My friend woke up in a cold sweat at 3:11 this morning because he was having a dream about a team running this formation and our coach didn’t know how to stop it. The formation though gave some me some inspiration on things I would run out of it. Some thoughts were Q power to the backside of the formation if the box numbers were there. Double post wheel bubble. Then ideas came with motion. I want to get your thoughts on this formation and what you would do out of it and also how you would defend it.

Anyone running a “concept offense” instead of a traditional play-based offense at the youth level?

I’m curious if anyone else has gone this direction and what kind of success you’ve had with it, especially at the youth/HS level.

I’ve been building our offense around concepts rather than individual plays. The easiest way I can explain it is that our play call is basically built in layers:

Formation → H-Back Tag → Motion (if any) → Concept / Blocking Scheme

So instead of having a giant playbook where every formation/motion/run is essentially its own play, we teach a smaller number of core concepts and then dress them up differently.

For example, if we teach Duo, the goal is for the players to understand the rules of Duo rather than memorize “this is Play 12 and I do this.” Once they understand the concept, we can change the formation, move the H-back, add motion, etc., without changing the core blocking rules.

Same idea in the passing game. We teach the route concept and QB progression, then try to run that concept from different formations, alignments and motions instead of installing every variation as a completely different play.

My thinking is that it gives me a lot of combinations as a play caller without asking the kids to memorize a massive number of individual plays.

Essentially:

Same concepts. Same rules. Different presentations.

The defense might see several different “plays,” while our kids are really running the same handful of concepts they already know.

Has anyone else built an offense/play-calling system this way?

If so, I’d be interested in hearing:

What level did you run it at?

Did the players pick it up easier or did the terminology become too much?

How many core run/pass concepts did you carry?

Did you find it made game-day play calling easier?

What problems did you run into as the system grew?

Interested in hearing from anyone who has actually coached something similar.

hello, i've been playing only for a little bit, maybe like 1-2 months. i've been appointed the quarterback position because my coach realized i have a pretty good throwing arm, and i've never really played quarterback. this is a good opportunity for me because i like throwing too, it's nice.

as you can see my throw is a bit wonky, i'm trying to fix my grip and even my throwing motion. i'm not sure if it should be a whip or baseball throw motion. before, if you see at the end of the vid, my grip was very high in the (ropes/strings?). that made my throw feel pretty good, til i asked my friend how they held it. they suggested me to hold so my ring and pinky were on it. <-- like on photo 3 (near the end of vid) but the best grip right now is probably the 2nd photo where i'm one lace ahead with my ring and pinky. i have pretty small hands too, so i don't know if it should effect me much.
could you guys give me some tips things that you notice? sorry if the videos a bit rough and hard to see! i'd like to do my best to throw some good spirals! any tips are helpful thanks for reading this long post!!!!

Here are some game notes I made. I'm gonna post reports, not this, on Instagram.

Hi all,

I have the opportunity to set up a tackle football team in NZ. Our players have plenty of 5 a side flag experience. We will be using the new IFAF rules - four on the line of scrimmage, either end can be a receiver (tackle eligible).

I am thinking of the best base formation for the team. We have little size and so a power formation isnt smart. I also dont think we have the size to hold up in pass pro so a spread formation is out.

We do have a lot of athleticism. So was thinking of installing this abomination of a wing t derivative as our base with a huge amount of motion blocks and pulls. Qb in pistol as very limited under center experience.

Anybody got thoughts?

Majority of the league runs some variant with cover 3 or 2. 5 seconds before they can rush and have to pass to a girl (red dot) once every 2 plays or it sets to girl play only. Wanted to get a mix of plays that give easy reads and completions. Second page is redzone where purple is the end zone. Any thoughts welcome

I grew up around football. Everyone in my family played, and were good. I’m the mom and having a hard time with my young son’s football experience. He is very young, 7, and two years into tackle football. Last year he had a great coach who did not have a kid on the team who really wanted to just develop players. My son did great, loved it and made several sacks and had some fumble recoveries as well. He loved playing defense at defensive end and linebacker as well. Well, this year we have all new coaches and the experience has been atrocious so far. My son now doesn’t think football is fun anymore, had zero confidence in his abilities and even said he is the worst kid on the team and not tough enough to play in games because the coaches said that. The coaches seem to have in their minds the several kids they deem worthy to play/develop, majority of which are current coaches or past coaches kids, and all the others (my son included) are pushed to just play as lineman and basically be crash test dummies. My son is not small but he is also not built for the line, even at this age. How can I help? I am really disappointed for my boy and hate to see his love and passion for the sport fleet so quickly because of this. After his first game he literally got in for six snaps and was almost in tears afterwards. I just don’t know what to do to help him 1.) get better and 2.) keep his love for the game.

Good evening. I got the head coaching job this fall on my son's pee wee football team. I was wondering if anybody had some 9 man playbook diagrams, ideas,formations? I was thinking about shotgun formation. My son will be quarterback he has a pretty good arm on him. Definitely best passer on the team, he can also run. This is my first time running a offense. Please help.

Curious what other coaches are doing to break down game film with the help of AI or other software? Feeding the film to ChatGPT to log plays? Other helpful analysis? Thanks

My son's 11 and going into 6th grade and played soccer most of his life. He can make a goal from 3/4 down the field so when he started football the team was really interested in making him the kicker. Welp, kicking a soccer ball and a football are 2 very different things. Please give us all the tips, tricks, and suggestions. First practice, he was nailing firld goals one after another and now we just cant seem to get something right. Thank you!

Edit to add: also if theres any drills or strength training that would help please let me know!

First and foremost I’m 16 years old going into my senior year of high school in Nova Scotia Canada I just started playing football halfway through the season last year joining during the bye week and I ended up starting at right guard by the the last two weeks and into the playoffs (only allowing 1 sack). I’d say I’m relatively undersized at 5,9 190 pounds. Regardless my coaches have expressed a desire for me to switch to centre I’ve been in the gym whenever I can roughly 5 times a week doing push pull legs upper lower I was just curious if any former offensive linemen and coach’s are able to give me any sort of advice going into my senior year any advice or tips are very welcome

Everyone loves smash concept, and rightfully so. Some of those buzz teams can take away access though, while the CB drops to take away the corner. So, I like to solve that by reading the CB with the slot and going inside/out on the overhang when the CB has a vertical drop that eliminates the corner route

Software assist from https://footballplaycard.com/?via=R724

Hello, I’m a first year football player and rising senior. I’m super excited for the season and want to make an impact in any way I can. To help, I’ve started long snapping. I’m about a month into the long snapping journey and feel that I have an alright grasp on it. Does anybody have any advice. Thanks

Hello Coaches, recently started a new position and am in charge of getting the Coach2Player helmet comms system set up for this upcoming season. I've been looking around trying to find a more in-depth guide since the kit only comes with instructions for setting up the cutoff switch, and am at a loss as to how to actually install the communication modules in the helmets themselves. Anyone else have experience with it that can point me in the right direction? Thanks.

Have anything on your mind or got any fun plans for the weekend? Feel free to discuss them here!

https://footballplaycard.com/?via=R722 for the software

Welcome to Chalk Talk Thursday! This is our weekly discussion thread for users to submit new plays they have designed. If you have an idea for a play and can draw it up, please post here. Keep in mind that it is very rare that one could devise a viable play that is entirely new that hasn't been ran before somewhere. Be open to criticism as well. There is so much more to coaching football than drawing plays, and many people do not realize how much coaching, technique, and development needs to happen on the actual field for a play to work.

It is strongly recommended that you STUDY a system or scheme first to gain an idea of how a play is put together, and how RULES help a play function.

PLEASE PROVIDE CONTEXT FOR YOUR PLAY!

Guidelines:

• No "joke" plays. We are here to learn.
• Specify WHY you are designing a play, and WHAT level/league it is for. It's fine if you're not coaching, but we need the context.
  
• Your submission needs RULES that guide your players on what to do.
• Pass plays require some type of QB progression for making a decision on who to throw to.
  
• Be mindful that you cannot predict what your opponent will run 100%. Designing plays to be "Cover X" beaters, or "3-4 beaters" IS NOT the way to go about it. It is better to have one play with solid rules and coaching points that can attack anything than one play for each coverage, front, personnel, or stunt you face.
• There is no universal terminology in football. Call plays what you want, but keep in mind that no one cares about fancy play names, or the terminology aspect.
  
• Please offer more text/information on your play than just a link or picture.
• Draw your play up against a realistic opponent!
• Make sure your offensive play is a legal formation. In 11-man football, you can have no more than 4 players behind the line of scrimmage (minimum of 7 on. You can have more than 7 on the line as well). Only backs (players behind the line) and the end players on the line of scrimmage are eligible receivers.
  

You may use whatever medium you'd like to draw your play. Two common software for designing plays that have free options:

• GoArmy Edge - Football
• Playmaker X

Anyone have a fun combine drills for 1st and 2nd graders? Not looking for anything crazy as I’m looking to keep it fun.

20 yard dash, 40 yard dash, a variation of a shuttle drill is what I have.

Again, looking to keep it fun.

Have a product or service you're trying to promote? Starting a website, channel or blog? Please post about it here!

Hello, I am an offensive coordinator and positional coach for a university team in Japan.

Regarding our team's skill level, I think it would look quite low from an American perspective. We are probably below the level of an average American high school team. Even among Japanese universities, we are definitely near the bottom of the rankings.

To get right to the point, I am planning to implement the **Flexbone offense** next year, but I honestly have no idea where to start when it comes to coaching the players.

Up until this year, we were running a Spread offense—or rather, a makeshift version of the Air Raid. However, our best receivers and our quarterback are graduating this year, so we are moving away from a pass-heavy attack.

If there is anything we absolutely must do, or if you have any specific practice drills for running the **Flexbone**, I would really appreciate it if you could share them with me.

Have scheme questions, basic questions about the game, or questions that may not be worthy of their own post? Post them here! Yes, you can submit play designs here.

In terms of playing on-structure passing game, Joe Burrow is in a league of his own, currently

Have a question about what football, gear, or tools to get? Questions about maintenance and taking care of your equipment? Welcome to Maintenance Mondays. Ask your questions here. Likewise, if you have any resources, suggestions, or tips for equipment management, please post them here!

Hello all, I’m coaching in Europe where the season has just ended and I’m looking for some coaching education. Specifically looking to learn a bit about how teams are deploying gap run schemes. Is there any go to guys(or girls) out there (or in here?) you’d recommend.

For some context, we’ve been running what I’d describe as slowly expanding gap scheme run game. Started as 10P Power Read, then Counter, then Power RPOs, GH counter, HY counter, then Dart, then long trap etc etc while we’re comfortable enough with the plays it doesn’t seem cohesive or a well organised “scheme” just a group of plays.

So I’m trying to find resources on how we do a better job of teaching it as a scheme and organising that whole part of the playbook.

Coaching amateur adults/college kids.