What does a great practice look like to you?

For Oregon: Hard, Fast, Finish.

Agree with the above plus drill work that has noticeable correlation to Friday nights.

maximum participation

A half hour of static stretching, a half hour of individual tackling drill with one guy going at a time, an hour scrimmage stopping to make detailed corrections every time a kid makes a mistake, finished up with a half hour of gassers.

That would make it completely perfect. 

mostly individuals, some small group work... all the while as little standing as possible, everyone getting a ton of reps
the coach should appear as he did a few bumps of coke with charlie sheen just before practice and preferably he never stops shaking at any moment in practice

any team time is short and sweet... high tempo, plays should reflect the skills worked in indy and group up to that point in the practice. coaching needs to be done on the fly so you can get more reps done

in educational terms the lesson plan, practice, hw, and real teaching goes on with the whiteboard and indy time... team is not where you get better, it is essentially a "pop quiz" to see how well you can carry over the skills learned in Indy/group into a game like situation


an actual game would be the equivalent of a test/final exam

you really do not get better in team or games, you get better at practice, and the team time or game is the application of what you have/haven't learned

you don't learn algebra 2 by taking a test on algebra 2, it merely "tests" how well you have been learning from lessons/class/hw

if only our lower levels could understand this haha

I also thought you should finish practice with the head coach talking for over 30 minutes about the good ole days and how puking while running the gassers will make you a better husband and dad some day.

I'll actually contribute something besides entertaining myself.

Some of my favorite practices have been ones where there isn't a crazy, Charlie Sheen on coked-out tiger blood vibe, but rather a calm atmosphere with lots of people just doing their jobs. Crisp execution, clear communication, great effort and attitude being shown all the time (not having to wait for someone to jump in on the scout team, for example).

I guess you could label it almost a cooperative feeling, instead of a directive. The staff and players are so familiar with the routine that they are all just flowing through it, not being driven through it.

I realize this is very hippie-dippie sounding, and that somewhat appropriate given where I'm from, but I enjoy these type a great deal.

Great translation between the classroom & the football field.

Effort and hustle from whistle to whistle.
Coaches coaching their tails off and players competing.
Efficiency: scripted plays and looks
Fast tempo. Minimum wasted time or reps.

Are the kids fixing what you told them they did wrong the next rep they have in that same drill, and then applying it again during team? If everyone is doing that consistently they're reinforcing the muscle memory you want them to have and it's a good practice. If not they're developing bad habits and it's a bad practice.

First, I like it when everyone gets there early so we can get off to a good start.

Next, I like it when drill work goes fast with the need for minimal coaching and minimal reps because our players understand what we want from each drill and give it willingly.

For group/team time I like to see our players communicating pre snap and coaching each other post snap before we have a chance to say anything...even if the extra communication/peer coaching slows the pace of practice down through these sessions.

At breaks I like to see our coaches talking about what went well and what needs to improve, even if it means going back and re-teaching something because we just are not comfortable with it. I like to see our players interacting in a way that lets me know they enjoy the guys they are with, they enjoy being at football practice and are learning to love the work it takes to be successful.

I always want the end of practice to be positive. Doesn't always happen, because the things I listed above don't always happen...but the end of a good practice seems to create an energy where the kids and coaches want to get back the next day and do it again.

And a good practice is normally shorter than a bad practice...

Scott Bailey
Lamar HS
Lamar, Missouri

That's a great question but I have seen it a great deal. 

While I think everybody does SOME things that correlate to Friday nights, I have worked with and seen some guys who do stuff just to do stuff. Had an assistant years ago who LOVED doing all kinds of conditioning  drills but our kids could not get off a block. 

Another example from same assistant is "bull in the ring" while several OL from our freshman team were still "hazy" about their blocking rules. 

Maybe I was clumsy w/ my communication, but what I intended to say is prioritize what you NEED for Fridays and cut out the "fluff". I think too much "fluff" in a practice is usually a sign of a position coach "wingin' it" rather then preparing his kids properly for Friday night. Again, JMO.

PS - That's why I have learned to develop a list of EDD's and then coaches can check w/ me about making a change here or their if they feel something needs extra attention. This has helped our practices improve tremendously.

  Guilty as charged. We do the JJ's w/ the mascot name. 

In my defense though, the whole thing takes about 8 seconds. Including the 3 claps in UNISON at the end