The most important role of a coach maybe to teach young players how to tackle and block without hurting themselves. In my youth, the term "head on the numbers!" was used in tackling drills. Its a wonder half of us did not end up with paralysis. I'm a high school football coach and teaching form tackling is very important part of my job. When teaching form tackling you should be observant of the following practices: - head on the ball side of the ball carrier - head up, not looking down - head on the ball - shoulder and head across the body - back straight, not humped or dipped - arms around mid-section - use arms as clubs to make contact with swinging motion on contact. - grasp jersey - roll hips and use leg thrust - tackle through the player These fundamentals should aid in the coaching of the game while protecting your athlete.