Buffalo OC teaches his model for game planning

• By Keith Grabowski

MAC-tion is back on Tuesday’s and the Buffalo Bulls are on top of the MAC at 3-0 with an  impressive offensive stat lines

Scoring 44.3 points per game

Rushing  260 ypg (6.3 yd/att)

Total 467.1 ypg 

Last night, running back Jaret Patterson carried it 31 times for a school-record 301 yards and four touchdowns as Buffalo beat Bowling Green 42-17. Note* 3 weeks later he broke the record again!

No one can argue the fact that players make plays, and Patterson is a special one, but it takes a sound plan not just game to game, but all year round to get an offense performing to its maximum potential.

That’s something that offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki takes great pride in and spends countless hours ensuring that he and his staff get it right and put their players in a position to be successful.

In his clinic on game planning, Kotelnicki starts by defining the word “coordinate”

It’s not about being a guru or putting up gaudy stats.  It’s about bringing things together.  In our era of huge offensive stats, it's easy to lose focus on that. To keep that focus.  Kotelnick begins every offensive meeting with that picture on the screen to remind them that they need to be on the same page.  

The fingers show that small gap that’s necessary for them to close to make the difference and win on Saturday.

Kotelnick explains how all of what they do is driven by execution in this video:

Kotelnicki points out the importance of having a flexible structure that does not hinder creativity.  He illustrates two paradigms of game planning to which most coaches subscribe:

Whether it's an “us” or them” focus, game planning fits into three models:

“Less is more” model: best suited to teams with great talent and depth.  They have less volume in their playbook which leads to more offensive production.  Sometimes this model lacks answers.

“An answer for everything” model: teams that do not have as much talent may feel they need more plays.  This model can detract from performance and execution because of the volume burden on players.

“The inverted U” model (pictured below): the “art and science” of coaching. Having enough to prepare the answers needed to attack a defense, but not too much as to hinder execution.

“You gotta make football finite”  - it was an “aha” moment for Kotelnick in realizing that he only has so many reps available in practice.

What the Bulls start with is quantifying their week.  Minutes = reps.  How much:

11 on 11 reps

Skelly

Inside

1st team, 2nd team, 3rd team reps

Meeting time

Walk thru time

Like in the classroom, you need to know how much time you have to teach the subject.

These define what you will be able to work on and have ready for a game.  You only have those reps, so you must use them wisely.

Kotelnicki covers all the details of how they break this down yearly and by week to  understand exactly what they need for every situation and how they will be able to get the maximum out of their execution on game day.

This is an exercise that every coordinator should do regardless of whether he coordinates the offense, defense, or special teams.

Learn the specifics in Kotelnicki’s clinic “Developing an Offensive Game Plan.”

Listen to Coach Kotelnicki on Coach and Coordinator