AFM Subscribers Ask: Steve Warren Head Coach Abilene High School

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Last fall, Abilene finished the season 15-0 by beating Katy High School in the Division II 5A Texas State Championship. Winning their first state title in 53 years, Abilene completed the season as the consensus #2 high school team in the country. Before Warren arrived in 1996, Abilene suffered through eight consecutive losing seasons. Entering his 15th season this fall, Warren has an overall 132-63 record which includes 11 straight playoff appearances. Abilene uses a one-back system as its base offense and a 3-4 on defense. Last fall they averaged 44 points per game and gave up only 12 per game.

Q. In order to facilitate a great turnaround, you obviously had to put an emphasis on summer conditioning. Could you tell me your philosophy on workouts during the summer as well as what a typical day would entail? Bryan Gray, Head Coach, East Hall High School (GA).

We have always put a premium on summer conditioning. My entire staff feels like the commitment the players show in the summer directly relates to the success we have in the fall. Our schedule is Monday through Thursday, two hours a day. The two hours is split between the weight room and agility/footwork.

Q. Football requires hours of practice, film study, game prep and conditioning. Some of these items can become rather mundane for young athletes. How do you keep players focused and motivated throughout the long season? Mark Germano, Sports Performance Coordinator, Mettler Athletic (IL).

The typical football coach wants to work hard every single day but I think working smart is a much more productive way to go. Knowing when to back off and keep practice time light is important as well as keeping physical contact to a minimum during the week. Find a way to have fun with the kids each day. It doesn’t have to be high intensity all of the time to get things accomplished.

Q. We’ve finished 3-30 over the last three years. It’s been tough for us to have our athletes buy into any part of the program. We’ve implemented many positives into the program but our players are not buying into it. What would you recommend to turn a program around? Tom Richards, Assistant Coach, West Chester High School (PA).

Fourteen years ago, our program had just gone through a stretch of eight wins over the previous five years. Needless to say, they were at rock bottom as far as wins and losses were concerned. When I took over the program along with some great assistant coaches, we had to change the negative culture that surrounded the team. I think the first and foremost thing that has to happen is the coaches have to instill a trust factor. Without that element, I don’t think good things will happen. As crazy as this sounds, even though you have only won three games, don’t be afraid to raise the level of expectations for your team. Create a winning atmosphere by making a big deal out of any type of success that your players have both on and off the field.

Q. I’m the defensive coordinator at Chopticon High School in Maryland. We also run a 3-4 defense. I would greatly appreciate any help or insight you could share in helping turn our defense into a better, more efficient defense. What are the keys to having a successful 3-4? Brett Johnson, Assistant Coach, Chopticon High School (MD).

In our scheme we put a premium on speed and quickness over size, even in the D-Line. Our outside backers and safeties have to be great tacklers and communicators. Keep it simple, turn them loose and let them play fast.

Q. What are your top two routes to attack a two high defense which is in either cover 2 or cover 4? Brent Eckley, Head Coach, Union High School (MO).

We like to run some type of corner route vs. both of those coverages. We will sprint out or play action with an outside stop route and a corner rout. Some people call that the ‘smash concept.’

Q. How do you adjust your 3-4 defense when you face a power team with either two or three running backs? In my experience, when we use an odd front, we become susceptible to the off-tackle power game. Dan McLean, Head Coach, Detroit Country Day School (MI).

Our safeties are the extra guys that most offenses cannot account for in their blocking schemes. We get them in the box and they become the fitters. Our safeties are some of our top tacklers each year.

Q. Can you give me some idea about the amount of time you spend watching DVDs of your games or practices? Do you look to tape anything special during practices as opposed to the standard angles used for game films or do you shoot everything from the same angle? Also, if you had to prioritize, what do you absolutely want to have taped at practices? Andrew Miller, Director of Game Films, Westminster Christian High School (FL).

We film all of our hull and team sessions each practice. The coaches watch the tape after practice and then the players come in before school and study that same tape with their position coach. We use both wide and tight angles depending on the session we are filming.

Q. How do you organize your practices to keep the players involved both mentally as well as physically and what are your favorite competition drills for them? John Giles, Defensive Backs Coach, Chattanooga Christian High School (TN).

I hate to have practices with a lot of standing around, so we try to break down our groups small enough so that all of the players are getting a lot of reps. I tell my coaches to coach on the run on the grass and spend more time teaching and talking during meeting and film time. There is no substitute for reps. We will compete in 1-on-1 drills throughout each practice, receivers vs. DBs, etc. u

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