Marc Glaude, Gordon A. Bloom, Luc J. Martin

Professional football teams contain distinctive positional subgroups within which strong social identities can be nested. Although important for positional subgroup cohesion, these nested identities must also align with the overarching team philosophy to support collective functioning. Given their responsibility for leading positional subgroups, this study explored professional football assistant coaches’ perspectives on creating optimally distinctive positional subgroup identities that contribute to overarching team functioning. The study focused on offensive line coaches, given this subgroup’s distinctiveness and strong collective identity. Seven current or recently retired offensive line coaches from the Canadian Football League (CFL) or National Football League (NFL) completed semi-structured interviews, which were analyzed using a reflexive thematic analysis. Results highlighted assistant coaching strategies for strengthening offensive line unity, enhancing the subgroup’s influence on overall team functioning, and aligning the subgroup with the head coach’s broader vision for the team. First, offensive line coaches focused on creating a unified subgroup by defining shared values, facilitating strong social bonds, and strategically structuring task-related communication. Second, participants noted that the offensive line’s often unglamorous hard work could help shape effort, unity, and performance across the whole team. Finally, assistant coaches aligned the offensive line with the head coach’s vision through reciprocal engagement, participating in team-wide meetings while facilitating the head coach’s involvement in positional meetings. These findings clarify how assistant coaches can foster positional subgroup distinctiveness while ensuring alignment with the broader team, providing insights for enhancing team functioning and cohesion in sports with distinctive subgroups (e.g., football, track and field).