Each week Coach Bass brings his 30 years of NFL coaching experience to USA Football. Email Coach Bass your question.
A coach sent the following question:
I am a member of USA football and had a question about teaching proper stances to our little league team of 7- to 9-year-olds, specifically the three-point stance. I'm concerned that we may have been teaching it incorrectly. We have them line up, place the feet shoulder width apart, place the hands on the thighs and place one hand slightly forward and go around checking the stances by removing the hand to see if they keep their balance with most of the weight on the legs and little on the hands. Is this correct?
Hi Coach,
You are correct that you do not want a majority of their weight on their down hand unless you are going to use a basic straight ahead drive block for a majority of your running plays.
If you are going to require that they be able to hook, angle or pull and block, then I always wanted more of a balanced stance with the weight equally distributed on the down hand and both feet.
In their stance, I would try to push them forward, backward and to the right and left. If their weight is evenly distributed, they are able to remain in place and you will know that they should be able to move in any direction on the snap.
One suggestion is that I would have them go to a four-point stance first. Start the same way that you are doing now with the foot alignment and their hands on the thighs.
Instead of placing one hand on the ground, have them go to a four-point stance by putting both hands on the ground slightly ahead of the front of their shoulder pads. Then, have the player lift one hand off the ground to assume a three-point stance.
Using this procedure you eliminate the chance that they will initially place their down hand more under their chin which immediately causes their shoulders to tilt and makes it difficult to have a good balanced stance.
Try to make sure they don't kick their feet back when they get into the stance, keep their feet under their hips and try to have their back level with their head up. A good stance will really help them in their play and will allow you to use a variety of different types of blocks in your offensive scheme. Good luck this season.
Coach Tom Bass
Greg sent the following question:
How would you number a passing play using four receivers such as a wide receiver, a tight end, a wing and a halfback coming out of the backfield? Most plays I have seen show a two or three number play call. Any suggestion on a passing tree for the wings and backs? I coach middle school boys ages 12 to 14.
Hi Greg,
One of the easiest ways to call passing plays that I have used is to establish a three digit call with the first number designating the receiver on the left, then the second number designating the pass route for the next receiver moving across the field and the final digit designating the receiver on the right.
This system does not say who the players are by position (split end, tight end, wing back/flanker) but instead focuses on the location of the three major receivers going from the left to the right.
With this system, you can use a variety of formations, and the receivers just have to know if they are the on the left, middle or right as they hear the pass called in the huddle.
The passing tree for the split end and wing back/flanker can be the same, and the passing tree for the tight end can be modified to match the routes you want him to run.
I liked to call the pass route for the halfback with a word at the end of the three digit call.
An example of the call in the huddle might be: "Right Wing Pass - 545 HB Stop -on Hut."
This will put our split end as the left receiver running a 5 route (Out) - the tight end, the middle receiver in the formation, running a 4 route (Center) - the wing back, the right receiver, running a 5 route (Out) - and the halfback running a stop route at seven yards on the side of the split end.
In this system, the routes were always numbered with odd numbers for the routes to the outside and with even numbers for routes to the inside.
This is a system that can be used by your offense during two-minute or no-huddle offense. I hope this gives you some ideas that you can use for your offensive play calling.
Coach Tom Bass
Coach Tom Bass, a 30-year NFL Coach and the technical writer and advisor for USA football, is also the author of several highly acclaimed football coaching books, including "Play Football the NFL Way" (St. Martin's Press) the only authorized NFL coaching book, "Football Skills and Drills" (Human Kinetics) and "The New Coaches Guide to Youth Football Skills and Drills" (McGraw Hill). If you would like to order a personalized autographed copy of Coach Bass' books, copies of his printed In-Depth Coaching Clinics, or NFL or College Sport Maps, please visit http://coachbass.com/.
