Football is the most fantastic sport in the world for many reasons. It’s both simple and complex at the same time. The strategies of the game are incredibly complex at times. But it still often comes down to one guy making a big play at the right time.

 

Because of the human element, great coaching does not guarantee victory every time. But it sure does help. Here are five coaching strategies that will give you and your team a better chance to win every game.

1. Keep it Simple

You want your players to play fast and aggressively at all times. Giving them too much to think about often leads to paralysis by analysis. That is never a good thing. During the game, they should be playing much more than thinking.

 

Don’t overcomplicate your game plan. Your plan can’t be soo simple that you are predictable. But, once your scheme is unpredictable, adding more complexity has diminishing returns.

2. Be Aggressive

You won’t win very many football games without big plays. That goes for both offense and defense.

 

Offense

Long drives of ten or more plays are hard to do. There are just too many things that could go wrong.

 

  • Penalties
  • Dropped passes
  • Blown assignments
  • Turnovers

Scoring points gets a lot easier when you have some chunk plays of ten yards or more.

So be smart, but at some point, you need to take some shots down the field.

 

Defense

There is a lot of merit to the so-called “bend but don’t break” philosophy of defense. The idea is to avoid giving up big plays so that the offense has to earn every yard. This gives the offense more opportunities to make drive-killing mistakes.

 

 

Even if you follow a bend but don’t break strategy, you need to get aggressive at certain times. 3rd and short, goal-line stands, and playing from behind are situations where you need to get aggressive on defense.

3. Look Good Play Good

Look, sound play good is an idea that many young coaches resist. Slowly but surely, they grow to accept the merit behind the idea. Studies have shown that confidence matters. Simply being more confident can make your performance better. One way to build confidence is to look the part.

 

A custom football jersey is one way to accomplish this. Nobody wants to be on the team with awful jerseys. Everyone makes fun of that team, and it affects their confidence.

 

There are many places, such as Wooter Apparel, that have a wide selection of jerseys. Pick your three or four favorites and then have the team vote for the one they like best.

4. Limit Mistakes

Shoot them more than you shoot yourself. Mistakes happen; no team is perfect. But, unforced mistakes are killers. Some examples of unforced errors are:

 

  • Dropped passes
  • Missed Assignments
  • Dumb Penalties (Ex. personal fouls)

As every coach knows, you get what you emphasize. Emphasize these things as much as possible in practice.

5. Focus on What You Can Control

There are a lot of moving parts in football. This makes the focus of the utmost importance for a coach. You don’t have any mental energy to waste on nonsense that doesn’t help you win.

 

Arguing with the refs is the most common example of focusing on something outside of your control. Paying attention to what the media or fans in the stands are saying is a close second.

 

If it doesn’t help you win, it’s not worth your energy. Save your energy for the important stuff.

 

Football is a beautiful game. It is both complex and simple at the same time. You can spend your entire coaching career learning and not know it all. That is why coaching football is so fun.

 

As long as you never lose sight of these five things, you will give your team a chance to win every game.

 

  • Keep it simple
  • Be aggressive
  • Look good play good
  • Limit mistakes
  • Focus on what you can control