Sunday, February 22, 2009

Pat White Open To Playing Other Positions

Pat White announced at the NFL combine that he's open to other offensive and special teams positions at the next level other than quarterback. White, who broke the NCAA QB rushing record out of a predominate spread offense at West Virginia University posted an unofficial 4.50 40 yard dash at the NFL combine. With the wildcat formation being introduced in the NFL this past season, White's style of play is being called the next progression of the shot-gun spread offense in the NFL.

West Virginia’s White open to playing other positions

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Sunday, February 15, 2009

Pass Protection Techniques In The Spread Offense

One of the best attributes of the spread offense is that its formations limit the amount of defensive fronts by forcing them to walk out linebackers to cover receivers. This simplifies pass blocking, because there are only so many things the defense can do without leaving players unaccounted for. It also allows other aspects of the passing game to "assist" the linemen, such as a quick passing attack and easier "hot" reads.

To read the entire article with diagrams, go to:




--Mark


Sunday, February 8, 2009

Jon Gruden Intrigued By The Spread Offense

Jon Gruden, the former head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers recently mentioned in an interview that he's very intrigued by the spread offense run in college and high school, and also had some encouraging words for Tim Tebow and his future in the NFL.

"He's like Brandon Jacobs playing quarterback," Gruden said. "Tim Tebow is 250 pounds, and he's the strongest human being that's ever played the position. He can throw well enough at any level."

Gruden went on to say that Tebow could 'revolutionize' the quarterback position in the NFL running a spread offense, once his chance arrives in 2010.

Gruden said he plans on returning to coaching and didn't rule out a job at the college level. He is also interested in working as a TV analyst next season and would like to attend some college camps to expand his knowledge, especially in the shot-gun, dual-threat QB spread offense.

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Tackle Trap: An Alternative To The Zone Read

In the majority of spread offenses at the collegiate level, the zone read is a cornerstone of the offense. What do you do if you don’t have the personnel to be successful with a zone run game? I have found that the tackle trap is a great alternative to the zone read in the shot-gun spread offense.

To read this entire article, with diagrams, go to:



--Mark


Sunday, January 25, 2009

Super Bowl Preview - The Spread Offense Will Be On Display

The big game is one week away in the NFL, The Pittsburgh Steelers vs. The Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl forty three.

One thing we know for sure is that on the offensive side of the ball, both teams will be 3, 4 or 5 wide, with a lot of shot-gun sets. You'll see the classic spread offense passing game with Kurt Warner and Ben Roethlisberger both looking to exploit the other's defense by spreading the field sideline to sideline in the passing game.

I found it interesting when a TV commentator doing the NFC championship game said on numerous occasions: "How is it possible that Larry Fitzgerald is SO wide open out there" - well, I'll tell you how.

It's the spread formations and offensive sets that the Arizona Cardinals execute on offense. They do a masterful job getting Fitzgerald spread across the field in numerous positions. When you add in Anquan Boldin as a major threat on the other side of the field, the defense can only do so much.

Now imagine this... take the arm of a Kurt Warner, throw in the legs of a Terrelle Pryor and blend it into one QB... How would the Steeler's (or any team) defend that!

--Mark
Spread Offense

Saturday, January 10, 2009

NFL Teams Listen Up... Draft Tim Tebow and Pat White

The days following the national championship have opened up a lot of discussions on this years upcoming NFL draft. The big networks have their experts making predictions on who will be drafted, who will leave college early, etc...

Tim Tebows name has come up numerous times, and all I have heard is "He'll be a situational player", "He'll be an H-Back or Tight End", "He's not a NFL quarterback, a third round pick at best...." and so on.

Bottom line in football.... who are the winners who come together as a 'team' and how will they help you win games.

Tim Tebow in this instance is a first round draft pick in my opinion, an easy top 5 overall pick.

If I was starting the "Hawaii Sharks" in 2009-2010 and had the first pick this year... it would be Tim Tebow.

Another guy I would draft.... Pat White from West Virginia. Again... a winner!!! 4-0 in bowl games (2 BCS games) meaning he's a big game player that raises peoples talents around him.

Offenses in the NFL are moving to hybrid styles, I'm not claiming the spread offense seen in college will be dominating the NFL anytime soon, but a variation or complemental (is that a word?) portion of it will continue to grow.

Wait till you see how many NFL offensive and defensive NFL coaches (especially the ones who've been in the league for over 5 years) flock to college campuses to talk spread offense shop.

I found the Miami Dolphins so interesting this year... not just for the 'Wild Cat' and Ronnie Brown, but also take a look at their coaching staff.

We know David Lee from Arkansas, but what about George DeLeone and Paul Pasqualoni (together at Syracuse during all those years they played Rich Rodriguez at West Virginia).

They've been in the spread offense and defending it for almost 10 years.... I'm sure the offensive staff would keep the door open for Coach Pasqualoni to give some feedback, even though he was the DC.

George DeLeone, I've been at many high school clinic's he has spoke at and he's a spread u'm out junkie... learning a lot from trying to defend Coach Rod at WVU in the Big East.

Back to my point... this will ALL keep evolving in the NFL, college coaches with spread in their blood being hired as Bill Parcells and Tony Sparano have. It's a natural process.

Back to my point point: Tim Tebow and Pat White.

Winners, winners, winners, period. And GM's and Coaches in the NFL get fired if they lose, that's a fact no one can deny.

--Mark
The Spread Offense

Disclaimer: We're not sure Tebow is going pro this year (he's only a junior and has one more year of college eligibility), but Pat White is a senior and will enter the NFL draft.

Friday, January 9, 2009

Inside Shovel Off The Speed Option - Spread Offense

Congratulations to the Florida Gators ! If you watched the game last night, you saw a great play that Urban Meyer has used for some time now even before coming to Florida, but last night might have been the first time some of you may have seen it.

It's off speed option action to the perimeter... but the backside TE (or H-Back in a different formation) runs the inside shovel pass, with his backside guard pulling or folding up into the hole for a gut or kick-out block. If the defensive end knifes down for the shovel pass, the quarterback keeps the ball and attacks the outside with his pitch relationship to the running back. If the defensive end square shoulders the QB or keeps outside leverage, the shovel pass is executed to the TE.


--Mark

Saturday, January 3, 2009

Reprint: Valuable Spread Offense Coaching Resources For The Off-Season

Spread Offense Playbook - Download Now!

Stopping The Spread Offense - Download Now!

One of the best quotes I ever heard and still truly believe is: 'Leaders are Readers' or in the modern era 'Leaders are Readers and watch Video'.

Below are both free resources and pay for resources for coaches looking to educate themselves on the spread offense:

1) Free Resources

I can't stress how important it is to use recording technology to your advantage if you want to learn and study something, especially the sport of football. The ability to tape games via a DVR machine (usually available through a cable company, satellite provider, or telephone TV service like Verizon FIOS) or a standard video recorder right from the comfort of your home is very valuable free resource.

If you're a coach that is passionate about running the spread offense or a coach passionate about stopping the spread offense, I would have to ask if you've taped most or all of the 2008-2009 college bowl games with teams that run the spread offense or some hybrid of it.


That's A LOT of spread offense to evaluate and learn from. It may not be too late if you missed a lot of these because ESPNU and ESPN Classic do a good job of replying these games for a few weeks after the bowl season.

These games are so valuable for learning and seeing what some of the best spread offensive minds are thinking and more importantly what some of the best defensive coaches are doing to stop it (or at least trying to do too stop it).

If you ever read 'The Art of War' by Sun Tzu, he mentions a very important point: "keep your friends close, but your enemies closer". If you want to be a great offensive spread coach, you need to know what the defensive coaches are thinking and planning to stop you (and vice versa).

The ability to breakdown film as a coach is a critical skill, not just your teams or your opponents, but what I call 'third party' film. Imagine in your head what you might call that 'third party' play based on your terminology and formations.

When I coached, I had a lot of 'specialty' plays that I stole from the likes of the Ol Ball Coach (Spurrier) and Bobby Bowden, plays like the Gator Counter and the Seminole Toss Pass.

I still have boxes of old VHS taped from the early 90's thru the early 00's that I just can't part from (my wife thinks I'm nuts) with game upon game that I recorded.

Get detailed on paper with notes if you see something you really like, what are the lineman's splits?, are there any influence blocks (or joker type techniques on the O-Line) taking place?, is the slot receiver acting out the bubble screen?, what's the play tempo like?, what's the down and distance?, where on the field is the ball?, what are the backfield splits?, etc.

Try not only praising the video, but be critical of plays when you evaluate 'third party' film. Is the quarterback carrying out his option fakes or carrying out the zone read bootleg fake on the hand-off? Is the tailback carrying out his fakes if he doesn't get the ball on the zone read? Are the X and Y receivers blocking aggressive enough on the bubble screen? Coach the other teams on the video as you would coach your team.

Besides video resources, another free option is to simply call a college or high school in your area that runs the spread offense and ask the coaches if they would clinic with you and your staff. Most staff's are very open to this, especially if you have some solid recruits that may be of interest to them in the future. Even if you don't and you're say a Pop Warner coach, most coaches will be glad to assist.

2) Pay For Resources

There are many good resources that you can pay for, many of these I have personally used and others I am going off references from other coaches.

I personally prefer video over books when it comes to coaching instructional stuff. The ability to rewind, slow mo, pause, and taking notes while watching is very valuable as opposed to reading it.

What I do enjoy reading is more motivational type stuff, life balance, or organizational books to help build teamwork, character, discipline, work ethic, and courage (the 'intangibles' of football).

Before I get into my favorite spread offense instructional videos, let me share some of my favorite motivational, positive attitude, life balance, organizational, and leadership books.

1. Sun Tzu For Success - Gerald Michaelson
2. Turning The Thing Around - Jimmy Johnson and Ed Hinton
3. Power For Living (Christian based) - Jamie Buckingham
4. Finding a Way to Win - Bill Parcells and Jeff Coplon
5. The Education of a Coach - Bill Belichick and David Halberstam
6. The Secret - Rhonda Byrne
7. Creating Your Own Destiny - Patrick Snow
8. You Can Heal Your Life - Louise L. Hay

I have attached below an Amazon.com online search box for your convenience to order these books. Just so you know this is a mix of books that I feel will make you a well rounded leader and person, both on the football field as a coach and in life. To me, balance is the key to be a great leader, motivator, and teacher.




Here is my list of favorite spread offense instructional videos:

1. The Shotgun Spread Offense Series - Bruce Eien, Brethren Christian (CA) High School Head Coach
2. West Virginia Spread Offense - Rich Rodriguez, Rick Trickett, Calvin Magee - West Virginia University
3. The Zone Option Package - Brian Hughes, C.W. Post College Assistant Coach/Offensive Coordinator
4. The Run Game Within the Spread Offense - John Reagan, University of Kansas Offensive Line/Run Game Coordinator
5. The Simplified Spread Offense - Dennis Dunn, Louisiana College Head Coach (former Evangel Christian Academy (LA) Head Coach)
6. Transitioning From the Wing-T to a Spread - Lew Johnston, Western Branch HS (VA) Head Coach
7. The Basics of the Single Wing Offense - Mike Rude, Johnston City High School (IL) Head Coach;Illinois High School Football Coaches Hall of Fame

Defending The Spread Offense Videos

8. Defending the Spread Shotgun Wing-T Offense - Lew Johnston,Western Branch HS (VA) Head Coach
9. Defending the Spread with the 50 Defense - J.T. Curtis, John Curtis Christian School (LA) Head Coach,2006 USA Today National HS Coach of the Year
10. 12 Keys to Defending the Spread - Brian George, Indiana University Co-Defensive Coordinator / DL
11. Defending the Spread with the 3-5-3 - Bert Williams, Georgia Military College Head Coach

Coaches Clinic's:

Glazier Clinic's 2009 Schedule

Nike Football Clinics 2009


The Spread Offense Coaches Forum - Interact with fellow spread offense coaches throughout the world online

I have produced hyperlinks above so simply click on the titles to view these fine videos and clinics. If you're interested in purchasing them, follow the directions once the page launches.

One area I'm not going to elaborate on but is critical for a successful spread offense is your off-season strength and conditioning program. This not only builds strong, fast, athletic athletes, it also goes a long way in building teamwork, togetherness, and comradery amongst your players and staff.

"The key is not the will to win . . . everybody has that. It is the will to prepare to win that is important.” - Bobby Knight.

Best wishes in your off-season preparation, and keep spreading them!

--Mark
http://www.spreadoffense.com/

Monday, December 29, 2008

The Quick Passing Game in the Spread Offense

By Greg Nejmeh, The College Of New Jersey:

One of the big advantages of the spread offense is to use the quick passing game (i.e., slants, stops, speed ins, sticks) as well as other routes and combinations to exploit the defense. At the most basic level, the quick passing game works well because it is high percentage passing, beats blitzes, minimizes an aggressive pass rush, and allows your best athletes – usually your slot receivers - to make moves on linebackers in space.




To read more and view the diagrams associated with this article, please go to: http://www.spreadoffense.com/ssp/quick_passing_game_spread_offens

Friday, December 19, 2008

Combo Passing Sets In The Spread Offense

We're probably all familiar with using a passing tree to describe the routes to be run on a given play. Often, in the spread offense, numbers aren't enough. An example of this would be if you wanted to run a follow pattern, in which the inside receiver runs a short in and the outside receiver runs a deep in; how would this differ from a follow switch pattern, in which the inside receiver runs the dig, and the outside receiver comes underneath on an in ... say your "4" pattern is a down-and-in route -- is a "44" a Follow or a Follow Switch? Is a 4 route a drag, dig, or square in?

For more details and to read the entire article, go to:
http://www.spreadoffense.com/ssp/combo_routes_spread_offense

Friday, December 12, 2008

And the Heisman Winner Is... A Spread Offense Quarterback

This Saturday (12/13/2008) will unveil the Heisman trophy winner for the 2008 college football season. The three finalist are all quarterback's from spread offense systems. You have last year's winner, Tim Tebow from the Unversity of Florida - Texas Longhorn's Colt McCoy, and Oklahoma Sooner's Sam Bradford.



Tebow, our SpreadOffense.com player of the year last year (2007) came on strong the second half of the season and is just an amazing player and person.




McCoy, who put up amazing numbers this year and showed the heart of a lion in the Oklahoma game, is our choice here at SpreadOffense.com




Bradford, Mr. Consistent who is extremely accurate with his throws and a great, humble leader.

Good luck to all the finalists... one thing is for sure, for the third year in a row a spread offense quarterback will win the award.

Sunday, November 30, 2008

The Spread Offense Thanks You Pat White

Last week when West Virginia's Pat White broke the all-time NCAA QB rushing record against Louisville, I had mixed emotions. One part of me was so happy for Pat and his WVU teammates while the other part of me was sad that an era was coming to an end. With college football down to two more games for most teams (some only one), I would only get to see #5 in the old gold and blue twice more... man, that stinks!

When I started this site about a year ago, it was an easy choice on who's mold I wanted the logo of "SpreadOffense.com" made from, I figured that the most inspiring spread offense player(s) over the previous 3 seasons was Pat White (and his partner in crime at the time, Steve Slaton). Hence, I made them the second and third WVU players that a logo was molded after (the first being Jerry West, who's the mold for the NBA logo).
This upcoming Saturday (December 6th at 8:00pm, televised on ESPN2), West Virginia plays the University of South Florida at West Virginia for Pat White's final home game as a Mountaineer. WVU is officially making it a Pat "White Out" event, meaning everyone in the stadium is being instructed to wear 'White' clothing in honor of #5.

The WVU Official Sports website recently released their 'Top 10' Pat White all-time game performances as a Mountaineer, go to: http://www.msnsportsnet.com/page.cfm?DB_OEM_ID=19400&story=13796 to see them.

The Mountaineer's will make a bowl game this year so that will be Pat's last official game, but do yourself a favor and tune in Saturday night for his last home game.

If you love the modern day spread offense... You'll love seeing the 'Magician' one more time in front of the home crowd.

Thank you Pat White... I can't wait to see you in the NFL.

--Mark
http://www.spreadoffense.com/

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Simplifying Pre-Snap Motion Out Of The Spread Offense

An area of the spread offense that drives defensive coordinators crazy is the pre-snap motion that many offenses use to out-man or gain an advantage on the defensive alignment. This changes the strength of the offense, and the defense must react quickly to re-align. To view a recent article with diagrams on simplifying the pre-snap motion offense out of the spread, go to: http://www.spreadoffense.com/ssp/spread_offense_motion_plays

--Mark

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Triple Option Shot-Gun Spread Offense - Works In The NFL Too!

OK, now it's getting serious down in Miami with the spread offense. If you saw the game or highlights of their last game vs. Seattle, Ricky Williams went untouched from 51 yards away out of the triple option set. It looked like a Steve Slaton run from his old West Virginia days when him and Pat White would drive defenses nuts.

How often do you see an NFL running back go 'untouched' for 50+ yards (well, see the video below)?? NFL defensive coordinators, look out!! I think 2011 has arrived a little early.


--Mark
http://www.spreadoffense.com/

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Pre-Snap Motion Passing Out Of The Spread Offense



With the impressive passing performance of Texas Tech last night vs. Texas, we thought a pass diagram with a little pre-snap motion out of the spread offense would be an appropriate post.
Great play by Michael Crabtree at the end of the game.... and a heck of a throw by Graham Harrell to his back shoulder.


Friday, October 24, 2008

Tulsa Giving The Spread Offense A Good Name

If you haven't seen The Golden Hurricane of Tulsa run the spread offense yet this year, do yourself a favor and watch them this Sunday night at 8:00pm ET (It's a Sunday night college special) vs. UCF (Central Florida) on ESPN.

Back in February, SpreadOffense.com posted a Q&A session with Herb Hand, co-offensive coordinator at Tulsa.

To view that post, Click Here

#19 (BCS and Coaches Poll) Tulsa is averaging 56.6 points per game, and QB David Johnson has thrown 31 TD's. Tarrion Adams is the leading rusher for the Golden Hurricane, averaging 5.9 yards per rush.

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Auburn Fires Franklin - Remain Committed To The Spread Offense

Auburn University fired offensive coordinator and spread offense guru Tony Franklin on Wednesday just ten months into his tenure.

Tommy Tuberville, the head coach at Auburn said he remained committed to the spread offense, but a change in play calling and style was required and he was going with his 'gut felling' on the decision.

"It hurts. It hurts bad," Tuberville said on Wednesday. "It's a difficult situation. It's a difficult thing to do in the middle of the season. My responsibility is to this football team and it always will be. Tony's a good person. When it all comes down to it, it's about production. I didn't think over the last few weeks we were making any progress."

Tuberville hired Franklin from Troy last December after firing Al Borges. Franklin led the offense in the Chick-fil-A Bowl — a victory over Clemson that created a lot of excitement over the new offense at Auburn.

Auburn plays Arkansas this Saturday in an SEC battle.

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Missouri Tigers Clearly The Cream Of The Spread Offense

After the first 5 weeks of the 2008 college football season, it's obvious that Missouri's spread offense lead by Chase Daniel is the most exciting and diverse in college football.

Through four games, Daniel has completed 101-of-133 passes for 1,412 yards, 12 touchdowns and one interception.

Not to mention one of the most exciting skill players in the country, Mr. Everything Jeremy Maclin.

To read more about Missouri's recent win over Nebraska, Click Here.

Monday, September 22, 2008

The Spread Offense Gets A Shot In The Arm From... The NFL's Miami Dolphins??

The spread offense in college has been sort of taking it on the chin the last few weeks, with the likes of Auburn and West Virginia having a difficult time getting their offenses in gear so far (Thank God for Missouri...what an offense that is!) this year.

Then out of the clear blue, this past Sunday saw the emergence of the 'South Florida Spread' (no, not Matt Grothe and the USF Bulls in Tampa), the Miami Dolphins!

That's right, the Dolphins of the AFC East took the New England Patriots behind the wood shed with some solid defensive play and a taste of the Arkansas 'Wild Cat and Wild Hog' Offense made so famous by Darren McFadden and Felix Jones.

In this case, it was Ronnie Brown who was in the shot-gun orchestrating the famous spread offense formation, surely under the tutelage of Miami's quarterback coach David Lee, from you guessed it... The University of Arkansas.

See Coach Lee explaining his offense - Click Here

On Sunday, Brown gained 113 yards on 17 carries and the Dolphins out gained the Patriots 461 yards to 216.

Ronnie Brown, typically used as a tailback, received six direct snaps resulting in four touchdowns (three runs, one pass).

This will be interesting to see how it develops as the year goes on, will you see this package every week by Miami? Will other pro teams consider trying this or a similar spread offense/single wing package with a great athlete?

Time will tell... remember our prediction on the college spread offense making its way into the NFL - click here - Maybe it'll happen sooner!

Keep spreading u'm!

--Mark
www.SpreadOffense.com

Sunday, September 7, 2008

QB Sweep - Simple And Effective Shot-Gun Spread Offense Play

QB Sweep Diagram (#1) Inside Slot Counter Trap #2 (off QB Sweep action)

Many spread offense's are pumping more and more rushing yards out of their athletic quarterback's (QB's). One of the simplest, yet effective plays out of the shot-gun is the QB Sweep (see diagram #1 above). This is also a great play to put in with your Tailback (TB) because it allows him to do what he is used to doing.

The QB will simply read the block of the #3 receiver (or inside slot). If the they get the hook he will sweep outside. If they kick-out, the QB will cut up and inside the block.

If you really want to keep the defense honest, compliment the QB sweep with the inside slot counter trap (see diagram #2 above). This could be either an inside hand-off or flip (schuffle) toss.

Sunday, August 31, 2008

Patrick White THROWS 5 TD Passes To Lead West Virginia In Opener

Pat White, the 4 year starting quarterback of the West Virginia Mountaineer's highly productive spread offense and a leading preseason Heisman candidate in 2008 broke another Mountaineer record on Saturday, this time not with his magic leg's, but with his arm.

White threw 5 touchdown passes against Villanova, a top 'sub-division' football program that consistently challenged the Mountaineer offense by placing 8 and 9 guys in the box in an attempt to slow up the anticipated 'zone read' rushing show by White and Noel Devine.

When new Mountaineer head coach Bill Stewart hired Jeff Mullen as the WVU offensive coordinator in early 2008, he did so knowing that Mullen was a 'take what they give you' type of offensive coach, something the Mountaineer's have been accused of ignoring the past few years under the past regime of Rich Rodriguez.

Mullen stated after the the 48-21 West Virginia win Saturday, “I was pleased with his decision making. Fundamentally and athletically, the kid has been blessed before I ever got a hold of him”. “I was just real happy with where his eyes went to on every pass play in order for those completions to occur."

“I’m a guru right?” Mullen joked. “There were a number of times today and during Patrick’s career when you go, ‘Wow, that wasn’t a very good call and then old #5 gets you out of that bind. He’s certainly a blessing to coach.

White finished with career highs in completions (25) and attempts (33). Six incompletions were the result of drops or poor receiver play, an area Mullen and Stewart expect to improve on.

Pat White, who has been compared at times to Vince Young looked more like Steve Young versus Villanova, standing tall in the pocket and firing accurate passes from his strong left arm.

This latest development out of Morgantown must be sending shivers up the spines of defensive coordinators having to face White and the Mountaineer's this year.

Just when you thought the 'game plan' executed so well by Pittsburgh and South Florida last year against the Mountaineer's powerful run game was a possible 'formula for success' (then again, White was hurt and not 100% in both of those games...), Patrick White shows us yesterday that his hard work in the off season and guidance from Jeff Mullen (previously at Wake Forest) has really improved his passing ability, giving the WVU offense the much needed balance it has needed the past three years.

The Mountaineer's have a great challenge ahead of them this week as they head to East Carolina, themselves coming off a great win over a ranked Virginia Tech team.

--Mark

http://www.spreadoffense.com/


WVU Highlights vs. Villanova (Pat White, 5 TD Passes)



Friday, August 8, 2008

College Rule Change Favors A No Huddle Spread Offense

College Football made some revisions this off-season to its 266 page rule book that will significantly help an already established offense that runs out of the no huddle spread offense in 2008 and beyond.

The 25 second clock, that was once reset after officials marked the ball, is now a secondary player. This year, a 40 second clock starts immediately at the end of every play. Only for reasons such as a penalty, time-out, or measurement will an offense receive a full 25 seconds from the spot of the ball.

This could be tough on offenses that rotate personnel often into the game, and it could have a big impact on a team huddling prior to coming to the line of scrimmage.

Chalk one up for the no-huddle spread offense teams out there in college football, you're ahead of the game and this important rule change.

Check out an article on this subject by Ivan Maisel of ESPN.com below:

Go to: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/preview08/columns/story?columnist=maisel_ivan&id=3524989


--Mark

Saturday, August 2, 2008

Are Your Ready For Some Spread Offense

As the 2008 College Football season draws closer, we thought this video of all of Tim Tebow's touchdown's last year, his heisman trophy season would get you in the mood for some serious 'spread offense' (or single wing.... looking at the video).

Enjoy Below:

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

How To Defend A Spread Offense Passing Attack


In this article, I will present how we defend against a predominately pass offense that runs just some zone read in the spread offense. The first thoughts in my mind are down and distance and where the ball is on the field. Our calls will change as the field become shorter, the score of the game and time left on the clock. I classify my thoughts in four general categories: A. Five in the box , B. Five and a half in the box, C. Six in the box and D. Seven in the box.


To read more, visit this article with diagrams at:


Friday, June 6, 2008

Balanced Offense Redefined - The Spread Offense

You can hear about it everyday from fans with even the most basic knowledge of the game of football. It is something that some spread offense coaches meticulously strive for, despite the fact that there are no points awarded for it, and some of the most successful coaches at any level completely disregard it. “It” is balance in play calling.

To read this entire article, please go to:

Friday, May 30, 2008

Running Backs As Blockers In The Spread Offense



The running back position in the spread offense requires not only the ability to carry the ball and catch the ball, but also an aggressive desire to block on both running plays and passing plays.



This article will be split up between explanations of two pass blocking concepts followed by run blocking explanations using the running back(s) out of the backfield.



To view the entire article with diagrams, go to:
http://www.spreadoffense.com/ssp/running_back_blocker_spread

Friday, May 2, 2008

Using the Running Back as a Receiving Threat in The Spread Offense


The running back in today’s spread offenses is meant to be more than just a running threat; he must also be a threat out of the backfield and spread out wide as a receiving weapon as well. This gives the quarterback another viable option in the passing game and will likely give the defense different problems that may alter what they do, which is the whole point.

To read more about this spread offense article with diagrams, go to:

Friday, April 4, 2008

Defending The Spread Offense Option Attack


When defending the spread option, the first thing we think about is what form of structure we want for our defense. As all football progresses in cycles, what we are really defending is the triple option without a seal block. The offense is trying to seal our LB by the action of the RB. We choose to defend the spread attack using a 3-4 (5-2) defensive structure. We like this defense because it adds an extra athlete to match the athleticism of the offense.


To read more of this article (with diagrams), go to:


Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Spread Offense Q&A - Nunzio Campanile - Don Bosco Prep High School - NJ


It's a pleasure to have Nunzio Campanile in our second coaches Q&A session, Athletic Director and Offensive Coordinator at Don Bosco Prep High School in New Jersey.


1) Coach, thanks for taking the time to speak with us at spreadoffense.com and congratulations on your second straight New Jersey state title (2006-2007)?

Thank you, this past season was a lot of fun. We had a great group of guys that really put the team ahead of their personal interests and it made for a great team in all phases of the game.


2) Tell us a little bit about the spread offense you run at Don Bosco Prep? (Run first philosophy? balanced attack philosophy (run/pass)? Tempo? No-Huddle? Gun vs. under the center? Etc…)


Our offense at Don Bosco Prep is predicated on 2 things, controlling the tempo and balance. The tempo is set by playing fast. We operate out of a no-huddle system on occasion, but we always want to play fast. The more experienced we are, the more likely we are to go no-huddle.


We will use no-huddle to give us a jumpstart or change the pace. We always want to fly in and out of the huddle if we do use one. We have a different thought about balance then many other teams. We never gameplan to be a 50/50 team. Rather, we want to be flexible enough to take what the defense gives us. On every play we have the ability to get into the play that best fits the look that the defense gives. We want to run the ball, but we never want to be too stubborn.


We are willing to throw the ball until the defense gives us the looks we want to run the ball successfully. That may be the greatest advantage of the spread. The formations create a threat to run and throw on every down. We do believe it essential to throw the ball well if you are in the spread. If you can’t take advantage of their attempts to stop the run you become one dimensional. We always want the threat of a balanced attack. This past season we were a predominantly gun team. In the past we have been mixed depending upon the QB.


3) Based on this philosophy, what do you and your fellow offensive coaches look for when preparing for an opponent every week?


We look for basic fronts and coverages. We want to know the other teams best stunts. We always ask, what do they believe in? A good team is not going to drastically overhaul their defense in one week.


If they do, they are not going to be able to make the necessary adjustments to beat us. We also look for physical match-ups. Who are their best and worst players. We want to keep it basic. We feel that our style of offense allows us a great deal of flexibility. We may throw it 35 times against one team and run it 40 times the next week. We love to throw, but devised a gameplan for the past 2 state championship games, in which we ran the ball almost 80% of the plays. To us that demonstrates our balance. We have the ability to take what the defense gives us.


4) What type of student-athlete do you guys get at Don Bosco Prep offensively? Does the type of athlete you guys have dictate the offensive philosophy?


We get a mixed bag of athletes at Don Bosco. Being a parochial school we draw from a wide variety of towns, providing an array of different athletes. Each year it varies in what type of athletes we will have. This past season we had 3 tremendous running backs on the varsity w/ some real strong guys behind them.


We tried to keep them all on the field as much as possible. Some years we have 6 or 7 WRs that rotate. We definitely change our scheme depending upon our players. We will not change our philosophy for anyone. In other words we will always believe in balance & tempo. We will always believe in being a tough physical team that can run the ball. What may change is, the actual scheme or choice of formations we use. We will not be too stubborn to run a scheme that we do not have the players to run, we will be flexible enough to adapt.


5) How long have you been running the spread offense (or a version of it) at DBP? And how has the spread offense evolved over that period at the high school level in NJ and nationally?


We have been running some version of the spread for 7 seasons. 8 years ago we ran a lot of 1 back stuff w/ Ryan Grant at tailback (Green Bay Packers), but we were a predominantly power run offense. We have evolved a great deal. There are so many great ideas out there. We are constantly seeking out advice on better ways to do what we are doing. I watch a lot of football and try to find ways to adapt what other teams are using to improve our offense.


There are so many colleges running the spread that you can find new ideas everywhere. They are usually very accommodating to high school coaches. We tinker with what we do constantly. Mainly, so that others teams do not catch us. We do not want teams to out work us.



As far as the change in spread offenses, I think its been tremendous. I played QB for my father at Paramus Catholic. We ran a version of the Run-N-Shoot in the early and mid-90’s. We were 4 WRs every play. No one was running the spread then. We were one of the only teams even throwing the ball, now everyone is getting into it. That offense really helped my transition into coaching. Many of the principles we used still apply today. Its exciting, it gets a lot of players involved, and the use of the dual threat QB has really changed the game. Now a QB can be a runner and a passer.


People used to think that combo was impossible, now you see it everywhere. We did many of these things when I was in school, but we never got in the gun. It really has changed the game in HS football.


6) Based on this evolution you’ve seen, is it still safe to say that defenses are still playing ‘catch-up’ in trying to figure out this offense (scheme wise)? Especially when defending an offense that has a gifted ‘dual threat’ type quarterback?


Defenses are playing catch up, if the team has the balance we talked about earlier. The dual threat QB has leveled the field. Under center the game is played 11 on 10. The QB’s ability to run has made it an 11 on 11 game. The offense can account for extra defenders w/ options, reads, and hots.


Many teams see the spread and think pass, but its much more than that. We have run the ball more than thrown it every year except one in the past 7 seasons, but teams are still giving us 5 and 6 man boxes to attack. A talented QB forces the defense to make difficult decisions.


Honestly I do not envy the defense in that situation. Often they are in a difficult position either way. Our QB this past season, Brett Knief, was the best dual threat QB we’ve had. I say that knowing the the 3 previous guys were all Div. 1 QBs. Steve Levy (Cal), Mike Teel (Rutgers), & Matt Simms (Louisville) were tremendous players that got better everyday. Simms & Teel were incredible throwers and smart QBs that allowed us to do many things, but they had to surprise you with a big run.


We hope that they are both future pros, but the ability to run in HS is crippling. Brett was a threat to run on every down and he killed teams throwing the ball. That dual threat puts a lot of uncertainty in the defense.


7) Play a little devil’s advocate, what are the biggest weaknesses you see in the run oriented spread offense in college and high school football?


The run oriented spread offense is limited. If a team has great perimeter defenders the defense can load the box to force long yardage situations. This limits the play action game. I will stick w/ our notion of balance. It takes a great deal of work to throw the ball successfully. We believe it is worth the investment of time.


Many teams in the “run oriented” spread only throw when they need to or have huge play action opportunities. This will hurt you when you face a team that is as talented as your team. When you are a threat to throw on every down the defense can not commit to one facet of your offense.


I often feel that a lack of balance kills some spread teams in big games. Plus it is hard to find QBs with those talents. If your QB gets injured will the next guy be able to run the offense. Balance is essential.


8) When this run oriented spread offense first arrived on the national spotlight, a lot of critics called it a fade or ‘gimmick’ offense, what made you and your fellow coaches buy into it and eventually implement it at DBP?


We believe in the spread for a lot of reasons. First it is easier to see what the defense is doing when you spread the field. Second, you take defenders out of the box, which means there are less players to block on every play. It also can eliminate confusion for the linemen in blitz pick-up. Third, it allows you to distribute the ball to more players. This makes the game exciting and interesting. There are many other options for kids today. We try to make the game fun and keep everyone involved.


We feel that the QB is central to the success of any offense. With that said we want to make the QB as effective as possible. I mentioned earlier that I have a Run-N-Shoot background. Coach Toal was a big fan of the “I”. This provided an opportunity to combine the 2. We are now running power run stuff out of 1 back formations. The QBs ability to run provides a numbers advantage. It was simple math.


9) Look into your crystal ball and tell us what the state of the shot-gun, run orientated spread offense will be in high school, college, and professional football in five years?


While the game of football will continue to change or at least cycle itself, I believe this offense will continue to be a part of college and high school football for a long time to come. The opportunity to showcase your best athletes is too important, for the spread to disappear.


The development of athletic QBs will also continue to be an important element in HS & college football. This offense has found a way to combine the triple option w/ the Run-N-Shoot. Both of those offenses are essential parts of the HS & college game. Teams use these ideas to hide deficiencies in the line or elsewhere in their personnel. While I believe elements of the spread will be extracted for use in the pros, it will never be a major part of pro football.


The QB is too valuable in the NFL to expose him to as many hits as he takes in the spread. While I love the offense its growth is hurting the development of college QBs for the NFL. It seems many are less prepared for the nuances of a pro offense.


10) Coach, what would be your advice to a High School or Pop Warner coach looking to install and implement the shot-gun, spread offense for the first time?


There is a lot that goes into it. We started by tailoring the formations around our existing offense. We were already big proponents of inside & outside zone. They are still the basis of our run offense. We do a lot now, but when we started we were simple. Less is more sometimes. Too many people want to do everything they see on TV every week. I say find out what fits your team and work at it religiously. Once you master it then add some more. We get better at coaching it every year, through trial & error. We had to take a long hard look at our terminology. We changed a lot of our language to streamline our playcalling and allow for the no-huddle.


We also spent a great deal of time on the snap. Our first attempt at the spread in 2001 was scrapped because we had trouble with the snap. The next year the same center had only one bad snap the entire season. We just stuck with it. Now it is not an option to scrap it. The shotgun has become too integral in what we do to scrap it. We make sure to work on it every day. This game still comes down to fundamentals. If you run the spread it is not a magic solution that allows you to stop working on the little things. Take the stuff you believe and tweak it.


11) How can High School or Pop Warner coaches get in touch with the staff at Don Bosco Prep?


The two best ways would be email or phone. The phone number in the football office is (201) 327-8003 x 155. The number in the athletic director’s office is (201) 327-4704 x 120 that is my direct line. My email is: ncampanile@donboscoprep.com


Our head coach is Greg Toal and our offensive line coach is Chuck Granatell. We would all be glad to share the little bit that we know, since many people have helped us throughout our time at Don Bosco and before.


12) Tell us how some Don Bosco prep alumni are doing at the college level? And a little about your tough schedule ahead in 2008?


Currently, Mike Teel is the QB at Rutgers University. Brian Toal will be back on the field at Boston College along with Ryan Lindsey & newcomer Alexander DiSanzo. Corey Wootten is playing at Northwestern University, Michael Ray Garvin is playing at Florida State. Matt Simms, Brian Roche, & Darius Mann are playing at Louisville. Matt will hopefully step into the QB role there in the coming years. Marquise Liverpool is playing WR at Temple. Justin Trottau is playing at the University of Florida and Sam Griffin is at the University of Cincinnati. There are a few that I am leaving out and I apologize, but we are very proud of the success that our guys are having at the next level. They are almost all contributing greatly to their programs’ success.


Next season the Ironmen will be hitting the road in the early part of the season. We travel to St. Xavier in Cincinnati, OH. We than play Valley Forge Military Academy at home. Our third game is at De La Salle High School in Concord, CA. St. X and De La Salle are two of the most decorated high school football teams in the country. We follow that by playing some of the best teams in New Jersey including; Bergen Catholic, St. Joe’s Montvale, Montclair, & Ridgewood. We feel that this is probably the most ambitious schedule in the history of New Jersey high school football. We only have that opportunity because of the guys mentioned in the previous paragraph and their teammates. We’re truly honored to be involved in such great games this upcoming season.


13) Coach, final question. You have one game to play to save planet earth vs. the University of Mars and the President of The United States has chosen you to run the offense. You need to pick a dual threat quarterback to lead your spread offense to victory. You have 4 weeks to prepare for this game in the coliseum in LA, and the only rule is you can’t choose a quarterback that you currently coach… who’s in the gun for you for this game?


That is a really difficult question. I tend to favor a great passer that can run. There are many great guys out there, but the dual threat makes it interesting. If it were a current player, I would choose Tim Tebow from Florida. He is not the most accurate passer but he manages the game real well. More importantly he has all the intangibles that it takes to lead a team. I have had the pleasure to meet his high school & college head coaches. Both men raved about his toughness, discipline, dedication, and athletic ability. I want the QB to be the toughest guy on the team. Tebow probably fits that description the best.

About Nunzio Campanile:


Nunzio Campanile is the first year athletic director at Don Bosco Preparatory High School in Ramsey, NJ. He has been the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Don Bosco for the last eight seasons. In that period, the Ironmen have played in seven New Jersey state championship games, winning four. The Ironmen have finished ranked in the USA Today four times in the last eight seasons, finishing as high as #2 in the nation in 2003. The 2007 season had the Ironmen ranked #3 in the nation on Maxpreps. In those eight seasons, the Ironmen have averaged over 40 points per game and have compiled a record of 88-5. Nunzio Campanile played quarterback at Paramus Catholic High School in NJ and at Amherst College. He graduated from Montclair State University in NJ.

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Spread Offense Run Game Answers vs. The Blitz

Written By Joe Dailey

Today’s discussion will revolve solely around handling the zone blitz in the run game. This has been a very popular topic and I have seen a number of ways people go about handling the blitz. For this discussion we will focus our conversation on the Zone running scheme out of a 2 by 2 formation versus various zone blitzes.

We are all familiar with the interview Rich Rodriguez did for ESPN explaining some of the things they did at West Virginia. If I remember correctly, the reporter interviewing Rich Rodriguez pointed out four distinctive things West Virginia would do on any certain play.

Those being:

1) Hand it off to the back
2) Read the Defensive End.
3) Read-Option with a back
4) Throw Bubble

These are all valuable answers to counter act what defenses are doing to handle the spreading of their defenders. In the video, Rich did not get into great depth schematically on what they will do versus zones blitzes and other situations. I’m sure if he wanted to; he could have done so with great depth. In the absence of his explanation I have proposed a simple solution to handle different types of zone blitz encounters that an offense will face in a given season. Note this is not the best way or the only way to solve some zone blitz problems, but it provides an offense with some decent solutions to the blitz.

The main goal in the Spread Offense, philosophically, is to consistently take advantage of what defenses lack to defend. By this, I mean what can we do schematically to spread a defense thin and ‘gut em’ down after down? And what can we do to counteract their zone blitz packages with minimal effort and communication in the run game? In order to be effective running the ball in the spread offense, you need to have sound answers versus pressure in the run game.

Through research, trial and error, I’ve come to find there are some simple answers to handle the zone blitz in the run game that will allow offenses to stay on course of positive yardage play after play. These answers came to life after simply applying some “common sense” protocol to handling the blitz.

Answer’s to the Blitz

After watching hours and hours of film, reviewing some of the notes I’ve taken over the years, reading books on handling the zone blitz and watching numerous clinic tapes on handling the zone blitz, I’ve come to the conclusion that you can build in answers to the blitz without whispering a single word. You ask how? Simple! By teaching your players to play with their eyes! Sounds cliché? Well it’s true!

As the son of a coach I remember growing up hearing “a smarter player is a better player!” I can remember to this day when I first saw this saying come to life. I was a high school Quarterback in the late 1990’s as a freshman. It was my first varsity game. I played the entire season on the freshman squad and was moved up to start at Quarterback for the varsity teams’ last game of the season. All week long I remember preparing for this game as best I possibly could. My pops watched film with me and we studied the opposing team’s defense tirelessly. Game day came and I was crazy nervous. We received the ball first and took it down to the opposing team’s 30 yard line. Since I was a freshman playing Quarterback for the first time, we expected blitz a lot. On the very first play we came out in 11 personnel in a 2 by 2 formation. We had a toss play strong called but there was an audible out of this formation in case we got pressure. Guess what that audible was? Bubble! The weak side linebacker over the slot walked up to the line of scrimmage and assumed his blitz position. The slot receiver and I signaled to each other the bubble sign and at the snap I threw the bubble and the receiver took it 30 yards for a touchdown!

With that said, let’s get to the solution for handling the zone blitz in the spread running game. I am a big advocate for the Zone running scheme out of the shot-gun spread offense. It gives the offense a solid blocking scheme which will never change. It is a scheme that you can’t ware out. It’s simple for the offensive-line to learn and simple for a coach to teach.

It’s as simple as covered or uncovered for the linemen. As for the backs, they have to simply make one read and stick with it. They have a 3 step decision. On the third step you must decide whether to bounce is outside, hit the hole or cut it back. The Quarterback has to make a decision on whether to keep the ball or hand it off based upon whether the defensive end chases or slow plays the read. Receivers must simply stalk block their defender and climb to second level if nothing shows up.

Theory

We want to run the zone play regardless of what the defense does. With this line of thinking you must ask yourself how exactly can we do this? Well we’ve found out over the years that by spreading a defense out, you force them to reveal what it is they are trying to do defensively. Are they trying to play coverage with sound run fits or are they trying to apply pressure to disrupt your run game?

Our theory is to run into a zone blitz and away from a zone blitz! That’s right into a zone blitz and away from a zone blitz! We can do this by simply applying our everyday zone blocking rules. Let’s look at them.

Covered Lineman:
*Never get beat away from your help!
*Press your landmark!
*Climb to the second level if your defender runs to your helper.

Uncovered Lineman:
*Get your eyes on the down lineman beside you!
*Anything that comes to you attack and remove it.
*Nothing comes to you track second level.

Additional Ways to handle the zone blitz

I’ve taken what my father taught me in high school in terms of handling the zone blitz in the run game and what is probably taught to most spread teams out of a 2 by 2 formation when they get blitz into a run and that’s to throw the bubble. The only difference is that we don’t handle signal this, we site adjust! By this I mean, we teach our wide receivers to automatically run the bubble when their defender threatens to blitz. The Quarterback will recognize it and throw the bubble.

Now the way we do this is probably not the same as other people but I feel that it can be done with quite ease. We apply this concept to both slot receivers. This is a change up from what we discussed earlier with the slot receivers climbing to the second level if their defender runs away. This time we tell them that we want to throw the bubble to you if the defender over you blitzes. Our thinking is that we want to get the ball to a speedster in space. Or what my receiver’s coach in college taught me “get the ball to a freak and let em’ eat".

Conclusion

What I’ve proposed here is not the one and only way to handle a zone blitz from the gun and the spread offense. It is merely one of many ways. I see people who check to four verticals or jail-break screens that go the distance. What we have here is a simple alternative way to solve zone blitzes with the least amount of communication. We are simply teaching our players to play with their eyes; our offensive linemen playing with their eyes in terms of defenders rotating to different zones and our slot receivers playing with their eyes when the defender over them blitzes.

I hope this article can help some people out there who are looking for different ways to handle the blitz from the gun. This can be used as a tool for teams who lack experience at the Quarterback position and need to find a answer to the blitz without using an audible or teams who are looking to change up the way the handle blitzes and break tendencies.

For any additional information or questions email me at Mrjdailey@yahoo.com

View this article with play diagrams at: SpreadOffense.com