Coach and Coordinator Podcast

Today’s episode is from our archives. It was recorded with Dub Maddox five years ago, pre-pandemic and at the start of what proved to be a rapid evolution of today’s defenses. Interestingly, the concepts Coach Maddox talks about may be more relevant now than when he shared those ideas originally on the podcast.Dub is one of the great thinkers and great football minds in the game. I have picked up a ton from him over the years. A trip I took to sit down and talk ball with him for a couple of days in 2010 stands out as highly productive. That visit helped me solidify how I thought about the passing game and how we could bring our receivers and protections together with our quarterback progressions to improve our passing game.In this episode, Coach Maddox shares insights from studying the U.S. Military that he applies to football. If you listened to this episode five years ago, you will want to sit down and listen again, and bring a pen and notebook. Be sure to listen to our winning edge takeaways and ideas for implementation following this conversation with Coach Dub Maddox.Please Note: When we originally recorded this episode, there was a lot of static in the connection, but the content was just too good not to air, and it’s also too good to not share again.Show Notes: Lessons from the United States Military Non-Negotiables: Space, Time, and Talent Breaking Down the RPO Getting Players to Understand the Game Plan Creating a Specialized Language to Help Players Letting Your Players Know When to Adjust Overview of Adapt or Die Follow Dub Maddox on Twitter @CoachDubMaddox.Related Resources:Harvard Business Review article, “The Best Ideas Come from Outside Your Industry”: https://bit.ly/42ZfY1ZFree Download of Question Set to Inventory Your Offense: https://bit.ly/3TXhQEqDub Maddox’s Book Adapt or Die: https://amzn.to/40T4rzFBe sure to go to coachandcoordinator.com for enhanced show notes with links to related episodes, resources, articles, and our winning edge takeaways. Also sign up for our free Weekly Tip Sheet newsletter, which highlights the best ideas from the previous week, trending episodes, and featured resources. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We reached out to today’s guest after we confirmed some eye-popping stats from his 2022 season. 62 touchdowns, 3,204 passing yards, and 1,805 rushing yards, in sum producing an average of 500.9 yards per game and 48 points per game. All at the high school level with 12-minute quarters and a running clock after a 30-point differential.Those numbers screamed “high-level execution”, and we wanted to dig into the what, how, and why behind it.Meet Mike Peck, offensive coordinator at Burley High School in Burley, ID.Show Notes: Spread the field and attack horizontally and vertically Based out of 10 personnel and empty, but highlight personnel year-to-year Hang your hat on runs and passes for the base offense Two factors that create execution: installation and practice The players understanding of why Install as a year-round activity leading up to the season Front loading for better learning Quarterback school The quarterback should be out on the field teaching it with you  Tools used to teach in the classroom Quizzes and competition Seven-day install format Practice format Early outs: walk through Situational periods in practice Unscripted situations so play callers get work Debrief periods so players understand why and what happened right or wrong Coach learning from the debrief as well Kids don’t come in on weekends Technology to allow coaches more family time Follow Mike Peck on Twitter @CoachPeck11.Related Episode:From the Archives – Noel Mazzone: https://bit.ly/42UL1fiBe sure to go to coachandcoordinator.com for enhanced show notes with links to related episodes, resources, articles, and our winning edge takeaways. Also sign up for our free Weekly Tip Sheet, which highlights the best ideas from the previous week, trending episodes, and featured resources.Coach Peck’s 7-day install template is also available on coachandcoordinator.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ben Kotwica has 17 years of coaching experience, including 15 seasons in the NFL. Most recently, Kotwica served as the assistant special teams coach for Minnesota in 2022 and was part of a coaching staff that helped the team to the NFC North Division title.A graduate of Army West Point, where he was a linebacker and team captain, he went on to serve as a helicopter pilot, reaching the rank of Captain and serving in the Iraq War, as well as in Bosnia and Korea.He began his coaching career at the US Military Academy Prep School as a defensive coordinator before jumping to the NFL as a special teams coach or coordinator for the New York Jets, Washington Redskins, Atlanta Falcons, Minnesota Vikings, and now the Denver Broncos under head coach Sean Payton.On today’s episode, he shares his influences and the importance of our roles as coaches, developing a leadership style, innovation, and the use of technology in teaching and developing players.Show Notes: Early influences Coaches saw ability that translates into being a coach Military background shaped leadership and coaching The people make the experience rewarding  From the military into coaching - offer from Bobby Ross Mike Westhoff - having standards Leadership - being the CEO  You must be yourself as a leader Coaching with technology Passive and active learning Integrating a new piece of technology into workflow  Enhanced player development  Post-practice punt protection period How to be innovative Advice on implementing technology Follow Ben Kotwica on Twitter @BKotwica44.Watch Coach Kotwica's Presentation from Lauren's First and Goal:Punt Install with Technology and Drills: https://bit.ly/3KjpkP5Related Episode:Figure It Out with Mike Westhoff: https://bit.ly/3JVFPPEBe sure to go to coachandcoordinator.com for enhanced show notes with links to related episodes, resources, articles, and our winning edge takeaways. Also sign up for our free Weekly Tip Sheet newsletter, which highlights the best ideas from the previous week, trending episodes, and featured resources.Follow us on Twitter @CoachKGrabowski. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Football is in Lance Zierlein’s blood. He is the son of retired NFL Coach Larry Zierlein and an analyst for NFL.com since 2015. His opinions on the best players in the game are highly respected across the industry.Today, he joins us to share his involvement in the Joe Moore Award, shed light on the process for determining the award's winning unit, and reveal the characteristics of the highest-performing offensive line units in the country.Through the conversation, both the physical and mental aspects of elite offensive line play show through, and he shares the common characteristics displayed by the coaches leading these top units.Show Notes: How he became involved with JMA The process is a funnel Our watchlist is everybody Duke Manyweather - LSU five-man protections in 2019 Three phases of the block Learning about how OL play evolves from his dad - NFL Coach Larry Zierlein Evaluating pass protection of the unit The true sign of teamwork in pass pro Run schemes that lend themselves to teamwork Assessing varied technique Characteristics of the OL coaches leading the best units Follow Lance Zierlein on Twitter @Lance Zierlein.Additional Joe Moore Award Episode:Aaron Taylor: https://bit.ly/3zchYGrRelated Resource:The Moore Method - OL University: https://bit.ly/3zchYGrAdditional Offensive Line Episodes:Sonny Dykes - Putting Together an Offense: https://spoti.fi/42NgiALBob Wylie - Coaching That Builds Relationships (Part 1): https://bit.ly/3TPJgfmBob Wylie - Coaching That Builds Relationships (Part 2): https://bit.ly/3nsAuYIKyle Caskey - Blitz Pick-Up: https://bit.ly/3lJ9UtZResearch and Development Series:Tackles: https://bit.ly/3FYLwLxInterior Linemen: https://bit.ly/40FMofZBe sure to go to coachandcoordinator.com for enhanced show notes with links to related episodes, resources, and articles, as well as our winning edge takeaways detailed in text. Also sign-up for our free Weekly Tip Sheet, which highlights the best ideas from the previous week, trending episodes, and featured resources.Follow us on Twitter @CoachKGrabowski. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Adam Cushing is the run game coordinator at Duke and also coaches the offensive line. Prior to serving on the Blue Devils staff, he spent three years as the head coach at Eastern Illinois University.Coach Cushing spent 15 seasons in a variety of roles at Northwestern University, including ten seasons as the offensive line coach. He also coached the super backs, tight ends, and H-backs, after starting as a graduate assistant working with the offensive line. Cushing had recruiting coordinator responsibilities as well, twice earning national recognition as one of the Big Ten’s top recruiters.Coach Cushing got his start in coaching as an assistant coach at the University of La Verne.In this segment from the 3rd Annual Lauren’s First and Goal Clinic, Coach Cushing focuses on what it takes to create a consistent player. While he gives examples with the offensive line, what he describes applies to all position groups, units, and the team.He establishes that consistency is the hallmark of greatness. His discussion includes mental consistency in training players' minds, especially related to the game plan, player-owned culture, and consistency with cultural messages.Show Notes: Consistency is the hallmark of greatness Mental preparation Beginning of a meeting Homework Follow Adam Cushing on Twitter @CoachCushing.Listen to Coach Cushing's Entire Clinic Talk: https://bit.ly/42JDa49Additional Adam Cushing Episodes:Simplifying Culture: https://bit.ly/3LUgdpgAdditional Adam Cushing Video Course:Culture and Leadership: https://bit.ly/3z9Y6nqPlease go to coachandcoordinator.com for expanded show notes, including our winning edge takeaways and links to resources. And while there, be sure to sign up for our Weekly Tip Sheet, which shares the best ideas from the podcast.Follow Keith Grabowski on Twitter @CoachKGrabowski. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s episode is from our archives and features Brent Dearmon from when he was the offensive coordinator at Arkansas Tech. Since that time, he’s gone on to do big things.Coach Dearmon is currently the head coach at the University of North Alabama. Prior to his current role, he served as the offensive coordinator for Florida Atlantic in 2022 after spending the 2021 season as OC at Middle Tennessee. His previous experience also includes serving as head coach at Bethel University. In his one season at Bethel in 2018, Dearmon guided the team to an undefeated regular season mark. Bethel earned a number-three ranking while averaging 540.3 yards and the second-highest scoring average in the country at 55.0 points per game. He was named Mid-South Conference Coach of the Year.Dearmon then made the rare jump from NAIA to FBS when he joined Les Miles' staff at Kansas in 2019 as a senior offensive consultant. Midway through the 2019 season, Dearmon took over as the program's offensive coordinator and led the team to a 24.1 scoring average and more than 400 yards of total offense per game.Brent Dearmon has always been at the forefront of RPO thinking, and it’s become a big part of the offenses he has directed. In this episode (one of four with Coach Dearmon in our library), he talks about assembling gap-sound RPOs that attack the defense across the entire field.Be sure to listen to the Winning Edge at the end of the episode for our takeaways and ideas for implementation from this episode.Show Notes: Evolving the RPO Keeping a downhill rushing mentality, while opening up more to the pass Doing RPOs in a sound way, while protecting the QB The Hot Gap Pre-snap reads The benefits of Power built into RPO The Counter game Turning Buck Sweep into RPO The three questions Dearmon asks for every concept RPO and practice Coaches need to ask, "Who do you say you are?" Winning Edge: Takeaways and ideas for implementation Follow Brent Dearmon on Twitter @BrentDearmon.Related Resources:Coach Dearmon’s Courses: Gap Sound RPOsRPOsIdentifying and Attacking Coverages with the RPOCoach Dearmon on CoachandCoordinator.com:The Hot GapAdditional Coach Dearmon Episodes:Our First Interview with Coach DearmonCreating a Common Language for CoachingC- and D-Gap RPOs Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Billy Riebock is the offensive coordinator at Midwestern State in Wichita Falls, Texas. He’s coached at all levels of college football, gaining valuable experience from the coaches he’s worked with all along the way.On today's episode, Coach Riebock shares how he utilizes data in the offseason to help determine what the offense will look like for the coming season. He also goes into detail about how Midwestern State utilizes technology to create a better workflow and better teaching tools for their players.Show Notes: A framework for preparing every position How a coach’s workflow and process evolve Find people that will mentor you Using data and analytics to come up with a simple plan Understanding how much you need in a game plan A system must handle all situations, or it’s not complete Using numbers to dictate what you can do Preparing and adjusting in spring Identifying and dealing with trends Using free technology to prepare players in the classroom Using interactive quizzes Using Go Army Edge technology to work through and understand concepts A more efficient way to walk through Eliminating uncertainty with interactive game plan a day ahead of practice Using technology for blitz pick-up with offensive line and running backs How the technology fosters better discussions Stealing time with the technology What the weekly plan with technology looks like Follow Billy Riebock on Twitter @RiebockBilly.Winning Edge – Takeaways and Ideas for Implementation:1) Know how much offense you need... Coach Riebock’s story about asking Coach Skrosky why they don’t change up plays in a certain situation made me recall something I have learned in the past – know how much you need by utilizing and studying the data of your past seasons. I highly recommend Brian Billick’s book, Developing an Offensive Game Plan. In the book, he lays out step-by-step what the process is for determining how much offense you need.Coach Billick writes, “Regardless of what type of team you coach (high school, college, or youth), you must think on three levels: yearly, weekly, and game day. Each level has very set parameters as to how much offense will actually be run in any given segment. The more you can overlap the amount of total offense you can carry vs. the amount that can be effectively practiced, the more effective the offense you actually run on game day will be.”2) Constantly evolve by examining how you are teaching and coaching... Ask yourself if you have the best methods, best tools, best technology to prepare your players. I heard a quote from retired Army General Eric Shinseki, who said, “If you don’t like change, you’re going to like irrelevance even less.”That’s where we are in our profession as the game becomes more and more dynamic, and we must find ways to best develop our players.3) Use an “expert” system to implement new technology and workflows... It reminds me of an African proverb, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” This approach gives you the benefits of moving quickly and also going far with new technology.That expert should be the one to learn it and then efficiently teach it and help the others on the staff troubleshoot it. In that way, you will more efficiently implement new tools into your workflow.Please go to coachandcoordinator.com to sign-up for our newsletter, the Weekly Tip Sheet. We share the best ideas from the past week’s episodes, recommended resources, and share our featured episodes.And follow us on Twitter @CoachKGrabowski. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today’s episode, Amanda Ruller joins the podcast to share a different perspective on networking in this profession, finding a way to the top, and then dig into ideas and drills for training running backs.Coach Ruller is currently the running backs coach at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. She recently served as the assistant running backs coach for the Seattle Seahawks through the Bill Walsh Diversity Fellowship program.Her unique background in strength and conditioning, data and analytics, and sports media, as well as her experience as an elite multi-sport athlete, is something she leverages to advance in the profession.There are plenty of takeaways from this episode, including insight and advice to become known to the people who can help elevate you, as well as ideas for creating purposeful drills.Show Notes: Finding a way into the coaching profession Her start in strength and conditioning Creating something to give  Marketing yourself Sports broadcasting as an avenue to build relationships Spending camp with the Saskatchewan Roughriders Bill Walsh Diversity Fellowship with Seattle Seahawks Persistence Find what you are passionate about and go and do it Data, analytics, and the NFL Combine Doing work for free to get noticed Putting together drills that are purposeful Training vision in the running backs Create to the standard to create the results Speed cuts Pressure step Be used to the movement but not the rhythm Jump cuts Working with the Seahawks Physio ball to create different timing in drills Follow Amanda Ruller on Twitter @AMANDAbolic.Watch Coach Ruller's Speed Training Presentation from Lauren's First and Goal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today’s episode, we sit down with Aaron Taylor to learn more about the Joe Moore Award, the only college football award that honors a group instead of an individual.Aaron Taylor played for Joe Moore at the University of Notre Dame. Taylor was a two-time All-American and a first round pick in the 1994 NFL Draft. He played professionally for the Green Bay Packers and the San Diego Chargers.Taylor currently works as a college football analyst, television sportscaster, and he is the founder of the Joe Moore Award. He shares all the details behind this award, and through hearing about Joe Moore and his methods, we learn of the impact that elite coaching makes.Whether you are an offensive line coach or not, there is plenty to take away for what it takes to be an impactful coach.Show Notes:  Who was Joe Moore? The Joe Moore O-Line Camp Kirk Ferentz's first attempt at the award The impact of a coach It started with belief and strict adherence to the fundamentals The detail that goes into finding the best college OL by the committee Toughness, teamwork, technique, consistency, and finishing The watchlist starts with 131 units Steed Lobotzke and Air Force as a finalist How the six aspects show up on film Lance Zierlein - three phases of a block Accounting for different methodology and technique There is no QBR for fat guys Common traits in the coaches leading these top units The Joe Moore Offensive Line Credo The “toughness drill” - base blocks for two hours You have five more in you The Foundation for Teamwork Th creation of the trophy The Moore Method - O-Line University course Follow Aaron Taylor on Twitter @AaronTaylorCFB.Take The Moore Method OL University CourseFor more information, visit JoeMooreAward.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mike Waufle most recently served as the defensive line coach for the Buffalo Bills. Coach Waufle served as defensive line coach for the Oakland Raiders from 1998 to 2003 and coached in Super Bowl XXXVII. Waufle coached primarily single-gap four-man defensive lines in 4-3 Defenses. He was the defensive line coach for the New York Giants from 2004 to 2009. He won Super Bowl XLII in 2007.He returned to the Raiders in 2010. From 2012 to 2016, he was the defensive line coach for St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams under head coach Jeff Fisher. He coached the Buffalo Bills defensive line in 2017 and retired after the 2017 season.In the segment from the 2022 C.O.O.L. Clinic, he shares how his classroom is unique and then goes into the six components of get-off, which he repped every single day.While he focuses his presentation on defensive line play, there’s a lot to learn here about teaching your players, regardless of the position, to master their technique.The entire talk is available on CoachTube and the link in the show notes will give you 25% off. It’s definitely worth adding to your library.Watch Coach Waufle's Entire Presentation (SAVE 25%)The 2023 C.O.O.L. Clinic site has been launched. Be sure to take advantage of early bird savings. To learn more, visit https://cool2023.coachesclinic.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices