The Football Coaching Podcast with Joe Daniel

Episode 149 is based on a discussion from our private JDFB Insider forum. Michael asked for advice heading into his first year as a Defensive Coordinator. It sounded like a great topic to me. I sent my own response, flipped through the advice from other coaches, and started making a list. I was shooting for 8 tips for 1st year coordinators. Either side of the ball, let's not limit it.  Instead I ended up with 15 before I stopped myself and turned the microphone on. It is Super Bowl Sunday afterall, I don't need to be doing this all day. And here it is. 15 tips for 1st year coordinators. And head coaches. And assistant coaches. OK, these are tips any football coach should probably pay attention to.  

Today we're getting a little deep. Some off the field stuff.  And I'll travel back to 1937 for some help.  Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill is one of my favorite books. It's not some get rich quick garbage like the title might make it sound.  It's a book every football coach should read. Every person, really.  We're looking specifically at the 10 Causes of Failure of Leadership from Chapter 6 in the book.  This is a book I come back to over and over again, and you should really look into it if you've never read it. Here it is on Amazon. All football coaches are in a leadership role. Whether you are the head coach, coordinator, or position coach, you are leading.  We lead other coaches, and more important we lead our players. Pay close attention to these points from many years ago, and see how they fit into your football coaching today. 

It's the off season. And the centerpiece of your off season is the weight room. Don't get carried away with X's and O's. That's a lot of fun. But remember one thing... Jimmy's and Joe's matter more. A lot more. And you can make massive improvements for your guys in the weight room this season. A lot more than you can make on paper. So what does it take to run a great weight program?  You don't need a ton of equipment. And you don't have to be a full time strength coach. You need to know enough about the lifts to teach them, and teach the lifts safely. Safety is above-all-else the most important aspect of coaching weight training.  You've got to have enthusiasm. Believe that the weight room is important. Show your players that.  And you need a plan. A path to follow. Where does the off season in the weight room start? What's the end game?  How do you get there? Check out this episode for some ideas on building your championship weight room!  And click here to join us on January 14, 2016 at 9pm ET, 6pm PT for the Critical Keys To Running A Championship Weight Room Web Clinic.

Defending the Double Wing is always a fun topic. It's a great offense for exposing your defense. The fact is, this is a tough task no matter what you run. It's a great argument against balance. I've been working on our 3-4 Defense eCourse and this is a topic that's sure to come up. So I'm preparing myself. Episode 146 is a collection of my ideas on defending the Double Wing Offense. It's not the end all, not the solution forever. Just ideas. Hopefully it gets your wheels turning as we head into the off-season!

There is no 'right' way. The sooner you learn that, the better your coaching career goes. It's not easy to accept, of course. I wish there was a right way. I wish there was one single scheme that would beat everyone else every day. As long as no one else knew about it, of course. But there is not. Every scheme can work. Offense, Defense, Special Teams. If it's sound and it fits your players (and you can teach it), you can win with it. And every football team is different. Your players are probably different from week to week - and even day to day.  How your scheme gels together... how you turn 11 individuals into one unit... that is going to change every day.  That requires you to be a flexible football coach. To have a toolbox of answers waiting.  Knowing when you use them? How to teach them? That separates good coaches from great coaches.  Check out Episode 145 of The Football Coaching Podcast to find out how you can be a Flexible Football Coach!

When the season's over, the next one begins. Post-season evaluation is a major part of that process. These are 9 key points that your staff needs to discuss during the off-season. Address them, you get better. Ignore them, you get disaster.    

Why do you coach? Is it because you like football? Well of course. Maybe you're really competitive. Wins and losses. On Thursday night, before our last game, I was reminded of why I coach football. We have a tradition called the Senior Speeches. And it's an annual reminder to me, and the rest of our staff, of why this is all worth it. In Episode 143 of The Football Coaching Podcast, I'll tell you what our players say that reminds us that coaching is an important profession. One of the most important professions, honestly. Listen to Episode 143 on Why We Coach Football now, and give yourself a reminder why all the blood, sweat, tears and time are all worth it!

The weather is getting colder. The sun goes down a lot earlier. Football season is winding down. And that's when the really important stuff happens! Rivalry games. Playoffs. BIG things. But kids don't always see all of that as a reason to work. A reason to continue to grind. As a coach, you have the ability to change how your football players approach their craft. Even this late in the season. One way is to shake up your practice. Try some new ideas. Do something out of the ordinary. Listen to Episode 142 for some great ideas on how to shake up your football practice this fall!

It's happened to every coach. Some of your kids are checked out. Football is a long season. A grind. Not everyone has the focus and tenacity to push all the way through. At least not with a little help. And that's where you come in. When the wheels seem to be coming off, and you need to re-focus your players to finish strong, there are things you can do. But it all comes down to you as a football coach. What will you do to get your players back on track? Finish strong. Listen to Episode 141 of The Football Coaching Podcast. And stop wishing the season would end!

They come up at the worst time. Those special situations you forgot. The game is in hand, then something happens. You know you should have worked on it... but you just didn't. I've worked to put together a complete list of special situations for your football team. I know it isn't complete because - well, it never is. But this is a start. I've also included the spreadsheet I made in our JDFB Insider Forum . You can add more situations that your football team works on - or needs to work on - in the forum. We'll compile a big list and have it ready for 2015. As it stands, there are a ton of situations that come up in a football game that you have to be prepared for. Listen to Episode 140 of The Football Coaching Podcast to make sure you've got these big one's checked off!