Football Defensive Philosophy
- We will EAT- Everything we do defensively will be with Effort- Attitude- Toughness. Effort, attitude, and toughness is the staple mark of any championship defense.
- We will be committed to stopping the run. We will prevent the offense from having a consistent offensive attack.
- We will swarm to the football. All 11 players on the field will have relentless pursuit to the ball carrier on both run and pass plays.
- We will be a sure tackling team. We will be a team that tackles well game in and game out. We will tackle safely and effectively.
- We will contain the outside. We will force the ball carrier inside to our teammates pursuing to the ball.
- We will hold our gaps and anchor. Our interior defensive linemen will get penetration and anchor their gap, not chasing counter action.
- We will not give up big plays. All players will hold their gaps and pursuit to the ball carrier. Hustle to the ball carrier will prevent big plays.
- We will create at least 2 turnovers a game. We will force turnovers with our relentless gang tackling and disciplined pass coverage.
- We will play excellent short yardage and goal line defense. We must increase our intensity & attitude when we are in our red zone and short yardage defense.
- We will be a smart defense. We will understand game situations, player alignments, opponent tendencies/game planning, and down and distances.
- We will not give up big passing plays. We will be disciplined in cover 3 zone defense.
- We will play defense with passion. When we play defense we fly to the football with enthusiasm and effort. We will communicate and talk it up with each other. If we make a big play we will get hyped about it!
- We will handle sudden change situations with resilience & short memory. If something doesn’t go our way we will get over it and get it back on the next play. “RELOAD”
Defense Articles
Proper tackling is vital to overall defense success- Proper Tackling Technique
Every defender must be able to destruct blocks- Rip Move for Block Destruction
Tackling in space is difficult, here is how- Tackling in the Open Field
The game of football is won at the line of scrimmage- Coaching Defensive Line
Linebackers have to get to the football- Coaching Linebackers