Rutgers Passing Attack

In the past 17 years I’ve had the privilege of being around some very profound football coaches. Some of these coaches have taught me the many different ways of implementing the passing game. Thank you for allowing me to share the easiest, yet most adaptable schemes for any offense. This conceptual system allows you to:

• Utilize multiple formations
• Utilize multiple personnel
• Visualize pictures when the route concept is called
• Give you more route options and
combinations with fewer routes
• Reduce the amount of language in play calling

Because pictures are formulated when the routes are called you and your players will find it easy learning once the concepts are learned.

Step 1: Implementing the system

Start with any 2-by-2 formation. On the strong side of your formation label the widest guy 1 strong and the second widest guy 2 strong. Across the ball on the weakside, label the widest guy 1 weak and the second widest guy 2 weak. If you have formations that don’t utilize 2-by-2 formation detached (i.e. wishbone), count the attached receivers as 1 strong/1 weak and call the two back opposite the FB 2 strong and 2 weak.

Here are six examples of formations. Assume the formations all have right strength calls. Create the formations you want to use in your offense with your different personnel groupings. (Diagrams 2-7)

Diagram 1.	Diagram 2.
Diagram 3.	Diagram 4.
Diagram 5.	Diagram 6.
Diagram 7.

Step 2: Creating your grid

The next phase of building route concepts is creating your route grid. Take all of your base routes in your system that you want to run versus all the different coverages. Be certain you can attack cover 3, cover 2, quarters coverage and press man coverages. Name your routes. Make sure the name has some association to the route (i.e. Carolina equals Curls, Georgia equals Go’s, etc.). For easy learning, take all of your mirrored routes and group them together first. Then take your routes that are similar (i.e. dig from the boundary and a post from the field, with the post from the boundary and dig from the field), as your second grouping. Then your last grouping should be routes that may or may not have any association. Generally these routes take more memorization. In the first column put the route name.

In the columns that follow put the rules for 1 strong, 2 strong, 1 weak, 2 weak and the back. The following is an example of a route grid. Once your players memorize the grid, possibilities are endless:

Step 3: Draw your study sheet grid

On one or two pages, no more, draw all of your routes (your players will learn it quicker if it is presented on fewer pages). This page should include splits by the receivers, route with route depths, conversions versus soft hard and press coverages and quarterback reads. Show the strength all to one side.

Diagram 8. Gator	Diagram 9. Carolina
Diagram 10. Ohio	Diagram 11. Florida
Diagram 12. Canton	Diagram 13. Georgia

Step 4: Calling your play

Diagram 14. Diagram 15. Diagram 16.

Call your formation first (Jade Trey). Then call your formation strength next (right). Then call your possible motion (H Left). Note: The motion man must know where to end up (1 or 2, weak or strong) within the concept. This is done by you in game planning. Protection comes next (rip). Then your route concept (Carolina). Then your snap count (on 2). Here’s how it sounds: JADE TREY RIGHT H LEFT RIP CAROLINA ON 2.

Step 5: Combining route concepts and tagging routes

Once you have learned the basic concepts you will have endless possibilities. This part of building routes is why you don’t need too many routes in your package. This will multiply your package by 20 if you only have five total routes. This section also gives you the flexibility to attack teams that play different coverages. For example, if a team is playing cover 2 and cover 3 against you throughout the course of a game, you build your route so you have cover 2 beater side and a cover 3 beater side. When you are combining your concepts call the strongside first then the weak. An example of this is: JADE RIGHT CAROLINA GATOR. The strong side runs Carolina and the weakside runs Gator.

Any three-receiver side should be tagged. Because 3 strong assumes 2 weak’s responsibilities in a trips set, sometimes there may or may not be a spacing problem. If you have a route where spacing is poor, you can tag 2 or 3 and that will eliminate the problem. Do this by calling the total route concept, and then tagging the letter you want to run a specialized route. Example: JADE TREY RIGHT LIZ CAROLINA Y SPOT. Be sure you adjust the backs’ routes as needed.

Special Tags

You can create even greater flexibility with these three tags. Trade Switch and Swap. When you call trade it exchanges 1 strong and 2 strong’s responsibilities. When you call switch it exchanges 1 weak and 2 weak’s responsibilities. When you call swap it will exchange 2 strong and 3 strong’s responsibilities. You must be in some type of trips set with the swap call. Example: JADE TREY RIGHT LIZ GEORGIA SWAP

Diagram 17.	Diagram 18.
Diagram 19.	Diagram 20.

I hope the thoughts we have shared benefit you and your football program. On behalf of head coach Greg Schiano and our staff, thank you for the opportunity and good luck next season.

If you liked this article, here are three others just like it: 1. Play Action for the Big Play, Sept. 2001 2. Packaging Your Passing Game, May 2001 3. Attacking the Red Zone, Aug. 2000

About the author
Darrell Hazell

Darrell Hazell is in his third season as wide receivers coach and first year assuming the role of Assistant Head Coach, where he will aid Head Coach Greg Schiano with a number of administrative duties.

A native of Cinnaminson, NJ, Hazell brings an extensive resume to the Scarlet Knights. Prior to joining the West Virginia staff in 1999, Hazell coached tight ends and split ends at the United States Military Academy for two seasons (1997-98).

Hazell served as running backs coach from 1999-2000 at West Virginia. Under his direction, Mountaineer running back Avon Cobourne developed into one of the top rushers in the country.

For more information, email: dhazell@scarletknights.com