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Redskins coach MAC

Help With Scared Players 7-8 Year Old

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I am the defensive coord. for a 7-8 year old tackle football team and i am running a 4-4 defense I have aot of kids that are gonna be headhunters and love to hit but then I have some who are scared and pull back and do not want to hit they are timid I understand this because this is new to them .This is my sons first year playing and at the first couple of practices he was timidand scared but I told him football is like this either you hit somebody or you get hit and he loves to hit know...I told the other kids this but it is not working any help would be great!!!!!!!!! I have tried all I know to do please help!!!!!!!!

thanks

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Try spending a little extra time in practice on some hitting drills. We use the Oklahoma drill alot to get our kids pumped up. Also, be sure you pair them up evenly so they won't get hurt or overly intimidated. Last but not least give tons of praise for good hits. We give each kid that makes a really good hit during a game a skull and cross bone sticker for his helmet.

Good luck!!

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Hokiebird,

It's tough to watch the kids being timid when it comes to defense especially. I agree w/Mac that you could try spending a little extra time with the timid players. I think you'll be surprised at how they progress as the year goes by. I've seen the timid ones become some pretty good ball players. I'm sure you'll keep in mind that they are only 7-8 yr olds. Certainly you don't want any kids getting hurt but try to make it fun for them with different drills that are fun and can be rewarded if executed properly with such things as a pack of football cards like Mac also suggested. Theres plenty of time to make these young ones into ripping your head off, stomping on your neck and pulling some guts out football players. Good luck! Please let us know how things are progressing from time to time.

Syn

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We've had the same timidity problem, we usually make those players our PAR kids, minimum play totals only. But I really like the helmet stickers idea, kind of a badge of courage thing!!

Great idea Hokiebird!! I'll try that one out this coming season!!

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Coach,

Hitting with the body at full speed is not a natural act in any way. It takes a special kind of kid to do it naturally. The younger they start the better adapt they become at tackling.

Every season we start off by doing the same things. First we rep and rep basic tackling. We feel if we stress safe and correct tackling and show our kids that it is in fact safe then they will build up confidence and thus become more aggressive. This means you have to teach them that their equipment will keep them safe if they execute tackling, blocking, and running w/ the ball correctly. Secondly we do things that build aggression in kids on the field. We do a King of the Ring drill which our kids absolutely love and it is often where we find out who has that instinct to hit and take a hit and keep playing. You would be surprised how meaning of our small first year kids shine in this drill.

Here is how we teach tackling -

First we get everyone in a circle with one coach in the middle and several coaches walking around the outside of the cirlce. We then go over a correct Hitting stance and how to make a tackle.

HEAD UP - head is always up and goes to the ball side of the target.

HIPS DOWN - always drop your hips and tackle from bottom to top.

ARMS OUT - fire your arms out away from your body and around the target and grab cloth or lock hands.

HIT - Hit with head on side of ball and far shoulder and chest plate into target's torso. Head NEVER makes contact with the body and is always up.

LOCK - lock the arms around the body (waist, hips, legs) grab cloth if you have to.

SQUEEZE - squeeze the runners body into yours and neutrilze his centero of gravity and ability to create momentum.

LIFT - get him off the ground and going backwards.

DRIVE - drive the legs and get him going backwards.

First Drill and the one used most often (modified)

Pair ups -

Take two lines facing each other 1 foot apart. Any odd man switches off with a pair are use a parent.

Walk through the HIT LOCK SQUEEZE LIFT DRIVE sequence in slow motion. You can get a bunch of quick reps in at slow motion. After that move to:

Tackle the Dummy

Three to six blocking dummies with players holding them up but out fo the way of the tackle.

Form lines 1 foot back from dummies.

1) on down - three point stance or if LB or DB two point stance

2) coach holding a ball moves the ball and the line fires off and tackles their dummy using correct form.

3) one or two coaches helping by watching for form. correct them immediatly. Whole line repeats if anyone gets it wrong.

4) anyone that is struggling pull him aside and go through the 1-2 sequence. We normally end up with three or four that are struggling and we rep the above drill and this one one on one until they get it.

5) move the dummies back to 1 yard and repeat.

6) as they get better move the dummies back to 3 yards and 5 yards as this requires them to build speed and still get their body under control and make a good tackle.

7) add a ball as the group makes the tackles toss a ball behind the dummies and yell fumble. Tell them to get of the tackle and on the ball .

8) have them line up 90 degrees ( are varied angles) and lying down on their back and make the same tackles. Use the ball for fumble drills.

This one drill allows us to put them in various situations and make good tackles. Reps are what breeds solid tackling. You don't have to tackle a body to learn how to tackle. Form is what counts.

Pit drills -

a line of players. One lines up in front of a line of blocking dummies lying on the ground and forming a cushioned bed. He holds a blocking shield in front of him and is in a good fit stance.

1) we start at 1 yard away in either 3pt or 2pt stance dependent on their position. On GO they fire off and tackle through the shield. Knock that guy on his butt.

2) as they improve move to 3 and 5 yards. The key is going through the tackle and following the rules above. Keep the head up.

After that all tackles live are done either in scrimmage or a middle drill. We scrimmage once a week against other teams that are not in our league or our brother team.

King of the Ring - we do this a lot during the beginning of the season and once or twice during the rest of the season each week.

Get everyone in a double arms interval circle. Fully equipped. Call out two kids.

Rule - you must get him out of the ring or on the ground. First one to do so wins.

Rule - no kicking, punching, scratching, biting, hair grabbing.

If they tire out are quiet you line the up in the middle and blow the whistle to start again. Someone must win.

Winner takes on the next person. They go until they are beaten. The one with the most wins is the King of the Ring. The key is to watch for what kid attacks, stays balanced, uses his smarts and his body to win. You can find your players in this drill real quick.

Coach Gregory

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