Getting more reps in practice

Jason Hylland

My approach to practice is to create a fun, exciting environment where players are flying around and working their tails off from start to finish. A lot of times I like to play music in the stadium in order to set the tone. In my coaching experience, players have responded very well to this. Music can be a great tool for practice if utilized correctly. The great part about it is you can also use it as a reward by allowing new players to pick the playlist each day.

The practice plan I constructed is a bit unique in a sense that it’s designed for both junior varsity and varsity players to practice together. The varsity coaches also serve as the JV coaches. The reason I like this plan is every player gets adequate attention and quality coaching. It’s great for teams who don’t have large participation numbers within their programs or for teams that are limited on available coaching stipends. Under this plan, the practice is essentially split into two blocks. In block 1, the varsity will be with their offensive position groups while the JV will be in their defensive position groups. Both teams basically have the same practice and flip somewhere around the middle segments after kickoff. The varsity will be with their defensive coaches during block 2 and the JV will be on offense.

This format is quite flexible and can be effectively utilized to have both groups service each other as well. In certain periods like 7 on 7, linebackers can switch back and forth to run fit while running backs can switch off with inside run. The JV team is essentially the scout team and varsity non-starters can fill in where necessary to maximize the look. The one thing that may be noticeable on the practice plan is there are no conditioning periods. This is because we are a hurry-up no huddle team and we are constantly moving within our segments. We emphasize getting maximum repetitions and the players end up getting enough conditioning done during routes on air and in their defensive pursuit drills.

A coach may want to break his practice schedule down into five minute segments for a few reasons. First, the periods are more concentrated so athletes are more and focused. The shorter periods also keep activity levels up while increasing repetitions. The biggest key to benefitting from short five minute segments is quickly transitioning from drill to drill so time is not wasted.