Turf War Podcast
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Turf War Podcast
Elevating Your Game: Mastering Football Film Study with Coach Mac
What if watching football film could be the game-changer your team needs? In this episode of Turf War, Coach Mac breaks down the intricate world of football film study, covering everything from game film and practice film to opponent film. We talk about how each type of film serves unique purposes, such as correcting mistakes, refining techniques, and analyzing opponent strategies. You'll also hear about revolutionary tools like Huddle, which streamline the analysis process and help teams gear up for their next big game.
Coach Mac doesn't just stop at the technical aspects; he dives into the challenges and strategies of ensuring that players at various levels of football IQ can effectively engage with film study. You'll hear practical advice for players on how to ask the right questions and focus on the basics while coaches learn the value of methodical and purposeful film analysis. By the end of this episode, you'll understand how high school players can build their analytical skills year by year, preparing them for higher levels of football. Tune in and elevate your team's game preparation through the nuanced art of film study!
Welcome everybody. I'm your host, coach Mac, and welcome to Turf War. First, maybe, official podcast, it depends on how you classify everything. But anyways, today we're just going to be diving deep into the process of football film study and the critical role in preparation for games. But then also, how essential is it for players, coaches and teams at all levels, from middle school all the way to pro? Okay, so enough of this introduction, let's just go right into it.
Coach Mac:So we got new basics of film study, okay, and there's three different types of film that we look at. You have game film, which is your game film. You have practice film is, which is alone, self-explanatory, and then you also have opponent film, right, and each one of these films is broken down or studied in a different way. All right, I mean, when we're looking at a game film, we're looking at what did we do right and what did we do wrong for practice? Right, and usually that first practice after a game is we're going to fix the problem right. All right, let's say we run a power eye right, and we're running the ball up the A gap, but we're just running a dive and let's say our center didn't move the tackle on the way to allow our fullback to get up to the second level. We have to correct the technique that is being used there so we're able to execute the play properly or even, if we're in a pass situation, being able to like okay, what happened here? Why did this pass get picked off? Was this a great play by the defender or did we have a miscommunication from coach to player? Practice film is where we get to kind of fine tune everything right. We get to watch how practices run, see what we need to fix and how to fix it or how to explain something right. Practice film, in my opinion, is probably the top thing over game film.
Coach Mac:I would say opponent film, practice film, then game film is my three, and then opponent film right. And then you have when the team that you're playing sends you their film and how you break that down. So, with that being said, opponent film is really depending on what program you're at. But for me personally, when I watch an opponent film, I'm looking for formations. What are their top three formations? They like to run. The tendencies of those is it pass, is passes a run, and then player movement right. So I want to find their best player. I want to be able to. All right, if he's lined up in his slot on the right side, they're most likely going to pass to that side, or they're going to have him run across or whatever, or okay, okay, their best player is our quarterback. If he's lined up at four yards, they're gonna hand it off. If he's out five, they're passing it right.
Coach Mac:Picking up tendencies not only from the coaches but also the players players can tell you a lot about what is going on. And then I mean formation tendencies. I mean formation tendencies I mean you can look at the field, look at where they're at on the field, see how they line up. If they're inside the 20-yard line or in the red zone, and all right, they're going to be lined up in a trips right 67% of the time and out of this they're going to pass 24%. So they're going to think they're trying to make us think we're passing and get people out of the box so they're able to run it.
Coach Mac:Just being able to pick up tendencies from coaches, play calling, and we'll talk about this more as the segment and episode goes on. But I mean Huddle. If y'all know what Huddle is, huddle is a, I guess, a film study website. It's something that a lot of teams use to be able to exchange film, label film, get data, and it really changed the game. I mean, for me personally, I'm able to sit there and uh run an analysis on a game and figure out, like on down the distance, are they more likely to run or pass, and what their, what their top formations are and what they run out of it, then figuring out if they're on the right hash, they're more likely to pass to the right or the left, and I mean it's just a whole bunch of stuff and even motions, like when they run motion, aren't they going to run or pass? They're able to figure out the data and analysis behind it. So you're able to figure, learn the tendencies a lot easier than trying to sit there and mark okay, clip one, they did this, this and this and I have to rewrite all the notes. You can do it a lot easier and it's a lot quicker. Don't get me wrong. I still spend hours and hours on trying to pick up tendencies or just looking at stuff, even if I've seen it 20 times, just make sure I don't miss anything.
Coach Mac:I take pride in watching film. It should be a pride thing. You want to become better, so film is a good way to do it. So as let's talk about the process, right, so we're going to break down these steps. So as let's talk about the process, right, so break, we're going to break down these steps, really from a coach's point of view first, and then a player's point of view, right, as a coach, let's say we're in a game six and we're about to play some team and they're going to send us. They'll either send us one or two game films or they'll sit there and send us five, right, and be able to pick and choose what games you want to watch. Sometimes it's difficult, right, but you want to sit there. You want to watch all six games. You want to know exactly what's going on. And that's not how it is right.
Coach Mac:As the season goes on, changes are made within the program and how certain things are going to be ran. So for me, if let's say we're in week six and I'm playing a team, the coach sends me five game films. The only only ones I'm looking at are going to be the last two games, last one we're going to pick up a tennis team from there and then the game before that, because they may run some of the old stuff as well. I want to get as much done in the middle clips. I usually do the last two games. Obviously, if we're playing a team that week to week they're going to change their scheme based on who they're playing. Then I'm going to sit there, we're going to have to watch all six games, but for the main part I'm breaking down the last two.
Coach Mac:Then, when I knew that, I start with the first game and I just ODK it right, offense, defense and kicking teams I ODK it and then I filter it based on offense and other defense and I always label from the offensive perspective. Right, you may have coaches that do it from the defensive perspective, but that's okay. I'm not saying it's right or wrong, it's just my personal preference as an offensive-minded coach. I do offense just because it's easier for me to visualize it moving forward. But you can also do defense.
Coach Mac:So I'll sit there and look at the offense first and I try to label their field zone, meaning are they backed up, are they coming out, are they in the alumni area, are they in the yellow area of the field, are they in the high red zone, low red zone and goal line and I break it down like that, along with all right, what's their formation? Are they in trips? Are they in ace? Are they in wing T? Are they in the eye? Are they in pistol? All right, are they in 12 pro, 21 pro, being able to dictate? All right, this is the formation.
Coach Mac:Now, what are they running right? Are they going to run an inside zone, outside zone? Are they going to run a flood concept, mesh concept? Based off that, and usually I try to label it based on what our playbook is right. So then it's easier for the players to kind of see. Okay, I, I see what they're doing here. All right, you want to make it as easy as possible for players as coaches. You can just label it normally, but, um, I try to label it based on what we, what we, run. If not, then I label it as simple as possible right, inside zone, outside zone, flood right, flood, left. Make it simple, make it easy. There's no need to make it complicated.
Coach Mac:Then I label the strength side of the offense, the play direction and the hash, and that's really what I do for offense On the defensive side. I look at defensive front. Are they in a 4-2? Are they in a 4-3? Could it be in a kind of 4-4 hybrid look or a 4-2-5? What do they like to do defensively? And I label, if they run a blitz, what that blitz is right based on our blitzes and what it closely aligns to, and then what our coverage is. Are they going to cover three, cover two quarters, palms, like, what are they doing on this play? And sometimes it it's hard, especially at a middle school or even high school level, but you don't really get to see the play develop sometimes, uh, but at the college and pro level, uh, you should be able to tell a lot easier most of the time, right, and then um, and then I go back after I label all it.
Coach Mac:That's when I go back and I just watch the film straight through. I watch the film straight through, I don't take notes, I'm just watching the film in a sense of trying to get an idea of the flow of the game. Right, to be able to understand a team team, you have to understand their pace. Are they fast pace? Are they uh slow? What? What are they trying to do? Do they try to do off speed? Right, they're gonna run three plays quick and they could slow it down for the next two. What are they trying to do for the next two? What are they trying to do?
Coach Mac:And then, uh, after I do that, that's when I will bring out a notepad or I pull up a google sheet and I watch offense first and I sit there and I look at, okay, they're doing this, who's their player right? I'm trying to label, uh, who's the player in that build, trying to pick up any tendencies from it. If I see, okay, the right guard is going to be shifting, it's going to, like, set his stance up and it's a little bit off to the left and I'm going to run out outside zone to the left in this formation, I'm going to, I'm going gonna try to find every play that I labeled as outside zone and see If it becomes a tendency. If it does, I circle it right, left guard, shift, stance left on outside zone, left, right, and Then, after I label that, then I'm able to move on to a next, the next play, right, or maybe they run outside Zone to the right and but this time it's the right tackle or maybe it's the running back Right and it's trying to pick up something from there. Then I said, there, I do the same thing for the first right, if they're blitzing, what do the linebackers do? Are they, are they in January, or are they gonna sit there and they're blitzing? What do the linebackers do? Are they, are they jittery? Or are they going to sit there and they're going to stay in their original stance so the offensive line don't seem as a threat, or are they going to get right up there on the line and they're going to let you know that I'm coming right in this hole and there's nothing you can do about it. Okay, so that's how, for me, as a coach, I'm going in and looking at this.
Coach Mac:Now, translating this to a player could be difficult, right? Some players are. You're going to have some players who are going to be really, really high in football IQ and they're going to understand exactly what you're seeing and exactly what you're seeing and exactly what you want them to do. And some players, it's going to be a little bit more difficult and you're going to have to sit there and spell it out for them. Right, it depends on your player, but you have to establish a certain level of expectation from the players as well and let them know that film isn't a joking matter. Right, you are required as a player your duty to this team and your commitment level also includes off the field work in the film room, whether it's you're watching it with a coach and trying to learn how to, or if it's by yourself or with teammates. But, like, there needs to be a level of expectation for this and then you also want to do it as a team. Okay, you know what Coaches watching it individually and players watching it individually like coaches as a staff should watch film together and players with the coaches should watch film together. It should be a common thing day in and day out, whether it's watching practice film, watching game film on Saturday, watching the opponent's film on Monday, whatever it is, it needs to be an expectation.
Coach Mac:For me, the biggest thing let's say, you're a brand new player and you're here and you're listening and you want to know, like, what can I do to better myself in the film room? Uh, the biggest tip I I recommend is ask questions. If the worst thing a coach can tell you is no, like no, that's not right. This is what they did right. Now you're getting the right answer, but now you're showing that, okay, I'm invested. I'm invested in not only my personal growth, but in team growth.
Coach Mac:And when you're watching, watch for the different type of footwork that players do on the opposing team, or what you do, kind of the play calling and defensive alignment, offensive alignment. Just look at new basic stuff, because if you understand the basics, everything else will come with time and preparation with coach. But you have to understand the basics before anything. So biggest tip for players is learn the basics of the game and then take notes. Learn the basics and take notes. So I mean. And then for coaches, most coaches understand the concept of film, but if you're trying to dive deeper into what you can do is literally sit there and slowly do it. Don't sit there and rush it. It may take you two days, right, you spend two hours this day, two hours this day doing it. But have purpose in what you do. I always say be consistent in your work, so your work is consistent and the more you do it, the faster you'll get to be able to recognize and just take notes whenever you see.
Coach Mac:Right, if you're going to say bottom-level coach, take notes, bring it to your head coach, bring it to your offensive coordinator, bring it to your defensive coordinator. They're going to see that you're putting effort forth right. It's the same as a player, you're trying to elevate your career and they're trying to elevate theirs right, so it this helps both of you. Don't hide something because you think they'll see it. Just go with it, okay.
Coach Mac:Um, now that's just game film, right, and we have practice, and practice film is really a personal thing. Practice film is where a player needs to be the most critical. In practice, you want to be as perfect as you can. We can't coach players to be perfect, but we can at least require and expect perfect effort from these players. And, um, as a player, when you're watching your practice film, be critical, be hard. Okay, if you ran the wrong route, why? If you missed a block, why figure out why and figure out how to fix it? If you don't ask if, like, hey, coach, on, uh, this practice film and one of ones, uh, I got pressed, really all I got pressed really bad off the line, like what can I do to avoid this situation again? Or I thought about this or this, but I would like to hear your opinion, right? Or, if you ran the wrong route, just review the playbook Okay, on blue I'm going to run a hitch, but on this one I ran blue angel and just get back in your study group.
Coach Mac:Okay, you got to be hard on yourself as a player, right, especially if you have aspirations to play at the next level. Okay, you gotta be. You gotta be hard on yourself as a player, right, especially if you have aspirations to play it at the next level. There isn't a, there isn't a time where you're not going to be like oh, I play really good in this game, even even in the wins. Right, celebrate your win, but still be hard on yourself. Be like okay, I could be better. Okay, don't just think there's a cap and point on your potential when there never is. All right.
Coach Mac:So, um, I'd say with coaches right, got to self-analyze every week. Right, self-analyze how your play calling was. If you're a position coach, what do your receivers do that you need to help them improve on? Right, or what do you not focus on enough that then shows out in film? Okay, be critical in your work as well, not just the players. All right, and that's how you learn. You learn best by watching and it's. It's hard and it sucks, but it is what it is, all right. At the end of the day, it is what it is.
Coach Mac:We ain't nobody going to sit there and hold your hand. Ain't nobody going to sit there and be like it's okay, all right, no, I'll be critical in it, okay, um, for for the next part, right, we talked, so let's recap real quick. Right, we talked about the basics. We talked about the process, all right now, player engagement and learning. We kind of already went into that, right.
Coach Mac:So I mean, as a player, is this it's hard, right, you, you want to enjoy the lights and you play with your friends and all this, but I mean there's a whole bunch of different aspects that goes in to it. And I mean you can. You can sit there and not watch film and stay the same player. You are Okay. Or, or you not watch film and be a great athlete on the field, but imagine how much better you can be with the football IQ. Take pride in what you're doing, okay, all right. And then, once you watch film, visualize what you would do better or what you would do against this coverage, and then go out there and perform it, work it in practice and then put it to and perform it, work it in practice and then put it to use in the game. I mean, that's all I got for players engagement and really learning.
Coach Mac:Um, it's. It's difficult to really talk about it. Um, that's because it's not, it's not done by a lot of people. There's a reason why d1, d2, d3 players are as successful as they are after high school is because they took pride in what so um, but advanced techniques and trends, right. So as, as time has moved on and like technology has grown, we have been able to start getting a lot more data and metrics into the game, right, that we never had before. We're able to see, okay, this quarterback probably max throwing power is about 50 yards, right, so there's no need for us to cover 50 yards outfield If a player wants to run that far on their team, by all means bye. Okay, I mean, you see it. With next-gen stats in the NFL, right, next-gen stats, you're able to see how fast a player runs. Okay, obviously, we probably don't have that at the high school level, but you may have that in the college level, depending on where you are. But then we're able to see a lot more data that goes into what is what? I mean? It's kind of remarkable if you really think about it, on all the things we now can figure out Now, film in practice, all right.
Coach Mac:So I'm not talking about film like the act of practicing watching film, but like the actual football practice, players are out on the field and how film correlates to that. Okay, um, you, if you're at a big school or you have enough players, you usually try to run a scout team against your starting O or your starting D, and if you have film, you can. You can sit there and develop a a scout team, look on different fronts, different formations and this and that to be able to get your players to start visualizing what's going to happen. What's going to happen, all right, if we know, against trips, that a defense is going to run quarters, right, have them work it in practice. Have you run trips with your offense, whatever play call it is, and have these scout D run quarters and have them work against it. Figure out as a team what works, what doesn't work, how we can adjust in game and in practice and be able to work it. And same with the defense, right, if you know that they like to run out of trips, then you can call. You can adjust your game plan to probably running as a simple cover three or whatever. Right, whatever, your school is Alright, but you still gotta cover the trips or running a zone blitz, okay, and I mean it's really cool to see it in action. But that's not why we're here. We're not going to talk about how cool it is.
Coach Mac:So let's talk about the importance of starting to. If you're a coach or even a player, starting to. If you're a coach or even a player, starting to develop the habit of watching film, all right. So if you're a youth player in Pee Wee, obviously it's not going to really matter to you. But once you get into middle school, right, if your middle school has film, you want to watch.
Coach Mac:As get into middle school, right, if your middle school has film, it's you want to watch as much as you can. Right, I know some middle schools don't do film and that's okay. Right, you can ask if you're at a school where you can talk to the head coach from the high school, see if you can get on their high school huddle and see if you can watch film from them and start learning how to right Be able to develop the patience and the attention span and the attention to detail when watching film. Right, that's all you're doing, right? I don't want you to sit there and write down. All right, ace, they're going to run outside zone, the right tackle is going to chip the end and then move up to the linebacker and is like no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Okay, I want you to build the attention span and the attention to detail at the middle school level. You can even do it at youth if your coaches are intense. Not only say intense, intense is the wrong word, but your coaches want you to be better and you have failed. Absolutely, go for it. Absolutely go for it. I think it's good for all ages.
Coach Mac:Now, once you get into high school, okay, and as you get into high school, it's going to be depending on your program. It could be a slow process of film or a very like no process of film. Okay, like, only the coaches at varsity watch film, not the freshmen on the JV team. But learn, if you're a freshman and you guys don't watch film, still start building habits that are good. Right, keep developing the attention to detail. Any attention spans, any patience, right, that's a constant theme as we go into.
Coach Mac:But now, maybe, start writing out formations, right, all right, they're gonna run ace and then ace and then ace and then trips. Why did he run? Okay, they're because they're on the uh, they're running trips left because they're on the right hash. Okay, okay, good, all right, ace, ace, ace, all right. And you start writing down formations right and start developing. Okay, all right, is it a run or a pass? Okay, out of this formation, run or pass. Don't do anything else. Run or pass, simple, right, very, very easy Formation, run, pass. And then maybe the next year you add the um. You know what hash and field area they're in right, are they on their own? 40 on it, like, and what has turning on Right.
Coach Mac:So now you're, now you're learning. Okay, they're Gonna, most likely, if they're on the left hash, they're most likely gonna run to the left or anything in a passing up. Pass to the right, okay, simple, okay. A lot of teams are gonna pass into the left because their quarterback arm isn't that strong, but that's besides the point. All right, stay on topic.
Coach Mac:Coach Mech, all right, now you're a junior, now you've developed this habit of attention to detail, patience and attention span to now you're understanding formation and if it's a run or pass or what hash, and by junior year, if you're on varsity now. Now you can bring in what the coaches are doing into your film study. We find that you should have. They should be sharing film to you and should be. It should be labeled on what's happening, okay, so if they're, if they're coming in and let's say you get filmed on Monday morning from, uh, abc high school, right, that's the school you're playing and it's it's labeled first.
Coach Mac:And 10, uh, right, hash, they're in the, uh, they're coming out, um, they're in trips, right, and it's labeled flight right, strong is to the right, the plane direction is to the right. Now you've already done like you should understand person 10. You've done the coming out part right, the field zone, like where they are in the field. You've done the hash. You've done the formation and the runner pass. All you're adding in here now is strength, which is usually usually be able to tell what strength the office is in and what play it is now right and where it's going okay, which is usually told in the play itself. All right, you're also. You're really only adding two things on top of everything you've already learned. So now you're a junior and you know all this stuff, so now you can develop that.
Coach Mac:So by the time you're a senior, you have all this ability to watch a play overview. Now you start watching player overview, where you sit there and you've built your attention span, you've built the patience, you've built the attention to detail. Now you sit there and be like on this play, I'm going to watch the quarterback. Or if I'm a receiver, right, I don't care about any line or really linebackers. Sometimes I want to see what the safety is doing and what the corner is doing. Okay, how do they react? What tendencies can I pick up? If they're going to stay at flats, what are they going to do? If they're going to bail out on me, what are they doing? So I know how to run my route, according to what route I'm given on a certain play, or if you're a quarterback, you can be like okay, I know that if I'm running a flood, I need to read the corner first and then look at the linebacker. If the corner bails, you know automatically they're in a cover. Three or even a quarters. Look on that side. But if he sits, you may have a comeback or a whole shot there or whatever right.
Coach Mac:And then for D-line or O-line and D-line you're looking at okay, what is the offensive line or defensive line doing in these different scenarios? What is their footwork like? Does this player like to do a pull and rip? Do they like to do a bull rush? Are they a swimmer or do they spin? What is their go-to type of thing? I mean, they're going to pull it out.
Coach Mac:Young athletes go to what they're comfortable with. Get them, take away what they're comfortable with and put them in an uncomfortable situation in a game. Uncomfortable situation creates frustration and when you create frustration, you, you win, all right. So I mean, that's how you can develop and once you're in a college and professional, they'll develop you in more ways on your film than, uh, you've already done on your own. Or maybe they'll develop you in more ways on the film than you've already done on your own. Or maybe they'll add to what you know, right, hey, on this field zone, what do they like to do the most? Right? It may just be as simple as that, okay. Or they may start saying, now, look, you can look at the sideline and see all right, if this coach raises his hand, his right hand, and holds and does like a strong side, all right, that's it right. Then we know they're going to run to the right. Okay, I mean it adds right, you can get. You get a lot from film, not only from all the people, but any silence. All right Now, overall, okay, let's, let's wrap this episode up.
Coach Mac:All right, the best thing I can tell you for coaches, for players, for even fans of the game you, to understand the game, you have to understand the behind the scenes of the game. Film study is a huge part in what coaches and players do to be able to perform on friday, saturday or sunday if we're talking about pro, all right, film provides probably more information to a team than practice does. Okay, all right, and without film, success on the field is limited. All right, obviously, actually. No, I'm not going to say obviously, because they, they have film.
Coach Mac:Back then too, their film was people went and watched the game and wrote down what they saw. All right, that was the film. All right. And now we're able to do it online in the comfort of our own bed, our own house. All right, nothing's changed, it's just technology. Right, all right, nothing changed, it's just technology, right, okay, but film study is important to success, not only on the field, but in the development of coaches and players.
Coach Mac:Okay, guys, I want to encourage you to dive deeper on your own, dive deeper into what actually goes on in the film study. Do some research about it. There's plenty of articles out there that teaches you how to watch film, but it also tells you what film provides to a team. I want you to dive deeper into it and let me know what you find. Did I miss anything? Do I need to talk about this again? All right, do we want to talk about, like, there's a certain topic within film? Okay, let me know. Okay, my email address is going to be right there in your bio, so please feel free to contact me at any time.
Coach Mac:All right, and next episode, guys, it's going to be. It's going to be. It's going to be a tough one, okay, but we're going to. We're going to talk about tough love with any sport. All right, tough love with any sport, but anyways, thank you so much for tuning in on you. Quote unquote first ever turf war podcast. Guys, I am your host, coach mac. All right, please, if you're watching this on youtube, hit that like and subscribe button down below so you don't miss out any videos. If you're here watching our podcast, make sure you hit that like and subscribe button down below so you don't miss out any videos. If you're here watching our podcast. Make sure you hit that subscribe button or that follow button, whatever you want to do, and stay tuned for the next episode. And make sure you go follow the Facebook page. Anyways, guys, we're done.