The Football Coaching Podcast with Joe Daniel

I’ve only heard one coach ever talk about how loaded his team was. Twice. He’s won two State Championships. For the rest of us… we got problems. The kids are too small. Too slow. Too young. Too soft. Too entitled. Something’s wrong. For every single one of us. Probably why coaching is not for everyone. You get into coaching thinking you know everything. The smartest coaches are the one’s who have never done it. Then you find out this is a hard gig. The kids don’t run around like they do in Madden. But the truth is… your players can play. They’re just like everyone else’s players. Maybe not as big, or as fast, or as… whatever it is. But everyone has shortcomings. This off-season, figure out what yours are. Get to work addressing them. Then move on. Time to go to work. In this episode, I mention the Max Motivation for Peak Performance eCourse along with several of the other resources that are available exclusively as part of JDFB Insiders. Click here to find out how to get Instant Access to JDFB Insiders!

Our biggest job as a coach is to develop character in our players. Best way to do that is to model it. There’s a lot of problems in society today. We know football can help develop our young men to overcome those problems. Rise above. And a victim mentality? That’s a big one. It’s always someone else’s fault. “I can’t!”  Why not? Because of this… this… this… oh the list goes on. As a football coach, we shouldn’t have that mentality. But it creeps up for a lot of us. I see it all the time. Stop finding reasons you can’t. Start finding solutions. Finding answers. And then get to work. This episode of The Football Coaching Podcast is a total rant, by the way. By the way, JDFB Insiders is a great place to find help for your football team. 1% at a time. Stop looking for excuses about why you can’t… sign up here for JDFB Insiders.

You work hard. Is it enough? Are you the right guy for this? We all worry about whether or not we’ve done all we can. Done it the right way. Your players only have a few years to play the game. That’s a lot of pressure. Not to mention pressure for the faculty, administration and community. It’s normal to wonder... Am I a good football coach? So I made a checklist. And you can download it from Joe Daniel Football. At some point we all run into tough times. You ask yourself the question. Then you carry on because, well, no one else is going to do it and you love it. That, coupled with the fact that you’re listening to this podcast, means you probably are a good football coach. But we all need a reminder.

It's that time of year. Some guys are rolling into the Playoffs. Others are searching for answers.  This episode of The Football Coaching Podcast is for those guys who know that what you're doing... it isn't working.  Change your thinking. Your approach.  Make that change first. Then you can change the scheme.  I talk about my Pistol Power Offense System in this episode. You can check out the free video series at http://joedanielfootball.com/ppo.  If what you're doing on offense isn't working... it's the solution. But not because of the playbook.  Check out this episode of The Football Coaching Podcast to find out why. 

You stand on the sidelines in disbelief. We worked on this! The fans in the stands have their doubts. How could any kid who’s ever been coached make mistake like that!? The skills that you forget even need to be coached. The skills that everyone should be able to execute. On paper they seem so easy. But you’ve tried to teach it. You’re cutting years off your life trying to get better at it. These are the 12 Football Skills that seem so easy that you shouldn’t even have to coach it. But you do. And you coach it. And coach it. And coach it. And they will make the mistake again. How do I know? Because they make these same mistakes in the NFL, too. Check out this episode of The Football Coaching Podcast to find out the 12 Football Skills that Seam So Easy (but aren’t)! In this episode I mention our Pistol Power Offense System and 4-3 Defense System. You can get immediate access to both of those when you sign up for JDFB Insiders today!

Every coach has the question. How do we turn losers into winners? Kids need to learn to win. Winning isn’t easy. Sure, some wins come easy. And if you’re just better than everyone else... that’s easy. Championship football teams win close games. Tough games. Go back and look at nearly every undefeated team or Championship team in NCAA Football. They all have a scare somewhere on the schedule. When your team has a winning mindset, you win those football games. When they don’t... you wilt and die. Listen to Episode 174 of The Football Coaching Podcast for ideas on how to establish that winning mindset for your football team! Ready to build the trust factor in your football team? Check out Max Motivation for Peak Performance, available exclusively as part of your JDFB Insider membership 

It’s one of the most frustrating parts of being a football coach. The scout team. You work to put all the opponent’s plays down on cards. You show them to a group of guys on your team... wait, these guys are all on your team? ...anyway, hold the card up. Everyone looks. They nod. They head to the line. The ball is snapped. If the snap doesn’t get fumbled, it’s a small victory. Then the disaster is on. Wait, the Guard didn’t pull! We need that guy to pull! Where’s the Tight End? There’s supposed to be a Tight End on that play! He was WHERE!? In this episode of The Football Coaching Podcast, I’m sharing ideas on how to make your scout team better. Just as an FYI, it’s not using color coded cards. I never saw more confused kids than when I did the color coded cards. None of these are earth shattering. It’s all about building your practice from small to big, just like we teach in JDFB Insiders. Check out this week’s episode, and start making some changes in your practice planning that will save your sanity!

Putting together your offensive game plan is critical to the success of your football team. And the most important part of that game plan is your evaluation of the defense. What do they do best? Where are the weaknesses? Who are the best players? The worst players? What are their tendencies? When do they change? (you can get your tendency report faster if you let us tag your game film!) Then you take that information and put it against your offense. What are you best at? Where are your strengths? It’s like fitting together puzzle pieces. This requires honest evaluation. Try to identify your bias. Try to identify the opponent’s bias. This is the chess match that makes football great. Check out this week’s episode of The Football Coaching Podcast for some game planning tips. And for more in depth analysis on your opponent, use the JDFB Insider membership forums to post your questions.

Lots of coaches can draw up passing routes. Trick the defense, find the holes in a zone. It’s fun stuff. But this isn’t 7 on 7. And it ain’t Madden. You want to throw all those fancy passing concepts? You have to protect your Quarterback. In Episode 170 we talked about the pass protection technique that you can use. That’s independent of your pass protection scheme. On this episode of The Football Coaching Podcast, I’m diving into the different protections schemes you can run. Big on Big protection. Slide protection. Half-Slide protection. Turn Back protection. Sprint protection. What does it all mean? When should you use each one? How many protections can you install for High School Football? When you want to go more in depth on pass protection, check out Joe Daniel Football Insiders. Learn the in’s and out’s of our 5 Step Protection in the exclusive JDFB Pistol Power Offense System to give your Quarterback time to throw the football!  (no matter what level you coach!).

There’s your pass protection scheme, and there’s the technique you use to execute it. Today we’re talking about technique. You’re probably familiar with kick sliding... that thing you see NFL Offensive Tackles do all the time. But that’s not the only way to protect your quarterback. Or even the best way to go about it, if you don’t throw the ball much. There’s a few options. In today’s episode of The Football Coaching Podcast, we talk about 3 different styles of pass protection... Kick-Slide Technique Vertical Set Protection Lead Step Protection Each method has it’s advantages and disadvantages. I’ve taught all of them in the past (and will likely use them again in the future, at the right time). This isn’t a thing where you choose 2 or 3. You choose one technique for the entire season, based on what is best for your football team. When you want to go more in depth on pass protection, check out Joe Daniel Football Insiders. The Offensive Line Coaching Formula is a 12 hour instructional course including an entire module on how to teach pass protection for your linemen (no matter what level you coach!).