Gun Install- first time

Have your centers start learning shot gun snaps now. They should practice with the qb's a couple days a week right up to fall camp starting. Our centers take snaps everyday they lift at the end of their workout. Make sure they are taking a pass set or run blocking step with each snap.

Backfield mesh drill is also another area we like to work quite often. Teaching the qb to read the DE and the running back or slot receiver getting into pitch relationship.

Best of luck with the gun offense, it is fun and exciting and the kids will love it.

JD

We try and put or best OL athlete at center and yes, they must be smart.

JD

The center snap - very important as everyone has already said.

For the run game we install the zone first. Our drill progression starts there. Even our pass protection begins with those concepts - slide protection. The zone concepts also apply to the backside of other plays, we run different backfield actions behind the zone schemes, etc.

Our installation is based on the line schemes, not the backfield. We have five packages - the zones, the options, the trap/pulls, power/counters, and then the others (draws, screens, playaction, etc.). Then of course we're working in our pass pro with four different packages - quick game, 5 man (big on big), 6 man (slide protection), sprint out. We don't install everything out of each run package. We just get the base plays in order.

The installation schedule actually goes through the year on an as needed basis. We do try to move quickly and don't try and get to a "mastery learning level" prior to installing something new. I did change to this philosophy in recent years and it seems to work better. Obviously, we're also putting different fronts up on a continuous basis.

We also stopped practicing against ourselves since we run a 30 stack on defense and a spread gun on offense (we don't see many teams like ourselves). We used to practice against ourselves at the start, in order to get the reps on both sides - trying to utilize the time. But now, we start with scout cards during team on the first day - on both sides of the ball. Once we have some base stuff in (after a couple of days), we take some of our upcoming opponents (the tough ones) and play one of them each day in practice - practice for their schemes in individual and group, use those scout cards in team ... next day another opponent, and so on. It gives the kids a theme and introduces the different types of offenses and defenses we'll see during the year.