Middle School Fundamentals, Drills, And Coaching Football Secrets
Secrets to a good hand off
Whether you are a quarterback, running back, or a player that at anytime will receive a hand off you need to realize the basics of a great hand off. Lets look at a simple hand off between a quarterback and a running back to point out the fundamentals of this skill. The running back starts the hand off running towards the quarterback with his arms open creating a pocket for the quarterback to slide the football right into the running backs chest. Once the quarterback has placed the ball in the pocket, or opening, the running back immediately clamps down on the ball protecting it and holding on to it. As the running back leaves from the handoff he needs to stay low to react quickly and again to protect the ball.
Conditioning Drill: Up Downs
The popular conditioning drill known as up downs is a very effective way to increase cardiovascular activity and endurance. Players will start this drill by running in place as fast as they can, keeping their knees high as possible. Then at random a coach will yell, down or blow a whistle at which the players must dive to the ground do a push up and then jump back into running in place. Because this drill can be very taxing, it is important to increase the time spent at this slowly over time as the players strength increases.
Hand off drill
Drills practicing fundamentals like an effective hand offs can make the difference between a mediocre team and an excellent one. One great hand off drill starts by having two separate lines of players facing each other: line A and line B. At the coaches signal player A leaves line A running with the football towards line B. At the same time a player leaves line B, and when they meet in the middle Player A hands off the ball to Player B. At the point of the hand off another player leaves line A and runs towards player B, who hands off the ball to the new player. This drill should perform in a seamless motion. This is a great drill to help running backs practice hand offs, and should be run every day.
Low Ball Catching Techniques
This means that quarterbacks, running backs, receivers, etc have gone through the motions several times and know how to react to situations on the field. Perfect and not so perfect scenarios should constantly run at football practice. Here are some great techniques in coaching and learning the low catch. First, keep your hands down low in a scooping or shovel position; you can even cross your pinkies. This technique stops the ball from bouncing away and also helps the player scoop up the ball quickly. Locking your pinkies prevents the football from falling through your hands. Third, once the ball touches your hands scoop it up into your chest and tuck it away into a secure position. Third, once you have caught the ball, tuck it away as soon as possible. Never use your body to catch a football. Catch it first and then worry about running it.
Whether you are a quarterback, running back, or a player that at anytime will receive a hand off you need to realize the basics of a great hand off. Lets look at a simple hand off between a quarterback and a running back to point out the fundamentals of this skill. The running back starts the hand off running towards the quarterback with his arms open creating a pocket for the quarterback to slide the football right into the running backs chest. Once the quarterback has placed the ball in the pocket, or opening, the running back immediately clamps down on the ball protecting it and holding on to it. As the running back leaves from the handoff he needs to stay low to react quickly and again to protect the ball.
Conditioning Drill: Up Downs
The popular conditioning drill known as up downs is a very effective way to increase cardiovascular activity and endurance. Players will start this drill by running in place as fast as they can, keeping their knees high as possible. Then at random a coach will yell, down or blow a whistle at which the players must dive to the ground do a push up and then jump back into running in place. Because this drill can be very taxing, it is important to increase the time spent at this slowly over time as the players strength increases.
Hand off drill
Drills practicing fundamentals like an effective hand offs can make the difference between a mediocre team and an excellent one. One great hand off drill starts by having two separate lines of players facing each other: line A and line B. At the coaches signal player A leaves line A running with the football towards line B. At the same time a player leaves line B, and when they meet in the middle Player A hands off the ball to Player B. At the point of the hand off another player leaves line A and runs towards player B, who hands off the ball to the new player. This drill should perform in a seamless motion. This is a great drill to help running backs practice hand offs, and should be run every day.
Low Ball Catching Techniques
This means that quarterbacks, running backs, receivers, etc have gone through the motions several times and know how to react to situations on the field. Perfect and not so perfect scenarios should constantly run at football practice. Here are some great techniques in coaching and learning the low catch. First, keep your hands down low in a scooping or shovel position; you can even cross your pinkies. This technique stops the ball from bouncing away and also helps the player scoop up the ball quickly. Locking your pinkies prevents the football from falling through your hands. Third, once the ball touches your hands scoop it up into your chest and tuck it away into a secure position. Third, once you have caught the ball, tuck it away as soon as possible. Never use your body to catch a football. Catch it first and then worry about running it.
