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Patrick had the following question:
I'm writing from the Long Island Sound Sharks Youth Football Organization. I have been coaching football for the past three years. My last year was with 8-year-old kids - my son being one of them.
I have been selected to run the 9-year-old "A" team. So the rules now change to high school rules. I actually run the defense on the team, so what would be the best defense to run at this age group?
Hi Patrick,
There are three ways to make your decision. The first is to teach what you know. You obviously have had success and have a good understanding of the defense you have taught for the past three years. This may form the basis for your defense and with the help of attending clinics, camps, viewing DVDs and reading books, you may be able to add new elements to your package that you had not used before.
When you add any new element to your defensive scheme, you owe it to your players to have the time to teach the individual players the techniques that they will need to employ to have success.
Practice should ensure that your players know and understand what is expected of them on every defense. Try not to ever assume that the players automatically know what you are saying until they demonstrate it on the field.
Another path would be to go to the high school coaches where most of your players are going to go high school and see if they would share with you the defense they plan to use.
In this way, you will hopefully be teaching your team a sound defense and at the same time introducing them to some of the drills, terminology, techniques and defenses that they will use when they reach high school. This gives them a dual preparation for their football careers.
The third method is to a have basic idea for the defense you want to run but be ready to make adjustments when you see the type of player you will have on the team. You may decide you want to run a 4-3 defense but find that you have more linebackers and they are better players than your defensive line. You could then adjust to a 3-4 defense, blitz one or more of the backers on each play and still use a seven-man front with four defensive backs.
The best of all the worlds would be if the defense you have been using is similar to the one the high school is using and that you have the type of players on the squad to make the defense a success.
Regardless of what you run, add only what your players can absorb, execute and run without mental error. It is far better to work and perfect a base scheme well than it is to have an elaborate defense package that none of your players understand or know how to play.
Finally, my choice would be to run a 3-4 defense with four defensive backs, start by playing zone and mixing up the pressure by sending one of the four backers on every play. To me, your choice should be teach what you know and make sure the players have enough practice time to learn. Good luck and congratulations on your move up the coaching ladder.
Coach Tom Bass
Coach Tom Bass, the technical writer and advisor for USA Football, is a 30-year NFL coach who has also authored several books, including "Play Football the NFL Way" - the first "how to" book ever authorized and published by the NFL. Coach Bass is happy to personally autograph his books to you. Book ordering information can be found at http://www.coachbass.com/.
