How Many Hats Can A Football Coach Wear?
Apr 13th, 2009 by Coach DeLorm
Here is another great post from football coach Dan Levin. He is a Head Coach of a football team in Australia. If you would like to contribute to the site please drop me a line using our contact form.
Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects about my job as football coach of the Eagles is that as the only coach, I have to coach the offense, defense, and special teams. Being responsible for all aspects of the team was not something I was looking forward to doing. My defensive experience was a grand total of three games in high school, when I was put in as depth on the defensive line. My special teams experience was a bit more, as I was special teams captain on my team in Melbourne - though even this position required me to read up on techniques and responsibilities.
I was frantically searching to find a defensive coordinator. Anyone who came to the club with any previous defensive experience was an instant candidate for the job. Sadly, none stuck around once they were aware of the challenges facing them. I can see now why bad American football teams stay bad - though I wonder what that says about the coaches who ignore reclamation projects?
So, knowing that I was responsible for coaching positions I’ve never played, let alone coached, I set out to learn EVERYTHING I could about defense. This included fronts, reads, keys, technique, coverages - EVERYTHING. I bought technique books and read online materials and videos. I sent my old coaches e-mails picking their brains about defense. I even asked opposition players about responsibilities and reads - and thankfully they were very supportive. I think that often gets lost in the shuffle in this sport - coaches helping other coaches. In my opinion, a win only counts if it’s against an equal opponent. I see no harm in helping other coaches out, so long as you don’t start giving your scheme away!
I also needed to learn about the most important offensive position, Quarterback. QB play is the toughest position to teach effectively, and QB play in Victoria in general is lacking. You can see it once you’ve learned it - skipping into the drop, wind-ups, side-arm delivery, no follow through, no hip rotation, not looking off receivers - it’s all over the place. I do not consider myself an expert on the QB yet, but once you know how to coach a QB, it certainly helps to fix those problems - not to mention the joy you get from seeing the problems corrected!
As we get closer to the season, things are appearing more bleak. Team morale appears high, but commitment is low. A Sunday practice had 12players show up - really poor considering the quality of the weather, though that may have had something to do with it as well. The problem is that I will not put people on the field if I feel that they have not shown up to enough training sessions where I’m confident that they know the playbook and can protect themselves. Right now, that’s about
12 people (myself included) - which is 3 less than required to play an actual game. I have told my team this, and I have told our team president this. Time will tell if the players are willing to find out
if I’m bluffing or not.
Coaching a small program can really be a lot of work. It may be grating sometimes and beat you down, but I think that it shows a lot of character and builds a great coach when they have to coach many positions and be dynamic enough to keep a handle on a lot of things.
You might find this a daunting task presently but you’ll be thankful you had the opportunity later in your career. Having the experience of coaching so many different position groups, not to mention coordinating, will be a great resume builder for you should you look to move on sometime down the road. In the meantime, because of the lack of QB play in your league, I suggest focusing on running the football and stopping the run. Control the clock and limit the opponents pocessions, hopefully you’ll find yourself in a lot of games in the fourth quarter.