Run the Ball With Eight
(or Nine) in the Box
W hether it has been in a formal clinic
or on a napkin in a restaurant, I have
learned most of what I know about football
from others. The exchange of ideas
between coaches is one of the traditions
that makes our profession so rewarding. I
want to thank those coaches who have so
generously shared their knowledge with
me, and I also want to thank John Lyons
and the AFCA Summer Manual committee
for the opportunity to share some game
plan thoughts with you.
At the Division III level, personnel often
dictates our offensive and defensive
philosophies. This past season, we had a
senior offensive line and an exceptional tal-
ent at tailback; therefore the run game
would be the key to our offensive success.
This was no secret to our opponents,
and we continually played against defen-
sive schemes that were designed to take
our tailback out of the game. Left with few
offensive weapons, we were forced to find
ways to get him the ball. The strategy
proved successful as our team won a share
of the league’s title, and our tailback won
the league’s offensive MVP honor and
broke the team’s career and season rush-
Bob Ritter ing records.
The biggest challenge to our run game
Head Coach was the eight-man front, with the free safe-
ty inverting at times to create a nine-man
Middlebury College front.
Diagram 1
Middlebury, Vt.
We attacked this defense by using three
base game plan components: 1. The run
play; 2. The formation; and 3. A scheme
designed to control the extra man (the free
safety).
The Run Play
The run play we used was our power play
(42/48). We favored this play because of the
matchups, the blocking angles and a double-
team at the point of attack. Our rules for the
play allowed us to run the play to both the out-
side technique defensive tackle (three tech-
nique) and the inside technique defensive
tackle (2I technique). We preferred to run this
play to the 2I technique.
• AFCA Summer Manual — 2001 •
Diagram 2
Frontside Tight End: Down block. With
“solid” call double the 6I technique with the
tackle.
Frontside Tackle: Versus a 3 technique
double with the guard. Versus a 2I tech-
nique make “solid” call and double with the
tight end. In both cases, eyeball the
frontside inside linebacker for the run
through.
Frontside Guard: Versus three tech-
nique double with the tackle. Versus a 2I
reach drive defensive tackle.
Center: If the backside guard is cov-
ered by a 2I technique, zone block with
the backside guard to the backside line-
backer. If the backside guard is covered
by a three technique, zone cut the back-
side linebacker.
Backside Guard: Versus a 2I zone
block with the center to the backside
backer. Versus a three technique, zone cut
defensive tackle.
Backside Tackle: Pull. Look to get
through to line of scrimmage outside the
tight end and block the frontside linebacker.
Backside Tight End: Zone cut man on.
H back: Block outside linebacker inside
out.
Flanker: Stalk No. 1
Tailback: Counter step. Get in hip pock-
et of puller and read his block.
Quarterback: Reverse pivot. Hand off
to tailback. Fake bootleg.
There are some important coaching
points. The tight end and tackle want to
tighten their split shoe to shoe when they
are double-teaming. The pulling tackle
should keep his shoulders parallel to the
line of scrimmage and be ready to block
the frontside linebacker. The linebacker
often gets caught up in the wash and the
tackle may be blocking a secondary player.
The frontside tackle must keep his shoul-
ders parallel to the line of scrimmage on his
double team to protect his inside gap from
the stunting linebacker.
The Formation
We start in our “Queen” set (Diagram 3).
 Diagram 3
This formation is effective as a starting
point for the following reasons:
1. It provides an eight-man blocking
surface.
2. The H back is in better position to
take on an aggressive outside linebacker
than the fullback.
3. There is no fullback to give the inside
linebacker a flow key. The tailback’s
counter steps freezes them for a moment.
4. It gives us four eligible receivers on
the line of scrimmage which helps stretch
the secondary with our boot game.
5. We can create a wing trips formation
to either side.
If the 2I technique is to the side of the H
back, we will run the play to that side. To
give us an extra blocker to that side, the
quarterback will bring the flanker in motion
to create trips to that side.
Diagram 4
If the 2I technique is away from the
wing, the quarterback will check the play
the other way and the H back will motion
over to other side and run the play.
Diagram 5
By creating these trips sets versus a
balanced front, we can account for every-
one except the free safety. We feel that our
tailback is better than the free safety. If we
force the free safety to make ten or so
plays, our tailback will turn a few of them
into missed tackles and big plays for us.
We do need to have an answer for the very
aggressive (or very good) free safety.
Controlling the Free Safety
We have two mechanisms to help con-
trol the aggressive free safety. The first is to
have our flanker run what we call a “read
force block.” The flanker drives off the line
and pushes the corner deep while eye-
balling the free safety. If the free safety fills
aggressively, the flanker will crack him. If
the free safety stays deep, the flanker will
continue to stalk the corner. Usually, the
flanker can get a pre-snap read tipping off
how the free safety will play.
Diagram 6
Diagram 7
The second method used to control the
free safety is our four vertical bootleg
game. If the quarterback gets a single safe-
ty pre-snap read he will look for the
frontside tight end first-anticipating the free
safety moving a little with the run fake. If
the free safety covers the frontside tight
end, the quarterback will look to the back-
side tight end. If the corner covers the
frontside tight end, he will look to the
flanker.
Diagram 8
If the quarterback gets a two-safety pre-
• AFCA Summer Manual — 2001 •
snap read he will look to the safety on the
tight end and wing side for his read. We will
try and stretch the half corner’s zone with
the tight end and wing.
Diagram 9
We can also run the four verticals out of
a wing trips set. We have found that once
we run the bootleg play it slows down the
aggressive free safety and softens the play
of the outside linebacker.
This is our starting point for our eight-
man front game plan. By adding counter
and inside trap away from trips motion we
create a complete package that allows us
to keep the tailback as the featured offen-
sive player.
I would like to pay special tribute to
Mickey Heinecken who retired from coach-
ing this year after almost 40 years. I
learned a great deal of football from him,
but he taught me even more about life.
100 Percent
That’s what a coach asks of his
players and that’s what the
American Football Coaches
Association is asking of football
coaching staffs at all 700 plus insti-
tutions fielding college football
teams throughout the country.
One hundred percent member-
ship in the AFCA by coaching
staffs will result in a more effec-
tive voice in matters affecting the
game and the coaching profes-
sion, from rules legislation to
coach of the year voting.
Set the standard. Be sure every
member of the football staff at your
school is a member of the AFCA.