3 Ways Special Teams Makes You A Better Coach
If I were putting a football staff together there would be position specific qualities I would look for as I filled each coaching job. However; there is one thing that would jump out at me on a resume, regardless of the position I was hiring for. If a football coach has special teams experience it would tell me a lot about them.
Why so? Well there are challenges that a special teams coach must master that a position coach on offense or defense does not. There may be more but today we look at three things that coaching special teams does to create a better over all football coach.
Special Teams Coaches Address 11 Players & Sometimes The Entire Team In A Meeting
I have seen plenty of young position coaches, coordinators and even head football coaches struggle mightily the first few times they addressed their unit or a full team. If a young football coach is in charge of a special teams phase then they have installed for a group of twenty to thirty players.
6 Special Teams Clinics Sure To Help
This comes in handy as a special teams coach has already done this. It is great preparation for a position meeting installation and even a full offense or defensive meeting. Anyone who has been at the front of these rooms understands that time is not your friend and a good football coach will need to be ultra organized.
Special Teams Coaches Have To Coach Coaches
It is almost impossible for one person to coach any one special teams phase. Typically, the coach in charge of a punt unit will have at least two or three other coaches helping. The coach who is in charge of that unit will often find themselves coaching the other coaches. This is the very same thing that a coordinator or head coach will find themselves doing.
Special Teams Coaches Learn How To Coach a “Whole Part Whole” Style
We have all worked with offensive or defensive line coaches who know nothing about the passing game or pass coverage. Same goes for receiver coaches or secondary coaches who don’t understand the front. A special teams coach is forced to learn what all 22 players are doing on the football field.
This is why using a “Whole Part Whole” teaching method is essential. A kickoff return coach must explain the big picture and then break it down into parts into practice before coming back together to put the whole thing together. There is really no other way to teach a big field special teams play.
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So if you are a head football coach and are putting together your staff, look for this important thing on a resume. Once again, do this even if the position you are hiring has nothing to do with special teams. Finally, if you are a young football coach who is avoiding coaching special teams, do yourself a favor and reconsider. This one thing might get you a linebacker job over someone else with no special teams experience.
