Zierlein Study

It's funny how someone needed to do a study to figure that out at the NFL level huh?
The HS coaches seem, for the most part, to have the thing figured out huh?

It has been my experience in over 40 years of coaching on all 3 levels that MORE people have too many plays rather than not enough.

I find HS coaches most guilty of adding "genius plays" (special plays put in week by week). As Tom Moore of the Colts said - when asked if he was putting in "new & special" plays for the Super Bowl: "HELL NO - IF THEY WERE THAT GOOD, I WOULD HAVE PUT THEM IN DURING AUGUST"!!!!!!!

ADDED 3/24/07):

This is from the great HOF Pro Coach - Paul Brown, & his disciple - HOF College Coach - Ara Parseghian (great ND coach):

THERE ARE 4 PARTS TO A FOOTBALL PROGRAM. LISTED IN ORDER OF IMPORTANCE THEY ARE:

A) MORALE (CONTROLS THE “WHO”, “HOW”, & “WHAT”)

B) PERSONNEL (“WHO”)

C) TECHNIQUE (“HOW”)

D) STRATEGY (“WHAT”)

*IF YOU HAVE A & B, C & D WILL COME EASY!

Note that X's & O's come LAST! In my over 40 years of coaching on all 3 levels, I have found the above to be absolutely true! To beat a team with superior morale, & superior talent, would imply that someone had "MAGIC" X's & O's" - & we all know that there ain't NO SUCH ANIMAL. If it were - everybody in America would use the system, and HALF of the would lose each week (so it would be a .500 offense at best).


Remember also what the following fabulous coaches had to say:

1. Bear Bryant - "At Bama - we operate on the "KISS" principle". KISS means: "KEEP IT SIMPLE, STUPID".

2. COLTS WR COACH - Clyde Christensen - in a great lecture on the Colts Pass Offense (this past weekend at UNC) says that the Colts stress a VERY LIMITED amount of plays - their motto is that "LESS IS BETTER"!

3. Bud Wilkinson (winner of 47 straight games & 3-4 National Championships at Oklahoma):

A) "The best coach is the one who makes the fewest mistakes; the one who does the best teaching job; the one who is the best organizer. Writing the X’s & O’s is not the most important thing. There are 22 variables in a football game that must be considered".

B) ERRORS IN TACTICS AND STRATEGY:
TACTICS AND VICTORY. You get very few victories on tactics. Victories come if you can out block, out tackle, out fundamental your opponent. “Intimidate them physically”! Outmaneuver – no. Defeat – yes.

C) TOO MANY PLAYS AND DEFENSES. Subtract the number of different plays used in the game from the total number of plays you practiced. If this number is too large you better get rid of some plays. It is difficult enough to know when to run off- tackle, but if you have four ways to run off-tackle, you will never get the right play. Beauty of the Oklahoma Split-T was it’s very limited number of plays (4-5 runs at MOST).

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Bill Mountjoy