Football - Maximizing Practice Time for the Wing-T Offensive Line - Coach and AD

8/13/2019 Football - Maximizing Practice Time for the Wing-T Offensive Line - Coach and AD

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Maximizing Practice Time for the Wing-T Offensive Line

By Steve Czekalski, Former Line Coach, West Deptford (NJ) High School

Offensive line coaches can borrow a phrase from high school Englishteachers as a guiding principle in the use of alliteration: “Prior Preparationand Planning Prevents Poor Performance Pain.”

If the coach’s goal is to maximize practice time, increase performance, andavoid the w ithering glare of an angry head coach, following are some stepshe can take to avoid “performance pain.”

Designing the Individual Practice Session

The Wing-T offensive line coach must design and implement drills thatemphasize the techniques used to execute the plays slated for thepractice session.

Buck Sweep and Waggle mean that Down Blocks, Sweep Pulls, Waggle Pulls, and Log Technique are logical choices.Double teams, Escape Technique, and learning how to trap are essential for the Guard Trap to go the distance.

Meaningless drills will now become meaningful to the players. Linemen will see the connection between their performanceduring t he individual session and the ir execut ion of play in a team sett ing.

Don’t practice something you most likely won’t do. For instance, it makes absolutely no sense to practice speed (or jet)sweep pulls if there is no chance that the play will be run during the course of the week.

A Sample Schedule

We’ll assume that 30 minutes have been set aside for the individual position coaches to instruct their players. A coachwho decides to “wing it” w ill find that his players will be as poorly prepared for the game as he was for practice.

The line coach should mix basic technique drills such as Shoulder Skills drills, Stances and Starts, and driving the sled withmore specialized or play-specific drills such as Sweep Pulls.

A good strategy t o follow is to break down the time allotted into approximately five-minute intervals and change up everyfew minutes.

The early preseason camp individual practice session is designed:

4:00: Stance and Starts Through Chutes.

4:03: Shoulder Skills on Heavy Bags from 3-Point Stance (On, Gap, Down).

4:10: Intro Plays of the Day: Guard Trap & Buck Sweep vs. 5-2, 4-4, and/or 4-3.

4:15: Post-Lead (Double-Team) Drill.

4:20: Tackles/Tight Ends - Escape Technique, Guards – Pull Trap Technique.

4:23: Tackles/Tight Ends – Gap/Down Technique Guards - Buck Sweep Pulls.

4:28: Run through Plays of the Day as a Unit vs. Various Fronts.

Obviously, each coach w ill have t o consider factors such as practice schedule, number of athletes, coaches on staff, andequipment and facilities. For example, more than one coach on hand means more than one pair of eyes watching forerrors and making corrections.

The ultimate goal in running the Wing-T offense is to develop a quick, rhythmic, machine-like t empo. By maintaining a fastpace and quickly switching drills, the coach adds a conditioning element and gives the players litt le opportunity to bebored.

Immediately Before Practice

Anticipate w hat equipment you need and either go out early and get it out yourself or assign your players theresponsibility. Countless minutes of practice time is wasted each season with the retrieval and set up of equipment. If you


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have enough room, set up your drills in advance.

In addition to chutes, sleds, and heavy bags, the most vital tools of the trade for the line coach are spacing strips andcones.

During Practice

1. Explain the drill and why it is important.

Drills develop and reinforce proper execut ion of specific t echniques. Excellent technique is the foundation of all Wing-Tline play. The angle blocks that are typical of the Wing-T offense are especially advantageous for the undersized linemen

playing a bigger opponent. Faulty technique equals failed play.

It is imperative that coaches explain what is trying to be accomplished. Coaches are also teachers and must always explainin detail what the drill entails, how to perform the drill, and why the drill is important.

2. Coach every rep of every drill.

Players need feedback. Poor technique that goes uncorrected becomes poor habit and will lead to poor performance inthe game. As a coach, it is imperative to always move around, always be active, always be encouraging, and to coachevery rep of every drill.

While our focus may tend to be on our starters, we have to keep in mind that our younger players will be the starters of the future. No player should go through a practice uncoached.

The coach should also have consistency of instruction. That means that every repetition gets coached the same wayevery time. It requires the coach to teach something the same way, utilizing the same verbiage and coaching points withhis athletes.

3. Double and triple your reps.

We’ve all been there: linemen snaking back into the distance, waiting for their turn at a drill. Repetition means thatplayers get enough practice performing the skills and techniques required to become good linemen and functionautomatically with a minimum of thought . Having t o t hink and t hen do requires a split-second longer than automaticallydoing.

That miniscule d ifference in time t ranslates to missed assignments, lost opportunities, and fewer yards. The goal of constant repet ition, especially with the offensive line, is to have the entire unit respond in machine-like fashion.

How do you increase the number or reps? By setting up multiple stations, depending on the number of players you have. You should have at least two and possibly as many as four. Two or three is usually ideal.

For example, if we need to practice double-teams we should have enough linemen to set up two stations about fiveyards apart. A coach should position himself in between the stations and in front so that he can easily switch his attentionfrom one group to the other. He’ll give a cadence and the group on the left will go. He will then focus to the right andthose players will perform the same technique.

While the one group is going, the other group should be getting in its stance, and someone should be busy getting thebag and holding it in position.

All of this eliminates the time wasted retrieving t he fallen bag, put ting it in position, and having players fussing overget ting into t heir stance. W hile one group goes, the ot her group is gett ing ready to go. We can get a rep going everycouple of seconds, t hus adding a conditioning e lement , increasing reps, and finding the t ime t o work on other skills.

There are two important points to keep in mind. First, always simulate the same cadence in drills as you do in a game(“Set” – “Ready Set” – “Go”). It makes no sense to use some generic command such as “Go” or “Hit”. You want thatcadence ingrained in the O-lines minds, and to vary it as well so that the line gets used to going on sound, on one, andon two. That helps eliminate those aggravating off-sides penalties.

The other important point is that if there is a major problem with the execution of a technique or if a player has aquestion, don’t be afraid to stop and explain or “coach things up.” We always would rather do one rep right than a dozenreps wrong.


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After Practice:

Just because practice is over doesn’t mean the coaching stops. As you walk into the locker room, make contact with as

many of your players as possible.

Maybe someone had a tough practice. Pick them up. Maybe someone is feeling discouraged and wants to know whatthey have to do to get better. Tell them what t hey need to work on.

Maybe you chewed someone out. Discuss what happened in a calm tone, tell them something that they did well duringpractice and give them a pat on the back.

It’s your job to keep them up, to make them feel good, to leave practice wanting to come back the next day. What youare doing, in short, is setting yourself up to have a good practice the next day.

Get an Early Start:

Whether you meet as a staff on the weekend or are waiting to receive your cue from the head Coach or offensive

coordinator, you know your own offense and you should have an idea of your opponent’s defensive tendencies.

Determine what plays your team will want to run. If the opponent runs a 5-2 know that Inside Trap, Down, and Buck Sweep may be big plays while Belly and Power might be preferred against a 4-3.

Of course, a lot depends on personnel match ups as well. By the end of the weekend or, at the latest, by Mondaymorning, know what the “plays of the week” will be.

Also study film and familiarize yourself with the opposing personnel and defensive schemes. Be aware of any stunts orshifts that may confuse your linemen and disrupt their assignments.

Armed with t his information, start to think about the assignments and techniques that your linemen will need to makepractice sessions crisp and to perform effect ively on game day.

COMMENTS: 1

wingtPosted from: dennis jackson, 8/11/13 at 11:49 PM CDT

excellent way with words coach

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Football - Maximizing Practice Time for the Wing-T Offensive Line - Coach and AD

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