How to Do a Swim Move in Football (5-Step Guide)

By Coach Martin | Football Basics

There are many different tactics that defenders can use to shed blockers and make their way into open space.

One of the most popular methods of doing so for defensive linemen is the Swim Move.

With this technique, the defender will actually do one thing that goes against some logic when it comes to football — they will be, in a way, going over the top of their blocker rather than staying low the entire time.

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What is Cadence in Football? (And How to Use It)

By Coach Martin | Football Basics

If you’ve ever played the game of football – or watched one closely enough – you’ve probably heard the quarterback run through what seems like a rehearsed set of lines before every play.

That cadence will go something like this:

“Down. Blue 85. Blue 85. Ready. Hike!”

On the word “hike,” the center will snap the ball to the quarterback and the play will begin.

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What is 12 Personnel Football? (Full Explanation)

By Coach Martin | Football Basics

Naming conventions are common in football, as coaches look for ways to quickly identify various things during fast-paced games.

One of the common naming conventions that is the personnel grouping.

These groupings refer to how many players at each position are on the field for a particular play on offense.

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What is 11 Personnel Football? (Full Explanation)

By Coach Martin | Football Basics

Football coaches have come up with naming conventions for just about everything in the game to make things easier to understand on the fly.

By simply calling out a few numbers or a few words, they can accurately and effectively help themselves and everyone else understand a certain situation.

One example of this is the naming convention used to identify positions on the field on offense — generally referred to as personnel groupings.

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What is 10 Personnel Football? (Full Explanation)

By Coach Martin | Football Basics

Football coaches need a way to quickly identify a package of players on the field.

These personnel groupings are important for the offense and the defense, as it allows each to set up the plays they’ll run in a game.

As such, coaches gave personnel groupings certain naming mechanisms based around numbers.

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How to Snap a Football Correctly (8-Step Guide)

By Coach Martin | Football Basics

Every offensive play in football starts with a snap, yet it’s one of the most overlooked parts of the game.

Those who watch the game simply assume that the snap is just going to happen properly so that the play can start as it’s supposed to.

While this happens more times than not at the upper levels of the game, there are many more issues with the snap at lower levels of football.

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What is a Jamboree in Football? (Full Explanation)

By Coach Martin | Miscellaneous

Youth football teams need extra preparation for each upcoming season.

With so many young players on the team – including many who may be playing the game for the first time – this extra preparation is necessary to get everyone up to speed.

This happens even in high school, where the level of football starts to really step up a significant amount.

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What Does Redshirt Mean in Football? (Full Explanation)

By Coach Martin | Miscellaneous

If you’re around football enough, you may have heard of the term “redshirt” before.

But, depending on where it’s used, redshirt could actually mean a few different things.

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XYZ Receivers in Football: The Differences Explained

By Coach Martin | Football Positions

XYZ aren’t just the last three letters of the alphabet — they’re also letters given to wide receivers in football.

These letters symbolize different players and the different roles they serve.

Football coaches use these letter abbreviations because it’s much simpler to refer to the different wide receivers on the field.

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What is the Red Zone in Football? (Full Explanation)

By Coach Martin | Football Basics

Football coaches name different sections of the field to easily detail where the play occurs, and how far the offense is progressing downfield.

Knowing this information helps coaches know what type of plays to call — on both offense and defense — and how to set a game plan for what’s ahead.

One of those sections is what’s known as the Red Zone, and it’s probably the most well-known of them all — it’s also the most important zone on a football field.

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