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University of Virginia-Wise defensive coordinator Shap Boyd discusses how he makes defensive adjustments

The guest on today’s Coach and Coordinator podcast is defensive coordinator at Division II UVa-Wise Shap Boyd. Boyd and host Keith Grabowski are no strangers, having coached against each other in the Ohio Athletic Conference while Boyd was at Muskingum and Grabowski at Baldwin Wallace.

On today’s show, Boyd shares how he makes adjustments and evolves his defense during the course of a season.

Show Notes

Entering his third season at UVa-Wise, Shap Boyd’s defense has become one of the best in the Mountain East Conference. In 2017, Boyd’s unit ranked in the Top 25 nationally in third down defense (13th), defensive touchdowns (15th), tackles for loss (18th) and interceptions (22nd). Opponents posted just 315.7 yards per game against the Cavaliers last fall.

LEARN MORE: See how Shap Boyd defends the Wing-T within a video from Coaching OnDemand. Login or create a free trial and then click here to check it out.

In his first season (2016), Boyd’s defense ranked second in the Mountain East Conference against the run, allowing just 100.1 rushing yards per game. The Cavaliers also were third in the MEC in getting off the field on third down as opponents converted just 32.8 percent of third down chances.

Twitter: @shapboyd

Topics discussed:

• Coaching journey
• His high school experience
• Morphing his defense into a three-man front
• Lessons that impacted him as a coach
• Protecting the Mike LB and using line movements
• Why everything is a spill defense for him
• The process of evolving a defense
• How many reps can you get in practice? 
• How to make coaching concepts similar
• Game plan continuity in a game pan and giving the offense “eye wash”
• Deciding how much defense to put in
• Practicing a game plan
• Having answers for different offensive formations
• Repping what they do vs. what they could do
• The cumulative effect of reps
• Tips to evolve over the course of a season
• When things go wrong, go back to base

 

QUARTERS COVERAGE MADE SIMPLE

Get a comprehensive overview of effective quarters coverage techniques with Coach Shap Boyd in a Coaching OnDemand video. Login or create a free trial and then click here to check it out.

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