I cannot tell you the number of times I have been in a short yardage situation and the opposing defense does not put a nose guard on our center. We have an audible in place between the quarterback and center and run our quarterback sneak, usually on a silent snap. I have had quarterbacks run for 80 yard touchdowns in this situation on more than one occasion. It seems to happen at all levels at about the same rate, meaning 13 year old teams forget the nose guard as frequently as 5 year old flag teams.
This is one of the biggest mistakes made on youth football defense. I know I am repeating myself, but I have seen too many coaches mess up on this simple fact. It is short yardage and the team does not use a nose guard. This is just giving the offense the first down.
The nose guard needs to be a tough player who is willing to sacrifice his body for the good of the team. The nose guard will probably be slanting to a gap, taking out the center or taking out blockers.
The most important thing for the nose guard in short yardage situations is to make sure he is not driven backwards. The nose guard cannot allow penetration by the offensive line. If he is losing ground, we teach our defensive lineman to hit the ground and make a pile up.
Placing a nose guard in short-yardage situations will put your team in a better position to succeed.
