How to Attack defenses

Being an o-line coach is a great way to learn the strengths and weaknesses of various defensive fronts. I suggest you start with one defense (say, a 4-4). Draw up your running plays with blocking assignments against it. Which plays look good? Which don't? What adjustments could/would you have to make?

That's where I started as a young coach many moons ago when the dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Then, keep reading this board and asking questions. Good luck.

keep it simple.

Learn the COVERAGES you will face. The coverages will the determine the front. The front (& coverage) will determine how they support the run.

Fritz Shurmur's "Coaching Team Defense" is the best book at explaining the simple tenets of defensive structure without trying to be a fancy-pants.

In high school, you probably won't see too much funky stuff....just Cover 3, Cover 2, 1/4, 1/4, 1/2 coverages...There are lots of ways defenses can give a disguise, but as long as you get a basic understanding of what they are trying to do, you ought to be okay.

Get a coverage indicator by identifying the FS and the MLB. How are the corners playing the receivers?

middle safety with one rolled up and/or corners backed up...giving a 3 deep look, you know your force players are going to be the OLBs....beat them and the perimeter is yours....depending on the shading of the line = you will probably have a weakside bubble available. If the Dline goes head up, find the weakest one of the bunch and attack them.

get rolled up corners with a 2 safety high look, you got Cover 2 or a version of Cover 4, etc....know your perimeter force players are going to be the corners. If you can run them off or manhandle them with bigger receivers. The MLB will generally be over the center and will likely be coming free because it will be so difficult to get a hat on him. This defense is evened up and you can just run to the numbers.

defense isn't that difficult...

Thanks brophy, that is exactly what I am talking about. We run a lot of option and knowing who may have what responsibility is a big help. We have a young head coach that is somewhat limited on experience but a great guy. Given time he will be fine. I just want to help him anyway I can. Blb I already have all my blocking schemes and put together a lineman manual that is 95 pages just on the run game. So you guys keep it coming if I don't understand it. I will for sure ask. thanks guys a great great help. and again keep it coming

Our defensive playbook is a flip-comic on the back of a beer stained bar napkin.

He must've been one of those offensive-minded-commie-pinko-subversion-ball-hiker-types

The best thing I have ever heard of/done is to play checkers. I think it's Tedford (used to be OC at Oregon and now HC at Cal) plays checkers with his players. He takes the black checkers and puts a formation on the table (not on the checkerboard) and the QB takes the red checkers and defends him.

I've done this and it's amazing what the QB's learn and me too! Every piece I move on offense has to affect at least one defensive player. Plus, when you say "I've run the ball successfully 5 plays in a row...What are you going to do?" and the QB moves his SS in the box he now can visualize the trouble he is in with a PAP. Then you switch and have the QB play offense and you play defense...look for bubbles on the defensive line, alignment of linebackers and corners. It's better than drawing on the board because you have to erase players and then re-draw, whereas with checkers the kids actually see the players move from place to place. It's also better than video because you can't move the players on the screen.

Another great tip I learned was to take one of your favorite formations on offense and play defensive coordinator against it! Take away the best plays out of the formation. Now as a offensive guy to have to counter and so on and so forth.

The first thing I do on Sundays is take their base defense and draw it up against all of our formations (based on film or my best guess) and see where they will have trouble. Abuse those formations during the week, set up some defensive counters and blitzes to it and then show the kids how to beat the counters.

Each defense has an inherant weakness and strength...there are some formations that work better vs. some defenses than others, each defense has different stress points due to how they react to stopping your best play(s).

Draw a ton and ask a lot of questions.

thanks johhnyboy great info. I love the checkers idea. any tip on what defenses specific weaknesses are. say 5-3 4-4 4-3 those are the three we will see the most of. thanks again