41 replies to this topic

[Orange]

The plays look good. One suggestion I have is the last play. The way it works best is for the center to delay and run underneath the other receivers cutting across the field. I'd have the center run a shallower pattern just past the los and maybe count to 1-2 before taking off. Also, the qb should not roll. Instead have him maybe take a 2-3 step drop and look like he's throwing it to one of the crossing receivers. The defenders will all bite towards the middle and the center should be open to the outside. You have to start teaching the qbs to look off the defenders, it really opens up the D.

[Texas_D_Coach]

The plays look good. One suggestion I have is the last play. The way it works best is for the center to delay and run underneath the other receivers cutting across the field. I'd have the center run a shallower pattern just past the los and maybe count to 1-2 before taking off. Also, the qb should not roll. Instead have him maybe take a 2-3 step drop and look like he's throwing it to one of the crossing receivers. The defenders will all bite towards the middle and the center should be open to the outside. You have to start teaching the qbs to look off the defenders, it really opens up the D.

Great tips Orange. I'll definitely try that.

Our QB's definitely need some coaching, and this is one area where we can vastly improve.

[Texas_D_Coach]

UUUGGGHHH!!!
Today I feel like Charlie Brown trying to kick the dreaded football that keeps getting pulled out of the way at the last second!!

Well we lost our second game today, and in this one we got creamed...30-0.

Basically I am feeling very frustrated with our team, because yesterday in practice we went over all of the plays and practiced them for an hour, and today we just couldn't seem to get the passing game going at all.

We threw 2 interceptions (one of them was on a 3rd down at the opponents goal line so it really was a wash), but the other one came at the hands of my son who threw it into the middle of the field when I emphasized NOT to do that...

It didn't help that our defense gave up 2 single play touchdowns to the other team. Although we did get one interception late in the game.

I'll add more detail later...

[Johnp2]

Don't let it get you down (which I know is easy to do). Be agile and as the season moves on you'll be able to figure out what is working vs what is not working. Even if your team gets drilled in every game this season, as long as your team plays "as a team" and has fun--good things will happen.

Think "Bad News Bears". ;-)

[Texas_D_Coach]

Don't let it get you down (which I know is easy to do). Be agile and as the season moves on you'll be able to figure out what is working vs what is not working. Even if your team gets drilled in every game this season, as long as your team plays "as a team" and has fun--good things will happen.

Think "Bad News Bears". ;-)

Thanks John.

I'm attaching my revised playbook, as I've revised my plays since I posted it last. After the last game I moved the QB back into shotgun for every play to give hime more time to get the ball and make decisions. That part seemed to improve since the last game. The big problem I'm still having though, as that when I try to run the end arounds or reverses, the blitzer is meeting us in the backfield at the handoff. I'm having the man in motion run on set, but it just seems like the handoff is taking longer than it should. I know that we can smooth it out a bit more in practice, but I am second guessing the end around plays now with this team.

The team we played kept a man on man defense the whole time, but even with the couple of misdirection plays I have we couldn't move the ball passing. The only play that worked were the first 2 where the QB hands off to the RB and then he runs. After a while they started spying the RB so even those plays wouldn't work.

I am proud that I kept true to my philosophy of getting everybody the ball as much as possible, rather than just handing it to our most talented kid on every play. It's hard to lose like that though...

Maybe we just need more practice to get them to be second nature to the kids.

I'm also having trouble getting the kids out of the huddl efast enough. What I do is show each kid thir position (I have them color coded),and give them a quick run down on what I want them to do. I switch up players almost every play to spread the ball around. Should I just assign each kid one position for a whole drive? That's what I'm thinking of doing from now on.

Attached Files

•  Winter_Flag_Football_Plays.ppt   67K   35 downloads

[Coach Rob]

The big problem I'm still having though, as that when I try to run the end arounds or reverses, the blitzer is meeting us in the backfield at the handoff.

One option is to fake the end around once in a while and throw a center drag or center fly pattern, especially if the rusher is biting every time on the end around. Another is to pull your end in a bit so he's closer to the QB. Before our league allowed the QB to run, we'd have someone else play QB and pitch or hand it to our regular QB giving him the option to run if the rusher was too fast.

Maybe we just need more practice to get them to be second nature to the kids.

End arounds aren't the easiest play to run sometimes because of the coordination it takes to pull it off. Think you got it though, practicing that exchange over and over again with the end running full blast. Definitely takes lots of practice.

I'm also having trouble getting the kids out of the huddl efast enough. What I do is show each kid thir position (I have them color coded),and give them a quick run down on what I want them to do. I switch up players almost every play to spread the ball around. Should I just assign each kid one position for a whole drive? That's what I'm thinking of doing from now on.

We use color coding, but usually only have the play going to one person. So really that one person needs to know the play, the rest of them are running color coded dummy routes so to speak unless they're involved in a fake to set up the real play. No talking in the huddle except coach and practicing the plays should help. We've even asked players to show up 30 minutes early to practice and used that for just running plays over and over again. I do use certain plays for specific players which helps the huddle time (i.e. the simple plays go to my weaker players and the harder ones to my better players).

We threw 2 interceptions (one of them was on a 3rd down at the opponents goal line so it really was a wash), but the other one came at the hands of my son who threw it into the middle of the field when I emphasized NOT to do that...

I just uploaded some new plays, check out FLOOD from my playbook. FLOOD is a great play to satisify the pass requirement, help take out the rusher and minimize the interception possibility. We try hard to throw only short sure passes and I tell my QBs to throw it away rather than risk the interception. Doesn't always work out, but we made huge improvements after throwing crucial intercepts in our first few games.

I am proud that I kept true to my philosophy of getting everybody the ball as much as possible, rather than just handing it to our most talented kid on every play. It's hard to lose like that though...

Good for you. That's very tough to do esp when you're losing like that. I also agree with hollad6636 about showing improvement instead of getting too twisted up about the score. I'll bet you see some marked improvement as the weeks go along.

CRob

[Orange]

Having the center snap the ball and then running a pattern straight towards the rusher tends to slow the rush down. You have to be careful that he doesn't intentionally pick the rusher but having someone coming at you full bore tends to slow you down or make you take a wider and longer path.

And kids will do the craziest things. Remember they are not professionals. My son was my best qb but every once in a while he'd throw a pick where I'd say. huh?! Like right to the defender with nobody else around. You just have to take it in stride.

If the ball is snapped when the wideout is in motion and within 3 yards from the qb, there is no way the rusher should be getting him in the backfield. Not every time. PRactice it over and over and over. Emphasize speed and timing. It takes a lot of practice but is beautiful when it works correctly.

[pointyfootball]

Maybe I'm different, but I don't have a starting QB, except in the playoffs and even then I play at least 3 different kids at the position. I like to see what kind of defense I'm facing and then move kids around to exploit that defense. If a team is not rushing anyone, I can put a "Drew Bledsoe" back there that can throw the ball pretty well, or who hasn't gotten to play the position much. If they're rushing extremely quickly, I put a more athletic player back there.

We only throw deep (longer than 10 yards) 3-4 times per game in our 10-12 y/o division, so I don't need a QB who can rifle the ball all over the field. Short passes and handoffs are the backbone of the offense. So just about anyone can play QB and we can adapt our plays to fit what they're capable of doing.

PF

[pointyfootball]

Having the center snap the ball and then running a pattern straight towards the rusher tends to slow the rush down. You have to be careful that he doesn't intentionally pick the rusher but having someone coming at you full bore tends to slow you down or make you take a wider and longer path.

This works quite effectively. We even had one team have their center run at my rusher with his fists together, elbows pointed straight out and the refs didn't call blocking. Make sure your center is discreet. Also, I always tell my center which way to steer the rusher by telling him which shoulder of his he should run at before cutting.

Another way is to make sure your QB uses his body to screen the rusher if at all possible. A smart kid will hand off the ball so that his body is between the rusher and the running back. If they're still getting there, you have to switch it up and do fake handoffs, which will get them and give your QB a lot of time.

And kids will do the craziest things. Remember they are not professionals. My son was my best qb but every once in a while he'd throw a pick where I'd say. huh?! Like right to the defender with nobody else around. You just have to take it in stride.

Shoot even professionals do the craziest things. Did you see McNabb missing receivers all day on Sunday?

If the ball is snapped when the wideout is in motion and within 3 yards from the qb, there is no way the rusher should be getting him in the backfield. Not every time. PRactice it over and over and over. Emphasize speed and timing. It takes a lot of practice but is beautiful when it works correctly.

Only thing I don't like about presnap motion to get the runner there is that it's a lot for the QB to think about and time. If the other team is having a rusher get there early, I will have my receivers move in so they're only 5-7 yards off the ball. Most kids only need 3-5 steps to be full speed it seems like. And Orange is right, if you can get end arounds to work effectively, your offense will dominate. Once they really start looking for it, fake end arounds, pass back to the QB, etc. It's the equivalent of between-the-tackles running success in tackle football.

PF

[Texas_D_Coach]

We had our 3rd game yesterday. We lost 24-13, but I am very happy with the progress we made since the last game. The game was within 6 points until the last 4 minutes when the other team scored late to extend the lead.

We finally got the end around plays to work and we scored on one. We did a couple of things different this game which I think helped our offense.

First off we threw deep on the first play of the game (unsuccessfully), and again on 2 other plays in the game. I think that helped open up the running game and short pass game because it kept their defense guessing about the deep pass.

Also I tailored my substitutions by series so that I had plays better suited for the players I had in the game. I also mixed up the formations within series (running a mixture of trips right, twins right, and balanced with a RB). That also helped keep the defense off guard. Last week I tried to keep the same formations within series because I thought the kids would have trouble adjusting to different formations, but they had no problems with it.

The biggest problem we have right now is getting the QB's to find the open receivers. Several times we had guys wide open and the QB trying to force it into coverage. We'll have to work on this...

On defense I designated positions for the whole series. The defense played MUCH better this game, although they still missed quite a few flags and gave up the big play near the end of the game.

We only were able to practice an hour on Saturday due to the cold weather, so I am very happy with their performance.

The kids had a great time and it was good to see them having fun this week.

[Johnp2]

We had our 3rd game yesterday. We lost 24-13, but I am very happy with the progress we made since the last game. The game was within 6 points until the last 4 minutes when the other team scored late to extend the lead.

Good deal. Hopefully you can build on this. Keep plugging away and enjoy how your players are coming together to roll out there as a team.

First off we threw deep on the first play of the game (unsuccessfully), and again on 2 other plays in the game.

This is a good idea. If anything, you weird the opposing coach out. One good approach we use is the following:
1. First play of game, have our QB drop back like he is going to throw deep.
2. Everyone runs a 9 route.
3. The C stays home to block.
4. The C and QB wait three seconds and the QB hands off on a draw. Works EVERY TIME.

A few plays later, put the kid who has the best arm in at QB and tell him to throw it to the teammate who goes down field the farthest (teach the WR not to run 60 yards). ;-) Call a simple running play, then have that QB throw deep again. Put your normal QB back in the game and call that Center Draw again. You are maybe 5-6 plays on offense, and you have just told the defense that you will be setting the tone.

The biggest problem we have right now is getting the QB's to find the open receivers. Several times we had guys wide open and the QB trying to force it into coverage. We'll have to work on this...

This can be tough. I know with 7-9 year olds the defense certainly has the advantage over QBs. Just keep teaching the QBs to read the field. They have to learn by mistakes, there is no way around it. He's putting in his dues early, so-to-speak. Know your QBs strength's and weaknesses, and above all ensure that he is someone that can lead the offence with crisp play-execution.

When your QB drops back and you see an open receiver, do you "point him out" to your QB? I started doing that this season, and it backfired on me. At least it did with my QB. He told me, "It messes me up when you tell me who to throw to". Point taken. ;-)

Regarding blocking the rush, I have assignments based on each side of the line. This is when I simply tell my players "stop him if he is rushing on your side." Our league allows blocking. We go in full-throttle, and back down as that day's official mandates. I encourage pancake blocks. I have different levels of blocking styles because in some games we are asked to "tone it down". This is fine. Some officials are more strict than others. We then go to "easy blocking". I figure most of these kids are going to play tackle soon, and it is never to early to teach football players about blocking. Their future teams will appreciate a willing blocker no matter what the offensive position.

The kids had a great time and it was good to see them having fun this week.

Nice to hear. It sounds as though you are doing everything any team would ask for--and then some. Keep up the great work and continue to let us all know how you do!

[Orange]

I coach the defense and I can tell you that when an opposing qb throws a long pass, even an incomplete one, I get nervous. Especially when I can see that he has a strong enough arm to go deep. The ones that really scare me are the ones towards the outside. Nobody wants to get burned deep and the threat of it definitely effects the playcalling. And if I see the opposing qb has a weak arm I'm play my defense even tighter. So yea, let one rip early, don't even try to connect, just tell the qb to throw is really far so the defense cannot catch it.

[Texas_D_Coach]

When your QB drops back and you see an open receiver, do you "point him out" to your QB? I started doing that this season, and it backfired on me. At least it did with my QB. He told me, "It messes me up when you tell me who to throw to". Point taken. ;-)

I did try that a couple of, and when I did, the defense came over and covered and he tried to force it in there anyway. I learned my lesson about pointing out open recievers just as you did... I think I'm going to reiterate to the kids to hold their hands up when they think they are open. That way it will be easier for the QB to scan and look for people.

Regarding blocking the rush, I have assignments based on each side of the line. This is when I simply tell my players "stop him if he is rushing on your side." Our league allows blocking. We go in full-throttle, and back down as that day's official mandates. I encourage pancake blocks. I have different levels of blocking styles because in some games we are asked to "tone it down". This is fine. Some officials are more strict than others. We then go to "easy blocking". I figure most of these kids are going to play tackle soon, and it is never to early to teach football players about blocking. Their future teams will appreciate a willing blocker no matter what the offensive position.

Unfortunately we are not allowed to block at all. I have trained my centers to look for the blitz, and if they see on, to try to run their route toward the blitzer to slow him down. I still need to do a better job of teaching the QB's to dump the ball off to the center when the blitz is too fast for them.

Nice to hear. It sounds as though you are doing everything any team would ask for--and then some. Keep up the great work and continue to let us all know how you do!

Thanks!!

I coach the defense and I can tell you that when an opposing qb throws a long pass, even an incomplete one, I get nervous. Especially when I can see that he has a strong enough arm to go deep. The ones that really scare me are the ones towards the outside. Nobody wants to get burned deep and the threat of it definitely effects the playcalling. And if I see the opposing qb has a weak arm I'm play my defense even tighter. So yea, let one rip early, don't even try to connect, just tell the qb to throw is really far so the defense cannot catch it.

That's exactly what we did on the first pass. I had both outside receivers run go patterns deep and just told my QB to chuck it as far as he could to the one that was more open. Another thing that I think helped is when we were warming up before the game (where the other team could see us) we practiced only passing routes (no running play), and especially the deep bomb routes. If the other coach was paying attention at all he would have thought we were mostly a passing team. The last couple of games I had the kids practicing their end arounds before the game (because we needed the practice), so I think the defenses in those games were ready for them and keyed on the run instead of the pass.

[Johnp2]

Can your QB run when he is blitzed? How many rushers can blitz? Our league allowed up to two defenders to rush once every four downs. Some teams never blitzed us, while some teams blitzed every opportunity they could. My QB knew that when he saw the rusher(s), he was to simply take off running. We were blitzed probably 40 plays this season, and only sacked once. Other than that we'd get a minimum of 7-10 yards when the QB ran (which isn't bad when there are eight defenders on the field) so we didn't mind being rushed.

If your league doesn't allow the QB to run when blitzed nor allows blocking, I'd consider talking with them about amending some of the rules as your QB is in a no-win situation.

[Orange]

Most of the 5 on 5 leagues do not allow the quarterback to run. There are some exceptions, like Coach Rob's current league but most of them do not. Typical I-9 and NFL flag rules allow any number of rushers if they start the play 7 yards back from the los. The referee places a bean bag to mark the spot. Once the ball is snapped, if you began the play behind the marker you can rush. In turn the qb cannot run. From what I could tell, just about every team would send a rusher every play. The offense has two choices. Either get your play off quickly, before the rush is a factor, or try to have your qb juke the rusher and buy time. It seems to me the best teams would do the former, executing quick strike plays.