Tag: power read

“How Do You Play Trips?” Pt. 3 – Defending the Run

Defending a spread offense’s 3×1 package run game from a two-high shell.

When developing a defense it is important to start with the front and work back. Lining up correctly to formations, understanding keys, and developing a plan to stop the run all starts with the front seven. In a 4-3/4-2-5 (or 3-4 Hybrid) defense, the secondary players become the adjusters. Playing a single-gap defense and using formations to dictate alignments allow defensive players to see the formation quicker and align correctly. Each player in a defense is anchored to one another in some way. Understanding these anchor points, and how they change depending on formations, is crucial to the success of any defensive unit.

The Spread’s utilization of space has put aligning correctly every play at a premium. It is easy to align to a simple 2×2 formation, but when offenses utilize 3×1 formations (primarily Trips Open) the defense must understand how it adjusts will dictate their areas of weakness. Offenses make use of Trips formations because it forces the defense to give something up. To gain a six-man box a defense must spin, either to the Trips or away.  Continue reading ““How Do You Play Trips?” Pt. 3 – Defending the Run”

The 3-4 Tite Front

The “new age” Double Eagle is taking over Spread defenses and “squeezing” out the Zone.

Speed Kills

Finding defensive lineman is hard, especially at smaller enrollment high schools. The trend from four-down to three-down is always fluctuating and relies heavily on the athletes at hand. As more teams turn to the Spread because of the lack of lineman, it is only natural for defensive coordinators to go “small” as well. Adding athletes to the field is never a bad thing, and if the “heaviest” formation a defense will face is a two-back 20 personnel set, then why not keep a faster defense on the field? The trend is playing out on Saturday’s too. Look at any conference that is heavy spread and the defenses are getting “smaller.” Why? Because they have to be. The phrase, “Speed kills,” has more validity than ever before.

The Big 12 is usually on the forefront of the modern Spread game and continues to push the envelope for what offense can do and defenses have to defend on the field. Starting in 2016, Big 12 defenses began to tinker with their defenses and fully blossoming into the scheme in 2017. The backbone of this defensive transition was the Tite Front or 404/303. Iowa State went from 103rd in 2016 to 32nd in 2017 according to BCfToys.com’s Defensive Efficiency ratings. Texas rose to a top 10 defense (#6 overall) from #45 under first-year coach Tom Herman utilizing the Tite Front and a unique Dime package created by Todd Orlando. Ian Boyd for Football Study Hall wrote an article recently that highlighted how the Tite Front has taken over college defenses when defending the Spread. Even the heavy hitters in the SEC and Big 10 are turning to the front to defend the Spread teams on their schedule. The reasoning is simpler than one might think.  Continue reading “The 3-4 Tite Front”

Defending the Power Read

Defending one of the Spread’s toughest plays.

The Power Read is one of the Spread’s hardest plays to defend because it stresses the techniques taught by most defensive coaches, and stretches the field horizontally (stretch) as well as vertically (Q-Power). Any time an offense can attack both planes of a defense it is going to stress the defense’s core principles. Unlike a basic QB power, where the RB blocks out on the defensive end and a guard pulls for the ILB, the Power Read plays on the flow read of the ILB.

The RB takes a stretch path and heads for the edge. This “flow” stresses the discipline of the ILB’s eyes. Most defensive coaches will teach the ILBs to read the guard while stepping to their gap. As the ILB sees the guard pull, his eyes go to the flow of the RB, which is horizontal and fast (Stretch!). This flow “tricks” the ILBs to think the play is heading to the edge, but the offense is reading elsewhere. Instead of reading the backside end like the Zone Read, the Power Read uses the front side DE as the read man and attacks his fit. The “inverted veer,” as some call the Power Read forces the D-line to play smart and stay sound and disciplined in their option fits. Below is a look at an 11p Power Read:

 

Continue reading “Defending the Power Read”

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