Fake Football … or nah? Local coaches bearish on 7-on-7

Ron Steward
April 24, 2019
Locals make collegiate decision
April 24, 2019
Ron Steward
April 24, 2019
Locals make collegiate decision
April 24, 2019

About a half-decade ago, 7-on-7 summer football was the new craze.

Coaches around the state loved the concept — an opportunity to pitch and catch a football over the summer with a live scoreboard keeping track of winners and losers.

Teams went to tournaments around the state and the sport grew — so much so that just about every, single team participated in it in some form or fashion.


But flash forward to the present and local coaches now have seen how 7-on-7 impacts teams in the fall.

And they’re now a little more bearish on the concept and how useful it can be to a football team’s successes.

The Times has spoken to several local head football coaches throughout the offseason to get their thoughts on 7-on-7 and somewhat surprisingly, most think the drills have become overblown.


H.L. Bourgeois coach Ryan Fournier was one of the most outspoken. He said the drills will never be a huge part of his summer program with the Braves.

“It’s fake football,” Fournier said. “Yeah, guys are running around and throwing passes and that’s fine. But games are won at the line of scrimmage. They always have been and always will be. And that’s the one part of the game that you don’t really focus on when doing those drills. So to me, it’s not all that useful.”

The ascent in the drills came at a time when the passing game was growing heavily in Louisiana high school football, which made the drills attractive at first.


In 7-on-7 football, teams have a center, quarterback, halfback and four receivers. The premise of the sport is to allow quarterbacks the opportunity to read defenses, while also working on timing with receivers. On the flip side, it’s handy work for defensive backs, as well.

The sport grew in popularity bout 6-7 years ago and teams would play full summer seasons, traveling to tournaments and different events to try and build confidence before the season.

But locals say the competitiveness of those tournaments was ill-spirited, adding that some coaches got more carried away with the idea of winning than of getting ready for the season.


Central Lafourche coach Keith Menard said he was calling a play once, when he stopped, looked at the defense and had a realization.

“Some of these teams are playing defenses that we’ve never seen before in my entire career in coaching,” Menard said. “Some of these teams are out there with no linebackers on the field. And I’m sitting to myself thinking, ‘We will never see this defense one time in the varsity season.’”

South Lafourche coach Blake Forsythe agrees.


He said that the Tarpons do 7-on-7 drills, but he added that the biggest thing they take out of it is to get work for their defensive backs.

South Lafourche runs a triple option offense. That’s not quite conducive to shotgun sets with four receivers on the field.

“We don’t really like to throw the football, so for us, it’s a little bit different,” Forsythe said with a laugh. “It’s good to get the work in, but it’s not something that we’re going to be really doing much of when the games count — that wide-open, spread-out offense like that.”


So now, local coaches are finding ways to be more productive in their time.

Yes, 7-on-7 practices will still be on the agenda throughout the summer, but instead of going to tournaments, teams may schedule one-on-one dates with schools they trust or they may just opt to face one another in an intrasquad setup.

“There’s just more control over what’s happening that way,” Terrebonne coach Gary Hill said.


And instead of working only on the passing game with quarterbacks and receivers, teams are also getting in the habit of bringing linemen along for the ride, as well.

While the skill players work in 7-on-7 drills, the offensive and defensive linemen for each team may do some light blocking and drill work with one another — a way to get the whole team better and create a more realistic experience that can better translate into the fall.

Ellender coach David McCormick said that’s the best way to get the most out of the drills.


“You have to get those big guys in there blocking and working on things,” McCormick said. “I’ve never seen a quarterback on a football field without anyone chasing him. You need to develop those linemen, too.”

“To me, that’s more valuable than 7-on-7,” Fournier added. “Without question.” •

Prep football


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