Author Archives: CoachFisher

Finding Your Coaching Dream Job with Daron Roberts

In the summer of 2006, author Daron K. Roberts was just one year away from earning a law degree from his dream school: Harvard. But that summer, in the throes of a clerkship at a Texas law firm, Roberts had a revelation—he wanted something different. Very different. Daron Roberts wanted to be an NFL football coach.

After making the transition from Harvard Law student to NFL newbie, Roberts worked as a coach for the Kansas City Chiefs, Detroit Lions, West Virginia Mountaineers, and the Cleveland Browns. But he’s not forgotten how hard it was to take that first step in a new direction. In Call an Audible, Roberts shares his inspiring journey and reveals his playbook to help guide your next transition.

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In-Game Coaching Assignments

Q1. How many coaches are on your staff?
Q2. How do you divide up pre-game responsibilities? (Stretch, cameras, headsets, etc.)
Q3. During the game, what are the responsibilities of coaches on the field?
Q4. What are the responsibilities for coaches in the booth?
Q5. Who talks to the offense and defense when they’re on the sideline?
Q6. How do you handle organizing special teams during the game?
Q7. How is your staff divided for sub-varsity game duties?

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Evaluating Your Coaching

Q1. What are you most pleased with about the job you did coaching your position/team last season?
Q2. What did you dislike about your coaching job from this season?
Q3. What did your coaching staff do that helped the team the most?
Q4. How did the steps you took last spring and summer help you become a better coach this fall?
Q5. What is one area in your professional development you’d like to specifically address this off-season?
Q6. What will you do in the off-season to improve your coaching?
Q7. If you were the head coach of your program, what changes would you make?

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Evaluating Your Defense

Q1. What did you find to be the most important part of your defensive prep this season?
Q2. What were your most successful stunts/blitzes against the run?
Q3. What formations gave you the most trouble in being to defend the run or the pass?
Q4. What reports on your video system were most helpful to you this season?
Q5. What coverages did you find most successful against 3X1? Empty?
Q6. How did you prepare for fast tempo offenses?
Q7. How will you use the off-season and summer to improve upon your defense next season?

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Evaluating Your Passing Game

Q1. What concepts were you most successful with this year and against what coverages?
Q2. How did your pass protection dictate what you could do with your passing game?
Q3. What concepts and coverages did you struggle with this season?
Q4. How many short yardage concepts do you employ/trust?
Q5. When breaking down your opponents, what did you look for in the coverage?
Q6. How do your athletes impact what you do with your passsing game?
Q7. What will be your focus this spring and summer to improve your passing game?

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Evaluating Your Run Game

Q1. What were your most effective run plays this season?
Q2. Why was this play succeful for your team?
Q3. What were your least effective run plays this season?
Q4. Why was your team unsuccesful running this play?
Q5. Do you have runs that you prefer vs odd fronts and even fronts?
Q6. How many of your run schemes have RPOs associated with them?
Q7. What are you goals for improving your run game this spring and next fall?

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Beginning Off-Season

Q1. When your season is officially over, how soon after do you begin off-season?
Q2. Do you begin off-season with strength tests for a baseline, or do you jump right in?
Q3. How much in-season lifting and conditioning do you do, and does it help begin off-season?
Q4. Describe the in-season lifiting and conditioning you perform.
Q5. How do you plan the first phase of your off-season?
Q6. How do you group your athletes in the first phase?
Q7. What is the environment created by the coaches and the workouts during the first phase?

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A Championship Environment

Q1: What characteristics define a championship environment?
Q2: How do you build these characteristics into your program?
Q3: Will you visit with champion programs to learn from their environment?
Q4:If your team falls short of the goal, what changes do you look to make in your program?
Q5: Is it easier to change the mentality of the team/players or the environment in which they work?
Q6: What does your program do already that is characteristic of a championship program?
Q7: When you think of championship programs, college or HS, what programs come to mind?

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2 Way Players or 2 Platooning Your Team

How do you determine whether you use 2 way players or 2 platoon your team?
How do you handle your sub-varsity teams?
What are the benefits of players playing 1 side of the ball vs both sides?
What are the cons of players playing 1 side of the ball vs both sides?
Are there small school coaches that 2 platoon?
Have you ever gone from 2 Way players 1 season to 2 platoon the next? (or vice versa) Why?
If you don’t 2 platoon your players, how often will you share your best athletes?

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The Hurt Makes It Great

As our season ended earlier than we wanted my mind filled with memories of everything this team accomplished this season. I thought back to the games we won, the practices we had, and my time with the kids. I looked around at the excitement on display by the team that won, and the dejection on…

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