EQualizer Coaching Clinic #5

EQualizer Coaching Clinic #5

Before we go any further, I think we need to talk about two play action pass plays: Dive Option 48 Pass and Dive 34 Bootleg pass.

These are two extremely effective pass plays. In fact, the Dive Option 48 Pass has been THE MOST SUCCESSFUL PASS PLAY I have called over a 4 decade coaching career. It works. When I was in school back in the 50s, we ran this play from the old Iowa Wing T series and it worked. We have ‘modified’ it every decade to “fit” the system we were running at the time, right up to the end with the unbalanced EQualizer Offense.

Again, you can read about the plays online at www.jvm.com/coachfree and you can see the cut ups of the play at www.maxcast.com/EQualizer.

Both plays operate on the premise that the first four steps are the same as on the base play(s). On Dive Option 48 Pass, the QB on that 4th step pushes off and drives for a point 7-9 yards deep behind where the SE aligned. AT that point, he is to turn upfield and attacks the LOS. His read progression is: short, middle, long.

Here are some critical coaching points on the play: (1) there has to be a good fake on the play. The better the fake, the more wide open everyone will be. (2) On his 4th step, the TB must locate the defender who is the threat to contain the QB and AGRESSIVELY block him. He must attack him and drive that person back. Ideally we would want him to block the defender’s outside number with his inside forearm and get the hips around to seal him inside. Younger, inexperienced players have to tendency and to slow down or stop and wait for the defender to come to him. That means that his feet are screwed into the ground and the defender is moving and will plow through the block and get to the QB. There needs to be a separation between the block being made and the path of the QB. (3) The SE needs to come down the LOS and STRIKE the end defender on the LOS. After hitting that guy he needs to run an arrow route (45 degree to the sideline). When he gets to a point that is 15 yards deep, he is to square out his pattern to the sideline. When the SE executes in this manner, he comes open 90% of the time or more. (4) The WB who is in motion, either short or extended motion, at the snap of the ball breaks upfield, and runs a deep corner route. He is to get to a depth of 25 plus yards. The receivers are to stack up: FB at 5yards, SE at 15 yards and WB at 25 yards and getting deeper on every step.

Often the play action freezes the defense and the WB has a chance to beat everyone deep for a huge gain or an easy score. The fake brings up the force man for pitch, and when the FB releases and crosses his face out there in the flat, that force man most of the time plays pass and picks up the FB in coverage.

Due to those two factors, the SE has a chance to ‘sneak’ behind the under coverage and open under the over coverage and come open over 90% of the time. If he does not come open, that means usually that the deep coverage is up on him and the WB is open.

You do not have to tell the QB to look deep; they will do that on their own. You need to teach them to look short middle long first. The deal is that if you teach them to look long first, they will never look short and see a wide open receiver.

This pass play has produced more first downs, and more touchdowns, than any other pass play run over that 40+ year time period: play action flood pass to the wide side of the field. It is the play to call when you are in a 3rd and long situation.

Even if you do not run the EQualizer, there is a play in your scheme that you can modify according to these principles and your offense will be more productive.

Now on to bootleg pass. Once again, first four steps the same, including a good fake to the FB. Here are the major coaching points on this play: (1) The FB is to take his fake into the B Gap and block that area. The center is to block the A Gap if he in uncovered. Obviously, if there is a nose guard, he is to block the nose. If the SG is covered, the C is to block for the SG who is pulling. (2) The SG pulls and is to block the backside DE (the called side guard is to block the backside DE). Once he passes the C, the SG must GET AS MUCH DEPTH AS POSSIBLE. Ideally, we would want the SG to get a depth of 7 yards, turn upfield, and block the outside number of the DE with his right arm (if he is pulling to the left) get his hips around and keep the DE to the inside. (3) The TE MUST BLOCK FIRST. The TE must block the DE before running his route. Blocking first does multiple things. First, blocking the DE sets the block of the SG on the pull. It helps the guard be able to keep the DE to the inside and thereby allowing the QB to get to the outside. The TE’s blocking also gives a false read to the secondary which will help him get open on his pass route. (3) The route of the SE is to take him to a depth of no more than 7 yards in the opposite flat. Normally the SE runs under the LB’er coverage unless they have really bitten on the fake, then he just runs this under route through space. The important thing is to a depth of no more than 7 yards. (4) The QB after the fake must sprint to a depth of 9 yards behind where the TE lined up. He then must turn and attack the LOS. Here he has a decision to make: Run or Pass. There are plenty of times when there is NO ONE in front of him: IN THAT CASE HE SHOULD RUN! Remember, Coach Hayes said there were many things that can go wrong when you pass the ball. The real thing is this. If the defense see the AB RUN early in the game . . . later on in the game they will come up to tackle the QB, and that is when you can hit the TE open on the deep route for a big gainer or easy TD.

Most of the time there is just one defender left on the weak side to defend on this play. The play action fake to the other side of the formation will get the defense’s attention there. As the secondary rotates there, the TE breezes by the backside CB on a deep corner route. The CB has to break to cover him, right? So who is left to cover the SE on the crossing route? A LB’er who has bitten on the fake? A LB’er who is looking at the QB? The SE will always come open over there in the opposite flat.

A couple more things: If you have a right handed QB and is rolling left, HE MUST SET HIS FEET TO THROW DEEP. In order to be accurate on the deep route, he must do a “Montana Hop” to square his hips, stride to the receive to throw deep. AND NEVER UNDERTHROW A DEEP BALL. Get enough air under the ball and get the receiver to run to catch the ball. This is not one of those underthrown deep balls they talk about on Sunday afternoon on TV. That would be OK on a Fade route, but underthrowing this ball leads to interceptions. Also, if there is a blitzer, or say the TE wiffs on his block and the SG has to block the DE out inside of keeping him in. Then the QB has to read this on the boot and stop, square up, and hit the SE between the LB’ers over the middle of later out in the flat after he is passing the weakside LB’er. If the QB tries to get outside a DE that is outside . . . he will lose most of the time.

Be 11!

RF