Georgia Coaching Notes
Backpack Coaches & Broken Development: The 7v7 Problem
The growth of 7v7 leagues has, in many ways, turned into the AAU basketball and travel baseball model—but now for football.
The growth of 7v7 leagues has, in many ways, turned into the AAU basketball and travel baseball model—but now for football.
And with it comes the same mess.
We are no longer immune from the cesspool of bad operators convincing parents and kids they’re going to get them “exposure,” all while:
- developing bad habits
- undermining high school programs
- and gaslighting kids about the very coaches actually responsible for their development
Let’s not dance around it.
Here are the real issues with 7v7:
Far Too Many BPCs -“Backpack Coaches”
This isn’t to say every coach wearing a backpack on the sideline is a problem…
…but it is to say that most problems seem to be wearing one. (I will refer to them as BPCs throughout)
When you sign your kid up for anything, you should expect a baseline:
- professionalism
- leadership
- some level of credibility
Instead, far too many of these teams are run by guys who:
- have no structure
- no accountability
- and no business being in charge of kids
They lean on “listen to your coaches” while putting kids in environments you wouldn’t trust for five minutes in a real program. Honestly, I have considered calling Child Protective Services based on some these experiences I have seen with these BPCs. So why are you okay with it as a parent?
Grown Men Chirping High School Kids
This one is embarrassing. I wish it were against the law to be this stupid.
The lack of class from some of these BPCs is staggering.
You’ll hear: “We’re skipping track this year—we got invited to an ELITE 7v7 team.” No discussion if that is in the best interest of the kid and his development or anything along those lines.
The parents have already put the deposit down and allowed the virus to infect their minds and the mind of the kid. They then take these kids to tournaments where they think it is the "cool" thing to do to talk trash at children.
If another high school coach tried to address one of my players like that, it would be handled in a swift and effecient fashion.
A grown man talking trash to a kid at a 7v7 tournament?
That’s about as low as it gets in this profession.
It’s a Pay-to-Play Ponzi Scheme
You’ll hear it all the time: “Football’s changed.”
You’re right.
Because now we’ve added:
- 7v7 leagues & coaches (This is You)
- personal skill trainers
- recruiting “gurus”
And somehow the answer is always:
Pay more money → get more exposure
That’s the pitch. Here’s the reality:
Colleges do not care about your 7v7 stats. They don’t care about your tournament highlights. They’re not offering scholarships because you went 4-for-4 in shorts and a t-shirt.
Anyone telling you otherwise wants your money. That’s it. They don’t care about your kid. They care about keeping you in the system.
How is it a Ponzi scheme? Because the more you pay, the more “exposure” you’re told you have. It doesn’t take a football mind to run a 7v7 team.
It takes a camera, a logo, and an ego.
Bad Habits and Make-Believe Football
At the root of all of this—it’s not real football. It's
No pass protection. No run game.
No physical consequences. You’ve got:
- 5–6 wide every snap
- Defenses full of DB body types
- Quarterbacks throwing into windows that don’t exist on Friday nights
That 5’9”, 155-pound linebacker you’re picking on all day? In real football, we’re running straight at him until he taps out.
Quarterbacks not worried about getting hit but still wearing a "Guardian" Cap. GTFO.
Then August hits—and now everything speeds up, and you’re trying to undo three months of bad habits. But what does the BP Coach say? "He wasn't doing that with me, it must be the coaching he has at the school". Again, GTFO.
We used to do 7v7 for timing. For rhythm.
For getting QBs and receivers on the same page within an actual system. Allow DBs to work through their technique, and take coaching on the fly.
If you tried some of this backyard stuff in a real setting, you’d get corrected real quick. Not by a coach. By physics and genetics.
Not every 7v7 program is the problem. There are some that are run the right way and actually help kids.
But right now, they’re getting buried under a pile of bad actors who are louder, flashier, and more interested in attention than development.
I’m all for competition. Always have been.
But when the environment starts promoting bad habits, bad behavior, and pulling kids away from the people actually responsible for their growth… that’s not progress.
That’s the problem. If you are in charge of one of these teams and allowing it to happen? You are the problem.
That's all I got. /
Our friends **@coaching_share** is the hub for all your resources no matter the sport or season... Except the backpack coaches of the 7v7 world. Give them a follow and check them out!
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