In just his third season of coaching the defensive line at the University of Miami Ohio, Coach E.J. Whitlow has already produced three All-MAC honorees. Last season, the Warhawks had 38 total sacks, and 28 of those came from the defensive line. A former defensive tackle at Findlay College, Coach Whitlow was named First-Team All-GLIAC and team MVP during his playing days.

On today’s episode of Coach and Coordinator Podcast, hear how Coach Whitlow has instructs his defensive linemen on their pass rush moves, gap control, hand placement, block shedding, and more. 

Show Notes:

0:20 Intro

1:05 Beginning of Coach Whitlow’s career

2:24 Developing as a coach

4:06 Transition to Grand Valley State

6:15 Expectations for defensive linemen

7:12 Coach Whitlow’s catch phrases

8:31 Keys to playing upfront

9:21 Gap Control

11:30 Art of hand placement

12:56 Using your hips

14:11 Traits to look for 

15:43 Identifying strengths in players

17:01 Utilizing movement upfront

18:07 Maintaining gap while moving

19:33 Defensive line tackling drills

20:51 Shedding blocks

22:07 Pass rush progressions

24:30 Keys to footwork

25:20 Tipped passes at the line

26:11 Powering through offensive linemen

27:48 Combining pass rush moves

28:31 Scouting offensive linemen 

You can follow Coach Whitlow on Twitter @CoachWhit_MU.

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