Pulling Starters

My rule of thumb is Running Clock ("Mercy Rule") or one team ahead by three scores in 4th Quarter.

Very tough to predict how it would affect you in playoffs.

How would it affect Team if you left starters in and lost one or more to injuries?

Plus kids that practice Scout teams all week deserve their reward when possible, too.

We had a season like this a few years ago. We had a running clock in every regular season game but knew that it wouldn't be that way in the playoffs. We were concerned that players wouldn't be conditioned physically and mentally to play a whole football game. Because of that, in some games late in the year, we kept the starters in deep into the fourth quarter. We'd pull our QB and TB a little earlier but not really early.

Injuries are always a concern but we'd seen it happen to others- teams with great regular seasons folding in the playoffs possibly because the kids weren't used to playing a whole football game.

Injuries are always a concern but I feel like you should at least use the game to get your players weaker areas some work. I like to mix in my backs that are not as fast or strong with the better backs as lead blockers. Let these guys run with the starters some. If I go with the second Offense I use my starting backfield on the line to block. I believe there are always areas that can be worked on. You can keep your starting line and run plays to see how well they block for an average rb and not your star. This will show if they hold their blocks long enough or if the star just hits the hole faster.

Have been in this situation several times before. We usually use the rule of first half anything goes. We are gonna try and score as much as we can in the first half. Usually starters begin the 3rd quarter play a few series. Then we start to sub. Hopefully the other team sees this and starts to sub as well, some games we have taken a time out and sent a new 11 on the field so everyone knows what's going on. We have had other teams do that as well to throw up the white flag. Ya just have to kind of play it game by game.

As far as being worried about playoffs and playing a whole game, we have really never had that problem. If your guys are that good then they will be ready. Plus in a game where your killin a team and your starters are in do you hit the point of diminishing returns? Teams give up believe it or not so what good is it to play your starters late in a game when the other team has quit. That gives you nothing. Also look at it this way, your guys should be fresher than the other teams who may play more full games in a season!

For the most part in HS varsity football playing the starting TB at guard isn't an option.

And that's a factor. During that great season (and let me make sure that that year was unique. It isn't like that every year) nobody that we played "surrendered". Never saw anybody else's seconds even when we got down to thirds and JVs.

I do not agree with the idea of taking my starers out if the opponent (who is losing) takes theirs out. I want my backups to play against the best the other team has to offer so I can see if they can actually play or not with the opponents best onb the field. Furthermore, why in the heck should the losing team Quit??!! I would not respect a team that just threw in the towel and did not keep fighting. Why would any self respecting coach teach his kids to concede?

This.

Not to mention what motivation does it give to kids 12-whatever your roster size is. If you play the same 11 in all situations why should anyone else stay on the team. You gotta throw kids a bone. Nothing like seeing the look on a scout team kids face when he scores or does something great and the whole team is going nuts for him.

Agreed. If the game is out of reach, get the starters out. Live to fight another day, get them out so you're not risking injury. Get your depth some playing time as they'll be going up against the depth of the other team. You only look like a fool if you leave your starters in against the other team's depth. I've seen it a few times where we have put our depth in only to have them beat up on the other team's exhausted starters. That doesn't look good at all.

I respectfully disagree as well. If you are blowing a team out, that is not playing a full game like they will see in the playoffs. Condition more at practice, find ways to make practice more up tempo, but you get nothing out of running up the score on less talented players. Plus you embarrass 15-18 year old kids on the other side of the field.

I don't want to get in to the "its their job to stop me" debate, but I have been on both sides of very lopsided losses. Its not fair to your backups/JV kids and its certainly not the right thing to do for those young men on the other side of the field.

Win. Win convincingly. Then back off.

Keep in mind that I was talking specifically to the OP because I've been in his situation. When you have a lot of blowouts in a row you do need to keep the starters sharp by letting them play deep in the game once or twice. Does it really make a difference in the playoffs? Don't know and don't want to find out the hard way.

I definitely know that in HS you won't do that but I was under the impression he meant youth football because of the difference in talent between schools is so vast. Where I'm from the talent is heavy and every game can be an upset.

I pull my starters often in the middle of the third. It's not a mass exodus. I pull a couple at a time until the 2nds are in. In one game this year, I had the whole 2nd team in to start the second half. It's several things for me. I never try to kick a "downed " opponent, my ego doesn't need to be stroked. My seconds work hard in practice and deserve as much playing time as I can give them, let's face it if one of my starters go down their next, GET THEM READY. No offense, but if you starters aren't ready to mentally or conditionally play a full game, it's the coaches fault. It doesn't take playing a full game to be ready to play a full game. I'm sure we've all had tough games at the beginning of the year. You had them ready for that one didn't you?

That's the thing. It doesn't sound like the OP has had many tough games. We didn't that year. If that's the case you do need to have the players get used to playing deep into games.

I want to make it clear that I'm not talking about a case where there's an occasional blowout. In most of them the starterswere out early, often very early. Later in the year, though, we knew that we had to get them ready to play a full, tough game. It sounds like that's the situation that the OP is in and I believe that he'd be right to do the same thing.