Advanced coaching points for offensive backs.

Every back must understand the design of the play and be ready to adjust and improvise 

Many football coaches are remiss in their practice programs for offensive backs. They are content to focus on the fundamentals of stance, alignment, receiving the ball, and running patterns, and then let the talent take over from there.

Following are some of the helpful coaching phrases and techniques that coaches can employ in their everyday backfield routines.

1 Understand the essentials of every play: the theory behind each play, what it is designed to accomplish, the blocking scheme, and anything else that can help make the play successful.

2 Be ready to "A and I" - adjust and improvise. If a play breaks down while you are carrying the ball, use your athleticism to get what you can out of the play; in short, finish it off. You don't want to be surprised by anything that can defeat you.

3 Make sure of the first downs, and the touchdowns will take care of themselves. By exercising patience and staying within the design of the play, you will gain the most possible yards on every play.

4 The back who gets the ball must make sure to wind up with it. A football attracts crowds and anytime the game is put in your hands, ball-security becomes all-important.

5 Lock the ball into your rib cage (no air), with the index and middle finger around the front end and the elbow wrapped around the rear end. In traffic, roll the ball forward onto your sternum, keeping the forearm just below the ball's midline.

6 Run through, not to, daylight. In short, explode through the "window" (light) rather than focus on just getting there (to daylight).

7 Always use your eyes, especially your peripheral vision. As a ball-carrier, you want to use that good vision to find the hole, set up your cut or fake, and anticipate contact. As a blocker, you want to focus on the correct contact point.

8 Be the hitter, not hittee. A hitter will gain more ground, have a better chance of sliding off the tackle, and be less likely to be injured.

9 Be decisive. Make up your mind to win every confrontation. Aggressiveness puts you in position to succeed. If, for example, the defender pins you to the sideline and you can't cut back, "punch" through him with a bowling-type action swing of your inside arm and a thrust of your hips into him.

10 Always come out the other end. Be gaining yards as you are going down; don't be driven back or try to back through a hole. Spin out only if you have to beat two tacklers side by side in front of you. If you must, deliver a blow with your free arm, spin away from the ball, and maintain contact with the defender until you pass him.

11 Squats are for the weight. room. Any time you allow your feet to "die" (squat down to make a cut), you will allow the defensive players to make up about three steps on you.

12 In the open field, pick one man to work on and then beat him. This will keep you from flattening out (running east and west) and being side-swiped by tackler. Again, vision is the

13 Observe the "one tug" rule. When a prone defender has you by the lower leg, make one tug to free yourself. If you can't shake free, dive forward to the ground, keeping the ball locked in. Staying up will increase your chances of fumbling or taking unnecessary hits from pursuers.

14 Get the point. When a pass is thrown to you, concentrate totally on the point (or tip) to ensure the reception. In other words, make maximum use of your hand-eye coordination.

15 Be a good "outfielder." When running a deep pass route, run on your toes (not heels first) to avoid having the ball "bounce" in your vision.

16 Post up on stop routes. That is, set up like a pivot man in basketball, facing the passer and making yourself "big" - using your body to shield the ball from the defenders and giving the passer a visual target with your hands.

When the ball is in flight, take one step back toward it, extend your hands to catch the ball, and then let the arms give with the catch.

If the ball is thrown below the waist, put your hands underneath the ball and catch it with a scooping action (preventing the ball from touching the ground).