3x1 Quick Game

Team 1)

When we go 3x1 our quick game is intended to go to the single receiver who we either throw hitch or slant to based on the coverage. If we see a flat player in the throwing window to take away the quick game to the single receiver we usually have a numbers advantage to the 3 receiver side.

We then will look to throw the bubble or we have the following combo routes, with the thinking that in the quick game we want the ball out quickly.

1. Bow Route - #1 runs fade, #2 runs a 4 step speed out, and #3 runs a seam route hoping to wall off the falt player to open up the speed out.

2. Skinny - #1 runs a 5 step slant, #2 runs the bubble, and #3 runs the seam again.

Our whole process in the quick game when in 3x1 sets is simple...

1. Is our X receiver (single side receiver) 1 on 1
2. If our X is not 1 on 1, throw to the uncovered on the 3 man side.

Team 2)

Spacing and Y stick by far are the best.

I would add Snag to that which is a variation of Y Corner.

I also like our quick 6 man protection scheme running Fade out of 3x1

#1 Fade
#2 4 step Speed out
#3 Stick Route

That or a concept called Short a friend of mine gave me when I worked with him that is excellent

#1 Shallow
#2 3 step slant
#3 1 step slant

Happy Memorial Day

• • "I'm well and strong and young -- young enough to go to the front. If I can't be a soldier, I'll help a soldier." -- Clara Barton, founder of the American National Red Cross
• • "It is not a sacrifice for the industrialist or the wage earner, the farmer or the shopkeeper, the trainman ... to pay more taxes, to buy more bonds, to forgo extra profits to work longer or harder at the task for which he is best fitted. Rather it is a privilege." -- President Franklin D. Roosevelt's call for shared sacrifice during World War II
• • "We've paid no price and have accepted (political) leadership that's demanded nothing of us, and we've demanded nothing of them. We've been moral defectors and have repealed one of the greatest American values. In wartime, war demands equality of sacrifice." -- Mark Shields, former Marine and political commentator, describing the average American's lack of sacrifice during the Iraq War
• • "People yearn for the memory of shared sacrifice that the Second World War represents. Now we're all free agents. We don't give up nothing. We were asked after 9/11 to go shopping. It was sort of, "don't worry your pretty little head about it." -- Ken Burns, documentary filmmaker
• • "Memorial Day is about remembering. It's about remembering those who died for our country; but it's also about remembering why they believed it was worth dying for. Too many Americans, though, have never been taught our own history and heritage. How can you remember something that you've never learned?" -- Fred Thompson, former U.S. senator from Tennessee
• • "The things that will destroy America are prosperity-at-any-price, peace-at-any-price, safety-first instead of duty-first, the love of soft living, and the get-rich-quick theory of life." --- President Theodore Roosevelt
• "No soldier starts a war -- they only give their lives to it. Wars are started by you and me, by bankers and politicians, excitable women, newspaper editors, clergymen who are ex-pacifists and Congressmen with vertebrae of putty. The youngsters yelling in the streets, poor kids, are the ones who pay the price." -- Father Francis P. Duffy, New York City priest and famous battlefield chaplain of World War I, in a sermon at the 1931 funeral of French Army commander Marshal Joffre

Great Quote

"Many people erroneously think they have only one chance to succeed in their life's work, and that if they miss that chance, they are doomed to failure. In fact, most people have several opportunities to succeed. If they learn from past mistakes, they will be better able to take full advantage of the next opportunity when it presents itself.''

The Divide Route in the Multiple Smash Concept

The Divide Route in the Multiple Smash Concept

from: http://smartfootball.blogspot.com/2008/01/divide-route-in-multiple-smash-concept.html

The "smash concept" is extremely popular for a reason: It's a great route. And it is simple to teach. The concept is designed to defeat Cover Two in its many forms. As Cover Two has evolved (Tampa 2, "Tough Two" with the corners retreating to ten yards and jumping routes, and Cover Two-Man), the Smash has become more and more popular.

A word here about verbiage. I refer here to the "Smash concept" or the "Smash route." Both refer to a two-man combination with the outside receiver on a 6 yard hitch and the inside receiver on a 12 yard corner route. Some coaches and teams go further and actually refer to either the corner route or the hitch route as a "smash" route. Again, "smash" to me is the combination - i.e. the concept - rather than any individual route.




In any event, the quarterback has a progression read: (1) corner, (2) hitch underneath. In his progression read he will "key" the cornerback: If the cornerback sinks back to stop the corner route, throw the hitch; if he comes up for the hitch, throw the corner. The best way to describe this to a QB is that you have a progression read and you "read" your receivers. You simply "progress" from one to two. In doing this though you have to understand what guys you are "keying," as their reactions should determine your progression. A Quarterback must understand defenses and defender reactions, but at the same time there is no telling where those 11 guys on defense will go, and as long as he knows where his receivers are and if the QB and the receivers are all on the same page we can run a successful play. We tell him his general rule is to throw the corner route until they take it away (though by gameplan or defense you can tell him to always throw the hitch until they come up for it).

I won't belabor the details of coaching up the "smash" portion of the route itself. If you want to understand all the details in depth, I suggest this. See here too for more on the "multiple smash route." (Registration required) Broadly, the inside receiver will run a 12 yard corner route. He has no "reading" on the play, but he must know his techniques. First, he should identify whether it is man or zone. Against man he will need to close his defender's cushion, push or lean him slightly inside, and plant and break hard away from the defender. Against zone he wants to see who he is running the route off of. If there is a deep defender over him he must set this man up inside and jab at the post at 10-12 yards and break for the corner. If there is no one head up on him he will roll cut his route so he loses no speed. It's worth mentioning though that even if he jabs or plants and breaks we want this closer to a "speed cut," as we don't want him to lose too much speed. A receiver can do this best by "jabbing" while having his toes actually pointed where he wants to go and having his "plant" foot not outside the framework of his body. Young receivers too often step way outside their body frames with their toes pointed in the wrong direction.

The corner route will be caught between 22-25 yards downfield. The QB's job is to "throw him open": throw the ball into the open grass. The receiver must react to the ball and go and get it. Against man to man defense to the short side of the field the depth of the route will be 18-22 yards.

See the above linked article for more specifics, but we tell the outside guy he has two portions to his route. First, run a six-yard hitch route (five-steps - three big and two small), and (2) the "option" or "get open" part of his route. We simply want him to find the open spot. If the corner comes up in Cover 2 zone he will push to 6, turn inside, and work inside to the next zone hole.



If the corner is off and he turns and there is a flat defender inside, he just wants to get space from that guy. If that defender hangs the hitch receiver will drift away from him at his 5-6 yard depth as an outlet for the QB.



If the flat defender flies out to cover him he will break inside this player. We'd like him to actually climb over this flat defender because he will better be able to find the zone hole created but if the flat defender hangs back too far he will come inside slightly and settle underneath.



The Divide Route

This is all fairly straightforward stuff that most people do. The point of this article is to talk about adding a bit more of a big-play dimension to theSmash by using the "divide route," which in other coaches terminology may be a "seam read" or a "tube-read." Both the route and the "read" are simple.

The divide route involves a MOFO or MOFC read by the inside receiver. MOFO simply means "middle of the field open," or no deep middle safety. MOFC means "middle of the field closed," or is there a deep middle guy. The nice thing about this read for the "divide route" as opposed to some other contexts is that the route, hence the name, is simply about "dividing" the deep coverage and the receiver has a lot of freedom to find the downfield open grass. It's a deep stretch and it is designed to strike safeties who overplay the smash or simply get out of position.

Obviously the immediate strength of the divide route as shown is that if a two-deep safety to the smash side overplays the route, one can hit the post route for a big play. If you keep the go route on the backside (as diagrammed) and both safeties overplay the Smash side then the "Go" might be open for a big play. The simple reality is that a Cover 2 team really cannot cover this concept effectively.

Against a Cover 3 zone the QB's "peek" is the seam backside. Before the smash part of his progression, he wants to get the F/S moving and hit the seam.



Running the divide to the trips side is even more dangerous. Any team that tries to play Cover 2 to the trips side will struggle mightily. Many defensive coaches instruct their kids to simply check out of Cover 2 against a trips look. Observe that the "divide" principles governing that inside receiver tells him that he will run more of a "skinny" post here inside the Cover 2 safety to break the deep coverage but avoid the safety on the opposite hash. If there is no deep safety the receiver has lots of freedom.

This is because, again, the governing principle of the "divide route" (one reason I like to call it this instead of a "seam-read") is that you can largely just tell the receiver that he has the area between the hashmarks to work to find the deep open vertical grass. A more advanced technique applies if the defense drops super deep so that he cannot effectively "divide" defenders. This will be done by gameplan, but if that is the case we will essentially let him "throttle" down a bit in the voids and the QB will still look to throw it in the open grass, but simply in the open grass in front of those deep dropping safeties.

In any event, see below for how the divide route will work against MOFO and MOFC defenses.

Cover 2:



Cover 3:



Now, what if it is a MOFC defense but that free safety is flying over too much? Well now it's time to be a good Ball Coach and tag the inside receiver on a "middle-read" route. I have previously explained that route here. The similarity with the divide is a post route against MOFO. The difference is a square-in or cross against MOFC. So if that free safety flies over, he will cut inside that guy. Observe that this is the exact same principle we used for that outside hitch receiver.



Backside hitch

Here is a last aspect to the play that I am a big fan of. I think the play is very effective if you keep the backside player on a hitch, particularly in trips. This gives you a great look against any soft coverage. When you do this you ask your QB to be a ball player and get the ball to the backside receiver if the defense gives it. (In other words, it's probably soft Cover 3.) If it's not there he looks over to the smash side and works his normal progression: Peek at the divide route, then work the smash combination.



Conclusion

This is a simple, well designed play that is both a ball-control, high percentage play, but with the divide route and the corner route it has great big-play potential. If the defense plays soft you will take what they give you, but if they play any kind of two-deep or if their safety gets out of position you will make them pay.

What is 2nd effort?

1st year college coach about to go out on his first recruiting trip goes to the old veteran coach for advise, "What kind of kid am I looking for?", the youngster asks
The old coach looks at him as says, "You know the kid that gets knocked down and doesn't get up? We definitely don't want him. You know the kid that gets knocked down and slowly gets up? We don't want him. You know the kid that get knocked down and pops back up and keeps playing? We don't want him either."
The young coach looking confused says, "Then who do we want?"
The old coach smiles and says "We want the kid who knocked the hell out of all those guys!"

Dean Pees on Drills

Dean Pees, the DC from the Patriots. He gets asked all the time about drills. He said, I don't have set drills, I look at what we need to teach, or game plan, and make drills up. He also said drills like the tip drill is worthless.
The one thing I will tell you is find out what coverages and concepts you are going to put in. Then devise your drills around them. Sometimes we get caught up in the idea of drills and not necessarily how this is helping my kids get better at what we do(tip drill).

I break up my drills into 2 different parts:

1.Basic DB technique
-backpedal / basketball shuffle
-transitions and breaking on the ball
-defending a receiver
-getting off blocks

These drills can be used daily in your indy period, I have set drills that I use, and we do them every week. If we need to get better at something we emphasize that drill by using it more often.

2. Coverage concepts and progression
- these drills are a progression of how you are going to teach Corners and Safeties the specific coverage concepts you are going to use. I break the positions up and teach them while using the other as WRs to help. These are your made up drills or drills that teach specific coverage skills.

Applying R4 to the Coverdale Quicks by Darin Slack

I would love to dial the R4 down to a lock tight, do this is in every situation" system. However, if there is one thing I have learned being on this board, and in my meager 28 years in the game, you must know where to flex, and where to draw the line.

Like the military, there are robust guidelines and training for battle scenarios. The guidelines are part of the non-negotiables that officers hope will "kick-in" when the scenario goes to heck in a hand basket, as most battle scenarios do. Football is no where near war, but the same fluid situations present themselves to teenagers under pressure, with coaches trying to limit collateral damage with "rules of engagement." As you know however, "rules" while extremely necessary for order and discipline, can hinder productivity as much as free-wheeling can.

My point is this - the intermediate passing game puts the quarterback further from the LOS, and creates a more stable environment for R4 to function as a process, with footwork tied very tightly to it to ensure the quarterback stays on task and moves through his reads on his drop and gets the ball out according to his footwork. R4 and its footwork puts greater demands on the quarterback and coach to be as sound and consistent as possible while not stifling functional creativity for both.

The quick game, in my opinion, is an entirely different animal. It is an offensive ambush. The element of surprise is as critical to its success, as the quarterback's footwork. But even more important than either of those things, is the play called and its design. If the intermediate game is an infantry offensive with whole, the quick game is a covert operation with a handful of men for a specific purpose. Additionally, the quick game is typically tied to an anticipation of a blitz. So within that operation, or play, there must be the capacity for a decision to be made "in theatre," so we don't lose our field position in the process. R4 relies heavily on the accelerators of cushion/collision/closure for its decision, and while the quick game may have those components present in a press situation, usually the quick game decision happens faster than even the "accelerators" would provide. What I mean is that in the quick game field side is determined "pre-snap," as is the expected open receiver, by defensive alignment -(ie. corners/flat defenders).

In today's intermediate game, many coaches have tried to do the same "pre-snap- know where you go" approach as the quick game to make things easier, and defenses have wised up with disguising, zone blitzing, and roll coverage, and therefore, R4 allows these things to become post snap again, while sustaining a full field of options, and providing competitive advantage to the offense with its speed of outcome.

The quick game on the other hand, while undergoing many upgrades, still has a clear non-negotiables tied to it due to aggressive protection(limited), and depth of drop and routes. Get the ball out quickly or you get sacked, and hit receivers in holes before the defense recovers.

R4 was meant primarily to restore sanity, in my opinion, to the voluminous over-analysis of the intermediate passing game, that was intended to simplify the QBs read down to a "quick game" concept (Pick a side, hit it on five), but instead has left many coaches scratching their own heads about how to position every read, for every situation, on every play. It becomes exponentially confusing.

The quick game hasn't hit that point YET. It still maintains some of its original purity, because of those non-negotiables I mentioned. However, with the advent of increasing routes, and over design in the quick game, it won't be long before it becomes "top heavy", and will need to have a system to govern it. You see what is coming for sure, but even then, the speed of the play, the need for an on the spot decision, and the presence of immediate pressure, will always have the QB throwing on the last step, and "releasing" quickly if not. This is what R4 was trying to bring back to the intermediate game, without giving up on the big play.

I guess the simplest way to say it is, "if it isn't broke, don't fix it." The quick game isn't broken, in my opinion, like the intermediate game was. All the right pieces still operate in the quicks - rhythm footwork, fast decision making, and release. And they will always be there.

What concerns me about the quick game more than R4 being applied, is the basic lack of understanding on the part of many coaches about the mechanics/footwork of the quarterback, and the timing of the routes that go with them. This is where I think the quick game will get "top heavy" faster.

I see, in ever increasing measure, QBs being asked to make throws with footwork, and mechanics that DO NOT make sense to the TIMING of either the QB's readiness to throw, nor the receiver's being positioned in a hole. QBs don't understand throwing mechanics, so they are slow in delivery(footwork depth and hitching) and throw too hard(adrenalized fear, ignorance, or arrogance,et al), and the receiver's are faster than ever into space and through it for the same reasons.

The Quick Game is a CONCEPT of skills, spacing, and timing, and R4 while assisting in the non-negotiables of intermittently ordering progression in man scenarios, or defender keys by presnap read sides, and helping with a speedy decision on cushion/collision - it cannot fix those things I just mentioned, because they exist as problems on deeper level.

That goes to the over wrought play design concern as I mentioned earlier that we all need to monitor in our offenses. And in terms of where the need is greatest in the QUICK game and how I believe we can best help with our resources, isn't as much a need for our R4 system, as it is a need for our C4 system of mechanics.

Just my opinion, and no disrespect to the many great coaches who are redefining great play design - they are mission critical. But, we still have to throw it, and catch it.

One point of clarification. When I mentioned "over-wrought" play design in the quick game, I am not referring to Coverdale's package in any manner. I have met Andrew and find him to be one of the most intelligent men I have ever known in football.

I am referring to a plethora of over schemed, mechanically uninformed quick game offenses that are getting the defensive "beating" they rightly deserve.

COIN TOSS CHART

COIN TOSS CHART
WE WIN THE TOSS Our Choice Their Choice 1st Half Result 2nd Half Result
DEFER THE BALL THE WIND THE BALL
DEFER THE WIND THE BALL THE BALL
RECEIVE THE WIND THE BALL THE WIND
KICKOFF THE BALL THE WIND THE BALL OR WIND

WE LOSE THE TOSS

Their Choice Our Choice 1st Half Result 2nd Half Result
DEFER THE BALL THE BALL THE WIND
DEFER THE WIND THE WIND THE BALL OR WIND
TO RECEIVE THE WIND THE WIND THE BALL
TO KICKOFF THE BALL THE BALL THE BALL OR WIND

KEYS TO REMEMBER

1. Regardless of which team defers, make sure we end with either the ball or the wind.
2. Make sure we never have to kickoff into the wind to start a half.
3. Forget about wanting the wind in the 4th quarter. If we have to kick off into the
wind to start the 2nd half, the game could be over before the 4th quarter begins.
4. If weather conditions are significant, it's okay to kickoff both halves. Bad weather
is usually an advantage to the defense.
5. If the weather conditions are not a factor, then be sure we get the ball at least once,
regardless of how good our defense is.
6. Discuss the possibilities with our staff before the game. Don't try to make a
decision while we are standing on the sidelines prior to the coin toss.
7. Defer whenever possible! It's better to have the choice later in the game. They
choose the ball but we get the wind.

Sail Combo and Top 5 Route Combos of various Coaches

Sail Combo
#1 - Runs a Takeoff route - His primary job is the run the CB off or get behind him (to the CB's outside) as soon as possible. QB reads this and either hits the #1 in the deep, outside 1/4 window, or allows the CB to be driven deep.
#2 - Run a 10-12 year out: But we'd get greedy and run the outward part of the route as we climbed for more distance. By the time the ball got to the #2, he would be at 13-15 yards deep.
At first, we told them to run a shallow corner - then we said a deep out - then we sort of were in the middle. (WHAT DO OTHERS DO?)
We either swing an RB out of the backfield to put the flat defender in conflict or run a TE or SB from the other side on an under route at 3-4 yards to accomplish the same thing.

Top 5 Route Combos By Various Coaches:

1. Flat/Curl
2. Wheel/Curl
3. Flood
4. 4 Verticals
5. Mesh

1. Curl Flat
2. 4 Verts
3. Mesh
4. Fade Out
5. Waggle

1. Curl/ Flat
2. Hitch/ Corner (Smash) Above are great used in combination with playaction.
3. Boot
4. Power Pass
5. Mesh

1. Double Slant
2. Smash
3. Fade, Option
4. Curl, Flat
5. Tightend Cross

1. Mini-curl (spacing)
2. 4 verticals
3. Smash
4. 3 Level Floods (like Y-sail)
5. Shallow

Developing Athletes web site and how kids are different

http://www.developingathletics.com/articles.html

How kids are different:
I find it interesting to compare the good old days to today when:

1. Children today are EXPECTED to learn and comprehend at an earlier age - NCLB includes standardized testing for pre-school, children as young a 4 & 5 are EXPECTED to be able to read / write and do basic math skills. My wife teaches 3 yr old pre-school and parents are upset because they don't teach pre-reading/writing/math and are threatening to "pull their kids out". On the HS end graduation expectations / standards are higher and the top 25% students are graduating with college credits & advanced courses.
2. Every building/district I have been in has had both leadership programs & character type programs at every level from K-12. Most communities have leadership building type programs / after school type programs / development type programs. My town offers organized sports starting at 3&4 yrs old. The HS I teach at has 4 different "leadership" programs in which kids can develop / practice leadership skills. We also emphasize (or over emphasize) character with many many incentives / rewards & recognitions for individual / group & class behaviors.
3. Kids have more access at younger age to ANY and ALL information. If I ask a simple question to any class - within one minute I have 8/10 kids with different web sites on their phone. My 6 yr old understands how to "click" on things to get information. Look how fast this web site has expanded and come back in a year- Ill bet we will have face to face interaction with instant video clips & computer imaging soon & thats a bunch of "old farts" who know nothing about computers!
4. Because of all this stuff most kids are overwhelmed. How many of your kids are always "plugged in" either on a cell phone, on an ipod or on a computer of some type. Because we are a consumer driven society this means company's are driving to combine all these things into on mega visually driven device. Soon we will see some type of glasses or something like that that can do anything (there are researchers working with brain synopsis and brain electrical charges to control devices)
   

What does this all mean? Biologically kids are kids, they have the same emotions, feelings, urges etc. Socially kids are very different & unless we address the times it is US who will be left behind.

1. Kids need rules & discipline - but now days they need to also know why & how does this help them.
2. Kids need structure & organization - but they need to see progress & how this benefits them / the team etc.
3. Kids need leadership & instruction in character - but they need to make mistakes and learn on their own

There is no responsibility for their own actions because they have never learned failure, the world owes them something and they have no cause and effect relationship. Parents give their kids too much. I recall having to buy my car, pay for my gas, pay for my insurance. If I couldn't pay for the gas...then my a$$ didn't go. My parents did not try to be my friend, they were my parents.
And if you're a non-conformist to the "talk it out" "be sensitive" trend in today's society you're labeled a bully, a hot head or an a-hole. I do not think I am any of those, but I am someone who will fight for what I think is right and I refuse to get walked on or taken advantage of and I for one am tired of being vilified for it.
Ironic how a country that was founded by a group of people who took what they wanted, and took it by extreme violence now acts like every problem can be solved through mediation and conversation and violence is never necessary.
2 conversations from 1 movie come to mind. From "Major Payne"
Emily: Major, WHAT are the boys doing in those DRESSES?
Major Benson Winifred Payne: Oh, they're just puttin' on a fashion show.
Emily: Do you really think THIS is the best way to gain the respect and admiration of these young men?
Major Payne: They may not like me, but they WILL respect me.
Emily: Let me be more direct: they HATE you.
Major Payne: Good. It'll draw 'em close together, make 'em a team.
Emily: That's a very cynical plan!
Major Payne: Yeah, well at least it won't backfire.
AND
Major Payne: Maybe what he need is for you to pop your titty out his mouth and let the boy grow up.
Emily: Excuse me, what did you say?
Major Payne: I didn't stutter, I said pop-your-tit-ty-out-his-mouth AND STOP BABYING HIM.
Emily: I don't call it babying, I call it nurturing.
Major Payne: And I call it neutering.
Emily: And I call you an insecure, overbearing, psychopathic, edictorial, ego maniacal, frigid lunatic ASSHOLE!
Major Payne: I ain't frigid.
I don't know. Maybe I'm too old school. But I know this, my mother parented by fear...and it worked. I am no longer afraid of her...unless she's armed...but I do respect her. I learned that cussing in her house would get me backhanded. At 38 years old, I still don't cuss in my mother's house, even if she's not home.

Receivers Blocking and Applying R4 to the Coverdale Quicks

Wide Receivers Blocking
Wide Receivers, once they realize that they did not get the ball, I want them "hunting" someone up. We practice this by making it a drill. Just got to rep it enough to learn to be smart. Outside receivers block the outside number of the DB. We teach to mirror his outside number and only shoot hands when #1 you can step on his toes and #2 when he shows which way he wants to go. #2 receiver's blocking rules can change based on the run (outside run=outside number, inside run= inside number) but the method of mirroring does not change. As far as holding and penalties down field, imo, it happens when receivers try to block for to long. Just mirror until the defender shows where he wants to go.

Applying R4 to the Coverdale Quicks
The Quick Game routes by definition are rush routes, except for the fade(rhythm) - thrown off any step of the drop - hitch or hinge. Also, the depth of the route breaks being under 7 yards makes them rush routes. A Rhythm is a single, or no break, route, over 9 yards that can be hit on the last step of the drop(rhythm is usually a 5 step drop - but a fade and seam in the quick game combos, can meet the expectation of the offense, and not break R4 protocol(9+ yard route depth and hinge release off last step of drop)
Quick game is primarily two possibilities: Rhythm/Rush - quick cushion/collision/closure look and we hit the complimentary Rush route early before the defense recovers on the quick rush route. OR,
The rush/rush, or rhythm/rhythm decisions are all defender keys with the collision/cushion concepts driving each.
Keep in mind, that the quick game should be primarily a two option(2 seconds) offense, due to the depth of the drop and timed route packages.
As a rule, I would suggest that it is probably best to reduce/rework what doesn't seem to fit, rather than trying to make up a new rule or force something to fit.
If there is a route that doesn't seem to fit, but works, it might be good to ask why it works and you will probably see one of two things: Either the play is designed to create 1 open route for a hinge throw and in that case you can coach that up with the progression as it sets up to R4 definitions of multiple Rhythm/Rush routes with no Read routes built in,
OR
the footwork and timing of the routes with the QB are being overlooked for the design of the play. Either way, R4 just gets you asking good questions.
The Read route concept with a three step drop would, By definition, require a shuffle - Or hitch footwork, in a quick game drop set, with routes that take longer to develop.
I am not opposed to that, there are teams that do it, but remember, we are trying to time up when the receiver opens to the QBs drop. If you WANT a Read route, just realize that regardless of what you want to design, the footwork must time up to the receiver's opening, not before. So make sure the Read route meets the Read route guidelines(multiple breaks, and the route comes open after 9 yards)
In my opinion, a third decision, without footwork tied in right, into a quick game combo, can lead to trying to do too much out of a precarious protection scheme. (aggressive protection with a shallow drop) I am not saying it can't be done, or shouldn't be done, it just needs to be thought through in terms of what opens when and what time exists, etc.
So let's break down one series of combinations according to the standard 2 route Slant combos and then the route combo brophy mentioned earlier- SLANT/SLANT/SHOOT.
If you only have two slants(rush/rush), the outside slant is going to be there, or not. It is a defender key off the flat defender over the inside slant, checking for collision from the flat defender, and being aware of the Corner's closure on the outside receiver's break on the Slant.
In a standard Slant/Arrow, it is still a read off the flat defender, we are checking collision off the inside receiver, and if he is collisioning the inside route, we can throw off his ear to the slant, with a closure confirmation on the corner.
A good rule of thumb is that the flat defender is usually the primary read in most quick game RUSH/RUSH routes, unless you have a rhythm route(fade or seam) and a rush underneath to compliment, and then it depends on the rhythm being inside or outside.
Considering brophy's SLANT/SLANT/SHOOT, I would recommend if you want to simplify this progression, you can go SLANT/SEAM/SHOOT. This is a Rhythm(SEAM)/Rush(SLANT)/Rush(ARROW) progression combo now.
The Inside Seam (Rhythm) route now becomes the first look, setting up an easy transfer of vision to the Slant if the inside route is collisioned. If he isn't hit, the QB hits him early off the third step, and the Mike LB is out of the picture because the receiver is wider, and won't be coming into the middle(like the slant). If it all goes bad, the shoot route is still our "hot" rush route if we need it right away, and it is our final option in the defender key off the remaining rush/rush after the rhythm is decided.
So, by simply adjusting the intent/angle of the inside slot route from a quick game Rush(slant) to a Rhythm (Seam), you get a workaround that times up very nicely.
The coaching of the inside Seam can give you all the benefits you need in the quick game - inside release, throttling down in the hole, angling slightly where it makes sense, but you get a sound solution tied to QB footwork by incorporating this adjustment.
For what its worth. It is truly just my opinion.
So, in terms of Coverdale stuff mentioned before, if you have a bunch package 3 step quick combo, or 3 option/3 step play from Coverdale's design, chances are you will have a rhythm/read/rush route combo already built in. The rhythm option is presnap and first step confirmed on cushion/collision. Just make sure the receiver will be available off the QB's third step.(Fade or Seam) If the first route is a corner, with a suggested 3 step drop, you need to reduce the Corner's vertical route stem to 4 steps(3 step QB drop), instead of the normal 6 steps(QB 5 step drop).
Then you might consider using a quick hitch off the last two routes - whether it is a defender key, or a read route with a rush. Either way, you are sound. The remaining read/rush concept, and/or double rush route can be thrown with a hitch or hinge within the mix according to Rush route rules - thrown off ANY step in the drop.
The Read route is the odd concept, taking longer to develop, and must be thought out in terms of protection and timing of the route opening with the QBs footwork.
The goal is meaningful simplicity, and you guys fighting through this is exactly the discipline of self-discovery that will put you in the best position to be successful.
I am resisting just giving you the WAY to do it for each route combo, because I think it is important to go through the process of really thinking about what we are trying to do with each quick game route, and whether it makes sense to keep it in the playbook. You guys are really doing great with this.
I am grateful for the workthroughs on this, and if it makes one offense/QB better, I am glad.
For what its worth to the skeptical, my own QB son is currently in an extremely conservative offensive run based setup, and R4, much less advanced passing, isn't currently a comfortable place for the coach, but he came home today and was very excited that while the coach doesn't necessarily know or ascribe to R4, he was still internally using all the concepts and he was able to get the ball out on the final step all day, with the coach being very excited with the speed of his decision making and ball delivery timing. My point is that, understanding the accelerators and key opportunities of R4, even in the quick game, it can be an effective tool.

School 1967 vs. School 2007

Scenario: Jack goes quail hunting before school, pulls into school parking lot with shotgun in gun rack.
1967 - Vice principal comes over, looks at Jack's shotgun, goes to his car and gets his own shotgun to show Jack.
2007 - School goes into lockdown, the FBI is called, Jack is hauled off to jail and never sees his truck or gun again. Counselors are called in to assist traumatized students and teachers.

Scenario: Johnny and Mark get into a fistfight after school.
1967 - Crowd gathers. Mark wins. Johnny and Mark shake hands and end up buddies.
2007 - Police are called, SWAT team arrives and arrests Johnny and Mark. They are charged with assault and both are expelled even though Johnny started it.

Scenario: Jeffrey won't sit still in class, disrupts other students.
1967 - Jeffrey is sent to the principal's office and given a good paddling. Returns to class, sits still and does not disrupt class again.
2007 - Jeffrey is given huge doses of Ritalin. Becomes a zombie. Tested for ADD. School gets extra state funding because Jeffrey has a disability.

Scenario: Billy breaks a window in his neighbor's car and his Dad gives him a whipping with his belt.
1967 - Billy is more careful next time, grows up normal, goes to college, and becomes a successful businessman.
2007 - Billy's dad is arrested for child abuse. Billy is removed to foster care and joins a gang. State psychologist tells Billy's sister that she remembers being abused herself and their dad goes to prison. Billy's mom has an affair with the psychologist.

Scenario: Mark gets a headache and takes some Aspirin to school.
1967 - Mark shares Aspirin with the school principal out on the smoking dock.
2007 - Police are called and Mark is expelled from School for drug violations. His car is searched for drugs and weapons.

Scenario: Pedro fails high-school English.
1967 - Pedro goes to summer school, passes English, goes to college.
2007 - Pedro's cause is taken up by local human rights group. Newspaper articles appear nationally explaining that making English a requirement for graduation is racist. US Civil Liberties Association files class action lawsuit against state school system and Pedro's English teacher. English is banned from core curriculum. Pedro is given his diploma anyway but ends up mowing lawns for a living because he cannot speak English.

Scenario: Johnny takes apart leftover Independence Day firecrackers, puts them in a model airplane paint bottle and blows up an anthill.
1967 - Ants die.
2007 - Homeland Security and the FBI are called and Johnny is charged with domestic terrorism. teams investigate parents, siblings are removed from the home, computers are confiscated, and Johnny's dad goes on a terror watch list and is never allowed to fly again.

Scenario: Johnny falls during recess and scrapes his knee. His teacher, Mary, finds him crying, and gives him a hug to comfort him.
1967 - Johnny soon feels better and goes back to playing.
2007 - Mary is accused of being a sexual predator and loses her job. She faces three years in federal prison. Johnny undergoes five years of therapy.

What is the Look Route?

LOOK he is wide open. This is where it come from and it was a answer in the nfl for corner blitzes. It can be applied to soft coverage. it works best I think towards as single rec side or a flanker to a te side.

Into the boundry a corner back depth of 8 yds or more or to the field a corner back depth of 10 yds or more.

WR drives hard for 1 step. this makes the db take a step back. then the wr turns his numbers to the qb. the qb to the right open with his right foot, steps with his left and throws. to the left for a right handed qb, he takes his right foot crosses behind his left, steps open with the left foot and throws. same footwork for the bubble screen by qb under center. In the shotgun, catch, step and throw. It is best run when wr and qb are on a nonsignal kid of way. qb looks at the wr, wr looks back and they both know it is a look throw. line blocks what ever the play is. The Green Bay packers ran the heck out of his play. they also ran it to the slot rec. a great deal of the time to.

Football one liners (ment to be funny)

• "That kid couldn't play dead in a western"
• "He can't bust a grape"
• Heard these in tackling drills over the years, "That sounds like a rat pissing on cotton", "Sounds like two socks in a dryer"
• "Don't be sorry. Be faster."
• "he's slower then steam rising from s@#$"
• "A mind once stretched to a new idea never returns to its original size" Oliver Wendell Holmes
• "THE REAL WORLD KEEPS SCORE" Bill Gates
• Excuses are like a-holes, everybody has one, and they all stink!
• When I got into coaching, I said I would never cuss or yell. AND I'LL BE DAMMED IF YOU AIN'T MADE A LIAR OUT OF ME!!
• You couldn't block a fart with your thumb up your a$$.
• You guys look so bad you look like pigs fucking in the mud
• To an official - after another brutal call against us - "There's a reason you're refereeing a 1-A (small school) game on a Saturday afternoon.
• To the QB- 'He's so open he's catching a cold!'
• You’re softer than a witch’s tit.
• I'd rather eat the ass out of a dead rhinoceros than lose to that team.
• We can't rush the ball the length of my dick
• An old timer discussing working with lack of talent: "Coach, you can't polish a turd"
• That kid looks like Tarzan but plays like Jane.
• Can't make chicken salad out of chicken $hit...
• One of my old coaches used to say when players when they would answer his question with I thought I was supposed to... "Don't think, you're not equipped for it."
• Another one of his sayings related to players finally doing what they were supposed to after failing many times..."Even a blind squirrel's going to find an acorn every once in a while."
• Half you guys over there. Half you guys over there. The rest of you guys come with me.
• "Coaches coach and players play! I didn't ask you to think, just do what I am asking and not what you want to do so we can win the game."
• Describing the blocking ability of our center: "He couldn't knock a sick whore off a toilet!"
• Describing the intensity of a team scrimmage period: "I'd rather watch skunks F**k!"
• Telling a running back to "run like you stole something"
• To a DB during film: "There are 2 things in life you shouldn't knock up, one is a football."
• To an assistant lobbying for playing time for a particular WR: "He's not much faster than a cone."
• "Son, do you know what your doing? Do you even know what state you’re in? I know a state of confusion!”- Lou Holtz
• "If, if ands and butts were candy and nuts everyday with be Christmas"
• "If he muffs the punt dive on it, we dive on all muffs"
• "your playing worse and worse everyday and now your playing like the middle of next week"
• White Rock - descriptive term used to illustrate a less than desirable player - "That boy is a white rock" - when a dog craps in the yard and it is left for a while it turns white and hard as a rock.
• Halloween - term used to describe players that like to "dress up in football costumes" but do not give effort or commitment.
• GATA - Get After Their Ass
• "It is far better to have died a young boy, then to ever drop the football" - Knute Rockne
• "Hard hat on, lunch pails away, punch in, you’re on my time now!"
• Coach talking to the press about the prospects for this year’s team: "Well, we may be small, but we are slow...."
• Coach describing why we should NOT play a certain CB - "We would get better coverage from a cardboard cut-out."
• "We're going to be wide open on offense, so y'all keep watching' 'cause one of us is about to score!”
• "That boy isn’t going to be building' any science rockets but he can flat out turn the corner."
• "That kid is deceptively slow"
• "Play like someone stole your freaking' sandwich!"
• "You're in the running for Peptol Bismol's 'Upset Player' of the week award."
• After a kid tried to explain what the defense was doing, but he spoke in some sort of hillbilly Ebonics. I responded "Your in American now son, speak the queens English" The confusion on his face was priceless.
• A sophomore was concerned about going up against a much larger and stronger senior in practice and I told him just to yell out a math problem that should freeze him in his tracks.
• Coach A "They beat us 45 to 14 that year"
• Coach B " Really what did they run"
• Coach A "Pretty much what ever the hell they wanted to"
• “HE COULDN'T BLOCK A DEAD SNAKE!"
• "If you guys play like you can play, than you'll play like you can play."
• "Alright guys, this is our new Spread Punt. And no, it's not Spread Cunt like your girlfriends."
• "You couldn't catch a cold butt-naked in a lake in the middle of December"
• Speaking to a guy who was going into the army after he graduated: "how are you going to defend our country when you can't even defend A gap?"
• Used to work for a guy who gave this as part of a speech before a big playoff game:
• "Guys...the team with the bigger d*ck is going to win this game tomorrow."
• Silence...nothing for a few seconds, then a few guys start tittering slightly and looking away to hide the rising, uncontrollable, laughter.
• Finally, one of the smart-asses on the team...a kid who never played and really didn't give a crap about anything, pipes up and says:
• "Coach, if that's what it is going to take to win, then we are in big trouble because I have seen all of these guys naked in the shower."
• At that point, everyone lost it...kids, coaches, EVERYBODY...one of the funniest things I have ever witnessed.
• "we look like drunk turtle sex...slow and sloppy"
• "don't hurt yourself sweetheart"
• Standing right beside the player - "Well gee whiz, from all the way over here that sounds like an excuse."
• "He looks like he's trying to catch it by sound."
• This one happened in a scrimmage, old time coach, they call a pass play and their OT blocks down and our DE blindsided their QB, and their coach goes:
• "Coach, coach...can we line that back up?"
• So we line it back up...
• "OK Jared...now lets take a look at this...you see these 2 guys?"
• Kid nods.
• "Which one are you suppose to block on _____________ (play call)"
• Kid stares...
• "Ok Jared...at what point would you think we should not block the giant SOB who looks like he eats steroids every morning for breakfast?"
• ...silence...
• "That's IT?! Nothing? Go down and play with the JV"
• Kid jogs to the JV field, coach says "Jesus Christ Ben (his QB) I'm sorry, hard to believe he was the fastest sperm isn't it."
• "My son can run a better route than that!" ~his son has MS and is in a wheel chair.
• In Football, RESPECT is never given freely by your opponent. It must be TAKEN from them...VIOLENTLY
• " Our Passing game is like Halloween, it is Scary but it aint real"
• HS coach to a nerd that was sitting aside doing math homework in gym class: Son, are you doing math homework?" Kid: "Yes sir" Coach: "Son, they don't let you do pushups in math class, and I don't allow math in pushups class...get your butt down here now."
• HS coach timing us in the 40 when the O and D line came up: "Hey coach, we're going to need a calendar to time this group."
• HS FB Asst Coach: "You run like you got a hotdog up your a$$ and you're afraid you're going to spill the chili!"
• HS FB Asst Coach: "Is that the stance we taught you? You look like a monkey screwing a football"
• Coach Pat Dye when asked about something he could have done differently after an Auburn loss: "Well, hindsight is 50/50 you know."
• Coach Bryant when asked by a reporter why he hadn't put the back up QB in due to the starting QBs struggles: "Cuz I want to win the football game."
• Worked with this old NY Italian guy- full of one-liners:
• "Doesn't know whether to scratch his watch or wind his ass..."
• "They came through [our o-line] like $hit through a goose..."
• "I got to squeeze my butt cheeks otherwise I'm going to be $hitting like a duck [walking and crapping at the same time]..."
• We also coached track together, and we had a kid fast as hell but he'd always pull hamstrings due to lack of flexibility- "That kid's tighter than a crab's a$$..."
• "Wow...you're smoother than sandpaper"
• "Wow...you're slicker than snot"
• "You couldn't knock a sick whore off a pisspot..."
• He called this kid "UMA" [like Uma Thurman] - when asked why, he said it's U.M.A. - Ugliest Man Alive...and his dad's nickname was U.F.A.- ugliest father alive.
• When entering the locker room: "It smells like a whore's a$$ in here..."
• Whenever something happened that was unexpected he'd say under his breath "your sister's a$$..."
• Would someone do something else wrong? I'm tired of seeing the same mistakes.
• "You must be a failed abortion" (kind of funny in a wrong sort of way)
• "You can wish in one hand and crap in the other. See which one weighs more."
• You'd screw up a wet dream.
• You couldn't find your way out of a wet paper sack.
• "Son, you better be on a receiver's butt the moment one steps on the football field. If he goes to the bathroom and takes a dump, you'd better be there to intercept the toilet paper."
• "You practice like old people f**k- it's slow, it's disgusting and someone's going to end up getting hurt!"
• That DB would have trouble covering his butt with a towel.
• "That kid's shaking like a dog $hitting razor blades..."
• "You could screw up a rock fight..."
• " Son your dumber than a box of hair!"
• Greatest one ever an assistant coach once said, " Son your a load your momma should of swallowed."
• Interesting converstion with kids sometimes. A player said this to a coach, but the coach didn't bat an eye.
• Player said (17 year old, w/ no business on the field.): "Yeah my kids are gonna play college ball."
• Coach said: " Yeah?, Where the hell they gonna get the tallent, we da*& sure know you ain't got any."

• Player: "coach, today I’m going to show you I don't suck."
• Coach: "you're going to have to get a lot better even just to reach suck."
• Coach on the field drawing stuff up on the sidelines for the D-line, D-line coach in the box.
• On field Coach: "Come on Andre', it's not that difficult all you have to do is......"
• Coach in box through headsets: "that's not in his box of crayons coach"
• DB coach on the field, who's frustrated with his CB throughout the game.
• CB gives up and easy route then gets flagged for a late hit out of bounds.
• "ROBERTS > :( ROBERTS...YOU AIN'T WORTH 15 YARDS!! YOU HEAR ME?! YOU AIN'T WORTH 15 YARDS!!!"
• Golf outing, DE is playing with his brother a LB (post graduation); they somehow get put right behind us (I won't get into the Larry the Cable guy shirts, jeans and work boot attire they were wearing).
• They pull up to the green; we're waiting in line for the next tee box. Guys behind them hit into them, ball rolls under the cart. DE gets out, clearly picks up the ball and puts it in his pocket. The group behind them comes driving up to the green and that guy is pissed.
• Guy: "HEY! Did you pick up my ball?"
• DE: "No."
• Guy: "I saw you pick it up."
• DE: "So?"
• Guy: "You're not suppose to pick up other people's golf balls"
• DE: "So."
• Guy: "Give it back"
• DE: "I'll wrestle you for it?"
• Guy: "No."
• DE: "Alright."
• And turned away like the guy wasn't even there anymore and pulled up 10 more feet behind our cart with the guy still standing beside where their cart was.
• I was laughing; the DE looked at me and said "What? What's he going to do?"
• God I miss that kid.
• Straining more than a dog that has been eating peach seeds
• Dumber than a box of rocks
• Worthless as chicken sh1t on a pump handle
• Nervous as a whore in church
• Nervous as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs
• Dumbest smart kid I ever saw. (Always have governor school kids)
• Dumber than a bag of sh1t
• During tackling drills: might as well take your shoulder pads off, they are just weighing you down
• One I used daily: Do you lay in bed at night trying to find ways to fuck up my practice
• He is so dumb he couldn’t track a fat squaw through a snow drift
• He would lose his thingy if it wasn’t attached
• If his brain was gasoline it wouldn’t run a mouse's motorcycle
• Another daily for me: We're burning daylight.
• You couldn’t escape from a wet paper bag
• "I think we could screw up a one car funeral"
• "He might look like Tarzan... but he plays like Jane"
• "The middle of the field will open up like your girlfriends legs on prom night..."
• "I can't make chicken salad out of chicken shit"
• Watching the o-line get into their stances after a summer of pretending they were practicing. "You guys look as happy to be in those stances as a guy with piles the size of grapes does when he needs a turd."
• One of our receivers insists of going to his knees when catching a lowish ball "Oi ..........., just coz your mama spent her teens on her knees don’t mean you have to"
• Hit'em with your purse, Nancy!
• Take your tampon out and finish the drill please...
• This is from a kid, but it happened yesterday at practice and I laughed my ass off
• Takes place between a varsity kid and a freshman, after freshman is whining about something at practice
• Varsity kid: “what’s wrong? Your vagina leaking?
• Looking up through a whole constellation of stars, Fisher DeBerry looks down at me and says "99 times out of 10 Tom Stansbury is going to hit you in the mouth, son, you got to pay attention!"
• Couldn't catch the clap in a whorehouse...
• Jerk the skirt off...
• The band takes kids at any time...
• To QB, you couldn't hit water if you fell out of a boat
• ToWR, didn't mean to hit you in the hands
• During tackling drill: Son, you look like a monkey trying to hump a football
• In the weight room the other day, I'm working with the LBs:
• DE comes up "coach, is the trainer here?"
• ME: "why?"
• DE: "I think I hurt my wrist hang cleaning, wanted to see if he would tape it."
• Sophomore LB speaks up: "Want a tampon?"
• DE turned around and went back to the clean rack and continued to lift.
• Worthless as tits on a boar hog
• My high school coach used to say: "You’re so stupid, you could fall in a barrel of titties and you would come out sucking your thumb."
• "I buy you the books and all you do is chew on the cover"
• "Son, I'm going to stop at Home Depot tonight and buy you a shovel, so tomorrow when you complain you can scoop the sand out of your vagina"
• Heard a coach yell this to a RB that would tip toe through the line of scrimmage. "You would hit that hole harder if it had hair on it."
• "Get up your killing the grass"
• A coach when asked about a player who stays in trouble and has quit every sport he's played. "Coach I hear Barry is coming back out to play next year. What position will he play?"
• The coach "Left out!"
• "If my aunt had balls, she'd be my uncle!"
• "The best part of him ran down his daddy's legs"
• The "poot-in-a-coke-bottle-route".....when rec. runs combo routes. They are so close together when the ball is thrown they could both poot in the same coke bottle
• "Pull your head out so you can see what's going on"
• "Coach what position am I going to play?"
• Left end, guard and tackle. Now go sit on the left end of the bench, guard the water, and tackle anybody that goes near it!
• "Son, you are fucking up my universe!"
• 3 DL vs. Spread Offense (5 OL)... all come off the field and say that we are all getting double teamed.
• "I have forgotten more football then you know!"
• A coach to an OL that is having a rough time making a reach block: "Son, I bet if there was a Twinkie attached to the defensive lines ass, you'd make that block!"
• My old HS head coach's favorite reply to me screwing up:
• "You are {censored} KILLING me, Jason...KILLING me!"
• A coach to a OL who just can’t seem to log the DE on the pull: "If God had wanted you to make that block, I guess he would have miracled your {censored} over there, huh?"
• Pulling a kid out he might say: Maybe I should just roll a helmet out there; at least someone might trip over the damn thing!
• He also liked to say: If we wanted you to have a girlfriend we would have issued you one.
• Oh yea, if you passed him in the hall and said coach or hi coach he would just say player or hi player.
• A coach told me one time that a player said during practice... "just wait until the game"
• Coach’s response... "Why do we have to wait until the game?"
• "Big time players make big time plays"
• The tackle was missing block after block in practice so he took the kid out of the drill and put a stand up bag there, and told the kid " at least the defense has to go over or around the bag" he then continued to finish out the rest of the team period with a bag playing RT, same coach another situation where he had a kid missing blocks. It had rained the day before so there was a puddle on the field. He takes the kid over to the puddle and makes him roll around in the mud screaming " I'm a pig, I’m a pig"
• "If this sport is too tough for you guys, put on a pair of shorts and go join the grass fairies on the soccer field"
• "I want a refund on my tax mileage. Obviously the special ed department is not doing its job."
• "Mr. ___________ (school band director) is coming by after practice to solicit members for the band. You'll still get to get on the game field; it will just be in a different uniform. I heard this year they will have a big, long feather in the cap."
• " Dude - you'd better go find the Wizard... because you ain't got heart, you ain't got courage and you ain't got brains..."
• OUR DC WAS IN COLLEGE AND HEARD THIS ONE FROM THE O-LINE COACH TO A TEAMMATE...."YOU DID A GREAT JOB JOHN....A GREAT JOB OF DOING ASBSOLUTLY F***ING NOTHING!"
• Head coach to admin: "can you at least give me a reach around here"
• My first HS coach...left after my sophomore year...during films he was counting backwards...which seemed random.
  Our TB had a particularly bad game fumbled like 3 times, missed some blocks...etc.
  First fumble - HC says "63"
  Missed block - HC says "59"
  2nd fumble - HC says "56"
  and so on...kept going throughout saturday film and none us had any clue what he was talking about, shortly after halftime of the film the RB whom he was biching at says "Coach...what's the numbers you're talking about?"
  Coach says "That's how many years you took off my life on each play."...pause..."Somebody call my wife, we just started the 2nd half, I'm going to die sometime last week at the rate Jason is going.
• OL coach talking about line splits, "buddy if you are telling the ladies that's 2 feet they must be pissed." Love using this one on the kids in camp this week.
• one our OL coach said in college "it's 3rd and less the length of my pieter and you guys can't get the f'in first down" kid on our team chimes in "coach it was 3rd and 6" I couldn't stop laughing at that one

Playbook Web Sites and A Blocking Circuit

Coach Brown's shared Football files:
http://www.scribd.com/people/documents/860399/folder/15468

Empty backfield playbook:
http://www.bign2football.com/xs1.htm

How to get a list of all play books in a folder with subdirectories
dir *.* /b /s > dirlist.doc
this will list files in all sub-directories.

A Blocking circuit:
1st Example
One thing we've been doing and tweaking for the last few years is a "blocking circuit." We all do tackling, takeaway, and conditioning circuits, so my coaching staff thought, why not a "blocking circuit." Every Tuesday, for 20 minutes, all three of our high school teams and staffs come together for our Tuesday 20.
One side of the field has all of our defensive kids (we are a two platoon program). The other side of the field has our offensive kids. If you are not a two platoon program, you can still tweak this concept to make it work for you.
While our defensive kids are working five stations of tackling, turnover, and pursuit drills; the offense is split up into a WR station, a QB station, and a OL-RB station.
The WR's do three stations self-contained- stalk blocks, take blocks, & crack blocks. The last two stations they combine with the QB's. The first three stations the QB's are on their own working QB footwork and fundamentals.
We are a Spread Gun Wing-T program, so our RB's & O-Line are working four stations of Gap blocks, Down blocks, Reach/Fire blocks, and pass pro blocks. The last station (#5) they all drive the sled.
So in 20 minutes, each station is about 3 1/2 minutes with 30 minutes rest. All levels of our coaching staff are teaching all levels of our kids. All levels of our coaching staff are coaching together. All skills are consistently taught from level to level. The first week of pads, we do this "Tuesday 20" concept everyday, with an emphasis on teaching and proper technique. After the first week, we only do this concept every Tuesday, and each week the focus should be more on repetition- but master the technique and teaching early!
As a head coach, I supervise and make sure the stations stay on time. I correct coaches before or after, but not during the drills. I also make sure to carry a camcorder, and record the right and wrong techniques, and show them to the kids and coaches.
You can take this idea and tweak it however you'd like. It's been GREAT for our program, and I'm always looking for ways to make it better.
2nd Example:
We do something similar. We are not 2 platoon, BUT, Mondays is Offensive day and we have "Program" time for 15-20 minutes. We have 3 stations: 1. Team Sled (toughness & Blocking) 2. Ball Security/Bags (Score!) 3. Cone Drills (work pressure step & cutting off outside foot). We continue "Program Time" Pat & Go, Rapid Fire (ROA-Quick Game), "Indy".
On Tuesday - defensive day, we also have "Program Time" for 40 minutes. Stations are: 1. Team Sled (Toughness & Tackling) 2. Agility - Grass / Bag Drills 3. Turnover Circuit 4. Tackling Circuit. We will also continue with all 3 levels doing a Pursuit Drill, Team Alignment, and "Indy". Wednesdays our frosh/JV are on their own and Varsity Practice is a Split practice.
3rd Example
Station #1
Form Block mechanics. Each player was taught how to perform a drive block. We would use different progressions to focus on for each day. One day we may have them just work on getting into a fit and drive defender down a board. Next day may be drive defender down board and then have defender try and rip through the block and have the offensive player accelerate their feet and finish the block.
Station #2
Open field blocks: This was based on the position that was rotating through. OL would pull or screen pull and block a defender in space. WR would stalk or crack, RB's would would lead or arc block.
Station #3
Drive the 7 man sled

Picking Captains

From Coachhuey's Whitemike:

I think it sends a message to people- being a captain of this team is a honor earned over time- like military ranking...they just don't hand out stars and make everybody a general do they?

Kids need to know-
ALL CAPTAINS ARE LEADERS OF THIS TEAM, BUT NOT ALL LEADERS ARE CAPTAINS.

Just because you don't get captain doesn't mean you are not a leader!
Leadership is relative to your status on the team- all upperclassmen should strive to be leaders. Hell, even freshmen should strive to lead. If every kid tries to pull the others along, through the muck, then you will have a strong TEAM.

Again, this is my philosophy only- this is something I truly believe in. IMO:

A Captain Must...

1) Be a contributing member of the team for 3+ years (no sophomores)
2) Walk the line on the field and in the classroom (no discipline problems)
3) Be a leader by example- they do not have to be vocal necessarily but speak up when needed
4) Take control of the team - they must have earned the team's respect!

Back in our day kids were more reluctant to speak up. Now a days these kids will yell and scream and put on a great show for the coaches if they think it will make them look good. We call these guys "trick or treaters"- they got the costume on but they sure aren't for real...