High School Football Season Curriculum: 10-Week In-Season Plan
By the Practice Plan App Coaching Team · Published August 2026
- 1.Who Is This In-Season Plan For?
- 2.How Is the Season Structured?
- 3.How Do Practices Change In-Season?
- 4.How Much New Install Each Week?
- 5.How To Use the Linked Practice Plans
- 6.The 10-Week Curriculum
- 7.What You'll Need
- 8.How Do I Manage Contact Across Ten Weeks?
- 9.How Do I Run Scout Teams That Give Real Looks?
- 10.What Changes on a Short Week or After a Blowout?
- 11.How Do I Develop Young Players During the Season?
- 12.Frequently Asked Questions
Who Is This In-Season Plan For?#
This curriculum is written for the high school staff that has finished camp and installed its base offense and defense, and now faces ten straight game weeks. It assumes four practices per game week — a corrections-and-lift day after the game, a full-pads Tuesday, a situational Wednesday, and a fast walkthrough Thursday — with Friday games. Every week reuses the same skeleton so players stop thinking about the schedule and start thinking about the opponent; only the situational theme changes.
How Is the Season Structured?#
The ten weeks ride one rhythm but rotate through the situations that decide high school games: game-week routine (Week 1), tackling maintenance (2), red zone (3), third down (4), special teams (5), a bye-week reset (6), two-minute (7), goal line and short yardage (8), a tempo wrinkle (9), and full playoff polish (10). If your bye lands elsewhere, slide Week 6 to match it and keep the rest of the sequence in order — the themes are sequenced from most to least foundational.
How Do Practices Change In-Season?#
In-season practice is maintenance plus preparation, not installation. Contact budget is spent on Tuesday only: thud tempo for base O vs D, live only in short-yardage fits capped at 10 minutes. Wednesday is shells — situational periods against scout looks at full speed but no tackling to the ground. Thursday is helmets, mental reps, and special teams review at walkthrough pace, always under 75 minutes. Total weekly contact goes down as the season goes on, not up; fresh legs in Week 8 beat extra reps in Week 8.
How Much New Install Each Week?#
The cap is three new plays or one new concept per side of the ball per week, installed Tuesday, repped against looks Wednesday, and walked through Thursday. Anything that has not been repped on Wednesday does not get called Friday. The weekly game plan lives on one sheet: base calls that never change, plus this week's situational package from the theme of the week.
How To Use the Linked Practice Plans#
Each week links one or two full practice plans from the library — an install-day plan matched to the theme and, where useful, the Thursday walkthrough or a 60-minute game-week plan for short weeks. Run them as written the first time; after that, keep the period structure and swap your own calls into the scripts.
The 10-Week Curriculum#
10 weeks · 4 practices per week · 120-minute sessions
Week 1
Game-Week Rhythm Install
▾
Week 1
Game-Week Rhythm Install
Goal
The team executes the full Tuesday-Thursday rhythm once, ending in a Thursday walkthrough that covers every special-teams unit and the openers script without a repeated period.
Practices
- Full-Pads Base Install (Thud) · 120 min
Run the linked 120-minute full-pads plan as written: base offense vs base defense at thud tempo with scripted team periods. This is the contact day — everything else this week is shells or helmets.
- Thursday Walkthrough · 75 min
The linked 75-minute walkthrough covers every special-teams unit, the openers script, and end-of-half procedure. Install it exactly once as written — it becomes the template every Thursday repeats.
Week 1 is about installing the rhythm itself. Every week after this reuses today's schedule with a different theme.
- Mon: Film corrections from the opener or final scrimmage, lift, 15-minute jog-through of base calls.
- Tue: Full pads — base offense vs base defense at thud (linked plan). Script 10 runs, 10 passes each way.
- Wed: Shells — openers script vs scout looks, first situational period: 3rd-and-medium.
- Thu: 75-minute walkthrough (linked plan): all six special-teams units, openers, two-minute procedure talk-through.
Week 2
Tackling & Defensive Maintenance
▾
Week 2
Tackling & Defensive Maintenance
Goal
Every defender gets 20+ quality tackling-circuit reps without a single player taken to the ground; missed-tackle count from Friday's film drops week over week.
Practices
- Defensive Tackling Circuit · 120 min
Run the linked 2-hour tackling-circuit plan's stations — angle, wrap, wheel, sideline — at thud. Rotate every defender through all stations; track reps so nobody hides.
- 60-Minute Game-Week Sharpener · 60 min
Use the linked 60-minute game-week plan on Wednesday if legs are heavy from the circuit day: openers, situational script, and pursuit at shells tempo.
Tackling erodes fastest in-season because nobody practices it live. Maintain it with circuits, not scrimmage.
- Mon: Film — grade every missed tackle by cause (angle, leverage, wrap). Lift.
- Tue: Full pads — tackling circuit (linked plan) for the first hour, then base team periods.
- Wed: Shells — pursuit drill opener, situational period: 2nd-and-long defense.
- Thu: Standard walkthrough; add kick-coverage lane review.
Week 3
Red Zone Week
▾
Week 3
Red Zone Week
Goal
Offense scores touchdowns on 4 of 6 scripted red-zone team periods Wednesday; every player can state the red-zone call-sheet structure (+20, +10, +5) unprompted.
Practices
- Red Zone Offense Install · 120 min
The linked 120-minute red-zone install builds the inside-the-20 package by zone: run-heavy +5, rub/fade +10, full-field +20. Run it Tuesday at thud and carry its scripts to Wednesday.
Points per red-zone trip swings more high school games than total yards. Give it a full week.
- Mon: Film — every red-zone snap of the season so far, both ways. Lift.
- Tue: Full pads — red-zone install (linked plan): +20, +10, and +5 packages at thud.
- Wed: Shells — 6 scripted red-zone drives vs scout defense; defense gets equal compressed-field reps.
- Thu: Walkthrough — red-zone call sheet review, PAT/FG operation timing.
Week 4
Third Down & Pressure
▾
Week 4
Third Down & Pressure
Goal
Offense converts 50% of scripted third-down periods against the week's pressure looks; defense shows three distinct third-down pressures with correct fits on film.
Practices
- Third-Down Pressure Install · 120 min
Run the linked 2-hour third-down plan: defense installs its pressure menu while offense reps hot routes and protection slides against it — best-on-best at thud, then scripted buckets.
Third down is where game plans live or die. Both sides get the theme: offense beats pressure, defense brings it.
- Mon: Film — every third down from last game, sorted by distance bucket. Lift.
- Tue: Full pads — third-down pressure install (linked plan), offense vs defense best-on-best in thud.
- Wed: Shells — third-down script by bucket (3rd-and-2, 3rd-and-5, 3rd-and-8+) vs scout looks.
- Thu: Walkthrough — protection-check review with QB and line, punt-safe vs fake alert.
Week 5
Special Teams Reset
▾
Week 5
Special Teams Reset
Goal
Punt and punt-return units run 8 clean operations each Wednesday (no snap over 0.9s off schedule, no return without a called lane); kickoff and goal-line field units re-fit on film.
Practices
- Punt / Punt Return Install · 120 min
The linked 2-hour plan rebuilds both punt units from operation timing up: snap-to-kick clock, shield fits, return lanes, and fake alerts. Run the full first half; give the second half to base maintenance.
- Goal Line & Kickoff Fits · 120 min
Pull the kickoff and goal-line periods from the linked install plan for Wednesday: coverage lanes at three-quarter speed, then goal-line fits capped at 10 live minutes.
Midseason is when special teams get sloppy — personnel has churned and reps have shrunk. Rebuild both punt units this week.
- Mon: Film — every special-teams snap of the last two games. Lift.
- Tue: Full pads — punt/punt-return install (linked plan) first half, base team periods second half.
- Wed: Shells — kickoff and kickoff-return lanes (linked plan periods), then situational script.
- Thu: Walkthrough — all six units in sequence, fake alerts, and the kick-safe call.
Week 6
Bye-Week Reset & Development
▾
Week 6
Bye-Week Reset & Development
Goal
Every backup logs 30+ install reps; starters finish the week with zero contact periods and two full recovery days; one fundamentals deficiency per position group is corrected on film.
Practices
- No-Pads Install Cleanup · 90 min
Run the linked 90-minute no-pads install plan with the twist that backups take every other rep. Fix the two worst-executed base concepts from your self-scout instead of adding anything new.
- Receiver / Skill Fundamentals Circuit · 90 min
Use the linked 90-minute receiver fundamentals plan as the Wednesday skill-circuit template: stance, releases, tracking, and contested-catch stations for receivers and DBs together.
No opponent this week — develop and recover. Cut total time 25% and give a true day off.
- Mon: Film — self-scout: top 5 tendencies an opponent would find. Light lift.
- Tue: No pads — install cleanup and fundamentals (linked plan) with backups taking half the reps.
- Wed: Position circuits — receivers/DBs, line, QBs rotate through skill stations; conditioning finisher.
- Thu: Off or optional film + treatment.
Week 7
Two-Minute & End-of-Half Mastery
▾
Week 7
Two-Minute & End-of-Half Mastery
Goal
Offense scores or reaches field-goal range in 3 of 4 two-minute periods Wednesday; every player passes a clock-rules quiz (spike, timeout, sideline, kneel situations).
Practices
- Two-Minute Drill Install · 120 min
The linked 120-minute plan installs the full two-minute operation: sideline signals, clock rules, spike/kill calls, and live-clock team periods. Run Tuesday at reduced contact; repeat its team periods Wednesday in shells.
From here on, close games decide the season. Two-minute execution is rehearsed chaos — script the chaos.
- Mon: Film + classroom: clock rules quiz, timeout philosophy. Lift.
- Tue: Full pads (reduced contact) — two-minute drill install (linked plan).
- Wed: Shells — four live-clock two-minute periods: +75/one timeout, +60/no timeouts, defense protecting a lead, four-minute kill-clock offense.
- Thu: Walkthrough — end-of-half procedure both ways, field-goal/kneel decision tree.
Week 8
Goal Line & Short Yardage
▾
Week 8
Goal Line & Short Yardage
Goal
Offense converts 4 of 6 scripted 3rd/4th-and-1 team reps; goal-line defense holds on 4 of 6 — all live reps inside a strict 10-minute contact cap.
Practices
- Goal Line & Kickoff Install · 120 min
Run the linked 120-minute plan with the goal-line periods live (capped at 10 minutes) and everything else at thud. The kickoff periods double as this week's special-teams maintenance.
Late-season football is won inside the 5. This is the one week with meaningful live contact — keep it short and violent.
- Mon: Film — every short-yardage snap this season. Lift.
- Tue: Full pads — goal-line install (linked plan): offense wedge/sneak/QB-follow menu, defense submarine and fit rules. 10 live minutes maximum.
- Wed: Shells — situational ladder: backed-up, midfield 4th-and-short decision, +3 goal line, 2-point menu.
- Thu: Walkthrough — 4th-down decision chart review with captains; kickoff after safety procedure.
Week 9
Tempo Change-Up
▾
Week 9
Tempo Change-Up
Goal
Offense runs a 10-play no-huddle period at under 16 seconds snap-to-snap with zero procedure penalties; defense practices its answer: sub packages and a freeze call.
Practices
- No-Huddle Offense Install · 120 min
The linked 2-hour plan installs signals, tempo tiers, RPO tags, and protection rules for a no-huddle package. Keep it to one formation family — the value is the speed, not the volume.
A tempo package late in the year forces opponents to burn a week of their own prep. Install it now so it's game-ready for the playoffs.
- Mon: Film + signals classroom session — wristbands issued. Lift.
- Tue: Full pads (reduced) — no-huddle install (linked plan): signals, tempo levels, RPO tags, protection defaults.
- Wed: Shells — tempo periods vs scout defense, then defense vs scout tempo for its freeze/sub answers.
- Thu: Walkthrough — tempo scripts at half speed, situational review.
Week 10
Playoff Polish
▾
Week 10
Playoff Polish
Goal
The full situational menu — openers, third down, red zone, two-minute, 4th-down chart, all six kicking units — is rehearsed once each with zero new install; players finish the week fresher than they started it.
Practices
- 60-Minute High-Tempo Game-Week Practice · 60 min
Run the linked 60-minute plan twice this week (Tuesday and as the Wednesday base): short periods, sprint tempo, zero teaching stoppages. Fresh legs are the last install of the season.
- Championship Walkthrough · 75 min
The linked Thursday walkthrough, unchanged since Week 1 — same sequence, same pace. The routine itself is the confidence.
Nothing new. Shorter, faster, sharper — the goal is a team that plays fast because it isn't thinking.
- Mon: Film — opponent tendencies down to one page. Light lift.
- Tue: Shells (no full pads this week) — 60-minute game-week plan (linked): openers, situational scripts at high tempo.
- Wed: Shells — situational ladder covering every bucket from Weeks 3-9, one period each.
- Thu: Walkthrough (linked plan) — full special teams, end-of-game decision rehearsal, captains speak.
| Week | Theme & Goal | Practices |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Game-Week Rhythm Install The team executes the full Tuesday-Thursday rhythm once, ending in a Thursday walkthrough that covers every special-teams unit and the openers script without a repeated period. Game-week routineBase offense vs defenseSpecial teams organization |
Week 1 is about installing the rhythm itself. Every week after this reuses today's schedule with a different theme.
|
| Week 2 | Tackling & Defensive Maintenance Every defender gets 20+ quality tackling-circuit reps without a single player taken to the ground; missed-tackle count from Friday's film drops week over week. Tackling techniquePursuit anglesDefensive fits |
Tackling erodes fastest in-season because nobody practices it live. Maintain it with circuits, not scrimmage.
|
| Week 3 | Red Zone Week Offense scores touchdowns on 4 of 6 scripted red-zone team periods Wednesday; every player can state the red-zone call-sheet structure (+20, +10, +5) unprompted. Red zone offenseFade/rub conceptsCompressed-field defense |
Points per red-zone trip swings more high school games than total yards. Give it a full week.
|
| Week 4 | Third Down & Pressure Offense converts 50% of scripted third-down periods against the week's pressure looks; defense shows three distinct third-down pressures with correct fits on film. Third down offensePressure packagesProtection adjustments |
Third down is where game plans live or die. Both sides get the theme: offense beats pressure, defense brings it.
|
| Week 5 | Special Teams Reset Punt and punt-return units run 8 clean operations each Wednesday (no snap over 0.9s off schedule, no return without a called lane); kickoff and goal-line field units re-fit on film. Punt & punt returnKickoff & coverage lanesSpecialist operations |
Midseason is when special teams get sloppy — personnel has churned and reps have shrunk. Rebuild both punt units this week.
|
| Week 6 | Bye-Week Reset & Development Every backup logs 30+ install reps; starters finish the week with zero contact periods and two full recovery days; one fundamentals deficiency per position group is corrected on film. Fundamentals circuitsYoung-player developmentRecovery |
No opponent this week — develop and recover. Cut total time 25% and give a true day off.
|
| Week 7 | Two-Minute & End-of-Half Mastery Offense scores or reaches field-goal range in 3 of 4 two-minute periods Wednesday; every player passes a clock-rules quiz (spike, timeout, sideline, kneel situations). Two-minute offenseClock managementPrevent defense |
From here on, close games decide the season. Two-minute execution is rehearsed chaos — script the chaos.
|
| Week 8 | Goal Line & Short Yardage Offense converts 4 of 6 scripted 3rd/4th-and-1 team reps; goal-line defense holds on 4 of 6 — all live reps inside a strict 10-minute contact cap. Short-yardage offenseGoal-line defenseQuarterback sneak & wedge rules |
Late-season football is won inside the 5. This is the one week with meaningful live contact — keep it short and violent.
|
| Week 9 | Tempo Change-Up Offense runs a 10-play no-huddle period at under 16 seconds snap-to-snap with zero procedure penalties; defense practices its answer: sub packages and a freeze call. No-huddle operationSignals & tempoConditioning under fatigue |
A tempo package late in the year forces opponents to burn a week of their own prep. Install it now so it's game-ready for the playoffs.
|
| Week 10 | Playoff Polish The full situational menu — openers, third down, red zone, two-minute, 4th-down chart, all six kicking units — is rehearsed once each with zero new install; players finish the week fresher than they started it. Situational masteryFreshness & recoveryOne-sheet game plan |
Nothing new. Shorter, faster, sharper — the goal is a team that plays fast because it isn't thinking.
|
Get this curriculum set up for your program — free.
We'll load this 10-week curriculum into Practice Plan App for your organization — shared templates for every coach, team, and age group, so your whole program runs the same season plan without PDFs and group texts.
What You'll Need#
- Full pads Tuesday, shells or helmets Wednesday, helmets only Thursday (state rules permitting)
- Play scripts printed for every install period (10-12 plays per script)
- Scout-team pinnies and card wristbands for look squads
- Field-numbering cones to mark red zone, +40, and backed-up zones
- 2 play clocks or a coach with air horn and stopwatch for tempo/2-minute periods
- Film camera or end-zone tripod for Tuesday and Wednesday practices
- Hand shields and tackling wheels/donuts for circuit maintenance work
- Kicking balls, tees, and shields for special-teams periods
How Do I Manage Contact Across Ten Weeks?#
Budget contact like money. One full-pads day per week, thud tempo as the default, live reps only in short-yardage and goal-line fits with a hard 10-minute cap. From Week 7 on, cut Tuesday contact periods by a third and give the time to special teams. Track who missed practice with bumps and bruises each week — if the list grows two weeks running, the next Tuesday goes to shells.
How Do I Run Scout Teams That Give Real Looks?#
The look squad decides whether Wednesday means anything. Put an assistant on cards full-time, keep scripts to 10-12 plays per period, and coach the scout players on the two or three opponent tendencies that matter — alignment depth, motion, first step — rather than perfect play reproduction. Reward the scout team publicly every Friday; JV players who give varsity a real look are developing faster than JV players standing in line.
What Changes on a Short Week or After a Blowout?#
Short week (Thursday game): drop the Wednesday situational practice, run the 60-minute game-week plan on Tuesday, and walk through Wednesday. After a lopsided win or loss, resist the urge to reinvent: Monday film corrections get 15 extra minutes, then the normal rhythm resumes. The schedule is the program's stability — change the theme, never the skeleton.
How Do I Develop Young Players During the Season?#
The bye week (Week 6) is the development week: no opponent, so Tuesday and Wednesday become fundamentals circuits and young-player install reps. In game weeks, give backups the last two reps of every Wednesday period and run a 20-minute developmental pod (QBs, receivers, linemen on separate days) before Thursday walkthrough while starters get treatment.
Frequently Asked Questions#
What does a good high school football practice schedule look like during the season?
▾
One repeatable rhythm: Monday film corrections and lift (60-75 minutes), Tuesday full pads for base offense vs defense at thud tempo (120 minutes), Wednesday shells for situational work against scout looks (120 minutes), Thursday helmets-only walkthrough with special teams review (60-75 minutes), Friday game. This plan keeps that skeleton for all ten weeks and only rotates the Wednesday situational theme.
How much hitting should a high school team do in-season?
▾
One full-pads day per week, thud tempo as the default, and live tackling only in short-yardage or goal-line periods capped at 10 minutes. Many state associations also cap weekly full-contact minutes (often 60-90), so budget Tuesday's contact periods against your state's rule and cut contact by roughly a third from Week 7 on to keep legs fresh for the playoff push.
How many new plays should we install each game week?
▾
Three new plays or one new concept per side of the ball, maximum. Install Tuesday, rep it against scout looks Wednesday, walk through it Thursday — and if it never got a Wednesday rep, it doesn't get called Friday. In-season game planning is about repackaging what your team already executes, not teaching new football.
What should we practice during a bye week?
▾
Development, not game planning. This plan's Week 6 turns Tuesday into a no-pads fundamentals and install-cleanup day and Wednesday into position-group circuits with heavy reps for backups and young players, plus a special-teams audit. Cut total practice time by about 25% and give players a true day off — the bye is also a recovery week.
How do I prepare a team for playoff football in the last weeks of the season?
▾
Weeks 8-10 sharpen what wins close games: goal line and short yardage, a tempo change-up, and full situational review — two-minute, four-minute, backed-up, and kick-safe calls on one sheet. Practice volume drops while speed stays high: shorter periods, faster tempo, no new install in Week 10, and Thursday walkthroughs that rehearse end-of-game decision-making, not just plays.
How long should a Thursday walkthrough practice be before a Friday game?
▾
60-75 minutes in helmets. Cover every special-teams unit, the openers script, the situational package of the week, and end-of-half procedure at walkthrough pace. The linked Thursday varsity walkthrough plan is built at 75 minutes — players should leave feeling fast and confident, not tired.
Run This Curriculum Across Your Whole Program
We'll set this curriculum up for your organization for free — shared templates, coach accounts, and a season calendar every team can follow.
Program director? See how directors use Practice Plan App or explore youth program features.