Sideline track
Why it works
Open-field stops are lost on angle, not speed. Starting both players on the ground and making them round a cone puts them in the same spot every game puts them, recovering into a chase, and the sideline gives the defender a teammate to pin the runner against.
Run it
8 MINEight minutes, about six reps each, three as runner and three as defender. Rest between reps; the lesson is the angle, and a tired defender always chases.
Say this
“Track his inside hip.”
Aiming at the near hip takes away the cutback and leaves the runner only the sideline.
“Use the sideline as your help.”
Squeezing the runner toward the sideline shrinks the field he has to make a move in.
“Breakdown, then finish.”
Short choppy steps in the last two yards let the defender change direction with the runner.
Good looks like
- Both players round their cone without cutting inside it.
- The defender's path bends forward to the runner's inside hip, not behind him.
- The runner either reaches the sideline or meets the defender; no clean cutback.
- The finish is a flag pull or a two-hand tag, with both players on their feet.
The mistakes
The defender running straight at the ball carrier and getting cut back inside. Mark a cone on the inside of the runner's lane; the defender has to beat the runner to it.
Say: “Track his inside hip.”
Overrunning to the sideline and opening the middle. Freeze it when the defender is level with the runner and show him the gap he left.
Say: “Use the sideline as your help.”
Reaching for the flag at full speed and missing. Make him chop his feet for two steps before any pull counts.
Say: “Breakdown, then finish.”
Start both players kneeling instead of lying down and shorten the cones to three yards, so the race is short and the angle is the only thing to get right.
Let the coach toss to either player without warning and add a second defender coming from deeper, so the first one has to turn the runner back to his help. Older tackle teams can finish with a fit at thud.