The Front Row with MARK NELKE Nov. 1, 2012

With the advancements in technology, the time-consuming process of exchanging films — along with the classic stories that go along with it — has all but disappeared for football coaches at the area’s largest schools.

“You used to feel on Saturdays like a drug dealer, meeting someone halfway in a parking lot, exchanging goods,” Coeur d’Alene coach Shawn Amos said.

The emergence of Hudl, a software program for coaches, allows them to break down game tape, and exchange game tape — among other uses.

“It’s basically a tool to break down game video,” said Lake City coach Van Troxel, who started using Hudl last season. “You can mark offense, defense and special teams (for each game). You can do as much as you want with down and distance.”

Most of the bigger schools use it. Lakeland uses it too. Timberlake doesn’t, but plans to start using it next year. Roughly half the teams on its schedule use Hudl.

WITH HUDL, it is no longer necessary for college coaches to visit high schools just to plow through game film. Now they can call the high school coach, get their password and watch the player on the computer in their office.

Players can also use Hudl to put together highlight tapes to send to colleges.

And if coaches have a question about a play, how it was officiated, they can call Roger Stewart, head of officials in District 1. With access to their passwords, Stewart can pull up the play on Hudl and see whether the official’s call was right or not — often while still on the phone with the coach.

When teams play each other, protocol calls for them to provide the other team with game films from two recent games.

Now, a coach can mark two game films ready for exchange on Hudl, but the other coach does not receive them until he puts his two game films in.

“When you played the Boise schools, you were putting film on the bus,” said Troxel, in his 34th season as a head coach in high school football. “But you never knew, did they pay for it, not pay for it, did it show up. I can remember being at the bus depot at 11 at night and no video shows up. And then you’ve got meetings the next day. Things have gotten better, that way.”

NOT ONLY can high school football players watch videos on their own time.

“Scouting reports can be sent online,” Amos. “I can text all my players with a click, and we can track how much kids are watching film.”

Coeur d’Alene started using another digital video service about 5-6 years ago, then Hudl bought that company out, and the Vikings are in their second year using Hudl.

“What you save in time, you pay in money,” Troxel said.

The program costs around $1,200 a year, and teams have to fundraise to pay for it.

Coaches can break down the games for the players, and include comments for the players to see as they watch the game tape.

So no longer do coaches at bigger schools have to copy a VHS tape or burn a CD, put it on a bus for Pocatello or Boise, where the other team wouldn’t receive it until Monday or Tuesday. Now, with games exchanged electronically, teams have what they need by Saturday.

Plus, the old process of film exchange was often done on the coach’s own dime.

“One time I was sitting at one gas station and the other coach was sitting at another gas station one block away,” Amos recalled, adding that was before the days of cell phones. “We must have sat there for four hours.”

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via email at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at CdAPressSports.