(Photo by Mike Fender)

Day 2 of the USA Football 2018 National Conference at Pro Bowl began at 9 a.m. with several presentations, chalk talk sessions and Vendor Village sponsors.

Check out this blog throughout the day for updates as events happen at today's conference, at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida.

RELATED CONTENT: USA Football 2018 National Conference: Day 1 activities, speakers, sights and sounds

9 a.m.

How to build an offensive game plan

 

Andrew Coverdale (Photo by Adam Wire)

Louisville (Kentucky) Trinity High School offensive coordinator Andrew Coverdale has helped the Shamrocks achieve back-to-back 15-0 seasons that culminated in state titles. His presentation, "Fundamentals of Assembling a Game Plan," drew a sizable crowd of high school coaches.

Coverdale discussed the process Trinity coaches use to devise their game plan each week, starting with Saturday morning.

It includes player self-evaluations, an initial scouting report by position and a question list for each coach on Saturday; a gotomeeting discussion with the staff on Sundays, during which they plan Monday's practice and focus primarily on the base offense. Monday, they build the base, and the players are expected to have already read the game plan, Coverdale said.

RELATED CONTENT: USA Football 2018 National Conference: See how Kevin Kelley uses data to utilize his unconventional special teams strategy

"We get the mental work in the bank on Monday," Coverdale said. "Calls, communications; I want the hardest scenarios on Monday. Get the problem exposed early. I'm not afraid of bad reps on Monday or Tuesday."

10:20 a.m.

Green Bay Packers CEO Mark Murphy, Focus 3 CEO Brian Kight talk leadership

Green Bay Packers president and CEO Mark Murphy (Photo by Adam Wire)

Mark Murphy played for the Washington Redskins under vastly different leadership styles. He began his career under George Allen and later played for Joe Gibbs, which led him to mention how varying leadership styles work.

"When you have a great coach, you can sense it," Murphy said. "George was probably the most enthusiastic coach of his time. He had a very innovative leadership style. Playing for Joe Gibbs was a tremendous honor. To see him set up his program was invaluable, particularly as it relates to leadership."

Kight joined Murphy on stage to discuss how varying leadership styles can work, but some characteristics eliminate a person's ability to lead.

"It’s important to separate leadership style from leadership skills," Kight said. "The reference point for a leader is, 'Did it work?' There are styles that worked really well in 2002, that wouldn’t work now.”

11:15 a.m.

"There's nothing soft about it"

 

Scott Peters, a former NFL offensive lineman who originated USA Football's Tip of the Spear contact system, demonstrated the technique (pictured above) to onlookers, and explained its benefits.

"In the NFL, the objective isn't to hurt somebody; it's to win," said Peters, who played with the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants, Carolina Panthers, San Francisco 49ers and Arizona Cardinals. "How do I get more out of my body? Some guys aren't as big physically. How do you win?"

Peters encouraged the high school coaches in attendance to teach the technique in the offseason, so it becomes second nature once the season begins.

"When you see high school players using the most sophisticated tactics in the game, it’s a good thing," Peters said. "Safety can be the byproduct, but don’t confuse safe with soft. There’s nothing soft about it."

11:40 a.m.

Rookie Tackle playbook

Chuck Kyle demonstrates during a Rookie Tackle presentation with Andy Ryland. (Photo by Adam Wire)

Longtime Cleveland St. Ignatius High School coach Chuck Kyle and USA Football Senior Manager, Education and Training Andy Ryland showed a crowd of youth football coaches and parents the types of plays you can run under the Rookie Tackle umbrella.

Ryland referenced basic plays such as jet sweep, simple trap, iso and a base version of power as plays that can run within the Rookie Tackle rules. He also explained the reasoning behind some of the current regulations, such as the two-point stance.

"This is about fundamental skill acquisition," Ryland said. "The two-point stance is what's needed."

Kyle, who has coached St. Ignatius to 11 Ohio state titles, said teaching Rookie Tackle properly is beneficial to high school programs down the road.

"As a high school football coach, I’m turning to you," Kyle said to prospective Rookie Tackle coaches. "If you can tell your lineman to fire off your feet, you are doing your high school coach a huge favor. You’ll see better blocking."

2 p.m.

Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Mike Singletary

The Chicago Bears great and former NFL head coach spent part of his one-hour block discussing his early life, career and family balance, then opening it up to questions from the hundreds in attendance.

Because Singletary’s Pentecostal minister father left home when he was 12, he had the chance to play football that his brothers didn’t. His Houston-area high school coach, Oliver Brown, inspired him from Day 1, and built a generation of leaders.

“When you went to class, you sat in the front. When something happened in the school, the football players were the ones who stepped up to make it right,” Singletary said.

Singletary also encouraged coaches to make sure their priorities are straight at home.

“Success to me is when I find a way to do what I’m called to do, without compromising what I must do first,” he said.

 

2:45 p.m.

Tip of the Spear, Exhibit A

Scott Peters hasn't been doing the USA Football Contact System demonstrations alone.

Most of the time, he has Joey Ramos with him. Ramos, a 17-year-old who graduated from Deer Valley High School in Glendale, Arizona, last fall. He'll play at Iowa State University this fall on a full-ride scholarship, thanks in part to his mastery of the contact system technique.

He showed off his skills as part of the Tip of the Spear demonstration on the Live Field, which also included former Indianapolis Colts guard Mike Pollak.

Ramos was most prominent in the Magnetic Hands drill, which Peters encouraged coaches to teach regardless of position.

"Other than quarterbacks and kickers, everybody can do this," Peters said.

 

3 p.m.

Two-Point Conversion Theory, with Pulaski Academy (Arkansas) coach Kevin Kelley

Kelley, one of the more innovative coaches in the sport, and who spoke to a packed room, used analytics to determine whether his team should go for two after touchdowns instead of kicking PATs. As a rule, Kelley always goes for it after the first two touchdowns in any game, to put the opposition in an immediate hole for a psychological advantage.

Whether it’s two-point conversions, frequent onside kicks or rarely punting, Kelley borrows from The Art of War by Sun Tzu.

“Those that do few things have to prepare for the enemy. Those that do many things, the enemy must prepare for you.”

Schematically, Kelley’s teams often use various sprint throwbacks and sprint-out run/pass options in two-point scenarios.

“We’re at about 52 percent on them without spending any time on it,” Kelley said. “If someone really practiced it, they could easily get to 62 to 65 percent. Come to think of it, maybe we should do that.”

 

3:45 p.m.

Success begins with what you don't do

Focus 3 CEO Brian Kight said he's worked with Fortune 100 companies, schools, hospitals, banks and other businesses, in addition to football teams. His leadership development approach is the same with all of them.

"What we do does not change," Kight told the large crowd at his speech, "E+R=O: Building a Culture of Discipline That Wins." "Personal growth drives organizational growth."

Kight did tailor the message to what he's witnessed in football programs, including at Ohio State University, the first football team he worked with.

"In the football coaching community, we over-emphasize job skills to the detriment of behavior skills," Kight said. To prove his point, he asked the assembled coaches if they got hired for their job skills or their behavior skills, and the majority said their job skills. He then asked, "Do you think most coaches get fired for their job skills or their behavior skills?" The majority responded behavior skills.

You can find Kight's E+R=O presentation here.

 

4 p.m.

Building a Successful Football Program, with Pine-Richlands High School (Gibsonia, Pennsylvania) coach Eric Kasperowicz

Kasperowicz talked about having a vision, philosophy and plan, based on this ratio – 75 percent culture, 25 percent scheme.

“Everything thing we do comes back to family,” he said. “(Players) really don’t care what you know until they know how much you care. The more you engage with those guys, the more they’ll care.”

Kasperowicz wants his program to embrace five intangibles – swagger, trust, having coachable players, respect and appreciation. In building a coaching staff, he looks for enthusiasm over tactical aptitude.

“I can teach them the X’s and O’s,” Kasperowicz said. “They need to be passionate, care about the kids, and you need to have different guys to suit different roles.”

 

5 p.m.

Youth Football Defense, with St. Ignatius (Cleveland) High School coach Chuck Kyle

The 11-time state champion coach discussed age-appropriate technique and skill development at the youth level. He started with a message regarding wins and losses.

“Don’t worry about your record. What the concern and goal is, here’s a kid who showed up and he started to love the game of football and you taught them tremendous techniques,” he said.

Kyle said player attention span is a major hurdle, and that a coach can’t rely on what they did in high school. He recommended coaches carefully analyze the speed and intensity of drills early on, to account for players who might not have contact experience.

“You don’t want them going home with tears in their eyes saying, ‘Mom, I don’t want to go back there,’” he said. “You can’t lose that kid. You need that kid, the sport needs that kid.”

 

5:15 p.m.

Interview to-do list

Oliver Luck's presentation, "Interviewing for the Job You Want," drew plenty of questions from inquisitive attendees.

Q: "Who would make a good reference for me?" A: "Someone who knows you and has worked with you."

Q: "Is it OK for me to ask who's going to be in the room for my interview?" A: "It's entirely appropriate to ask that question. You never want to be surprised. Plus, it shows you have done your homework when you meet those folks."

Luck also mentioned a few questions prospective coaches could count on hearing: "Why should we hire you?" "Why do want this job?" "How long are you going to stay?"