Youth Football Spread Offense? Be Careful.
When you are choosing your offense and defense, it is always a good idea to look at your players first. It sounds like common sense right? However; it is a mistake made at all levels, even in the NFL where they choose their players. (Hint, it’s called injuries.) The problem normally shows up when the coach only knows one style of offense. Today, I want to specifically look at the group where not considering your players can do the most harm. I will detail why I am always nervous when a youth football coach says they are going to run a spread offense.
Please understand before we get started here, I coached for thirty years and most of those snaps was on offense…and we coached the spread. It is, in my opinion, the best offense in football as long as you don’t abandon your running game.
The spread offense has changed the landscape of football over the past fifty years. So has throwing the football. No throwing…no Spread. This is why I think there are at least three things to consider before you spread your youth football offense out.
Your Youth Football Spread Offense May Not See The Defense You Saw On Saturday
Here at FirstDown PlayBook we have had some very interesting and informative guest this winter. One coach that stands out is veteran head coach Scott Criner as he details what it takes to be an effective Offensive Coordinator at the high school level. His leading piece of advice is to evaluate your talent first. Youth football coaches would do well to head the same advice.
So let’s look at three things to think about if you are a youth football coach and are about to install a spread offense. These are things that will quickly become apparent if your Pop Warner quarterback cannot take over a game with their arm.
1. Short Edges Can Be A Problem
When you start drawing up your spread offense run game with a short edge there is normally at least one defender you cannot block. If the play is a wide to the other side, this can be overcome with a boot fake from your quarterback.
However if you are running any downhill offensive play, it will be a problem. Having two tight ends solves a lot of problems if you are a youth football coach and want to run the ball in the A or B gap.
2. The Defense May Not Buy What You’re Selling
You have to be honest with yourself and ask the hard questions. What are you going to do with your spread offense if the defense only marginally covers your receivers? A receiver is not open if the quarterback cannot get the ball to them. This could happen if you play against a smart defensive coach. I have seen it at the college level. (Think Army/Navy Game)
If your quarterback cannot take advantage of a defense overloading the box to stop the run, you have issues. You will now likely have two unblocked defenders at the point of attack even if you are running your quarterback.
3. Are You Teaching Youth Football Or Trying To Have A Personal Clap Drill?
We are all competitive. We get that. However, when you are coaching youth football, you have to always evaluate if what you are teaching is helping develop young players. Youth football is not about the coach. If you are running a spread offense so four of your players can line up as receivers and just outside release every snap, then this is not good for youth football.
If young players are going to learn how to safely play our game, they need to learn to block and tackle. Playing with tight ends and running backs helps promote just that. You can still be competitive, but you win by teaching the fundamentals and techniques better than your opponents.
This will allow your players to walk into the middle school or high school in your area with fundamentals that allow them to be successful. At this point the young player may be ready to take on all of the complexities of a spread offense.
One of the great things about coaching is that you get to make decisions about scheme. It’s a great thing but it comes with a lot of responsibility. We hope you will take these three things into consideration as you begin installing this season’s youth football offense.
FirstDown PlayBook offers you 12 youth football formations. There are unbalanced formation plays out of every one. You should consider one or two of these for your Pop Warner offense. Tap on any one of the tiles below to visit the article describing that formation. After reading the article then go join FirstDown PlayBook and get busy coaching your Pop Warner team with the best football playbook available!
