Special teams

The kick-off in youth football can be a make it or break it special team. If you are not prepared for kick-off coverage, or receiving you can be in big trouble. Once again, the younger the players are the more simple you need to keep special teams.

Scouting becomes especially important, as you will want to see alignments and tendencies of your opponents. Many teams will only kick-off to a certain area or onside kick after a score, and by scouting the opponent, you will have an advantage.

The kick-off in youth football should be as boring an uneventful as possible. I truly live by making this special team as un-special as possible. You need to make sure not to kick the ball out of bounds (penalty), but also not to kick it to any dangerous return man. To solve this issue, I use a squib kick. I will turn the tee upside down, or not even use a tee, and teach the kick to boot the ball right in the middle. We try to get a good rotation, and aim for the second row of players. I do everything in my power to avoid a return, and many times this method gives the ball a strange bounce giving us an opportunity for the recovery.

The kick-off receiving team must be good at falling on the ball. We will review the scouting report for any trends, which include

• Who the kicker is
• Is the kick long or short
• Is the kick left or right
• Onside kick frequency

The main objective is to not turn the ball over. I gave up the dream of kick-off returns for touchdowns many years ago.

When coaching youth football special teams, make sure that the team understands the importance of not being a hero, and the goal is to not turn the ball over.

The punt team on your youth football special teams can be very important if used in the correct manner. Youth football punt team is very similar to the upper levels. The primary objective when punting is to gain an advantage from your current field position.

If you are deep in your end of the field, your goal is to get your youth football defense some breathing room. You want to make sure the kick gets as far as possible, but not returnable. You do not want to risk a punt return for a score.

If you are around mid-field, your goal is to get the kick as close to the end zone as possible. You need to make sure the kick does not go into the end zone for a touch back. I work on having the punter kicking the ball out of bounds.

Make sure you know the rules for your league. The younger ages in our league get a free snap, followed by a free punt, but as soon as the ball is kicked, the play becomes live. There is no rush or live line play until the ball is kicked. This does present a challenge, as you need to teach the players to move as soon as the ball is kicked. All players must stay in there lanes and tackle the return man. This is much easier said than done, especially at the younger levels.

Youth football punting has its rewards as long as you understand the rules, and make sure not to give up the big play.

Please make sure that you know all of the rules for the age level you will be coaching. Youth football special teams will have many different rules, so you must have a complete understanding. I will cover all areas of the youth special teams, but this chapter will focus on the PAT, or point after touchdown.

In the higher levels of football, high school and above, the normal scoring is you get one point for a kicked extra point, and two points for a pass or run in from the 2 ½ yard line. At these levels, the defense is live and tries to stop the offense or block the kick.

Usually, the lower levels of youth football, meaning under high school, the scoring of the PAT is the exact opposite. If you kick the PAT, you get two points, while a run or pass is worth one point. I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to kick the PAT at all levels. The younger the players are the more valuable the extra point becomes. If you can kick the PAT with a seven and eight-year old team, you will have a great advantage over your opponents. If you have a two score lead over your opponent, that is a very large lead to overcome. Making it even better is the fact that at the very young ages, the defense is usually not live. The defense usually just stands there waving their arms while you can take all the time you need to kick the ball.

When it comes to youth football, special teams make sure you have a complete understanding of all the rules. It also important to keep a copy of the rules close by, because many times the officials are not up to speed on the rules, and if you have the rulebook with you, it will save your case.

I learned many years ago not to worry about making big plays on special teams. I learned it was more important to not give up a big play, or worse a turnover on your youth special teams. This is true no matter which age level you are coaching.

I am proud to say in over 20 years of coaching youth football; I have never had a kick off run back for a touchdown. On the other side, I have never returned a kick off for a touchdown. Now that is what I call steady and consistent.

Punting has been another story. My youth special teams have had mixed results over the years. I have noticed that my better teams have been extremely successful in the punting game, while my not so successful teams have struggled.

My biggest fear in Youth Special Teams is on the receiving teams for both kick off and punting. I could care less about the return; just do not turn the ball over. Turnovers on the receiving teams are definite game changers, and not for the good.

I keep the same goal every year, and that is to make special teams as uneventful as possible!