It does take some time to learn to read defenses but can be done during a season.  A lot of it comes down to coaching and experience.  I am a firm believer in having a QB coach that is dedicated to the QB's is huge. The QB coach is exclusively for QB’s he is not the OC or RB coach, this makes a big difference.  When Coach Meyer came in my senior year, Coach Dan Mullen was the QB coach and he was with us all the time.  He was a major part of the success that Alex had because he was great at teaching us how to read defenses and what to look for on each play.  It takes a lot of time in the film room to study a defense's tendencies and how they try to disguise their coverages based on alignments, personnel, formations, etc.  One of the first things to do when you come to the line of scrimmage is to locate the safeties because they will tip you off on the coverage a lot of times.

Go Utes!

Lance

9/28/09

Question: Lance, How did you learn to read defenses? Is it something that takes a decade or can it be taught during a season i.e. the 2009 season?

Joseph B.