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Furman’s Loaded Presentation Pressure Menu

Furman’s Loaded Presentation Pressure Menu

Posted by | Apr 9, 2024 | , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Chad Byers
Co-Defensive Coordinator/Inside Linebackers
Furman University (SC)
Twitter: @CoachC_Byers

 

 

This past season, Furman was among the best in the country in defending third down and a big part of its third down menu consisted of presenting overloaded fronts to affect protections in third and long. For co-defensive coordinator Chad Byers, the priority was to get offenses to declare their protections and attack opposite. And if they can’t get an offense to declare protections, well then it becomes a game of picking on your personnel. “Let’s say your left Tackle is a weak spot, now I can overload away from him and I guarantee a one on one where the Guard can’t help him,” said Coach Byers.

All of the following loaded presentation calls are one-word calls and became a safe alternative to being too exotic on third down as Furman was in previous seasons. “We just couldn’t play fast,” said Coach Byers. “This lets us get to a specific game plan mindset and work from a menu of a few different looks. Now we took our five or six base pressures and figured let’s just call a front and use them.”

Furman’s loaded front pressure menu will be the focus of this report. But it’s important to keep in mind that Coach Byers and his staff will alternate between pure four-man rushes and pressure patterns in these presentations. He will pair several four-man games at the line of scrimmage to alter protection schemes and exploit personnel.

 

“Tab” Front Presentations

The cornerstone of the menu is what Furman calls its “Tab” presentation, which tells the Tackle and Bandit (Boundary End) in Furman’s three-down outfit to align as a 5-technique or wider on the line of scrimmage.

 

This also tells the weakside (Will) linebacker to be at the heel line of the line of scrimmage to present the illusion that they are bringing three off the edge to get some over-setting. Essentially, this becomes a 3-5-9 surface into the boundary, which is preferably where Coach Byers likes to design his overload.

 

“We mainly load into the boundary because our front is built with field/boundary personnel and predicated where the 3-technique is,” he said. “It’s more efficient for us to load to that side.” And the initial benefit of the load is that with a zero technique, the  Guard has to declare quickly if he is going to help the Center or leave the Center singled up. “ When we build our game plan, we assume most protections will slide to the boundary because that is where our overload is,” he said. “If they are not going to slide to the boundary, then we are bringing a corner pressure or Will pressure. As soon as they slide to the boundary then we are bringing field pressure. There is a point in doing both.”

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Correlating Pin/Pull with Zone Read Mesh

Correlating Pin/Pull with Zone Read Mesh

Posted by | Apr 9, 2024 | , , , , , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Joe Spagnolo
Head Coach
Iona Prepatory School (NY)
Twitter: @Joespags12

 

 

Coach Spagnolo got fed up with defenses scrape exchanging the backside of zone read and leveraging his quarterback run. So, when he installed the read off his Pin and Pull scheme he made a conscious choice to make the mesh look exactly like zone read. Which means that he wasn’t a flat mesh. Instead, the quarterback opens on a 45 degree angle- as he would on zone read- to read the backside C gap defender.

 

“Now the linebacker can’t look at our mesh point and tell the difference between either,” he said. “The linebacker has to play honest on zone read so now the quarterback can get to the backdoor. It became our own solution to the play,” he said.

If linebackers are not flowing with pin and pull run action, the backside defensive end can be read. With two false pulls, the quarterback works out the backdoor. If they don’t flow, the Tackle can work to the play side LB on his block.

 

Now, the linebacker can’t look at mesh point to see zone vs. pin and pull. “To him, it looks like zone,” said Coach Spagnolo. The backside Tackle is drive stepping his footwork, so it looks like it would against a 3-technique in tight zone.”

It’s important to note that Iona Prep runs two variations of the concept. They will lock the backside defensive end and read the play side linebacker. And he will also tell the backside Tackle to block B gap and read the defensive end.

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Teaching the QB Pre-Snap Perimeter Leverage on the Slide RPO

Teaching the QB Pre-Snap Perimeter Leverage on the Slide RPO

Posted by | Mar 31, 2024 | , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Adam Hollifield
Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line Coach
Charleston Southern University (SC)
Twitter: @CoachHollifield

 

 

At Charleston Southern, the Slide RPO is built on inside zone principles. The offensive line will identify the five box defenders and work off them. But while it’s built off tight zone, the actual fundamentals for the offensive line are more similar to outside zone footwork. In fact, the play side of the concept blocks a tight zone track, and the backside of the concept blocks a wide zone track. This allows for the horizontal stretch needed to get the defense to move opposite the slide. “With the backside Guard and Tackle in a cutoff phase it puts the C gap player in a bind because he needs to squeeze hard,” said Coach Hollifield. “If he doesn’t squeeze hard we are going to get him kicked out on split zone on vertical concepts. When he does squeeze hard we get into our slide RPO.

 

Any uncovered offensive linemen in this scheme are taught what Coach Hollifield calls a “KTC Rule,” which means they will either “Knock Over,” “Take Over” or “Climb” to the second level. “We key the near hip,” said Coach Hollifield. “If it comes to me I K.T.C. If it goes away I climb.” He talks about “biting apple off the play side shoulder” of the defender. “We want to be both lateral and vertical up front with our shoulders squared,” he said. “This way we give our running back a two-way go.”

If a defense stays stagnant it turns more into a vertical push on the front side and backside. When defenses start slanting or back gapping, he tells his linemen to keep their eyes flat and try to push the ball front side. “We don’t chase anything backside across our face,” he said. “Our rule is to block our play side Gap to our linebacker. We want our line to block the first level while our back reads the second level.”

As far as communication goes, the play side linebacker is the point except in a 4-3 box. In that situation, the read gets pushed out to the Sam linebacker.

 

QB/RB Mesh:

Since installing the scheme in 2019, Coach Hollifield has transitioned into more of a mid-zone track for the back, despite the run blocking being a more tight zone play side. The aiming point for the back is the inside leg of the play side Guard. One of the coaching points Coach Hollifield has used is to slow up the back on the exchange. “He doesn’t take his first step until the quarterback catches the ball,” he said. “That allows us ample time to read on the backside.”

The quarterback is taught to ride and throw unless it’s automatic pressure. Then he reads the blitz angle. if he’s up the field, hand the ball off. “If he chases the dive on the heel line, the quarterback should pull and pitch on the perimeter,” said Coach Hollifield.

 

If the quarterback gives the ball and the run portion of the play is activated, the back reads the first linebacker in the box. If he presses downhill, the ball will press and cut back. If the LB’s back gap, the ball is pushed front side into the play side A gap, B gap and C gap. The ball can hit anywhere from the play side C gap to the backside C gap on the dive element.

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Forcing the Corner to be the Free Hitter: Elon’s Interior Blocking Rules in Gap and Zone Runs

Forcing the Corner to be the Free Hitter: Elon’s Interior Blocking Rules in Gap and Zone Runs

Posted by | Mar 31, 2024 | , , , , , , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Alex Stadler and Kyle Perkins
Offensive Line Coach and Receivers Coach
Elon University (NC)
Twitter: @Coach_Stad and @CoachKPerk

 

 

If you’re an eleven-personnel outfit and you want to major in interior run schemes, you’re going to need to figure out how to dig out the Sam/Nickel so he’s not a factor in the run game. Sure, RPOs can be an option, but if you don’t want to throw off number seven you’d better have answers. For Elon University, it started with motioning a slot receiver in to come in and crack him. “With that receiver coming in to crack it forced the Mike to be wider on his path,” said offensive line coach Alex Stadler. “Power was an efficient play for us just for that reason. It was pushed to the field alley and it put the Mike in conflict. There was a lot of space for the Mike to navigate and go make a play.”

So, Elon started to bunch receivers to the field which helped dig out the Sam. “We found that the tighter we get, the tighter they are going to get so there had to be a way to keep them honest and circle the defense if they are going to keep adjusting down inside,” said Coach Stadler. “Some of it is structurally based and some of it is personnel based on how they are going to align. It helped us get the edge.”

For Coach Perkins, the length of the motion is determined by where that force player is. “We talk about motioning to align inside of him,” he said. That could be 2-5 yards from the EMOL or in the hip of the Tackle. If he shoots (penetrates) on the snap and you are still out-leveraged, you will crack him with your head in front and keep rolling.”

This report is going to focus on how Coach Stadler and receivers coach Kyle Perkins teaches their receivers to handle box defenders for the interior run game. Our research will be separated into gap schemes, speed sweeps, and the Duo concept.

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The Backside Guard Pull Menu in A-Gap Power

The Backside Guard Pull Menu in A-Gap Power

Posted by | Mar 19, 2024 | , , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Tim Shields
Co-Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line Coach
University of Wisconsin Whitewater
Twitter: @CoachTShields

 

 

One of the beauties of the A-gap power concept is that the backside linebacker can never be right. If he gets downhill in a hurry, he’ll get picked off on combination blocks front side. And if he hesitates or backfits, the play is going to hit inside him directly in the A-gap. The A-gap power needs to be run correctly, not necessarily perfectly. As Coach Shields will often say, it’s the operation time, the path of the ball carrier, and the tight insert of the pulling Guard that makes it so hard to defend.

Wisconsin Whitewater runs its A-gap power tighter than most. It’s tight. Really tight. And when you watch the film on them, it’s recognizable how many defenders are often caught outside the insert block making them irrelevant in the fit.

The rules of the concept are below:

 

Whitewater relies on horizontal double teams to crease the A gap. The emphasis is to eliminate run through lanes and make the minus one (or backside LB) make a quick decision. The focal point is the A-gap.

 

Play Side Combination Blocks: How Backside LB is Not a Factor

Coach Shields teaches a prototypical post man/drive man combination block fundamental play side. The post-man is responsible for the inside half of the defender and uses either a load stab or down block technique with the purpose of lifting him. “We want to create extension in the knees and hips of the defender to stop vertical movement,” said Coach Shields. “If you cannot keep your hip in front of the 3-technique anymore you cannot be part of the block.

 

The drive man (or PST Tackle) will use an angle drive or hip skip vs. a 3-technique defender. For any defender that is not a 3-technique, he will use a gallop. “We talk more about reinforcing the A-gap defender,” said Coach Shields. “We have to be flat enough to handle any run-throughs.”

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Manipulating the Leverage of “3:” Slide RPO Route Design from Single Wide, Double Wide, and Compressed Formation Pictures

Manipulating the Leverage of “3:” Slide RPO Route Design from Single Wide, Double Wide, and Compressed Formation Pictures

Posted by | Mar 19, 2024 | , , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Jared Ambrose
Offensive Coordinator
University at Albany (NY)
Twitter: @CoachJambrose

 

 

While some programs build the slide route off wide zone, the offensive staff at Albany chooses to format it off tight zone for one main reason: it gets the Will linebacker downhill and out leveraged for the slide.  The focus of this report is how to “manipulate three,” who typically is the free hitter to the side of the slide.

It’s the quarterback’s role to find number three pre-snap, who is often the most dangerous defender to the slide. Coach Ambrose will train the quarterback to identify where that number three is, who is Will linebacker. “We tell him to identify the number three defender and how tight he is to the slide,” said Coach Ambrose. “If he is in a tight 20 technique, the quarterback already knows pre-snap that he is going to throw the slide.”

 

“If he’s in a wider technique, then we go back to a read key and pitch key element post-snap. It becomes a triple option. Now if the quarterback pulls the ball and the Will linebacker’s angle is bad it becomes a pull and pitch for us.”

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Cover Zero Pressures from “6-Up” and “7-Up” Presentations

Cover Zero Pressures from “6-Up” and “7-Up” Presentations

Posted by | Mar 12, 2024 | , , , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Rich Yahner
Defensive Coordinator
Virginia Military Institute
Twitter: @RichYahner

 

 

VMI Personnel:

In its base structure, VMI operates out of Odd Stack, or 3-3-5 spacing from a three-high align, and will use the following personnel:

Nose– zero technique

End- Field defensive end

Tackle- Boundary defensive end

Sam- Strong side linebacker

Mike- Middle linebacker

Will- Weak side linebacker

Rover- Field Safety

Bandit- Boundary Safety

Free Safety- Middle Safety

Field Corner

Boundary Corner

 

The “6-Up” and “7-Up” presentations are an off-shoot of VMI’s base personnel. But to the offense, it can look incredibly overwhelming. The entire purpose of this pressure system is to confuse the quarterback who will routinely see up to seven defenders at the line of scrimmage. On the back end, it’s a pure cover zero principle with defenders’ eyes split between the quarterback and their receiver. It’s simple but it works. “We won’t want to put too much pressure on the defense,” said Coach Yahner. “We want to get vision on the ball.”

The entire premise of the system is to pressure with more defenders than blockers. VMI is an Odd Stack outfit, so the front six defenders are typically the “six-up” in this package. The pressure defenders are typically the three down linemen and the three linebackers. “We will typically not bring a third-level defender unless we want to surge the defense,” said Coach Yahner. “When you can blitz more than they can protect it will work out.”

 

Base Zero Coverage Rules:

Day one install rules tell the corners to play number one man-to-man, while the safeties play number two. If there is no number two to their side, the safeties rule is to find number three away. So, the presentation will look different based on the potential blockers at the line of scrimmage.

  • If there are five potential blockers, six defenders will be presented at the line of scrimmage
  • If there are six potential blockers, seven defenders will be presented at the line of scrimmage.

 

Consider how the presentation plays out based on the following formation structures:

 

3X2 Empty Formation:

 

2×2 Open Formations:

 

2×2 Closed Formations:

 

3X1 Open Formations

 

3×1 Closed Formations

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Scoots, Shuffles, and Helmet Stretches: 3 Ways to Cutoff the Backside on Wide Zone Insert

Scoots, Shuffles, and Helmet Stretches: 3 Ways to Cutoff the Backside on Wide Zone Insert

Posted by | Mar 12, 2024 | , , , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Shawn Byrnes
(Former) Offensive Line Coach
University of Northern Colorado

 

 

While at the University of Northern Colorado, the play was tagged “Wanda Man,” which told the offensive line to block wide zone to the play side with man principles on the backside. The tight end is the insert player to the backside to handle the minus-one linebacker. The backside is locked and it became an open-edged weak side run. It became a good way to separate and dent the defense vertically, an alternative to pin and pull runs. While it may be an expensive concept to install it was a strong complement to base wide zone runs that stretch the defense. Here, it became more of a stretch and puncture action.

 

Play Side Combinations:

Because the front side and backside are separate from one another, the Center, play side Guard and play side Tackle are working together while the backside Guard, backside Tackle, and Tight End are working together. The front side is treated in the same fashion as a pure outside zone with the emphasis being on the leverage of the play side backer which will dictate which of the three offensive linemen are in the combination.

In the image below against a wide 50-technique linebacker, the Guard and Tackle are in the combination while the Center is solo on the Nose.

 

Against movement fronts or the potential of spikes to the play side, three-man combinations can be called to the front side where the Center, play side Guard, and play side Tackle are going three for three to the play side.

 

Against any 30-technique backer, the combination will be called with the play side Guard and Center, putting the Tackle one one-on-one with the C gap defender.

 

While this report is focused on the backside (or man side) of the concept, Coach Byrnes talked about the Center trying to stay square- and not reach the Nose- giving the back a two-way go. “We block the play side armpit on the block then work the combination the way the defense plays it,” he said. “If the Nose crosses his face, he has to lock on because he has no help. The back hits it behind the crease.”

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Segmenting Open Gap vs. Closed Gap Combos in Duo

Segmenting Open Gap vs. Closed Gap Combos in Duo

Posted by | Feb 29, 2024 | , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Loren Endsley
Offensive Line Coach
University of Minnesota Duluth

 

 

We all know Duo to be a “culture play” that’s built off violent doubles along the line of scrimmage. At Minnesota Duluth, the offensive line room refers to the play as a “bucket of blood.” “It is a play that allows us to shut off our brain a bit and focus on hammering the first level of the defense,” said Coach Endsley. “We can be full speed and put our face on somebody and not have to worry too much about rules.” Duluth was mainly an outside zone/mid-zone operation, so Duo became a great downhill complement when those safeties started to flow laterally to defend those perimeter runs. It’s been a consistent and efficient concept all season.

Coach Endsley provides the “A to Z” of Duluth’s Duo scheme in this clinic report. And he starts with the heart of what makes the concept effective- the double teams at the line of scrimmage.

 

The Drive Combo:

Coach Endsley calls his double teams “Drive Combinations” and they are built off zone tree principles. He separates the combinations based on the front side and backside of the scheme:

  • The Goal of a Drive Combo on the Frontside of the Scheme is to Nail Down the Near Shoulder & Create a Wall
  • The Goal of a Drive Combo on the Backside of the Scheme is to Create Distortion of the Defense

 

 

Lead Man vs. Trail Man Distinction:

The lead man is the covered offensive lineman in the scheme. Whether he is covered on his playside shoulder or backside shoulder, he is still considered the lead man.

 

The trail man is the uncovered offensive lineman who can be uncovered working to an open or closed gap.

 

Coach Endsley teaches this fundamental using his High Hip Carry Drill where the hands will be on the down defender with eyes on the linebacker. Coach Endsley talks about “hands on the wheel, eyes looking through dashboard.” Clearly, the idea is to not have any space between the combination block.

 

When it comes down to understanding which lineman will work to second level, a great deal of importance is placed on whether lineman are working to a “thick” or “thin” linebacker.

  • Thick Backer = Backer in an Alignment that Allows you to stay on the Combo Longer
  • Thin Backer = Backer in an Alignment that Forces you to leave the Combo Earlier

 

 

In order to do this, Coach Endsley teaches a double under technique, taking on the linebacker square. He wants his earhole to the far pec of the defender. “If the linebacker triggers hard downhill or pressures we can double under, meeting his force with leverage getting under him and lifting up,” said Coach Endsley. “If he is running away from the gap we go earhole to far pec and guide or accelerate his movement.”

An emphasis is placed on the departure of the Drive Combination to the linebacker. In order to get that done, Coach Endsley teaches and angle step which eliminates any wasted movement. The goal is to get their hips in line to generate power on the linebacker.

 

For the lineman taking over the first-level defender, Coach Endsley teaches what he calls a “Helmet Redirect” technique which is used to gain leverage on the down lineman. It allows the blocker to regain leverage on the down defender. This is used on the frontside of a Closed Drive Combo (see below), to nail down the near shoulder and create a wall. “We wouldn’t do it on the backside combo because the running back would read the linebacker and bend it out behind us,” he said.

 

The Take Over technique is used on the Duo scheme by the Trail Man when the Read Key Linebacker Fits Inside and it’s known the ball is going to bend back behind. “We want to secure the block,” said Coach Endsley.

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First Day Duo: Vertical Chips Not Vertical Doubles in the Priority Gap Mentality

First Day Duo: Vertical Chips Not Vertical Doubles in the Priority Gap Mentality

Posted by | Feb 29, 2024 | , , | 0 |

By Landon Miller
Offensive Coordinator
Waverly High School (OH)
Twitter: @Lmiller0524

 

 

We frame our Duo play as a “hard dive” mentality. We don’t expect it to be a large explosive play. We are going to come out to you right now to see how tough you are. Oftentimes it is used to set up Counter, which has been our most explosive play. We teach Duo as an “own your gap” mentality. We don’t Mike point anything. It’s a true gap scheme, that is similar to Power. The difference is power hit too slow for us and the line always has to be right. In Duo, the back has to be right and they are more dynamic players so we will rely on them.

 

Priority Gap Responsibility:

When we talk to our offensive line about a “priority gap” mentality, we talk about owning our gaps up front. This gap is the gap opposite gap of the play call. For example, if we call the play to the right (12 for us) the offensive line has a priority gap to the left. This is highlighted in the diagram below with corresponding responsibilities. For example, the RIGHT TACKLE is RED. His responsibility is to first block any LOS (Line Of Scrimmage) defender that can threaten his PRIORITY GAP (RED TRIANGLE). If a LOS defender does not threaten his priority gap, you are to CHIP on the nearest LOS defender to the CALL SIDE and then responsibility for the 2nd level defender that is threatening your PRIORITY GAP (since most defenses will be gap sound they will have a defender for each gap).

 

Below are some still images on how our line is taught to block first or second level defenders using the priority gap rule.

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Second Level Exchange Reads Off Outside Zone

Second Level Exchange Reads Off Outside Zone

Posted by | Feb 26, 2024 | , , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Ryan Pugh
Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line Coach
Abilene Christian University (TX)
Twitter: @CoachRyanPugh

 

 

If you’re an offense that majors in wide zone, then you know how important it is to handle the backside. The athletes on the perimeter today can run things down often getting you behind the sticks. Some, like Coach Pugh, would argue that the play is often made on the backside and not the front side. If the backside is handled correctly, it will produce a numbers advantage for the back to hit play side. And if you’re not an offensive operation whose linemen cut, then you’re left figuring out ways to protect the backside edge.

At Abilene Christian University, Coach Pugh and his staff do not define the read for the running back. His aiming point is the outside leg of the EMLOS if he’s in Pistol, but that will get tightened up if he’s in the off-set alignment. “We will use the aiming point of the inside leg of the Play side Tackle in those circumstances,” he said. “We will speed him up so that he can get to the read on the third step and get to his cut on the fifth step.” His read is traditionally the end man on the line of scrimmage but when it’s run to the boundary- as Coach Pugh likes to call it- that play will often cut back.

There are two base ways that Abilene Christian will handle the backside edge- slices and swipes. And when these two elements are combined it makes for an extremely efficient play.

 

Outside Zone Slice Concept:

The wide zone slice concept isn’t a novel idea. It’s meant to slow down the edge, or at least produce some hesitation so the play can hit front side. But there are several advantages in using the swipe exclusively against defenses that either will rock back with the second level or trace with the third level based on the movement of that Y. The beauty of the wide zone play is that it can hit either frontside or backside. But if defenses are clued into the movement of that Y, there are several ways you can manipulate having the ball hit frontside.

For example, when defenses track the high safety with the swipe motion, they become one gap short on the play side.

 

Similarly, when second-level linebackers track the Y on swipe, the same thing will occur. They become a gap short to the play side.

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The QB Run Menu in the Spread Wing

The QB Run Menu in the Spread Wing

Posted by | Feb 26, 2024 | , , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Ken Vigdal and Thomas Vigdal
Head Coach and Quarterback Coach
Le Mars High School (IA)
Twitter: @kevigdal

 

 

For a large portion of my coaching career, I ran the double-tight Wing-T offense. A significant aspect of that offense involved using fakes and motion to distribute the ball to many different offensive threats. As defenses continued to increase the numbers in the box, we made the decision to transition to the spread wing. Despite keeping our motions and fakes, we were no longer effectively getting the ball to one of our key threats: our quarterback.  Our offense has truly flourished with the installment of the quarterback counter.  This past season, our quarterback led the district in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns.

 

Formations

We started with our 2-back backfield and ran the basic G-T counter with our quarterback. Our play selection grew as we started using a variety of formations such as trips, wing sets, and our unbalanced formations.  By adding these other formations, we had to add tags to our counter names, so the players would know who was exactly pulling and who was covering.

 

Blocking for G-T Counter

PST Gap down to backer (#1 coaching point, if the tackle does not have a great angle to down the defensive end, leave him for the pulling guard.)
PSG Gap down to backer
C On or cover for pulling guard
BSG Pull and kick out the first man to show. If the defensive end squeezes and closes the gap, we will wrong arm and seal everything to the inside.
BST Pull and lead up the hole. He has to read the numbers of the pulling guard to see if the guard is kicking the end out or sealing him to the inside.
QB Will open to the side of the H by pivoting back on his front foot, so his feet are parallel, fake handoff to the W who is in the pistol, then pivot back to the backside and follow pulling tackle.
W Fake getting the handoff and aiming on the inside leg of the tackle to help block defensive end or blitzing linebacker
H Lead on the outside leg of the guard, for aiming point, to block the defensive end.
X,Y Stalk corner
Z Stalk OLB

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Double Load Power Read from 12 Personnel

Double Load Power Read from 12 Personnel

Posted by | Feb 19, 2024 | , , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Pete Jennings
Head Coach
University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh
Twitter: @PeteyBananas

 

 

Utilizing a power read from a three-man surface has its advantages: you’re able to widen the read defender a gap further and you’re able to get an extra blocker (the tight end) on the perimeter for the QB pull. University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh head football coach Pete Jennings spent several seasons as the offensive coordinator at Division 3 powerhouse Wisconsin Whitewater, so the A-gap power was a major staple in his arsenal. The problem was, he didn’t have an athletic enough quarterback to run the power read element.

That all changed when he took the job at Oshkosh which had a good amount of tight ends on the roster. He had an elite athlete running quarterback, but couldn’t get him on the edge on zone read. So, he started looking at different ways to affect not just the defensive structure but the individual technique of defensive players. So, Coach Jennings merged his teachings of power with a read principle and did it out of 12 personnel with the intent of getting an additional hat on the perimeter to block for the quarterback pull and get his athlete in space.

 

“Force the Log:” Backside Guard Technique:

Defensive ends have become better at surfing to take away the frontside A gap and retracing back to a QB pull on the play. “If you don’t have an elite quarterback, that would be a problem,” said Coach Jennings. So, rather than read the end, he decided he would block him with the backside puller. As noted in the video, Coach Jennings teaches a shuffle pull technique for that backside Guard. And having him get a piece of that C gap defender has been a major advantage against squeeze and spill defensive ends. “Now he sees the down block from the Tackle which forces him to squeeze,” said Coach Jennings. “This forces a pull read by quarterback and how you’re out on the edge with the QB just like zone read. We’re forcing the technique of the defensive end. Something he’s been taught to spill since eighth grade. We use this technique against him.”

 

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Speed Sweep: Ferris State’s Complement to Jet Read

Speed Sweep: Ferris State’s Complement to Jet Read

Posted by | Feb 19, 2024 | , , , , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Sam Parker
Run Game Coordinator/Offensive Line Coach
Ferris State University (MI)
Twitter: @CoachParker

 

 

Having majored in the Jet Read for most of head coach Tony Annese’s tenure, the staff at Ferris State needed a complement that could easily push the ball to the perimeter. But rather than build in traditional outside zone schemes, the Bulldogs wanted to stay true to its roots as a gap scheme team. So, the answer was using a speed sweep with a false pull. But run game coordinator Sam Parker and the offensive staff will complement the speed sweep with its traditional power read scheme based on the look they are getting from the defense. “The entire point of running outside or sweep is to stretch everyone and if you have a threat of a box run with it, that’s when you get the efficiency you need,” he said. “You get the false key with the pull. We are always going to threaten defenses with an A gap run element.”

 

The Advantage of Cluster Formations:

Since most of Ferris State’s jet read scheme is presented using condensed formations, it made sense for the staff to build its speed sweep around the same design. According to Coach Parker, it helped in disseminating whether or not there were numbers to the field for the speed sweep or numbers in the box to run the power read. “We look at how well they handle aligning to cluster formations,” said Coach Parker. “Can they take the perimeter sweep to the field off the table? If they do, we look at running power read back to the boundary.”

For example, since so many defenses at that level are field rotation defenses, if there are any additional numbers to the field, the call gets adjusted to power read back to the boundary. It’s an easy adjustment by the quarterback.

 

But Coach Parker did mention he’ll live with running the scheme to the field if he can get it run on a field corner in space.

 

In order to do that, both the receivers and the back need to be in constant communication on who to block on the perimeter. “We will either crack the EMLOS with the receiver or handle him with the back,” he said. “We let those guys communicate it.”

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Minnesota Duluth QB Run Package from Heavy Personnel

Minnesota Duluth QB Run Package from Heavy Personnel

Posted by | Feb 12, 2024 | , , , , , , , , | 0 |

By Mike Kuchar with Chase Vogler
Offensive Coordinator/Wide Receivers Coach
University of Minnesota Duluth
Twitter: @CoachVogler

 

 

Minnesota Duluth is in its third year of developing the quarterback run package, but it may be indisputable that this season was it’s strongest. The Bulldogs leaned on quarterback runs to generate over 240 yards per game on the ground and its quarterback had many of those by himself. The Bulldogs QBR package is versatile enough to have rules for every front and often times Coach Vogler trusts his quarterback to make these changes at the line of scrimmage. We’re going to dive into the Bulldogs two most efficient QB run schemes- the zone read bluff and G lead- and why they have been so efficient.

 

Zone Bluff Concept:

Duluth is traditionally a 12 and 13 personnel outfit, so it made sense to keep those heavier groupings when designing the complementary QB runs. When Coach Vogler designs his zone read principles, he chooses to use tight ends to block on the perimeter for the quarterback keep. And instead of using tight zone blocking, the Bulldogs use the mid-zone variety and read the C gap defensive end. The running back is taught to track the inside foot of the play side Tackle. “We used to track the inside foot of the Guard, but it was too tight,” said Coach Vogler. “We wound up banana-ing the path.”

 

Double Swipe Principle:

One of the innovations that Duluth uses in its zone bluff concept is a double swipe concept- having two blockers block for the QB on the pull read. It’s helped in generating over 14 yards a game this season on the concept. Modeled after what Utah was doing, there will be two blockers at the point of attack for the quarterback. One is a jet motion element and one is an off-line tight end. “When you present jet motion and a swiper you are going to freeze linebackers,” said Coach Vogler. “It’s difficult for defensive ends to see the ball through all that movement. But the ideal snap point should be on the backside Tackle.”

These players are responsible for both the force defender and the -1 defender in the count, but Coach Vogler and his staff will vary their responsibilities. So, he had to be deliberate in teaching which blocker was the lead blocker and which was the wrapper- or what Coach Vogler calls the “fixer.” Duluth is a huddle, longer verbiage based operation so these words are all communicated in the play call.

  • “Plane” Tag- This tells the jet motion man there is no mesh to the QB; the motion clears to the other side of the formation.
  • “Jet” Tag- This tells the jet motion man he will mesh with the QB and is part of the read element of the concept. These are clearly used in jet read concept, which although they are part of the offensive menu at Duluth, are not detailed in this clinic report.
  • “Brake” Tag- This tells the jet motion man there is no mesh to the QB; but he is in a block scenario on the edge to block for the quarterback on the pull read.

 

While the terminology is one thing, making sure both blockers handle their correct responsibilities is a whole other teaching point.

For example, if the tight end is aligned to the side of the read, he will block support while the jet motion man is the “fixer.”

 

If the Tight End is on the backside of the read, the motion man is on alley support while the tight end is the “fixer” blocking the second threat.

 

Coach Vogler will also build in “crack” calls which tells the single receiver to cracking on the perimeter. This means the motion man is on support (or first threat) while the tight end is the fixer, who will usually block the -1 linebacker to the side of the read or the Will linebacker.

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