Biggest Coaching Pet Peeves

B.A.R.

B.A.R.

CTG Partner
Staff member
Fire away!



I'll get the ball rolling...

Punting the ball in the 4th when down a significant amount of points. I'll use the current game. Miami is down 25 points. Yes, it is 4th and 18 but throw a bomb and get an interference call. Stranger things have happened. Punting and letting 2-3 mins min go off the clock is ridiculous. You might as well allow coaches to just end the game. There is literally no reason to punt there. You better be down one score and one score only or leading to punt there.

You. Play. To. Win. The. Game.

Go have fun! Try and win. Why not? A loss is a loss no matter the score.

This isn't new to me, we see it every week in both college and professional and it drives me nuts.




***I have plenty more but will let everyone get in on the action first***
 
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Attempting long ass field goals from midfield that have no chance of going through.

They usually wind up getting blocked. Best case scenario you give the other team great field position.

Drives me up the wall.
 
Going for one when trailing by 2, I don't care if it's the first half -- you're taunting the football gods if you presume you'll score again. And statistically, it's the right move to go for the tie.
 
B.A.R. said:
Fire away!



I'll get the ball rolling...

Punting the ball in the 4th when down a significant amount of points. I'll use the current game. Miami is down 25 points. Yes, it is 4th and 18 but throw a bomb and get an interference call. Stranger things have happened. Punting and letting 2-3 mins min go off the clock is ridiculous. You might as well allow coaches to just end the game. There is literally no reason to punt there. You better be down one score and one score only or leading to punt there.

You. Play. To. Win. The. Game.

Go have fun! Try and win. Why not? A loss is a loss no matter the score.
Click to expand...
I don't mind that at all. Not all punt returners have the coaching or discipline to just let the ball bounce. You could get a muff. Or roughing the kicker. Or a defensive hold pre-kick. Or maybe Wisco fumbles the next play. You never know. Miami converting 4th-and-18 and then finishing the drive doesn't seem much more likely than one of those other fluke plays leading to a score.

And I think it's fine to show some dignity and lose with grace. Do you act that way in the rest of your life?
 
M.W. said:
I don't mind that at all. Not all punt returners have the coaching or discipline to just let the ball bounce. You could get a muff. Or roughing the kicker. Or a defensive hold pre-kick. Or maybe Wisco fumbles the next play. You never know. Miami converting 4th-and-18 and then finishing the drive doesn't seem much more likely than one of those other fluke plays leading to a score.

And I think it's fine to show some dignity and lose with grace. Do you act that way in the rest of your life?
Click to expand...

I was using that as an example.

I see plenty of coaches do the same thing down 17 with 6 minutes left and having 4th and 1.

I, as a coach, want to give my players a chance to win the game. What I am showing by that is I gave up. That is a terrible lesson to instill. It makes the players think their coach doesn't believe in them 'as a team'. They have waved the white flag. If you were out there passing the ball on that series you were trying to move the sticks, so why give up now?

And, to go to the bolded... you can show dignity and grace by playing the whole game as well. If I am playing a simple card game with friends and have no chance, I still play it out... you know why? It is the right thing to do.

Until something is 'officially' over, it isn't over, now is it?

Where is the footage of the Texas High School game from the mid-nineties?
 
Lining up in shotgun from the 1 yard line. Drives me fucking crazy and my club does it all the time.
 
Running on 1st down or 2nd and 10

Not running on 2nd and very short

Running ever out of jumbo instead of spread packages

Calling fade routes over actual offense

Not running enough play action

Ever kicking a field goal less than 22 yards unless it’s to win the game

Waiting to go for 2 until later when you already can find out

That’s some of them
 
Challenging anything less than a 25 yard swing before the 2nd half

Calling timeout on 3rd and long to avoid 3rd and a little longer when you’re in your own territory

Wasting a timeout almost every time you try to get defenses to jump on a 4th and short
 
QBs...hey dildos...when you're scrambling out of the pocket and near the sideline behind the line of scrimmage...THROW THE FUCKING BALL AWAY INSTEAD OF STEPPING OUT OF BOUNDS FOR A LOSS OF YARDAGE. Makes no sense why QBs don't do this. Hell, on pitch plays or sweeps when RBs get the ball, they should do it too if the pursuit isn't immediately in their face. Not intentionally grounding if a passer is out of the pocket. Throw the ball away if you can you dopes.

Clock management. This is insane to me. How in the hell can some great coaching minds (at all levels) have zero idea what to do with timeouts? All you need to do is get a 13-year-old kid that plays 23 hours of Madden a day...and hire him as your time management coach. I'm willing to bet a year's salary that the teenager makes a higher percentage of correct calls than some of these dingleberries working 115 hour work weeks to run a slow developing running play 6 yards behind the QB on 4th and an inch...

...which leads me to my next point. Hey Teste Tickler HC's...if its 4th and you're a pubic hair away from getting the first down...don't run a slow-developing running play (SDRPs) 6 yards backwards to get the first down. Holy fuck that's idiotic. AND DUDES WHO KNOW ANALYTICS STILL FUCK THIS UP! DOUGGIE P IN PHILLY LOVES HIM SOME SDRPs ON 4TH AND A HALF A TOOTH LENGTH. JFC BRO, MOVE FORWARD FOR FUCKS SAKE.

JUMBO PACKAGES. OMFG THIS DRIVES ME MAD. If it is 4th and half of a teste to go to get the 1st down. There are 11 guys on offense and 11 guys on defense. Bro...spread the fucking field to run. why would you make the defenses job easier and put all 11 guys in a tight formation with less room to cover instead of spreading at least 3 WR out so those guys can't be in the box? 8 on 8 (going 3 wide) is a million times easier to get than 11 on 11 when the D clearly sees what is coming.

Next we have what I call the Patriots rules...God I hate them but they do some shit that is just smart as fuck.

How many times have you seen TB12 on 3rd or 4th and short just look at the defense and push between the A-gaps he clearly sees wide open. Fuck the play call...keep the drive going. My God this isn't rocket science. If the D is giving you a look where its 99.9% you get the first down...TAKE IT. NE does this all the time and TB12 is the best at it.

Another Pats rule...OMG...TB12 and ARod do this ALL THE TIME...THROW THE BALL ALL THE WAY DOWN THE FIELD ON AN OFFSIDE PENALTY. YOU LITERALLY HAVE ZERO TO LOSE....NOT A DAMN THING. YOU COULD DRAW A DPI CALL OR A QB HIT CALL OR A BIGGER THAN 5 FREE YARD PENALTY. MY GOD, JUST GO FOR THE JUGULAR YOU DUMMIES.

Another Pats rule...and how other teams don't do this is beyond me...if you run a play...AND IT FUCKING WORKS. RUN TO THE LINE OF SCRIMMAGE AND LITERALLY RUN THE SAME FUCKING PLAY AGAIN. I'VE SEEN NE DO THIS ON RED ZONE DRIVES FOR YEARS. WHY? BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT TRYING TO OUTTHINK THEMSELVES. OMFG, IT IS MADDENING TO ME HOW OTHER TEAMS DON'T DO THE SAME DAMN THING.

Onside kicks...this one makes me crazy too...if you're down one score after scoring and trailing in the game. In a sport where 99% of the rules are based upon the offense...and your defense sucks...WHY IN THE HOLY FUCK WOULD KICK DEEP AND TRY TO PLAY DEFENSE TO STOP THEM WHEN YOUR TEAM HAS ALREADY GIVEN UP 45 POINTS? If it's a 17-14 game its one thing...but everything in the sport is based upon the offense...all of the rules. Never kick deep and pray on your D. By going for an onside kick (especially if it's under a 4/5 point game), you give yourself 2 opportunities to win.....first by recovering the onside kick and second by then hoping to hold to an FG try. Don't you want to give yourself 2 opportunities to win instead of one? And you are hoping for the same thing in both scenarios...a defensive stop anyway!

And onside kicks...god man...this isn't splitting the atom once again. All the safety rules have eliminated the amount of yardage you can run pre-kick and 99% of schmuck HCs run these kick to one side onside kicks...hey dingleberries....run a tight formation where everyone is close to the kicker....have your kicker dribble the ball and then hit the living fuck out of the other team under pressure and pray to recover the scramble. Significantly smarter than trying that "hope the ball pops in the air" crap everybody does.

And finally (for now)...how about what Cal did the other night? If you didn't see it, they had on a kickoff a player run out of bounds and then come in to be the first to touch the ball. Since the player was considered OOB, the ball went to to the 40 where they started their drive. Brilliant coaching. WHY NOT HAVE 3 OR 4 GUYS RUN OOB on purpose then dash back into the field of play hoping they'll be the first to touch the ball? That's a guaranteed start at the 40 which is enormous.

That's all I've got for now, but I'm sure I'll have more that pop into my head. Holy crap head coaches are dumbfucks.
 
Does the RB or WR who tries to throw the ball off a gadget play like a reverse, ever look before he throws? Seems like he just closes his eyes and chucks it. Most every time the intended target is double covered.

Calling timeout to avoid a 5 yard delay of game when you aren't in fg range.
 
B.A.R. said:
Good to see people coming to the dark side with me on 2 pt conversion after all these years. I used to get attacked for that during in-games years back.
Click to expand...
we should do away with kicking all together, it's a sign of failure.
cross the rubicon
many leaders have burnt their ships to inspire "conquer or die"
 
Not taking timeouts on defense when other team is inside 10 near the end of the half or waiting too long to take them.

Calling a reverse or trick play when your team is dominating without the gimmicks (see Vanderbilt yesterday on drive where they had to settle for FG to tie game after they lost 10 yards on first down on reverse)
 
Okay, my turn....Miss State going into halftime today with the ball on the 50...clock is running down, 4th down and long......30 29, 28, 27...Ferentz is letting it die..Moorhead has one timeout left. What to do...., well??? Maybe kill the clock at 2 seconds and throw it in the end zone, right? What's to lose, maybe get a TD going into halftime?

Nah, just let the clock run out and we continue our downturn from the 2Q.

What a fucking joke. Is there no one on that staff that could have gotten into this guy's ear? Holy shit. Just let a free play go.
 
detroit187 said:
Not taking timeouts on defense when other team is inside 10 near the end of the half or waiting too long to take them.

Calling a reverse or trick play when your team is dominating without the gimmicks (see Vanderbilt yesterday on drive where they had to settle for FG to tie game after they lost 10 yards on first down on reverse)
Click to expand...

See bold: Franklin did this (not inside 10 but around 20 yd line with 3 timeouts) for Kentucky today at the end of the half when he was on offense with 64 seconds left......bahahaha
 
Scarf hit on one - when goal to goal and they bring in the jumbo package and all 22 players within 5 yards of each other. Keep the field spread.

Punt returns. One, what happened to "put your feet on the 10 and don't move back to field the ball" rule - I saw a kid field a punt on the goal line recently. Happens all the time now. Two, why not have 2 returners back to field a punt - a short guy and long guy about 15 yards apart - how many times do you see a short punt that rolls another 30 fucking yards costing team field position. Of course, you'd have to have rules for the short guy (i.e. don't move back to field anything, etc.) and based on my first comment, not sure anyone can understand that simple rule anymore.

I didn't know name of Miss St coach. but I guess it's Moorhead - should be bonehead. But 4th and inches at his own 35 with 4 1/2 minutes left in the game and they punted. That's simply unbelievable. Feel sorry for their fans - can't imagine kids are going to want to go play for a guy like that. He's no Mullen, that's for sure.
 
Burning a time out on 4th and short, especially when after the time out, the coach sends out the punt or fg unit, or when the team comes out of time out and gets a delay of game, or some other pre-snap infraction.

Coaches should already know, and by extension, the offensive players should know, what they are going to do if they don't pick up the first down on third down.

Have a fucking plan for 4th and short god's sake. Is that too much to ask?
 
A lot of you have touched on the 4th down stuff and the 2 pt conversion stuff. There are still coaches who are living in 1993 with that stuff.

@scarf31 loved your rant but for years I was with u on the "if a runner is heading out of bounds behind the LOS just throw the ball" wagon, but someone correctly pointed out to me that there is almost definitely an illegal blocker down field if the ball is thrown

-I hate when teams run the ball instead of kneeling to run out the clock at the end of a half. Just kneel and don't take any chance of a fumble!

-on a play where the game is on the line and you need to convert, whatever play you call should have more than one option. No fades (fades are the worst play ever), no runs directly up the middle. unless its 4th and 1 or less and in that case, qb sneak every time

-prevent defense. always see teams get back into games because of it. A team is up 21-3 at the half and next thing you know their defense is playing 10 yards off and the offense is going run-run-pass and getting 3 and outs. When what you are doing is working, don't change!
 
D-Woww said:
A lot of you have touched on the 4th down stuff and the 2 pt conversion stuff. There are still coaches who are living in 1993 with that stuff.

@scarf31 loved your rant but for years I was with u on the "if a runner is heading out of bounds behind the LOS just throw the ball" wagon, but someone correctly pointed out to me that there is almost definitely an illegal blocker down field if the ball is thrown

-I hate when teams run the ball instead of kneeling to run out the clock at the end of a half. Just kneel and don't take any chance of a fumble!

-on a play where the game is on the line and you need to convert, whatever play you call should have more than one option. No fades (fades are the worst play ever), no runs directly up the middle. unless its 4th and 1 or less and in that case, qb sneak every time

-prevent defense. always see teams get back into games because of it. A team is up 21-3 at the half and next thing you know their defense is playing 10 yards off and the offense is going run-run-pass and getting 3 and outs. When what you are doing is working, don't change!
Click to expand...

Good point, Dan about the illegal blocker down the field if the ball is thrown...but can you recall ever seeing that call when the QB does it? I don't. My point is that the dipshit refs who are too old and slow anyway are focused on the ball carrier and are going to miss that call now when the QB does it (and throws the ball away). You never see it.
 
scarf31 said:
Good point, Dan about the illegal blocker down the field if the ball is thrown...but can you recall ever seeing that call when the QB does it? I don't. My point is that the dipshit refs who are too old and slow anyway are focused on the ball carrier and are going to miss that call now when the QB does it (and throws the ball away). You never see it.
Click to expand...
Only the player who takes the snap is allowed to take advantage of the legal intentional grounding rule that you're talking about, so there's your explanation.
 
The top mistake college coaches make is to coach with a risk adverse attitude.

Ex- penn state down 6 late 4 mins left. Pen state 4 th and 7 from the 13 yard line of Kentucky.

Janes Franklin decision? Ok let’s not risk it here and kick the sure fgoal and try to get the ball back again to tie.

This is a baby boomer risk adverse attitude. Penn state athletic director should be fired ASAP. Franklin isn’t a winner. He coaches with a losing attitude.

Let’s not risk it. Let’s play safe and lose.
 
Punting late in games and not trying to win.

Todd Bowles Jeff Fisher style. John fox was the worst. Matt Patricia.

Seems to be that the defensive coaches are not suited for this era of football. They are so eager to punt the ball always. When it’s obvious you need to go for it.
 
4 th and inches. Instead of a sneak qb why not just give it to your running back 5 yards behind line of scrimmage and make it 4th and 6 now
 
Urban Meyer running same stupid plays and never adjusting.

If his players are superior meaning faster and just better he wins. Otherwise he stinks as a coach with regular talent.
Ex- every national championship title team had basically a nfl all star team .

Obviously Ezekiel Elliot Joey Bosa von bell Eli Apple Derron Lee Noah pass rusher guy Taylor decker Michael Thomas etc.

If not Meyer has no answer at all to adjust
 
Frank Costanza said:
Yeah, x100. Just get under center. Have 2 big dudes lined up behind for the push / insurance.
Click to expand...

Exactly it’s much higher percentage than pitching the ball back to your running back 5 yards behind the line.

The quick sneak is like a rugby scrum. Very hard for the defense to stop a sneak. Especially when it’s inches.

I understand if it’s 4 th and 2 or 1.5 yards but anything less than a yard should be sneak.
 
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