Coach and Coordinator Podcast

On this episode of the Coach and Coordinator podcast, host Keith Grabowski shares his thoughts about the Kickoff and Kickoff Return game. We go into a deep thought process about where the kickoff is in respect to the history of the game and where it could potentially be going in the future. Additionally, Grabowski shares his most successful kickoff return play and how to practice it. Show Notes: 0:45 General thoughts on the kickoff 3:00 Traditional views of the kickoff and how it’s changed over time 4:27 What an NFL Coach had to say about special teams 5:50 Setting up personnel 10:20 Why field position is so important 11:35 5 Main points for KOR thought process 12:50 Alignments 14:41 Assignments 18:45 Technique 25:22 Practice 32:00 Summary and final thoughts 33:55 Connect with USA Football Related Content: Check on blogs.usafootball.com for the corresponding powerpoint https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/6611/podcast-special-teams-guru-bobby-april-talks-about-importance-of-communication https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/6613/take-a-look-at-this-special-teams-mock-game-inspired-by-special-teams-guru-bobby-april https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/6697/podcast-specialist-coach-taylor-mehlhaff-keith-grabowski-give-insight-on-how-to-coach-up-young-specialists https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/sets/special-teams https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/6495/podcast-host-keith-grabowski-discusses-rarely-utilized-fair-catch-free-kick-rule https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/6542/podcast-host-keith-grabowski-talks-about-using-a-practice-format-for-the-kicking-scrimmage https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/6885/podcast-college-leaders-robby-discher-university-of-toledo-special-teams-coordinator https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7097/podcast-education-and-detail-erik-link-appalachian-state-special-teams-coordinator

On today’s Coach and Coordinator podcast, guest host Chris Vasseur sits down with Dante Bartee, a grad assistant at Cal. Despite being only 23 years of age, Bartee has been coaching for six years, 2 as a junior and senior in high school at Perry High School (AZ), where he helped with film analysis, the scout team and scouting. In 2014, Perry added Barrtee to the coaching staff and in his second season, at only age 19, he became a co-defensive coordinator, a role in which he would have all to himself over the next 2 years. In 2018, coach Bartee was the linebacker coach for the Upper Iowa Peacocks. Bartee joins the podcast today to talk about the cover 7 defense. Show Notes: 1:40 Coach’s journey 9:28 Basics of Cover 7 17:06 What makes Cover 7 so attractive to coaches 19:48 History of Cover 7 24:26 Starting point for installing cover 7 26:43 “MOD” and other basics 35:48 Difference between mod and box 38:11 MEG 42:39 Cone 49:23 What to do vs the “simple plays” 53:11 “Switch” 58:44 Playing switch in High School 1:00:26 Star alignment 1:04:39 Redzone switch Related Content: https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/split-safety-coverages-with-jerry-gordon-nauset-high-school-ma https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/deep-dive-on-defense-chris-vasseur-rip-liz-match-w-kyle-cogan https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/5615/how-to-understand-nick-saban-s-pattern-match-cover-3-defense

On this episode of Coach and Coordinator podcast’s “All In on Offense” series, host Keith Grabowski is joined by Brent Dearmon, offensive assistant at Kansas. Dearmon is one of the hottest offensive names in the game right now after his one-year campaign as head coach of Bethel University, where they went 10-0 and boasted an incredible 540.3 yards per game to go along with an unheard of 55 points per game, the most for any team in college football. Additionally, Dearmon spent three seasons at Arkansas Tech and two seasons as an analyst on Guz Malzahn’s staff at Auburn. Dearmon also wrote the book, “The Evolution of the RPO,” and is one of the top RPO coaches in the country. Dearmon joins Grabowski to talk about all things RPO in today’s “All In on Offense” segment. Show notes: 1:28 How the RPO has evolved 3:27 What should coaches start with in the RPO game 5:35 Inside zone 7:11 Placing receivers 10:23 Preparing packages to combat what defenses are doing (i.e., vs. 4-2-5 and tite) 12:58 Pre-snap reads 16:15 Tips to installing and practicing RPOs 19:22 Making sure players are repping their actual routes 20:25 Teaching the QB 24:44 Keeping consistency when using different personnel in the box 26:45 Utilization of the backs 29:51 Key points for the TE 32:07 TE pop pass 34:19 Defeating different coverages 36:32 Challenges vs. zone coverage 40:15 Buck sweep RPO 41:54 Keys to RPO offense 43:11 Connect with Coach Learn RPO: https://coachtube.com/courses/football/run-pass-option-rpo-s Related Content: https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/brent-dearmon-arkansas-tech-1 https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/brent-dearmon-arkansas-tech https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7338/run-pass-option-resources-for-offense-and-defense https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/all-in-on-offense-defeating-the-tite-front-with-matt-drinkall-army-offensive-assistant https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/all-in-on-offense-4-verts-with-aj-smith

This is the weekly breakdown of USA Football's Coach and Coordinator Podcast Series by Keith Grabowski. These short clips highlight snippets of what the episodes from the week feature and the different guests on the show. Highlights from this week on Coach and Coordinator: Serving Others Through Football with Mike London, Head Coach William & Mary All In On Offense- Defeating the Tite Front with Matt Drinkall, Army Offensive Assistant Deep Dive On Defense- Game Planning: Evaluating & Attacking Defenses w/ Joe Moorhead, H.C. Miss. St Home Team- Jerry Sinz, Head Coach Edgar (Wisc.) High School Coach Grabowski’s Notebook-Structuring Your Offense Around a Starting Point Play Check out our systems for skill development in blocking, defeating blocks and tackling at footballdevelopment.com Follow us daily on Twitter for content and interaction @FBDevCoach Check out X's and O's analysis at USA Football Blogs blogs.usafootball.com

On today’s podcast, host Keith Grabowski opens his notebook to talk about how to structure your offense around a starting point play. Keith offers advice on how to develop your starting point play based on your coaching style and personnel. Additionally, Keith shares how to develop plays off your starting point and make adjustments. Show notes: 0:20 Intro 3:25 Series football and developing a starting point for offense 5:50 Looking at your system in the offseason and breaking it down 8:16 Incorporating your identity and personnel 10:45 Structuring formations 11:40 Terminology 12:00 Motioning players 13:20 Using different personnel groups 13:50 Structuring the starting point play 16:30 Knowing how to make your starting point play work vs. any defense 19:28 Building off what you think the defense will do 22:00 Making adjustments 23:18 Practice structure Connect with Coach: Twitter: @CoackKGrabowski @FBDevCoach Related Content: https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/all-in-on-offense-the-installation-plan-and-execution-with-arizona-oc-noel-mazzone https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/jenks-oklahoma-high-school-offensive-coordinator-dub-maddox-on-specialized-language-for-players https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/dub-maddox-final https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/sets/game-planning https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/6854/podcast-best-of-coach-and-coordinator-the-game-planning-process-part-i https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/6857/podcast-the-game-planning-process-part-2-add-adjust-analytics-execute-elevate https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/1555/building-an-offensive-line-teaching-the-stretch-play https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9mqJExYAkI

On today’s “Home Team” segment of the Coach and Coordinator podcast, guest host Joel Nellis talks with legendary high school head coach Jerry Sinz. Coach Sinz is one of the most decorated high school football coaches in the state of Wisconsin and has been at the helm of Edgar since 1975. Since then, coach has amassed a record of 419-83. Edgar has won 25 conference titles, had 17 undefeated regular seasons, and captured seven state titles in 12 trips during Coach Sinz’s tenure. In 2009, Edgar was the No. 1 ranked small school in the country, and in 2010, Coach was recognized as the National High School Coach Association Football Coach of the Year. Sinz had the pleasure of coaching all four of his sons – Jason, Jeremy, Jordan and Justin – at Edgar. Sinz has been married to his wife, Barb, for 47 years. They are proud grandparents to nine grandchildren. Show Notes: 2:40 Stars of his home team 3:08 Coach’s wife, Barb, and her background 4:16 Why Barb is so important to Coach 5:26 Coach’s kids 13:22 Advice for young coaches about talking to their families 15:41 Dealing with job opportunities 18:52 Managing time between football and family 22:47 Handling younger kids that want to be managers 26:04 Dealing with coaches/players that have conflicts with practices/games 29:35 How does he avoid spending too much time game planning 32:25 Weekend game planning for his coaches 35:33 Struggles coach has had to overcome 41:10 How coach’s relationship with his family has reflected on his players and younger coaches 44:12 Something that’s helped coach be more effective Related Content: https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/home-team-terrance-jamison-air-force-dl-coach https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/home-team-w-joel-nellis-jay-eilers https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/home-team-w-joel-nellis-joe-labuda

On today’s “Deep Dive on Defense” series, guest host Chris Vasseur sits down with Mississippi State head coach Joe Moorhead. Moorhead has had coaching stops at Pittsburgh, Georgetown, Akron, Connecticut, Fordham and most recently served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Penn State. During Moorhead’s tenure as OC at Penn State, the offense compiled 39.4 points per game and scored 30 points in 21 of their 26 contests over his two-year tenure. In 2017, the Penn State offense ranked in the top 25 nationally in seven different offensive statistics. Coach was named the 2016 and 2017 National Offensive Coordinator of the Year. In his first year at Mississippi State, the team went 8-5 and participated in the Outback Bowl vs. Iowa. Coach joins the Deep Dive today to talk about how he puts together his game plan and attacks defenses. Show Notes: 3:10 Coach’s journey 5:11 Coach’s shift from offense to defense 7:06 How involved Coach is with Mississippi St. offense 8:21 How many games Moorhead uses to scout and why 10:24 First part of the game-planning process 10:54 How much stock Coach puts into down and distance 12:39 Field zone breakdown 14:40 Self-scouting 17:29 Early season scouting 19:07 Most important thing coach looks for during scouting process 20:15 Balancing your identity with matchups 22:46 Matchups and personnel vs. schemes 25:23 College vs. NFL 29:48 Putting together the pieces of his week into a full game plan 33:50 What fronts are most frightening for offenses 38:26 Game planning pass-pro 39:37 Pass-pro vs. stud athletes 41:50 Camp practices 43:04 Scouting coverages and QB reads 45:36 Game planning vs. great players 47:05 What high school coaches could do to help prepare their players for college 48:45 Planning for surprises in a game, planning for the unexpected 50:45 What it was like coaching Saquon Barkley 53:48 Pressure situation call Connect with Coach: @BallCoachJoeMo Related Content: https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/6228/podcast-mississippi-state-new-head-coach-joe-moorhead-shares-plan-to-build-strong-culture-for-program https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/all-in-on-offense-the-installation-plan-and-execution-with-arizona-oc-noel-mazzone https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/deep-dive-on-defense-playing-1-high-out-of-tite-fronts-with-bert-watts-dc-fresno-state https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/installing-game-plan-and-reading-the-defense-dan-gonzalez-offensive-consultant https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/4770/how-penn-state-used-saquon-barkley-in-several-spots-to-beat-michigan https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7340/film-to-field-friday-on-coach-and-coordinator-fight-to-connect

Today’s guest on the Coach and Coordinator podcast’s “All In On Offense” segment is Matt Drinkall, current offensive assistant at Army West Point and former head coach at Kansas Wesleyan University. Drinkall was selected to be a participant in the 2018 American Football Coaches Association 35 under 35 Coaches Leadership Institute. This program is designed to identify and develop premier, future leaders in the football coaching profession. Drinkall goes all in today on how he has gone about defeating the tite front, including some of his go-to plays. Show Notes: 3:20 When Coach noticed the tite front becoming more prevalent 6:15 Difference between NFL and college tite fronts 10:13 Keys to the tite front for defense 14:10 Starting point for attacking the tite front and base plays 26:43 Where the runs should hit 28:02 Coaching the players vs. the tite 31:55 Preparing your backside tackle 32:25 Dart read 37:08 Dart, jet and fly sweep responsibilities 46:09 Play-action vs. tite 49:56 In-game coaching 1:01:52 How Coach determines if a new play is worth it 1:03:10 Connecting with Coach Connect with Coach: Twitter: @DrinkallCoach Related Content: For the power point presentation on this podcast, go to: https://blogs.usafootball.com/ https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/the-importance-of-time-and-work-environment-for-your-staff-with-army-assistant-coach-matt-drinkall https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/kansas-wesleyan-coach-matt-drinkall-talks-running-game-and-tempo https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/matt-drinkall-kansas-wesleyan https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/all-in-on-offense-4-verts-with-aj-smith https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/all-in-on-offense-the-installation-plan-and-execution-with-arizona-oc-noel-mazzone https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/deep-dive-on-defense-playing-the-tite-front-to-all-personnel-groupings-with-rob-everett-01 https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/deep-dive-on-defense-playing-1-high-out-of-tite-fronts-with-bert-watts-dc-fresno-state https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7253/the-tite-front-why-defenses-are-tightening-down-the-interior-of-their-defense https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7304/the-gap-run-system https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7324/the-sprint-out-package

On today’s episode of the Coach and Coordinator podcast, host Keith Grabowski sits down with Mike London, head coach at the College of William & Mary. Coach London has an extensive coaching history dating back to the 1980s. In 2008, London led the Richmond Spiders to their first FCS National Championship in school history. For his work that year, he was named AFCA’s FCS National Coach of the Year. In 2011, as head coach at Virginia, London won ACC Coach of the year. Most recently, London was the head coach at Howard University, where, in 2017, he led the Bison to one of the greatest upsets in recent NCAA history as they upended UNLV. This past off-season, coach accepted the job at William & Mary to be closer to his family. Coach joined the podcast today to talk about how his experiences in life have helped shaped who he is as a football coach as well as talk about the culture being built at W&M. Show Notes: 1:27 Coach’s incredible journey 6:05 How did his journey as a police officer and through life reflect on his decision to coach 11:32 Servant leadership 16:00 How much the history of W&M means to him 18:43 Depth of his staff 22:14 Constant evolution at W&M and their work with USA Football 27:07 Evolving role of sports training technology and science 31:09 How the game has changed and how W&M prioritizes it 33:33 Winning Edge Related Content: https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/erik-korem-director-of-sports-science-houston-texans https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/richie-gray-skills-acquisition-and-coaching-education-specialist https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/vision-decision-action-andy-ryland-senior-manager-of-education-and-training-usa-football https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/ncaa-leaders-brennan-marion-howard-university-offensive-coordinator https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7340/film-to-field-friday-on-coach-and-coordinator-fight-to-connect https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7321/film-to-field-friday-on-coach-and-coordinator-fight-to-prepare https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7299/film-to-field-friday-on-coach-and-coordinator-fight-to-track

This is the weekly breakdown of USA Football's Coach and Coordinator Podcast Series by Keith Grabowski. These short clips highlight snippets of what the episodes from the week feature and the different guests on the show. Highlights from this week on Coach and Coordinator: Tips For A Successful Summer with Eric Kasperowicz, HC Pine-Richland HS (PA) Attention to Detail with Chris Kappas, Defensive Coordinator, Mount Union Deep Dive on Defense- Split Safety Coverages with Jerry Gordon, Nauset High School (MA) All In On Offense- 4 Verts with A.J. Smith The Role of Tackling Boss with Peyton Allen, Defensive Line Coach, Maine Maritime Check out our systems for skill development in blocking, defeating blocks and tackling at footballdevelopment.com Follow us daily on Twitter for content and interaction @FBDevCoach Check out X's and O's analysis at USA Football Blogs blogs.usafootball.com

On today’s episode of USA Football’s Coach and Coordinator podcast, host Keith Grabowski is joined by Peyton Allen, defensive line coach at Maine Maritime Academy. Allen was a player at Bridgewater College before being converted to an offensive coach due to an injury he sustained his junior year. He transitioned over to the defensive side of the ball and served as “tackle boss” going into the fall of 2018. Allen learned first-hand under Coach Rob Everett, one of the best tackling analytics coaches in the country, while at Bridgewater. Show Notes 1:24 Coach’s Journey 3:50 Allen’s role as the tackle boss under Rob Everett 5:21 Resources Allen used to successfully operate as tackle boss 7:26 How did his role as tackling boss change how he viewed coaching 9:39 Finding a starting point and building consistency when grading tackling 11:51 How the skills he builds as tackle boss can translate to other aspects of coaching 14:30 Daily workflow in camp 17:00 Not separating between positions 19:10 Using the previous days report to plan the next practice 20:41 In-season workflow 23:15 Fitting the system into the weekly game plan 25:21 Tackling time in practice 27:31 How much information is shared with players 29:24 How the system affects personnel and scouting 31:25 Tackling boss’ role on game day 33:21 How the system affected the culture of their defense 33:28 Best way to buy in to the Five Fights 39:14 Connect with Coach Twitter: @CoachPAllenFb Gmail: coachpeytonallen@gmail.com Related Content: https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7321/film-to-field-friday-on-coach-and-coordinator-fight-to-prepare https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7306/part-i-of-the-five-fights-film-to-field-series-on-usa-football-s-coach-and-coordinator-podcast-features-slade-calhoun-defensive-coordinator-at-munford-high-school-in-tennessee https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7299/film-to-field-friday-on-coach-and-coordinator-fight-to-track https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7330/part-ii-of-the-five-fights-film-to-field-series-on-usa-football-s-coach-and-coordinator-podcast-features-coach-ryan-fullen https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/grading-and-evaluating-tackling-vinny-digaetano-assistant-football-coach-fordham-university

On this episode of the Coach and Coordinator podcast’s “All In On Offense” series, host Keith Grabowski is joined by A.J. Smith to discuss the art of the 4 verts. Smith has extensive offensive experience having previously been the quarterback coach at Jackson State (Miss.) under Hal Mumme and at Southeastern University (Fla.) as well. Show Notes: 2:28 Coach’s experience with 4 verts 5:36 4 Verts vs. Rip/Liz 7:22 Benefits of the switch tag 11:32 Basic QB progressions and reads with 4 verts (question by Matt Nielsen) 18:30 4 Verts out of 2x2 vs. Cover 2 30:10 Communication in progressions 40:26 Getting the Z involved and training the QB to go through his reads 49:32 Working the reads in practice 52:23 4 verts out of trips 56:30 In the 3x1, the landmark for the No.3 (question by Tye Hiatt) 1:07:48 Coaches staying true to themselves 1:10:45 Switching out of the 3x1 1:14:05 Using the shallow tag 1:17:03 Running back’s role 1:19:31 4 verts out of empty (question by Hutch Gonzalez) 1:20:52 Advice for a coach starting to implement 4 verts Connect with Coach: Twitter: @AustinJamesXFL Related Content: https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/what-happens-when-a-proven-system-is-taught-with-a-cutting-edge-technology-hale-mumme-and-aj-smith https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/air-raid-analytics-and-virtual-reality https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/hal-mumme-final https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/all-in-on-offense-the-installation-plan-and-execution-with-arizona-oc-noel-mazzone

On today’s Coach and Coordinator podcast, the “Deep Dive on Defense” series continues as Jerry Gordon sits down with guest host Chris Vasseur. Gordon, a former walk-on at UMass, is a coaching veteran, having spent time coaching in the now defunct USFL, collegiately and at the high school level. In 2018, Gordon took over the defensive responsibilities at Nauset High School in Eastham, Mass. Coach joined the podcast to take a deep dive on split coverages. Show Notes: 4:55 Nauset’s 2018 season 8:00 Coach’s journey 16:05 More of Coach’s journey 23:20 How Coach’s journey led him to Don Brown 29:05 Coach’s book on split coverages 33:34 Main coverages Coach likes to run towards strong-side 2 read 45:12 2 read, trap and rub and different calls 52:03 Weak side coverages – blue, sky or rat 55:25 Choice concept 59:05 Coverages vs. trips 1:05:43 How his defense evolved as offenses spread out 1:11:30 Playing against the RPO 1:19:05 Coach’s contact info 1:23:51 Pressure situation call Related Content: https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/jerry-gordon-broad-run-high-school https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/deep-dive-on-defense-chris-vasseur-rip-liz-match-w-kyle-cogan https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/deep-dive-on-defense-match-quarters-and-defending-rpos-with-cody-alexander

Today’s guest on this “NCAA Leaders” edition of the Coach and Coordinator podcast is Chris Kappas, defensive coordinator at the University of Mount Union, a NCAA Division III school in Alliance, Ohio. Kappas has a unique experience having been a coordinator and part of national championship-winning teams on both sides of the ball at Mount Union. Coach Kappas joined Coach and Coordinator today to talk about how his year coaching offense helped his defense and how attention to detail is so important in everything his units do. Show Notes: 1:00 Coach’s experience on both sides of the ball 1:50 How coaching offense helped him see the game differently 4:15 What Coach changed on his defense after being on offense, specifically with RPOs 6:23 What Coach learned the most from his experience 8:38 Small details Coach believes gives Mount Union an advantage 11:30 How attention to detail has evolved and how it benefits his units 14:11 Pursuit 17:50 Pointing out details to players 20:27 Mental process of players in game situations 23:25 Which offenses create the most problems for defenses in today’s game 25:40 What are some defensive trends that give offenses the most problems Learn Defense: https://coachtube.com/courses/football/team-defense Related Content: https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/chriskappas-finl https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/ncaa-leaders-chris-kappas-university-of-mount-union-ohio-coach https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7299/film-to-field-friday-on-coach-and-coordinator-fight-to-track https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/7321/film-to-field-friday-on-coach-and-coordinator-fight-to-prepare

Today's guest is Eric Kasperowicz, the head coach of Pine-Richland High School (Gibsonia, Pa.), a top program in western Pennsylvania. In 2017, Kasperowicz led Pine-Richland to a state title and this past offseason was named an Under Armor All-American Coach. He joins the USA Football Coach and Coordinator podcast to discuss how he plans his summer program for his players, coaches and parents. Show Notes: 1:43 Keys to getting the best attendance possible during the summer 7:45 Dealing with players who have time conflicts 11:25 Dealing with players who are competing in other sports during the summer 15:30 What kind of work his staff does during the summer 18:49 Installation plans 21:16 Getting parents on the same page and getting them involved 25:40 Top tips for coaches during the summer Connect with Coach @coach_kasper Related Content: https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/lessons-of-2017-eric-kasperowicz-pine-richland-penn-hs https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/eric-kasperowicz-pine-richland-high-school-pa https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/eric-kapserowicz-pine-richland-pa-hs-coach https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/lessons-of-2017-mark-solis-olentangy-ohio-high-school-coach https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/mark-solis-olentangy-hs-coach https://soundcloud.com/user-804678956/all-in-on-offense-the-installation-plan-and-execution-with-arizona-oc-noel-mazzone