If you are like me, you are starting to think about your next youth football season and developing your plans. Since we play Spring ball here in Keller, TX, we’ve already had a few coaches meetings .  What did we do right, wrong, and should have done?

It seems like each season after these meetings and before tough games, I will pull out one of the books below and reference one or two things, or just re-read or scan the book again for ideas and or answers.  I probably have 50 or so books in my youth football library, but these are my favorites and trusted stand bys:

1. The Toss by Jerry Vallotton
2. Coaching Offensive Lineman by Dave Christensen
3. Coaching Team Defense by Fritz Shurmur
4. Directory of Football Defenses by Drew Tallman
5. Complete Book of Drills for Winning Football - Michael D. Koehler
6. Coaching Youth Football by John T. Reed
7. Winning Youth Football – Dave Cisar
8. Coaching Football by Tom Flores
9. Football Scouting Methods by Steve Belichick
10. Football; principles and play by David M Nelson

I usually buy these books used on Amazon.  I wait until I can get a good copy for around $10 plus shipping.  Many of these books are out of print and sometimes demand a high price.  Wait a few months and you may find a copy on Amazon or Ebay.  Also, Google the author and they may have an old copy for sale or an ebook copy.

Yes, I know many of these books are older books.  But think about it, youth football is mainly a running game like football was in its early days before passing became so popular in the mid 1970′s.  Trust me these are great football books.  This is my top 10 best coaching youth football books as of today.

Other good web resources that I frequent are Gregory Double Wing , DumCoach Boards and USA Football.

Have a great New Year.

Cheers,
Coach Parker
Keller, Texas / Ft. Worth, TX  / DFW

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POLL Closed

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Thanks for your help in advance.

Coach Parker
Fort Worth / Keller Texas

Here are a few of my favorite passages from the book:

1. Arm strength is about 6th on the list of what I look for in a quarterback. First I want to know how accurate he is and if he can make good decisions.
2. I think playbooks are outdated.  Now everything is on video, and you playbook is your cut ups.
3. You’re either coaching it or allowing it to happen.  

There’s a lot more.  And there is a good quote about making football fun from Rex Ryan.  I don’t want to give it all away.

Here’s a draft agenda for the Burst Speed Football Camp

Dynamic Warm ups

• High Knees
• Toe Touches
• Lunges
• Bunny Hops
• Cariaca
• Shuffles
• etc

Station One

• Rings – In Out In Out In
• 10 Push Ups
• 10 Set Ups
• 3 bags in and outs touch bags 2 Xs
• 10 Push Ups
• 10 Soccer Ball Crunches
• Jog around End Zone Station 2

Station Two

• Rings – Out Across to Out and back
• 10 Push Ups
• 10 Soccer Ball Crunches
• 3 Bags Side Shuffles right and Left 2Xs
• 10 Push Ups
• 10 Soccer Ball Crunches

Station Three

• Rings – In Two Out in Jump In
• 10 Push Ups
• 10 Soccer Ball Crunches
• King Crab Push down and Back
• 10 Push Ups
• 10 Soccer Ball Crunches

Station Four

• Crazy 8 Cones
• 10 Push Ups
• 10 Soccer Ball Crunches
• Side Jumps over Bar 25
• 10 Push Ups
• 10 Soccer Ball Crunches

Station Five

• Star Cone 8 Point Circle
• 10 Push Ups
• 10 Soccer Ball Crunches
• Forward Jumps 25
• 10 Push Ups
• 10 Soccer Ball Crunches

Running Backwards and Sideways Drill Stations

Jog 400 Meters cool down

Let me know what you think.

1. http://www.youthfootballcoachingtips.com/2010/10/complete-guide-to-installing-44-split.html
2. http://www.youthfootballcoachingtips.com/2010/10/vince-lombardi-on-football.html
3. http://www.youthfootballcoachingtips.com/2010/10/complete-book-of-drills-for-winning.html
4. http://www.youthfootballcoachingtips.com/2010/10/play-football-nfl-way-by-tom-bass.html
5. http://www.youthfootballcoachingtips.com/2010/10/coaching-footballs-46-defense-book-by.html

What football coaching book s have you been reading lately?  Let me know in the comments section.

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One of the paragraphs I keep coming back to is…  “The body tends to do what it hears most clearly; the mind tells the body what it sees most clearly.  So, thinking about what you don’t want to happen greatly increases the chance it WILL happen.”  This happen to my team two years ago.  Before a game I told my team I dreamed we fumbled a ton during the upcoming came and told them do not fumble the ball.  Protect the ball.  We fumbled the ball 5 times during that game.  Because of what I said, I set my players up to fumble. 

 According to the book, a leading sports psychologist believes, “the difference between two (high performance) athletes is 20% physical and 80% mental.”  If this is true, as coaches we need to be teaching our players how to develop their mental tools. 

I hope you enjoy the book.

Play for Fun and Winning is Funner!

The book is divided into two parts; tactics and techniques.  The Tactics sections includes chapters on; Punting, Kickoffs, Punt Returns, Kickoff Returns, Extra Points and Field Goals, Two-Point Conversions, Punt and Field Goal Blocks, and Developing Special Team Units.  The Techniques section includes chapters on; Punting, Kicking Off, Kicking Extra Points and Field Goals, Long Snapping, Holding for Kicks, Returning Punts and Kickoffs, and Developing Special Team Players.

There is so much good information in this book.  I made highlight marks on just about every page and I normally do not make hand written notes inside my books, but I did in this book.  It is that good.  I especially like the technique chapters on Punting, Long Snapping and Kicking.  You can buy the Complete Guide to Special Teams book at my Amazon Football book store here. 

Good luck this season.  Play for Fun and Winning is Funner!

Here’s a quick summary of the DVD;

1. Setting Defensive Priorities & Schemes
2. How to Tackle & Drills
3. Tackling Games & Competition
4. Base 6-2 Wide Tackle Formation
5. Position Drills
6. Formation Recognition & Adjustments
7. 6-2 Blitzes and Stunts
8. 6-2 Defense Implementation
9. Viper 4-4 Defense
10. 4-4 Stunts and Blitz Packages
11. Offensive Formation Recognition
12. Coaching Points

This is a great addition to your youth football coaching library.  I rate this DVD a 4/5.

Good luck this season.

Coach Cisar wrote the meat of the book for his youth football league’s internal use after extensive research on what works in youth football.  The book goes into detail about how to run a winning youth football team and organization.  There’s a ton of good administrative information about how to run a team, dealing with parents, practice organization, recruiting and more.

Coach Cisar also goes into detail about his defenses, the Wide Tackle 6, a 6-2 defense, and a 4-4 defense.  I was going to move from my 6-2 variation, but with his suggestions, I think I will stay with the 6-2 and implement a few 4-4 adjustments and 8 Gap adjustments which are very easily done out of the 6-2 defense. 

Coach Cisar then explains his philosophy on Special Teams and his various formations and strategies.  This section is weak compared to his offense and defense chapters but is very good.  I am going to implement his trap kick return.

If you are considering a Single Wing Offense, this book is definitely for you.  Coach Cisar goes into great detail about the Single Wing Offense; strategy, drills, plays, play calling and more.  About 100 pages of the book are dedicated to the Single Wing.  If you are not a Single Wing coach there are many areas of the Single Wing which you can use.  I am thinking about going into shotgun formation using the Single Wing shotgun style and on my power plays moving my backside Wing into a blocking back position.  There’s something here for everyone. 

Here’s a review from Winning Youth Football’s website..

“This comprehensive youth Football Coaching book is filled with over 200 diagrams and pictures as well as detailed instructions on how to build a winning youth football program featuring the Single Wing Offense. It includes a top down detailed plan for excelling in all areas of the game, football practice organization, offense, defense, special teams and game day management. Dave’s version of the Single Wing offense is featured including; football plays, youth football playbook, personnel descriptions, adjustments, blocking schemes and drills, detailed football play implementation and footwork, detailed football practice plans, keys, game day play calling and scouting are all there. You get his football schemes, packages, position descriptions, player evaluations, football drills, progressions, football practice methodology and program management. It’s everything you need to build a winning youth football program including player, parent and coaching contracts, waivers, and more. All in easy to understand “non coach speak”. This isn’t theory, it’s what works in 2007.” Foreward by Dave Rimington.

I loved Coach Cisar’s DVD, Dominating Offensive Line Play and also love his book, Winning Youth Football A Step by Step Plan.  I recommended Coach Cisar’s book and DVDs to our league’s President as a guide for our rookie coaches.    Coach Cisar’s books and DVDs should be in your football library!

 I will post full reviews of the book and DVDs over the next two weeks.  Stay tuned.