High School Football Coach Doesn't Punt, Always Onside Kicks, and Usually Wins

[HUSKER 37]

I first heard about this on "Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel"..But it raises some interesting questions.

I wonder if it would work in the college game.

 

Arkansas High School Football Coach Doesn't Punt, Always Onside Kicks And Usually Wins

 

 

Read more: http://articles.busi...d#ixzz1lHz7qMTW

[/left]

 

 

Numbers usually don't lie

 

 

Kevin Kelly isn’t nuts, crazy or a mad football scientist. The Little Rock, Ark. Pulaski Academy football coach is a cult-coaching figure for his non-traditional tactics.

He doesn’t punt. He almost always attempts onside kicks. And his playbook is filled with gimmicks – like the time he employed all 11 defenders in the box, leaving his opponent’s receivers wide open.

It worked, too. The quarterback misfired under pressure.

Why the outlandish thinking? It’s all in the numbers, he told Sports Illustrated.

According to statistics, an opponent only has a 15% likelier chance of chance of scoring from 10 yards outside the endzone than they do from the 40-yard line.

“It’s like some said, [Punting] is what you do on fourth down, and everyone did it without asking why,” he told SI.

The chances of winning certainly increase when you can take a 29-0 lead – before the other team ever touches the ball. A series of touchdowns and recovered onside kicks only four minutes into a particular game put it out of reach before Pulaski’s opponent ran an offensive set.

The team is the talk of the town. And they’re good. Pulaski is ranked No. 3 in the state AP poll and will likely win their third state title in eight years.

 

 

[GSG]

Dootball?

 

 

I heard about this guy when I was reading "Sportscasting" a while back. Interesting idea I suppose.

[walksalone]

thats crazy as hell

[HUSKER 37]

Dootball?

 

 

I heard about this guy when I was reading "Sportscasting" a while back. Interesting idea I suppose.

 

Great Googly Moogley!!!

 

I gotta glue new letters on me keybd!!

[HUSKER 37]

Gotta Love the Math!

 

 

 

 

Maybe it works mainly because in highschool, you probably only gain 30-35 yards of real estate when you punt.

[HUSKER 37]

One of the reasons that I think Tim Tebow had so much more success at the end of games and not so much in the first three quarters was because the Defenses were in a prevent.

 

Which I quess they also might be in a 4th and long situation.

[NUance]

I've though about this strategy for hs football, and think it could work in the right league. For two reasons. 1) your team would really hone their skills in onside kicks. 2) the other teams would waste an inordinate amount of practice time leading up to the game in order to prepare for the onslaught of onside kicks--something that could help out in other areas of the game.

 

If I was going to implement this I'd probably onside kick on every single attempt for the first couple of games. Just to raise the eyebrows of other coaches on the schedule. But I don't think I'd limit my team to *always* onside kicking. After the first few games I'd mix in some pooch kicks--say 30 yds or so, just over the first line of hands people--and also mix in some full length kicks as well.

[Cactusboy]

In the book they say his strategies wouldn't work as well in higher level football where player are faster and more athletic. I'm talking the 100% strict never punting, always going for 2 and such. Coaches still don't go for it enough on 4th in even NFL.

 

ALSO, a huge point made is that a coach has to have a LOT of job security to do this. Bill Belichick isn't going to get fired if he goes for it on 4th on his own side of the field because he has the job security needed. However if pretty much anyone else does that a couple times in a big game and doesn't make it he may be packing or at least he's going to be blasted by fans and media and his life will be hell. Point is...it's simply easier to do the safe thing and punt even if the numbers say going for it is the better move.