Creating Turnovers: Strip and Fumble Recovery Drill
This drill is designed to enhance a defensive back’s ability to create turnovers through forced fumbles and effective fumble recovery. By focusing on proper technique, anticipation, players will develop the instincts necessary to capitalize on opportunities.
Purpose
- Ball Disruption: Develops the skills to strip the ball from the ball carrier through various techniques.
- Fumble Recovery: Enhances the ability to secure a loose ball and maintain possession.
- Turnover Creation: Cultivates a mindset focused on creating turnovers through aggressive play.
Description
Drill Setup
- Pair up: Pairs of defensive backs and ball carriers line up, approximately 3-4 yards apart, with the ball carrier turning his back to the defensive back.
Drill Execution
- On the coach’s command, the ball carrier starts running at about 3/4 speed – holding the football properly, but only loosely.
- The defensive back also starts, but at 100% speed, closing in on the ball carrier.
- When the defensive back gets close enough, he will knock the football out of the ball carrier’s hands using either the Tomahawk Chop, coming over the top, or knocking the ball out from underneath.
- When the ball is free, the defensive back charges to recover the ball or picks it up and runs it back.
The drill is over when either the player controlling the ball is down, or the ball is returned to the starting point (or the ball carrier scores – bad! real bad!)
Variations
- Increase Difficulty: Gradually increase the speed and intensity of the drills to challenge the defensive backs.
- Ball Carrier Countermeasures: Have ball carriers implement ball security techniques (e.g. the ball carrier protects the ball either from the top against a tomahawk chop or from the bottom against a low hit, forcing the defender to choose the right technique to free the ball) to challenge the defensive backs’ stripping abilities.
- Free Ball is Fair Game: As soon as the ball is free it’s fair game, so the ball carrier also tries to recover the football.
- Multiple Pairs at Once: The drill can be run with multiple pairs of defenders at the same time – but each pair should be supervised by a coach so that mistakes can be corrected immediately.
Coaching Points
- Stripping Technique: Emphasize proper hand placement, timing, and leverage for effective strip attempts.
- Ball Security: Stress the importance of quickly securing the ball with both hands upon recovery.
- Awareness: Develop situational awareness by emphasizing the need to be alert for opportunities to strip the ball or recover a fumble.
- Physicality: Foster a mentality of aggression and physicality when attempting to strip the ball or secure a fumble.
- Tackle First: Emphasize that making the tackle still has first priority, so if the ball doesn’t come out, the tackle still has to be made
Recommendation: Recovering the fumble (securing it on the ground) should be practiced first before working on picking up the football and run.
Equipment
- Football(s)
By mastering these strip and fumble recovery drills, defensive backs will develop the skills and instincts necessary to create turnovers and impact the outcome of games.
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