Made in USA
Coach Al Wright (WR/RB Specialist)
High School Wide Receiver Coach Al Wright Reviews the Colt
The Mobility of the Colt is the Best Thing for Blocking Drills
Q: How do you use “The Colt” in your daily practice or progression?
A: The Colt was the first thing we used every day in practice. It was really pivotal with all the blocking drills we did. We worked through it from the beginning of practice all the way through the end because we can’t cut block so we’re blocking in space the whole time. We really had to be sound with our technique in being able to cut off the inside and have good hand placement, help adjust the feet.
Q: How does the Colt affect hand placement?
A: Because you have the arms on the Colt, it really makes kids have to be aware of where they’re placing their hands, just because you have to get inside those arms. Once you get outside of it, that’s immediately a hold to a referee.
Q: Does the blocking pad being mobile affect how you’re able to practice?
A: The football blocking pad being mobile is probably the best thing for our skill position guys with blocking, because you’re blocking an open space and it’s a lot more difficult. You have to focus on breaking down your feet. The defender’s going to break down his feet so you have to be able to lower your hands and adjust to whatever level the pad is going to be, which is realistic to gameplay because no guy is ever standing still, nobody is ever square to you, chest to chest, that’s not how you block in an actual game.
Q: So, you’re able to move with the pad as a coach?
A: Yes, I always made sure I held the blocking pad for my guys so I made it as realistic as possible. I really made sure the kids were working with the pad, so they’re banging with it, the pad was durable, how the hands adjusted to how exactly what a defender would do, it really made a difference with how we blocked from the year we didn’t have the Colt to the year we brought the Colt into practice. The leap our kids made was just amazing.
Q: Did you utilize the football blocking shield in practice with your running backs?
A: Yes, blocking with the running backs was huge because they’re the ones who help set the edge after the tackles do. The blocking shield really made a difference because we had to go through, had to show strong technique, how to punch on the outside shoulder and lock-in and engage with the defender. With the arms there, it really gave an actual aiming point for where the kids needed to be with the Colt.
Q: Do you think the Colt can be used in your off-season training program?
A: The Colt will be a huge part of our off-season. We’ve already started to implement it, the younger kids especially. Coming up, they have to learn how to block, because no one ever actually learns how to block when they’re playing youth football. They’re just leading head first, and I don’t want kids banging heads all day. I really want them to focus on using their hands, getting good body space and just really shielding themselves- arms up, thumbs up- and punching. It’s really important. We’ll go through what our different drills are, our weight room coordinator is working with all of that to have our kids use that on a regular basis.
Q: Does the Colt have an affect with wide receivers coming off the line?
A: Oh, with the releases and everything. It’s a part of our everyday routine, just as far as being able to slap the hands down, or stab and re-adjust, the punch really helps getting off the press blocks. The kids aren’t afraid to go full speed with the blocking pad because when you’re going with another person, you’re worried about your hands hitting them and everyone’s worried about bruising their forearm, wrist and hands. With the football shield, you can actually go through at full speed and get lots of reps in. The kids aren’t afraid of actually hurting themselves. The Colt was huge with that stuff, just allowing us to go full speed even if we didn’t have shoulder pads on, or it was more of a walk-through day, or even beginning days in mini-camps or two-a-days. The kids really got to get all of their work in- with or without shoulder pads on, so the blocking shield was huge.
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