At-home football drills for 14 year olds and older: running back

This is a free sample week of at-home football training for 14 year olds and older, for a running back: 3 of the 7 plans SSTracker has for this group, each 15 minutes, with every step and minute. Nothing here is written for this page alone; it is what the app gives a family.

Everything here can be done in a room, garage or yard. Drills that need a team are left out; a parent can be the partner in a pair drill.

A free sample week of football for 14 year olds and older

Session 1

Running back: Ladder Plus Catch 15 minutes

Warm-up: easy jog, skips and arm circles · 3 min
Start slow and build up. Loosen up; nothing should hurt.
Ladder Plus Catch · 5 min
Feet keep going. Safety: Throw only into clear space or a solid wall, with nobody in the way. Use a soft or light ball.
Five-Ten-Five Technique Rehearsal · 5 min
Low turn, push off the outside foot. Safety: Use a clear, non-slip space and change direction only as fast as you can control. Stop if a knee or ankle hurts.
Cool-down: walk and easy stretches · 2 min
Breathe slowly and hold each stretch about 20 seconds, never to pain.

Session 2

Running back: Single-Leg Catch and Hold 15 minutes

Warm-up: easy jog, skips and arm circles · 3 min
Start slow and build up. Loosen up; nothing should hurt.
Single-Leg Catch and Hold · 5 min
Stable leg, soft hands. Safety: Throw only into clear space or a solid wall, with nobody in the way. Use a soft or light ball.
Open-Field Leverage · 5 min
Inside-out, keep them going to the sideline. Safety: Only with a coach, in a helmet and pads. Head up and to the side, never lead with the helmet. Bags and pads only; no live tackling in this drill, and never tackle a person at home.
Cool-down: walk and easy stretches · 2 min
Breathe slowly and hold each stretch about 20 seconds, never to pain.

Session 3

Running back: Open-Field Leverage 15 minutes

Warm-up: easy jog, skips and arm circles · 3 min
Start slow and build up. Loosen up; nothing should hurt.
Open-Field Leverage · 5 min
Inside-out, keep them going to the sideline. Safety: Only with a coach, in a helmet and pads. Head up and to the side, never lead with the helmet. Bags and pads only; no live tackling in this drill, and never tackle a person at home.
Partner Nudge Balance · 5 min
Absorb and recover. Safety: Practice on soft ground or near a wall with clear space around you, so a wobble is no problem.
Cool-down: walk and easy stretches · 2 min
Breathe slowly and hold each stretch about 20 seconds, never to pain.

Want the rest of the plan?

This sample is 3 of the 7 football plans SSTracker has for this group. In SSTracker every step is on the screen, your child logs the work, and you see it. No club needed: the family plan is $7.50 a month per player, or $12 a month for the whole household, and the first 14 days are free.

Get the full plan free for 14 days Coach or club director? Set up your team free Print a free week for another sport or age

The drills in this week

Ladder Plus Catch

Ages 13 and up · 12 min

Run a footwork pattern while a partner tosses you a ball to catch and return. Feet and hands working together.

Run through the ladder with a chosen pattern.
Your partner tosses a ball halfway through.
Catch and return the ball without breaking the pattern.
Do 8 runs; count clean ones.

Coach's cue: Feet keep going.

Bring: agility ladder, ball, partner

Safety: Throw only into clear space or a solid wall, with nobody in the way. Use a soft or light ball.

Five-Ten-Five Technique Rehearsal

Ages 13 and up · 12 min

Practice the 5-10-5 pattern with clean, low turns before ever timing it. Then time a few and beat only your own best.

Set three cones in a line, 5 yards apart; start at the middle one.
Run 5 yards right, touch the line with your outside hand, turn low.
Run 10 yards to the far cone, touch, turn, run 5 back through the middle.
Do 3 walk-throughs, 3 at three-quarter speed, then 2 timed with full rest.

Coach's cue: Low turn, push off the outside foot.

Bring: 3 cones, stopwatch

Safety: Use a clear, non-slip space and change direction only as fast as you can control. Stop if a knee or ankle hurts.

Single-Leg Catch and Hold

Ages 13 and up · 10 min

Balance on one leg while a partner tosses a ball to different sides. Catch and throw back without touching down.

Stand on one leg facing a partner 3 yards away.
Your partner tosses high, low, left and right.
Catch and return without the other foot touching down.
Do 10 tosses per leg, 2 rounds.

Coach's cue: Stable leg, soft hands.

Bring: ball, partner

Safety: Throw only into clear space or a solid wall, with nobody in the way. Use a soft or light ball.

Open-Field Leverage

Ages 14 and up · 12 min

Use the sideline as a helper and take away the cutback before fitting on a bag.

Set a 10-yard-wide lane with a bag at the end.
A partner jogs the lane then steps behind the bag.
Stay inside-out, close the space, then fit on the bag.
Do 8 reps each side.

Coach's cue: Inside-out, keep them going to the sideline.

Bring: 6 cones, partner, stand-up bag

Safety: Only with a coach, in a helmet and pads. Head up and to the side, never lead with the helmet. Bags and pads only; no live tackling in this drill, and never tackle a person at home.

Partner Nudge Balance

Ages 13 and up · 8 min

Stand on one leg on a soft pad while a partner gives gentle nudges to the shoulders. Trains quick balance reactions.

Stand on one leg on a folded mat.
Your partner gives small, gentle pushes from different sides.
Stay steady without hopping.
Do 3 rounds of 20 seconds per leg.

Coach's cue: Absorb and recover.

Bring: partner, folded mat or pad

Safety: Practice on soft ground or near a wall with clear space around you, so a wobble is no problem.

Safety for ages 14 and up

Plans for this age group use beginner, developing and advanced drills only. Advanced drills open from age 13 in the app.
Home plans use only drills for a room, garage or yard. Stop if anything hurts.

Before you start: football

Helmet fitted by a coach, mouthguard and full pads for any contact.
A cup and well-fitted cleats.
Tackling and blocking contact only with a coach, in a helmet and pads. Never practise tackling at home.
Tackle with the head up and out of contact (shoulder tackle). Never lead with the helmet.
Full-contact practice is capped (USA Football: 30 minutes a day, 120 a week). Many experts advise flag before 14.
Hot preseason: 14 days to get used to heat and gear, water at every break, stop on dizziness or headache.

For every sport and age (7)

Head knock or concussion signs (headache, dizziness, confusion, feeling "off"): when in doubt, sit them out. See a doctor, and no return the same day.
Back to sport only with a doctor's written OK, after a step-by-step return. Every U.S. state has a youth concussion law.
Heat: drink water before, during and after. Take shade breaks, ease into hot weather over about two weeks, and stop if dizzy, sick or headachy.
Lightning: if you hear thunder or see lightning, go inside a building or a closed car. Wait 30 minutes after the last thunder (the 30-30 rule).
Pain is a stop sign, not something to push through. Stop and tell a grown-up; pain that lasts or comes back each session needs a doctor.
Water and rest are part of training: 1-2 rest days a week, plenty of sleep, a meal or snack before and after, and other sports welcome.
Know where the nearest AED (heart defibrillator) is, and who calls for help in an emergency.

The research behind these plans

Which drills are shown at which age, and the safety notes, follow the 28 sources below: national governing bodies, medical associations and studies on youth sport (last reviewed October 2026). Where no study gives an exact number, the plans use cautious defaults, and we change them as the research does.

Football: governing bodies, safety and development (8)

Youth athletic development and safety (20)