face many challenges working for the football team. For many decades the world of football has been dominated mostly by men with women playing only minor roles, if any. As we grow as a society and as a sport, women are starting to emerge in football in a variety of roles that once were thought to only be done by males. The world of football equipment has been, in particular, one of the harder positions for females to work. Many coaches and support staff have always b
Your Take: Long Hours, Hard Work – Do You Spend Your Time Doing What Matters Most?
If you are a head football coach, chances are that you are also a husband, father and classroom teacher. Usually guys that are wired to be a head football coach are wired to give their best in everything they do. How in the world do you balance all of the demands that go with those roles? Are you active in your church? I have spent 23 years as a head football coach. The last 19 years were at Mason County High School (KY). I underestimated how much work I would have to do when I became the new
Coaching HD – Technology to Prepare Your Team in Camp and During the Season
As another season is ready to commence, now is the time to solidify plans and details, and be sure that you are able to work through the grind of the season in the smartest way possible. Utilizing technology to help you and your staff be efficient will pay dividends in both preparation for each week as well as alleviating some of the stress that comes with the long work day that the season brings.In 2010, huge advancements improved the way we are able to work as coaches. The film r
A Strategy for Team Building
Players today are not any different than when I began coaching nearly 20 years ago. However, the number of outside distractions that players are exposed to almost daily has increased tenfold. It is because of these increased distractions that the player-coach relationship has become so significant. So many of these distractions that student-athletes are exposed to daily do nothing but tear down the values that we spend countless hours trying to instill in our players, primarily the value of t
We Are The Champions
Earning the state champion title means different things to different coaches.After the Gatorade is dumped, after the trophies are raised, after the last party is over, the coaches of the 300-plus high school state champions have time to reflect on their seasons and what winning the state title meant to them, their players, their schools and their communities.To some, becoming a state champion is the culmination of their coaching career. For others, it’s the continuation of
Leadership Strategies: Developing a Leadership Council
Jerome Learman was a high school coach for 20 years and 13 as a head coach. He received his doctorate in 2005 from Michigan State in Kinesiology. Learman is currently teaching at both Michigan State and Central Michigan University. While coaching, Learman developed a leadership council for juniors and seniors who received leadership training to become captains. American Football Monthly spoke to Coach Learman about his leadership council.After taking over for Craig Bohl, North Dakota S
AFM Subscribers Ask with Mike Golden Director of Sports Performance, University of Massachusetts (Part II)
Mike Golden is the Director of Sport Performance at the University of Massachusetts. Golden has 18 years of collegiate strength and conditioning experience. Prior to UMass, he coached for two seasons at the University of South Florida. He also coached at East Carolina, helping build the Pirates into one of the top programs in Conference USA, winning back-to- back conference championships with Head Coach Skip Holtz. While at ECU, he also trained first round draft pick Chris Johnson who r
Gaining Leverage - Using unbalanced sets and formations can give your offense an advantage.
In this high tech game of offensive football, every coach is looking to gain advantages. We have incorporated different unbalanced sets as a part of our offensive scheme. Our players understand what we are trying to accomplish with these sets and, more importantly, they understand the do’s and don’ts in these formations. Ultimately, with these formations, we look to surprise the defense and create a small amount of confusion. We also look to out-leverage the defense and bring more players
Why We Do What We Do - A Look Inside Clemson's Strength and Conditioning Program.
The foundation of any successful collegiate football program is an understanding and commitment by all who work with the student-athletes to shape them into the vision the head coach has for the team. Head Coach Dabo Swinney has a vision of greatness for our program, which in the past four years, has driven us to two ACC Atlantic Division Championships, one conference championship, a 4-year span of 10+-win seasons, three straight bowl wins over ranked opponents, three straight Top 15 finishes
Think Quick! If executed correctly, the quick passing game can be effective, regardless of the down and distance situation.
The University of Idaho’s quick passing game was first developed by Head Coach Dennis Erickson when he coached the Vandals. Now, Paul Petrino has refined the quick passing game after working on it with his brother, Bobby, when both coached at Louisville. Our goals with the quick passing game are to get the ball out of our QB’s hands quickly and produce explosive plays with short passes. This demands a system that is detailed, disciplined, and practiced every day at full s
Coach to Coach: Follow These Four Keys to Become a Better Coach Every Day
As coaches, we often preach to our players, “You will either get better or worse today.” In order to get better every day, players have coaches who have made practice plans for them and provide encouragement, feedback, and inspiration. But if we, as coaches, are going to get better, who and what do we have to help us? The following is an acronym for a process you can use on a daily basis to make sure you are improving in key areas of coaching effectiveness. Follow this plan each day, and
Coaching HD: Train the Brain
Over the past year, there has been tremendous growth in the realm of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) applications in football. The idea of training the brain to function in a number of different situations has merits in terms of gaining experience as well as performing in a setting where the dangers of injury are removed. Data on these simulations show that performance on the field is improved. Cognition training provides an additional way for preparing the brain for high spee
AEMA Report – The Second Football Season
By Austin Perryman, Student Equipment ManagerUniversity of Tennessee-ChattanoogaSpring football is altogether one of the most memorable seasonal sports to be involved in as both a high school player and a FCS student manager. I’ve been lucky enough to have been involved as both.Just before my last spring at Lincoln County High School in Fayetteville, TN I hurt my back doing hang-cleans. It wasn’t much at first, but as the spring went along, my back sta
5 Keys to Boost Your Off-Season Training
It’s an old adage that championships begin with your off-season weight training program.The old adage is that championships are won in the off season. A positive, challenging and competitive off-season program can help be the catalyst that can set a team apart from the pack in the upcoming season. No two strength programs are the same and one cannot claim to be better than the other. However, there are a few key building blocks that can help to lay the foundation for future football
Leadership Report: The Intangible That Makes a Difference
The Speed Report: Football Speed and Movement Training – Making it Relative to practices and Games
Speed on the football field is every coach’s desire. The good news is that speed and movement can be developed. When I started developing football speed 36 years ago, no one believed it could be taught. How it was developed back then and even today, is still an issue that concerns me. Far too many programs are using inferior fundamental principles and, in most cases, they’re principles that fall short of the mark for maximizing results. Incorporating sound teaching fundamentals
Strength Report: The Power Clean and the Squat
The two main lifts we habitually do that are the core of what we do are the squat and the power clean. We will then adjust those main lifts for athletes with different body types and/or limitations. Two reasons why we regard these two exercises as the most important are because they test lower body strength and also total body power. There is a very high chance that our players performed these lifts in high school, and the results of their max efforts in those lifts give play
Building Champions to Win Championships
We recently surveyed coaches on a variety of topics, one of which was their interest in having more information about leadership. An astounding 80% said they would like us to present more information on this topic that is so vital to individual and team success.With this issue of American Football Monthly, we are introducing a new monthly Leadership report – Building Champions to Win Championships. AFM has assembled a team of leadership experts to explore, define and communicate
TURNING AROUND A LOSING PROGRAM
By Chad Hanson, Head Coach, Eleva-Strum High School (WI) Chad Hanson is the head coach at Eleva-Strum High School in Wisconsin. Three years ago he was hired to improve the school’s football fortunes. In the previous three years prior to his arrival, the team won a total of five games. * What were the issues with the Eleva-Strum football program before you arrived? What was the culture like? - The situation that I walked into at Eleva-Strum was a unique one. The
AFM Subscribers Ask with Mike Golden
Mike Golden is the Director of Sports Performance at the University of Massachusetts. He has 18 years of collegiate strength and conditioning experience. Prior to UMass, Golden coached for two seasons at the University of South Florida. He also coached at East Carolina, helping build the Pirates into one of the top programs in Conference USA, winning back to back conference championships under Head Coach Skip Holtz. While at ECU, he also trained first round draft pick Chris Johnson, who recor
Maximizing Your Goal Line Defense – The Okie Hot defense is intended for use at the goal line and its efficiency is dependent on players following alignment rules as well as their execution.
We have seen a number of offenses in our conference transition to a spread attack. This has also transitioned to the goal line area of the field. Our defense is a 3-4 that plays the majority of time a cover 3 with single LB blitzes. When we’re inside the 10 yard line, we do not have a lot of options so we end up playing man coverage without help. The problem that we have had is our corners are 5’9” and are susceptible to bigger wide receivers beating them on jump ball f
Winning the Key Ground with Kickoff Coverage - Each man in kickoff coverage has an assignment ...
Each man in kickoff coverage has an assignment along with a kicker who must be skilled in directional kicking.This is a game of field position and we talk a lot about “Winning the Key Ground.” Below is our philosophy and goals for our kickoff cover unit.Philosophy 1. Cover two-thirds of the field with directional kicks.2. Inside and in front coverage – not lane.3. &nb
Building a Program From the Ground Up - South Alabama Head Coach Joey Jones
South Alabama Head Coach Joey JonesUniversity of South Alabama Coach Joey Jones is no stranger to rekindling programs or starting them from scratch. The former Alabama WR was the head coach for a decade at Mountain Brook High School (AL) where he went 101-27. He inherited a program that had nine consecutive losing seasons and took them to the state championship game in his first year as coach. In the 10-year period in which Jones was head coach (1996-2005), Mountain Br
Samson Equipment's Strength and Conditioning Coaches of the Year for 2014
NFL: Garrett Giemont Pittsburgh SteelersBACKGROUND Garrett Giemont’s first job in the NFL was with the Los Angeles Rams in 1978. With over 30 years of experience in the NFL, Giemont was also the strength and conditioning coach for both the Oakland Raiders (1995-2002) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2003-2005). Head Coach Mike Tomlin brought Giemont to Pittsburgh in 2007 and he enters his 9th season with the Steelers this fall. Coach Giemont also worked as the D
A Nine-Week Off Season Super-Cycle Strength and Conditioning Program
This article was published in the January edition of American Football Monthly with factual errors. The revised version is posted below. AFM regrets the errors.True developmental training at the collegiate level can be defined as two mandatory, nine-week training phases per year. The remaining time each year could be considered in-season, discretionary or possibly maintenance. The other possibility in the yearly scheme that
LOCKED IN PREPARATION - Mental Conditioning for Football
The 2014 season marked my 10th season as defensive coordinator at Northwestern College. Throughout the ten years we have been blessed to have some great players and have had consistently strong defenses. Over this time, we have always gone into each game week with a list of ten goals. These goals were all measurable outcomes we could strive to achieve in each game. How we measured each goal may vary from year to year but these goals always included winning as our #1 goal. This goal was follo
From the Coach’s Bookshelf – The New QB Gurus
Most coaches would agree that quarterback is the most critical position in the sport. This past decade has seen the boom of the specialized private quarterback-coach business, transforming the position and the game. Former Super Bowl winning quarterback Trent Dilfer is one of this new breed, running the prestigious Elite 11 camp and starting his own training method. In this excerpt from The QB – The Making of Modern Quarterbacks, veteran sports writer and bestselling author Bruce Feldman gi
DC Leadership Lessons - Detail is critical in making sure a staff knows the expectations of a defensive coordinator.
As a defensive coordinator, you are the head coach of the defense. That’s the way I approach it every day. Before fall camp and spring ball, I discuss my expectations for each coach and their position group. As the leader of those coaches, I want to make sure we are on the same page. My Expectations -A. No egos. We should all be trying to achieve the same thing.We should all be in this for the kids. If you are in it for any other reason such as money, not
Rawlings Football 2014 College and High School Coaches of the Year
Urban MeyerOhio StateIt was supposed to be a relatively straightforward formula. Any team with designs on winning a national championship should flex its muscles early in the season, stay relatively healthy, especially at the skill positions, and play its football in the Southeastern Conference. Somehow, Urban Meyer and the Ohio State Buckeyes did not come close to following that formula, yet the team pulled off
Coach to Coach: The Mindset of Excellence
At the end of the 2013 season, I remember watching 15-0 North Dakota State win their third straight FCS title. An ESPN reporter got to Head Coach Craig Bohl in the end zone for the post-game interview. At the end of the interview I heard coach Bohl say, “We pursue perfection and along the way we touch excellence”. It takes an incredible attitude to push for something so unattainable that it can never be reached and the
Drills Report: Four Running Back Drills for Good Footwork and Instinctive Moves
Running backs need to have great footwork. They also need to be able to make moves as second nature. These are not the only things that we practice. But it is very important to make sure that the running backs get plenty of work on these. With our spread offense, the running backs need to be instinctive. Being able to make moves without thinking is critically important. We work on drills that will help us during game situations. There are four drills that we work on every day
Helmet Maintenance 101
For football coaches, athletic trainers, and athletic equipment managers, player safety is the number one priority for their athletes. One of the best ways to support that endeavor is to have a certified athletic equipment manager on staff. Established in 1973, the athletic equipment managers association (AEMA) added certification for members in 1991. The certification program represents a level of competence, professionalism, and accountability to organizations, coaches and athletes. With th
From the Coach’s Bookshelf: Linebacker Lessons
Coach Lou Tepper brings more than 45 years of experience as a college football coach to Complete Linebacking. In this excerpt, Coach Tepper details the many intangibles a linebacker must possess to maximize his success.Linebackers are the glue of a defensive unit, physically and emotionally. Physically, they fill the open seams between defensive linemen inside and patrol the perimeter in conjunction with the secondary. In zone coverage lineback
Simulating Game Action with 3 Linebacker Drills
We run a 3-4 based scheme, so we need to have quite a few different linebacker drills ready when fall camp starts. To make sure we can cover all of the skills that our players need for the season, I start with a chart. This chart changes slightly from year to year as I adjust what skills and techniques I feel our players need to have. I also add new drills that I see or take out drills I want to get rid of. Ultimately, I don’t want to have so many drills that I don’t hav
The Dupe Run-Pass Combo
The Dupe concept is the name of the pass concept that is tagged with the run call and can only be run out of the 3 x 1 formation. It is one of our 12 run/pass combos that gives the quarterback the opportunity to make an easy hitch or slant throw.We always run the dupe offense out of either a static 3 x 1 formation or motioning into a 3 x 1 formation. Dupe communicates to our receivers the pass routes. The single receiver away from the formation call will always run a 6-yard hitch r
Special Teams Winning Edge (Part II)
In the December issue, we discussed the head coach setting the tone for special teams play, the importance of other assistant coaches being involved in areas of special teams, setting goals, and strategy for the punt unit, kickoff unit, kickoff return unit and punt return unit. In this article, we’ll discuss practice efficiency and key points to consider when game planning for your next opponent. Spring Practice Plans Each spring, we evaluate our performance from th
Running for Sparty: Michigan State Running Back Essentials, Fundamentals and Abilities
I have been fortunate to be a part of the successes and championships at Michigan State and truly believe that they are a result of a tremendous team effort of our coaches and administrators.We have been blessed with talent at the running back position over our years here but we also believe that we do a good job of developing these young men. This article outlines what we believe it takes to play RB at a high level – the essentials. These are what the individual, to some degree,
Planning Ahead: What are the keys to game planning for an offensive coordinator?
What does an offensive coordinator go through as he prepares for his next opponent? What are the keys to having the most efficient game plan? AFM spoke to three offensive coordinators about the topic – Keith Grabowski, former offensive coordinator at Baldwin Wallace University, football consultant Dan Gonzalez, a former high school and college offensive coordinator, and Nick Restifo, the offensive coordinator at St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland.What is the process for
Maximize Practice Time with Special Team Drills
We pride ourselves on having a special team’s identity. It’s consists of pressure, field position, and points. These identities help create tempo and energy throughout practice and games. Our philosophy consists of: Pressure:• We make every effort in every way to apply pressure to our opponent. Field Position:• We either want to flip or win field position whenever possible. Points:• With every special teams unit, we e
Teaching the Clean: From A to Z (Part II)
In part I of teaching the clean lift, we discussed the concept of clean movement patterns and progressing your athletes with the proper technique. In this issue, we will focus on hip extension where real power is generated. Once an athlete can hip hinge properly, we teach violent hip extension. The main ways we teach this are through a variety of medicine ball throws and kettlebell swings (Photos 1-4).
FREE FORM - Coaches Evaluation Form
With the season now completed, it’s a perfect opportunity to evaluate the coaching staff with the Coaches Evaluation Form. Categories include Personal and Professional Attributes, Administrative Procedural Abilities, Knowledge and Practice of Medical-Legal Aspects, Theory and Techniques of Coaching, Personnel Management, and Public Relations Skills.
Aggie Upgrade - With the help of their friends and neighbors at Samson Equipment, New Mexico State completed a major renovation to their strength and conditioning facility.
One would be hard pressed to find a strength and conditioning coach with more experience than Don Decker. One of only 140 individuals worldwide to have been named a master level strength coach by the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Association, Decker’s 24-year collegiate career includes 15 seasons at Arkansas and four at Ole Miss, working with some of the most prominent coaches in the sport. Now, as Director of Strength and Conditioning at New Mexico State University, Decker supervise
Character is the Key
By Jim Place, Retired High School Coach Each year you have 10 scheduled games. Every team will set their goal at going 10-0 but the reality is that very few teams have the physical talent to reach this goal. The reality is that each team has a four game swing based upon their talent. For a given team based upon their talent the best record may be 7-3 and their worst 4-6, other teams 2-8 to 5-5 or 9-1 to 6-4. This is the range of record
Managing Your Program: Evaluating Staff - Creating an Environment For Success
As the season ends, equipment is collected, banquets are planned, and goals are set with the returning players. It’s important to not lose sight of one very important component in your program – the coaching staff. The team’s success is very closely tied to the coaches who create the environment that nurtures that success, yet often, the staff is the last component attended to in the transition from one season to the next. Years ago, former Navy Commander and aut
Helmet Maintenance 101 -
By Michael Valentine, Equipment Manager, Northern Illinois University and Melisande Resendiz, Assistant Equipment Manager, Northwestern UniversityFor football coaches, athletic trainers, and athletic equipment managers, player safety is the number one priority for their athletes. One of the best ways to support that endeavor is to have a certified athletic equipment manager on staff. Established in 1973, the athletic equipment managers association (AEMA) added certification for mem
Never Stop Learning: Coaching Clinics - 2015
Now is the time to make your plans for coaching clinics in 2015. Here is a listing of four premier organizations that will be conducting clinics across the nation during the winter and spring months of 2015.Nike Coach of the Year Clinics The 2015 Nike Coach of the Year clinics will feature the nation’s top coaches speaking at 15 different cities throughout the country. Coaches can register for any of the clinics by going to www.nikecoyfootball.com. Some of the featured spe
Special Teams Winning Edge (Part I)
I am a believer in our special teams philosophy because we have seen great success in every major category at two different universities – North Greenville University and Gardner-Webb – at two different levels of college football.My first few years as a special teams coordinator was trial by fire. But what I did learn is that you have to completely embrace the role because all great programs are sound and explosive in the kicking game and you have a chance to create a cul
Building Blocks
Whether you’re starting a new program from scratch, taking over a losing program, or trying to develop your program into a consistent winner, these proven techniques from state champion coaches can be your blueprint for success.When Dave Redding accepted the head coaching position at Mansfield High School in Mansfield, Massachusetts in 1988, he knew changes had to be made. “Mansfield had not won a league championship since 1976,” said Redding. “We focused on the off-season stre
Drills Report: Running and Tackling Drills - A Twist for TNT Drills
Similar to other teams, we spend time each week working on tackling and turnover (TNT) drills. In the past, we typically felt satisfied at the conclusion of each TNT drill as our defense seemed to grasp the fundamentals of tackling and forcing turnovers. However, when we reached game day and even team practice scenarios, our drills did not seem to translate to the field. Often, we missed tackles (especially in open-field situations) and our players suddenly lacked focus when it came to
Strength Report: Teaching the Clean: From A to Z (Part I)
We are constantly teaching our athletes how to move better and more efficiently. Our whole program is based on the concept of clean movement patterns, which is stability and mobility through the hips, trunk, and thoracic spine. From there, the ability to control your own body in space, then finally strengthening movement patterns that will benefit movements and learning how to generate, apply, and receive force in any way needed to perform better are our goals.Most of us that playe
Fueling Champions
Sophisticated nutritional and recovery practices and new NCAA food guidelines help Florida State’s Katy Meassick keep Seminole athletes fully fueled and ready for competition.To build a championship program in the ultra-competitive FBS, every aspect of athletes’ training, on and off the field, must be carefully addressed. That includes making sure that proper nutritional and workout recovery practices are being followed. At Florida State, that job falls to Sports Registered Die
Erasing A Decade of Disappointment: The Transformation of the Mustangs
A lot of coaches like talking Xs and Os, which is the easy part of coaching. The scheming and game planning is the chess match we all signed up for and love to do. However, as head coaches, we take on a little more than just the scheme these days. When you get your shot to be a head coach, for most of us, we don’t inherit a program that wins and is used to winning. Rather, it is usually a challenging program, one that has not won or doesn’t do so consistently. This p
Zone Defense on the Goal Line - To be efficient in this zone defense, give each player a specific responsibility.
As the passing game has evolved over the last few decades, defenses have been challenged in a variety of ways. Defensive coaches have had to try to find ways to maintain some competitive balance in both the red zone and the big red zone. In the 1970’s it was rare to find teams playing zone defense in the red zone. The standard coverage was man-to-man with corners playing on the line of scrimmage with inside leverage. The most common pass in this scenario became the quick fade to the corner
Lasting Legacy - At 70, Corky Rogers is still going strong as a member of the exclusive 400 win club.
It was a misty, cool, December night in Florida. Things looked bleak for coach Corky Rogers and his Bolles School team from Jacksonville. The Bulldogs were trailing a powerhouse Santa Fe team 17-6 with less than a minute to play in a semifinal playoff game. Santa Fe was loaded with future NFL players. “We were just getting it taken to us,” Rogers said. “We were trying everything you could try, because nothing was working.”In that final minute, Rogers made an adjustment and
Coach to Coach: The Mental Fundamentals - Attention Control and Concentration
One Play at a Time It takes consistent practice in order to concentrate and focus on the proper things. Our defense in high school had a motto on every break of the huddle. The Mike linebacker would call the defense and yell “HIT!” and everyone would follow with “HARD!” HIT.....HARD! It seems so simple but that was over 25 years ago and it still gets me fired up. It served as a great verbal trigger to focus on the next play and it describes what we were about
Limits on Live Tackling in Practice – Good or Bad for the Game?
National player safety concerns prompted in great part by the National Football League’s (NFL) response to player lawsuits and scientific research data that is calling into question the safety of the game has led to numerous efforts to implement changes that will hopefully make the game safer on all levels of play. The California Assembly by a vote of 50-22 has approved AB 2127 a bill that will prohibit high school and middle school football teams of school districts, charter school
The American Equipment Managers Association
The purpose of the Athletic Equipment Managers Association (AEMA) is, as a national organization, to promote, advance, and improve the equipment managers’ profession in all of its many phases. Members of the AEMA will now be working with American Football Monthly to help educate and inform AFM subscribers about how to better address equipment-related issues.What is the background of the AEMA? In 1974, 25 equipment managers became the first members of the organization at
Taking the No-Huddle Offense to the West Coast – Combining the West Coast offense with an up-tempo, no-huddle system can result in a powerful running and passing attack.
Football is a sport that runs in cycles. Offenses and defenses are constantly inventing and re-inventing themselves to match and overtake what the other side of the ball is doing. Systems and styles come and go and then are cycled back again. The constant on either side of the ball, no matter the generation or system, is the importance of a running game. Every defensive coordinator’s first job in preparing for a game is to figure out how to contain the running game. Every offensive coordina
Starting Fresh – What are the priorities for five new first-year head coaches?
Steve Sarkisian’s first team meeting as head coach of the Southern California Trojans lasted an hour. There was no planned speech, only bullet-pointed priorities on what he expected from his players and what they could expect from their new coach. He strived to make his introduction as real as possible.“I don’t think you should come into that first meeting (with a new team) believing that you’re going to win over all the players,” said Sarkisian, who, after five successfu
Managing Your Program: Building a Team – Objectives for Camp
Unity/Chemistry - Establishing chemistry is a big goal for every team in camp. Hopefully, the ground work was established in the off season. No matter how the off season went, camp and the new season have a new dynamic in how the team will interact and work together. It is a time for leadership of the team to really take root. This is an area that can be coached, managed and developed. A good head coach and his staff will see some of the issues that must be worked on during camp so
Drills Report: Kickoff Return – The Alley Drill
Anyone who has coached special teams at any level will usually list three problem areas that can sometimes make it difficult to excel in the kicking game. One is personnel. It is a constant challenge to balance utilizing your roster to the max yet also getting the best players on your team involved in the kicking game. Another is how much time is allotted to special teams practice. If you are in high school or college, your practice time is often limited. Unless you have a head coach who real
Coach to Coach: The Mental Fundamentals – Motor Programming
The ball is in the air. It’s a perfect spiral flying straight into a pair of hands. He drops it! It’s like his hands exploded from the speed of the ball. The coach yells “catch the ball, you gotta make that catch” or something similar, as if the player didn’t want to catch the ball in the first place. Why waste your breath on stating the obvious? What kind of receiver doesn’t want to make the catch? Chances are, the reason he missed the catch is because he hasn’t done
Carmel High School’s Game Week Preparation Model
By John Hebert, Assistant Coach, Carmel High School (IN) The Carmel defensive system currently in place has many influences. Through external benchmarking visits, (2005-Colerain High School in Cincinnati; 2008- Air Force Academy; 2010- Naval Academy; and 2012 Grand Valley State) we have become committed to a one ga
A Question of CHARACTER
The NFL High School Player Development Program presented by the National Guard helps thousands of high school athletes develop strong character.From an athletic standpoint, the hundreds of camps of the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard help thousands of high school student-athletes refine their football skills using drills developed by a collegiate coaching staff. From a competitive standpoint, HSPD organizes the nation’s largest 7-on-7 tourna
Flex Fronts: Stop offenses by using a different front on every play.
As I watched Clemson and Auburn play in BCS games last January, I wondered how many high school coaches will be going to the spring coaching clinics put on by these schools. More importantly, what are defensive coaches going to do to stop these types of offense? Tight ends are becoming a huge part of offenses. While there are some teams that don’t ever use one, other teams use three on one play. We have to be able to line up against all of these formations.In Florida, we see a di
Big D: Defensive Line Philosophy and Daily Drills for an Aggressive Front
One key to a strong defense is that each position group develops the fundamental skills required to consistently execute their individual assignments. Here is our defensive line philosophy and an outline of the daily drills we utilize to help our players compete at a high level. Defensive Line PhilosophyWe pride ourselves on being a fast, aggressive front that plays with exceptional fundamentals and discipline. We prepare, practice, and compete with tremendous energy and
AFM’s Annual State Champions Roundup
State Champ Coaches’ Profile Average Age = 48 Average Years as a Head Coach = 13 (22% have 20 or more years experience) 80% are coaches and teachersWhat are some of the reasons for your success? (multiple answers)100% said Coaching Staff98% said Players72% said Parents Support69% said Strength and Conditioning57% sai
Coaching American Football Overseas
By John Trana, American Football Coach in Russia and Croatia American football’s popularity is growing quickly all around the world. It is opening up new avenues for players and coaches to continue their football careers. There are over 700 teams in Europe alone playing American football. The quality of football can vary drastically with the top teams playing at a low college level. As the NFL continues to expand overseas, so will the popularity of American foo
MAKE YOUR SYSTEM FIT YOUR PERSONNEL – FOCUS ON THE PLAYER AND NOT THE PLAY
Coaches love to talk about personnel. In fact once someone identifies you as a defensive coach, you can almost guarantee the next question is going to be “What do you run?” The person who is asking the question is looking to see if you are a 4-3 guy or a 3-4 guy. Now there are other defenses but the majority of coaches fit one of these two molds. While I think that having a system in place and being consistent is very important, I think that you are making a big mistake if y
Your Take: Expanding Your Coaching Network
We all have a stack of business cards, or an inbox full of messages from other coaches throughout our network. When was the last time you reached out to one of those coaches to discuss a concept or to share a scheme? Have you applied or inquired about a job at a school where you did not know anyone on the current staff? Is there a chance that one of those contacts in your file has a connection to use?The concept of increasing value and depth to your network is one that should not b
Pressure Packed – Game-like drills will help your quarterback make good decisions.
In today’s offensive game plans, most teams have a spread attack that works out of the shotgun set. Teams run 60-65 plays per game with the quarterback in a drop back technique for most of the passing plays. Out of the number of passing plays called, at least 12-15 plays – on an average – force the quarterback out of the pocket or to retreat back into the middle of the pocket. This means at least one fourth of your pass plays have a QB making a decision to either run or pass while
Situational Analysis – Having a specific gameplan for each offensive situation enhances your chances of success.
We teach our players to develop a thorough understanding of situational offense: its importance, its relevance, and the consequences of not recognizing and reacting to the many situations that exist and ultimately define our game. Here are eight main situations and how we develop our players’ understanding of them. During the beginning of fall camp, as well as in the opening of spring practice, we implement a well-planned-out installation that will be the foundation of our offens
Put the Block On – Block circuit drills and one-on-one punt rush drills can increase your chances of blocking a punt.
Blocking punts takes not only personal belief and courage, but training and a good scheme to get the right player free to the punter. We teach the techniques necessary to properly block punts. We also practice different drills to train players to use those techniques plus a few scheme adjustments to try to get players free to the punter. I always tell the players that I want volunteers, not mercenaries. Mercenaries are people you hire to do a job; volunteers do it because they love it. Pu
Pressure Defenses (Part I) – Specific stunts and gap exchanges – when coordinated correctly – can improve team defense.
The Peru State defense played with relentless effort last season and finished sixth in the nation against the run and second in the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) in total defense. A big reason was our defensive philosophy and how we align with our various packages.Bobcat Defensive Philosophy• Focus on effort and attitude• Play hard every play and play with great enthus
Summer Priorities – What should be your priorities heading into the summer months?
The summer months bring about a number of challenges for every football coach. Staying in contact with players and parents without school every day can be difficult. Similarly, coordinating staff meetings and giving players and coaches the needed time off before the grind of a new season begins can also be taxing.What should be your priorities heading into summer? What are the most effective ways to communicate with players and coaches? How important are strength and conditioning p
Coach to Coach: The Mental Fundamentals
The yellow flag is thrown and the coach’s voice is rising. It’s obviously a bad call. Everyone can smell the home cooking. “That score would have put us on top and now it’s called back. The ref has literally taken points away from us.” The coach is livid and walking the tightrope to ejection. The lack of composure is reflected in the players when the clock dwindles and the cheap shots fly. This game will be lost in more ways than one.Building mental toughness starts with
FINDING THE RIGHT CONDITIONING COACH
I had an opportunity to attend a football clinic by an organization that is really well known for putting on quality clinics. This clinic was well attended with most of the attendees from high schools in the area. Since I no longer coach a position, I was there to listen and learn from the strength and conditioning coach. The presenting coach was the head strength from an
Major Undertaking
Behind the scenes at a successful football skills and character development camp of the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard.As you would expect, managing the largest football skills and character development camp program in the world is a massive organizational challenge. With nearly two hundred camps across the country involving thousands of high school athletes, the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Gua
SERVE and PROTECT
Legendary New England Coach John Papas teams up with Xenith to provide future collegiate athletes with added protection, better fit and strong performance.If you’ve coached at the high school and collegiate levels for over 35 years, chances are you’ve developed strong opinions about football equipment. You know which products are best for your players from performance and safety standpoints and you know which companies are best to work with. Coach John Papas has seen
Your Take: Win The Offseason: Organization Matters
Organization isn’t the sexiest topic to talk about, but if you’re serious about improving as a coach, it takes more than how-to videos and watching game tape. Reviewing your notes and processes can help save time and energy, while also allowing you to tackle your goals of molding your athletes into better players and people.Being disorganized can mean the difference between winning and losing. Even the smartest coaches need to be reminded of old plays and schemes that could hel
BE SPECIAL By committing to better special team practice organization, your units will create more explosive plays.
Special teams are an important part of any football game. They are the first play of every game, and many times the last and decisive play in a game. During every special teams play, one of these situations occurs – a large field position exchange, a change of possession, or a scoring opportunity. Frequently, two of these situations take place on the same special teams play. By their very nature, special teams plays are “special” and have a big impact on the outcome of the game.
UPSET SPECIAL Give your underdog team a shot with these strategies.
Nearly every coach has entered a game week knowing that the only people picking his team to win are on his staff or inside his own locker room.These situations can be an opportunity to galvanize a team by instilling an us-against-them world mentality; freeing the underdogs to play loose and pulling off an upset.No one knows that more than George O’Leary, the head coach at the University of Central Florida. The Knights pulled off the biggest upset in BCS history by beat
ESTABLISHING A QUICK-PACED OFFENSE IN MIDDLE SCHOOL FOOTBALL
Aside from scoring, the ability to control the clock and the tempo of a football game is the primary objective of any offense. For years, the pattern was to pound the ball slowly and chew up the clock to control a game and defeat an opponent. Yet, with
Champion Communicators
Four state champion coaches rely on the Tempest FX sideline communications system from CoachComm.All high school coaches know that it’s critical to have clear, reliable communications during a game. The ability to share information between coaches in the press box and those on the sideline has, for years, determined much of a team’s in-game strategy. An interrupted signal or unclear reception can spell disaster. But the best coaches, those that win state champ
DEFENSIVE BLUEPRINT - Lehigh's 11 Keys to a Championship Defense
We have 11 priorities for building a championship defense: staff, personnel, multiplicity, coaching the little things, getting what you coach, swarm, passion, and finish, self-scouting, game planning, and maintaining the integrity of your defense. Developing each one is critical to building your defense. Staff - It’s hard to be a championship defense if you don’t have a championship staff. In order to develop your staff, everyone must be on the same page and be an expert in
Rowan University's Special Teams Philosophy and Punt Team Techniques
We think our approach to special teams is very sound. We utilize all players, both starters and reserves, on special teams and use players from both sides of the ball. Also, we will reward certain players for outstanding play by allowing them to participate on special teams.We identify every player’s strengths and incorporate them into special teams. We cannot afford to spend an inordinate amount of time teaching skills that players have already mastered. We keep the schemes rela
The Fine Points of the 3-Step Passing Game
We have been successful with the 3-step passing game over the last few seasons. Here are the reasons why we use it, the quarterback’s steps and reads, the importance of ball placement and wide receiver routes. Four actual plays within the 3-step game are also included – our 90 pass, 91 switch, 92 double, and 95Y stick. Reasons to use the 3-step passing game: • Better utilize our skilled athletes - “speed in space”.• Take advantage of loose
U-TURN How Southern Virginia University went from 3-8 to 8-2.
On February 9th 2009, I agreed to become the head football coach at Southern Virginia University. At the time, the SVU football program faced several obstacles both on and off the field. They included a low team grade point average, discipline problems, and recruitment and retention problems. In addition, they had embraced a mediocre mentality from a losing record.When I accepted the head coaching job, SVU had only had one winning season in school history and had averaged just two
The Business of Coaching - Joe Moglia is a prime example of how success in business and coaching go hand-in-hand.
If you pay attention to the great coaching stories in college football, then you already know about Joe Moglia.You may recognize him as the former CEO of financial services company TD Ameritrade, where he oversaw the firm’s meteoric growth during his seven years at the helm. Or, you may know him as the current head coach at Coastal Carolina, where, in his first season in 2012, he led the Chanticleers to eight wins en route to being named the Big South Coach of the Year. He follow
Thoughts from an HSPD Veteran
Craig Jacoby, who is the site manager for the Rockland, New York, HSPD camp, has over a decade of experience with the program and has seen first-hand how it has benefitted hundreds of high school athletes. We asked him about the camp experience for athletes and the value of the DVD to coaches.AFM: How do HSPD athletes respond to the college-level drills at HSPD camps? Jacoby: In my experience, the players who attend HSPD are getting a training experience that can’t be d
Practice Priorities - All high school coaches benefit from the practice plan developed for the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard
What are your priorities when designing an early-season practice plan? Do you try to build a collection of proven drills that safely and efficiently teach fundamentals while challenging your players? Do you incorporate teaching techniques that you may have learned from a top college coach at a clinic session? Do you have printed materials and video that every member of your staff can use to gain a thorough understanding of your drills and how to conduct them?If you’re a coach at
Finding a Football Strength Coach
It is critical to get the right person from the start. First and foremost is a coach that understands your football program and will buy in and want to be a part of it. That is why I look at this position as a football coaching position. Many times the football coach and the strength coach do not see eye to eye, and it usually results in a bad environment for coaches and athletes. This position coach must be on board as the “Football Strength Coach”. If this coach does not buy in,
Samson Equipment’s Strength and Conditioning Coaches of the Year
NFL: Luke Richesson Denver BroncosBackground - Luke Richesson began his coaching career at his alma mater, the University of Kansas, in 1997 after a four-year career playing safety for the Jayhawks. After one season as a strength and conditioning intern, he spent the next season at the University of Wyoming and the following two at Arizona State University as a graduate assistant before becoming the performance team direc
Managing Your Program: Measuring Practice Success and Developing Good Habits
With spring football around the corner, coaches are looking to develop or test out some new ideas obtained during the clinic season, identify how personnel will fit into the system and figure out what adjustments will be necessary for the upcoming season. These are legitimate concerns, and spring practice will allow a coaching staff to address them.Spring is also a time to establish the habits that will make the team successful in the fall. Getting the most out of practice by impro
Out in the Open - Live tackling drills can improve your team’s open field tackling.
As today’s game stretches laterally to encompass the entire width of the field, the ability to open-field tackle is at a premium. One of the most difficult skills to acquire as a defensive player is the art of open-field tackling. Even elite athletes need to improve and sharpen their skill sets.How do you enhance those abilities and replicate them at game speed? The answer is simple – live tackling, offensive skill vs. defensive skill. At the University at Albany, Head Coach Bo
Option Football - Few Plays, Many Ways, Part I
Option football has been around for many decades. The vast majority of today’s collegiate and high school programs use some form of option in their offensive scheme.Why run the option? Football is a “numbers game” where the offense tries to outnumber the defense at the point of attack. While there are more than a few ways to accomplish this goal, we believe that the option is by far the easiest and most effective way to ensure that your offense outnumbers the defense on every
Rawlings Football College and High School Coaches of the Year
It was a summer evening in the mid-1980’s. Volunteer workouts were revving up for the Salem University football team. Salem Quarterbacks Coach Terry Bowden pointed at his quarterback’s cleats and laughed. “His football shoes were covered in cow manure and hay,” Bowden recalled with a chuckle.Thirty years later, that quarterback with the stinky shoes is a national champion and Rawlings Football Coach of the Year, Florida State’s Jimbo Fisher.“Althou
Coach to Coach: An Efficient and Effective Play Calling System
Last year at this time, I wrote an article on the use of tempo as a weapon. I stated then that tempo was being used by many successful teams and that extremely fast-paced offenses were going to be a standard of football for years to come. Today, the use of the fast-paced, no- huddle offense is becoming more the norm than the exception.Webster’s Dictionary defines the word tempo as the “rate of motion or activity”. In today’s football terminology, the word tempo refers to how qu
Letter from AFM: Crowning Achievement
For the amazing job that he did taking an Auburn team that was winless in the SEC in 2012 and guiding them to the SEC championship and a runner-up finish in the BCS championship game, Gus Malzahn was a deserving winner of the many Coach of the Year awards he received. With the nation’s best running attack, they disproved the notion that you must have a high-powered passing game to succeed in the modern era of college football. And the two game-winning plays against Georgia and Alabama will
Going Camping
Sending your players to the free football camps offered by the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard is a win-win for you and them.Football camps for high school athletes are big business. Dozens of for-profit camps, costing hundreds or even thousands of dollars to attend, are offered to high school students who want to hone their skills over a period of days or weeks. But only one football camp program offers proven instruction methods a
Step Lively! Linebacker Movements vs. the Run
Before teaching these movements, we insist on linebackers learning the correct body position. The fundamental body position allows a linebacker to achieve leverage and power. I spend many hours teaching a basic linebacker stance, which is a stationary position. I want a linebacker to stem, move around, and basically be active. Newton’s first law of motion is that an object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion unless an external force acts upon it. This is as true in
Getting Defensive – Cocoa High School’s base 3-3-5 defense shuts down nearly every opponent they face.
When you ask Cocoa High School Head Coach John Wilkinson about his personal philosophy, it’s very obvious what motivates him. “I want winners because I want to win,” he said. “I want to do whatever it takes to win. It may sound simple but, to me, there is something very different between competing and winning.”And win he has. In his nine-year career at Cocoa, Wilkinson has a record of 100-19 which includes three Florida 4A state championships, a 38-game winning streak, a
Coach to Coach: The Turnaround
Prior to the season, If you would have told any rational Auburn fan or even most returning players that they would be playing for the 2013 national title, I think most would have been skeptical at best. There was excitement within the football program at the University of Auburn last off-season when they hired Gus Malzahn as their head coach. Malzahn had been instrumental in Auburn’s success during the 2010 National Title season. But the team had only won 3 games in 2012 and was
Speed Report: Is Your Speed Training the Real Deal?
Have you analyzed why you use the methods and teaching applications for football speed training? Have you just borrowed available concepts and plugged them into your program? Are you just covering bases or do you really feel you’ve reached a high level of knowledge and are satisfied with your results? Where did you get what you use today and is it working? Why did you choose to incorporate it into your program? Did you get your material from a friend, a colleague, a relative
Building a Successful Football Program From the Ground Up
The prospect of building a football program is an exciting challenge for any head coach of any experience level. There is no all-encompassing manual instructing a coach how to build a program. No one can wave a magic wand and turn a program into a success over night. The construction project will take time. It could take one season or several seasons to see significant progress. Building a football program is much like building a house - you must start from the ground up and build a solid fou
Back to School - 2014 Coaching Clinics
Now is the time to make yourplans for coaches clinics in 2014. Here is a listing of four premier organizations that will be conducting clinics across the country during the winter and spring months of 2014.Nike Coach of the Year Clinics The 2014 Nike Coach of the Year Clinics will feature the nation’s top coaches speaking at 17 locations in every corner of the nation. Many of the clinics will feature special lectures for youth league coaches. Most also wil
Get Strong – Four Proven Off-Season Strength and Conditioning Programs
BISHOP GORMAN HIGH SCHOOL Las Vegas, NevadaHead Coach –Tony SanchezEnrollment – 1,200 students9-12 Football Program – 160-180 athletesFour consecutive Nevada 4A Championships, Nationally-Ranked ProgramSean Manuel serves as Head Strength and Conditioning Coach and also coaches the offensive line at Bishop Gorman. When he joined the Gorman staff in 2010, he completely revamped the outdated strength and conditioning facility.The FacilityOur w
AFM Subscribers Ask with Joe Daniel Defensive Coordinator and Offensive Line Coach Prince George High School (VA) - Part II
Joe Daniel has more than ten years experience coaching on the high school and college level. In 2009, Daniel began building a website which includes more than 300 articles on defensive coaching – www.Football-Defense.com Daniel is also the host of The Football Coaching Podcast and has written several eBooks, including Coaching Football’s 4-2-5 Defense, Installing the 4-3 Over Defensive Front, and Dominating Football Defense with the Zone Blitz. A frequent contributor to
Strength Report: Wyoming’s Winter Player Development Program
Much like a football game has four quarters, the Wyoming football player development program is broken down into four distinct phases. Winter training, spring football, summer training and the competitive season make up our yearly training calendar. The Wyoming player development program has a structured plan during each of these phases and is built around landmarks found in the student-athletes academic calendar and competition dates. Each phase has very specific goals and intended outcomes.
Letter from AFM - Getting Stronger
Now that your season has ended, it’s time to focus on what you can do to strengthen your program during the off-season.Last year in our December issue, our “panel” of eight legendary high school coaches covered a variety of topics related to off-season priorities including player and staff evaluation, working with graduating seniors and methods to keep your team involved and motivated during the winter and spring months. You can access the article, “Building Blocks” and h
Game Planning Your Coaching Career (Part II)
The Third Quarter After the first half (introduction and growth phase) and making adjustments at half-time, the third quarter becomes the maturity phase of the coaching career. This does not mean that, as coaches, we do not continue to grow or learn. It means that we become more stabilized in our “giftings” as a coach. I admire the confidence of the FBS assistant who maintains a positive attitude that he will land a job in a better environment, after
Coaching Rewards
The NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard lets coaches give back to the game and reap special coaching rewards.For high school football coaches, the rewards of coaching can take many forms. There are celebrations after big wins, championship trophies, accolades from peers.But most coaches realize that the biggest and best rewards of coaching football are those that come from helping young athletes succeed –
AFM Subscribers Ask with Joe Daniel Defensive Coordinator and Offensive Line Coach, Prince George High School (VA) – Part I
Joe Daniel has more than ten years experience coaching on the high school and college level. In 2009, Daniel began building a website which includes more than 300 articles on defensive coaching – www.Football-Defense.com Daniel is also the host of The Football Coaching Podcast and has written several eBooks, including Coaching Football’s 4-2-5 Defense, Installing the 4-3 Over Defensive Front, and Dominating Football Defense with the Zone Blitz. A frequent contributor to b
Circuit Drills Emphasize Repetition, Range of Motion and Reaction to Improve Your Special Teams Play.
Our staff at Central Washington University understands the importance and value of the kicking game in each contest. We treat each special team’s preparation with the same enthusiasm, intensity, and creativity as our offense and defense. To do it right, we must train our special teams players in the same way. Preparing players for their special team roles, however, presents some unique challenges. Consider the following:1. Getting Enough RepetitionsAlmost all of our playe
Multiple Looks from a 3-4 Defense to Slow Down an Up-Tempo Offense
When we played Lake Travis High School four years ago, Chad Morris – now the offensive coordinator at Clemson – was the head coach. That year we had a short week of preparation for his up-tempo, no-huddle offense.After a relatively good start in the first quarter, our defense broke down after a turnover in the second quarter. Their fast-paced offense began to take its toll on our defense as we struggled to line-up before the snap, became confused with the offensive packages the
Safety First: Is your Weight Room a Safe Room?
Don’t overlook the importance of having a comprehensive safety program in your strength and conditioning facility.Stafon Johnson had two successful seasons as a running back for USC in 2007 and 2008 and was primed for a big senior year in 2009 and possibly a shot at the NFL. That all changed on September 8th when the 275-pound barbell he was bench pressing fell on his neck, crushing his larynx and severing his vocal chords. Lucky to survive, he recovered and had a sh
Coach to Coach: Enjoy the Ride
It had been a long time since I’d been on a college sideline as a coach. After 10 years of being a high school head coach, I was excited to be back and I was relieved to see the clock tick to zeros in a 45-13 season opening win. The entire coaching staff and every player had put tremendous effort into preparing for our opener and the final score reflected a great night for us all. As I walked off the field, I couldn’t help but notice the smiling fans, the players chatting with friends and
Speed Report: Combining In-Season Conditioning with In-Season Speed Training
Combining the two – in-season conditioning and speed training – is a subject that often comes up for discussion when I’m doing clinics and workshops across the country at various high schools and colleges. We always discuss the physiological energy mechanisms and how they function when we train. The same question seems to arise each time: What’s the best way to condition during the season?The answer is usually not well-received. My reply is that we need to understand how the ga
Game Planning Your Coaching Career (Part I)
(This article is written to discuss career planning in the coaching profession and this is by no means the only way to pattern your pathway. The experience of one coach, while addressing many issues, does not include all scenarios. However, the organization of the material is well-known to all coaches as it is structured just as all of us would game plan against an unfamiliar opponent. It is hoped that this discussion would have us in the coaching profession talk about
D-Back Run Stoppers Both the Key Read Drill and Block Escape Circuit Drill will improve defensive backs’ recognition of the run.
Stopping the run is one of the main priorities of any defense. In order to accomplish this goal, the defensive secondary must be active against running plays. It is important that all members of the secondary are equipped with the skills to recognize the run and then be able to execute techniques to disengage blocks. Your secondary can sharpen their eye discipline, footwork and hand placement/combat skills by recognizing the intentions of the End Man on the Line of Scrimmage (EMOL)
D-Line Rules vs. Outside Zone and Zone Read
Following the playside and backside rules is critical to stopping the outside zone and zone read.We try to keep our D-line rules and principles the same with outside zone and zone read as well as other plays and concepts. When we speak about outside zone, we break into halves, especially what side the offense is on in pre-and post-snap. We use strength and if the quarterback is under center or in the gun to determine the run strength of this particular play. Otherwise, we may use the t
Human Shield: The shield punt formation maximizes protection and coverage.
Protection is the most critical piece to a punt unit’s success. In pre-season camp, protection is the first area that is addressed. It is emphasized in every meeting, film session, and drill period, because there are few occurrences more deflating to a team than a blocked punt. The shield formation itself creates advantages, because it lengthens rush lanes and handicaps angles for the defense. The three-man shield, when executed properly, serves as a deflector for the block point that elimi
The Mean Green Way: North Texas' Multi-Year System of Training
“As to methods there may be a million and thensome, but principles are few. The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson This quote hangs in my office as a daily reminder of the dichotomy of our profession. Truly, there are countless methods to improve athlete performance. Ask 125 FBS football strength and conditioning coaches how best to train an ath
Fine-Tuning: Adapting the Spread Offense to Your Personnel
Heading into the 2008 season, the pieces were all in place. Oklahoma had a talented and veteran offensive line featuring multiple NFL prospects, an experienced quarterback in Sam Bradford and a versatile playmaker at tight end in Jermaine Gresham. It was on the Oklahoma coaching staff to tailor its offensive scheme to its personnel. And the best way to capitalize on this wealth of talent was to run more plays.Oklahoma offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson (now head coach at Indiana) h
Coach to Coach: The Class of 2013
Last month I enjoyed watching one of the greatest golf tournaments in the world, The British Open. While some find golf boring to watch, I find it to be an intriguing display of both the internal and external struggles of sport. I love the tradition of golf, the variety of skills required and the individual pressure that accompanies every shot. I love the fact that golfers are paid entirely on the merits of their immediate accomplishments and not on the wishful expectations of future events.
Drills Report: Defensive Backs: Footwork, Block Protection, Tackling, and Ball Skills
Our focus on drill work for defensive backs has played a role in our success and paid dividends in the fall. At Villanova, our base defensive front is a 3-3 stack. With five defensive backs on the field in varying roles, we focus our teaching on a select number of skills to best prepare the entire group within our time constraints. Our goal is to spend at least five minutes each practice developing four specific skill categories: footwork, block protection, tackling, and ball skills.F
Strength Report: In-Season Training: Improve Performance, reduce Injuries
The in-season training program is critical to the success of our athletes. Programs should be designed to enhance and not just maintain their level of physical preparation. Lowering expectations during the in-season to maintain rather than improve strength will eventually lead to a decrease in performance and increase the risk of injury.To maximize the strength, health, mobility, and overall fitness of your athletes, is manage the distribution of the volume and loading. Within this
Coaching Rewards
The NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard gives coaches the satisfaction that comes from giving back to the game.What are the rewards of coaching? Some coaches might say that wins and championships are at the top of the list. After all, winning has been the traditional yardstick for measuring coaching success, and few moments can compare to raising a trophy or donning a championship ring.Most coaches,
AFM Subs Ask With Curtis Tsuruda Strength and Conditioning Coach • East St. John High School (LA)
Coach Curtis Tsuruda, has over 30 years of experience as a strength and conditioning coach. He has worked at Tulane, LSU, Hawaii, and Mississippi State and is currently the strength and conditioning coach at East St. John High School in Reserve, Louisiana. He was featured in AFM Subscribers Ask in May and now responds to more of your questions.What methods do you use to train young high school athletes to successfully rack the bar on the power clean? How many days do you fe
Three Pillars of Defensive Prep
Three important items in game planning include practicing proper tackling, studying your opponent’s big plays and those your defense has given up, and focusing on turnovers.We are always looking for a defensive edge on game day. However, with the unpredictability that game day brings, it is very difficult to predict or prepare for every scenario that might present itself. That is why it is important to use Monday through Friday to put the odds of victory as much as possible in our fa
New Weapon – More and more offenses are adding a read-option scheme to incorporate the QB into the running game.
In this new age of football, teams are using athletic quarterbacks to add an additional dimension to their offense. I believe the pro-style attack offenses will mirror this trend, whether it’s a specific package or a main part of their offense. We began this transformation this past year.Last fall, we had a very athletic quarterback that we wanted to utilize in our run game. After implementing this, we ended the season ranked 12th nationally within FCS i
On Top of the World – AFM’s Annual State Champions Survey and Profiles
State champion coaches share their secrets to winning it all. The results may surprise you.Most high school coaches would agree that their ultimate goal is winning their state championship. Taking home the trophy after the punishing regular season and pressure-filled playoffs is the pinnacle for the 300+ teams that annually achieve that goal.But do coaches agree on the best methods to use to reach that mountaintop? What offensive, defensive and special teams strategies give
Safety First – Pre-Season Safety Checklist
With the 2013 season around the corner, it’s time for coaches to review all safety-related issues and ensure that proper procedures and protocols are in place before fall practice begins. . “Every team and athlete should have sports safety as a top priority,” says Larry Cooper, chair of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Secondary School Committee and head athletic trainer at Penn Trafford (PA) High School. “It’s vital for coaches, athletic trainers, parents and the
Drills Report – Techniques to Prevent Blocks
When a player is blocked, it is commonly due to two things. He has concentrated solely on the ball carrier and not the individual who is coming to block him, giving him little chance of success. Or, his attack and body position taking on the block doesn’t allow him to use any power. Without enough power, you are unable to gain advantage or leverage on a blocker. When you have proper position and use power, you are able to strike and neutralize the opponents’ power to maintain your gap of
Taking the Lead
As part of their sponsorship of the NFL’s High School Player Development program, the National Guard is taking an active role in the HSPD Leadership Program.When most people think about the National Guard, they envision “Weekend Warriors” devoting several days each month to military training and, if necessary, participating in disaster relief or serving overseas. But in reality, many of the Guard’s activities revolve around the com
RE-STARTING A COACHING CAREER
I had the good fortune of leading one of the most successful public school programs in the state of Virginia for 22 years. At Western Branch High School in Chesapeake, winning became synonymous with Bruins football. From 1997 to the 2006 season when I retired, our winning percentage was over .800. We won numerous District titles and had three undefeated regular seasons. It
Develop Your Dynamic Identity
Every experienced coach knows that teams tend to develop a particular identity during the course of the season. Some coaches argue that the best teams are the ones that have the flashiest, most dominating identities – teams like the Oregon Ducks, known for its high-octane offense, or the Baltimore Ravens, known for its suffocating defense. Other coaches counter that the best teams are often the ones that possess less exciting identities, those summarized with phrases like “balanced” or
Speed Report - Football Speed Information: Good News or Old News?
I have been writing AFM’s Speed Report for 6½ years and have traveled the country for 30 years engaging with coaches who want to learn “thorough and complete football speed training”. Not second-hand information that isn’t football speed specific. More specifically, lineal track techniques. Coaches should understand that these particular techniques don’t provide movement skills needed for football speed and/or transition speed that’s required to play fast and stay in control.
Drills Report – Advanced Wide Receiver Drills, Part II
Last month’s drills for wide receivers included five different drills intended to make players concentrate on catching the ball and improve their route running. The six drills included this month are more detailed with an emphasis on proper technique (In each drill, ‘C’ refers to coach and ‘R’ for receiver).Chute DRILL (Diagram 1)
Organization of Weekly and Gameday Duties with a Short Staff
By Hunter Sims, Offensive Coordinator Howard Payne University With a limited staff, it is critical to have detailed responsibilities on the day after the game, during the week, and on gameday. As a Division III college, we deal with being under-staffed year in and year out. We need to be completely organized in order to maximize our workload throughout the week. Offensively, we are allotted three full-time coaches. If we’re lucky,
Emphasizing Ball Security – Mastering the five points of contact will help keep your runners from fumbling
Mastering the five points of contact will help keep your runners from fumbling dropping the ball.When teaching ball carriers about ball security, we talk about the five points of contact. The first point relates to our nickname which is the Eagles, so I use the term “Eagle Claw” for the point of the football. The second point of contact is the forearm and the third is the bicep. Both are used to secure the outside part of the ball to the middle of the body which leads to the fourth
Making the Grade – Spring evaluation is essential for maximizing each player’s contribution to the team
Spring evaluation is essential for maximizing each player’s contribution to the team.While coaches understand that player evaluation is a year-round necessity, spring is a particularly important time for returning player evaluations as your team heads into the summer pre-season lull. It’s the perfect time to size up the strengths and weaknesses of each athlete and set personal and team goals. What is the best way to evaluate a returning player? American Football Monthly asked seven
High Roller! – Since Tony Sanchez was named head coach, Bishop Gorman has won four consecutive Nevada State Championships and posted an overall 56-4 record.
“Live well.” The words are simple; however, what they entail for those associated with the Bishop Gorman High School football program is anything but. Serving as the mantra which internally defines Bishop Gorman football, “live well” is part of an overall philosophy which has contributed to the school capturing the last four 4A Nevada State Championships.There are six identifiable components one can link to the culture of success that is Gaels’ football. These six charact
Coach to Coach – Change of Season
Last year, I wrote an article describing the ever-expanding coaching carousel that all of us in this profession encounter. The article described some of the challenges of change within the coaching profession. I received a lot of emails regarding this article. It seems that all of us in coaching are presented with change or the opportunity for change on a continual basis. Some of this change is welcomed and, unfortunately, some of it is not. Deciding to change jobs is often one of the most di
Speed Report - Off-Season Speed Development: A Dilemma for Small Schools
As I write this column each month, I receive more and more replies from coaches at smaller schools. It’s become apparent that most of them have something in common – that the off-season presents a challenge for speed and lifting development. The problem is that athletes at these schools need to be multi-sport athletes. The bulk of the football team plays two to three sports in a small school, so it’s almost impossible to fill the rosters on other sports if they were only playing footbal
Safety First – Getting On The Same Page
If you’ve spent time this off-season reviewing the latest safety rules and guidelines, working with medical professionals and athletic trainers to institute procedures for dealing with injuries, checking out the latest in innovative safety equipment and making plans to ensure proper hydration and heat stroke prevention in early season practices, then congratulations! You’ve taken the first steps to make player safety a priority for your program.Now, looking ahead to next season
As a Coach, How Do You Want to be Remembered?
by Derek Schlieve, Head Football Coach Mayville State University Football is time consuming. It can become all-consuming if you let it. High School football takes a lot of time. College Football requires even more time. I cannot even begin to imagine what the time commitment is like at the professional level. Every now and then, you read a story about how much time coaches put in and what they are missing out on and it makes a person think twic
Camp Season
- The NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard conducts free camps for high school players that combine football skills teaching with character development lessons.Summer is right around the corner, and that means that it will soon be time for football camps for high school athletes to begin. Camps have become a popular way for high school players to get meaningful instruction and work on their fundamentals in the months leading
Tools for Success
The NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard worked with Al Golden and the University of Miami to produce the 2013 practice plan and DVD – benefitting every high school program in America.When it comes to supporting the nation’s high school football coaches, no program can match the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard. Not only does HSPD provide coaches with the opportunity to give bac
From the Coaches Bookshelf – Earn the Right To Win – By Tom Coughlin with David Fisher
Like most coaches, New York Giants Head Coach Tom Coughlin has had moments when he’s lost his temper on the sidelines. In his new book, Earn the Right to Win, he shares his best advice on managing your anger and dozens of other topics about leadership, communication and preparation. His lessons are illustrated with previously untold stories about players like Eli Manning, Doug Flutie and Michael Strahan. Probably the most difficult thing for me t
Defending the Zone Read –Defenses can be successful against the zone read if they understand the rules and their gap responsibilities.
Defending the zone read is similar to defending the triple option that attacks the play side of the defense. We have specific rules for defending the dive (RB), the QB and the pitch. For the dive, we designate the first defender outside the offensive tackle to squeeze and tackle the first threat. The quarterback is designated for the area #2, the curl defender, which is usually the scraping linebacker.We always emphasize that our area #1, the curl/flat defender is responsible for t
Get Naked! – Effectively using the Hitch-Naked passing game forces a defense to defend the entire field.
The Hitch-Naked passing game provides our offense with a safe and efficient way to move the ball with high percentage throws while at the same time allowing us to effectively target our playmakers. Any time we can get the ball to our receivers in a position where they can attack a defender in a 10-yard box, we have successfully created an opportunity for a big play. This is exactly what the Hitch-Naked series has provided our offense.When we installed the series in 2009, we had no
Maximizing Special Teams Practice Time – Circuit drills for both kickoffs and punt units can help improve special teams play.
Anyone who has coached special teams knows that there never seems to be enough time to teach the proper techniques as well as implement your systems. Even at a school like Norwich, we end up trying to get more done, in less time.A strategy we’ve used, which has benefitted us greatly, is to set up a circuit of drills for each individual special teams unit and have all of our players rotate through this circuit. This allows us to get a lot of quality, technique-specific work done,
Samson Equipment’s Strength and Conditioning Coaches of the Year for 2012
NFL: Chris CarlisleSeattle SeahawksBackground – Chris Carlisle began his coaching career at Dodge High School (NE) in 1985. After continuing to coach on the high school level and then as an assistant at the University of Arkansas, Carlisle joined the staff at Tennessee in 1998 under John Stucky. He then became USC’s head strength and conditioning coach in 2001 when Pete Carroll called Stucky and asked for a recommendation.
Getting Your Team Connected
During my five years as a Head Coach at Liberty High School in Colorado Springs, I have always been proud of the class that our fans, staff and players have shown in games, regardless of the score. At every pre-season coaches meeting, I share with my staff a valuable lesson that I learned in my first year as a Head Coach at Rockville High School (CT). We were losing my first game of the 2005 season, 41-0, to Hall High School, and when they got the ball with a minute to go at our ten ya
USING THE iPAD AS A COACHING TOOL
Whether on the field or off, the IPad can be a major part in helping your players improve and communicate the weekly gameplan. Our student-athletes are so used to technology, it is the way they are taught in classroom and it was what they use outside the classroom. Give your student-athlete an IPad and they immediately feel comfortable as they swipe through pages or watch video. After receiving an IPad for my birthday last offseason I started searching for wa
Out With the Old, In With the New – Today’s tight ends have become an integral part of every offense.
Today, tight ends have become a fusion of a wide receiver, running back, and offensive tackle. Due to their athletic limitations, the old-school tight ends were always attached to the offensive line with their hand on the ground. The defense knew this and could call defenses accordingly. The new school tight ends are lining up in the backfield and flexing out both as slot and outside receivers to cause matchup issues. Many teams are now doing this with two or more tight ends in the game at th
Variables 101 – Knowing how to analyze over 100 offensive variables gives your defense a statistical edge.
Knowing how to analyze over 100 offensive variables gives your defense a statistical edge.Every defensive coordinator has his own style and process in preparing a game plan for the next opponent. Part of this process is detailing the statistical side of probability on the opponent’s play selection. Ideally, each defensive call has the probability of being successful, helps create one-on-one favorable match-ups and allows the players to execute the proper techniques in stopping the of
AFM’s National and Regional High School Coaches of the Year
Gary Joseph Katy High School Joseph led the Tigers to one of the most dominating seasons in Texas football history. A last-minute playoff loss ended the Katy Tigers’ 2011 season. It marked the second straight season the Tigers had been close, but were unable to finish. Head coach Gary Joseph was determined not to let that happen in 2012. “We had been competitive, but hadn’t finished. This year, we were going to become a more physical football team that w
Safety First – Training for Safety
Vince Lombardi once said, “Football is not a contact sport. Football is a collision sport. Dancing is a contact sport.” This, coupled with the fact that every year, athletes at all levels are getting bigger, stronger, and faster, means that there is a very real threat to see a dramatic increase in football injuries. These run the gamut from minor injuries with no time lost to more severe injuries that could be season or career ending.Keeping a football te
Student of the Game: Using Academic Resources To Enhance Your Program
Volume 3: The 10,000 Hour Rule, Athlete-Controlled Feedback and Inside-Out Circuits by Jack Byrne, Defensive Coordinator, Windham High School (NH)
Giving Back
Two Regional Directors of the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard discuss how coaches everywhere can give back to the game.Most successful coaches recognize that they are fortunate to have made a career out of football. That’s what motivates so many to give something back to the game by participating in activities that can make a difference – using football to be a positive influence with youth in their communities.Hundreds of coach
From the Coaches Bookshelf - Dream Chaser – 4th and Goal by Monte Burke
For some, coaching football is simply in their blood. In his new book, 4th & Goal, author Monte Burke tells the amazing story of Joe Moglia, who left coaching to pursue what would become a monumentally successful career in financial services. Moglia has since returned to the sidelines and fulfilled his life-long dream of becoming a college head coach. Here is an excerpt.Now sixty-two, Joe Moglia is standing on the sidelines of a football field in Nebraska, wearing a headset and a w
Spare a Dime – The dime 4-1-6 package can be used in certain passing situations, providing solid man-to-man coverage.
We use the dime 4-1-6 package in third and long situations as well as other long yardage situations. We also like to use this package against passing teams who have a pocket passing quarterback who is not very mobile and does not look to run when pressured. This package has also been used in two-minute situations when the game is on the line. We only want to rush four and have tight coverage behind them. We know the weakness of this defense is running the football against it, but if teams dec
One Team – Two Offenses
By Jeff Hancock • Offensive Coordinator • Siena Heights Universityand Jason Mensing • Head Coach, Whitehall High School (MI)Two years ago the Board of Trustees voted to start football at Siena Heights University and we were fortunate enough to be a part of the very first staff. Among the overwhelming number of things that go into starting a new program was this question because of our limited senior leadership – how were we going to recruit enough players
Thunder Storm – Trine University’s tackling and turnover circuit covers all the essentials of effective defense.
There is little doubt that great tackling and creating turnovers are the two most important things a defense can do to help its team win. We have employed a tackle and turnover circuit that we believe not only teaches our players to tackle with great technique, but also teaches an understanding of how to create turnovers when given the opportunity. As a result, we have been at or very near the top of the turnover margin statistics for our conference over the past few years. We led all of Divi
Legendary Leader – John Gagliardi retires after 64 years, 489 wins and countless changed lives.
Amos Alonzo Stagg coached college football for 57 years in the first half of the 20th century, winning a then-record 314 games. Bobby Bowden tallied 377 wins in his 44-year coaching career at Samford, West Virginia and Florida State. Eddie Robinson coached Grambling for 55 years and won 408 games.John Gagliardi bettered them all. In a coaching career that spanned 60 seasons at the helm of Division III St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota, and four prior sea
Coach to Coach – Want to Use a Faster Tempo as a Weapon? Be Creative in Deciding How
NCAA bowl games started on December 15th and finished on January 7th, and, like many of you, I watched almost every game. Of all the current football trends on display, there was one that seemed to present itself in almost every game - the no-huddle, up-tempo offense. Spread offenses have been a football standard for many seasons. However, the pace at which teams are executing their schemes is becoming more and more of a key factor in their offensive philosophy and identity.In today’
Safety First – Stronger Necks = Fewer Injuries
Neck testing and training methods for football are critical ways to reduce injuries.Even though research studies have shown that increases in neck strength decrease the chance of a head injury, there is no national standard for neck testing in collision sports. At the University of Memphis, we developed an innovative program to test, monitor, and strengthen the neck that has decreased our concussions and missed playing time 50% in one year. This past season at Columbia
Get Educated 2013 Coaches Clinics
Now is the time to make yourplans for coaches clinics in 2013. Here is a listing of four premier organizations that will be conducting clinics across the country during the winter and spring months of 2013.Nike Coach of the Year Clinics Last year, almost 13,000 high school coaches attended 21 Nike COTY clinics. In 2013, many of the clinics will include special lectures for youth league coaches. Most clinics will also include demonstration periods of technique and
LINEBACKER TACKLING DRILLS AND TECHNIQUES
One of our defensive coaching guidelines is that we will get what we demand or allow. If we do not emphasize what we think is important to our defense or if we do not hold our players accountable for what our expectations are, then we are held responsible for the lack of production on the field. This definitely applies to tackling. We demand to be 90% efficient in all tackling opportunities and we do not want to allow poor practice habits or a lack of emphasis on the right things to adversely
Keeping Score - Ways to Keep Your Off-Season Strength Program Competitive
Maintaining a competitive mindset is a priority in the off-season at successful programs. From live player drafts to team-building exercises, creative coaches are constantly coming up with ways to keep their strength and conditioning programs competitive. “You want to train the mental component of competitiveness year-round. That’s a critical piece,” said Maine Strength and Conditioning Coach Dan Nichol. “You don’t want that competitive aspect to go dormant.” AFM talked to
Building Blocks – The day your 2012 season ends, your 2013 pre-season begins. Now is the time to build the foundation for your team’s future success.
In today’s ultra-competitive football environment, there’s no such thing as a true off season. The coach who leaves the game behind after the last items of equipment are stored for the winter is the coach who falls behind his peers.Between post-season evaluations of players and coaches, planning and implementing special activities and training programs and working with seniors who want to play at the next level, coaches’ plates are full. To successfully navigate the challenge
Banner Year
The NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard achieved record-setting participation in 2012 and concluded the year with its largest National 7-on-7 Tournament ever.However you measure it, the 2012 NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard was a resounding success. The HSPD camps experienced dramatic growth in bo
Quality Control – Planning Your Off-Season
The equipment has been shipped out for reconditioning, awards banquets are complete, and you’ve gotten over that awkward feeling in the week or two following the season where from 3pm-6pm you felt like you should be doing something else. Now is a great time to do some quality control and analysis work before you head into the clinic season. Coaches who are successful year-in and year-out are great organizers. Planning precedes organizing. In order to plan effectively you must per
ALTERNATE TECHNIQUES TO INCREASE UPPER BODY STRENGTH
During this past off-season, we noticed that our percentage of increase in strength for the upper body press had not gone up as a team compared to our increases for the squat and power clean. Obviously, the lower body lift of a squat incorporates larger muscle groups, and both the power clean and squat can increase lower body strength significantly by using proper techniques so there are reasons to see a larger increase with these lifts. However, we also realized that we were not using as man
Subscribers Ask - With Tony Sanchez Head Coach • Bishop Gorman (NV)
Coach Tony Sanchez took over as Bishop Gorman’s Head Coach in March of 2009. The results over three seasons have been spectacular. The Gaels have won three straight state championships with records of 15-0, 13-2, and 16-1. Last fall, Bishop Gorman played three ranked top 25 teams – Chaparral (AZ), Armwood (FL) and Servite (CA). Their only loss was to Armwood, 20-17.Sanchez believes in playing the best teams he can schedule each year. “It was tough to lose the game to Armwood
ELWAY AND ZIGGY Using “Z Check” and Option Principles to Stop the Zone Read
The zone read is a very dynamic play that can confuse the defense and force them into mismatches. However, there are several ways to stop this play and put the offense in lose-lose situations. I have spent time on both sides of the ball and, as an offensive coordinator, the zone read was the first play implemented and we had great success with it. It is a play that can have many options and complementary plays off of the same look. The zone read begins and ends with the QB and his ability to
Preparing Your Punt Teams
Getting your punting and pressure/return special team units prepared to meet the challenges they’ll face on game day can be the difference between a win and a loss.Successful coaching requires attention to detail. This is never truer than in special teams, especially in preparing your punt and punt pressure/return units. Punts and punt returns hold opportunities for positive, momentum-changing outcomes but they also have the potential for disaster. Of all the plays in football, the p
The Pirate Returns - Mike Leach brings his high-powered but surprisingly simple passing offense to Washington State
Mike Leach is complex. Contrary to popular belief, his coaching philosophy is not. Dating back to his early days as an innovative offensive coordinator at Iowa Wesleyan and Valdosta State, Leach has always experimented with unique plays and unusual ideas. Yet, two decades later, his first offense at Washington State has just 14 pass plays.
Drills Report Bonus - Improving Your Offensive Production
In our offense that we call the “truck and chuck”, we borrow academy-style option principles, implement them from a normal five-yard depth in the shotgun, and then throw as much play-action as we can into it. Like any offense, there are countless ways to practice and prepare our players to execute our style of play. However, when we think about drills and teaching methods for our offense, we stick to a few basic principles:#1 Big/Little/Big - Give the players the big picture (the
Coach to Coach Dealing with Discipline
I was having dinner on a Saturday night with my family when the doorbell rang. Upon opening the door, I was a little shocked to see a former player that I had not seen in almost ten years standing in front of me. Having past members of my teams stop by to say hello is not an uncommon occurrence but this was different. This young man, who was a part of my first varsity team at Foothill High School, had the distinctive “honor” of being the first player that I had ever dismissed from m
Who is the Typical AFM Reader?
At AFM, we like to think our readers are the smartest coaches in the game. They’re the ones who understand that coaching requires a lifetime of learning. They also know that the best way to be a smarter coach is to take every opportunity to learn from other successful coaches who are wiling to share their schemes, plays, drills, strategies and personal experiences. That’s what they look to AFM for and that’s what we try to deliver in every issue.The more we know about our rea
Coach Corporal: Football, Military, and Internal Discipline
So there I was, a 20-year old United States Marine sitting on a giant KC-130 refueling plane. I was a part of Operation Northern Watch in Southeastern Turkey. The goal of our operation, in short, was to prevent Sadaam Hussein from traveling north of a certain point. My unit had just loaded all of our equipment and materials onto our plane in a hurried 45 minutes time, as dir
Wide Receiver Play Base Fundamentals vs. Press Coverage
The proper technique for hand releases and quick feet are critical for the wide receiver in defeating press coverage.We spend a good amount of time in practice working on individual skills. One of our focuses in practice is releases vs. a hard corner. We work on many different releases, with a goal for our players to develop a repertoire. We spend a great deal of time breaking down each individual skill so it will become a habit for them.We break the skill of releases down i
Defending the Wing-T Offense
The Wing-T is a great offensive system that challenges defenses at both the high school and collegiate levels. Many of today’s one-back and spread offenses can trace their roots back to the Wing-T.We defend the Wing-T by being as simple as possible. We try to play one front and one coverage the entire game vs. Wing-T sets. We take an “Over” front concept and slide the front to the TE/Wing. We want to take away or limit the Wing-T’s ability to run to the TE surface (Diagrams 1
Managing Your Managers
Most coaches have a good handle on their responsibilities and those of their players. In many programs, these responsibilities are very detailed and almost always put in writing.But often overlooked are the roles and responsibilities of team managers. That’s unfortunate, since having solid, detail-oriented team managers can be a blessing to a coaching staff – giving them more time to focus on helping their players be successful on the field.In my coaching career, I p
Slowing Down the Spread
What do defenses do to slow down the spread and how do offenses counter? AFM asked spread offense coaches, “What defenses give you the most trouble?”Sparky Woods • Head Coach • Virginia Military InstituteSparky Woods has been the head coach at VMI for the past four seasons. Previously, he was head coach at Appalachian State and South Carolina and the OC/QBs Coach at Memphis. Woods was also a position coach at Alabama, Virginia, and Mississippi State. He has b
Southern Savior: Saban's 10 Keys to Success
Alabama’s Nick Saban has relied on his core philosophy to resurrect the Crimson Tide program and bring championships to Tuscaloosa.The decade between Alabama Head Coach Gene Stallings retirement in 1996 and David Shula’s dismissal as head coach in 2006 was perhaps the darkest era in Crimson Tide football history. Four losing seasons, NCAA probation, a coach fired before his first game and, worst of all, five losses in a row to Auburn led to despair in Tuscaloosa.“W
Tide Talent Search
From HOW THE SEC BECAME GOLIATH by Ray Glier. Copyright © 2012 by Ray Glier. Reprinted with permission from Howard Books, a Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.In essence, what Saban did at LSU and what he is doing at Alabama is not about collecting talent. Not even close. He is building a team. He does not start with players, he starts with definitions of players just like the Cowboys and Browns did. When Alabama goes recr
Reliable Performer
A Houston-area high school chose the HME DX300 sideline communications system to deliver superior performance in critical game situations.In the super-competitive world of Texas 5A high school football, coaches must pay close attention to every detail of program management – on and off the field – in order to achieve winning seasons. Decisions about which coaching technology to use, for example, can be just as important as which offense to install or which player to start at middle
Leadership Lessons
The NFL High School Player Development Program presented by the National Guard goes off the field to help mold the leaders of tomorrow.On so many levels, the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard is unique. There are many football camps around the country for high school athletes, but only one program – HSPD – includes character development sessions to help athletes be successful in the classroom, in the community, and at home. Only one program
Expanded Special Teams: Kickoff and Punt Returns
One of the biggest areas for hidden yards in a football game takes place in the return game of special teams. Making blocks in open space is critical to field position. Technique, fundamentals, angles, and field awareness must be emphasized to be successful. With the motto “every yard counts” players must understand that working to be at the correct landmark can be the difference between a game-changing return and a penalty. Here are drills that we practice:Illini Kickoff Retu
VIDEOTAPING FOR AUGUST TWO-A-DAYS
The key to having productive video sessions during August two-a-days and the regular season is being completely organized. Some questions you ought to ask are:
Boot Camp Day for High School Football
Last April, during Ohio’s North / South All-Star Football Game at Ohio Stadium, I had the good fortune to be standing on the sidelines with members of the Ohio Army National Guard. As we were talking, they shared with me how they did a number of “Boot Camps” with high school football teams in Southern Ohio. I let them know that I would love to do something like that with my team. Fortunately, a member of their unit was transferred to recr
Protecting the Split-Side Running Game
There are ways to account for a defense’s flat player by using the front-side bubble,fly motion, and the bubble and go.As football has continued to evolve and change over the last decade, teams at all levels are lining up in more open formations on offense. The removal of the fullback and the tight end from formations has forced offenses to find other ways to effectively run the football. Many teams are forced to have answers for defenses that are making it difficult to run the ball
Complete Cornerback Coverage Techniques
The proper technique for backpedaling is a key to maximizing a cornerback’s coverage.As with any technique in football, there are a number of ways that standard defensive back techniques can be taught. The core fundamentals of backpedal, break, and bail are often articulated in very different ways. While it is important to put some of your best athletes at the cornerback position, there are always times when you will need to adapt your personnel and teach a corner how to play the pos
Coaching Technology – Today and Tomorrow
Technology is a critical part of coaching success and will be even more important in the future.From the first time a football game was ever filmed, in 1903, to the invention of the first videotape recorder, in 1951, to the first-ever editing system in 1987 to the introduction of digital editing in 1994, technology has been influential in shaping how coaches prepare for opponents and communicate during games.Today, coaches have a wider variety of technology tools available t
That Championship Season – AFM’s 2011 Survey of 334 State Champions
Winning a state championship is the pinnacle for most high school teams. Learning from the experience of championship coaches can help in your quest to hoist the trophy.Hard work. Dedication. Leadership. Commitment. Focus. Team chemistry. These are the common themes that emerge when you talk to high school coaches that won their state championships in 2011.But there is also great diversity among the 334 teams that raised the state championship trophy last season. There are t
Safety First – Teaching safe tackling technique can reduce head and neck injuries and help protect the game’s future.
In the past 35 years, two-thirds of football-related catastrophic injuries have occurred while making a tackle, according to the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research at the University of North Carolina. Most of these were caused by helmet-to-helmet contact. “This is a major problem,” said Fred Mueller, Ph.D., director of the NCCSIR, which has collected data and published annual reports on catastrophic football injuries for 48 years.Dr. Mueller said head-to-he
Strength Report – Seven Phases
Sam Houston State’s Strength and Conditioning ProgramTRAINING PHILOSOPHYThe goal for our strength and conditioning program is to improve each player’s athleticism using a variety of different training methods. Our approach is to implement a simple and effective, yet sound program. A program that relies on hard work, focus, and determination as its main ingredients for success. This approach is not only successful, but is complementary to Head Coach Willie Fritz and his staf
Coach to Coach – Summer Session (Part II)
Using the summer months to organize and articulate your coaching philosophies and methods.In part two of using the summer months to organize and articulate your coaching philosophies and methods, I want to share with you a few methods and strategies in developing your game week schedule, practice preparation, organizing your game day, halftime responsibilities and addressing parent concerns.Game Week Schedule and PreparationsAt Foothill, we play our games on Fr
Play Like a Champion
When the upcoming high school football season gets underway, there will be over 15,000 coaches and teams that, at least on paper, have a chance to win their state championship. By the season’s conclusion, roughly 340 will have raised the championship trophy. There will be teams that will be celebrating the latest in a string of many championships and others that will be claiming the title for the first time in school history. There will be veteran coaches for whom winning is expected and fi
Powerful Partnership
The National Guard’s Citizen Soldiers contribute to the success of the NFL High School Player Development program on many levels.What does it mean to serve in the National Guard? It means that you’re part of the oldest established branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, dating back to 1636. It means that you can be called upon to provide relief to those that have suffered from natural disasters in your home state. It also means that you could serve overseas, if needed, as part of America
Managing Your Program
Promoting and Building Your Program in Today’s Multiple Choice SocietyLooking back on how I grew up, I recall not having many choices. We had a 13” color TV that received three network channels. There were no video game consoles or DVD players hooked up to it. In the fall I played football, in the winter, basketball, and in the spring, baseball. There weren’t many things to think about or do besides those three sports, and growing up in Northeast Ohio, football dominated the othe
Uphill Battle – Grambling’s ‘Back to the Basics’ strength and conditioning program challenges an athlete’s body as well as his mind.
With the end of the spring semester, our players understand that it is only two-three weeks before we begin our summer workouts. With the start of those workouts, they also understand that we are officially preparing for the upcoming season. Since we are a BCS program, we are financially restricted in terms of paying for our athletes to attend both summer school sessions but they are at least able to attend the second session (late June – late July). For those athletes that are fortunate en
Disrupting the Spread with the 3-5 Defense
Focusing on blitz opportunities and mixing coverages can help stop the spread option team.Regardless of the level of the game, championship football means playing strong defense. We run a 3-5 stack defense because it fits who we want to be as a football program. We want to be an aggressive, attacking team and we feel this scheme fits our style of play. We have run the 3-5 stack very successfully since 2003. This past season, we faced two spread offenses who, at the time, led our confer
Reloading at Rockhurst – Tony Severino, the head coach at Rockhurst High School for 29 years, believes in keeping his players busy in all aspects of their lives – not just on the field.
It was near the end of an hour-long interview when Tony Severino was asked a question that he has fielded numerous times in recent years. “How much longer do you think you’ll coach?”His answer is the same every time.“I get asked that every day. You’re the second one today that’s asked me,” said Severino, who will turn 64 in September. “I’ve been saying, ‘five years’ for the last 10 years. I have such a good time doing what I do. When I don’t, I’
Diamond Backs – For a team with many playmakers, the Diamond formation may be the best way to showcase their talents.
In April, after a West Virginia spring practice, a few Mountaineer defensive coaches strolled over to running backs coach Robert Gillespie with troubled looks on their faces. They had just been introduced to the new facets of the Mountaineers’ already-potent three-back Diamond set Head Coach Dana Holgorsen and Gillespie had been installing. The defensive coaches’ initial reaction was shock. They said, “Man, that’s very tough to deal with,” Gillespie recalled. “They talk
Drills Report – Linebacker Progression Drills
Coaching linebackers is an ever-evolving process. With today’s offensive schemes becoming more and more complex, we must ask more of our defensive players. I ask our linebackers to read keys, be aggressive run stoppers in the box, defeat blocks, get to the ball using a specific technique, tackle the ball carriers, find receivers and cover them up in zone concepts as well as cover backs and receivers man-to-man. While doing all this, I also expect them to know the game plan, call the defense
Coach to Coach – Summer Session
Using the summer months to organize and articulate your coaching philosophies and methods.Being a head football coach is a job that requires a multitude of skills. The coach that is successful over a long period of time has learned to master the art of the “tions” – motivation, delegation, innovation, articulation, dedication – all the while maintaining the most important element – passion. In order to become efficient in all of these areas, a head coach must know and be able
Louisiana Legend
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Philosophy of Pass Protection
Being both the OC and OL coach allows us to have a “Protection First” view to the offense. I always stress two things to the offensive unit – first, we must protect the QB at all costs, and second, if you cannot protect the QB, you will not play. This philosophy has been a big part of our success in protecting the QB over the past several years. Over a three year period from 2008-2010 our
AFM Subscribers Ask with Pulaski Academy (AR) Head Coach Kevin Kelley
As AFM reported in April’s cover feature, “Mad Genius”, Coach Kevin Kelley of Pulaski Academy (AR) has an unorthodox approach to the game. His team never returns a punt, they almost never punt themselves, they kick off onsides virtually every time and they usually go for a two-point conversion. For Kelley, the unconventional strategy has worked with a 49-7 record over the last four years and multiple state championships. Many AFM subscribers had questions for Coach Kelley about his unus
Special Teams – Practice Schedule, Goals, and Critique
Our players understand the importance of special teams because of the amount of time that we put in coaching them. Starting in the spring, we spend a minimum of 10 minutes per day on the “big four” – punt, kickoff, kick return and punt return. We also put in extra point/field goal work in every day. We keep it fresh by changing up drills as much as possible.We run a traditional punt formation and we changed our scheme slightly and spent a lot of time in the spring on punt. It
Multiplicity – Using Personnel Groupings to Enhance Your Offense and Player Morale
After the 2004 season, my first as a head coach in a big high school program, we were faced with the challenge of pay-to-play. The coaching staff made a great effort in selling our program to athletes and parents, and we fielded the biggest roster in spite of the new pay-to-play obstacle. We also knew that in order to keep those numbers, we needed to re-evaluate how we were utilizing our players, especially in terms of playing time. We looked at the possibility of two platoon, and we wanted t
Eyes Up – Quarterbacks Coach Terry Shea has devoted more than 40 years of his coaching life to the development of the position including the training of elite players like Robert Griffin III.
Terry Shea knows quarterbacks. In addition to quarterback coaching stints in the CFL, college, and the NFL, Shea has helped prepare future NFL quarterbacks for their professional careers. Among others, he has tutored Matthew Stafford, Sam Bradford, and most recently, Robert Griffin III. When elite quarterbacks want the best in personalized instruction, they call Shea.The compilation of his 40 years as an expert in coaching quarterbacks is now in his recently published book, Eyes Up
The Fix Is In – Adjusting your defense at halftime and during the game can pay big dividends.
All coaches know that tweaking a defensive scheme during a game or at halftime can often make the difference between winning and losing. But how do some of the game’s best defensive minds approach in-game defensive adjustments? Is it better to completely revamp a defensive game plan or is it better to make minor adjustments based on what you’ve seen from an offense? AFM asked three prominent defensive coordinators about their approaches to in-game defensive adjustments and found some spec
Strength Report – New Mexico Military Institute’s Strength Program
Before we designed our program, we sat down and discussed what advantages and limitations New Mexico Military presented us with as far as training our athletes. Our goal, obviously, was to maximize our advantages and minimize the effects of our limitations. The advantages were: 1) structure – we knew that our kids were going to be at workouts and we knew they were not going to stay out all night partying, 2) support of the coaching staffs – our coaching staffs have faith in us and are wil
Coach to Coach – Underestimating the Underdog
Months would pass before I would log my first meaningful memory of Joey. I remember the howling wind and unseasonably cold weather that made it almost impossible to communicate that night as I stood outside of the visitor’s locker room in Dixon, California. Players were starting to make their way towards the field as I reviewed my play call sheet minutes before we would kickoff the 2010 season. Joey, looking more like a manager than a player, nervously approached me with tears in his eyes a
Letter from AFM - Saluting Mentors
Just about every football coach has had a mentor – someone that has taught him the finer points of the game and had a positive influence in his development as a coach and a person. It’s part of what makes football coaching such a unique profession – the willingness to teach and share information with other coaches.In AFM’s email newsletter, which you can sign up to receive at AmericanFootballMonthly.com, we recently asked coaches to send in their personal stories about the
Your Take: Review What You Do
Self-analysis is critical to year-to-year improvement.It doesn’t matter if your team won 12 games last year or 2 – the winter off-season period is the time to review what you do. Every aspect of your offense should be critically reviewed, from the individual drills your position coaches use to the plays you call and why you call them. Here is the process we use to critically analyze who we are vs. who we think we are.Our offensive staff establishes scheme go
Winning the Turnover Battle - Three drills that will help your defense recover fumbles and make interceptions.
At the conclusion of each season, we evaluate how effective we have been in various areas. Then we decide what we can do to get our players to be more effective as it relates to our defensive philosophy (See Chart). Although we recognize there is always room for improvement in every area, we ask ourselves what did we do well, and what do we need to emphasis more? We have seen great improvement in the last two years has been point four “Create turnovers and big plays – SCORE!” Our defens
Release and Separate - Wide receiver techniques that will gain an advantage.
At Marian, we have the mindset that we will not let a defense dictate our offense. Critical to our success is the ability of our wide receivers to use various release and separation techniques that allow them to take advantage of defensive backs.PhilosophyMany times, a defender will want to take away certain areas of the field by playing a type of coverage or using a certain technique. But with our philosophy, we can get that defender to relinquish his responsibility or break
Making the Most of the Hurry-Up, No-Huddle Offense - Calling plays at the line can let you double your offensive snaps.
His team had just been walloped 56-7 in its spring game last May and Palm Beach Gardens (FL) head coach Chris Davis knew he had to make some adjustments or face another mediocre .500 season. He just wasn’t sure what he was going to change in his system. His teams had been 4-5 and 5-5 in 2009 and 2010.A few weeks later, Davis was attending a coaches clinic where he heard Gus Malzahn, then the offensive coordinator at Auburn, speak on the advantages of a no-huddle, hurry-up offense
Coach to Coach – Maximizing Your Speed, Strength, and Conditioning Programs
As I write this column, March Madness is upon us, spring training is winding up and weightrooms across the country are filled with ambitious and determined football players who know that football season is right around the corner. Training the body for the demanding sport of football is nothing new. When I was playing in high school our head coach would give us a goal sheet and some basic workout instructions and send us off for the summer. We knew that he expected us to return in August in s
Run Stoppers – Improve your defense with Princeton’s schemes, adjustments, and drills.
Your defensive structure must be simple, it must allow your players to play fast, and it must be adjustable to multiple schemes and sets that offenses present. Our base fronts and coverages are based on the personnel that we have in our program at the present time. Therefore, what works with one group, one year, might not with the next year’s group. We are constantly assessing and reinventing to get better as a defense. With that said, we have installed and implemented a foundation of core
Samson’s Strength and Conditioning Coaches of the Year
NFLMark UyeyamaSan Francisco 49ers If the San Francisco 49ers weren’t the most physical team in the NFL, they were high on the list.Mark Uyeyama is the main behind that physicality, although the 49ers strength and conditioning coach is way too humble to admit it.“Take a look at Justin Smith or Ray McDonald, really look at those guys, now,” said Uyeyama, Samson Equipment’s NFL Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year. “That’s not me, man.
Taking Your Physical Abilities to the Next Level
Today’s players are bigger, stronger, and faster than ever before. A focused conditioning program has become essential to on-the-field success. In Complete Conditioning for Football, a book and combined DVD package, authors Pat Ivey and Josh Stoner detail a comprehensive training program that builds players’ abilities as well as the football-specific skills their positions require.Coach’s ResponsibilitiesDelineating the responsibilities of all assistant coaches is the job
The Challenges of Teaching Football Speed
The first step toward teaching football speed is dealing with velocity and angles that change rapidly. Secondly, you must provide a progressive training system that is relative to speed and movement physically, mentally, and technically. The nature of the game provides various challenges to movement speed, angle changes, frequency changes, and rapid acceleration. Your teaching must fit these practicums because, unlike track sprinting, the technical application for football speed is not all li
Moving Up, Moving On or Moving Out: Life on the Coaching Carousel
Years ago I sat in a clinic presentation given by a prominent NFL head football coach who stated “Most high school coaches want to be college coaches, most college coaches want to be NFL coaches and most NFL coaches would like to be high school coaches.” Most coaches possess an unquenchable desire to advance their careers to the next level. Most of us are eager to face new challenges and conquer the next occupational mountain.The world of football coaching is fill
AFM’s National and Regional High School Coaches of the Year
Hal Wasson Southlake CarrollWhile celebrating on the field after his Carroll High School team, known to most around the country as Southlake Carroll, completed a 16-0 season with a 36-29 victory over Fort Bend Hightower in the Texas Class 5A- Division I state championship game, Hal Wasson thought about a fateful decision he made back in 2002.After over 20 years as a successful head coach at multiple high scho
AFM’s College Coaches of the Year
Mike Gundy Oklahoma StateGundy led the Cowboys to the greatest year in their history, netting him AFM’s top coaching awardThe visitors’ locker room at Texas A&M is located right next to the entrance that takes you onto the field. Every time the doors open, the visiting locker room is treated to the sounds of Kyle Field, featuring rowdy fans, bands and entertainment. It’s not the most peaceful environment to settle a team down, especially one trailing 20-3 at the ha
Coach to Coach – Maximizing Productivity: A Key Component to Success
If football had a caloric value, I would have gained fifty pounds over the last month. From high school championship games, to college bowl games, to NFL playoff games, I am fat on football. One of the factors causing my football weight gain is how I consume the product. There are no fast food meals here. The invention of the DVR has turned me into a slow and steady consumer. A three hour game can easily take me twice that long to watch. The rewind and pause features allow me to regurgitate o
Drills Report – Getting Open: Drills to Make Your Wide Receivers Great
The most important part of any passing game is the ability of wide receivers to get open. Your type of passing system will determine what types of routes are run, but the ultimate success of the passing game will be based on your wide receivers abilities to get open at the right time for the quarterback. Over the years, I have coached some outstanding receivers, and all the great ones had the ability to get open. The key is practice repetition. We work on a grid square every
Speed Report - Movement Skills – Critical for Drill Effectiveness
Using drills for teaching and developing football movement is certainly not uncommon. However, breaking down the drills analytically is not the most common practice. Most drills are performed to provide reinforcement for certain football movements, usually relevant to a position. The movement patterns are supposed to create better agility and speed of movement with the use of cones or other equipment creating a challenge for player agility. Although there’s nothing wrong with that, there’
Letter from AFM- Home on the Range
This year, over 20% of FBS schools will enter the 2012 season with new head coaches. That’s nothing new. Every year, more and more coaches find themselves on the coaching carousel as the pressure to win, win often and win consistently becomes more relentless. Sometimes, a change at the top is just what a program needs to get on track. Witness Brady Hoke, who led a Michigan team that had underachieved for years to 11 wins, including a victory over Ohio State for the first ti
Head Coach Self-Evaluation - Free Form
With the season over, it is time for a complete self-evaluation as a head coach. This form includes a complete grading system for all areas of coaching – relationship with your players and staff, recruiting, discipline, academics, department business, improving professional knowledge, and personal image in regard to your school and community.
Getting Your Team Connected
By Eric Slivoskey, Former Coach Seinajoki Crocodiles (Finland) How connected are you to your players? Do you merely make contact with team members to ensure that they are staying out of trouble and not reflecting poorly on the program, or do you strive to know something personal about each person on the squad. In a world that seems to be changing faster than any of us could have ever imagi
Muddle Hd” The New Age Muddle Huddle Two-Point Formation
Like all coaches, I look forward to the off-season to attend as many coaching clinics as I can that are held throughout the United States. Some coaches attend clinics looking to have a good time and use the weekend as an “outing” away from the wives and kids to unwind and enjoy themselves with their staff. When I go to clinics, I aim to attend as many sessions as possible to learn and gain knowledge from some of the most successful and innovative minds in football today. I set out to lear
AFM Subs Ask - with former NFL special teams coach Mike Sweatman
Mike Sweatman coached for 23 years in the NFL, primarily with special teams. He began his NFL career with the Vikings and later coached with the Bears, Patriots and Jets and had two stints with the New York Giants. Sweatman coached under Bill Parcells when the Giants won the Super Bowl in 1990 and later, Coach Tom Coughlin hired him as Special Teams Coordinator in 2004. His career included three Super Bowl appearances and two championships. He answers your questions about special teams
Texas Titans – Lake Travis High School has built a winning tradition from the ground up.
The Lake Travis (TX) High School athletic program is blessed with a huge enrollment, college-caliber facilities and an abundance of next-level talent, especially at the quarterback position. With those types of advantages, the Cavaliers are expected to have success.But, with four straight 4A state titles and a shot at an unprecedented fifth, Lake Travis football has exceeded even the highest expectations and stands out as a prime example of an administration and coaching staff that
Coach to Coach – Off-Season Priorities
“The Future is Now!” was a phrase I heard often during the 1991 football season at Long Beach State. It was one of the many catch phrases that George Allen coined and is famous for. As we enter the heart of the 2012 off-season, it’s sometimes difficult to envision that the future of next football season is now. When it comes to developing a successful plan for the 2012 season, the future is indeed now. Over the past year and half, I have shared many of my ideas as they relate to the pri
Drills Report – EXPANDED – Special Teams at South Dakota State
I have had the opportunity to work as the special teams coordinator at South Dakota State for the past two seasons. During that time, I could not be more pleased with our success. In 2010, we ranked No. 4 in FCS net punting, No. 4 in punt return yardage defense, No. 9 in kickoff returns, No. 1 in kickoff return yardage defense and No. 37 in punt returns. We accomplished these numbers without placing one single player in the top-20 of any category. I truly believe we achieved that success beca
Speed Report – The Off-Season is Back – Time for Foundation Speed Drills
If you’re not moving forward each year, you’re standing still. If you wish to grow, you need to review what you’ve been doing and challenge yourself to do more. I’ve spent 32 years adding something that improves my program to better levels than they were the year before. Sometimes it’s a new system or just tweaking the old one a certain way. Whatever your situation might be, it can always be better, especially when it comes to speed. I will give you a few thoug
Two-Back Run Fits – Teaching Fast Flow and Leverage in an 8-Man Box
‘Fast Flow’ rules assign specific roles to each linebacker which creates an eighth defender and gives the defense an advantage.One of the first lessons I learned as a young coach was grounded in Bill Walsh’s logic. He said, “A system should never reduce the game to the point where it simply blames the players for failure because they did not physically overwhelm the opponent.”In my first year of college coaching, Coach Mike Van Diest – the except
Maximizing Your Kickoff Coverage – Each player must possess a different skill set to ensure effective kickoff coverage.
In order to maximize your kickoff coverage, each player must possess a different skill set and be committed to a ‘Want’ philosophy. At Minnesota State University, we take our special teams very seriously. We dedicate significant meeting time and practice to special teams every day. We film both angles of all phases, including when we do individual drill work for a specific unit. Our philosophy for special teams is very basic:• This is not rest time. This is an opportunity to make a
Zone Blitzing the Spread Offense – Use this aggressive approach to disrupt routes and timing of the spread.
Head Coach Danny Hale just completed his 19th season at Bloomsburg and has seen over those years a trend in our opponent’s offense, a change from the traditional 2-back attack to more of a spread attack. Defensively, we have had to adapt to the ever changing schemes and, along with Secondary Coach Chet Henicle and Defensive Line Coach Bill Perkins, we have developed a scheme that is both effective and easy to understand and one that employs the most basic but also most important aspect of d
Keys for Effective Man Coverage – Effective use of man coverage by your defensive backs can confuse the offense and put more pressure on the QB.
Effective use of man coverage by your defensive backs can confuse the offense and put more pressure on the quarterback.One of the main reasons the Air Force Academy has been able to climb to the top five in the country in pass defense the last few years has been our ability to mix in effective man coverage. Based out of our 3-4 scheme, the effective use of man coverage has allowed us to vary our pressure package and also allowed us to be more aggressive in our coverage
Strength Report – Density Training for the High School Athlete
Many programs can help make high school athletes stronger, more muscular and even faster. However, if your goal is to train your high school athletes to improve athleticism, flexibility, balance, strength, power and speed, density training is the way to go. Density training is a philosophy of training based on strength coach Charles Staley’s program, “Escalating Density Training”. Since the program was introduced, strength coaches all over the country have been putting together their ow
Ten Tips to Help Every Youth Football Coach Be the Best They Can Be
By Harold “Bud” Boughton Senior Consultant and Assistant Coach, Franklin College Two years ago I was asked to be a guest speaker at two USA Football Coaching Schools. I knew right away what I wanted to talk about. Drawing on my coaching experience at both the college and youth level, I created a presentation entitled, “Coaching is T
Get Educated 2012 Coaches Clinics
Now is the time to develop your game-plan for the 2012 coaches clinic season. It’s your opportunity to pick up philosophy, techniques, drills, and the latest in offensive formations, defensive schemes and special teams play from some of the game’s most successful coaches. Here are four premier organizations that will be conducting clinics scheduled during the winter months in 2012.Nike Coach of the Year Clinics There are 20 nationwide Nike COY clinics in 2012. Most of the clini
Making an Impact with Your Kickoff Return
For a successful kickoff return, it is critical for all 11 players – including the deep returners – to think about making their block.There is almost nothing that compares to returning the opening kickoff of the season for a 95-yard touchdown against your school’s historic rival. The capacity crowd who had not yet made it to their seats for our 2010 opening game missed one of the most exciting moments of the year, a moment that made a statement to our opponent that we had come to
Father Figure – In his celebrated career, Houston’s Ray Seals became much more than a coach to many of his players.
Twenty-three years ago, Ray Seals decided to change his coaching legacy. It wasn’t going to just be about football anymore.Seals arrived at Madison High School (TX) in 1988 to find a program full of kids from low-income families. Some came to practice with no clothes; some hadn’t eaten. His players were foul-mouthed and disrespectful. They weren’t college material. “I said right then that when I became head coach, that wasn’t going to happen to my kids,” said Seals.
AFM Subs Ask – with Ron Erhardt Former NFL Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator
Ron Erhardt was the head coach of the New England Patriots (1978-1981), the offensive coordinator of the New York Giants for a decade (1982-1991), and the OC of the Pittsburgh Steelers (1992-1996). While with the Giants, his teams won two Super Bowls with two different quarterbacks, Phil Simms and Jeff Hostetler. He was also a very successful college coach, having an overall record of 61-7-1 in seven seasons as the head coach at North Dakota State. Erhardt’s offensive philosophy
Drills Report – Building Pocket Awareness
We believe that pocket awareness is one of the most important quarterback skills to develop. I did say develop. We don’t believe that most people are born with the ability to stand in the pocket and wait for people to run into them. We spend fifteen minutes a week during the season working on pocket awareness. On Monday, we spend five minutes re-enacting the pocket awareness situations that the quarterback should have handled more efficiently from the previous game. On Tuesday, w
Strength Report – The Friday from Hades
When we came to PV a few months ago we found a downtrodden, used to losing group of young men. There was no pride in the program, nothing but “Hey, we tried”. The words compete, fight, and adversity were not in the vocabulary of these young men. We had to shock the system and change a lot of things. The first thing we changed was the strength and conditioning program.We are together Monday through Friday. Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday are scheduled lifting sessions in which we use
Coaching In Poland
Compared to other European countries, organized American football in Poland is in its infancy, but growing. What once began at a grass roots level has now turned into three separate divisions - 1st Division, 2nd Division and an eight-man football league. The Polish American Football League or (PLFA) was started in 2006 with four teams. With the popularity of American football growing, the PLFA split into two divisions in 2008 - PLFA I (8 teams) and
How Much Does Crowd Noise Really Affect Your Team?
Sport psychology is taken so seriously by most elite football teams that they have entire staffs dedicated to the mental well-being of their players. In high school, the pressure to constantly perform at a high level for many college prospects can cause great stress and anxiety. After all, most are mentally still teenagers, though their physical presence would make you think otherwise. Though the disparity between physical and mental development may be evident to those who are trained on the
AFM Subscribers Ask – with Bubba Schweigert, Defensive Coordinator, Southern Illinois University
Bubba Schweigert enters his fourth season as the defensive coordinator at Southern Illinois University this fall. Since he arrived in Carbondale, the Salukis are 25-11 and last fall led the Missouri Valley Conference in total defense. His philosophy of defense is based on pressuring the quarterback and creating turnovers. Schweigert’s 2009 defense ranked second nationally with 23 interceptions and fourth nationally with 37 turnovers caused. Before joining the SIU staff, Sch
Coach to Coach – Principles for Becoming a Better Coach
As I write this article, we are only three weeks away from the official start of the 2011 football season. It’s the time when players and coaches alike are weary of countless off-season workouts and are ready to put the preparation and hard work to good use. With every clank of a 45-pound round, our players see the light at the end of the tunnel. It’s the calm before the storm and the season rapidly approaches.If you have read my previous articles in the Coach to Coach column, you
Drills Report (Expanded) – ‘The Six Pack’ Concept: Keeping Linebacker Fundamentals Strong All Season Long
During pre-season camp, individual periods tend to be much longer, which gives the position coach ample time to work on the fundamentals that are essential to linebacker play. As coaches, we become spoiled with all of that individual time. Once pre-season camp ends, so do the long individual periods, as the focus turns to preparation for upcoming opponents. This can drastically shorten the amount of time that you can truly devote to working on fundamentals. But, it is important to
Method To His Madness - Letter from the Publisher
You could describe LSU Head Coach Les Miles in many different ways. Just don’t call him conventional. He has been known to eat a bit of grass from the football field for good luck. He has over 34,000 Twitter followers, which is more than any other FBS coach. Last month, he tweeted “I hear Wimbledon champ likes eating grass too. Hope he enjoyed it. Nothing beats Tiger Stadium grass though.” He is a press favorite, having provided many memorable sound bites. There
RAWLINGS SIGNS STEVEN JACKSON TO ENDORSE FOOTBALL HELMET LINE
For more information, please contact: Seth Elrod, Rawlings Football, (314) 819-2715, selrod@rawlings.com
Q & A with Bill Ramseyer
Keys to Successful August PracticesBill Ramseyer has a reputation for turning programs around. While head coach at Firelands High School in Ohio, his teams finished with a 24-2 record for a school that never had a winning season prior to Ramseyer’s arrival. After becoming head coach at Wilmington College, Ramseyer amassed a 114-58-4 record over 19 seasons. Before his arrival, Wilmington had only 28
The Heat Is On – In the hottest months of the year, coaches need to watch for any signs of heat illness.
August will be here in a few weeks, and for most areas that means the hottest weather of the year. The high heat and humidity combined with the most intense football practices of the year mean that coaches need to be extra alert for any signs of players who might be suffering heat-related illnesses. Football players, perhaps more than any other athletes, are vulnerable to a variety of serious medical conditions arising from outdoor physical activity in intense heat. It is tragic bu
Great Expectations – How do coaches like Bob Stoops manage high expectations or overcome low ones?
“Coaches who can outline plays on a black board are a dime a dozen. The ones who win get inside their players and motivate.”– Vince LombardiEvery season starts with expectations, some higher than others. How a coach handles those expectations can be the difference between failing to meet them and exceeding them. But what is the secret to dealing with expectations in this era of pre-season rankings, blogs and media pundits that put pressure on teams before fall practice even
Utilizing the Quick Passing Game in a Spread Offense
At Kansas Wesleyan, one of the key components of our spread offense is being able to successfully utilize the quick passing game. Our offense is based out of a single back, 2 x 2 formation. One of our main objectives is keep things simple. This ranges from route concepts, protections, signals and words. As an offensive staff, we strive to get players to react instead of over-thinking. We encourage our players to be athletes and make plays based on reaction. In this article, we will discuss th
Graduate Course How does a high school coach fulfill a dream of advancing to the college ranks?
In every profession, it’s natural to want to advance to the next level. Greater prestige, higher compensation and job security are all potential rewards of a promotion within an organization or a change of employers. In football, you would naturally assume that many successful high school coaches would aspire to become college coaches, and that may indeed be the case. But even the best high school head coaches have struggled to succeed as head coaches in college football, at leas
Motivation & Leadership During The Off-Season
The off-season in competitive college football has become almost non-existent. The so-called ‘off-season’ has become, in itself, a competitive season. At Emporia State University we have developed the POWER OF E off-season program. Just like any good college program, everyone takes pride in their player development. We believe we have a unique way of doing it with our program. Through this program we believe that we maximize our player’s potential with a focus on competitiveness, leader
Subscribers Ask: With Patrick Ross Head Coach • Lindenwood University
Over the last few years, Patrick Ross has gained a reputation for both turning programs around and having prolific offenses. In his second season at Ottawa University in 2003, Ross’ team improved from 5-5 to 9-2, winning the KCAC title and advancing to the national playoffs. He was named national NAIA Coach of the Year the following season, his first at Lindenwood, leading the Lions to an 11-0 regular season record. That year Lindenwood tied for the same number of wins the team earned in th
Your Take – The New-Age of the Agent and the Tactics They Employ
Over the past year, the NCAA’s agents, gambling and amateurism staff has begun to address the issue of the new-age agent. The new-age agent will not be wearing a suit, he will not be a recognizable face, and he won’t wait for an school’s “agent day” to try and contact student-athletes. Agents of the past presented themselves as executives who established relationships and gained clients by any and all means. Today, some examples of the new faces of “agents” include another stude
Trojan Force – Head Coach Allan Trimble has built the Jenks High School program into a perennial power in Oklahoma and overcome adversity along the way
Allan Trimble, the Head Coach at Jenks High School (OK), authored the book ‘Coaching Football Successfully’ in 2001. In it, Trimble wrote that success should not be measured solely in terms of wins and losses. “Success comes in many shapes and sizes,” said Trimble. “It could be mentoring an athlete who is facing adversity, having your team show improvement as the season progresses, or having both a loyal and supportive coaching staff.” • Trimble clearly
Tiger Training – Missouri’s 10 Key Defensive Line Drills and Techniques – How you can fortify your pass rush.
The key to any defensive pass rush is putting pressure on the quarterback. Missouri conducts drills daily to accomplish just that. At the University of Missouri, I have been very fortunate and blessed with defensive linemen who have and are embracing this attitude. In my time here, we have increased our sack total each year. We have had many players go on to All-Conference honors. We have had players lead the Big 12 in sacks and in tackles-for-loss. We have had a defensive lineman
Steuerwald’s Rules – A coaching legend shares his guidelines for designing and implementing an effective pre-season practice schedule.
In sixty days or less, your 2011 team will be assembled for pre-season practice. They’ll be pushing themselves to achieve peak physical condition, battling each other for higher spots on the depth chart and, in most places around the country, struggling to get through practices in oppressive heat and humidity.
Coach to Coach: The Pre-Season Home Stretch
“The time will come when winter will ask what you were doing all summer.” - Senator Henry ClayTwo months and counting! It is amazing how fast the season is approaching. By the start of June, our players have completed countless workouts, 10 days of spring ball and now are preparing for summer camp at the University of Nevada. We have spent the last few months training and preparing ourselves for the 2011 season. June is the start of the final phase of the so called off-season.
Strength Report: Fairmont State’s Summer Strength Program
Breaking down each seasonal phase of your strength and conditioning program throughout the calendar year is a must. But before we outline the entire year, let’s devise a plan for summer workouts. Here’s a complete plan divided into two phases for your summer workouts.
Letter from AFM - Last Call for Fall Prep
With the school year coming to a close, the next major event on the football calendar will be the start of pre-season practice. Every coach would likely agree that the weeks leading up to the season opener are critical times for conditioning, learning the playbook and fine-tuning offensive and defensive units. For many coaches, putting together a plan for pre-season practice is a no-brainer. If they’ve been successful in recent years, especially in their openin
15 Keys to Building A Successful & Sustainable Football Program
By Frank DiCocco • Assistant Coach • Dwyer High School (FL) • 2009 Florida 4A State Champions 1. Have a Flexible and Evolving Approach to the Game: Have a flexible and evolving approach to schemes and strategies. Have a Flexible and Evolving Offense: Develop an efficient and effective offensive approach for each team, each season, and each game. Place a premium on production, both in terms of yards and points. As long as the winner of a football c
From the Coach’s Bookshelf – Winning Football
In his new book Winning Football, Bill Ramseyer provides a blueprint for coaching success. Based on lessons he’s learned from his decades in coaching, the book is a complete handbook that examines all parts of the game. Here is an excerpt from his opening chapter.Elements of Success Success can be measured in many ways. If you are a coach, perhaps you measure success by the positive influence you have on the lives of the players you coach – the attitudes
Triangulation – The safety’s triangle alignment will keep balance in your defense vs. multiple formations
We are strong believers in the 3-4 at Southern Illinois and, as a defensive staff, we do not deviate from our commitment to running the 3-4 defense. Dale Lennon, our head coach, implemented this scheme as defensive coordinator at the University of North Dakota in 1991. During this time, I was the secondary coach and have been a part of coaching the 3-4 defensive system for 20 consecutive seasons. One of the advantages of running the 3-4 system is the ability to r
5 Keys to Running a Successful Youth Camp
Thinking about the annual obligatory youth camp stirs up mixed emotions among coaches across the country. On one hand, they are excited to teach their sport to future players. On the other hand, many see this camp as just another time consuming activity taking time away from their varsity teams and their families during the summer months. Unfortunately, not all coaches take advantage of these camps as an opportunity to build their program from the ground up. Instead, these camps often become
Coach to Coach – Coaching to Make a Difference
The longer I coach and the more time I spend witnessing kids transform into young men, the more I realize that in this profession we have the opportunity and the responsibility to be more than just a coach. Coaching allows all of us the unique opportunity to leave a lasting imprint on the lives of our players. Our profession is one of only a few that will mold and shape future business leaders, politicians, husbands, fathers, clergy, infantry and military leaders. One of my favorite maxims co
Desert Dominance
Head Coach Charlie Ragle led Chaparral High School in Scottsdale, Arizona, to their second consecutive state title – using the Connex® sideline communications system from CoachComm.Win a state championship in a football-rich state like Arizona and your high school team will be recognized for their significant accomplishment. Win back-to-back championships and get mentioned as the early favorite for a third and you become part of the national conversation as one of the top teams in t
Speed Report: Why You Do What You Do for Football Speed Training
Have you really analyzed why you use the methods and teaching applications you use for football speed or have you just borrowed available concepts and plugged them into your program? Have you just covered the bases or have you really looked into becoming more knowledgeable about football speed? If you haven’t studied the subject, what and where did you get what you use today? Why is it good, and why did you choose to incorporate it into your football program? Did it come from a friend, a co
Making the Game Safer
If you watch television or go to the movies, you’ve seen Bobby Hosea. You just might not realize it. In an acting career that has spanned more than 25 years, Hosea has appeared in dozens of television shows and movies including 24, CSI, Heroes, Cold Case, Xena: Warrior Princess, Independence Day – the list goes on and on. He’s portrayed military officers, police detectives, doctors – even OJ Simpson. But, in football ci
Feeding the Ducks
Sports nutritionist James Harris makes sure that University of Oregon athletes are properly fueled and ready to compete at the highest level.For many years, football coaches have recognized that effective strength and conditioning programs are essential ways to help athletes achieve peak performance. Increasing numbers of programs now also understand that proper nutritional practices are just as important if you want to maximize an athlete’s effectiveness on the field. &nb
AFM Subscribers Ask – with Mark Hudspeth Head Coach, University of Louisiana
Mark Hudspeth was appointed the 25th head coach at the University of Louisiana last December. He brings with him a reputation for a high-powered, no-huddle offense. Previously the Passing Game Coordinator/Wide Receivers Coach at Mississippi State and head coach at North Alabama, he brought the no-huddle concept to Starkville and now to the University of Louisiana. Hudspeth has a national championship, four conference championships, eight post-season appearances a
Mixing in the Gun – Integrating Shotgun into Your Spread Option Offense
At Lincoln University, we adopted the spread option offense because we felt it gave us the best advantage going into the Mid-American Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA). To complement our spread, we started to run some of our option plays out of the shotgun. We started playing with “the gun” because we have a good center who can shotgun snap the football and block anyone and we wanted to improve our 3-step passing game. It also provided a psychological boost for our athletes who
Samson’s Strength & Conditioning Coaches of the Year for 2010
NFLRusty JonesChicago Bears In 2006, Chicago Bears Strength and Conditioning Coach Rusty Jones received the National Professional Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year award. What made the award so special was that all 32 NFL strength and conditioning coaches voted on the award. “Because it was from my peers, it really meant something special,” said Jones. Jones just completed his sixth full season with the Chicago Bears, the last three
Coach to Coach: Football Clinics – The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly
If you are like me, your email has been full of invitations and promotions to the many football coaching clinics being held across the country. As a coach with 19 seasons under my belt, I have attended many clinics, have had the opportunity to speak at many clinics, and I host the Shotgun Zone Fly Summit. Clinics provide us with a great opportunity to learn from some of the most successful people in the business. They are also a great excuse to get a “hall pass” for a w
Speed Report: Football Coach or Football Speed Coach –You Can Be Both
You don’t have to be apprehensive when you think about football speed development. You don’t have to feel incompetent when it comes to developing team speed. That is, if you have a certain knowledge of the subject of football speed. If you don’t, you might feel uneasy about teaching it. My quest in this article is to provide you with perspective about football speed and how you can feel more comfortable with what it takes to do it right – right according to the scientific knowledge th
Resounding Success
A Portland area high school captures their first-ever state championship – with the help of HME’s DX300 headset system. When Chris Casey took the head coaching position at Aloha High School outside Beaverton, Oregon seven years ago, the challenge he faced was daunting. The Warriors had won a total of 14 games in their previous 17 seasons and only one game in the last three. They were losing elite pl
AFM’s 2010 College Coaches of the Year
FCSBeau BaldwinEastern Washington If Eastern Washington could have written a script for the 2010 football season, it could not have gone any better. The Eagles got a lot of the buzz in the Football Championship Subdivision early in the year because of their newly installed red turf, which became known as the Inferno. In September, the Eagles, whom the media had given modest preseason aspirations in the Big Sky Conference, were routed in Boz
AFM’s 2010 High School Coaches of the Year
EastHarold Fairclough Allentown Central Catholic (PA) When it comes to loyalty to one’s alma mater, Harold Fairclough is a prime example. Fairclough is a graduate of Allentown Central Catholic High School, where he is the head coach. Playing for head coach Jim Morgans in the early 1990’s, Fairclough learned how important it is to let his assistants do their job. Taken the model used by Morgans, Fairclough surrounded himself with the best coaches possible, ga
AFM’s 2010 High School Coach of the Year Tony Heath Pearland (TX)
Euless Trinity, Southlake Carroll, Katy, Cy Fair, Northshore, Lake Travis. Imposing programs all poised to win Texas 5A Championships in any given year. There is very little debate that this is the toughest state championship to win in the nation. They’ve got the biggest stadiums, the biggest crowds and the most pressure. Enter Pearland High School outside of Houston, also a 5A program. When Tony Heath considered the head coaching position at Pe
Your Take: Turn Back the Clock For Safety
The recently completed football season will go down in history as the year of the concussion. Not because the game fundamentally changed, but improvements in head injury detection have forced a closer examination of the subject at all levels of the game. The football community is no longer taking a “head in the sand” approach to a problem that has existed for a long time but only now is beginning to be understood. In the future, head injuries in football will decline. The solution w
Turf Trends
Chances are very good that your team has either installed a synthetic turf field at your facility or played at least one road game on a turf field. Each year, hundreds of football practice and game fields are converted from natural grass to synthetic turf. That’s not surprising, considering that today’s turf systems provide safe, consistent, all-weather playing surfaces that can be utilized 24/7 by not just the football team but by a long list of other sports and activities. &n
AFM’s FBS Coach of the Year -Gary Patterson •TCU
The BCS-busting Patterson led the Horned Frogs to a perfect record, a Rose Bowl victory, and a #2 national ranking.As college football fans look at the national landscape over the last 10 years or so, there always seems to be the same names at the top week-in week-out, year-in year-out, whether it’s Texas, Oklahoma, Ohio State, Florida, Alabama, LSU, USC. Every now and then a new team might rise up for a few weeks or a couple of years. But like any list,
Strength Report: Corrective Movement Dysfunction, Part III - Correction
The basis for movement dysfunction lies in the lack of mobility and/or stability in one or more joints or muscles in the body. Thus, the basis for correcting movement dysfunction lies in restoring the proper mobility and stability patterns along with correct timing of movement patterns. Dysfunction does not occur in isolation. Deficiencies in mobility are always linked to deficiencies in stability and vice versa. In fact, dysfunction in one part of the body typically occ
Quarterback Play – Focusing on Strengths
“A leader needs to know his strengths as a carpenter knows his tools, or as a physician knows the instruments at his disposal. What great leaders have in common is that each truly knows his or her strengths – and can call on the right strength at the right time. This explains why there is no definitive list of characteristics that describes all leaders.” - Donald O. CliftonAs a football coach, it’s very easy to get caught up in the strategy and design of a practice week a
Mississippi Masters – Head Coach Lance Pogue of South Panola High School led his Tigers to a 15-0 record and the number one prep ranking in America.
At South Panola High School in Batesville, Mississippi, they are not accustomed to losing. Since Head Coach Lance Pogue joined the school in 2007, the Tigers have an overall record of 58-2 and, prior to this year, had won two state championships in three years to add to their previous six titles. But this year South Panola set a new benchmark by not only winning another Mississippi 6A State Championship but by also capturing the mythical prep ‘National Champions
Stifle Your Opponent with a Bruising Defense – Coordinators of two top-ranked college defenses show you how.
What are the most important ingredients of a stifling defense? Beyond having a sound scheme, what should coaches look for in athletes in an effort to ensure domination of their opponents? To get the answers, AFM talked to the defensive coordinators of two of 2010’s most imposing defensive units – Mount Union of Division III and Boston College of the FBS. While certain defensive fundamentals are to be expected, both Vince Kehres of Mount Union and Bill McGovern of BC provided additional in
Strength Report: Correcting Movement Dysfunction - Part II: Interpretation
In the first installment of this series, we learned that movement dysfunction is a leading predictor of injury in athletes. We also learned what movement dysfunction is and what we are looking for in evaluating athletes in accordance with the stacked joint approach of the human body. Finally, we set up a simple evaluation to determine and quantify movement dysfunctions. In Part II of the series, we will learn how to interpret the evaluation scores, discuss implications of the scores, and dete
Misdirection: Using Pre-Snap Movement and Multiple Personnel Groupings to Gain an Offensive Advantage
Mike Martz is one of the more productive offensive coaches in the National Football League. He has utilized pre-snap movements for years and during many of those seasons he has gained a competitive advantage. As an offense, we want to create the illusion of being very complex while we are, in fact, being simple and basic. We accomplish this through using a variety of movements and personnel groupings. By minimizing the number of basi
Establishing a New Defense with an Effective Dime Pass Rush
At the Colorado School of Mines, our defensive staffs have run the same 3-4 pressure defense since 1988 and have made the necessary changes and adjustments to have success against constantly evolving offensive schemes. During my tenure as the Head Coach at Georgetown University, we had some successful defenses including the #1 I-AA defense in the nation in 1995 and 1996, as well as one of the top 25 defenses in 2005. During my two years at Towson University, we w
Sizing Up Your Team – Post-Season Evaluation Can Be a Positive Exercise for Coaching Staffs and Players
The 2010 high school football season has ended, but that does not mean that head coaches downshift into neutral and coast for the next few months. In reality, the 2011 season already has begun. What is accomplished in the off-season is often key to how successful next season will be. In many ways, the off-season is as busy, if not busier, than the actual fall season for head coaches. Equipment needs to be reconditioned and inspected
Flying Ducks – Oregon’s Prolific Fast-Paced Offense Presents Monumental Challenges to Defenses
By Bjorn Zetterberg and David PurdumWhen former Oregon Head Coach Mike Bellotti hired Gary Crowton as offensive coordinator in 2005 to install the spread option offense, it was his intent to keep up with so many other teams in college football that had gone in that direction. In its first year, the Ducks’ spread yielded impressive results – a 10-2 record, 34.5 points per game and over 430 yards per game in offensive production.
Coach to Coach: Making Your Off-Season Count, Part I
The end of another season is here. It’s time to decompress and reintroduce myself to my wife and three children. It’s time to take a few weeks off and recharge the battery. The end of the football season is also the introduction of the Holiday Season and I’m looking forward to a great Christmas and New Year. I like the idea of the New Year. It’s a chance to evaluate our lives, our work and our relationships. The New Year presents us with the opportunity to alter our course or maybe ev
Speed Report: Off-Season Speed Development - A Dilemma For Small Schools
As I write this column each month, I receive more and more replies from coaches at smaller schools. It’s become apparent that most of them have something in common – that the off-season presents a challenge for speed and lifting development. The problem is that athletes at these schools need to be multi-sport athletes. The bulk of the football team plays two to three sports in a small school, so it’s almost impossible to fill the rosters on other sports if they were only playing footbal
The Importance of Formation Recognition
By Ryan Ruschhaupt, Assistant Coach Monterey Peninsula College Football is an ever evolving game where some of the most creative and intelligent coaches in sports find ways to defeat you merely by the alignment of players in a formation. Offensive coordinators search for alignment weaknesses
FREE FORMS - Pass Routes
Free Forms from American Football Monthly
Recruiting Results
Among all the legends of high school coaching, Bill McGregor probably knows more about college recruiting than any coach in America. As head coach of perennial power DeMatha Catholic High School in Hyattsville, Maryland, Coach McGregor has compiled a record of 279-40-3 with 18 championships in 29 years and has seen over 300 of his players advance to play at the college level. The 2004 NFL High School Coach of the Year, McGregor is considered a master at helping his athletes who want to play c
Goal Line Defense: Lenape Valley’s 6-5 Scheme
When introducing our Goal Line Defense to our team, we stress from day one that we must stop the run at all cost – “We are fighting for inches not yards”. As a staff, three principles must be kept in mind at all times: 1. Instill in our players the mindset that “they cannot score by running the football on us – they must pass to score”. Also, attitude is as important as schemes and techniques. 2. Have a limited number of adjustments to formations and motions.
Georgia’s In-Season and Bowl Game Strength Training
Every year, college football players across the country engage in strength and conditioning programs from January until the beginning of training camp in August. Those workouts lay the conditioning foundation and strength base for the upcoming season. And while those workouts are important, many strength coaches would argue that workouts held during the season are just as important, if not more so, than workouts held during the rest of the year. This simple question must be asked: When woul
John McKissick: 7 Keys to Long-Term Success
McKissick, 84, entered his 59th season at Summerville in September with a record 576 wins. He’s accomplished the astonishing feat with a plethora of offenses, from the wing-T to the wishbone to his current spread attack. His defense also has changed with the times, transforming from a wide-tackle 6 and 50 look used to defend the tight ground attacks of the past to a multiple scheme designed to stop the modern spread offenses. “You’ve got to change with the material y
Dissecting a Successful Offense: Abilene High School (TX)
It takes guts to make changes to an extremely balanced offense that averaged 45 points per game the previous season. Abilene High School (TX) head coach Steve Warren is gutsy. He’s also a state champion, thanks in part to an adjustment to the Eagles’ offense that produced a unique blend of a power running game and the spread offense. “Yep, that characterizes us pretty well,” said Warren, who, in his 14th season, led the Eagles to the 2009 5A Division II state championship. “
Fundamentals of Wide Receiver Play and Reading Coverages
By PJ Fleck, Wide Receivers Coach Rutgers University PURPOSEFUL “TEACHING” I was always told that I was the “King of the TOO’s” (too small, too slow, too short). I heard all the time, “GET OUT OF THE BREAK, DROP YOUR WEIGHT, CATCH THE BALL, GET OFF THE PRESS.” “Cat
GAME DAY AT CARMEL HIGH SCHOOL
On a grey fall Friday afternoon, Carmel Catholic head coach Andy Bitto greets a visitor as he enters his office. Kickoff is four and a half hours away, but minus his headset, Bitto is already sporting his game day outfit—brown and gold pullover, brown tie on white shirt, khaki pants and tennis shoes. The outfit could be labeled old school, something out of George Halas’ time. After all, where is the Under Armour? Bitto hands the visitor an itinerary for that week’s
Coaching in Denmark Part III
For my final and third installment on my coaching experience in Denmark, I would like to share two topics that are universal when it comes to coaching American football: officiating and game management. My wife and I were thrilled to attend the Steelers/Dolphins game on October 24 in Miami. As the clock ticked down to the final minutes, the game was suspended in air as Ben Roethlisberger’s touchdown attempt was being reviewed by the officials. Every fan, whe
Coach to Coach
When I was an offensive coordinator at the junior/community college level for six seasons, my football life consisted of recruiting, installing our schemes, game planning and calling the game on Saturdays. A full plate for sure, but it was 100% football. I definitely had ideas of what I would do if and when I became a head coach, but all of the peripheral things associated with running the entire program were in the hands of the head coach and the athletic director. In those days I thought th
John Robinson, Assistant Coach
By Jeff Fedotin • RivalsHigh.com At 75, John Robinson’s coaching career has come full circle – from USC to the NFL to now, the sidelines of San Marcos High School as an assistant coach Connor Kuehnle’s parents did not believe their son when he told them the identity of his new defensive coordinator. “There’s no way it’s John Robinson from USC and the Rams,” Kathy and Kenzie Kuehnle said. “There’s no way this guy’s gonna come an
Getting Big Results at Small Schools
What are the keys to building winning programs in schools so small that just fielding a team can be a challenge? In this, part two of AFM’s series about how some of the smallest high schools in the country have built dominant programs, we examine how Alcoa High School (TN) Coach Gary Rankin and Harlan Community High School (IA) Coach Curt Bladt have established winning traditions and taken home multiple championships. Alcoa, Tennessee, population 7,744, sits in the shadows of the G
Guru of the Golden Arms
As a high school quarterback, Steve Clarkson led Wilson High in Los Angeles to a 39-1 record and three straight city championships in the late 70’s. That was followed by three years as the starting quarterback for San Jose State where he played for John Elway’s father, Jack Elway. Clarkson broke several passing records in the process at SJSU (1979-82) and was a two-year Academic All-American. He was destined to fulfill his dream of being drafted by an NFL team. It didn’t qui
HERO TO ZERO IN ONE PLAY: Drilling the Defensive Back for Confidence
While I am now coaching tight ends at Columbia University, I have spent many seasons as a defensive backs coach. If anyone has been a secondary coach or played the position before, you are intimately familiar with those times when, in the final seconds of a game, an intercepted pass can “seal the deal” for your team or where a deep bomb can spell misery. The positive end result of those times is a combination of competitiveness, but more importantly, reliance on solid fundamentals. I have
Coaching In Denmark (Part II)
By Wayne Anderson In this next installment of coaching in Denmark, I would like to share more about the teaching aspect of coaching a team like the Odense Swans. The first thing you must remember about a team like the Swans is that what you can truly do as a coach depends on how many coaches you have on your staff and how many players consistently participate in practice. In Denmark, our season is divided into two different parts:
GEORGE BLANDA “It’s Never Too Late”
By T. J. Troup Coach, Teacher, and Pro Football Historian Future Hall of Fame Quarterback Bobby Layne was sold to the New York Bulldogs before the 1949 season by “Papa Bear” George Halas. To fill the roster spot, Halas used the Bears 12th pick in the draft to take quarterback George Blanda of Kentucky. During his last three years at Kentucky, playing under the legendary Paul “Bear” Bryant, the Wildcats won 20 of 31 games and played in the
GAME STRATEGY AND PLAY CALLING: THE “HEDGEHOG” PHILOSOPHY
By Bruce Reynolds Former Head Coach William Penn High School, New Castle (DE) Game day strategy and play calling should not be too elaborate. Go with what got you there. Too many coaches make the mistake of trying to put in too many “new” things for the big game. My father, the Dr. Brooks E. Reynolds, a Methodist minister, was always preaching Steven Covey’s theme: “The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” You can appl
Coaching in Denmark
By Wayne Anderson Sporting Director/Head Football Coach, Odense Swans I joined the Odense Swans in Denmark as their head coach on May 18th. Having coached in Norway and Italy prior to this position, traveling overseas was not a new experience; however, there are always unique challenges with each destination. With eight years of seasonal coaching positions, my wife and I have a routine when preparing me for the season away from home. When preparing to coach in E
AFM Subscribers Ask: Steve Warren Head Coach Abilene High School
Last fall, Abilene finished the season 15-0 by beating Katy High School in the Division II 5A Texas State Championship. Winning their first state title in 53 years, Abilene completed the season as the consensus #2 high school team in the country. Before Warren arrived in 1996, Abilene suffered through eight consecutive losing seasons. Entering his 15th season this fall, Warren has an overall 132-63 record which includes 11 straight playoff appearances. Abilene uses a one-back system as its base
Portable Perspective
Colleges and high schools have long employed elevated end zone and sideline cameras to capture practice and game video that could be reviewed and used as a teaching tool. But, until recently, the stationary cameras were limited in how they could be used in a variety of practice situations. Now, that has changed with the introduction of the remarkable portable elevated camera system from U.S. Sports Video called the SideWinder. In the summer of 2006, Tennessee Offensive Coordi
The Color Drill: Helping Linebackers & Defensive Backs Maximize Their Drops
Over the years our defensive staff has successfully identified areas our defense needed to improve on. After identifying these weaknesses we have the ability to think of some innovative drills to help our players improve in the specified areas. This past season we identified that while getting into their zone pass drops, our linebackers and defensive backs were not reading the backfield action and the quarterback. In order to improve in this area we came up with our ‘Color
The Use of Multiple Tight Ends in the One-Back Offense
My first head football coaching position was in 1987. Upon arrival, I found quite a few skilled athletes, a good quarterback, and a severe lack of depth and talent in the offensive line. To overcome the problems in the offensive line, I decided to employ a run-and-shoot style attack. This allowed us to spread the defense and open up holes both running and passing that year. Our offense led our conference in rushing offense, passing offense, and total offense. From that start,
Game Week Practice Planning to Defend the Spread Option Attack
When we prepare to play against the spread option, we first need to understand that getting the most out of our practice time is the number-one priority. We understand that the option teams that we face run their offense at a high level and they have gotten hundreds of reps at what they do before we face them. So, we need to be able to get as many reps as possible in just one week. For the past eight years, our philosophy has changed from trying to get good at practicing and
10 Musts Before The Start of Fall Camp
#1 Hit the weights and don’t forget to stretch for success. Nothing can make up for players that are not physically ready to play their best. Instead of lamenting that your players are not “bigger, faster and stronger,” take the initiative and make them bigger, faster, and stronger. If you do not have a weight room, create your own. We started our weight room in a storage closet in the wrestling room. I personally ran the summer weight room three days a w
Offensive Game Planning: A Week-Long Schedule to Success
Game Week Schedule - Sunday Our game week schedule is designated from Sunday to Friday. Our main objective for Sunday is to have a final breakdown of our previous game by 4:00 pm. Our breakdown consists of players’ grades on assignments and team goals. We also determine individual awards for our players from the previous game. Following our team meeting, our players divide into groups and watch film with the position coaches. Their night ends with position lifts. At abo
Small Schools, Big Time Programs
For years, Smith Center, Kansas’ (population 1,700) claim to fame was that it’s located in the geographic center of the United States. Now, high school football has put the town on the map. The Smith Center Redmen gained national attention in 2007 when, in the middle of an eventual 79-game winning streak, they had an 11-game run where they outscored their opponents a combined 706-0. In one memorable game, they scored 72 points – in the first quarter. Wh
Coach to Coach
* Getting more done in less time is always a great model for success. Be organized and get the most out of your time with your players and staff. Wasted time is one thing that you can never get back. I have worked with coaches that must have had a different watch than I did. 3:30 meant 4:00 and a one-hour meeting always meant two hours. The one thing that all of us have in common is that we each have 24 hours in each day. I read recently that 25% of American worker
Speed Report: Combining In-Season Conditioning with In-Season Speed Training
The answer is usually not well-received. My reply is that we need to understand how the game is played physiologically. If you run athletes hard and often with short recovery time between efforts, your athletes are being exposed to overtraining. Consequently, you’re training the wrong metabolic system and will not be tapping the proper system that is required. Limited recovery with constant brutal sprinting is going to keep the heart rate at maximum levels. The heart rate should have a
Your Take: Worth Every Penny
Last August there was outrage in some parts of the media. News broke that University of Florida head coach Urban Meyer was getting a contract extension. The new deal meant that Meyer was going to earn at least $4 million on his new contract, and could make up to $4.5 million with incentives. There was cause for commotion, but it should have been because Meyer was so underpaid. Yes, underpaid. As in a bargain. While those who were critical of Meyer’s new deal talked about
Simplicity and the O-Line – Why The Flip/Flop O-Line Works
As coaches, we tend to overthink and overestimate our influence on game days. The common trap is our attempt to outcoach our adversaries across the field. While giving a clinic two years ago, I had an epiphany: “It is not my job to outcoach someone. It is my job to get my men to outplay their opponents.” On game day, it does not matter what we know. It’s what our players know that determines the outcome. This became my motto in everything I do as an offensive line coach and I am ble
Technology Tools: Computer Software That Brings Your Play Diagrams to Life.
Use coaching technology to your advantage with computer software that brings your play diagrams to life. Technological advances have had a significant impact on football and coaching, especially in how plays are developed and illustrated for coaches and players. Today’s state-of-the-art play diagramming software gives coaches advantages never before available. For playmaking, computers have indeed changed the way coaches coach. “Computers and software
Legendary Leader - George Smith of St. Thomas Aquinas
George Smith of St. Thomas Aquinas shares principles that have helped him become one of the nation’s winningest coaches His heroes are old-school coaches like Paul “Bear” Bryant, Woody Hayes and Don Shula, and his disciplinarian style in many ways reflects an old-school coaching philosophy. But George Smith is not afraid to try something new if it will help give his football team an edge. That’s what Smith, the head coach at St. Thomas Aquinas
Coach to Coach
The 2010 season will be my 20th as a Head Coach and/or Offensive Coordinator at both the high school and college levels. I have coached a lot of games in that stretch and held ten times as many practices. I started playing football in 1976 and haven’t missed a season since. I guess you could say that I am addicted to this great game. In those 34 years, I have learned some important lessons that have played a huge role in my coaching life. As we head into the 2010 season, I want to share some k
Strength Report: Lamar’s Off-Season Strength and Conditioning Program
The Lamar football program begins play in 2010 after a 21-year layoff. As the first Sport Performance Director in school history, it has been my task to develop and implement a speed, power, strength, agility, flexibility, and conditioning program. The process has been difficult, to say the least. Combine that with the fact that we are waiting for our athletic facility to be built and one can only imagine the challenges we have faced. Needless to say, I not only have had to think outside my b
Clutch Performer
Coach Dave White leads the Edison Chargers in high school hotbed Orange County Orange County, California, just south of Los Angeles, is year after year one of the country’s top regions for high school football. Many teams are highly-ranked, not just state-wide but nationally as well, and powerhouse programs produce plenty of DI talent every year. To succeed in “The O.C.”, be prepared to face a tough opponent virtually every week. Take Edison High School in Hunting
Five Ways To Ensure A Solid Foundation For Your Junior High Program
By Bill Shepard, Assistant Coach, Durand High School (IL) and Darin Davis, Assistant Coach, Dakota High School (IL) If a head coach at the high school level wants to achieve success then he needs to invest time in his junior high program. We believe that there are five essential ingredients that help lay a solid foundation for a football program at the junior high level. It may take time to get all of the ingredients in place but the effects on th
7-On-7’s: Tune Up Your Passing Game
While 7-on-7 competitions have been around for nearly 30 years, it’s only in the last seven or eight years that this concept has exploded. The growth of the 7-on-7 competition is a direct reflection of the growth of the spread offense. Today, more and more high schools and colleges are using the spread, and players and coaches see the value of 7-on-7 tournaments and competitions as ways to hone passing skills. The events match skilled players against each other. Usually played on
Samson’s Strength & Conditioning Coaches of the Year
From the NFL to High School, Strength & Conditioning Coaches are trusted to maximize their team’s potential when they step onto the field. Here, Samson Equipment recognizes those coaches who made a big impact in 2009... NFL Dan Dalrymple New Orleans Saints New Orleans Saints Strength and Conditioning Coach Dan Dalrymple learned a valuable lesson when he had a free agent tryout with the Seattle Seahawks in 1987. Dalrymple had been a four-
Takeaway! More and More Teams are Using The Strip To Create Turnovers
Stripping the football from an opposing running back or receiver is not a new concept. Some players, such as former Giants Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor, included it their defensive tactics long before the NFL owners made the strip legal in 2002. More than ever though, defensive players are being coached about stripping the ball and successfully implementing it in game situations. Colts wide receiver Pierre Garcon’s strip of safety Ed Reed following a Peyton Manning intercepti
The Wildcat Comes of Age - Making it Work In Your Offense
The Wildcat has evolved. The modern version of the single wing has surpassed the gimmick stage and blossomed into a game-changing weapon that is reportedly being used in some fashion by 80 percent of college and high school teams. The Wildcat even found a niche in the NFL, although its long-term viability at the professional level is still being debated. What’s not up for debate is the impact the Wildcat has on defenses. The formation, which dates back to Pop Warner in the
Strength Report - CITADEL’S OFF-SEASON STRENGTH & CONDITIONING PROGRAM
The winter off-season is the first of two primary development phases in the annual layout of a collegiate football player. The second is the summer. These are the only two periods of the year where no football is being played and training sessions are directed by the strength and conditioning staff. For us at The Citadel, the winter differs slightly from the summer, in terms of our priorities and where they rank. We believe that the better we keep the team physically prepared over the course
Most Valuable Player
Power, speed and reliability. The ability to manage large amounts of information and perform at a high level under pressure. Important characteristics of every successful football player, without a doubt. These same characteristics can also be used to describe the modern football team’s most valuable technological tool – its video editing system. Since they were introduced in the mid-1990’s, digital editing systems have become indispensable tools for today’s sophisticated co
Clear Choice
Imagine playing one of your biggest games of the year, on the road in a hostile environment against a formidable opponent. At a critical moment in the game, when it’s absolutely imperative that you get usable information from your staff in the pressbox, instead of hearing your coaches on your headset, all you hear are…truckers. It can happen and it has happened to Mark Speckman. “We also picked up other teams’ signals, radio stations and cell phones at various games,” he r
Dramatic Turnaround: Going From 0-11 to 12-1 In One Year
After Luke Salmons was hired to be the head coach at struggling Lawrence County High School (KY) in 2008, he did what every new coach would do. He put his plan in place and hoped for the best. Salmons inherited a program that did not have a winning record since 2003. “They’d had a period of five or six years where they didn’t win many games, and so I got the job,” said Salmons. “I’ve always wanted to be a head coach, and you never really know whe
AFM’s National and Regional High School Coaches of the Year
Greg Toal, Head Coach of Don Bosco Prep in Ramsey, NJ, was having success a few years ago with a program that continually ranked among the top high school teams in the state. They were beginning to surpass perennial powers St. Joe’s Regional, Bergen Catholic, and St. Peter’s Prep as the best team in the New Jersey. But he wanted to take DBP to another level. Toal knew the Ironmen could compete with the best teams in New Jersey but he wanted to see how they would fare on
AFM’s College Coaches of the Year
FCS Andy Talley • Villanova All season, Villanova kept tapping the rock, again, again and again, never knowing when it would break. The rock was one of the founding blocks from the first church at Villanova, which was built in 1896. The square block sat in the Wildcats locker room and even traveled on the road. Before every practice and every game, players and coaches tapped the rock. “This is what life is all about,” said Talley. &ldqu
AFM’s FBS Coach of the Year: Boise State’s Chris Petersen
Chemistry is so much more than just a cliché at Boise State. In fact, according to head coach Chris Petersen, chemistry is “as important as anything we do here.” “I think we have all been on those teams where we’ve had a lot of talent, but haven’t done well for one reason or another,” said Petersen, American Football Monthly’s FBS Coach of the Year. “We’ve also all probably had the opportunity to be on a team that didn’t have a lot of talent, but did very well to
Letter from AFM
After the Boise State Broncos completed their season 14-0 with a win over previously-unbeaten TCU in the Fiesta Bowl, you might expect Chris Petersen to give credit to his arsenal of trick plays that almost always work or Kellen Moore’s incredible 2009 performance for the Bronco’s success. Instead Petersen, AFM’s 2009 FBS Coach of the Year, looked to something more intangible – team chemistry. That’s why we’ve titled this month’s cover story “Ch
Developing an Off-Season Competition Program (Part II)
Last month Coach DePorter outlined the reasons for installing an ‘Off-Season Competition Program’ at Richmond-Burton High School. The program places all players onto teams, holds them accountable in a number of areas, and awards points in all phases of competition. In this issue, Coach DePorter discusses competition in other sports, community service, scoring and organization of the competition, rewards, and results. Other Sports Roughly 65% of our players
The ‘Loco’ Punt Formation
I have been the Head Football Coach at Galax High School for the last three years and, like all coaches, I stress the importance of all three phases of the game: offense, defense, and special teams. I believe that one of the most important phases is special teams and, unfortunately, many coaches don’t emphasize its importance until they get bit in the backside. A couple of years ago, while I was an assistant coach, I put some of my own thoughts into a punt scheme that I u
Reading the Proper Visual Keys - A True Essential In Stopping the Run
Effective defensive line play in football involves much more than three or four guys butting heads with the offensive line. Numerous physical techniques – hand placement, stance, shedding blockers, etc. – have been developed and refined in an attempt to overcome the offense’s built-in advantage of knowing where the play is going. All too often, an equally important mental technique which directly addresses this issue is overlooked. At West Liberty University, we devote significant time
Q & A With Larry Porter: Challenges for a New Coach
One of the challenges facing the University of Memphis when they fired Tommy West as their football coach was finding a replacement who could take Memphis to the next level. West made strides, taking the Tigers to fi ve bowl games in his nine years as head coach, but this past season was a disappointment as Memphis finished 2-10. An obstacle Memphis has always faced is that the college is in the heart of SEC territory. Memphis was an independent for years and for the last 15 seasons has been
An Offense For the Undersized: The Double Wing
In 1999, Ygnacio Valley High School, under the direction of head coach Tim Murphy, set the all-time large-school record in Northern and Central California by rushing for 5,019 yards. The Warriors’ offensive line that season averaged 208 pounds. In 2003, Murphy led Clovis East High School to the California Interscholastic Federation title and finished ranked in the Top 25 in the nation. The T-Wolves’ offensive line averaged 198 pounds. In 2007, Clovis East rushed for just
Developing an Off-Season Competition Program (Part I)
Despite some success over the last few seasons, one of the problems that we have had is getting our players to accept the idea that the off-season runs from January through August. We have had great summer weight room attendance, but our winter and spring lifting attendance has not always been at the level we expect. After a very successful season this past fall, we were also worried about complacency from our players and had to deal with some players who chose to work out with personal trainers
How To Slow Down the ‘Tempo’ Wing-T
During my first year as a Defensive Coordinator in 2006, we were very fortunate to have an excellent team at Merced High School. Making it to the sectional final and nearly pulling off a last-minute win was an exciting way to begin my career as a DC. However, that year was tempered with several doses of humility, mainly at the hands of the wing-t offense (specifically the tempo wing-t). In our second game of the year vs. Madera H.S., coached by wing-t guru Randy Blankenship, and later in the
6 Reasons to Invest in Recruiting Software This Off-Season
Walk into any college football coach’s office and, chances are, his desk will be covered with recruiting clutter. Questionnaires, transcripts, evaluations, DVDs, Post-it notes scrawled with contact info. This is the reality of the college game today. The pressure to win now rarely affords you the time to get organized. Fortunately, the days of legal pads and file folders covering the office and frantically trying to track down a DVD from that four-star kid in Texas from the last c
From Huddle to No-Huddle in 5 Simple Steps
Over the past few years, no huddle offenses have become increasingly prevalent among D-I football teams. While no-huddle has found its way into the high school game to a certain extent, many coaches still avoid this concept because of the perceived communication barriers. They watch college QBs constantly changing the play and get headaches thinking about how that could work on their team. At the same time, it is hard to deny the advantages that you can gain from the no huddle such as contro
Ditching Your Huddle – With so many teams going to the no-huddle offense, should you?
Until recently, the only time most teams would dare to run plays without taking the time to huddle up to get the play call and the snap count from the quarterback was during the two-minute offense, when saving precious seconds was critical. Not any more. Today, dozens of pro and college teams have instituted full-time no-huddle offenses with the simple goal of gaining an advantage over the defense by keeping them off-guard. High school teams are even beginning to follow suit. The no-
Gator Powerhouse
Head Coach Urban Meyer has called him perhaps the most valuable member of his staff. After just over four years with the Florida Gators, he’s widely recognized as one of the best, if not the very best, strength and conditioning coach in America. And now, with two BCS National Championship titles in the last three seasons, he’s at the very pinnacle of college football. He’s University of Florida Director of Strength and Conditioning Mickey Marotti and he’s prepping the Gators
From the Coach’s Bookshelf – Brian Billick’s More Than a Game
During his tenure as head coach of the Baltimore Ravens, Brian Billick experienced the pinnacle of NFL coaching success when the Ravens crushed the Giants in Super Bowl XXXV. He also suffered through perhaps the lowest point of his career when he was dismissed after posting a 5-11 record in 2007. Throughout his nine seasons at the Ravens’ helm, though, one thing remained consistent – the grind. In his new book, More Than A Game: The Glorious Present and Uncertain Future of the NFL
Strength Report – Harvesting Strength from the Field
We frequently look at different forms of strength equipment to help reach our ultimate goal of building a complete athlete. While much of the equipment we incorporate at Vanderbilt can be utilized inside, our staff definitely prefers to implement them outside on our practice fields. I have always felt that this form of outdoor strength training replicates farming. As coaches, we all want to grow strong, healthy, productive athletes that don’t break down and can withstand the heat. Simil
Lessons Learned - Bunkered In-Game Week in the NFL
Working in the NFL is a fight against time. A work week consists of 80 -100 hours for the coaches. The time is divided up between individual work assignments, group projects, game-planning meetings, coaches’ film sessions, player meetings and film sessions, walk thru’s and practice. The meeting time with the players is between 20 - 25 hours per week. The amount of time actually practicing on the field is less than ten hours per week. Hard to believe, but true. Monday:
Increasing the Efficiency of Your Practice and Video Time
“Time stands still for no man.” I’m sure you’ve heard this quote before. If you are like us, you are constantly looking for ways to optimize your team’s practice and video time. Doing so will greatly improve your team’s chances for success. Our offensive philosophy at Northwest Missouri State University is to “Be Balanced.” • 2006 run to pass ratio: 55% to 45% • 2007 run to pass ratio: 52% to 48% • 2008 run to pass ratio
Conversion Routes in the Empty Offense - The Pivot and Spacing Concept
Running the empty offense has many advantages; the ability to stretch the field both horizontally and vertically, getting advantageous matchups on the perimeter and opening up run seams in the defense are just a few of them. Yet, many coaches are hesitant when it comes to installing the empty-look variation in their playbooks. Some even feel as if it needs to be an integral part of the offense in order to be run correctly. The fact of the matter is, it doesn’t. Where there is shotgun, there
Q&A with Frank Spaziani
After over 30 years of paying dues as an assistant, Frank Spaziani finally gets his time. Frank Spaziani has been in the game long enough to know how it works – or the way it should work. In a world of instant gratification, his mantra has been if you work hard, stay humble, and pay your dues then good things will come. Which is why, after serving 33 years as a collegiate assistant, 12 of those molding the Boston College Eagles defense into a national powerhouse, the sixty on
Onside Every Time - Sam Nichols Turns the Tables by Making His Kickoff Team an Offensive Unit
In last November’s Michigan Division 4 district title game, underdog South Haven, trailing 7-3, began the second half with an onside kick. What seemed like a very risky strategy paid off, as the Rams recovered the kick, scored on the ensuing possession and held on for a 16-7 victory. It was the first playoff win and first district title in school history. Some in the media called Head Coach Sam Nichols’ decision to onside kick a big gamble. But was it?
Lessons Learned - The Most Important 12 Minutes in Team Sports
A good friend of mine once said, “The only meetings that count in football are the ones that take place at halftime.” Halftime in the National Football League is completely foreign to most people outside the profession. The world of halftime starts in the Laboratory in the Sky (press box) with about three minutes to go in the second quarter. The process begins with each coach talking to another coach through the headset (field) or in the press box as to what offensive pla
Increasing the Efficiency of Your Practice and Video Time
“Time stands still for no man.” I’m sure you’ve heard this quote before. If you are like us, you are constantly looking for ways to optimize your team’s practice and video time. Doing so will greatly improve your team’s chances for success. Our offensive philosophy at Northwest Missouri State University is to “Be Balanced.” • 2006 run to pass ratio: 55% to 45% • 2007 run to pass ratio: 52% to 48% • 2008 run to pass ratio
The Perfect Practice
Practice how you play. Perfect practice makes perfect. We’ve all heard the coaching axioms about preparation, and how important it is to practice efficiently. We hear them, but do we really listen? Just by simple word association, practice is tedious. To our players, it’s drudgery. Many of them simply go through the motions, “get through the practice”, and hold back until game day – which is why they signed up, after all. How do you organize your practices to mak
CONVERSION ROUTES IN THE EMPTY OFFENSE
The Pivot and Spacing concept – easy to execute and even easier to install. Running the empty offense has many advantages; the ability to stretch the field both horizontally and vertically, getting advantageous matchups on the perimeter and opening up run seams in the defense are just a few of them. Yet, many coaches are hesitant when it comes to installing the empty-look variation in their playbooks. Some even feel as if it needs to be an integral part of the offense in order to
Blitzing Bad Memories
Athletes require very selective short term memories in order to discard the negative feelings they get from mistakes or the stress of playing. As coaches, because we are working with such malleable athletic minds, we need to assist with this process, not reinforce the negative. Focusing on an athlete’s mistake—with ample doses of anger, frustration, dismissive-ness or sarcasm—creates athletes who are overly careful and fearful of making future mistakes. In football, as in mos
Longhorn Legend
Texas strength and conditioning coach Jeff “Mad Dog” Madden oversees a cutting-edge Longhorn program that combines intense training with sound nutrition practices. The words on the wall of the University of Texas’ strength and conditioning training facility have inspired All-Americans, Heisman Trophy winners, National Champions and hundreds of Longhorn football athletes. They read, “The pride and winning tradition of the Texas Longhorns will not be entrusted to the weak nor t
How to slow down the “Tempo”Wing-T
During my first year as a Defensive Coordinator, in 2006, we were very fortunate to have an excellent team at Merced High School. Making it to the sectional final and nearly pulling off a last-minute win was an exciting way to begin my career as DC. However, that year was tempered with several doses of humility, mainly at the hands of the wing-t offense (specifically the tempo wing-t). In our second game of the year vs. Madera H.S., coached by wing-t guru Randy Blankenship, and later in the s
Lessons Learned -from an NFL Assistant Coach - Bunkered In: Game Week in the NFL
Working in the NFL is a fight against time. A work week consists of 80 -100 hours for the coaches. The time is divided up between individual work assignments, group projects, game-planning meetings, coaches’ film sessions, player meetings and film sessions, walk thru’s and practice. The meeting time with the players is between 20 - 25 hours per week. The amount of time actually practicing on the field is less than ten hours per week. Hard to believe, but true. Monday:
The Laboratory in the Sky
Most people think all the decisions in the National Football League are made from the sideline. Nothing could be further from the truth. I never worked on the sideline in the NFL. All my experience was in the coaches’ booth. I wouldn’t have had it any other way. The learning experience each game was priceless. I worked in the NFL coaches’ booth both offensively and defensively. The thinking process in the box is constant. You need to be zoned in on all cylinders for the
ADDING FLEXIBILITY TO YOUR DEFENSIVE GAME PLAN
As high school defensive coordinators, we are challenged on a weekly basis to stop a variety of offensive schemes. Over the course of last season, these offensive schemes included split-back veer, wing-t, fly, zone, pro-style, full-house double TE, and of course the spread offense. Our defensive staff has always prided itself in being able to prepare our players on a weekly basis to stop our opponent’s particular scheme, their most dominant player, and their bread-and-butter plays.
Recruiting Confidential
ESPN’s Bruce Feldman shares his insight into the methodology of big-time college recruiting Since 1994, ESPN The Magazine’s senior writer Bruce Feldman (left) has been tracking college football at its highest level. He’s been in dozens of football war rooms and seen hundreds of player evaluations and highlight tapes. He has even ha
Stealing Signals
“I think that it is part of the game. It forces you to become more creative in protecting your calls, which is a good thing both for my staff as well as our players.” - Anonymous “Although I never go into a game with the intention of stealing signals, if a coach on the sideline or booth picks up on something, I will use that to our advantage. I feel that if it is being done in plain view on a sideline, its fair game. However, I feel using video equipment to obtain signa
Seeing is Believing
While the days of coaches scratching out X’s and O’s on a chalkboard or huddling around a 16mm projector to review game film are long gone, some football programs have not, until recently, taken full advantage of the high-tech teaching tools available to coaches today. Case in point – Oaks Christian High School in Westlake Village, California. To call the Oaks Christian football program high-profile would be an understatement. Not only had Head Coach Bill Redell’s Lio
Proven Performer
Top programs are increasingly choosing the DX300 sideline communications system from HME for its proven reliability and superior features. Steve Lineweaver knows about reliable performance. As head coach of the Trinity Trojans in Euless, Texas, Lineweaver has built one of the most consistently outstanding high school programs in the nation. With 5A Division I state titles in 2005 and 2007 and a national top ranking for most of the 200
Helping an Unnoticed Player Get Noticed
High school football offers many great rewards for young men. Unfortunately, due to state guidelines that are different across the board, not all players develop the same or receive the same type of coaching. Occasionally at the high school level players develop late, new kids move into town or those athletically gifted kids walking the halls decide to play football. If this is the case for a senior on your team, then you and he are going to be behind in the recruiting process.
The Most Basic Rule of Coaching - .COM
I am probably the only sports fan who goes to a game and watches the coach as much as I watch the players. As a peak performance trainer, I specifically observe what coaches do or don’t do in their leadership role, and I see too few coaches who know how to stay in the Zone. Generally, because of this, I can predict the outcome of the game by a coach’s actions during the warm up and first quarter of the game. Many—most coaches I’m afraid—have little understanding of the
The Strength Report - How to Utilize Your Space to Positively Effect Your Program
The High School Perspective: By Dave Brown, Strength & Conditioning Coordinator, Archbishop Mitty High School (CA) No matter how big your training facility is, you should be trying to utilize space to make your training efficient, challenging, productive and motivating. How do you train when resources are limited? Archbishop Mitty High School has one of the top athletic programs in the nation. Sports Illustrated, in 2006-2007, rated th
Lessons Learned - From an NFL Assistant Coach
Besides coaching on defense, my most valuable learning experience took place while working with the quarterbacks. Prior to my NFL coaching days, I worked a summer football camp for two years at a Big Ten university where I befriended the QB Coach, (Presently an Assistant Head Coach in the NFL) who taught me the QB position. We spent hours upon hours watching film. The first words that came out of his mouth were, “If you want to learn football, this is the position to coach.”
Schutt - FBS Coach of the Year Finalists
Nick Saban University of Alabama Nick Saban has won plenty of hardware in his illustrious career, and he’ll add more to his mantle this year. The Associated Press and SEC Coach of the Year has single-handedly restored the pride back in Alabama football. After struggling through a 7-6 record in 2007, Saban and his staff rolled the Tide to a 12-1 mark and a berth in the Sugar Bowl. At one point during the season, Alabama was the number one team in the countr
Schutt - College Coaches of the Year
Mike London University of Richmond Creating Competition in Practice – Making Players Perform Under Pressure After seven games into the 2008 season with a record of 4-3, nobody believed Richmond could win it all, except Mike London himself, who saw something special in his guys. “I knew that our losses could have gone either way early on,” said London, who was the defensive coordinator at Virginia before taking the job at his alm
Schutt - National High School Coach of the Year
Coaching Smart A Florida football legend, George Smith, is the Schutt Sports National High School Coach of the Year George Smith’s coaching career could have ended before it ever really got started. As a 27-year-old first-year head coach, Smith was getting his staff together after his first full season, a 6-4 campaign in 1975. “I was going around asking my staff in a post-season meeting who was going to come back for next year,” Smith recalls. “They al
Schutt - FBS Coach of the Year
“They pay coaches bigger salaries now, so you better not waste any time getting the job done. There is always someone else in waiting.” Simply put, Brian Kelly knows how to win football games. And he can win them at any level. Just as a craftsman works his plan to the detail, Kelly has executed his formula for success at every level he’s been – from Division II Grand Valley State to mid-major Central Michigan to a former Big East doormat, the University of Cincinnati.
Alternative Training
Every offseason coaches begin their workouts and conditioning drills in hopes of producing superior athletes for the football field. Many exercises are designed to produce faster, stronger, more explosive athletes and reduce the chance of injury. The list of exercises can be endless and many are very sports specific. The goal is to produce explosive, powerful, fast football players, not bodybuilders, Olympic lifters, or strongmen. At the University of Central Florida we use a varie
Developmental Aspects of Implementing the Front and Back Squat in a Training Program
The College Perspective: By Joe Kenn MA, CSCS, SCCC Director of Athlete Development – Football University of Louisville Utilizing a squat movement is highly recommended for any athletic-based program. The combination of hip and knee extension that this movement develops is a key component in an athlete’s overall physical development. At one time, the traditional barbell back squat was the primary squat utilized in our program. Now, we use a variety of
Football Coaches are Football Savvy, but Just How Movement & Speed Savvy?
For nearly 30 years I‘ve worked toward becoming an expert at movement and speed for sports performance. The time spent has been a labor of personal gratification. I’ve worked with the old pros and today’s modern superstars of the NFL. My forte has been developing players at the novice to elite levels. Over the last 29 years, I’ve consulted with 11 NFL teams on speed development and was once on the staff of the Seattle Seahawks. Three years ago, I was approached by Pete Carroll from USC a
The Drills Report: Delaware’s Defensive Line Hip Emphasis Drills
As defensive line coaches, we all know the importance of developing strength, power, quick feet, active hands, and a relentless desire to get to the football. What I also add to that list is the development of the hips in relation to movements necessary to play defensive line. We work year-round on the strength, power and flexibility of the hips. Our training staff and strength & conditioning coaches work year-round improving this area and I incorporate drills that I feel are
Football Video – The Right Way
From the days of 16 millimeter film to the videotape era to today’s sophisticated digital video systems, recording and sharing game images for team analysis and opponent scouting has been an essential coaching tool. But do some coaches underestimate the importance of video and miss opportunities to get more effective use out of their video programs – possibly costing them future wins? According to David Affholter, the answer is, unfortunately, yes. “All coaches study game video o
30-Stack Pressure Defense
When we went to the 30-Stack defense as our base defense, we did so for a few reasons. First, it suited our personnel. Traditionally, we are a school that does not have great size, but we were fortunate to have athletes who could run. This defense allowed us to feature our greatest asset: team speed. Second, we liked the idea of being in a defense where we could show a lot of different looks to opposing offenses in terms of fronts and coverages without having to change personnel. The 3
The Off-Season: Preparing for Advanced Level Training (Part II)
This is part II in Dale Baskett’s column on eight elements of speed training in the off-season. In part I, Dale presented four of the eight elements starting with periodization, foundation principles, load work and assisted speed training (to read last month’s column, please visit www.AmericanFootballMonthly.com). This month Dale discusses elements five through eight.
Special Teams Time Management
Special teams is the aspect of the game where the “Hidden Yardage” can have a great effect of the outcome of a game. The MSU “Red Hawks” will win the hidden yardage weekly. This is accomplished through hard work, being well disciplined, knowing and executing the techniques and assignments and playing every play as a 101%er. Solid special teams are directly related to sound and effective time management. The old adage of “Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance” couldn\
Fundamental Offensive Line Leverage Drills
I want to thank all the tremendous coaches who I have had the pleasure of learning from over the course of my 25 years of coaching. The following fundamental drills are still my favorite for developing offensive lineman. I take great pride in getting my players better every day. I impose the philosophy of never taking a day off or a play off. All my drills are executed to create positive blocking habits. The three things I demand each and every snap are for my OL to learn how to get into their f
Season Ending Evaluations of Players/Program
Jeff Shutter • Head Coach • Eastern York High School (PA) I always give the players a survey first to have them self evaluate their play, to evaluate their teammates, and to make suggestions for next season. I hold a meeting and distribute our lifting and conditioning calendar for the off season. I meet with the captains to have them write a brief note to help next year’s captains. The staff evaluates each game in hindsight and also evaluates returning players
10 Offensive Strategies
Charlie Stubbs is to coaching what IBM is to computers. Now at 53, chances are he’s logged more hours under a headset than the entire American Airlines flight crew. He’s spent 19 years in collegiate coaching, including the last eleven as a coordinator at such high-profile schools as Louisville, Tulsa, Alabama, UNLV and Oregon State. Perhaps it’s just coincidence that after his stint in Louisville, where the Cardinals averaged 32.5 points per game under his tenure, he landed in the lap of o
The Big Picture
It has been the goal of this article series to provide coaches with the ability to design a safe and productive strength and conditioning program. In this article I would like to reiterate some of the information provided in prior articles and give you a sample template. Before designing a strength and conditioning program it is most important to define what it is you are trying to accomplish. At the University of South Florida we have five program goals: 1. To maximize the genetic po
Beaver Brawn
When Oregon State beat #1-ranked USC in September, most observers agreed that the Beavers out-muscled the heavily favored Trojans. That was satisfying, but not surprising to OSU’s first-year Director of Strength and Conditioning Bryan Miller. The Beaver’s strength and conditioning program is being transformed under Miller, who was promoted in his third year at OSU when Jeff Macy left to become Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Milwaukee Bucks. With the help of a new facility featu
An Adjustment No One Wants to Make
Funny how we always tell our players that football is like life. We have our ups and downs and we learn how to juggle both of them without compromising our integrity or losing our dignity. About a month ago, our starting senior middle linebacker and one of the nicest kids, went down with a severe knee injury. But it wasn’t during practice, it was in the minutes leading up to it. As he was taking his introductory lap before our stretch he had the bright idea (we know they don’t always use
Halftime Adjustments
Halftime…It may be the most under coached aspect of a football game, and it usually separates average coaches from good coaches and good coaches from great coaches. It’s thinking on the run at its best, when everything else fails – when everything you worked on the entire week isn’t going the way you want it to – and you only have twenty minutes to get it all worked out. You either come out of that tunnel with redemption or suffer continuing onslaught. It’s always interesting to
Results For Recruits
Tony Severino might know more about big-time college recruiting than any high school coach in America. As head football coach of perennial powerhouse and defending Missouri State Champion Rockhurst High School in Kansas City, Coach Severino has compiled a record of 236-55-1 with six state championships over 25 years. With such a successful, high-profile program, Severino has seen literally hundreds of his players advance to play at the college level. From the 2007 team alone, 17 players have gon
What Can You do as a Coach to Improve Academic Progress and Eliminate Ineligibility
Vic Wallace, former Head Coach Lambuth University and now Special Assistant to the President for Athletics Lambuth University is a small, academic university. The university provides, for all students, a person with the title: Director of Student Success, Retention and Academic Advising. Professors report to this person via e-mail, phone or note anyone who is struggling in class, not attending, not getting assignments in or any student that requires special assistance or
- More Solutions to Problem #11
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 11: On field game/time management issues... what can be done if this is a problem within your coaching staff? We designate one coach as our time management coach, which is usually the coach(es) in the press box since they are away from the pressures
Valdosta State Defense - \"Code Red\" and Teaching Philosophy
First of all, I would like to thank AFM for asking us to share a few thoughts with you about Valdosta State and some thoughts about our \"CODE RED DEFENSE\". On behalf of our Head Football Coach, David Dean. and the rest of our Staff, we would like to share some of those thoughts that we believe helped us get through some halftime deficits we experienced throughout the year all the way to last year’s National Championship. Every group, unit, team, or some affiliation of people mu
Revamping the Wing-T
Who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks? Sure, the Wing-T offense has been around for over half a century and is continued to be used productively at every level of high school and small college football. The down blocks, traps and misdirection schemes have been giving defensive coordinators conniptions ever since the legend himself, former Delaware head coach Tubby Raymond, ran the Wing-T. This scheme has begun to morph into a different style. Good coaches are always trying to find wa
The Strength Report: Skill Development
These days a strength and conditioning coach has to be more than a weight lifting coach. They must be a mentor, counselor, nutritionist, etc. However, one area that must be well versed for a team to have great success on the field is skill development. Most seasons are between 3-4 months in length. This leaves 8-9 months of off-season time that position skills are often excluded. There must be a direct transfer from what is being done in those 8-9 months in the off-season to what will be done fo
The Speed Report: Variables For In-Season Speed Training (Part 2)
Last month we described many things that you can accomplish and sustain during the in-season. So very often in-season speed training becomes a burden to the football world in terms of time allotment. Football is about speed and the maintenance of technical applications that produce it. It never ceases to amaze me how much can be accomplished during the season with consistent training reinforcement. Conversely, the dissipation of technique can also be void of consistency when neglecte
Nickel Package: Matching Speed with Speed
With the continued advancement of spread offenses saturating the game of football, it becomes almost a necessity for defenses to match speed with speed by employing some type of nickel package in their scheme. It seems like not too long ago, coaches were fixated on putting their best eleven defenders in the game, regardless of the type of personnel that they were up against. Rarely was there any two-platoon system where players were subbed on and off the field defensively, like they were offensi
Stretching the Field With Your Tight End
Coaching tight ends at Marshall University has the best of both worlds. Our head coach Mark Snyder believes strongly in the use of the TE, while our offensive staff uses various schemes to implement them into the offense. Like most teams, we use a traditional TE with size to block defensive ends and also use their ability to be a part of the short passing game. In 2006, we found a hybrid TE to stretch the field and attack the defense with our vertical passing game. That year our TE’s combin
Getting Over the Mid-Season Hump
By the time you read this piece, you’re in the middle of the season and have a pretty good idea of how things will turn out. The best thing about the pre-season is feeling your kids out – who’s going to be a contender and who’s going to be a pretender. By now, at least you would think to have a handle on that. Hopefully, for most of us, we’re riding a win streak or rapidly progressing into “mid-season form”… whatever that means. For some of us, we have to deal with disappointment
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Mark Richt
An outstanding high school quarterback in South Florida, Mark Richt attended the University of Miami in nearby Coral Gables. There, he played for Coach Howard Schnellenberger and backed up future Hall of Fame QB Jim Kelly. Richt coached later on Bobby Bowden’s staff at Florida State for over a decade and helped mentor two Heisman Trophy winners, Charlie Ward and Chris Weinke. The Seminoles also won two National Championships during his time in Tallahassee. Named the head coach at Georgia prio
Using Speed and Movement to Shut Down the Inside Zone
Every defensive coach knows that the Inside Zone is a base play for most offenses. There are many variations to the Zone scheme like lead, split, read, and bubble. At Adrian we start with the premise that it is important to beat the Zone from the inside out. We try to force the running back to bounce or cut back where we want. We will run down the read, bubble, and options off the Inside Zone. Here at Adrian College we believe in a smaller, faster, attacking defense that leaves the offense on th
- More Solutions to Problem #12
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 12: Communication issues between the press box coaches and the sideline coaches...how do you improve this issue? As an offensive staff, which includes our head coach as an offensive position coach, we spend a lot of time in the off-season talking and me
- More Solutions to Problem #10
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 10: Poor personnel management from the sideline; penalties for not lining up properly, offside penalties, and your athletes\' running onto the field late. Is it the coaches\' or the players\' fault or both? Our philosophy is simple: what you see on t
- More Solutions to Problem #9
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 9: Special teams letdowns – losing a game because of special teams play...what can be done to improve special teams play? Our focus here at Holbrook is on kick coverage and punt/punt return, since these are the biggest change of field plays in the
Maximize Your Football Coaching Video
College coaches will admit that watching video accounts for 2-3 times more of their in-season workload than actual on the field preparation. Football game video is a necessary evaluation tool for coaches and players, yet many coaches struggle through each season with untrained videographers producing ineffective results. A decade of coordinating video for high school, NAIA, and NCAA-FBS football has taught me that finding the right personnel to handle your team\'s football video is
- More Solutions to Problem #8
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 8: Unproductivity in the red zone. Not being able to finish drives especially because of the lack of a strong field goal kicker...how to you deal with this issue? When we get within the red zone we limit our offense to what we do best: our ‘sainted
- More Solutions to Problem #7
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 7: Dealing with academic and disciplinary issues like cutting classes or grades...what can be done to solve this issue? We have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to these issues with both affecting playing time, depth chart, playing level, and eve
- More Solutions to Problem #4
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 4: Dealing with an early season setback such as an injury to your best player...how do you counter this setback and what is the contingency plan if this occurs? Having multiplicity in one’s scheme is very important at any level. Being a small town sc
- More Solutions to Problem #3
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 3: Not being able to get the ball in the hands of your playmaker and teams finding ways to limit his touches...what do you do to counter the frustration inherent to this problem? As the offensive coordinator in a triple option offense it is important
- More Solutions to Problem #2
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 2: Your running back has ball control issues... if he’s prone to fumbling, how do you improve his ball security? Ball security by all players is priority #1 in our offense and great care is given to ball security. We have a series of drills where th
- More Solutions to Problem #1
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 1. Not playing to the level of your opponent – avoiding a major let down early in the season... how do you deal with this issue? Are there ways to motivate a team that is under achieving? Our biggest issue is not so much playing down to our opponents,
The Speed Report: Variables For In-Season Speed Training (Part I)
When the season starts coaches become so focused on football that speed development is often the last thing they are concerned with. Speed erosion is greatest during the season. We must be mindful that football is a game of collisions and moving fast to make plays. If speed enhancement is ignored during the season, the off-season becomes a point of diminished return. There is a lot one can do in-season to preserve off-season development and actually improve speed. Time is never your friend durin
32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season
Monitor and adjust. It’s probably the most useful axiom in the coaching and teaching profession. We’re all regimented people by nature, which is why we get into this in the first place. We have everything accounted for and leave nothing to chance – from the opening stretch period in practice to our awards dinner in December. But what if that plan starts to tumble and collapse right in front of our face? What if your all-area QB tears his ACL during two-a-days? What if your seniors are not
Building Better Bruins
Head Athletic Performance Coach Mike Linn of UCLA has come home. Raised in Southern California, Linn was a two-year starter for the Bruins on the offensive line and stayed with the program after graduation, eventually becoming UCLA’s Head Strength and Conditioning Coach from 1999 to 2002. For the last several years, he’s been training individual athletes and supervising training programs nationwide for Velocity Sports Performance, a leading provider of individual performance training program
AFM Subscribers Ask...with David Cutcliffe
After only 22 wins over the last 13 seasons, Duke turned their fortunes to new head coach David Cutcliffe last December. Coach Cutcliffe comes to Durham after serving the previous two seasons as assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at Tennessee. His coaching experience includes a six-year stint at Ole Miss where the Rebels had a 44-29 record and went to four bowl games. Cutcliffe was named the SEC Coach of the Year in 2003 after leading the Rebels to a 10-3 record. He has participated
The 5th Down: Dealing with an Unsupportive Administration
Marcus George, Head Coach Ansbach High School Dodds, Germany “Our main goal when we go to a new school or welcome a new administrator is to weave ourselves tightly with the aims and goals of the staff and administration. It is important to let the staff know that you support them and to hear what the administrator is saying. Many times, we don\'t initially hear what we want to hear from a new administrator but the tune usually changes when they realize that our pla
Interviewing for a High School Coaching Job – The Key to the Right Fit
As anyone that has stayed in the coaching profession for long can tell you there are jobs that will be desired and there are jobs that look good but by taking them it could be the beginning of the end of your coaching career. How do you run the gauntlet of the interview process and find out the true story of what is going on at the interviewing school for the good of your professional opportunity and family considerations? A job interview is actually two interviews; the school offic
Michigan\'s Rich Rodriguez
There is no doubt that Rich Rodriguez has continued to establish himself as one of the premier coaches in college football. Known as the modern grandfather of the spread offense, Rodriguez has continued to establish quick strike offenses while developing even more explosive players to lead it. Now after taking the West Virginia program to new heights by making them a perennial national title contender, Rodriguez has his biggest challenge in front of him – as the new head coach of Michigan.
Predicting Offensive Coodinators\' Calls
Dear offensive coordinators, Ever get the feeling that someone is watching you? I mean really watching your every move. We’re talking about pure diagnosis here, like the quintessential chess playing tactic of knowing your next move before you do. This is the science of breaking down and dissecting your every move before you do it – and Warren Central High School’s (IN) defensive coordinator Steve Tutsie has got it down pat and he’s just about to share it with you.
The Triple Screen
It started with a sophomore defensive end on the scout team during the 2007 spring practice. When this inexperienced defender was able to blow up our jailbreak screen because he recognized the tackle was leaving to block the perimeter, it was another sign that we needed to address the fact that defensive teams have improved in their defending of the spread and screen game. Only four years earlier, our jailbreak screen, at times, had easily become a big play. Now, everyone was catching on to the
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Will Muschamp
Last fall, under Defensive Coordinator Will Muschamp, Auburn led the Southeastern Conference in scoring defense and finished in the top 10 nationally in pass efficiency defense, total defense, pass defense, and scoring defense. Since then Muschamp has joined the Texas staff as DC and inherits a defense that set school records for passing yards (3,611) and total yards (4,825) surrendered in a season in 2007. While he has his work cut out for him, Muschamp has a proven track record of fixing defen
The 5th Down: How to Motivate an Unmotivated Player
Rey Hernandez, Defensive Coordinator, La Jolla High School, San Diego, CA “We have started using an off-season program that is patterned after those used at some colleges. In fact I got the idea from a recent article in AFM about Kent State’s program. We selected seven captains and we conducted an NFL style draft wherein the captains selected team members. All returning varsity and junior varsity players were drafted and these players composed the “active mem
South Florida\'s Zone Blitz Package
We would like to a take this opportunity to share some of our thoughts and beliefs on our zone blitz package at The University of South Florida. We realize there are many different zone blitz philosophies, but our staff and players are very confident in what we do schematically. Through researching other successful programs and combining it with our experience as coaches, we developed a system that we feel confident we can execute on game day. We began our teaching process with our ba
Single Source
There’s no question that advances in technology have had a positive impact on football programs in recent decades. Digital editing systems have given coaching staffs play-analyzing capabilities that were unheard of just a few years ago. Wireless headset communication systems have become more powerful and more reliable and have freed coaches from the cumbersome wires of systems in the past. A long list of video accessory products such as duplicators have made tasks like sharing game footage wit
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Wisconsin-Whitewater's Lance Leipold
Taking over for his former college coach Bob Berezowitz last fall, Wisconsin-Whitewater’s Lance Leipold led the Warhawks to their first Division III National Championship. After losing to Mount Union in the title game in both 2005 and 2006, UW-W proved the third time is the charm as they upset Mount Union in their third straight meeting, 31-21. In the process, Leipold became only the second first-year coach to ever win a D-III National Championship. Leipold’s coaching career also began at
The 5th Down: Playing Time
Tim Dodson, Head Coach, Siuslaw High School, Florence, OR “First I think it is important to describe our school because size of school and coaching staff have a great deal on how playing time is handled. We are a 450 student high school and we have around 30 players on our varsity roster and 35 players in our frosh/soph program. We have three coaches with our frosh/soph team and three coaches with our varsity team. Our frosh/soph coaches are busy on our game night and
Special Teams Game Plan Design
In no other phase of the game can field position be changed so dramatically in just one play as in the kicking game; yet, coaches often minimize weekly preparation in the kicking game just to get a few more offensive or defensive reps. Also, in no other phase of the game can one play be so emotionally uplifting, or, conversely, so demoralizing as in the kicking game. Additionally, consider that nearly one-third of the game is consumed by some phase of the kicking game and that for eve
Valdosta State Defense: Code Red
First of all, I would like to thank AFM for asking us to share a few thoughts with you about Valdosta State and some thoughts about our \"CODE RED DEFENSE.\" On behalf of our head football coach, David Dean, and the rest of our staff, we would like to share some of those thoughts that we believed helped us get through those halftime deficits we experienced throughout the year on our way to the D-II National Championship. Every group, unit, team , or some affiliation of people mus
iFutbol Fever!
As everyone knows, soccer is king in the Mexican sporting world. But did you know that football as we know it, Fútbol Americano to Mexicans, has been played south of the border at the collegiate and professional levels since the 1920’s and today enjoys widespread popularity? Or that the top conference in the ONEFA (the primary collegiate league) is known as Doce Grandes – the Big 12? Or that an ONEFA All-Star team beat a NCAA Division III All-Star team in 2003 to capture the annual Aztec Bo
Renowned Rivalry
Together, the two teams have won the last 12 Oklahoma state 6A titles. They’re each regularly ranked in national polls. Their annual in-season game, known as the Backyard Bowl, draws over 35,000 fans – too many to fit in either of their stadiums so it’s played at the University of Tulsa. A documentary film about their rivalry called “King of the Mountain” was made in 2003. Last year they were featured in the premier episode of “Greatest High School Football Rivalries” – a nationa
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Valdosta State\'s David Dean
Last December Valdosta State’s Head Coach David Dean became the second coach to win the Division II National Championship in his first season. Dean replaced Chris Hatcher in January 2007 and then led VSU to a 13-1 record, culminating in a 25-20 win over Northwest Missouri State in the championship game. Dean served as Valdosta State’s Offensive Coordinator from 2000-2006 where the Blazers won another national championship in 2004. During that time VSU was a perennial leader in scoring offens
The Definition of a Coach
The other day I was at a sporting event with a friend who is a fellow coach. Behind us a student hollered, “Hey Coach.” We both automatically turned our heads in response to find that he wasn\'t addressing either of us. This athlete was talking to his coach, seated in our general vicinity. The athlete got his coach\'s attention. He appeared to be in somewhat of a panic, but whatever the coach was saying to him, it seemed to calm him down. Eventually, he smiled. Observing this interacti
The Speed Report: Quickness & Speed - What\'s the Difference in Football?
I travel the country month to month installing my progression – designed football speed training system. It deals with quickness and transition speed effectiveness. As teams and their staffs spend a few days learning to use the comprehensive package, I am always asked what’s the difference between quickness and speed? The common thought is that if a player has limb speed (arm and leg cycle frequency) then he has good speed. It’s the general thinking of most coaches but it’s n
How to Choose a Video System That\'s Right for You
In the early 1980’s, videotape replaced 16 millimeter film as the standard tool for coaches reviewing game footage and game-planning for upcoming opponents. While video had obvious advantages to film, coaches were just as limited in their ability to jump to the right video segment as they were with film. Watching game tapes provided video that could help a coach see a player’s problems and correct them, but rewinding and fast-forwarding through tapes was cumbersome and a big waste of time. E
Fueling Champions
As Director of Strength and Conditioning at LSU, Tommy Moffitt knows how to train athletes to become champions. With his second BCS National Championship at LSU in the last five years, Moffitt solidified his reputation as one of the country’s top strength and conditioning coaches. The 2003 Samson Strength and Conditioning Collegiate Coach of the Year, Moffitt understands the critical role that nutrition plays in supplementing the hard work that happens in the weight room. AFM recently asked
Developing a Passing Attack that Fits Your Plans and Players
Throughout my twenty-nine years in the profession, I have had the opportunity to coach at both the collegiate and high school levels. During that time, I have had the pleasure of working with various coaching staffs that have helped me formulate my philosophies on dealing with the passing game. At the same time, I have had many athletes with various ranges in athletic abilities. Therefore, I have had to adapt each year to the specific situation. When you are developing a passing at
Defensive Game Planning
Game planning is all about prioritizing; sifting through all the infinite details that you and your staff have investigated; and pinpointing the most crucial elements. Every coach worth his whistle charts tendencies from every down-and-distance, from every formation, and from each hash mark. They scout blocking schemes and multiple personnel match-ups, just like you do. They document the number of times you run certain routes; they know what your go-to running and passing plays are an
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Jerry Moore
Appalachian State Head Coach Jerry Moore led the Mountaineers to one of college football’s all-time upsets last fall: ASU beat Michigan, in Ann Arbor, 34-32. Additionally, Moore and the Mountaineers completed last season as the first ‘three-peat’ in the history of Division I-AA or FCS football. ASU won their third consecutive National Championship beating Delaware, 49-21. Appalachian’s head man since 1989, Moore has an overall 167-70 record. In 2006 he was selected the Schutt Sports FCS
The A-11 Offense: You Have to See it to Believe it
Warning: Although completely accurate, the following information may seem preposterous, even downright offensive, to some defensive coaches and those conventional offensive coordinators who have grown accustomed to running the same scheme year after year and too set in their ways to change. All skill players on the field at the same time? Every player can be eligible on any given play? It’s real. It’s all real. So real that we got film to prove it – right now as a matter of fact
The Speed Report: The Essence of High School Combines and Your Players
High school combines nationally have mushroomed over the last five years. Is it a fad or is it here to stay? Personally, I think it will stay for a while. Some years ago I was living in Seattle and for a point in time was the speed coach for the Seattle Seahawks. I was obviously aware of the NFL combines that were conducted at that level. In those days the statistics recorded by the organizations were strictly confidential; they were not public knowledge. Today, the combines are liv
Samson\'s I-AA, II, III, NAIA, Juco and HS Strength & Conditioning Coaches of th
Division I-AA/FCS: Henry Briscoe Central Arkansas The Strength and Conditioning Coach at Central Arkansas, Henry Briscoe, has been influenced by a number of coaches and players over the years. But, in addition to that, one book that has helped his strategy is the Book of War by Sun-Tsu. “One of the concepts in the book is to analyze your weaknesses and make them your strengths,” says Briscoe. “We try to do that in the weight room and on the field. This can be
Powerful Performance
A record-setting 12-1 season. The first top-ten final AP ranking since 1995, tying their highest ever. A stunning 24-21 victory against Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl. Multiple Coach of the Year honors for Head Coach Mark Mangino. The only one-loss team in the top ten. By any measure, the 2007-08 season was a monumental success for the University of Kansas Jayhawks. For Head Strength and Conditioning Coach Chris Dawson, the Jayhawks’ success on the field was the payoff for the long hours and
Building Team Unity with the Games Inside the Game
These days the game of football is broken down to a science. Sure, most coaches preach lip service about blocking and tackling but they are usually the same ones that spend a great deal of money and countless hours filing into clinic discussions trying to find the latest innovative offensive scheme or researching a bone-crushing defense. So instead of searching the ends of the earth for the newest scheme or end-all technicality, some coaches have turned towards the intangibles like developing t
4 Principles of Play Action Passing
Gary Crowton has seen it all. He has coached in the biggest stadiums, in the biggest conferences, in the biggest games. He has coached in the small stadiums of small conferences in overlooked games. But, one thing doesn’t change no matter where he coaches. It is all football. WHY PLAY ACTION? Crowton joined Les Miles’ staff at LSU this year as offensive coordinator and helped lead the Tigers to a National Championship using two quarterbacks and a handful of ball c
Test for Success
Beyond any doubt, strength and conditioning programs are becoming more sophisticated all the time, especially at high schools. Education of coaches, modern equipment, improved nutrition and detailed training regimens have all contributed to the trend. • But one very important area, according to legendary strength coach Boyd Epley, has been overlooked – testing athletes to establish benchmarks that can then be used to gauge the effectiveness of a strength training program. “Without a well-d
Shutting Down the Zone Option
Delta State head coach Ron Roberts knows the zone option. He sees it every week. Like most other conferences in college football, the Gulf Coast, a Division II conference, has become filled with teams who invest in running some form of option out of the spread. In fact, eight of the ten programs in the Gulf Coast are pure option teams. Whether it be zone, veer, midline, dart or speed option, chances are you will see some form of it. “We see it all, a little bit of everything to tell the truth,
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Ron Zook
Illinois Head Coach Ron Zook and his staff and players recorded one of the greatest turnarounds in the last decade with the team’s performance last fall. The Illini, 2-10 in 2006, finished the season with a 9-3 record, a major upset win over Ohio State in Columbus and a berth in the Rose Bowl. That turnaround (+7) was tops among all Football Bowl Subdivision teams. Known as a tireless worker and recruiter, Zook’s first two campaigns resulted in an overall 4-19 record. But his recruiting p
Practice Planning For All Levels of Play
\"Winning is never an accident, it is the result of high intentions, determination and skilled executions\" When was the last time you or any coach you know complained of having too much practice time? As a coach with nearly 25 years of experience at the youth leagues, I have never heard a coach complain of this. I doubt sincerely that high school or colleges complain of this as well. One thing I have found out though, in the research I have done of successful coaches at all leve
Schutt Sports FBS I-A Coach of the Year - Ron Zook
A program that won eight games the previous four seasons combined – and went 4-19 his first two years – wasn’t about to tear up the blueprint and start from scratch. Zook, 53, believed in what he was doing and that belief paid off as Illinois finished 9-4, including an impressive victory at Ohio State. Going from two wins in 2006 to nine this past season gave Illinois the best turnaround season among Football Bowl Subdivision teams. “I’m really honored to be named the Schutt
Multiple Fronts Without Changing Personnel
No matter what defensive scheme you run, there are a few elements that must always be consistent for you to be successful. The athletes must believe in what they’re doing and they must understand what their responsibilities are. At the high school level we cannot recruit, so finding the great corners, the big Middle LB or the two big, strong, fast linemen may not happen each year. As high school football coaches we need to be able to adjust what we do depending on what the parents send us. No
Air Raid Offense Drills
In the book Band of Brothers by Stephen Ambrose is a quote by the author of Warriors, J. Glenn Gray: “Organization for a common and concrete goal in peacetime organizations does not evoke anything like the degree of comradeship commonly known in war. At its height this sense of comradeship is an ecstasy…men are true comrades only when each is ready to give his life for the other without reflection and without thought of personal loss.” The players on our team must build cohesiveness close
Schutt Sports College Coaches of the Year
FCS - DIVISION I-AA Mark Farley Northern Iowa (7th year) Record: 12-1, first Gateway Conference school to complete a perfect 11-0 season; upset Iowa State. Offense: Primarily a one-back, Shotgun West Coast offense, with 30-40% mix of I-formation. Defense: 4-3 Key Stat: Talk about balance – the Panthers averaged 227 rushing yards and 229 passing yards this season. The difference in Mark Farley’s f
Schutt Sports High School Coaches of the Year
EAST Jim Morgans, Parkland HS (Allentown, Pa.) After losing to the Parkland Trojans, opposing coaches invariably remarked on their relentless defense. Parkland’s defensive pursuit was no accident. The Trojans, who recorded seven straight shutouts en route to a 14-1 season, practice a different pursuit drill every day. One is the rabbit drill. “We toss the ball to a rabbit – he’s a kid who will run down the sideline,” coach Jim Morgans explain
National HS Coach of the Year - Grace Under Fire
They say there are no hopeless situations; there are only men who have grown hopeless about them. But about this time last year, circumstances surrounding Miami’s Northwestern High School, one of the nation’s most respected football programs, certainly seemed hopeless. Antwan Easterling, one of the nation\'s most sought after running backs, was 19 years old at the time and had consensual sex with a 14 year-old freshman in one of the school’s bathrooms. Despite the fact that it was consider
Combating Offensive Speed with the 4-4 Defense
Whatever is being done at a higher level is usually filtered and quickly replicated through to the high school ranks. Packages like the zone read offense, the ‘spread’ rugby style punt formation and odd-stack defenses have become the norm now at lower levels. Although trends come in cycles, perhaps no scheme in football, except for the I formation offense, has had as much consistency as the 4-4 defense. Yet despite the popularity of the defense, teams have recently started to shif
The Choice of Champions
As every coach will attest, effective and reliable communication between the coaches on the sideline and those in the press box is a critical element of any team’s success on the field. For two San Diego area high schools, this meant a change was needed for the 2007 season. Head Coach Damian Gonzalez’s Division I Poway Titans were coming off an 8-6 season in 2006 where headset communication was sometimes an issue. “At certain schools we would pick up a lot of static on our headse
How To Get The Most Out Of Practice Time As An Assistant Coach
Football programs at all levels from Pop Warner to the NFL have to deal with similar challenges. Your practice time is limited. Your playbook is unlimited. Your next opponent presents numerous difficulties. As a result, many coaches struggle weekly with the same dilemma: How are we going to get all this done? The answer, of course, is that every staff must get the most of practice time. But how? While many clinics, books, and articles advise head coaches how to plan a week or day of practi
Did the Spin Offense Live Up to its Hype?
If you were to ask Cirtronelle High School (AL) Offensive Coordinator Barry Gibson or Catholic High’s (LA) Head Coach Dale Weiner a year ago if they thought they would have this much feedback from the Spin offense, neither one would have believed you. But the truth is since the first article on the Spin appeared in AFM’s December, 2006 issue, Gibson and Weiner have spent countless hours on the computer emailing coaches and in the post office sending out cut-ups of the Spin scheme. It has tak
The Zone Read in the Pistol Offense
“This concept is rapidly growing around the country. Most high schools that are good at running this are doing it out of an off-set. We are doing it out of the Pistol alignment because we think it gives him a better downhill angle to attack the line of scrimmage and not so much sideways.” Coach Steve Rampy of Blue Valley High School in Stillwell (KS) won a state championship last year using the Pistol offense. But even though they didn’t win a state title this year, he is
The Truth About Recruiting
There is no doubting Ed Orgeron\'s passion for recruiting.. Just ask his former boss, Pete Carroll. But, unfortunately for Orgeron, his recruiting abilities didn\'t translate into victories during his three-year tenure at Ole Miss. He was fired Nov. 25, just a few months after Bruce Feldman\'s book \"Meat Market\" was published and shortly after this article was written. Plenty can still be learned from Orgeron\'s relentless recruiting efforts, which Feldman reveals i
The Machiavellian Football Coach
Written in 1513 and published posthumously in 1531, The Prince (Il Principe) by Niccolò Machiavelli has become synonymous with ruthlessness and tyranny. Today, it is often read (along with Lao Tzu’s The Art of War, interestingly enough) in business courses as preparation for the cut-throat world these students are about to enter. A careful reading of The Prince, however, yields an insightful view into topics essential to becoming a successful football coach. Before we set about anal
Defending the Pass
In today’s brand of college football, teams tend to throw more than they run. In light of this trend, the coaching staff at UCLA has tried to be more creative with regard to how we coach and prepare our players to play against the pass. Also, because of his experience in the NFL, UCLA Defensive Coordinator Dewayne Walker, then with the Washington Redskins, brought information from studies done on \'Ball Disruptions.\' It is well known that combining pressure on the passer with the ja
Gaining the Pre- and Post-Snap Advantage
It is commonly said that an offense has two distinct pre-snap advantages over any particular defense: one, they know the snap count and two, they know where the ball is going. Once the ball is snapped those advantages disappear, but there are other factors post-snap, such as movement and deception, to help leverage defenses. AFM talked to three of the more prominent coaches in the country: Dale Weiner of Catholic High School in Baton Rouge; Byron Hamilton of Foothill High School in Cal
Common Bond
The contrasts could not be greater. The big school in the football-crazed state that routinely plays in front of over 10,000 fans and produces multiple D-I players every year. The small school in the small state that’s only playing in its eighth year and might draw 2,000 for the season’s biggest game. One tech-savvy coach who has grown up with computers and another who had, until very recently, never used a computer and still refuses to use email. But Defensive Coordinator Jonathan Kay of po
What Do You Mean You Guys Don\'t Bench? Not At All?
\"Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect\"—Mark Twain I can’t begin to tell you how many times I’ve had to answer the title of this article in the past four years—from all factions: fans, players, parents and even other coaches. As you well know, in our profession anytime we go against the norm there is some inherent risk. There is safety in conformity. “If the league champ is running the spread, then we will too. So
Unsung Heroes
Monday, August 29, 2005. In the early morning hours, category 3 Hurricane Katrina slams into Louisiana and Mississippi, barely missing a direct hit on New Orleans. The worst damage is initially concentrated on the Gulf Coast, but within the next 24 hours it becomes apparent that the levee system designed to protect New Orleans is failing. Some levees are topped by the high water in Katrina’s wake and others are completely breached. By the end of the day on Tuesday, 80% of New Orleans is un
The Strength Report: Developing the Explosive Athlete - Auburn's Off Season Tra
Conditioning should be at the forefront of a football strength and conditioning program. This does not diminish the importance of the weight room but there always needs to be a certain level of fitness for each player. You can't overemphasize the importance of conditioning, especially in this day and age. No matter how great the player is in the weight room, if he can't run, he can't play. This not only applies to straight-ahead running but the ability to move athletically, to change direction a
How Kent State Creates Leaders through Year-Round Competition
Kent State University Head Coach Doug Martin remembers trying to figure out what went wrong following a 1-10 season (including 0-8 in the Mid-American Conference). Picking up the pieces after the team had gone a respectable 5-6 the previous year wasn’t easy. But one piece that certainly needed to be addressed was team leadership. “When coaches are losing, the first thing that comes out of their mouths is we don’t have any leadership,” Martin said. “Well, it’s our job as coa
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Jerry Glanville
The man in black is back...Veteran NFL coach Jerry Glanville accepted the head coaching position at Portland State earlier this year. The former head coach of both the Houston Oilers and Atlanta Falcons, Glanville spent more than a decade out of coaching while serving as a television analyst. He returned to the coaching ranks on the college level two years ago, joining June Jones’ staff in Hawaii as Defensive Coordinator. After two years in Honolulu, Glanville accepted the PSU position on Febr
The Spin Offense: The Weakside Attack
Six years ago, I was the offensive coordinator at St. Andrews Episcopal High School in Ridgeland, MS. I was at a point in my career where I wanted to design an offense that would not only be different but would also help a team with average talent to compete against much stronger and more talented teams. With 23 years of coaching experience under my belt, I had run just about every kind of offense you could imagine. It was at that time I created the \'Spin Offense.\' By combining some
The Defensive End: Up or Down?
Chuck Martin is quite familiar with success. Martin will begin his third year as head football coach at Grand Valley State University, the winningest Division II football program in the country. He has led the Lakers to 23 wins, a D-II National Championship, a 13-game winning streak and a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) title. The Lakers’ success begins and ends with defense. Eleven of GVSU’s 13 opponents were held to 17 points or less and seven scored 10 points or fe
Inside Zone Read: Three Ways to Combat the Games Defenses Play
Our base running play is the inside zone read out of the shotgun. We don’t block the backside end and since we are in the shotgun he becomes our read. Our offensive staff has had the opportunity to ask a lot of defensive coordinators at various levels ‘how do you defend zone read?’ Most of them answer that they have one defender on the backside responsible for chasing the running back and another to stay at home and ‘rob’ the QB. This can be done out of many different fronts. Defenses
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Glenn Caruso
Macalester College’s football program began a new era on December 16, 2005 when the college named Glenn Caruso its new football coach. In his previous position as offensive coordinator at South Dakota, Caruso directed an offense that set 117 school records including points scored and total yardage. In 2005, the Coyotes went 9-2 while averaging 49.7 points and 583 yards per game. Last fall, in his first season as Macalester’s head coach, the Scots produced their two highest single-game, total
Effective Cover 1 Robber Coverage
John Burrell sits in his office on a warm afternoon in late July. The Western Connecticut State University coach wishes he could walk over to the clock on the wall and stop the hands from moving. But with a game scheduled for late August that clock just keeps on ticking towards another season. There never seems to be enough time to get ready. And getting ready for Burrell often includes creating something different. A new twist. A wrinkle no one has seen before. An adjustment here. An adjustment
Disguising Your Pre-Snap Defense
Sometimes the best way to disguise a defense is with no disguise at all. Miami (OH) defensive backs coach Tim Cooper relies on that type of deception to confuse offenses. Instead of throwing multiple looks at offenses, Cooper often prefers that the Redhawks’ defense looks identical to the way it did on the previous play. That doesn’t mean Miami will never use pre-snap movement. Stemming the line, bluffing pressure with creeping linebackers and showing multiple-safety looks are all
Meshing the Option with the West Coast Offense
Not unlike the other service academies, when it came to running the football, the United States Air Force Academy prided itself on executing a balanced, three-back option attack. Focusing on four to five yards a carry – their patented scheme would burn up the clock and wear down its opponents. It was that ‘three yards and a cloud of dust’ mentality that former head coach Fisher DeBerry preached to his cadets for the 23 years of his reign giving them a chance to compete against bigger, stro
Major Upgrade
Any list of the most successful prep programs in the country over the last quarter century would certainly include the Jenks Trojans. Led by Head Coach Allan Trimble, Jenks has taken the Oklahoma 6-A state title crown 11 times since 1979, including six in a row between 1996 and 2001 and eight out of the last eleven. Trimble’s perennial powerhouse prevailed again in 2006, overcoming the tragic death of the team’s starting center, Garrett Bennett, just prior to the start of the season.
Letter From the Editor/Publisher: Terry Hoeppner (1947-2007)
Terry Hoeppner (1947-2007) Football coaches are judged by the number of wins and losses on their record. But the real judgment is based on the lives a coach touches. Terry Hoeppner was an assistant high school coach, Head Coach at Franklin College, on the staff and then Head Coach at Miami University and then Head Coach at Indiana. A football coach for more than three and a half decades, we estimate he influenced the lives of about 1,875* players. That,
Motion Offense
It is an honor to write this article on behalf of Rick Comegy and the Jackson State offensive staff. We’ve been fortunate to be blessed with an array of talented athletes who have the ability to play multiple positions. Offensive coaches are always trying to find the edge on defenses. Using motion, shifting, and audibles at the line of scrimmage are just a few ways we try to create mismatches for every play. Defenses are doing an excellent job of recognizing different personnel groups and maki
D-Backs: Playing with Low Pad Level
One of the most important fundamental concepts that we stress in the secondary at Iowa State University is playing with low pad level. We believe as a staff that this improves the capabilities of our players in two ways. First, low pad level allows us to have phenomenal power when striking a ball carrier or when disengaging from a blocker. Second, it allows for quicker cuts and breaks, especially within the secondary. I have had the opportunity to work with both the linebackers as well
Comebacks
Games can be-and often are-won at halftime. Last year in Division I-A, there were 129 comeback victories by teams that trailed at halftime. Houston’s Art Briles authored five second-half comeback victories in 2006, most in Division I-A. Having a high-powered, quick-strike offense helps, says Briles, but making sure the team believes it can get back into the game is equally as important. San Jose State’s Dick Tomey led the Spartans to four second-half comebacks en route to
AFM Subscribers Ask... with Ron Vanderlinden
Penn State Linebackers Coach Ron Vanderlinden answered questions from subscribers in the May issue of AFM. Because of the subscriber response, he answers additional questions about the linebacker position. A coach for more than a quarter century, Vanderlinden has coached at Bowling Green, Michigan, Ball State, Colorado, Northwestern, Maryland and Penn State. He was the Terrapins head coach from 1997-2000 and this fall enters his seventh year in Happy Valley. Q. What is the teaching
GAME PREPARATION FOR HIGH SCHOOL DEFENSE
It is an honor to contribute to American Football Monthly and to represent the Verona Area High School football program. A common challenge faced in preparing a defense for each game is that of making changes and adjustments to defend the opponent, while maintaining the base structure of the defensive scheme. A second challenge is to maintain a manageable level of sophistication in scheme while eliminating player confusion. Many staffs spend the off-season learning new schemes, mo
The Strength Report: Developing the Explosive Athlete - Offensive Linemen
Training a football player is a year long endeavor. We have four years to develop the players under our charge. At BGSU we receive tremendous support from Head Coach Gregg Brandon and his staff in emphasizing the program to the players and allotting time for training during the NCAA imposed hour guidelines. The football staff also does a great job in identifying talent. When developing an explosive football player step one is evaluation. Players play certain positions because of body type, skill
Headset Heaven
Imagine the following situation: you’re setting up your headset system for a road game against a big rival. One hour before game time, you and your staff run a test of the system and it seems to be working fine. All five coaches on the sideline and four in the booth have good, clear signals. As the head coach, you know that effective game day communication between coaches is an essential part of winning. No coaching staff can expect to succeed without a well thought out sideline comm
The Strength Report: Wide Receivers Part II
Our next three phases are the Pre-Season Camp, Fall In-Season, and Bowl Preparation or Transition. During the Pre-Season Camp we will utilize different circuits in the strength program. The wide receivers will lift two to three times weekly for about 30-40 minutes. The volume of lower body strength training is decreased significantly, due to the demands that are being placed on the position group on the field during practice in camp. This is a time we focus on recovery and injury prevention with
The Situation
It’s near halftime with your opponent at the 50 yard line in a Spread Shotgun set with trips on the right side and a single WR on the left. There’s time for one more play before halftime and it looks like a ‘Hail Mary’ is coming. You’ve been in a 4-4 defense but must adjust to a potential trick play or long pass. How would you defend this offense? Travis Cossey, Defensive Coordinator and Tim Schipper, Head Coach, Fennville HS, MI. AFM subscriber sin
Letter From the Editor: Free Coaching Clinics
Coach Brooke Stafford is the defensive line coach at Lufkin High School in Texas, one of the premier prep programs in the country. In addition to his coaching duties, he has another job: Stafford (pictured) is the Recruiting Coordinator for the Lufkin Panthers. With the guidance of Head Coach John Outlaw, the Panthers have had 131 players receive scholarships over the last 12 years. Having the normal responsibilities as a recruiting coordinator, Stafford spends time with the school cou
The Drills Report: Ball Security Drills
At American International College, through the diligence of our staff and head coach Art Wilkins, the idea of ball security and turnover margin is given our top priority. We have been taught to view this statistic as second only to the score of the game. Also, I have been extremely fortunate to coach talented players with high character and the ability to work hard and buy into our principles. In this article, my objective is to share my beliefs on ball security as it pertains to running backs,
AFM Subscribers Ask... with Tommy Bowden
The first thing that comes to mind when you look at Tommy Bowden’s record is consistency. In ten seasons as a head coach, all ten of his teams have been bowl eligible at the conclusion of the regular season. Each of his last seven teams have finished with a winning record. In his ten seasons as a head coach (two with Tulane and eight at Clemson) Bowden has an overall 78-41 record, a 65.5% winning percentage. A walk-on wide receiver at West Virginia, Bowden’s first coaching job was
Making the Most of 3 and Outs
Sure, some coaches like to preach about how vital special teams are, giving the cliché about it being one-third of a complete game. Yet it usually gets filtered down into pure lip service, with coaches dedicating the majority of their time to what is perceived as more important issues like stopping the spread offense or figuring out how to get their best offensive players in space – special teams becomes an afterthought. But for Lousiana Tech’s new head coach Derek Dooley, he’s
The Strength Report: Developing the Explosive Athlete - Wide Receivers (Part I)
Our football players are put through a year round periodized speed, strength and conditioning plan. Depending on what time of year it is, our focus for our football players will also change. The annual plan is broken down into six different phases: Winter Development, Spring Development, Summer Pre-Season, Pre-Season Camp, Fall In-Season and Bowl Preparation or Transition. Our football players are also grouped and categorized by strength and skill level along with the position they play on the f
The Situation
Scott Criner, Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks Coach, Bishop Kelly High School, Boise ID. AFM subscriber since 2001. We are a no-huddle offense and we expect to get a large number of repetitions per game. In this situation we would want to be aware of field position and how well our defense is playing the opponent’s offense. The worst thing we can do is force the ball and allow the opponent to gain field position by giving them a turnover. After taking the abo
Letter From the Editor: \'She Called me a Traitor...\'
Head Coach Chuck Martin of back-to-back defending NCAA Division II National Champion Grand Valley State University has an unusual distinction. In 2003, the Lakers won the D-II Championship when Martin was the defensive coordinator under Brian Kelly. After Kelly left for the head job at Central Michigan, Martin became GVSU’s head coach. In the three years since, the Lakers won national titles in 2005 and 2006. But what’s unique is that Martin made the complete transition to the offensive side
Drills Report: Drills for Defensive Backs
When playing in the secondary, one must understand the thought process of a receiver. A receiver’s stemming throughout a route helps gain leverage on the defensive player. Stemming is the use of angles by the receiver to manipulate the DB into position, where it is difficult to make plays. The stems used by a receiver are utilized for a purpose; that is, what specific route a vertical stem is taken on the DB. The vertical stem will reduce the DB’s cushion and make the DB turn and run. When t
AFM Subscribers Ask...
Ron Vanderlinden, now approaching his seventh year as Linebackers Coach at Penn State, has developed a reputation as an outstanding linebackers mentor. Over the years, he has coached Penn State All-Americans Paul Posluszy and Dan Connor, Pat Fitzgerald and Barry Gardner of Northwestern and Chad Brown of Colorado. He also helped the Nittany Lions defense rank in the top 15 nationally in rushing, pass efficiency, scoring, total defense and sacks in 2005. Similarly, his Northwestern defense in 1995
Technology Tools You Need Today
There’s no denying that technological advances have had a significant impact on football and coaching. In only a few decades, we’ve come from cutting and splicing 16mm game film by hand in order to analyze opponent’s tendencies to today’s state-of-the-art editing systems and software that can give coaches information and advantages never before available. Coaches today are wireless, online, hi-speed and most definitely high-tech. Product innovation and falling prices are drivin
Coach-By-Coach Responsibilities on Game Day
Coaches across America at every level require their players to be prepared for every game so they can be as effective and efficient as possible. If you do not require the same game day plan from your coaching staff in both responsibility and communication, then you are not being true to the requirements you place on your players. In researching another project for AFM, we found a wide discrepancy on game day responsibilities and communication among coaching staffs at various levels. T
The Pistol Offense - Part I
Without uncertainty, two of the most popular schemes in high school and college football today are the inside/outside zone play and the play action that results from it. Imagine the offensive productivity you’d have by being able to combine those two concepts while adding an element of misdirection? It’s exactly this kind of productivity that Chris Ault, head coach at Nevada, is having with the Wolf Pack since converting from an “I” formation to his own invention, the Pistol offense.
Implementing the Sweep Series Package
Growing up the son of a high school football coach, I was exposed to a brand of offensive football that utilizes a series of complementary plays off the same or similar formations, backfield actions, and blocking schemes. The Drive Series or Split- T offense that my father used in our high school combined full flow base runs with the misdirection of counter plays and play action passes. All fit neatly into a system that allowed the offense to keep the defense off balance by countering defensive
The Situation
Pete Saylor, Assistant Coach, Southern Columbia High School, Catawissa, PA. AFM subscriber since 1999. The field position does not put us in a panic mode. The staff has reminded the team that our opponent has some outstanding athletes with the ability to make some big plays. It is important that we keep our composure over the course of the game. We know that they like to take advantage of their team speed. With that said, we feel we can stay in our base defense and have succes
Drills Report: C.W. Post\'s Zone Block Teaching Progressive
The purpose of this article is to discuss how we teach the basics of zone blocking at C. W. Post. In our nine years as a staff, we have enjoyed great success. We believe this is due to playing great defense and being dominant in the run game. Over the last few years we\'ve had running backs that have gained over 2,000 yards in different seasons and in 2005 we had two running backs that both rushed for over 1,000 yards. Among all Division II colleges in 2005, we were fourth in total offense (517
Bobby April\'s 5 Must Follow Rules for Coaching Kickoff Returns
Have you ever dreamt of always starting an offensive drive near midfield? Or is it more of the opposite … you wake up in a cold sweat after another nightmare where your kick returner misjudges the ball and you are stuck near your goal line in the biggest game of the year. Buffalo Bills Special Teams Coach Bobby April has five rules that will all but guarantee that you will be better than ever in your kick return game. And hopefully you will sleep better at night. RULE# 1
Developing the Explosive Athlete: Wide Receivers
Strategy My strategy when designing a strength and conditioning program for the Georgia Tech football team first starts with the word EFFORT. Over the last eleven years that I have been in this business, I have found that all of the successful teams that I have worked with were not always the most talented but won because of their willingness to put forth the extra effort and intensity needed for us to become successful. I firmly believe that the athlete’s motivation and dedic
Preparation: 4 Points to Remember from Penn State
If you had the opportunity to spend an hour with Penn State Linebackers Coach Ron Vanderlinden, what would you ask him? Think for a moment about the tradition of Nittany Lion linebackers. I had that opportunity at last month’s American Football Coaches Association convention in San Antonio. While we were getting ready for a photo shoot, we talked informally, not about X’s and O’s but about game preparation. Coach Vanderlinden takes a special pride in preparation as we spoke about
Strong Beliefs: A Key Ingredient in the Success of a Strength & Conditioning Pro
D I-AA: Kyle Speer • Sam Houston State Kyle Speer has been the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at Sam Houston State University for three years. He has one assistant coach, Brian Wiseman, working with him, and together the two are responsible for 16 sports with more than 350 athletes. In 2005 and 2006, Sam Houston State won the Commissioner’s Cup Championship Award, which is a performance-based award for the best overall athletic program in the Southland Conference. Sp
AFM Subscribers Ask...
Catholic High School Coach (Baton Rouge, LA) Dale Weiner has been a coach for 32 years with the last 21 as the head man at CHS. During that time, his teams have a 201-48 overall record with 13 district titles and have been either a state finalist or semi-finalist a total of 7 times. CHS has a current playoff streak, as well, of 19 consecutive years. He has coached, among other outstanding athletes, Warrick Dunn, Major Applewhite and Travis Minor. During the 2001 season Weiner and his staff began
The Speed Report
Coaching is teaching and the successful coaches from year to year are usually good teachers on the field. Over the last 38 years I’ve been coaching I’ve observed that most coaches rely on natural talent and innate speed skills when choosing a running back. Running backs with quicks, vision and intuitive reaction capabilities are a choice commodity. Exceptional running backs come along infrequently. However, developing backs to have quickness, burst and acceleration capability while running w
AFM Subscribers Ask...
Former Georgia Southern head coach Mike Sewak helped learn his craft from two GSU legendary coaches: Erk Russell and Paul Johnson. An oustanding lineman for Virigina in the late 70\'s, Sewak first coached at Hobart and Georgia Tech before joining Russell\'s staff for two seasons in the mid 80\'s. In those two years in Statesboro, the Eagles won national championships. He then coached at Hawaii and Ohio before coming back to GSU on Johnson\'s staff. As OC, Sewak and the Eagles won two more champ
The Spin Offense
Coaches spend the majority of their off-season performing a great deal of self-scouting. Assessing each game film, they evaluate what plays were productive and which plays to scrap entirely out of their playbook. After the 2001 season, Dale Weiner and his staff at Catholic High (LA) realized that the hybrid they created called the “spin” worked exactly as planned – incorporating Wing T offense with traditional “I” formation misdirection in the run game. Opposing teams were l
Building a Foundation
Despite having played in the nation’s first college football game on Nov. 6, 1869, Rutgers’ transformation from perennial loser to winner did not begin until Greg Schiano took over as the Scarlet Knights’ head coach on Dec. 1, 2000. Even then, success didn’t come immediately. Over a six-year period, the program and the coaching staff’s strategies and philosophies have undergone a series of adjustments and adaptations. “Being a defensive coach I’ve always believe
Point Counterpoint: Quarterback Read vs. Defending the Inside Zone
Coach: Charles W. Bankins School: Hampton Running Backs Coach Scheme: A primarily two-back set that has steadily added more elements of the spread to the offense, including using more one-back sets. The result is a potent and extremely balanced attack that averaged 175 yards on the ground and 176 through the air. Experience: Spent last season as a special teams assistant on Mike Martz’ St. Louis Rams staff, before returning to Hampt
The Tools to be a Linebacker
Defining A Hawk Linebacker: In the 50 front, which is the Hawk base defense, the two linebackers are labeled Sam and Will. Sam is historically the strong side linebacker based around the offensive set and normally lines up on the tight end side. The other linebacker is labeled Will and normally plays on the split-end side of the offensive set. In an offensive set that has two tight ends the Sam linebacker will position himself on the tight end side that has the flanker present or a power
The Mental Aspect of Winning in the Trenches
All defensive line coaches have been embedded to believe that games are won and lost in the trenches. We would love to have that 6’ 8”, 290 lb. defensive end who runs a 4.5 40-yard dash and benches 500 lb. But for most of us that is not reality. As the old saying goes, “The game of football is 90% mental and 10% physical.” All coaches believe that the team that is most prepared will win the ball game. Here at Florida A&M University, we are fortunate to have a head coach, Rubin Carter, an
Schutt Sports High School Coach of the Year
Steve Tutsie
In just his first year as a varsity head football coach, Steve Tutsie led his Warren Central Warriors to a 15-0 record and an Indiana State Class 5A championship. The Warriors were as dominant as any team in the country, outscoring their opponents 722 to 124 and winning the state championship game by a comfortable 35-14 over Carmel in the RCA Dome in Indianapolis. Tutsie, 41, was so impressive under the head set that he was named the Schutt Sports National Coach of the Year. Tutsie doe
Schutt Sports High School Coaches of the Year
East Greg Toal Don Bosco Prep, Ramsey, NJ Using the run to set up the pass isn’t exactly a breakthrough in game strategy. However, it worked to perfection as Don Bosco Prep put the finishing touches on a 12-0 season and New Jersey Non-Public State title with a 41-0 rout of St. Peter’s Prep in the championship game. The offense featured diversified looks out of the spread all season with a one-tight end, three-wideout look among the most used formations
Schutt Sports I-A Coach of the Year Finalists
CHRIS PETERSEN BOISE STATE The “other” unbeaten Division I-A school registered its 12-0 record in the tree-lined Idaho capitol virtually hidden from the harsh glare of the media limelight by the majestic Rockies. While undefeated Ohio State and its Heisman QB had a wire to wire grip on the nation’s number one ranking, the Boise State Broncos were chalking up another spectacular season capped by its sixth straight WAC title. Then, in one of the most incredible bowl ga
Preparing for the Media
Successful football coaches are prepared for every detail when it comes to preparing for each football game but when dealing with their local press representatives, many could/might consider changes in their media relations’ efforts. By understanding how media members cover their teams and especially their deadlines, coaches can create a better working relationship with their press representatives with some minor adjustments to their game preparation. As a retired Air Force public affairs s
AFM Subscribers Ask...Arizona\'s Mike Stoops
Arizona Head Coach Mike Stoops recently completed his third season in Tucson as the Wildcats finished with a 6-6 regular season record after back-to-back 3-8 campaigns. A 21-year coaching veteran, Stoops had an overall 168-48-2 record as an assistant coach. For five years prior to taking the Arizona job, Stoops was the top aide to his brother Bob at Oklahoma. A defensive back while an undergrad at Iowa, Stoops also coached at Iowa and Kansas State. Having a reputation as an outstanding defensive
The Spin Offense: The Running Game (Part II)
When Dale Weiner and his staff at Catholic High School in Baton Rouge (LA) developed the “spin offense” as their primary offense in 2001, there were three aspects that they felt needed to be accomplished in order to be successful: develop a base run package with complimentary play-action off of it; keep the defense on its toes by using misdirection and motion; and keep it simple enough so that the players and coaches can make adjustments on the fly. Although the system is quite sim
Backed Up Against the Wall: Coming Off the Goal Line
Although many programs panic or go flat when their offense takes the field after the ball has been spotted on the minus one yard line, our program gets excited! In Hal Mumme’s Air Raid offense we have taken this negative part of the field and flipped the scenario into our favor. Many coaches may see it as an unorthodox approach to this situation, but we view it as a chance to demoralize our opponent. When backed up against the wall, we have three main goals: think touchdown, no negative
Coaches: Ways to Lose a Football Game
Everyone knows that brilliant coaching strategies, like those of Bill Walsh on offense and Buddy Ryan on defense, can win teams games. But the opposite is also true. Coaching mistakes can cost your team games. We talked to as many coaches as we could about what the key mistakes are that can cost you games, real world examples of the mistakes and how to avoid them. Here is what they had to say: Jerry Schmitt, head coach, Duquesne University “One thing tha
AFM Subscribers Ask... Dan Hawkins
What Division I-A program was the only school to average over 40 points a game in the period, 2000-2005? The answer is Boise State and for 5 of those 6 years Dan Hawkins was the head coach. His five-year 53-11 record included three 11-plus win seasons and 31-game winning streaks in both WAC play as well as at home on Boise State’s famous blue artificial turf field. Last December he was named the 23rd head coach in University of Colorado history. Now in his first year in Boulder, he answ
Playing it Safe in The Red Zone
Keep it simple. The Cardinal Rule, no only for life in general, but also for football. It is a philosophy you may want to adopt to play better defense in the Red Zone. There is no question that the Red Zone is the most important zone on the field. Good Red Zone defense wins games! Typically on defense it is the most aggressive section of your game play; it quickly can become a high risk / high reward zone. However, I want to explain why you should
What a Rush! Getting the Most out of Your Pass Rush
Pass rush is the single most important part of our job. It should be a passion of any good rusher. We are committed to stopping the run to win. As we do this, it will give us more opportunities to rush the passer. It’s very important to be a complete defensive line with the ability to do both. The sack is the most exciting play in football. It brings the crowd to its feet, lifts the defense and destroys the confidence level of a
Establishing a Multiple Attack Running Game
During my time as a coach, I have learned that it is extremely hard to be one-dimensional and have constant success. Some teams do it and have success but on an overall basis we as a staff feel better about our chances with a multiple attack running game. First of all, we think it is much harder for our opponents to prepare for and if a team has success stopping one phase of our running game then we easily can retract to another phase. In today’
Sticking to the Script
Many coaches believe in the philosophy of scripting your first 10-15 offensive plays of the game and a few less than that for the second half. The idea is to make it easier for your players to have early success and to learn how the defense will react to some of your core plays. We talked to three coaches for their philosophies about scripted plays and for information about the kind of plays they actually put into their scripts. The coaches are Tommy Condell, OC of the C
The Spin: The Greatest Offense You\'ve Never Heard Of
The Strategy Head coach Dale Weiner and his staff at Catholic HS in Baton Rouge (LA) began dreaming up the spin offense five years ago during the 2001 season. Bored with the conventional pro “I” sets they had been running, they looked for a different way to run their mis-direction schemes like counter and sweep. So after breaking down the previous night’s game film on Saturday mornings, Weiner and his staff started to lay down the
The Strength Report: Running Backs and Wide Receivers
As a strength and conditioning coach at the Division I-A level, philosophically, I feel you have to first develop core beliefs, which guide you in creating your specific training methods. These core beliefs must first and foremost be grounded in scientifically proven methods, which speak to the specific athletic goals of the athletes and sports you are focused on. The primary philosophy I follow in program design for football is a system utili
The Drills Report: Wartburg College\'s Cut Block Circuit
The cut block is very important to our offense. At Wartburg College, we utilize the cut block in several of our offensive schemes. Although we do believe in the cut block, we do not cut our own players in practice. Because the cut block is so important in our offense, we asked the same question everyone asks, “How do we practice cutting without cutting our own players?” In order to effectively teach the technique and practice the cut block, we
The Scouting Report
All you have to say about Jenks High School in Jenks (OK) is the fact that they’ve won 7 state championships over the past decade. The architect for much of that success is head coach Allan Trimble, compiling an overall 122-12 record during that stretch. A number of his players – year-in, year-out – go on to receiving scholarships at Division I-A programs. In addition to losing a number of blue chip players yearly, Jenks\' success has enabled many of Trimble\'s assistants to go on t
Staff Report: Landing the Interview
Your dream job comes open and you are in a time in your career that your experience and skills fit the qualifications for the position. How you proceed over the next days/or weeks will determine whether or not you will be interviewed by the search committee. Creating a Buzz Your gaol is to create a \'buzz\' about yourself with the athletic director and committee members. You want to create as much momentum as possible to have the committee excited to learn more about you. h
Evaluting a Receiver\'s Performance
Evaluating or “grading” a player’s performance has always been a topic of debate among coaches. Many of the coaches that I have been around use the +/- system of grading a players performance in a game (giving a + for carrying out an assignment and a – for a busted assignment). I personally have never liked this system of grading because I think it lacks objectivity. If a receiver runs a perfect route but drops the ball, do you give him a plus or a minus? If you give him both, then they
Pursuit, Tackling, and Takeaways
As coaches, we have many formative years. We learn to scheme, we learn organization, we learn player relations, how to recruit, how to present, how to teach, motivate, package, adapt. There are certain things that have changed over time and there are some constants. Tackling and pursuit have always been trademarks of great defenses. More recently, takeaways has been a great indicator of team success. The goal of this article is to
The Strength Report: Defensive Backs
My philosophy for training the college football athlete is based upon the physical and mental demands occurring during the course of a normal practice and game. Football is a collision oriented game grounded in the physical skills of blocking, tackling, jumping, running, throwing and kicking. These are skills initiated by the lower body and lend credibility to the maxim of football being played on your feet. These highly synchronized skills are ex
Letter from the Editor
Special Teams: They Can’t Be Over-Emphasized When the term ‘Special Teams’ is mentioned each of us may have a different image or mindset as to what it means. One may recall a game that was decided by a kickoff or punt return while another may remember a fumble return for a score. There have been many dramatic finishes that ended in a special teams play. One of the most exciting games in college history was decided by not one but tw
Missouri: From the Shotgun to the Shovel Pass
In the past year of running the Shovel Play we averaged 5.5 yards per carry and it offered a great change-up to our inside zone play and our speed option. The Shovel Play is a great play for any shotgun offense because you can run it out of many sets and it forces the defense to prepare for the triple option. A common misconception is that you need a fast or running quarterback to run this play; this is not true. In our previous year at the University of Missouri our quarterback only kept
Maximizing the Shotgun Formation
The shotgun formation has become more and more popular, with some teams now using it to run as well as pass. We talked to three outstanding coaches about the intricacies of the shotgun. Lew Johnston, head coach of Western Branch High School in Chesapeake, VA, uses the shotgun as a change-up to his standard Delaware Wing T offense. New Mexico State quarterbacks coach Matt Mumme is part of a team that uses the shotgun about 50 percent of the time. A
How Do You Negate an Outstanding Wideout?
How then do you stop a receiver who can take the game away from you? We asked four expert coaches for their thoughts on the subject: Jerry Moore, head coach of defending Division I-AA champion Appalachian State University; John Wiley, his defensive coordinator; Lyle Setencich, defensive coordinator at Texas Tech University; and Gary DeLoach, defensive secondary coach at UCLA. PRE-GAME PREPARATION In scouting and looking at fil
Maximizing Your Down Lineman in the 3-5-3 Defense
It is often said that necessity is the mother of all invention. Such has been the case with the trend of the 3-5-3 (or the hybrid 3-3-5), or odd stack defense. While the scheme’s origins trace back to the mid 1990’s, when defensive coordinators Joe Lee Dunn at Mississippi State and Charlie Strong at South Carolina began penning its initial blueprints – now it’s trickled down to over a couple dozen teams at the collegiate level and some high school programs have even started to cat
The Speed Report: Increasing your Linebacker Speed
Every coach in America selects athletes year to year to play linebacker and must determine various characteristics needed to make the wisest choice. LB’s are the heart of the defense and a player must be multi-dimentional athletically able to hit, run, move quickly, and have the mental tenacity of a lightening bolt on a mission. Finding players each year with these skills sometimes is easier said then done. Lead with Speed S
The Strength Report: Linebackers
My general philosophy of preparing players for competition in the game of football is that the game is played with the hips. Football is played on your feet – running, blocking, and hitting. You have a triple extension of your ankles, knees and hips. You need to be extended into your opponent or toward the ball, when you’re trying to catch it for example. When a receiver explodes off the line, he’s using his hips. When a defensive end exten
The Drills Report - West Virginia\'s Defensive Secondary Footwork Drills
This month’s drill was submitted by Coach Tony Gibson, the Defensive Backs Coach at West Virginia University. Coach Gibson is entering his sixth year as a member of Coach Rich Rodriquez’s staff. Coach Gibson has also made stops along his coaching career at West Virginia Tech University, Cumberland University, Glenville State College and Gilmer County High School. While at West Virginia University, Coach Gibson has been part of three Big East
Blocking, Tackling and Leadership
On behalf of our football program it is indeed a privilege for me to submit this article. As coaches we devote quite a bit of time and effort teaching the fundamental principles and techniques of blocking and tackling. We do this because we know what a tremendous impact these fundamentals have on our game. Another fundamental that I believe to be critical to an organization’s success is leadership. Leadership is becoming increasingly more critical in college athletics a
In the Heart of Special Teams: Your Best Opportunity to Gain a Competitive Advan
At the University of Cincinnati, we believe that special teams is one area of the game where you can gain a significant advantage over your opponent simply through the commitment of your best players and the commitment of your entire coaching staff. In this article I will share ideas on how we attempt to get our players to buy into special teams and how we attempt to “out coach” our opponents. Whether you coach high school, college or in the pros, each one of us sells
Point-Counterpoint: Third and Five In The Red Zone
Northwestern State and Wisconsin-Whitewater are locked in a low-scoring defensive battle. Tied 10-10, neither team has been able to move the ball consistently. The Demons’ pressure has bothered Zeifel’s offense throughout the game. Finally, with six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the Warhawks put together their best drive and move into Demon territory. But NSU’s defense stiffens and the drive bogs down. Zwiefel is facing a 3rd and 5 at the 20.
The Scouting Report
Having earned a reputation as one of the great innovators and teachers during his 36 years of coaching, Walt Harris became the head football coach at Stanford on December 13, 2004. A South San Franciso native, Harris came ‘home.’ Last fall, the Cardinal came within one win of its first bowl game since 2001, finishing with an overall 5-6 record. Approaching his 60th birthday, Harris has coached in 14 bowl games, inc
New Equipment
Wrestling Knee Pad From Bike Athletic 800-251-9230 www.bikeathletic.com Bike Athletic\'s wrestling knee pad, which can also be used to provide support in other sports, is made with foam padding for patella protection and side-roll motion. Using lycra and neoprene, the pad covers the full knee. It is lined with special fabric that keeps sweat off the skin. Air ventilation holes and a behind-the-knee cutout prevents binding. Sold individually, the pads come i
The Diary of a New Coach - Part I
Norman, Okla., is 17 miles south of Oklahoma City and perhaps most famous for being home of the Oklahoma Sooners. Football has deep roots in Norman. Norman High School, a Class 6A school with a strong football tradition itself, has nine state championships. NHS runs out of the offset I-formation and our base plays are either 42/43 Crunch (an iso on the playside backer) with a complimentary 26/27 Counter, or an option attack, depending on our personnel. Most of our passing is from a three-step
News & Notes
Former NFL Europe head coach Dick Curl joins the Chiefs Dick Curl, who joined NFLE in 1991 as Barcelona Dragons offensive coordinator and spent the last three seasons with the Frankfurt Galaxy as their head coach, has been named pro personnel assistant with the NFL\'s Kansas City Chiefs. In each of his first two seasons in Frankfurt, Curl was named NFLE Coach of the Year after leading the Galaxy to a berth in World Bowl. The Galaxy lost to the Rhein Fire in 1998, but beat Barce
News & Notes
Mountain West \'in the room\' on BCS talksMountain West Conference schools have gone from outsiders in the Bowl Championshp Series to non-voting members, thanks to a recent development in the BCS. The MWC, which is made up of eight former Western Athletic Conference schools such as Utah, Wyoming and UNLV, will participate in BCS meetings and discussions over the next six years. Only Conference USA and the Mountain West are non-voting members on the BCS panel. \"We\'re in the
Mike Leach Q & A
Q: You didn\'t reach the Division I-A level until 1997 at Kentucky. Before that, you had coached in Division II and the NAIA. What did you learn from your experiences at small colleges and how did you reach your current level?A: When you work at small colleges, you have to know a little bit about everything involved in a football program. A lot of things at major college that are done by someone else, I\'ve actually done myself. I\'ve actually been an equipment guy while coachi
New Equipment
Scouting/Editing Compatibilityfrom CoachComm800-749-2761www.coachcomm.comCoachComm has combined the popular Digital Scout and PowerTouch scouting software packages with their powerful video editing products. Simply enter the play information (down, distance, formation, etc.) into the portable Palm computer or the fast-entry PowerTouch tablet. Then print out your customized reports and open the CoachWin or DSE editing programs. Import the game files into CoachComm\'s
AFM Subscribers Ask... Texas Tech
Premiering with this issue American Football Monthly begins ‘AFM Subscribers Ask…’, an in-depth Q & A session with a different coach each month. Subscribers are asked to send in their inquiries with specific questions for the coach featured that month. Our first coach to answer your responses is Texas Tech’s Mike Leach. One of the top offensive minds in the game today, Leach begins his seventh season in Lubbock thi
The Spacing Concept: How to Maximize Your Offense
I have had the great fortune of learning under some of the best offensive minds in college football in Coach Urban Meyer and Coach Gregg Brandon. Here at BGSU we have a great staff that is an honor to work with. Our staff is comprised of Greg Studrawa (OC), Mick McCall (QB), Dennis Springer (RB), Troy Rothenbuhler (TE) and Russ Kuhns (GA). These men do a great job and any ideas that I share in this article are BGSU staff ideas. The concept that I want to share is our Spacing
LRSSports Hot Coaches 2006
Division I-A Mike Haywood, Offensive Coordinator, Notre Dame: The Notre Dame alumnus (Class of ’86) had an impressive performance last year, his first in the job. The Irish offense averaged 36.7 points a game, which put them at No. 8 in the nation. The team had a particularly potent passing attack, averaging 330 yards per game, fourt
The Scouting Report
At the entrance to the Katy High School (TX) athletics field house, there’s a high trophy case with the inscription, “When excellence becomes a tradition, greatness has no limits.” The Katy Tigers have developed both a tradition and greatness. Named as the ‘High School Team of the Decade’ by the Houston Chronicle, Katy won Texas State Class 5A football championships in 1997, 20
Point Counterpoint: Defending the Kickoff vs. Maximizing your Kickoff Return
TALE OF THE TAPE Kyle “Bubba” Schweigert Minnesota-Duluth Head Coach 3rd year 2005 North Central Conference Coach of the Year Bulldogs led Division II in kickoff returns in 2005
Exclusive: Inside Mickey Andrews\' Florida State Defense
Great college football teams are designed to STOP great college football teams. And when you play the kind of brutal and challenging schedule Florida State University lines up against each fall, you better be prepared to STOP great college football teams. Florida State defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews, who has been at the school for 22 years, is the architect behind the strategy, philosophy, instruction, motivation and guidance of one of the game’s stingiest defenses. Throughout his
Turnaround: How do you Turn an Ailing Program Around?
When you inherit an ailing program, one coming off a series of poor recruiting classes, one that’s subsisting on a steady diet of one or two wins a year, what’s a coach to do? Prospective recruits don’t want to play for a loser, especially if your campus lacks glamour. Alumni and community businesses don’t want to show financial support. It’s harder to find talented assistants, and the administration and the student body will be hard to placate. What often happens
The Drills Report: Georgia\'s Offensive Blocking Circuit
This month’s drill has been submitted by Coach Neil Callaway, the Offensive Coordinator and Offensive Line Coach of the 2005 SEC Champion Georgia Bulldogs. Since Coach Callaway became a member of coach Mark Richt’s staff in 2001, the Bulldogs have won two SEC Championships, three bowl victories and three top six finishes in the final polls. Coach Calloway explains his blocking circuit: “We implemented the Blocking Circuit at
The Scouting Report
Todd Graham returned ‘home’ this past January. A native of the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Graham was named Rice University’s 17th head football coach on January lst. In his previous coaching stops, Graham played major roles in reversing the fortunes of struggling programs. It started at East Central University where, in his three seasons as DC, ECU improved from a break-even program to the NAIA national championship in 1993. As
How to Climb the Coaching Ladder of Success
American Football Monthly asked me about climbing the coaching ladder of success. I had to go to Webster’s Dictionary to define what success is. Some words I found are “to do well, achieve, or gain satisfaction from your accomplishments.” Some people believe it is to lead your team to win the Super Bowl, to be#1 in Division I football, to be Coach of the Year. These are all satisfying accomplishments but I believe it is satisfying just to coach this great game of
High Percentage Throws: Valdosta State\'s Shallow Passing Game
Offensively, we go by a simple rule in implementing our game plan each week. We try to make positive yards on first and second down, then pick up the remaining yards needed to move the chains on third down. We feel the best way to do this is using mostly high percentage passes and mixing in an occasional run. In this article, I am going to concentrate on one such high percentage pass play in our playbook: The Shallow Game. Our Shallow Game has been one of the most successf
Improving Your Running Game
The commitment to run the ball has to start when a head coach lays the foundation for his system. Portland (OR) State’s Tim Walsh sees this mentality as key to any coaching staff. “Coaches have to find a way to instill a belief in their players that they can run against anybody. At Portland State, we’ve created a mindset for players over several seasons.” Walsh and his assistant coaches stress the team’s prior success to new recruits, while returning players have already been in
The Secrets of Urban Meyer\'s Spread Option Offense
The legend lives on: From the flat lands of northern Ohio to the depths of Salt Lake City to the swamps of Florida, Urban Meyer, at the young age of 41, has already earned the moniker of legend. He has been called a football genius, an offensive innovator and is considered the architect behind an offense that even the best minds in college football can’t harness, let alone stop. His spread option offense helped change the game and in turn brought respectability to Bowling
The Drills Reports: Louisiana Tech\'s Defensive Tackle Circuit Drills
This month’s feature drill is from Randy Bates, Defensive Coordinator for Louisiana Tech University. Under the leadership of Coach Bates last fall, the La Tech bulldog defense ranked third in the Western Athletic Conference. Also, the 2005 defensive WAC statistics ranked the Bulldogs first in overall turnover margin (+13), second in rushing defense, and third in both passing and scoring defense. Coach Bates began his career 24 years ago at Muskingum College as an offens
The Scouting Report
If two words describe Mira Mesa High School in San Diego they are tradition and excellence. One of the top academic schools in the city, the Mira Mesa Marauders also have an outstanding football legacy. Led by Head Coach Gary Blevins and Assistant HC Chris Thompson, Mira Mesa plays in the prestigious San Diego Eastern League. This fall they play Long Beach Poly in a non-league game. Poly, a perennial Southern California power, has the most alums of any school in the nation playing in the
Letter From the Editor
In this issue is our third annual high school state champions survey sponsored by Schutt Sports. A total of 340 questionnaires were sent out to head coaches in all 50 states. While some trends – over the three years – seem to be taking place, there were some fascinating responses among last fall’s champions. Among them: • The age of the youngest head coach among all state champs was 26 while the oldest was 72. • The head coach with the shortest tenure was
Preparing your Defensive Game Plan
Every football coach, at one time or other during the season thinks “If only there were more time to prepare for this game, we could…”. DC’s are under great pressure each week to develop and implement a scheme that puts their players in the best possible position to make plays. This type of defensive game planning requires many hours of preparation – first breaking down game tape and determining an offense’s tendencies, and then selecting fronts, stunts and blitzes from the De
Teaching WR\'s the Critical Skills
One of the main problems that have plagued football coaches for a long time is how to teach the necessary skills needed to play the game during the fifteen to thirty minutes in practice known as individual. Just at the wide receiver position, we must teach stance, start, footwork, route running, releases (press and open field), blocking (push blocking, wall-off, cutting, middle block), catching the ball, running with the ball, and many other skills needed to be a good wide receiver.
Its All About Options
3 Ways to Utilize the Option in the Shotgun and the Spread Offense The option remains one of the most successful concepts in football. It forces the defense to play assignment football and account for each ball carrier. On offense it allows you to leave defenders unblocked at the point of attack. Option concepts have evolved over the last 40 years. Most offensive coordinators have incorporated some form of option into their offenses. In this article I will discuss three dif
The Internet Video Exchange: A Major Assist for Coaches
Sharing game tapes through the internet has streamlined the process while saving both time and money Coaches, say goodbye to your UPS bills. It used to be that the exchanging of game film was just that, literally. A staff member – be it a coach or video coordinator – would make a copy of a particular game film and overnight it to an opposing team. Reel-to-reel turned into VHS tapes, which morphed into DVDs and hard drives. But the concept was always the same – you send
Scouting Your Opponents Quarterback
Scouting an opponent’s quarterback is crucial in developing a game plan, as the quarterback often represents the most important player on the field. Here are what four accomplished coaches view as the key elements in scouting the opposition QB. For Warren Maloney, defensive coordinator at University of Saint Francis, an NAIA school in Fort Wayne, Ind., the first question is whether the quarterback is the one who makes the offense go. “We like to see whether the guy makes bi
An Eye for your Opponents
Mike Van Deist keeps a close eye on personel match-ups and ways to exploit them. It’s been repeated almost too many times to say again. But, here you go: defense wins championships. Hold the urge to roll your eyes until you look at Carroll College in Montana. During Mike Van Diest’s seven-year reign as head coach at Carroll, the Saints have become an NAIA powerhouse, winning the national championship the last four years after reaching the semifinals
The Scouting Report
Mark Speckman has been coaching Willamette University football for the past eight years. The Bearcats are 46-34 under Speckman and in 1999 he was named Northwest Conference Coach of the Year after Willamette won the NWC title and earned a trip to the D III national playoffs. Speckman was the Bearcats’ offensive coordinator for three years prior to being named head coach. He also spent 14 seasons as a high school head football coach, compiling an overall mark of 113-48-3. But he’s more
The Big Squeeze
ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT times to get a football player into the weight room is during the rigorous two-a-day practice sessions before the start of each football season. During this time the athlete\'s body is pushed to the limits of exhaustion. It\'s a time of major concern to most strength and conditioning coaches and athletic trainers because of the chance of overuse/overwork muscle strains and pulls that can occur. During this time the question arises as to what would be the best
Letter from the Editor
According to Webster, the word ‘adversity’ means ‘a state of wretchedness or misfortune, poverty and trouble… or an instance of misfortune or calamity.’ When applied to the sports world, we often hear the term ‘overcoming adversity’ when referred to players. You can debate whether it’s an overused phrase or not but three instances come to mind: • Lance Armstrong: Arguably the athlete of this decade, Armstrong overcame cancer to win seven consecutive races of the Tour
The High-Powered Shotgun Option Offense vs. Defending the Option
The High-Powered Shotgun Option Offense vs. Defending the Option CHARLESTON VS. VIRGINIA TECH TALE OF THE TAPE Tony DeMeo University of Charleston Head Coach Entering 2nd Season Triple Gun Offense Turned programs around at four different colleges with the option off
Running Wild
HOW TO CREATE AN EFFECTIVE RUNNING GAME THAT WILL BOOST YARDS AND WINS For all of football’s passing progress over the past decade, the running game remains a fundamental cornerstone of winning football. Whether you’re punching the ball across the line in short-yardage situations or controlling the clock, every team must be able to get the ball into the hands of a capable runner who can read and follow effective blocks downfield, breaking tackles and making defenders miss.
The Scouting Report, Patrick Walsh - Serra HS (CA)
“If the breakdown is done right, building a game plan becomes easy off of the printed reports that uncover tendencies and holes in the offensive gameplan.” Patrick Walsh, Serra HS (CA) This coming fall Patrick Walsh begins his sixth season at Junipero Serra High School in San Mateo, CA. A high school rich in athletic tradition – alumni include Jim Fregosi, John Robinson, Lynn Swann, Gregg Jefferies, Tom Brady and Barry Bonds – Walsh helped bring th
Prep Report - Flying Under the Radar
TERRY EIDSON: A LARGE PART OF DE LA SALLE’S TRADITION Much has been said and much has been written about the football program at De La Salle in Concord, CA. The Spartans and coach Bob Ladouceur won a national-record 151 straight games and six National Prep Poll titles from 1992-2003. Although De La Salle has developed a handful of NFL players and its share of college stars, Ladouceur gets more acclaim for his ability to exact every last drop of ability out of his pla
Looking For a Boost in Your Offense?
Why Mid-Line? Our first season at Bucknell we had installed a spread option offense. We invested a lot of time into our base play: the triple option. As the season progressed we had been able to execute the triple with some moderate success. At the end of the 2003 season we had averaged just a little over six yards per attempt. We had run some mid-line in 2003 but were not majoring in it. We, as an offensive staff, knew that in order for us to compete on a yearly basis with the
Running Wild How to create an effective running game that will boost yards and wins. By Richard Scott
Secret Weapon: Turning your Punt Team into an Offensive Weapon
It is a pleasure and honor to be asked to represent Carthage College by contributing to American Football Monthly. Our staff at Carthage looks forward to this magazine and all the fine coaches who submit ideas and philosophy on a monthly basis. At Carthage we have had a very unique and increasingly productive punt formation that has not only been a solid punt formation but an offensive weapon. This year our “spread punt” produced the followin
Point Counterpoint - The Blitz
Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts were helpless against the Pittsburgh Steelers and their blitz packages in last month’s AFC playoff game. Manning, the master of the audible and game’s best gunslinger, spent most of the afternoon forcing passes, trying to avoid getting crushed or getting crushed. After the game, Manning hinted that he didn’t have the best protection. The offensive line, running backs, extra blockers and offensive co
Off Season Workouts
Off-season training should take a different focus then your typical change of just changing the amount of reps. It should take a turn to pre-hab (exercises that help prevent or minimize injuries), technique, and individual or positional needs. In my past twelve years of really getting involved in NFL programs I’ve seen something that is a trend among strength coaches and athletic trainers that is very alarming. One of greatest concerns to me is
The Need for Speed
From the time young football players figure out they’re faster than the other players on the field, many assume speed is simply a gift that some have, some don’t. They figure it’s all a matter of nature, genetics or a divine blessing. While it’s true that some young men are simply born and raised faster than others, no football player has to be content with his speed – or his lack of speed. “A lot of the kids we recruit have
Samson\'s NFL Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year: Seattle\'s Mike Clark
Take a look around your living room. If you are an average adult in your 30s, 40s or 50s, chances are a young person is taking up space in your house, sleeping in a bed you provide, eating your food and wearing clothes that you have bought. That young person is likely to be on the couch watching TV or playing video games. The thought of why this young person is inside on a beautiful day giving his opposable thumbs a workout on toggle switches a
Texas Sized Strength
Speed kills. Just ask most of the Texas Longhorns’ opponents during the 2005-06 season. That can be attributed largely to the players that head coach Mack Brown and his staff recruit. As big of a factor in the team’s success, however, is the strength and conditioning program the Longhorn players endure. Sure, endure. “Oh, I’ve been known as a guy that works them and works them hard,” laughed Jeff Madden, the University of Texas as
SCOUTING REPORT
Mark Panella is the Quarterbacks/Receivers Coach at De La Salle High School in Concord, CA and has served on coach Bob Ladouceur’s staff – except for a brief period – since 1989. He has just about seen it all – from the team’s incredible 151 game winning streak to the lows of an unheard of consecutive losses. He also serves as the team’s Video Coordinator. The starting quarterback on the 1984 De La Salle team that went 11-1, Panella s
Lakeland’s Right Hand Man
Lakeland (FL) again did a lot of winning in 2005. In fact, head coach Bill Castle’s Dreadnaughts were downright dominant, outscoring opponents by a combined 580-93 while capturing their second consecutive Class 5A state championship and 30th straight win. The dream season was punctuated with Lakeland’s best-ever finish in the national rankings (No. 2 National Prep Poll and No. 1 USA Today). As expected, Castle picked up his share of personal
Letter from the Editor
Our ‘Scouting Report’ feature this month includes an interview with Mark Panella of De La Salle High School in Concord, CA. The Spartans’ Quarterbacks/Receivers coach, Panella also serves as the teams’ video coordinator. Panella has been an integral part of Head Coach Bob Ladouceur’s staff for over a decade and witnessed a good portion of what is known as ‘The Streak’: De La Salle’s incomprehensible record of winning 151 straigh
Cover Story
Samson\'s D I-A College Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year: Texas\' Jeff Madden The BIG MAN on campus: How Jeff Madden Builds Power and Speed at Texas By Matt Fulks
Video a Necessary Part of Every Program
“It was film in the old days, up to about ‘88 or 89,” recalls Clemson’s veteran video coordinator Rick Bagby, a pioneer in his field who led the video revolution that enables football coaches better use their time to develop sophisticated, smart, systems, and, he hopes, winning game plans for the ACC program that’s been a big winner for decades in the South. Across the country in the Pacific Northwest, Steve Pohl has been running Oregon’s football video operation since 19
Third and Shorts
Since 1996, the Frank Broyles Award has gone to the nation’s top assistant football coach. The award is named in honor of longtime Arkansas athletic director and former Razorbacks coach Frank Broyles. During his coaching career Broyles developed a reputation for producing outstanding assistants with more than 25 becoming head coaches at the college or professional level. Among the former Broyles’ assistants were Joe Gibbs, Hayden Fry, Jimmy Johnson, Johnny Majors, Jackie Sherrill, and Barry
Overcoming a Devastating Defeat
We are a nation obsessed with it: from reality game shows, to toothpaste whiteners. Winning it seems, has become the “the only thing” – as Vince Lombardi so prophetically proclaimed nearly a half century ago. And today, that bar inches ever higher. So what happens when we lose? And not just lose . . . but lose badly? The Pittsburg State Gorillas (KS) put the big hurt, on nearly every Division II opponent they faced in 2004 – setting an NCAA record of 837 points scored: besting
Impact Stats: Total Defense
Tommy Tuberville’s Auburn Tigers placed fifth in the nation among all Divison I-A teams in Total Defense in 2004, surrendering just 19 total touchdowns, the second lowest total that year. They were first in the country in Scoring Defense. “When you’re consistently good on defense, it gives your offense a lot of chances to go for big plays. You’re going to give your offense more turnovers and more balls in better field position and, to me, where it really starts is defense. You
The Top 25 Public and Private High Schools of 2005
PRIVATE SCHOOLS TOP 25 1. St. Xavier (Cincinnati) Record: 15-0 Coach: Steve Specht The Bombers became the fourth consecutive Cincinnati school to win Ohio’s big-school title. St. X’s defense allowed only one opponent to score more than 17 points, and the offense was sparked by super talented sophomore RB Darius Ashley (5-9, 170). 2. St. Bonaventure (Ventura, CA) Record: 14-0 Coach: Jon Mack The Seraphs finished as the highest ranked team in Cal
Stopping the Spread Offense
Defending the spread offense. Where does one start? Maybe on the other side of the ball. What exactly is a spread offense? And understanding what it is you are trying to defend will go along way in answering how you are going to defend it. The spread offense means many things to many people. Sure there are some consistencies, but it seems every coach has added his own twist and own purpose to running the spread offense. And while trying to stop the spread offense, you better know what
Dominating Run Defenses
Different teams. Different schemes. Different coaches. Different levels of play. But Ohio State, Duquesne, Edinboro and Trinity all shared one very important distinction at the end of the 2005 college football season. They all led their respective NCAA Divisions in stopping the run. And while the way they accomplished their No. 1 ranking varied, a closer look at each program revealed some common threads to their success. All four agreed that personnel is the biggest determining factor
Schutt Sports Regional High School Coaches of the Year
East Region: Jeff Weachter Bishop McDevitt HS, Harrisburg (PA) Jeff Weachter, 40, led Bishop McDevitt high school in Harrisburg, PA to a 13-1 record this season, reaching the semifinals of the state 4A division. Pure football talent explains a lot of the school’s success, Weachter said. Five of his players were recruited by Division I colleges. But the team had to overcome some adversity. LeSean McCoy, ranked as the top running back in the country by some recruiting
A Winning Tradition: Lakeland\"s Bill Castle
When you’ve been in coaching 36 years, 35 at the same school and 30 as the head coach, you see a lot of players and teams come and go. Some are more memorable than others. Some kids, some teams, some seasons, they all start to run together. Did that Smith kid play tackle or guard? Or was that his older brother? Was it the 1991 team or the 1992 team that was so fast? Was it the second state championship or the third state title that overcame all that adversity? Some teams and players
Schutt Sports College Coaches of the Year
Joe Taylor Hampton Joe Taylor made a decision last off-season that helped lift his Pirates to the Div. I-AA playoffs. During his regular off-season evaluations – which involves looking at every play of every game, interviewing coaches and writing a letter to his players – Taylor realized his defense needed to change. “You must look at this as a bu
Heart of a Lion: Joe Paterno
Football is a funny business. It is a war-like game in which the biggest, strongest and toughest will often come out on top. Throw in the elements of brains and intelligence and it can either amplify the preceding characteristic or eliminate it. The teams on the sidelines – on a given autumn afternoon or evening – want to humiliate, eliminate and defeat their opposite numbers. It is the most competitive of all sports. Yet there is a fraternity among its players and coac
Scouting Report
Coach Jim Kunau just completed his 13th year as head coach at Orange Lutheran High School. In 2004 the Lutheran Lancers received the ultimate prize: a CIF Championship. With an overall record of 131-32-3, Kunau has seen it all and established LHS as one of the elite programs in southern California. From a school approaching 500 students in which 22 players were football players a decade ago, Orange Lutheran has evolved to an enrollment of nearly 1,200 with 200 student-athletes now a part of a hi
The Prep Report
With seven 5A championships and a 118-16 record during the ‘90s, Skyline (Salt Lake City) was among the very elite prep football programs in the nation. But things changed slightly for coach Roger Dupaix (AFM’s West Coach of the Year in ’99) and Skyline in the first half of this decade. The Eagles still were no slouches, making at least the state semifinals each year, but endured what seemed like forever to them – five years – without another championship. The “sl
Great Coaching Stories at Every Level
While much of the media focuses on Division I-A coaches, there are many great coaching stories at every level of professional, high school, and college football. Who could have forecast the turnaround at the University of Central Florida: the Golden Knights had lost 17 straight, were 0-11 last year, lost there first two games this fall but then rebounded to finish 8-3 and host the Conference USA Championship Game. Bill Cubit inherited a 1-10 Western Michigan team. He and his staff
Open Door Policy
Bob Johnson’s coaching experience spans nearly 35 years with stops at Los Amigos High School, El Toro, and, for the past 7 years, Mission Viejo High School. He won his 200th game as a head coach last fall and is closing in on the Orange County record of 236 wins held by Los Alamitos’ John Barnes. Undefeated thus far in 2005, the Mission Viejo Diablos completed a perfect 14-0 season last fall, winning the CIF Southern Section Division II Championship and have won 78 of their last 79 games. La
Crunching Numbers
Now that the season is over and the dust has settled, it’s time to look back and evaluate your season. As offensive coaches, we all accumulate a huge amount of statistical data over the course of the season. We also know that statistics can be deceiving. Using all the data we collect can help us understand our own offense as well as determine those areas which need improvement. In this article I will discuss how to collect data, evaluate your statistics, and implement the necessary changes to
Gear
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Defensive Back Play in Quarters Coverage
Stopping the run in football has always been paramount. Over the years coaches have devised different ways to get extra defenders into the box. Often times this has benefited the run game and it has also left the pass game vulnerable. I believe that quarters coverage provides an answer for both run and pass. It allows both of the safeties to be primary run support defenders while also allowing the defense to defend a vertical passing game.
From Scouting Report to Game Plan
Know thy enemy. On the battlefield or the football field, few statements ring truer than that. Being able to effectively size up an opponent, identify their weaknesses, recognize their tendencies and formulate an attack puts you that much closer to victory on Saturday. In today’s high-tech world, scouting the opposition is often done with the latest in digital editing equipment. And when the lights go out, every program, every coach and every player is scanning their scouting report for the ex
Point-Counterpoint
There is no need for punt coverage, if the punt is blocked. “A blocked kick can turn the momentum of the game more than anything else,” said Air Force legend Fisher DeBerry. “It’s won a lot of football games for us and created some field position for us.” Yet, more and more coaches, including DeBerry, are utilizing the “Shield Punt,” which, admittedly, sacrifices protection for coverage. “There’s been some kicks blocked if the shield breaks down,” DeBerry said. “
Can Big Mo Be Stopped?
It doesn’t take long for Larry Kehres to teach a reporter a lesson about momentum. Kehres, whose ridiculous resume includes seven Div. III national titles since 1993 for Mount Union College, is making dinner at his home and talking to the reporter on the phone at the same time. “Don’t let a mistake bug you,” he said. “Just think about it. You have periods of frustration, happiness and boredom every day. You just have to –.” That’s when the phone dies. The reporter calls
Email Recruiting
Talking with a teen-ager. Oftentimes a daunting task for any middle-aged coach. Many coaches have an uncanny ability of knowing the best way to communicate with a high-school recruit. Still, staying ahead of the competition while finding the best way to be noticed and remembered by a teen-ager takes communicating in the way that they’re most comfortable. “From the standpoint of what kids read, I’m not sure how we get noticed,” joked Tom Creguer, the recruiting coordinator at No
Open Door Policy
In his 13th season as head coach of the Portland State Vikings, Tim Walsh has the distinction of being the longest tenured and winningest football coach in the program’s history. After taking over for legendary Vikings coach Pokey Allen, Walsh helped lead Portland State to three straight NCAA playoff appearances. In 1996, the Portland State athletics program made the move to Division I-AA (from Division II) in football. That placed Walsh in the position of having to build an under-fu
The Prep Report
PREP FACT Only 3 active coaches have over 50 years as a head coach: Summerville’s John McKissick (SC), St. Edmond’s Dick Tighe (IA) and Bethpage’s Howie Vogts (NY) FLYING UNDER THE RADAR Camden County (GA): 20 Shutouts in 34 Games Before you can find a way to beat the Camden County (Kingsland, Ga.) Wildcats, you better first figure out a way to score on them. Putting up a single point has been a
It Starts in the Trenches
Juan Castillo has coached offensive linemen at the high school and Division II level. He’s also spent the past 11 years with the Philadelphia Eagles. Throughout this career, the daily principles he brings to his job have remained the same. “To me it’s still the same – it’s all about fundamentals,” Castillo said. “When I was at Texas A&I, I was fortunate to learn a lot of my drills from NFL coaches and major college coaches, but I still break it down the way I did at the s
Cover Story It Starts in the Trenches 5 Coaches d
Open Door Policy
Having not had a winning season since 1991, Steve Kragthorpe rolled into Tulsa two years ago and led the Golden Hurricane to an overall 8-5 record. In the process, Tulsa played in the school’s first bowl game in 12 years. His coaching job helped produce the biggest turnaround in Division I-A in the 2003 season and Kragthorpe was named WAC Coach of the Year. While Tulsa slipped to 4-8 last fall, optimism is high this season as the Golden Hurricane begin their first season as a member of Confer
The Prep Report
Flying Under the Radar The Triple Option is Alive and Well The triple option – it was college football’s offense de jour in the 1960s and 70s, highlighted by the ultra successful wishbone systems at Texas, Oklahoma and Alabama. Now, only a handful of Division I-A programs such as Rice and Air Force employ an option system. But the triple option is still very much alive and well on high school football fields across the nation. Especially at Warren Cent
The Staff Report
The start of a new season always involves the coaching staff’s discussion of personnel. We have sat in these meetings as a GA, as a volunteer, as an assistant, as a coordinator and as head coach. It seems that in every one of these meetings the discussion of depth creates quite a bit of emotional dialogue. Who wants the player on offense? How many tailbacks do we need? Do we need that many at wide out? Can we get by with the amount of defensive and offensive linemen? After the discussion,
How to Stop the Option
Snap to the Q. He sprints to the right, instantaneously scans the defense as he is hit. At virtually the same time he pitches to the fullback. Quick cut to the left, he darts through the hole and rips off 55 yards. How often have you seen it? How many times has it left you pacing the sidelines, shaking your head and clipboard? It’s the ageless option pitch/run. How do you stop it? What options does a coach have? AFM contacted a number of high school and college coaches and
Letter From the Editor
A legendary coach was once asked, ‘if you could have your best athlete play one particlular position – offense or defense – what position would that be?’ Without batting an eyelash, the coach responded, ‘middle linebacker – he sets the tone and leads our def
Cover Story C.W. Post Defensive Line Play Defensive line play at C.W. Post has been an integral part of our team’s
Letter from the Editor
One of the major elements of a football program – at just about every level – is a strength and conditioning program. While somewhat under the radar for the last decade, both the quality and quantity of a strength and conditioning program has emerged as both a prerequisite for a successful program but also a major recruiting strat
Heavy Impact
It’s the youngest, and certainly in many respects, the most important element in developing winning athletic programs, especially football, other than the head coach himself. The strength and conditioning coach and his staff can be difference makers between a winning program and mediocrity. Before the earl
Postion-Specific Training
When you lose your keys, you’ve often left them in the last place you’d think to look. Coaches and trainers, in search for a competitive edge, do the same thing. Typically, they look outside for answers when the secret ingredients for a successful training program might already be right und
The Prep Report
FLYING UNDER THE RADAR Gus Malzahn Springdale (AR) Located along U.S. Highway 71 just north of Fayetteville with a population of about 50,000, Springdale is already on just about any map of Arkansas you can pi
An Insider’s Perspective
I have been involved with many staffs that have different ways of handling half time. Some did not have any organization, while some were very strict. All in all the procedure that is most comfortable for the coach is the best. There are numerous different situations that your team can come up against as you are entering half-time – behind, ahead, tied and with different subtleties within each that was aforementioned. No matter what the situation a team must come out as fre
Letter from the Editor
What’s the secret to having a successful football season? What’s necessary to be a consistently winning program, year-in, year-out that produces a playoff caliber team? Is it strictly talent on the field or a combination of other ingredients? Many coaches will list the following and not in any particular order: • Talent – the skills that perform on the field • Assistant coaching staff – a loyal, professional staff • Resources – fields and practice faciliti
Cover Story Gorilla Warfare: Chuck Broyles\' Pittburg State Gorillas\' Scary Offensive Attack Chuck Broyles doesn’t pretend
Get a Grip
I have been asked to write about the program that our offensive staff implemented this past season for ‘Ball Security.’ In 2004 we were fortunate enough to go through the entire season (695 touches) with only one offensive lost fumble. This put us first in the Big Ten and tied us for first in the nation. Ball Security is an aspect of our game that our team and coaches take personally and very seriously. We make it a priority at each position to make sure our players understand that fu
Tackling Circuit Drills
We feel that one of the most important fundamentals is the ability to tackle and tackle well. As a staff, we try to emphasize the proper tackling techniques through a tackling circuit. The ability to tackle well shouldn’t ever be taken for granted. We use a four station circuit that touches on four key points that we must emphasize in order to be a good tackling unit. Although each position coach works tackling techniques into their individual periods, we use the tackling circuit to fur
The Art of Play Calling
A good play is easy to spot on game day. It’s the decision to go for it on fourth-and-one that yields a fresh set of downs, a blitz-beating touchdown toss, or even a basic trap play, executed perfectly a handful of times, that marches your offense down the field. But while these plays unfold in the moment, it’s the weeks and even months of preparation that ultimately make them work. Good play calling is the result of repetition and trial and error without the glare of the lights or th
Gorilla Warfare
Chuck Broyles doesn’t pretend to hold the “secrets” for winning. But through an aggressive style of play, a loyal staff and players, and an offense that works to stay one step ahead of defenses, Broyles and his staff have turned Pittsburg State (Kan.) into a perennial power in NCAA Division II. During the last 15 seasons, under Broyles, Pittsburg State is 154-30-2. The Gorillas have won the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) championships nine times, missed the
Open Door Policy
AFM:What was the feeling like when you were named head coach and in charge of the Southlake Carroll program? TD: I’ve competed against Southlake Carroll over the years and I was truly honored to be named head coach. Like the University of Texas, there is tremendous tradition here and I was honored and humbled about the job. At the first spring booster club event I attended I remember the slogan: ‘Protect the Tradition.’ It meant a lot. AFM: Tell me how your office
Gear
BW Software announces TD Video Viewer for Microsoft Windows ($395). TD Video is a Macintosh based software product that provides affordable digital video editing for football ($895). With our new Windows based TD Video Viewer, you can analyze plays, enter scouting data and print scouting reports. You still need to capture the game video with TD Video for Macintosh. N
2005 Top 25 Prep Football Rankings
Public Schools National Top 25 l. Mission Viejo (Calif.) 2004: 14-0, CIF Southern Section Division II champion Coach: Bob Johnson (69-10, 6 years, 198-69 overall) The Diablos return six all-CIF players and have won 55 of their last 56 games. The offense will miss national player of the year quarterback Mark Sanchez (USC), but welcomes back bruising tailback Chane “The Train” Moline (6-2, 235). 2. Lowndes (Valdosta, Ga.) 2004: 15-0,
4,733 Wins, 5 Coaches, 1 Question
Glenn Robinson Men’s College Basketball Coach • Franklin & Marshall Franklin & Marshall head coach Glenn Robinson is the most successful basketball coach in Division III history with 697 wins. He has been coaching for 37 years and what he learned at the very beginning helped set him on his course for success. “One of the first things I got to do when I became a coach was meet Dean Smith,” Robinson said. “He was very successful and had that great staff
Open Door Policy
There are football ‘turnarounds’ and then there are incredible turnarounds. Andy Lambert and his staff at Sterling College inherited a team that had lost 20 consecutive games starting the 2004 season. Last fall, in his first season at the NAIA college, the Sterling Warriors lost their first four contests-making it 24 straight losses-but then won five of their last six games to finish with a remarkable 5-5 record. Lambert came ‘home’ to Sterling from Trinity International Unive
Table of Contents
Cover Story 80 Hot Coaches for 2005 Many coaches – from the NFL to high school – are ready for a break-out season. But will it be a sizzle or fizzle? So often expectations don’t match perf
Hammer Force Defensive Technique
“The new scheme, combined with our players’ great attitude, paid giant dividends for us in stopping the run last fall.” - Santa Cruz & Willmer In the spring of 2004 we made the switch from an even front to an odd for its recruiting advantages (since it is difficult to recruit four solid defensive linemen at our level) and for its aggressive nature. The new scheme, combined with our players’ great attitude, paid giant dividends
Program Architects
Shortly after Jerry Kill took over the football program at Southern Illinois in 2001, he went to the Missouri Valley Conference basketball tournament to watch the Salukis. Call it school spirit. A chance to root for his new school. It also was a chance for his Kill’s wife, Rebecca, who was still living in Emporia, KS and getting the family’s former home ready to sell, to see her husband for the first time since he became the SIU coach. Kill
What Are You Worth?
American Football Monthly just completed its first annual salary survey among college coaches throughout the country. All levels of coaches were included – Division I-A, I-AA, II, III, NAIA, and Junior College – as well as all coordinators and position coaches on staff. The results were tabulated from the 860 questionnaires with a response rate of 30% and will appear in AFM over the next six issues. This month’s salary survey focuses on h
Legends of the Hall
With 119 chapters and over 12,000 members nationwide, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame, a non-profit educational organization, runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in today’s young people. NFF programs include the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., Play It Smart, the NFF Center for Youth Development Through Sport at Springfield College, the NFL/NFF
Open Door Policy
Tradition is the operative word when Joliet Catholic Academy and football are discussed. Since the start of a formalized high school playoff system throughout Illinois in 1974, the Joliet Catholic Hilltoppers have won the most state championships (12) of all the high schools throughout the state. The first four titles came under the direction of legendary coach Gordie Gillespie (1975 through 1978) and continued under the direction of Jim Boyter (1986) and Don S
The Secrets to Efficient Practices
“Whatever you accept (in practice) that’s what you’re going to get. If you accept lackadaisical performance or lack of effort, then you can be assured that’s what you’re going to get.” - Kansas State Head Coach Bill Snyder Richland (Fort Worth, Texas) head coach Gene Wier has a problem. “I’ve not had many good practices in my time,” he said humbly and with a chuckle. His six state championship rings beg to differ.
Cover Story 10 Impact Stats To build a championship team. AFM has researched and ranked the top statistical categories t
Kentucky's Best Passing Game Drill
Football coaches often ask each other, "What is your best drill?" At the University of Kentucky, our best offensive drill is called Routes On Air. It is the cornerstone of how we teach and practice our pass offense with our quarterbacks, receivers, and running backs. One of the reasons that our staff was hired at the University of Kentucky was because of our pass-oriented offense. This same offense was very successful for us at Valdosta State and Iowa Wesleyan. At both schools,
Learning on the Job
The days immediately following the 1997 college football season weighed heavily on the head and shoulders of Mike DuBose. In his first season as Alabama's head coach, the Crimson Tide had slipped to a 4-7 record, only the second losing season at Alabama since Coach Paul "Bear Bryant" Bryant returned to Tuscaloosa after the 1957 season. Losing at arch-rival Auburn by one point in the final seconds was one thing. Losing to programs such as Louisiana Tech, Kentucky, Arkansas and M
Heartbreak in the Heartland
Not unlike like millions of fans, players, coaches, alumni and followers associated with what became known as the Big Red Machine, Frank Solich had no idea what a profound effect Tom Osborne would have on his life. In 1962 Solich was a fullback for Bob Devaney's Huskers, and a young assistant football coach named Tom Osborne was teaching classes on the side to help supplement his meager coaching stipend. Solich was enrolled in an educational psychology. Osborne was his i
3 High School Programs - 3 Different Strategies for Success
They seem to be there every year. Like a leaf changing color in the fall or students grumbling about going back to class, the high school football elite return each season to reclaim their dominance. These high school powerhouses didn’t earn their reputations overnight. But how did these teams reach this unique place? What road takes a football program to the pinnacle and then keeps it there for season after season after season? Players change. Even coac
Open Door Policy
Chuck Broyles of Pittsburg State followed a near legendary coach – Dennis Franchione – when he became head coach of the Pittsburg State Gorillas in 1990. Franchione, now the head man at Texas A & M, had compiled a 56-6 record in his last six seasons at PSU. Since that time, though, Broyles has not only continued the tradition, he has become near legendary himself. In his fifteen seasons as head coach he has guided the Gorillas to 13 post-season
Feeder Frenzy
No one would have predicted it. No one in Elizabethtown, Ky., in 1998 and ‘99 would have looked at the seventh and eighth graders playing for T.K. Stone Middle School and guessed they would someday reach the 2003 state championship game as high school seniors. “I don’t remember their record but they were pretty much a .500 team in seventh and eighth grade,” former Elizabethtown High School coach Brett Burnett said. “But that was a group of
1/2 Block 1/2 Wall Return
\"Over the past four years our Punt Block team has been responsible for 18 blocks and 5 touchdowns.\" - Jay Sawvel It is certainly an honor to share some ideas regarding our Punt Block team. When we arrived at Southern Illinois University four years ago we felt that being aggressive on special teams served two main purposes: 1) in our early days at SIU we had to generate plays in the kicking game in order to be competitive, and 2)
Cover Story What\'s the Make-up of a State Champion? AFM\'s Second Annual State Champions Survey By AFM Research Staff
Back to Basics
During the last three years, the Ponderosa football staff has committed itself to focusing on the fundamentals of defensive football. The first twenty minutes of every defensive practice are spent on either a team pursuit drill or a circuit. Our circuits are something we feel are unique and they have allowed us to emphasize the importance of executing basic football skills. Since the inception of this philosophy in 2001, we have amassed 53 inte
Letter from the Editor
Just like the real estate adage that the most important thing in buying a home is ‘location, location, location,’ the analogy is that recruiting is the name of the game in football and it goes on 365 days a year. Recruiting used to be a seasonal activity while many teams stockpiled talent before the start of limitations on scholarships. The number of scholarships have been reduced dramatically over the years so selecting the right player for your
Mastering the Recruiting Process at the Small College Level
At the NAIA level, recruiting student athletes takes on so much more than just a high school visit and a few recruiting weekends. We are not blessed in so many cases to just show up with our school names on our shirts and have recruits begging to come to our schools. We have to be more creative through phone calls and mail flow. For us at Bethany College, we are very fortunate to have a lot of tradition based on what the previous Head Coach, Ted Kessinger, did h
Tuesday Morning Quarterback
When coaches approached the AFM booth at the recent AFCA Convention in Louisville, we tried to make a habit of asking the coaches what they wanted to see in the magazine. Some wanted more Xs and Os. Some wanted more technology information. Others wanted career and financial planning. However, many coaches wanted help balancing their jobs with marriage and family. Meanwhile at a nearby hotel, the wives who attended the convention attended semina
Legends of the Hall
With 119 chapters and over 12,000 members nationwide, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame, a non-profit educational organization, runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in today’s young people. NFF programs include the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., Play It Smart, the NFF Center for Youth Development Through Sport at Springfield C
Redefining Murphy\'s Law
Harvard coach Tim Murphy is enjoying rare success despite dealing with handicaps many Division I coaches might bristle at facing. He works at the nation’s oldest college, one of the world’s elite educational institutions, so Murphy and his teams must live up to traditions nearly as old as America itself. He must also recruit student-athletes who can handle academic standards that might appear impossibly high. In addition, Murphy has zero athletic scholar
Madness in the Midwest
Kerry Coombs has lost control. He’s Colerain High School’s assistant principal and head football coach, but he’s not in charge. The kids, he says, are the one’s in control of his day. His office looks like the inside of several file cabinets or in his words, “absolute chaos.” “A really wise guy once told me that if I could get to where I’m only touching paper once that I’d be more efficient at my job,” Coombs said. “I’m
Open Door Policy
A perennial pre-season top ten team among high schools, Jenks (Oklahoma) is the model of consistency. Under head coach Allan Trimble, the Trojans have won seven state championships in nine years. His record at the school is 112-11 with a number of players receiving scholarships to I-A college programs yearly. Jenks plays in Oklahoma’s largest classification, 6A. Between 1996 and 200l, Trimble’s record was 79-4 and he was named the
The Country\'s 30 Best Recruiters
John Blake has a secret. Along with other members of coach Bill Callahan’s staff, the defensive line coach helped recruit what many called the best incoming class of the 2005 season. Blake recruits the talent-laden areas of Southern California and Southern Texas, in addition to Mississippi, Oklahoma and Tennessee. “Some people have a gift,” said Blake, who was the head coach at Oklahoma from 1996-98. “One of my gifts is to speak to peop
Third and Shorts
Head Coaches - Tulane awarded head coach Chris Scelfo a contract extension through 2009. Scelfo has guided the Green Wave for six seasons... Greg Robinson was hired as head coach at Syracuse... Aurora tabbed Rich Duncan as head coach... Arne Ferguson was named as interim head coach at Western Oregon to succeed Duke Iverson, who will continue as an assistant with the program at least through the end of the academic year...
College Strength & Conditioning coach of the year
Mike Gentry has built a foundation of success in Virginia Tech’s weight room and is becoming a legend among his peers The weight room. You want to talk about the basics and building blocks of any football program, start with the weight room.That’s where the foundation is built. Players are in the weight room nearlyevery day, working on getting stronger, quicker, more flexible and more explosive.Mike Gentry, the director of strength and condi
Open Door Policy
One of the nicknames for basketball hall of fame player Larry Bird is ‘Larry Legend.’ In Alliance, Ohio, there is another \'Larry Legend\': Mt. Union College’s Head Coach Larry Kehres. Quite simply in his 19 years at the helm of the Purple Raider football fortunes, he has built one of the most successful programs in college fo
High School Coach of the Year
For Southlake Carroll head coach Todd Dodge, the 2004 season brought intense pressure and the highest of expectations. With 11 returning starters from last year’s state runner-up team, including All-State quarterback Chase Daniel, the Dragons were not only the favorites in Texas but also in the nation. Yet, while a strong nucleus of players returned, six of Dodge’s eight coaches did not, including defensive coordinator Charlie Stalcup. He succumbed to a fiv
2004 AFM Pro Coaches of the Year
NFL: Marty Schottenheimer San Diego Chargers The National Football League is filled with outstanding coaches. There’s Bill Belichick in New England, Andy Reid in Philadelphia and Bill Cowher in Pittsburgh. All three of them could easily be named as this year’s AFM NFL Coach of the Year. But to do that would be to ignore the coach who has done the most with the least, the coach who many prognosticators believed would
Coach of the Year - A Season for the Ages
He knew it was over. Tommy Tuberville and his whole staff would soon be shown the door, despite four consecutive winning seasons, four bowl games and share of thee division titles in five seasons at Auburn University. One more game, against archrival Alabama, and they would all be out looking for new jobs. “I had already put in my application to be a greeter at Wal-Mart,” he would later joke. Laughter helped. Gallows
Evaluating Your Next Job
There are a Number of Considerations Before Commiting to That Next Positon AFM talks exclusively with Urban Meyer, John L. Smith, Mike Stoops, Chris Hatcher, Brian Kelly and Al Borges It’s that time of year when the coaching business is buzzing with changes and rumors, with coaches preparing resumes and working the telephones to promote, save or launch a career.
Changing the Tempo of the Game
On behalf of the Hargrave Military Academy postgraduate coaching staff, we would like to thank American Football Monthly for printing our clinic article on changing the tempo of the game. Hargrave Military Academy is one of the premier one-year prep schools in the country where we are faced with teaching our offense to a whole new group of athletes on a yearly basis. We quickly found out that our athletes become bored with the same stale offensive scheme
Disruptive Behavior
The old cliché “The Defense Wins Championships” is definitely true. I can also speak specifically to this after our team, the Pearl River Community College Wildcats, won the 2003 MACJC State Championship and the 2004 National Championship. Not only do I believe this defensive philosophy to be true and to work toward maintaining a defense that will produce champions, but any and all championship contenders must work on developing a defense that will keep th
Schutt Sports College Coaches of the Year
Tim Murphy Harvard Triumph – thy color is Crimson Tim Murphy choreographed every step of the way for Harvard, and he led his team to a 10-0 record – the first time since 1906 the team had recorded a double-digit victory total. Since replacing the well-respected Joe Restic in 1994, Murphy has led Harvard to four Ivy League titles in nine seasons, including two unbeaten and untied seasons.
The Staff Report
With the football season ending, you and the athletes you coach need to stay motivated in the off-season so your team can come out in spring practice running on all cylinders. In addition to staying motivated in the off-season, you do not have to wait until next season begins to start mental training. In fact, the off-season is a great time to work on your team’s mental skills. Most coaches will agree that talent alone is not enough for success and other inta
A Look Inside Coaches Office: Troy Morrell
AFM: What was it like the first time you stepped into your office knowing that you’re in charge of Auburn football? TT: When I first stepped into the office I was amazed at how large it was... it’s probably bigger than all the offices I’ve had as an assistant coach combined. It was built by Coach (Pat) Dye and the complex itself houses everything. With all the windows,
Spotlight
Bob Casciola President, National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, Inc. (Retired) Why You Should Know Him: In the world of college football, there isn’t much that Bob Casciola hasn\'t done. An All-Ivy tackle for Princeton University, Casciola spent 20 years in the college coaching ranks as an assistant coach at Princ
2004 High School State Champions
Ricky Woods, coach of Mississippi’s 5A state champion South Panola, confers with the state’s Player of the Year, Derek Pegues. At 5-10, 190-pounds, Pegues – who has 4.4 speed on the field and a 2.9 GPA in the classroom – led South Panola to back-to-back 15-0 seasons and Class 5A state championships. Despite rushing for 1,659 yards as South Panola’s QB in 2004, Pegues is looking to play corner in college. ALABAMA 6A: Hoov
Cover Story COACH OF THE YEAR Auburn’s Tommy Tuberville
An Insider’s Perspective
Talent evaluation is a primary factor that leads to wins and losses. It can also be the most subjective. The numerous tools and criteria that are being offered today to facilitate this process can lead to paralysis of analysis. It becomes apparent that your organization must have a sound structure in place to defeat this. At the heart of this structure are the questions, “What is important to you? What type of player fits in your scheme? Which do you enjoy
Letter from the Editor
An overall football budget includes a variety of items: equipment, field maintenance, health issues including doctors and a support staff, salaries for staff, travel, on-the-road meals, security, and a number of other factors. Obviously, the budget for a high school football team differs from that of a Junior College or Division I-A program. But more and more programs-at all levels-are including funding for the growth of a new position with the structure of the
Sterling College\'s - Principles of the 3-4 Defense
Every coaching staff in America has to have a starting point when they put together an offensive or defensive scheme. Our defense staff at Sterling College is committed to four main principles. First of all, we are committed to having our best eleven football players on the field. Secondly, we want to position players where they will be able to make plays by being deceptive. Thirdly, we want to be assignment proof. And, finally, we want to minimize the ability
Tuesday Morning Quarterback
College football is big into labels. Some coaches are “ball coaches.” Some are “Xs and Os guys.” Some players are “solid.” Others are “raw.” Those labels seem harmless enough, but the subtle context they carry can be negative. Not sure? Then ask yourself this: what do you think of when someone says, “he’s a recruiter?” Do you think of a guy who works the phones, hits the road, charms mamas, wows daddies an
5 Tips for Breaking Down Film
Every coach starts somewhere. Whether it the first year of freshman football in high school or on a Pop Warner team or in a coach’s meeting, most football coaches can remember the first time they started watching film. For Matt Kelchner, it started at home. Kelchner, head coach of Div. III Christopher Newport, still remembers seeing grainy football film for the first time. It was at home. His father, a college coach, would bring home a film projec
Unsung Hero
A week in the life of Tulsa’s video coordinator, Gabe Haney Good coordinators are vital to the success of any college football program. But if all you’re thinking about is the guys in charge of your offense and defense, then you’ve overlooked a key position. When time is tight and the stakes are high, you better make sure that you’ve got a top-flight video coordinator who can break down every bit of information about your opponent and your own team in
Zone Blocking Principles
Zone blocking occurs when two offensive linemen are responsible for blocking two defenders in a certain area towards the point of attack. The purpose of using the zone blocking scheme is to stop penetration, create movement on Level I (build a wall) and also seal off the onside linebacker. All zone blocks initially start out as an inside-out double team. A
Open Door Policy
A legendary coach leading a storied program at one of the nation’s most respected institutions...that’s the story that unfolded in December of 2003 when the United States Military Academy announced the hiring of Bobby Ross as Army’s new football coach. A head coach in the college ranks for 15 years, Ross also coached the San Diego Chargers and the Detroit Lions in the NFL. He helped lead the Chargers to their only Super Bowl appearance in history in 1994.
Defending the Triple Option
At UW-Platteville we run a 3-4 defense because we believe it gives us the best opportunity to compete in our conference (See Diagram l). Diagram 1. We utilize speed because we are often undersized on the defensive
Football Video Technology:
When a football program is on the smaller scale, we have to imagine that when it comes time for budgeting, there are certain items that take precedent. Obviously, the team must be equipped with the proper tools: helmets, shoulder pads, shoes and those items necessary to outfit a college or high school football player. The next item that must take precedent is
Technology and Your Budget: Hints and Suggestions
NFL teams are spending millions on video technology and complex computer systems. Division I-A teams are spending hundreds of thousands on their own versions of the same technology. So what? What does that mean for NCAA Division II and III, NAIA, junior college and high school programs with limited budgets and resources? Do you find yourself at clinics and conventions walking right past the tech booths and ignoring the tech seminars, afraid you
2005 December 2005 Innovators of the option • From Scouting Report to Game Plan • True Football Speed • Quarterback Fundamentals November 2005 It Starts in the Trenches • Attacking Defenses with the Veer • 4 Technical Components of Punt Coverage • Teaching
Screen your way to success
If you liked this article, here are three others just like it:
Strength in Numbers
Tommy Knotts Quarterbacks Coach, Duke Former Head Coach, Independence High School Charlotte, N.C. 2003 football team: Class 4A State Champions Whether it be a rigorous strength and conditioning program or an abundance of talented players such as Florida quarterback Chris Leak – most likely the two feed off each other – Tommy Knotts has mastered high school football in
Hard Core
The core region of the body has the most significant impact on athletic development and performance. The core (abdominals and low back) is the link between the upper and lower extremities of the body. All actions in athletics require a power transfer and effective stabilization from the core to create movement. They not only allow the transfer of power between the upper and lowe
Pride in the Work Place
Tommy Moffitt demands and gets results. He’s just not always there to see them. Moffitt, AFM’s Samson Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year, helped tighten up Tennessee as the Vol’s head associate strength and conditioning coach from 1994-97. In 1998, after Moffitt had accepted a position under Butch Davis at Miami, Tennessee upset Florida State in the Fiesta Bowl to capture the first BCS National Championship. Bad timing. Moffitt spent the next two y
Cover Story Samson’s 2003 Pro Strength & ConditioningCoach of the Year: Carolina’s Jerry Simmons By David Purdum March 2004 T
Rutgers Passing Attack
Related Videos American Football Monthly now offers a full line of coaching videos. So, if you enjoyed this
Black Bear
Related Videos American Football Monthly now offers a full line of coaching videos. So, if you enjoyed this
Schutt Sports Regional High School Coaches of the Year
West Regional Tom Joseph Mountain View HS (Mesa, Az.) 2003: 13-1, 5A East Valley Regional Finalist Record at school: 27-1, 2 years Career record: 94-40 Tom Joseph’s Mountain View High School football program has established an incredible tradition. In the 25-year history of the school, Mountain View has won eight state ch
Leading the Charge
Every college football head coaching job is tough in its own way. Every job presents its own trials, its own pressures. For Miami (Ohio) coach Terry Hoeppner, some of the most unique and heavy challenges in the history of college football surround him and try to stare him down every day. Every college football head coach has an office, too. None of them are like Hoeppner’s office complex. His place of work is
Sharing Information Just Became Easier
For nearly a decade, thanks in many ways to publications like American Football Monthly, technology in football has become the norm rather than the exception. Every major football program, college or pro, has relied heavily on the latest forms of capturing, editing and exchanging video to enhance its ability to compete both on and off the field. Yet, very few football programs have the mega-million dollar budgets of major college football – much less t
Schutt Sports National High School Coach of the Year
Pictures Perfect
To find out something about Kelly Donohoe, the coach, all one needs to do is examine his record the past four years at Blue Springs High School. Under Donohoe’s direction, the Wildcats have gone 45-5 with two perfect seasons and a pair of Class 6 state championships. To find out about Kelly Donohoe, the man, spend an afternoon at his fashionable Eastern Jackson County home and watch him interact with his wife Jennifer, his high school sweethea
Schutt Sports I-A Coach of the Year Finalists
PETE CARROLL SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA When Pete Carroll arrived at USC in 2001 with a 33-31 career in four years as a head coach with the New York Jets and New England Patriots, Trojan fans were understandably skeptical. Over the past three years, Carroll has offered plenty of proof, with a 29-9 record that includes a 12-1 record in 2003 and the national championship fro
Multiple 3-3-5 Defense
Following the 2000 football season our defensive staff was faced with the stark reality that the system/style of defense we were using was not only unproductive – it was unacceptable. Harding University has a history of physical, hustling, technically sound defenses primarily built around the philosophy of minimal fronts and coverages with an emphasis on execution and individual technique. Our dissatisfac
Spotlight
Danny Arnold, Floyd Keith, Gary Korhonen Danny Arnold Director, PLEX Sports & Rehab Why you should know him? Danny Arnold is the Director of all operations for Plex Sports & Rehab. Together with his staff, Danny Arnold is recognized as the leader in providing innovative training and Transitional Sports Therapy (TST) to help athl
Cover Story Schutt Sports 2003 Coach of the Year Miami of Ohio\'s Terry Hoeppner takes command of the college coaching landscape. By Richard Scott February 2004
Rodeo Circuit
Related Videos American Football Monthly now offers a full line of coaching videos. So, if you enjoyed this
3-5-3
It seems like the phone never stops ringing at Georgia Military College. Since installing a new defense in 2001, the small college in Milledgeville, Ga., has become the de facto expert on the subject. And it seems that the more people hear about the 3-5-3 defensive scheme that they run, the more the phone keeps ringing, with coaches from high schools to colleges trying to find out GMC’s secret. “I can’t beg
Finishing Strong
We’ve reached the midpoint of the season. You spent your spring and much of the summer training your players, evaluating up and coming talent, and refining your game plan – adding a few wrinkles that you picked up from the pages of American Football Monthly and coaching clinics you might have attended. The end of summer marked the beginning of the football season with the introduction
Job Search
For most observers, the process colleges use to find a head coach appears swathed in mystery. You hear reports, rumors and innuendo in the mass media, and sometimes surprise candidates are selected, not the obvious or “smart-money” choices.But this is the glamour job at most high schools and colleges. How do schoolssearch for the right candidate? Well, many high-profile programs go to smallfirms that specialize in suggesting lists of coaches and
West Coast Offense
I have always been a proponent of the controlled passing game, mainly because my career has been highlighted with examples of its effectiveness. One instance in particular sticks out in my memory during my time as Head Coach of the London Monarchs in the World League of American Football (WLAF). The WLAF (now known as NFL Europe) was in the process of kicking off its inaugural year. Unlike many new leagues, teams in this leagu
6 Issues That May Be Effecting You
In the early part of the 20th century, there was a loud hue and cry to ban football. The game was violent, dangerous and apparently out of control. President Teddy Roosevelt had decided it was a brutal activity. There had been many deaths in one year. Football coaches who would soon find themselves out of a job took it upon themselves to clean up the game and make it acceptable. They rewrote the rules, got rid of the flying wedge – a syst
A Look Inside A Coach\'s Office: Bob Stoops
Oklahoma Head Coach Bob Stoops, now entering his sixth campaign in Norman, is approaching the near legendary status of some of his predecessors – namely Bennie Owen, Bud Wilkinson, and Barry Switzer. With a National Championship, last year’s Heisman Trophy winner, and a 55-11 overall record entering the fall, the Sooner tradition is clearly continuing. We spoke with Coach Stoops about the Okl
Spotlight
THE NAMES YOU SHOULD KNOW John Bankert, Chuck Neinas, Mike Van Diest John Bankert President, Pro Football Hall of Fame Why You Should Know Him: John Bankert began working at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio in the film library and theatre as a
Cover Story Coach Searches: Making the Right Fit By David Srinivas
510 And Counting
For the Record John McKissick’s Record as head coach at Summerville High School: 1952-2003
Talking Cutups
Breaking Down Game Tape
Before the 2002 season, Purdue University Defensive Coordinator Brock Spack and his staff created a dozen tutorial tapes on various aspects of the defense. “We don’t cover everything,” says Spack, “just the most basic things, like fronts and covers, and the most complicated things, like blitz packages.” Players check out the tapes and watch them in the football offices. “These babies don’t lea
A Coach\'s Perspective: How to Deal with Kids
You can make a significant mark if you put 40-plus years in the coaching business. And Pat Collins certainly hasn’t been cheated during a career that began in 1963. Collins’ experiences have been many and varied – he has coached in high school, college and the pros. He was an assistant at Louisiana Tech when a sophomore named Terry Bradshaw was tearing up the college ranks. Collins won a Division I-AA championship as head coach at Northeast Lou
Letter From the Publisher
One of the least things known about American Football Monthly is a tradition that started when the magazine moved to South Florida in the summer of 1997. Every year South Florida welcomes hundreds of college coaches vying for the most talented athletes the area has to offer and for the last six years AFM has played host to many of these coaches traveling to our back yard. Over the years we have had lunch and di
Making the Jump
You ask Tommy Knotts why he decided to leave his job as head coach of one of the most dominant high school programs in America for an assistant’s job at a college football program. You wonder how he could leave Independence High School in Charlotte, N.C., where his teams have won 62-straight games, the second-best mark in the country. You assume it’s because of some major life-changing event. Was
Under Pressure
Before I begin, I would like to thank the people at American Football Monthly for giving me this opportunity. I also owe Coach Dirk Koetter and Coach Brent Guy thanks for allowing me to represent our staff in these pages. These are some concepts we believe in at Arizona State. Hopefully, there are a few things you can use with your players as well. You
Adjusting To Your Talent
At St. Bernard’s Catholic School our football program was able to win a North Coast Section Championship in the 2003 season. Our coaching staff was blessed to work with some gifted young men. As the head football coach, I feel that at this level of play a coach must design the entire team’s systems (Offense, Defense, Specialties) around the talents and abiliti
Command of the Line
Since the installation of the 3-5-3 defense, Georgia Military College has consistently been ranked among the nation’s top defenses. Our defensive packages are easy to learn and execute. We strive to control the line of scrimmage with our front eight players. We are able to use different fronts to change an offense’s blocking rules and attacking points against our defense. Ev
Cover Story 510 & Counting: A Look at John McKissick, Football’s All-Time Winningest Coach By David Purdum June 2004 TABLE
If at First You Don\'t Succeed
One nasty defeat gnawed away at Kirk Ferentz’s gut for a full year. When Iowa rolled through the Big Ten schedule in 2002 and won eight straight games without a loss, it was one of the top stories in college football. Ferentz, then in his fourth season as head coach of the Hawkeyes, figured his team would be competitive in the Big Ten, but critics saw them as a middle of the pack team. With mobile Brad Banks at
Randy Shannon
Ray Lewis, Phillip Buchanon, Ed Reed, Duane Starks, Warren Sapp, Vince Wilfork, Sean Taylor, Jonathon Vilma ... the list goes on and on ... and on and on. Clearly, the University of Miami wins because of one reason – talent. Actually, there are 36 reasons, as in 36 NFL first-round draft picks since 1984, the most of any college or university. With all that talent, Sebastian, the ‘Canes mascot, might as
Stepping Out of the Shadows
When George Lumpkin was a young assistant coach at Hawaii, he worked alongside an assistant with big hopes and dreams for his career. That assistant started at Kent State, moved to Hawaii, made stops at San Jose State, Cal, Tennessee and Ohio State before finally moving on to an extended pro football career. Lumpkin and his friend kept in touch and he even visited him professionally over the years, tapping into his friend’s
Rushing Ahead
Over the past five years we have had quarterbacks who have been 6-foot-1 or less. For this reason we have been in the shotgun a considerable amount of the time. We wanted to have threats with plays other than the passing game. We have been good throwing the ball but we needed more. We are always trying to gain yards but we also want to eliminate the negative yardage plays.
Spotlight
Larry Kennan, Chuck Stiggins, Joe Juraszek Larry Kennan Executive Director of NFLCA Why You Should Know Him: Larry Kennan was named Executive Director of the National Football League Coaches Association (NFLCA) on February 1, 1999. Since being elected to that position, the NFLCA has seen a number of accomplishments. With the s
Cover Story Randy Shannon: Miami’s Defensive CoordinatorBy David Purdum April 2004 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Maximizing Player Performance
It’s the summer of 2003, and the Oklahoma Sooners football team doesn’t have much to complain about. The squad is ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press and the ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ Preseason Poll, and the Sooners are enjoying the return to national prominence brought upon by coach Bob Stoops and his dominating defense. The team is preparing for a season that would see it lose the National Championsh
2004 Top 25 Prep Football Rankings
1. De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) The coach: Bob Ladouceur (287-14-1, 25 years) – school record 2003: CIF-NCS Class 4A champion, 13-0 The record: The Spartans have won a national-record 151 straight games (more than doubling the next best total), and have beaten at least one nationally ranked team each season since 1998. The Bay Area power won its unprecedented fourth consecuti
The Next Level
There’s nothing obvious about Gary Patterson’s background that would suggest he could be one of the nation’s hottest college football coaches. There’s nothing that stands out on a life resume that starts with growing up in a small Kansas town, playing Juco ball on an academic scholarship, walking on and playing special teams for a perennial college football loser, coaching at places most college foo
Keeping Drives Alive: Effective Third Down Game Planning
At Western Michigan University, we utilize a multi-faceted approach when it comes time to game plan third down. It is a cooperative effort, involving all of the members of the offensive staff and the head coach. Before any meaningful discussion on third downs takes place, you must develop the down and distance parameters that will guide you through your game planning. We have two general categories, run situatio
Fired Up?
As the new football season arrives, coaches around the nation are preparing for the tasks and challenges they will soon face when the 2004-2005 football season gets into full swing. However, nothing ever goes just as planned or scripted in any coach’s playbook and that’s why coaches, just as the athletes I work with on the mental game, need to develop strategies to deal with the myriad of responsibiliti
Letter From the Editor
This month AFM continues its tradition of selecting its choices for the 2003 Coordinator of the Year awards. Normally, the task of announcing a list is difficult because of the many outstanding programs – at all levels – around the country; what made this year’s selections more difficult was the research involved which indicated statistics were only one measure of success. While statistics were important, many i
2004 Hot Coaches
DIVISION I-A RANDY SHANNON, MIAMI: Defensive Coordinator of the ‘Canes, Shannon is our top selection and a head-coach-in-waiting. A member of this listing last year and the feature of an AFM cover story in April, he has all the tools and experience as well as an organizational plan to get to the top-whether it be Miami
Cover Story Gary Patterson: The Next Level Following the success of former head coach Dennis Franchione, Gary Patterson\'s intensity, professional experience and strong work ethic has helped take TCU\'s football team - along with it\'s attendance and graduation rates- to a whole new level. By Richard
His Own Man
Delaware’s K.C. Keeler doesn’t have many bad days. And since his return to his alma mater in 2002, neither have the Blue Hens. “I’ve never seen him in a bad mood,” said Mike Corey, co-host of the “K.C. Keeler Show” on 94.7 FM, the River. “Even if he is having a bad day, you would never be able to tell it.” Maybe that’s because, these days in Newark, Del., there’s
From High School to Division I - Football Programs to Work for
Presented by LRSSports Software When football hounds gather to talk about schools with a fine tradition of producing coaches, talk usually begins and ends with
National Footbal League Coaches Association
American Football Monthly and the National Football League Coaches Association have formed a partnership that will include periodic information on NFLCA projects as well as clinic articles by both former and current NFL coaches. Included below is Executive Director Larry Kennan’s letter to AFM readers on the NFLCA’s new Affiliate Membership Club.
LSU
It is an honor to represent Coach Nick Saban and the entire LSU football program, and to share some thoughts on our organizational structure that we feel are paramount to having consistent and productive special teams play. Almost every program claims that they are committed to special teams, but as Coach Saban constantly reminds us, “Your actions speak so loud I cannot hear what you say.” At LSU, we fe
Trojan Pride
It’s clear to me that I want to put together a program that can win on a consistent basis and compete for championships year in and year out. This is a grand opportunity here,” a proud Pete Carroll said early this summer during a break at his football camp on the University of Southern California campus in Los Angeles. “USC has all the elements you need for a championship program.” Coach Ca
Cover Story From High School to Division l: 16 Football Programs to Work For AFM’s annual listing of successful programs that have a tradition of developing coaches By David Srinivasan September 2004
Landmarks: The Foundation of Zone Coverage
Zone coverage contains one simple fact that is often over looked. You are defending zones of the field. As such, you must have a base knowledge about the depth and width of what you are defending. I call this the geometry of football. A football field has specific landmarks. The playing surface is 53 & 1/3 yards wide and 100 yards long with two scoring areas, the end zones, at ei
What Next?
Jim Emery remembers many things during his career: a college football player at Ohio Wesleyan University, a graduate assistant, recruiting coordinator, college coach, mentor of many varied club football teams in Italy, and now, COO of Digital Scout, one of the software companies that helps football coaches at all levels prepare for their next opponent. “I coached in Italy for a good part of 18 years and saw a r
Leaps and Bounds
Marshall’s Brad Helton refers to him as “The Godfather of Video Coordinators.” But like most of his colleagues, UCLA’s Ken Norris is a cipher unless you are intimately familiar with his work. Over the years, Norris has worked with and for a number of football giants – men such as George Allen, Terry Donahue, John Robinson and Norv Turner. Norris has been a big help to the coaches for whom he has worked. But like all good video c
Coach Potatoes
More than 83,000 Crimson Tide fans just got real excited. They were packed in Bryant-Denny stadium to see the first ever No. 1 team visit Tuscaloosa. Alabama had just capped off a six-play, 80-yard drive with a Brodie Croyle 20-yard touchdown pass to Triandos Luke, cutting top-ranked Oklahoma’s lead to 13-10 midway through the third quarter. With the momentum clearly on their side, ‘Bama’s defense forced th
Letter From the Publisher
In the five years that we’ve been publishing American Football Monthly’s annual Technology issue, we’ve seen many advances in the various software and hardware designed specifically for football. Today’s technology allows coaches to merge diagrams and video together in presentation formats, trade game film over the Internet, introduce DVD options for film quality, track the frame-by-frame movements
Spotlight
Pat Coleman, KC Keeler, Steve Pohl Pat Coleman Publisher & Editor, D3Football.com Why You Should Know Him: Pat Coleman has been following Division III football since the early 90s, ever since the likes of Duquesne, Iona and Georgetown played D-III. He is a 1994 g
The Mental Game
This article looks at ways that instructional technology and principles can be used to improve the mental performance of your football players. The focus is on decision-making. That breaks down into a player’s ability to recognize an opponent’s actions, to know his team’s schemes and his individual assignments, and to choose the correct response. It does not include executing the response. Coaches spe
The Use of Formations to Gain an Advantage
Garrison High School has a long tradition of a winning football program. We have been in the playoffs 28 times and won 22 district championships. This was the first time in my coaching career that I had taken over a program that had a winning tradition and the opportunity was there to make a good program great instead of trying to turn an unsuccessful program into a winning program. I was hired in July of 1999 an
Learning Curve
Mark Hudspeth has not wasted any time traveling down his career path. Yet, at each stop along the way – some more rocky than others – he has made sure to slow down, take his time and learn. “I think it’s very important to focus on the job at hand,” says Hudspeth, now in his third year as head coach at Division II North Alabama. “Concentrate on where you are at and where you are working. Sometimes guys are too busy looking for t
From Gloom To Glory
Here’s a warning: like every season, this story starts with a test. You thought you were done with those when you finished college, huh? Well at least it’s a multiple choice test, so you can always make an educated guess. Question 1: When your team slips in September and loses a game or two (or three), you: 1. Call all your coaching connections and start looking for another
Letter From the Publisher
What is black and gold, weighs in at a hefty 5lbs and is getting the attention of some of the top recruits in the country? The University of Missouri’s 2004 Media and Recruiting Guide. Careful. This thing is big. It’s big in size and it’s bigger in potential on the national recruiting scene and it is currently landing on the kitchen table of some of the nation’s top recruits with a resounding ‘thud’ – opening their eyes to Mizzou Football.
Georgia Military College’s 3-5-3 Defensive Package
Georgia Military College’s, 3-5-3 defensive package, is an extremely easy package to implement on any level. We as a defensive staff, feel that this package gives us the greatest advantage of being successful against our opponent’s offense. While running the 3-5-3 defense, GMC is continually one of the statistical leaders in the NJCAA in total defense, run defense, and pass
Sunshine State of Mind
The state of Florida produces over 80 percent of the United States’ supply of citrus. Every year, the Sunshine State sells roughly $4 billion worth of oranges, tangerines, pineapples and other goods grown within its borders. About $3.5 billion worth of orange juice is exported from Florida to the rest of the country – and world – every year. As dominant as the citrus business is in the state of Florida, th
Three-Step Pass Protection
The Doane College football program has an historically successful tradition. Over the past 20 years Doane College has competed in the national playoffs during the 1980’s and 1990’s (last appearance in 1999), and has proven the test of time with consistency by accumulating a .603 winning percentage. We run the “West Coast Offense” at Doane College. Our offensive philosophy is a balanced attack that u
Spotlight
THE NAMES YOU SHOULD KNOW SPOTLIGHT John Bankert, Chuck Neinas, Mike Van Diest John Bankert President, Pro Football Hall of Fame Why You Should Know Him: John Bankert began working at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio in the film library
Cover Story From Gloom to Glory
Mean Green
As much as any other coach in the country, Darrell Dickey, the persevering and successful head football coach at the University of North Texas, lives with the reality of college athletics, where aspiring football programs like his, are locked on a collision course with 21st century fiscal reality. “We have an athletic department that’s really struggling for money, so we have to play a very demanding sch
Rebirth of the \'Blue Death\'
Family. Above all else, the one element that most contributed to our success as a team and as a defensive unit was a family atmosphere brought to the program in the Spring of 2003 by our head coach, George Small. More important than the success experienced on the football field was the way that kinship maintained us as we endured the passing of one of our young and most talented
Surfing the Turf
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Family Values
“My door is open. 24-7,” says the University of Arizona’s new 42-year old football coach Mike Stoops. It’s the first policy Stoops instituted when he became the 28th coach in the 104 year history of football on the Tucson campus last November 29th. Stoops’ declaration signaled the start of give-and-take between players and coaches, a family-like feeling at a place crying for it. It’s a rare concept in the big business-like atmo
An Alabama Legend
If you seek success akin to that of Hoover (Ala.) High School’s Rush Propst, there’s a simple formula you can follow: • Start from the bottom and work your way up – paying attention to detail not salary. • Make plenty of friends in the business, and stay in touch – frequently. • Understand your limitations. • Al
Bridging the Generation Gap
77, 77, 68, 74, 67, hut? No, it’s not some ill-fated snap count devoted to offensive linemen. Instead, those are the ages of some of the most respected coaches in the business. Men like John Gagliardi of St. John’s (Minn.) University, Dick Vermeil of the Kansas City Chiefs, Joe Paterno of Penn State, Bobby Bowden of Florida State and Lou Holtz of South Carolina. There’s no doubt about the track record of these men as all are championship-level coache
An Eagle Among Us
At what point do the perceptions disappear and give way to reality? At what point do people in the football business, as well as the media and the fans, stop looking at the outside, at the skin color, at the last name, at the perception that his place in the world must be the result of a handout, a favor or a quota? What would it take to change the assumptions and move on to the facts? Would a man have
Cover Story One of a Kind: Philadelphia Eagles Offensive Line Coach Juan Castillo By Richard Scott July 2004 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Evaluating Your Next Job
It’s that time of year when the coaching business is buzzing with changes and rumors, with coaches preparing resumes and working the telephones to promote, save or launch a career. Coaches are renewing old contacts, making new ones and mining every source they can find to help them make the next move. “There are two types of coaches: those who are sought after, which I’ve been, and those who are not,
Getting the Most Out of a Football Clinic
It’s been a good but not great season. A 6-4 record was good enough to finish in second place in the division, but not good enough to earn a spot in the postseason playoffs. The year has been strangely similar to last year and the year before. It seems that a rut has developed and your team is stuck in it. That’s not all bad since there has been a lot of winning - but not en
Being in the Right Place at the Right Time
There are several key points that can be helpful in developing your Defensive Backs. Many coaches have used these ideas and techniques over the years. It is my hope that you will gain something that will help you in some way 1. Stance - Specific Points for Stance: • Head and eyes should be up • Outside foot up with a heel/toe relationship on the inside
Fighting Adversity
Ask Todd Berry about the coaches who’ve influenced him in his 20-plus years in the business and he’ll rattle off insights obtained from names like John Cooper, Johnny Majors, Steve Logan and even his old high school coach, L.D. Bains. But the one lesson that stood out from all the X’s and O’s and motivational techniques came from his late father, Rueben, a former head coach in the Canadian Football
Open Door Policy
Butler County Community College head coach Troy Morrell began his fifth season this past fall as head coach of the Grizzlies. Last fall, Morrell led BCCC to an undefeated season and the NJCAA National Championship. The team has been ranked number one all throughout 2004 and recently completed another undefeated season and beat Coffeyville Community College in the regional district final. An All-America lineman as
Spotlight
John Bankert, Chuck Neinas, Mike Van Diest John Bankert President, Pro Football Hall of Fame Why You Should Know Him: John Bankert began working at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio in the film library and theatre as a part-time employee in August of 1964. Over a 40 year period he became an Administrative Assistant, Busi
The Spread Shot-Wing Offense
For years, we were a basic Delaware Wing T football team. We had great success with it, using the 3 basic series (buck sweep/trap; belly/down and power) and mixing in a good dose of play action and 3 step drop-back passes to keep defenses honest. But four years ago we started a 15 year old freshman at quarterback whom we knew was going to be somebody special as far as throwing the football before he g
No Huddle? More Chances
In 2002 the Lambuth University Eagles went 6-4 and averaged 55 snaps per game. During the spring of 2003 we put in the no-huddle offense. Our general offensive scheme did not change, just the tempo at which we ran the plays. In the 2003 season we increased our snaps per game to 70 and improved our overall record to 9-3, won a conference championship, and a trip to the playoffs. This is roughly a 27% i
Cover Story Evaluating Your Next Job There are a Number of Considerations Before Commiting to That Next Positon
Recruiting: More of an art than a science
While football recruiting over the years has become more scientific and sophisticated, the bottom line is that it is still an art in making a decision on a high school senior. No matter what the overall assessment concludes and no matter how many interviews are completed, there is no sure fire way of knowing if a player will perform up to both his abilities and/or the recruiters expectations. Like many things in
High School Scouting
It’s Wednesday night, and for Salt Fork coach Brian Plotner and his linebackers and defensive backs, that means film night. Every Wednesday during the season, that group meets at the home of a player or coach to learn more about its next opponent. “They pick up on tendencies,” said Plotner. “They re-familiarize themselves with the formations they’ve seen in practice. “Sometimes they pick up on things I didn’t see by looking at it from a differ
Letter From the Editor
It seems as though coaches have taken a beating in the media lately. Although you never want to see anyone’s laundry aired out in public, some of the scrutiny has not been without warrant. Coaches behaving badly are not the norm, but out of the thousands and thousands of coaches out there, there are sure to be a few bad apples in the bunch. But for the most part I believe the coaching profession, especially football coaches, to be among the best people
Attacking the 3-3 defense with the Inside and Outside Zone
On behalf of our staff at Southeast Missouri State University I’d like to say that it’s an honor and privilege to have the opportunity to share some of our thoughts and ideas on attacking the 3-3 Defense with the Inside and Outside Zone. The problem the 3-3 presents is that it is an odd front with a 4-3 linebacker set. It neither fits your odd front rules or your 4-3 rules and if you try to full zone it – more times tha
The Last Rep
Practice scheduling is becoming more important with every season that passes, so American Football Monthly recently sat down with six of the top head coaches from around the country to get their thoughts on some of the major issues concerning their industry. What is a coach’s mindset entering a new season? “Coaches in Division III are at a disadvantage because we
Miles Apart
Respect: What does it take to get a little? Last season, playing in arguably one of the toughest divisions in all of sports – the Big 12 South – the Oklahoma State Cowboys posted W’s in six of their last seven, including a pair of wins large enough to end the careers of two sets of goal posts at Lewis Field in Stillwater, Okla. But despite beating Nebraska for the first time in 41-years; and despite e
The Way It Used To Be
If there is one constant, it is that there are no constants. Over time, everything changes and nothing remains quite the same. Never is this more evident than in the profession of coaching college football. American Football Monthly recently sat down with a few of the game’s greatest coaches for a peek inside the ever-changing world of college football. From their first job to their last, the
Cover Story Norm Chow: Does Anyone Really Know Norm? Searching for the identity of college football\'s most intriguing and mysterious offensive coordinator By Aaron S. Lee September 2003
Marching to the Beat of a Different Drum
With such noticeable improvements in training regimens throughout the years, there is one method that is still underutilized – resistance “speed” training (RST). RST is a method that will add explosive power and speed to any athlete, if done correctly. The reason for this is because muscle contraction force is generated by the recruitment of the necessary number of muscle fibers to meat the load demand placed
A Clear Picture
Potatoes? Can we just forget about the potato jokes for a little bit? This story isn’t about spuds. It’s about football. Football in Idaho. Boise to be exact. It’s about a winning football program. It’s about winning tradition, high expectations and making the most of what you’ve got with players who want to be there. It’s about blue artificial turf and quality of life. It’s about a head footb
Cover Story A Clear Picture: Boise State’s Dan Hawkins Please don’t adjust your TV set... Yes, the field IS cool blue, but Boise State’s Dan Hawkins leads AFM’s 2003 red hot coaches’ list. By Richard Scott
Where There\'s Smoke There\'s Fire
Every year certain coaches separate from the pack … and this year will be no exception. Whether they are relative newcomers or wily veterans, these coaches are the future of high school, college and professional football. With the help of some of the top sports writers and football experts in the nation, American Football Monthly has compiled a list of coaches that it believes will make such an impact in
Coaching the Player
I appreciate the opportunity to share my thoughts concerning coaching the player. As you well know, the hub of your program is the players and the effective job you do in coaching them. I. Coaching – Teaching and Parenting II. Challenge of Coaching (raise his self image) A. Making each player the best he can be. Total Person – student, player and person.B. It starts w
My Three Sons
In Bill Mallory’s Bloomington, Ind., office, there is a picture hanging on the wall of the former coach celebrating on top of his team’s shoulders. Like all good pictures, there’s a story behind this one, and it reflects what family and football is all about. In 1987, Mallory, in his fourth year as head football coach at Indiana, had his team off to a 5-1 start, and with wins over Ohio State, Northwestern and Minnesota,
Making a Point
Over midway through the 2003 season in which he has a team potentially bound for Florida state championship hardware again, there probably aren’t many prep coaches who wouldn’t want to be in the shoes of Palm Bay’s Dan Burke, who considers himself one of the luckiest in the business. Burke, with his team on the radar of the USA Today top 10 all season long and a nationally televised game on The Football Network, has buil
Hired! Now What?
Last month, American Football Monthly gathered a panel of experts to give you the tools you need to get your next job in part one of a two-part series focused on career management. AFM discussed everything from networking, resumes, interview skills, salary negotiations, coaching agents and dealing with the media. This month, AFM pulls out all the stops in part two as we show
Right Place Right Time
Brian Kelly will tell you that luck put him in position to be one of the top head coaches in Division II football. His record at Grand Valley State will tell you otherwise. Yes, it’s true that Kelly was coaching linebackers and coordinating the defense in Massachusetts at his alma mater, Assumption College, when an old friend called Kelly and told him he was leaving his job as Grand Valley State’s defensive coordinator to become a head coach.
Building the Best Defensive Linemen
When building the best defensive lineman, you have to think outside the box of traditional training. You have to be innovative in your training program as much as you are in your defensive stunts. The following are a few of the defensive linemen drills we use with some of our clients that include such names as Tommie Harris (University of Oklahoma), Casey Hampton (Steelers), Shaun Rogers (Lions), Juliu
The Way It Used To Be
If there is one constant, it is that there are no constants. Over time, everything changes and nothing remains quite the same. Never is this more evident than in the profession of coaching football. American Football Monthly recently sat down with a few of the game’s greatest coaches’ wives for a peek inside the ever-changing world of football. From their life on the road to idle chit-chat, A
Stepping Into Retirement
Forget about Bob Stoops, Jim Tressell and Larry Coker. The best college football coaches in America are the former coaches who show up when they want to at home football games, sit in their suites or club level seats surrounded by family and friends and thank the football gods that they no longer have to sweat the outcome. There’s nothing like retirement to make a head coach the second most popular guy in tow
Cover Story CEO: Fisher DeBerry Leads Coaching into the New Era By Aaron S. Lee December 2003 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Starting From Scratch
No matter what level of football you’re coaching or playing, it’s hard enough to maintain a successful program these days. From high school to Division I to even the NFL, there are budgets, injuries, ever-growing parity with technology and those inevitable peaks and valleys. That’s talking about established programs. What’s it like to try to create all of those things programs strive for: fans, top-tier
Avoiding Major Mistakes in the Interview Process
Networking: Make the Most of Every Opportunity
Double Threat: Making Your QB a True Rushing Threat
Over the last two seasons the Capital University football program has taken a step towards the upper echelon of Division III football. Competing in the always-tough Ohio Athletic Conference against traditional powers Mt. Union, Baldwin Wallace, John Carroll and Ohio Northern is quite a challenge. Now people are including Capital when they talk about the top teams in the OAC. One of the reasons for our success is
Dealing With the Media During the \'Silly Season\'
Networking: Make the Most of Every Opportunity
Steppin\' Out
Former coach and forever Grambling State legend Eddie Robinson doesn’t come on campus as much these days. Maybe it’s because, at 84-years wise, Coach Robinson’s sideline agility isn’t what it used to be. Winning 408 football games will do that to you. Or maybe it’s because he’s satisfied, knowing that a budding superstar has filled his giant shoes, which were left behind upon college football’s all-time winning
Should a Coach Employ an Agent?
Networking: Make the Most of Every Opportunity
How to Handle Coaching Salary Negotiations
Networking: Make the Most of Every Opportunity
Robber Coverage Out of an 8-man Front
On behalf of Frank Solich and the entire University of Nebraska Football family, I would like to say that it is an honor and privilege to be asked to write an article for American Football Monthly. As a firm believer in trying to gain knowledge from any source available, I have found American Football Monthly to be a valuable asset. Throughout my career I have had the fortune to
One Step Back ... Two Steps Forward
Bryan Collins never wanted to leave C.W. Post in the first place. He enjoyed his job as an assistant coach and felt like he could grow and succeed at Post. But with a wife and a child on the way, the idea of a part-time coaching job was enough to convince him it was time to leave Post for another opportunity. “I had been a part-time coach for three years,” Collins says. “I did enjoy my time here but with only two full-ti
Cover Story Steppin’ Out: Grambling State’s Doug Williams Casts his Own Shadow. By David Purdum November 2003 TABLE
Resurrection
What They’re Saying ... “ Starting a new program is an enormous challenge. The fear of knowing that you have to bring a football team
Coast to Coast
ALABAMA 6A: Hoover 39, Jeff Davis 29; 5A: Homewood 31, Russellville 28; 4A: UMS-Wright 7, North Jackson 3; 3A: T.R. Miller 38, Colbert County 6; 2A: Southern Choctaw 12, Lineville 6; 1A: Clay County 29, Autaugaville 0. AISA (champions): AAA: Bessemer Academy, AA: Marengo Academy, A: Jackson Academy
Etched In Stone
Perhaps Super Bowl-winning head coach Jon Gruden, of Tampa Bay, said it best when describing the profession of coaching when he told American Football Monthly, “Coaches are like offensive linemen, you don’t hear much about them unless they are in the transactions section changing jobs.” Unfortunately that is sometimes the case, but the fact remains that coaching is still one of the most rewarding
Sunshine State of Mind
With a 48-21 victory over his former team, the Oakland Raiders, in Super Bowl XXXVII, Jon Gruden, 39, became the youngest coach in NFL history to win a Super Bowl as he guided Tampa Bay to its first world title in franchise history. Gruden was also the first non-rookie head coach to lead his team to the Super Bowl in his first season with a new team. In fact, Gruden has accomplished a lot for a man that is keepin
Goin\' Up
It would be so easy to say it’s all the head coach. Take a look at his success, his overall record, his impact on the program and the fact that seven of his assistant coaches have left the program in the past three years and moved on to higher levels of college football and the program hasn’t skipped a beat, and it’s easy to say the head coach must be the reason. But what about the university? The tradition
Cover Story Resurrection - Hal Mumme and Woody Widenhofer return to football to revive Southeastern Louisiana football and their careers. Read the complete article >>> April 2003 Staff Meeting
The Last Rep
The strength and conditioning industry has gone from being an afterthought in most football programs to being the cornerstone of any championship foundation in just the past 20 years. Men like Kim Wood, Boyd Epley, Dan Riley, Joe Juraszek and John Dunn have carved a path of knowledge and success – sometimes thru trial-and-error – for all those to follow.
The Life of Riley
Riley’s Thoughts on Supplements ... “When I started in this industry, a strength and conditioning coach could tell an athlete anything. We cou
Training Mr. Everything
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Scorching the Competition
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Times Change: So Should Your Workout
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Making \"Quality\" a Priority
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Letter From the Editor
Every great coach is only as good as the cast that surrounds him ... the supporters, the players, the staff. After all, it’s that surrounding cast that can often make the difference between success and failure. The same can be said of American Football Monthly. This magazine’s sole purpose is for the further enhancement of your coaching career, and that is something that we take very seri
The Life of Riley - When Dan Riley joined the Houston Texans as their first strength and conditioning coach, many asked why? Hear Coach Riley’s answer and find out why he is among the most respected coaches in his industry.Read the complete article >>> March 2003
Throwback
Attention all coaches: Think conditions are tough where you are? Try taking a group of talented, but often-immature, teenagers and transforming them into not only Division-I football players, but also into NCAA-caliber students. Oh by the way, you have only two years to do it. Seems like an impossible mission – for the average coach. Luckily for 24 Georgia Military Bulldogs, who, in the last three years, hav
Letter From the Publisher
We approach publishing American Football Monthly magazine much like you approach developing a successful football program. Like you strive to get better each game, we work hard and diligently to produce a magazine better than the last. Just as you recruit the best coaching staff and players, we search our industry to improve our publishing staff to build arguably the best coaching magazine in the world. As
Nice Guys Finish First
Former Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher was often quoted as saying that “Nice guys finish last.” But perhaps in the case of Garden City Community College (Kan.) head football coach Bob Larson, that isn’t necessarily the case. In fact, trying to find someone with something negative to say about Coach Larson is like trying to find a proponent of the Bowl Championship Series at a mid-major. The fans love him, the ath
Cover Story Throwback Georgia Military College’s Bert Williams uses bulldog tenacity to take a bite out of the JUCO elite. By David Purdum October 2003
Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime
Anyone. Anywhere. Anytime. ... This is not just a slogan for the University of Southern Mississippi, located in the piney woods of Hattiesburg, Miss., it is a way of life that has defined the character and grit of Southern Miss football for all of its 86-year existence. Schools like Southern Miss have embodied the pure essence of competition that envelops college football and al
LSU\'s Offensive Line Drills
First of all I would like to say it is an honor to be able to represent head coach Nick Saban and the LSU football staff in American Football Monthly. As coaches we know the game is always changing, but some things never change. You must know fundamentals, you must be able to block and tackle. There are many ways to skin a cat but these are some of the basic fundamentals that we “hang our hat”
Dominate 4th Down
Starting a program from scratch in 2000 brought enormous challenges for the coaching staff at East Texas Baptist University in Marshall, Texas. One key foundational element that allowed us to challenge the best teams on our schedule in such a short period of time was the commitment to be productive offensively on fourth down. Field position gained by effective punting has become a trademark of ETBU fo
The Right Way
Unlike the NFL, where free agency allows a team to upgrade its roster yearly, rebuilding a struggling college team can be a long, grueling process, usually filled with defeat and frustration. However, a successful resurrection can be one of the most gratifying, fullilling and respected accomplishments of a coach’s career. Before Bill Snyder took over at Kansas
The Last Rep
Practice scheduling is becoming more important with every season that passes, so American Football Monthly recently sat down with six of the top coaches from around the country to get their thoughts on some of the major issues concerning two-a-days and pre-season preparation. How do you get yourself and your players prepared for two-a-days? “More than anything, I
The Way It Used To Be
If there is one constant, it is that there are no constants. Over time, everything changes and nothing remains quite the same. Never is this more evident than in the profession of coaching college football. American Football Monthly recently sat down with a few of the game’s greatest coaches for a peek inside the ever-changing world of college football. From their first
The Home Team
8 Tips In an effort to keep football coaches on good terms with their significant others, AFM has compiled these eight tips to help you maintain balance between career and family: 1) Pick Up the Phone - That’s right, call. Your wife understands the demands of your job, but at least pick
Cover Story Anyone. Anywhere. Anytime... Three coaches, Three schools, One Philosophy... A look inside college football\'s most underrated football programs...By Aaron S. Lee July 2003
Pressure Points
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Against The Grain
It only happened once. And it never happened again. Maybe that’s because Southern Miss video director Chris Hooley is too busy doing her job to let her status as the first woman in her position in Division I-A college football become an issue. There was a time when an NFL scout came to visit her video office for film on some potential NFL prospects. He made a rather unnecessary comment about her not belonging in a man’s game and then slipped in a couple of other snide remark
Focus the man behind the camera
Nearly nine years after the fact, Brad Helton can finally admit it. When he became Marshall’s video coordinator in 1995, Helton re-wired his entire office area. “That way the coaches couldn’t even come in here and make a tape,” Helton says, laughing. “At the time, I didn’t know how many programs even had video coordinators or how many people were doing it or what they were doing it with, so I did it for job security. I figured
Technology Game Plan
The arrival of spring means that spring football has begun at many college campuses across the country. Springtime also provides coaches the opportunity to visit other coaching staffs and observe their practice routines. In Texas, high school coaches especially like to take this opportunity to visit with area college staffs. Its during these times that visiting high school coaches ask me to offer my thoughts on
Film School
I started in 1992 as graduate assistant in the football video department at the University of Illinois. Prior to that I had no idea what went in to preparing for a football game. In 1996, I became the video coordinator here at the University of Oregon where I have spent the last seven seasons. Aside from trying to explain to my friends what I actually do, and convince my Mom and Dad that I ca
Letter From the Editor
Well, it’s no secret that football is ever changing and not just with personnel, uniform colors, helmet design and Xs and Os. In fact, the most noticeable changes often occur off the field, hidden from the millions of fans that pack the stadiums each weekend. Football has indeed changed for the many coaches who teach the game, a game that is now seemingly dominated by laptops, keyboards and hard drives. Once again,
The Last Rep
Technology is becoming more intricate with every season that passes, so American Football Monthly recently sat down with six of the top video coordinators and recruiting coordinators from around the country to get their thoughts on some of the major issues concerning their industry. What is the hottest new technology in your industry?
Outline for Technology Game-planning
With the growth of technology in football and the ever-increasing demands on coaches’ time game planning and scheduling has become even more important providing the foundation for a successful football program. This is an outline of the weekly schedule we use at Fordham University for offensive game planning. The outline also highlights the manner technology makes our film study either more efficient or allows us to study
Cover Story Focus - The man behind the camera. Take a close look at what video coordinator Brad Helton is doing for Marshall’s football team both on and off the field . By Richard Scott Cover Photo by Jim Robinette Cov
Releasing is the Key
Through the course of coaching receivers at four different colleges, one thing has stood by itself as being the task that has frustrated both players at that position and some coaches on those staffs. Invariably, the release (a clean release without sacrificing vertical speed) is what we are all striving for on pass plays. But that has become a bigger issue to deal with as offenses have attempted to
Schutt Sports 2002 Regional High School Coaches of the Year
Southwest Regional J.T. Curtis John Curtis Christian (River Ridge, La.) 2002: 14-1, Class 4A state champs Record at school: 393-43-6, 27 years Career record: 393-43-6 J.T. Curtis began his head coaching responsibilities at John Curtis
The Staff Report
Career: 8 Guidlines for the High School Assistant Coach So you dream of becoming the head coach someday? Well, there are a few things you need to know and do that will help you earn that dream job you’ve been looking for. Anyone who wants to be a successful assistant coach and eventually a successful head coach must have certain qualities that set them
Everybody\'s All-American
Coker\'s 24-Game Winning Streak 2001 (12-0) Miami 33, Penn State 7 Miami 61, Rutgers 0 Miami 43, Pittsburgh 21 Miami 38, Troy State 7
Northwestern\'s Academic Game Plan
High School Coaches The foundation for successful college football student-athletes is laid by the high school coach. Whether the player goes on to play college bal
Schutt Sports College Coaches of the Year
DIVISION I-AA WINNER Dave Clawson Fordham Dave Clawson did not rest on his laurels after guiding his squad to a 7-4 record and being named Co-Patriot League Coach of the Year in 2001. No, Clawson joins former Holy Cross mentor Mark Duffner (1986-87) a
Letter From the Editor
Another football season has come and gone and as usual, many new faces have come to the forefront and many older faces have remained steadfast and stoic. The turbulent world of coaching tests a mans soul and strengthens his resolve ... yet by season’s end the truly great have stepped to the plate and performed. Each year American Football Monthly proudly presents the Schutt Sp
Schutt Sports I-A Coach of the Year Runners-up
Jim Tressel Ohio State Jim Tressel, who went 7-5 last season as head coach of the Buckeyes, led Ohio State (14-0) to a national championship in just his second season in Columbus with a 31-24 overtime win over defending national champion, the Miami Hurricanes. This was Tressel
Cover Story Schutt Sports 2002 Division I-A Coach of the Year: Larry Coker - Miami\'s Larry Coker entered the 2003 Fiesta Bowl with a 24-0 record as head coach, a national championship ring on one finger and an opportunity to win one for another finger. Rockne, Warner, Wilkinson, Bryant, Robinson... none of them did that in their first two years as a head coach.
Solid Ground
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unCommon Ground
At this moment, it’s probably rainy in Juneau, Alaska, sunny and hot in Key West, Fla., hot and humid in El Paso, Texas, and dry and windy in Howells, Neb. In The Bronx, it’s doing whatever New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner says it’s doing. OK, just kidding. But we’re not kidding about this: in these five culturally, socially and economically diverse areas, some
High School Booster Clubs
Behind every successfully funded athletic program, there is usually an active and thriving booster club helping to pave the way. Without a properly running support branch, athletic departments and alumni would be forced to constantly operate and support under a dark cloud of uncertainty, debt and cutbacks. “Booster clubs are an essential part of not only the fundraising process, but also the community process
Gold Rush
In 1969, a 22-year-old college student, nine credit hours shy of graduating, accepted an offer to become the head football coach at John Curtis Christian High School – the school his father, John Curtis Sr., had founded eight years earlier in River Ridge, La. It was a dream come true for the young coach, and he eagerly arrived that summer to meet with players and organize a weight program. The summer wound down, and on the first day of pract
The History of the Wing-T
It is an honor to have the opportunity to write this article and especially since the article deals with a topic as dear to my heart as the wing-t. In my 33 years of coaching I have seen many different cycles of football but the wing-t has remained a fixture since the time before I played and throughout my time as a player and a coach. I am sure that it will continue to be a very popular system long
A Cyclone of a Secondary
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Elevation
Jenks or jinx, nothing could stop Bill Blankenship’s Tulsa Union team from running the table in 2002 for the school’s elusive first state championship in 11 seasons under his leadership. A 52-3 thrashing of Broken Arrow stifled any chuckles about Blankenship and his veteran staff not being able to win the big one and validates what has been one of high school football’s better-kept secrets outside of the Sooner State.
Undersized? No Problem
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Letter From the Editor
You know, I have been fortunate to meet some of the best people that the football industry has to offer, establish some longlasting relationships and have the opportunity to hear some pretty fantastic stories along the way. One of my new favorite stories, which – depending on who asks me and when – changes daily, was a story told to me by Tommy Condell, the offensive coordinator at the University of Louisiana at Monroe.
Getting Footballs Game Ready
It doesn’t matter whether you purchase a dozen footballs at a time or 244 like Auburn equipment manager Frank Cox has each of the last five seasons. Once they are delivered, these footballs have to be made game ready. While you could simply throw the footballs out of the shipper’s box and into your players’ hands, there are a few guidelines you may wish to follow. While routines vary from program to program and even season to
The Last Rep
Practice scheduling is becoming more important with every season that passes, so American Football Monthly recently sat down with six of the top head coaches from around the country to get their thoughts on some of the major issues concerning their industry. How important is practice scheduling? “Practice is the most important time that you have. T
Simple Formations Take Advantage of Complex Defenses
J.T. Curtis’ offense isn’t complicated. Rarely will the Patriots line up in anything but the basic pro set. And you know what is coming – the veer option. Yet, for 28 years, teams have had trouble stopping it. Since 1975 – the first year Curtis utilized the split-back veer – the Patriots have reached the championship game 22 times, winning 18 titles. Since 1977, they have lost only two district games. The Patriots made 10 consecutive appearances in t
Cover Story Gold Rush: J.T. Curtis In his 33 years as head coach, J.T. Curtis has brought John Curtis Christian High School’s trophy case a national record 18 gold footballs. And counting... By David Purdum A TV Star too
How to Lose a Game
Every coach has that call he’d like to have back. It might be that defensive set on that goal-line stand that gave up the go-ahead score on third-and-goal from the five. Or that time he passed three times from inside his own 10 leading with less than two minutes left in game. If he’s lucky, maybe it’s one or two a season. Tulsa Union coach Bill Blankenship knows his share about losing, even though he hasn’t done that much of i
Urban Development
The record book said Bowling Green was in trouble when Urban Meyer went to interview for the university’s head coaching position in December 2000. The record book said the Falcons hadn’t had a winning season since 1994. The record book said the university had replaced coach Gary Blackney in mid-season that year after nine years on the job and two conference championships. Meyer loo
Five Steps to Maximize Player Potential
Five Steps to Maximize Player Potential Spotlight Five Steps to Maximize Player Potential Football players of the 21st century may look like they did way back in the 1900s – you know, three years ago – but let’s face it, times have changed. In order to fully maximize bot
The Big Play
There is not a head coach in the country that won’t expound on the importance of having good special teams play. We all know how to say the right thing, but unless a head coach is truly committed to special teams, your players will look at the “teams,” as we call them at Michigan, as just a break between offense and defense. But most importantly, special teams must be important to the head coach.
Breaking the Mold
Imagine a day when young men still stood at attention when young ladies entered the room or when a teacher could put their arms around a kid in need or when coaches led more by example than strong words. Imagine a day when kids would say “Yes, sir” and “No, ma’am.” Or when kids lost they graciously accepted defeat and proudly shook their opponents hand. Imagine a day when students a
Maintaining the Vision
Legendary Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi once muttered, “Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.” And even though that particular ideology throws political correctness completely out the window, it does, however, remind those who play the games that victory is – without a doubt – the desired end result. The game of football is a primary example of the win-at-all-cost
West Coast Offense: East Coast Style
Seven years ago, Ithaca College made a philosophical change to our program by incorporating the West Coast Offense. Rule changes, the excitement of the passing game and the ability to effectively match up against more talented defenses were all factors for this decision. We needed to develop a system of plays rather than a series of plays based on our background in option football. Therefore,
The Staff Report
Within the game of Football the difference in many athletes performance stems from flexibility of the hips. Whether your need is to engage a man on the line of scrimmage or to come in and out of your cuts faster, your results will depend on this. An interior lineman will be able to drive through the more forcefully and the skill position athlete will be able break down faster and more efficiently. Throughout
Running with the Bulls...
EDITOR\'S NOTE: On Dec. 12, 2002, Jim Leavitt signed a new five-year contract with a total base salary worth $2.4 million. The salary escalates from $407,173 in 2003 to $596,143 in 2007, the final year of the contract. Leavitt had been under contract through 2005. In addition to base salary, the new contract includes a $25,000 annual annuity and television/radio money that escalates from $40,000 to $50,000 over the course of the five years.
Disciplined Destruction
We have been fortunate to have many really good defenses at Furman over the past 20 years and that system has evolved from what use to be the 50 Defense to what we now call our Stack Defense. This is not the only defense that we run but it is our primary system and what we start teaching with. Like most schools it is our primary objective to stop the run first and then the pass. We do have some consistent
The Science of Recruiting Letters - Part II
Whether you like it or not, recruiting is a necessity. It is the only means to rebuild fallen programs and reload successful ones. More often than not, recruiting has become an endless saga filled with repetitive approaches that have changed little in the past four decades. Recruiting is something that everyone does, but does everyone do it well? In last month’s issue, the staff of American
Cover Story Running with the Bulls - With a base salary of $140,000, South Florida’s Jim Leavitt may in fact be the best bargain in college football, but one thing is for certain - he is no longer a secret. Read the complete article >>>
Running From The Shotgun Formation
When coaches think of running the football, they generally get in two tight ends and two backs, and MASH. The personnel on the field allows you take care of blocking most defenses and when you finish drawing your play everyone, at least in theory, can be blocked. You also believe you have a bigger, as strong, or stronger blocker then the defense. Many great coaches use that theory today.
Focus on Critical Information to Place Your Players in Position to be Successful
FOR LAST YEAR’S TECHNOLOGY ISSUE, American Football Monthly asked me to share some insight on the organization of game planning staff and resources.* This year, Travis Davis has asked me to again address the subject of game planning, this time regarding an often asked question: In light of the finite time we coaches have available each week for strategic planning, how can we find and use the best from th
Technology Crossroads
Bobby April had reached a crossroads in his career and his life. When the New Orleans Saints fired Mike Ditka’s staff after the 1999 season, April – the special teams coach – found himself without a job. April also found himself with a year left on his contract, and decisions to make. “I had a daughter who was going to be a senior in high school, and I wasn’t going to
2001 Coordinators of the Year
DEFENSE - BUD FOSTER, Virginia Tech OFFENSE - MIKE BORICH, BYU After more than two decades as one of college football’s most prolific passing and scoring teams under former coach LaVell Edwards, Brigham Young fans thought they had seen it all. Then Gary Crowton an
Roll Call at the Ball
In order to have a great defense, you must have great pursuit and gang tackling. In order to have great pursuit, you must emphasize running to the football throughout the entire practice. This includes the time spent in our individual and team periods. You must grade the effort of your players everyday. We’ve had outstanding defenses the past few seasons. In 2000, we finished first i
Letter From the Editor
It’s time for American Football Monthly’s annual look at new technologies in the game of football. We began this annual series in May 2000 because when it comes to technology, coaching is similar to many other jobs. Innovators and entrepreneurs are looking at ways to develop technology to make your job easier and to make you more efficient. For all that technology can do, it can’t add to the number o
May 2002 Cover Story Information Age Bobby April of the St. Louis Rams uses technology to gain a coaching and career edge. Technology Crossroads - St. Louis Rams special teams coach Bobby April is one of a growing
Georgia Military College’s Devastating 3-5 Defense
Following the 2000 season, our staff met to discuss what we needed to do to give our team a chance to play for something special in 2001. We had just finished the season 7-3 with the #2 ranked defense in the NJCAA, but we knew we had the talent returning to do better in 2001. One of the things we decided to do was to revamp our defense and change to a 3-5 scheme. While some may question the sanity of rebuilding
Back to School
Chan Gailey File: 1974-75 University of Florida - graduate assistant 1976-78 Troy State University - defensive backs coach 1979-80 Air Force Academy - defensive assistant 1981-82 Air Force Academy - defensive coordinator 1983-84 Troy State University - head coach 1985 Denver Br
No Excuses, No Apologies, Just Football
The Morriss File 1988-89 New England Patriots - Offensive Line 1991 Mansfield, Tex., HS - Offensive Coordinator 1992 Washington (PSFL) - Head Coach 1992-93 Valdosta State - Offensive Line 1994 Arizona Cardinals - Offensive Line 1995 San Antonio (CFL) - Offensive Line
ROAD TRIP
During his formative years as a high school coach, Barry Alvarez religiously studied the game while absorbing knowledge from a variety of sources. One spring, he decided to prove he was willing to go the extra mile (or miles in this case) to learn everything he could about the X’s and O’s of football. So he piled into his car with one of his coaching buddies (a former college teammate at Nebraska) and they
ATTACKING THE PERIMETER WITH THE QUICK GAME
Why use the quick game? A big reason for this is our staff has always believed in the philosophy to take what the defense gives you. I know this is probably an overused cliché, but it is one that both our staff and quarterbacks believe in 100%. ADVANTAGES OF THE QUICK GAME • Protection - Don’t have to hold them out long. • Safe - High percentage completions, closer to th
The “B” Word
Five sure signs that you’re coaching football at a basketball school: 1. The booster groups insist on inviting the basketball coach to your summer kickoff functions. 2. The basketball coach’s line for autographs outnumbers your line 10 to 1. 3. The basketball staff has a nice spacious office set-up up high in coliseum. You and your staff are stuck in the basement.
Media Guides
Universities across the country are paying close attention to the content in their media guides. Schools are forced to do so in order to insure themselves of not facing a controversial situation that could jeopardize their reputation. In response to specific cases involving false information and slandering comments of opponents in recent media guides, some schools have altered the manner in which they comp
Special Delivery
At Missouri Western we try to make special teams special. Many coaches have made the statement that special teams are one-third of the game, but actually as far as time spent on the field, they are less than that, but in impact they are more. Special team plays have a major effect on the results of the game. Blocking a punt for a touchdown or returning a kick for “six” more often than not results
NFL Coach of the Year Runners-up
BUTCH DAVIS When the Cleveland Browns hired Butch Davis as the second head coach in the three-year history of the new Browns franchise, Davis was told to beef up the defense and the running game and field a team that resembled the aggressive, hard-nosed kind of football Browns fans have been accustomed to back in the old days. More important, he was instructed to take the core of a
NFL Coach of the Year - Bill Belichick
You thought you knew him from his days in Cleveland. You saw the images on television. The grim, stern, face, void of emotion, ratcheted with intensity. You saw the newspaper stories. The humorless, dogmatic responses. A personality as cold and brittle as the wind blowing in from Lake Erie, pummeling Cleveland. You thought you knew him, but did you? Did you really? Did the people feeding those
The Nature of a Quiet Man
Dick Jauron is by nature a quiet man. Not given to yelling, screaming or grand statements. But as head coach of the Chicago Bears, he was able to get his team to achieve grand accomplishments in 2001. Try worst to first in the NFC Central Division. Try the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoffs, earning a bye and a ticket to a home game in the divisional playoffs. That ticket was torn u
April 2002 Latest Cover Story NFL Coach of the Year Getting to know the Real Bill Belichick Bill Belichick - You thought you knew him from his days in Cleveland. You saw the images on television. The grim, stern face, void of emotion, ratcheted with intensity.
Path To Victory
While there is no such thing as an easy head coaching job in football, some present as more challenging than others. In 1993, one of the more challenging jobs available was to be the next head coach of the Colorado State University Rams. The facilities were among the worst in the Western Athletic Conference (now the Mountain West Conference), with no signs of improvement
Practice With a Purpose
It is an honor to represent head coach Nick Saban and the LSU football staff in American Football Monthly. As coaches, we constantly stress to our players the importance of knowing what to do, but do not always explain when and how a scheme applies itself in a game situation. Here at LSU, we stress to our players knowing what to do, how to do it and when it applies. Our in-season practice schedule helps ou
Class of 2002
They are a pair of the most significant shoes in all of the college football coaching world. When you step in at Florida for Steve Spurrier, there is no hope of warming or going through a learning experience. Make no mistake about it. The heat will be on from Game One for Ron Zook. The Gators were one of the most consistent and powerful teams in the country under Spurrier. When Spurrie
Letter From the Publisher
As the 2002 football season is about to start, the attention given to coaches is only going to increase – especially new coaches. In some cases the double-whammy for new coaches is not only the “win now” mentality, but to reach the level of expectations set by their predecessors. Fans, alumni, media, administration, parents and just about every person in a coffee shop will be clo
Third & Short
University of Colorado co-defensive coordinator Tom McMahon has died of cancer at the age of 53. McMahon was diagnosed with inoperable cancer in the spring of 2000 and given a 10 percent chance to survive. He continued to fight, likening it to the fight against an opposing offense. He also continued at Colorado for as long as he could. He joined Gary Barnett’s staff prior to t
Embrace the Past
For new coaches attempting to fill huge shoes, history suggests it is smart to embrace the legend and make the most of it instead of trying to cut ties with the former coach and his assistants. When Gary Crowton took over at BYU for LaVell Edwards following the 2000 season, he reminded Cougar fans, “I’m not LaVell Edwards. I tried my imitation on the sidelines, and I’m not him. But I’ve learned fro
Cover Story Path To Victory Under Sonny Lubick's guidance, Colorado State is now a consistant winner The Look of a Winner - Anyone who thinks there are some programs that will never turn aroun
Third & Short
BCA to create minority hiring report card for universities The executive director of the Black Coaches Association, Floyd Keith said in late October that his organization and others intend to create a Hiring Report Card by August 2003 to grade and track the progress of minority football coaches, while giving players something to use when making their decision on which schools to attend.
Past, Present, Future
“I don’t have all the answers. As soon as I retire, then I’ll have all the answers. I’ll stay up in the stands with the rest of the fans who have all the answers, and I can answer it all then. Right now, I still have to go do it. It’s never easy to go out and get it done.” - John Gagliardi SO HOW MUCH LONGER IS JOHN GAGLIARDI GOING TO keep coaching? It’s a ques
Gary Gaines Trades Lights for Sunny Saturday Afternoons
GARY GAINES WILL BE THE FIRST ONE TO TELL YOU that nothing comes easy – especially in coaching. In fact, the Abilene Christian University head football coach wouldn’t have it any other way. Gaines, who led teams to nine playoff appearances in 17 years as a high school coach, gained national attention as the head coach of
Dale Lennon\'s 3 Keys to Success...
You don’t just win the Division II national championship without a plan. And University of North Dakota head coach Dale Lennon had one of his very own. The Fighting Sioux alumnus and former assistant coach returned to Grand Forks, North Dakota, and within three short years guided the Big Green to the national title. Recently American Football Monthly had the opportunity
The Science Of Recruiting Letters Part 1
What if you could have an in-home visit with any football recruit in the nation at any time during the NCAA’s mandated recruiting period? What if your in-home visit could take advantage of every possible opportunity to share your program’s tradition, goals and intentions with a potential game-breaking superstar that could help make the difference between a 5-6 also-ran and a 6-5 bowl run?
Words of Wisdom
Just the mention of Alabama football conjures images of hound’s-tooth hats and championship trophies; images of football past, present and future; images of great players led by even greater men. Paul “Bear” Bryant immediately comes to mind when referring to the University of Alabama. But without question, former Crimson Tide head coach Gene Stallings is a close second.
Equipment Room
Defensive Reaction Machine From Rae Crowther Co. 1-800-841-5050 www.raecrowther.com B.C. Cruncher Two-Man Sled Defensive Reaction Sled (DFR) \"Over 70 Years of What Works...\" Quality Reconditioning 1-800-544-5564 www.continentalathletic.c
Turf
Artificial turf has undergone a major makeover. Instead of a hard, abrasive surface that players feared and fans despised, the newer version of artificial turf provides a softer, more cushioned playing field that wears well and can stand up under heavy usage. That’s the key to today’s artificial grass-like surfaces. For universities, colleges and high schools with
High School Notes
Not even a trip to powerhouse Long Beach Poly could end De La Salle’s national-record winning streak and run to an unprecedented fourth national title. When the top-ranked “Spartan Express” – engineered by coach Bob Ladouceur – chugged south down the Pacific coast to meet No. 3 Poly at Long Beach’s Veterans Stadium on Oct. 6, there were many who believed that De La Salle would be derailed
Division I-A Coach of the Year Runners-up.
GARY BARNETT COLORADO Back in late July, Colorado Coach Gary Barnett visited Dallas for the Big 12’s annual preseason media event when he decided to take some of his players on a trip to Texas Stadium, home of the 2001 Big 12 championship game. Then he told his players that the season would be a disappointment if they did not return to Texas Stadium at the end of the
New Equipment
Recruiting Software From CyberSports 1-315-732-4333 members.home.net/cybersports CyberPalm allows you to take all your recruits information on the road with you, and sync any changes you made on the road when you return to the office. Now all the coaches can have access to any new information you have gathered on your recent recruiting trips. With a few clicks of the mouse, selected prospec
Cover StoryCoach of the Year Ralph Friedgen February 2002 Division I-A Coach of the Year Ralph Friedgen When the University of Maryland went looking for a football coach, they wanted someone who cared about UM, its past, present and futu
Why Split?
Meeting with an informal group of offensive line coaches at the national coaches convention this year, the question was asked about our wide splits in the bowl game. After some conversation with the group, it was clear that many of them had not watched us play prior to the Alamo Bowl. The truth of the matter is our offensive line has always used wide splits in some form.
Poetic Justice
My job as defensive line coach is to help my players attain our team goals, our defensive goals, and their individual goals. One of the ways I do this is by preparing them during the week for situations they may encounter during the game. On Saturdays, I do not want them thinking; I want them reacting. For this reason, I am very careful with respect to what I expose them to during the week. I try to keep i
Football Strength
It’s no longer just about lifting weights, Washington State develops flexibility, speed, skill development and conditioning to get the most out of their players. By Steve Silverman The role of the strength coach has changed dramatically over the years. A couple of decades ago, the concept of the strength coach was a relatively
Strong, Fast, Agile
The job of the strength coach is not a complicated one. It is to build stronger players and to do it with efficiency and organization. If you help develop stronger players, your program has a better chance of playing winning football. And it\'s not just about building stronger players – it\'s about developing faster and quicker players. Give strong, fast and ag
March 2002 Latest Cover Story Behind Oklahoma's Strength Jerry Schmidt - Before coming to OU, Schmidt worked as a strength coach at Nebraska, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State and Florida. It seems everywhere he goes athletes get stronger and faster. As the Director of S
Who’s Hot?
DAN HAWKINS, HC, BOISE STATE After serving as Dirk Koetter\'s assistant head coach, special teams and tight ends coach and overseeing Boise State’s highly successful community service and public involvement program, Hawkins moved up to the head coach’s job when Koetter took over at Arizona State following the 2000 season. During his time as an assistant at Boise State, t
Red Hot
RANDY SANDERS Most first-time college football coordinators get their new jobs in the offseason, with plenty of time to prepare for spring practice, more time to teach in the spring and then even more time to work toward the coming season. If they’re really fortunate, they’ll open the season against East Bugtussle State Teachers College
Are Football Coaches Overpaid?
Washington Redskins Head Football Coach Steve Spurrier is probably the highest paid football coach in the world today. Coach Spurrier is reportedly contracted to earn $25,000,000.00 over a five year term, a deal valued at $5 million dollars annually. Despite that he may also be one of the best coaches, he has little need to worry about 3% inflation. After all, Notre Dame’s Knute Rockne was highly compensated too at
2002 Hot Coaches RED HOT Tennessee’s Offensive Coordinator, Randy Sanders and Kansas State’s Defensive Coordinator, Bob Elliott are two assistant coaches that have studied and performed under some of the best head coaches in the game. Following the 2002 season, many athletic directors will be calling to enlist th
Innovative Fundraising Ideas
Here are some fundraising ideas your booster club can consider to raise anywhere from a little to a lot of money to support the football program: 1. A Golf Tournament The best part about a golf tournament is it gives people in the community who support your team a chance to do it while doing something else many people enjoy: playing competitive golf. You can cha
Personal Decision
The questions hang around the high school stadium whenever a veteran coach with some championships and a reputation for excellence stalks the sidelines. If this guy is so good, why didn’t he get a coaching job at the college or professional level? Why is he still coaching high school football? Frank Lenti has heard those questions before. As one of the na
Letter From the Editor
“Everyone loves a winner.” Every coach knows the value and impact of winning football games. Depending on your level of coaching, it means some combination of more job security, more job opportunities more money, better recruits and more community support. For most coaches, at least the ones I’ve had the good fortune to speak with, the term “football philosophies” is a slight
Player Hand-offs
Recruiting is an interestingly complex part of football that isn’t getting any easier on coaches at either the high school or college levels. It was never easy for college coaches to recruit players, traveling the country relying on tips and grainy videos and news accounts to try and form a college football roster. While the Internet has made it easier to find out information about
June 2002 Cover Story Paths to Success - First rate facilities a plus, but people ultimately determine program success. An inside look at successful high school programs in Artesia, N.M., and Carol City, Fla., shows that coaches, communities and players are the bes
Follow The Leader
When the University of Texas whipped out the wishbone in the 1960s, it didn\'t take long for college football programs all over the South to follow the trend and come up with their own version of the triple-option. When Florida coach Steve Spurrier brought a wide-open passing attack to the run-oriented SEC in the early 90s, it didn\'t take long for the rest of the conference to pick up on the trend and discover the joys of passing.When Nebraska and Kansas State starting using press-man def
Climbing to the Summit
He\'s coached at the high school level, at the small college level, and the major college level for the past 24 seasons. Along the way, he\'s been an assistant head coach, an offensive coordinator, a running backs coach and a receivers\' coach. Someday, Woody McCorvey would like to be a head coach on the college level.That\'s why McCorvey is a position coach at the University of Tennessee. He knows being a coordinator or an assistant head coach might be the most obvious path to a head coachin
On the Circuit
At the University of North Dakota, we have one major goal for our defense to attain each season. That goal is to lead the North Central Conference in fewest points allowed. This is not an easy task in one of the most balanced and powerful Division II conferences in the country. Yet we have reached our goal of allowing the fewest points in our league in six of the last nine seasons. During six of the last seven seasons, we have also been first or second in our conference in total defense. While w
Best of the Best ...
What makes an outstanding coaching staff? Experience? Expertise? Knowledge? Communication? Teaching ability? Team building? Is it all of the above, plus the ability to recruit in the college ranks, and the ability to scout in the pro ranks? It depends on how you measure success. Is it national championships, something the Oklahoma, Florida State and Tennessee staffs can all claim over the past three college seasons? Is it Super Bowl victories, something Baltimore and St. Louis own from the
Blood Brother
When Rutgers University Athletic Director Robert Mulcahy began his search for a new head football coach last November, die-hard Scarlet Knight fans and a large contingent of New Jersey high school coaches wanted one thing ... they wanted a \"Jersey Guy.\" They wanted what another favorite son, Bruce Springsteen, refers to in song. What they wanted was one of their \"Blood Brothers.\" They wanted a guy who spent his July weekends down on the Jersey shore cruising the boardwalk, and his Novem
News & Notes
Veteran NFL assistant coach and New England quarterbacks coach Dick Rehbein died during training camp. The 45-year-old Rehbein died of heart failure at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. The Patriots said Rehbein, who had heart disease, checked himself into the hospital complaining of discomfort. Rehbein joined the Patriots in February 2000. Rehbein, who had an internal pacemaker because of cardiomyopathy, suffered an apparent heart attack and extensive resuscitation efforts failed.
Efficiency in the Scoring Zone
From the time we watched our first game, we all understood the fundamental role of the offense in the game of football. The purpose of the offense is not to control the clock, nor is it to create field position or give the defense a rest. Although these are all important by-products of an effective offense, they are not the primary focus. The role of the offense is to score points, period. It is with that basic premise in mind that we communicate and develop our philosophy for the area between t
Cover Story Greg Schiano October 2001 Blood Brother - Perennially bad and lacking for direction, Rutgers turned its fo
H20
Working out means working up a sweat. In fact, many people believe the more you sweat, the better the workout. But losing all that fluid is just your body\'s way of cooling itself. You have to give back what\'s lost in a workout. If you don\'t, you are putting yourself at risk of dehydration that could end with serious consequences. The National Athletic Trainers\' Association has a Position Statement explaining the role of proper hydration in athletic performances. Take the time to r
Letter From the Publisher
Protecting your assets... In the business world, there are a few axioms that are universally applied by all successful companies. For example, some of these management philosophies are: focus on those things with the greatest opportunity for success; make certain you do whatever is necessary to keep your best employees; and protect your company\'s most valuable assets. However, in the football world, I fear teams sometimes ignore sound, proven and winning business strategies th
The Truth About Turf
Your quarterback is on the run. Coming from his left is a 275-pound defensive end charging with a full head of speed. Coming straight at him is a blitzing middle linebacker. You watch from the sidelines and know the inevitable is about to happen. It\'s just a matter of who is going to get to your quarterback - the end or the linebacker. The linebacker wins the race. He explodes past a would-be blocker and wraps up the quarterback with a nasty hit punctuated by his head bouncing off th
Longevity
Frank Broyles, who has been with the Razor-backs for 44 years, is now in his 28th year as athletic director, and the accolades continue to pour in. Recent awards include the Bobby Jones Award by the Atlanta Council of the Boy Scouts of America and the John L. Toner Award, given annually by the National Football Foundation and the College Hall of Fame to the athletics director who has demonstrated superior administrative abilities and shown outstanding dedication to college athletics a
The Protector
When Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive back Damien Robinson is asked how important athletic trainers are to his game, he whips out his cell phone.\"He is the No. 1 number,\" Robinson says of Bucs head trainer Todd Toriscelli. Once thought of as those guys who toted water or taped ankles, athletic trainers are now as important to winning football programs as quarterbacks with cannons for arms or receivers who can sprint downfield undetected to catch those powerful blasts.\"I think the i
Words of Wisdom
With innovations such as the pocket pass, loose-leaf playbooks, year-round coaching staffs, classroom teaching and tests, advanced scouting, grading player performance from film review, and sending in plays from the sideline, some say Paul Brown was the greatest coach who ever lived. Add to that coaching legendary high school teams at Massilon, Ohio, a national championships at Ohio State, all four AAFC champions, and three NFL championships, it\'s hard to get much argument to that claim. Brown
Everyone on the Same Page
In the absence of a certified athletic trainer, the head coach or coaches have many responsibilities as it relates to an injured athlete. During the course of a game, as one can imagine, all coaches are very involved with focusing on the next play, making the right substitutions, calling or signaling the right signs and searching for a way to win the game. One of the most difficult responsibilities for a coach is when an athlete is injured and his or her attention has to be refocused on ensuring
Emergency Situations: What\'s the Coach\'s Role?
Football is a collision sport and by its very nature invites injury. Participation in football requires all out exertion. There are numerous situations involving oftentimes high speed contact with other bodies or with the ground. While coaches focus on strategy and victory, they also must be aware of injury risks and know their role when a situation does transpire. Fortunately most injuries do not result in emergency situations, however, when emergencies do occur, prompt care is essential. With
News & Notes
Trojan and Buccaneer legend McKay Passes Away John McKay, the legendary coach of USC and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, known as much for his memorable sense of humor as he was for his tremendous success as a coach, passed away on June 10 from complications associated with his diabetes. McKay, who won four national titles at USC and was later the coach of the expansion Tampa Bucs, was 77. \"John McKay never bit his tongue,\" said former Bucs quarterback and current Grambl
Cover Story Sports Medicine July 2001 The Protector... - As head athletic trainer for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Todd Toriscelli
Lion Heart
Coaching requires the commitment to teach, to inspire athletes to set and achieve team and/or personal goals, while simultaneously developing the all-important necessary strategies to win! At no time should a coach ever forget or choose to ignore a most basic fundamental and unwritten code: coaching involves people not just schemes or strategies. Regardless of the level or the sport chosen to coach, this code can never be forgotten or the meaning lessened: that coaches, first and foremost, are i
NEVER A DOUBT
An upset? Don\'t call Oklahoma\'s national championship or its Orange Bowl victory over Florida State an upset. An upset is when a team that shouldn\'t win beats a team that should win, and that wasn\'t the case when the Sooners completed their undefeated season by beating the Seminoles 13-2. So what if Florida State was favored to win by nearly two touchdowns? So what if the Seminoles were playing for the national championship for the third time in four years? So what if the Sooners w
Leading By Example
Just four short months after assuming the reigns of the University of Oklahoma athletic department, Sooner athletic director Joe Castiglione made a decision that would shake the OU football program out of its recent doldrums and head it toward a sudden and glorious future. He hired Bob Stoops as head football coach.Prior to his arrival in Norman, Castiglione - a former football walk-on at the University of Maryland - spent 18 years rebuilding the pride and solidifying the infrastructur
The Relentless Pursuit of Excellence
Each year coaching staffs spend countless hours and large amounts of money searching for new and innovative ways to improve their defensive performance. Descriptive phrases such as \"swarming defense\" and \"relentless pursuit\" depict the type of play coaches are seeking from their defensive units. While using innovative coaching aids, advanced computer technology, and attending professional clinics can help a coach in his pursuit of these levels of performance, perhaps the most effec
High School Notes
Heart attack claims life of Ohio State recruit Drushaun Humphrey, one of the nation\'s top prospects from the Class of 2002 and unofficially an early verbal commitment to Ohio State, died April 30 of an apparent heart attack during a pickup basketball game. Humphrey, a standout running back/linebacker at Rogers High School in Toledo, arrived at the Medical College of Ohio in full cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead. An autopsy was planned to determine an exact cau
News & Notes
Fiesta Bowl changing to an afternoon game and will host 2003 title game The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl is switching to an afternoon kickoff on New Year\'s Day 2002 rather than the night schedule of recent years. Officials announced that the game will match the Pac-10 and Big 12 champions if those teams aren\'t playing in the Rose Bowl. If those teams aren\'t available for the Fiesta Bowl, its officials will turn to a pool of at-large teams that includes the champions of the Big Ten,
June 2001 Cover Story Buried Treasure... UAB's Watson Brown - Sometimes numbers can be deceiving, and in the case of Watson Brown, his career cannot be measured by wins and losses. Acclaimed by all who know him a
Equipment Room
Rogers Lev Sled 1-(800) 248-0270 www.rogersathletic.com Utilize the power of leverage to achieve more gridiron victories. Only the Rogers Lev Sled requires the blocker to drive the pad to compress the spring - then he is able to elevate the pad. From Rae Crowther Co. 1-800-841-5050 www.raecrowther.com The most effective football sleds and machines in the game. 68 years of what works. 1, 2, 5, and 7 man sleds. Off
Class of 2001
When Ralph Friedgen met the press during hype week at Super Bowl XXIX in January of 1995, he faced an important question. \"Wouldn\'t you like to be a head coach some day?\" the media asked.At the time, Friedgen was the offensive coordinator for the San Diego Chargers. His team was getting ready to battle the 49ers in a contest that would become one of the most devastating offensive performances in Super Bowl history. The Chargers would be on the wrong end of those offensive fireworks.Frie
NFL Hot College Coaches 2001
What does it take to get to the throne of an NFL franchise? It is not a secret formula. The men making the decisions on who will lead a NFL team are not by nature risk-takers. They want the safe choice, either a proven winner or a hot assistant on the rise.For the proven winners like Dick Vermeil or Marty Schottenheimer, their records are clear and unambiguous. Owners can look at what they have done and choose to seek their leadership for their floundering franchises. However, the choice
Special Delivery: Pete Rodriguez
Pete Rodriguez has a motto to match his moxie. Here it goes: No matter how nervous he might get sometimes as the special teams coordinator of the Seattle Seahawks, the blood, sweat and tears of his work are the last thing you\'ll see on his sleeve, skin or collar.\"Don\'t ever let them see you sweat,\'\' Rodriguez said. \"I try to believe in that commercial. You need to have control, and however you handle it, reflects your own personality. Some guys are real vocal and holler and scream. I
On A Mission
It\'s 8:30 on a humid Friday morning in June, and Ralph Friedgen looks frazzled, as if he\'s already worked his standard 18-hour day. Sweat sits on the face of the 54-year-old, who appears out of breath when arriving at his University of Maryland office.For the Terps new football coach, the morning has been about three hours old - and hectic at that. Friedgen chased down three of his freshmen to get them to their academic tutor on time and coordinated details for Maryland\'s ongoing high scho
Words of Wisdom
To the people of he state of Minnesota, Bud Grant is an icon. To many in the NFL during the 1970s and 80s, he was iconoclastic. His belief in treating his players like men, as opposed to dogs, was more than unique; it was rebellious. His shortened training camps and less than arduous emphasis on hitting made Grant a coach who might have been run out of the good ol\' boy club were it not for the fact he won at an amazing rate. What kind of coach was Grant? Just like Sergeant Joe Friday used to
Capitol Will...
A year ago at this time, the Washington Redskins were the most hyped team in NFL history - Super Bowl expectations, $100 million payroll, marquee free agent signings. These days, the volume in Redskins land is at a monotone. One person took it upon himself to bring the franchise down to earth: Marty Schottenheimer.After a two-year stint as an ESPN analyst, the NFL\'s 12th all-time winningest coach is back on familiar turf. Since becoming the Redskins head coach and taking charge of the tea
Play Action for the Big Play
The past three seasons we have experienced much success at Jones Jr. College. In 1998, we were fortunate enough to finish the season 12-0 with a #1 ranking in one national poll. Our no-huddle, one-back offensive attack has averaged 29 points per game in the three seasons we have been together. In the spring of 1997, our staff decided to put in the one-back offense with the objective of spreading the defense. Our offensive philosophy is fairly simple. We want to determine where the defen
News & Notes
Tragedy strikes Florida as freshman FB, Autin diesEvery coach and parent\'s nightmare happened in Gainesville, when incoming Florida freshman Eraste Autin died of complications related to heat stroke, six days after collapsing and falling into a coma following a workout with teammates. Autin fell unconscious just outside Florida Field in late July while jogging back to the locker room after one of the football team\'s voluntary summer conditioning sessions. Although no autopsy wa
Cover Story Pete Rodriguez September 2001 Special Delivery: Pete Rodriguez - Pundits always argue that special teams p
State of Emergence
A huge photograph of a college quarterback appears, mural-like, on the side of a building across from Madison Square Garden in New York City during the past summer, touting the senior\'s candidacy for the Hesiman Trophy. Two of his teammates will appear this season on promotional billboards in San Francisco and Los Angeles.You think: Notre Dame, maybe?At the rival school up the road, they\'re hyping the star running back for the Heisman Trophy. They pose him in a photo with a prominent alu
Equipment Room
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Balance : Steve Spurrier
Nearly every coach would like Steve Spurrier\'s recruiting base in Florida and the talent on his roster. Almost any coach would covet Spurrier\'s financial resources and facilities. A majority of coaches would give their left ... pinkie toes ... to have Florida\'s fervent fan support and outstanding administrative backing.With all those advantages going for Spurrier and the University of Florida football program, winning ought to be easy, right? Now ask yourself this: would every coach pro
Spurrier Q&A
Florida head coach Steve Spurrier is a hands-on boss who coaches his own quarterback, coordinates his own offense and calls his own plays, and does it as well, if not better, than anyone in football. In many ways, his coaching style is an extension of his playing career, when he played quarterback for the University of Florida and three NFL teams during a 10-year pro career.During the week before a recent open date, Spurrier took the time to talk with American Football Monthly\'s Richard Scot
Cover Story Balance: Steve Spurrier December 2001 Balance: Steve Spurrier -
The Big 10
Every year thousands of coaches try to take the next step up the ladder of success thatleads to the land of head coaching. Most of these men fully believe they have \"what it takes\" and all they need is a chance. Yet, many of these same men will tell me they feel totally disenfranchised and do not know how to \"get in the loop\" or make it to the next level. So many coaches seem to feel if they wor
Scout\'s Honor
WORKING IN THE NFL ISN\'T ALWAYS ABOUT THE GLORY. Despite working in the richest and most successful league in all of professional sports, there are still a great number of key employees who aren\'t household names. Yet without them, head coaches, star players and backups couldn\'t have the degree of preparation that is seen on a weekly basis. Scouts are generally in the game for the love of it. O
The Mouse That Roared
He is talking football, as usual, as he veers his black 1991 Mercedes 300 SE into the parking lot of the Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.There are other interests in his life, but nothing quite captures Mouse Davis\' fancy like throwing the football.\"Visiting with Mouse is like talking to Mr. Football, and it is not an artificial enthusiasm,\" says another man with a passing interest in the game, Dick Vermeil.Davis is discussing how to attack the latest defensive phenomeno
High School Coach of the Year
ON A WARM SUMMER DAY LAST JULY, CATHEDRAL Prep coach Mike Mischler and 13 of his senior football players loaded into his Jeep Cherokee and a rented passenger van to begin a journey through the nation\'s heartland. The two-vehicle caravan\'s four-day swing through the college towns of South Bend, Ind., Iowa City, Iowa, East Lansing, Mich., and Ann Arbor, Mich., was an informal meet-and-greet trip for Mischler and his players - a way for them to see some campuses, meet some coaches, and
Schutt Sports: Regional High School Coaches of the Year
SOUTHEASTNick ColemanVenice High School (Venice, Fla.)2000: 15-0, Class 5A state champs, Record at school: 21-5, 2 yearsVenice High School coach Nick Coleman is a little ahead of his time. At 31, he\'s already led a team to a state championship and a national ranking. Rarely has such a young head coach accomplished so much in the highly competitive world of Florida prep football. And when Coleman started his second full season as head coach of the Indians la
Practicing What You Preach
Too many times, we as coaches are guilty of talking out of both sides of our mouths. We stand before our players in meetings or in front of our peers at coaching clinics and expound on our philosophies, values and beliefs about the keys to winning football games. Yet, when we go out to the practice field, our practice structure does not mirror these beliefs. Instead, we spent too little time on what we say are the important things and get caught in the trap of using our limited practic
The Old Dog Has Some New Tricks
He\'s 64 years old, he\'s been a head coach for 29 years, he\'s won 223 games, taken six different teams to a combined total of 22 bowls, and won a national championship at one of the nation\'s most prestigious programs.He\'s the first to admit he\'s stubborn, sometimes to a fault. He didn\'t have to change his coaching methods. He didn\'t have to change his offense or his defense or his staff management style. He didn\'t have to try anything new. He didn\'t even have to take this job
News & Notes
Schottenheimer heads back to the field Marty Schottenheimer is leaving the broadcast booth and returning to the football field, this time as head coach and director of football operations for the beleaguered Washington Redskins. At a press conference in early January, Schottenheimer said that while he loved the two years he spent as an NFL analyst for ESPN, he just couldn\'t pass up the opportunity to return to coaching. \"It\'s in my blood,\" the 11th winningest coach in NFL histor
Cover Story Lou Holtz February 2001 Division 1-A Coach of the Year Lou Holtz - It was enough that the Notre Dame coaching lege
Equipment Room
Rogers Lev Sled 1-(800) 248-0270 www.rogersathletic.com Utilize the power of leverage to achieve more gridiron victories. Only the Rogers Lev Sled requires the blocker to drive the pad to compress the spring - then he is able to elevate the pad. From Rae Crowther Co. 1-800-841-5050 www.raecrowther.com The most effective football sleds and machines in the game. 68 years of what works. 1, 2, 5, and 7 man sleds. Off
Hot College Coaches 2001
In the year 2000, a plague swept across the land of college football. At 25 cities, in various corners of the country, the disease of fan impatience and athletic director intolerance dealt death blows to good men. ADs were forced to pull the plug on coaches who were left on life-support by too few wins or too many losses versus the wrong opponent. Unfortunately there is no cure for the malady that has invaded the system known as college football and it has reached epidemic proportions.With t
Two Hot to Stop
According to the old cliche, defense wins championships and offense sells tickets, so if the rising number of offensive-related hires in recent years tells us anything, it\'s that college presidents, athletic directors and major boosters doing the hiring must be more interested in selling tickets than winning championships.But what factor sells tickets more than winning championships? Just ask the folks at Oklahoma, where coach Bob Stoops and the Sooners are the hottest ticket West of the Mis
Getting the Ball to Your Playmaker
Our motto at Stephen F. Austin is \"Let players be playmakers,\" and we as coaches attempt to put the players in an environment where they can succeed and we get out of the way! We emphasize the importance of \"explosives.\" Explosives are defined as plays (run or pass) that gains twenty yards or more. We want our players to understand that these gain have a positive impact on the game. Not only do they lead to scoring opportunities, but they also lead to huge shifts in field position that a
Minority Opinion
There are 117 Division I-A football programs and five (5) are led by minority coaches. Is this acceptable? Absolutely not. Can this situation be corrected? Absolutely.Take this test- write down the names of all five I-A football coaches; its not that difficult (Tyrone Willingham, Stanford; Jerry Baldwin, Louisiana-Lafayette; Fitz Hill, San Jose State; Bobby Williams, Michigan State; and Tony Samuels, New Mexico State). Now, use that same piece of paper and list all minority D-IA head basketb
Stop the Spread
Kansas State defensive coordinator Phil Bennett has been a popular man this off-season.Not a week goes by without another coordinator calling for some advice on defending an offense that was hard to tackle last season. It is an offense responsible for Oklahoma winning the national title, Oregon State completing its best season in school history, Purdue going to the Rose Bowl, and both Northwestern and South Carolina rising from the depths.It\'s the spread offense and the debate on how to,
News & Notes
Dolphins name Paton director of pro personnelThe Miami Dolphins have named George Paton their director of pro personnel. Paton, who spent the last four years working in the Chicago Bears\' player personnel department, performing scouting duties, will be responsible for monitoring the rosters of all 31 NFL teams and clubs in other leagues. He will also scout Dolphins opponents. He was a defensive back at UCLA, graduating in 1991. Duke to appeal ruling in favor of former femal
Cover Story Two Hot to Stop August 2001 Two Hot to Stop - For the past several years, head coaching vacancies have been fille
Equipment Room
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Out With The Old and In With The New
While the towering Payne Whitney Gymnasium at Yale University is known as the \"cathedral of sports,\" for Steve Plisk and his strength and conditioning staff, it was an ungodly mess.Stuffed in a former wrestling room, the 3,600-square-foot weight room had long outlived its usefulness.\"Athletes would show up at their assigned time and have to wait 10 minutes for it to clear out,\" says Plisk, describing one of the many obstacles he faced trying to run a strength and conditioning pr
The Power Behind The Thrown
They\'re the Rodney Dangerfields of the football world. They\'re overworked, underpaid, overlooked and under-appreciated. If they do their jobs well and their teams win, they get little, if any, glory. But, if they put a squad on the field that can\'t go the distance and collapses in the fourth quarter, there\'s hell to pay.In short, with rare exception, strength and conditioning coaches just don\'t get no respect.\"The unofficial rule when dealing with the football staff
Big Man On Campus
When Boyd Eply told Nebraska head coach Bob Devaney he was going to teach his Cornhuskers how to lift weights, Devaney was about as excited as if Eply had told him he was going to teach them how to fumble in the end zone.\"Why would you want to do that?\" Devaney asked. \"I have a friend at Michigan State and he doesn\'t lift weights. I have a friend at Ohio State and he doesn\'t lift weights. In fact, I don\'t know anyone in the whole country who lifts weights. The way I understand it
News and Notes
Waiting for the XFL to call If Rich Brooks has his way, he\'ll be coaching in the XFL next year. Brooks in January abruptly resigned his three-year post as defensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons, sold his house in Atlanta and moved back to Eugene, Ore. to wait for a call from the upstart league. \"I guess my time has passed in this league,\" he said, refering to the NFL, as he announced his resignation from the Falcons. Last fall the 59-year-old turned down a job
Cover Story The Godfather March 2001 Big Man on Campus - Nebraska's Boyd Eply didn't set out to change the game of football
Packaging Your Passing Game
As the passing game has evolved, problems have arisen in packaging the pass routes for all protections, personnel groups and formations. For example, we have 10 different personnel groups, ranging from three tight ends and two running backs, to five wide receivers. Making the passing game flexible enough to encompass all the variables can get difficult. Our offensive staff has put a great deal of time and thought into this, and has developed a comprehensive, yet very user-friendly, sy
Cover Too
It may come as a surprise to some that computers have been helping high school and college coaches build game plans for nearly 20 years. Starting with the early Apple II and IBM personal computers, technology that had previously been available only to larger colleges and professional teams began working its way into the high school and small college ranks. Innovative coaches, facing many obstacles, began to integrate computers into their game planning processes during the mid-1980s. C
To AD or not to AD...
Can you see this happening? A new coach is hired. He wants new computers and video equipment for his staff. So, off to the AD\'s office he goes. The athletic director, anxious to do everything to make the new coach happy, tells the coach to get him a proposal. Thereafter, the coach instructs his video coordinator to \"... write something up.\" The coach and his video guy then return to the AD\'s office to make their pitch. The AD will most oftentimes try to approve the expenditure, and then find
Cutting the Chord
Coaching great Knute Rockne is known for his motto \"Winning - it\'s not everything ... it\'s the only thing.\" But as any successful coach can tell you, perhaps the only thing you can really count on are the long, often tedious hours. No one needs to remind you that coaching is a time-consuming profession. You\'ve been there. Late nights followed by early mornings. And if by some miraculous intervention more hours were added to the day, you\'d probably just spend this surplus time in your offic
The Information Age
It\'s the kind of argument that breaks out hundreds of times during hundreds of coaches meetings that are held at hundreds of school across the nation each week.The coaching staff at Pittsburg State University in Kansas was mulling over the team\'s weak spots and one coach insisted that a glaring problem was the team\'s inability to convert on third down. The idea caught on quickly and pretty soon the entire staff was in agreement that the Gorillas simply weren\'t very good in third-down situ
Achieving Maximum Benefit from Your Use of Technology in Game Planning
ALL STAFFS INVEST A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF time and effort in game planning. Strategic preparation for an opponent is a big part of what we do as coaches. It\'s a major element of the intellectual challenge of coaching which attracts us to the profession, and it forms the basis for the way in which we as coaches compete on game day. Play calling success is dependent upon a knowledge of the strengths, weaknesses and tendencies of both your own team and of your opponent. We all know that ot
From Athlete to Administrator
When Arizona State University appointed Gene Smith as the school\'s 18th director of athletics on July 27, 2001, the Pac-10 school gained both an experienced and accomplished leader. Before arriving in Tempe, Smith served as athletic director at Iowa State University (1993-2000) and at Eastern Michigan University (1986-93). At Iowa State, he coordinated the financial and physical transformation of the Cyclone athletic department, including the construction of a $6.1 million three-story football
News & Notes
Sooners visit the White House President Bush honored Bob Stoops and his University of Oklahoma national championship football team at the White House March 5, 2001 in a special ceremony held in the Rose garden. The team was recognized along with the women\'s softball team, which beat UCLA 3-1 for its first national championship at the Women\'s College World Series in Oklahoma City last spring. The teams also toured the U.S. Capitol and were recognized on the Senate floo
May 2001 Cover Story The Information Age - Computers and the countless software applications have forever changed the face of coaching... a look at how the changes have affected coaches like Pittsburg State's OL coach Bill Kroenke.
Evaluating Offensive Linemen
Assessing the abilities and skills of an interior lineman is one of the most coach\'s job. Many coaches do not realize the true capabilities of their players. Countless times determinations and selections are made solely on the candidate\'s height, weight, speed and potential as a football player, without much, if any, regard for the player\'s ability as a performer on the field to actually \"get it done.\" There are all types of offensive linemen. Some are short and stout. Others are simply
Equipment Room
Rogers Lev Sled 1-(800) 248-0270 www.rogersathletic.com Utilize the power of leverage to achieve more gridiron victories. Only the Rogers Lev Sled requires the blocker to drive the pad to compress the spring - then he is able to elevate the pad. From Rae Crowther Co. 1-800-841-5050 www.raecrowther.com The most effective football sleds and machines in the game. 68 years of what works. 1, 2, 5, and 7 man sleds. Off
He Knows the Way In San Jose
In a geographical area of California well-known for its technology innovations and sports achievements\' San Jose State\'s Chuck Bell knows that his athletic teams must be competitive if people are to identify with, much less attend Spartan athletic events. But grappling for attention in Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area, where competitiveness is cutting edge, can be difficult. All the same, Bell, who is nearing the end of his third full year as athletic director at SJSU, doesn\'t sh
What a Tangled Web We Have Weaved...
Rewind your football clock 30 years, to a time when legendary Alabama coach Paul \"Bear\" Bryant used preseason practice to install the wishbone in total secrecy and used it to ambush an unsuspecting USC team in the Crimson Tide\'s season opening 17-10 win over the Trojans. Fast forward that clock to August, 2001, to a time when first-year Alabama coach Dennis Franchione attempted to prepare his team for its season opener against UCLA. Franchione, following an Alabama tradition, opened his p
Moving On...
You are coaching at good, old State U. There have been a few bumps and bruises over the years, but that\'s in the past. You have just led State to a second consecutive 8-3 record and a second straight bowl game. Times are good. The shoe company has just offered you a new deal. Your TV show - the one where you review yesterday\'s game with the local yahoo sportscaster - is a success as ratings are up 20 percent. One of the local alums has offered you a part-ownership in the new restaurant tha
Ten Coaches You Should Know
Bobby Bowden. Joe Paterno. Steve Spurrier. Phillip Fulmer. Even the casual college football fan knows those names, and they\'ve earned their fame and fortune through time, experience and victory. But what about those head coaches who don\'t make the headlines, but still do a great job? The NCAA record book is filled with the names of outstanding coaches who never coached a game in the so-called \"big time,\" but there\'s no doubt that men such as Amoz Alonzo Stagg, Ron Schipper, Frosty Weste
A Wizard in the Land of Oz
When Tony DeMeo left the tight confines of the East Coast for the wide-open plains of Topeka, Kan., and Washburn University in December 1993, what he found was pretty alarming. The school, though getting ready to begin its 103rd year playing the game, was one of the barren wastelands of college football. Five years had passed since the Ichabods last posted a winning record and the program was languishing through a 12-game losing streak. Even worse, DeMeo found only 29 players on the ro
Breaking Bonds
It had been one of the most embarrassing nights of Marty Schottenheimer\'s career. After a two-year absence from the head-coaching ranks, Schottenheimer decided to get back into the business when Redskins owner Daniel Snyder came calling. While that decision may have been questionable considering Schottenheimer\'s criticism of the Redskin owner, he ultimately decided to take the job because he thought he could get the Redskins back to the playoffs and into the Super Bowl. Schottenheimer is o
Gaining an Edge Through Special Teams
As football coaches, we have all heard the theory that the difference between winning and losing close games often comes down to a special teams play. At Arizona State University, we believe that in order to achieve success, sound execution of special teams play is paramount. We approach special teams with the perspective that the difference between winning the PAC-10 Championship and finishing at the bottom of the league could very well be determined by the effectiveness and efficiency of our s
Cover Story Tony DeMeo November 2001 A Wizard in the Land of Oz - Tiny Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas may not win conference
Leader of the Pack
The door was open for Marvin Lewis last winter - at least for a few days. Shortly after the Ravens demolished the Giants in Super Bowl XXXV, Lewis had the chance to interview for the Buffalo Bills head coaching job. Blow their doors off and he\'d get the opportunity to run his own franchise. Sure, there was the matter of competition from Tennessee defensive coordinator Gregg Williams and N.Y. Giant defensive coordinator John Fox, but it was Lewis who was thought to be in the driver\'s seat.
Northwestern University Offense Practice Sturcture
It is an honor to represent our Head Coach Randy Walker (one of the best coaches in the college game today); a tremendous offensive staff (Mike Dunbar - TE / FB; Howard Feggins - WR; Jeff Genyk - RB; James Patton - OL; and Kevin Johns - Offensive Graduate Assistant); and the best group of young men that I\'ve ever been associated with in college athletics with this article for American Football Monthly. We are truly blessed here at Northwestern University with excellent opportunities that are
The Saints Go Marching In
Some people in the NFL and the media thought Jim Haslett was so desperate to be a head coach that he\'d simply taken the first offer he got. After all, he\'d interviewed for openings in Seattle, Chicago, Philadelphia and Baltimore and come up empty. Others thought the New Orleans Saints were the desperate ones that they had no idea what they were doing when they hired Haslett last year. After all, this is the same franchise that had never, ever won an NFL playoff game, one of the most
Letter from the Publisher
To those who subscribe to the theory of \"primacy and recency,\" it is what you do either first or last that matters the most. This hotly-debated field of behavioral study focuses on which areas of persuasion influence people more than others. I certainly do not have a Ph.D., but after publishing this magazine for over eight years, I know that with coaches it is what they do last that matters most. Clearly, this is no different than society as whole and its \"what have you done for me la
What Reporters Really Want
I have a soft spot for football coaches. I respect them. I admire them. I still look at my favorite coaches with true appreciation for their time, commitment, energy, intensity and passion for the game, and the life lessons that came with being part of it. I empathize with the challenges they face, the hours they work, the fragile nature of their job security and the expectations they face from outsiders who understand very little about what they do. And I am a member of the media.S
If coaches had crystal balls,would it help them win the big one?
Matt Cavanaugh\'s eyes were red - almost blood shot. The Baltimore Raven offensive coordinator was meeting with the media for the last time before his team would take the field against the N.Y. Giants in Super Bowl XXXV and he looked worn out and emotionally overwrought.But looks can be deceiving. It wasn\'t emotions that made Cavanaugh look like he\'d been on an all night crying jag. His eyes were swollen from staring at hours and hours of the Giants on videotape.\"I\'ve looked at
The Best of Both Worlds
As a youngster, Kathy Schniedwind was fascinated with medicine. \"When I was in fourth grade I told people I wanted to be a doctor when I grew up,\" she says.But in addition to her interest in dissection kits, anatomy books and games like Operation, she was also drawn to the athletic field. An avid athlete, she played lacrosse, softball, field hockey, basketball and ran track in high school and college.So when it came time to pick a career, she knew she had to alter her fourth-grade
Keeping the Gators on top
University of Florida Athletic Director Jeremy Foley sits atop an athletic program that has consistently ranked among the nation\'s 10 best. Since 1992, when he assumed the reins of the Gator athletic department, continuing that legacy of excellence has been one of his top goals.Named an honorary alumnus by the Florida Alumni Association in October, Foley, 47, started his career at UF as an intern in the Gator ticket office in 1976. Since then he has worked in nearly every aspect of th
News & Notes
Fassel gets giant raise While Jim Fassel didn\'t win the Super Bowl, he won the respect of the New York Giant\'s brass. Exactly a month after the Giants lost to the Baltimore 34-7 in Tampa, team officials announced that they had signed Fassel to another four-year contract even though he had another year left on the contract extension he signed after the 1999 season. While the terms weren\'t available, Fassel will reportedly earn $11 million over the four years - more than doublin
Paradise Found
June Jones would be lying if he said he expected this. The same is true of his coaches, his players and friends in the coaching profession. That\'s because it\'s not supposed to happen. Teams don\'t go 19 games without winning, then turn around and win eight regular-season games, capture a share of the conference championship, earn a bowl bid and then win the bowl game. It\'s not supposed to happen, especially to a team that faces the unique geographic obstacles that are part of Uni
High School Notes
The returns are in. Another college football signing day has passed and it\'s now time to assess the winners and losers - who signed the most impact players and where the top prospects are going. Here is a look at American Football Monthly\'s Top 40 prospects from the Class of 2000 (based upon a consensus of top recruiting experts and AFM staff evaluations) and where they signed along with a ranking of the Top 10 recruiting classes. The Top 40 RecruitsRan
Air Attack
There are more than a few Division I-A offenses around the nation that can keep a defensive coach\'s eyes wide open in the week leading to that Saturday\'s encounter. The trouble with Joe Tiller\'s record-setting air show at Purdue, however, is that the sleepless nights don\'t always end when the final gun sounds. Just ask Penn State defensive backfield coach Tom Bradley. His Nittany Lions actually survived their late-October showdown with the Boilermakers (31-25) at
News & Notes
Osborne: The Distinguished Gentleman from Nebraska? After weeks of speculation that he might make his next career in politics, former Nebraska Coach Tom Osborne announced in January that he is running for Congress. Osborne, who led the Huskers to three national titles before retiring in 1997, threw his hat into the ring in his hometown of Hastings on the campus of his alma mater, Hastings College. The 62-year-old Osborne, a Republican, said he had been contemplating whether t
March 2000 Would you like to read a past article from American Football Monthly Magazine? Or are you looking for an article on a specific subject not in this month\'s issue? Try back issues. Staff Meeting Let
Hiring the Enemy
THERE WAS A TIME WHEN CARL TORBUSH AND MIKE O\'Cain were enemies. At least that\'s the way fans and media painted their relationship. Coaches at rival schools are supposed to hate each other, right? They\'re supposed to spread evil rumors about each other, undercut each other at every opportunity and wish the worst for each other, aren\'t they? And they would never, ever profess to respect each other or, heaven forbid, actually like each other.In truth, even though they coached at r
December 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from legendary Notre Dame coach Ara Parseghian
The Survivor
Here he was, scaling a fence in a driving thunderstorm, with a blank videocassette under his rain jacket. The coaching staff desperately needed video of its next opponent, but a lack of sufficient technology at the team\'s training facility prevented the team from finding the game on television. That did not, however, prevent the team\'s head coach from finding another solution. So with the rain pouring down and thunder rumbling overhead, he found himself climbing the fence betwe
Traveling Man
Somewhere on the road between 19 cities in 11 states, Mike Leach found a way to climb the rope from the small time to the big time. Call it the back-road plan for future coaching success. Leach, the new head coach at Texas Tech, never played college football, never coached at the Division I level until 1997 and never even really knew he wanted to be a football coach until after he earned his law degree from Pepperdine in 1986. After law school, his path was filled with job after j
News & Notes
AF2 kicks-off season The arenaleague2 opened its inaugural season the week of April 8th. The league, which was introduced to bring Arena Football to small to mid-sized communities, features teams in cities such as Augusta, Ga; Birmingham, Ala.; Charleston, S.C.; Greensboro, N.C.; Greenville, S.C. and Huntsville, AL. Nine other cites make up the league with the addition of three new teams planned for the 2001 season. After opening the season with league highs in total attendan
Back with the Pack
For eight consecutive years, football schools in the Atlantic Coast Conference have been looking up to Florida State in the league standings. Nobody has hit upon a formula to unseat the Seminoles as one of the most dominant programs in NCAA history. So North Carolina State decided to take a new approach in its search for a football coach. Instead of hiring a big-name head coach like Georgia\'s Jim Donnan or Stanford\'s Tyrone Willingham, both of whom were considered, the Wolfpack decid
July 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from former Houston Oilers' coach Bum Phillips News and Notes Vandy, DiNardo settle lawsuit ... North Texas
Hot NFL Coaches
The path to the top of the NFL coaching ranks is somewhat well-defined: serve an apprenticeship as a position coach; become a coordinator for a successful playoff or Super Bowl team; then teams seeking to reverse their woebegone fortunes come calling like school boys looking for a prom date. Although 2000 was an aberration with two new head coaches not serving as coordinators in 1999, Al Groh was the LB coach for the Jets before his promotion, and Dave Wannstedt was the assistant head coa
Best of Best...The Top Coaching Staffs in Football
Taking into account all of the factors that go into the composition of what makes a great coaching staff, the following is our second annual look at the best coaching staffs in football. Just as last year, it is extremely difficult to choose one staff over another. It is somewhat analogous to trying to decide which dessert you want in a buffet. But, what makes a great staff? Is it the number of championships won collectively? How about longevity at the institution? C
September 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher News and Notes Dick Curl leaves Europe and joins the Chiefs... Bama's DuBose makes a sick young man's day...NCAA legislation may hurt I-AA football...Mizzou seeks to get out of future
The Evolution of Technology in Football
CLICK...CLACK...CLICK...CLACK.... the only sound emanating from the darkened room droned endlessly. For decades, it was the sound of technology in football. For generations of players and coaches, the first technological skill to be mastered was how to thread film in the 16mm projector. It was film, passing back and forth through the projector\'s gate, which was the sound of technology in the game. An endless ribbon of film ran through the game and connected generations of coaches and pla
High Schools That Went High Tech
When Rob Scheidt took over the program at Merced (Calif.) H.S. in the spring of 1996, he faced a rebuilding job. The historically strong MHS program, which won a state championship just five years before, had spiraled downward into a two-year playoff draught and was stinging from a 1-9 record the previous season. Scheidt, who became head varsity coach at Merced while he was still in his mid-20s, saw a couple of problems that needed to be addressed right off the bat. First, the school
Letter from the Publisher
The forward pass. Integration. Facemasks and new equipment that makes players seem more prepared for a battle than a game of football. TV, radio call-in shows and 24-hour a day media coverage. All of these changes have dramatically altered the game of football. Yet the sum total of these alterations pale in comparison to the virtual metamorphosis that is taking place in the year 2000. Computers, the associated software programs, and enhanced video equipment are dynamically changing the ga
Reaching the Top
With its groundbreaking use of computers, video cameras and advances in research in human kinetics (just to name a few), the University of Nebraska has become known as \"the birthplace for strength and conditioning in collegiate athletics.\" The person most responsible for the inception of not only Nebraska\'s strength and conditioning program, but also programs throughout the country, is Director of Performance Boyd Epley. Epley began his career with Nebraska in 1969 when he became th
Success is Coming in Bunches at Wisconsin
According to the Acromania Index on the Ziff Davis website www.zdnet.com, Information Technology is defined Pronounced as separate letters, IT refers to the broad subject of managing and processing information. In contrast, Vince Lombardi noted, \"football is only two things - blocking and tackling.\" How can one reconcile the differences between the general study and application of data and this strict, physical discipline? Barry Alvarez and company at the University of Wisconsin have b
On Target
During the 1990s many defenses were transformed from \"read and react\" defenses into attacking defenses. An effective attacking defense is not just a loose cannon, it\'s a guided missile. To be effective you have to know when and where to attack. Sophisticated scouting software of an opponent\'s offense through statistical analysis gives the defensive coaching staff the tools they need to create a \"smart-weapon, guided-missile\" attacking defense. Creating Defensive Call Sheets t
6 Hours to 5 Minutes:
How would you like to add several hours of \"free\" time to your schedule each week, especially during the football season? Time to view some additional videotape, review the game plan, or maybe just get some rest. A major catalyst in freeing time for the staff of the Minnesota Vikings has been the use of computers within our football operations. We have never viewed computers as a magic bullet to solve problems. We still rely on the intelligence and creativity of our staff to make
News & Notes
McKittrick Loses Battle with Cancer After a 14-month battle with cancer, San Francisco 49ers' OL coach Bobb McKittrick died on March 15. He was 64. McKittrick, who worked with five Super Bowl winning teams in 21 years, courageously continued working on the 49ers' staff while fighting bile duct cancer. A former Marine Corps officer, McKittrick was known for his toughness, hard work and dedication to the game and to his players. His on-field coaching duties were assumed by Pat Mo
May 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher News and Notes 49ers' McKittrick loses battle with cancer ... Pitt gives Harris contract extension ... Gilbertson OC at U of Washington again ... Notre Dame hires new AD from ASU ... Okl
The Calm After The Storm
It was the cruelest possible irony. Less than two weeks after the worst natural disaster in North Carolina history had crippled 66 counties, caused what was later estimated at $6 billion in flood damage, and cost 51 people their lives, the football forecast at East Carolina called for Hurricanes. By that time, however, Steve Logan was the last person on which such madness could be lost. He was, by trade, a head coach. But in the days leading up to East Carolina\'s Sept. 25 date
Letter from the Publisher
A few months ago we started The Winning Point, a newsletter created to provide our readers with even more in-depth information about the game, the sport and the business of football. I thought rather than tell you about the newsletter, I\'d give you a sample of what is found in each issue. The March edition included The Terranova 5 - a summary of who\'s hot and who\'s not in the world of college coaching. Here is a taste:The 5 Best Hires Following the \'99 Season
Curtain Call
After two long seasons in St. Louis, the experiment was failing badly. Dick Vermeil, in his attempt to reinvent himself as a football coach and erase the lingering, distasteful image that haunted him when he left the Philadelphia Eagles in 1982, appeared to be hitting another dead end. The 1998 season ended with the St. Louis Rams losing six of their last seven games. Their 5-11 record, preceded by a 4-12 mark in Vermeil\'s first season as Rams head coach, was only half the problem
USFL—The $1 League
They were supposed to be the rot and refuse, a bunch of has-beens, never-weres and never-will-bes. Their value? One dollar. One lousy buck. But for three action-packed spring seasons - 1983-85 - they were the United States Football League - the USFL - the latest failed attempt to wrestle the monopoly on professional football away from the NFL. During its three years on the field, the USFL sported four Heisman Trophy winners: Herschel Walker, Mike Rozier, Doug Flutie and two-time winne
Rolling to Victory
The 1999 season was very successful for the players, coaches and staff of City College of San Francisco. We were fortunate enough to complete our season with a perfect 12-0 record and win the 1999 J.C. Gridwire National Championship and California state championship. We also achieved this same feat in 1994 after completing the season 11-0. In the 90s, we won our conference nine times in 10 years (1990, 1992-1999) and we are three-time defending Northern California champions. In all, we ended the
News & Notes
NCAA Adopts Rule Changes Changes in the rules of college football aimed at protecting defensive players from dangerous blocks and keeping offenses from using quick substitutions to gain an advantage were approved by the NCAA Football Rules Committee, which met in Indianapolis in February. Among the alterations to the rulebook is an expansion to the definition of an illegal block to mean any high-low block by two offensive players when the initial contact clearly occurs beyond the
April 2000 Would you like to read a past article from American Football Monthly Magazine? Or are you looking for an article on a specific subject not in this month's issue?Staff MeetingLetter from PublisherWords of Wisdom
Letter from the Publisher
In each month\'s issue, I often spend time discussing the news in the world of football, be it good or bad. I received a letter from Ron Schipper, the legendary former coach of Central College (Iowa) in which he responded to my Letter from the Publisher in this year\'s June issue. As the coach of Central, Schipper, knows a few things about coaching, guiding the Flying Dutchmen to 36 consecutive winning seasons (an NCAA record) and a Division III title. My original letter talked abou
Who\'s Hot?
When Clemson offensive coordinator Rich Rodriguez thinks about the right quarterback to run his offense, he can\'t help but compare him to a point guard. The ideal QB for Rodriguez\'s offense is someone who can distribute the ball, step back and hit the 3-point shot, but most importantly, is someone who\'s on the ball. Rodriguez, the second-year offensive coordinator for the Tigers, is known throughout college football for his \"On the Ball\" offense, a no-huddle, two-minute drill-type
The Man Of Steel
Back then, Gary Darnell couldn\'t help but feel like Superman. Darnell, then Kansas State\' defensive coordinator, had just helped fly K-State to a new plateau in football success. Darnell\'s the current coach of the Western Michigan University Broncos, who in just three seasons at WMU has put together three-straight winning seasons, compiled a 22-12 record and guided the Broncos to a Western Division title in the Mid-American Conference and the MAC championship game. He\'s seen atten
Red Hot
Every year around the time families begin to think of gathering for Thanksgiving, some unfortunate athletic directors begin to ponder a much less joyous occasion ... hiring a new football coach. Needless to say this is very seldom a time for celebration. It does not happen often where the replacement of a coach is a pleasant and easy transition. As opposed to an anointment, it more often resembles a coup d\'etat. The AD will be beset by hundreds of calls, some wanted and most unwanted, f
Attacking the Red Zone
There are several considerations that must go into your staff\'s planning a comprehensive red zone ready list. As I present these concepts to you, you will have to establish your own answers to some of these factors and hopefully, be able to work your offensive system into each concept.1. Determine where the red zone begins. If you are fortunate to have a computer printout of your opponent, you may be able to see where they change their philosophy. Many times you can sense that yoursel
August 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from current Florida State coach Bobby Bowden News and Notes Mountain West 'in the room' on BCS tal
Behind Bowden
With two national titles, 13 years among the top four teams in the country and six Atlantic Coast Conference championships in the 1990s, the Florida State Seminoles have the track record to prove they know what it takes to be a champion. It is that knowledge of the means to reach success that has not only fueled FSU\'s success on the field, but also it\'s success in the Don Fauls athletic training facility. Randy Oravetz, the Director of Sports Medicine at FSU, heads up the te
The Diary of A New Coach
THIRD GAME WEEK: As I said before, our number one objective is really not to win, but to prepare. This week was the exception. We were playing our cross-town rival, Norman North, a school that had never scored against any Norman High team in their two-year existence. Our varsity and J.V. had already scored shutouts the week before so this was a must win. For the game Tuesday, our emotions were high. Our team was more pumped up than they had been all year. We got the b
The Other Coordinator
Throughout the life of our magazine (now American Football Monthly), I have very seldom written articles. But, when we conceptualized this special issue on sports medicine, I immediately decided to author a piece on the role of the sports medicine staff for a football team. I wanted to do this because I strongly believe athletic trainers and sports medicine staffs are potentially one of the most under utilized and overlooked aspects of a successful football program. Lets face i
Being at your best when things are not going well
Bruce Snyder, an avid reader, has noticed that books are rife with stories of people who retreat when faced with crisis. If you are doing a good job and are confident in yourself, he believes that you will retreat to your basic core values, and that it\'s important to remind everyone of what those core values are. \"I think that\'s playing the percentages,\" he says, \"and I think that\'s what I do in those cases. I don\'t go against percentages. The percentages are, over the
The Basics
It\'s been called the sick tank, the warm-up room - and in at least one case, the wildlife sanctuary. It\'s where players go to prepare for battle and where they return to let their game faces down as they confront the pain of injury. It\'s not a simple place. The athletic training room, even in its most basic form, is a microcosm unto itself. Building one entails careful attention to the structural requirements, which are more detailed than finding four walls and a ceiling.
News & Notes
Utah rewards McBride with an extension 60-year old Ron McBride has agreed to a contract that will keep at the the University of Utah team for four years and presumably allow him to finish his career with the Utes. Under the terms of the deal, McBride will earn a total of $310,000 a year, including incentives based on the team\'s performance in the classroom and on the field. Offering a bit of levity to the announcing of the extension, McBride said, \"Little does the univers
October 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from legendary Vince Lombardi
The Turner Network
Both head coaches had their backs to the wall entering the season, Norv with the Washington Redskins and Ron at the University of Illinois. Norv had gone five seasons without reaching the playoffs, the longest stretch of any active NFL coach, and Ron had crafted a 3-19 record in his first two years. New Redskins owner Daniel Snyder applied volumes of extra pressure on Norv by telling him to make the playoffs or find a new job. Ron was in the critical third year of a five-year contract.
Schutt Sports High School Coaches of the Year
SOUTHJohn Parchman,Hoboken HS, Hoboken, NJRobert E. Lee HS, Midland, Texas 1999: 15-0, Class 5A, Div. I state champsRecord at school: 57-8-1, 5 yearsWhen you win a football state title in Texas, you\'ve done something. When you do it two years in a row, that\'s really special. And special is a very accurate way to describe coach John Parchman\'s Midland Lee Rebels. In the last two seasons, Lee High School has claimed back-to-back Class 5A Texas Bowl
Do It Your Way
Throughout my twenty-two years in the profession, I have had the opportunity to coach at both the collegiate and high school levels. During that time, I have had the pleasure of working with various coaching staffs that have helped me formulate my philosophies on dealing with the passing game. At the same time, I have coached many athletes with various ranges in athletic abilities. Therefore, I have had to adapt each year to the specific situation. When you are developing a passing attack, it
News & Notes
Barnett\'s Colorado Contract Finalized After more than one year, Gary Barnett and the University of Colorado finalized a five-year contract. The multi-year contract, retroactive to Jan. 22, 1999, when he accepted the position, is one of three positions the State Legislature allows CU to exempt from standard contract rules. All other deals are limited to one year. \"We\'re delighted to have finalized the agreement with coach Barnett. This gives us the opportunity to accomplish the g
June 2000 Staff MeetingLetter from PublisherWords of Wisdom from Buffalo Bills¹ legend Marv LevyNews and Notes Barnett and the Buffs finally ink a deal... Tennessee¹s academic
Hurricane Butch
For the better part of 12 seasons, fear and loathing fueled the University of Miami. Dressed in orange and white, but invariably cast in black, the Hurricanes were the unofficial scourge of college football. They were the team you loved to hate, but dreaded seeing on your schedule. And with good reason. Embarking on one of the most dominant stretches in the sport\'s history, the Hurricanes ravaged the Division I-A landscape with NFL-bound talent and WWF-like attitude. Be
Philosophy of Performance: One Coach\'s Interaction Style
On January 22, 1996, Malcolm Glazer, owner and president of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, made a pivotal administrative decision by hiring Tony Dungy as his head coach. The appointment wasn\'t significant just because Dungy was one of only a handful of minority coaches. Rather, the hiring struck many as unusual because Dungy\'s personality - on and off the field - was far from the stereotypical mannerisms of other head coaches. Unlike some of the more renown names associated with \"great\"
Mark Speckman
Mark Speckman, like every football coach and player on this planet, has seen many a penalty flag he thought absurd. One in particular, from his playing days at Menlo College, stands out. The memories have faded, but the irony has not. Speckman, a linebacker, was asked one game to fill in on the offensive line for a few snaps and was penalized for illegal use of the hands. The ironic part is that he was incapable of committing the infraction. Speckman was born without hands.
Letter from the Editor
If it is true that hard times are the test of a man\'s character, a test in the life of Tony Dungy came on Sunday night January 23. At approximately 6:30 p.m. St. Louis time, staring straight into the face of one of his most disappointing losses as a head coach, Tampa Bay\'s leader showed why the once struggling Buccaneers are now one of the model franchises in the NFL. The answers all begin and end with Dungy, a man of class, a man of dignity, and a man to be admired and emulated by everyone he
Joe Cool
For the record, the song was called, \"In Heaven, There is No Beer.\" And the first time he heard it being belted out by a senior citizens band from the local Kiwanis club on that late summer day in 1989, Joe Glenn began to realize just how much work he had ahead of him. It was his first game as head football coach at the University ofNorthern Colorado, and although the afternoon would end in a narrow victory over Idaho State, it was a truly humbling experience. It had been seven years
Q And A: Larry Kehres
Q.You graduated from Mount Union with a major in business administration. If you hadn\'t gotten into coaching, what do you think you\'d be doing now?A.I suppose I\'d be doing something in the business world. But to tell the truth, right now I can\'t picture myself doing anything but coaching.Q: a head coach for 14 years, are you still learning?A:Yes, of course. That\'s part of the changes a coach needs to make. Anticipating problems is how I\'d put it. When s
Husker Power
Looking back, it\'s hard to believe it. But just 30 years ago, coaches at the University of Nebraska were actually discouraging athletes from lifting weights for fear it would make them muscle bound and slower. My, have times changed in Lincoln. I first came to Nebraska in 1968, competing as a pole valuter on the track and field team. A back injury halted my valuting career in the spring of my junior year. To rehab my back, I went to the weight room every day where a few injured Husker foo
The Winning Business
The work ethic that has steered Larry Kehres to some amazing heights in college football coaching began to take shape a long time ago. The man who has earned four AFMA Coach of the Year awards at Mount Union College in Ohio, Kehres as a youth performed tasks before and after school and had his first job when he was just 10 years old. \"We didn\'t feed chickens every day or anything like that,\'\' says Kehres, who grew up in rural Palmyra township near Alliance. \"But when I was t
News & Notes
Once Under Fire, DuBose Gets Contract Extension Just months after rumors swirled that he would be fired, Alabama Coach Mike DuBose signed a two-year contract extension at season\'s end. \"I can\'t say enough about how proud I am of Coach DuBose and the entire football staff for their accomplishments this season and the classy way they have run their program,\" Athletic Director Mal Moore said in a statement. \"This agreement gives our coaching staff the security they deserve and ne
February 2000 Would you like to read a past article from American Football Monthly Magazine? Or are you looking for an article on a specific subject not in this month's issue? Try back issues. Staff Meeting
Equipment Room
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Hoop Dreams
When I was named head coach at Juniata College in 1998, my staff and I needed to determine what type of offense best suited our personnel. We had a number of quality receivers, an inexperienced offensive line and a quarterback with a great deal of potential. We decided to develop a passing attack that would teach our quarterback a few basic principles and carry him through an entire season. We did not want to make many play changes from week to week, and it was imperative that our coaches
Letter from the Publisher
Sometimes media pundits will make the comment that \"coaching is overrated.\" These same geniuses will say that it is simply a matter of the team with the most talent wins. \"Look at Florida State University,\" they say, \"anyone could win there.\" Well, anyone involved with football will tell you there are hundreds of games each season where one team will get beat by a team with inferior talent because the staff on the opposite sideline developed a superior game plan and coerced th
Adversity? What adversity?
Gary Barnett never thinks about what could have been. No way, Barnett said. What\'s done is done. The Rose Bowl season in 1995? No time to think about it. All the job offers he got in 1996? His answer is a resounding, \"No. I made the right decision.\'\' Even after he inherited the nation\'s toughest schedule this year in his second year at the helm of Colorado, Barnett talked only about how much he and his team liked the idea of facing the best of
What\'s the Rush?
When New Mexico State head coach Tony Samuel selected a coaching staff to join him in Las Cruces three years ago, the first priority was to put a physical team on the field. The other coaches and I made a commitment to run the ball. During the past two seasons, the Aggies were ranked 7th and 13th in rushing offense.Since all of the coaches have worked with Nebraska teams, it\'s easy to understand why the option is an integral part of our offensive package. The G-Option is one of the options
November 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from legendary Bud Wilkinson
Follow the Leaders
Contrary to the opinion of many people, leaders are not born. Leaders are made; and they are made by effort and hard work." —Vince Lombardi Providing leadership is one of a football coaching staff's fundamental responsibilities. Coaches are expected to dictate the direction, set the standard and mold the attitude and character of their team. One of the outcomes of effective leadership is the development and empowerment of other leaders. Are you devel
Wannstedt—Winning Again
Given their shared passion for late-night cheese nachos over a few Heinekens, the average nutritionist might suggest that Jimmy Johnson and Dave Wannstedt need the afternoon jog for which they've become notorious. But those who understand and appreciate their seemingly symbiotic relationship—one forged over the past two decades—will tell you otherwise. Johnson and Wannstedt were born to run. Together. After all, that's how the Miami Dolphins' head coach and
Letter to the Editor
These are the best of times; these are the worst of times. Paraphrasing from Charles Dickens may seem trite, but it sums up the current situation of one of the best offensive coaches I know, and how the winds of fortune affecting the coaching profession can blow a coach off-course. Peter Vaas is currently an offensive assistant with the Barcelona Dragons in NFL Europe. How he arrived is an interesting story. Vass finds himself at a career crossroads. He makes "good" money worki
The Ultimate Interview
An over-time approach to getting the right candidate for the head coach position. When all things are equal, and the score is tied, how do you determine the better of two outstanding candidates for the head football coach position at a large high school with a very competitive athletic program? This dilemma was tested last spring with excellent results. I offer it to you from the position of a principal at a high school in suburban Kansas City. But
Boys to Men
Football's great, but it's not everything. Not all coaches would agree with that statement, especially not those who have won close to 90 percent of their games. But Mount Carmel head coach Frank Lenti is not like most coaches. Lenti has won at the all-male Catholic high school on Chicago's south side at an amazing rate. So you might expect him to talk at length about NFL players like Simeon Rice and Donovan McNabb, who prepped under his tutelage at Mount Carmel. Or maybe brag
Balancing Act
On behalf of the University of Arkansas, Coach Houston Nutt and offensive staff, it's a pleasure to be asked to write an article for American Football Monthly. 1998 was a great year for the Arkansas Razorbacks. Our offensive unit was explosive with big play potential on every snap. Our players executed well, averaging almost 400 yards per game with a scoring total of 32.6 points per contest. Of course, a solid offense was accompanied by a swarming defense and great kicking game. We hav
News
Prognosis for Beth Holtz termed 'excellent'The wife of South Carolina head coach Lou Holtz had successful surgery in October to remove her adrenal gland and a cyst on her ovary. The procedure on Beth Holtz was performed at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. In a statement after the surgery, Holtz said that the operation went extremely well and his wife's prognosis is excellent. He said she will recover at the family's home in Orlando, Fla. Holtz left his team fo
November 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from legendary Darrell Royal
Complete Coach
As a coach, your time is not only valuable, it's also restricted. And with a finite number of hours in a day, you can only accomplish so much. While many of your daily obligations - such as family, school and boosters - have little or nothing to do with coaching, these obligations force you to become more effective during the short stretches of time when you actually get to focus on coaching. With this in mind, how can you both save and manage your timemore efficiently? The answer li
December 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom Army Coach Earl "Red" BlaikNews and Notes Raiders
1998 American Football Monthly Coordinators of the Year
OFFENSEMike LeachUniversity of Kentucky*(*now at the University of Oklahoma)Sure it is easy to coach one of the best offenses in the country when you have All-American Tim Couch (7 NCAA, 14 SEC and 26 school records) as your QB. But to dismiss the accomplishments of the UK offense and the staff that led it as purely the play of Couch would be a failure to look deep into the system that has produced huge numbers at every stop over a 11-year period. 1998 Amer
Beating the Clock
Walk down the halls of the Minnesota Vikings' picturesque Eden Prairie compound, and you'll come to the end of a hallway where there's a familiar name on the door: Bud Grant. Whether you will find him there or not is anybody's guess. His role as consultant to the franchise doesn't demand the 100-hour work weeks "required" in coaching. But then, Grant was never the type who believed you needed to put in a 100-hour week just to win a ballgame. To find Grant, you'd better get dressed up and h
Q&A With Bud Grant
Q: What is your philosophy on staff management?A: Philosophy is something you are asked about a lot, but I am not so sure everybody has a philosophy or that I have a philosophy. Your coaching staff is vitally important; there is no successful team that doesn't have a good staff. As much as coaching might be overrated, your assistant coaches certainly can't be or shouldn't be. They are really the backbone of the team, because they do most of the work. I think it is important for
The Bulldogs Bark
Ten years ago, Corky Rogers found himself at a crossroad for the first time in his illustrious coaching career. He faced a decision that would ultimately have implications on two of Jacksonville's most storied high school football programs. And there was no way he could please everybody. Rogers, then 45, was wrestling whether to leave his alma mater, Lee High School, after 17 successful seasons and take a job at The Bolles School. What made the decision so difficult was Rogers spen
News & Notes
Jayhawks and Irish set to open the 1999 season in the Robinson Classic Notre Dame will open the 1999 season by playing host to Kansas in the second Eddie Robinson Classic on Aug. 28. It will be the first time the Irish and Jayhawks have met since 1938, and the Aug. 28 season opener is the earliest in Notre Dame history. The classic benefits the Eddie Robinson Foundation and honors the former Grambling coach who retired after 55 years following the 1997 season. He was inducted into
June 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from PublisherReader Feedback News and Notes Eddie Robinson Cla
Family First
For Houston Nutt, his coaching philosophy is crystal clear. It's all about family. Sounds simple enough, but when he arrived at the University of Arkansas, the plan didn't look so easy. He was dealing with 15 seniors who had one season left in a football program that certainly had seen better days in the Southeastern Conference. The players went to him and said, "Coach, we want to win, and we are willing to do whatever it takes to do it." Nutt could have slid into a pessimistic fra
NFL Coach of the Year: Picking Up the Trash and Raking the Leaves
It was gut check time for the Atlanta Falcons. At halftime of an NFC playoff game against San Francisco 49ers, the Falcons sat in their locker room of the Georgia Dome, reeling from a series that of odd calamities that turned a potential 21-0 halftime lead into a tenuous 14-10 edge. "The mood wasn't good. It was like, 'oh man, what's happening?'" recalled Falcons wide receiver Terance Mathis. "Then Dan came into the room." Just one month after undergoing quadruple-bypass heart surge
The Other Side of the Ball
While most of the attention on our football team during the last few years has been focused on the offensive side of the ball and the great job of our former head coach Gary Crowton (now offensive coordinator of the Chicago Bears) and the play of our quarterback Tim Rattay and record-setting wide receiver Troy Edwards, we've also had some success on defense. We have accomplished this success by working as a staff to discover new and innovative ways to maximize the time we have with
Q&A with Dan Reeves
Q: Would you say that your experiences as a successful player in college (South Carolina) and the NFL (Dallas) have helped you as a coach?A: I think it has helped me a great deal. I first got involved in coaching as a player-coach for the Cowboys. Coaching was not something I had thought about. I was not one of those people that always knew I wanted to become a coach after my playing days were over. It wasn't until I hurt my knee and Coach Landry asked me if I would be intere
Splitting Ranks
Don't mess with tradition. That's what Lawrence High School head football coach Dick Purdy might have told voters prior to the November 1994 bond issue vote that would eventually split Kansas' largest high school and most dominant football power into two separate schools. However, this was a battle that even tradition couldn't withstand. Voters approved the $36.9 million bond issue and in the fall of 1997 the city's second high school-Free State High School-opened its doors to the pub
Letters to AFC
Dear AFM: I am currently the offensive coordinator at the University of Loughborough in the UK, where we have won the Northern Conference championship for the past two seasons. Football is very popular over here and I want to do all that I can increase the quality of the game. The reason for my letter is to solicit your help in finding a program (high school or college) in the US that would have a position where I could serve as a graduate assistant or volunteer coach. I realize
News and Notes
Judge sends message to the NCAA: "No more SAT!" 302 NCAA Division I programs were cast adrift in a boat without a rudder or sail by a decision that sent shock waves throughout all of college football. U.S. District Court Judge Ronald Buckwalter ruled that the NCAA and its institutions may not use a minimum test score as a basis for eligibility. However, on March 31, an appeals court issued a temporary stay order to halt the imposition of the judge's ruling which would have completely disa
May 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Reader Feedback News and Notes No more SAT? • H
Fulmer's Way
In Knoxville, Phillip Fulmer Way intersects with Peyton Manning Pass right in front of the main entrance to Neyland Stadium. But, no one really needs directions to the famed shrine of college football that has seen Phil Fulmer emerge as one of the nation's top collegiate coaches. Tennessee appreciates their favorite son. His face graces the covers of books and magazines and now the street that leads loyal Volunteer fans to the football stadium has been renamed in his honor. The 19
Letter from the Publisher
One day early in September, I was involved in a conversation that both reminded me of one of my favorite feel good "heck yeah... he's doing it right" stories of last summer, and compelled me to make a mental note to remember to share it with you. A very good friend of mine has a son who is currently a freshman player at one of the country's top football schools. This kid is a player and was recruited by virtually every school in the nation. At practice in August he quickly showed promi
The Communicator
He is everywhere in Baltimore. The slender face with the receding hairline and jutting jaw is on several Baltimore-area billboards or in team advertisements in national sports magazines. He has been active in the community, not selling just the Ravens, but himself. One day could include several motivational speeches that might have stops at the Baltimore Teachers Association or a high school football clinic with 200 coaches. Brian Billick has enamored fans in Baltimore. He quote
Re-Examining Spearing
Every few years the problem is rediscovered in the media by a cervical spine injury in the NFL. Most recently it was Detroit Lions linebacker Reggie Brown. Television networks show the hit numerous times and stories appear in newspapers and magazines. But the injury is always portrayed as an unfortunate accident. It's not used to educate the football community that there is an identified cause for these injuries. No one says, "Reggie Brown made the mistake of loweri
Brian Billick Q & A
Q.In your decision to take the job, how important was the philosophical commitment from the top management at Baltimore for the development of a winning franchise in your overall analysis of the situation?A. Without the proper commitment and support from the overall organization, winning on the field is virtually impossible. This means having the same passion and commitment for the game as the players and coaches. I have experienced many times, particularly at the college level,
News & Notes
It was the surprise of the off-season. Washington AD Barbara Hedges lured then-Colorado head coach Rick Neuheisel to the University of Washington for big money. In August the two made it an official marriage as coach Neuheisel signed a contract for nearly $1 million a year. Neuheisel was named head coach Jan. 9. He was hired away from Colorado after former Husky coach Jim Lambright was fired following Washington's 6-6 season. The new Husky head man's total compensation is $997,000 a year
October 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from legendary Bo Schembechler News and Notes Neuheisel finally gets his deal d
Offensive Minded
When University of Kentucky athletic director C.M. Newton was searching for a football coach after the 1996 season and called Florida's Steve Spurrier for suggestions, the Gator boss didn't throw out any names. Just a formula. "I told him to go after an offensive-minded guy because that's how you move the ball up and down the field, win games, win championships and put fans in the seats," said Spurrier. In other words, somebody like, well, himself. Newton took Spurrie
The Best Coaching Staffs
What makes a great staff? Is it the number of championships won collectively? How about longevity at the institution or team? Could it be the number of future head coaches being apprenticed by the current head coach? Is the best staff the one that consistently recruits the top players? The answer to what makes a great staff most assuredly is defined by each of the components listed above. For some staffs, they have been together for so long that each of the staff members feels like par
Win-Win Situation
If it had been a marriage last January - so sudden, so shockingly surprising - the town gossips would have had a field day. Dashing Dennis Erickson, the coach who won two national football championships at Miami, and Oregon State, the ungainly spinster of college football? No way. It can't last, the gossips would have said. Oregon State just got him on the rebound from that nasty mess in Seattle. Gosh, he can't be the desperate, can he? After all the bright lights, and the fame
Bobby and the Boys
Unlike many colleagues in their nomadic profession, they remain anchored to a cozy town in northwest Florida. They have kept the moving vans at bay, instead preferring to work for the same boss while turning down more lucrative job opportunities elsewhere. Coaches at other Division I-A schools would likely jump at thechances that have presented themselves to Florida State's staff over the years. Jim Gladden, the 58-year-old defensive ends coach, reinforced his status as a Seminole
News & Notes
Ravens loaned $65 million from NFL lender The NFL has arranged a $65 million, short-term loan for the Baltimore Ravens, backed by the eventual sale of part of the franchise to a new investor, according to The Baltimore Sun. Team owners voted overwhelmingly to approve the bailout for Ravens controlling partner Art Modell, one of the league's longest-standing owners. His financial problems have prompted several NFL actions in recent years, including the 1996 vote to all
September 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Reader Feedback News and Notes Ravens loa
It's Not About the Plays . . . It's About the Players.
Twice a year, after the college football season and again after spring drills, University of Oregon coach Mike Bellotti arms himself with a yellow legal pad, and a supply of pens, and spends most of several consecutive days in his office. He isn't, on those occasions, scribbling Xs and Os. He isn't tinkering with the sophisticated offense that has placed Oregon in the top 20 in the nation in passing in five of the last six seasons. He isn't refining the strategies that
New Equipment
New Equipment Chronomix Corp.1-800-538-1548www.chronomix.comThe Practice Timer is a multi-use training tool. It can be programmed for circuit interval training or practice segment timing. When not running programs it can be used as a hundredth of a second stop watch for timing the forty yard dash or laps. Accessories are available for printed results or automatic timing. ContinentalAthletic Supply1-800-544-5564
Main Attraction
It's not like Mack Brown didn't have enough to worry about in his first year at the helm of the University of Texas football program. There was picking up the pieces from a dreadful 4-7 season and the enormous expectations of the "Hook 'em, 'Horns" faithful. Not to mention the separate controversies that precipitated his arrival in the Lone Star State. One being the firing of his predecessor, John Mackovic, and the other the bitter feelings that lingered in North Carolina when B
Letter to the Editor
Watch any basketball game and you'll see some of the best swimmers in the world. Men and women who truly understand how to navigate through the ebbs and tides of emotion that run through every athletic contest. Take for instance, what happens if a game is tied and one team steals the ball goes for a break away and slams the ball uncontested through the hoop. Then, this same team steals the in-bounds pass and scores an easy lay up. Next, they force a turnover and score quickly (let's
A Bronx Tale
It is said that New York City is like no other place on Earth. To its public school football coaches, the phrase takes on an entirely different meaning. The Big Apple is, in many ways, high school football's final frontier. The sport somehow is managing to survive in an environment where all too often it seems the forces are aligned to squelch it out. By and large, high school teams in the city are under funded and many operate with no money provided by the Public Schools Athle
Bellotti Q&A
Q: What is your approach to disciplining players? You have a three-strikes policy. Please explain.A: We ask for commitment from our players. Generally, we ask them to be accountable and responsible. They know right from wrong. We tell them to 'do right.' It's pretty simplistic in its approach. We have a commitment time (requiring an early morning wake-up) and if they screw up initially, they're remanded to that. If there's something more serious, where there's an outright br
News & Notes
Notre Dame may have more problems with the NCAANotre Dame has hired a law firm which specializes in assisting colleges under investigation by the NCAA to help the school in the continuing saga of a booster who gave improper gifts to Irish football players. It appears the program may be in more trouble with the NCAA than originally thought concerning the case of imprisoned booster Kim Dunbar. "Notre Dame wanted us to accept this case as a secondary infraction investig
July 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Reader Feedback News and Notes Notre Dame booster drama • Auburn saga continues
What Do You Expect?
Over the years, Bishop Amat Memorial High School (Calif.) has achieved notable success. The school has been recognized by the U.S. Congress as one of the "Exemplary Private High Schools in the Nation" and consistently receives the highest possible accreditations from the various associations and boards responsible for scholastic certification. This tradition of academic achievement has found its way onto the athletic fields of Bishop Amat, as well. Since their first varsity football s
Star's Trek...
Just as James T. Kirk passed the baton to Jean-Luc Picard, Bob Stoops, Brian Billick and Chris Palmer have now ascended to the heights of the coaching world and the time has come for the next wave of "hot" superstars on the rise. The following is our look at the 25 coaches who are sure to be on the list of every athletic director or general manager looking for a savior for his or her program. These men will inspire confidence in the faithful and rally the troops because they are the next
Head Game
Wouldn't it be great to be able to match player personalities with particular football positions to get the best performance from the entire team and thereby improve the chances of success for the players and the team? The focus of this article is on a new and promising line of research that links a player's personality with his playing position on the field. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is a personality test that has been used for years in various settings, especially in the
Issues | August 1999 All In the FamilyGene FrenetteFlorida Times-UnionOn December 1, 1998, Bob Stoops broke from family tradition and finally reached an inevitable position that many viewed as practically his birthright: he became a head football coach. Not at your run-of-the-mill program, but at Oklahoma, a school where fans have grown accustomed to their coaches becomin
New Equipment
Rocket Pop-upFrom Rogers Athletic Company800-248-0270Help young players develop aggressiveness and safely master the blocking and tackling skills needed for victory. The Rocket Pop-up comes to its feet after every hit, freeing other players from holding or righting standard dummies. Jersey-style numbers give youth aiming points for practicing correct techniques.The Rocket Pop-up is a foam-filled dummy so there is never a loss of practice time due to leaking air
Letters to AFM
We want your input! Letters to AFM should include the name, address and telephone number of the writer. Mail to: AFM, P.O. Box 13079, North Palm Beach, FL, 33408. Or, you can e-mail your letter to us at letters@americanfootballmonthly.com or reach us via fax at (561) 627-5275. Visit AFM online at www.americanfootballmonthly.com. Dear AFM: I had to send you this poem that one of my seventh graders wr
August 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Reader Feedback News and Notes Colorado
Q&A with Bill Snyder
The problem with miracles is you never know where to look for one. Here's a clue. Take I-70 west, approximately two and one-half hours from Kansas City, turn right on exit 313 and head eight miles north to find home to one of the real miracles in the history of college football . . . Manhattan, Kansas. The stories of the turnaround have been told over and over again, but to put it plain and simple, Bill Snyder -- the quiet, professorial, unassuming and non-self-promoting head coa
Letter from Publisher
On January 13th, the same day that Michael Jordan retired from the NBA, Jimmy Johnson decided to resign as head coach of the Miami Dolphins. Feeling the pain of losing his mother and his father's illness, tired of 30 years of 16 hour days, a failed marriage and lost precious time with his sons, coupled with the frustration of dealing with multi-millionaire players, who refuse to "run through a brick wall like they used to," Johnson told his boss, team owner Wayne Huizenga, he was ready to
Balance
Our basic offensive philosophy at Western Michigan is to remain as balanced and unpredictable as possible, by incorporating the run from a variety of looks (i.e., different combination of personnel, shifting, and motion) in as many different strategic situations as possible. Our balance is achieved by the percentage of run/pass relative to repititions, not yardage. As a result, we have a system that is flexible, simple to learn, and easily adapted to our personnel. The quarterback is
Whiplashed:
When Mark Whipple was on his way home last spring from the Atlantic-10 Conference meetings, the rookie head coach at the University of Massachusetts decided to buy one of those preseason football magazines to see where the so-called experts believed the Minutemen would finish in league play. Much to his dismay, UMass was the only team among 11 conference schools not mentioned in this magazine's A-10 forecast. It was as if the program didn't even exist. "We weren't in there, m
Coach of the Year: Bill Snyder
There's a story to illustrate the apathy. Its authenticity is tough to attribute, but the tale is too good not to share. A kid, who undoubtedly had room to roam in empty KSU Stadium, had enough by the fourth quarter and began acting up. His father in all likelihood a diehard since he hadn't fled for the exits, reportedly told his son, "If you keep that up, I'll bring you back next week." Cruel punishment indeed. Today, the bleacher space that kid could have used to se
It Starts at the Top
Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr carefully selected the metaphor, just like he did the two previous years. Inspired by the book Into Thin Air, Carr decided his team's journey through its arduous 1997 schedule loomed like an assault on Mt. Everest. Now look who's sitting at the top of the mountain. It's not just his team, the 12-0, Big Ten champion, Rose Bowl champion, national champion Wolverines up there. It's not just the staff, the coordinators and position coaches upon whom the hea
Stories from Statesboro
Ninteen seventy-eight turned out to be one hell of a season for us at Georgia. Not just because we won nine ball games, but more because the so-called "experts" had predicted that the Dawgs would be "underdawgs" in eight of our 11 games. During the preseason, our staff suggested to the players that we were the "wonder dogs" not the underdogs the media would've had them and anybody else willing to read their wit believe. I guess that's why pundits are writing instead of coaching. We lo
Jeff Bower: My Coach of the Year, this, next, and every year
Jeff Bower is the successful (43-35-1) coach of the University of Southen Mississippi Golden Eagles; the school where he was a record-setting quarterback from 1973 to 1975. As a coach, he has known a great deal of success (coaching Brett Favre, leading his team to two consecutive Conference USA titles and two bowl trips) and, also, has suffered his fair share of setbacks. Both success and discouragement have forged the foundation of the man that has been high on the list of potential
The Philosophy of Gaucho Football
Note: The following pages are directly out of the staff manual of one of the nation's top junior college programs. While it is somewhat different than anything heretofore offered in "Outline to Victory," we feel that the thoughts contained wherein may help crystallize the views of you and your staff. Special thanks to Bill Cunerty, who, due to health concerns, recently stepped down. ELSIf you are reading this, you are a member of the best coaching staff in community college football.
High-Flying Hornets
Emporia State University, an NCAA Division II school in the prestigious MIAA (Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association) Conference, featured the most balanced, yet explosive offensive attack in all of college football. Utilizing an attack with four receivers, no tight ends or fullback, the Hornets established 42 ESU, 30 MIAA, and nine NCAA records. No tight end and no fullback. Wait a minute, is this the run-and-shoot? Hardly. To say that the Hornets have achieved these acco
Letters to the Publisher
Dear Publisher: First, let me congratulate you and AFM on your article outlining minority coaching issues (The Dilemma of Black Coaches, Vol. 3, 3rd Quarter). The article's fair and objective presentation of the issues dealing with minority hiring presented the problems well. Yet, as we now sit in the midst of another hiring season, there is an even greater reason for concern. On the heels of a dismal hiring record in '97, we must ask: Are we off to greater disappoitment in 1998? T
When Tragedy Strikes
When the home telephone of a college football coach rings late at night, it's often the kind of news he'd rather not hear. Usually, it means a player has been arrested, violated a rule or done something to anger someone. Such thoughts ran through the head of Mississippi State Coach Jackie Sherrill when he picked up the telephone at his home on the evening of August 5. The news was, indeed, bad. But this time, it was so bad it made an arrest or a rule violation seem small and insignific
1997 AFM Coordinators of the Year
OffenseAL BORGESUCLAChico State '81What a difference a year makes when shaping the identity of a program. Take, for example, the Bruins of UCLA and offensive coordinator Al Borges, who recently participated in year two of Bob Toledo's tenure. From the moans and groans of an inaugural 5-6 campaign came the hope for progress in 1997. A young, learning quarterback. Five starters on the offensive line. Experience on both sides of the ball. "We wanted to
The Cowboy Way
At the University of Wyoming great offenses have been the norm. The Cowboy defense has taken a "bend but don't break" mentality. That scheme and mentality gave up a lot of yards and points in 1996, but the Cowboys were strong enough offensively to earn a 10-2 record and a Pacific Division Championship. With the arrival of Coach Dana Dimel as the Cowboys' new head coach, the philosophy and focus went towards establishing the Wyoming defense as an "attack" style defense. As defensiv
NFL Coach of the Year
Picture Sir Edmund Hillary, circa 1953. How might he have felt, standing atop Mount Everest for the first time, if some anonymous Sherpa guide suddenly tapped him on the shoulder and said, "Nice job on this Everest thing and all but, uh, have you seen the really big one behind you?" Tony Dungy might know that feeling. Having just scaled his own Everest in '96 as he finally landed the NFL head coaching job that had eluded him for 10 years, Dungy was presented with this Tibetan-siz
Q&A With Tony Dungy
Q: It seems to me you believe coaches and players have a responsibility to the kids that look up to them. How do you feel about the role of an athlete in the community?A: Whether you want to be or not, you have to face the facts that you are a role model and that's part of the job. I don't necessarily like all the things that go along with it, like dealing with the media and doing interviews. I'd much rather just sit here--all I want to do is coach the team and that's it. But it is part
Ole Miss' Tommy Tuberville Rebel With A Cause
Legendary Alabama coach Paul "Bear" Bryant used to say that luck is when preparation meets opportunity. With his quick climb up the college coaching ladder, Tommy Tuberville might seem like a lucky guy, but he's really just living proof of Bryant's coaching axiom. From his days as a high school in Arkansas to his current job as the head football coach at Ole Miss, Tuberville has met every opportunity with commitment, enthusiasm, planning and a broad vision for both the big picture and
Letters to the Publisher
Dear Publisher: I enjoyed reading the Clinic Bonus Clock Management (Vol. 3, 4th Quarter), by John T. Reed. Mr. Reed brings up some interesting points that all coaches must be aware of when the game gets down to crunch time. At Ohio State, we use the time/down/ time out table on our game plan call sheets. We take it a step further by having a second table which is the situation of having just made a first down. We can roughly add 24 seconds to the change of possession table so we ar
Schutt Sports Coaches of the Year
North Jim O'Leary St. John's Preparatory, Danvers, MA 1997: 11-0, Div. 1 Super Bowl Champions Record at School: 96-38-2, 14 seasonsOn a drizzly and cold Thanksgiving morning, the earliest onlookers could be found claiming their seats as early as 6:30. Eventually, 10,000 interested followers would turn up in their coats and blankets to watch one of the most hyped contests in Massachusetts football history. In a state without a true playoff, t
Q&A With Mack Brown
Q: When you came in, you talked about reaching out to the high school coaches. Now did you find the things that you did were any different than your philosophies at Carolina, or just something not done in Texas in recent years? A: I'm not sure what's been done in here in the past, and I'd rather not look back. We're doing the same things here that we did at Tulane and at North Carolina. We enjoy the high school coaches, we know they are the lifeblood of college football regardless of wh
Champions by the Numbers.
The athletes from the following institutions may not been the biggest, fastest or the strongest coming out of high school. They may have not even been the best "pure athletes" on the nation's football fields last fall. But certainly, their teams achieved the level of success in 1997 for which every program strives - national championships. For the information of your staff and players who aspire to play at the nation's colleges and universities, we are happy to present true empirical high
Letter From the Publisher
Bud Grant, the Hall of Fame coach of the Minnesota Vikings (18 years, 158-96-5, 12 playoff teams and four Super Bowl appearances, all after a successful Hall of Fame career as a CFL coach with Winnipeg: 10 years, 102-56-2, and four Grey Cup championships), was an innovator in the "self-scouting" concept. He was a great believer in "coaching people" and getting to know what made them tick. Grant was known for creating rules during training camp simply to test his players. He wanted to know fo
The Eyes of Texas are Upon Brown
The youthful looking forty-something coach had told everyone who would listen he wasn't going anywhere. His team, the media, the fans. North Carolina had become home, and he was just dandy there, thank you. Kids in school. Roots. A wife with a lucrative land development business. Perhaps more compelling, Mack Brown had a top ten program two-years running, a program he had nutured from the brink of abandonment 10 years before. Those close to Brown, personally and professionally
Keep the Chains Moving
Achieving results on third down is one of the biggest keys to winning any football game. Third-down situations are often pivotal in determining the outcome of a game. A key stop for the defense can change momentum or significantly alter field-position advantage. Conversely, a conversion by the offense can keep a drive alive, eat up clock time, and keep scoring opportunities available. For the offense, the objective is simple: keep the football by making the necessary yardage. Severa
Letters to the Publisher
Dear AFM: Thank you for your great magazine. My interest is in locating previously published coaching information (books, magazines, film, videos, etc.) that can be used to coach youth football. Mixing the schemes and techniques taught of years ago while still coaching the recent changes in the rules to allow more use of hands and never dropping the head, for example, make for a good combination in coaching youth coaches. Information about how to use the defenses and offenses of
This page brings together American Football Monthly's expert articles focused specifically on Coaching Staff Management. Whether you're a head coach assembling your first staff, an athletic director overseeing personnel, or a coordinator leading a position group, you'll find valuable resources here.
Discover insights and practical advice covering essential aspects of managing your football staff:
- Recruitment & Hiring: Strategies for finding, interviewing, and hiring talented assistant coaches and support staff.
- Defining Roles & Responsibilities: Clearly outlining duties and expectations for each staff member.
- Staff Development: Techniques for mentoring coaches, fostering growth, and enhancing skills.
- Communication & Collaboration: Building effective communication channels and a collaborative working environment.
- Performance Evaluation: Methods for assessing staff performance and providing constructive feedback.
- Building Staff Cohesion & Culture: Creating a positive, unified, and productive atmosphere.
- Managing Personalities & Conflict: Strategies for leading diverse individuals and resolving disagreements.
- Retention Strategies: Keeping valuable coaches and staff members invested in your program.
Staff Search Results
Smarter Sideline Strategies: How EliteEdgeFB Turns Your Hudl Data Into Friday-Night Play CallsSponsored Feature · In Partnership with EliteEdgeFB
Defining Instructional Principles for Your Coaching Staff–
Strength Report: Football Specific Conditioning, Part II
E very head coach desires to have traction. While performing speed training, to sprinting because unnecessary tension mechanics can be improved solely by run- team speed; that is, players that in the body will restrict the speed of limb movements. can run fast at every position on the field. Heavy squats are used to increase ning at faster speeds. The knees will lift It is a common understanding that higher and a desirable forefoot strike oc- force output;
Over Ten Years of the Strength Report
Nebraska's Boyd Epley is generally regarded as the father of collegiate strength and conditioning. Epley convinced Nebraska Head Coach Bob Devaney in the late 60's that a strength and conditioning program would make the Husker players bigger, faster, and stronger. Devaney approved the program but he told Epley, 'If any of our players get slower, you're fired.'With a strength and conditioning program in place, Epley helped Nebraska become a national power in the 70's. He premiered s
Fire Zone Blitz
The following is an overview of how we play our fire zone coverage concept. We utilize several different blitz patterns but our coverage rules remain consistent throughout. We use this exact information to teach our players not just to do their job, but the overall schematic of the coverage and why we do what we do. Fire Zone Blitzes consist of any 5 members of the defense rushing the passer, and 6 members of the defense dropping into pass coverage. Essentially:5 Rushers
Off-Season Drill Work for Offensive Linemen
The off-season, specifically the cycles around spring football, January through March and May through August, are absolutely vital to the growth and development of an offensive lineman. It is when they make the most significant gains in upper and lower body strength, speed, conditioning and explosiveness as well as continuing to develop and improve position specific technique. We preach the concept of doing it harder and better than it’s ever been done before. It is a constant strain to imp
State Champions 2015 – The Best of the Best
Gary Rankin – Alcoa High School, TNSpread Offense • 4-3 Defense• Tennessee’s all-time winningest high school coach.• Won 7 state championships in his 10 years at the school.• Averaged 32 points in playoff games last fall, surrendering only 4.5 ppg.• Defeated Christ Presbyterian Academy in 3A state title game, 20-0.Chris Wolfe – Male High School, L
Leadership Strategies: How to Develop a Steady Stream of ‘Championship Level QBs in Your Program, Part I
There is not much argument in any level of football that to win consistently and compete for championships you need strong quarterback play. So what defines ‘strong quarterback play’ and how do you develop that consistently within an organization? This series of articles will lay out a clear path that can easily be followed in any program given the proper attention. Let’s first discuss what goes into the makings of a great quarterback. From there, you’ll be in a better posi
Coach to Coach: Coaching Staff Self-Improvement from the Inside-Out
Self-evaluation can be incredibly important for professional development, yet so often we make evaluation sterile, boring, and too driven by numbers. I will not focus on that type of evaluation for several reasons, not the least of which is that you probably already have a way to do that type of evaluation or have easy access to such an evaluation by performing a quick internet search. I’m going to propose a different type of self-evaluation, one that I believe is superior to the
Drills Report: Special Teams Organization for Competition Drills and Circuits
One of the greatest challenges for coaching special teams at all levels is how to get maximum quality reps in the most efficient manner possible during practice. Teaching multiple skills and techniques to 60+ players takes the combined effort of the entire coaching staff. I rely on all our coaches to help teach our players different aspects of the kicking game. It also takes a great deal of planning and organization so that your time on the field is efficient.One organizational con
Strength Report: Football Specific Conditioning, Part I
Football is an explosive sport requiring power and speed in linear and non-linear sport specific movements. With the average time per play lasting 6 seconds and a 40 second play clock, football is an interval based sport switching from high intensity bursts of about 6 seconds and low intensity active-recovery periods of about 40 seconds. Due to the high intensity nature of each play, one goal of the off-season conditioning program is to train the capacity and efficiency of the short duration,
Creating Turnovers Through Ball Disruption
As a head coach for 11 years, I have also worn the title of the offensive coordinator and defensive coordinator, and even though I am an offensive coordinator by heart, I realize more and more in this profession how important your defense is to your program’s success. As a defensive coordinator, one of the things I like to do after every season is review each game film and try to see what made us successful and what hurt us each game. Defensively, the main things I like to focus on while wa
Missouri Protection - Teaching Pass Blocking Fundamentals to Running Backs
Using the right technique, four protection drills will help your running backs protect the quarterback.When we teach protection, there are a variety of drills that I use. I start with the base of the body, which are the feet, and I work my way up to the hands and the upper body. I start with the feet because that is where everything begins. A phrase I use a lot when coaching is get the right “Body Position.” I talk to running backs about blocking the defender with their feet.
Post- Season Priorities - Wrapping up one season and transitioning to the next are critical times for successful programs
When your season ends, do you kick back, relax and get away from the game for a couple months? Of course not. Whether it’s formulating and implementing an off-season strength and conditioning program, ushering in a new group of players and preparing them for the following season or putting together motivational exercises, every successful coach knows that winter presents an opportunity for physical and mental team building.To find out how the best coaches approach the post season
Leadership Strategies
Jeff Hancock is the head coach at Vidalia High School in Louisiana. He recently took part in AFM’s “Leadership Survey”. Included are his responses:How do you develop responsible and respected team captains?This question is best answered by talking about my Senior Leadership Council. For our program, the seniors are the leaders and sometimes decision makers for the program. Bringing them in for meetings to discuss policy, setting standards, and letting them know what I am
Priorities For a Championship Off-Season
Great programs realize that getting better every single day is a key to winning championships. This is as true in the off-season as it is during the season. Thus, establishing off-season priorities often helps programs move forward consistently. Here are some suggestions for establishing off-season priorities that will help any and every team move forward this off-season.Use Data WiselyLook at your season stats. Where do you want to improve? Create a specific plan for addressi
Linebacker Movement Drill Progressions
When developing drill progressions for your position group, it is important to break down the points of emphasis that you want to develop on a daily basis. Since individual period time is so valuable at all positions, it is crucial to stay organized to maximize the efficiency of the drill work you accomplish with your position group. By breaking down a position through film study we are able to create drill progressions that fit our scheme, personnel, and practice scripts to accomplish proper
Conditioning for an Aggressive, Up-Tempo Offensive System
Up-tempo offenses have become more and more popular at all levels of football and whether this is your team’s offensive philosophy or not, chances are that there are several teams like this in your conference or on your schedule that you must prepare for. Before we can begin to discuss the particulars of conditioning for an attacking, fast-paced style of play such as the up-tempo offense, we have to take a look at the dynamics of a typical football game and how we try to alter those dynamic
Every Program Needs a Speed System Like the One at Southeastern Louisiana
For the past 20 years it has become understood that football speed training is beneficial. However, what’s often missing in speed programs is the lack of a technically sound system. According to the definition of the word ‘system’ it’s “a group of related parts that move or work together.” This is the very essence of what makes a speed program viable. Many organizations throughout the country address the issue of speed training but may not be aware they could be missing the most i
A Little Help From Your Friends
The Beatles told us that you can Get By With A Little Help From Your Friends……And nothing could be more true within the world of coaching football. Your Membership in American Football Monthly provides you with a golden opportunity to submit YOUR EXPERIENCE to be shared with your fellow coaches. We want you to consider contributing and helping your peers become better coaches. Do you have ideas you always wanted to share? Do you have t
A Quick, Simple, High Rep Progression for Defeating Blocks
Repetitions with four different ways to defeat blocks – the rip, punch, slip and cut techniques – will help improve your overall defense.One of the many great things about being at Butler University is being centrally located and having so many terrific football programs very close to use as professional development resources. Let’s be clear, no one is inventing a new defense. However, there are many different schemes, philosophies, fits, terminology, etc. This is where I think a
Why Coach? Being Compassionate, Optimistic, Attentive, Confident and Humanistic are Some of the Qualities a Coach Should Possess
When I was invited to submit an article to AFM, I figured I would simply put some drills together, share some concepts, propose a few diagrams and maybe even talk about the transition of players from high school football to college competition. After all, that’s what we, as coaches, would need for personal or professional development, right? I shared my ideas with colleagues in the office and even surveyed some young coaches who were helping with our sum
RAISING THE BAR - Transforming your Training Facility
Master Strength & Conditioning Coach Troy Jorgensen of Missouri Southern State University has transformed his training facility – with the help of Samson Equipment.Top collegiate programs are well aware of the importance of having facilities that will impress recruits and give their athletes an edge. That’s especially true with strength and conditioning facilities.But what about smaller colleges – those non-FBS schools that generally operate with much smaller
Ways to Turn a Season Around – Four Coaches Have Proven Ways to Help Turn a Season Around After a Struggling Start
Dan Rohn Grand Rapids West Catholic High School (MI) In 2013, Coach Dan Rohn’s Grand Rapids West Catholic team started the season 1-4 – and went on to win the Michigan state championship. In 2012, West Catholic started 1-3 – and reached the state championship game. In Rohn’s first eight seasons, West Catholic won its season opener only three times. It’s all part of the plan. “We gear everything toward being the best football team in
ALL IN: Prevention and Psychological Treatment of Football Injuries
Injuries are inevitable in football and too often when injuries occur, coaches are at a loss for how to deal with it. If you pursue an ALL IN philosophy and follow the acronym ALL IN after an injury, you will prevent as many injuries as possible and skillfully handle the unavoidable injuries that do occur. Before the InjuryBegin building an ALL IN culture before injuries occur. ALL IN means you are devoted to the whole person, not just the football player part of the person. M
AFM Subscribers Ask with Shawn Liotta Offensive Coordinator, Clairton High School (PA)
Shawn Liotta is the offensive coordinator at Clairton High School (PA), a team which averaged 59.9 points per game last season. Clairton also averaged 12.8 yards per play and 510 yards in total offense per game, even though the PIAA Mercy Rule was in effect in the second half of 12 of the 16 games his team played. His offense is aptly named the ‘No-Huddle, No Mercy’ offense.Along the way, Clairton’s quarterback, running back and wide receiver each set school records last fall
3-4 Front with Quarters Coverage: Base Front Variations – These four variations of the 3-4 defense may help your defense with one more player having ‘drop skills.’
Over the past two and a half years of being directly involved with the 3-4 defense and through doing our research, we have encountered several different ways to adjust the base 3-4 look and play a multiple quarters coverage behind it.Some form of the 3-4 defense is being increasingly implemented at all levels of football. There are many reasons for this but the fundamental premise that our Head Coach Mike Archer and Defensive Coordinator Jared Backus always hangs their hat on is th
The Drive Series – It is critical for the QB to read coverage early for this series of plays to be successful.
One of the pass series in our playbook that allows us flexibility and options vs. defenses is the Drive Series. The Drive encompasses concepts that can be successful against most coverages. The routes within the series also create some big play chances if the quarterback can recognize the coverage early. We install the three main plays of the series in the first two days of our August camp because, in addition to the fact that these plays are good for both first down and third downs, they als
Warhawk Special Team Play – Technique and Drills
Special teams are a major determining factor in the outcome of football games at any level. It is fundamental that you stress not only the importance of special teams to your program but also continually drill them and show them the results that you want. This is our philosophy for special teams play:• We use the KISS principle – Keep It Simple Stupid – which allows you to focus on fundamentals.• Give the illusion that you do a lot of different formations, moti
Having a Dominant Defense at the Point of Attack – URI uses a four word progression every snap to maximize the play of their defensive line.
URI uses a four word progression every snap to maximize the play of their defensive line.Coaching a defensive line to be dominant is based on consistency in coaching. The players standard of performance begins and ends with their coach. We believe if players don’t understand their assignments, we need to change the way they are taught. Consequently, if drills aren’t showing up on tape, the drill needs to be adjusted. There is no such thing as “dumb players”, ju
Texas Legend Phil Danaher
Phil Danaher has been the head coach at Calallen High School (Corpus Christi, Texas) since 1984. He is one of two coaches in the history of Texas high school football that has amassed over 400 wins. Danaher has a chance in 2016 to surpass the all-time leader – G. A. Moore – who won 426 games over a 44-year career. Danaher’s career record is 407-103-4.Danaher’s teams have made the playoffs every year since he arrived at Calallen. Before he took over the program, Calallen had
Leadership Strategies: In Need of a New Direction
Coaching staffs should not expect seniors to lead simply based on their age. So, the ultimate goal of our program became to build better men, to help them to grow individually, and eventually teach them how to lead other young men. The result of our emphasis on leadership has been impressive. In 2014 we had a 13-game winning streak that included a #1 Missouri state ranking, a top 150 national ranking, and a narrow defeat in the Class 5 State Semifinals. Provid
An In-Season Strength and Conditioning Strategy
After completing a successful summer off-season program, I began to look at our in-season training and evaluating what we wanted to accomplish. The typical goals for an in-season program are to keep the players healthy and maintain what we achieved during the summer training. Not only did I want to accomplish this, but I also wanted our players to feel energetic, explosive, and powerful come Saturday. Since the beginning of my career in strength and conditioning, it has been common for footba
Developing Physical Linebacker Play
From my standpoint, the greatest compliment our defensive staff can receive is at the end of the game having the opposing coach say how hard and physical our guys played. Playing hard is something that every coach demands from their team. Playing a physical style necessarily is not. If we do not practice being physical, how can I expect my guys to come out on Saturday and play physical? We try and recruit naturally physical kids, but we all know sometimes it does not work out that way. Over t
AEMA Report: Challenges Female Equipment Managers Face Working Football
Female equipment managers face many challenges working for the football team. For many decades the world of football has been dominated mostly by men with women playing only minor roles, if any. As we grow as a society and as a sport, women are starting to emerge in football in a variety of roles that once were thought to only be done by males. The world of football equipment has been, in particular, one of the harder positions for females to work. Many coaches and support staff have always b
Your Take: Long Hours, Hard Work – Do You Spend Your Time Doing What Matters Most?
If you are a head football coach, chances are that you are also a husband, father and classroom teacher. Usually guys that are wired to be a head football coach are wired to give their best in everything they do. How in the world do you balance all of the demands that go with those roles? Are you active in your church? I have spent 23 years as a head football coach. The last 19 years were at Mason County High School (KY). I underestimated how much work I would have to do when I became the new
Coaching HD – Technology to Prepare Your Team in Camp and During the Season
As another season is ready to commence, now is the time to solidify plans and details, and be sure that you are able to work through the grind of the season in the smartest way possible. Utilizing technology to help you and your staff be efficient will pay dividends in both preparation for each week as well as alleviating some of the stress that comes with the long work day that the season brings.In 2010, huge advancements improved the way we are able to work as coaches. The film r
A Strategy for Team Building
Players today are not any different than when I began coaching nearly 20 years ago. However, the number of outside distractions that players are exposed to almost daily has increased tenfold. It is because of these increased distractions that the player-coach relationship has become so significant. So many of these distractions that student-athletes are exposed to daily do nothing but tear down the values that we spend countless hours trying to instill in our players, primarily the value of t
We Are The Champions
Earning the state champion title means different things to different coaches.After the Gatorade is dumped, after the trophies are raised, after the last party is over, the coaches of the 300-plus high school state champions have time to reflect on their seasons and what winning the state title meant to them, their players, their schools and their communities.To some, becoming a state champion is the culmination of their coaching career. For others, it’s the continuation of
Leadership Strategies: Developing a Leadership Council
Jerome Learman was a high school coach for 20 years and 13 as a head coach. He received his doctorate in 2005 from Michigan State in Kinesiology. Learman is currently teaching at both Michigan State and Central Michigan University. While coaching, Learman developed a leadership council for juniors and seniors who received leadership training to become captains. American Football Monthly spoke to Coach Learman about his leadership council.After taking over for Craig Bohl, North Dakota S
AFM Subscribers Ask with Mike Golden Director of Sports Performance, University of Massachusetts (Part II)
Mike Golden is the Director of Sport Performance at the University of Massachusetts. Golden has 18 years of collegiate strength and conditioning experience. Prior to UMass, he coached for two seasons at the University of South Florida. He also coached at East Carolina, helping build the Pirates into one of the top programs in Conference USA, winning back-to- back conference championships with Head Coach Skip Holtz. While at ECU, he also trained first round draft pick Chris Johnson who r
Gaining Leverage - Using unbalanced sets and formations can give your offense an advantage.
In this high tech game of offensive football, every coach is looking to gain advantages. We have incorporated different unbalanced sets as a part of our offensive scheme. Our players understand what we are trying to accomplish with these sets and, more importantly, they understand the do’s and don’ts in these formations. Ultimately, with these formations, we look to surprise the defense and create a small amount of confusion. We also look to out-leverage the defense and bring more players
Why We Do What We Do - A Look Inside Clemson's Strength and Conditioning Program.
The foundation of any successful collegiate football program is an understanding and commitment by all who work with the student-athletes to shape them into the vision the head coach has for the team. Head Coach Dabo Swinney has a vision of greatness for our program, which in the past four years, has driven us to two ACC Atlantic Division Championships, one conference championship, a 4-year span of 10+-win seasons, three straight bowl wins over ranked opponents, three straight Top 15 finishes
Think Quick! If executed correctly, the quick passing game can be effective, regardless of the down and distance situation.
The University of Idaho’s quick passing game was first developed by Head Coach Dennis Erickson when he coached the Vandals. Now, Paul Petrino has refined the quick passing game after working on it with his brother, Bobby, when both coached at Louisville. Our goals with the quick passing game are to get the ball out of our QB’s hands quickly and produce explosive plays with short passes. This demands a system that is detailed, disciplined, and practiced every day at full s
Coach to Coach: Follow These Four Keys to Become a Better Coach Every Day
As coaches, we often preach to our players, “You will either get better or worse today.” In order to get better every day, players have coaches who have made practice plans for them and provide encouragement, feedback, and inspiration. But if we, as coaches, are going to get better, who and what do we have to help us? The following is an acronym for a process you can use on a daily basis to make sure you are improving in key areas of coaching effectiveness. Follow this plan each day, and
Coaching HD: Train the Brain
Over the past year, there has been tremendous growth in the realm of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) applications in football. The idea of training the brain to function in a number of different situations has merits in terms of gaining experience as well as performing in a setting where the dangers of injury are removed. Data on these simulations show that performance on the field is improved. Cognition training provides an additional way for preparing the brain for high spee
AEMA Report – The Second Football Season
By Austin Perryman, Student Equipment ManagerUniversity of Tennessee-ChattanoogaSpring football is altogether one of the most memorable seasonal sports to be involved in as both a high school player and a FCS student manager. I’ve been lucky enough to have been involved as both.Just before my last spring at Lincoln County High School in Fayetteville, TN I hurt my back doing hang-cleans. It wasn’t much at first, but as the spring went along, my back sta
5 Keys to Boost Your Off-Season Training
It’s an old adage that championships begin with your off-season weight training program.The old adage is that championships are won in the off season. A positive, challenging and competitive off-season program can help be the catalyst that can set a team apart from the pack in the upcoming season. No two strength programs are the same and one cannot claim to be better than the other. However, there are a few key building blocks that can help to lay the foundation for future football
Leadership Report: The Intangible That Makes a Difference
The Speed Report: Football Speed and Movement Training – Making it Relative to practices and Games
Speed on the football field is every coach’s desire. The good news is that speed and movement can be developed. When I started developing football speed 36 years ago, no one believed it could be taught. How it was developed back then and even today, is still an issue that concerns me. Far too many programs are using inferior fundamental principles and, in most cases, they’re principles that fall short of the mark for maximizing results. Incorporating sound teaching fundamentals
Strength Report: The Power Clean and the Squat
The two main lifts we habitually do that are the core of what we do are the squat and the power clean. We will then adjust those main lifts for athletes with different body types and/or limitations. Two reasons why we regard these two exercises as the most important are because they test lower body strength and also total body power. There is a very high chance that our players performed these lifts in high school, and the results of their max efforts in those lifts give play
Building Champions to Win Championships
We recently surveyed coaches on a variety of topics, one of which was their interest in having more information about leadership. An astounding 80% said they would like us to present more information on this topic that is so vital to individual and team success.With this issue of American Football Monthly, we are introducing a new monthly Leadership report – Building Champions to Win Championships. AFM has assembled a team of leadership experts to explore, define and communicate
TURNING AROUND A LOSING PROGRAM
By Chad Hanson, Head Coach, Eleva-Strum High School (WI) Chad Hanson is the head coach at Eleva-Strum High School in Wisconsin. Three years ago he was hired to improve the school’s football fortunes. In the previous three years prior to his arrival, the team won a total of five games. * What were the issues with the Eleva-Strum football program before you arrived? What was the culture like? - The situation that I walked into at Eleva-Strum was a unique one. The
AFM Subscribers Ask with Mike Golden
Mike Golden is the Director of Sports Performance at the University of Massachusetts. He has 18 years of collegiate strength and conditioning experience. Prior to UMass, Golden coached for two seasons at the University of South Florida. He also coached at East Carolina, helping build the Pirates into one of the top programs in Conference USA, winning back to back conference championships under Head Coach Skip Holtz. While at ECU, he also trained first round draft pick Chris Johnson, who recor
Maximizing Your Goal Line Defense – The Okie Hot defense is intended for use at the goal line and its efficiency is dependent on players following alignment rules as well as their execution.
We have seen a number of offenses in our conference transition to a spread attack. This has also transitioned to the goal line area of the field. Our defense is a 3-4 that plays the majority of time a cover 3 with single LB blitzes. When we’re inside the 10 yard line, we do not have a lot of options so we end up playing man coverage without help. The problem that we have had is our corners are 5’9” and are susceptible to bigger wide receivers beating them on jump ball f
Winning the Key Ground with Kickoff Coverage - Each man in kickoff coverage has an assignment ...Each man in kickoff coverage has an assignment along with a kicker who must be skilled in directional kicking.This is a game of field position and we talk a lot about “Winning the Key Ground.” Below is our philosophy and goals for our kickoff cover unit.Philosophy 1. Cover two-thirds of the field with directional kicks.2. Inside and in front coverage – not lane.3. &nb
Building a Program From the Ground Up - South Alabama Head Coach Joey Jones
South Alabama Head Coach Joey JonesUniversity of South Alabama Coach Joey Jones is no stranger to rekindling programs or starting them from scratch. The former Alabama WR was the head coach for a decade at Mountain Brook High School (AL) where he went 101-27. He inherited a program that had nine consecutive losing seasons and took them to the state championship game in his first year as coach. In the 10-year period in which Jones was head coach (1996-2005), Mountain Br
Samson Equipment's Strength and Conditioning Coaches of the Year for 2014
NFL: Garrett Giemont Pittsburgh SteelersBACKGROUND Garrett Giemont’s first job in the NFL was with the Los Angeles Rams in 1978. With over 30 years of experience in the NFL, Giemont was also the strength and conditioning coach for both the Oakland Raiders (1995-2002) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2003-2005). Head Coach Mike Tomlin brought Giemont to Pittsburgh in 2007 and he enters his 9th season with the Steelers this fall. Coach Giemont also worked as the D
A Nine-Week Off Season Super-Cycle Strength and Conditioning Program
This article was published in the January edition of American Football Monthly with factual errors. The revised version is posted below. AFM regrets the errors.True developmental training at the collegiate level can be defined as two mandatory, nine-week training phases per year. The remaining time each year could be considered in-season, discretionary or possibly maintenance. The other possibility in the yearly scheme that
LOCKED IN PREPARATION - Mental Conditioning for Football
The 2014 season marked my 10th season as defensive coordinator at Northwestern College. Throughout the ten years we have been blessed to have some great players and have had consistently strong defenses. Over this time, we have always gone into each game week with a list of ten goals. These goals were all measurable outcomes we could strive to achieve in each game. How we measured each goal may vary from year to year but these goals always included winning as our #1 goal. This goal was follo
From the Coach’s Bookshelf – The New QB Gurus
Most coaches would agree that quarterback is the most critical position in the sport. This past decade has seen the boom of the specialized private quarterback-coach business, transforming the position and the game. Former Super Bowl winning quarterback Trent Dilfer is one of this new breed, running the prestigious Elite 11 camp and starting his own training method. In this excerpt from The QB – The Making of Modern Quarterbacks, veteran sports writer and bestselling author Bruce Feldman gi
DC Leadership Lessons - Detail is critical in making sure a staff knows the expectations of a defensive coordinator.
As a defensive coordinator, you are the head coach of the defense. That’s the way I approach it every day. Before fall camp and spring ball, I discuss my expectations for each coach and their position group. As the leader of those coaches, I want to make sure we are on the same page. My Expectations -A. No egos. We should all be trying to achieve the same thing.We should all be in this for the kids. If you are in it for any other reason such as money, not
Rawlings Football 2014 College and High School Coaches of the Year
Urban MeyerOhio StateIt was supposed to be a relatively straightforward formula. Any team with designs on winning a national championship should flex its muscles early in the season, stay relatively healthy, especially at the skill positions, and play its football in the Southeastern Conference. Somehow, Urban Meyer and the Ohio State Buckeyes did not come close to following that formula, yet the team pulled off
Coach to Coach: The Mindset of Excellence
At the end of the 2013 season, I remember watching 15-0 North Dakota State win their third straight FCS title. An ESPN reporter got to Head Coach Craig Bohl in the end zone for the post-game interview. At the end of the interview I heard coach Bohl say, “We pursue perfection and along the way we touch excellence”. It takes an incredible attitude to push for something so unattainable that it can never be reached and the
Drills Report: Four Running Back Drills for Good Footwork and Instinctive Moves
Running backs need to have great footwork. They also need to be able to make moves as second nature. These are not the only things that we practice. But it is very important to make sure that the running backs get plenty of work on these. With our spread offense, the running backs need to be instinctive. Being able to make moves without thinking is critically important. We work on drills that will help us during game situations. There are four drills that we work on every day
Helmet Maintenance 101
For football coaches, athletic trainers, and athletic equipment managers, player safety is the number one priority for their athletes. One of the best ways to support that endeavor is to have a certified athletic equipment manager on staff. Established in 1973, the athletic equipment managers association (AEMA) added certification for members in 1991. The certification program represents a level of competence, professionalism, and accountability to organizations, coaches and athletes. With th
From the Coach’s Bookshelf: Linebacker Lessons
Coach Lou Tepper brings more than 45 years of experience as a college football coach to Complete Linebacking. In this excerpt, Coach Tepper details the many intangibles a linebacker must possess to maximize his success.Linebackers are the glue of a defensive unit, physically and emotionally. Physically, they fill the open seams between defensive linemen inside and patrol the perimeter in conjunction with the secondary. In zone coverage lineback
Simulating Game Action with 3 Linebacker Drills
We run a 3-4 based scheme, so we need to have quite a few different linebacker drills ready when fall camp starts. To make sure we can cover all of the skills that our players need for the season, I start with a chart. This chart changes slightly from year to year as I adjust what skills and techniques I feel our players need to have. I also add new drills that I see or take out drills I want to get rid of. Ultimately, I don’t want to have so many drills that I don’t hav
The Dupe Run-Pass Combo
The Dupe concept is the name of the pass concept that is tagged with the run call and can only be run out of the 3 x 1 formation. It is one of our 12 run/pass combos that gives the quarterback the opportunity to make an easy hitch or slant throw.We always run the dupe offense out of either a static 3 x 1 formation or motioning into a 3 x 1 formation. Dupe communicates to our receivers the pass routes. The single receiver away from the formation call will always run a 6-yard hitch r
Special Teams Winning Edge (Part II)
In the December issue, we discussed the head coach setting the tone for special teams play, the importance of other assistant coaches being involved in areas of special teams, setting goals, and strategy for the punt unit, kickoff unit, kickoff return unit and punt return unit. In this article, we’ll discuss practice efficiency and key points to consider when game planning for your next opponent. Spring Practice Plans Each spring, we evaluate our performance from th
Running for Sparty: Michigan State Running Back Essentials, Fundamentals and Abilities
I have been fortunate to be a part of the successes and championships at Michigan State and truly believe that they are a result of a tremendous team effort of our coaches and administrators.We have been blessed with talent at the running back position over our years here but we also believe that we do a good job of developing these young men. This article outlines what we believe it takes to play RB at a high level – the essentials. These are what the individual, to some degree,
Planning Ahead: What are the keys to game planning for an offensive coordinator?
What does an offensive coordinator go through as he prepares for his next opponent? What are the keys to having the most efficient game plan? AFM spoke to three offensive coordinators about the topic – Keith Grabowski, former offensive coordinator at Baldwin Wallace University, football consultant Dan Gonzalez, a former high school and college offensive coordinator, and Nick Restifo, the offensive coordinator at St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland.What is the process for
Maximize Practice Time with Special Team DrillsWe pride ourselves on having a special team’s identity. It’s consists of pressure, field position, and points. These identities help create tempo and energy throughout practice and games. Our philosophy consists of: Pressure:• We make every effort in every way to apply pressure to our opponent. Field Position:• We either want to flip or win field position whenever possible. Points:• With every special teams unit, we e
Teaching the Clean: From A to Z (Part II)
In part I of teaching the clean lift, we discussed the concept of clean movement patterns and progressing your athletes with the proper technique. In this issue, we will focus on hip extension where real power is generated. Once an athlete can hip hinge properly, we teach violent hip extension. The main ways we teach this are through a variety of medicine ball throws and kettlebell swings (Photos 1-4).
FREE FORM - Coaches Evaluation Form
With the season now completed, it’s a perfect opportunity to evaluate the coaching staff with the Coaches Evaluation Form. Categories include Personal and Professional Attributes, Administrative Procedural Abilities, Knowledge and Practice of Medical-Legal Aspects, Theory and Techniques of Coaching, Personnel Management, and Public Relations Skills.
Aggie Upgrade - With the help of their friends and neighbors at Samson Equipment, New Mexico State completed a major renovation to their strength and conditioning facility.
One would be hard pressed to find a strength and conditioning coach with more experience than Don Decker. One of only 140 individuals worldwide to have been named a master level strength coach by the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Association, Decker’s 24-year collegiate career includes 15 seasons at Arkansas and four at Ole Miss, working with some of the most prominent coaches in the sport. Now, as Director of Strength and Conditioning at New Mexico State University, Decker supervise
Character is the Key
By Jim Place, Retired High School Coach Each year you have 10 scheduled games. Every team will set their goal at going 10-0 but the reality is that very few teams have the physical talent to reach this goal. The reality is that each team has a four game swing based upon their talent. For a given team based upon their talent the best record may be 7-3 and their worst 4-6, other teams 2-8 to 5-5 or 9-1 to 6-4. This is the range of record
Managing Your Program: Evaluating Staff - Creating an Environment For Success
As the season ends, equipment is collected, banquets are planned, and goals are set with the returning players. It’s important to not lose sight of one very important component in your program – the coaching staff. The team’s success is very closely tied to the coaches who create the environment that nurtures that success, yet often, the staff is the last component attended to in the transition from one season to the next. Years ago, former Navy Commander and aut
Helmet Maintenance 101 -
By Michael Valentine, Equipment Manager, Northern Illinois University and Melisande Resendiz, Assistant Equipment Manager, Northwestern UniversityFor football coaches, athletic trainers, and athletic equipment managers, player safety is the number one priority for their athletes. One of the best ways to support that endeavor is to have a certified athletic equipment manager on staff. Established in 1973, the athletic equipment managers association (AEMA) added certification for mem
Never Stop Learning: Coaching Clinics - 2015
Now is the time to make your plans for coaching clinics in 2015. Here is a listing of four premier organizations that will be conducting clinics across the nation during the winter and spring months of 2015.Nike Coach of the Year Clinics The 2015 Nike Coach of the Year clinics will feature the nation’s top coaches speaking at 15 different cities throughout the country. Coaches can register for any of the clinics by going to www.nikecoyfootball.com. Some of the featured spe
Special Teams Winning Edge (Part I)
I am a believer in our special teams philosophy because we have seen great success in every major category at two different universities – North Greenville University and Gardner-Webb – at two different levels of college football.My first few years as a special teams coordinator was trial by fire. But what I did learn is that you have to completely embrace the role because all great programs are sound and explosive in the kicking game and you have a chance to create a cul
Building Blocks
Whether you’re starting a new program from scratch, taking over a losing program, or trying to develop your program into a consistent winner, these proven techniques from state champion coaches can be your blueprint for success.When Dave Redding accepted the head coaching position at Mansfield High School in Mansfield, Massachusetts in 1988, he knew changes had to be made. “Mansfield had not won a league championship since 1976,” said Redding. “We focused on the off-season stre
Drills Report: Running and Tackling Drills - A Twist for TNT DrillsSimilar to other teams, we spend time each week working on tackling and turnover (TNT) drills. In the past, we typically felt satisfied at the conclusion of each TNT drill as our defense seemed to grasp the fundamentals of tackling and forcing turnovers. However, when we reached game day and even team practice scenarios, our drills did not seem to translate to the field. Often, we missed tackles (especially in open-field situations) and our players suddenly lacked focus when it came to
Strength Report: Teaching the Clean: From A to Z (Part I)
We are constantly teaching our athletes how to move better and more efficiently. Our whole program is based on the concept of clean movement patterns, which is stability and mobility through the hips, trunk, and thoracic spine. From there, the ability to control your own body in space, then finally strengthening movement patterns that will benefit movements and learning how to generate, apply, and receive force in any way needed to perform better are our goals.Most of us that playe
Fueling Champions
Sophisticated nutritional and recovery practices and new NCAA food guidelines help Florida State’s Katy Meassick keep Seminole athletes fully fueled and ready for competition.To build a championship program in the ultra-competitive FBS, every aspect of athletes’ training, on and off the field, must be carefully addressed. That includes making sure that proper nutritional and workout recovery practices are being followed. At Florida State, that job falls to Sports Registered Die
Erasing A Decade of Disappointment: The Transformation of the Mustangs
A lot of coaches like talking Xs and Os, which is the easy part of coaching. The scheming and game planning is the chess match we all signed up for and love to do. However, as head coaches, we take on a little more than just the scheme these days. When you get your shot to be a head coach, for most of us, we don’t inherit a program that wins and is used to winning. Rather, it is usually a challenging program, one that has not won or doesn’t do so consistently. This p
Zone Defense on the Goal Line - To be efficient in this zone defense, give each player a specific responsibility.
As the passing game has evolved over the last few decades, defenses have been challenged in a variety of ways. Defensive coaches have had to try to find ways to maintain some competitive balance in both the red zone and the big red zone. In the 1970’s it was rare to find teams playing zone defense in the red zone. The standard coverage was man-to-man with corners playing on the line of scrimmage with inside leverage. The most common pass in this scenario became the quick fade to the corner
Lasting Legacy - At 70, Corky Rogers is still going strong as a member of the exclusive 400 win club.
It was a misty, cool, December night in Florida. Things looked bleak for coach Corky Rogers and his Bolles School team from Jacksonville. The Bulldogs were trailing a powerhouse Santa Fe team 17-6 with less than a minute to play in a semifinal playoff game. Santa Fe was loaded with future NFL players. “We were just getting it taken to us,” Rogers said. “We were trying everything you could try, because nothing was working.”In that final minute, Rogers made an adjustment and
Coach to Coach: The Mental Fundamentals - Attention Control and Concentration
One Play at a Time It takes consistent practice in order to concentrate and focus on the proper things. Our defense in high school had a motto on every break of the huddle. The Mike linebacker would call the defense and yell “HIT!” and everyone would follow with “HARD!” HIT.....HARD! It seems so simple but that was over 25 years ago and it still gets me fired up. It served as a great verbal trigger to focus on the next play and it describes what we were about
Limits on Live Tackling in Practice – Good or Bad for the Game?
National player safety concerns prompted in great part by the National Football League’s (NFL) response to player lawsuits and scientific research data that is calling into question the safety of the game has led to numerous efforts to implement changes that will hopefully make the game safer on all levels of play. The California Assembly by a vote of 50-22 has approved AB 2127 a bill that will prohibit high school and middle school football teams of school districts, charter school
The American Equipment Managers Association
The purpose of the Athletic Equipment Managers Association (AEMA) is, as a national organization, to promote, advance, and improve the equipment managers’ profession in all of its many phases. Members of the AEMA will now be working with American Football Monthly to help educate and inform AFM subscribers about how to better address equipment-related issues.What is the background of the AEMA? In 1974, 25 equipment managers became the first members of the organization at
Taking the No-Huddle Offense to the West Coast – Combining the West Coast offense with an up-tempo, no-huddle system can result in a powerful running and passing attack.
Football is a sport that runs in cycles. Offenses and defenses are constantly inventing and re-inventing themselves to match and overtake what the other side of the ball is doing. Systems and styles come and go and then are cycled back again. The constant on either side of the ball, no matter the generation or system, is the importance of a running game. Every defensive coordinator’s first job in preparing for a game is to figure out how to contain the running game. Every offensive coordina
Starting Fresh – What are the priorities for five new first-year head coaches?
Steve Sarkisian’s first team meeting as head coach of the Southern California Trojans lasted an hour. There was no planned speech, only bullet-pointed priorities on what he expected from his players and what they could expect from their new coach. He strived to make his introduction as real as possible.“I don’t think you should come into that first meeting (with a new team) believing that you’re going to win over all the players,” said Sarkisian, who, after five successfu
Managing Your Program: Building a Team – Objectives for Camp
Unity/Chemistry - Establishing chemistry is a big goal for every team in camp. Hopefully, the ground work was established in the off season. No matter how the off season went, camp and the new season have a new dynamic in how the team will interact and work together. It is a time for leadership of the team to really take root. This is an area that can be coached, managed and developed. A good head coach and his staff will see some of the issues that must be worked on during camp so
Drills Report: Kickoff Return – The Alley Drill
Anyone who has coached special teams at any level will usually list three problem areas that can sometimes make it difficult to excel in the kicking game. One is personnel. It is a constant challenge to balance utilizing your roster to the max yet also getting the best players on your team involved in the kicking game. Another is how much time is allotted to special teams practice. If you are in high school or college, your practice time is often limited. Unless you have a head coach who real
Coach to Coach: The Mental Fundamentals – Motor Programming
The ball is in the air. It’s a perfect spiral flying straight into a pair of hands. He drops it! It’s like his hands exploded from the speed of the ball. The coach yells “catch the ball, you gotta make that catch” or something similar, as if the player didn’t want to catch the ball in the first place. Why waste your breath on stating the obvious? What kind of receiver doesn’t want to make the catch? Chances are, the reason he missed the catch is because he hasn’t done
Carmel High School’s Game Week Preparation Model
By John Hebert, Assistant Coach, Carmel High School (IN) The Carmel defensive system currently in place has many influences. Through external benchmarking visits, (2005-Colerain High School in Cincinnati; 2008- Air Force Academy; 2010- Naval Academy; and 2012 Grand Valley State) we have become committed to a one ga
A Question of CHARACTER
The NFL High School Player Development Program presented by the National Guard helps thousands of high school athletes develop strong character.From an athletic standpoint, the hundreds of camps of the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard help thousands of high school student-athletes refine their football skills using drills developed by a collegiate coaching staff. From a competitive standpoint, HSPD organizes the nation’s largest 7-on-7 tourna
Flex Fronts: Stop offenses by using a different front on every play.
As I watched Clemson and Auburn play in BCS games last January, I wondered how many high school coaches will be going to the spring coaching clinics put on by these schools. More importantly, what are defensive coaches going to do to stop these types of offense? Tight ends are becoming a huge part of offenses. While there are some teams that don’t ever use one, other teams use three on one play. We have to be able to line up against all of these formations.In Florida, we see a di
Big D: Defensive Line Philosophy and Daily Drills for an Aggressive Front
One key to a strong defense is that each position group develops the fundamental skills required to consistently execute their individual assignments. Here is our defensive line philosophy and an outline of the daily drills we utilize to help our players compete at a high level. Defensive Line PhilosophyWe pride ourselves on being a fast, aggressive front that plays with exceptional fundamentals and discipline. We prepare, practice, and compete with tremendous energy and
AFM’s Annual State Champions Roundup
State Champ Coaches’ Profile Average Age = 48 Average Years as a Head Coach = 13 (22% have 20 or more years experience) 80% are coaches and teachersWhat are some of the reasons for your success? (multiple answers)100% said Coaching Staff98% said Players72% said Parents Support69% said Strength and Conditioning57% sai
Coaching American Football Overseas
By John Trana, American Football Coach in Russia and Croatia American football’s popularity is growing quickly all around the world. It is opening up new avenues for players and coaches to continue their football careers. There are over 700 teams in Europe alone playing American football. The quality of football can vary drastically with the top teams playing at a low college level. As the NFL continues to expand overseas, so will the popularity of American foo
MAKE YOUR SYSTEM FIT YOUR PERSONNEL – FOCUS ON THE PLAYER AND NOT THE PLAY
Coaches love to talk about personnel. In fact once someone identifies you as a defensive coach, you can almost guarantee the next question is going to be “What do you run?” The person who is asking the question is looking to see if you are a 4-3 guy or a 3-4 guy. Now there are other defenses but the majority of coaches fit one of these two molds. While I think that having a system in place and being consistent is very important, I think that you are making a big mistake if y
Your Take: Expanding Your Coaching Network
We all have a stack of business cards, or an inbox full of messages from other coaches throughout our network. When was the last time you reached out to one of those coaches to discuss a concept or to share a scheme? Have you applied or inquired about a job at a school where you did not know anyone on the current staff? Is there a chance that one of those contacts in your file has a connection to use?The concept of increasing value and depth to your network is one that should not b
Pressure Packed – Game-like drills will help your quarterback make good decisions.
In today’s offensive game plans, most teams have a spread attack that works out of the shotgun set. Teams run 60-65 plays per game with the quarterback in a drop back technique for most of the passing plays. Out of the number of passing plays called, at least 12-15 plays – on an average – force the quarterback out of the pocket or to retreat back into the middle of the pocket. This means at least one fourth of your pass plays have a QB making a decision to either run or pass while
Situational Analysis – Having a specific gameplan for each offensive situation enhances your chances of success.
We teach our players to develop a thorough understanding of situational offense: its importance, its relevance, and the consequences of not recognizing and reacting to the many situations that exist and ultimately define our game. Here are eight main situations and how we develop our players’ understanding of them. During the beginning of fall camp, as well as in the opening of spring practice, we implement a well-planned-out installation that will be the foundation of our offens
Put the Block On – Block circuit drills and one-on-one punt rush drills can increase your chances of blocking a punt.
Blocking punts takes not only personal belief and courage, but training and a good scheme to get the right player free to the punter. We teach the techniques necessary to properly block punts. We also practice different drills to train players to use those techniques plus a few scheme adjustments to try to get players free to the punter. I always tell the players that I want volunteers, not mercenaries. Mercenaries are people you hire to do a job; volunteers do it because they love it. Pu
Pressure Defenses (Part I) – Specific stunts and gap exchanges – when coordinated correctly – can improve team defense.
The Peru State defense played with relentless effort last season and finished sixth in the nation against the run and second in the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) in total defense. A big reason was our defensive philosophy and how we align with our various packages.Bobcat Defensive Philosophy• Focus on effort and attitude• Play hard every play and play with great enthus
Summer Priorities – What should be your priorities heading into the summer months?
The summer months bring about a number of challenges for every football coach. Staying in contact with players and parents without school every day can be difficult. Similarly, coordinating staff meetings and giving players and coaches the needed time off before the grind of a new season begins can also be taxing.What should be your priorities heading into summer? What are the most effective ways to communicate with players and coaches? How important are strength and conditioning p
Coach to Coach: The Mental Fundamentals
The yellow flag is thrown and the coach’s voice is rising. It’s obviously a bad call. Everyone can smell the home cooking. “That score would have put us on top and now it’s called back. The ref has literally taken points away from us.” The coach is livid and walking the tightrope to ejection. The lack of composure is reflected in the players when the clock dwindles and the cheap shots fly. This game will be lost in more ways than one.Building mental toughness starts with
FINDING THE RIGHT CONDITIONING COACH
I had an opportunity to attend a football clinic by an organization that is really well known for putting on quality clinics. This clinic was well attended with most of the attendees from high schools in the area. Since I no longer coach a position, I was there to listen and learn from the strength and conditioning coach. The presenting coach was the head strength from an
Major Undertaking
Behind the scenes at a successful football skills and character development camp of the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard.As you would expect, managing the largest football skills and character development camp program in the world is a massive organizational challenge. With nearly two hundred camps across the country involving thousands of high school athletes, the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Gua
SERVE and PROTECT
Legendary New England Coach John Papas teams up with Xenith to provide future collegiate athletes with added protection, better fit and strong performance.If you’ve coached at the high school and collegiate levels for over 35 years, chances are you’ve developed strong opinions about football equipment. You know which products are best for your players from performance and safety standpoints and you know which companies are best to work with. Coach John Papas has seen
Your Take: Win The Offseason: Organization Matters
Organization isn’t the sexiest topic to talk about, but if you’re serious about improving as a coach, it takes more than how-to videos and watching game tape. Reviewing your notes and processes can help save time and energy, while also allowing you to tackle your goals of molding your athletes into better players and people.Being disorganized can mean the difference between winning and losing. Even the smartest coaches need to be reminded of old plays and schemes that could hel
BE SPECIAL By committing to better special team practice organization, your units will create more explosive plays.
Special teams are an important part of any football game. They are the first play of every game, and many times the last and decisive play in a game. During every special teams play, one of these situations occurs – a large field position exchange, a change of possession, or a scoring opportunity. Frequently, two of these situations take place on the same special teams play. By their very nature, special teams plays are “special” and have a big impact on the outcome of the game.
UPSET SPECIAL Give your underdog team a shot with these strategies.
Nearly every coach has entered a game week knowing that the only people picking his team to win are on his staff or inside his own locker room.These situations can be an opportunity to galvanize a team by instilling an us-against-them world mentality; freeing the underdogs to play loose and pulling off an upset.No one knows that more than George O’Leary, the head coach at the University of Central Florida. The Knights pulled off the biggest upset in BCS history by beat
ESTABLISHING A QUICK-PACED OFFENSE IN MIDDLE SCHOOL FOOTBALL
Aside from scoring, the ability to control the clock and the tempo of a football game is the primary objective of any offense. For years, the pattern was to pound the ball slowly and chew up the clock to control a game and defeat an opponent. Yet, with
Champion Communicators
Four state champion coaches rely on the Tempest FX sideline communications system from CoachComm.All high school coaches know that it’s critical to have clear, reliable communications during a game. The ability to share information between coaches in the press box and those on the sideline has, for years, determined much of a team’s in-game strategy. An interrupted signal or unclear reception can spell disaster. But the best coaches, those that win state champ
DEFENSIVE BLUEPRINT - Lehigh's 11 Keys to a Championship Defense
We have 11 priorities for building a championship defense: staff, personnel, multiplicity, coaching the little things, getting what you coach, swarm, passion, and finish, self-scouting, game planning, and maintaining the integrity of your defense. Developing each one is critical to building your defense. Staff - It’s hard to be a championship defense if you don’t have a championship staff. In order to develop your staff, everyone must be on the same page and be an expert in
Rowan University's Special Teams Philosophy and Punt Team Techniques
We think our approach to special teams is very sound. We utilize all players, both starters and reserves, on special teams and use players from both sides of the ball. Also, we will reward certain players for outstanding play by allowing them to participate on special teams.We identify every player’s strengths and incorporate them into special teams. We cannot afford to spend an inordinate amount of time teaching skills that players have already mastered. We keep the schemes rela
The Fine Points of the 3-Step Passing Game
We have been successful with the 3-step passing game over the last few seasons. Here are the reasons why we use it, the quarterback’s steps and reads, the importance of ball placement and wide receiver routes. Four actual plays within the 3-step game are also included – our 90 pass, 91 switch, 92 double, and 95Y stick. Reasons to use the 3-step passing game: • Better utilize our skilled athletes - “speed in space”.• Take advantage of loose
U-TURN How Southern Virginia University went from 3-8 to 8-2.
On February 9th 2009, I agreed to become the head football coach at Southern Virginia University. At the time, the SVU football program faced several obstacles both on and off the field. They included a low team grade point average, discipline problems, and recruitment and retention problems. In addition, they had embraced a mediocre mentality from a losing record.When I accepted the head coaching job, SVU had only had one winning season in school history and had averaged just two
The Business of Coaching - Joe Moglia is a prime example of how success in business and coaching go hand-in-hand.
If you pay attention to the great coaching stories in college football, then you already know about Joe Moglia.You may recognize him as the former CEO of financial services company TD Ameritrade, where he oversaw the firm’s meteoric growth during his seven years at the helm. Or, you may know him as the current head coach at Coastal Carolina, where, in his first season in 2012, he led the Chanticleers to eight wins en route to being named the Big South Coach of the Year. He follow
Thoughts from an HSPD Veteran
Craig Jacoby, who is the site manager for the Rockland, New York, HSPD camp, has over a decade of experience with the program and has seen first-hand how it has benefitted hundreds of high school athletes. We asked him about the camp experience for athletes and the value of the DVD to coaches.AFM: How do HSPD athletes respond to the college-level drills at HSPD camps? Jacoby: In my experience, the players who attend HSPD are getting a training experience that can’t be d
Practice Priorities - All high school coaches benefit from the practice plan developed for the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard
What are your priorities when designing an early-season practice plan? Do you try to build a collection of proven drills that safely and efficiently teach fundamentals while challenging your players? Do you incorporate teaching techniques that you may have learned from a top college coach at a clinic session? Do you have printed materials and video that every member of your staff can use to gain a thorough understanding of your drills and how to conduct them?If you’re a coach at
Finding a Football Strength Coach
It is critical to get the right person from the start. First and foremost is a coach that understands your football program and will buy in and want to be a part of it. That is why I look at this position as a football coaching position. Many times the football coach and the strength coach do not see eye to eye, and it usually results in a bad environment for coaches and athletes. This position coach must be on board as the “Football Strength Coach”. If this coach does not buy in,
Samson Equipment’s Strength and Conditioning Coaches of the Year
NFL: Luke Richesson Denver BroncosBackground - Luke Richesson began his coaching career at his alma mater, the University of Kansas, in 1997 after a four-year career playing safety for the Jayhawks. After one season as a strength and conditioning intern, he spent the next season at the University of Wyoming and the following two at Arizona State University as a graduate assistant before becoming the performance team direc
Managing Your Program: Measuring Practice Success and Developing Good Habits
With spring football around the corner, coaches are looking to develop or test out some new ideas obtained during the clinic season, identify how personnel will fit into the system and figure out what adjustments will be necessary for the upcoming season. These are legitimate concerns, and spring practice will allow a coaching staff to address them.Spring is also a time to establish the habits that will make the team successful in the fall. Getting the most out of practice by impro
Out in the Open - Live tackling drills can improve your team’s open field tackling.
As today’s game stretches laterally to encompass the entire width of the field, the ability to open-field tackle is at a premium. One of the most difficult skills to acquire as a defensive player is the art of open-field tackling. Even elite athletes need to improve and sharpen their skill sets.How do you enhance those abilities and replicate them at game speed? The answer is simple – live tackling, offensive skill vs. defensive skill. At the University at Albany, Head Coach Bo
Option Football - Few Plays, Many Ways, Part I
Option football has been around for many decades. The vast majority of today’s collegiate and high school programs use some form of option in their offensive scheme.Why run the option? Football is a “numbers game” where the offense tries to outnumber the defense at the point of attack. While there are more than a few ways to accomplish this goal, we believe that the option is by far the easiest and most effective way to ensure that your offense outnumbers the defense on every
Rawlings Football College and High School Coaches of the Year
It was a summer evening in the mid-1980’s. Volunteer workouts were revving up for the Salem University football team. Salem Quarterbacks Coach Terry Bowden pointed at his quarterback’s cleats and laughed. “His football shoes were covered in cow manure and hay,” Bowden recalled with a chuckle.Thirty years later, that quarterback with the stinky shoes is a national champion and Rawlings Football Coach of the Year, Florida State’s Jimbo Fisher.“Althou
Coach to Coach: An Efficient and Effective Play Calling System
Last year at this time, I wrote an article on the use of tempo as a weapon. I stated then that tempo was being used by many successful teams and that extremely fast-paced offenses were going to be a standard of football for years to come. Today, the use of the fast-paced, no- huddle offense is becoming more the norm than the exception.Webster’s Dictionary defines the word tempo as the “rate of motion or activity”. In today’s football terminology, the word tempo refers to how qu
Letter from AFM: Crowning Achievement
For the amazing job that he did taking an Auburn team that was winless in the SEC in 2012 and guiding them to the SEC championship and a runner-up finish in the BCS championship game, Gus Malzahn was a deserving winner of the many Coach of the Year awards he received. With the nation’s best running attack, they disproved the notion that you must have a high-powered passing game to succeed in the modern era of college football. And the two game-winning plays against Georgia and Alabama will
Going Camping
Sending your players to the free football camps offered by the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard is a win-win for you and them.Football camps for high school athletes are big business. Dozens of for-profit camps, costing hundreds or even thousands of dollars to attend, are offered to high school students who want to hone their skills over a period of days or weeks. But only one football camp program offers proven instruction methods a
Step Lively! Linebacker Movements vs. the Run
Before teaching these movements, we insist on linebackers learning the correct body position. The fundamental body position allows a linebacker to achieve leverage and power. I spend many hours teaching a basic linebacker stance, which is a stationary position. I want a linebacker to stem, move around, and basically be active. Newton’s first law of motion is that an object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion unless an external force acts upon it. This is as true in
Getting Defensive – Cocoa High School’s base 3-3-5 defense shuts down nearly every opponent they face.
When you ask Cocoa High School Head Coach John Wilkinson about his personal philosophy, it’s very obvious what motivates him. “I want winners because I want to win,” he said. “I want to do whatever it takes to win. It may sound simple but, to me, there is something very different between competing and winning.”And win he has. In his nine-year career at Cocoa, Wilkinson has a record of 100-19 which includes three Florida 4A state championships, a 38-game winning streak, a
Coach to Coach: The Turnaround
Prior to the season, If you would have told any rational Auburn fan or even most returning players that they would be playing for the 2013 national title, I think most would have been skeptical at best. There was excitement within the football program at the University of Auburn last off-season when they hired Gus Malzahn as their head coach. Malzahn had been instrumental in Auburn’s success during the 2010 National Title season. But the team had only won 3 games in 2012 and was
Speed Report: Is Your Speed Training the Real Deal?
Have you analyzed why you use the methods and teaching applications for football speed training? Have you just borrowed available concepts and plugged them into your program? Are you just covering bases or do you really feel you’ve reached a high level of knowledge and are satisfied with your results? Where did you get what you use today and is it working? Why did you choose to incorporate it into your program? Did you get your material from a friend, a colleague, a relative
Building a Successful Football Program From the Ground Up
The prospect of building a football program is an exciting challenge for any head coach of any experience level. There is no all-encompassing manual instructing a coach how to build a program. No one can wave a magic wand and turn a program into a success over night. The construction project will take time. It could take one season or several seasons to see significant progress. Building a football program is much like building a house - you must start from the ground up and build a solid fou
Back to School - 2014 Coaching Clinics
Now is the time to make yourplans for coaches clinics in 2014. Here is a listing of four premier organizations that will be conducting clinics across the country during the winter and spring months of 2014.Nike Coach of the Year Clinics The 2014 Nike Coach of the Year Clinics will feature the nation’s top coaches speaking at 17 locations in every corner of the nation. Many of the clinics will feature special lectures for youth league coaches. Most also wil
Get Strong – Four Proven Off-Season Strength and Conditioning Programs
BISHOP GORMAN HIGH SCHOOL Las Vegas, NevadaHead Coach –Tony SanchezEnrollment – 1,200 students9-12 Football Program – 160-180 athletesFour consecutive Nevada 4A Championships, Nationally-Ranked ProgramSean Manuel serves as Head Strength and Conditioning Coach and also coaches the offensive line at Bishop Gorman. When he joined the Gorman staff in 2010, he completely revamped the outdated strength and conditioning facility.The FacilityOur w
AFM Subscribers Ask with Joe Daniel Defensive Coordinator and Offensive Line Coach Prince George High School (VA) - Part II
Joe Daniel has more than ten years experience coaching on the high school and college level. In 2009, Daniel began building a website which includes more than 300 articles on defensive coaching – www.Football-Defense.com Daniel is also the host of The Football Coaching Podcast and has written several eBooks, including Coaching Football’s 4-2-5 Defense, Installing the 4-3 Over Defensive Front, and Dominating Football Defense with the Zone Blitz. A frequent contributor to
Strength Report: Wyoming’s Winter Player Development Program
Much like a football game has four quarters, the Wyoming football player development program is broken down into four distinct phases. Winter training, spring football, summer training and the competitive season make up our yearly training calendar. The Wyoming player development program has a structured plan during each of these phases and is built around landmarks found in the student-athletes academic calendar and competition dates. Each phase has very specific goals and intended outcomes.
Letter from AFM - Getting Stronger
Now that your season has ended, it’s time to focus on what you can do to strengthen your program during the off-season.Last year in our December issue, our “panel” of eight legendary high school coaches covered a variety of topics related to off-season priorities including player and staff evaluation, working with graduating seniors and methods to keep your team involved and motivated during the winter and spring months. You can access the article, “Building Blocks” and h
Game Planning Your Coaching Career (Part II)
The Third Quarter After the first half (introduction and growth phase) and making adjustments at half-time, the third quarter becomes the maturity phase of the coaching career. This does not mean that, as coaches, we do not continue to grow or learn. It means that we become more stabilized in our “giftings” as a coach. I admire the confidence of the FBS assistant who maintains a positive attitude that he will land a job in a better environment, after
Coaching Rewards
The NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard lets coaches give back to the game and reap special coaching rewards.For high school football coaches, the rewards of coaching can take many forms. There are celebrations after big wins, championship trophies, accolades from peers.But most coaches realize that the biggest and best rewards of coaching football are those that come from helping young athletes succeed –
AFM Subscribers Ask with Joe Daniel Defensive Coordinator and Offensive Line Coach, Prince George High School (VA) – Part I
Joe Daniel has more than ten years experience coaching on the high school and college level. In 2009, Daniel began building a website which includes more than 300 articles on defensive coaching – www.Football-Defense.com Daniel is also the host of The Football Coaching Podcast and has written several eBooks, including Coaching Football’s 4-2-5 Defense, Installing the 4-3 Over Defensive Front, and Dominating Football Defense with the Zone Blitz. A frequent contributor to b
Circuit Drills Emphasize Repetition, Range of Motion and Reaction to Improve Your Special Teams Play.
Our staff at Central Washington University understands the importance and value of the kicking game in each contest. We treat each special team’s preparation with the same enthusiasm, intensity, and creativity as our offense and defense. To do it right, we must train our special teams players in the same way. Preparing players for their special team roles, however, presents some unique challenges. Consider the following:1. Getting Enough RepetitionsAlmost all of our playe
Multiple Looks from a 3-4 Defense to Slow Down an Up-Tempo Offense
When we played Lake Travis High School four years ago, Chad Morris – now the offensive coordinator at Clemson – was the head coach. That year we had a short week of preparation for his up-tempo, no-huddle offense.After a relatively good start in the first quarter, our defense broke down after a turnover in the second quarter. Their fast-paced offense began to take its toll on our defense as we struggled to line-up before the snap, became confused with the offensive packages the
Safety First: Is your Weight Room a Safe Room?
Don’t overlook the importance of having a comprehensive safety program in your strength and conditioning facility.Stafon Johnson had two successful seasons as a running back for USC in 2007 and 2008 and was primed for a big senior year in 2009 and possibly a shot at the NFL. That all changed on September 8th when the 275-pound barbell he was bench pressing fell on his neck, crushing his larynx and severing his vocal chords. Lucky to survive, he recovered and had a sh
Coach to Coach: Enjoy the Ride
It had been a long time since I’d been on a college sideline as a coach. After 10 years of being a high school head coach, I was excited to be back and I was relieved to see the clock tick to zeros in a 45-13 season opening win. The entire coaching staff and every player had put tremendous effort into preparing for our opener and the final score reflected a great night for us all. As I walked off the field, I couldn’t help but notice the smiling fans, the players chatting with friends and
Speed Report: Combining In-Season Conditioning with In-Season Speed Training
Combining the two – in-season conditioning and speed training – is a subject that often comes up for discussion when I’m doing clinics and workshops across the country at various high schools and colleges. We always discuss the physiological energy mechanisms and how they function when we train. The same question seems to arise each time: What’s the best way to condition during the season?The answer is usually not well-received. My reply is that we need to understand how the ga
Game Planning Your Coaching Career (Part I)
(This article is written to discuss career planning in the coaching profession and this is by no means the only way to pattern your pathway. The experience of one coach, while addressing many issues, does not include all scenarios. However, the organization of the material is well-known to all coaches as it is structured just as all of us would game plan against an unfamiliar opponent. It is hoped that this discussion would have us in the coaching profession talk about
D-Back Run Stoppers Both the Key Read Drill and Block Escape Circuit Drill will improve defensive backs’ recognition of the run.
Stopping the run is one of the main priorities of any defense. In order to accomplish this goal, the defensive secondary must be active against running plays. It is important that all members of the secondary are equipped with the skills to recognize the run and then be able to execute techniques to disengage blocks. Your secondary can sharpen their eye discipline, footwork and hand placement/combat skills by recognizing the intentions of the End Man on the Line of Scrimmage (EMOL)
D-Line Rules vs. Outside Zone and Zone Read
Following the playside and backside rules is critical to stopping the outside zone and zone read.We try to keep our D-line rules and principles the same with outside zone and zone read as well as other plays and concepts. When we speak about outside zone, we break into halves, especially what side the offense is on in pre-and post-snap. We use strength and if the quarterback is under center or in the gun to determine the run strength of this particular play. Otherwise, we may use the t
Human Shield: The shield punt formation maximizes protection and coverage.
Protection is the most critical piece to a punt unit’s success. In pre-season camp, protection is the first area that is addressed. It is emphasized in every meeting, film session, and drill period, because there are few occurrences more deflating to a team than a blocked punt. The shield formation itself creates advantages, because it lengthens rush lanes and handicaps angles for the defense. The three-man shield, when executed properly, serves as a deflector for the block point that elimi
The Mean Green Way: North Texas' Multi-Year System of Training
“As to methods there may be a million and thensome, but principles are few. The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson This quote hangs in my office as a daily reminder of the dichotomy of our profession. Truly, there are countless methods to improve athlete performance. Ask 125 FBS football strength and conditioning coaches how best to train an ath
Fine-Tuning: Adapting the Spread Offense to Your Personnel
Heading into the 2008 season, the pieces were all in place. Oklahoma had a talented and veteran offensive line featuring multiple NFL prospects, an experienced quarterback in Sam Bradford and a versatile playmaker at tight end in Jermaine Gresham. It was on the Oklahoma coaching staff to tailor its offensive scheme to its personnel. And the best way to capitalize on this wealth of talent was to run more plays.Oklahoma offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson (now head coach at Indiana) h
Coach to Coach: The Class of 2013
Last month I enjoyed watching one of the greatest golf tournaments in the world, The British Open. While some find golf boring to watch, I find it to be an intriguing display of both the internal and external struggles of sport. I love the tradition of golf, the variety of skills required and the individual pressure that accompanies every shot. I love the fact that golfers are paid entirely on the merits of their immediate accomplishments and not on the wishful expectations of future events.
Drills Report: Defensive Backs: Footwork, Block Protection, Tackling, and Ball Skills
Our focus on drill work for defensive backs has played a role in our success and paid dividends in the fall. At Villanova, our base defensive front is a 3-3 stack. With five defensive backs on the field in varying roles, we focus our teaching on a select number of skills to best prepare the entire group within our time constraints. Our goal is to spend at least five minutes each practice developing four specific skill categories: footwork, block protection, tackling, and ball skills.F
Strength Report: In-Season Training: Improve Performance, reduce Injuries
The in-season training program is critical to the success of our athletes. Programs should be designed to enhance and not just maintain their level of physical preparation. Lowering expectations during the in-season to maintain rather than improve strength will eventually lead to a decrease in performance and increase the risk of injury.To maximize the strength, health, mobility, and overall fitness of your athletes, is manage the distribution of the volume and loading. Within this
Coaching Rewards
The NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard gives coaches the satisfaction that comes from giving back to the game.What are the rewards of coaching? Some coaches might say that wins and championships are at the top of the list. After all, winning has been the traditional yardstick for measuring coaching success, and few moments can compare to raising a trophy or donning a championship ring.Most coaches,
AFM Subs Ask With Curtis Tsuruda Strength and Conditioning Coach • East St. John High School (LA)
Coach Curtis Tsuruda, has over 30 years of experience as a strength and conditioning coach. He has worked at Tulane, LSU, Hawaii, and Mississippi State and is currently the strength and conditioning coach at East St. John High School in Reserve, Louisiana. He was featured in AFM Subscribers Ask in May and now responds to more of your questions.What methods do you use to train young high school athletes to successfully rack the bar on the power clean? How many days do you fe
Three Pillars of Defensive Prep
Three important items in game planning include practicing proper tackling, studying your opponent’s big plays and those your defense has given up, and focusing on turnovers.We are always looking for a defensive edge on game day. However, with the unpredictability that game day brings, it is very difficult to predict or prepare for every scenario that might present itself. That is why it is important to use Monday through Friday to put the odds of victory as much as possible in our fa
New Weapon – More and more offenses are adding a read-option scheme to incorporate the QB into the running game.
In this new age of football, teams are using athletic quarterbacks to add an additional dimension to their offense. I believe the pro-style attack offenses will mirror this trend, whether it’s a specific package or a main part of their offense. We began this transformation this past year.Last fall, we had a very athletic quarterback that we wanted to utilize in our run game. After implementing this, we ended the season ranked 12th nationally within FCS i
On Top of the World – AFM’s Annual State Champions Survey and Profiles
State champion coaches share their secrets to winning it all. The results may surprise you.Most high school coaches would agree that their ultimate goal is winning their state championship. Taking home the trophy after the punishing regular season and pressure-filled playoffs is the pinnacle for the 300+ teams that annually achieve that goal.But do coaches agree on the best methods to use to reach that mountaintop? What offensive, defensive and special teams strategies give
Safety First – Pre-Season Safety Checklist
With the 2013 season around the corner, it’s time for coaches to review all safety-related issues and ensure that proper procedures and protocols are in place before fall practice begins. . “Every team and athlete should have sports safety as a top priority,” says Larry Cooper, chair of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Secondary School Committee and head athletic trainer at Penn Trafford (PA) High School. “It’s vital for coaches, athletic trainers, parents and the
Drills Report – Techniques to Prevent Blocks
When a player is blocked, it is commonly due to two things. He has concentrated solely on the ball carrier and not the individual who is coming to block him, giving him little chance of success. Or, his attack and body position taking on the block doesn’t allow him to use any power. Without enough power, you are unable to gain advantage or leverage on a blocker. When you have proper position and use power, you are able to strike and neutralize the opponents’ power to maintain your gap of
Taking the Lead
As part of their sponsorship of the NFL’s High School Player Development program, the National Guard is taking an active role in the HSPD Leadership Program.When most people think about the National Guard, they envision “Weekend Warriors” devoting several days each month to military training and, if necessary, participating in disaster relief or serving overseas. But in reality, many of the Guard’s activities revolve around the com
RE-STARTING A COACHING CAREER
I had the good fortune of leading one of the most successful public school programs in the state of Virginia for 22 years. At Western Branch High School in Chesapeake, winning became synonymous with Bruins football. From 1997 to the 2006 season when I retired, our winning percentage was over .800. We won numerous District titles and had three undefeated regular seasons. It
Develop Your Dynamic Identity
Every experienced coach knows that teams tend to develop a particular identity during the course of the season. Some coaches argue that the best teams are the ones that have the flashiest, most dominating identities – teams like the Oregon Ducks, known for its high-octane offense, or the Baltimore Ravens, known for its suffocating defense. Other coaches counter that the best teams are often the ones that possess less exciting identities, those summarized with phrases like “balanced” or
Speed Report - Football Speed Information: Good News or Old News?
I have been writing AFM’s Speed Report for 6½ years and have traveled the country for 30 years engaging with coaches who want to learn “thorough and complete football speed training”. Not second-hand information that isn’t football speed specific. More specifically, lineal track techniques. Coaches should understand that these particular techniques don’t provide movement skills needed for football speed and/or transition speed that’s required to play fast and stay in control.
Drills Report – Advanced Wide Receiver Drills, Part II
Last month’s drills for wide receivers included five different drills intended to make players concentrate on catching the ball and improve their route running. The six drills included this month are more detailed with an emphasis on proper technique (In each drill, ‘C’ refers to coach and ‘R’ for receiver).Chute DRILL (Diagram 1)
Organization of Weekly and Gameday Duties with a Short Staff
By Hunter Sims, Offensive Coordinator Howard Payne University With a limited staff, it is critical to have detailed responsibilities on the day after the game, during the week, and on gameday. As a Division III college, we deal with being under-staffed year in and year out. We need to be completely organized in order to maximize our workload throughout the week. Offensively, we are allotted three full-time coaches. If we’re lucky,
Emphasizing Ball Security – Mastering the five points of contact will help keep your runners from fumbling
Mastering the five points of contact will help keep your runners from fumbling dropping the ball.When teaching ball carriers about ball security, we talk about the five points of contact. The first point relates to our nickname which is the Eagles, so I use the term “Eagle Claw” for the point of the football. The second point of contact is the forearm and the third is the bicep. Both are used to secure the outside part of the ball to the middle of the body which leads to the fourth
Making the Grade – Spring evaluation is essential for maximizing each player’s contribution to the team
Spring evaluation is essential for maximizing each player’s contribution to the team.While coaches understand that player evaluation is a year-round necessity, spring is a particularly important time for returning player evaluations as your team heads into the summer pre-season lull. It’s the perfect time to size up the strengths and weaknesses of each athlete and set personal and team goals. What is the best way to evaluate a returning player? American Football Monthly asked seven
High Roller! – Since Tony Sanchez was named head coach, Bishop Gorman has won four consecutive Nevada State Championships and posted an overall 56-4 record.
“Live well.” The words are simple; however, what they entail for those associated with the Bishop Gorman High School football program is anything but. Serving as the mantra which internally defines Bishop Gorman football, “live well” is part of an overall philosophy which has contributed to the school capturing the last four 4A Nevada State Championships.There are six identifiable components one can link to the culture of success that is Gaels’ football. These six charact
Coach to Coach – Change of Season
Last year, I wrote an article describing the ever-expanding coaching carousel that all of us in this profession encounter. The article described some of the challenges of change within the coaching profession. I received a lot of emails regarding this article. It seems that all of us in coaching are presented with change or the opportunity for change on a continual basis. Some of this change is welcomed and, unfortunately, some of it is not. Deciding to change jobs is often one of the most di
Speed Report - Off-Season Speed Development: A Dilemma for Small Schools
As I write this column each month, I receive more and more replies from coaches at smaller schools. It’s become apparent that most of them have something in common – that the off-season presents a challenge for speed and lifting development. The problem is that athletes at these schools need to be multi-sport athletes. The bulk of the football team plays two to three sports in a small school, so it’s almost impossible to fill the rosters on other sports if they were only playing footbal
Safety First – Getting On The Same Page
If you’ve spent time this off-season reviewing the latest safety rules and guidelines, working with medical professionals and athletic trainers to institute procedures for dealing with injuries, checking out the latest in innovative safety equipment and making plans to ensure proper hydration and heat stroke prevention in early season practices, then congratulations! You’ve taken the first steps to make player safety a priority for your program.Now, looking ahead to next season
As a Coach, How Do You Want to be Remembered?
by Derek Schlieve, Head Football Coach Mayville State University Football is time consuming. It can become all-consuming if you let it. High School football takes a lot of time. College Football requires even more time. I cannot even begin to imagine what the time commitment is like at the professional level. Every now and then, you read a story about how much time coaches put in and what they are missing out on and it makes a person think twic
Camp Season
- The NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard conducts free camps for high school players that combine football skills teaching with character development lessons.Summer is right around the corner, and that means that it will soon be time for football camps for high school athletes to begin. Camps have become a popular way for high school players to get meaningful instruction and work on their fundamentals in the months leading
Tools for Success
The NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard worked with Al Golden and the University of Miami to produce the 2013 practice plan and DVD – benefitting every high school program in America.When it comes to supporting the nation’s high school football coaches, no program can match the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard. Not only does HSPD provide coaches with the opportunity to give bac
From the Coaches Bookshelf – Earn the Right To Win – By Tom Coughlin with David Fisher
Like most coaches, New York Giants Head Coach Tom Coughlin has had moments when he’s lost his temper on the sidelines. In his new book, Earn the Right to Win, he shares his best advice on managing your anger and dozens of other topics about leadership, communication and preparation. His lessons are illustrated with previously untold stories about players like Eli Manning, Doug Flutie and Michael Strahan. Probably the most difficult thing for me t
Defending the Zone Read –Defenses can be successful against the zone read if they understand the rules and their gap responsibilities.
Defending the zone read is similar to defending the triple option that attacks the play side of the defense. We have specific rules for defending the dive (RB), the QB and the pitch. For the dive, we designate the first defender outside the offensive tackle to squeeze and tackle the first threat. The quarterback is designated for the area #2, the curl defender, which is usually the scraping linebacker.We always emphasize that our area #1, the curl/flat defender is responsible for t
Get Naked! – Effectively using the Hitch-Naked passing game forces a defense to defend the entire field.
The Hitch-Naked passing game provides our offense with a safe and efficient way to move the ball with high percentage throws while at the same time allowing us to effectively target our playmakers. Any time we can get the ball to our receivers in a position where they can attack a defender in a 10-yard box, we have successfully created an opportunity for a big play. This is exactly what the Hitch-Naked series has provided our offense.When we installed the series in 2009, we had no
Maximizing Special Teams Practice Time – Circuit drills for both kickoffs and punt units can help improve special teams play.
Anyone who has coached special teams knows that there never seems to be enough time to teach the proper techniques as well as implement your systems. Even at a school like Norwich, we end up trying to get more done, in less time.A strategy we’ve used, which has benefitted us greatly, is to set up a circuit of drills for each individual special teams unit and have all of our players rotate through this circuit. This allows us to get a lot of quality, technique-specific work done,
Samson Equipment’s Strength and Conditioning Coaches of the Year for 2012
NFL: Chris CarlisleSeattle SeahawksBackground – Chris Carlisle began his coaching career at Dodge High School (NE) in 1985. After continuing to coach on the high school level and then as an assistant at the University of Arkansas, Carlisle joined the staff at Tennessee in 1998 under John Stucky. He then became USC’s head strength and conditioning coach in 2001 when Pete Carroll called Stucky and asked for a recommendation.
Getting Your Team Connected
During my five years as a Head Coach at Liberty High School in Colorado Springs, I have always been proud of the class that our fans, staff and players have shown in games, regardless of the score. At every pre-season coaches meeting, I share with my staff a valuable lesson that I learned in my first year as a Head Coach at Rockville High School (CT). We were losing my first game of the 2005 season, 41-0, to Hall High School, and when they got the ball with a minute to go at our ten ya
USING THE iPAD AS A COACHING TOOL
Whether on the field or off, the IPad can be a major part in helping your players improve and communicate the weekly gameplan. Our student-athletes are so used to technology, it is the way they are taught in classroom and it was what they use outside the classroom. Give your student-athlete an IPad and they immediately feel comfortable as they swipe through pages or watch video. After receiving an IPad for my birthday last offseason I started searching for wa
Out With the Old, In With the New – Today’s tight ends have become an integral part of every offense.
Today, tight ends have become a fusion of a wide receiver, running back, and offensive tackle. Due to their athletic limitations, the old-school tight ends were always attached to the offensive line with their hand on the ground. The defense knew this and could call defenses accordingly. The new school tight ends are lining up in the backfield and flexing out both as slot and outside receivers to cause matchup issues. Many teams are now doing this with two or more tight ends in the game at th
Variables 101 – Knowing how to analyze over 100 offensive variables gives your defense a statistical edge.
Knowing how to analyze over 100 offensive variables gives your defense a statistical edge.Every defensive coordinator has his own style and process in preparing a game plan for the next opponent. Part of this process is detailing the statistical side of probability on the opponent’s play selection. Ideally, each defensive call has the probability of being successful, helps create one-on-one favorable match-ups and allows the players to execute the proper techniques in stopping the of
AFM’s National and Regional High School Coaches of the Year
Gary Joseph Katy High School Joseph led the Tigers to one of the most dominating seasons in Texas football history. A last-minute playoff loss ended the Katy Tigers’ 2011 season. It marked the second straight season the Tigers had been close, but were unable to finish. Head coach Gary Joseph was determined not to let that happen in 2012. “We had been competitive, but hadn’t finished. This year, we were going to become a more physical football team that w
Safety First – Training for Safety
Vince Lombardi once said, “Football is not a contact sport. Football is a collision sport. Dancing is a contact sport.” This, coupled with the fact that every year, athletes at all levels are getting bigger, stronger, and faster, means that there is a very real threat to see a dramatic increase in football injuries. These run the gamut from minor injuries with no time lost to more severe injuries that could be season or career ending.Keeping a football te
Student of the Game: Using Academic Resources To Enhance Your Program
Volume 3: The 10,000 Hour Rule, Athlete-Controlled Feedback and Inside-Out Circuits by Jack Byrne, Defensive Coordinator, Windham High School (NH)
Giving Back
Two Regional Directors of the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard discuss how coaches everywhere can give back to the game.Most successful coaches recognize that they are fortunate to have made a career out of football. That’s what motivates so many to give something back to the game by participating in activities that can make a difference – using football to be a positive influence with youth in their communities.Hundreds of coach
From the Coaches Bookshelf - Dream Chaser – 4th and Goal by Monte Burke
For some, coaching football is simply in their blood. In his new book, 4th & Goal, author Monte Burke tells the amazing story of Joe Moglia, who left coaching to pursue what would become a monumentally successful career in financial services. Moglia has since returned to the sidelines and fulfilled his life-long dream of becoming a college head coach. Here is an excerpt.Now sixty-two, Joe Moglia is standing on the sidelines of a football field in Nebraska, wearing a headset and a w
Spare a Dime – The dime 4-1-6 package can be used in certain passing situations, providing solid man-to-man coverage.
We use the dime 4-1-6 package in third and long situations as well as other long yardage situations. We also like to use this package against passing teams who have a pocket passing quarterback who is not very mobile and does not look to run when pressured. This package has also been used in two-minute situations when the game is on the line. We only want to rush four and have tight coverage behind them. We know the weakness of this defense is running the football against it, but if teams dec
One Team – Two Offenses
By Jeff Hancock • Offensive Coordinator • Siena Heights Universityand Jason Mensing • Head Coach, Whitehall High School (MI)Two years ago the Board of Trustees voted to start football at Siena Heights University and we were fortunate enough to be a part of the very first staff. Among the overwhelming number of things that go into starting a new program was this question because of our limited senior leadership – how were we going to recruit enough players
Thunder Storm – Trine University’s tackling and turnover circuit covers all the essentials of effective defense.
There is little doubt that great tackling and creating turnovers are the two most important things a defense can do to help its team win. We have employed a tackle and turnover circuit that we believe not only teaches our players to tackle with great technique, but also teaches an understanding of how to create turnovers when given the opportunity. As a result, we have been at or very near the top of the turnover margin statistics for our conference over the past few years. We led all of Divi
Legendary Leader – John Gagliardi retires after 64 years, 489 wins and countless changed lives.
Amos Alonzo Stagg coached college football for 57 years in the first half of the 20th century, winning a then-record 314 games. Bobby Bowden tallied 377 wins in his 44-year coaching career at Samford, West Virginia and Florida State. Eddie Robinson coached Grambling for 55 years and won 408 games.John Gagliardi bettered them all. In a coaching career that spanned 60 seasons at the helm of Division III St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota, and four prior sea
Coach to Coach – Want to Use a Faster Tempo as a Weapon? Be Creative in Deciding How
NCAA bowl games started on December 15th and finished on January 7th, and, like many of you, I watched almost every game. Of all the current football trends on display, there was one that seemed to present itself in almost every game - the no-huddle, up-tempo offense. Spread offenses have been a football standard for many seasons. However, the pace at which teams are executing their schemes is becoming more and more of a key factor in their offensive philosophy and identity.In today’
Safety First – Stronger Necks = Fewer Injuries
Neck testing and training methods for football are critical ways to reduce injuries.Even though research studies have shown that increases in neck strength decrease the chance of a head injury, there is no national standard for neck testing in collision sports. At the University of Memphis, we developed an innovative program to test, monitor, and strengthen the neck that has decreased our concussions and missed playing time 50% in one year. This past season at Columbia
Get Educated 2013 Coaches Clinics
Now is the time to make yourplans for coaches clinics in 2013. Here is a listing of four premier organizations that will be conducting clinics across the country during the winter and spring months of 2013.Nike Coach of the Year Clinics Last year, almost 13,000 high school coaches attended 21 Nike COTY clinics. In 2013, many of the clinics will include special lectures for youth league coaches. Most clinics will also include demonstration periods of technique and
LINEBACKER TACKLING DRILLS AND TECHNIQUES
One of our defensive coaching guidelines is that we will get what we demand or allow. If we do not emphasize what we think is important to our defense or if we do not hold our players accountable for what our expectations are, then we are held responsible for the lack of production on the field. This definitely applies to tackling. We demand to be 90% efficient in all tackling opportunities and we do not want to allow poor practice habits or a lack of emphasis on the right things to adversely
Keeping Score - Ways to Keep Your Off-Season Strength Program Competitive
Maintaining a competitive mindset is a priority in the off-season at successful programs. From live player drafts to team-building exercises, creative coaches are constantly coming up with ways to keep their strength and conditioning programs competitive. “You want to train the mental component of competitiveness year-round. That’s a critical piece,” said Maine Strength and Conditioning Coach Dan Nichol. “You don’t want that competitive aspect to go dormant.” AFM talked to
Building Blocks – The day your 2012 season ends, your 2013 pre-season begins. Now is the time to build the foundation for your team’s future success.
In today’s ultra-competitive football environment, there’s no such thing as a true off season. The coach who leaves the game behind after the last items of equipment are stored for the winter is the coach who falls behind his peers.Between post-season evaluations of players and coaches, planning and implementing special activities and training programs and working with seniors who want to play at the next level, coaches’ plates are full. To successfully navigate the challenge
Banner Year
The NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard achieved record-setting participation in 2012 and concluded the year with its largest National 7-on-7 Tournament ever.However you measure it, the 2012 NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard was a resounding success. The HSPD camps experienced dramatic growth in bo
Quality Control – Planning Your Off-Season
The equipment has been shipped out for reconditioning, awards banquets are complete, and you’ve gotten over that awkward feeling in the week or two following the season where from 3pm-6pm you felt like you should be doing something else. Now is a great time to do some quality control and analysis work before you head into the clinic season. Coaches who are successful year-in and year-out are great organizers. Planning precedes organizing. In order to plan effectively you must per
ALTERNATE TECHNIQUES TO INCREASE UPPER BODY STRENGTH
During this past off-season, we noticed that our percentage of increase in strength for the upper body press had not gone up as a team compared to our increases for the squat and power clean. Obviously, the lower body lift of a squat incorporates larger muscle groups, and both the power clean and squat can increase lower body strength significantly by using proper techniques so there are reasons to see a larger increase with these lifts. However, we also realized that we were not using as man
Subscribers Ask - With Tony Sanchez Head Coach • Bishop Gorman (NV)
Coach Tony Sanchez took over as Bishop Gorman’s Head Coach in March of 2009. The results over three seasons have been spectacular. The Gaels have won three straight state championships with records of 15-0, 13-2, and 16-1. Last fall, Bishop Gorman played three ranked top 25 teams – Chaparral (AZ), Armwood (FL) and Servite (CA). Their only loss was to Armwood, 20-17.Sanchez believes in playing the best teams he can schedule each year. “It was tough to lose the game to Armwood
ELWAY AND ZIGGY Using “Z Check” and Option Principles to Stop the Zone Read
The zone read is a very dynamic play that can confuse the defense and force them into mismatches. However, there are several ways to stop this play and put the offense in lose-lose situations. I have spent time on both sides of the ball and, as an offensive coordinator, the zone read was the first play implemented and we had great success with it. It is a play that can have many options and complementary plays off of the same look. The zone read begins and ends with the QB and his ability to
Preparing Your Punt Teams
Getting your punting and pressure/return special team units prepared to meet the challenges they’ll face on game day can be the difference between a win and a loss.Successful coaching requires attention to detail. This is never truer than in special teams, especially in preparing your punt and punt pressure/return units. Punts and punt returns hold opportunities for positive, momentum-changing outcomes but they also have the potential for disaster. Of all the plays in football, the p
The Pirate Returns - Mike Leach brings his high-powered but surprisingly simple passing offense to Washington State
Mike Leach is complex. Contrary to popular belief, his coaching philosophy is not. Dating back to his early days as an innovative offensive coordinator at Iowa Wesleyan and Valdosta State, Leach has always experimented with unique plays and unusual ideas. Yet, two decades later, his first offense at Washington State has just 14 pass plays.
Drills Report Bonus - Improving Your Offensive Production
In our offense that we call the “truck and chuck”, we borrow academy-style option principles, implement them from a normal five-yard depth in the shotgun, and then throw as much play-action as we can into it. Like any offense, there are countless ways to practice and prepare our players to execute our style of play. However, when we think about drills and teaching methods for our offense, we stick to a few basic principles:#1 Big/Little/Big - Give the players the big picture (the
Coach to Coach Dealing with Discipline
I was having dinner on a Saturday night with my family when the doorbell rang. Upon opening the door, I was a little shocked to see a former player that I had not seen in almost ten years standing in front of me. Having past members of my teams stop by to say hello is not an uncommon occurrence but this was different. This young man, who was a part of my first varsity team at Foothill High School, had the distinctive “honor” of being the first player that I had ever dismissed from m
Who is the Typical AFM Reader?
At AFM, we like to think our readers are the smartest coaches in the game. They’re the ones who understand that coaching requires a lifetime of learning. They also know that the best way to be a smarter coach is to take every opportunity to learn from other successful coaches who are wiling to share their schemes, plays, drills, strategies and personal experiences. That’s what they look to AFM for and that’s what we try to deliver in every issue.The more we know about our rea
Coach Corporal: Football, Military, and Internal Discipline
So there I was, a 20-year old United States Marine sitting on a giant KC-130 refueling plane. I was a part of Operation Northern Watch in Southeastern Turkey. The goal of our operation, in short, was to prevent Sadaam Hussein from traveling north of a certain point. My unit had just loaded all of our equipment and materials onto our plane in a hurried 45 minutes time, as dir
Wide Receiver Play Base Fundamentals vs. Press Coverage
The proper technique for hand releases and quick feet are critical for the wide receiver in defeating press coverage.We spend a good amount of time in practice working on individual skills. One of our focuses in practice is releases vs. a hard corner. We work on many different releases, with a goal for our players to develop a repertoire. We spend a great deal of time breaking down each individual skill so it will become a habit for them.We break the skill of releases down i
Defending the Wing-T Offense
The Wing-T is a great offensive system that challenges defenses at both the high school and collegiate levels. Many of today’s one-back and spread offenses can trace their roots back to the Wing-T.We defend the Wing-T by being as simple as possible. We try to play one front and one coverage the entire game vs. Wing-T sets. We take an “Over” front concept and slide the front to the TE/Wing. We want to take away or limit the Wing-T’s ability to run to the TE surface (Diagrams 1
Managing Your Managers
Most coaches have a good handle on their responsibilities and those of their players. In many programs, these responsibilities are very detailed and almost always put in writing.But often overlooked are the roles and responsibilities of team managers. That’s unfortunate, since having solid, detail-oriented team managers can be a blessing to a coaching staff – giving them more time to focus on helping their players be successful on the field.In my coaching career, I p
Slowing Down the Spread
What do defenses do to slow down the spread and how do offenses counter? AFM asked spread offense coaches, “What defenses give you the most trouble?”Sparky Woods • Head Coach • Virginia Military InstituteSparky Woods has been the head coach at VMI for the past four seasons. Previously, he was head coach at Appalachian State and South Carolina and the OC/QBs Coach at Memphis. Woods was also a position coach at Alabama, Virginia, and Mississippi State. He has b
Southern Savior: Saban's 10 Keys to Success
Alabama’s Nick Saban has relied on his core philosophy to resurrect the Crimson Tide program and bring championships to Tuscaloosa.The decade between Alabama Head Coach Gene Stallings retirement in 1996 and David Shula’s dismissal as head coach in 2006 was perhaps the darkest era in Crimson Tide football history. Four losing seasons, NCAA probation, a coach fired before his first game and, worst of all, five losses in a row to Auburn led to despair in Tuscaloosa.“W
Tide Talent Search
From HOW THE SEC BECAME GOLIATH by Ray Glier. Copyright © 2012 by Ray Glier. Reprinted with permission from Howard Books, a Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.In essence, what Saban did at LSU and what he is doing at Alabama is not about collecting talent. Not even close. He is building a team. He does not start with players, he starts with definitions of players just like the Cowboys and Browns did. When Alabama goes recr
Reliable Performer
A Houston-area high school chose the HME DX300 sideline communications system to deliver superior performance in critical game situations.In the super-competitive world of Texas 5A high school football, coaches must pay close attention to every detail of program management – on and off the field – in order to achieve winning seasons. Decisions about which coaching technology to use, for example, can be just as important as which offense to install or which player to start at middle
Leadership Lessons
The NFL High School Player Development Program presented by the National Guard goes off the field to help mold the leaders of tomorrow.On so many levels, the NFL High School Player Development program presented by the National Guard is unique. There are many football camps around the country for high school athletes, but only one program – HSPD – includes character development sessions to help athletes be successful in the classroom, in the community, and at home. Only one program
Expanded Special Teams: Kickoff and Punt Returns
One of the biggest areas for hidden yards in a football game takes place in the return game of special teams. Making blocks in open space is critical to field position. Technique, fundamentals, angles, and field awareness must be emphasized to be successful. With the motto “every yard counts” players must understand that working to be at the correct landmark can be the difference between a game-changing return and a penalty. Here are drills that we practice:Illini Kickoff Retu
VIDEOTAPING FOR AUGUST TWO-A-DAYS
The key to having productive video sessions during August two-a-days and the regular season is being completely organized. Some questions you ought to ask are:
Boot Camp Day for High School Football
Last April, during Ohio’s North / South All-Star Football Game at Ohio Stadium, I had the good fortune to be standing on the sidelines with members of the Ohio Army National Guard. As we were talking, they shared with me how they did a number of “Boot Camps” with high school football teams in Southern Ohio. I let them know that I would love to do something like that with my team. Fortunately, a member of their unit was transferred to recr
Protecting the Split-Side Running Game
There are ways to account for a defense’s flat player by using the front-side bubble,fly motion, and the bubble and go.As football has continued to evolve and change over the last decade, teams at all levels are lining up in more open formations on offense. The removal of the fullback and the tight end from formations has forced offenses to find other ways to effectively run the football. Many teams are forced to have answers for defenses that are making it difficult to run the ball
Complete Cornerback Coverage Techniques
The proper technique for backpedaling is a key to maximizing a cornerback’s coverage.As with any technique in football, there are a number of ways that standard defensive back techniques can be taught. The core fundamentals of backpedal, break, and bail are often articulated in very different ways. While it is important to put some of your best athletes at the cornerback position, there are always times when you will need to adapt your personnel and teach a corner how to play the pos
Coaching Technology – Today and Tomorrow
Technology is a critical part of coaching success and will be even more important in the future.From the first time a football game was ever filmed, in 1903, to the invention of the first videotape recorder, in 1951, to the first-ever editing system in 1987 to the introduction of digital editing in 1994, technology has been influential in shaping how coaches prepare for opponents and communicate during games.Today, coaches have a wider variety of technology tools available t
That Championship Season – AFM’s 2011 Survey of 334 State Champions
Winning a state championship is the pinnacle for most high school teams. Learning from the experience of championship coaches can help in your quest to hoist the trophy.Hard work. Dedication. Leadership. Commitment. Focus. Team chemistry. These are the common themes that emerge when you talk to high school coaches that won their state championships in 2011.But there is also great diversity among the 334 teams that raised the state championship trophy last season. There are t
Safety First – Teaching safe tackling technique can reduce head and neck injuries and help protect the game’s future.
In the past 35 years, two-thirds of football-related catastrophic injuries have occurred while making a tackle, according to the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research at the University of North Carolina. Most of these were caused by helmet-to-helmet contact. “This is a major problem,” said Fred Mueller, Ph.D., director of the NCCSIR, which has collected data and published annual reports on catastrophic football injuries for 48 years.Dr. Mueller said head-to-he
Strength Report – Seven Phases
Sam Houston State’s Strength and Conditioning ProgramTRAINING PHILOSOPHYThe goal for our strength and conditioning program is to improve each player’s athleticism using a variety of different training methods. Our approach is to implement a simple and effective, yet sound program. A program that relies on hard work, focus, and determination as its main ingredients for success. This approach is not only successful, but is complementary to Head Coach Willie Fritz and his staf
Coach to Coach – Summer Session (Part II)
Using the summer months to organize and articulate your coaching philosophies and methods.In part two of using the summer months to organize and articulate your coaching philosophies and methods, I want to share with you a few methods and strategies in developing your game week schedule, practice preparation, organizing your game day, halftime responsibilities and addressing parent concerns.Game Week Schedule and PreparationsAt Foothill, we play our games on Fr
Play Like a Champion
When the upcoming high school football season gets underway, there will be over 15,000 coaches and teams that, at least on paper, have a chance to win their state championship. By the season’s conclusion, roughly 340 will have raised the championship trophy. There will be teams that will be celebrating the latest in a string of many championships and others that will be claiming the title for the first time in school history. There will be veteran coaches for whom winning is expected and fi
Powerful Partnership
The National Guard’s Citizen Soldiers contribute to the success of the NFL High School Player Development program on many levels.What does it mean to serve in the National Guard? It means that you’re part of the oldest established branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, dating back to 1636. It means that you can be called upon to provide relief to those that have suffered from natural disasters in your home state. It also means that you could serve overseas, if needed, as part of America
Managing Your Program
Promoting and Building Your Program in Today’s Multiple Choice SocietyLooking back on how I grew up, I recall not having many choices. We had a 13” color TV that received three network channels. There were no video game consoles or DVD players hooked up to it. In the fall I played football, in the winter, basketball, and in the spring, baseball. There weren’t many things to think about or do besides those three sports, and growing up in Northeast Ohio, football dominated the othe
Uphill Battle – Grambling’s ‘Back to the Basics’ strength and conditioning program challenges an athlete’s body as well as his mind.
With the end of the spring semester, our players understand that it is only two-three weeks before we begin our summer workouts. With the start of those workouts, they also understand that we are officially preparing for the upcoming season. Since we are a BCS program, we are financially restricted in terms of paying for our athletes to attend both summer school sessions but they are at least able to attend the second session (late June – late July). For those athletes that are fortunate en
Disrupting the Spread with the 3-5 Defense
Focusing on blitz opportunities and mixing coverages can help stop the spread option team.Regardless of the level of the game, championship football means playing strong defense. We run a 3-5 stack defense because it fits who we want to be as a football program. We want to be an aggressive, attacking team and we feel this scheme fits our style of play. We have run the 3-5 stack very successfully since 2003. This past season, we faced two spread offenses who, at the time, led our confer
Reloading at Rockhurst – Tony Severino, the head coach at Rockhurst High School for 29 years, believes in keeping his players busy in all aspects of their lives – not just on the field.
It was near the end of an hour-long interview when Tony Severino was asked a question that he has fielded numerous times in recent years. “How much longer do you think you’ll coach?”His answer is the same every time.“I get asked that every day. You’re the second one today that’s asked me,” said Severino, who will turn 64 in September. “I’ve been saying, ‘five years’ for the last 10 years. I have such a good time doing what I do. When I don’t, I’
Diamond Backs – For a team with many playmakers, the Diamond formation may be the best way to showcase their talents.
In April, after a West Virginia spring practice, a few Mountaineer defensive coaches strolled over to running backs coach Robert Gillespie with troubled looks on their faces. They had just been introduced to the new facets of the Mountaineers’ already-potent three-back Diamond set Head Coach Dana Holgorsen and Gillespie had been installing. The defensive coaches’ initial reaction was shock. They said, “Man, that’s very tough to deal with,” Gillespie recalled. “They talk
Drills Report – Linebacker Progression Drills
Coaching linebackers is an ever-evolving process. With today’s offensive schemes becoming more and more complex, we must ask more of our defensive players. I ask our linebackers to read keys, be aggressive run stoppers in the box, defeat blocks, get to the ball using a specific technique, tackle the ball carriers, find receivers and cover them up in zone concepts as well as cover backs and receivers man-to-man. While doing all this, I also expect them to know the game plan, call the defense
Coach to Coach – Summer Session
Using the summer months to organize and articulate your coaching philosophies and methods.Being a head football coach is a job that requires a multitude of skills. The coach that is successful over a long period of time has learned to master the art of the “tions” – motivation, delegation, innovation, articulation, dedication – all the while maintaining the most important element – passion. In order to become efficient in all of these areas, a head coach must know and be able
Louisiana Legend
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Philosophy of Pass Protection
Being both the OC and OL coach allows us to have a “Protection First” view to the offense. I always stress two things to the offensive unit – first, we must protect the QB at all costs, and second, if you cannot protect the QB, you will not play. This philosophy has been a big part of our success in protecting the QB over the past several years. Over a three year period from 2008-2010 our
AFM Subscribers Ask with Pulaski Academy (AR) Head Coach Kevin Kelley
As AFM reported in April’s cover feature, “Mad Genius”, Coach Kevin Kelley of Pulaski Academy (AR) has an unorthodox approach to the game. His team never returns a punt, they almost never punt themselves, they kick off onsides virtually every time and they usually go for a two-point conversion. For Kelley, the unconventional strategy has worked with a 49-7 record over the last four years and multiple state championships. Many AFM subscribers had questions for Coach Kelley about his unus
Special Teams – Practice Schedule, Goals, and Critique
Our players understand the importance of special teams because of the amount of time that we put in coaching them. Starting in the spring, we spend a minimum of 10 minutes per day on the “big four” – punt, kickoff, kick return and punt return. We also put in extra point/field goal work in every day. We keep it fresh by changing up drills as much as possible.We run a traditional punt formation and we changed our scheme slightly and spent a lot of time in the spring on punt. It
Multiplicity – Using Personnel Groupings to Enhance Your Offense and Player Morale
After the 2004 season, my first as a head coach in a big high school program, we were faced with the challenge of pay-to-play. The coaching staff made a great effort in selling our program to athletes and parents, and we fielded the biggest roster in spite of the new pay-to-play obstacle. We also knew that in order to keep those numbers, we needed to re-evaluate how we were utilizing our players, especially in terms of playing time. We looked at the possibility of two platoon, and we wanted t
Eyes Up – Quarterbacks Coach Terry Shea has devoted more than 40 years of his coaching life to the development of the position including the training of elite players like Robert Griffin III.
Terry Shea knows quarterbacks. In addition to quarterback coaching stints in the CFL, college, and the NFL, Shea has helped prepare future NFL quarterbacks for their professional careers. Among others, he has tutored Matthew Stafford, Sam Bradford, and most recently, Robert Griffin III. When elite quarterbacks want the best in personalized instruction, they call Shea.The compilation of his 40 years as an expert in coaching quarterbacks is now in his recently published book, Eyes Up
The Fix Is In – Adjusting your defense at halftime and during the game can pay big dividends.
All coaches know that tweaking a defensive scheme during a game or at halftime can often make the difference between winning and losing. But how do some of the game’s best defensive minds approach in-game defensive adjustments? Is it better to completely revamp a defensive game plan or is it better to make minor adjustments based on what you’ve seen from an offense? AFM asked three prominent defensive coordinators about their approaches to in-game defensive adjustments and found some spec
Strength Report – New Mexico Military Institute’s Strength Program
Before we designed our program, we sat down and discussed what advantages and limitations New Mexico Military presented us with as far as training our athletes. Our goal, obviously, was to maximize our advantages and minimize the effects of our limitations. The advantages were: 1) structure – we knew that our kids were going to be at workouts and we knew they were not going to stay out all night partying, 2) support of the coaching staffs – our coaching staffs have faith in us and are wil
Coach to Coach – Underestimating the Underdog
Months would pass before I would log my first meaningful memory of Joey. I remember the howling wind and unseasonably cold weather that made it almost impossible to communicate that night as I stood outside of the visitor’s locker room in Dixon, California. Players were starting to make their way towards the field as I reviewed my play call sheet minutes before we would kickoff the 2010 season. Joey, looking more like a manager than a player, nervously approached me with tears in his eyes a
Letter from AFM - Saluting Mentors
Just about every football coach has had a mentor – someone that has taught him the finer points of the game and had a positive influence in his development as a coach and a person. It’s part of what makes football coaching such a unique profession – the willingness to teach and share information with other coaches.In AFM’s email newsletter, which you can sign up to receive at AmericanFootballMonthly.com, we recently asked coaches to send in their personal stories about the
Your Take: Review What You Do
Self-analysis is critical to year-to-year improvement.It doesn’t matter if your team won 12 games last year or 2 – the winter off-season period is the time to review what you do. Every aspect of your offense should be critically reviewed, from the individual drills your position coaches use to the plays you call and why you call them. Here is the process we use to critically analyze who we are vs. who we think we are.Our offensive staff establishes scheme go
Winning the Turnover Battle - Three drills that will help your defense recover fumbles and make interceptions.
At the conclusion of each season, we evaluate how effective we have been in various areas. Then we decide what we can do to get our players to be more effective as it relates to our defensive philosophy (See Chart). Although we recognize there is always room for improvement in every area, we ask ourselves what did we do well, and what do we need to emphasis more? We have seen great improvement in the last two years has been point four “Create turnovers and big plays – SCORE!” Our defens
Release and Separate - Wide receiver techniques that will gain an advantage.
At Marian, we have the mindset that we will not let a defense dictate our offense. Critical to our success is the ability of our wide receivers to use various release and separation techniques that allow them to take advantage of defensive backs.PhilosophyMany times, a defender will want to take away certain areas of the field by playing a type of coverage or using a certain technique. But with our philosophy, we can get that defender to relinquish his responsibility or break
Making the Most of the Hurry-Up, No-Huddle Offense - Calling plays at the line can let you double your offensive snaps.
His team had just been walloped 56-7 in its spring game last May and Palm Beach Gardens (FL) head coach Chris Davis knew he had to make some adjustments or face another mediocre .500 season. He just wasn’t sure what he was going to change in his system. His teams had been 4-5 and 5-5 in 2009 and 2010.A few weeks later, Davis was attending a coaches clinic where he heard Gus Malzahn, then the offensive coordinator at Auburn, speak on the advantages of a no-huddle, hurry-up offense
Coach to Coach – Maximizing Your Speed, Strength, and Conditioning Programs
As I write this column, March Madness is upon us, spring training is winding up and weightrooms across the country are filled with ambitious and determined football players who know that football season is right around the corner. Training the body for the demanding sport of football is nothing new. When I was playing in high school our head coach would give us a goal sheet and some basic workout instructions and send us off for the summer. We knew that he expected us to return in August in s
Run Stoppers – Improve your defense with Princeton’s schemes, adjustments, and drills.
Your defensive structure must be simple, it must allow your players to play fast, and it must be adjustable to multiple schemes and sets that offenses present. Our base fronts and coverages are based on the personnel that we have in our program at the present time. Therefore, what works with one group, one year, might not with the next year’s group. We are constantly assessing and reinventing to get better as a defense. With that said, we have installed and implemented a foundation of core
Samson’s Strength and Conditioning Coaches of the Year
NFLMark UyeyamaSan Francisco 49ers If the San Francisco 49ers weren’t the most physical team in the NFL, they were high on the list.Mark Uyeyama is the main behind that physicality, although the 49ers strength and conditioning coach is way too humble to admit it.“Take a look at Justin Smith or Ray McDonald, really look at those guys, now,” said Uyeyama, Samson Equipment’s NFL Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year. “That’s not me, man.
Taking Your Physical Abilities to the Next Level
Today’s players are bigger, stronger, and faster than ever before. A focused conditioning program has become essential to on-the-field success. In Complete Conditioning for Football, a book and combined DVD package, authors Pat Ivey and Josh Stoner detail a comprehensive training program that builds players’ abilities as well as the football-specific skills their positions require.Coach’s ResponsibilitiesDelineating the responsibilities of all assistant coaches is the job
The Challenges of Teaching Football Speed
The first step toward teaching football speed is dealing with velocity and angles that change rapidly. Secondly, you must provide a progressive training system that is relative to speed and movement physically, mentally, and technically. The nature of the game provides various challenges to movement speed, angle changes, frequency changes, and rapid acceleration. Your teaching must fit these practicums because, unlike track sprinting, the technical application for football speed is not all li
Moving Up, Moving On or Moving Out: Life on the Coaching Carousel
Years ago I sat in a clinic presentation given by a prominent NFL head football coach who stated “Most high school coaches want to be college coaches, most college coaches want to be NFL coaches and most NFL coaches would like to be high school coaches.” Most coaches possess an unquenchable desire to advance their careers to the next level. Most of us are eager to face new challenges and conquer the next occupational mountain.The world of football coaching is fill
AFM’s National and Regional High School Coaches of the Year
Hal Wasson Southlake CarrollWhile celebrating on the field after his Carroll High School team, known to most around the country as Southlake Carroll, completed a 16-0 season with a 36-29 victory over Fort Bend Hightower in the Texas Class 5A- Division I state championship game, Hal Wasson thought about a fateful decision he made back in 2002.After over 20 years as a successful head coach at multiple high scho
AFM’s College Coaches of the Year
Mike Gundy Oklahoma StateGundy led the Cowboys to the greatest year in their history, netting him AFM’s top coaching awardThe visitors’ locker room at Texas A&M is located right next to the entrance that takes you onto the field. Every time the doors open, the visiting locker room is treated to the sounds of Kyle Field, featuring rowdy fans, bands and entertainment. It’s not the most peaceful environment to settle a team down, especially one trailing 20-3 at the ha
Coach to Coach – Maximizing Productivity: A Key Component to Success
If football had a caloric value, I would have gained fifty pounds over the last month. From high school championship games, to college bowl games, to NFL playoff games, I am fat on football. One of the factors causing my football weight gain is how I consume the product. There are no fast food meals here. The invention of the DVR has turned me into a slow and steady consumer. A three hour game can easily take me twice that long to watch. The rewind and pause features allow me to regurgitate o
Drills Report – Getting Open: Drills to Make Your Wide Receivers Great
The most important part of any passing game is the ability of wide receivers to get open. Your type of passing system will determine what types of routes are run, but the ultimate success of the passing game will be based on your wide receivers abilities to get open at the right time for the quarterback. Over the years, I have coached some outstanding receivers, and all the great ones had the ability to get open. The key is practice repetition. We work on a grid square every
Speed Report - Movement Skills – Critical for Drill Effectiveness
Using drills for teaching and developing football movement is certainly not uncommon. However, breaking down the drills analytically is not the most common practice. Most drills are performed to provide reinforcement for certain football movements, usually relevant to a position. The movement patterns are supposed to create better agility and speed of movement with the use of cones or other equipment creating a challenge for player agility. Although there’s nothing wrong with that, there’
Letter from AFM- Home on the Range
This year, over 20% of FBS schools will enter the 2012 season with new head coaches. That’s nothing new. Every year, more and more coaches find themselves on the coaching carousel as the pressure to win, win often and win consistently becomes more relentless. Sometimes, a change at the top is just what a program needs to get on track. Witness Brady Hoke, who led a Michigan team that had underachieved for years to 11 wins, including a victory over Ohio State for the first ti
Head Coach Self-Evaluation - Free Form
With the season over, it is time for a complete self-evaluation as a head coach. This form includes a complete grading system for all areas of coaching – relationship with your players and staff, recruiting, discipline, academics, department business, improving professional knowledge, and personal image in regard to your school and community.
Getting Your Team Connected
By Eric Slivoskey, Former Coach Seinajoki Crocodiles (Finland) How connected are you to your players? Do you merely make contact with team members to ensure that they are staying out of trouble and not reflecting poorly on the program, or do you strive to know something personal about each person on the squad. In a world that seems to be changing faster than any of us could have ever imagi
Muddle Hd” The New Age Muddle Huddle Two-Point Formation
Like all coaches, I look forward to the off-season to attend as many coaching clinics as I can that are held throughout the United States. Some coaches attend clinics looking to have a good time and use the weekend as an “outing” away from the wives and kids to unwind and enjoy themselves with their staff. When I go to clinics, I aim to attend as many sessions as possible to learn and gain knowledge from some of the most successful and innovative minds in football today. I set out to lear
AFM Subs Ask - with former NFL special teams coach Mike Sweatman
Mike Sweatman coached for 23 years in the NFL, primarily with special teams. He began his NFL career with the Vikings and later coached with the Bears, Patriots and Jets and had two stints with the New York Giants. Sweatman coached under Bill Parcells when the Giants won the Super Bowl in 1990 and later, Coach Tom Coughlin hired him as Special Teams Coordinator in 2004. His career included three Super Bowl appearances and two championships. He answers your questions about special teams
Texas Titans – Lake Travis High School has built a winning tradition from the ground up.
The Lake Travis (TX) High School athletic program is blessed with a huge enrollment, college-caliber facilities and an abundance of next-level talent, especially at the quarterback position. With those types of advantages, the Cavaliers are expected to have success.But, with four straight 4A state titles and a shot at an unprecedented fifth, Lake Travis football has exceeded even the highest expectations and stands out as a prime example of an administration and coaching staff that
Coach to Coach – Off-Season Priorities
“The Future is Now!” was a phrase I heard often during the 1991 football season at Long Beach State. It was one of the many catch phrases that George Allen coined and is famous for. As we enter the heart of the 2012 off-season, it’s sometimes difficult to envision that the future of next football season is now. When it comes to developing a successful plan for the 2012 season, the future is indeed now. Over the past year and half, I have shared many of my ideas as they relate to the pri
Drills Report – EXPANDED – Special Teams at South Dakota State
I have had the opportunity to work as the special teams coordinator at South Dakota State for the past two seasons. During that time, I could not be more pleased with our success. In 2010, we ranked No. 4 in FCS net punting, No. 4 in punt return yardage defense, No. 9 in kickoff returns, No. 1 in kickoff return yardage defense and No. 37 in punt returns. We accomplished these numbers without placing one single player in the top-20 of any category. I truly believe we achieved that success beca
Speed Report – The Off-Season is Back – Time for Foundation Speed Drills
If you’re not moving forward each year, you’re standing still. If you wish to grow, you need to review what you’ve been doing and challenge yourself to do more. I’ve spent 32 years adding something that improves my program to better levels than they were the year before. Sometimes it’s a new system or just tweaking the old one a certain way. Whatever your situation might be, it can always be better, especially when it comes to speed. I will give you a few thoug
Two-Back Run Fits – Teaching Fast Flow and Leverage in an 8-Man Box
‘Fast Flow’ rules assign specific roles to each linebacker which creates an eighth defender and gives the defense an advantage.One of the first lessons I learned as a young coach was grounded in Bill Walsh’s logic. He said, “A system should never reduce the game to the point where it simply blames the players for failure because they did not physically overwhelm the opponent.”In my first year of college coaching, Coach Mike Van Diest – the except
Maximizing Your Kickoff Coverage – Each player must possess a different skill set to ensure effective kickoff coverage.
In order to maximize your kickoff coverage, each player must possess a different skill set and be committed to a ‘Want’ philosophy. At Minnesota State University, we take our special teams very seriously. We dedicate significant meeting time and practice to special teams every day. We film both angles of all phases, including when we do individual drill work for a specific unit. Our philosophy for special teams is very basic:• This is not rest time. This is an opportunity to make a
Zone Blitzing the Spread Offense – Use this aggressive approach to disrupt routes and timing of the spread.
Head Coach Danny Hale just completed his 19th season at Bloomsburg and has seen over those years a trend in our opponent’s offense, a change from the traditional 2-back attack to more of a spread attack. Defensively, we have had to adapt to the ever changing schemes and, along with Secondary Coach Chet Henicle and Defensive Line Coach Bill Perkins, we have developed a scheme that is both effective and easy to understand and one that employs the most basic but also most important aspect of d
Keys for Effective Man Coverage – Effective use of man coverage by your defensive backs can confuse the offense and put more pressure on the QB.
Effective use of man coverage by your defensive backs can confuse the offense and put more pressure on the quarterback.One of the main reasons the Air Force Academy has been able to climb to the top five in the country in pass defense the last few years has been our ability to mix in effective man coverage. Based out of our 3-4 scheme, the effective use of man coverage has allowed us to vary our pressure package and also allowed us to be more aggressive in our coverage
Strength Report – Density Training for the High School Athlete
Many programs can help make high school athletes stronger, more muscular and even faster. However, if your goal is to train your high school athletes to improve athleticism, flexibility, balance, strength, power and speed, density training is the way to go. Density training is a philosophy of training based on strength coach Charles Staley’s program, “Escalating Density Training”. Since the program was introduced, strength coaches all over the country have been putting together their ow
Ten Tips to Help Every Youth Football Coach Be the Best They Can Be
By Harold “Bud” Boughton Senior Consultant and Assistant Coach, Franklin College Two years ago I was asked to be a guest speaker at two USA Football Coaching Schools. I knew right away what I wanted to talk about. Drawing on my coaching experience at both the college and youth level, I created a presentation entitled, “Coaching is T
Get Educated 2012 Coaches Clinics
Now is the time to develop your game-plan for the 2012 coaches clinic season. It’s your opportunity to pick up philosophy, techniques, drills, and the latest in offensive formations, defensive schemes and special teams play from some of the game’s most successful coaches. Here are four premier organizations that will be conducting clinics scheduled during the winter months in 2012.Nike Coach of the Year Clinics There are 20 nationwide Nike COY clinics in 2012. Most of the clini
Making an Impact with Your Kickoff Return
For a successful kickoff return, it is critical for all 11 players – including the deep returners – to think about making their block.There is almost nothing that compares to returning the opening kickoff of the season for a 95-yard touchdown against your school’s historic rival. The capacity crowd who had not yet made it to their seats for our 2010 opening game missed one of the most exciting moments of the year, a moment that made a statement to our opponent that we had come to
Father Figure – In his celebrated career, Houston’s Ray Seals became much more than a coach to many of his players.
Twenty-three years ago, Ray Seals decided to change his coaching legacy. It wasn’t going to just be about football anymore.Seals arrived at Madison High School (TX) in 1988 to find a program full of kids from low-income families. Some came to practice with no clothes; some hadn’t eaten. His players were foul-mouthed and disrespectful. They weren’t college material. “I said right then that when I became head coach, that wasn’t going to happen to my kids,” said Seals.
AFM Subs Ask – with Ron Erhardt Former NFL Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator
Ron Erhardt was the head coach of the New England Patriots (1978-1981), the offensive coordinator of the New York Giants for a decade (1982-1991), and the OC of the Pittsburgh Steelers (1992-1996). While with the Giants, his teams won two Super Bowls with two different quarterbacks, Phil Simms and Jeff Hostetler. He was also a very successful college coach, having an overall record of 61-7-1 in seven seasons as the head coach at North Dakota State. Erhardt’s offensive philosophy
Drills Report – Building Pocket Awareness
We believe that pocket awareness is one of the most important quarterback skills to develop. I did say develop. We don’t believe that most people are born with the ability to stand in the pocket and wait for people to run into them. We spend fifteen minutes a week during the season working on pocket awareness. On Monday, we spend five minutes re-enacting the pocket awareness situations that the quarterback should have handled more efficiently from the previous game. On Tuesday, w
Strength Report – The Friday from Hades
When we came to PV a few months ago we found a downtrodden, used to losing group of young men. There was no pride in the program, nothing but “Hey, we tried”. The words compete, fight, and adversity were not in the vocabulary of these young men. We had to shock the system and change a lot of things. The first thing we changed was the strength and conditioning program.We are together Monday through Friday. Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday are scheduled lifting sessions in which we use
Coaching In Poland
Compared to other European countries, organized American football in Poland is in its infancy, but growing. What once began at a grass roots level has now turned into three separate divisions - 1st Division, 2nd Division and an eight-man football league. The Polish American Football League or (PLFA) was started in 2006 with four teams. With the popularity of American football growing, the PLFA split into two divisions in 2008 - PLFA I (8 teams) and
How Much Does Crowd Noise Really Affect Your Team?
Sport psychology is taken so seriously by most elite football teams that they have entire staffs dedicated to the mental well-being of their players. In high school, the pressure to constantly perform at a high level for many college prospects can cause great stress and anxiety. After all, most are mentally still teenagers, though their physical presence would make you think otherwise. Though the disparity between physical and mental development may be evident to those who are trained on the
AFM Subscribers Ask – with Bubba Schweigert, Defensive Coordinator, Southern Illinois University
Bubba Schweigert enters his fourth season as the defensive coordinator at Southern Illinois University this fall. Since he arrived in Carbondale, the Salukis are 25-11 and last fall led the Missouri Valley Conference in total defense. His philosophy of defense is based on pressuring the quarterback and creating turnovers. Schweigert’s 2009 defense ranked second nationally with 23 interceptions and fourth nationally with 37 turnovers caused. Before joining the SIU staff, Sch
Coach to Coach – Principles for Becoming a Better Coach
As I write this article, we are only three weeks away from the official start of the 2011 football season. It’s the time when players and coaches alike are weary of countless off-season workouts and are ready to put the preparation and hard work to good use. With every clank of a 45-pound round, our players see the light at the end of the tunnel. It’s the calm before the storm and the season rapidly approaches.If you have read my previous articles in the Coach to Coach column, you
Drills Report (Expanded) – ‘The Six Pack’ Concept: Keeping Linebacker Fundamentals Strong All Season Long
During pre-season camp, individual periods tend to be much longer, which gives the position coach ample time to work on the fundamentals that are essential to linebacker play. As coaches, we become spoiled with all of that individual time. Once pre-season camp ends, so do the long individual periods, as the focus turns to preparation for upcoming opponents. This can drastically shorten the amount of time that you can truly devote to working on fundamentals. But, it is important to
Method To His Madness - Letter from the Publisher
You could describe LSU Head Coach Les Miles in many different ways. Just don’t call him conventional. He has been known to eat a bit of grass from the football field for good luck. He has over 34,000 Twitter followers, which is more than any other FBS coach. Last month, he tweeted “I hear Wimbledon champ likes eating grass too. Hope he enjoyed it. Nothing beats Tiger Stadium grass though.” He is a press favorite, having provided many memorable sound bites. There
RAWLINGS SIGNS STEVEN JACKSON TO ENDORSE FOOTBALL HELMET LINE
For more information, please contact: Seth Elrod, Rawlings Football, (314) 819-2715, selrod@rawlings.com
Q & A with Bill Ramseyer
Keys to Successful August PracticesBill Ramseyer has a reputation for turning programs around. While head coach at Firelands High School in Ohio, his teams finished with a 24-2 record for a school that never had a winning season prior to Ramseyer’s arrival. After becoming head coach at Wilmington College, Ramseyer amassed a 114-58-4 record over 19 seasons. Before his arrival, Wilmington had only 28
The Heat Is On – In the hottest months of the year, coaches need to watch for any signs of heat illness.
August will be here in a few weeks, and for most areas that means the hottest weather of the year. The high heat and humidity combined with the most intense football practices of the year mean that coaches need to be extra alert for any signs of players who might be suffering heat-related illnesses. Football players, perhaps more than any other athletes, are vulnerable to a variety of serious medical conditions arising from outdoor physical activity in intense heat. It is tragic bu
Great Expectations – How do coaches like Bob Stoops manage high expectations or overcome low ones?
“Coaches who can outline plays on a black board are a dime a dozen. The ones who win get inside their players and motivate.”– Vince LombardiEvery season starts with expectations, some higher than others. How a coach handles those expectations can be the difference between failing to meet them and exceeding them. But what is the secret to dealing with expectations in this era of pre-season rankings, blogs and media pundits that put pressure on teams before fall practice even
Utilizing the Quick Passing Game in a Spread Offense
At Kansas Wesleyan, one of the key components of our spread offense is being able to successfully utilize the quick passing game. Our offense is based out of a single back, 2 x 2 formation. One of our main objectives is keep things simple. This ranges from route concepts, protections, signals and words. As an offensive staff, we strive to get players to react instead of over-thinking. We encourage our players to be athletes and make plays based on reaction. In this article, we will discuss th
Graduate Course How does a high school coach fulfill a dream of advancing to the college ranks?
In every profession, it’s natural to want to advance to the next level. Greater prestige, higher compensation and job security are all potential rewards of a promotion within an organization or a change of employers. In football, you would naturally assume that many successful high school coaches would aspire to become college coaches, and that may indeed be the case. But even the best high school head coaches have struggled to succeed as head coaches in college football, at leas
Motivation & Leadership During The Off-Season
The off-season in competitive college football has become almost non-existent. The so-called ‘off-season’ has become, in itself, a competitive season. At Emporia State University we have developed the POWER OF E off-season program. Just like any good college program, everyone takes pride in their player development. We believe we have a unique way of doing it with our program. Through this program we believe that we maximize our player’s potential with a focus on competitiveness, leader
Subscribers Ask: With Patrick Ross Head Coach • Lindenwood University
Over the last few years, Patrick Ross has gained a reputation for both turning programs around and having prolific offenses. In his second season at Ottawa University in 2003, Ross’ team improved from 5-5 to 9-2, winning the KCAC title and advancing to the national playoffs. He was named national NAIA Coach of the Year the following season, his first at Lindenwood, leading the Lions to an 11-0 regular season record. That year Lindenwood tied for the same number of wins the team earned in th
Your Take – The New-Age of the Agent and the Tactics They Employ
Over the past year, the NCAA’s agents, gambling and amateurism staff has begun to address the issue of the new-age agent. The new-age agent will not be wearing a suit, he will not be a recognizable face, and he won’t wait for an school’s “agent day” to try and contact student-athletes. Agents of the past presented themselves as executives who established relationships and gained clients by any and all means. Today, some examples of the new faces of “agents” include another stude
Trojan Force – Head Coach Allan Trimble has built the Jenks High School program into a perennial power in Oklahoma and overcome adversity along the way
Allan Trimble, the Head Coach at Jenks High School (OK), authored the book ‘Coaching Football Successfully’ in 2001. In it, Trimble wrote that success should not be measured solely in terms of wins and losses. “Success comes in many shapes and sizes,” said Trimble. “It could be mentoring an athlete who is facing adversity, having your team show improvement as the season progresses, or having both a loyal and supportive coaching staff.” • Trimble clearly
Tiger Training – Missouri’s 10 Key Defensive Line Drills and Techniques – How you can fortify your pass rush.
The key to any defensive pass rush is putting pressure on the quarterback. Missouri conducts drills daily to accomplish just that. At the University of Missouri, I have been very fortunate and blessed with defensive linemen who have and are embracing this attitude. In my time here, we have increased our sack total each year. We have had many players go on to All-Conference honors. We have had players lead the Big 12 in sacks and in tackles-for-loss. We have had a defensive lineman
Steuerwald’s Rules – A coaching legend shares his guidelines for designing and implementing an effective pre-season practice schedule.
In sixty days or less, your 2011 team will be assembled for pre-season practice. They’ll be pushing themselves to achieve peak physical condition, battling each other for higher spots on the depth chart and, in most places around the country, struggling to get through practices in oppressive heat and humidity.
Coach to Coach: The Pre-Season Home Stretch
“The time will come when winter will ask what you were doing all summer.” - Senator Henry ClayTwo months and counting! It is amazing how fast the season is approaching. By the start of June, our players have completed countless workouts, 10 days of spring ball and now are preparing for summer camp at the University of Nevada. We have spent the last few months training and preparing ourselves for the 2011 season. June is the start of the final phase of the so called off-season.
Strength Report: Fairmont State’s Summer Strength Program
Breaking down each seasonal phase of your strength and conditioning program throughout the calendar year is a must. But before we outline the entire year, let’s devise a plan for summer workouts. Here’s a complete plan divided into two phases for your summer workouts.
Letter from AFM - Last Call for Fall Prep
With the school year coming to a close, the next major event on the football calendar will be the start of pre-season practice. Every coach would likely agree that the weeks leading up to the season opener are critical times for conditioning, learning the playbook and fine-tuning offensive and defensive units. For many coaches, putting together a plan for pre-season practice is a no-brainer. If they’ve been successful in recent years, especially in their openin
15 Keys to Building A Successful & Sustainable Football Program
By Frank DiCocco • Assistant Coach • Dwyer High School (FL) • 2009 Florida 4A State Champions 1. Have a Flexible and Evolving Approach to the Game: Have a flexible and evolving approach to schemes and strategies. Have a Flexible and Evolving Offense: Develop an efficient and effective offensive approach for each team, each season, and each game. Place a premium on production, both in terms of yards and points. As long as the winner of a football c
From the Coach’s Bookshelf – Winning Football
In his new book Winning Football, Bill Ramseyer provides a blueprint for coaching success. Based on lessons he’s learned from his decades in coaching, the book is a complete handbook that examines all parts of the game. Here is an excerpt from his opening chapter.Elements of Success Success can be measured in many ways. If you are a coach, perhaps you measure success by the positive influence you have on the lives of the players you coach – the attitudes
Triangulation – The safety’s triangle alignment will keep balance in your defense vs. multiple formations
We are strong believers in the 3-4 at Southern Illinois and, as a defensive staff, we do not deviate from our commitment to running the 3-4 defense. Dale Lennon, our head coach, implemented this scheme as defensive coordinator at the University of North Dakota in 1991. During this time, I was the secondary coach and have been a part of coaching the 3-4 defensive system for 20 consecutive seasons. One of the advantages of running the 3-4 system is the ability to r
5 Keys to Running a Successful Youth Camp
Thinking about the annual obligatory youth camp stirs up mixed emotions among coaches across the country. On one hand, they are excited to teach their sport to future players. On the other hand, many see this camp as just another time consuming activity taking time away from their varsity teams and their families during the summer months. Unfortunately, not all coaches take advantage of these camps as an opportunity to build their program from the ground up. Instead, these camps often become
Coach to Coach – Coaching to Make a Difference
The longer I coach and the more time I spend witnessing kids transform into young men, the more I realize that in this profession we have the opportunity and the responsibility to be more than just a coach. Coaching allows all of us the unique opportunity to leave a lasting imprint on the lives of our players. Our profession is one of only a few that will mold and shape future business leaders, politicians, husbands, fathers, clergy, infantry and military leaders. One of my favorite maxims co
Desert Dominance
Head Coach Charlie Ragle led Chaparral High School in Scottsdale, Arizona, to their second consecutive state title – using the Connex® sideline communications system from CoachComm.Win a state championship in a football-rich state like Arizona and your high school team will be recognized for their significant accomplishment. Win back-to-back championships and get mentioned as the early favorite for a third and you become part of the national conversation as one of the top teams in t
Speed Report: Why You Do What You Do for Football Speed Training
Have you really analyzed why you use the methods and teaching applications you use for football speed or have you just borrowed available concepts and plugged them into your program? Have you just covered the bases or have you really looked into becoming more knowledgeable about football speed? If you haven’t studied the subject, what and where did you get what you use today? Why is it good, and why did you choose to incorporate it into your football program? Did it come from a friend, a co
Making the Game Safer
If you watch television or go to the movies, you’ve seen Bobby Hosea. You just might not realize it. In an acting career that has spanned more than 25 years, Hosea has appeared in dozens of television shows and movies including 24, CSI, Heroes, Cold Case, Xena: Warrior Princess, Independence Day – the list goes on and on. He’s portrayed military officers, police detectives, doctors – even OJ Simpson. But, in football ci
Feeding the Ducks
Sports nutritionist James Harris makes sure that University of Oregon athletes are properly fueled and ready to compete at the highest level.For many years, football coaches have recognized that effective strength and conditioning programs are essential ways to help athletes achieve peak performance. Increasing numbers of programs now also understand that proper nutritional practices are just as important if you want to maximize an athlete’s effectiveness on the field. &nb
AFM Subscribers Ask – with Mark Hudspeth Head Coach, University of Louisiana
Mark Hudspeth was appointed the 25th head coach at the University of Louisiana last December. He brings with him a reputation for a high-powered, no-huddle offense. Previously the Passing Game Coordinator/Wide Receivers Coach at Mississippi State and head coach at North Alabama, he brought the no-huddle concept to Starkville and now to the University of Louisiana. Hudspeth has a national championship, four conference championships, eight post-season appearances a
Mixing in the Gun – Integrating Shotgun into Your Spread Option Offense
At Lincoln University, we adopted the spread option offense because we felt it gave us the best advantage going into the Mid-American Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA). To complement our spread, we started to run some of our option plays out of the shotgun. We started playing with “the gun” because we have a good center who can shotgun snap the football and block anyone and we wanted to improve our 3-step passing game. It also provided a psychological boost for our athletes who
Samson’s Strength & Conditioning Coaches of the Year for 2010
NFLRusty JonesChicago Bears In 2006, Chicago Bears Strength and Conditioning Coach Rusty Jones received the National Professional Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year award. What made the award so special was that all 32 NFL strength and conditioning coaches voted on the award. “Because it was from my peers, it really meant something special,” said Jones. Jones just completed his sixth full season with the Chicago Bears, the last three
Coach to Coach: Football Clinics – The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly
If you are like me, your email has been full of invitations and promotions to the many football coaching clinics being held across the country. As a coach with 19 seasons under my belt, I have attended many clinics, have had the opportunity to speak at many clinics, and I host the Shotgun Zone Fly Summit. Clinics provide us with a great opportunity to learn from some of the most successful people in the business. They are also a great excuse to get a “hall pass” for a w
Speed Report: Football Coach or Football Speed Coach –You Can Be Both
You don’t have to be apprehensive when you think about football speed development. You don’t have to feel incompetent when it comes to developing team speed. That is, if you have a certain knowledge of the subject of football speed. If you don’t, you might feel uneasy about teaching it. My quest in this article is to provide you with perspective about football speed and how you can feel more comfortable with what it takes to do it right – right according to the scientific knowledge th
Resounding Success
A Portland area high school captures their first-ever state championship – with the help of HME’s DX300 headset system. When Chris Casey took the head coaching position at Aloha High School outside Beaverton, Oregon seven years ago, the challenge he faced was daunting. The Warriors had won a total of 14 games in their previous 17 seasons and only one game in the last three. They were losing elite pl
AFM’s 2010 College Coaches of the Year
FCSBeau BaldwinEastern Washington If Eastern Washington could have written a script for the 2010 football season, it could not have gone any better. The Eagles got a lot of the buzz in the Football Championship Subdivision early in the year because of their newly installed red turf, which became known as the Inferno. In September, the Eagles, whom the media had given modest preseason aspirations in the Big Sky Conference, were routed in Boz
AFM’s 2010 High School Coaches of the Year
EastHarold Fairclough Allentown Central Catholic (PA) When it comes to loyalty to one’s alma mater, Harold Fairclough is a prime example. Fairclough is a graduate of Allentown Central Catholic High School, where he is the head coach. Playing for head coach Jim Morgans in the early 1990’s, Fairclough learned how important it is to let his assistants do their job. Taken the model used by Morgans, Fairclough surrounded himself with the best coaches possible, ga
AFM’s 2010 High School Coach of the Year Tony Heath Pearland (TX)
Euless Trinity, Southlake Carroll, Katy, Cy Fair, Northshore, Lake Travis. Imposing programs all poised to win Texas 5A Championships in any given year. There is very little debate that this is the toughest state championship to win in the nation. They’ve got the biggest stadiums, the biggest crowds and the most pressure. Enter Pearland High School outside of Houston, also a 5A program. When Tony Heath considered the head coaching position at Pe
Your Take: Turn Back the Clock For Safety
The recently completed football season will go down in history as the year of the concussion. Not because the game fundamentally changed, but improvements in head injury detection have forced a closer examination of the subject at all levels of the game. The football community is no longer taking a “head in the sand” approach to a problem that has existed for a long time but only now is beginning to be understood. In the future, head injuries in football will decline. The solution w
Turf Trends
Chances are very good that your team has either installed a synthetic turf field at your facility or played at least one road game on a turf field. Each year, hundreds of football practice and game fields are converted from natural grass to synthetic turf. That’s not surprising, considering that today’s turf systems provide safe, consistent, all-weather playing surfaces that can be utilized 24/7 by not just the football team but by a long list of other sports and activities. &n
AFM’s FBS Coach of the Year -Gary Patterson •TCU
The BCS-busting Patterson led the Horned Frogs to a perfect record, a Rose Bowl victory, and a #2 national ranking.As college football fans look at the national landscape over the last 10 years or so, there always seems to be the same names at the top week-in week-out, year-in year-out, whether it’s Texas, Oklahoma, Ohio State, Florida, Alabama, LSU, USC. Every now and then a new team might rise up for a few weeks or a couple of years. But like any list,
Strength Report: Corrective Movement Dysfunction, Part III - Correction
The basis for movement dysfunction lies in the lack of mobility and/or stability in one or more joints or muscles in the body. Thus, the basis for correcting movement dysfunction lies in restoring the proper mobility and stability patterns along with correct timing of movement patterns. Dysfunction does not occur in isolation. Deficiencies in mobility are always linked to deficiencies in stability and vice versa. In fact, dysfunction in one part of the body typically occ
Quarterback Play – Focusing on Strengths
“A leader needs to know his strengths as a carpenter knows his tools, or as a physician knows the instruments at his disposal. What great leaders have in common is that each truly knows his or her strengths – and can call on the right strength at the right time. This explains why there is no definitive list of characteristics that describes all leaders.” - Donald O. CliftonAs a football coach, it’s very easy to get caught up in the strategy and design of a practice week a
Mississippi Masters – Head Coach Lance Pogue of South Panola High School led his Tigers to a 15-0 record and the number one prep ranking in America.
At South Panola High School in Batesville, Mississippi, they are not accustomed to losing. Since Head Coach Lance Pogue joined the school in 2007, the Tigers have an overall record of 58-2 and, prior to this year, had won two state championships in three years to add to their previous six titles. But this year South Panola set a new benchmark by not only winning another Mississippi 6A State Championship but by also capturing the mythical prep ‘National Champions
Stifle Your Opponent with a Bruising Defense – Coordinators of two top-ranked college defenses show you how.
What are the most important ingredients of a stifling defense? Beyond having a sound scheme, what should coaches look for in athletes in an effort to ensure domination of their opponents? To get the answers, AFM talked to the defensive coordinators of two of 2010’s most imposing defensive units – Mount Union of Division III and Boston College of the FBS. While certain defensive fundamentals are to be expected, both Vince Kehres of Mount Union and Bill McGovern of BC provided additional in
Strength Report: Correcting Movement Dysfunction - Part II: Interpretation
In the first installment of this series, we learned that movement dysfunction is a leading predictor of injury in athletes. We also learned what movement dysfunction is and what we are looking for in evaluating athletes in accordance with the stacked joint approach of the human body. Finally, we set up a simple evaluation to determine and quantify movement dysfunctions. In Part II of the series, we will learn how to interpret the evaluation scores, discuss implications of the scores, and dete
Misdirection: Using Pre-Snap Movement and Multiple Personnel Groupings to Gain an Offensive Advantage
Mike Martz is one of the more productive offensive coaches in the National Football League. He has utilized pre-snap movements for years and during many of those seasons he has gained a competitive advantage. As an offense, we want to create the illusion of being very complex while we are, in fact, being simple and basic. We accomplish this through using a variety of movements and personnel groupings. By minimizing the number of basi
Establishing a New Defense with an Effective Dime Pass Rush
At the Colorado School of Mines, our defensive staffs have run the same 3-4 pressure defense since 1988 and have made the necessary changes and adjustments to have success against constantly evolving offensive schemes. During my tenure as the Head Coach at Georgetown University, we had some successful defenses including the #1 I-AA defense in the nation in 1995 and 1996, as well as one of the top 25 defenses in 2005. During my two years at Towson University, we w
Sizing Up Your Team – Post-Season Evaluation Can Be a Positive Exercise for Coaching Staffs and Players
The 2010 high school football season has ended, but that does not mean that head coaches downshift into neutral and coast for the next few months. In reality, the 2011 season already has begun. What is accomplished in the off-season is often key to how successful next season will be. In many ways, the off-season is as busy, if not busier, than the actual fall season for head coaches. Equipment needs to be reconditioned and inspected
Flying Ducks – Oregon’s Prolific Fast-Paced Offense Presents Monumental Challenges to Defenses
By Bjorn Zetterberg and David PurdumWhen former Oregon Head Coach Mike Bellotti hired Gary Crowton as offensive coordinator in 2005 to install the spread option offense, it was his intent to keep up with so many other teams in college football that had gone in that direction. In its first year, the Ducks’ spread yielded impressive results – a 10-2 record, 34.5 points per game and over 430 yards per game in offensive production.
Coach to Coach: Making Your Off-Season Count, Part I
The end of another season is here. It’s time to decompress and reintroduce myself to my wife and three children. It’s time to take a few weeks off and recharge the battery. The end of the football season is also the introduction of the Holiday Season and I’m looking forward to a great Christmas and New Year. I like the idea of the New Year. It’s a chance to evaluate our lives, our work and our relationships. The New Year presents us with the opportunity to alter our course or maybe ev
Speed Report: Off-Season Speed Development - A Dilemma For Small Schools
As I write this column each month, I receive more and more replies from coaches at smaller schools. It’s become apparent that most of them have something in common – that the off-season presents a challenge for speed and lifting development. The problem is that athletes at these schools need to be multi-sport athletes. The bulk of the football team plays two to three sports in a small school, so it’s almost impossible to fill the rosters on other sports if they were only playing footbal
The Importance of Formation Recognition
By Ryan Ruschhaupt, Assistant Coach Monterey Peninsula College Football is an ever evolving game where some of the most creative and intelligent coaches in sports find ways to defeat you merely by the alignment of players in a formation. Offensive coordinators search for alignment weaknesses
FREE FORMS - Pass Routes
Free Forms from American Football Monthly
Recruiting Results
Among all the legends of high school coaching, Bill McGregor probably knows more about college recruiting than any coach in America. As head coach of perennial power DeMatha Catholic High School in Hyattsville, Maryland, Coach McGregor has compiled a record of 279-40-3 with 18 championships in 29 years and has seen over 300 of his players advance to play at the college level. The 2004 NFL High School Coach of the Year, McGregor is considered a master at helping his athletes who want to play c
Goal Line Defense: Lenape Valley’s 6-5 Scheme
When introducing our Goal Line Defense to our team, we stress from day one that we must stop the run at all cost – “We are fighting for inches not yards”. As a staff, three principles must be kept in mind at all times: 1. Instill in our players the mindset that “they cannot score by running the football on us – they must pass to score”. Also, attitude is as important as schemes and techniques. 2. Have a limited number of adjustments to formations and motions.
Georgia’s In-Season and Bowl Game Strength Training
Every year, college football players across the country engage in strength and conditioning programs from January until the beginning of training camp in August. Those workouts lay the conditioning foundation and strength base for the upcoming season. And while those workouts are important, many strength coaches would argue that workouts held during the season are just as important, if not more so, than workouts held during the rest of the year. This simple question must be asked: When woul
John McKissick: 7 Keys to Long-Term Success
McKissick, 84, entered his 59th season at Summerville in September with a record 576 wins. He’s accomplished the astonishing feat with a plethora of offenses, from the wing-T to the wishbone to his current spread attack. His defense also has changed with the times, transforming from a wide-tackle 6 and 50 look used to defend the tight ground attacks of the past to a multiple scheme designed to stop the modern spread offenses. “You’ve got to change with the material y
Dissecting a Successful Offense: Abilene High School (TX)
It takes guts to make changes to an extremely balanced offense that averaged 45 points per game the previous season. Abilene High School (TX) head coach Steve Warren is gutsy. He’s also a state champion, thanks in part to an adjustment to the Eagles’ offense that produced a unique blend of a power running game and the spread offense. “Yep, that characterizes us pretty well,” said Warren, who, in his 14th season, led the Eagles to the 2009 5A Division II state championship. “
Fundamentals of Wide Receiver Play and Reading Coverages
By PJ Fleck, Wide Receivers Coach Rutgers University PURPOSEFUL “TEACHING” I was always told that I was the “King of the TOO’s” (too small, too slow, too short). I heard all the time, “GET OUT OF THE BREAK, DROP YOUR WEIGHT, CATCH THE BALL, GET OFF THE PRESS.” “Cat
GAME DAY AT CARMEL HIGH SCHOOL
On a grey fall Friday afternoon, Carmel Catholic head coach Andy Bitto greets a visitor as he enters his office. Kickoff is four and a half hours away, but minus his headset, Bitto is already sporting his game day outfit—brown and gold pullover, brown tie on white shirt, khaki pants and tennis shoes. The outfit could be labeled old school, something out of George Halas’ time. After all, where is the Under Armour? Bitto hands the visitor an itinerary for that week’s
Coaching in Denmark Part III
For my final and third installment on my coaching experience in Denmark, I would like to share two topics that are universal when it comes to coaching American football: officiating and game management. My wife and I were thrilled to attend the Steelers/Dolphins game on October 24 in Miami. As the clock ticked down to the final minutes, the game was suspended in air as Ben Roethlisberger’s touchdown attempt was being reviewed by the officials. Every fan, whe
Coach to Coach
When I was an offensive coordinator at the junior/community college level for six seasons, my football life consisted of recruiting, installing our schemes, game planning and calling the game on Saturdays. A full plate for sure, but it was 100% football. I definitely had ideas of what I would do if and when I became a head coach, but all of the peripheral things associated with running the entire program were in the hands of the head coach and the athletic director. In those days I thought th
John Robinson, Assistant Coach
By Jeff Fedotin • RivalsHigh.com At 75, John Robinson’s coaching career has come full circle – from USC to the NFL to now, the sidelines of San Marcos High School as an assistant coach Connor Kuehnle’s parents did not believe their son when he told them the identity of his new defensive coordinator. “There’s no way it’s John Robinson from USC and the Rams,” Kathy and Kenzie Kuehnle said. “There’s no way this guy’s gonna come an
Getting Big Results at Small Schools
What are the keys to building winning programs in schools so small that just fielding a team can be a challenge? In this, part two of AFM’s series about how some of the smallest high schools in the country have built dominant programs, we examine how Alcoa High School (TN) Coach Gary Rankin and Harlan Community High School (IA) Coach Curt Bladt have established winning traditions and taken home multiple championships. Alcoa, Tennessee, population 7,744, sits in the shadows of the G
Guru of the Golden Arms
As a high school quarterback, Steve Clarkson led Wilson High in Los Angeles to a 39-1 record and three straight city championships in the late 70’s. That was followed by three years as the starting quarterback for San Jose State where he played for John Elway’s father, Jack Elway. Clarkson broke several passing records in the process at SJSU (1979-82) and was a two-year Academic All-American. He was destined to fulfill his dream of being drafted by an NFL team. It didn’t qui
HERO TO ZERO IN ONE PLAY: Drilling the Defensive Back for Confidence
While I am now coaching tight ends at Columbia University, I have spent many seasons as a defensive backs coach. If anyone has been a secondary coach or played the position before, you are intimately familiar with those times when, in the final seconds of a game, an intercepted pass can “seal the deal” for your team or where a deep bomb can spell misery. The positive end result of those times is a combination of competitiveness, but more importantly, reliance on solid fundamentals. I have
Coaching In Denmark (Part II)
By Wayne Anderson In this next installment of coaching in Denmark, I would like to share more about the teaching aspect of coaching a team like the Odense Swans. The first thing you must remember about a team like the Swans is that what you can truly do as a coach depends on how many coaches you have on your staff and how many players consistently participate in practice. In Denmark, our season is divided into two different parts:
GEORGE BLANDA “It’s Never Too Late”
By T. J. Troup Coach, Teacher, and Pro Football Historian Future Hall of Fame Quarterback Bobby Layne was sold to the New York Bulldogs before the 1949 season by “Papa Bear” George Halas. To fill the roster spot, Halas used the Bears 12th pick in the draft to take quarterback George Blanda of Kentucky. During his last three years at Kentucky, playing under the legendary Paul “Bear” Bryant, the Wildcats won 20 of 31 games and played in the
GAME STRATEGY AND PLAY CALLING: THE “HEDGEHOG” PHILOSOPHY
By Bruce Reynolds Former Head Coach William Penn High School, New Castle (DE) Game day strategy and play calling should not be too elaborate. Go with what got you there. Too many coaches make the mistake of trying to put in too many “new” things for the big game. My father, the Dr. Brooks E. Reynolds, a Methodist minister, was always preaching Steven Covey’s theme: “The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” You can appl
Coaching in Denmark
By Wayne Anderson Sporting Director/Head Football Coach, Odense Swans I joined the Odense Swans in Denmark as their head coach on May 18th. Having coached in Norway and Italy prior to this position, traveling overseas was not a new experience; however, there are always unique challenges with each destination. With eight years of seasonal coaching positions, my wife and I have a routine when preparing me for the season away from home. When preparing to coach in E
AFM Subscribers Ask: Steve Warren Head Coach Abilene High School
Last fall, Abilene finished the season 15-0 by beating Katy High School in the Division II 5A Texas State Championship. Winning their first state title in 53 years, Abilene completed the season as the consensus #2 high school team in the country. Before Warren arrived in 1996, Abilene suffered through eight consecutive losing seasons. Entering his 15th season this fall, Warren has an overall 132-63 record which includes 11 straight playoff appearances. Abilene uses a one-back system as its base
Portable Perspective
Colleges and high schools have long employed elevated end zone and sideline cameras to capture practice and game video that could be reviewed and used as a teaching tool. But, until recently, the stationary cameras were limited in how they could be used in a variety of practice situations. Now, that has changed with the introduction of the remarkable portable elevated camera system from U.S. Sports Video called the SideWinder. In the summer of 2006, Tennessee Offensive Coordi
The Color Drill: Helping Linebackers & Defensive Backs Maximize Their Drops
Over the years our defensive staff has successfully identified areas our defense needed to improve on. After identifying these weaknesses we have the ability to think of some innovative drills to help our players improve in the specified areas. This past season we identified that while getting into their zone pass drops, our linebackers and defensive backs were not reading the backfield action and the quarterback. In order to improve in this area we came up with our ‘Color
The Use of Multiple Tight Ends in the One-Back Offense
My first head football coaching position was in 1987. Upon arrival, I found quite a few skilled athletes, a good quarterback, and a severe lack of depth and talent in the offensive line. To overcome the problems in the offensive line, I decided to employ a run-and-shoot style attack. This allowed us to spread the defense and open up holes both running and passing that year. Our offense led our conference in rushing offense, passing offense, and total offense. From that start,
Game Week Practice Planning to Defend the Spread Option Attack
When we prepare to play against the spread option, we first need to understand that getting the most out of our practice time is the number-one priority. We understand that the option teams that we face run their offense at a high level and they have gotten hundreds of reps at what they do before we face them. So, we need to be able to get as many reps as possible in just one week. For the past eight years, our philosophy has changed from trying to get good at practicing and
10 Musts Before The Start of Fall Camp
#1 Hit the weights and don’t forget to stretch for success. Nothing can make up for players that are not physically ready to play their best. Instead of lamenting that your players are not “bigger, faster and stronger,” take the initiative and make them bigger, faster, and stronger. If you do not have a weight room, create your own. We started our weight room in a storage closet in the wrestling room. I personally ran the summer weight room three days a w
Offensive Game Planning: A Week-Long Schedule to Success
Game Week Schedule - Sunday Our game week schedule is designated from Sunday to Friday. Our main objective for Sunday is to have a final breakdown of our previous game by 4:00 pm. Our breakdown consists of players’ grades on assignments and team goals. We also determine individual awards for our players from the previous game. Following our team meeting, our players divide into groups and watch film with the position coaches. Their night ends with position lifts. At abo
Small Schools, Big Time Programs
For years, Smith Center, Kansas’ (population 1,700) claim to fame was that it’s located in the geographic center of the United States. Now, high school football has put the town on the map. The Smith Center Redmen gained national attention in 2007 when, in the middle of an eventual 79-game winning streak, they had an 11-game run where they outscored their opponents a combined 706-0. In one memorable game, they scored 72 points – in the first quarter. Wh
Coach to Coach
* Getting more done in less time is always a great model for success. Be organized and get the most out of your time with your players and staff. Wasted time is one thing that you can never get back. I have worked with coaches that must have had a different watch than I did. 3:30 meant 4:00 and a one-hour meeting always meant two hours. The one thing that all of us have in common is that we each have 24 hours in each day. I read recently that 25% of American worker
Speed Report: Combining In-Season Conditioning with In-Season Speed Training
The answer is usually not well-received. My reply is that we need to understand how the game is played physiologically. If you run athletes hard and often with short recovery time between efforts, your athletes are being exposed to overtraining. Consequently, you’re training the wrong metabolic system and will not be tapping the proper system that is required. Limited recovery with constant brutal sprinting is going to keep the heart rate at maximum levels. The heart rate should have a
Your Take: Worth Every Penny
Last August there was outrage in some parts of the media. News broke that University of Florida head coach Urban Meyer was getting a contract extension. The new deal meant that Meyer was going to earn at least $4 million on his new contract, and could make up to $4.5 million with incentives. There was cause for commotion, but it should have been because Meyer was so underpaid. Yes, underpaid. As in a bargain. While those who were critical of Meyer’s new deal talked about
Simplicity and the O-Line – Why The Flip/Flop O-Line Works
As coaches, we tend to overthink and overestimate our influence on game days. The common trap is our attempt to outcoach our adversaries across the field. While giving a clinic two years ago, I had an epiphany: “It is not my job to outcoach someone. It is my job to get my men to outplay their opponents.” On game day, it does not matter what we know. It’s what our players know that determines the outcome. This became my motto in everything I do as an offensive line coach and I am ble
Technology Tools: Computer Software That Brings Your Play Diagrams to Life.
Use coaching technology to your advantage with computer software that brings your play diagrams to life. Technological advances have had a significant impact on football and coaching, especially in how plays are developed and illustrated for coaches and players. Today’s state-of-the-art play diagramming software gives coaches advantages never before available. For playmaking, computers have indeed changed the way coaches coach. “Computers and software
Legendary Leader - George Smith of St. Thomas Aquinas
George Smith of St. Thomas Aquinas shares principles that have helped him become one of the nation’s winningest coaches His heroes are old-school coaches like Paul “Bear” Bryant, Woody Hayes and Don Shula, and his disciplinarian style in many ways reflects an old-school coaching philosophy. But George Smith is not afraid to try something new if it will help give his football team an edge. That’s what Smith, the head coach at St. Thomas Aquinas
Coach to Coach
The 2010 season will be my 20th as a Head Coach and/or Offensive Coordinator at both the high school and college levels. I have coached a lot of games in that stretch and held ten times as many practices. I started playing football in 1976 and haven’t missed a season since. I guess you could say that I am addicted to this great game. In those 34 years, I have learned some important lessons that have played a huge role in my coaching life. As we head into the 2010 season, I want to share some k
Strength Report: Lamar’s Off-Season Strength and Conditioning Program
The Lamar football program begins play in 2010 after a 21-year layoff. As the first Sport Performance Director in school history, it has been my task to develop and implement a speed, power, strength, agility, flexibility, and conditioning program. The process has been difficult, to say the least. Combine that with the fact that we are waiting for our athletic facility to be built and one can only imagine the challenges we have faced. Needless to say, I not only have had to think outside my b
Clutch Performer
Coach Dave White leads the Edison Chargers in high school hotbed Orange County Orange County, California, just south of Los Angeles, is year after year one of the country’s top regions for high school football. Many teams are highly-ranked, not just state-wide but nationally as well, and powerhouse programs produce plenty of DI talent every year. To succeed in “The O.C.”, be prepared to face a tough opponent virtually every week. Take Edison High School in Hunting
Five Ways To Ensure A Solid Foundation For Your Junior High Program
By Bill Shepard, Assistant Coach, Durand High School (IL) and Darin Davis, Assistant Coach, Dakota High School (IL) If a head coach at the high school level wants to achieve success then he needs to invest time in his junior high program. We believe that there are five essential ingredients that help lay a solid foundation for a football program at the junior high level. It may take time to get all of the ingredients in place but the effects on th
7-On-7’s: Tune Up Your Passing Game
While 7-on-7 competitions have been around for nearly 30 years, it’s only in the last seven or eight years that this concept has exploded. The growth of the 7-on-7 competition is a direct reflection of the growth of the spread offense. Today, more and more high schools and colleges are using the spread, and players and coaches see the value of 7-on-7 tournaments and competitions as ways to hone passing skills. The events match skilled players against each other. Usually played on
Samson’s Strength & Conditioning Coaches of the Year
From the NFL to High School, Strength & Conditioning Coaches are trusted to maximize their team’s potential when they step onto the field. Here, Samson Equipment recognizes those coaches who made a big impact in 2009... NFL Dan Dalrymple New Orleans Saints New Orleans Saints Strength and Conditioning Coach Dan Dalrymple learned a valuable lesson when he had a free agent tryout with the Seattle Seahawks in 1987. Dalrymple had been a four-
Takeaway! More and More Teams are Using The Strip To Create Turnovers
Stripping the football from an opposing running back or receiver is not a new concept. Some players, such as former Giants Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor, included it their defensive tactics long before the NFL owners made the strip legal in 2002. More than ever though, defensive players are being coached about stripping the ball and successfully implementing it in game situations. Colts wide receiver Pierre Garcon’s strip of safety Ed Reed following a Peyton Manning intercepti
The Wildcat Comes of Age - Making it Work In Your Offense
The Wildcat has evolved. The modern version of the single wing has surpassed the gimmick stage and blossomed into a game-changing weapon that is reportedly being used in some fashion by 80 percent of college and high school teams. The Wildcat even found a niche in the NFL, although its long-term viability at the professional level is still being debated. What’s not up for debate is the impact the Wildcat has on defenses. The formation, which dates back to Pop Warner in the
Strength Report - CITADEL’S OFF-SEASON STRENGTH & CONDITIONING PROGRAM
The winter off-season is the first of two primary development phases in the annual layout of a collegiate football player. The second is the summer. These are the only two periods of the year where no football is being played and training sessions are directed by the strength and conditioning staff. For us at The Citadel, the winter differs slightly from the summer, in terms of our priorities and where they rank. We believe that the better we keep the team physically prepared over the course
Most Valuable Player
Power, speed and reliability. The ability to manage large amounts of information and perform at a high level under pressure. Important characteristics of every successful football player, without a doubt. These same characteristics can also be used to describe the modern football team’s most valuable technological tool – its video editing system. Since they were introduced in the mid-1990’s, digital editing systems have become indispensable tools for today’s sophisticated co
Clear Choice
Imagine playing one of your biggest games of the year, on the road in a hostile environment against a formidable opponent. At a critical moment in the game, when it’s absolutely imperative that you get usable information from your staff in the pressbox, instead of hearing your coaches on your headset, all you hear are…truckers. It can happen and it has happened to Mark Speckman. “We also picked up other teams’ signals, radio stations and cell phones at various games,” he r
Dramatic Turnaround: Going From 0-11 to 12-1 In One Year
After Luke Salmons was hired to be the head coach at struggling Lawrence County High School (KY) in 2008, he did what every new coach would do. He put his plan in place and hoped for the best. Salmons inherited a program that did not have a winning record since 2003. “They’d had a period of five or six years where they didn’t win many games, and so I got the job,” said Salmons. “I’ve always wanted to be a head coach, and you never really know whe
AFM’s National and Regional High School Coaches of the Year
Greg Toal, Head Coach of Don Bosco Prep in Ramsey, NJ, was having success a few years ago with a program that continually ranked among the top high school teams in the state. They were beginning to surpass perennial powers St. Joe’s Regional, Bergen Catholic, and St. Peter’s Prep as the best team in the New Jersey. But he wanted to take DBP to another level. Toal knew the Ironmen could compete with the best teams in New Jersey but he wanted to see how they would fare on
AFM’s College Coaches of the Year
FCS Andy Talley • Villanova All season, Villanova kept tapping the rock, again, again and again, never knowing when it would break. The rock was one of the founding blocks from the first church at Villanova, which was built in 1896. The square block sat in the Wildcats locker room and even traveled on the road. Before every practice and every game, players and coaches tapped the rock. “This is what life is all about,” said Talley. &ldqu
AFM’s FBS Coach of the Year: Boise State’s Chris Petersen
Chemistry is so much more than just a cliché at Boise State. In fact, according to head coach Chris Petersen, chemistry is “as important as anything we do here.” “I think we have all been on those teams where we’ve had a lot of talent, but haven’t done well for one reason or another,” said Petersen, American Football Monthly’s FBS Coach of the Year. “We’ve also all probably had the opportunity to be on a team that didn’t have a lot of talent, but did very well to
Letter from AFM
After the Boise State Broncos completed their season 14-0 with a win over previously-unbeaten TCU in the Fiesta Bowl, you might expect Chris Petersen to give credit to his arsenal of trick plays that almost always work or Kellen Moore’s incredible 2009 performance for the Bronco’s success. Instead Petersen, AFM’s 2009 FBS Coach of the Year, looked to something more intangible – team chemistry. That’s why we’ve titled this month’s cover story “Ch
Developing an Off-Season Competition Program (Part II)
Last month Coach DePorter outlined the reasons for installing an ‘Off-Season Competition Program’ at Richmond-Burton High School. The program places all players onto teams, holds them accountable in a number of areas, and awards points in all phases of competition. In this issue, Coach DePorter discusses competition in other sports, community service, scoring and organization of the competition, rewards, and results. Other Sports Roughly 65% of our players
The ‘Loco’ Punt Formation
I have been the Head Football Coach at Galax High School for the last three years and, like all coaches, I stress the importance of all three phases of the game: offense, defense, and special teams. I believe that one of the most important phases is special teams and, unfortunately, many coaches don’t emphasize its importance until they get bit in the backside. A couple of years ago, while I was an assistant coach, I put some of my own thoughts into a punt scheme that I u
Reading the Proper Visual Keys - A True Essential In Stopping the Run
Effective defensive line play in football involves much more than three or four guys butting heads with the offensive line. Numerous physical techniques – hand placement, stance, shedding blockers, etc. – have been developed and refined in an attempt to overcome the offense’s built-in advantage of knowing where the play is going. All too often, an equally important mental technique which directly addresses this issue is overlooked. At West Liberty University, we devote significant time
Q & A With Larry Porter: Challenges for a New Coach
One of the challenges facing the University of Memphis when they fired Tommy West as their football coach was finding a replacement who could take Memphis to the next level. West made strides, taking the Tigers to fi ve bowl games in his nine years as head coach, but this past season was a disappointment as Memphis finished 2-10. An obstacle Memphis has always faced is that the college is in the heart of SEC territory. Memphis was an independent for years and for the last 15 seasons has been
An Offense For the Undersized: The Double Wing
In 1999, Ygnacio Valley High School, under the direction of head coach Tim Murphy, set the all-time large-school record in Northern and Central California by rushing for 5,019 yards. The Warriors’ offensive line that season averaged 208 pounds. In 2003, Murphy led Clovis East High School to the California Interscholastic Federation title and finished ranked in the Top 25 in the nation. The T-Wolves’ offensive line averaged 198 pounds. In 2007, Clovis East rushed for just
Developing an Off-Season Competition Program (Part I)
Despite some success over the last few seasons, one of the problems that we have had is getting our players to accept the idea that the off-season runs from January through August. We have had great summer weight room attendance, but our winter and spring lifting attendance has not always been at the level we expect. After a very successful season this past fall, we were also worried about complacency from our players and had to deal with some players who chose to work out with personal trainers
How To Slow Down the ‘Tempo’ Wing-T
During my first year as a Defensive Coordinator in 2006, we were very fortunate to have an excellent team at Merced High School. Making it to the sectional final and nearly pulling off a last-minute win was an exciting way to begin my career as a DC. However, that year was tempered with several doses of humility, mainly at the hands of the wing-t offense (specifically the tempo wing-t). In our second game of the year vs. Madera H.S., coached by wing-t guru Randy Blankenship, and later in the
6 Reasons to Invest in Recruiting Software This Off-Season
Walk into any college football coach’s office and, chances are, his desk will be covered with recruiting clutter. Questionnaires, transcripts, evaluations, DVDs, Post-it notes scrawled with contact info. This is the reality of the college game today. The pressure to win now rarely affords you the time to get organized. Fortunately, the days of legal pads and file folders covering the office and frantically trying to track down a DVD from that four-star kid in Texas from the last c
From Huddle to No-Huddle in 5 Simple Steps
Over the past few years, no huddle offenses have become increasingly prevalent among D-I football teams. While no-huddle has found its way into the high school game to a certain extent, many coaches still avoid this concept because of the perceived communication barriers. They watch college QBs constantly changing the play and get headaches thinking about how that could work on their team. At the same time, it is hard to deny the advantages that you can gain from the no huddle such as contro
Ditching Your Huddle – With so many teams going to the no-huddle offense, should you?
Until recently, the only time most teams would dare to run plays without taking the time to huddle up to get the play call and the snap count from the quarterback was during the two-minute offense, when saving precious seconds was critical. Not any more. Today, dozens of pro and college teams have instituted full-time no-huddle offenses with the simple goal of gaining an advantage over the defense by keeping them off-guard. High school teams are even beginning to follow suit. The no-
Gator Powerhouse
Head Coach Urban Meyer has called him perhaps the most valuable member of his staff. After just over four years with the Florida Gators, he’s widely recognized as one of the best, if not the very best, strength and conditioning coach in America. And now, with two BCS National Championship titles in the last three seasons, he’s at the very pinnacle of college football. He’s University of Florida Director of Strength and Conditioning Mickey Marotti and he’s prepping the Gators
From the Coach’s Bookshelf – Brian Billick’s More Than a Game
During his tenure as head coach of the Baltimore Ravens, Brian Billick experienced the pinnacle of NFL coaching success when the Ravens crushed the Giants in Super Bowl XXXV. He also suffered through perhaps the lowest point of his career when he was dismissed after posting a 5-11 record in 2007. Throughout his nine seasons at the Ravens’ helm, though, one thing remained consistent – the grind. In his new book, More Than A Game: The Glorious Present and Uncertain Future of the NFL
Strength Report – Harvesting Strength from the Field
We frequently look at different forms of strength equipment to help reach our ultimate goal of building a complete athlete. While much of the equipment we incorporate at Vanderbilt can be utilized inside, our staff definitely prefers to implement them outside on our practice fields. I have always felt that this form of outdoor strength training replicates farming. As coaches, we all want to grow strong, healthy, productive athletes that don’t break down and can withstand the heat. Simil
Lessons Learned - Bunkered In-Game Week in the NFL
Working in the NFL is a fight against time. A work week consists of 80 -100 hours for the coaches. The time is divided up between individual work assignments, group projects, game-planning meetings, coaches’ film sessions, player meetings and film sessions, walk thru’s and practice. The meeting time with the players is between 20 - 25 hours per week. The amount of time actually practicing on the field is less than ten hours per week. Hard to believe, but true. Monday:
Increasing the Efficiency of Your Practice and Video Time
“Time stands still for no man.” I’m sure you’ve heard this quote before. If you are like us, you are constantly looking for ways to optimize your team’s practice and video time. Doing so will greatly improve your team’s chances for success. Our offensive philosophy at Northwest Missouri State University is to “Be Balanced.” • 2006 run to pass ratio: 55% to 45% • 2007 run to pass ratio: 52% to 48% • 2008 run to pass ratio
Conversion Routes in the Empty Offense - The Pivot and Spacing Concept
Running the empty offense has many advantages; the ability to stretch the field both horizontally and vertically, getting advantageous matchups on the perimeter and opening up run seams in the defense are just a few of them. Yet, many coaches are hesitant when it comes to installing the empty-look variation in their playbooks. Some even feel as if it needs to be an integral part of the offense in order to be run correctly. The fact of the matter is, it doesn’t. Where there is shotgun, there
Q&A with Frank Spaziani
After over 30 years of paying dues as an assistant, Frank Spaziani finally gets his time. Frank Spaziani has been in the game long enough to know how it works – or the way it should work. In a world of instant gratification, his mantra has been if you work hard, stay humble, and pay your dues then good things will come. Which is why, after serving 33 years as a collegiate assistant, 12 of those molding the Boston College Eagles defense into a national powerhouse, the sixty on
Onside Every Time - Sam Nichols Turns the Tables by Making His Kickoff Team an Offensive Unit
In last November’s Michigan Division 4 district title game, underdog South Haven, trailing 7-3, began the second half with an onside kick. What seemed like a very risky strategy paid off, as the Rams recovered the kick, scored on the ensuing possession and held on for a 16-7 victory. It was the first playoff win and first district title in school history. Some in the media called Head Coach Sam Nichols’ decision to onside kick a big gamble. But was it?
Lessons Learned - The Most Important 12 Minutes in Team Sports
A good friend of mine once said, “The only meetings that count in football are the ones that take place at halftime.” Halftime in the National Football League is completely foreign to most people outside the profession. The world of halftime starts in the Laboratory in the Sky (press box) with about three minutes to go in the second quarter. The process begins with each coach talking to another coach through the headset (field) or in the press box as to what offensive pla
Increasing the Efficiency of Your Practice and Video Time
“Time stands still for no man.” I’m sure you’ve heard this quote before. If you are like us, you are constantly looking for ways to optimize your team’s practice and video time. Doing so will greatly improve your team’s chances for success. Our offensive philosophy at Northwest Missouri State University is to “Be Balanced.” • 2006 run to pass ratio: 55% to 45% • 2007 run to pass ratio: 52% to 48% • 2008 run to pass ratio
The Perfect Practice
Practice how you play. Perfect practice makes perfect. We’ve all heard the coaching axioms about preparation, and how important it is to practice efficiently. We hear them, but do we really listen? Just by simple word association, practice is tedious. To our players, it’s drudgery. Many of them simply go through the motions, “get through the practice”, and hold back until game day – which is why they signed up, after all. How do you organize your practices to mak
CONVERSION ROUTES IN THE EMPTY OFFENSE
The Pivot and Spacing concept – easy to execute and even easier to install. Running the empty offense has many advantages; the ability to stretch the field both horizontally and vertically, getting advantageous matchups on the perimeter and opening up run seams in the defense are just a few of them. Yet, many coaches are hesitant when it comes to installing the empty-look variation in their playbooks. Some even feel as if it needs to be an integral part of the offense in order to
Blitzing Bad Memories
Athletes require very selective short term memories in order to discard the negative feelings they get from mistakes or the stress of playing. As coaches, because we are working with such malleable athletic minds, we need to assist with this process, not reinforce the negative. Focusing on an athlete’s mistake—with ample doses of anger, frustration, dismissive-ness or sarcasm—creates athletes who are overly careful and fearful of making future mistakes. In football, as in mos
Longhorn Legend
Texas strength and conditioning coach Jeff “Mad Dog” Madden oversees a cutting-edge Longhorn program that combines intense training with sound nutrition practices. The words on the wall of the University of Texas’ strength and conditioning training facility have inspired All-Americans, Heisman Trophy winners, National Champions and hundreds of Longhorn football athletes. They read, “The pride and winning tradition of the Texas Longhorns will not be entrusted to the weak nor t
How to slow down the “Tempo”Wing-T
During my first year as a Defensive Coordinator, in 2006, we were very fortunate to have an excellent team at Merced High School. Making it to the sectional final and nearly pulling off a last-minute win was an exciting way to begin my career as DC. However, that year was tempered with several doses of humility, mainly at the hands of the wing-t offense (specifically the tempo wing-t). In our second game of the year vs. Madera H.S., coached by wing-t guru Randy Blankenship, and later in the s
Lessons Learned -from an NFL Assistant Coach - Bunkered In: Game Week in the NFL
Working in the NFL is a fight against time. A work week consists of 80 -100 hours for the coaches. The time is divided up between individual work assignments, group projects, game-planning meetings, coaches’ film sessions, player meetings and film sessions, walk thru’s and practice. The meeting time with the players is between 20 - 25 hours per week. The amount of time actually practicing on the field is less than ten hours per week. Hard to believe, but true. Monday:
The Laboratory in the Sky
Most people think all the decisions in the National Football League are made from the sideline. Nothing could be further from the truth. I never worked on the sideline in the NFL. All my experience was in the coaches’ booth. I wouldn’t have had it any other way. The learning experience each game was priceless. I worked in the NFL coaches’ booth both offensively and defensively. The thinking process in the box is constant. You need to be zoned in on all cylinders for the
ADDING FLEXIBILITY TO YOUR DEFENSIVE GAME PLAN
As high school defensive coordinators, we are challenged on a weekly basis to stop a variety of offensive schemes. Over the course of last season, these offensive schemes included split-back veer, wing-t, fly, zone, pro-style, full-house double TE, and of course the spread offense. Our defensive staff has always prided itself in being able to prepare our players on a weekly basis to stop our opponent’s particular scheme, their most dominant player, and their bread-and-butter plays.
Recruiting Confidential
ESPN’s Bruce Feldman shares his insight into the methodology of big-time college recruiting Since 1994, ESPN The Magazine’s senior writer Bruce Feldman (left) has been tracking college football at its highest level. He’s been in dozens of football war rooms and seen hundreds of player evaluations and highlight tapes. He has even ha
Stealing Signals
“I think that it is part of the game. It forces you to become more creative in protecting your calls, which is a good thing both for my staff as well as our players.” - Anonymous “Although I never go into a game with the intention of stealing signals, if a coach on the sideline or booth picks up on something, I will use that to our advantage. I feel that if it is being done in plain view on a sideline, its fair game. However, I feel using video equipment to obtain signa
Seeing is Believing
While the days of coaches scratching out X’s and O’s on a chalkboard or huddling around a 16mm projector to review game film are long gone, some football programs have not, until recently, taken full advantage of the high-tech teaching tools available to coaches today. Case in point – Oaks Christian High School in Westlake Village, California. To call the Oaks Christian football program high-profile would be an understatement. Not only had Head Coach Bill Redell’s Lio
Proven Performer
Top programs are increasingly choosing the DX300 sideline communications system from HME for its proven reliability and superior features. Steve Lineweaver knows about reliable performance. As head coach of the Trinity Trojans in Euless, Texas, Lineweaver has built one of the most consistently outstanding high school programs in the nation. With 5A Division I state titles in 2005 and 2007 and a national top ranking for most of the 200
Helping an Unnoticed Player Get Noticed
High school football offers many great rewards for young men. Unfortunately, due to state guidelines that are different across the board, not all players develop the same or receive the same type of coaching. Occasionally at the high school level players develop late, new kids move into town or those athletically gifted kids walking the halls decide to play football. If this is the case for a senior on your team, then you and he are going to be behind in the recruiting process.
The Most Basic Rule of Coaching - .COM
I am probably the only sports fan who goes to a game and watches the coach as much as I watch the players. As a peak performance trainer, I specifically observe what coaches do or don’t do in their leadership role, and I see too few coaches who know how to stay in the Zone. Generally, because of this, I can predict the outcome of the game by a coach’s actions during the warm up and first quarter of the game. Many—most coaches I’m afraid—have little understanding of the
The Strength Report - How to Utilize Your Space to Positively Effect Your Program
The High School Perspective: By Dave Brown, Strength & Conditioning Coordinator, Archbishop Mitty High School (CA) No matter how big your training facility is, you should be trying to utilize space to make your training efficient, challenging, productive and motivating. How do you train when resources are limited? Archbishop Mitty High School has one of the top athletic programs in the nation. Sports Illustrated, in 2006-2007, rated th
Lessons Learned - From an NFL Assistant Coach
Besides coaching on defense, my most valuable learning experience took place while working with the quarterbacks. Prior to my NFL coaching days, I worked a summer football camp for two years at a Big Ten university where I befriended the QB Coach, (Presently an Assistant Head Coach in the NFL) who taught me the QB position. We spent hours upon hours watching film. The first words that came out of his mouth were, “If you want to learn football, this is the position to coach.”
Schutt - FBS Coach of the Year Finalists
Nick Saban University of Alabama Nick Saban has won plenty of hardware in his illustrious career, and he’ll add more to his mantle this year. The Associated Press and SEC Coach of the Year has single-handedly restored the pride back in Alabama football. After struggling through a 7-6 record in 2007, Saban and his staff rolled the Tide to a 12-1 mark and a berth in the Sugar Bowl. At one point during the season, Alabama was the number one team in the countr
Schutt - College Coaches of the Year
Mike London University of Richmond Creating Competition in Practice – Making Players Perform Under Pressure After seven games into the 2008 season with a record of 4-3, nobody believed Richmond could win it all, except Mike London himself, who saw something special in his guys. “I knew that our losses could have gone either way early on,” said London, who was the defensive coordinator at Virginia before taking the job at his alm
Schutt - National High School Coach of the Year
Coaching Smart A Florida football legend, George Smith, is the Schutt Sports National High School Coach of the Year George Smith’s coaching career could have ended before it ever really got started. As a 27-year-old first-year head coach, Smith was getting his staff together after his first full season, a 6-4 campaign in 1975. “I was going around asking my staff in a post-season meeting who was going to come back for next year,” Smith recalls. “They al
Schutt - FBS Coach of the Year
“They pay coaches bigger salaries now, so you better not waste any time getting the job done. There is always someone else in waiting.” Simply put, Brian Kelly knows how to win football games. And he can win them at any level. Just as a craftsman works his plan to the detail, Kelly has executed his formula for success at every level he’s been – from Division II Grand Valley State to mid-major Central Michigan to a former Big East doormat, the University of Cincinnati.
Alternative Training
Every offseason coaches begin their workouts and conditioning drills in hopes of producing superior athletes for the football field. Many exercises are designed to produce faster, stronger, more explosive athletes and reduce the chance of injury. The list of exercises can be endless and many are very sports specific. The goal is to produce explosive, powerful, fast football players, not bodybuilders, Olympic lifters, or strongmen. At the University of Central Florida we use a varie
Developmental Aspects of Implementing the Front and Back Squat in a Training Program
The College Perspective: By Joe Kenn MA, CSCS, SCCC Director of Athlete Development – Football University of Louisville Utilizing a squat movement is highly recommended for any athletic-based program. The combination of hip and knee extension that this movement develops is a key component in an athlete’s overall physical development. At one time, the traditional barbell back squat was the primary squat utilized in our program. Now, we use a variety of
Football Coaches are Football Savvy, but Just How Movement & Speed Savvy?
For nearly 30 years I‘ve worked toward becoming an expert at movement and speed for sports performance. The time spent has been a labor of personal gratification. I’ve worked with the old pros and today’s modern superstars of the NFL. My forte has been developing players at the novice to elite levels. Over the last 29 years, I’ve consulted with 11 NFL teams on speed development and was once on the staff of the Seattle Seahawks. Three years ago, I was approached by Pete Carroll from USC a
The Drills Report: Delaware’s Defensive Line Hip Emphasis Drills
As defensive line coaches, we all know the importance of developing strength, power, quick feet, active hands, and a relentless desire to get to the football. What I also add to that list is the development of the hips in relation to movements necessary to play defensive line. We work year-round on the strength, power and flexibility of the hips. Our training staff and strength & conditioning coaches work year-round improving this area and I incorporate drills that I feel are
Football Video – The Right Way
From the days of 16 millimeter film to the videotape era to today’s sophisticated digital video systems, recording and sharing game images for team analysis and opponent scouting has been an essential coaching tool. But do some coaches underestimate the importance of video and miss opportunities to get more effective use out of their video programs – possibly costing them future wins? According to David Affholter, the answer is, unfortunately, yes. “All coaches study game video o
30-Stack Pressure Defense
When we went to the 30-Stack defense as our base defense, we did so for a few reasons. First, it suited our personnel. Traditionally, we are a school that does not have great size, but we were fortunate to have athletes who could run. This defense allowed us to feature our greatest asset: team speed. Second, we liked the idea of being in a defense where we could show a lot of different looks to opposing offenses in terms of fronts and coverages without having to change personnel. The 3
The Off-Season: Preparing for Advanced Level Training (Part II)
This is part II in Dale Baskett’s column on eight elements of speed training in the off-season. In part I, Dale presented four of the eight elements starting with periodization, foundation principles, load work and assisted speed training (to read last month’s column, please visit www.AmericanFootballMonthly.com). This month Dale discusses elements five through eight.
Special Teams Time Management
Special teams is the aspect of the game where the “Hidden Yardage” can have a great effect of the outcome of a game. The MSU “Red Hawks” will win the hidden yardage weekly. This is accomplished through hard work, being well disciplined, knowing and executing the techniques and assignments and playing every play as a 101%er. Solid special teams are directly related to sound and effective time management. The old adage of “Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance” couldn\
Fundamental Offensive Line Leverage Drills
I want to thank all the tremendous coaches who I have had the pleasure of learning from over the course of my 25 years of coaching. The following fundamental drills are still my favorite for developing offensive lineman. I take great pride in getting my players better every day. I impose the philosophy of never taking a day off or a play off. All my drills are executed to create positive blocking habits. The three things I demand each and every snap are for my OL to learn how to get into their f
Season Ending Evaluations of Players/Program
Jeff Shutter • Head Coach • Eastern York High School (PA) I always give the players a survey first to have them self evaluate their play, to evaluate their teammates, and to make suggestions for next season. I hold a meeting and distribute our lifting and conditioning calendar for the off season. I meet with the captains to have them write a brief note to help next year’s captains. The staff evaluates each game in hindsight and also evaluates returning players
10 Offensive Strategies
Charlie Stubbs is to coaching what IBM is to computers. Now at 53, chances are he’s logged more hours under a headset than the entire American Airlines flight crew. He’s spent 19 years in collegiate coaching, including the last eleven as a coordinator at such high-profile schools as Louisville, Tulsa, Alabama, UNLV and Oregon State. Perhaps it’s just coincidence that after his stint in Louisville, where the Cardinals averaged 32.5 points per game under his tenure, he landed in the lap of o
The Big Picture
It has been the goal of this article series to provide coaches with the ability to design a safe and productive strength and conditioning program. In this article I would like to reiterate some of the information provided in prior articles and give you a sample template. Before designing a strength and conditioning program it is most important to define what it is you are trying to accomplish. At the University of South Florida we have five program goals: 1. To maximize the genetic po
Beaver Brawn
When Oregon State beat #1-ranked USC in September, most observers agreed that the Beavers out-muscled the heavily favored Trojans. That was satisfying, but not surprising to OSU’s first-year Director of Strength and Conditioning Bryan Miller. The Beaver’s strength and conditioning program is being transformed under Miller, who was promoted in his third year at OSU when Jeff Macy left to become Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Milwaukee Bucks. With the help of a new facility featu
An Adjustment No One Wants to Make
Funny how we always tell our players that football is like life. We have our ups and downs and we learn how to juggle both of them without compromising our integrity or losing our dignity. About a month ago, our starting senior middle linebacker and one of the nicest kids, went down with a severe knee injury. But it wasn’t during practice, it was in the minutes leading up to it. As he was taking his introductory lap before our stretch he had the bright idea (we know they don’t always use
Halftime Adjustments
Halftime…It may be the most under coached aspect of a football game, and it usually separates average coaches from good coaches and good coaches from great coaches. It’s thinking on the run at its best, when everything else fails – when everything you worked on the entire week isn’t going the way you want it to – and you only have twenty minutes to get it all worked out. You either come out of that tunnel with redemption or suffer continuing onslaught. It’s always interesting to
Results For Recruits
Tony Severino might know more about big-time college recruiting than any high school coach in America. As head football coach of perennial powerhouse and defending Missouri State Champion Rockhurst High School in Kansas City, Coach Severino has compiled a record of 236-55-1 with six state championships over 25 years. With such a successful, high-profile program, Severino has seen literally hundreds of his players advance to play at the college level. From the 2007 team alone, 17 players have gon
What Can You do as a Coach to Improve Academic Progress and Eliminate Ineligibility
Vic Wallace, former Head Coach Lambuth University and now Special Assistant to the President for Athletics Lambuth University is a small, academic university. The university provides, for all students, a person with the title: Director of Student Success, Retention and Academic Advising. Professors report to this person via e-mail, phone or note anyone who is struggling in class, not attending, not getting assignments in or any student that requires special assistance or
- More Solutions to Problem #11
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 11: On field game/time management issues... what can be done if this is a problem within your coaching staff? We designate one coach as our time management coach, which is usually the coach(es) in the press box since they are away from the pressures
Valdosta State Defense - \"Code Red\" and Teaching Philosophy
First of all, I would like to thank AFM for asking us to share a few thoughts with you about Valdosta State and some thoughts about our \"CODE RED DEFENSE\". On behalf of our Head Football Coach, David Dean. and the rest of our Staff, we would like to share some of those thoughts that we believe helped us get through some halftime deficits we experienced throughout the year all the way to last year’s National Championship. Every group, unit, team, or some affiliation of people mu
Revamping the Wing-T
Who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks? Sure, the Wing-T offense has been around for over half a century and is continued to be used productively at every level of high school and small college football. The down blocks, traps and misdirection schemes have been giving defensive coordinators conniptions ever since the legend himself, former Delaware head coach Tubby Raymond, ran the Wing-T. This scheme has begun to morph into a different style. Good coaches are always trying to find wa
The Strength Report: Skill Development
These days a strength and conditioning coach has to be more than a weight lifting coach. They must be a mentor, counselor, nutritionist, etc. However, one area that must be well versed for a team to have great success on the field is skill development. Most seasons are between 3-4 months in length. This leaves 8-9 months of off-season time that position skills are often excluded. There must be a direct transfer from what is being done in those 8-9 months in the off-season to what will be done fo
The Speed Report: Variables For In-Season Speed Training (Part 2)
Last month we described many things that you can accomplish and sustain during the in-season. So very often in-season speed training becomes a burden to the football world in terms of time allotment. Football is about speed and the maintenance of technical applications that produce it. It never ceases to amaze me how much can be accomplished during the season with consistent training reinforcement. Conversely, the dissipation of technique can also be void of consistency when neglecte
Nickel Package: Matching Speed with Speed
With the continued advancement of spread offenses saturating the game of football, it becomes almost a necessity for defenses to match speed with speed by employing some type of nickel package in their scheme. It seems like not too long ago, coaches were fixated on putting their best eleven defenders in the game, regardless of the type of personnel that they were up against. Rarely was there any two-platoon system where players were subbed on and off the field defensively, like they were offensi
Stretching the Field With Your Tight End
Coaching tight ends at Marshall University has the best of both worlds. Our head coach Mark Snyder believes strongly in the use of the TE, while our offensive staff uses various schemes to implement them into the offense. Like most teams, we use a traditional TE with size to block defensive ends and also use their ability to be a part of the short passing game. In 2006, we found a hybrid TE to stretch the field and attack the defense with our vertical passing game. That year our TE’s combin
Getting Over the Mid-Season Hump
By the time you read this piece, you’re in the middle of the season and have a pretty good idea of how things will turn out. The best thing about the pre-season is feeling your kids out – who’s going to be a contender and who’s going to be a pretender. By now, at least you would think to have a handle on that. Hopefully, for most of us, we’re riding a win streak or rapidly progressing into “mid-season form”… whatever that means. For some of us, we have to deal with disappointment
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Mark Richt
An outstanding high school quarterback in South Florida, Mark Richt attended the University of Miami in nearby Coral Gables. There, he played for Coach Howard Schnellenberger and backed up future Hall of Fame QB Jim Kelly. Richt coached later on Bobby Bowden’s staff at Florida State for over a decade and helped mentor two Heisman Trophy winners, Charlie Ward and Chris Weinke. The Seminoles also won two National Championships during his time in Tallahassee. Named the head coach at Georgia prio
Using Speed and Movement to Shut Down the Inside Zone
Every defensive coach knows that the Inside Zone is a base play for most offenses. There are many variations to the Zone scheme like lead, split, read, and bubble. At Adrian we start with the premise that it is important to beat the Zone from the inside out. We try to force the running back to bounce or cut back where we want. We will run down the read, bubble, and options off the Inside Zone. Here at Adrian College we believe in a smaller, faster, attacking defense that leaves the offense on th
- More Solutions to Problem #12
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 12: Communication issues between the press box coaches and the sideline coaches...how do you improve this issue? As an offensive staff, which includes our head coach as an offensive position coach, we spend a lot of time in the off-season talking and me
- More Solutions to Problem #10
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 10: Poor personnel management from the sideline; penalties for not lining up properly, offside penalties, and your athletes\' running onto the field late. Is it the coaches\' or the players\' fault or both? Our philosophy is simple: what you see on t
- More Solutions to Problem #9
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 9: Special teams letdowns – losing a game because of special teams play...what can be done to improve special teams play? Our focus here at Holbrook is on kick coverage and punt/punt return, since these are the biggest change of field plays in the
Maximize Your Football Coaching Video
College coaches will admit that watching video accounts for 2-3 times more of their in-season workload than actual on the field preparation. Football game video is a necessary evaluation tool for coaches and players, yet many coaches struggle through each season with untrained videographers producing ineffective results. A decade of coordinating video for high school, NAIA, and NCAA-FBS football has taught me that finding the right personnel to handle your team\'s football video is
- More Solutions to Problem #8
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 8: Unproductivity in the red zone. Not being able to finish drives especially because of the lack of a strong field goal kicker...how to you deal with this issue? When we get within the red zone we limit our offense to what we do best: our ‘sainted
- More Solutions to Problem #7
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 7: Dealing with academic and disciplinary issues like cutting classes or grades...what can be done to solve this issue? We have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to these issues with both affecting playing time, depth chart, playing level, and eve
- More Solutions to Problem #4
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 4: Dealing with an early season setback such as an injury to your best player...how do you counter this setback and what is the contingency plan if this occurs? Having multiplicity in one’s scheme is very important at any level. Being a small town sc
- More Solutions to Problem #3
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 3: Not being able to get the ball in the hands of your playmaker and teams finding ways to limit his touches...what do you do to counter the frustration inherent to this problem? As the offensive coordinator in a triple option offense it is important
- More Solutions to Problem #2
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 2: Your running back has ball control issues... if he’s prone to fumbling, how do you improve his ball security? Ball security by all players is priority #1 in our offense and great care is given to ball security. We have a series of drills where th
- More Solutions to Problem #1
Continued from: 32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season Problem 1. Not playing to the level of your opponent – avoiding a major let down early in the season... how do you deal with this issue? Are there ways to motivate a team that is under achieving? Our biggest issue is not so much playing down to our opponents,
The Speed Report: Variables For In-Season Speed Training (Part I)
When the season starts coaches become so focused on football that speed development is often the last thing they are concerned with. Speed erosion is greatest during the season. We must be mindful that football is a game of collisions and moving fast to make plays. If speed enhancement is ignored during the season, the off-season becomes a point of diminished return. There is a lot one can do in-season to preserve off-season development and actually improve speed. Time is never your friend durin
32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You\'ll Face this Season
Monitor and adjust. It’s probably the most useful axiom in the coaching and teaching profession. We’re all regimented people by nature, which is why we get into this in the first place. We have everything accounted for and leave nothing to chance – from the opening stretch period in practice to our awards dinner in December. But what if that plan starts to tumble and collapse right in front of our face? What if your all-area QB tears his ACL during two-a-days? What if your seniors are not
Building Better Bruins
Head Athletic Performance Coach Mike Linn of UCLA has come home. Raised in Southern California, Linn was a two-year starter for the Bruins on the offensive line and stayed with the program after graduation, eventually becoming UCLA’s Head Strength and Conditioning Coach from 1999 to 2002. For the last several years, he’s been training individual athletes and supervising training programs nationwide for Velocity Sports Performance, a leading provider of individual performance training program
AFM Subscribers Ask...with David Cutcliffe
After only 22 wins over the last 13 seasons, Duke turned their fortunes to new head coach David Cutcliffe last December. Coach Cutcliffe comes to Durham after serving the previous two seasons as assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at Tennessee. His coaching experience includes a six-year stint at Ole Miss where the Rebels had a 44-29 record and went to four bowl games. Cutcliffe was named the SEC Coach of the Year in 2003 after leading the Rebels to a 10-3 record. He has participated
The 5th Down: Dealing with an Unsupportive Administration
Marcus George, Head Coach Ansbach High School Dodds, Germany “Our main goal when we go to a new school or welcome a new administrator is to weave ourselves tightly with the aims and goals of the staff and administration. It is important to let the staff know that you support them and to hear what the administrator is saying. Many times, we don\'t initially hear what we want to hear from a new administrator but the tune usually changes when they realize that our pla
Interviewing for a High School Coaching Job – The Key to the Right Fit
As anyone that has stayed in the coaching profession for long can tell you there are jobs that will be desired and there are jobs that look good but by taking them it could be the beginning of the end of your coaching career. How do you run the gauntlet of the interview process and find out the true story of what is going on at the interviewing school for the good of your professional opportunity and family considerations? A job interview is actually two interviews; the school offic
Michigan\'s Rich Rodriguez
There is no doubt that Rich Rodriguez has continued to establish himself as one of the premier coaches in college football. Known as the modern grandfather of the spread offense, Rodriguez has continued to establish quick strike offenses while developing even more explosive players to lead it. Now after taking the West Virginia program to new heights by making them a perennial national title contender, Rodriguez has his biggest challenge in front of him – as the new head coach of Michigan.
Predicting Offensive Coodinators\' Calls
Dear offensive coordinators, Ever get the feeling that someone is watching you? I mean really watching your every move. We’re talking about pure diagnosis here, like the quintessential chess playing tactic of knowing your next move before you do. This is the science of breaking down and dissecting your every move before you do it – and Warren Central High School’s (IN) defensive coordinator Steve Tutsie has got it down pat and he’s just about to share it with you.
The Triple Screen
It started with a sophomore defensive end on the scout team during the 2007 spring practice. When this inexperienced defender was able to blow up our jailbreak screen because he recognized the tackle was leaving to block the perimeter, it was another sign that we needed to address the fact that defensive teams have improved in their defending of the spread and screen game. Only four years earlier, our jailbreak screen, at times, had easily become a big play. Now, everyone was catching on to the
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Will Muschamp
Last fall, under Defensive Coordinator Will Muschamp, Auburn led the Southeastern Conference in scoring defense and finished in the top 10 nationally in pass efficiency defense, total defense, pass defense, and scoring defense. Since then Muschamp has joined the Texas staff as DC and inherits a defense that set school records for passing yards (3,611) and total yards (4,825) surrendered in a season in 2007. While he has his work cut out for him, Muschamp has a proven track record of fixing defen
The 5th Down: How to Motivate an Unmotivated Player
Rey Hernandez, Defensive Coordinator, La Jolla High School, San Diego, CA “We have started using an off-season program that is patterned after those used at some colleges. In fact I got the idea from a recent article in AFM about Kent State’s program. We selected seven captains and we conducted an NFL style draft wherein the captains selected team members. All returning varsity and junior varsity players were drafted and these players composed the “active mem
South Florida\'s Zone Blitz Package
We would like to a take this opportunity to share some of our thoughts and beliefs on our zone blitz package at The University of South Florida. We realize there are many different zone blitz philosophies, but our staff and players are very confident in what we do schematically. Through researching other successful programs and combining it with our experience as coaches, we developed a system that we feel confident we can execute on game day. We began our teaching process with our ba
Single Source
There’s no question that advances in technology have had a positive impact on football programs in recent decades. Digital editing systems have given coaching staffs play-analyzing capabilities that were unheard of just a few years ago. Wireless headset communication systems have become more powerful and more reliable and have freed coaches from the cumbersome wires of systems in the past. A long list of video accessory products such as duplicators have made tasks like sharing game footage wit
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Wisconsin-Whitewater's Lance Leipold
Taking over for his former college coach Bob Berezowitz last fall, Wisconsin-Whitewater’s Lance Leipold led the Warhawks to their first Division III National Championship. After losing to Mount Union in the title game in both 2005 and 2006, UW-W proved the third time is the charm as they upset Mount Union in their third straight meeting, 31-21. In the process, Leipold became only the second first-year coach to ever win a D-III National Championship. Leipold’s coaching career also began at
The 5th Down: Playing Time
Tim Dodson, Head Coach, Siuslaw High School, Florence, OR “First I think it is important to describe our school because size of school and coaching staff have a great deal on how playing time is handled. We are a 450 student high school and we have around 30 players on our varsity roster and 35 players in our frosh/soph program. We have three coaches with our frosh/soph team and three coaches with our varsity team. Our frosh/soph coaches are busy on our game night and
Special Teams Game Plan Design
In no other phase of the game can field position be changed so dramatically in just one play as in the kicking game; yet, coaches often minimize weekly preparation in the kicking game just to get a few more offensive or defensive reps. Also, in no other phase of the game can one play be so emotionally uplifting, or, conversely, so demoralizing as in the kicking game. Additionally, consider that nearly one-third of the game is consumed by some phase of the kicking game and that for eve
Valdosta State Defense: Code Red
First of all, I would like to thank AFM for asking us to share a few thoughts with you about Valdosta State and some thoughts about our \"CODE RED DEFENSE.\" On behalf of our head football coach, David Dean, and the rest of our staff, we would like to share some of those thoughts that we believed helped us get through those halftime deficits we experienced throughout the year on our way to the D-II National Championship. Every group, unit, team , or some affiliation of people mus
iFutbol Fever!
As everyone knows, soccer is king in the Mexican sporting world. But did you know that football as we know it, Fútbol Americano to Mexicans, has been played south of the border at the collegiate and professional levels since the 1920’s and today enjoys widespread popularity? Or that the top conference in the ONEFA (the primary collegiate league) is known as Doce Grandes – the Big 12? Or that an ONEFA All-Star team beat a NCAA Division III All-Star team in 2003 to capture the annual Aztec Bo
Renowned Rivalry
Together, the two teams have won the last 12 Oklahoma state 6A titles. They’re each regularly ranked in national polls. Their annual in-season game, known as the Backyard Bowl, draws over 35,000 fans – too many to fit in either of their stadiums so it’s played at the University of Tulsa. A documentary film about their rivalry called “King of the Mountain” was made in 2003. Last year they were featured in the premier episode of “Greatest High School Football Rivalries” – a nationa
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Valdosta State\'s David Dean
Last December Valdosta State’s Head Coach David Dean became the second coach to win the Division II National Championship in his first season. Dean replaced Chris Hatcher in January 2007 and then led VSU to a 13-1 record, culminating in a 25-20 win over Northwest Missouri State in the championship game. Dean served as Valdosta State’s Offensive Coordinator from 2000-2006 where the Blazers won another national championship in 2004. During that time VSU was a perennial leader in scoring offens
The Definition of a Coach
The other day I was at a sporting event with a friend who is a fellow coach. Behind us a student hollered, “Hey Coach.” We both automatically turned our heads in response to find that he wasn\'t addressing either of us. This athlete was talking to his coach, seated in our general vicinity. The athlete got his coach\'s attention. He appeared to be in somewhat of a panic, but whatever the coach was saying to him, it seemed to calm him down. Eventually, he smiled. Observing this interacti
The Speed Report: Quickness & Speed - What\'s the Difference in Football?
I travel the country month to month installing my progression – designed football speed training system. It deals with quickness and transition speed effectiveness. As teams and their staffs spend a few days learning to use the comprehensive package, I am always asked what’s the difference between quickness and speed? The common thought is that if a player has limb speed (arm and leg cycle frequency) then he has good speed. It’s the general thinking of most coaches but it’s n
How to Choose a Video System That\'s Right for You
In the early 1980’s, videotape replaced 16 millimeter film as the standard tool for coaches reviewing game footage and game-planning for upcoming opponents. While video had obvious advantages to film, coaches were just as limited in their ability to jump to the right video segment as they were with film. Watching game tapes provided video that could help a coach see a player’s problems and correct them, but rewinding and fast-forwarding through tapes was cumbersome and a big waste of time. E
Fueling Champions
As Director of Strength and Conditioning at LSU, Tommy Moffitt knows how to train athletes to become champions. With his second BCS National Championship at LSU in the last five years, Moffitt solidified his reputation as one of the country’s top strength and conditioning coaches. The 2003 Samson Strength and Conditioning Collegiate Coach of the Year, Moffitt understands the critical role that nutrition plays in supplementing the hard work that happens in the weight room. AFM recently asked
Developing a Passing Attack that Fits Your Plans and Players
Throughout my twenty-nine years in the profession, I have had the opportunity to coach at both the collegiate and high school levels. During that time, I have had the pleasure of working with various coaching staffs that have helped me formulate my philosophies on dealing with the passing game. At the same time, I have had many athletes with various ranges in athletic abilities. Therefore, I have had to adapt each year to the specific situation. When you are developing a passing at
Defensive Game Planning
Game planning is all about prioritizing; sifting through all the infinite details that you and your staff have investigated; and pinpointing the most crucial elements. Every coach worth his whistle charts tendencies from every down-and-distance, from every formation, and from each hash mark. They scout blocking schemes and multiple personnel match-ups, just like you do. They document the number of times you run certain routes; they know what your go-to running and passing plays are an
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Jerry Moore
Appalachian State Head Coach Jerry Moore led the Mountaineers to one of college football’s all-time upsets last fall: ASU beat Michigan, in Ann Arbor, 34-32. Additionally, Moore and the Mountaineers completed last season as the first ‘three-peat’ in the history of Division I-AA or FCS football. ASU won their third consecutive National Championship beating Delaware, 49-21. Appalachian’s head man since 1989, Moore has an overall 167-70 record. In 2006 he was selected the Schutt Sports FCS
The A-11 Offense: You Have to See it to Believe it
Warning: Although completely accurate, the following information may seem preposterous, even downright offensive, to some defensive coaches and those conventional offensive coordinators who have grown accustomed to running the same scheme year after year and too set in their ways to change. All skill players on the field at the same time? Every player can be eligible on any given play? It’s real. It’s all real. So real that we got film to prove it – right now as a matter of fact
The Speed Report: The Essence of High School Combines and Your Players
High school combines nationally have mushroomed over the last five years. Is it a fad or is it here to stay? Personally, I think it will stay for a while. Some years ago I was living in Seattle and for a point in time was the speed coach for the Seattle Seahawks. I was obviously aware of the NFL combines that were conducted at that level. In those days the statistics recorded by the organizations were strictly confidential; they were not public knowledge. Today, the combines are liv
Samson\'s I-AA, II, III, NAIA, Juco and HS Strength & Conditioning Coaches of th
Division I-AA/FCS: Henry Briscoe Central Arkansas The Strength and Conditioning Coach at Central Arkansas, Henry Briscoe, has been influenced by a number of coaches and players over the years. But, in addition to that, one book that has helped his strategy is the Book of War by Sun-Tsu. “One of the concepts in the book is to analyze your weaknesses and make them your strengths,” says Briscoe. “We try to do that in the weight room and on the field. This can be
Powerful Performance
A record-setting 12-1 season. The first top-ten final AP ranking since 1995, tying their highest ever. A stunning 24-21 victory against Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl. Multiple Coach of the Year honors for Head Coach Mark Mangino. The only one-loss team in the top ten. By any measure, the 2007-08 season was a monumental success for the University of Kansas Jayhawks. For Head Strength and Conditioning Coach Chris Dawson, the Jayhawks’ success on the field was the payoff for the long hours and
Building Team Unity with the Games Inside the Game
These days the game of football is broken down to a science. Sure, most coaches preach lip service about blocking and tackling but they are usually the same ones that spend a great deal of money and countless hours filing into clinic discussions trying to find the latest innovative offensive scheme or researching a bone-crushing defense. So instead of searching the ends of the earth for the newest scheme or end-all technicality, some coaches have turned towards the intangibles like developing t
4 Principles of Play Action Passing
Gary Crowton has seen it all. He has coached in the biggest stadiums, in the biggest conferences, in the biggest games. He has coached in the small stadiums of small conferences in overlooked games. But, one thing doesn’t change no matter where he coaches. It is all football. WHY PLAY ACTION? Crowton joined Les Miles’ staff at LSU this year as offensive coordinator and helped lead the Tigers to a National Championship using two quarterbacks and a handful of ball c
Test for Success
Beyond any doubt, strength and conditioning programs are becoming more sophisticated all the time, especially at high schools. Education of coaches, modern equipment, improved nutrition and detailed training regimens have all contributed to the trend. • But one very important area, according to legendary strength coach Boyd Epley, has been overlooked – testing athletes to establish benchmarks that can then be used to gauge the effectiveness of a strength training program. “Without a well-d
Shutting Down the Zone Option
Delta State head coach Ron Roberts knows the zone option. He sees it every week. Like most other conferences in college football, the Gulf Coast, a Division II conference, has become filled with teams who invest in running some form of option out of the spread. In fact, eight of the ten programs in the Gulf Coast are pure option teams. Whether it be zone, veer, midline, dart or speed option, chances are you will see some form of it. “We see it all, a little bit of everything to tell the truth,
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Ron Zook
Illinois Head Coach Ron Zook and his staff and players recorded one of the greatest turnarounds in the last decade with the team’s performance last fall. The Illini, 2-10 in 2006, finished the season with a 9-3 record, a major upset win over Ohio State in Columbus and a berth in the Rose Bowl. That turnaround (+7) was tops among all Football Bowl Subdivision teams. Known as a tireless worker and recruiter, Zook’s first two campaigns resulted in an overall 4-19 record. But his recruiting p
Practice Planning For All Levels of Play
\"Winning is never an accident, it is the result of high intentions, determination and skilled executions\" When was the last time you or any coach you know complained of having too much practice time? As a coach with nearly 25 years of experience at the youth leagues, I have never heard a coach complain of this. I doubt sincerely that high school or colleges complain of this as well. One thing I have found out though, in the research I have done of successful coaches at all leve
Schutt Sports FBS I-A Coach of the Year - Ron Zook
A program that won eight games the previous four seasons combined – and went 4-19 his first two years – wasn’t about to tear up the blueprint and start from scratch. Zook, 53, believed in what he was doing and that belief paid off as Illinois finished 9-4, including an impressive victory at Ohio State. Going from two wins in 2006 to nine this past season gave Illinois the best turnaround season among Football Bowl Subdivision teams. “I’m really honored to be named the Schutt
Multiple Fronts Without Changing Personnel
No matter what defensive scheme you run, there are a few elements that must always be consistent for you to be successful. The athletes must believe in what they’re doing and they must understand what their responsibilities are. At the high school level we cannot recruit, so finding the great corners, the big Middle LB or the two big, strong, fast linemen may not happen each year. As high school football coaches we need to be able to adjust what we do depending on what the parents send us. No
Air Raid Offense Drills
In the book Band of Brothers by Stephen Ambrose is a quote by the author of Warriors, J. Glenn Gray: “Organization for a common and concrete goal in peacetime organizations does not evoke anything like the degree of comradeship commonly known in war. At its height this sense of comradeship is an ecstasy…men are true comrades only when each is ready to give his life for the other without reflection and without thought of personal loss.” The players on our team must build cohesiveness close
Schutt Sports College Coaches of the Year
FCS - DIVISION I-AA Mark Farley Northern Iowa (7th year) Record: 12-1, first Gateway Conference school to complete a perfect 11-0 season; upset Iowa State. Offense: Primarily a one-back, Shotgun West Coast offense, with 30-40% mix of I-formation. Defense: 4-3 Key Stat: Talk about balance – the Panthers averaged 227 rushing yards and 229 passing yards this season. The difference in Mark Farley’s f
Schutt Sports High School Coaches of the Year
EAST Jim Morgans, Parkland HS (Allentown, Pa.) After losing to the Parkland Trojans, opposing coaches invariably remarked on their relentless defense. Parkland’s defensive pursuit was no accident. The Trojans, who recorded seven straight shutouts en route to a 14-1 season, practice a different pursuit drill every day. One is the rabbit drill. “We toss the ball to a rabbit – he’s a kid who will run down the sideline,” coach Jim Morgans explain
National HS Coach of the Year - Grace Under Fire
They say there are no hopeless situations; there are only men who have grown hopeless about them. But about this time last year, circumstances surrounding Miami’s Northwestern High School, one of the nation’s most respected football programs, certainly seemed hopeless. Antwan Easterling, one of the nation\'s most sought after running backs, was 19 years old at the time and had consensual sex with a 14 year-old freshman in one of the school’s bathrooms. Despite the fact that it was consider
Combating Offensive Speed with the 4-4 Defense
Whatever is being done at a higher level is usually filtered and quickly replicated through to the high school ranks. Packages like the zone read offense, the ‘spread’ rugby style punt formation and odd-stack defenses have become the norm now at lower levels. Although trends come in cycles, perhaps no scheme in football, except for the I formation offense, has had as much consistency as the 4-4 defense. Yet despite the popularity of the defense, teams have recently started to shif
The Choice of Champions
As every coach will attest, effective and reliable communication between the coaches on the sideline and those in the press box is a critical element of any team’s success on the field. For two San Diego area high schools, this meant a change was needed for the 2007 season. Head Coach Damian Gonzalez’s Division I Poway Titans were coming off an 8-6 season in 2006 where headset communication was sometimes an issue. “At certain schools we would pick up a lot of static on our headse
How To Get The Most Out Of Practice Time As An Assistant Coach
Football programs at all levels from Pop Warner to the NFL have to deal with similar challenges. Your practice time is limited. Your playbook is unlimited. Your next opponent presents numerous difficulties. As a result, many coaches struggle weekly with the same dilemma: How are we going to get all this done? The answer, of course, is that every staff must get the most of practice time. But how? While many clinics, books, and articles advise head coaches how to plan a week or day of practi
Did the Spin Offense Live Up to its Hype?
If you were to ask Cirtronelle High School (AL) Offensive Coordinator Barry Gibson or Catholic High’s (LA) Head Coach Dale Weiner a year ago if they thought they would have this much feedback from the Spin offense, neither one would have believed you. But the truth is since the first article on the Spin appeared in AFM’s December, 2006 issue, Gibson and Weiner have spent countless hours on the computer emailing coaches and in the post office sending out cut-ups of the Spin scheme. It has tak
The Zone Read in the Pistol Offense
“This concept is rapidly growing around the country. Most high schools that are good at running this are doing it out of an off-set. We are doing it out of the Pistol alignment because we think it gives him a better downhill angle to attack the line of scrimmage and not so much sideways.” Coach Steve Rampy of Blue Valley High School in Stillwell (KS) won a state championship last year using the Pistol offense. But even though they didn’t win a state title this year, he is
The Truth About Recruiting
There is no doubting Ed Orgeron\'s passion for recruiting.. Just ask his former boss, Pete Carroll. But, unfortunately for Orgeron, his recruiting abilities didn\'t translate into victories during his three-year tenure at Ole Miss. He was fired Nov. 25, just a few months after Bruce Feldman\'s book \"Meat Market\" was published and shortly after this article was written. Plenty can still be learned from Orgeron\'s relentless recruiting efforts, which Feldman reveals i
The Machiavellian Football Coach
Written in 1513 and published posthumously in 1531, The Prince (Il Principe) by Niccolò Machiavelli has become synonymous with ruthlessness and tyranny. Today, it is often read (along with Lao Tzu’s The Art of War, interestingly enough) in business courses as preparation for the cut-throat world these students are about to enter. A careful reading of The Prince, however, yields an insightful view into topics essential to becoming a successful football coach. Before we set about anal
Defending the Pass
In today’s brand of college football, teams tend to throw more than they run. In light of this trend, the coaching staff at UCLA has tried to be more creative with regard to how we coach and prepare our players to play against the pass. Also, because of his experience in the NFL, UCLA Defensive Coordinator Dewayne Walker, then with the Washington Redskins, brought information from studies done on \'Ball Disruptions.\' It is well known that combining pressure on the passer with the ja
Gaining the Pre- and Post-Snap Advantage
It is commonly said that an offense has two distinct pre-snap advantages over any particular defense: one, they know the snap count and two, they know where the ball is going. Once the ball is snapped those advantages disappear, but there are other factors post-snap, such as movement and deception, to help leverage defenses. AFM talked to three of the more prominent coaches in the country: Dale Weiner of Catholic High School in Baton Rouge; Byron Hamilton of Foothill High School in Cal
Common Bond
The contrasts could not be greater. The big school in the football-crazed state that routinely plays in front of over 10,000 fans and produces multiple D-I players every year. The small school in the small state that’s only playing in its eighth year and might draw 2,000 for the season’s biggest game. One tech-savvy coach who has grown up with computers and another who had, until very recently, never used a computer and still refuses to use email. But Defensive Coordinator Jonathan Kay of po
What Do You Mean You Guys Don\'t Bench? Not At All?
\"Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect\"—Mark Twain I can’t begin to tell you how many times I’ve had to answer the title of this article in the past four years—from all factions: fans, players, parents and even other coaches. As you well know, in our profession anytime we go against the norm there is some inherent risk. There is safety in conformity. “If the league champ is running the spread, then we will too. So
Unsung Heroes
Monday, August 29, 2005. In the early morning hours, category 3 Hurricane Katrina slams into Louisiana and Mississippi, barely missing a direct hit on New Orleans. The worst damage is initially concentrated on the Gulf Coast, but within the next 24 hours it becomes apparent that the levee system designed to protect New Orleans is failing. Some levees are topped by the high water in Katrina’s wake and others are completely breached. By the end of the day on Tuesday, 80% of New Orleans is un
The Strength Report: Developing the Explosive Athlete - Auburn's Off Season Tra
Conditioning should be at the forefront of a football strength and conditioning program. This does not diminish the importance of the weight room but there always needs to be a certain level of fitness for each player. You can't overemphasize the importance of conditioning, especially in this day and age. No matter how great the player is in the weight room, if he can't run, he can't play. This not only applies to straight-ahead running but the ability to move athletically, to change direction a
How Kent State Creates Leaders through Year-Round Competition
Kent State University Head Coach Doug Martin remembers trying to figure out what went wrong following a 1-10 season (including 0-8 in the Mid-American Conference). Picking up the pieces after the team had gone a respectable 5-6 the previous year wasn’t easy. But one piece that certainly needed to be addressed was team leadership. “When coaches are losing, the first thing that comes out of their mouths is we don’t have any leadership,” Martin said. “Well, it’s our job as coa
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Jerry Glanville
The man in black is back...Veteran NFL coach Jerry Glanville accepted the head coaching position at Portland State earlier this year. The former head coach of both the Houston Oilers and Atlanta Falcons, Glanville spent more than a decade out of coaching while serving as a television analyst. He returned to the coaching ranks on the college level two years ago, joining June Jones’ staff in Hawaii as Defensive Coordinator. After two years in Honolulu, Glanville accepted the PSU position on Febr
The Spin Offense: The Weakside Attack
Six years ago, I was the offensive coordinator at St. Andrews Episcopal High School in Ridgeland, MS. I was at a point in my career where I wanted to design an offense that would not only be different but would also help a team with average talent to compete against much stronger and more talented teams. With 23 years of coaching experience under my belt, I had run just about every kind of offense you could imagine. It was at that time I created the \'Spin Offense.\' By combining some
The Defensive End: Up or Down?
Chuck Martin is quite familiar with success. Martin will begin his third year as head football coach at Grand Valley State University, the winningest Division II football program in the country. He has led the Lakers to 23 wins, a D-II National Championship, a 13-game winning streak and a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) title. The Lakers’ success begins and ends with defense. Eleven of GVSU’s 13 opponents were held to 17 points or less and seven scored 10 points or fe
Inside Zone Read: Three Ways to Combat the Games Defenses Play
Our base running play is the inside zone read out of the shotgun. We don’t block the backside end and since we are in the shotgun he becomes our read. Our offensive staff has had the opportunity to ask a lot of defensive coordinators at various levels ‘how do you defend zone read?’ Most of them answer that they have one defender on the backside responsible for chasing the running back and another to stay at home and ‘rob’ the QB. This can be done out of many different fronts. Defenses
AFM Subscribers Ask...with Glenn Caruso
Macalester College’s football program began a new era on December 16, 2005 when the college named Glenn Caruso its new football coach. In his previous position as offensive coordinator at South Dakota, Caruso directed an offense that set 117 school records including points scored and total yardage. In 2005, the Coyotes went 9-2 while averaging 49.7 points and 583 yards per game. Last fall, in his first season as Macalester’s head coach, the Scots produced their two highest single-game, total
Effective Cover 1 Robber Coverage
John Burrell sits in his office on a warm afternoon in late July. The Western Connecticut State University coach wishes he could walk over to the clock on the wall and stop the hands from moving. But with a game scheduled for late August that clock just keeps on ticking towards another season. There never seems to be enough time to get ready. And getting ready for Burrell often includes creating something different. A new twist. A wrinkle no one has seen before. An adjustment here. An adjustment
Disguising Your Pre-Snap Defense
Sometimes the best way to disguise a defense is with no disguise at all. Miami (OH) defensive backs coach Tim Cooper relies on that type of deception to confuse offenses. Instead of throwing multiple looks at offenses, Cooper often prefers that the Redhawks’ defense looks identical to the way it did on the previous play. That doesn’t mean Miami will never use pre-snap movement. Stemming the line, bluffing pressure with creeping linebackers and showing multiple-safety looks are all
Meshing the Option with the West Coast Offense
Not unlike the other service academies, when it came to running the football, the United States Air Force Academy prided itself on executing a balanced, three-back option attack. Focusing on four to five yards a carry – their patented scheme would burn up the clock and wear down its opponents. It was that ‘three yards and a cloud of dust’ mentality that former head coach Fisher DeBerry preached to his cadets for the 23 years of his reign giving them a chance to compete against bigger, stro
Major Upgrade
Any list of the most successful prep programs in the country over the last quarter century would certainly include the Jenks Trojans. Led by Head Coach Allan Trimble, Jenks has taken the Oklahoma 6-A state title crown 11 times since 1979, including six in a row between 1996 and 2001 and eight out of the last eleven. Trimble’s perennial powerhouse prevailed again in 2006, overcoming the tragic death of the team’s starting center, Garrett Bennett, just prior to the start of the season.
Letter From the Editor/Publisher: Terry Hoeppner (1947-2007)
Terry Hoeppner (1947-2007) Football coaches are judged by the number of wins and losses on their record. But the real judgment is based on the lives a coach touches. Terry Hoeppner was an assistant high school coach, Head Coach at Franklin College, on the staff and then Head Coach at Miami University and then Head Coach at Indiana. A football coach for more than three and a half decades, we estimate he influenced the lives of about 1,875* players. That,
Motion Offense
It is an honor to write this article on behalf of Rick Comegy and the Jackson State offensive staff. We’ve been fortunate to be blessed with an array of talented athletes who have the ability to play multiple positions. Offensive coaches are always trying to find the edge on defenses. Using motion, shifting, and audibles at the line of scrimmage are just a few ways we try to create mismatches for every play. Defenses are doing an excellent job of recognizing different personnel groups and maki
D-Backs: Playing with Low Pad Level
One of the most important fundamental concepts that we stress in the secondary at Iowa State University is playing with low pad level. We believe as a staff that this improves the capabilities of our players in two ways. First, low pad level allows us to have phenomenal power when striking a ball carrier or when disengaging from a blocker. Second, it allows for quicker cuts and breaks, especially within the secondary. I have had the opportunity to work with both the linebackers as well
Comebacks
Games can be-and often are-won at halftime. Last year in Division I-A, there were 129 comeback victories by teams that trailed at halftime. Houston’s Art Briles authored five second-half comeback victories in 2006, most in Division I-A. Having a high-powered, quick-strike offense helps, says Briles, but making sure the team believes it can get back into the game is equally as important. San Jose State’s Dick Tomey led the Spartans to four second-half comebacks en route to
AFM Subscribers Ask... with Ron Vanderlinden
Penn State Linebackers Coach Ron Vanderlinden answered questions from subscribers in the May issue of AFM. Because of the subscriber response, he answers additional questions about the linebacker position. A coach for more than a quarter century, Vanderlinden has coached at Bowling Green, Michigan, Ball State, Colorado, Northwestern, Maryland and Penn State. He was the Terrapins head coach from 1997-2000 and this fall enters his seventh year in Happy Valley. Q. What is the teaching
GAME PREPARATION FOR HIGH SCHOOL DEFENSE
It is an honor to contribute to American Football Monthly and to represent the Verona Area High School football program. A common challenge faced in preparing a defense for each game is that of making changes and adjustments to defend the opponent, while maintaining the base structure of the defensive scheme. A second challenge is to maintain a manageable level of sophistication in scheme while eliminating player confusion. Many staffs spend the off-season learning new schemes, mo
The Strength Report: Developing the Explosive Athlete - Offensive Linemen
Training a football player is a year long endeavor. We have four years to develop the players under our charge. At BGSU we receive tremendous support from Head Coach Gregg Brandon and his staff in emphasizing the program to the players and allotting time for training during the NCAA imposed hour guidelines. The football staff also does a great job in identifying talent. When developing an explosive football player step one is evaluation. Players play certain positions because of body type, skill
Headset Heaven
Imagine the following situation: you’re setting up your headset system for a road game against a big rival. One hour before game time, you and your staff run a test of the system and it seems to be working fine. All five coaches on the sideline and four in the booth have good, clear signals. As the head coach, you know that effective game day communication between coaches is an essential part of winning. No coaching staff can expect to succeed without a well thought out sideline comm
The Strength Report: Wide Receivers Part II
Our next three phases are the Pre-Season Camp, Fall In-Season, and Bowl Preparation or Transition. During the Pre-Season Camp we will utilize different circuits in the strength program. The wide receivers will lift two to three times weekly for about 30-40 minutes. The volume of lower body strength training is decreased significantly, due to the demands that are being placed on the position group on the field during practice in camp. This is a time we focus on recovery and injury prevention with
The Situation
It’s near halftime with your opponent at the 50 yard line in a Spread Shotgun set with trips on the right side and a single WR on the left. There’s time for one more play before halftime and it looks like a ‘Hail Mary’ is coming. You’ve been in a 4-4 defense but must adjust to a potential trick play or long pass. How would you defend this offense? Travis Cossey, Defensive Coordinator and Tim Schipper, Head Coach, Fennville HS, MI. AFM subscriber sin
Letter From the Editor: Free Coaching Clinics
Coach Brooke Stafford is the defensive line coach at Lufkin High School in Texas, one of the premier prep programs in the country. In addition to his coaching duties, he has another job: Stafford (pictured) is the Recruiting Coordinator for the Lufkin Panthers. With the guidance of Head Coach John Outlaw, the Panthers have had 131 players receive scholarships over the last 12 years. Having the normal responsibilities as a recruiting coordinator, Stafford spends time with the school cou
The Drills Report: Ball Security Drills
At American International College, through the diligence of our staff and head coach Art Wilkins, the idea of ball security and turnover margin is given our top priority. We have been taught to view this statistic as second only to the score of the game. Also, I have been extremely fortunate to coach talented players with high character and the ability to work hard and buy into our principles. In this article, my objective is to share my beliefs on ball security as it pertains to running backs,
AFM Subscribers Ask... with Tommy Bowden
The first thing that comes to mind when you look at Tommy Bowden’s record is consistency. In ten seasons as a head coach, all ten of his teams have been bowl eligible at the conclusion of the regular season. Each of his last seven teams have finished with a winning record. In his ten seasons as a head coach (two with Tulane and eight at Clemson) Bowden has an overall 78-41 record, a 65.5% winning percentage. A walk-on wide receiver at West Virginia, Bowden’s first coaching job was
Making the Most of 3 and Outs
Sure, some coaches like to preach about how vital special teams are, giving the cliché about it being one-third of a complete game. Yet it usually gets filtered down into pure lip service, with coaches dedicating the majority of their time to what is perceived as more important issues like stopping the spread offense or figuring out how to get their best offensive players in space – special teams becomes an afterthought. But for Lousiana Tech’s new head coach Derek Dooley, he’s
The Strength Report: Developing the Explosive Athlete - Wide Receivers (Part I)
Our football players are put through a year round periodized speed, strength and conditioning plan. Depending on what time of year it is, our focus for our football players will also change. The annual plan is broken down into six different phases: Winter Development, Spring Development, Summer Pre-Season, Pre-Season Camp, Fall In-Season and Bowl Preparation or Transition. Our football players are also grouped and categorized by strength and skill level along with the position they play on the f
The Situation
Scott Criner, Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks Coach, Bishop Kelly High School, Boise ID. AFM subscriber since 2001. We are a no-huddle offense and we expect to get a large number of repetitions per game. In this situation we would want to be aware of field position and how well our defense is playing the opponent’s offense. The worst thing we can do is force the ball and allow the opponent to gain field position by giving them a turnover. After taking the abo
Letter From the Editor: \'She Called me a Traitor...\'
Head Coach Chuck Martin of back-to-back defending NCAA Division II National Champion Grand Valley State University has an unusual distinction. In 2003, the Lakers won the D-II Championship when Martin was the defensive coordinator under Brian Kelly. After Kelly left for the head job at Central Michigan, Martin became GVSU’s head coach. In the three years since, the Lakers won national titles in 2005 and 2006. But what’s unique is that Martin made the complete transition to the offensive side
Drills Report: Drills for Defensive Backs
When playing in the secondary, one must understand the thought process of a receiver. A receiver’s stemming throughout a route helps gain leverage on the defensive player. Stemming is the use of angles by the receiver to manipulate the DB into position, where it is difficult to make plays. The stems used by a receiver are utilized for a purpose; that is, what specific route a vertical stem is taken on the DB. The vertical stem will reduce the DB’s cushion and make the DB turn and run. When t
AFM Subscribers Ask...
Ron Vanderlinden, now approaching his seventh year as Linebackers Coach at Penn State, has developed a reputation as an outstanding linebackers mentor. Over the years, he has coached Penn State All-Americans Paul Posluszy and Dan Connor, Pat Fitzgerald and Barry Gardner of Northwestern and Chad Brown of Colorado. He also helped the Nittany Lions defense rank in the top 15 nationally in rushing, pass efficiency, scoring, total defense and sacks in 2005. Similarly, his Northwestern defense in 1995
Technology Tools You Need Today
There’s no denying that technological advances have had a significant impact on football and coaching. In only a few decades, we’ve come from cutting and splicing 16mm game film by hand in order to analyze opponent’s tendencies to today’s state-of-the-art editing systems and software that can give coaches information and advantages never before available. Coaches today are wireless, online, hi-speed and most definitely high-tech. Product innovation and falling prices are drivin
Coach-By-Coach Responsibilities on Game Day
Coaches across America at every level require their players to be prepared for every game so they can be as effective and efficient as possible. If you do not require the same game day plan from your coaching staff in both responsibility and communication, then you are not being true to the requirements you place on your players. In researching another project for AFM, we found a wide discrepancy on game day responsibilities and communication among coaching staffs at various levels. T
The Pistol Offense - Part I
Without uncertainty, two of the most popular schemes in high school and college football today are the inside/outside zone play and the play action that results from it. Imagine the offensive productivity you’d have by being able to combine those two concepts while adding an element of misdirection? It’s exactly this kind of productivity that Chris Ault, head coach at Nevada, is having with the Wolf Pack since converting from an “I” formation to his own invention, the Pistol offense.
Implementing the Sweep Series Package
Growing up the son of a high school football coach, I was exposed to a brand of offensive football that utilizes a series of complementary plays off the same or similar formations, backfield actions, and blocking schemes. The Drive Series or Split- T offense that my father used in our high school combined full flow base runs with the misdirection of counter plays and play action passes. All fit neatly into a system that allowed the offense to keep the defense off balance by countering defensive
The Situation
Pete Saylor, Assistant Coach, Southern Columbia High School, Catawissa, PA. AFM subscriber since 1999. The field position does not put us in a panic mode. The staff has reminded the team that our opponent has some outstanding athletes with the ability to make some big plays. It is important that we keep our composure over the course of the game. We know that they like to take advantage of their team speed. With that said, we feel we can stay in our base defense and have succes
Drills Report: C.W. Post\'s Zone Block Teaching Progressive
The purpose of this article is to discuss how we teach the basics of zone blocking at C. W. Post. In our nine years as a staff, we have enjoyed great success. We believe this is due to playing great defense and being dominant in the run game. Over the last few years we\'ve had running backs that have gained over 2,000 yards in different seasons and in 2005 we had two running backs that both rushed for over 1,000 yards. Among all Division II colleges in 2005, we were fourth in total offense (517
Bobby April\'s 5 Must Follow Rules for Coaching Kickoff Returns
Have you ever dreamt of always starting an offensive drive near midfield? Or is it more of the opposite … you wake up in a cold sweat after another nightmare where your kick returner misjudges the ball and you are stuck near your goal line in the biggest game of the year. Buffalo Bills Special Teams Coach Bobby April has five rules that will all but guarantee that you will be better than ever in your kick return game. And hopefully you will sleep better at night. RULE# 1
Developing the Explosive Athlete: Wide Receivers
Strategy My strategy when designing a strength and conditioning program for the Georgia Tech football team first starts with the word EFFORT. Over the last eleven years that I have been in this business, I have found that all of the successful teams that I have worked with were not always the most talented but won because of their willingness to put forth the extra effort and intensity needed for us to become successful. I firmly believe that the athlete’s motivation and dedic
Preparation: 4 Points to Remember from Penn State
If you had the opportunity to spend an hour with Penn State Linebackers Coach Ron Vanderlinden, what would you ask him? Think for a moment about the tradition of Nittany Lion linebackers. I had that opportunity at last month’s American Football Coaches Association convention in San Antonio. While we were getting ready for a photo shoot, we talked informally, not about X’s and O’s but about game preparation. Coach Vanderlinden takes a special pride in preparation as we spoke about
Strong Beliefs: A Key Ingredient in the Success of a Strength & Conditioning Pro
D I-AA: Kyle Speer • Sam Houston State Kyle Speer has been the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at Sam Houston State University for three years. He has one assistant coach, Brian Wiseman, working with him, and together the two are responsible for 16 sports with more than 350 athletes. In 2005 and 2006, Sam Houston State won the Commissioner’s Cup Championship Award, which is a performance-based award for the best overall athletic program in the Southland Conference. Sp
AFM Subscribers Ask...
Catholic High School Coach (Baton Rouge, LA) Dale Weiner has been a coach for 32 years with the last 21 as the head man at CHS. During that time, his teams have a 201-48 overall record with 13 district titles and have been either a state finalist or semi-finalist a total of 7 times. CHS has a current playoff streak, as well, of 19 consecutive years. He has coached, among other outstanding athletes, Warrick Dunn, Major Applewhite and Travis Minor. During the 2001 season Weiner and his staff began
The Speed Report
Coaching is teaching and the successful coaches from year to year are usually good teachers on the field. Over the last 38 years I’ve been coaching I’ve observed that most coaches rely on natural talent and innate speed skills when choosing a running back. Running backs with quicks, vision and intuitive reaction capabilities are a choice commodity. Exceptional running backs come along infrequently. However, developing backs to have quickness, burst and acceleration capability while running w
AFM Subscribers Ask...
Former Georgia Southern head coach Mike Sewak helped learn his craft from two GSU legendary coaches: Erk Russell and Paul Johnson. An oustanding lineman for Virigina in the late 70\'s, Sewak first coached at Hobart and Georgia Tech before joining Russell\'s staff for two seasons in the mid 80\'s. In those two years in Statesboro, the Eagles won national championships. He then coached at Hawaii and Ohio before coming back to GSU on Johnson\'s staff. As OC, Sewak and the Eagles won two more champ
The Spin Offense
Coaches spend the majority of their off-season performing a great deal of self-scouting. Assessing each game film, they evaluate what plays were productive and which plays to scrap entirely out of their playbook. After the 2001 season, Dale Weiner and his staff at Catholic High (LA) realized that the hybrid they created called the “spin” worked exactly as planned – incorporating Wing T offense with traditional “I” formation misdirection in the run game. Opposing teams were l
Building a Foundation
Despite having played in the nation’s first college football game on Nov. 6, 1869, Rutgers’ transformation from perennial loser to winner did not begin until Greg Schiano took over as the Scarlet Knights’ head coach on Dec. 1, 2000. Even then, success didn’t come immediately. Over a six-year period, the program and the coaching staff’s strategies and philosophies have undergone a series of adjustments and adaptations. “Being a defensive coach I’ve always believe
Point Counterpoint: Quarterback Read vs. Defending the Inside Zone
Coach: Charles W. Bankins School: Hampton Running Backs Coach Scheme: A primarily two-back set that has steadily added more elements of the spread to the offense, including using more one-back sets. The result is a potent and extremely balanced attack that averaged 175 yards on the ground and 176 through the air. Experience: Spent last season as a special teams assistant on Mike Martz’ St. Louis Rams staff, before returning to Hampt
The Tools to be a Linebacker
Defining A Hawk Linebacker: In the 50 front, which is the Hawk base defense, the two linebackers are labeled Sam and Will. Sam is historically the strong side linebacker based around the offensive set and normally lines up on the tight end side. The other linebacker is labeled Will and normally plays on the split-end side of the offensive set. In an offensive set that has two tight ends the Sam linebacker will position himself on the tight end side that has the flanker present or a power
The Mental Aspect of Winning in the Trenches
All defensive line coaches have been embedded to believe that games are won and lost in the trenches. We would love to have that 6’ 8”, 290 lb. defensive end who runs a 4.5 40-yard dash and benches 500 lb. But for most of us that is not reality. As the old saying goes, “The game of football is 90% mental and 10% physical.” All coaches believe that the team that is most prepared will win the ball game. Here at Florida A&M University, we are fortunate to have a head coach, Rubin Carter, an
Schutt Sports High School Coach of the Year
Steve Tutsie
In just his first year as a varsity head football coach, Steve Tutsie led his Warren Central Warriors to a 15-0 record and an Indiana State Class 5A championship. The Warriors were as dominant as any team in the country, outscoring their opponents 722 to 124 and winning the state championship game by a comfortable 35-14 over Carmel in the RCA Dome in Indianapolis. Tutsie, 41, was so impressive under the head set that he was named the Schutt Sports National Coach of the Year. Tutsie doe
Schutt Sports High School Coaches of the Year
East Greg Toal Don Bosco Prep, Ramsey, NJ Using the run to set up the pass isn’t exactly a breakthrough in game strategy. However, it worked to perfection as Don Bosco Prep put the finishing touches on a 12-0 season and New Jersey Non-Public State title with a 41-0 rout of St. Peter’s Prep in the championship game. The offense featured diversified looks out of the spread all season with a one-tight end, three-wideout look among the most used formations
Schutt Sports I-A Coach of the Year Finalists
CHRIS PETERSEN BOISE STATE The “other” unbeaten Division I-A school registered its 12-0 record in the tree-lined Idaho capitol virtually hidden from the harsh glare of the media limelight by the majestic Rockies. While undefeated Ohio State and its Heisman QB had a wire to wire grip on the nation’s number one ranking, the Boise State Broncos were chalking up another spectacular season capped by its sixth straight WAC title. Then, in one of the most incredible bowl ga
Preparing for the Media
Successful football coaches are prepared for every detail when it comes to preparing for each football game but when dealing with their local press representatives, many could/might consider changes in their media relations’ efforts. By understanding how media members cover their teams and especially their deadlines, coaches can create a better working relationship with their press representatives with some minor adjustments to their game preparation. As a retired Air Force public affairs s
AFM Subscribers Ask...Arizona\'s Mike Stoops
Arizona Head Coach Mike Stoops recently completed his third season in Tucson as the Wildcats finished with a 6-6 regular season record after back-to-back 3-8 campaigns. A 21-year coaching veteran, Stoops had an overall 168-48-2 record as an assistant coach. For five years prior to taking the Arizona job, Stoops was the top aide to his brother Bob at Oklahoma. A defensive back while an undergrad at Iowa, Stoops also coached at Iowa and Kansas State. Having a reputation as an outstanding defensive
The Spin Offense: The Running Game (Part II)
When Dale Weiner and his staff at Catholic High School in Baton Rouge (LA) developed the “spin offense” as their primary offense in 2001, there were three aspects that they felt needed to be accomplished in order to be successful: develop a base run package with complimentary play-action off of it; keep the defense on its toes by using misdirection and motion; and keep it simple enough so that the players and coaches can make adjustments on the fly. Although the system is quite sim
Backed Up Against the Wall: Coming Off the Goal Line
Although many programs panic or go flat when their offense takes the field after the ball has been spotted on the minus one yard line, our program gets excited! In Hal Mumme’s Air Raid offense we have taken this negative part of the field and flipped the scenario into our favor. Many coaches may see it as an unorthodox approach to this situation, but we view it as a chance to demoralize our opponent. When backed up against the wall, we have three main goals: think touchdown, no negative
Coaches: Ways to Lose a Football Game
Everyone knows that brilliant coaching strategies, like those of Bill Walsh on offense and Buddy Ryan on defense, can win teams games. But the opposite is also true. Coaching mistakes can cost your team games. We talked to as many coaches as we could about what the key mistakes are that can cost you games, real world examples of the mistakes and how to avoid them. Here is what they had to say: Jerry Schmitt, head coach, Duquesne University “One thing tha
AFM Subscribers Ask... Dan Hawkins
What Division I-A program was the only school to average over 40 points a game in the period, 2000-2005? The answer is Boise State and for 5 of those 6 years Dan Hawkins was the head coach. His five-year 53-11 record included three 11-plus win seasons and 31-game winning streaks in both WAC play as well as at home on Boise State’s famous blue artificial turf field. Last December he was named the 23rd head coach in University of Colorado history. Now in his first year in Boulder, he answ
Playing it Safe in The Red Zone
Keep it simple. The Cardinal Rule, no only for life in general, but also for football. It is a philosophy you may want to adopt to play better defense in the Red Zone. There is no question that the Red Zone is the most important zone on the field. Good Red Zone defense wins games! Typically on defense it is the most aggressive section of your game play; it quickly can become a high risk / high reward zone. However, I want to explain why you should
What a Rush! Getting the Most out of Your Pass Rush
Pass rush is the single most important part of our job. It should be a passion of any good rusher. We are committed to stopping the run to win. As we do this, it will give us more opportunities to rush the passer. It’s very important to be a complete defensive line with the ability to do both. The sack is the most exciting play in football. It brings the crowd to its feet, lifts the defense and destroys the confidence level of a
Establishing a Multiple Attack Running Game
During my time as a coach, I have learned that it is extremely hard to be one-dimensional and have constant success. Some teams do it and have success but on an overall basis we as a staff feel better about our chances with a multiple attack running game. First of all, we think it is much harder for our opponents to prepare for and if a team has success stopping one phase of our running game then we easily can retract to another phase. In today’
Sticking to the Script
Many coaches believe in the philosophy of scripting your first 10-15 offensive plays of the game and a few less than that for the second half. The idea is to make it easier for your players to have early success and to learn how the defense will react to some of your core plays. We talked to three coaches for their philosophies about scripted plays and for information about the kind of plays they actually put into their scripts. The coaches are Tommy Condell, OC of the C
The Spin: The Greatest Offense You\'ve Never Heard Of
The Strategy Head coach Dale Weiner and his staff at Catholic HS in Baton Rouge (LA) began dreaming up the spin offense five years ago during the 2001 season. Bored with the conventional pro “I” sets they had been running, they looked for a different way to run their mis-direction schemes like counter and sweep. So after breaking down the previous night’s game film on Saturday mornings, Weiner and his staff started to lay down the
The Strength Report: Running Backs and Wide Receivers
As a strength and conditioning coach at the Division I-A level, philosophically, I feel you have to first develop core beliefs, which guide you in creating your specific training methods. These core beliefs must first and foremost be grounded in scientifically proven methods, which speak to the specific athletic goals of the athletes and sports you are focused on. The primary philosophy I follow in program design for football is a system utili
The Drills Report: Wartburg College\'s Cut Block Circuit
The cut block is very important to our offense. At Wartburg College, we utilize the cut block in several of our offensive schemes. Although we do believe in the cut block, we do not cut our own players in practice. Because the cut block is so important in our offense, we asked the same question everyone asks, “How do we practice cutting without cutting our own players?” In order to effectively teach the technique and practice the cut block, we
The Scouting Report
All you have to say about Jenks High School in Jenks (OK) is the fact that they’ve won 7 state championships over the past decade. The architect for much of that success is head coach Allan Trimble, compiling an overall 122-12 record during that stretch. A number of his players – year-in, year-out – go on to receiving scholarships at Division I-A programs. In addition to losing a number of blue chip players yearly, Jenks\' success has enabled many of Trimble\'s assistants to go on t
Staff Report: Landing the Interview
Your dream job comes open and you are in a time in your career that your experience and skills fit the qualifications for the position. How you proceed over the next days/or weeks will determine whether or not you will be interviewed by the search committee. Creating a Buzz Your gaol is to create a \'buzz\' about yourself with the athletic director and committee members. You want to create as much momentum as possible to have the committee excited to learn more about you. h
Evaluting a Receiver\'s Performance
Evaluating or “grading” a player’s performance has always been a topic of debate among coaches. Many of the coaches that I have been around use the +/- system of grading a players performance in a game (giving a + for carrying out an assignment and a – for a busted assignment). I personally have never liked this system of grading because I think it lacks objectivity. If a receiver runs a perfect route but drops the ball, do you give him a plus or a minus? If you give him both, then they
Pursuit, Tackling, and Takeaways
As coaches, we have many formative years. We learn to scheme, we learn organization, we learn player relations, how to recruit, how to present, how to teach, motivate, package, adapt. There are certain things that have changed over time and there are some constants. Tackling and pursuit have always been trademarks of great defenses. More recently, takeaways has been a great indicator of team success. The goal of this article is to
The Strength Report: Defensive Backs
My philosophy for training the college football athlete is based upon the physical and mental demands occurring during the course of a normal practice and game. Football is a collision oriented game grounded in the physical skills of blocking, tackling, jumping, running, throwing and kicking. These are skills initiated by the lower body and lend credibility to the maxim of football being played on your feet. These highly synchronized skills are ex
Letter from the Editor
Special Teams: They Can’t Be Over-Emphasized When the term ‘Special Teams’ is mentioned each of us may have a different image or mindset as to what it means. One may recall a game that was decided by a kickoff or punt return while another may remember a fumble return for a score. There have been many dramatic finishes that ended in a special teams play. One of the most exciting games in college history was decided by not one but tw
Missouri: From the Shotgun to the Shovel Pass
In the past year of running the Shovel Play we averaged 5.5 yards per carry and it offered a great change-up to our inside zone play and our speed option. The Shovel Play is a great play for any shotgun offense because you can run it out of many sets and it forces the defense to prepare for the triple option. A common misconception is that you need a fast or running quarterback to run this play; this is not true. In our previous year at the University of Missouri our quarterback only kept
Maximizing the Shotgun Formation
The shotgun formation has become more and more popular, with some teams now using it to run as well as pass. We talked to three outstanding coaches about the intricacies of the shotgun. Lew Johnston, head coach of Western Branch High School in Chesapeake, VA, uses the shotgun as a change-up to his standard Delaware Wing T offense. New Mexico State quarterbacks coach Matt Mumme is part of a team that uses the shotgun about 50 percent of the time. A
How Do You Negate an Outstanding Wideout?
How then do you stop a receiver who can take the game away from you? We asked four expert coaches for their thoughts on the subject: Jerry Moore, head coach of defending Division I-AA champion Appalachian State University; John Wiley, his defensive coordinator; Lyle Setencich, defensive coordinator at Texas Tech University; and Gary DeLoach, defensive secondary coach at UCLA. PRE-GAME PREPARATION In scouting and looking at fil
Maximizing Your Down Lineman in the 3-5-3 Defense
It is often said that necessity is the mother of all invention. Such has been the case with the trend of the 3-5-3 (or the hybrid 3-3-5), or odd stack defense. While the scheme’s origins trace back to the mid 1990’s, when defensive coordinators Joe Lee Dunn at Mississippi State and Charlie Strong at South Carolina began penning its initial blueprints – now it’s trickled down to over a couple dozen teams at the collegiate level and some high school programs have even started to cat
The Speed Report: Increasing your Linebacker Speed
Every coach in America selects athletes year to year to play linebacker and must determine various characteristics needed to make the wisest choice. LB’s are the heart of the defense and a player must be multi-dimentional athletically able to hit, run, move quickly, and have the mental tenacity of a lightening bolt on a mission. Finding players each year with these skills sometimes is easier said then done. Lead with Speed S
The Strength Report: Linebackers
My general philosophy of preparing players for competition in the game of football is that the game is played with the hips. Football is played on your feet – running, blocking, and hitting. You have a triple extension of your ankles, knees and hips. You need to be extended into your opponent or toward the ball, when you’re trying to catch it for example. When a receiver explodes off the line, he’s using his hips. When a defensive end exten
The Drills Report - West Virginia\'s Defensive Secondary Footwork Drills
This month’s drill was submitted by Coach Tony Gibson, the Defensive Backs Coach at West Virginia University. Coach Gibson is entering his sixth year as a member of Coach Rich Rodriquez’s staff. Coach Gibson has also made stops along his coaching career at West Virginia Tech University, Cumberland University, Glenville State College and Gilmer County High School. While at West Virginia University, Coach Gibson has been part of three Big East
Blocking, Tackling and Leadership
On behalf of our football program it is indeed a privilege for me to submit this article. As coaches we devote quite a bit of time and effort teaching the fundamental principles and techniques of blocking and tackling. We do this because we know what a tremendous impact these fundamentals have on our game. Another fundamental that I believe to be critical to an organization’s success is leadership. Leadership is becoming increasingly more critical in college athletics a
In the Heart of Special Teams: Your Best Opportunity to Gain a Competitive Advan
At the University of Cincinnati, we believe that special teams is one area of the game where you can gain a significant advantage over your opponent simply through the commitment of your best players and the commitment of your entire coaching staff. In this article I will share ideas on how we attempt to get our players to buy into special teams and how we attempt to “out coach” our opponents. Whether you coach high school, college or in the pros, each one of us sells
Point-Counterpoint: Third and Five In The Red Zone
Northwestern State and Wisconsin-Whitewater are locked in a low-scoring defensive battle. Tied 10-10, neither team has been able to move the ball consistently. The Demons’ pressure has bothered Zeifel’s offense throughout the game. Finally, with six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the Warhawks put together their best drive and move into Demon territory. But NSU’s defense stiffens and the drive bogs down. Zwiefel is facing a 3rd and 5 at the 20.
The Scouting Report
Having earned a reputation as one of the great innovators and teachers during his 36 years of coaching, Walt Harris became the head football coach at Stanford on December 13, 2004. A South San Franciso native, Harris came ‘home.’ Last fall, the Cardinal came within one win of its first bowl game since 2001, finishing with an overall 5-6 record. Approaching his 60th birthday, Harris has coached in 14 bowl games, inc
New Equipment
Wrestling Knee Pad From Bike Athletic 800-251-9230 www.bikeathletic.com Bike Athletic\'s wrestling knee pad, which can also be used to provide support in other sports, is made with foam padding for patella protection and side-roll motion. Using lycra and neoprene, the pad covers the full knee. It is lined with special fabric that keeps sweat off the skin. Air ventilation holes and a behind-the-knee cutout prevents binding. Sold individually, the pads come i
The Diary of a New Coach - Part I
Norman, Okla., is 17 miles south of Oklahoma City and perhaps most famous for being home of the Oklahoma Sooners. Football has deep roots in Norman. Norman High School, a Class 6A school with a strong football tradition itself, has nine state championships. NHS runs out of the offset I-formation and our base plays are either 42/43 Crunch (an iso on the playside backer) with a complimentary 26/27 Counter, or an option attack, depending on our personnel. Most of our passing is from a three-step
News & Notes
Former NFL Europe head coach Dick Curl joins the Chiefs Dick Curl, who joined NFLE in 1991 as Barcelona Dragons offensive coordinator and spent the last three seasons with the Frankfurt Galaxy as their head coach, has been named pro personnel assistant with the NFL\'s Kansas City Chiefs. In each of his first two seasons in Frankfurt, Curl was named NFLE Coach of the Year after leading the Galaxy to a berth in World Bowl. The Galaxy lost to the Rhein Fire in 1998, but beat Barce
News & Notes
Mountain West \'in the room\' on BCS talksMountain West Conference schools have gone from outsiders in the Bowl Championshp Series to non-voting members, thanks to a recent development in the BCS. The MWC, which is made up of eight former Western Athletic Conference schools such as Utah, Wyoming and UNLV, will participate in BCS meetings and discussions over the next six years. Only Conference USA and the Mountain West are non-voting members on the BCS panel. \"We\'re in the
Mike Leach Q & A
Q: You didn\'t reach the Division I-A level until 1997 at Kentucky. Before that, you had coached in Division II and the NAIA. What did you learn from your experiences at small colleges and how did you reach your current level?A: When you work at small colleges, you have to know a little bit about everything involved in a football program. A lot of things at major college that are done by someone else, I\'ve actually done myself. I\'ve actually been an equipment guy while coachi
New Equipment
Scouting/Editing Compatibilityfrom CoachComm800-749-2761www.coachcomm.comCoachComm has combined the popular Digital Scout and PowerTouch scouting software packages with their powerful video editing products. Simply enter the play information (down, distance, formation, etc.) into the portable Palm computer or the fast-entry PowerTouch tablet. Then print out your customized reports and open the CoachWin or DSE editing programs. Import the game files into CoachComm\'s
AFM Subscribers Ask... Texas Tech
Premiering with this issue American Football Monthly begins ‘AFM Subscribers Ask…’, an in-depth Q & A session with a different coach each month. Subscribers are asked to send in their inquiries with specific questions for the coach featured that month. Our first coach to answer your responses is Texas Tech’s Mike Leach. One of the top offensive minds in the game today, Leach begins his seventh season in Lubbock thi
The Spacing Concept: How to Maximize Your Offense
I have had the great fortune of learning under some of the best offensive minds in college football in Coach Urban Meyer and Coach Gregg Brandon. Here at BGSU we have a great staff that is an honor to work with. Our staff is comprised of Greg Studrawa (OC), Mick McCall (QB), Dennis Springer (RB), Troy Rothenbuhler (TE) and Russ Kuhns (GA). These men do a great job and any ideas that I share in this article are BGSU staff ideas. The concept that I want to share is our Spacing
LRSSports Hot Coaches 2006
Division I-A Mike Haywood, Offensive Coordinator, Notre Dame: The Notre Dame alumnus (Class of ’86) had an impressive performance last year, his first in the job. The Irish offense averaged 36.7 points a game, which put them at No. 8 in the nation. The team had a particularly potent passing attack, averaging 330 yards per game, fourt
The Scouting Report
At the entrance to the Katy High School (TX) athletics field house, there’s a high trophy case with the inscription, “When excellence becomes a tradition, greatness has no limits.” The Katy Tigers have developed both a tradition and greatness. Named as the ‘High School Team of the Decade’ by the Houston Chronicle, Katy won Texas State Class 5A football championships in 1997, 20
Point Counterpoint: Defending the Kickoff vs. Maximizing your Kickoff Return
TALE OF THE TAPE Kyle “Bubba” Schweigert Minnesota-Duluth Head Coach 3rd year 2005 North Central Conference Coach of the Year Bulldogs led Division II in kickoff returns in 2005
Exclusive: Inside Mickey Andrews\' Florida State Defense
Great college football teams are designed to STOP great college football teams. And when you play the kind of brutal and challenging schedule Florida State University lines up against each fall, you better be prepared to STOP great college football teams. Florida State defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews, who has been at the school for 22 years, is the architect behind the strategy, philosophy, instruction, motivation and guidance of one of the game’s stingiest defenses. Throughout his
Turnaround: How do you Turn an Ailing Program Around?
When you inherit an ailing program, one coming off a series of poor recruiting classes, one that’s subsisting on a steady diet of one or two wins a year, what’s a coach to do? Prospective recruits don’t want to play for a loser, especially if your campus lacks glamour. Alumni and community businesses don’t want to show financial support. It’s harder to find talented assistants, and the administration and the student body will be hard to placate. What often happens
The Drills Report: Georgia\'s Offensive Blocking Circuit
This month’s drill has been submitted by Coach Neil Callaway, the Offensive Coordinator and Offensive Line Coach of the 2005 SEC Champion Georgia Bulldogs. Since Coach Callaway became a member of coach Mark Richt’s staff in 2001, the Bulldogs have won two SEC Championships, three bowl victories and three top six finishes in the final polls. Coach Calloway explains his blocking circuit: “We implemented the Blocking Circuit at
The Scouting Report
Todd Graham returned ‘home’ this past January. A native of the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Graham was named Rice University’s 17th head football coach on January lst. In his previous coaching stops, Graham played major roles in reversing the fortunes of struggling programs. It started at East Central University where, in his three seasons as DC, ECU improved from a break-even program to the NAIA national championship in 1993. As
How to Climb the Coaching Ladder of Success
American Football Monthly asked me about climbing the coaching ladder of success. I had to go to Webster’s Dictionary to define what success is. Some words I found are “to do well, achieve, or gain satisfaction from your accomplishments.” Some people believe it is to lead your team to win the Super Bowl, to be#1 in Division I football, to be Coach of the Year. These are all satisfying accomplishments but I believe it is satisfying just to coach this great game of
High Percentage Throws: Valdosta State\'s Shallow Passing Game
Offensively, we go by a simple rule in implementing our game plan each week. We try to make positive yards on first and second down, then pick up the remaining yards needed to move the chains on third down. We feel the best way to do this is using mostly high percentage passes and mixing in an occasional run. In this article, I am going to concentrate on one such high percentage pass play in our playbook: The Shallow Game. Our Shallow Game has been one of the most successf
Improving Your Running Game
The commitment to run the ball has to start when a head coach lays the foundation for his system. Portland (OR) State’s Tim Walsh sees this mentality as key to any coaching staff. “Coaches have to find a way to instill a belief in their players that they can run against anybody. At Portland State, we’ve created a mindset for players over several seasons.” Walsh and his assistant coaches stress the team’s prior success to new recruits, while returning players have already been in
The Secrets of Urban Meyer\'s Spread Option Offense
The legend lives on: From the flat lands of northern Ohio to the depths of Salt Lake City to the swamps of Florida, Urban Meyer, at the young age of 41, has already earned the moniker of legend. He has been called a football genius, an offensive innovator and is considered the architect behind an offense that even the best minds in college football can’t harness, let alone stop. His spread option offense helped change the game and in turn brought respectability to Bowling
The Drills Reports: Louisiana Tech\'s Defensive Tackle Circuit Drills
This month’s feature drill is from Randy Bates, Defensive Coordinator for Louisiana Tech University. Under the leadership of Coach Bates last fall, the La Tech bulldog defense ranked third in the Western Athletic Conference. Also, the 2005 defensive WAC statistics ranked the Bulldogs first in overall turnover margin (+13), second in rushing defense, and third in both passing and scoring defense. Coach Bates began his career 24 years ago at Muskingum College as an offens
The Scouting Report
If two words describe Mira Mesa High School in San Diego they are tradition and excellence. One of the top academic schools in the city, the Mira Mesa Marauders also have an outstanding football legacy. Led by Head Coach Gary Blevins and Assistant HC Chris Thompson, Mira Mesa plays in the prestigious San Diego Eastern League. This fall they play Long Beach Poly in a non-league game. Poly, a perennial Southern California power, has the most alums of any school in the nation playing in the
Letter From the Editor
In this issue is our third annual high school state champions survey sponsored by Schutt Sports. A total of 340 questionnaires were sent out to head coaches in all 50 states. While some trends – over the three years – seem to be taking place, there were some fascinating responses among last fall’s champions. Among them: • The age of the youngest head coach among all state champs was 26 while the oldest was 72. • The head coach with the shortest tenure was
Preparing your Defensive Game Plan
Every football coach, at one time or other during the season thinks “If only there were more time to prepare for this game, we could…”. DC’s are under great pressure each week to develop and implement a scheme that puts their players in the best possible position to make plays. This type of defensive game planning requires many hours of preparation – first breaking down game tape and determining an offense’s tendencies, and then selecting fronts, stunts and blitzes from the De
Teaching WR\'s the Critical Skills
One of the main problems that have plagued football coaches for a long time is how to teach the necessary skills needed to play the game during the fifteen to thirty minutes in practice known as individual. Just at the wide receiver position, we must teach stance, start, footwork, route running, releases (press and open field), blocking (push blocking, wall-off, cutting, middle block), catching the ball, running with the ball, and many other skills needed to be a good wide receiver.
Its All About Options
3 Ways to Utilize the Option in the Shotgun and the Spread Offense The option remains one of the most successful concepts in football. It forces the defense to play assignment football and account for each ball carrier. On offense it allows you to leave defenders unblocked at the point of attack. Option concepts have evolved over the last 40 years. Most offensive coordinators have incorporated some form of option into their offenses. In this article I will discuss three dif
The Internet Video Exchange: A Major Assist for Coaches
Sharing game tapes through the internet has streamlined the process while saving both time and money Coaches, say goodbye to your UPS bills. It used to be that the exchanging of game film was just that, literally. A staff member – be it a coach or video coordinator – would make a copy of a particular game film and overnight it to an opposing team. Reel-to-reel turned into VHS tapes, which morphed into DVDs and hard drives. But the concept was always the same – you send
Scouting Your Opponents Quarterback
Scouting an opponent’s quarterback is crucial in developing a game plan, as the quarterback often represents the most important player on the field. Here are what four accomplished coaches view as the key elements in scouting the opposition QB. For Warren Maloney, defensive coordinator at University of Saint Francis, an NAIA school in Fort Wayne, Ind., the first question is whether the quarterback is the one who makes the offense go. “We like to see whether the guy makes bi
An Eye for your Opponents
Mike Van Deist keeps a close eye on personel match-ups and ways to exploit them. It’s been repeated almost too many times to say again. But, here you go: defense wins championships. Hold the urge to roll your eyes until you look at Carroll College in Montana. During Mike Van Diest’s seven-year reign as head coach at Carroll, the Saints have become an NAIA powerhouse, winning the national championship the last four years after reaching the semifinals
The Scouting Report
Mark Speckman has been coaching Willamette University football for the past eight years. The Bearcats are 46-34 under Speckman and in 1999 he was named Northwest Conference Coach of the Year after Willamette won the NWC title and earned a trip to the D III national playoffs. Speckman was the Bearcats’ offensive coordinator for three years prior to being named head coach. He also spent 14 seasons as a high school head football coach, compiling an overall mark of 113-48-3. But he’s more
The Big Squeeze
ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT times to get a football player into the weight room is during the rigorous two-a-day practice sessions before the start of each football season. During this time the athlete\'s body is pushed to the limits of exhaustion. It\'s a time of major concern to most strength and conditioning coaches and athletic trainers because of the chance of overuse/overwork muscle strains and pulls that can occur. During this time the question arises as to what would be the best
Letter from the Editor
According to Webster, the word ‘adversity’ means ‘a state of wretchedness or misfortune, poverty and trouble… or an instance of misfortune or calamity.’ When applied to the sports world, we often hear the term ‘overcoming adversity’ when referred to players. You can debate whether it’s an overused phrase or not but three instances come to mind: • Lance Armstrong: Arguably the athlete of this decade, Armstrong overcame cancer to win seven consecutive races of the Tour
The High-Powered Shotgun Option Offense vs. Defending the Option
The High-Powered Shotgun Option Offense vs. Defending the Option CHARLESTON VS. VIRGINIA TECH TALE OF THE TAPE Tony DeMeo University of Charleston Head Coach Entering 2nd Season Triple Gun Offense Turned programs around at four different colleges with the option off
Running Wild
HOW TO CREATE AN EFFECTIVE RUNNING GAME THAT WILL BOOST YARDS AND WINS For all of football’s passing progress over the past decade, the running game remains a fundamental cornerstone of winning football. Whether you’re punching the ball across the line in short-yardage situations or controlling the clock, every team must be able to get the ball into the hands of a capable runner who can read and follow effective blocks downfield, breaking tackles and making defenders miss.
The Scouting Report, Patrick Walsh - Serra HS (CA)
“If the breakdown is done right, building a game plan becomes easy off of the printed reports that uncover tendencies and holes in the offensive gameplan.” Patrick Walsh, Serra HS (CA) This coming fall Patrick Walsh begins his sixth season at Junipero Serra High School in San Mateo, CA. A high school rich in athletic tradition – alumni include Jim Fregosi, John Robinson, Lynn Swann, Gregg Jefferies, Tom Brady and Barry Bonds – Walsh helped bring th
Prep Report - Flying Under the Radar
TERRY EIDSON: A LARGE PART OF DE LA SALLE’S TRADITION Much has been said and much has been written about the football program at De La Salle in Concord, CA. The Spartans and coach Bob Ladouceur won a national-record 151 straight games and six National Prep Poll titles from 1992-2003. Although De La Salle has developed a handful of NFL players and its share of college stars, Ladouceur gets more acclaim for his ability to exact every last drop of ability out of his pla
Looking For a Boost in Your Offense?
Why Mid-Line? Our first season at Bucknell we had installed a spread option offense. We invested a lot of time into our base play: the triple option. As the season progressed we had been able to execute the triple with some moderate success. At the end of the 2003 season we had averaged just a little over six yards per attempt. We had run some mid-line in 2003 but were not majoring in it. We, as an offensive staff, knew that in order for us to compete on a yearly basis with the
Running Wild How to create an effective running game that will boost yards and wins. By Richard Scott
Secret Weapon: Turning your Punt Team into an Offensive Weapon
It is a pleasure and honor to be asked to represent Carthage College by contributing to American Football Monthly. Our staff at Carthage looks forward to this magazine and all the fine coaches who submit ideas and philosophy on a monthly basis. At Carthage we have had a very unique and increasingly productive punt formation that has not only been a solid punt formation but an offensive weapon. This year our “spread punt” produced the followin
Point Counterpoint - The Blitz
Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts were helpless against the Pittsburgh Steelers and their blitz packages in last month’s AFC playoff game. Manning, the master of the audible and game’s best gunslinger, spent most of the afternoon forcing passes, trying to avoid getting crushed or getting crushed. After the game, Manning hinted that he didn’t have the best protection. The offensive line, running backs, extra blockers and offensive co
Off Season Workouts
Off-season training should take a different focus then your typical change of just changing the amount of reps. It should take a turn to pre-hab (exercises that help prevent or minimize injuries), technique, and individual or positional needs. In my past twelve years of really getting involved in NFL programs I’ve seen something that is a trend among strength coaches and athletic trainers that is very alarming. One of greatest concerns to me is
The Need for Speed
From the time young football players figure out they’re faster than the other players on the field, many assume speed is simply a gift that some have, some don’t. They figure it’s all a matter of nature, genetics or a divine blessing. While it’s true that some young men are simply born and raised faster than others, no football player has to be content with his speed – or his lack of speed. “A lot of the kids we recruit have
Samson\'s NFL Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year: Seattle\'s Mike Clark
Take a look around your living room. If you are an average adult in your 30s, 40s or 50s, chances are a young person is taking up space in your house, sleeping in a bed you provide, eating your food and wearing clothes that you have bought. That young person is likely to be on the couch watching TV or playing video games. The thought of why this young person is inside on a beautiful day giving his opposable thumbs a workout on toggle switches a
Texas Sized Strength
Speed kills. Just ask most of the Texas Longhorns’ opponents during the 2005-06 season. That can be attributed largely to the players that head coach Mack Brown and his staff recruit. As big of a factor in the team’s success, however, is the strength and conditioning program the Longhorn players endure. Sure, endure. “Oh, I’ve been known as a guy that works them and works them hard,” laughed Jeff Madden, the University of Texas as
SCOUTING REPORT
Mark Panella is the Quarterbacks/Receivers Coach at De La Salle High School in Concord, CA and has served on coach Bob Ladouceur’s staff – except for a brief period – since 1989. He has just about seen it all – from the team’s incredible 151 game winning streak to the lows of an unheard of consecutive losses. He also serves as the team’s Video Coordinator. The starting quarterback on the 1984 De La Salle team that went 11-1, Panella s
Lakeland’s Right Hand Man
Lakeland (FL) again did a lot of winning in 2005. In fact, head coach Bill Castle’s Dreadnaughts were downright dominant, outscoring opponents by a combined 580-93 while capturing their second consecutive Class 5A state championship and 30th straight win. The dream season was punctuated with Lakeland’s best-ever finish in the national rankings (No. 2 National Prep Poll and No. 1 USA Today). As expected, Castle picked up his share of personal
Letter from the Editor
Our ‘Scouting Report’ feature this month includes an interview with Mark Panella of De La Salle High School in Concord, CA. The Spartans’ Quarterbacks/Receivers coach, Panella also serves as the teams’ video coordinator. Panella has been an integral part of Head Coach Bob Ladouceur’s staff for over a decade and witnessed a good portion of what is known as ‘The Streak’: De La Salle’s incomprehensible record of winning 151 straigh
Cover Story
Samson\'s D I-A College Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year: Texas\' Jeff Madden The BIG MAN on campus: How Jeff Madden Builds Power and Speed at Texas By Matt Fulks
Video a Necessary Part of Every Program
“It was film in the old days, up to about ‘88 or 89,” recalls Clemson’s veteran video coordinator Rick Bagby, a pioneer in his field who led the video revolution that enables football coaches better use their time to develop sophisticated, smart, systems, and, he hopes, winning game plans for the ACC program that’s been a big winner for decades in the South. Across the country in the Pacific Northwest, Steve Pohl has been running Oregon’s football video operation since 19
Third and Shorts
Since 1996, the Frank Broyles Award has gone to the nation’s top assistant football coach. The award is named in honor of longtime Arkansas athletic director and former Razorbacks coach Frank Broyles. During his coaching career Broyles developed a reputation for producing outstanding assistants with more than 25 becoming head coaches at the college or professional level. Among the former Broyles’ assistants were Joe Gibbs, Hayden Fry, Jimmy Johnson, Johnny Majors, Jackie Sherrill, and Barry
Overcoming a Devastating Defeat
We are a nation obsessed with it: from reality game shows, to toothpaste whiteners. Winning it seems, has become the “the only thing” – as Vince Lombardi so prophetically proclaimed nearly a half century ago. And today, that bar inches ever higher. So what happens when we lose? And not just lose . . . but lose badly? The Pittsburg State Gorillas (KS) put the big hurt, on nearly every Division II opponent they faced in 2004 – setting an NCAA record of 837 points scored: besting
Impact Stats: Total Defense
Tommy Tuberville’s Auburn Tigers placed fifth in the nation among all Divison I-A teams in Total Defense in 2004, surrendering just 19 total touchdowns, the second lowest total that year. They were first in the country in Scoring Defense. “When you’re consistently good on defense, it gives your offense a lot of chances to go for big plays. You’re going to give your offense more turnovers and more balls in better field position and, to me, where it really starts is defense. You
The Top 25 Public and Private High Schools of 2005
PRIVATE SCHOOLS TOP 25 1. St. Xavier (Cincinnati) Record: 15-0 Coach: Steve Specht The Bombers became the fourth consecutive Cincinnati school to win Ohio’s big-school title. St. X’s defense allowed only one opponent to score more than 17 points, and the offense was sparked by super talented sophomore RB Darius Ashley (5-9, 170). 2. St. Bonaventure (Ventura, CA) Record: 14-0 Coach: Jon Mack The Seraphs finished as the highest ranked team in Cal
Stopping the Spread Offense
Defending the spread offense. Where does one start? Maybe on the other side of the ball. What exactly is a spread offense? And understanding what it is you are trying to defend will go along way in answering how you are going to defend it. The spread offense means many things to many people. Sure there are some consistencies, but it seems every coach has added his own twist and own purpose to running the spread offense. And while trying to stop the spread offense, you better know what
Dominating Run Defenses
Different teams. Different schemes. Different coaches. Different levels of play. But Ohio State, Duquesne, Edinboro and Trinity all shared one very important distinction at the end of the 2005 college football season. They all led their respective NCAA Divisions in stopping the run. And while the way they accomplished their No. 1 ranking varied, a closer look at each program revealed some common threads to their success. All four agreed that personnel is the biggest determining factor
Schutt Sports Regional High School Coaches of the Year
East Region: Jeff Weachter Bishop McDevitt HS, Harrisburg (PA) Jeff Weachter, 40, led Bishop McDevitt high school in Harrisburg, PA to a 13-1 record this season, reaching the semifinals of the state 4A division. Pure football talent explains a lot of the school’s success, Weachter said. Five of his players were recruited by Division I colleges. But the team had to overcome some adversity. LeSean McCoy, ranked as the top running back in the country by some recruiting
A Winning Tradition: Lakeland\"s Bill Castle
When you’ve been in coaching 36 years, 35 at the same school and 30 as the head coach, you see a lot of players and teams come and go. Some are more memorable than others. Some kids, some teams, some seasons, they all start to run together. Did that Smith kid play tackle or guard? Or was that his older brother? Was it the 1991 team or the 1992 team that was so fast? Was it the second state championship or the third state title that overcame all that adversity? Some teams and players
Schutt Sports College Coaches of the Year
Joe Taylor Hampton Joe Taylor made a decision last off-season that helped lift his Pirates to the Div. I-AA playoffs. During his regular off-season evaluations – which involves looking at every play of every game, interviewing coaches and writing a letter to his players – Taylor realized his defense needed to change. “You must look at this as a bu
Heart of a Lion: Joe Paterno
Football is a funny business. It is a war-like game in which the biggest, strongest and toughest will often come out on top. Throw in the elements of brains and intelligence and it can either amplify the preceding characteristic or eliminate it. The teams on the sidelines – on a given autumn afternoon or evening – want to humiliate, eliminate and defeat their opposite numbers. It is the most competitive of all sports. Yet there is a fraternity among its players and coac
Scouting Report
Coach Jim Kunau just completed his 13th year as head coach at Orange Lutheran High School. In 2004 the Lutheran Lancers received the ultimate prize: a CIF Championship. With an overall record of 131-32-3, Kunau has seen it all and established LHS as one of the elite programs in southern California. From a school approaching 500 students in which 22 players were football players a decade ago, Orange Lutheran has evolved to an enrollment of nearly 1,200 with 200 student-athletes now a part of a hi
The Prep Report
With seven 5A championships and a 118-16 record during the ‘90s, Skyline (Salt Lake City) was among the very elite prep football programs in the nation. But things changed slightly for coach Roger Dupaix (AFM’s West Coach of the Year in ’99) and Skyline in the first half of this decade. The Eagles still were no slouches, making at least the state semifinals each year, but endured what seemed like forever to them – five years – without another championship. The “sl
Great Coaching Stories at Every Level
While much of the media focuses on Division I-A coaches, there are many great coaching stories at every level of professional, high school, and college football. Who could have forecast the turnaround at the University of Central Florida: the Golden Knights had lost 17 straight, were 0-11 last year, lost there first two games this fall but then rebounded to finish 8-3 and host the Conference USA Championship Game. Bill Cubit inherited a 1-10 Western Michigan team. He and his staff
Open Door Policy
Bob Johnson’s coaching experience spans nearly 35 years with stops at Los Amigos High School, El Toro, and, for the past 7 years, Mission Viejo High School. He won his 200th game as a head coach last fall and is closing in on the Orange County record of 236 wins held by Los Alamitos’ John Barnes. Undefeated thus far in 2005, the Mission Viejo Diablos completed a perfect 14-0 season last fall, winning the CIF Southern Section Division II Championship and have won 78 of their last 79 games. La
Crunching Numbers
Now that the season is over and the dust has settled, it’s time to look back and evaluate your season. As offensive coaches, we all accumulate a huge amount of statistical data over the course of the season. We also know that statistics can be deceiving. Using all the data we collect can help us understand our own offense as well as determine those areas which need improvement. In this article I will discuss how to collect data, evaluate your statistics, and implement the necessary changes to
Gear
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Defensive Back Play in Quarters Coverage
Stopping the run in football has always been paramount. Over the years coaches have devised different ways to get extra defenders into the box. Often times this has benefited the run game and it has also left the pass game vulnerable. I believe that quarters coverage provides an answer for both run and pass. It allows both of the safeties to be primary run support defenders while also allowing the defense to defend a vertical passing game.
From Scouting Report to Game Plan
Know thy enemy. On the battlefield or the football field, few statements ring truer than that. Being able to effectively size up an opponent, identify their weaknesses, recognize their tendencies and formulate an attack puts you that much closer to victory on Saturday. In today’s high-tech world, scouting the opposition is often done with the latest in digital editing equipment. And when the lights go out, every program, every coach and every player is scanning their scouting report for the ex
Point-Counterpoint
There is no need for punt coverage, if the punt is blocked. “A blocked kick can turn the momentum of the game more than anything else,” said Air Force legend Fisher DeBerry. “It’s won a lot of football games for us and created some field position for us.” Yet, more and more coaches, including DeBerry, are utilizing the “Shield Punt,” which, admittedly, sacrifices protection for coverage. “There’s been some kicks blocked if the shield breaks down,” DeBerry said. “
Can Big Mo Be Stopped?
It doesn’t take long for Larry Kehres to teach a reporter a lesson about momentum. Kehres, whose ridiculous resume includes seven Div. III national titles since 1993 for Mount Union College, is making dinner at his home and talking to the reporter on the phone at the same time. “Don’t let a mistake bug you,” he said. “Just think about it. You have periods of frustration, happiness and boredom every day. You just have to –.” That’s when the phone dies. The reporter calls
Email Recruiting
Talking with a teen-ager. Oftentimes a daunting task for any middle-aged coach. Many coaches have an uncanny ability of knowing the best way to communicate with a high-school recruit. Still, staying ahead of the competition while finding the best way to be noticed and remembered by a teen-ager takes communicating in the way that they’re most comfortable. “From the standpoint of what kids read, I’m not sure how we get noticed,” joked Tom Creguer, the recruiting coordinator at No
Open Door Policy
In his 13th season as head coach of the Portland State Vikings, Tim Walsh has the distinction of being the longest tenured and winningest football coach in the program’s history. After taking over for legendary Vikings coach Pokey Allen, Walsh helped lead Portland State to three straight NCAA playoff appearances. In 1996, the Portland State athletics program made the move to Division I-AA (from Division II) in football. That placed Walsh in the position of having to build an under-fu
The Prep Report
PREP FACT Only 3 active coaches have over 50 years as a head coach: Summerville’s John McKissick (SC), St. Edmond’s Dick Tighe (IA) and Bethpage’s Howie Vogts (NY) FLYING UNDER THE RADAR Camden County (GA): 20 Shutouts in 34 Games Before you can find a way to beat the Camden County (Kingsland, Ga.) Wildcats, you better first figure out a way to score on them. Putting up a single point has been a
It Starts in the Trenches
Juan Castillo has coached offensive linemen at the high school and Division II level. He’s also spent the past 11 years with the Philadelphia Eagles. Throughout this career, the daily principles he brings to his job have remained the same. “To me it’s still the same – it’s all about fundamentals,” Castillo said. “When I was at Texas A&I, I was fortunate to learn a lot of my drills from NFL coaches and major college coaches, but I still break it down the way I did at the s
Cover Story It Starts in the Trenches 5 Coaches d
Open Door Policy
Having not had a winning season since 1991, Steve Kragthorpe rolled into Tulsa two years ago and led the Golden Hurricane to an overall 8-5 record. In the process, Tulsa played in the school’s first bowl game in 12 years. His coaching job helped produce the biggest turnaround in Division I-A in the 2003 season and Kragthorpe was named WAC Coach of the Year. While Tulsa slipped to 4-8 last fall, optimism is high this season as the Golden Hurricane begin their first season as a member of Confer
The Prep Report
Flying Under the Radar The Triple Option is Alive and Well The triple option – it was college football’s offense de jour in the 1960s and 70s, highlighted by the ultra successful wishbone systems at Texas, Oklahoma and Alabama. Now, only a handful of Division I-A programs such as Rice and Air Force employ an option system. But the triple option is still very much alive and well on high school football fields across the nation. Especially at Warren Cent
The Staff Report
The start of a new season always involves the coaching staff’s discussion of personnel. We have sat in these meetings as a GA, as a volunteer, as an assistant, as a coordinator and as head coach. It seems that in every one of these meetings the discussion of depth creates quite a bit of emotional dialogue. Who wants the player on offense? How many tailbacks do we need? Do we need that many at wide out? Can we get by with the amount of defensive and offensive linemen? After the discussion,
How to Stop the Option
Snap to the Q. He sprints to the right, instantaneously scans the defense as he is hit. At virtually the same time he pitches to the fullback. Quick cut to the left, he darts through the hole and rips off 55 yards. How often have you seen it? How many times has it left you pacing the sidelines, shaking your head and clipboard? It’s the ageless option pitch/run. How do you stop it? What options does a coach have? AFM contacted a number of high school and college coaches and
Letter From the Editor
A legendary coach was once asked, ‘if you could have your best athlete play one particlular position – offense or defense – what position would that be?’ Without batting an eyelash, the coach responded, ‘middle linebacker – he sets the tone and leads our def
Cover Story C.W. Post Defensive Line Play Defensive line play at C.W. Post has been an integral part of our team’s
Letter from the Editor
One of the major elements of a football program – at just about every level – is a strength and conditioning program. While somewhat under the radar for the last decade, both the quality and quantity of a strength and conditioning program has emerged as both a prerequisite for a successful program but also a major recruiting strat
Heavy Impact
It’s the youngest, and certainly in many respects, the most important element in developing winning athletic programs, especially football, other than the head coach himself. The strength and conditioning coach and his staff can be difference makers between a winning program and mediocrity. Before the earl
Postion-Specific Training
When you lose your keys, you’ve often left them in the last place you’d think to look. Coaches and trainers, in search for a competitive edge, do the same thing. Typically, they look outside for answers when the secret ingredients for a successful training program might already be right und
The Prep Report
FLYING UNDER THE RADAR Gus Malzahn Springdale (AR) Located along U.S. Highway 71 just north of Fayetteville with a population of about 50,000, Springdale is already on just about any map of Arkansas you can pi
An Insider’s Perspective
I have been involved with many staffs that have different ways of handling half time. Some did not have any organization, while some were very strict. All in all the procedure that is most comfortable for the coach is the best. There are numerous different situations that your team can come up against as you are entering half-time – behind, ahead, tied and with different subtleties within each that was aforementioned. No matter what the situation a team must come out as fre
Letter from the Editor
What’s the secret to having a successful football season? What’s necessary to be a consistently winning program, year-in, year-out that produces a playoff caliber team? Is it strictly talent on the field or a combination of other ingredients? Many coaches will list the following and not in any particular order: • Talent – the skills that perform on the field • Assistant coaching staff – a loyal, professional staff • Resources – fields and practice faciliti
Cover Story Gorilla Warfare: Chuck Broyles\' Pittburg State Gorillas\' Scary Offensive Attack Chuck Broyles doesn’t pretend
Get a Grip
I have been asked to write about the program that our offensive staff implemented this past season for ‘Ball Security.’ In 2004 we were fortunate enough to go through the entire season (695 touches) with only one offensive lost fumble. This put us first in the Big Ten and tied us for first in the nation. Ball Security is an aspect of our game that our team and coaches take personally and very seriously. We make it a priority at each position to make sure our players understand that fu
Tackling Circuit Drills
We feel that one of the most important fundamentals is the ability to tackle and tackle well. As a staff, we try to emphasize the proper tackling techniques through a tackling circuit. The ability to tackle well shouldn’t ever be taken for granted. We use a four station circuit that touches on four key points that we must emphasize in order to be a good tackling unit. Although each position coach works tackling techniques into their individual periods, we use the tackling circuit to fur
The Art of Play Calling
A good play is easy to spot on game day. It’s the decision to go for it on fourth-and-one that yields a fresh set of downs, a blitz-beating touchdown toss, or even a basic trap play, executed perfectly a handful of times, that marches your offense down the field. But while these plays unfold in the moment, it’s the weeks and even months of preparation that ultimately make them work. Good play calling is the result of repetition and trial and error without the glare of the lights or th
Gorilla Warfare
Chuck Broyles doesn’t pretend to hold the “secrets” for winning. But through an aggressive style of play, a loyal staff and players, and an offense that works to stay one step ahead of defenses, Broyles and his staff have turned Pittsburg State (Kan.) into a perennial power in NCAA Division II. During the last 15 seasons, under Broyles, Pittsburg State is 154-30-2. The Gorillas have won the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) championships nine times, missed the
Open Door Policy
AFM:What was the feeling like when you were named head coach and in charge of the Southlake Carroll program? TD: I’ve competed against Southlake Carroll over the years and I was truly honored to be named head coach. Like the University of Texas, there is tremendous tradition here and I was honored and humbled about the job. At the first spring booster club event I attended I remember the slogan: ‘Protect the Tradition.’ It meant a lot. AFM: Tell me how your office
Gear
BW Software announces TD Video Viewer for Microsoft Windows ($395). TD Video is a Macintosh based software product that provides affordable digital video editing for football ($895). With our new Windows based TD Video Viewer, you can analyze plays, enter scouting data and print scouting reports. You still need to capture the game video with TD Video for Macintosh. N
2005 Top 25 Prep Football Rankings
Public Schools National Top 25 l. Mission Viejo (Calif.) 2004: 14-0, CIF Southern Section Division II champion Coach: Bob Johnson (69-10, 6 years, 198-69 overall) The Diablos return six all-CIF players and have won 55 of their last 56 games. The offense will miss national player of the year quarterback Mark Sanchez (USC), but welcomes back bruising tailback Chane “The Train” Moline (6-2, 235). 2. Lowndes (Valdosta, Ga.) 2004: 15-0,
4,733 Wins, 5 Coaches, 1 Question
Glenn Robinson Men’s College Basketball Coach • Franklin & Marshall Franklin & Marshall head coach Glenn Robinson is the most successful basketball coach in Division III history with 697 wins. He has been coaching for 37 years and what he learned at the very beginning helped set him on his course for success. “One of the first things I got to do when I became a coach was meet Dean Smith,” Robinson said. “He was very successful and had that great staff
Open Door Policy
There are football ‘turnarounds’ and then there are incredible turnarounds. Andy Lambert and his staff at Sterling College inherited a team that had lost 20 consecutive games starting the 2004 season. Last fall, in his first season at the NAIA college, the Sterling Warriors lost their first four contests-making it 24 straight losses-but then won five of their last six games to finish with a remarkable 5-5 record. Lambert came ‘home’ to Sterling from Trinity International Unive
Table of Contents
Cover Story 80 Hot Coaches for 2005 Many coaches – from the NFL to high school – are ready for a break-out season. But will it be a sizzle or fizzle? So often expectations don’t match perf
Hammer Force Defensive Technique
“The new scheme, combined with our players’ great attitude, paid giant dividends for us in stopping the run last fall.” - Santa Cruz & Willmer In the spring of 2004 we made the switch from an even front to an odd for its recruiting advantages (since it is difficult to recruit four solid defensive linemen at our level) and for its aggressive nature. The new scheme, combined with our players’ great attitude, paid giant dividends
Program Architects
Shortly after Jerry Kill took over the football program at Southern Illinois in 2001, he went to the Missouri Valley Conference basketball tournament to watch the Salukis. Call it school spirit. A chance to root for his new school. It also was a chance for his Kill’s wife, Rebecca, who was still living in Emporia, KS and getting the family’s former home ready to sell, to see her husband for the first time since he became the SIU coach. Kill
What Are You Worth?
American Football Monthly just completed its first annual salary survey among college coaches throughout the country. All levels of coaches were included – Division I-A, I-AA, II, III, NAIA, and Junior College – as well as all coordinators and position coaches on staff. The results were tabulated from the 860 questionnaires with a response rate of 30% and will appear in AFM over the next six issues. This month’s salary survey focuses on h
Legends of the Hall
With 119 chapters and over 12,000 members nationwide, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame, a non-profit educational organization, runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in today’s young people. NFF programs include the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., Play It Smart, the NFF Center for Youth Development Through Sport at Springfield College, the NFL/NFF
Open Door Policy
Tradition is the operative word when Joliet Catholic Academy and football are discussed. Since the start of a formalized high school playoff system throughout Illinois in 1974, the Joliet Catholic Hilltoppers have won the most state championships (12) of all the high schools throughout the state. The first four titles came under the direction of legendary coach Gordie Gillespie (1975 through 1978) and continued under the direction of Jim Boyter (1986) and Don S
The Secrets to Efficient Practices
“Whatever you accept (in practice) that’s what you’re going to get. If you accept lackadaisical performance or lack of effort, then you can be assured that’s what you’re going to get.” - Kansas State Head Coach Bill Snyder Richland (Fort Worth, Texas) head coach Gene Wier has a problem. “I’ve not had many good practices in my time,” he said humbly and with a chuckle. His six state championship rings beg to differ.
Cover Story 10 Impact Stats To build a championship team. AFM has researched and ranked the top statistical categories t
Kentucky's Best Passing Game Drill
Football coaches often ask each other, "What is your best drill?" At the University of Kentucky, our best offensive drill is called Routes On Air. It is the cornerstone of how we teach and practice our pass offense with our quarterbacks, receivers, and running backs. One of the reasons that our staff was hired at the University of Kentucky was because of our pass-oriented offense. This same offense was very successful for us at Valdosta State and Iowa Wesleyan. At both schools,
Learning on the Job
The days immediately following the 1997 college football season weighed heavily on the head and shoulders of Mike DuBose. In his first season as Alabama's head coach, the Crimson Tide had slipped to a 4-7 record, only the second losing season at Alabama since Coach Paul "Bear Bryant" Bryant returned to Tuscaloosa after the 1957 season. Losing at arch-rival Auburn by one point in the final seconds was one thing. Losing to programs such as Louisiana Tech, Kentucky, Arkansas and M
Heartbreak in the Heartland
Not unlike like millions of fans, players, coaches, alumni and followers associated with what became known as the Big Red Machine, Frank Solich had no idea what a profound effect Tom Osborne would have on his life. In 1962 Solich was a fullback for Bob Devaney's Huskers, and a young assistant football coach named Tom Osborne was teaching classes on the side to help supplement his meager coaching stipend. Solich was enrolled in an educational psychology. Osborne was his i
3 High School Programs - 3 Different Strategies for Success
They seem to be there every year. Like a leaf changing color in the fall or students grumbling about going back to class, the high school football elite return each season to reclaim their dominance. These high school powerhouses didn’t earn their reputations overnight. But how did these teams reach this unique place? What road takes a football program to the pinnacle and then keeps it there for season after season after season? Players change. Even coac
Open Door Policy
Chuck Broyles of Pittsburg State followed a near legendary coach – Dennis Franchione – when he became head coach of the Pittsburg State Gorillas in 1990. Franchione, now the head man at Texas A & M, had compiled a 56-6 record in his last six seasons at PSU. Since that time, though, Broyles has not only continued the tradition, he has become near legendary himself. In his fifteen seasons as head coach he has guided the Gorillas to 13 post-season
Feeder Frenzy
No one would have predicted it. No one in Elizabethtown, Ky., in 1998 and ‘99 would have looked at the seventh and eighth graders playing for T.K. Stone Middle School and guessed they would someday reach the 2003 state championship game as high school seniors. “I don’t remember their record but they were pretty much a .500 team in seventh and eighth grade,” former Elizabethtown High School coach Brett Burnett said. “But that was a group of
1/2 Block 1/2 Wall Return
\"Over the past four years our Punt Block team has been responsible for 18 blocks and 5 touchdowns.\" - Jay Sawvel It is certainly an honor to share some ideas regarding our Punt Block team. When we arrived at Southern Illinois University four years ago we felt that being aggressive on special teams served two main purposes: 1) in our early days at SIU we had to generate plays in the kicking game in order to be competitive, and 2)
Cover Story What\'s the Make-up of a State Champion? AFM\'s Second Annual State Champions Survey By AFM Research Staff
Back to Basics
During the last three years, the Ponderosa football staff has committed itself to focusing on the fundamentals of defensive football. The first twenty minutes of every defensive practice are spent on either a team pursuit drill or a circuit. Our circuits are something we feel are unique and they have allowed us to emphasize the importance of executing basic football skills. Since the inception of this philosophy in 2001, we have amassed 53 inte
Letter from the Editor
Just like the real estate adage that the most important thing in buying a home is ‘location, location, location,’ the analogy is that recruiting is the name of the game in football and it goes on 365 days a year. Recruiting used to be a seasonal activity while many teams stockpiled talent before the start of limitations on scholarships. The number of scholarships have been reduced dramatically over the years so selecting the right player for your
Mastering the Recruiting Process at the Small College Level
At the NAIA level, recruiting student athletes takes on so much more than just a high school visit and a few recruiting weekends. We are not blessed in so many cases to just show up with our school names on our shirts and have recruits begging to come to our schools. We have to be more creative through phone calls and mail flow. For us at Bethany College, we are very fortunate to have a lot of tradition based on what the previous Head Coach, Ted Kessinger, did h
Tuesday Morning Quarterback
When coaches approached the AFM booth at the recent AFCA Convention in Louisville, we tried to make a habit of asking the coaches what they wanted to see in the magazine. Some wanted more Xs and Os. Some wanted more technology information. Others wanted career and financial planning. However, many coaches wanted help balancing their jobs with marriage and family. Meanwhile at a nearby hotel, the wives who attended the convention attended semina
Legends of the Hall
With 119 chapters and over 12,000 members nationwide, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame, a non-profit educational organization, runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in today’s young people. NFF programs include the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., Play It Smart, the NFF Center for Youth Development Through Sport at Springfield C
Redefining Murphy\'s Law
Harvard coach Tim Murphy is enjoying rare success despite dealing with handicaps many Division I coaches might bristle at facing. He works at the nation’s oldest college, one of the world’s elite educational institutions, so Murphy and his teams must live up to traditions nearly as old as America itself. He must also recruit student-athletes who can handle academic standards that might appear impossibly high. In addition, Murphy has zero athletic scholar
Madness in the Midwest
Kerry Coombs has lost control. He’s Colerain High School’s assistant principal and head football coach, but he’s not in charge. The kids, he says, are the one’s in control of his day. His office looks like the inside of several file cabinets or in his words, “absolute chaos.” “A really wise guy once told me that if I could get to where I’m only touching paper once that I’d be more efficient at my job,” Coombs said. “I’m
Open Door Policy
A perennial pre-season top ten team among high schools, Jenks (Oklahoma) is the model of consistency. Under head coach Allan Trimble, the Trojans have won seven state championships in nine years. His record at the school is 112-11 with a number of players receiving scholarships to I-A college programs yearly. Jenks plays in Oklahoma’s largest classification, 6A. Between 1996 and 200l, Trimble’s record was 79-4 and he was named the
The Country\'s 30 Best Recruiters
John Blake has a secret. Along with other members of coach Bill Callahan’s staff, the defensive line coach helped recruit what many called the best incoming class of the 2005 season. Blake recruits the talent-laden areas of Southern California and Southern Texas, in addition to Mississippi, Oklahoma and Tennessee. “Some people have a gift,” said Blake, who was the head coach at Oklahoma from 1996-98. “One of my gifts is to speak to peop
Third and Shorts
Head Coaches - Tulane awarded head coach Chris Scelfo a contract extension through 2009. Scelfo has guided the Green Wave for six seasons... Greg Robinson was hired as head coach at Syracuse... Aurora tabbed Rich Duncan as head coach... Arne Ferguson was named as interim head coach at Western Oregon to succeed Duke Iverson, who will continue as an assistant with the program at least through the end of the academic year...
College Strength & Conditioning coach of the year
Mike Gentry has built a foundation of success in Virginia Tech’s weight room and is becoming a legend among his peers The weight room. You want to talk about the basics and building blocks of any football program, start with the weight room.That’s where the foundation is built. Players are in the weight room nearlyevery day, working on getting stronger, quicker, more flexible and more explosive.Mike Gentry, the director of strength and condi
Open Door Policy
One of the nicknames for basketball hall of fame player Larry Bird is ‘Larry Legend.’ In Alliance, Ohio, there is another \'Larry Legend\': Mt. Union College’s Head Coach Larry Kehres. Quite simply in his 19 years at the helm of the Purple Raider football fortunes, he has built one of the most successful programs in college fo
High School Coach of the Year
For Southlake Carroll head coach Todd Dodge, the 2004 season brought intense pressure and the highest of expectations. With 11 returning starters from last year’s state runner-up team, including All-State quarterback Chase Daniel, the Dragons were not only the favorites in Texas but also in the nation. Yet, while a strong nucleus of players returned, six of Dodge’s eight coaches did not, including defensive coordinator Charlie Stalcup. He succumbed to a fiv
2004 AFM Pro Coaches of the Year
NFL: Marty Schottenheimer San Diego Chargers The National Football League is filled with outstanding coaches. There’s Bill Belichick in New England, Andy Reid in Philadelphia and Bill Cowher in Pittsburgh. All three of them could easily be named as this year’s AFM NFL Coach of the Year. But to do that would be to ignore the coach who has done the most with the least, the coach who many prognosticators believed would
Coach of the Year - A Season for the Ages
He knew it was over. Tommy Tuberville and his whole staff would soon be shown the door, despite four consecutive winning seasons, four bowl games and share of thee division titles in five seasons at Auburn University. One more game, against archrival Alabama, and they would all be out looking for new jobs. “I had already put in my application to be a greeter at Wal-Mart,” he would later joke. Laughter helped. Gallows
Evaluating Your Next Job
There are a Number of Considerations Before Commiting to That Next Positon AFM talks exclusively with Urban Meyer, John L. Smith, Mike Stoops, Chris Hatcher, Brian Kelly and Al Borges It’s that time of year when the coaching business is buzzing with changes and rumors, with coaches preparing resumes and working the telephones to promote, save or launch a career.
Changing the Tempo of the Game
On behalf of the Hargrave Military Academy postgraduate coaching staff, we would like to thank American Football Monthly for printing our clinic article on changing the tempo of the game. Hargrave Military Academy is one of the premier one-year prep schools in the country where we are faced with teaching our offense to a whole new group of athletes on a yearly basis. We quickly found out that our athletes become bored with the same stale offensive scheme
Disruptive Behavior
The old cliché “The Defense Wins Championships” is definitely true. I can also speak specifically to this after our team, the Pearl River Community College Wildcats, won the 2003 MACJC State Championship and the 2004 National Championship. Not only do I believe this defensive philosophy to be true and to work toward maintaining a defense that will produce champions, but any and all championship contenders must work on developing a defense that will keep th
Schutt Sports College Coaches of the Year
Tim Murphy Harvard Triumph – thy color is Crimson Tim Murphy choreographed every step of the way for Harvard, and he led his team to a 10-0 record – the first time since 1906 the team had recorded a double-digit victory total. Since replacing the well-respected Joe Restic in 1994, Murphy has led Harvard to four Ivy League titles in nine seasons, including two unbeaten and untied seasons.
The Staff Report
With the football season ending, you and the athletes you coach need to stay motivated in the off-season so your team can come out in spring practice running on all cylinders. In addition to staying motivated in the off-season, you do not have to wait until next season begins to start mental training. In fact, the off-season is a great time to work on your team’s mental skills. Most coaches will agree that talent alone is not enough for success and other inta
A Look Inside Coaches Office: Troy Morrell
AFM: What was it like the first time you stepped into your office knowing that you’re in charge of Auburn football? TT: When I first stepped into the office I was amazed at how large it was... it’s probably bigger than all the offices I’ve had as an assistant coach combined. It was built by Coach (Pat) Dye and the complex itself houses everything. With all the windows,
Spotlight
Bob Casciola President, National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, Inc. (Retired) Why You Should Know Him: In the world of college football, there isn’t much that Bob Casciola hasn\'t done. An All-Ivy tackle for Princeton University, Casciola spent 20 years in the college coaching ranks as an assistant coach at Princ
2004 High School State Champions
Ricky Woods, coach of Mississippi’s 5A state champion South Panola, confers with the state’s Player of the Year, Derek Pegues. At 5-10, 190-pounds, Pegues – who has 4.4 speed on the field and a 2.9 GPA in the classroom – led South Panola to back-to-back 15-0 seasons and Class 5A state championships. Despite rushing for 1,659 yards as South Panola’s QB in 2004, Pegues is looking to play corner in college. ALABAMA 6A: Hoov
Cover Story COACH OF THE YEAR Auburn’s Tommy Tuberville
An Insider’s Perspective
Talent evaluation is a primary factor that leads to wins and losses. It can also be the most subjective. The numerous tools and criteria that are being offered today to facilitate this process can lead to paralysis of analysis. It becomes apparent that your organization must have a sound structure in place to defeat this. At the heart of this structure are the questions, “What is important to you? What type of player fits in your scheme? Which do you enjoy
Letter from the Editor
An overall football budget includes a variety of items: equipment, field maintenance, health issues including doctors and a support staff, salaries for staff, travel, on-the-road meals, security, and a number of other factors. Obviously, the budget for a high school football team differs from that of a Junior College or Division I-A program. But more and more programs-at all levels-are including funding for the growth of a new position with the structure of the
Sterling College\'s - Principles of the 3-4 Defense
Every coaching staff in America has to have a starting point when they put together an offensive or defensive scheme. Our defense staff at Sterling College is committed to four main principles. First of all, we are committed to having our best eleven football players on the field. Secondly, we want to position players where they will be able to make plays by being deceptive. Thirdly, we want to be assignment proof. And, finally, we want to minimize the ability
Tuesday Morning Quarterback
College football is big into labels. Some coaches are “ball coaches.” Some are “Xs and Os guys.” Some players are “solid.” Others are “raw.” Those labels seem harmless enough, but the subtle context they carry can be negative. Not sure? Then ask yourself this: what do you think of when someone says, “he’s a recruiter?” Do you think of a guy who works the phones, hits the road, charms mamas, wows daddies an
5 Tips for Breaking Down Film
Every coach starts somewhere. Whether it the first year of freshman football in high school or on a Pop Warner team or in a coach’s meeting, most football coaches can remember the first time they started watching film. For Matt Kelchner, it started at home. Kelchner, head coach of Div. III Christopher Newport, still remembers seeing grainy football film for the first time. It was at home. His father, a college coach, would bring home a film projec
Unsung Hero
A week in the life of Tulsa’s video coordinator, Gabe Haney Good coordinators are vital to the success of any college football program. But if all you’re thinking about is the guys in charge of your offense and defense, then you’ve overlooked a key position. When time is tight and the stakes are high, you better make sure that you’ve got a top-flight video coordinator who can break down every bit of information about your opponent and your own team in
Zone Blocking Principles
Zone blocking occurs when two offensive linemen are responsible for blocking two defenders in a certain area towards the point of attack. The purpose of using the zone blocking scheme is to stop penetration, create movement on Level I (build a wall) and also seal off the onside linebacker. All zone blocks initially start out as an inside-out double team. A
Open Door Policy
A legendary coach leading a storied program at one of the nation’s most respected institutions...that’s the story that unfolded in December of 2003 when the United States Military Academy announced the hiring of Bobby Ross as Army’s new football coach. A head coach in the college ranks for 15 years, Ross also coached the San Diego Chargers and the Detroit Lions in the NFL. He helped lead the Chargers to their only Super Bowl appearance in history in 1994.
Defending the Triple Option
At UW-Platteville we run a 3-4 defense because we believe it gives us the best opportunity to compete in our conference (See Diagram l). Diagram 1. We utilize speed because we are often undersized on the defensive
Football Video Technology:
When a football program is on the smaller scale, we have to imagine that when it comes time for budgeting, there are certain items that take precedent. Obviously, the team must be equipped with the proper tools: helmets, shoulder pads, shoes and those items necessary to outfit a college or high school football player. The next item that must take precedent is
Technology and Your Budget: Hints and Suggestions
NFL teams are spending millions on video technology and complex computer systems. Division I-A teams are spending hundreds of thousands on their own versions of the same technology. So what? What does that mean for NCAA Division II and III, NAIA, junior college and high school programs with limited budgets and resources? Do you find yourself at clinics and conventions walking right past the tech booths and ignoring the tech seminars, afraid you
2005 December 2005 Innovators of the option • From Scouting Report to Game Plan • True Football Speed • Quarterback Fundamentals November 2005 It Starts in the Trenches • Attacking Defenses with the Veer • 4 Technical Components of Punt Coverage • Teaching
Screen your way to success
If you liked this article, here are three others just like it:
Strength in Numbers
Tommy Knotts Quarterbacks Coach, Duke Former Head Coach, Independence High School Charlotte, N.C. 2003 football team: Class 4A State Champions Whether it be a rigorous strength and conditioning program or an abundance of talented players such as Florida quarterback Chris Leak – most likely the two feed off each other – Tommy Knotts has mastered high school football in
Hard Core
The core region of the body has the most significant impact on athletic development and performance. The core (abdominals and low back) is the link between the upper and lower extremities of the body. All actions in athletics require a power transfer and effective stabilization from the core to create movement. They not only allow the transfer of power between the upper and lowe
Pride in the Work Place
Tommy Moffitt demands and gets results. He’s just not always there to see them. Moffitt, AFM’s Samson Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year, helped tighten up Tennessee as the Vol’s head associate strength and conditioning coach from 1994-97. In 1998, after Moffitt had accepted a position under Butch Davis at Miami, Tennessee upset Florida State in the Fiesta Bowl to capture the first BCS National Championship. Bad timing. Moffitt spent the next two y
Cover Story Samson’s 2003 Pro Strength & ConditioningCoach of the Year: Carolina’s Jerry Simmons By David Purdum March 2004 T
Rutgers Passing Attack
Related Videos American Football Monthly now offers a full line of coaching videos. So, if you enjoyed this
Black Bear
Related Videos American Football Monthly now offers a full line of coaching videos. So, if you enjoyed this
Schutt Sports Regional High School Coaches of the Year
West Regional Tom Joseph Mountain View HS (Mesa, Az.) 2003: 13-1, 5A East Valley Regional Finalist Record at school: 27-1, 2 years Career record: 94-40 Tom Joseph’s Mountain View High School football program has established an incredible tradition. In the 25-year history of the school, Mountain View has won eight state ch
Leading the Charge
Every college football head coaching job is tough in its own way. Every job presents its own trials, its own pressures. For Miami (Ohio) coach Terry Hoeppner, some of the most unique and heavy challenges in the history of college football surround him and try to stare him down every day. Every college football head coach has an office, too. None of them are like Hoeppner’s office complex. His place of work is
Sharing Information Just Became Easier
For nearly a decade, thanks in many ways to publications like American Football Monthly, technology in football has become the norm rather than the exception. Every major football program, college or pro, has relied heavily on the latest forms of capturing, editing and exchanging video to enhance its ability to compete both on and off the field. Yet, very few football programs have the mega-million dollar budgets of major college football – much less t
Schutt Sports National High School Coach of the Year
Pictures Perfect
To find out something about Kelly Donohoe, the coach, all one needs to do is examine his record the past four years at Blue Springs High School. Under Donohoe’s direction, the Wildcats have gone 45-5 with two perfect seasons and a pair of Class 6 state championships. To find out about Kelly Donohoe, the man, spend an afternoon at his fashionable Eastern Jackson County home and watch him interact with his wife Jennifer, his high school sweethea
Schutt Sports I-A Coach of the Year Finalists
PETE CARROLL SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA When Pete Carroll arrived at USC in 2001 with a 33-31 career in four years as a head coach with the New York Jets and New England Patriots, Trojan fans were understandably skeptical. Over the past three years, Carroll has offered plenty of proof, with a 29-9 record that includes a 12-1 record in 2003 and the national championship fro
Multiple 3-3-5 Defense
Following the 2000 football season our defensive staff was faced with the stark reality that the system/style of defense we were using was not only unproductive – it was unacceptable. Harding University has a history of physical, hustling, technically sound defenses primarily built around the philosophy of minimal fronts and coverages with an emphasis on execution and individual technique. Our dissatisfac
Spotlight
Danny Arnold, Floyd Keith, Gary Korhonen Danny Arnold Director, PLEX Sports & Rehab Why you should know him? Danny Arnold is the Director of all operations for Plex Sports & Rehab. Together with his staff, Danny Arnold is recognized as the leader in providing innovative training and Transitional Sports Therapy (TST) to help athl
Cover Story Schutt Sports 2003 Coach of the Year Miami of Ohio\'s Terry Hoeppner takes command of the college coaching landscape. By Richard Scott February 2004
Rodeo Circuit
Related Videos American Football Monthly now offers a full line of coaching videos. So, if you enjoyed this
3-5-3
It seems like the phone never stops ringing at Georgia Military College. Since installing a new defense in 2001, the small college in Milledgeville, Ga., has become the de facto expert on the subject. And it seems that the more people hear about the 3-5-3 defensive scheme that they run, the more the phone keeps ringing, with coaches from high schools to colleges trying to find out GMC’s secret. “I can’t beg
Finishing Strong
We’ve reached the midpoint of the season. You spent your spring and much of the summer training your players, evaluating up and coming talent, and refining your game plan – adding a few wrinkles that you picked up from the pages of American Football Monthly and coaching clinics you might have attended. The end of summer marked the beginning of the football season with the introduction
Job Search
For most observers, the process colleges use to find a head coach appears swathed in mystery. You hear reports, rumors and innuendo in the mass media, and sometimes surprise candidates are selected, not the obvious or “smart-money” choices.But this is the glamour job at most high schools and colleges. How do schoolssearch for the right candidate? Well, many high-profile programs go to smallfirms that specialize in suggesting lists of coaches and
West Coast Offense
I have always been a proponent of the controlled passing game, mainly because my career has been highlighted with examples of its effectiveness. One instance in particular sticks out in my memory during my time as Head Coach of the London Monarchs in the World League of American Football (WLAF). The WLAF (now known as NFL Europe) was in the process of kicking off its inaugural year. Unlike many new leagues, teams in this leagu
6 Issues That May Be Effecting You
In the early part of the 20th century, there was a loud hue and cry to ban football. The game was violent, dangerous and apparently out of control. President Teddy Roosevelt had decided it was a brutal activity. There had been many deaths in one year. Football coaches who would soon find themselves out of a job took it upon themselves to clean up the game and make it acceptable. They rewrote the rules, got rid of the flying wedge – a syst
A Look Inside A Coach\'s Office: Bob Stoops
Oklahoma Head Coach Bob Stoops, now entering his sixth campaign in Norman, is approaching the near legendary status of some of his predecessors – namely Bennie Owen, Bud Wilkinson, and Barry Switzer. With a National Championship, last year’s Heisman Trophy winner, and a 55-11 overall record entering the fall, the Sooner tradition is clearly continuing. We spoke with Coach Stoops about the Okl
Spotlight
THE NAMES YOU SHOULD KNOW John Bankert, Chuck Neinas, Mike Van Diest John Bankert President, Pro Football Hall of Fame Why You Should Know Him: John Bankert began working at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio in the film library and theatre as a
Cover Story Coach Searches: Making the Right Fit By David Srinivas
510 And Counting
For the Record John McKissick’s Record as head coach at Summerville High School: 1952-2003
Talking Cutups
Breaking Down Game Tape
Before the 2002 season, Purdue University Defensive Coordinator Brock Spack and his staff created a dozen tutorial tapes on various aspects of the defense. “We don’t cover everything,” says Spack, “just the most basic things, like fronts and covers, and the most complicated things, like blitz packages.” Players check out the tapes and watch them in the football offices. “These babies don’t lea
A Coach\'s Perspective: How to Deal with Kids
You can make a significant mark if you put 40-plus years in the coaching business. And Pat Collins certainly hasn’t been cheated during a career that began in 1963. Collins’ experiences have been many and varied – he has coached in high school, college and the pros. He was an assistant at Louisiana Tech when a sophomore named Terry Bradshaw was tearing up the college ranks. Collins won a Division I-AA championship as head coach at Northeast Lou
Letter From the Publisher
One of the least things known about American Football Monthly is a tradition that started when the magazine moved to South Florida in the summer of 1997. Every year South Florida welcomes hundreds of college coaches vying for the most talented athletes the area has to offer and for the last six years AFM has played host to many of these coaches traveling to our back yard. Over the years we have had lunch and di
Making the Jump
You ask Tommy Knotts why he decided to leave his job as head coach of one of the most dominant high school programs in America for an assistant’s job at a college football program. You wonder how he could leave Independence High School in Charlotte, N.C., where his teams have won 62-straight games, the second-best mark in the country. You assume it’s because of some major life-changing event. Was
Under Pressure
Before I begin, I would like to thank the people at American Football Monthly for giving me this opportunity. I also owe Coach Dirk Koetter and Coach Brent Guy thanks for allowing me to represent our staff in these pages. These are some concepts we believe in at Arizona State. Hopefully, there are a few things you can use with your players as well. You
Adjusting To Your Talent
At St. Bernard’s Catholic School our football program was able to win a North Coast Section Championship in the 2003 season. Our coaching staff was blessed to work with some gifted young men. As the head football coach, I feel that at this level of play a coach must design the entire team’s systems (Offense, Defense, Specialties) around the talents and abiliti
Command of the Line
Since the installation of the 3-5-3 defense, Georgia Military College has consistently been ranked among the nation’s top defenses. Our defensive packages are easy to learn and execute. We strive to control the line of scrimmage with our front eight players. We are able to use different fronts to change an offense’s blocking rules and attacking points against our defense. Ev
Cover Story 510 & Counting: A Look at John McKissick, Football’s All-Time Winningest Coach By David Purdum June 2004 TABLE
If at First You Don\'t Succeed
One nasty defeat gnawed away at Kirk Ferentz’s gut for a full year. When Iowa rolled through the Big Ten schedule in 2002 and won eight straight games without a loss, it was one of the top stories in college football. Ferentz, then in his fourth season as head coach of the Hawkeyes, figured his team would be competitive in the Big Ten, but critics saw them as a middle of the pack team. With mobile Brad Banks at
Randy Shannon
Ray Lewis, Phillip Buchanon, Ed Reed, Duane Starks, Warren Sapp, Vince Wilfork, Sean Taylor, Jonathon Vilma ... the list goes on and on ... and on and on. Clearly, the University of Miami wins because of one reason – talent. Actually, there are 36 reasons, as in 36 NFL first-round draft picks since 1984, the most of any college or university. With all that talent, Sebastian, the ‘Canes mascot, might as
Stepping Out of the Shadows
When George Lumpkin was a young assistant coach at Hawaii, he worked alongside an assistant with big hopes and dreams for his career. That assistant started at Kent State, moved to Hawaii, made stops at San Jose State, Cal, Tennessee and Ohio State before finally moving on to an extended pro football career. Lumpkin and his friend kept in touch and he even visited him professionally over the years, tapping into his friend’s
Rushing Ahead
Over the past five years we have had quarterbacks who have been 6-foot-1 or less. For this reason we have been in the shotgun a considerable amount of the time. We wanted to have threats with plays other than the passing game. We have been good throwing the ball but we needed more. We are always trying to gain yards but we also want to eliminate the negative yardage plays.
Spotlight
Larry Kennan, Chuck Stiggins, Joe Juraszek Larry Kennan Executive Director of NFLCA Why You Should Know Him: Larry Kennan was named Executive Director of the National Football League Coaches Association (NFLCA) on February 1, 1999. Since being elected to that position, the NFLCA has seen a number of accomplishments. With the s
Cover Story Randy Shannon: Miami’s Defensive CoordinatorBy David Purdum April 2004 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Maximizing Player Performance
It’s the summer of 2003, and the Oklahoma Sooners football team doesn’t have much to complain about. The squad is ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press and the ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ Preseason Poll, and the Sooners are enjoying the return to national prominence brought upon by coach Bob Stoops and his dominating defense. The team is preparing for a season that would see it lose the National Championsh
2004 Top 25 Prep Football Rankings
1. De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) The coach: Bob Ladouceur (287-14-1, 25 years) – school record 2003: CIF-NCS Class 4A champion, 13-0 The record: The Spartans have won a national-record 151 straight games (more than doubling the next best total), and have beaten at least one nationally ranked team each season since 1998. The Bay Area power won its unprecedented fourth consecuti
The Next Level
There’s nothing obvious about Gary Patterson’s background that would suggest he could be one of the nation’s hottest college football coaches. There’s nothing that stands out on a life resume that starts with growing up in a small Kansas town, playing Juco ball on an academic scholarship, walking on and playing special teams for a perennial college football loser, coaching at places most college foo
Keeping Drives Alive: Effective Third Down Game Planning
At Western Michigan University, we utilize a multi-faceted approach when it comes time to game plan third down. It is a cooperative effort, involving all of the members of the offensive staff and the head coach. Before any meaningful discussion on third downs takes place, you must develop the down and distance parameters that will guide you through your game planning. We have two general categories, run situatio
Fired Up?
As the new football season arrives, coaches around the nation are preparing for the tasks and challenges they will soon face when the 2004-2005 football season gets into full swing. However, nothing ever goes just as planned or scripted in any coach’s playbook and that’s why coaches, just as the athletes I work with on the mental game, need to develop strategies to deal with the myriad of responsibiliti
Letter From the Editor
This month AFM continues its tradition of selecting its choices for the 2003 Coordinator of the Year awards. Normally, the task of announcing a list is difficult because of the many outstanding programs – at all levels – around the country; what made this year’s selections more difficult was the research involved which indicated statistics were only one measure of success. While statistics were important, many i
2004 Hot Coaches
DIVISION I-A RANDY SHANNON, MIAMI: Defensive Coordinator of the ‘Canes, Shannon is our top selection and a head-coach-in-waiting. A member of this listing last year and the feature of an AFM cover story in April, he has all the tools and experience as well as an organizational plan to get to the top-whether it be Miami
Cover Story Gary Patterson: The Next Level Following the success of former head coach Dennis Franchione, Gary Patterson\'s intensity, professional experience and strong work ethic has helped take TCU\'s football team - along with it\'s attendance and graduation rates- to a whole new level. By Richard
His Own Man
Delaware’s K.C. Keeler doesn’t have many bad days. And since his return to his alma mater in 2002, neither have the Blue Hens. “I’ve never seen him in a bad mood,” said Mike Corey, co-host of the “K.C. Keeler Show” on 94.7 FM, the River. “Even if he is having a bad day, you would never be able to tell it.” Maybe that’s because, these days in Newark, Del., there’s
From High School to Division I - Football Programs to Work for
Presented by LRSSports Software When football hounds gather to talk about schools with a fine tradition of producing coaches, talk usually begins and ends with
National Footbal League Coaches Association
American Football Monthly and the National Football League Coaches Association have formed a partnership that will include periodic information on NFLCA projects as well as clinic articles by both former and current NFL coaches. Included below is Executive Director Larry Kennan’s letter to AFM readers on the NFLCA’s new Affiliate Membership Club.
LSU
It is an honor to represent Coach Nick Saban and the entire LSU football program, and to share some thoughts on our organizational structure that we feel are paramount to having consistent and productive special teams play. Almost every program claims that they are committed to special teams, but as Coach Saban constantly reminds us, “Your actions speak so loud I cannot hear what you say.” At LSU, we fe
Trojan Pride
It’s clear to me that I want to put together a program that can win on a consistent basis and compete for championships year in and year out. This is a grand opportunity here,” a proud Pete Carroll said early this summer during a break at his football camp on the University of Southern California campus in Los Angeles. “USC has all the elements you need for a championship program.” Coach Ca
Cover Story From High School to Division l: 16 Football Programs to Work For AFM’s annual listing of successful programs that have a tradition of developing coaches By David Srinivasan September 2004
Landmarks: The Foundation of Zone Coverage
Zone coverage contains one simple fact that is often over looked. You are defending zones of the field. As such, you must have a base knowledge about the depth and width of what you are defending. I call this the geometry of football. A football field has specific landmarks. The playing surface is 53 & 1/3 yards wide and 100 yards long with two scoring areas, the end zones, at ei
What Next?
Jim Emery remembers many things during his career: a college football player at Ohio Wesleyan University, a graduate assistant, recruiting coordinator, college coach, mentor of many varied club football teams in Italy, and now, COO of Digital Scout, one of the software companies that helps football coaches at all levels prepare for their next opponent. “I coached in Italy for a good part of 18 years and saw a r
Leaps and Bounds
Marshall’s Brad Helton refers to him as “The Godfather of Video Coordinators.” But like most of his colleagues, UCLA’s Ken Norris is a cipher unless you are intimately familiar with his work. Over the years, Norris has worked with and for a number of football giants – men such as George Allen, Terry Donahue, John Robinson and Norv Turner. Norris has been a big help to the coaches for whom he has worked. But like all good video c
Coach Potatoes
More than 83,000 Crimson Tide fans just got real excited. They were packed in Bryant-Denny stadium to see the first ever No. 1 team visit Tuscaloosa. Alabama had just capped off a six-play, 80-yard drive with a Brodie Croyle 20-yard touchdown pass to Triandos Luke, cutting top-ranked Oklahoma’s lead to 13-10 midway through the third quarter. With the momentum clearly on their side, ‘Bama’s defense forced th
Letter From the Publisher
In the five years that we’ve been publishing American Football Monthly’s annual Technology issue, we’ve seen many advances in the various software and hardware designed specifically for football. Today’s technology allows coaches to merge diagrams and video together in presentation formats, trade game film over the Internet, introduce DVD options for film quality, track the frame-by-frame movements
Spotlight
Pat Coleman, KC Keeler, Steve Pohl Pat Coleman Publisher & Editor, D3Football.com Why You Should Know Him: Pat Coleman has been following Division III football since the early 90s, ever since the likes of Duquesne, Iona and Georgetown played D-III. He is a 1994 g
The Mental Game
This article looks at ways that instructional technology and principles can be used to improve the mental performance of your football players. The focus is on decision-making. That breaks down into a player’s ability to recognize an opponent’s actions, to know his team’s schemes and his individual assignments, and to choose the correct response. It does not include executing the response. Coaches spe
The Use of Formations to Gain an Advantage
Garrison High School has a long tradition of a winning football program. We have been in the playoffs 28 times and won 22 district championships. This was the first time in my coaching career that I had taken over a program that had a winning tradition and the opportunity was there to make a good program great instead of trying to turn an unsuccessful program into a winning program. I was hired in July of 1999 an
Learning Curve
Mark Hudspeth has not wasted any time traveling down his career path. Yet, at each stop along the way – some more rocky than others – he has made sure to slow down, take his time and learn. “I think it’s very important to focus on the job at hand,” says Hudspeth, now in his third year as head coach at Division II North Alabama. “Concentrate on where you are at and where you are working. Sometimes guys are too busy looking for t
From Gloom To Glory
Here’s a warning: like every season, this story starts with a test. You thought you were done with those when you finished college, huh? Well at least it’s a multiple choice test, so you can always make an educated guess. Question 1: When your team slips in September and loses a game or two (or three), you: 1. Call all your coaching connections and start looking for another
Letter From the Publisher
What is black and gold, weighs in at a hefty 5lbs and is getting the attention of some of the top recruits in the country? The University of Missouri’s 2004 Media and Recruiting Guide. Careful. This thing is big. It’s big in size and it’s bigger in potential on the national recruiting scene and it is currently landing on the kitchen table of some of the nation’s top recruits with a resounding ‘thud’ – opening their eyes to Mizzou Football.
Georgia Military College’s 3-5-3 Defensive Package
Georgia Military College’s, 3-5-3 defensive package, is an extremely easy package to implement on any level. We as a defensive staff, feel that this package gives us the greatest advantage of being successful against our opponent’s offense. While running the 3-5-3 defense, GMC is continually one of the statistical leaders in the NJCAA in total defense, run defense, and pass
Sunshine State of Mind
The state of Florida produces over 80 percent of the United States’ supply of citrus. Every year, the Sunshine State sells roughly $4 billion worth of oranges, tangerines, pineapples and other goods grown within its borders. About $3.5 billion worth of orange juice is exported from Florida to the rest of the country – and world – every year. As dominant as the citrus business is in the state of Florida, th
Three-Step Pass Protection
The Doane College football program has an historically successful tradition. Over the past 20 years Doane College has competed in the national playoffs during the 1980’s and 1990’s (last appearance in 1999), and has proven the test of time with consistency by accumulating a .603 winning percentage. We run the “West Coast Offense” at Doane College. Our offensive philosophy is a balanced attack that u
Spotlight
THE NAMES YOU SHOULD KNOW SPOTLIGHT John Bankert, Chuck Neinas, Mike Van Diest John Bankert President, Pro Football Hall of Fame Why You Should Know Him: John Bankert began working at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio in the film library
Cover Story From Gloom to Glory
Mean Green
As much as any other coach in the country, Darrell Dickey, the persevering and successful head football coach at the University of North Texas, lives with the reality of college athletics, where aspiring football programs like his, are locked on a collision course with 21st century fiscal reality. “We have an athletic department that’s really struggling for money, so we have to play a very demanding sch
Rebirth of the \'Blue Death\'
Family. Above all else, the one element that most contributed to our success as a team and as a defensive unit was a family atmosphere brought to the program in the Spring of 2003 by our head coach, George Small. More important than the success experienced on the football field was the way that kinship maintained us as we endured the passing of one of our young and most talented
Surfing the Turf
Sponsored by Eastbay 1-800-826-2205
Family Values
“My door is open. 24-7,” says the University of Arizona’s new 42-year old football coach Mike Stoops. It’s the first policy Stoops instituted when he became the 28th coach in the 104 year history of football on the Tucson campus last November 29th. Stoops’ declaration signaled the start of give-and-take between players and coaches, a family-like feeling at a place crying for it. It’s a rare concept in the big business-like atmo
An Alabama Legend
If you seek success akin to that of Hoover (Ala.) High School’s Rush Propst, there’s a simple formula you can follow: • Start from the bottom and work your way up – paying attention to detail not salary. • Make plenty of friends in the business, and stay in touch – frequently. • Understand your limitations. • Al
Bridging the Generation Gap
77, 77, 68, 74, 67, hut? No, it’s not some ill-fated snap count devoted to offensive linemen. Instead, those are the ages of some of the most respected coaches in the business. Men like John Gagliardi of St. John’s (Minn.) University, Dick Vermeil of the Kansas City Chiefs, Joe Paterno of Penn State, Bobby Bowden of Florida State and Lou Holtz of South Carolina. There’s no doubt about the track record of these men as all are championship-level coache
An Eagle Among Us
At what point do the perceptions disappear and give way to reality? At what point do people in the football business, as well as the media and the fans, stop looking at the outside, at the skin color, at the last name, at the perception that his place in the world must be the result of a handout, a favor or a quota? What would it take to change the assumptions and move on to the facts? Would a man have
Cover Story One of a Kind: Philadelphia Eagles Offensive Line Coach Juan Castillo By Richard Scott July 2004 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Evaluating Your Next Job
It’s that time of year when the coaching business is buzzing with changes and rumors, with coaches preparing resumes and working the telephones to promote, save or launch a career. Coaches are renewing old contacts, making new ones and mining every source they can find to help them make the next move. “There are two types of coaches: those who are sought after, which I’ve been, and those who are not,
Getting the Most Out of a Football Clinic
It’s been a good but not great season. A 6-4 record was good enough to finish in second place in the division, but not good enough to earn a spot in the postseason playoffs. The year has been strangely similar to last year and the year before. It seems that a rut has developed and your team is stuck in it. That’s not all bad since there has been a lot of winning - but not en
Being in the Right Place at the Right Time
There are several key points that can be helpful in developing your Defensive Backs. Many coaches have used these ideas and techniques over the years. It is my hope that you will gain something that will help you in some way 1. Stance - Specific Points for Stance: • Head and eyes should be up • Outside foot up with a heel/toe relationship on the inside
Fighting Adversity
Ask Todd Berry about the coaches who’ve influenced him in his 20-plus years in the business and he’ll rattle off insights obtained from names like John Cooper, Johnny Majors, Steve Logan and even his old high school coach, L.D. Bains. But the one lesson that stood out from all the X’s and O’s and motivational techniques came from his late father, Rueben, a former head coach in the Canadian Football
Open Door Policy
Butler County Community College head coach Troy Morrell began his fifth season this past fall as head coach of the Grizzlies. Last fall, Morrell led BCCC to an undefeated season and the NJCAA National Championship. The team has been ranked number one all throughout 2004 and recently completed another undefeated season and beat Coffeyville Community College in the regional district final. An All-America lineman as
Spotlight
John Bankert, Chuck Neinas, Mike Van Diest John Bankert President, Pro Football Hall of Fame Why You Should Know Him: John Bankert began working at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio in the film library and theatre as a part-time employee in August of 1964. Over a 40 year period he became an Administrative Assistant, Busi
The Spread Shot-Wing Offense
For years, we were a basic Delaware Wing T football team. We had great success with it, using the 3 basic series (buck sweep/trap; belly/down and power) and mixing in a good dose of play action and 3 step drop-back passes to keep defenses honest. But four years ago we started a 15 year old freshman at quarterback whom we knew was going to be somebody special as far as throwing the football before he g
No Huddle? More Chances
In 2002 the Lambuth University Eagles went 6-4 and averaged 55 snaps per game. During the spring of 2003 we put in the no-huddle offense. Our general offensive scheme did not change, just the tempo at which we ran the plays. In the 2003 season we increased our snaps per game to 70 and improved our overall record to 9-3, won a conference championship, and a trip to the playoffs. This is roughly a 27% i
Cover Story Evaluating Your Next Job There are a Number of Considerations Before Commiting to That Next Positon
Recruiting: More of an art than a science
While football recruiting over the years has become more scientific and sophisticated, the bottom line is that it is still an art in making a decision on a high school senior. No matter what the overall assessment concludes and no matter how many interviews are completed, there is no sure fire way of knowing if a player will perform up to both his abilities and/or the recruiters expectations. Like many things in
High School Scouting
It’s Wednesday night, and for Salt Fork coach Brian Plotner and his linebackers and defensive backs, that means film night. Every Wednesday during the season, that group meets at the home of a player or coach to learn more about its next opponent. “They pick up on tendencies,” said Plotner. “They re-familiarize themselves with the formations they’ve seen in practice. “Sometimes they pick up on things I didn’t see by looking at it from a differ
Letter From the Editor
It seems as though coaches have taken a beating in the media lately. Although you never want to see anyone’s laundry aired out in public, some of the scrutiny has not been without warrant. Coaches behaving badly are not the norm, but out of the thousands and thousands of coaches out there, there are sure to be a few bad apples in the bunch. But for the most part I believe the coaching profession, especially football coaches, to be among the best people
Attacking the 3-3 defense with the Inside and Outside Zone
On behalf of our staff at Southeast Missouri State University I’d like to say that it’s an honor and privilege to have the opportunity to share some of our thoughts and ideas on attacking the 3-3 Defense with the Inside and Outside Zone. The problem the 3-3 presents is that it is an odd front with a 4-3 linebacker set. It neither fits your odd front rules or your 4-3 rules and if you try to full zone it – more times tha
The Last Rep
Practice scheduling is becoming more important with every season that passes, so American Football Monthly recently sat down with six of the top head coaches from around the country to get their thoughts on some of the major issues concerning their industry. What is a coach’s mindset entering a new season? “Coaches in Division III are at a disadvantage because we
Miles Apart
Respect: What does it take to get a little? Last season, playing in arguably one of the toughest divisions in all of sports – the Big 12 South – the Oklahoma State Cowboys posted W’s in six of their last seven, including a pair of wins large enough to end the careers of two sets of goal posts at Lewis Field in Stillwater, Okla. But despite beating Nebraska for the first time in 41-years; and despite e
The Way It Used To Be
If there is one constant, it is that there are no constants. Over time, everything changes and nothing remains quite the same. Never is this more evident than in the profession of coaching college football. American Football Monthly recently sat down with a few of the game’s greatest coaches for a peek inside the ever-changing world of college football. From their first job to their last, the
Cover Story Norm Chow: Does Anyone Really Know Norm? Searching for the identity of college football\'s most intriguing and mysterious offensive coordinator By Aaron S. Lee September 2003
Marching to the Beat of a Different Drum
With such noticeable improvements in training regimens throughout the years, there is one method that is still underutilized – resistance “speed” training (RST). RST is a method that will add explosive power and speed to any athlete, if done correctly. The reason for this is because muscle contraction force is generated by the recruitment of the necessary number of muscle fibers to meat the load demand placed
A Clear Picture
Potatoes? Can we just forget about the potato jokes for a little bit? This story isn’t about spuds. It’s about football. Football in Idaho. Boise to be exact. It’s about a winning football program. It’s about winning tradition, high expectations and making the most of what you’ve got with players who want to be there. It’s about blue artificial turf and quality of life. It’s about a head footb
Cover Story A Clear Picture: Boise State’s Dan Hawkins Please don’t adjust your TV set... Yes, the field IS cool blue, but Boise State’s Dan Hawkins leads AFM’s 2003 red hot coaches’ list. By Richard Scott
Where There\'s Smoke There\'s Fire
Every year certain coaches separate from the pack … and this year will be no exception. Whether they are relative newcomers or wily veterans, these coaches are the future of high school, college and professional football. With the help of some of the top sports writers and football experts in the nation, American Football Monthly has compiled a list of coaches that it believes will make such an impact in
Coaching the Player
I appreciate the opportunity to share my thoughts concerning coaching the player. As you well know, the hub of your program is the players and the effective job you do in coaching them. I. Coaching – Teaching and Parenting II. Challenge of Coaching (raise his self image) A. Making each player the best he can be. Total Person – student, player and person.B. It starts w
My Three Sons
In Bill Mallory’s Bloomington, Ind., office, there is a picture hanging on the wall of the former coach celebrating on top of his team’s shoulders. Like all good pictures, there’s a story behind this one, and it reflects what family and football is all about. In 1987, Mallory, in his fourth year as head football coach at Indiana, had his team off to a 5-1 start, and with wins over Ohio State, Northwestern and Minnesota,
Making a Point
Over midway through the 2003 season in which he has a team potentially bound for Florida state championship hardware again, there probably aren’t many prep coaches who wouldn’t want to be in the shoes of Palm Bay’s Dan Burke, who considers himself one of the luckiest in the business. Burke, with his team on the radar of the USA Today top 10 all season long and a nationally televised game on The Football Network, has buil
Hired! Now What?
Last month, American Football Monthly gathered a panel of experts to give you the tools you need to get your next job in part one of a two-part series focused on career management. AFM discussed everything from networking, resumes, interview skills, salary negotiations, coaching agents and dealing with the media. This month, AFM pulls out all the stops in part two as we show
Right Place Right Time
Brian Kelly will tell you that luck put him in position to be one of the top head coaches in Division II football. His record at Grand Valley State will tell you otherwise. Yes, it’s true that Kelly was coaching linebackers and coordinating the defense in Massachusetts at his alma mater, Assumption College, when an old friend called Kelly and told him he was leaving his job as Grand Valley State’s defensive coordinator to become a head coach.
Building the Best Defensive Linemen
When building the best defensive lineman, you have to think outside the box of traditional training. You have to be innovative in your training program as much as you are in your defensive stunts. The following are a few of the defensive linemen drills we use with some of our clients that include such names as Tommie Harris (University of Oklahoma), Casey Hampton (Steelers), Shaun Rogers (Lions), Juliu
The Way It Used To Be
If there is one constant, it is that there are no constants. Over time, everything changes and nothing remains quite the same. Never is this more evident than in the profession of coaching football. American Football Monthly recently sat down with a few of the game’s greatest coaches’ wives for a peek inside the ever-changing world of football. From their life on the road to idle chit-chat, A
Stepping Into Retirement
Forget about Bob Stoops, Jim Tressell and Larry Coker. The best college football coaches in America are the former coaches who show up when they want to at home football games, sit in their suites or club level seats surrounded by family and friends and thank the football gods that they no longer have to sweat the outcome. There’s nothing like retirement to make a head coach the second most popular guy in tow
Cover Story CEO: Fisher DeBerry Leads Coaching into the New Era By Aaron S. Lee December 2003 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Starting From Scratch
No matter what level of football you’re coaching or playing, it’s hard enough to maintain a successful program these days. From high school to Division I to even the NFL, there are budgets, injuries, ever-growing parity with technology and those inevitable peaks and valleys. That’s talking about established programs. What’s it like to try to create all of those things programs strive for: fans, top-tier
Avoiding Major Mistakes in the Interview Process
Networking: Make the Most of Every Opportunity
Double Threat: Making Your QB a True Rushing Threat
Over the last two seasons the Capital University football program has taken a step towards the upper echelon of Division III football. Competing in the always-tough Ohio Athletic Conference against traditional powers Mt. Union, Baldwin Wallace, John Carroll and Ohio Northern is quite a challenge. Now people are including Capital when they talk about the top teams in the OAC. One of the reasons for our success is
Dealing With the Media During the \'Silly Season\'
Networking: Make the Most of Every Opportunity
Steppin\' Out
Former coach and forever Grambling State legend Eddie Robinson doesn’t come on campus as much these days. Maybe it’s because, at 84-years wise, Coach Robinson’s sideline agility isn’t what it used to be. Winning 408 football games will do that to you. Or maybe it’s because he’s satisfied, knowing that a budding superstar has filled his giant shoes, which were left behind upon college football’s all-time winning
Should a Coach Employ an Agent?
Networking: Make the Most of Every Opportunity
How to Handle Coaching Salary Negotiations
Networking: Make the Most of Every Opportunity
Robber Coverage Out of an 8-man Front
On behalf of Frank Solich and the entire University of Nebraska Football family, I would like to say that it is an honor and privilege to be asked to write an article for American Football Monthly. As a firm believer in trying to gain knowledge from any source available, I have found American Football Monthly to be a valuable asset. Throughout my career I have had the fortune to
One Step Back ... Two Steps Forward
Bryan Collins never wanted to leave C.W. Post in the first place. He enjoyed his job as an assistant coach and felt like he could grow and succeed at Post. But with a wife and a child on the way, the idea of a part-time coaching job was enough to convince him it was time to leave Post for another opportunity. “I had been a part-time coach for three years,” Collins says. “I did enjoy my time here but with only two full-ti
Cover Story Steppin’ Out: Grambling State’s Doug Williams Casts his Own Shadow. By David Purdum November 2003 TABLE
Resurrection
What They’re Saying ... “ Starting a new program is an enormous challenge. The fear of knowing that you have to bring a football team
Coast to Coast
ALABAMA 6A: Hoover 39, Jeff Davis 29; 5A: Homewood 31, Russellville 28; 4A: UMS-Wright 7, North Jackson 3; 3A: T.R. Miller 38, Colbert County 6; 2A: Southern Choctaw 12, Lineville 6; 1A: Clay County 29, Autaugaville 0. AISA (champions): AAA: Bessemer Academy, AA: Marengo Academy, A: Jackson Academy
Etched In Stone
Perhaps Super Bowl-winning head coach Jon Gruden, of Tampa Bay, said it best when describing the profession of coaching when he told American Football Monthly, “Coaches are like offensive linemen, you don’t hear much about them unless they are in the transactions section changing jobs.” Unfortunately that is sometimes the case, but the fact remains that coaching is still one of the most rewarding
Sunshine State of Mind
With a 48-21 victory over his former team, the Oakland Raiders, in Super Bowl XXXVII, Jon Gruden, 39, became the youngest coach in NFL history to win a Super Bowl as he guided Tampa Bay to its first world title in franchise history. Gruden was also the first non-rookie head coach to lead his team to the Super Bowl in his first season with a new team. In fact, Gruden has accomplished a lot for a man that is keepin
Goin\' Up
It would be so easy to say it’s all the head coach. Take a look at his success, his overall record, his impact on the program and the fact that seven of his assistant coaches have left the program in the past three years and moved on to higher levels of college football and the program hasn’t skipped a beat, and it’s easy to say the head coach must be the reason. But what about the university? The tradition
Cover Story Resurrection - Hal Mumme and Woody Widenhofer return to football to revive Southeastern Louisiana football and their careers. Read the complete article >>> April 2003 Staff Meeting
The Last Rep
The strength and conditioning industry has gone from being an afterthought in most football programs to being the cornerstone of any championship foundation in just the past 20 years. Men like Kim Wood, Boyd Epley, Dan Riley, Joe Juraszek and John Dunn have carved a path of knowledge and success – sometimes thru trial-and-error – for all those to follow.
The Life of Riley
Riley’s Thoughts on Supplements ... “When I started in this industry, a strength and conditioning coach could tell an athlete anything. We cou
Training Mr. Everything
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Scorching the Competition
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Times Change: So Should Your Workout
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Making \"Quality\" a Priority
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Letter From the Editor
Every great coach is only as good as the cast that surrounds him ... the supporters, the players, the staff. After all, it’s that surrounding cast that can often make the difference between success and failure. The same can be said of American Football Monthly. This magazine’s sole purpose is for the further enhancement of your coaching career, and that is something that we take very seri
The Life of Riley - When Dan Riley joined the Houston Texans as their first strength and conditioning coach, many asked why? Hear Coach Riley’s answer and find out why he is among the most respected coaches in his industry.Read the complete article >>> March 2003
Throwback
Attention all coaches: Think conditions are tough where you are? Try taking a group of talented, but often-immature, teenagers and transforming them into not only Division-I football players, but also into NCAA-caliber students. Oh by the way, you have only two years to do it. Seems like an impossible mission – for the average coach. Luckily for 24 Georgia Military Bulldogs, who, in the last three years, hav
Letter From the Publisher
We approach publishing American Football Monthly magazine much like you approach developing a successful football program. Like you strive to get better each game, we work hard and diligently to produce a magazine better than the last. Just as you recruit the best coaching staff and players, we search our industry to improve our publishing staff to build arguably the best coaching magazine in the world. As
Nice Guys Finish First
Former Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher was often quoted as saying that “Nice guys finish last.” But perhaps in the case of Garden City Community College (Kan.) head football coach Bob Larson, that isn’t necessarily the case. In fact, trying to find someone with something negative to say about Coach Larson is like trying to find a proponent of the Bowl Championship Series at a mid-major. The fans love him, the ath
Cover Story Throwback Georgia Military College’s Bert Williams uses bulldog tenacity to take a bite out of the JUCO elite. By David Purdum October 2003
Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime
Anyone. Anywhere. Anytime. ... This is not just a slogan for the University of Southern Mississippi, located in the piney woods of Hattiesburg, Miss., it is a way of life that has defined the character and grit of Southern Miss football for all of its 86-year existence. Schools like Southern Miss have embodied the pure essence of competition that envelops college football and al
LSU\'s Offensive Line Drills
First of all I would like to say it is an honor to be able to represent head coach Nick Saban and the LSU football staff in American Football Monthly. As coaches we know the game is always changing, but some things never change. You must know fundamentals, you must be able to block and tackle. There are many ways to skin a cat but these are some of the basic fundamentals that we “hang our hat”
Dominate 4th Down
Starting a program from scratch in 2000 brought enormous challenges for the coaching staff at East Texas Baptist University in Marshall, Texas. One key foundational element that allowed us to challenge the best teams on our schedule in such a short period of time was the commitment to be productive offensively on fourth down. Field position gained by effective punting has become a trademark of ETBU fo
The Right Way
Unlike the NFL, where free agency allows a team to upgrade its roster yearly, rebuilding a struggling college team can be a long, grueling process, usually filled with defeat and frustration. However, a successful resurrection can be one of the most gratifying, fullilling and respected accomplishments of a coach’s career. Before Bill Snyder took over at Kansas
The Last Rep
Practice scheduling is becoming more important with every season that passes, so American Football Monthly recently sat down with six of the top coaches from around the country to get their thoughts on some of the major issues concerning two-a-days and pre-season preparation. How do you get yourself and your players prepared for two-a-days? “More than anything, I
The Way It Used To Be
If there is one constant, it is that there are no constants. Over time, everything changes and nothing remains quite the same. Never is this more evident than in the profession of coaching college football. American Football Monthly recently sat down with a few of the game’s greatest coaches for a peek inside the ever-changing world of college football. From their first
The Home Team
8 Tips In an effort to keep football coaches on good terms with their significant others, AFM has compiled these eight tips to help you maintain balance between career and family: 1) Pick Up the Phone - That’s right, call. Your wife understands the demands of your job, but at least pick
Cover Story Anyone. Anywhere. Anytime... Three coaches, Three schools, One Philosophy... A look inside college football\'s most underrated football programs...By Aaron S. Lee July 2003
Pressure Points
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Against The Grain
It only happened once. And it never happened again. Maybe that’s because Southern Miss video director Chris Hooley is too busy doing her job to let her status as the first woman in her position in Division I-A college football become an issue. There was a time when an NFL scout came to visit her video office for film on some potential NFL prospects. He made a rather unnecessary comment about her not belonging in a man’s game and then slipped in a couple of other snide remark
Focus the man behind the camera
Nearly nine years after the fact, Brad Helton can finally admit it. When he became Marshall’s video coordinator in 1995, Helton re-wired his entire office area. “That way the coaches couldn’t even come in here and make a tape,” Helton says, laughing. “At the time, I didn’t know how many programs even had video coordinators or how many people were doing it or what they were doing it with, so I did it for job security. I figured
Technology Game Plan
The arrival of spring means that spring football has begun at many college campuses across the country. Springtime also provides coaches the opportunity to visit other coaching staffs and observe their practice routines. In Texas, high school coaches especially like to take this opportunity to visit with area college staffs. Its during these times that visiting high school coaches ask me to offer my thoughts on
Film School
I started in 1992 as graduate assistant in the football video department at the University of Illinois. Prior to that I had no idea what went in to preparing for a football game. In 1996, I became the video coordinator here at the University of Oregon where I have spent the last seven seasons. Aside from trying to explain to my friends what I actually do, and convince my Mom and Dad that I ca
Letter From the Editor
Well, it’s no secret that football is ever changing and not just with personnel, uniform colors, helmet design and Xs and Os. In fact, the most noticeable changes often occur off the field, hidden from the millions of fans that pack the stadiums each weekend. Football has indeed changed for the many coaches who teach the game, a game that is now seemingly dominated by laptops, keyboards and hard drives. Once again,
The Last Rep
Technology is becoming more intricate with every season that passes, so American Football Monthly recently sat down with six of the top video coordinators and recruiting coordinators from around the country to get their thoughts on some of the major issues concerning their industry. What is the hottest new technology in your industry?
Outline for Technology Game-planning
With the growth of technology in football and the ever-increasing demands on coaches’ time game planning and scheduling has become even more important providing the foundation for a successful football program. This is an outline of the weekly schedule we use at Fordham University for offensive game planning. The outline also highlights the manner technology makes our film study either more efficient or allows us to study
Cover Story Focus - The man behind the camera. Take a close look at what video coordinator Brad Helton is doing for Marshall’s football team both on and off the field . By Richard Scott Cover Photo by Jim Robinette Cov
Releasing is the Key
Through the course of coaching receivers at four different colleges, one thing has stood by itself as being the task that has frustrated both players at that position and some coaches on those staffs. Invariably, the release (a clean release without sacrificing vertical speed) is what we are all striving for on pass plays. But that has become a bigger issue to deal with as offenses have attempted to
Schutt Sports 2002 Regional High School Coaches of the Year
Southwest Regional J.T. Curtis John Curtis Christian (River Ridge, La.) 2002: 14-1, Class 4A state champs Record at school: 393-43-6, 27 years Career record: 393-43-6 J.T. Curtis began his head coaching responsibilities at John Curtis
The Staff Report
Career: 8 Guidlines for the High School Assistant Coach So you dream of becoming the head coach someday? Well, there are a few things you need to know and do that will help you earn that dream job you’ve been looking for. Anyone who wants to be a successful assistant coach and eventually a successful head coach must have certain qualities that set them
Everybody\'s All-American
Coker\'s 24-Game Winning Streak 2001 (12-0) Miami 33, Penn State 7 Miami 61, Rutgers 0 Miami 43, Pittsburgh 21 Miami 38, Troy State 7
Northwestern\'s Academic Game Plan
High School Coaches The foundation for successful college football student-athletes is laid by the high school coach. Whether the player goes on to play college bal
Schutt Sports College Coaches of the Year
DIVISION I-AA WINNER Dave Clawson Fordham Dave Clawson did not rest on his laurels after guiding his squad to a 7-4 record and being named Co-Patriot League Coach of the Year in 2001. No, Clawson joins former Holy Cross mentor Mark Duffner (1986-87) a
Letter From the Editor
Another football season has come and gone and as usual, many new faces have come to the forefront and many older faces have remained steadfast and stoic. The turbulent world of coaching tests a mans soul and strengthens his resolve ... yet by season’s end the truly great have stepped to the plate and performed. Each year American Football Monthly proudly presents the Schutt Sp
Schutt Sports I-A Coach of the Year Runners-up
Jim Tressel Ohio State Jim Tressel, who went 7-5 last season as head coach of the Buckeyes, led Ohio State (14-0) to a national championship in just his second season in Columbus with a 31-24 overtime win over defending national champion, the Miami Hurricanes. This was Tressel
Cover Story Schutt Sports 2002 Division I-A Coach of the Year: Larry Coker - Miami\'s Larry Coker entered the 2003 Fiesta Bowl with a 24-0 record as head coach, a national championship ring on one finger and an opportunity to win one for another finger. Rockne, Warner, Wilkinson, Bryant, Robinson... none of them did that in their first two years as a head coach.
Solid Ground
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unCommon Ground
At this moment, it’s probably rainy in Juneau, Alaska, sunny and hot in Key West, Fla., hot and humid in El Paso, Texas, and dry and windy in Howells, Neb. In The Bronx, it’s doing whatever New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner says it’s doing. OK, just kidding. But we’re not kidding about this: in these five culturally, socially and economically diverse areas, some
High School Booster Clubs
Behind every successfully funded athletic program, there is usually an active and thriving booster club helping to pave the way. Without a properly running support branch, athletic departments and alumni would be forced to constantly operate and support under a dark cloud of uncertainty, debt and cutbacks. “Booster clubs are an essential part of not only the fundraising process, but also the community process
Gold Rush
In 1969, a 22-year-old college student, nine credit hours shy of graduating, accepted an offer to become the head football coach at John Curtis Christian High School – the school his father, John Curtis Sr., had founded eight years earlier in River Ridge, La. It was a dream come true for the young coach, and he eagerly arrived that summer to meet with players and organize a weight program. The summer wound down, and on the first day of pract
The History of the Wing-T
It is an honor to have the opportunity to write this article and especially since the article deals with a topic as dear to my heart as the wing-t. In my 33 years of coaching I have seen many different cycles of football but the wing-t has remained a fixture since the time before I played and throughout my time as a player and a coach. I am sure that it will continue to be a very popular system long
A Cyclone of a Secondary
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Elevation
Jenks or jinx, nothing could stop Bill Blankenship’s Tulsa Union team from running the table in 2002 for the school’s elusive first state championship in 11 seasons under his leadership. A 52-3 thrashing of Broken Arrow stifled any chuckles about Blankenship and his veteran staff not being able to win the big one and validates what has been one of high school football’s better-kept secrets outside of the Sooner State.
Undersized? No Problem
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Letter From the Editor
You know, I have been fortunate to meet some of the best people that the football industry has to offer, establish some longlasting relationships and have the opportunity to hear some pretty fantastic stories along the way. One of my new favorite stories, which – depending on who asks me and when – changes daily, was a story told to me by Tommy Condell, the offensive coordinator at the University of Louisiana at Monroe.
Getting Footballs Game Ready
It doesn’t matter whether you purchase a dozen footballs at a time or 244 like Auburn equipment manager Frank Cox has each of the last five seasons. Once they are delivered, these footballs have to be made game ready. While you could simply throw the footballs out of the shipper’s box and into your players’ hands, there are a few guidelines you may wish to follow. While routines vary from program to program and even season to
The Last Rep
Practice scheduling is becoming more important with every season that passes, so American Football Monthly recently sat down with six of the top head coaches from around the country to get their thoughts on some of the major issues concerning their industry. How important is practice scheduling? “Practice is the most important time that you have. T
Simple Formations Take Advantage of Complex Defenses
J.T. Curtis’ offense isn’t complicated. Rarely will the Patriots line up in anything but the basic pro set. And you know what is coming – the veer option. Yet, for 28 years, teams have had trouble stopping it. Since 1975 – the first year Curtis utilized the split-back veer – the Patriots have reached the championship game 22 times, winning 18 titles. Since 1977, they have lost only two district games. The Patriots made 10 consecutive appearances in t
Cover Story Gold Rush: J.T. Curtis In his 33 years as head coach, J.T. Curtis has brought John Curtis Christian High School’s trophy case a national record 18 gold footballs. And counting... By David Purdum A TV Star too
How to Lose a Game
Every coach has that call he’d like to have back. It might be that defensive set on that goal-line stand that gave up the go-ahead score on third-and-goal from the five. Or that time he passed three times from inside his own 10 leading with less than two minutes left in game. If he’s lucky, maybe it’s one or two a season. Tulsa Union coach Bill Blankenship knows his share about losing, even though he hasn’t done that much of i
Urban Development
The record book said Bowling Green was in trouble when Urban Meyer went to interview for the university’s head coaching position in December 2000. The record book said the Falcons hadn’t had a winning season since 1994. The record book said the university had replaced coach Gary Blackney in mid-season that year after nine years on the job and two conference championships. Meyer loo
Five Steps to Maximize Player Potential
Five Steps to Maximize Player Potential Spotlight Five Steps to Maximize Player Potential Football players of the 21st century may look like they did way back in the 1900s – you know, three years ago – but let’s face it, times have changed. In order to fully maximize bot
The Big Play
There is not a head coach in the country that won’t expound on the importance of having good special teams play. We all know how to say the right thing, but unless a head coach is truly committed to special teams, your players will look at the “teams,” as we call them at Michigan, as just a break between offense and defense. But most importantly, special teams must be important to the head coach.
Breaking the Mold
Imagine a day when young men still stood at attention when young ladies entered the room or when a teacher could put their arms around a kid in need or when coaches led more by example than strong words. Imagine a day when kids would say “Yes, sir” and “No, ma’am.” Or when kids lost they graciously accepted defeat and proudly shook their opponents hand. Imagine a day when students a
Maintaining the Vision
Legendary Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi once muttered, “Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.” And even though that particular ideology throws political correctness completely out the window, it does, however, remind those who play the games that victory is – without a doubt – the desired end result. The game of football is a primary example of the win-at-all-cost
West Coast Offense: East Coast Style
Seven years ago, Ithaca College made a philosophical change to our program by incorporating the West Coast Offense. Rule changes, the excitement of the passing game and the ability to effectively match up against more talented defenses were all factors for this decision. We needed to develop a system of plays rather than a series of plays based on our background in option football. Therefore,
The Staff Report
Within the game of Football the difference in many athletes performance stems from flexibility of the hips. Whether your need is to engage a man on the line of scrimmage or to come in and out of your cuts faster, your results will depend on this. An interior lineman will be able to drive through the more forcefully and the skill position athlete will be able break down faster and more efficiently. Throughout
Running with the Bulls...
EDITOR\'S NOTE: On Dec. 12, 2002, Jim Leavitt signed a new five-year contract with a total base salary worth $2.4 million. The salary escalates from $407,173 in 2003 to $596,143 in 2007, the final year of the contract. Leavitt had been under contract through 2005. In addition to base salary, the new contract includes a $25,000 annual annuity and television/radio money that escalates from $40,000 to $50,000 over the course of the five years.
Disciplined Destruction
We have been fortunate to have many really good defenses at Furman over the past 20 years and that system has evolved from what use to be the 50 Defense to what we now call our Stack Defense. This is not the only defense that we run but it is our primary system and what we start teaching with. Like most schools it is our primary objective to stop the run first and then the pass. We do have some consistent
The Science of Recruiting Letters - Part II
Whether you like it or not, recruiting is a necessity. It is the only means to rebuild fallen programs and reload successful ones. More often than not, recruiting has become an endless saga filled with repetitive approaches that have changed little in the past four decades. Recruiting is something that everyone does, but does everyone do it well? In last month’s issue, the staff of American
Cover Story Running with the Bulls - With a base salary of $140,000, South Florida’s Jim Leavitt may in fact be the best bargain in college football, but one thing is for certain - he is no longer a secret. Read the complete article >>>
Running From The Shotgun Formation
When coaches think of running the football, they generally get in two tight ends and two backs, and MASH. The personnel on the field allows you take care of blocking most defenses and when you finish drawing your play everyone, at least in theory, can be blocked. You also believe you have a bigger, as strong, or stronger blocker then the defense. Many great coaches use that theory today.
Focus on Critical Information to Place Your Players in Position to be Successful
FOR LAST YEAR’S TECHNOLOGY ISSUE, American Football Monthly asked me to share some insight on the organization of game planning staff and resources.* This year, Travis Davis has asked me to again address the subject of game planning, this time regarding an often asked question: In light of the finite time we coaches have available each week for strategic planning, how can we find and use the best from th
Technology Crossroads
Bobby April had reached a crossroads in his career and his life. When the New Orleans Saints fired Mike Ditka’s staff after the 1999 season, April – the special teams coach – found himself without a job. April also found himself with a year left on his contract, and decisions to make. “I had a daughter who was going to be a senior in high school, and I wasn’t going to
2001 Coordinators of the Year
DEFENSE - BUD FOSTER, Virginia Tech OFFENSE - MIKE BORICH, BYU After more than two decades as one of college football’s most prolific passing and scoring teams under former coach LaVell Edwards, Brigham Young fans thought they had seen it all. Then Gary Crowton an
Roll Call at the Ball
In order to have a great defense, you must have great pursuit and gang tackling. In order to have great pursuit, you must emphasize running to the football throughout the entire practice. This includes the time spent in our individual and team periods. You must grade the effort of your players everyday. We’ve had outstanding defenses the past few seasons. In 2000, we finished first i
Letter From the Editor
It’s time for American Football Monthly’s annual look at new technologies in the game of football. We began this annual series in May 2000 because when it comes to technology, coaching is similar to many other jobs. Innovators and entrepreneurs are looking at ways to develop technology to make your job easier and to make you more efficient. For all that technology can do, it can’t add to the number o
May 2002 Cover Story Information Age Bobby April of the St. Louis Rams uses technology to gain a coaching and career edge. Technology Crossroads - St. Louis Rams special teams coach Bobby April is one of a growing
Georgia Military College’s Devastating 3-5 Defense
Following the 2000 season, our staff met to discuss what we needed to do to give our team a chance to play for something special in 2001. We had just finished the season 7-3 with the #2 ranked defense in the NJCAA, but we knew we had the talent returning to do better in 2001. One of the things we decided to do was to revamp our defense and change to a 3-5 scheme. While some may question the sanity of rebuilding
Back to School
Chan Gailey File: 1974-75 University of Florida - graduate assistant 1976-78 Troy State University - defensive backs coach 1979-80 Air Force Academy - defensive assistant 1981-82 Air Force Academy - defensive coordinator 1983-84 Troy State University - head coach 1985 Denver Br
No Excuses, No Apologies, Just Football
The Morriss File 1988-89 New England Patriots - Offensive Line 1991 Mansfield, Tex., HS - Offensive Coordinator 1992 Washington (PSFL) - Head Coach 1992-93 Valdosta State - Offensive Line 1994 Arizona Cardinals - Offensive Line 1995 San Antonio (CFL) - Offensive Line
ROAD TRIP
During his formative years as a high school coach, Barry Alvarez religiously studied the game while absorbing knowledge from a variety of sources. One spring, he decided to prove he was willing to go the extra mile (or miles in this case) to learn everything he could about the X’s and O’s of football. So he piled into his car with one of his coaching buddies (a former college teammate at Nebraska) and they
ATTACKING THE PERIMETER WITH THE QUICK GAME
Why use the quick game? A big reason for this is our staff has always believed in the philosophy to take what the defense gives you. I know this is probably an overused cliché, but it is one that both our staff and quarterbacks believe in 100%. ADVANTAGES OF THE QUICK GAME • Protection - Don’t have to hold them out long. • Safe - High percentage completions, closer to th
The “B” Word
Five sure signs that you’re coaching football at a basketball school: 1. The booster groups insist on inviting the basketball coach to your summer kickoff functions. 2. The basketball coach’s line for autographs outnumbers your line 10 to 1. 3. The basketball staff has a nice spacious office set-up up high in coliseum. You and your staff are stuck in the basement.
Media Guides
Universities across the country are paying close attention to the content in their media guides. Schools are forced to do so in order to insure themselves of not facing a controversial situation that could jeopardize their reputation. In response to specific cases involving false information and slandering comments of opponents in recent media guides, some schools have altered the manner in which they comp
Special Delivery
At Missouri Western we try to make special teams special. Many coaches have made the statement that special teams are one-third of the game, but actually as far as time spent on the field, they are less than that, but in impact they are more. Special team plays have a major effect on the results of the game. Blocking a punt for a touchdown or returning a kick for “six” more often than not results
NFL Coach of the Year Runners-up
BUTCH DAVIS When the Cleveland Browns hired Butch Davis as the second head coach in the three-year history of the new Browns franchise, Davis was told to beef up the defense and the running game and field a team that resembled the aggressive, hard-nosed kind of football Browns fans have been accustomed to back in the old days. More important, he was instructed to take the core of a
NFL Coach of the Year - Bill Belichick
You thought you knew him from his days in Cleveland. You saw the images on television. The grim, stern, face, void of emotion, ratcheted with intensity. You saw the newspaper stories. The humorless, dogmatic responses. A personality as cold and brittle as the wind blowing in from Lake Erie, pummeling Cleveland. You thought you knew him, but did you? Did you really? Did the people feeding those
The Nature of a Quiet Man
Dick Jauron is by nature a quiet man. Not given to yelling, screaming or grand statements. But as head coach of the Chicago Bears, he was able to get his team to achieve grand accomplishments in 2001. Try worst to first in the NFC Central Division. Try the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoffs, earning a bye and a ticket to a home game in the divisional playoffs. That ticket was torn u
April 2002 Latest Cover Story NFL Coach of the Year Getting to know the Real Bill Belichick Bill Belichick - You thought you knew him from his days in Cleveland. You saw the images on television. The grim, stern face, void of emotion, ratcheted with intensity.
Path To Victory
While there is no such thing as an easy head coaching job in football, some present as more challenging than others. In 1993, one of the more challenging jobs available was to be the next head coach of the Colorado State University Rams. The facilities were among the worst in the Western Athletic Conference (now the Mountain West Conference), with no signs of improvement
Practice With a Purpose
It is an honor to represent head coach Nick Saban and the LSU football staff in American Football Monthly. As coaches, we constantly stress to our players the importance of knowing what to do, but do not always explain when and how a scheme applies itself in a game situation. Here at LSU, we stress to our players knowing what to do, how to do it and when it applies. Our in-season practice schedule helps ou
Class of 2002
They are a pair of the most significant shoes in all of the college football coaching world. When you step in at Florida for Steve Spurrier, there is no hope of warming or going through a learning experience. Make no mistake about it. The heat will be on from Game One for Ron Zook. The Gators were one of the most consistent and powerful teams in the country under Spurrier. When Spurrie
Letter From the Publisher
As the 2002 football season is about to start, the attention given to coaches is only going to increase – especially new coaches. In some cases the double-whammy for new coaches is not only the “win now” mentality, but to reach the level of expectations set by their predecessors. Fans, alumni, media, administration, parents and just about every person in a coffee shop will be clo
Third & Short
University of Colorado co-defensive coordinator Tom McMahon has died of cancer at the age of 53. McMahon was diagnosed with inoperable cancer in the spring of 2000 and given a 10 percent chance to survive. He continued to fight, likening it to the fight against an opposing offense. He also continued at Colorado for as long as he could. He joined Gary Barnett’s staff prior to t
Embrace the Past
For new coaches attempting to fill huge shoes, history suggests it is smart to embrace the legend and make the most of it instead of trying to cut ties with the former coach and his assistants. When Gary Crowton took over at BYU for LaVell Edwards following the 2000 season, he reminded Cougar fans, “I’m not LaVell Edwards. I tried my imitation on the sidelines, and I’m not him. But I’ve learned fro
Cover Story Path To Victory Under Sonny Lubick's guidance, Colorado State is now a consistant winner The Look of a Winner - Anyone who thinks there are some programs that will never turn aroun
Third & Short
BCA to create minority hiring report card for universities The executive director of the Black Coaches Association, Floyd Keith said in late October that his organization and others intend to create a Hiring Report Card by August 2003 to grade and track the progress of minority football coaches, while giving players something to use when making their decision on which schools to attend.
Past, Present, Future
“I don’t have all the answers. As soon as I retire, then I’ll have all the answers. I’ll stay up in the stands with the rest of the fans who have all the answers, and I can answer it all then. Right now, I still have to go do it. It’s never easy to go out and get it done.” - John Gagliardi SO HOW MUCH LONGER IS JOHN GAGLIARDI GOING TO keep coaching? It’s a ques
Gary Gaines Trades Lights for Sunny Saturday Afternoons
GARY GAINES WILL BE THE FIRST ONE TO TELL YOU that nothing comes easy – especially in coaching. In fact, the Abilene Christian University head football coach wouldn’t have it any other way. Gaines, who led teams to nine playoff appearances in 17 years as a high school coach, gained national attention as the head coach of
Dale Lennon\'s 3 Keys to Success...
You don’t just win the Division II national championship without a plan. And University of North Dakota head coach Dale Lennon had one of his very own. The Fighting Sioux alumnus and former assistant coach returned to Grand Forks, North Dakota, and within three short years guided the Big Green to the national title. Recently American Football Monthly had the opportunity
The Science Of Recruiting Letters Part 1
What if you could have an in-home visit with any football recruit in the nation at any time during the NCAA’s mandated recruiting period? What if your in-home visit could take advantage of every possible opportunity to share your program’s tradition, goals and intentions with a potential game-breaking superstar that could help make the difference between a 5-6 also-ran and a 6-5 bowl run?
Words of Wisdom
Just the mention of Alabama football conjures images of hound’s-tooth hats and championship trophies; images of football past, present and future; images of great players led by even greater men. Paul “Bear” Bryant immediately comes to mind when referring to the University of Alabama. But without question, former Crimson Tide head coach Gene Stallings is a close second.
Equipment Room
Defensive Reaction Machine From Rae Crowther Co. 1-800-841-5050 www.raecrowther.com B.C. Cruncher Two-Man Sled Defensive Reaction Sled (DFR) \"Over 70 Years of What Works...\" Quality Reconditioning 1-800-544-5564 www.continentalathletic.c
Turf
Artificial turf has undergone a major makeover. Instead of a hard, abrasive surface that players feared and fans despised, the newer version of artificial turf provides a softer, more cushioned playing field that wears well and can stand up under heavy usage. That’s the key to today’s artificial grass-like surfaces. For universities, colleges and high schools with
High School Notes
Not even a trip to powerhouse Long Beach Poly could end De La Salle’s national-record winning streak and run to an unprecedented fourth national title. When the top-ranked “Spartan Express” – engineered by coach Bob Ladouceur – chugged south down the Pacific coast to meet No. 3 Poly at Long Beach’s Veterans Stadium on Oct. 6, there were many who believed that De La Salle would be derailed
Division I-A Coach of the Year Runners-up.
GARY BARNETT COLORADO Back in late July, Colorado Coach Gary Barnett visited Dallas for the Big 12’s annual preseason media event when he decided to take some of his players on a trip to Texas Stadium, home of the 2001 Big 12 championship game. Then he told his players that the season would be a disappointment if they did not return to Texas Stadium at the end of the
New Equipment
Recruiting Software From CyberSports 1-315-732-4333 members.home.net/cybersports CyberPalm allows you to take all your recruits information on the road with you, and sync any changes you made on the road when you return to the office. Now all the coaches can have access to any new information you have gathered on your recent recruiting trips. With a few clicks of the mouse, selected prospec
Cover StoryCoach of the Year Ralph Friedgen February 2002 Division I-A Coach of the Year Ralph Friedgen When the University of Maryland went looking for a football coach, they wanted someone who cared about UM, its past, present and futu
Why Split?
Meeting with an informal group of offensive line coaches at the national coaches convention this year, the question was asked about our wide splits in the bowl game. After some conversation with the group, it was clear that many of them had not watched us play prior to the Alamo Bowl. The truth of the matter is our offensive line has always used wide splits in some form.
Poetic Justice
My job as defensive line coach is to help my players attain our team goals, our defensive goals, and their individual goals. One of the ways I do this is by preparing them during the week for situations they may encounter during the game. On Saturdays, I do not want them thinking; I want them reacting. For this reason, I am very careful with respect to what I expose them to during the week. I try to keep i
Football Strength
It’s no longer just about lifting weights, Washington State develops flexibility, speed, skill development and conditioning to get the most out of their players. By Steve Silverman The role of the strength coach has changed dramatically over the years. A couple of decades ago, the concept of the strength coach was a relatively
Strong, Fast, Agile
The job of the strength coach is not a complicated one. It is to build stronger players and to do it with efficiency and organization. If you help develop stronger players, your program has a better chance of playing winning football. And it\'s not just about building stronger players – it\'s about developing faster and quicker players. Give strong, fast and ag
March 2002 Latest Cover Story Behind Oklahoma's Strength Jerry Schmidt - Before coming to OU, Schmidt worked as a strength coach at Nebraska, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State and Florida. It seems everywhere he goes athletes get stronger and faster. As the Director of S
Who’s Hot?
DAN HAWKINS, HC, BOISE STATE After serving as Dirk Koetter\'s assistant head coach, special teams and tight ends coach and overseeing Boise State’s highly successful community service and public involvement program, Hawkins moved up to the head coach’s job when Koetter took over at Arizona State following the 2000 season. During his time as an assistant at Boise State, t
Red Hot
RANDY SANDERS Most first-time college football coordinators get their new jobs in the offseason, with plenty of time to prepare for spring practice, more time to teach in the spring and then even more time to work toward the coming season. If they’re really fortunate, they’ll open the season against East Bugtussle State Teachers College
Are Football Coaches Overpaid?
Washington Redskins Head Football Coach Steve Spurrier is probably the highest paid football coach in the world today. Coach Spurrier is reportedly contracted to earn $25,000,000.00 over a five year term, a deal valued at $5 million dollars annually. Despite that he may also be one of the best coaches, he has little need to worry about 3% inflation. After all, Notre Dame’s Knute Rockne was highly compensated too at
2002 Hot Coaches RED HOT Tennessee’s Offensive Coordinator, Randy Sanders and Kansas State’s Defensive Coordinator, Bob Elliott are two assistant coaches that have studied and performed under some of the best head coaches in the game. Following the 2002 season, many athletic directors will be calling to enlist th
Innovative Fundraising Ideas
Here are some fundraising ideas your booster club can consider to raise anywhere from a little to a lot of money to support the football program: 1. A Golf Tournament The best part about a golf tournament is it gives people in the community who support your team a chance to do it while doing something else many people enjoy: playing competitive golf. You can cha
Personal Decision
The questions hang around the high school stadium whenever a veteran coach with some championships and a reputation for excellence stalks the sidelines. If this guy is so good, why didn’t he get a coaching job at the college or professional level? Why is he still coaching high school football? Frank Lenti has heard those questions before. As one of the na
Letter From the Editor
“Everyone loves a winner.” Every coach knows the value and impact of winning football games. Depending on your level of coaching, it means some combination of more job security, more job opportunities more money, better recruits and more community support. For most coaches, at least the ones I’ve had the good fortune to speak with, the term “football philosophies” is a slight
Player Hand-offs
Recruiting is an interestingly complex part of football that isn’t getting any easier on coaches at either the high school or college levels. It was never easy for college coaches to recruit players, traveling the country relying on tips and grainy videos and news accounts to try and form a college football roster. While the Internet has made it easier to find out information about
June 2002 Cover Story Paths to Success - First rate facilities a plus, but people ultimately determine program success. An inside look at successful high school programs in Artesia, N.M., and Carol City, Fla., shows that coaches, communities and players are the bes
Follow The Leader
When the University of Texas whipped out the wishbone in the 1960s, it didn\'t take long for college football programs all over the South to follow the trend and come up with their own version of the triple-option. When Florida coach Steve Spurrier brought a wide-open passing attack to the run-oriented SEC in the early 90s, it didn\'t take long for the rest of the conference to pick up on the trend and discover the joys of passing.When Nebraska and Kansas State starting using press-man def
Climbing to the Summit
He\'s coached at the high school level, at the small college level, and the major college level for the past 24 seasons. Along the way, he\'s been an assistant head coach, an offensive coordinator, a running backs coach and a receivers\' coach. Someday, Woody McCorvey would like to be a head coach on the college level.That\'s why McCorvey is a position coach at the University of Tennessee. He knows being a coordinator or an assistant head coach might be the most obvious path to a head coachin
On the Circuit
At the University of North Dakota, we have one major goal for our defense to attain each season. That goal is to lead the North Central Conference in fewest points allowed. This is not an easy task in one of the most balanced and powerful Division II conferences in the country. Yet we have reached our goal of allowing the fewest points in our league in six of the last nine seasons. During six of the last seven seasons, we have also been first or second in our conference in total defense. While w
Best of the Best ...
What makes an outstanding coaching staff? Experience? Expertise? Knowledge? Communication? Teaching ability? Team building? Is it all of the above, plus the ability to recruit in the college ranks, and the ability to scout in the pro ranks? It depends on how you measure success. Is it national championships, something the Oklahoma, Florida State and Tennessee staffs can all claim over the past three college seasons? Is it Super Bowl victories, something Baltimore and St. Louis own from the
Blood Brother
When Rutgers University Athletic Director Robert Mulcahy began his search for a new head football coach last November, die-hard Scarlet Knight fans and a large contingent of New Jersey high school coaches wanted one thing ... they wanted a \"Jersey Guy.\" They wanted what another favorite son, Bruce Springsteen, refers to in song. What they wanted was one of their \"Blood Brothers.\" They wanted a guy who spent his July weekends down on the Jersey shore cruising the boardwalk, and his Novem
News & Notes
Veteran NFL assistant coach and New England quarterbacks coach Dick Rehbein died during training camp. The 45-year-old Rehbein died of heart failure at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. The Patriots said Rehbein, who had heart disease, checked himself into the hospital complaining of discomfort. Rehbein joined the Patriots in February 2000. Rehbein, who had an internal pacemaker because of cardiomyopathy, suffered an apparent heart attack and extensive resuscitation efforts failed.
Efficiency in the Scoring Zone
From the time we watched our first game, we all understood the fundamental role of the offense in the game of football. The purpose of the offense is not to control the clock, nor is it to create field position or give the defense a rest. Although these are all important by-products of an effective offense, they are not the primary focus. The role of the offense is to score points, period. It is with that basic premise in mind that we communicate and develop our philosophy for the area between t
Cover Story Greg Schiano October 2001 Blood Brother - Perennially bad and lacking for direction, Rutgers turned its fo
H20
Working out means working up a sweat. In fact, many people believe the more you sweat, the better the workout. But losing all that fluid is just your body\'s way of cooling itself. You have to give back what\'s lost in a workout. If you don\'t, you are putting yourself at risk of dehydration that could end with serious consequences. The National Athletic Trainers\' Association has a Position Statement explaining the role of proper hydration in athletic performances. Take the time to r
Letter From the Publisher
Protecting your assets... In the business world, there are a few axioms that are universally applied by all successful companies. For example, some of these management philosophies are: focus on those things with the greatest opportunity for success; make certain you do whatever is necessary to keep your best employees; and protect your company\'s most valuable assets. However, in the football world, I fear teams sometimes ignore sound, proven and winning business strategies th
The Truth About Turf
Your quarterback is on the run. Coming from his left is a 275-pound defensive end charging with a full head of speed. Coming straight at him is a blitzing middle linebacker. You watch from the sidelines and know the inevitable is about to happen. It\'s just a matter of who is going to get to your quarterback - the end or the linebacker. The linebacker wins the race. He explodes past a would-be blocker and wraps up the quarterback with a nasty hit punctuated by his head bouncing off th
Longevity
Frank Broyles, who has been with the Razor-backs for 44 years, is now in his 28th year as athletic director, and the accolades continue to pour in. Recent awards include the Bobby Jones Award by the Atlanta Council of the Boy Scouts of America and the John L. Toner Award, given annually by the National Football Foundation and the College Hall of Fame to the athletics director who has demonstrated superior administrative abilities and shown outstanding dedication to college athletics a
The Protector
When Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive back Damien Robinson is asked how important athletic trainers are to his game, he whips out his cell phone.\"He is the No. 1 number,\" Robinson says of Bucs head trainer Todd Toriscelli. Once thought of as those guys who toted water or taped ankles, athletic trainers are now as important to winning football programs as quarterbacks with cannons for arms or receivers who can sprint downfield undetected to catch those powerful blasts.\"I think the i
Words of Wisdom
With innovations such as the pocket pass, loose-leaf playbooks, year-round coaching staffs, classroom teaching and tests, advanced scouting, grading player performance from film review, and sending in plays from the sideline, some say Paul Brown was the greatest coach who ever lived. Add to that coaching legendary high school teams at Massilon, Ohio, a national championships at Ohio State, all four AAFC champions, and three NFL championships, it\'s hard to get much argument to that claim. Brown
Everyone on the Same Page
In the absence of a certified athletic trainer, the head coach or coaches have many responsibilities as it relates to an injured athlete. During the course of a game, as one can imagine, all coaches are very involved with focusing on the next play, making the right substitutions, calling or signaling the right signs and searching for a way to win the game. One of the most difficult responsibilities for a coach is when an athlete is injured and his or her attention has to be refocused on ensuring
Emergency Situations: What\'s the Coach\'s Role?
Football is a collision sport and by its very nature invites injury. Participation in football requires all out exertion. There are numerous situations involving oftentimes high speed contact with other bodies or with the ground. While coaches focus on strategy and victory, they also must be aware of injury risks and know their role when a situation does transpire. Fortunately most injuries do not result in emergency situations, however, when emergencies do occur, prompt care is essential. With
News & Notes
Trojan and Buccaneer legend McKay Passes Away John McKay, the legendary coach of USC and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, known as much for his memorable sense of humor as he was for his tremendous success as a coach, passed away on June 10 from complications associated with his diabetes. McKay, who won four national titles at USC and was later the coach of the expansion Tampa Bucs, was 77. \"John McKay never bit his tongue,\" said former Bucs quarterback and current Grambl
Cover Story Sports Medicine July 2001 The Protector... - As head athletic trainer for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Todd Toriscelli
Lion Heart
Coaching requires the commitment to teach, to inspire athletes to set and achieve team and/or personal goals, while simultaneously developing the all-important necessary strategies to win! At no time should a coach ever forget or choose to ignore a most basic fundamental and unwritten code: coaching involves people not just schemes or strategies. Regardless of the level or the sport chosen to coach, this code can never be forgotten or the meaning lessened: that coaches, first and foremost, are i
NEVER A DOUBT
An upset? Don\'t call Oklahoma\'s national championship or its Orange Bowl victory over Florida State an upset. An upset is when a team that shouldn\'t win beats a team that should win, and that wasn\'t the case when the Sooners completed their undefeated season by beating the Seminoles 13-2. So what if Florida State was favored to win by nearly two touchdowns? So what if the Seminoles were playing for the national championship for the third time in four years? So what if the Sooners w
Leading By Example
Just four short months after assuming the reigns of the University of Oklahoma athletic department, Sooner athletic director Joe Castiglione made a decision that would shake the OU football program out of its recent doldrums and head it toward a sudden and glorious future. He hired Bob Stoops as head football coach.Prior to his arrival in Norman, Castiglione - a former football walk-on at the University of Maryland - spent 18 years rebuilding the pride and solidifying the infrastructur
The Relentless Pursuit of Excellence
Each year coaching staffs spend countless hours and large amounts of money searching for new and innovative ways to improve their defensive performance. Descriptive phrases such as \"swarming defense\" and \"relentless pursuit\" depict the type of play coaches are seeking from their defensive units. While using innovative coaching aids, advanced computer technology, and attending professional clinics can help a coach in his pursuit of these levels of performance, perhaps the most effec
High School Notes
Heart attack claims life of Ohio State recruit Drushaun Humphrey, one of the nation\'s top prospects from the Class of 2002 and unofficially an early verbal commitment to Ohio State, died April 30 of an apparent heart attack during a pickup basketball game. Humphrey, a standout running back/linebacker at Rogers High School in Toledo, arrived at the Medical College of Ohio in full cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead. An autopsy was planned to determine an exact cau
News & Notes
Fiesta Bowl changing to an afternoon game and will host 2003 title game The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl is switching to an afternoon kickoff on New Year\'s Day 2002 rather than the night schedule of recent years. Officials announced that the game will match the Pac-10 and Big 12 champions if those teams aren\'t playing in the Rose Bowl. If those teams aren\'t available for the Fiesta Bowl, its officials will turn to a pool of at-large teams that includes the champions of the Big Ten,
June 2001 Cover Story Buried Treasure... UAB's Watson Brown - Sometimes numbers can be deceiving, and in the case of Watson Brown, his career cannot be measured by wins and losses. Acclaimed by all who know him a
Equipment Room
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Class of 2001
When Ralph Friedgen met the press during hype week at Super Bowl XXIX in January of 1995, he faced an important question. \"Wouldn\'t you like to be a head coach some day?\" the media asked.At the time, Friedgen was the offensive coordinator for the San Diego Chargers. His team was getting ready to battle the 49ers in a contest that would become one of the most devastating offensive performances in Super Bowl history. The Chargers would be on the wrong end of those offensive fireworks.Frie
NFL Hot College Coaches 2001
What does it take to get to the throne of an NFL franchise? It is not a secret formula. The men making the decisions on who will lead a NFL team are not by nature risk-takers. They want the safe choice, either a proven winner or a hot assistant on the rise.For the proven winners like Dick Vermeil or Marty Schottenheimer, their records are clear and unambiguous. Owners can look at what they have done and choose to seek their leadership for their floundering franchises. However, the choice
Special Delivery: Pete Rodriguez
Pete Rodriguez has a motto to match his moxie. Here it goes: No matter how nervous he might get sometimes as the special teams coordinator of the Seattle Seahawks, the blood, sweat and tears of his work are the last thing you\'ll see on his sleeve, skin or collar.\"Don\'t ever let them see you sweat,\'\' Rodriguez said. \"I try to believe in that commercial. You need to have control, and however you handle it, reflects your own personality. Some guys are real vocal and holler and scream. I
On A Mission
It\'s 8:30 on a humid Friday morning in June, and Ralph Friedgen looks frazzled, as if he\'s already worked his standard 18-hour day. Sweat sits on the face of the 54-year-old, who appears out of breath when arriving at his University of Maryland office.For the Terps new football coach, the morning has been about three hours old - and hectic at that. Friedgen chased down three of his freshmen to get them to their academic tutor on time and coordinated details for Maryland\'s ongoing high scho
Words of Wisdom
To the people of he state of Minnesota, Bud Grant is an icon. To many in the NFL during the 1970s and 80s, he was iconoclastic. His belief in treating his players like men, as opposed to dogs, was more than unique; it was rebellious. His shortened training camps and less than arduous emphasis on hitting made Grant a coach who might have been run out of the good ol\' boy club were it not for the fact he won at an amazing rate. What kind of coach was Grant? Just like Sergeant Joe Friday used to
Capitol Will...
A year ago at this time, the Washington Redskins were the most hyped team in NFL history - Super Bowl expectations, $100 million payroll, marquee free agent signings. These days, the volume in Redskins land is at a monotone. One person took it upon himself to bring the franchise down to earth: Marty Schottenheimer.After a two-year stint as an ESPN analyst, the NFL\'s 12th all-time winningest coach is back on familiar turf. Since becoming the Redskins head coach and taking charge of the tea
Play Action for the Big Play
The past three seasons we have experienced much success at Jones Jr. College. In 1998, we were fortunate enough to finish the season 12-0 with a #1 ranking in one national poll. Our no-huddle, one-back offensive attack has averaged 29 points per game in the three seasons we have been together. In the spring of 1997, our staff decided to put in the one-back offense with the objective of spreading the defense. Our offensive philosophy is fairly simple. We want to determine where the defen
News & Notes
Tragedy strikes Florida as freshman FB, Autin diesEvery coach and parent\'s nightmare happened in Gainesville, when incoming Florida freshman Eraste Autin died of complications related to heat stroke, six days after collapsing and falling into a coma following a workout with teammates. Autin fell unconscious just outside Florida Field in late July while jogging back to the locker room after one of the football team\'s voluntary summer conditioning sessions. Although no autopsy wa
Cover Story Pete Rodriguez September 2001 Special Delivery: Pete Rodriguez - Pundits always argue that special teams p
State of Emergence
A huge photograph of a college quarterback appears, mural-like, on the side of a building across from Madison Square Garden in New York City during the past summer, touting the senior\'s candidacy for the Hesiman Trophy. Two of his teammates will appear this season on promotional billboards in San Francisco and Los Angeles.You think: Notre Dame, maybe?At the rival school up the road, they\'re hyping the star running back for the Heisman Trophy. They pose him in a photo with a prominent alu
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Balance : Steve Spurrier
Nearly every coach would like Steve Spurrier\'s recruiting base in Florida and the talent on his roster. Almost any coach would covet Spurrier\'s financial resources and facilities. A majority of coaches would give their left ... pinkie toes ... to have Florida\'s fervent fan support and outstanding administrative backing.With all those advantages going for Spurrier and the University of Florida football program, winning ought to be easy, right? Now ask yourself this: would every coach pro
Spurrier Q&A
Florida head coach Steve Spurrier is a hands-on boss who coaches his own quarterback, coordinates his own offense and calls his own plays, and does it as well, if not better, than anyone in football. In many ways, his coaching style is an extension of his playing career, when he played quarterback for the University of Florida and three NFL teams during a 10-year pro career.During the week before a recent open date, Spurrier took the time to talk with American Football Monthly\'s Richard Scot
Cover Story Balance: Steve Spurrier December 2001 Balance: Steve Spurrier -
The Big 10
Every year thousands of coaches try to take the next step up the ladder of success thatleads to the land of head coaching. Most of these men fully believe they have \"what it takes\" and all they need is a chance. Yet, many of these same men will tell me they feel totally disenfranchised and do not know how to \"get in the loop\" or make it to the next level. So many coaches seem to feel if they wor
Scout\'s Honor
WORKING IN THE NFL ISN\'T ALWAYS ABOUT THE GLORY. Despite working in the richest and most successful league in all of professional sports, there are still a great number of key employees who aren\'t household names. Yet without them, head coaches, star players and backups couldn\'t have the degree of preparation that is seen on a weekly basis. Scouts are generally in the game for the love of it. O
The Mouse That Roared
He is talking football, as usual, as he veers his black 1991 Mercedes 300 SE into the parking lot of the Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.There are other interests in his life, but nothing quite captures Mouse Davis\' fancy like throwing the football.\"Visiting with Mouse is like talking to Mr. Football, and it is not an artificial enthusiasm,\" says another man with a passing interest in the game, Dick Vermeil.Davis is discussing how to attack the latest defensive phenomeno
High School Coach of the Year
ON A WARM SUMMER DAY LAST JULY, CATHEDRAL Prep coach Mike Mischler and 13 of his senior football players loaded into his Jeep Cherokee and a rented passenger van to begin a journey through the nation\'s heartland. The two-vehicle caravan\'s four-day swing through the college towns of South Bend, Ind., Iowa City, Iowa, East Lansing, Mich., and Ann Arbor, Mich., was an informal meet-and-greet trip for Mischler and his players - a way for them to see some campuses, meet some coaches, and
Schutt Sports: Regional High School Coaches of the Year
SOUTHEASTNick ColemanVenice High School (Venice, Fla.)2000: 15-0, Class 5A state champs, Record at school: 21-5, 2 yearsVenice High School coach Nick Coleman is a little ahead of his time. At 31, he\'s already led a team to a state championship and a national ranking. Rarely has such a young head coach accomplished so much in the highly competitive world of Florida prep football. And when Coleman started his second full season as head coach of the Indians la
Practicing What You Preach
Too many times, we as coaches are guilty of talking out of both sides of our mouths. We stand before our players in meetings or in front of our peers at coaching clinics and expound on our philosophies, values and beliefs about the keys to winning football games. Yet, when we go out to the practice field, our practice structure does not mirror these beliefs. Instead, we spent too little time on what we say are the important things and get caught in the trap of using our limited practic
The Old Dog Has Some New Tricks
He\'s 64 years old, he\'s been a head coach for 29 years, he\'s won 223 games, taken six different teams to a combined total of 22 bowls, and won a national championship at one of the nation\'s most prestigious programs.He\'s the first to admit he\'s stubborn, sometimes to a fault. He didn\'t have to change his coaching methods. He didn\'t have to change his offense or his defense or his staff management style. He didn\'t have to try anything new. He didn\'t even have to take this job
News & Notes
Schottenheimer heads back to the field Marty Schottenheimer is leaving the broadcast booth and returning to the football field, this time as head coach and director of football operations for the beleaguered Washington Redskins. At a press conference in early January, Schottenheimer said that while he loved the two years he spent as an NFL analyst for ESPN, he just couldn\'t pass up the opportunity to return to coaching. \"It\'s in my blood,\" the 11th winningest coach in NFL histor
Cover Story Lou Holtz February 2001 Division 1-A Coach of the Year Lou Holtz - It was enough that the Notre Dame coaching lege
Equipment Room
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Hot College Coaches 2001
In the year 2000, a plague swept across the land of college football. At 25 cities, in various corners of the country, the disease of fan impatience and athletic director intolerance dealt death blows to good men. ADs were forced to pull the plug on coaches who were left on life-support by too few wins or too many losses versus the wrong opponent. Unfortunately there is no cure for the malady that has invaded the system known as college football and it has reached epidemic proportions.With t
Two Hot to Stop
According to the old cliche, defense wins championships and offense sells tickets, so if the rising number of offensive-related hires in recent years tells us anything, it\'s that college presidents, athletic directors and major boosters doing the hiring must be more interested in selling tickets than winning championships.But what factor sells tickets more than winning championships? Just ask the folks at Oklahoma, where coach Bob Stoops and the Sooners are the hottest ticket West of the Mis
Getting the Ball to Your Playmaker
Our motto at Stephen F. Austin is \"Let players be playmakers,\" and we as coaches attempt to put the players in an environment where they can succeed and we get out of the way! We emphasize the importance of \"explosives.\" Explosives are defined as plays (run or pass) that gains twenty yards or more. We want our players to understand that these gain have a positive impact on the game. Not only do they lead to scoring opportunities, but they also lead to huge shifts in field position that a
Minority Opinion
There are 117 Division I-A football programs and five (5) are led by minority coaches. Is this acceptable? Absolutely not. Can this situation be corrected? Absolutely.Take this test- write down the names of all five I-A football coaches; its not that difficult (Tyrone Willingham, Stanford; Jerry Baldwin, Louisiana-Lafayette; Fitz Hill, San Jose State; Bobby Williams, Michigan State; and Tony Samuels, New Mexico State). Now, use that same piece of paper and list all minority D-IA head basketb
Stop the Spread
Kansas State defensive coordinator Phil Bennett has been a popular man this off-season.Not a week goes by without another coordinator calling for some advice on defending an offense that was hard to tackle last season. It is an offense responsible for Oklahoma winning the national title, Oregon State completing its best season in school history, Purdue going to the Rose Bowl, and both Northwestern and South Carolina rising from the depths.It\'s the spread offense and the debate on how to,
News & Notes
Dolphins name Paton director of pro personnelThe Miami Dolphins have named George Paton their director of pro personnel. Paton, who spent the last four years working in the Chicago Bears\' player personnel department, performing scouting duties, will be responsible for monitoring the rosters of all 31 NFL teams and clubs in other leagues. He will also scout Dolphins opponents. He was a defensive back at UCLA, graduating in 1991. Duke to appeal ruling in favor of former femal
Cover Story Two Hot to Stop August 2001 Two Hot to Stop - For the past several years, head coaching vacancies have been fille
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Out With The Old and In With The New
While the towering Payne Whitney Gymnasium at Yale University is known as the \"cathedral of sports,\" for Steve Plisk and his strength and conditioning staff, it was an ungodly mess.Stuffed in a former wrestling room, the 3,600-square-foot weight room had long outlived its usefulness.\"Athletes would show up at their assigned time and have to wait 10 minutes for it to clear out,\" says Plisk, describing one of the many obstacles he faced trying to run a strength and conditioning pr
The Power Behind The Thrown
They\'re the Rodney Dangerfields of the football world. They\'re overworked, underpaid, overlooked and under-appreciated. If they do their jobs well and their teams win, they get little, if any, glory. But, if they put a squad on the field that can\'t go the distance and collapses in the fourth quarter, there\'s hell to pay.In short, with rare exception, strength and conditioning coaches just don\'t get no respect.\"The unofficial rule when dealing with the football staff
Big Man On Campus
When Boyd Eply told Nebraska head coach Bob Devaney he was going to teach his Cornhuskers how to lift weights, Devaney was about as excited as if Eply had told him he was going to teach them how to fumble in the end zone.\"Why would you want to do that?\" Devaney asked. \"I have a friend at Michigan State and he doesn\'t lift weights. I have a friend at Ohio State and he doesn\'t lift weights. In fact, I don\'t know anyone in the whole country who lifts weights. The way I understand it
News and Notes
Waiting for the XFL to call If Rich Brooks has his way, he\'ll be coaching in the XFL next year. Brooks in January abruptly resigned his three-year post as defensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons, sold his house in Atlanta and moved back to Eugene, Ore. to wait for a call from the upstart league. \"I guess my time has passed in this league,\" he said, refering to the NFL, as he announced his resignation from the Falcons. Last fall the 59-year-old turned down a job
Cover Story The Godfather March 2001 Big Man on Campus - Nebraska's Boyd Eply didn't set out to change the game of football
Packaging Your Passing Game
As the passing game has evolved, problems have arisen in packaging the pass routes for all protections, personnel groups and formations. For example, we have 10 different personnel groups, ranging from three tight ends and two running backs, to five wide receivers. Making the passing game flexible enough to encompass all the variables can get difficult. Our offensive staff has put a great deal of time and thought into this, and has developed a comprehensive, yet very user-friendly, sy
Cover Too
It may come as a surprise to some that computers have been helping high school and college coaches build game plans for nearly 20 years. Starting with the early Apple II and IBM personal computers, technology that had previously been available only to larger colleges and professional teams began working its way into the high school and small college ranks. Innovative coaches, facing many obstacles, began to integrate computers into their game planning processes during the mid-1980s. C
To AD or not to AD...
Can you see this happening? A new coach is hired. He wants new computers and video equipment for his staff. So, off to the AD\'s office he goes. The athletic director, anxious to do everything to make the new coach happy, tells the coach to get him a proposal. Thereafter, the coach instructs his video coordinator to \"... write something up.\" The coach and his video guy then return to the AD\'s office to make their pitch. The AD will most oftentimes try to approve the expenditure, and then find
Cutting the Chord
Coaching great Knute Rockne is known for his motto \"Winning - it\'s not everything ... it\'s the only thing.\" But as any successful coach can tell you, perhaps the only thing you can really count on are the long, often tedious hours. No one needs to remind you that coaching is a time-consuming profession. You\'ve been there. Late nights followed by early mornings. And if by some miraculous intervention more hours were added to the day, you\'d probably just spend this surplus time in your offic
The Information Age
It\'s the kind of argument that breaks out hundreds of times during hundreds of coaches meetings that are held at hundreds of school across the nation each week.The coaching staff at Pittsburg State University in Kansas was mulling over the team\'s weak spots and one coach insisted that a glaring problem was the team\'s inability to convert on third down. The idea caught on quickly and pretty soon the entire staff was in agreement that the Gorillas simply weren\'t very good in third-down situ
Achieving Maximum Benefit from Your Use of Technology in Game Planning
ALL STAFFS INVEST A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF time and effort in game planning. Strategic preparation for an opponent is a big part of what we do as coaches. It\'s a major element of the intellectual challenge of coaching which attracts us to the profession, and it forms the basis for the way in which we as coaches compete on game day. Play calling success is dependent upon a knowledge of the strengths, weaknesses and tendencies of both your own team and of your opponent. We all know that ot
From Athlete to Administrator
When Arizona State University appointed Gene Smith as the school\'s 18th director of athletics on July 27, 2001, the Pac-10 school gained both an experienced and accomplished leader. Before arriving in Tempe, Smith served as athletic director at Iowa State University (1993-2000) and at Eastern Michigan University (1986-93). At Iowa State, he coordinated the financial and physical transformation of the Cyclone athletic department, including the construction of a $6.1 million three-story football
News & Notes
Sooners visit the White House President Bush honored Bob Stoops and his University of Oklahoma national championship football team at the White House March 5, 2001 in a special ceremony held in the Rose garden. The team was recognized along with the women\'s softball team, which beat UCLA 3-1 for its first national championship at the Women\'s College World Series in Oklahoma City last spring. The teams also toured the U.S. Capitol and were recognized on the Senate floo
May 2001 Cover Story The Information Age - Computers and the countless software applications have forever changed the face of coaching... a look at how the changes have affected coaches like Pittsburg State's OL coach Bill Kroenke.
Evaluating Offensive Linemen
Assessing the abilities and skills of an interior lineman is one of the most coach\'s job. Many coaches do not realize the true capabilities of their players. Countless times determinations and selections are made solely on the candidate\'s height, weight, speed and potential as a football player, without much, if any, regard for the player\'s ability as a performer on the field to actually \"get it done.\" There are all types of offensive linemen. Some are short and stout. Others are simply
Equipment Room
Rogers Lev Sled 1-(800) 248-0270 www.rogersathletic.com Utilize the power of leverage to achieve more gridiron victories. Only the Rogers Lev Sled requires the blocker to drive the pad to compress the spring - then he is able to elevate the pad. From Rae Crowther Co. 1-800-841-5050 www.raecrowther.com The most effective football sleds and machines in the game. 68 years of what works. 1, 2, 5, and 7 man sleds. Off
He Knows the Way In San Jose
In a geographical area of California well-known for its technology innovations and sports achievements\' San Jose State\'s Chuck Bell knows that his athletic teams must be competitive if people are to identify with, much less attend Spartan athletic events. But grappling for attention in Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area, where competitiveness is cutting edge, can be difficult. All the same, Bell, who is nearing the end of his third full year as athletic director at SJSU, doesn\'t sh
What a Tangled Web We Have Weaved...
Rewind your football clock 30 years, to a time when legendary Alabama coach Paul \"Bear\" Bryant used preseason practice to install the wishbone in total secrecy and used it to ambush an unsuspecting USC team in the Crimson Tide\'s season opening 17-10 win over the Trojans. Fast forward that clock to August, 2001, to a time when first-year Alabama coach Dennis Franchione attempted to prepare his team for its season opener against UCLA. Franchione, following an Alabama tradition, opened his p
Moving On...
You are coaching at good, old State U. There have been a few bumps and bruises over the years, but that\'s in the past. You have just led State to a second consecutive 8-3 record and a second straight bowl game. Times are good. The shoe company has just offered you a new deal. Your TV show - the one where you review yesterday\'s game with the local yahoo sportscaster - is a success as ratings are up 20 percent. One of the local alums has offered you a part-ownership in the new restaurant tha
Ten Coaches You Should Know
Bobby Bowden. Joe Paterno. Steve Spurrier. Phillip Fulmer. Even the casual college football fan knows those names, and they\'ve earned their fame and fortune through time, experience and victory. But what about those head coaches who don\'t make the headlines, but still do a great job? The NCAA record book is filled with the names of outstanding coaches who never coached a game in the so-called \"big time,\" but there\'s no doubt that men such as Amoz Alonzo Stagg, Ron Schipper, Frosty Weste
A Wizard in the Land of Oz
When Tony DeMeo left the tight confines of the East Coast for the wide-open plains of Topeka, Kan., and Washburn University in December 1993, what he found was pretty alarming. The school, though getting ready to begin its 103rd year playing the game, was one of the barren wastelands of college football. Five years had passed since the Ichabods last posted a winning record and the program was languishing through a 12-game losing streak. Even worse, DeMeo found only 29 players on the ro
Breaking Bonds
It had been one of the most embarrassing nights of Marty Schottenheimer\'s career. After a two-year absence from the head-coaching ranks, Schottenheimer decided to get back into the business when Redskins owner Daniel Snyder came calling. While that decision may have been questionable considering Schottenheimer\'s criticism of the Redskin owner, he ultimately decided to take the job because he thought he could get the Redskins back to the playoffs and into the Super Bowl. Schottenheimer is o
Gaining an Edge Through Special Teams
As football coaches, we have all heard the theory that the difference between winning and losing close games often comes down to a special teams play. At Arizona State University, we believe that in order to achieve success, sound execution of special teams play is paramount. We approach special teams with the perspective that the difference between winning the PAC-10 Championship and finishing at the bottom of the league could very well be determined by the effectiveness and efficiency of our s
Cover Story Tony DeMeo November 2001 A Wizard in the Land of Oz - Tiny Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas may not win conference
Leader of the Pack
The door was open for Marvin Lewis last winter - at least for a few days. Shortly after the Ravens demolished the Giants in Super Bowl XXXV, Lewis had the chance to interview for the Buffalo Bills head coaching job. Blow their doors off and he\'d get the opportunity to run his own franchise. Sure, there was the matter of competition from Tennessee defensive coordinator Gregg Williams and N.Y. Giant defensive coordinator John Fox, but it was Lewis who was thought to be in the driver\'s seat.
Northwestern University Offense Practice Sturcture
It is an honor to represent our Head Coach Randy Walker (one of the best coaches in the college game today); a tremendous offensive staff (Mike Dunbar - TE / FB; Howard Feggins - WR; Jeff Genyk - RB; James Patton - OL; and Kevin Johns - Offensive Graduate Assistant); and the best group of young men that I\'ve ever been associated with in college athletics with this article for American Football Monthly. We are truly blessed here at Northwestern University with excellent opportunities that are
The Saints Go Marching In
Some people in the NFL and the media thought Jim Haslett was so desperate to be a head coach that he\'d simply taken the first offer he got. After all, he\'d interviewed for openings in Seattle, Chicago, Philadelphia and Baltimore and come up empty. Others thought the New Orleans Saints were the desperate ones that they had no idea what they were doing when they hired Haslett last year. After all, this is the same franchise that had never, ever won an NFL playoff game, one of the most
Letter from the Publisher
To those who subscribe to the theory of \"primacy and recency,\" it is what you do either first or last that matters the most. This hotly-debated field of behavioral study focuses on which areas of persuasion influence people more than others. I certainly do not have a Ph.D., but after publishing this magazine for over eight years, I know that with coaches it is what they do last that matters most. Clearly, this is no different than society as whole and its \"what have you done for me la
What Reporters Really Want
I have a soft spot for football coaches. I respect them. I admire them. I still look at my favorite coaches with true appreciation for their time, commitment, energy, intensity and passion for the game, and the life lessons that came with being part of it. I empathize with the challenges they face, the hours they work, the fragile nature of their job security and the expectations they face from outsiders who understand very little about what they do. And I am a member of the media.S
If coaches had crystal balls,would it help them win the big one?
Matt Cavanaugh\'s eyes were red - almost blood shot. The Baltimore Raven offensive coordinator was meeting with the media for the last time before his team would take the field against the N.Y. Giants in Super Bowl XXXV and he looked worn out and emotionally overwrought.But looks can be deceiving. It wasn\'t emotions that made Cavanaugh look like he\'d been on an all night crying jag. His eyes were swollen from staring at hours and hours of the Giants on videotape.\"I\'ve looked at
The Best of Both Worlds
As a youngster, Kathy Schniedwind was fascinated with medicine. \"When I was in fourth grade I told people I wanted to be a doctor when I grew up,\" she says.But in addition to her interest in dissection kits, anatomy books and games like Operation, she was also drawn to the athletic field. An avid athlete, she played lacrosse, softball, field hockey, basketball and ran track in high school and college.So when it came time to pick a career, she knew she had to alter her fourth-grade
Keeping the Gators on top
University of Florida Athletic Director Jeremy Foley sits atop an athletic program that has consistently ranked among the nation\'s 10 best. Since 1992, when he assumed the reins of the Gator athletic department, continuing that legacy of excellence has been one of his top goals.Named an honorary alumnus by the Florida Alumni Association in October, Foley, 47, started his career at UF as an intern in the Gator ticket office in 1976. Since then he has worked in nearly every aspect of th
News & Notes
Fassel gets giant raise While Jim Fassel didn\'t win the Super Bowl, he won the respect of the New York Giant\'s brass. Exactly a month after the Giants lost to the Baltimore 34-7 in Tampa, team officials announced that they had signed Fassel to another four-year contract even though he had another year left on the contract extension he signed after the 1999 season. While the terms weren\'t available, Fassel will reportedly earn $11 million over the four years - more than doublin
Paradise Found
June Jones would be lying if he said he expected this. The same is true of his coaches, his players and friends in the coaching profession. That\'s because it\'s not supposed to happen. Teams don\'t go 19 games without winning, then turn around and win eight regular-season games, capture a share of the conference championship, earn a bowl bid and then win the bowl game. It\'s not supposed to happen, especially to a team that faces the unique geographic obstacles that are part of Uni
High School Notes
The returns are in. Another college football signing day has passed and it\'s now time to assess the winners and losers - who signed the most impact players and where the top prospects are going. Here is a look at American Football Monthly\'s Top 40 prospects from the Class of 2000 (based upon a consensus of top recruiting experts and AFM staff evaluations) and where they signed along with a ranking of the Top 10 recruiting classes. The Top 40 RecruitsRan
Air Attack
There are more than a few Division I-A offenses around the nation that can keep a defensive coach\'s eyes wide open in the week leading to that Saturday\'s encounter. The trouble with Joe Tiller\'s record-setting air show at Purdue, however, is that the sleepless nights don\'t always end when the final gun sounds. Just ask Penn State defensive backfield coach Tom Bradley. His Nittany Lions actually survived their late-October showdown with the Boilermakers (31-25) at
News & Notes
Osborne: The Distinguished Gentleman from Nebraska? After weeks of speculation that he might make his next career in politics, former Nebraska Coach Tom Osborne announced in January that he is running for Congress. Osborne, who led the Huskers to three national titles before retiring in 1997, threw his hat into the ring in his hometown of Hastings on the campus of his alma mater, Hastings College. The 62-year-old Osborne, a Republican, said he had been contemplating whether t
March 2000 Would you like to read a past article from American Football Monthly Magazine? Or are you looking for an article on a specific subject not in this month\'s issue? Try back issues. Staff Meeting Let
Hiring the Enemy
THERE WAS A TIME WHEN CARL TORBUSH AND MIKE O\'Cain were enemies. At least that\'s the way fans and media painted their relationship. Coaches at rival schools are supposed to hate each other, right? They\'re supposed to spread evil rumors about each other, undercut each other at every opportunity and wish the worst for each other, aren\'t they? And they would never, ever profess to respect each other or, heaven forbid, actually like each other.In truth, even though they coached at r
December 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from legendary Notre Dame coach Ara Parseghian
The Survivor
Here he was, scaling a fence in a driving thunderstorm, with a blank videocassette under his rain jacket. The coaching staff desperately needed video of its next opponent, but a lack of sufficient technology at the team\'s training facility prevented the team from finding the game on television. That did not, however, prevent the team\'s head coach from finding another solution. So with the rain pouring down and thunder rumbling overhead, he found himself climbing the fence betwe
Traveling Man
Somewhere on the road between 19 cities in 11 states, Mike Leach found a way to climb the rope from the small time to the big time. Call it the back-road plan for future coaching success. Leach, the new head coach at Texas Tech, never played college football, never coached at the Division I level until 1997 and never even really knew he wanted to be a football coach until after he earned his law degree from Pepperdine in 1986. After law school, his path was filled with job after j
News & Notes
AF2 kicks-off season The arenaleague2 opened its inaugural season the week of April 8th. The league, which was introduced to bring Arena Football to small to mid-sized communities, features teams in cities such as Augusta, Ga; Birmingham, Ala.; Charleston, S.C.; Greensboro, N.C.; Greenville, S.C. and Huntsville, AL. Nine other cites make up the league with the addition of three new teams planned for the 2001 season. After opening the season with league highs in total attendan
Back with the Pack
For eight consecutive years, football schools in the Atlantic Coast Conference have been looking up to Florida State in the league standings. Nobody has hit upon a formula to unseat the Seminoles as one of the most dominant programs in NCAA history. So North Carolina State decided to take a new approach in its search for a football coach. Instead of hiring a big-name head coach like Georgia\'s Jim Donnan or Stanford\'s Tyrone Willingham, both of whom were considered, the Wolfpack decid
July 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from former Houston Oilers' coach Bum Phillips News and Notes Vandy, DiNardo settle lawsuit ... North Texas
Hot NFL Coaches
The path to the top of the NFL coaching ranks is somewhat well-defined: serve an apprenticeship as a position coach; become a coordinator for a successful playoff or Super Bowl team; then teams seeking to reverse their woebegone fortunes come calling like school boys looking for a prom date. Although 2000 was an aberration with two new head coaches not serving as coordinators in 1999, Al Groh was the LB coach for the Jets before his promotion, and Dave Wannstedt was the assistant head coa
Best of Best...The Top Coaching Staffs in Football
Taking into account all of the factors that go into the composition of what makes a great coaching staff, the following is our second annual look at the best coaching staffs in football. Just as last year, it is extremely difficult to choose one staff over another. It is somewhat analogous to trying to decide which dessert you want in a buffet. But, what makes a great staff? Is it the number of championships won collectively? How about longevity at the institution? C
September 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher News and Notes Dick Curl leaves Europe and joins the Chiefs... Bama's DuBose makes a sick young man's day...NCAA legislation may hurt I-AA football...Mizzou seeks to get out of future
The Evolution of Technology in Football
CLICK...CLACK...CLICK...CLACK.... the only sound emanating from the darkened room droned endlessly. For decades, it was the sound of technology in football. For generations of players and coaches, the first technological skill to be mastered was how to thread film in the 16mm projector. It was film, passing back and forth through the projector\'s gate, which was the sound of technology in the game. An endless ribbon of film ran through the game and connected generations of coaches and pla
High Schools That Went High Tech
When Rob Scheidt took over the program at Merced (Calif.) H.S. in the spring of 1996, he faced a rebuilding job. The historically strong MHS program, which won a state championship just five years before, had spiraled downward into a two-year playoff draught and was stinging from a 1-9 record the previous season. Scheidt, who became head varsity coach at Merced while he was still in his mid-20s, saw a couple of problems that needed to be addressed right off the bat. First, the school
Letter from the Publisher
The forward pass. Integration. Facemasks and new equipment that makes players seem more prepared for a battle than a game of football. TV, radio call-in shows and 24-hour a day media coverage. All of these changes have dramatically altered the game of football. Yet the sum total of these alterations pale in comparison to the virtual metamorphosis that is taking place in the year 2000. Computers, the associated software programs, and enhanced video equipment are dynamically changing the ga
Reaching the Top
With its groundbreaking use of computers, video cameras and advances in research in human kinetics (just to name a few), the University of Nebraska has become known as \"the birthplace for strength and conditioning in collegiate athletics.\" The person most responsible for the inception of not only Nebraska\'s strength and conditioning program, but also programs throughout the country, is Director of Performance Boyd Epley. Epley began his career with Nebraska in 1969 when he became th
Success is Coming in Bunches at Wisconsin
According to the Acromania Index on the Ziff Davis website www.zdnet.com, Information Technology is defined Pronounced as separate letters, IT refers to the broad subject of managing and processing information. In contrast, Vince Lombardi noted, \"football is only two things - blocking and tackling.\" How can one reconcile the differences between the general study and application of data and this strict, physical discipline? Barry Alvarez and company at the University of Wisconsin have b
On Target
During the 1990s many defenses were transformed from \"read and react\" defenses into attacking defenses. An effective attacking defense is not just a loose cannon, it\'s a guided missile. To be effective you have to know when and where to attack. Sophisticated scouting software of an opponent\'s offense through statistical analysis gives the defensive coaching staff the tools they need to create a \"smart-weapon, guided-missile\" attacking defense. Creating Defensive Call Sheets t
6 Hours to 5 Minutes:
How would you like to add several hours of \"free\" time to your schedule each week, especially during the football season? Time to view some additional videotape, review the game plan, or maybe just get some rest. A major catalyst in freeing time for the staff of the Minnesota Vikings has been the use of computers within our football operations. We have never viewed computers as a magic bullet to solve problems. We still rely on the intelligence and creativity of our staff to make
News & Notes
McKittrick Loses Battle with Cancer After a 14-month battle with cancer, San Francisco 49ers' OL coach Bobb McKittrick died on March 15. He was 64. McKittrick, who worked with five Super Bowl winning teams in 21 years, courageously continued working on the 49ers' staff while fighting bile duct cancer. A former Marine Corps officer, McKittrick was known for his toughness, hard work and dedication to the game and to his players. His on-field coaching duties were assumed by Pat Mo
May 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher News and Notes 49ers' McKittrick loses battle with cancer ... Pitt gives Harris contract extension ... Gilbertson OC at U of Washington again ... Notre Dame hires new AD from ASU ... Okl
The Calm After The Storm
It was the cruelest possible irony. Less than two weeks after the worst natural disaster in North Carolina history had crippled 66 counties, caused what was later estimated at $6 billion in flood damage, and cost 51 people their lives, the football forecast at East Carolina called for Hurricanes. By that time, however, Steve Logan was the last person on which such madness could be lost. He was, by trade, a head coach. But in the days leading up to East Carolina\'s Sept. 25 date
Letter from the Publisher
A few months ago we started The Winning Point, a newsletter created to provide our readers with even more in-depth information about the game, the sport and the business of football. I thought rather than tell you about the newsletter, I\'d give you a sample of what is found in each issue. The March edition included The Terranova 5 - a summary of who\'s hot and who\'s not in the world of college coaching. Here is a taste:The 5 Best Hires Following the \'99 Season
Curtain Call
After two long seasons in St. Louis, the experiment was failing badly. Dick Vermeil, in his attempt to reinvent himself as a football coach and erase the lingering, distasteful image that haunted him when he left the Philadelphia Eagles in 1982, appeared to be hitting another dead end. The 1998 season ended with the St. Louis Rams losing six of their last seven games. Their 5-11 record, preceded by a 4-12 mark in Vermeil\'s first season as Rams head coach, was only half the problem
USFL—The $1 League
They were supposed to be the rot and refuse, a bunch of has-beens, never-weres and never-will-bes. Their value? One dollar. One lousy buck. But for three action-packed spring seasons - 1983-85 - they were the United States Football League - the USFL - the latest failed attempt to wrestle the monopoly on professional football away from the NFL. During its three years on the field, the USFL sported four Heisman Trophy winners: Herschel Walker, Mike Rozier, Doug Flutie and two-time winne
Rolling to Victory
The 1999 season was very successful for the players, coaches and staff of City College of San Francisco. We were fortunate enough to complete our season with a perfect 12-0 record and win the 1999 J.C. Gridwire National Championship and California state championship. We also achieved this same feat in 1994 after completing the season 11-0. In the 90s, we won our conference nine times in 10 years (1990, 1992-1999) and we are three-time defending Northern California champions. In all, we ended the
News & Notes
NCAA Adopts Rule Changes Changes in the rules of college football aimed at protecting defensive players from dangerous blocks and keeping offenses from using quick substitutions to gain an advantage were approved by the NCAA Football Rules Committee, which met in Indianapolis in February. Among the alterations to the rulebook is an expansion to the definition of an illegal block to mean any high-low block by two offensive players when the initial contact clearly occurs beyond the
April 2000 Would you like to read a past article from American Football Monthly Magazine? Or are you looking for an article on a specific subject not in this month's issue?Staff MeetingLetter from PublisherWords of Wisdom
Letter from the Publisher
In each month\'s issue, I often spend time discussing the news in the world of football, be it good or bad. I received a letter from Ron Schipper, the legendary former coach of Central College (Iowa) in which he responded to my Letter from the Publisher in this year\'s June issue. As the coach of Central, Schipper, knows a few things about coaching, guiding the Flying Dutchmen to 36 consecutive winning seasons (an NCAA record) and a Division III title. My original letter talked abou
Who\'s Hot?
When Clemson offensive coordinator Rich Rodriguez thinks about the right quarterback to run his offense, he can\'t help but compare him to a point guard. The ideal QB for Rodriguez\'s offense is someone who can distribute the ball, step back and hit the 3-point shot, but most importantly, is someone who\'s on the ball. Rodriguez, the second-year offensive coordinator for the Tigers, is known throughout college football for his \"On the Ball\" offense, a no-huddle, two-minute drill-type
The Man Of Steel
Back then, Gary Darnell couldn\'t help but feel like Superman. Darnell, then Kansas State\' defensive coordinator, had just helped fly K-State to a new plateau in football success. Darnell\'s the current coach of the Western Michigan University Broncos, who in just three seasons at WMU has put together three-straight winning seasons, compiled a 22-12 record and guided the Broncos to a Western Division title in the Mid-American Conference and the MAC championship game. He\'s seen atten
Red Hot
Every year around the time families begin to think of gathering for Thanksgiving, some unfortunate athletic directors begin to ponder a much less joyous occasion ... hiring a new football coach. Needless to say this is very seldom a time for celebration. It does not happen often where the replacement of a coach is a pleasant and easy transition. As opposed to an anointment, it more often resembles a coup d\'etat. The AD will be beset by hundreds of calls, some wanted and most unwanted, f
Attacking the Red Zone
There are several considerations that must go into your staff\'s planning a comprehensive red zone ready list. As I present these concepts to you, you will have to establish your own answers to some of these factors and hopefully, be able to work your offensive system into each concept.1. Determine where the red zone begins. If you are fortunate to have a computer printout of your opponent, you may be able to see where they change their philosophy. Many times you can sense that yoursel
August 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from current Florida State coach Bobby Bowden News and Notes Mountain West 'in the room' on BCS tal
Behind Bowden
With two national titles, 13 years among the top four teams in the country and six Atlantic Coast Conference championships in the 1990s, the Florida State Seminoles have the track record to prove they know what it takes to be a champion. It is that knowledge of the means to reach success that has not only fueled FSU\'s success on the field, but also it\'s success in the Don Fauls athletic training facility. Randy Oravetz, the Director of Sports Medicine at FSU, heads up the te
The Diary of A New Coach
THIRD GAME WEEK: As I said before, our number one objective is really not to win, but to prepare. This week was the exception. We were playing our cross-town rival, Norman North, a school that had never scored against any Norman High team in their two-year existence. Our varsity and J.V. had already scored shutouts the week before so this was a must win. For the game Tuesday, our emotions were high. Our team was more pumped up than they had been all year. We got the b
The Other Coordinator
Throughout the life of our magazine (now American Football Monthly), I have very seldom written articles. But, when we conceptualized this special issue on sports medicine, I immediately decided to author a piece on the role of the sports medicine staff for a football team. I wanted to do this because I strongly believe athletic trainers and sports medicine staffs are potentially one of the most under utilized and overlooked aspects of a successful football program. Lets face i
Being at your best when things are not going well
Bruce Snyder, an avid reader, has noticed that books are rife with stories of people who retreat when faced with crisis. If you are doing a good job and are confident in yourself, he believes that you will retreat to your basic core values, and that it\'s important to remind everyone of what those core values are. \"I think that\'s playing the percentages,\" he says, \"and I think that\'s what I do in those cases. I don\'t go against percentages. The percentages are, over the
The Basics
It\'s been called the sick tank, the warm-up room - and in at least one case, the wildlife sanctuary. It\'s where players go to prepare for battle and where they return to let their game faces down as they confront the pain of injury. It\'s not a simple place. The athletic training room, even in its most basic form, is a microcosm unto itself. Building one entails careful attention to the structural requirements, which are more detailed than finding four walls and a ceiling.
News & Notes
Utah rewards McBride with an extension 60-year old Ron McBride has agreed to a contract that will keep at the the University of Utah team for four years and presumably allow him to finish his career with the Utes. Under the terms of the deal, McBride will earn a total of $310,000 a year, including incentives based on the team\'s performance in the classroom and on the field. Offering a bit of levity to the announcing of the extension, McBride said, \"Little does the univers
October 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from legendary Vince Lombardi
The Turner Network
Both head coaches had their backs to the wall entering the season, Norv with the Washington Redskins and Ron at the University of Illinois. Norv had gone five seasons without reaching the playoffs, the longest stretch of any active NFL coach, and Ron had crafted a 3-19 record in his first two years. New Redskins owner Daniel Snyder applied volumes of extra pressure on Norv by telling him to make the playoffs or find a new job. Ron was in the critical third year of a five-year contract.
Schutt Sports High School Coaches of the Year
SOUTHJohn Parchman,Hoboken HS, Hoboken, NJRobert E. Lee HS, Midland, Texas 1999: 15-0, Class 5A, Div. I state champsRecord at school: 57-8-1, 5 yearsWhen you win a football state title in Texas, you\'ve done something. When you do it two years in a row, that\'s really special. And special is a very accurate way to describe coach John Parchman\'s Midland Lee Rebels. In the last two seasons, Lee High School has claimed back-to-back Class 5A Texas Bowl
Do It Your Way
Throughout my twenty-two years in the profession, I have had the opportunity to coach at both the collegiate and high school levels. During that time, I have had the pleasure of working with various coaching staffs that have helped me formulate my philosophies on dealing with the passing game. At the same time, I have coached many athletes with various ranges in athletic abilities. Therefore, I have had to adapt each year to the specific situation. When you are developing a passing attack, it
News & Notes
Barnett\'s Colorado Contract Finalized After more than one year, Gary Barnett and the University of Colorado finalized a five-year contract. The multi-year contract, retroactive to Jan. 22, 1999, when he accepted the position, is one of three positions the State Legislature allows CU to exempt from standard contract rules. All other deals are limited to one year. \"We\'re delighted to have finalized the agreement with coach Barnett. This gives us the opportunity to accomplish the g
June 2000 Staff MeetingLetter from PublisherWords of Wisdom from Buffalo Bills¹ legend Marv LevyNews and Notes Barnett and the Buffs finally ink a deal... Tennessee¹s academic
Hurricane Butch
For the better part of 12 seasons, fear and loathing fueled the University of Miami. Dressed in orange and white, but invariably cast in black, the Hurricanes were the unofficial scourge of college football. They were the team you loved to hate, but dreaded seeing on your schedule. And with good reason. Embarking on one of the most dominant stretches in the sport\'s history, the Hurricanes ravaged the Division I-A landscape with NFL-bound talent and WWF-like attitude. Be
Philosophy of Performance: One Coach\'s Interaction Style
On January 22, 1996, Malcolm Glazer, owner and president of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, made a pivotal administrative decision by hiring Tony Dungy as his head coach. The appointment wasn\'t significant just because Dungy was one of only a handful of minority coaches. Rather, the hiring struck many as unusual because Dungy\'s personality - on and off the field - was far from the stereotypical mannerisms of other head coaches. Unlike some of the more renown names associated with \"great\"
Mark Speckman
Mark Speckman, like every football coach and player on this planet, has seen many a penalty flag he thought absurd. One in particular, from his playing days at Menlo College, stands out. The memories have faded, but the irony has not. Speckman, a linebacker, was asked one game to fill in on the offensive line for a few snaps and was penalized for illegal use of the hands. The ironic part is that he was incapable of committing the infraction. Speckman was born without hands.
Letter from the Editor
If it is true that hard times are the test of a man\'s character, a test in the life of Tony Dungy came on Sunday night January 23. At approximately 6:30 p.m. St. Louis time, staring straight into the face of one of his most disappointing losses as a head coach, Tampa Bay\'s leader showed why the once struggling Buccaneers are now one of the model franchises in the NFL. The answers all begin and end with Dungy, a man of class, a man of dignity, and a man to be admired and emulated by everyone he
Joe Cool
For the record, the song was called, \"In Heaven, There is No Beer.\" And the first time he heard it being belted out by a senior citizens band from the local Kiwanis club on that late summer day in 1989, Joe Glenn began to realize just how much work he had ahead of him. It was his first game as head football coach at the University ofNorthern Colorado, and although the afternoon would end in a narrow victory over Idaho State, it was a truly humbling experience. It had been seven years
Q And A: Larry Kehres
Q.You graduated from Mount Union with a major in business administration. If you hadn\'t gotten into coaching, what do you think you\'d be doing now?A.I suppose I\'d be doing something in the business world. But to tell the truth, right now I can\'t picture myself doing anything but coaching.Q: a head coach for 14 years, are you still learning?A:Yes, of course. That\'s part of the changes a coach needs to make. Anticipating problems is how I\'d put it. When s
Husker Power
Looking back, it\'s hard to believe it. But just 30 years ago, coaches at the University of Nebraska were actually discouraging athletes from lifting weights for fear it would make them muscle bound and slower. My, have times changed in Lincoln. I first came to Nebraska in 1968, competing as a pole valuter on the track and field team. A back injury halted my valuting career in the spring of my junior year. To rehab my back, I went to the weight room every day where a few injured Husker foo
The Winning Business
The work ethic that has steered Larry Kehres to some amazing heights in college football coaching began to take shape a long time ago. The man who has earned four AFMA Coach of the Year awards at Mount Union College in Ohio, Kehres as a youth performed tasks before and after school and had his first job when he was just 10 years old. \"We didn\'t feed chickens every day or anything like that,\'\' says Kehres, who grew up in rural Palmyra township near Alliance. \"But when I was t
News & Notes
Once Under Fire, DuBose Gets Contract Extension Just months after rumors swirled that he would be fired, Alabama Coach Mike DuBose signed a two-year contract extension at season\'s end. \"I can\'t say enough about how proud I am of Coach DuBose and the entire football staff for their accomplishments this season and the classy way they have run their program,\" Athletic Director Mal Moore said in a statement. \"This agreement gives our coaching staff the security they deserve and ne
February 2000 Would you like to read a past article from American Football Monthly Magazine? Or are you looking for an article on a specific subject not in this month's issue? Try back issues. Staff Meeting
Equipment Room
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Hoop Dreams
When I was named head coach at Juniata College in 1998, my staff and I needed to determine what type of offense best suited our personnel. We had a number of quality receivers, an inexperienced offensive line and a quarterback with a great deal of potential. We decided to develop a passing attack that would teach our quarterback a few basic principles and carry him through an entire season. We did not want to make many play changes from week to week, and it was imperative that our coaches
Letter from the Publisher
Sometimes media pundits will make the comment that \"coaching is overrated.\" These same geniuses will say that it is simply a matter of the team with the most talent wins. \"Look at Florida State University,\" they say, \"anyone could win there.\" Well, anyone involved with football will tell you there are hundreds of games each season where one team will get beat by a team with inferior talent because the staff on the opposite sideline developed a superior game plan and coerced th
Adversity? What adversity?
Gary Barnett never thinks about what could have been. No way, Barnett said. What\'s done is done. The Rose Bowl season in 1995? No time to think about it. All the job offers he got in 1996? His answer is a resounding, \"No. I made the right decision.\'\' Even after he inherited the nation\'s toughest schedule this year in his second year at the helm of Colorado, Barnett talked only about how much he and his team liked the idea of facing the best of
What\'s the Rush?
When New Mexico State head coach Tony Samuel selected a coaching staff to join him in Las Cruces three years ago, the first priority was to put a physical team on the field. The other coaches and I made a commitment to run the ball. During the past two seasons, the Aggies were ranked 7th and 13th in rushing offense.Since all of the coaches have worked with Nebraska teams, it\'s easy to understand why the option is an integral part of our offensive package. The G-Option is one of the options
November 2000 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from legendary Bud Wilkinson
Follow the Leaders
Contrary to the opinion of many people, leaders are not born. Leaders are made; and they are made by effort and hard work." —Vince Lombardi Providing leadership is one of a football coaching staff's fundamental responsibilities. Coaches are expected to dictate the direction, set the standard and mold the attitude and character of their team. One of the outcomes of effective leadership is the development and empowerment of other leaders. Are you devel
Wannstedt—Winning Again
Given their shared passion for late-night cheese nachos over a few Heinekens, the average nutritionist might suggest that Jimmy Johnson and Dave Wannstedt need the afternoon jog for which they've become notorious. But those who understand and appreciate their seemingly symbiotic relationship—one forged over the past two decades—will tell you otherwise. Johnson and Wannstedt were born to run. Together. After all, that's how the Miami Dolphins' head coach and
Letter to the Editor
These are the best of times; these are the worst of times. Paraphrasing from Charles Dickens may seem trite, but it sums up the current situation of one of the best offensive coaches I know, and how the winds of fortune affecting the coaching profession can blow a coach off-course. Peter Vaas is currently an offensive assistant with the Barcelona Dragons in NFL Europe. How he arrived is an interesting story. Vass finds himself at a career crossroads. He makes "good" money worki
The Ultimate Interview
An over-time approach to getting the right candidate for the head coach position. When all things are equal, and the score is tied, how do you determine the better of two outstanding candidates for the head football coach position at a large high school with a very competitive athletic program? This dilemma was tested last spring with excellent results. I offer it to you from the position of a principal at a high school in suburban Kansas City. But
Boys to Men
Football's great, but it's not everything. Not all coaches would agree with that statement, especially not those who have won close to 90 percent of their games. But Mount Carmel head coach Frank Lenti is not like most coaches. Lenti has won at the all-male Catholic high school on Chicago's south side at an amazing rate. So you might expect him to talk at length about NFL players like Simeon Rice and Donovan McNabb, who prepped under his tutelage at Mount Carmel. Or maybe brag
Balancing Act
On behalf of the University of Arkansas, Coach Houston Nutt and offensive staff, it's a pleasure to be asked to write an article for American Football Monthly. 1998 was a great year for the Arkansas Razorbacks. Our offensive unit was explosive with big play potential on every snap. Our players executed well, averaging almost 400 yards per game with a scoring total of 32.6 points per contest. Of course, a solid offense was accompanied by a swarming defense and great kicking game. We hav
News
Prognosis for Beth Holtz termed 'excellent'The wife of South Carolina head coach Lou Holtz had successful surgery in October to remove her adrenal gland and a cyst on her ovary. The procedure on Beth Holtz was performed at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. In a statement after the surgery, Holtz said that the operation went extremely well and his wife's prognosis is excellent. He said she will recover at the family's home in Orlando, Fla. Holtz left his team fo
November 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from legendary Darrell Royal
Complete Coach
As a coach, your time is not only valuable, it's also restricted. And with a finite number of hours in a day, you can only accomplish so much. While many of your daily obligations - such as family, school and boosters - have little or nothing to do with coaching, these obligations force you to become more effective during the short stretches of time when you actually get to focus on coaching. With this in mind, how can you both save and manage your timemore efficiently? The answer li
December 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom Army Coach Earl "Red" BlaikNews and Notes Raiders
1998 American Football Monthly Coordinators of the Year
OFFENSEMike LeachUniversity of Kentucky*(*now at the University of Oklahoma)Sure it is easy to coach one of the best offenses in the country when you have All-American Tim Couch (7 NCAA, 14 SEC and 26 school records) as your QB. But to dismiss the accomplishments of the UK offense and the staff that led it as purely the play of Couch would be a failure to look deep into the system that has produced huge numbers at every stop over a 11-year period. 1998 Amer
Beating the Clock
Walk down the halls of the Minnesota Vikings' picturesque Eden Prairie compound, and you'll come to the end of a hallway where there's a familiar name on the door: Bud Grant. Whether you will find him there or not is anybody's guess. His role as consultant to the franchise doesn't demand the 100-hour work weeks "required" in coaching. But then, Grant was never the type who believed you needed to put in a 100-hour week just to win a ballgame. To find Grant, you'd better get dressed up and h
Q&A With Bud Grant
Q: What is your philosophy on staff management?A: Philosophy is something you are asked about a lot, but I am not so sure everybody has a philosophy or that I have a philosophy. Your coaching staff is vitally important; there is no successful team that doesn't have a good staff. As much as coaching might be overrated, your assistant coaches certainly can't be or shouldn't be. They are really the backbone of the team, because they do most of the work. I think it is important for
The Bulldogs Bark
Ten years ago, Corky Rogers found himself at a crossroad for the first time in his illustrious coaching career. He faced a decision that would ultimately have implications on two of Jacksonville's most storied high school football programs. And there was no way he could please everybody. Rogers, then 45, was wrestling whether to leave his alma mater, Lee High School, after 17 successful seasons and take a job at The Bolles School. What made the decision so difficult was Rogers spen
News & Notes
Jayhawks and Irish set to open the 1999 season in the Robinson Classic Notre Dame will open the 1999 season by playing host to Kansas in the second Eddie Robinson Classic on Aug. 28. It will be the first time the Irish and Jayhawks have met since 1938, and the Aug. 28 season opener is the earliest in Notre Dame history. The classic benefits the Eddie Robinson Foundation and honors the former Grambling coach who retired after 55 years following the 1997 season. He was inducted into
June 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from PublisherReader Feedback News and Notes Eddie Robinson Cla
Family First
For Houston Nutt, his coaching philosophy is crystal clear. It's all about family. Sounds simple enough, but when he arrived at the University of Arkansas, the plan didn't look so easy. He was dealing with 15 seniors who had one season left in a football program that certainly had seen better days in the Southeastern Conference. The players went to him and said, "Coach, we want to win, and we are willing to do whatever it takes to do it." Nutt could have slid into a pessimistic fra
NFL Coach of the Year: Picking Up the Trash and Raking the Leaves
It was gut check time for the Atlanta Falcons. At halftime of an NFC playoff game against San Francisco 49ers, the Falcons sat in their locker room of the Georgia Dome, reeling from a series that of odd calamities that turned a potential 21-0 halftime lead into a tenuous 14-10 edge. "The mood wasn't good. It was like, 'oh man, what's happening?'" recalled Falcons wide receiver Terance Mathis. "Then Dan came into the room." Just one month after undergoing quadruple-bypass heart surge
The Other Side of the Ball
While most of the attention on our football team during the last few years has been focused on the offensive side of the ball and the great job of our former head coach Gary Crowton (now offensive coordinator of the Chicago Bears) and the play of our quarterback Tim Rattay and record-setting wide receiver Troy Edwards, we've also had some success on defense. We have accomplished this success by working as a staff to discover new and innovative ways to maximize the time we have with
Q&A with Dan Reeves
Q: Would you say that your experiences as a successful player in college (South Carolina) and the NFL (Dallas) have helped you as a coach?A: I think it has helped me a great deal. I first got involved in coaching as a player-coach for the Cowboys. Coaching was not something I had thought about. I was not one of those people that always knew I wanted to become a coach after my playing days were over. It wasn't until I hurt my knee and Coach Landry asked me if I would be intere
Splitting Ranks
Don't mess with tradition. That's what Lawrence High School head football coach Dick Purdy might have told voters prior to the November 1994 bond issue vote that would eventually split Kansas' largest high school and most dominant football power into two separate schools. However, this was a battle that even tradition couldn't withstand. Voters approved the $36.9 million bond issue and in the fall of 1997 the city's second high school-Free State High School-opened its doors to the pub
Letters to AFC
Dear AFM: I am currently the offensive coordinator at the University of Loughborough in the UK, where we have won the Northern Conference championship for the past two seasons. Football is very popular over here and I want to do all that I can increase the quality of the game. The reason for my letter is to solicit your help in finding a program (high school or college) in the US that would have a position where I could serve as a graduate assistant or volunteer coach. I realize
News and Notes
Judge sends message to the NCAA: "No more SAT!" 302 NCAA Division I programs were cast adrift in a boat without a rudder or sail by a decision that sent shock waves throughout all of college football. U.S. District Court Judge Ronald Buckwalter ruled that the NCAA and its institutions may not use a minimum test score as a basis for eligibility. However, on March 31, an appeals court issued a temporary stay order to halt the imposition of the judge's ruling which would have completely disa
May 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Reader Feedback News and Notes No more SAT? • H
Fulmer's Way
In Knoxville, Phillip Fulmer Way intersects with Peyton Manning Pass right in front of the main entrance to Neyland Stadium. But, no one really needs directions to the famed shrine of college football that has seen Phil Fulmer emerge as one of the nation's top collegiate coaches. Tennessee appreciates their favorite son. His face graces the covers of books and magazines and now the street that leads loyal Volunteer fans to the football stadium has been renamed in his honor. The 19
Letter from the Publisher
One day early in September, I was involved in a conversation that both reminded me of one of my favorite feel good "heck yeah... he's doing it right" stories of last summer, and compelled me to make a mental note to remember to share it with you. A very good friend of mine has a son who is currently a freshman player at one of the country's top football schools. This kid is a player and was recruited by virtually every school in the nation. At practice in August he quickly showed promi
The Communicator
He is everywhere in Baltimore. The slender face with the receding hairline and jutting jaw is on several Baltimore-area billboards or in team advertisements in national sports magazines. He has been active in the community, not selling just the Ravens, but himself. One day could include several motivational speeches that might have stops at the Baltimore Teachers Association or a high school football clinic with 200 coaches. Brian Billick has enamored fans in Baltimore. He quote
Re-Examining Spearing
Every few years the problem is rediscovered in the media by a cervical spine injury in the NFL. Most recently it was Detroit Lions linebacker Reggie Brown. Television networks show the hit numerous times and stories appear in newspapers and magazines. But the injury is always portrayed as an unfortunate accident. It's not used to educate the football community that there is an identified cause for these injuries. No one says, "Reggie Brown made the mistake of loweri
Brian Billick Q & A
Q.In your decision to take the job, how important was the philosophical commitment from the top management at Baltimore for the development of a winning franchise in your overall analysis of the situation?A. Without the proper commitment and support from the overall organization, winning on the field is virtually impossible. This means having the same passion and commitment for the game as the players and coaches. I have experienced many times, particularly at the college level,
News & Notes
It was the surprise of the off-season. Washington AD Barbara Hedges lured then-Colorado head coach Rick Neuheisel to the University of Washington for big money. In August the two made it an official marriage as coach Neuheisel signed a contract for nearly $1 million a year. Neuheisel was named head coach Jan. 9. He was hired away from Colorado after former Husky coach Jim Lambright was fired following Washington's 6-6 season. The new Husky head man's total compensation is $997,000 a year
October 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Words of Wisdom from legendary Bo Schembechler News and Notes Neuheisel finally gets his deal d
Offensive Minded
When University of Kentucky athletic director C.M. Newton was searching for a football coach after the 1996 season and called Florida's Steve Spurrier for suggestions, the Gator boss didn't throw out any names. Just a formula. "I told him to go after an offensive-minded guy because that's how you move the ball up and down the field, win games, win championships and put fans in the seats," said Spurrier. In other words, somebody like, well, himself. Newton took Spurrie
The Best Coaching Staffs
What makes a great staff? Is it the number of championships won collectively? How about longevity at the institution or team? Could it be the number of future head coaches being apprenticed by the current head coach? Is the best staff the one that consistently recruits the top players? The answer to what makes a great staff most assuredly is defined by each of the components listed above. For some staffs, they have been together for so long that each of the staff members feels like par
Win-Win Situation
If it had been a marriage last January - so sudden, so shockingly surprising - the town gossips would have had a field day. Dashing Dennis Erickson, the coach who won two national football championships at Miami, and Oregon State, the ungainly spinster of college football? No way. It can't last, the gossips would have said. Oregon State just got him on the rebound from that nasty mess in Seattle. Gosh, he can't be the desperate, can he? After all the bright lights, and the fame
Bobby and the Boys
Unlike many colleagues in their nomadic profession, they remain anchored to a cozy town in northwest Florida. They have kept the moving vans at bay, instead preferring to work for the same boss while turning down more lucrative job opportunities elsewhere. Coaches at other Division I-A schools would likely jump at thechances that have presented themselves to Florida State's staff over the years. Jim Gladden, the 58-year-old defensive ends coach, reinforced his status as a Seminole
News & Notes
Ravens loaned $65 million from NFL lender The NFL has arranged a $65 million, short-term loan for the Baltimore Ravens, backed by the eventual sale of part of the franchise to a new investor, according to The Baltimore Sun. Team owners voted overwhelmingly to approve the bailout for Ravens controlling partner Art Modell, one of the league's longest-standing owners. His financial problems have prompted several NFL actions in recent years, including the 1996 vote to all
September 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Reader Feedback News and Notes Ravens loa
It's Not About the Plays . . . It's About the Players.
Twice a year, after the college football season and again after spring drills, University of Oregon coach Mike Bellotti arms himself with a yellow legal pad, and a supply of pens, and spends most of several consecutive days in his office. He isn't, on those occasions, scribbling Xs and Os. He isn't tinkering with the sophisticated offense that has placed Oregon in the top 20 in the nation in passing in five of the last six seasons. He isn't refining the strategies that
New Equipment
New Equipment Chronomix Corp.1-800-538-1548www.chronomix.comThe Practice Timer is a multi-use training tool. It can be programmed for circuit interval training or practice segment timing. When not running programs it can be used as a hundredth of a second stop watch for timing the forty yard dash or laps. Accessories are available for printed results or automatic timing. ContinentalAthletic Supply1-800-544-5564
Main Attraction
It's not like Mack Brown didn't have enough to worry about in his first year at the helm of the University of Texas football program. There was picking up the pieces from a dreadful 4-7 season and the enormous expectations of the "Hook 'em, 'Horns" faithful. Not to mention the separate controversies that precipitated his arrival in the Lone Star State. One being the firing of his predecessor, John Mackovic, and the other the bitter feelings that lingered in North Carolina when B
Letter to the Editor
Watch any basketball game and you'll see some of the best swimmers in the world. Men and women who truly understand how to navigate through the ebbs and tides of emotion that run through every athletic contest. Take for instance, what happens if a game is tied and one team steals the ball goes for a break away and slams the ball uncontested through the hoop. Then, this same team steals the in-bounds pass and scores an easy lay up. Next, they force a turnover and score quickly (let's
A Bronx Tale
It is said that New York City is like no other place on Earth. To its public school football coaches, the phrase takes on an entirely different meaning. The Big Apple is, in many ways, high school football's final frontier. The sport somehow is managing to survive in an environment where all too often it seems the forces are aligned to squelch it out. By and large, high school teams in the city are under funded and many operate with no money provided by the Public Schools Athle
Bellotti Q&A
Q: What is your approach to disciplining players? You have a three-strikes policy. Please explain.A: We ask for commitment from our players. Generally, we ask them to be accountable and responsible. They know right from wrong. We tell them to 'do right.' It's pretty simplistic in its approach. We have a commitment time (requiring an early morning wake-up) and if they screw up initially, they're remanded to that. If there's something more serious, where there's an outright br
News & Notes
Notre Dame may have more problems with the NCAANotre Dame has hired a law firm which specializes in assisting colleges under investigation by the NCAA to help the school in the continuing saga of a booster who gave improper gifts to Irish football players. It appears the program may be in more trouble with the NCAA than originally thought concerning the case of imprisoned booster Kim Dunbar. "Notre Dame wanted us to accept this case as a secondary infraction investig
July 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Reader Feedback News and Notes Notre Dame booster drama • Auburn saga continues
What Do You Expect?
Over the years, Bishop Amat Memorial High School (Calif.) has achieved notable success. The school has been recognized by the U.S. Congress as one of the "Exemplary Private High Schools in the Nation" and consistently receives the highest possible accreditations from the various associations and boards responsible for scholastic certification. This tradition of academic achievement has found its way onto the athletic fields of Bishop Amat, as well. Since their first varsity football s
Star's Trek...
Just as James T. Kirk passed the baton to Jean-Luc Picard, Bob Stoops, Brian Billick and Chris Palmer have now ascended to the heights of the coaching world and the time has come for the next wave of "hot" superstars on the rise. The following is our look at the 25 coaches who are sure to be on the list of every athletic director or general manager looking for a savior for his or her program. These men will inspire confidence in the faithful and rally the troops because they are the next
Head Game
Wouldn't it be great to be able to match player personalities with particular football positions to get the best performance from the entire team and thereby improve the chances of success for the players and the team? The focus of this article is on a new and promising line of research that links a player's personality with his playing position on the field. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is a personality test that has been used for years in various settings, especially in the
Issues | August 1999 All In the FamilyGene FrenetteFlorida Times-UnionOn December 1, 1998, Bob Stoops broke from family tradition and finally reached an inevitable position that many viewed as practically his birthright: he became a head football coach. Not at your run-of-the-mill program, but at Oklahoma, a school where fans have grown accustomed to their coaches becomin
New Equipment
Rocket Pop-upFrom Rogers Athletic Company800-248-0270Help young players develop aggressiveness and safely master the blocking and tackling skills needed for victory. The Rocket Pop-up comes to its feet after every hit, freeing other players from holding or righting standard dummies. Jersey-style numbers give youth aiming points for practicing correct techniques.The Rocket Pop-up is a foam-filled dummy so there is never a loss of practice time due to leaking air
Letters to AFM
We want your input! Letters to AFM should include the name, address and telephone number of the writer. Mail to: AFM, P.O. Box 13079, North Palm Beach, FL, 33408. Or, you can e-mail your letter to us at letters@americanfootballmonthly.com or reach us via fax at (561) 627-5275. Visit AFM online at www.americanfootballmonthly.com. Dear AFM: I had to send you this poem that one of my seventh graders wr
August 1999 Staff Meeting Letter from Publisher Reader Feedback News and Notes Colorado
Q&A with Bill Snyder
The problem with miracles is you never know where to look for one. Here's a clue. Take I-70 west, approximately two and one-half hours from Kansas City, turn right on exit 313 and head eight miles north to find home to one of the real miracles in the history of college football . . . Manhattan, Kansas. The stories of the turnaround have been told over and over again, but to put it plain and simple, Bill Snyder -- the quiet, professorial, unassuming and non-self-promoting head coa
Letter from Publisher
On January 13th, the same day that Michael Jordan retired from the NBA, Jimmy Johnson decided to resign as head coach of the Miami Dolphins. Feeling the pain of losing his mother and his father's illness, tired of 30 years of 16 hour days, a failed marriage and lost precious time with his sons, coupled with the frustration of dealing with multi-millionaire players, who refuse to "run through a brick wall like they used to," Johnson told his boss, team owner Wayne Huizenga, he was ready to
Balance
Our basic offensive philosophy at Western Michigan is to remain as balanced and unpredictable as possible, by incorporating the run from a variety of looks (i.e., different combination of personnel, shifting, and motion) in as many different strategic situations as possible. Our balance is achieved by the percentage of run/pass relative to repititions, not yardage. As a result, we have a system that is flexible, simple to learn, and easily adapted to our personnel. The quarterback is
Whiplashed:
When Mark Whipple was on his way home last spring from the Atlantic-10 Conference meetings, the rookie head coach at the University of Massachusetts decided to buy one of those preseason football magazines to see where the so-called experts believed the Minutemen would finish in league play. Much to his dismay, UMass was the only team among 11 conference schools not mentioned in this magazine's A-10 forecast. It was as if the program didn't even exist. "We weren't in there, m
Coach of the Year: Bill Snyder
There's a story to illustrate the apathy. Its authenticity is tough to attribute, but the tale is too good not to share. A kid, who undoubtedly had room to roam in empty KSU Stadium, had enough by the fourth quarter and began acting up. His father in all likelihood a diehard since he hadn't fled for the exits, reportedly told his son, "If you keep that up, I'll bring you back next week." Cruel punishment indeed. Today, the bleacher space that kid could have used to se
It Starts at the Top
Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr carefully selected the metaphor, just like he did the two previous years. Inspired by the book Into Thin Air, Carr decided his team's journey through its arduous 1997 schedule loomed like an assault on Mt. Everest. Now look who's sitting at the top of the mountain. It's not just his team, the 12-0, Big Ten champion, Rose Bowl champion, national champion Wolverines up there. It's not just the staff, the coordinators and position coaches upon whom the hea
Stories from Statesboro
Ninteen seventy-eight turned out to be one hell of a season for us at Georgia. Not just because we won nine ball games, but more because the so-called "experts" had predicted that the Dawgs would be "underdawgs" in eight of our 11 games. During the preseason, our staff suggested to the players that we were the "wonder dogs" not the underdogs the media would've had them and anybody else willing to read their wit believe. I guess that's why pundits are writing instead of coaching. We lo
Jeff Bower: My Coach of the Year, this, next, and every year
Jeff Bower is the successful (43-35-1) coach of the University of Southen Mississippi Golden Eagles; the school where he was a record-setting quarterback from 1973 to 1975. As a coach, he has known a great deal of success (coaching Brett Favre, leading his team to two consecutive Conference USA titles and two bowl trips) and, also, has suffered his fair share of setbacks. Both success and discouragement have forged the foundation of the man that has been high on the list of potential
The Philosophy of Gaucho Football
Note: The following pages are directly out of the staff manual of one of the nation's top junior college programs. While it is somewhat different than anything heretofore offered in "Outline to Victory," we feel that the thoughts contained wherein may help crystallize the views of you and your staff. Special thanks to Bill Cunerty, who, due to health concerns, recently stepped down. ELSIf you are reading this, you are a member of the best coaching staff in community college football.
High-Flying Hornets
Emporia State University, an NCAA Division II school in the prestigious MIAA (Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association) Conference, featured the most balanced, yet explosive offensive attack in all of college football. Utilizing an attack with four receivers, no tight ends or fullback, the Hornets established 42 ESU, 30 MIAA, and nine NCAA records. No tight end and no fullback. Wait a minute, is this the run-and-shoot? Hardly. To say that the Hornets have achieved these acco
Letters to the Publisher
Dear Publisher: First, let me congratulate you and AFM on your article outlining minority coaching issues (The Dilemma of Black Coaches, Vol. 3, 3rd Quarter). The article's fair and objective presentation of the issues dealing with minority hiring presented the problems well. Yet, as we now sit in the midst of another hiring season, there is an even greater reason for concern. On the heels of a dismal hiring record in '97, we must ask: Are we off to greater disappoitment in 1998? T
When Tragedy Strikes
When the home telephone of a college football coach rings late at night, it's often the kind of news he'd rather not hear. Usually, it means a player has been arrested, violated a rule or done something to anger someone. Such thoughts ran through the head of Mississippi State Coach Jackie Sherrill when he picked up the telephone at his home on the evening of August 5. The news was, indeed, bad. But this time, it was so bad it made an arrest or a rule violation seem small and insignific
1997 AFM Coordinators of the Year
OffenseAL BORGESUCLAChico State '81What a difference a year makes when shaping the identity of a program. Take, for example, the Bruins of UCLA and offensive coordinator Al Borges, who recently participated in year two of Bob Toledo's tenure. From the moans and groans of an inaugural 5-6 campaign came the hope for progress in 1997. A young, learning quarterback. Five starters on the offensive line. Experience on both sides of the ball. "We wanted to
The Cowboy Way
At the University of Wyoming great offenses have been the norm. The Cowboy defense has taken a "bend but don't break" mentality. That scheme and mentality gave up a lot of yards and points in 1996, but the Cowboys were strong enough offensively to earn a 10-2 record and a Pacific Division Championship. With the arrival of Coach Dana Dimel as the Cowboys' new head coach, the philosophy and focus went towards establishing the Wyoming defense as an "attack" style defense. As defensiv
NFL Coach of the Year
Picture Sir Edmund Hillary, circa 1953. How might he have felt, standing atop Mount Everest for the first time, if some anonymous Sherpa guide suddenly tapped him on the shoulder and said, "Nice job on this Everest thing and all but, uh, have you seen the really big one behind you?" Tony Dungy might know that feeling. Having just scaled his own Everest in '96 as he finally landed the NFL head coaching job that had eluded him for 10 years, Dungy was presented with this Tibetan-siz
Q&A With Tony Dungy
Q: It seems to me you believe coaches and players have a responsibility to the kids that look up to them. How do you feel about the role of an athlete in the community?A: Whether you want to be or not, you have to face the facts that you are a role model and that's part of the job. I don't necessarily like all the things that go along with it, like dealing with the media and doing interviews. I'd much rather just sit here--all I want to do is coach the team and that's it. But it is part
Ole Miss' Tommy Tuberville Rebel With A Cause
Legendary Alabama coach Paul "Bear" Bryant used to say that luck is when preparation meets opportunity. With his quick climb up the college coaching ladder, Tommy Tuberville might seem like a lucky guy, but he's really just living proof of Bryant's coaching axiom. From his days as a high school in Arkansas to his current job as the head football coach at Ole Miss, Tuberville has met every opportunity with commitment, enthusiasm, planning and a broad vision for both the big picture and
Letters to the Publisher
Dear Publisher: I enjoyed reading the Clinic Bonus Clock Management (Vol. 3, 4th Quarter), by John T. Reed. Mr. Reed brings up some interesting points that all coaches must be aware of when the game gets down to crunch time. At Ohio State, we use the time/down/ time out table on our game plan call sheets. We take it a step further by having a second table which is the situation of having just made a first down. We can roughly add 24 seconds to the change of possession table so we ar
Schutt Sports Coaches of the Year
North Jim O'Leary St. John's Preparatory, Danvers, MA 1997: 11-0, Div. 1 Super Bowl Champions Record at School: 96-38-2, 14 seasonsOn a drizzly and cold Thanksgiving morning, the earliest onlookers could be found claiming their seats as early as 6:30. Eventually, 10,000 interested followers would turn up in their coats and blankets to watch one of the most hyped contests in Massachusetts football history. In a state without a true playoff, t
Q&A With Mack Brown
Q: When you came in, you talked about reaching out to the high school coaches. Now did you find the things that you did were any different than your philosophies at Carolina, or just something not done in Texas in recent years? A: I'm not sure what's been done in here in the past, and I'd rather not look back. We're doing the same things here that we did at Tulane and at North Carolina. We enjoy the high school coaches, we know they are the lifeblood of college football regardless of wh
Champions by the Numbers.
The athletes from the following institutions may not been the biggest, fastest or the strongest coming out of high school. They may have not even been the best "pure athletes" on the nation's football fields last fall. But certainly, their teams achieved the level of success in 1997 for which every program strives - national championships. For the information of your staff and players who aspire to play at the nation's colleges and universities, we are happy to present true empirical high
Letter From the Publisher
Bud Grant, the Hall of Fame coach of the Minnesota Vikings (18 years, 158-96-5, 12 playoff teams and four Super Bowl appearances, all after a successful Hall of Fame career as a CFL coach with Winnipeg: 10 years, 102-56-2, and four Grey Cup championships), was an innovator in the "self-scouting" concept. He was a great believer in "coaching people" and getting to know what made them tick. Grant was known for creating rules during training camp simply to test his players. He wanted to know fo
The Eyes of Texas are Upon Brown
The youthful looking forty-something coach had told everyone who would listen he wasn't going anywhere. His team, the media, the fans. North Carolina had become home, and he was just dandy there, thank you. Kids in school. Roots. A wife with a lucrative land development business. Perhaps more compelling, Mack Brown had a top ten program two-years running, a program he had nutured from the brink of abandonment 10 years before. Those close to Brown, personally and professionally
Keep the Chains Moving
Achieving results on third down is one of the biggest keys to winning any football game. Third-down situations are often pivotal in determining the outcome of a game. A key stop for the defense can change momentum or significantly alter field-position advantage. Conversely, a conversion by the offense can keep a drive alive, eat up clock time, and keep scoring opportunities available. For the offense, the objective is simple: keep the football by making the necessary yardage. Severa
Letters to the Publisher
Dear AFM: Thank you for your great magazine. My interest is in locating previously published coaching information (books, magazines, film, videos, etc.) that can be used to coach youth football. Mixing the schemes and techniques taught of years ago while still coaching the recent changes in the rules to allow more use of hands and never dropping the head, for example, make for a good combination in coaching youth coaches. Information about how to use the defenses and offenses of
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