The Miami Wildcat Formation in Youth Football

The Miami Wildcat Formation in Youth Football

read more about agen bola, bandar bola terbesar, situs bola terbesar, agen judi terpercaya, agen bola piala dunia

Any readers of my previous articles know how I feel about coaches using offensive systems, or playbooks too complicated for little kids. I believe it is the number one mistake made by youth football coaches today.

So what is one supposed to do as he sits on the couch on a Sunday afternoon and gazes blankly into the TV as he hears the announcers go on and on about this new Wildcat Offense? Most yahoos watch a play or two, jot what they can remember from the boob tube, and head on out to the field to teach the "unstoppable" system to their 8 year old players.

There are all kinds of problems with the above scenario, yet sadly it is a common occurrence across this great country of ours. Let's keep this post Wildcat specific and I'll explain the way I handle it.

First a few misconceptions about the "wildcat", so we can begin on the right foot. The "new breed" formation is a version of the old single wing formation, used by Glen "Pop" Warner in 1895 at the university of Georgia. The formation has evolved, but the basic premise has remained the same.

First off, there is no quarterback and the ball is snapped directly from the center to the running back of choice. Depending on the version of the single wing you are using, there can be anywhere from one to three running backs available for the snap.

The second common feature is the power running game is taught by bringing more blockers to the area where the ball carrier is attempting to run to. This is most commonly achieved by pulling lineman, double team blocking or using an unbalanced formation. Many times, two or three of the above mentioned will be used at the same time.

Lastly, there is a great deal of manipulation done with the ball, making it very hard for the defense to know who has the ball, until it is too late. It is common to watch videos on youtube where the entire defense goes after one ball carrier and the actual ball carrier is running free for a touchdown.

I use the same philosophy that has given me great success over the years, and make sure I modify any play, system or formation for the AGE and SKILL level of the players I'm coaching during the current season. I have a "tried and trued" set way of teaching blocking, as well as certain blocking schemes that we have used with amazing results over the years.

I couple the basic philosophy of the play and combine one of my blocking schemes and "presto" I have a perfectly designed play I can use at the right level. Of course a play on paper is worthless, so until we test it in practice, and make the appropriate tweaks, I would never consider using it in a game.

In summary, I believe that an offense as "sexy" as the Wildcat can be used at just about all levels of football, but it must be modified first.