Occam’s Razor

The principle of Occam’s Razor states that one should not make more assumptions than the minimum needed.  It also states that the simplest solution tends to be the right one.  Although Occam’s Razor is intended to be used to solve a complex problem with competing hypotheses, we use it to determine our summer 7v7 installation schedule.

What could be more complex than a teenage boy trying to decide which of 5 receivers he should throw the ball to while they are being covered by 7 opponents? Even more problematic, we coaches have a funny way of making things more difficult than necessary…

We love to prove (largely to ourselves) how smart we are and how much football we know.  Unfortunately, as I have stated in earlier blogs, it is not about what you know.  It’s is about what you can get your players to understand and execute.

As we prepare our summer 7v7 installation schedule, we need to keep in mind we will have a new quarterback this season.  Therefore, we need to minimize assumptions and simplify solutions.  Regardless of how much we may like a play or pass route combination, if it does not fall into one of our three basic Quarterback read categories, it will not be installed.

Similarly, regardless of the backfield action, we group every route combination into one of three quarterback read categories:

• Triangle Reads
• Curl-Flat Middle Reads
• Level Reads

We have 42 different route combinations that we can lump into these three reads.

42 route combinations are a complex problem for defenses, but we “simplify” them for our Quarterback; tipping a hat to Occam’s Razor.

Coach Rich Alercio is available to discuss coaching philosophy, X’s & O’s, or teach his O-Line “techniques in the trenches.” Contact Coach at richalercio@gmail.com and share http://www.olineskills.com with your colleagues and friends.

Thanks for your time!