Playing kids both ways...

Not to overkill this thread but I think their are 2 other really important points to make here.

The first being, 2 platooning assumes that you have competent coaches on the other side of the ball. I certainly know it's my job to coach the coaches & I think I do that pretty well and my staff is awesome. But what about the guy who's in the middle of trying to turn a program around? Or what about the guy who works for a tight wad district tht won't give him enough stipends to 2 platoon? 

Or even worse, what about the guy that just took over a crap program and old Coach GEEZER who's been in the district for 30 years and is counting his days and you can't get rid of him cuz the union's got his back doesn't like your defense and doesn't want to coach it the way you want it done and gets to spend 2-3 hours a day away from you while your trying to coach up the offense?

Or even the guy who works in a low paying stepping stone district who always has coaching turnover (that's where I started my HFC career). He's trying to teach a new coach every year and then sends him off on his own.


I know a lot of guys who are or have been in these spots and they are tough to platoon in b/c your not around the other side of the ball as much as you would be in a 1 platoon scenario.


The 2nd point I think worth mentioning is the COACHING "IT FACTOR". Some of us have it and some of us don't but it's that ability to just KNOW when something is going to work and when it isn't. For example, some guys can just look at a player and you just know a kid doesn't have it despite benching 3 bills. It's nothing you c an measure. You just KNOW this kid's not a player.


Likewise, some of us can just look at a team and just KNOW that platooning is or is not the way to go. No tangible measurement. Sometimes it's the INTANGIBLE of just KNOWING.  You can't explain it, you just KNOW this is or is not going to work. It's what makes us all unique and why some guys can thrive in one place and not another.

Anyway, sorry for the overkill, I am just a believer that we are all the BEST QUALIFIED to know what WE should be doing in OUR programs.

good points, s73.

Again, I don't care what folks do. There is no right answer. I thought I've reiterated several times in this thread that there are perfectly legitimate reasons for doing either. There are perfectly valid reasons for not platooning.

The OP asked a question and I've chimed in along with others on some of the challenges/benefits of the topic. In my experience, conclusions on platooning are often met with short-term answers. That doesn't serve the OP's question. I just wanted to raise the issue of platooning, and the programs that commit to it, have thought long and hard about the cost. It isn't an easy solution by any means because it requires some really hard questions to be answered.

Reducing it all down to simplistic absolutes doesn't help anyone, though ("we really can't commit to passing the ball, because then we will never be able to run the ball", "we can't platoon because then we'll never win - we'll give up on this season"). Lets not be pedantic or simple, here. There are costs associated with each decision we make for the program. The goal at the end of the day is to have both immediate, short-term, and long-term plans for where you intend to lead the program.

Such a great thread. I've been checking this one more than any here of late...just reading and soaking up all of the different opinions.

Next year (year 2 as the HC, and my 2nd year in general) we are going to have about 40-45 grades 9-12. Here is the breakdown:

-10 Juniors and Seniors combined.
-My 10 BEST freshmen and sophomores are better as a whole than the older kids.

We went 6-6 this past year. We had 10 seniors and they all started......both ways. Luckily, we didn't have any injuries and it was literally an amazing years. However, knowing that I was counting on those 10 + 2-3 others is something I'd rather avoid.

So, considering the information above about next years squad...with there being no real talent gap across the board; is this about as good of a time as any to Two Platoon?

For the record, I was very upfront with the committee in my interview before I got the job last year (was an assistant at the school for 4 years, DC for 3). I thought that if we got lucky injury wise this past year that we could snag 5 or 6 and we did (three teams in our region have accounted for 12 State Titles...one of which has won 5 out of the last 6 in our class in KY). This year...and, '14 (we will be better) I made things really clear that any win(s) we get...we better cherish every bit of them, fortunately my admin/hiring committee was/is aware of that. As a matter of fact, my principal and I were having a beer the other night and he made the comment that, "If you thought winning 6 was big this year, getting 4 next year would be just as big" (the reason I mention that conversation is bc I believe I'd have the support to go this route since nothing is being expected as is).

Also, I have myself plus 7 paid assistants and 2 volunteers. They all only coach one side of the ball as is. We implemented that about 3 years back. They really are a great bunch. Sure there are some who work better, harder than others like every staff, but they really are a very solid bunch. We're all trying to get better.

Thoughts for or against two platooning VERY welcomed.

FWIW

I was at a small HS (<225 kids) which made it one of the smallest HS in the smallest classification (8th smallest out of 48, largest school was 2.5x our size).  This school historically had some talent.  Rural town, mills were closed/closing, 90% free and reduce lunch, the only show in town, usually made the play offs, only 1 final appearance/several semi-final appearances.

I was HC of the JV as well as varsity AC.  I had pretty much free reign with these kids b/c the HC/OC and DC weren't around right after school b/c they drove school buses.  I had a couple of other guys that helped me.  The only real insistence that the HC placed on the JV was that if they didn't show up for practice they couldn't play.

I had a fairly good size group, but about average for the program.  Our JV was 7-9.  I usually had around 30 kids.

I decide to 2 platoon.  I had a pretty good smattering of football types --  a few decent OL, DL, LB/FB, DB/WR kids.  No studs, just good ol' HS FB players.

I made up a Blue team and a Gold team (guess what our school colors were?)  Each group learned an O&D position.  One group had the better skills, the other had the better OL type kids.  They worked for 25 minutes on one side of the ball, then flipped for the other 25.  Each group learned our base offense and defense, but each had it's own 'package offense' that fit it's strengths.  Nothing fancy just some plays and complements that they excelled at.

We would play our games and each side would take turns by quarter as to what side of the ball each played.  IE
-Game 1: Blue started Q1 on offense, Gold on D; flip at Q2. 
-Game 2: Gold started Q1 on offense, Blue on D; flip at Q2.
Now of course I had been there a while, so I knew a good bit about the opposition.  I set up ahead of time which opponent would see which group of mine in Q1.  AND the biggie -- our big rival/toughest opponent was one of the last games of the year.  And yes the best ones were going to be on the field for the majority of the snaps for that one.

Analysis:
-There were some that stuck their lips out b/c being an 'iron man' 2 way starter was a badge of honor; jut like most small schools.  Some were just selfish, like many kids that age.  I just had to smooth out some ruffled feathers, just like any HC has to do from time to time.  I took time to point out that JV was about DEVELOPMENT.  That JV didn't get rings/trophies/etc....  That including as many players as possible would benefit the not only this year but the years to follow, and I made sure to point out the successes of the 'lesser athletes' to whole team.  And I had to create a level of trust that it would work.  And it did, they didn't lose a ball game that year.

-There were some kids that really blossomed with the system.  Those kids that I didn't think would contribute did.  Some spectacularly, others more mundanely; yet contributed none the less.  We discovered some kids had certain skill sets that weren't previously shown when they were 2nd/3rd string whatevers.  I had a kid that was a 4th string wishbone HB that ended up being one of the best passing QBs to ever come through the school; he had a 588 yard/5 TD performance as a Sr against that rival.

-The program was able to 'open' up the offense b/c of that discovered talent.  It also helped to hold on to some of those kids that contributed on the JV so that they could contribute on varsity. 

-Like many small schools, success comes in cycles as the talent level does.  That group went on to be one of the most successful groups to come through that school in a while.  Was it the 2 platoon in of itself --NO.  But certainly it was a contributing factor.

-More kids were held accountable therefore were vested in the program.  Like I mentioned, the main stipulation was that kids had to practice in order to play.  Not that I would have done any differently even if the HC hadn't cared; but with more kids seeing that they had a chance to play in front of momma on Thursday night, we had few if any problems with kids crapping out on practice, getting in trouble and missing practice b/c of detention/ISS/OSS/etc..

Again, this is "if" you are given a chance to execute said short term and long term goals.  The trigger happy admin's of the world aren't letting some coaches past the immediate ones...

Duece

Coach--I could be wrong, but this is not what most coaches consider 2 platooning.

Absolutely.  I was just pointing that out because it sort of goes along with the post I made earlier regarding coaches not differentiating between trying to play a bunch of players..and 2 platooning.   When coaches are talking about two platooning here, they are referring to the advantages of only having to teach the kids ONE side of the ball, and the kids improving because they get DOUBLE the reps at that position.   You are espousing the opposite (which I agree with for the JV level by the way)