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   - More Solutions to Problem #8

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Continued from:
32 Solutions for the 12 Biggest Problems You'll Face this Season

Problem 8: Unproductivity in the red zone. Not being able to finish drives especially because of the lack of a strong field goal kicker...how to you deal with this issue?

When we get within the red zone we limit our offense to what we do best: our ‘sainted six plays.’ We spend a lot of time working on moving the chains to get in the red zone (which is the 15 yard line in) and converting to first downs. Inside the red zone it’s all about using our base plays to punch it in. We will use formationing and personnel packages to help create mismatches, but rely on our ‘sainted six plays.’

Keith Wheeler, Offensive Coordinator/QB Coach
Holbrook Roadrunners (AZ)


The solution: If your FG Kickers’ range is erratic, then you need to plan a better goal line package which gives you opportunities to SCORE. You need to keep confidence with your kicker, working with him while devising a plan for red zone scoring.

Ron Price, Assistant Coach
Santa Rosa High School (CA)


Develop a good working relationship with your soccer coach and you will have an ample supply of the necessary evil known as kickers. The red zone takes extra practice. We dedicate two scrimmage periods per week to coming out and going in the end zone. To keep it simple, once we are inside the five we come out of the spread and go power I. The kids love this change and fans do to. In our teaching progression everything is taught by field landmarks, even play selection. The kids understand the need to protect the ball in this area and the type of plays we will call. This, again, allows them to play confidently.

Randy Pinkowski, Head Football Coach
C.B. Aycock H.S. (NC)


We just make practicing in the red zone a part of our practices twice a week. You have to develop the attitude that you are going to score when you get there. Obviously, we work on different situations that can occur. We don’t score 100% of the time we get in the red zone but we are prepared.

Sam Harp, Head Football Coach
Danville High School (KY)


Confidence in your offensive game plan will help in un-productivity in the red zone. Obviously, your offense isn't having trouble moving the football because you're in the red zone. However, with the field condensing you are having trouble punching the pigskin in for 6. You may want to look for your favorite plays that work in short areas and you have to look for your opponents’ tendencies in the red zone: e.g., are they man-on-man coverage or zone, do they give you a different defensive look when down in the red zone, do they stress inside-out or outside-in leverage of defense.

Jared Van Acker, Head Varsity Football Coach
Galax High School (VA)


I never liked putting too much emphasis on the red zone. I prefer to run our normal offense. I do think that if the issue is penalties in this situation, check your conditioning. Designing practice so that great concentration is needed is valuable.

Bob DeLong, Offensive Coordinator
Xenia High School (OH)


I am a big believer in having a well-practiced set of plays to rely on in various situations. I want the players to know that, in the red zone, we have 4 passes and 2 running plays for normal down and distance. We will have 4 runs and 2 passes when we are in third and long (+7) situations. We script these and run them from the beginning of two-a-days. When we practice at game tempo, and we get to the red zone, the players know the plays that will be called. We build confidence in each other and the plays we have. The emphasis is on scoring a touchdown any time we are inside their 20 yard line.

Larry Payne, Assistant Coach (retired)
North Bend H.S. (OR)


As a coaching staff we need to sit down and make sure we have the best possible plan in tact for our team. If it is an execution problem then rep the red zone as much as possible. Due to the lack of a kicker, maybe we need to call plays differently or attack in a different way.

Zak Bessac, Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator
Warner Park, Madison (WI)


We spend a great deal of our practice time in group and team work in the red zone. Our goal is to finish and score touchdowns; not to settle for field goals. Field goals are the very last option, so our play calling philosophy is predicated on making the very best use of talent and strategy with four downs from the end 30 yard line in. Patience, ball security, absence of penalties, and a red zone game plan, have all helped us score around 90% of the time over the last several seasons. When we do need the field goal, and do not have a good kicker among our players,we usually are fortunate to have a player or two on our team who may be on the soccer team or who has a soccer background. We have a good relationship with the soccer program, and generally have been able to have at least one of the better kickers on our team. They practice with us when their time is available and enjoy the football experience.

Ron Stolski, Head Football Coach
Brainerd High School (MN)


We have a “run the ball and finish" commitment in our program and inside the red zone that is our most important emphasis. Having said that we are continuing to increase our bootleg and play action options to use on first or second down to take advantage of aggressive goal line defenses. Finally, we will go back to our "every time" play script and believe in running our basic plays at that key moment; for us the outside zone. This past year it paid off in district and in the playoffs with key TD's late to wrap up victories. Our Wednesday situation practice will always include more red zone offense and defense than we may actually see in a game. If we see problems in a game, we obviously look at what we are calling and see if our own tendencies are at fault or our execution. We have found it is almost always execution. More specifically, its offensivelLine and lead back blocking so we will hang our hat on improving those skills if we struggle in the red zone.

Steve Hopkins, Head Football Coach
Basehor-Linwood H.S. (KS)


After stretch-flex and some ballistic warmup, put the ball on the 8 and go 1st O vs 1st D.

Bruce Evans, LB coach

More red zone practice time. Concentration of bread and butter short yardage plays. Also, more creativity within the red zone that centers around what the team does best. The team has to be doing something well to drive the field and get in the red zone.

Gerald Aubrey, Asst.Coach

Restructure practice and add more time to your red zone period. Re-evaluate your play calling in this area and make adjustments accordingly.

Harry G Bellucci, Head Football Coach
Hartford Public High School (CT)


First of all, focus on the kicker--find out if the issue with your kicker is physical or mental. Then address each issue- either through analyzing and correcting the physical problem- then practicing the corrected technique or dealing with the mental issue by explaining that if your kicker performs the correct technique mechanically and the same way each time that it will not matter what the situation is on the field. The results will be the same--successful. If neither is successful, then prepare your offense to expect to go for it inside typical field-goal range and prepare a number of fake field-goal plays.

R. Scott Thompson, Head Football Coach
Montgomery Lonsdale JH (AL)


Run your best plays down here, the one’s that got you there in the first place. The red zone is not the place to get tricky or get out of “your" game. We have all seen many instances of this happening and we are all guilty of it from time to time.

Allan Amrein, Head Coach
Kennedy Middle School, Hays (KS)


Again, this gets back to productive practice. Identify what defense you will see--find their weaker areas--have ways to attack these areas. Successful teams will have a good plan A but if plan A gets stopped then have a Plan B. Convince your players that both plans will work.

Jerry Parrish, Retired Head Coach
North Kitsap High School (WA)


WE work on variable formations. Set plays like pick type plays. WE practice a few plays every week to get better at them and try to build some confidence. Let's face it. If you are struggling in the red zone, your kids will freeze up on you if you don't do something to build confidence when you get there. Practice it more. Give them plays they believe in. Pray a lot.

Thomas Taylor, Teacher/Football Coach
Weir High School (WV)


Make sure your first down package is strong. Limit your red zone offense to what you do the best. Do not try and outcoach yourself.

Bob Reeves, Offensive Line Coach
New Hope High School (MS)


The simple answer.. the kicker just needs to get better--or you'll find someone else. If that isn't an option, it simplifies play calling. Every drive becomes a four down situation. We practice with game situations in mind though. We like to run the specific plays in all of the field zones. That way the kids know what to expect and they have a lot of reps. This isn't a place to surprise your own team.

Barton W. Miller, Offensive Coordinator
Trinity High School, Camp Hill (PA)


Up tempo your offense, go to a no huddle mode.

Anthony, Defensive Coordinator
Lawrence High School


We have three kickers. PAT/FG, Kickoff, punter. If we really can't come away with some points, then we have some two point plays we like to run all the time. The kids like them. They are fun to practice and when they work it breaks the stress and struggle of the Red Zone!

Louis Farrar, Head Coach
Charter Oak High School (CA)


Red zone practice. Continually explain the difference of the mentality a player should have when in the red zone.

Andrew Cotter, Head Football Coach
Moreau Catholic High School (CA)


Develop a red zone philosophy. Are you going to use the same play calling strategy that put you in the red zone or are you going to develop a different style of play once you get there? There may be more times you go for it on fourth down since you are not going to kick. The coach must also consider where the red zone starts. If you don't have a good kicker your red zone will change. You will no longer save a down to kick. Every down will be used to acheive another first down.

Jim Glover, Assistant Coach
Jackson Central-Merry High School (TN)
Well we have a good field goal kicker so this year is not a problem. As a coaching staff we emphasize the importance of scoring inside the 20 yard line. I don't think we make it a life /death situation but the athletes are aware of its importance. More importantly is if we are stopped we tell our defense that it is important to keep our opponents’ from making a long drive so we can keep the “Field Position Advantage."

Ed Sadloch, Head Football Coach
Cedar Grove High School (NJ)


Practice red zone situations more. Expand the menu of plays to use in fourth down situations. Evaluate your play selection in red zone situations. Evaluate your play selection on first down in red zone situations. Think in terms of four downs and do whatever is necessary to get good gains on first and ecnd down to set up makeable situations on thirrd and fourth downs.

Thomas A. McDaniels, Head Football Coach
Massillon Jackson H.S. (OH)


When we have faced this problem, the coaches attempt to examine exactly why this is happening: is it the personnel, the play-calling (formation, series, are we doing something different in the red zone that we're not having problems with in other parts of the field?). Once we establish what we think the problem is, we make it a focus of practice and try to correct it. We will drill it in practice by working on situations that we feel need fixing each week. The Red Zone Offense is an area we focus on each week.

John R. Mackay, Director of Athletics/Head FC
St. George's School (RI)


If this results from failure to execute by a player, get a new player.

Robert J. Sayfie, Coach
IHM (7 - 8 grade)







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