Keep Youth Football Practice Practical


By FirstDown PlayBook on Oct 4, 2020

Over the past several weeks FirstDown PlayBook has been looking at youth football practices. We have talked about having a teaching progression as you coach. It’s also important that your teaching progression fits into the bigger picture of what your head coach wants to get accomplished that day in practice.

This is why it’s important for the head coach and or the offensive coordinator to have a plan. This way you will know ahead of time what needs to be taught in your individual periods.

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It is hard for your players to understand when they are asked to go to a team period and execute a technique they have never been taught. It is also confusing for a player when they work their tails off on a technique in individual period and get to group period and never use it. This happens all the time in a youth football practice.

Keep your practices practical. Practice what will be needed in a team period or more importantly in the game that week. Don’t practice something just to practice it. Not going to throw the ball much? Take that into consideration as you plan time for your receivers to work on catching as opposed to blocking.

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It seems like common sense but you would be surprised. Coaches are creatures of habit. They teach what they know and what they are used to teaching. As the head coach, it’s your job to make sure that what your team is learning will be practical when they reach the game field.