If you are a coach for a high school or youth team, you’ve probably had to make the decision of what to do with that one player who is better than the rest. Play him at his natural position? Or is there somewhere else that he can help the team? For example, you may have a kid who is a prototypical college Linebacker. But he runs a 4.5 40-yard dash, and on your team that’s running by guys like they’re standing still! So he’s your Free Safety, the “catch all” for when everything else breaks down. Or you could play him at Nose Guard, and let him wreck the offense from the start. Is that the right thing to do?You have to evaluate your talent and make decisions on a case-by-case basis. If the concern you’re having is whether or not it will effect his recruiting, the truth is that it will. Will it be better, or worse? Hard to say. If the player embraces his new position, and plays comfortable, it should not hurt him. He will still be the explosive, dominating force that he would have been in his natural position. If he pursues to the football with passion, it will show up on the film no matter where he starts the play from. [Read more...]