First, “Why run the Option?” Simple answer: To Equalize the LOS for your players. The further question is how is this achieved? The option offense allows us another advantage. There are people on the defense we do not have to block. Remember, they have to defend the LOS with 9 defenders spread out across the field. They have two deep defenders who take those read steps or align deep enough “not get beat deep.” So when you run option (1) or triple option (2), there are defenders who are not blocked. They are read by our QB and defeated with the mind. We force the defense to make a decision, which we render wrong with our reaction (reading) of that decision. That means that we can double team and wall off the inside, screen the outside defenders, and not block but read defenders at the point of attack. This is the reason that our offense is to place their DE on an island at the end of the LOS. Our Ts are free to Double Team their tackle and seal the LOS to the inside. The WR in motion and the SE then run off and block the secondary. The QB reads the isolated defender and plays off his reaction.
How is the LOS Equalized? With the option offense, or the THREAT of the option, we have 6 offensive players going against 3 of their defenders. When we have 6 of us going against 3 of them, we feel we have a better chance for success.
How does this work? Watch the video: http://goo.gl/ugisG
Lots of coaches nationwide talk about how difficult the option is to coach and teach. It really isn't - when you sell it this way. Probably the most successful play in Pop Warner football is the QB takes the ball and runs around the end, right? The Option play here is just that: get the ball and run around the end; here we just throw in a fake to the FB along the way to get the defense to suck in on him, so your QB can run and gain more yards. And Oh, if he is threatened by a defender on that sweep, just pitch the ball to the TB right before you get tackled and let him run on the outside.
DIVE OPTION: (fake the dive and run the option) When we use the same alignment and motion as we do on the dive play (to make everything look the same) the play develops as follows:
1. The WB's motion will take him into the bastard split. When the ball is snapped, he will continue to a point behind the SE and then he will arc up field. He is responsible for blocking the force man who is usually responsible for the pitch back. This defender usually has some pass coverage responsibility as well as the pitch back, and for the first 2 seconds after the ball is snapped must honor the release of the WB and will drop for pass coverage. The WB will drive to the outside shoulder of the SS, take him as deep as he can in pass coverage and then stalk block him keeping him to the inside.
2. The SE releases down field and has the same responsibilities as he does on the dive play. If a "loaded" call is heard in the huddle, SE would block the first man to his inside on or off the ball. In this case it would be the DE.
3. Everyone else on the LOS (except for the TE who has the same assignment as on the dive) blocks the first man to his inside on or off the ball and executes a cut off block on that man.
4. The FB executes a good fake into the line. A good fake involves making a pocket for the QB to set the ball into, and after the ball is removed by the QB, the FB will close his arms together and roll his inside shoulder while hitting the line. This movement will get the LB’ers on the defense to step up to the LOS making it easier to wall them off. Many times the FB will be tackled at the LOS (a good fake is worth 3 blocks). If he is not taken down, the FB will continue through the LOS, veer to the outside and look for a LB’er to block.
5. The QB's steps are the same for the dive and option. First step is a 45 degree step back to the FB. The second and third step continue this action. The third 45 degree step is a "plant" step. This step is a critical step for the option and the veer to be run properly and requires a great deal of practice for the QB. Most QB's, especially young, inexperienced ones, have the tendency to rush this play. We want to give the defense time to react to the dive fake. The third step by the QB is a plant step, therefore, actually stopping his movement away from the LOS much like a plant step on a three step drop for pass. His fourth step is a "ride" step toward the LOS with the FB. During the fourth step, the QB places the ball in the "pouch" created by the FB thereby giving him a ball fake. This ball fake is crucial. The ball must be placed into the pouch of the FB. Using a "soft ball" technique, the QB removes the ball from the pouch. A soft ball means that the QB, keeping both hands on the football, uses very flexible elbows to draw the ball out of the pouch. The flexible elbows allow the QB to move with the FB as the moves to the LOS. This is the point where the effectiveness of the option has a tendency to break down with young QBs. Most inexperienced people will want to rush through the fake to the FB actually not stopping to fake and running through the FB forcing the FB wider that he should go. Running through the FB fake will also put the QB too deep and too wide for an effective option to take place. When the QB pulls the ball from the FB's pouch, it would be naturally pointed directly at the DE. The QB should step directly at the inside shoulder of the DE. The next number of steps (short choppy controlled steps) should be along the same path to the inside shoulder of the DE. Correct execution of these steps will get the QB to "run downhill" as they say in the option game.
On or around the eighth step the QB will reach the "option point." the option point is one yard deeper and one yard outside where the DE lines up. At this point the QB must have either pitched the ball to the TB or have made the decision to carry the ball up field (north and south). If the QB is carrying the ball wider than the option point, the defense has time to pursue and jump on the QB's back. As he moves to the option point, the QB keeps both hands on the football and "seats" it, extending his elbows and swings them side to side.
By running to the inside shoulder of the DE in this fashion, the DE is forced to make a decision. He must either take the QB or move to pitch. If the DE steps to tackle the QB, he immediately "squats" and pitches the ball to the TB who continues to run the ball on the outside.
The role of the QB on this play is to carry the ball on the inside running lane until such time that the defense makes a play on him. When this happens he is to pitch the ball to the TB. The TB's role on this play is to carry the ball on the outside. The inexperienced QB has the tendency to try to run too wide and to try and cut around defenders in the secondary. When this happens, the whole play slows down and pursuit tackles the play from behind. The man usually responsible for the QB on the option is the DE or the FS in the defense that is drawn.
If we put the WB into extended motion and widen the SS and get a soft corner, many defenses assign the DE to pitch figuring they can cover the QB with the FS. This is a common adjustment made by many of the colleges against the option. How many times have you seen an option called on the goal line and the QB scores easily because no one is assigned to the QB on the goal line LOS? The Washington Huskies used to do it all the time. So does Notre Dame. Defensive people believe they can cover the QB with a FS. It just does not happen, especially in high school.
When a defense plays three deep in the secondary, has the philosophy of not getting beat deep, and coaches "read steps" (take three steps back as you read for run or pass), not even the above average FS is going to make all the right decisions, react and stop the play on the LOS. In fact, we are counting on our FB after carrying out a great fake to knock off the FS by locating himself in the pursuit lane.
A word about pitch relationship: when a defensive player (hopefully the DE or FS in the force area) commits to tackling the QB, he is to pitch the ball to the TB. We do not get real technical with this pitch. We want the QB to "squat," i.e., slow down and sit down, look at the TB, pitch him the ball, and fall backward when the defender hits him. This technique results in far fewer injuries to the QB. Some QB's ego will not let them use this technique in a game, but it only takes one or two good licks by the defense to change his mind.
The pitch itself is just a flick to the TB. There are those who will spend hours talking about how the QB should pitch the ball, end over end, thumb down, and all that. Our QB is going to be one of our more skilled athletes. Since he is an athlete, we expect him to get the ball to the TB at the proper time. We do not want him thinking, "Now should I have my thumb down here or . . ." we need to have the QB make a correct read on the option man and pitch the ball. That's enough to think about.
Over the years we have had a difficult time maintaining proper pitch relationship between the QB and TB. Having the pitch back begin from a seven yard depth means he not only get the width he needs, but he also can start moving up field like he naturally wants to do. The major concern with the TB is rushing the play. Due to the dive fake and the read, the TB must "take his time" moving down the line with the QB. He may be at only 50% speed. That is ok. We want the TB to accelerate with a burst of speed when he receives the pitch. A good pitch relationship is around 4 yards outside the QB and two yards behind. Many people are going to tell you 4 x 4, but that is a very difficult relationship for high school programs to maintain.
We do not make a big deal out of it. The TB needs to be deep enough and wide enough so that no defender can play both the QB and make the tackle on the TB. 6. The TB cross over steps to the play side and immediately works to get into a good pitch relationship with the QB (as explained above). Always be under control. Speed is not important at the beginning of this route. We want you to accelerate after receiving the pitch not before.
Comments here from experience:
First: One of the things we started doing more of was to put the WB into extended motion beyond the SE. This automatically would give us a 'soft corner' most of the time. After all, when you motion wide, someone has to cover him, right? Even a QB with poor skills could "shot-put" him the ball out there if no one covered him. What we would do is to stand on the sidelines and look at the DE. When he would step down to take the FB, we would then call Dive option 48. The QB would pull the ball on the fake (and I would tell the QB to ride the ball in there till the DE would step down when this play is called), he then 'bubbles' around the collision made by the FB & DE, and then options the force man out there somewhere int he flat. It is the job of the QB to run at the inside shoulder of the Force man - forcing him to make a decision. If he takes the QB, he pitches it to the TB running wide. If the force man goes to pitch, the QB continues to run. Simple. The deal is this: We want everything on the first 4 steps of this play to look exactly the same as it would be on the dive play and for other "companion plays that we have, like Dive Option 48 Pass (which by the way is the most successful football pass play I have run over a 4 decade career - we will talk about that play later), the counter play, the bootleg etc.
We also want the steps to be the same as for our Veer play which is our triple option. And also the same steps for our counter play and out Dive option 48 pass which is the most successful pass play we ran over a 4 decade experience.
Some years you have a QB that makes good decisions and can run the veer. Other years, not so good. Those years we do not run the veer, but the defense does not know that everything is predetermined. To them it all looks the same. The QB just gets the ball and runs around the end like he always has done . . . and maybe pitch the ball right before he gets tackles to gain more yards. The key point is the steps of the QB, especially the ride step into the line, and the bubble step away from the line on step 5.
I would tell the QB to put the ball in the FB's belly long enought to get the DE to step down. Then bubble around. But I repeat myself, you get the point. Remember to read the details from the playbook: http://www.addy.com/coachfree/Option.
Have Fun.
RF
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