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The full text of “DRILLS FOR QUICKNESS - TRENCH TACTICS” by Doug Heslip, from the Vol 3 — Fall 2025 issue.
Page 6DRILLS FOR QUICKNESS by Doug Heslip The offensive line is your key to a successful football season! A porous offensive line will lead to an offensive system failure. Your quarterbacks and running backs will not be as productive as they should be and it could lead to injuries. Offensive linemen and defen - sive linemen strike and punch violently. It’s a hand war during run and pass blocking. It’s not a position for the meek.
How smart, fast and nimble your big guys in the trenches are, the better off you’ll be all season. A good offensive line keeps coaches employed. Why? Your chances of securing that W vastly improves with a well oiled machine that consistently delivers every week. TRENCH TACTICS TRENCH TACTICS
Page 7Below I have listed some outstanding drills to improve hand striking ability and quick - ness. I perform these drills with my linemen. DRILL # 1 Have your linemen get in their stance. Stand in front of them holding a med ball. On your cadence have them snap out of their stance with hands up and elbows in. Toss the med ball at them. They will strike the med ball as if it were an opponent in front of them. I will sometimes stand up to five feet away and toss the med ball at them.
Have them strike the med ball and hit it back to you. You can do this drill with your offensive tack - les while they are performing a kick step. This also works when using one hand to strike the med ball. Create different scenarios for your lineman and train with both one-handed and two-handed strikes. Strike from the lats not the chest. Using your chest to extend your hands forward will cause your body to lean forward into the defender. Have the hands in tight to the core, engage the lats and strike.
Carlos Perez is demonstrating drills 1, 3 and 4 in the pictures below. DRILL # 2 Have your lineman stand in front of a wall in an athletic stance holding a med ball. Have them throw an 8, 10 or 12 pound med ball at the wall with two hands. After 4 to 6 reps, have them swap out the med ball they are using for a lighter med ball to throw at the wall. This gives them contrast training. For example, if he is throwing a 10 pound ball 4 times, contrast that with a 6 pound med ball for 4 reps.
DRILL # 3 Have them kneel down resting their butt on the heels of their feet. While in this position have them hold a med ball near their chest. On your cadence have them lead with their hips, pop them through and simultaneously throw the med ball at the wall. They should land in the push-up position. Give them sufficient rest. I don’t want them fatigued as they perform this drill.
Page 8DRILL # 4 Landmine strike. Attach a Neutral Grip Viking Press Handle to your Landmine. Add some weight to the barbell. Don’t load the bar up heavy. I want them to explosively #press the weight. Have them get into an athletic position. Hold the Viking handle with two hands. Explosively press the weight upwards. I will have them do this with both feet shoulder width apart at a standstill.
Page 9I will also have them perform this in a split stance with only one arm doing the work. Have them hold a barbell that is attached to the Landmine. I start them with just bar weight (45lbs) and progress from there. I never make this cumber - some by adding too much weight. Have them lower the barbell to the anterior deltoid. If they are using their right hand, move the right leg back. The left leg will remain forward.
Upon your command, they will explo - sively lift the barbell up and slightly away due to the angle the Landmine produces. Simul - taneously as this is happening, switch both legs. So, the right leg will come forward and the left leg will now be back. You can rapid-fire this and keep going for 5 seconds or less working one arm at a time.
DRILL # 5 Tennis balls and a Rebounder I like this drill because the rebounder can add some unpredictability to which way the ten - nis balls are moving toward your athlete off the rebound. Have your lineman stand approximately 5 feet from a rebounder. You will stand be - hind the athlete. Toss a tennis ball at the rebounder. Once the tennis ball hits the rebounder it will rebound back toward your lineman. At this point I want him to strike the tennis ball with one hand as he would against an opponent.
Start out throwing one tennis ball then add a second one to engage both hands in a strik - ing motion.
Page 10This drill will also work on hand speed by providing a smaller target to strike. You don’t have to have a rebounder. You can stand directly in front of your athlete and toss the tennis ball at them from different angles and heights. Tossing multiple tennis balls one after another makes it fun and very competitive. HAND SPEED DRILLS/WARM UP Here are some easy drills to get the blood fl owing a bit before practice. (1) Vertical hand taps - get athletes in a push-up position.
Then simply have them move their hands as fast as possible back and forth as they alternate hands. (2) Lateral hand taps - get them in a push-up position. Now have them move their hands laterally as they alternate their hands. Owner of Coach Heslip Sports Performance and Consulting Green Bay Packer/USA Football Instructor Team USA Football Certifi ed SAQ Certifi ed Triphasic Trainer NASM Performance Specialist Coach Heslip is a sports performance trainer in Marquette Michigan.
He has been coaching and training athletes for 30 years. He has worked with the Green Bay Packers, Coached Team USA, hold’s several sports performance certifications through the IYCA and Athletes Acceleration. In addition to this he has multiple published pieces in reference to sports performance world wide. He is also a certified Triphasic Trainer which specializes in strength and conditioning for optimal athletic performance.
Page 11SEEK AND DESTROY Coach Doug Heslip, a Performance Enhancement Specialist, details advanced drills for running backs. The agility drills include teaching players to be nimble on their feet. These unique drills will help im - prove your players’ performance in avoiding defensive players with their feet, reacting to defenders, and missing tacklers. The 52 min - ute video is a complete guide to maximizing the performance of your running backs. (3) Moving plank - have them add their legs to the aforementioned drill.
They will move the leg laterally with the corresponding hand. This adds a little brain warmup too. (4) A clapping push-up will also help develop hand speed and get your athlete to move ex - plosively. The deceleration component of this drill may help reduce injury risk due to the fact that the athlete is absorbing force on the way down. The drills listed above, I have found, bring an element of fun to each training session and they help keep athletes engaged.
Adding variety to your workouts helps your athletes avoid the Law of Accommodation. For further instructional videos visit Coach Heslip’s Athletic Consulting and Performance on Facebook.
