The Football Coaching Podcast with Joe Daniel

On this edition of The Football Coaching Podcast, it’s a deep dive into Pattern Read Coverage. What is it, and why should your team run it? And also… why shouldn’t your team run it? We’ll talk about making the decision. I’ll talk about the 4 Critical Keys to Coaching Pattern Read Coverage. Then we’ll dive into all of the communication your players have to learn to run a successful pattern read defense. In this episode I mentioned quite a few resources, and they’re listed below: Coaching Pattern Read Coverage by Tom Olivadotti is an excellent overview of pattern read principles. Quarters Coverage Made Simple by Shap Boyd was crucial for me learning Quarters Coverage. Listen to my interview with Coach Boyd on Quarters Coverage in Episode 26 of The Football Coaching Podcast 4-3 Over Cover 4 Defense from Pat Narduzzi is a great resource if you’re interested in Press Quarters. Or defense. Can’t recommend this 2 DVD set enough. Don’t overcomplicate your coaching. Keep it simple so your kids can execute. That’s what The 4-2-5 Defense System is all about. To get access to free videos on The 4-2-5 Defense System, visit http://425defense.com/podcast.

For this week’s episode of The Football Coaching Podcast, Defensive Game Planning won the Twitter Poll! You can vote for next week’s poll topic on my Twitter feed @footballinfo.   This could probably make up a month’s worth of show topics. I decided to focus on one aspect - the scouting.   Gathering enough information to give your football team an advantage. Without going overboard. And without digging through too much information and actually falling behind.   I talk about what information the football coaches need to know. And how much of that do your players actually need?   Then we’ll talk about the Game Planning Call Sheet. If you want to go deeper on that, check my article on 24 Things You Can’t Leave Off Your Defensive Call Sheet.   For more ideas on putting your Defensive Playbook together (after all, you can’t get the call sheet right if you don’t have a foundation), download my free eBook Defensive Installation Manual here.

The most important skill for a Linebacker is learning how to defeat blocks. A Linebacker should expect to defeat a block before he makes the tackle. It's also one of the hardest skills to get your Linebackers to execute. The natural tendency is to run around those big guys trying to push you.  I've studied a lot on coaching linebackers. The best resource I've found is Lou Tepper's Complete Linebacking book: http://amzn.to/2mXKjMp If you haven't read it yet, you need to get it. Every football coach should check it out.  In this episode, I talk about 3 styles of block destruction. We focus on the core principles including the strong inside foot, leverage and exploding the hips through the blocker. Then you'll shed the block and go make a tackle!

You voted and this is the topic that won! Coaching Without Leadership means coaching when you don’t have those leaders on your team. The one’s that would make your life so much easier. Here’s the real secret. You have leaders. You have leadership. Now you have to be the coach. Develop it. And there’s a lot going on here. For this podcast, I referenced my interview with Coach Chris Zablocki and his Pyramid of Priorities. Making good decisions is what you’re really after. I also focus on the 5 Levels of Leadership that John Maxwell talks in this video. Maxwell’s books are a must for football coaches. Finally, you can get instant access to Chris Zablocki’s web clinic on leadership from last year, as well as my Max Motivation for Peak Performance eCourse when you join JDFB Insiders. Click here to get all the details.

Get ready for an in-depth look at Coaching the Outside Linebackers. Or Overhang Safeties. Whatever you want to call them! In this episode of The Football Coaching Podcast, I’m going through the foundations of coaching your force players in the defense. This is mainly from the perspective of a 4-4 or 4-2-5 Defense, or a 3-5-3 or 33 Stack Defense. But you can pick up some ideas no matter what defensive system you’re running. Cover 3, Quarters, Cover 1 or Cover 2 all get discussed. I’m going through the ASKA pre-snap progression for your players. Stolen from TCU, as so many things I talk about are. ASKA stand for Alignment, Stance, Key, Assignment. It’s a great way to build your pre-snap checklist that your players run through. I’ll share the how and why of everything your Outside Linebackers need to do. Include 4 different Outside Linebacker Keys for determining Run or Pass and identifying the play. Outside Linebackers take a lot of work. This is the guy that most Offensive Coordinators will look to put in conflict. Make him wrong no matter what. This episode of The Football Coaching Podcast will help to arm you against the bad guys! Looking for the Umbrella Principle video? Click here to watch the video. Then you can sign up to get the entire 3 video series on Coaching The 4-2-5 Defense System delivered directly to your inbox for free.

I’ve talked a lot about The Pistol Power Offense System. But I don’t know if I’ve ever talked about what it really is. At least, not on this podcast. The Pistol Power Offense System is just the One Back Offense. Run from Pistol… and under center, and gun. It’s just a fancy name. What’s the One Back Offense? Pretty simple. We’ve got a feature back. Then use a hybrid H-Back to move around and set up the defense. That hybrid guy replaces your Fullback in a Pro I Offense. He’s just more versatile. Most of the plays are the same. Listen to this episode to  hear the details of the running plays in the offensive playbook. Power, Counter, Zone, Stretch and Truck Toss. I get into the basics of each play, along with how and why they’re packaged together. It’s a good introduction to the One Back Offense for your football team. When you’re ready to dive all the way in, join the Pistol Power Offense System!

Size matters. Especially when you don’t have it. Coaching with smaller players means you have to make some adjustments. Your undersized team can still have success if you don’t hit the panic button. In today’s episode of The Football Coaching Podcast, I’ll give you 8 keys to Coaching With Smaller Players. This is probably the most common question I get asked. Or some form of it. “My team is undersized. What should I run?” The answer is… changing the playbook won’t change a thing. It’s how you use your scheme that will make the difference (no matter what it is). So don’t panic about all those little guys. Listen to this episode of The Football Coaching Podcast for ideas on how to coach your smaller players. And if you need a System - one that works no matter who you’re coaching - check out The 4-2-5 Defense System. You can get Instant Access when you sign up now!

The 4-2-5 Defense is probably my favorite defense. And what I’m best known for. In today’s episode of The Football Coaching Podcast, we’re going to talk about the basics of this 8 man, even front defense. This is the same as a 4-4 Defense. Or a 6-2 Defense. Numbers don’t really matter. Don’t get caught up thinking this is some ‘Spread Defense’. We’ll go in depth on Defensive End alignment and responsibility. His technique is critical to the 4-2-5 Defense. This defense is a balanced front. You can flip your players strong and weak, or not flip them. This is an advantage when you’re facing Hurry Up, No Huddle teams. I’ll also talk about the variety of coverage you can run with your 4-2-5 Defense. Stay a single high safety Cover 3 or Cover 1, or get fancy. Like TCU’s Split Field Coverage. Finally, we’ll go in depth on position personnel. Who do you need in order to run a dominating 4-2-5 Defense? I’ll give you details. I’ve worked with over 3,000 coaches on this incredible defensive scheme. To learn all about my 4-2-5 Defense System, visit 425defense.com and get Instant Access today.

When’s the right time to start applying for jobs? That’s easy.  You can always apply for the job. The interview experience in invaluable.  But when are you ready to take a head coaching job?  “It depends.” That’s the answer we’ve heard for years. In this episode of The Football Coaching Podcast, I’m going to nail down the real right  time to be a new Head Coach. Just a warning. I don’t want to be a head coach right now. I have never been a head coach. A lot of this is a little tongue-in-cheek. But it’s what I’ve observed. What I believe. What would have to be true for me, if I were to pursue head coaching jobs.  My sources are a few head coaches I’ve worked for, and hundreds of head coaches I’ve worked with. It’s a hard job.  So… thinking about it? Or just want to reminisce about the time before you sold your soul to be a head football coach? (that’s tongue-in-cheek too!) Listen to this episode of The Football Coaching Podcast. In this episode, I mentioned Coach Chris Fore. He’s THE MAN when you want to put your resume together and prep for your head coaching interviews. Find him at CoachFore.org.  I also mentioned the Max Motivation for Peak Performance eCourse. This is the definitive guide to building trust with your new team, and creating the culture that all winning teams have. It’s available only by becoming a JDFB Insider Client.  

Champions are made in the Weight Room. Every High School Football Coach talks about how important this time of year is. This week’s episode of The Football Coaching Podcast is all about the keys to having a great off-season in the Weight Room. Getting the most from your football strength training. On a side note, this episode is 100 episodes after my favorite Football Coaching Podcast of all time… Episode 80 4 Types of Defense. What makes your football strength training program great? You need players in the weight room. Sell the program to them. Better yet, get your players that are already committed to sell to new kids. Then you’ve got to know your facilities. Yeah, you need a weight room. It doesn’t have to be anything special though. Work with what you have. Then you ned a plan. Laid out. Well thought out. Don’t just wing it. This season, we’ve got an expert Strength Coach to do all that for you. Chris Lawyer, who runs The Weight Room RVA here in Richmond, VA, has put together an incredible football strength program for you.  Click here to get the details on JDFB Weight Room 2017 With 40,000 hours of strength coaching hours logged, Chris is a true expert. He’s coached State, National and World Record Holders in powerlifting, weightlifting and strongman. He’s also consulted with plenty of High School and College strength coaches. Chris knows his stuff.