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AFM Magazine


AFM Subscribers Ask with Pulaski Academy (AR) Head Coach Kevin Kelley

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As AFM reported in April’s cover feature, “Mad Genius”, Coach Kevin Kelley of Pulaski Academy (AR) has an unorthodox approach to the game. His team never returns a punt, they almost never punt themselves, they kick off onsides virtually every time and they usually go for a two-point conversion. For Kelley, the unconventional strategy has worked with a 49-7 record over the last four years and multiple state championships. Many AFM subscribers had questions for Coach Kelley about his unusual philosophy and strategy.

Q. How many different onside kicks do you have for opponents to prepare for and how much time do you spend practicing the different kicks and recovery skills in both pre-season camp and during the season? Brad Burchfield, Head Coach, Bishop Hartley High School (OH).

We have about 12 different onside kicks we use and then various formations and motions that go along with that. That combination gives us a lot of different looks that we feel can give us an advantage almost every time.

Q. We use all four downs on our offense and punted only 12 times last fall. Do you always onside kick and do you use pooch and squib kicks to specific zones? Louis Nightingale, Offensive Coordinator, Perry High School (AZ).

We always do onside kicks of some sort with the lone exception being if the opponent brings all 11 players up (which rarely happens but has happened). Then we kick it deep with the hope of being able to get there before the opponent which I suppose is in itself a form of onside kick.

Q. I have a two-part question about your ‘no punting’ philosophy. 1-Do you keep your personnel on the field on fourth down or do you have hybrid personnel of offensive and defensive players to give a punt personnel look? 2-Is there a distance/field position on fourth down that you will punt? Ron Cook, Defensive Assistant Coach, Independence High School, Charlotte (NC).

We do keep our same personnel. We are not trying to fool anyone. We are going to line up and run our offense to try to get the first down. There are just a few situations that we would punt with those being the time left after completing a first down would not allow us to score. For instance, if there are 15 seconds left in the half and we are on our own 5-yard line, we won’t have enough time to go score even if we convert. The reward is not worth the risk then.

Q. How do you feel about momentum? The problem I’ve seen is if you get it you’re up and if you don’t convert, the other team is up. How do you prepare for the mental state of your athletes when you succeed or fail with your conversions? Bryan Gray, Head Coach, East Hall High School (GA).

Momentum and emotion are a huge part of football. We feel like we can manipulate the momentum in our favor more in a positive way when we do convert a fourth down than momentum that goes against us in a negative way when we do not convert. We mentally prepare our team during the season and during practices for the chance that we won’t make it. Our defensive players are conditioned to go onto the field knowing that they may only have 25 yards to defend. The opposing team’s defense cannot be conditioned in a week to play us. They will be on the field for not only one more down, but 50% of the time they will continue to stay on the field.

Q. As a member of a staff that has embraced the onside kick as a weapon, I am curious as to how you structure your practice time. How do you provide the opportunity for your kicker to practice accuracy of his kicks in combination with the timing of the coverage team? Also, what is the thought process with attempting a field goal? Is there a certain area of the field where a field goal is an option? Paul Horne, Offensive Coordinator, Naples High School (FL).

The kickers do a lot of practice on their own before or after practice. We honestly spend maybe 10 minutes per day working on the kicking game. That extra time everyone else spends working on special teams, we spend on specific situations or team offense or team defense. We do work on the timing by allowing our kickoff team to go full speed against players holding dummies or backing out of the way when the ball is kicked. We have attempted four field goals in the last four years, I believe, and I know that we are 100% on the ones we have attempted. They have all come in only situations at crucial times.

In 2008, in the 5A state championship game, we had a long fourth down and were up 22-0 so the field goal would have put us up three TDs, two two-point conversions, and a field goal. In 2009, we were on the road in the first round of the playoffs and there was 1:38 left in the game and we were up 7 so the field goal put us up 10 (it was only a 22-yard field goal). In 2010, we were in the quarterfinals of the state playoffs and were up 14-0 and there were 2 seconds left so we attempted and made a 34-yard field goal to put us up 17-0. Finally, this year, we were in game 3 and our QB got a cramp on a play on third down. It was fourth and 15 and rather than put in a backup QB, we attempted and made a 42-yard field goal to put us up 10 points, 38-28 with under 8 minutes left in the game. As I answer this question, it is strange that we are 4 for 4 on field goals in the last four years and all four of them were at crucial times and 3 of them were in post season play. That whole thing about special teams being a third of the game doesn’t work with us when you look at the number of special teams plays run. We have kicked four field goals and punted four times in the last four years.

Q. When you first decided not to punt any more, did you get a lot of negative feedback? How long did it take for people to understand the method of your madness? Doug Heslip, USA Instructor – Team USA, Marquette (MI).

When I first decided, I won the coaches and players over first. I really was not worried about anyone else because nothing else affects the outcome of the game so I really did not care to be totally honest. I do encourage the parents not to pollute the minds of their kids in regards to our style of play before every season. Our kids believe in it and I don’t want any negativity in their minds at any point if we do not convert the fourth down. There was some negative media and crowd disapproval early on and actually some applause when we did punt several years ago. It really took several years for our crowd to either believe in it, or simply accept it, which they eventually did. u

Coach Kelley answers additional questions from subscribers at www.AmericanFootballMonthly.com

(continued from the May, 2012 issue of American Football Monthly)

Q. I am very interested in your kickoff strategies. How many different kinds of kicks are used and how difficult are they to teach to your kicker so he can master the proper techniques? Mike Schneider, Special Teams Coordinator, Northmont High School (OH).

We have about 12 different onside kicks. Our kids all know we do them and they really practice them on their own during the spring and summer and then ultimately, we have tryouts the week before our first game. Surprisingly, we have a lot of kids that want the job so competition really improves their performance. Our coaches do not have to spend much time on it.

Q. Once you are actually going to punt, do you have fake punts in your arsenal as well? Do your opponents tend to come after you when you do punt since it doesn’t happen that often? Dirk Moran, Head Coach, the Baldwin School, Puerto Rico.

We have no fake punts. If we are going for it, we are going to run our offense. In our total of four punts over the last four years, only once has anyone put a player back to field the ball as if they could not believe we were actually punting.




Call-outs - 5 minutes 


We have tried various packages to block a field goal attempt. In your years of experience on both the college and NFL level, what are the most important things we can tell our players to maximize their efforts? Bob Stanley, Assistant Coach, Greenville High School (MO). 

This is truly one of the most difficult plays in all of football to coach because kicks are hard to block and players (and coaches) do get discouraged. Here are some coaching points to emphasize in your FG BLK scheme: 

•      It is a 4th down play. You must be sound against a fake.
    Play situational football.
•      Take a sprinters stance, narrow with weight forward. Look in at the ball.
•      Crowd the ball, stay outside. Watch the ball, get off on the snap
    and not the man over you.
•      Stay low, hit on the rise through the offensive lineman.
•      Get your hands up in the line of flight of the kick.
•      Outside rushers lay out for the block spot. See the ball kicked and
    watch    it hit your hands. If there is a mishandled snap, tackle the holder.

    Teaching the field goal block is a challenge. Make it a fun period by ending the session with a “scoop and score” play so that when it happens in your game, the players will look like they have done it before.
 
  Open field tackling has been a problem with our special teams units. What drills would you recommend to improve tackling in space? Steve Van Buren, Assistant Coach, Lakeview high School (OH).
 
    Improving your kicking units’ open field tackling is more involved than just doing drills, although I will list some for you. Improving your units’ tackling also involves improving the quality of kick and the talent covering the kick. Some drills include:

•  Sprint and come to balance. Full speed sprint for 30-40 yards and then break down, widening the base and lowering the center of gravity. Finish the drill with a tag off on the ball carrier.

•  Two on one. Two defenders sprint down on one ball carrier. Have a coach tell the ball carrier when/where to go. Tag off on the ball carrier. This teaches not only the sprint and come to balance concept, but also leverage and pursuit angles.

•  Mirror drill. Start with cones 5 yards apart and a ball carrier and tackler within 5 yards of each other. Tacklers mirror the ball carrier until the ball carrier makes his move to score, and then they close with the ball carrier. The coach can vary the amount of contact desired. The primary coaching point of this drill is to teach the tackler to be in position to tackle the ball carrier.

    Any open field tackling drill that stresses the coming to balance after the sprint down the field, reacting to the ball carrier, leveraging with the rest of the coverage or the sideline and the proper lane discipline will improve your squads’ open field tackling.
 

 

 
 






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