What are the priorities for the offense and defense as the teams head to the locker room at halftime?
Halftime adjustments can mean the difference between winning the game and losing it. It is here that coach’s debate what needs to be changed and analyze what the other team is doing to limit them both offensively and defensively. All of this goes on in a 20-minute period. It’s at this time that coaches must be organized and have a well thought out plan of attack to squeeze each second out of the halftime period because they know the staff in the other locker room is doing the same thing. Gridiron Strategies spoke to two coaches about halftime adjustments. What is their philosophy and strategy based on what happened in the first half?
Coach Rick Shepas is the Head Coach at Waynesburg University and a defensive specialist. Coach Keith Grabowski is the offensive coordinator of the Baldwin Wallace University. Halftime is about more than Xs and Os – it’s also about how you as a coach can effectively manage your time while communicating realistic adjustments to your players. Coaches Shepas and Grabowski share how they maneuver that small amount of time into potentially big rewards.
What is your minute-by-minute schedule with coaches and players at halftime? How do you divide the time?
Shepas: Based on a 20 minute half, the first five-seven minutes both offensive and defensive coaches are talking adjustments while the team is being handled by trainers. The next two minutes is where I give my message, and a short evaluation of the game to this point. Then, we break into a five-seven minute adjustment period for offense and defense where they are separate. We finish with five or so minutes for adjusting the kicking game and then break for the field to get loose for the second half.
Grabowski: At the high school level, we immediately went to pre-determined positions in the locker room. In high school, often you have players playing both sides of the ball. We would spend two and a half minutes with offensive positions then two and a half minutes with defensive positions. When I did have a two platoon team, we gave them four minutes to meet individually. Then the position coaches would take any info they received to the coordinators and any adjustments would be made in the next five minutes. During that five minutes, the special teams coordinator meets with any unit needed. The coordinators then have two minutes each to make an adjustment and, as the head coach, I would briefly address them. A basic rundown looks like this:
• 2.5 minutes - offense individual position groups
• 2.5 minutes - defense Individual position groups
• 5 minutes - staff meets/special teams needs with players
• 2 minutes - defense
• 2 minutes - offense
• 1 minute - head coach
That left us five minutes to play with. As the head coach, I could allot any time as needed.
What are your priorities as an OC/HC? How does the booth help you with making adjustments?
Shepas: We are in constant discussion regarding play calls. There is one play caller but all information from the field and box are considered along with what the players see also. That is the biggest part of the call system I run. Play calls have a lot to do with what the players are seeing. Box and field coaches all have assignments to contribute as well.
Grabowski: Priorities as the offensive coordinator are to find what has been working and why, what needs to be adjusted or what should we stay away from? We look at our tendencies and see if we need to adjust situation-wise (third and long, red zone, etc.). We look at key indicators like run efficiency (which runs are effective), and passing and third down efficiency. As a running team, we pay close attention to play-action and which defenders are getting out of place to stop the run. We look for any opportunity in the passing game or with any specials planned.
As the head coach, I paid special attention to the needs of the team. If we were rolling offensively but struggling on defense, I would give the defense additional time or take time from offense to make adjustments they needed with the team.
On the field and in the booth, coaches are assigned to watch specific portions of the offense or defense. Each coach has a specific assignment and feedback on each play. During each series they are expected to communicate information concisely if they are asked. The rule on the head sets is no talking unless asked or if something absolutely critical comes up. The idea is to not disturb the flow or thought process of the play caller. We always jokingly say, don’t be a “fan.” In other words, you really should not just be watching the whole play.
If your opponent is running well against your defense, what are you looking for in adjusting your scheme?
Shepas: We will strive to make a team one dimensional. Stopping the run is always the key. Alignment adjustments would be first to take away blocking angles. Next are any changes in responsibilities although we try to keep that to a minimum. We want our players to play fast and do what we have practiced. There may be a pressure that can help or be adjusted as well. Sometimes the easiest adjustments are just settling the players down and doing a better job at the basic fits.
Grabowski: That always depended on our scheme and what we were trying to do. At most of my stops as a head coach, we were running the stunt 4-3 defense. We had a number of prescribed answers we could go to in order to stop a certain type of run or to shore up the run defense strong or weak by executing a certain call.
If your opponent is passing well against your defense, what are you looking for in adjusting your coverage?
Shepas: I like to restrict passing lanes and take away first down throws to make a QB and play caller stay patient. That’s something that is very difficult to do - staying patient. So my first adjustments are going to be based on our underneath coverage. Better coverage may lead to a sack as well. Timely pressure will not hurt in the right situation.
Grabowski: That answer is similar to combating the running team. For us, the answer to stopping the pass was an adjustment in technique by one of our defenders. A receiver might be getting a clean release or not be delivered to the next defender. We would go to the coach assigned to watch certain areas and ask what was happening. Again, we had answers built in to the defense and we could make our calls accordingly.
Would you consider any trick plays in the second half (OC)? Are you on the lookout for trick plays in the second half (HC)?
Shepas: We always consider exotic plays both on offense as well in preparation for them. There is a feel for the game that I think every coach needs to have when anticipating when to call or when a coach feels like an exotic will be called. I think the bigger the game the greater opportunity for exotic plays.
Grabowski: As the OC, it’s always been about finding the opportune time. What exactly is the trick play designed to attack? We are always looking for some kind of aggressiveness out of a certain defender, or a reaction to stop something. When we see that, we could call that play. Sometimes it’s something that is already set up by what we saw in film study and a certain defender’s strength or weakness. Sometimes those are set up by inducing a reaction because a play has been run a few times.
What message do you want to give your players before the start of the third quarter? Is it a different message if you’re ahead or behind in the game?
Shepas: Halftime comments are given under circumstance and will change from week to week. However, I have a confident and calm approach that is honest and I believe that will help this team handle each situation.
Grabowski: The standard question is “What’s the score men?” The expected reply was, “0-0!” The idea is that the scoreboard didn’t matter. We want our best effort whether we are up 10 or down 10. Any message given to the team before we hit the field was always positive. No reference was ever made to anything negative.
Each coach has his own system of utilizing that time most effectively. This plays into the never ending chess match of strategy that goes into each game. In the end, it comes down to having an organized system to go to in that short amount of time. By taking advantage of this time, your team can be more prepared to handle adversity in the second half.