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Post by hogscall on Nov 17, 2015 12:46:47 GMT -6
I'm a young coach seeking some advice on film study. When watching film, what specifics do you guys look for when watching the opponent's offense/defense? I would like to improve as a coach and would appreciate any input/advice on how you guys study film on an opponent. Thanks
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Post by jasper912 on Nov 17, 2015 13:05:58 GMT -6
I'm the OC so when I watch film I am looking at the opposing defense. Things I look for is formations I run and how they line up to that. I look for what the defense is giving up and what they are trying to take away. I look for pad level of DL and whether or not they rush up field.
By the time I get these things I start watching backers. Are they reading keys? If so, what keys are they reading? Do they blitz a lot? Do they stunt? Do they scrape and find the alley or do they pretty much just run lateral until they find the ball carrier? Does backside backer play cutback/counter?
Do corners come up field on toss? Do they straight bail on pass?
Everything I mentioned is things I go through each film.
Tendencies too. Do they always bring pressure in certain situations?
One of the most important things for me is this. Who is the best player on their defense? Who is their worst player on defense? After finding these 2 guys, can I isolate one of their worst players with one of my best offensive players?
Oh almost forgot....do they shift/adjust to motion? I can't believe how many teams just line up and play.
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Post by jasper912 on Nov 18, 2015 8:13:58 GMT -6
I figured more people would chime in to help out. I think this is a good question for a young coach to ask.
I will try to help from a defensive perspective, although I am an OC. I played Safety in college and collaborate with our DC so here are some things to look for on that side of the ball.
Formations, best offensive player(s), tendencies (both down and distance and out of certain formations.)
Anything you can pick up on. I notice a lot of shotgun teams are guilty of this. If its run, then the RB will be a little deeper, like a half step or so behind the QB, if its a pass then he will be even.
What did other teams do against them that were successful? Do they use motion? If so, does it give anything away?
We have a Math teacher on our staff. He actually does a tendency pie chart each week. He charts 1st downs, 2nd downs, 3rd downs, etc. Its pretty amazing. One week, the team we were playing ran it to the strong side 94% of the time on first down.
Our DC is also very good, and our kids believe in what we are doing. By game time, we are "check auto" over 90% of the time. What does this mean you might ask? Well our DC will say, if they come out in this, then we are running this. If they show this kind of motion we are automatically doing this in response to it.
We rep it all week and by game time we just check auto and then adjust accordingly.
Other things would be do they move players around for certain plays? Like do they have an OL that they move around. Do they have a skilled guy they move around? If so, what is their rhyme or reason for doing this?
I wish I could help you out more, but I've been stuck in OC mode for a few years now lol.
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Post by coach31 on Nov 18, 2015 8:48:48 GMT -6
I m a visual learner. Drawing all 22 really helps me. I do all our scout cards on both sides of the ball, I can't tell you how much drawing up what I'm seeing had helped me develop. I can't recommend it enough
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Post by coach31 on Nov 18, 2015 8:49:36 GMT -6
I m a visual learner. Drawing all 22 really helps me. I do all our scout cards on both sides of the ball, I can't tell you how much drawing up what I'm seeing had helped me develop. I can't recommend it enough
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Post by fantom on Nov 18, 2015 8:57:19 GMT -6
I figured more people would chime in to help out. I think this is a good question for a young coach to ask. This is a very general question and it's been less than 24 hours. It's a message board, not a chat. Also, several coaches here are still in-season. Have a little patience.
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Post by stone65 on Nov 18, 2015 9:01:10 GMT -6
As a DC I look at the formations, plays and players. When scouting the first thing I look for is the formations and what they are trying to do with them. Also, look at what they are doing with their best players. Are they moving him around? If so, why and when?
We run a 3-3 stack and very few do on our schedule. So, I know that many offenses we face will look different when we play them because in my experience OC's give different looks to 3-3 teams.
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Post by hogscall on Nov 18, 2015 10:39:54 GMT -6
I really appreciate all the input. Anything and everything is very helpful. Yea I know there's a ton of guys still in season. And I'm hoping those guys will also chime in eventually. I just figured I'd ask now and start practicing and trying to get better for next year.
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CoachF
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Post by CoachF on Nov 18, 2015 11:43:12 GMT -6
This sounds bland but the more film you watch the better you will get, and you will develop your own tendencies.
When watching offense... Always formation/personnel first
I first watch the clip to see if it is run or pass.
If run: I watch the guard center guard to figure out what scheme they are running (zone, power, man/draw). Then you Take into effect how personnel and formation help the scheme. Also note whether or not QB is reading anyone on the d.
If pass: I like to look at pass protection first, is it half slide? Full slide? Vertical set? Are they setting and moving into screen? Then look at route combinations.
Watching and scouting defense is a little harder because you have to know the offense then disect the defensive reaction (alignment) then see how they react to the play (assignment)
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Post by fantom on Nov 18, 2015 12:22:12 GMT -6
I'm a DC. Before I start breaking anything down I like to watch the tape all the way through. I like to get a feel for the other guy. If we've played the opponent several times and we're familiar with them I might not watch as long, just long enough to confirm what we expected. I may stop to draw up plays along the way if I see something that's been especially effective or if they've run it more than once.
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Post by gators1422 on Nov 18, 2015 12:25:10 GMT -6
Most times I watch the 1st time I just get a general feel for the team. Don't really concentrate on any one thing. I coach the RB and the LBs so and I am the coach in the box so I need to have an idea of everything. The 2nd time through I look at things like the 1st poster said. Do they have a stud up front, can you trap them? We run the veer so we hardly ever get a look that is similar to us so we have to guess alot on the offensive side as to how they will line up. Defensively after watching I have an idea who I want to read with my LBs. So I go watch every play and just watch the read and see if it makes them right, and if I need to adjust it or not. Usually it's only 1-2 things they might do so its not a big deal.
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Post by olinedude on Nov 18, 2015 12:46:15 GMT -6
I start with the big picture then work down to the little stuff, and I'm an offensive guy so I'm watching defenses.
At first I'll look for alignments, base coverages, most common stunts/blitzes, and hopefully pick up on when they change. When do they blitz? Will their coverage give away blitz? Do they slant much? Will their alignment give away a blitz or stunt? etc.
The next time through I'll walk the individual players. Are LBs keying and biting hard? Do the safeties bite on play action? Are the corners peeking in the backfield? Most importantly to me is looking at the individual defensive lineman. Are they using their hands well? Are they chasing, staying home, or standing still looking confused? Do they play with good pad level? Are they defeating blocks, getting off blocks, and making plays?
Also, one of the most important but easiest to miss is looking at who is making all their tackles? I miss that one a lot, but then you go back and look for it and you'll find 1 or 2 guys popping up that are making most of their tackles. Then I'll go back and watch those individual guys to see how they are able to do so.
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Post by veerman on Nov 18, 2015 17:37:50 GMT -6
Agree watch whole game first. See how they line up to certain formations if it's simular to yours. I really try to find their weak link. Most every HS football team has 2-3 kids that are weaker. Find those kids and see how you can exspose them.
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Post by wolfden12 on Nov 18, 2015 19:58:44 GMT -6
As an offensive Coach working with our HC/OC we work collaboratively on the plan. I handle all the breakdown in the back end and he handles the front seven. I asked to work with him directly this here in the breakdown portion to get a better idea of what he is seeing. He coaches o-line and has a great mindset offensively and in the run game. We put the video up and he breaks it down while I enter data. This allows me to see it (I'm a visual learner) and be able to ask questions. After we break film down, I will go ahead and run all the reports he requests. Hudl is sometimes too overwhelming for him so I simplify and get him the data. After he leaves Saturday, I stay and draw up their defense vs. our base formations. I start to formulate what we want to do in the passing game. We will text and talk Saturday with ideas and if we see anything. I also draw up all the scout cards as mentioned above as it helps me learn as well.
Thinks I look for: Best/worst: DL/LB/DB - who can we pick on? Screens and Gadgets. Which are our best? How do they play the backside? How do they play situations? 1st, 2nd (short, medium, long), 3rd (short, medium, long) How do they play the backside WR away from the multiple receiver look? Does our protection/formations need adjusted vs a heavy pressure team and what are they? How active is there MLB and alley players?
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Post by chi5hi on Nov 18, 2015 22:54:02 GMT -6
I'm a young coach seeking some advice on film study. When watching film, what specifics do you guys look for when watching the opponent's offense/defense? I would like to improve as a coach and would appreciate any input/advice on how you guys study film on an opponent. Thanks I had to chuckle a little while remembering having the same questions, being a baby coach and watching 16 mm film from a projector aimed at the blackboard in the coaches lounge. That was definitely "back in the day"! Anymore, I just see things...I don't know how, I suppose its because I'm looking for it or expecting something. I still don't see everything. Back in the day, what I did was to play the film through in its entirety first. Then I got to the point...somehow, I can't remember why...where I'd run the film through a second time in fast forward. It seemed to give some tendencies as to hash marks, direction of the play as to field boundary, etc. Most everyone back in those days huddled and played a run first offense with a 50 defense. Stuff was easier to see. I remember back as a rookie, I would spend hours watching film through the whole weekend. Some of that was because we had to re-wind film reels, and that took time. Also...had to repair film from when it snapped from going fast forward. I suppose I still do the FF thing...Not on 16 mm anymore. it seems to be easier to see an entire picture...for me at least. Anymore I'm not sure exactly what, specifically, I look for, or in what order I try to see things, but I certainly do stop the tapes and doodle out what I see...personnel groupings and DD & Hash mark tendencies are a big thing. One specific I look for in opposing offenses is their 3rd Down pass game. 3rd and Short...Med...and Long. I spend more time on that than any other part of the pass offense. Figure that the occasional shot down field is low percentage and lots of guys do that to get the PI. Clinically speaking...again, this is MHO...what teams do is not as critical to know as is..."What will they do when I stop THAT thing?" Other questions I like to consider are..."Are they impatient?" (What do they do when they get hit by a quick score?) "Do they "chase" 2 point conversions?" (Are they going to try to "catch up...How important is the "momentum" thing?) Do they Kick and Punt for distance or do they consider "hang time". Third Downs and Kicking Game certainly occupies some considerable time for me. Pay attention to those things! One thing I can say is that it seems to get easier as you get experience. Its like the first interception you ever threw. You never forget it. When they hit you with that ONE THING and win the game, you'll recall seeing it, on some film you saw...and the next time you do film...you never forget it! I suggest that you don't get caught up in the minute things you can't know about until the game starts. Things like...What if My Tackle can't handle that 3 tech...WHAT WILL WE DO? Their 3 tech might be out with the flu!
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Post by Chris Clement on Nov 19, 2015 1:19:12 GMT -6
Doing tons of breakdowns helped me a lot. There are probably games in your team's Hudl that never got broken down because you never played that team, so go through and do them. Personnel group, formation, backseat, play, receiver patterns, protection, do a few thousand plays and you'll see patterns much faster.
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Post by wolfden12 on Nov 19, 2015 6:18:47 GMT -6
Give college coaches a call and ask if you can come in and watch some film. Ask them what they look for and utilize that resource
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Post by coachfloyd on Nov 19, 2015 6:39:37 GMT -6
I came into a situation this year where a lot of stuff had been broken down before I got here. But what I found was that almost all of it was generic information. For example, it might say 4-2 but it told you nothing about how they aligned to trips. So the first thing I did was go back and put in every offensive formation and then I sort it by offensive formation to see how they align to all the formations theyve seen. Then I can tell what their defensive philosophy is and it will give me a better idea on how they align to something we do that nobody else does.
Then I draw those up and just look at them until I start to see any adjustments we need to make and what plays might be best.
I rarely try to make decisions based on their personnel. Ive been burned too many times thinking someone was awful only for them to do something to beat me in a game. One such guys highlight video can still be found on youtube.
I can tell you the worst thing I have witnessed in all my years coaching, and it happens almost every year, is defensive coaches trying to draw up scout cards according to how they saw something blocked on film against an entirely different defense. Its like they assume they invented the play when in reality its just power, counter, or whatever. 99% of the time you can easily predict how something will be blocked. I always make a joke when we screw up something that next week some DC somewhere will be drawing that up.
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Post by rwb32497 on Nov 19, 2015 7:03:30 GMT -6
With the job I have in our school I am able to watch film for a long period of time each day. I am usually watching something just about every class period. I watch for a lot of different stuff but I kind of have a routine that allows for me to focus on something specific for part of that day. Typical film study for me goes as follows Saturday and sunday put info into Hudl. Sunday meeting we watch as a defensive unit. We usually watch the most recent game as a staff and share general opinions about the opponent. During that we look for formations, 3 best runs, and 3 best passes. We as a def. unit also look for their playmakers best lineman etc. We make our Hudl reports for tendencies and that's about it. Monday I spend watching all doubles plays and then all trips plays. I look for any kind of key based on alignments of WR, RB's and lineman. I then watch all special teams play and find out where we want to block kicks, return kicks, and what fake we want in for the week. Tuesday I kind of repeat this process and get a plan for their crazy formations or goal line/short yardage set. Wed I take some time to watch the other teams defense to see if I notice any details I could maybe give the offense. I also spend a lot more time on special teams film on Wed as we finalize our special teams plan during wed practice. By Thursday I have watched so much film that I have a really good idea what they are doing and what I want to call to certain formations, downs, and distances. I also take some time to watch last years game vs the opponent. During planning I run final reports and make my play call sheet that we will use during Thursday's walk thru. Friday I watch the JV game to see if there is anything I take away from it. I also get 1 hr of film with the kids on tues, wed, thurs, and Fri.
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Post by ItalianStallion on Nov 19, 2015 11:26:35 GMT -6
One thing we look for, defensively, and another coach told us this about our QB so we started watching others, but when opposing team is in shotgun, we watch the QB's feet pre-snap to see what kind of tell we can get. A lot of times QB will stagger in order to get a push for a pass drop. That is until you get to round one of playoffs and you have 7 game films on the other QB and 99% of your pre-snap feet reads are spot on, so you know run or pass is coming. Then for some reason for your game he decides to change his feet to very narrow and close together EVERY play so there is no tell. Sometimes film can help you, other times it can just piss you off.
We will continue to monitor feet, but what we like to look for tendency wise (mostly mentioned already): Favorite formation Favorite play Run to/away from wing/h-back Run to/away from TE With/away from motion Running back alignment. Guards showing pull.
These are things I'll specifically look for when breaking down film. If anything sticks out we'll pass on to players, a lot of times we keep to coaching staff then see how plays out in first part of game so that players aren't guessing about what's coming and they're doing their job.
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Post by fbs on Nov 19, 2015 11:59:38 GMT -6
As an OL coach I have a certain criteria I look for, and as an OC there's a lot of others. I'll just go at it from an OL perspective, as that's my current gig.
1. Personnel- Who starts? Who are the primary backups for each position? Best overall DL, LB and DB. Are they 2 way players? Most trap-able DL? Best pass rusher? Do they flip their DL?
2. Scheme- possible fronts? how often are they in each front? what triggers blitzes? do they show their blitz? What are their keys/reads? How are they trying to stop specific schemes? How do their DE's and LB's react to pulling G's? Pulling T's? Are there gap exchanges, and why? Alignment to TE? Alignment to wing? Alignment to Ace? Ace over? Is a TE even beneficial that week? Can they be influenced? How can we best run the power?
3. What have other people done to them that hurt them that is similar to what we do?
I think this is a pretty good starting point for how I break it down, although it is very abbreviated. Hope this helps.
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Post by gibbs72 on Nov 19, 2015 13:16:26 GMT -6
Based on the type of offense we are going to see, I will watch specific positions to see how they choose to block various fronts. For example, in the playoffs we are playing a wishbone option/ power team. I focus on each play to see how the TE and the playside WB block. I know how the wishbone offense operates, so I can break down what they try to do by those positions. I spend a lot of clinic time/ offseason discussions with offensive coaches from different offenses to let me in on the key positions for each so I know who to focus on during film.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 19, 2015 17:47:31 GMT -6
I'm a young coach seeking some advice on film study. When watching film, what specifics do you guys look for when watching the opponent's offense/defense? I would like to improve as a coach and would appreciate any input/advice on how you guys study film on an opponent. Thanks Learn a language that you are comfy with and watch as much football as you can.
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Post by gibbs72 on Nov 20, 2015 8:15:43 GMT -6
This is a great post! Learn terminology for naming formations, positions, backfield alignments, etc and use this new language when you analyze and break down film.
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