On today’s USA Football Coach and Coordinator podcast, we continue the “Your Call” series, allowing coaches and professionals to respond on social media and air their thoughts and opinions on various matters. This time, we look at how technology plays a factor in teaching players the game plan in the install phase. When it comes to having your players learn in the offseason, delivering that message in the right way is everything. Three professionals in football technology contributed to our conversation on social media and join today’s show.

Rob Everett – defensive coordinator at Bridgewater College (Virginia) – Twitter: @NineintheBox

Everett is in his third season as the defensive coordinator at Bridgewater. He coached four all-conference players and the state defensive rookie of the year last season. Before coming to Bridgewater, Everett coached five seasons in the same role at Westfield High School (Virginia). Westfield won the 6A state championship in 2015 and his defense held teams to 7.9 points per game. Prior to that, he was the head coach at Robert E. Lee High School (Virginia) from 2006-10. Everett also was an advisor at HigherEchelon and helped develop the GoArmy Edge Football App.

Austin Barone – Founder/CEO at Just Play Sports Solutions (justplaysolutions.com) – Twitter: @austin_barone

Barone founded Just Play Sports Solutions in 2014. Just Play helps coaches with delivering playbooks and teaching tools to their players in a way they can understand best. He came up with the idea while he was a football player at the University of Kansas from 2012-15. Barone co-founded Just Play with Andy Wachter, a former college basketball player at Wichita State University and Pittsburg State University. Barone developed the beta version of the Just Play system in his last season at Kansas, while he learned how coaches worked and interacted in the press box.

Mike Rolih – Co-Founder/CEO at GoRout (gorout.com) – Twitter: @mikerolih

Rolih founded GoRout in 2014. It is a wearable technology that allows players to digitally retrieve plays being called from coaches on the sidelines. This technology can be fitted as a wristband as well as in the player’s helmet visor. The technology makes calling plays and having players understand them seamless for coaches. Rolih is a former high school football coach and all-state quarterback.

In today’s show, host Keith Grabowski talks with three guests about their technological improvements to installing game plan in the offseason.

Show Notes

2:02 Rob Everett talks about the best method for installation

4:55 RE: Keeping players engaged during install

7:01 RE: Being efficient with practice/classroom time

8:30 RE: Using GoArmy Edge for install

12:51 RE: Making it easy on the players to consume the information

16:02 RE: Using Google Forms to quiz players before practice

22:22 Austin Barone discusses how Just Play Solutions helps install sessions

24:50 AB: Coaches able to hold players accountable

27:33 AB: Types of quizzes in the Just Play Solutions playbooks

29:48 AB: Tips for preseason install

32:02 AB: How coaches are using the Just Play Solutions technology

35:38 AB: Creating a realistic environment without being in-season

37:52 Mike Rolih explains how GoRout technology improves install

41:59 MR: Accompanying to learning in the digital age

44:33 MR: Technology promoting memorization in players

47:54 MR: Linking learning in the classroom to applying on the field

50:49 MR: Installing within the flow of practice

53:25 MR: Catering game plan notes to each player

55:03 MR: Technology integrating the coaching staff in the install

59:34 MR: Adapting teaching styles to the change in technology

Today’s USA Football Coach and Coordinator podcast begins a new series called “Home Team.” This series will broadcast once every week for the next few weeks and features guest host Joel Nellis, the assistant coach and offensive line coach at Brookfield Central High School (Wisconsin). He was on the Coach and Coordinator podcast as a guest July 2. The “Home Team” series will air every Monday for the next few weeks, talking to various coaches about balancing life in football and life at home. The first guest Nellis has is Jim Leonhard, defensive coordinator at the University of Wisconsin.

Leonhard is in his third season on the coaching staff at Wisconsin. He started by coaching the defensive backs his first season, then moved to defensive coordinator in his second season on the staff. As a defensive coordinator in 2017, Leonhard was a finalist for the Broyles Award for the nation’s top assistant. Before coaching, Leonhard spent 10 seasons in the NFL as a player with the Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens, New York Jets, Denver Broncos, New Orleans Saints and Cleveland Browns. Prior to playing professionally, Leonhard was an all-American defensive back at Wisconsin.

In today’s podcast, Leonhard talks about how he integrates his family with his work and the importance of time management with balancing football and home life.

Show Notes

1:10 Leonhard on how he met his wife

2:04 How his wife helps make work-life balance easier

3:23 What makes his sons unique

5:06 Transitioning from playing to coaching with his family

7:06 Early career decisions made with his wife

8:54 Making time for family while in season

10:36 Having a kid-friendly environment at work

12:39 Diving into coaching without serving as a graduate assistant first

14:19 Using coaches’ knowledge and teaching skills

16:24 Game planning without looking too far ahead

18:57 Preparing the best ways to win the game

21:47 Coaching players to understanding and executing

24:33 Getting players to buy in to the game plan

27:11 Learning from other programs while focusing inward

30:19 Being fully prepared and still losing the game

34:18 Knowing when to sacrifice time and when not to

36:13 Making an importance on seeing the big picture

37:54 His kids putting things in perspective after a loss

39:32 Legacy for his family through coaching

Today’s USA Football Coach and Coordinator podcast begins a new series called “Home Team.” This series will broadcast once every week for the next few weeks and features guest host Joel Nellis, the assistant coach and offensive line coach at Brookfield Central High School (Wisconsin). He was on the Coach and Coordinator podcast as a guest July 2. The “Home Team” series will air every Monday for the next few weeks, talking to various coaches about balancing life in football and life at home. The first guest Nellis has is Jim Leonhard, defensive coordinator at the University of Wisconsin.

Leonhard is in his third season on the coaching staff at Wisconsin. He started by coaching the defensive backs his first season, then moved to defensive coordinator in his second season on the staff. As a defensive coordinator in 2017, Leonhard was a finalist for the Broyles Award for the nation’s top assistant. Before coaching, Leonhard spent 10 seasons in the NFL as a player with the Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens, New York Jets, Denver Broncos, New Orleans Saints and Cleveland Browns. Prior to playing professionally, Leonhard was an all-American defensive back at Wisconsin.

In today’s podcast, Leonhard talks about how he integrates his family with his work and the importance of time management with balancing football and home life.

Show Notes

1:10 Leonhard on how he met his wife

2:04 How his wife helps make work-life balance easier

3:23 What makes his sons unique

5:06 Transitioning from playing to coaching with his family

7:06 Early career decisions made with his wife

8:54 Making time for family while in season

10:36 Having a kid-friendly environment at work

12:39 Diving into coaching without serving as a graduate assistant first

14:19 Using coaches’ knowledge and teaching skills

16:24 Game planning without looking too far ahead

18:57 Preparing the best ways to win the game

21:47 Coaching players to understanding and executing

24:33 Getting players to buy in to the game plan

27:11 Learning from other programs while focusing inward

30:19 Being fully prepared and still losing the game

34:18 Knowing when to sacrifice time and when not to

36:13 Making an importance on seeing the big picture

37:54 His kids putting things in perspective after a loss

39:32 Legacy for his family through coaching

Host Keith Grabowski shares ideas for awarding helmet decals for your players. Ideas from some of the best college programs around the country like Ohio State, Georgia, and Florida State are detailed in this episode.

Host Keith Grabowski shares ideas for awarding helmet decals for your players. Ideas from some of the best college programs around the country like Ohio State, Georgia, and Florida State are detailed in this episode.

Today on the Coach and Coordinator podcast continues introducing the coaching staff for the Under-19 U.S. National Team from yesterday’s podcast. The conversation continues with Director of the U.S. National Teams for USA Football, Coach Aaron Ingram, as the offensive coaching staff is introduced. Host Keith Grabowski talks with four members on the offensive side of the ball. Those include offensive coordinator Blaise Holzer, offensive line coach Virgil Hart, running backs coach Lamont ‘Bup’ Robinson and wide receivers coach Fred Biletnikoff Jr. Their respective schools and twitter handles can be found below.

This is in preparation for the U19 team traveling to the 2018 IFAF World Championships in Mexico City, Mexico. The competition goes from July 12th to July 22nd. Part one of this two-part series with the U19 team coaching staff introduced the head coach and members of the defensive coaching staff. It can be found on the USA Football website and across podcast streaming services such as Soundcloud and iTunes.

Offensive Coordinator: Blaise Holzer, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Shorter University (Georgia). Twitter: @Coach_B_Holzer

Offensive Line Coach: Virgil Hart, offensive line graduate assistant at Northwestern State (Louisiana). Twitter: @CoachVHart

Running Backs Coach: Lamont ‘Bup’ Robinson. Twitter: @DCoachBupRob

Wide Receivers Coach: Fred Biletnikoff, Jr, athletic director and head coach at Squaw Valley Academy (California).

Show Notes

2:13 Introduction to offensive coordinator, Blaise Holzer

3:04 Interview with Coach Blaise Holzer

12:14 Exciting play calling in the offensive playbook

13:01 Introduction to offensive line coach, Virgil Hart

13:50 Interview with Coach Virgil Hart

21:55 Talent and ability of the team’s offensive line

23:07 Introduction to running backs coach, Lamont Robinson

23:51 Interview with Coach Lamont Robinson

31:09 What it means to coach for the U.S. National Team

31:54 Introduction to wide receivers coach, Fred Biletnikoff, Jr

32:37 Interview with Coach Fred Biletnikoff, Jr.

41:17 Breakdown of the wide receiving core

Today on the Coach and Coordinator podcast continues introducing the coaching staff for the Under-19 U.S. National Team from yesterday’s podcast. The conversation continues with Director of the U.S. National Teams for USA Football, Coach Aaron Ingram, as the offensive coaching staff is introduced. Host Keith Grabowski talks with four members on the offensive side of the ball. Those include offensive coordinator Blaise Holzer, offensive line coach Virgil Hart, running backs coach Lamont ‘Bup’ Robinson and wide receivers coach Fred Biletnikoff Jr. Their respective schools and twitter handles can be found below.

This is in preparation for the U19 team traveling to the 2018 IFAF World Championships in Mexico City, Mexico. The competition goes from July 12th to July 22nd. Part one of this two-part series with the U19 team coaching staff introduced the head coach and members of the defensive coaching staff. It can be found on the USA Football website and across podcast streaming services such as Soundcloud and iTunes.

Offensive Coordinator: Blaise Holzer, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Shorter University (Georgia). Twitter: @Coach_B_Holzer

Offensive Line Coach: Virgil Hart, offensive line graduate assistant at Northwestern State (Louisiana). Twitter: @CoachVHart

Running Backs Coach: Lamont ‘Bup’ Robinson. Twitter: @DCoachBupRob

Wide Receivers Coach: Fred Biletnikoff, Jr, athletic director and head coach at Squaw Valley Academy (California).

Show Notes

2:13 Introduction to offensive coordinator, Blaise Holzer

3:04 Interview with Coach Blaise Holzer

12:14 Exciting play calling in the offensive playbook

13:01 Introduction to offensive line coach, Virgil Hart

13:50 Interview with Coach Virgil Hart

21:55 Talent and ability of the team’s offensive line

23:07 Introduction to running backs coach, Lamont Robinson

23:51 Interview with Coach Lamont Robinson

31:09 What it means to coach for the U.S. National Team

31:54 Introduction to wide receivers coach, Fred Biletnikoff, Jr

32:37 Interview with Coach Fred Biletnikoff, Jr.

41:17 Breakdown of the wide receiving core

On today’s USA Football Coach and Coordinator podcast, host Keith Grabowski talks with Coach Aaron Ingram, Director of the U.S. National Teams for USA Football. Through their conversation, Ingram introduces members of the Under-19 U.S. National Team coaching staff. Today, we hear from head coach Matt Hennesy and four coaches on the defensive side of the ball. Those include defensive coordinator Matt Gegenheimer, safeties coach Mike Patterson, cornerbacks coach Kresean Reed and offensive line coach Bill Williams. Their respective schools and twitter handles can be found below.

Ingram and his staff are preparing to take the U-19 team to the 2018 International Federation of American Football World Championships in Mexico City from July 12 to July 22. The United States took home the silver medal two years ago at the last World Championships. Both the U.S. and Canada each have two gold and silver medals through four competitions. Friday’s podcast will continue the conversation with Ingram and introduce the offensive staff.

Head Coach: Matt Hennesy, head coach at Pawhuska High School (Oklahoma). Twitter: @matthennesy

Defensive Coordinator: Matt Gegenheimer, head coach at Prior Lake High School (Minnesota). Twitter: @PLFBCoachG

Safeties Coach: Mike Patterson, defensive coordinator at Scottsdale Christian Academy (Arizona). Twitter: @CoachMPatterson

Cornerbacks Coach: Kresean Reed, defensive backs graduate assistant at Midwestern State University (Texas). Twitter: @coachreedmw

Offensive Line Coach: Bill Williams, head coach at Holdenville High School (Oklahoma). Twitter: @hillbilleways

Show Notes

3:51 Putting together the U-19 coaching staff

4:50 Process in getting the team ready for the IFAF World Championships

6:31 Recruiting players to play for the National Team

8:54 Players who have experience with USA Football

10:01 Preparing players for the challenge of playing for USA Football

11:33 Coordinating with the player’s high school coaches

12:47 Getting the team excited with uniform reveal

14:54 Characteristics of the kind of coaches he wants

16:07 Introduction to the head coach, Matt Hennesy

17:56 Interview with Hennesy

28:17 Trying to go 1-0 every game and not looking ahead

29:29 How the atmosphere is in different countries

30:13 Introduction to defensive coordinator, Matt Gegenheimer

30:57 Interview with Gegenheimer

40:29 Schemes and formations for the defense

41:36 Introduction to safeties coach, Mike Patterson

42:45 Interview with Patterson

51:43 Impact of RPOs and opposing team’s offensive styles

52:50 Introduction to cornerbacks coach, Kresean Reed

53:33 Interview with Reed

58:58 Introduction to defensive line coach, Bill Williams

59:29 Interview with Williams

1:09:48 What coaching for USA Football means to Williams

On today’s USA Football Coach and Coordinator podcast, host Keith Grabowski talks with Coach Aaron Ingram, Director of the U.S. National Teams for USA Football. Through their conversation, Ingram introduces members of the Under-19 U.S. National Team coaching staff. Today, we hear from head coach Matt Hennesy and four coaches on the defensive side of the ball. Those include defensive coordinator Matt Gegenheimer, safeties coach Mike Patterson, cornerbacks coach Kresean Reed and offensive line coach Bill Williams. Their respective schools and twitter handles can be found below.

Ingram and his staff are preparing to take the U-19 team to the 2018 International Federation of American Football World Championships in Mexico City from July 12 to July 22. The United States took home the silver medal two years ago at the last World Championships. Both the U.S. and Canada each have two gold and silver medals through four competitions. Friday’s podcast will continue the conversation with Ingram and introduce the offensive staff.

Head Coach: Matt Hennesy, head coach at Pawhuska High School (Oklahoma). Twitter: @matthennesy

Defensive Coordinator: Matt Gegenheimer, head coach at Prior Lake High School (Minnesota). Twitter: @PLFBCoachG

Safeties Coach: Mike Patterson, defensive coordinator at Scottsdale Christian Academy (Arizona). Twitter: @CoachMPatterson

Cornerbacks Coach: Kresean Reed, defensive backs graduate assistant at Midwestern State University (Texas). Twitter: @coachreedmw

Offensive Line Coach: Bill Williams, head coach at Holdenville High School (Oklahoma). Twitter: @hillbilleways

Show Notes

3:51 Putting together the U-19 coaching staff

4:50 Process in getting the team ready for the IFAF World Championships

6:31 Recruiting players to play for the National Team

8:54 Players who have experience with USA Football

10:01 Preparing players for the challenge of playing for USA Football

11:33 Coordinating with the player’s high school coaches

12:47 Getting the team excited with uniform reveal

14:54 Characteristics of the kind of coaches he wants

16:07 Introduction to the head coach, Matt Hennesy

17:56 Interview with Hennesy

28:17 Trying to go 1-0 every game and not looking ahead

29:29 How the atmosphere is in different countries

30:13 Introduction to defensive coordinator, Matt Gegenheimer

30:57 Interview with Gegenheimer

40:29 Schemes and formations for the defense

41:36 Introduction to safeties coach, Mike Patterson

42:45 Interview with Patterson

51:43 Impact of RPOs and opposing team’s offensive styles

52:50 Introduction to cornerbacks coach, Kresean Reed

53:33 Interview with Reed

58:58 Introduction to defensive line coach, Bill Williams

59:29 Interview with Williams

1:09:48 What coaching for USA Football means to Williams

Today’s guest on the coach and coordinator podcast is Jon Clanton, head football coach at Phoenix Central High School (Arizona). Last season, the Bobcats finished with a 6-4 record for the season. Before getting into coaching, Clanton was a four-year player at the University of Nebraska on the defensive line. Clanton had 45 tackles and two forced fumbles in his senior year and earned a start in the Independence Bowl game. He graduated from Nebraska with a degree in special education.

After graduating from Nebraska, Clanton went on to play professionally with the Tennessee Titans and in NFL Europe for a short time. Clanton was an all-state lineman in high school at Centennial High School (Arizona). Over the past few years, Clanton has also worked with Scott Peters and the USA Football Tip of the Spear Contact System. With that, Clanton is an instructor with Tip of the Spear on the defensive side of the ball. He looks at how players can effectively defeat blocks while maintaining safe technique.

On today’s show, Clanton and host Keith Grabowski talk about Clanton’s experience with the USA Football Tip of the Spear Contact System, teaching defeating blocks effectively and how that applies to coaching high school football.

Show Notes

1:15 Playing experience affecting his coaching

2:24 Getting to play at Nebraska while in college

3:14 What brought him to Tip of the Spear

5:02 Detail that goes into safe technique

6:36 The importance of hip placement in blocking/defeating blocks

7:52 Drills that look cool but aren’t effective

9:31 Explaining the “pillar” concept

10:54 Keeping the head and helmet away from the contact

11:43 Breaking down the BLAST concept

13:19 Having personnel to work with your scheme

14:05 Overview of the pillar technique for defensive line

15:05 Working on engaging the hips in defeating blocks

15:45 Using TOS techniques with his H.S. team

16:32 Teaching these techniques to younger players

17:18 Helping make thing simple for defensive players to learn

20:04 Coaching and developing his son into a great football player

21:03 Teaching Tip of the Spear in the Virgin Islands

22:21 How coaches react to the TOS contact system

23:57 Teaching coaches the fundamentals and science of the system