Blue and Gold Illustrated

CHALK TALK BRYAN DRISKELL yardage situations, on third down, into the short side of the field, the wide side, in the red zone, etc.? When do they like to bring pressure, and who do they like to emphasize in such calls? Throughout these breakdowns, coaches will look for tells, which are things that a defense might do to give the offense a clue as to what is coming. Are there certain alignments that give away a tendency for certain coverages or pressures? Do specific players line up with certain techniques that give away their intentions? These are very important aspects to look for in the de- fense. Every coach has tendencies, but the better coaches are able to hide them. However, the better offensive coaches are still able to find them. Throughout this analysis, coaches are making notes of ways they can gain an edge. What formations are going to give them a numbers advantage and allow the offense to maximize its best players and plays? What are ways the offense can line up to take advantage of its positive individual matchups? How can the offense protect itself in the matchups where it has a disadvantage? Finally, the staff comes together and hatches a plan. The coach responsible for overseeing everything must create opportunities for each coach to give feedback and take ownership of his du- ties, and how best to go about excelling in those areas. For example, the line coach will have a significant say on the protections and run schemes that will be implemented. Ultimately, the coach in charge of the offense brings the plan all together, and in instances where there isn't a consen- sus he has the final say, but this rarely happens on a cohesive staff. By the time the coaches hit the prac- tice field on Tuesday and Wednesday, hours of meetings have taken place, all of the opponent film has been broken down and the staff will have developed what the game plan will be. This gets built on during the week, but the base offense is installed by Tuesday's practice. Wednesday and Thursday is built around situation specific practice periods, focused on third-down plans, a red-zone approach, short-yardage situations two-minute attacks and more. GAME-DAY ROLES When game day arrives, only one coach ultimately gives the call to who- ever signals in the play, but throughout the game Kelly, Denbrock, Sanford and Hiestand will all have input on what to call. A lot of this discussion happens between each series when the coaches adjust to what the defense is running and how their players are executing. Heading into the game, each coach has a clearly defined job. The best staffs are those whose coaches accept those roles and respect the established hier- archy. If coaches stick to that plan, each will have a significant part in determin- ing what is called, even if there is just one primary play caller. If Kelly calls plays, he will continue to rely heavily on the input of his coaches, who are the ones that put the game plan together, spent the majority of the time breaking down film and are locked into specific aspects of the defense throughout each contest.

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