Is face tackling legal?

[bigjohn]

I have been coaching since 1984, high school varsity football in Southern Ohio. I have never seen face tackling called in a game. I have been to over half the playoff finals in those 25 years and NEVER seen FACE Tackling called EVER!!!!!
So while in theory your answer is Illegal, the method you are teaching is sound as long as you teach the kids to not put their head down but bull the neck, aim for the chest and make contact with their chest not their face.

[HLin NC]

I think the caveat here to Big John's method of tackling is the head can not be the first item of the tackler to make contact with the tacklee. The tackler can not lead with his head, imagining a kid with his arms to his side and his helmet drilling the opponent in the chest as the primary method of face tackling.

You might want to ask the prospective coach to demonstrate his method in a follow-up interview. He may just mean that he wants to teach the kids to wrap up and then drive thought the chest without using the helmet as a weapon. In his excitement, he may have just left off the pertinent and legal details.

[bigjohn]

YouTube - Coach Wright Tackling Progression

[Mike L]

Youth Coach,

the bottom line is this....is your prospective coach teaching initiating contact with the helmet or not? Once you get that answer, you'll be well on your way to making an informed decision.

As for the posted video, I noticed every single time the coach demonstrated the power step in, his head is down and forward. Then he does his "bite the ball" thingy and initiates contact. My worry about that is with the ball carrier most like closing at a rapid pace, contact may occur prior to "biting the ball" which leaves the youngsters he is teaching in a pretty vulnerable position.

And finally, just because it hasn't been called much in someones experience, does not mean you should ignore a potentially dangerous technique being taught.