Sykesville Raiders Coaching Clinic Overview & Defense

Why are some coaches successful? Biggest Myth – Have best athletes – Sometimes true but is usually not the case – Raiders were full of teams who had the best players but didn’t win or their players did not fully develop Are you giving your players 100% effort? Are you really giving your players 100% effort?

Coaching beyond the players Surround yourself with good Asst. Coaches – Let them do their job – Train them in what you want done – Coaching disagreements are normal No substitute for Film – Major area of coaching deficiency – Scrimmages, Games of your team – Opponent – No short-cut in doing “frame by frame” Become expert as the basics… – Blocks, Tackling, Stance & Start, Exchanges Be Organized Talk with other successful coaches

General Thoughts Youth Football is not High School, College or NFL – Each age group is different and must be approached differently – Each Level is different and must be approached accordingly – Coaching opponents will be different Put kids in a position where they can succeed – Keep your best 4-6 kids on field ALL THE TIME Attempt to give everyone a starting position Always coach – don’t let anything slip – Little things lead to big things

Offensive Thoughts A formation is not an Offense Offense takes time to develop, don’t rush it – Start slow, target 2 nd half of season for optimization You must adjust & evolve DURING THE SEASON – What worked week 1 might not work in week 8 – Won’t work in Week 8 against better coaching Pass sparingly Focus on Offensive Line – Doubleteam blocks at point of attack – Down block to give your player an advantage Double Wing – E or D advantage with people playing back – Federal or Liberty – Gives you advantage with smaller players – Easy to install: You can win with 6-8 plays

DEFENSE Make the tackle – Work on it in every practice: Form, Dummies or Live 6 Man Line at most levels Gap Control – Use alignment techniques to give defensive line the advantage without letting them know which hole you are going in Bring corners in tighter – Don’t give their passing game too much respect until they earned it – Better off having more run support for the 90% of plays which will be running plays – Lockdown their TE’s if they do pass Limits their passing without sacrificing run defense Do not pursue into backfield – Lateral Pursuit Reduce/minimize running lanes available for ball-carrier Must be prepared to mirror offensive player movement