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AFM Magazine


The Situation

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Your offense has been struggling against a very physical defense the entire game. However, you are only down by 6 points late in the fourth quarter. Your QB is rattled and has thrown 2 INTs, but he’s been in tough situations like this before and has always come through. It’s 3rd and 4 on your opponents’ 28 yard line. The ball is on the right hash which is your sideline. You have just used your last time out with only 30 seconds remaining. On 1st down you ran a sprint option play to the left, the QB kept the ball for a 5 yard gain. On second down you threw a quick hitch to the right for a 1 yard gain. Your playbook is modeled after the spread option offense and you have an arsenal of plays to choose from. What do you tell your team to do?


Denie Marie, Athletic Administration,
Virginia Tech.
AFM subscriber since 1997.

We would like to get the ball in the hands of our best athlete (play maker). With the situation as stated and thorough film study and the flow of the game we need to take the guess work out and have a play that is as clear as possible for the offense to execute. Having a pass-run option play is a play we feel we can execute and move the chains.

The Pass Run Option

X - align top of numbers – take an inside release – run a post route – read the middle of the field.

Y - align three yards outside the hash – push up staying outside the defender – run a corner route – if coverage is tight work back down to the sideline.

Z - align bottom of numbers – push defender and step on his toes – stick and separate – if coverage is tight, work back down to the sideline.

A - check protection – slide to flat mirroring the QB’s action.

B - tight split – inside release – push up under near LB gaining depth and width – read far LB and adjust accordingly.

QB - you have a high to low throw or run option called – go through your read progression and take the throw the defense gives you – if not there, run and get the first down. Execute, be a playmaker, move the chains.

Reads – Y-Z-A-Run – X takes a look – B-late


Ryan Sulkowski
Assistant Head Coach/OC, Hargrave Military Academy Post Graduate Football
(Chatham, VA). AFM subscriber since 2000.


After looking at this month’s situation I immediately thought of one thing to do. When an offensive coordinator has been in this situation before, it makes it easier to make a play call. My game plan heading into a contest versus a very aggressive defense automatically dictates that screens will be a big part of our offensive scheme. This gives the quarterback a safe throw; in this situation he has been rattled and pressured all day long which will play into our game plan.

A third down and four on our right hash on the opponent’s 28-yard line with 30 seconds remaining tells me a number of things and gives me a number of different scenarios. The first one being that we must either gain a first down or get out of bounds with no time outs remaining in order to continue the drive. The second is having a second play called in the event that we do not accomplish either of the above mentioned or our pass or running play is kept in bounds to keep the clock running. In my mind evaluating the two situations above in this situation dictates a pass play within my offense.

Diagram 1. 98H

With the assumption that the defense is a high pressure unit, I am assuming that there will only be a one safety look meaning the defense will either play a cover one look or a cover three look. Either way this will put four defenders underneath in coverage. During the time out I will make a two call play. The play will be dictated by what the defense does versus our formation and motion.

Diagram 2. Bubble

We will line up in our Ace formation. Our Ace formation is dictated by the Y receiver (TE) lining up to the called side. In this situation in Diagram 1 it will be called Liz Ace Gun Strong. This tells the Y that he is flexed and on the ball to the left side. The receiver will travel with the Y while the F receiver and X receiver travel away from the called side. In Liz Ace the F will line up in the slot off of the ball and the X will line up wide and off the ball. The actual play call in the huddle would be Liz Ace Gun Strong Fly Check 95 Bubble 98 H. Liz Ace was explained above but the Strong call sends our H back to the called side (left side in the shotgun). The play call Check tells the offense that the quarterback will make the offense aware of the play on the line. He has two choices. The first being 95 Bubble which is a bubble screen pass to the F receiver after he motions across the formation (Fly is the F motion across from the right to the left side to set up a trips formation). The second being 98 H which is an H back screen back to the right side away from where F motioned from. This will be dictated at the line by the quarterback according to how the defense adjusts to our formation.

In Diagram 1 you will see a basic 4-4 defense with a single safety. If the weak side linebacker on the right side slides inside the tackle box or rotates back to act as a safety we will run 98 H. The quarterback will motion the receiver then call the play from the line of scrimmage in his cadence. The H back will step up to the left and then release flat to the right. The receivers on the left side (X, Y and F receivers) will run off their defenders. The lone receiver to the right (X receiver) will make the best judgment on whether to run off the cornerback or to block man on. The right side of the offensive line will hold for a thousand two count and then release flat to the right for the outside threats.

In Diagram 2 we see the 4-4 defense with a single safety but after the if motion the quarterback feels that we have the defense outflanked to the left he will call 95 Bubble. The F will stop inside of the y receiver on Fly motion and on the snap will bubble back to receive the throw. The Z and Y receiver will block the most dangerous threats while the play side of the offensive line releases immediately to block the outside force. If the quarterback makes the correct decision the play should gain four yards to earn a first down as long as the pass is completed. Either play should focus on getting out of bounds but in the case that we obtain the first down without getting out of bounds, it will give us time to spike the ball to stop the clock and live to play another play.

Coming in March: Your in-state rival has installed a spread-bone offense that you were totally unprepared for and it's destroying the 4-3 you planned on running. However, you stopped them in the red zone with your 5-2 goal line defense and forced a field goal the first series of the game. It's now 3rd and 10; the ball is on the right hash of their 35 yard line. They are in a double wing, two wide-out set with the qurterback in the shotgun and the fullback to his left. What defense would you use in this situation to stop their offense and force a punt? Send your responses and play diagrams to AFM Managing Editor Rex Lardner at rlardner@lcclark.com





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