Inspired by this Twitter thread by Coach DeMarco, we shared video of individual components of the daily tackling circuit practice by our players. We'll call the first station "Rip, Squeeze, and Roll."
Players partner up, with one doing the tackling. Tackler get in athletic stance, with one foot between teammate’s feet. Tackler proceeds to set his feet, sink his hips, shoot his arms back into gunfighter holster position, then rip, squeeze and roll, taking his teammate to the ground. Tackler’s head remains to the side. Tackled player is not fighting the tackle, providing minimal resistance as he falls to the ground. Each partner executes two reps rolling both right and left. Coach leads drill with “Feet! Sink! Arms! Rip, squeeze and roll!” commands.
Each group of players spends 3-4 minutes at a station before rotating. There are subtle variations of these drills that we used throughout the season, and other changes we are considering for next. You may discover drills that rep individual tackling skills that make good substitutes for the ones listed here. Great! Bottom line: break tackling down into its component parts, break your players into small groups, and send them a circuit of concise, high-rep drills that train those specific skills.
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Players partner up, with one doing the tackling. Tackler get in athletic stance, with one foot between teammate’s feet. Tackler proceeds to set his feet, sink his hips, shoot his arms back into gunfighter holster position, then rip, squeeze and roll, taking his teammate to the ground. Tackler’s head remains to the side. Tackled player is not fighting the tackle, providing minimal resistance as he falls to the ground. Each partner executes two reps rolling both right and left. Coach leads drill with “Feet! Sink! Arms! Rip, squeeze and roll!” commands.
Each group of players spends 3-4 minutes at a station before rotating. There are subtle variations of these drills that we used throughout the season, and other changes we are considering for next. You may discover drills that rep individual tackling skills that make good substitutes for the ones listed here. Great! Bottom line: break tackling down into its component parts, break your players into small groups, and send them a circuit of concise, high-rep drills that train those specific skills.
Subscribe to my YouTube channel
Follow me on Twitter