Preston Hadley | Defensive Coordinator, Northern Colorado
Presented by Lauren’s First and Goal Foundation
Coaching as Collaboration
For Preston Hadley, defensive teaching football begins with how you teach, not just what you teach. Building a great defense starts with a shared learning process. His approach blends modern learning science with old-school football fundamentals. He calls it Theory Z coaching — an idea rooted in collaboration between the teacher and the learner.
“You collaborate with the people who are actually doing the work — the players. Ask for their feedback. If a technique isn’t fitting them, find out why and work together to adjust it.”
Hadley believes that when players feel ownership in how they learn and execute, their buy-in and retention skyrocket. It’s no different from a business that asks its workers for insight on how to improve production. The people closest to the process often hold the best answers — and in defensive teaching football, that means the players who live the calls, leverage, and matchups every snap.
This collaborative mindset sets the tone for everything in Hadley’s football defensive teaching system — a model that encourages communication, problem-solving, and shared accountability.
The Learning Pyramid
Hadley grounds his staff’s defensive football teaching in the Learning Pyramid, a research-based model showing how people retain information:
- Lecture: ~5 % retention
- Reading: ~10 %
- Demonstration: ~30 %
- Discussion: ~50 %
- Practice by Doing: ~75 %
- Teaching Others: ~90 %
“What I’m doing right now — lecturing — is the least effective form of learning. Players retain the most when they teach each other.”
To maximize that, Hadley builds peer-to-peer learning into every practice and meeting. Older players coach younger ones, reinforcing their own understanding while spreading knowledge through the room. This approach reflects the foundation of defensive teaching football — where learning through teaching creates smarter, more confident defenders.
Learning becomes a shared process, not a one-way transfer of information, and it reinforces Hadley’s belief that great defense starts with great teachers on the field.
Flipped Classroom Coaching
Hadley and his staff use a flipped classroom model — a concept borrowed from education but vital in teaching defense efficiently. Instead of introducing material in meetings, coaches record voice-over install videos that players review before arriving.
“We push the installs out digitally, then meet to discuss. It turns the meeting into a conversation, not a lecture.”
This method frees up meeting time for clarification, application, and film discussion. Players move from passive listening to active thinking, mirroring the decision-making required on game day. It’s how Hadley transforms classroom learning into game-speed processing — the hallmark of elite defensive teaching football programs.
By flipping the classroom, Hadley turns meeting rooms into collaborative labs — where players analyze, question, and refine their understanding of the defensive system.
Teaching How to Practice
Hadley insists coaches teach practice habits before scheme, setting standards for tempo, communication, and focus — a key piece of his defensive football teaching philosophy.
He uses film to show what good partners look like in drills — players who provide resistance, mirror footwork, and help teammates improve. He also teaches the habit of stealing reps — rehearsing steps and movements while waiting in line so each athlete gets three times the practice in the same amount of time.
“You have to teach your team how to practice. Show them how to be good partners and how to steal reps. That’s where improvement compounds.”
This mindset ensures that defensive teaching football happens not just during meetings but through every movement, every rep, and every detail on the practice field.
Peer-to-Peer Learning on the Field
Peer learning extends beyond meetings. Hadley makes it part of every drill. Veterans coach younger players on the side, reinforcing technique, communication, and leadership.
“The one who benefits most is the one doing the teaching.”
This peer-driven style of defensive football teaching not only accelerates learning but also builds leadership capacity within the roster. Players become more confident communicators — a vital skill for a defensive unit that thrives on trust and alignment.
Hadley’s philosophy turns every player into both a student and a teacher, strengthening the entire defense through constant feedback and collaboration.
Critical Defensive Metrics
Beyond learning philosophy, Hadley teaches his defense to think in terms of critical metrics that define winning football — another pillar of his defensive teaching football system:
- Stop Rate: Stops ÷ Possessions (target 70 % +)
- QB Disruption: Hurries, sacks, and hits per game
- Run Defense Efficiency
- Red Zone Defense
- Winning the Middle Eight (minutes around halftime)
- Forcing One-Dimensional Offenses
These metrics create clear, player-driven goals that turn philosophy into accountability. When players know what truly impacts winning, effort becomes intentional — aligning daily work with game-day success.
Hadley’s football defensive teaching doesn’t just focus on schemes — it builds understanding of what really wins games.
Key Takeaway
Building a strong defense depends on developing effective learners. By combining collaboration, peer teaching, and measurable goals, Preston Hadley ensures his players not only know what to do — but understand why it matters.
His version of defensive teaching football empowers players to take ownership of their learning, making the defense more adaptable, cohesive, and competitive.
“Our job is to help them learn how to learn — and then watch them teach each other.”
— Preston Hadley
Related:
Student of the Game- Collaboration in Coaching- Pete Sterbick, Head Coach, Colorado School of Mines
More on Coach Preston Hadley
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