Many youth football clubs are wrapping up their season at this point. Many of us want to make the final game competitive and in the playoffs. Your team should improve each week when coaching youth football. This means that your final game of the season should be your best. You also want your last practice week to be memorable. All of us want to end the season with some laughter and to entice players to return for the next season. How can we achieve both these goals? Can we have fun while still being prepared for the last big game?
We are now down to just two football practices per week at this time of the year. Many youth football coaches don’t have any fun last week, or turn that last practice into a circus. While I love making it fun for the children, you can often instill the belief that the season is over by making last practice fun and games.
On the first practice of each week, we like to have “fun”. We may play Hawaiian Rules football, or have a live scrimmage where running backs are playing on the line and running backs are playing running back. Sometimes we do the things the team has learned to be fun, such as the deer hunter and towel game. The last practice of the year was cancelled due to rain. We were able to practice in the gym and played Dodge Ball and Capture the Flag for the 30 minutes that remained. It was a great experience.
We discussed our week’s goals and the goals of each member of the team during team. The players are aware that the final result will not be known until 20+ years later. We hope that the seeds we planted this season will have grown and matured by then. These are the seeds of perseverance, hard work and sacrifice, as well as accepting criticism and accepting guidance. This will make each player better sons, brothers, fathers, and providers. While youth football may not be a panacea for all social ills it is an important part of many children’s development. An employer can tell whether a person has ever played competitive sports. They are often more competitive than their videogame playing counterparts. They accept coaching better, work harder, get flustered less, and overcome obstacles much better than competitive sports players 스포츠중계.
The first half of week practice is a little reflective and fun, but we quickly get into “football mode” for the second half. This is where parents can do something extra if they want. The very last practice of the week is when we return to “business” later in the week. We will be covering on-air team defense, team offense and special teams in addition to our regular individual development periods. Many youth football teams will be pulling out all the stops at this stage of the season. You need to take the time to align your team and alert them about unusual formations such as the Swinging Gate/Lonesome Polecat, or unbalanced sets. This time of year we also see wall kick returns and starburst or throwback kick return. We also see “trick” plays such as QB throwbacks and even illegal plays like “wrong-ball” plays.
You can prepare your youth football team by setting up special defenses or teams against the “scout team” of your coaches and other players. Place everyone in their respective positions. Have everyone stand and take a step back. As the defense watches, you can discuss the play with your scout group and then walk them through it together. Next, jog your scout group through the various football plays that you must prepare against. After you have shown 4-5 of the football plays to your defense team, huddle up again and run the plays either live or to thud (but not taking the ballcarrier down). To give the defense quality reps, we always have coaches at the skill positions.
Although you might not see these “trick” formations or plays, they are new to the children. It’s not unusual for youth football players to feel a bit bored during this time of year. This keeps kids’ attention and provides them with a fresh and exciting way to learn. This can be a game-changer in the end.
You might even have some clever football plays to your name at this time of year. We do it for the novelty and not to be able to score. It is done to keep kids interested. We may not run the play or use it for extra points.
For youth football teams, nothing is worse than watching their secret play go for a touchdown and then having it stuffed for no gain or big loss. The other team will count on you not being prepared when you run something like that. They expect chaos, poor alignment, confusion, and, of course, success. This occurred in the final game of the season for my age 10-11. The illegal “wrong-ball” play was attempted by the opponent. You can find more information and a video clip about the play by doing a search for “wrong balls” on this blog.
Our defense had been taught the “wrong” play by us in the week before our last game. We had discussed, demonstrated, and even ran it against our defense. No matter what coaches or players were saying, our defense knew that the ball had to be picked up by the player who was set to play.