Speedball Tempo Plays

Fast Faster Fastest

 It seems like almost any offense can operate out of no huddle in today's game.  I would venture to guess that more than 50% of high school and college teams are now no huddle offenses.  The fact that teams can operate without a huddle does not make them a tempo team.  In reality the huddle was used as a method of communication for the offense.  Coaches needed a way to get all the information into the players, so the QB acted as the interpreter gathering information from the Coach and then delivering all the information to the players in the huddle which was where all 11 players were.

Offense Is In Control

How many times have you seen an NFL team get shutout for 28 minutes, go to a 2 minute drive at the end of a half and go right down the field and score?  You ask yourself why they don't do that more often, and the answer is simple.  They can't communicate their entire playbook that way so they usually have 5 or 6 things they practice each week in a 2 minute drill.  What you find out is the defense has a hard time communicating with their players and you usually see more base defenses which makes it easier to execute on offense.  So offensive coaches figured out since they control the personnel changes and the pace of the game, why not do it all the time?  Being in or out of the huddle is not about schematics, it's more about how you choose to communicate with your team.  That is why any offensive system can operate as a no huddle team so long as they can streamline their communication.  The question that arises now is can you be a tempo team?  That is where schematics comes into play.  If you are a power I team that has all predetermined runs and passes it is very difficult to be a great tempo team because you do not possess built in answers to how the defense chooses to defend you.  You will have to teach your QB how to check out of bad plays which essentially is slowing down your pace of play.  That is why the true "UP TEMPO" teams are so good at what they do.  Their plays have built in answers to adjust to the different looks the defense presents.

Today I am going to talk about a philosophy called "Speedball" which is essentially the fastest you can play on offense.  When using a speedball approach you are essentially staying in the same formation and running the same play as fast as the refs will allow you to do so.  This really puts a strain on the defense because your players already know that but the defense does not.  When you use this philosophy coming from the sideline your offensive guys already know what they will be doing but the defense has to react to it.  You have now negatively impacted the defenses lines of communication because they are trying to get a call and you already have yours.  Now the issue that arises is you have to have a play that has different built in options for the QB to get you out of bad situations.  Usually the best case scenario for speed ball is any form of option football that has built in access throws for the QB based on coverages.  In this scenario you can get the football to 3 or 4 or 5 different players without ever changing the play.  Now you have to have a QB that can read and react on the fly as opposed to a QB that can stop and change the play.  So in general you still need a smart and savvy QB that has to be well trained to execute this type of offense.  

Keep in mind there are no magic bullets in football.  It will still always come down to blocking, throwing, catching, and securing the football on offense.  I took a new job in the off season and we got off to a slow start and lost a few games because we did not execute the fundamentals of football.  But our kids understand how to run the speedball tempo and the few times we have done it this season it has worked for us.  It actually eliminates a lot of the thinking on offense because you do not have to worry about formation, snap count, or assignment changes.  At times I think coaches including myself make it more difficult than it needs to be and in essence slow kids down when our whole intent is to PLAY FAST!!!!!

Sometimes I forget myself, but it is important to try and remember our goal is to PLAY FAST.

Simple Packaged Concepts For Up Tempo Teams

Lightning Fast Play Calls

 There is a difference between No Huddle "Check With Me" teams and No Huddle "Up Tempo" teams.  If you are a check with me team then you may operate using a no huddle system of communication but your concern is getting the best play called vs. a certain defensive look.  If you are an up tempo team then your concern is running plays as fast as possible and eliminating multiple calls and substitutions from the defense.

As an offense, staying on schedule with your down and distance goals is a huge concern.  When you are calling plays in an up tempo fashion and not getting a great look at the defensive alignment, packaged plays with multiple options for the QB can help save your job.  Now to say we have no idea what the defense is in would be a lie because we studied game film all week.  Our film study will help us generate an idea of how the defense will handle certain formations and what their pressure tendencies are.  It will also help us determine where they like to bring pressure from.

Guys like Chip Kelly and Rich Rodriguez are famous for their high octane spread up tempo offenses.  What people do not realize is their pace of play involves a lot of QB options and choices depending on how the defense decides to defend them.  You would be crazy to think they are just calling plays off the top of their heads and hoping they work.  They are actually spending a ton of time with their QBS, helping them get the offense in good situations pre and post snap.  Peyton Manning is the best QB at the line of scrimmage pre snap in my opinion.  He almost always gets the offense in a good situation once he recognizes the defense.  With up tempo teams the QBS job is getting the offense in a good situation post snap as well.

Packaged plays are a great way to get your offense in good situations and play off the reaction of certain defenders we label as conflicted.  These plays can consist of 2 to 3 and sometimes 4 different options for the QB.  It is not like you are creating new schemes or magical bullets, you are just combining your concepts that have already been installed to maximize your efficiency.   Today we are going to take a look at some of these concepts.

The first one we will look at is a 3 Man Scat on one side with a slow screen on the opposite side.  The 3 Man Scat is already part of our offense.  By tagging it with a slow screen we can put ourselves in advantageous situations by reading a conflicted defenders reaction to put us in what we think is a great situation. This way we can call the concept as quickly as possible while still having the ability to react to different looks or reactions from the defense.

The second one we will look at is a quick game route on one side with a waggle concept on the other side.  When calling quick game as an up tempo team there are times where you may get a coverage that takes away the route you called.  Without having to worry about converting routes and getting the QB and WR on the same page, we can build a waggle concept on the back side to put us in a better situation.

Looking for Answers

Remember this does not become the automatic way to score 50 points a game.  It still comes down to blocking and tackling.  You have to execute if you want to be effective.  What we are trying to do is come up with answers as an up tempo offense to handle different schemes and reactions from the defense.  Keep in mind in this style of play we often will not get a look at the defense before calling a play.  Packaged plays help us try and avoid negative plays and get into good situations post snap since we are not doing it pre snap.

PLAY FAST

Conflicting Defenders

We are starting to see more and more packaged plays on all levels of football including the NFL.  These are plays that are 2 or 3 plays built into 1, with the potential of the ball going to 3 or 4 different players on the same play.  They usually involve some sort of run combined with a shorter pass or screen.  Sometimes they can be 2 running theories combined into 1 play like a jet sweep with a power play.  The theory is very simple,  let the offense get the ball into the right players hands based on how the defense wants to defend you.  This type of play calling hopefully keeps the offense out of "bad" plays while limiting the number of checks or audibles the QB needs to make.

Usually during these types of plays there is a certain defender the offense wants to put into a "conflicted" position.  Based off of that defenders alignment or reaction, the QB will decide what to do with the ball.  This tied in with up tempo football has really started to give the offense a slight advantage while forcing defensive coaches to come up with a set of answers. This newer style of play calling has made its way to the NFL which really leads you to believe there must be some real strong validity to it.

Today I am going to focus on putting the conflict on the defensive end, and having ways to coordinate your attack based on his reaction to certain blocking schemes.  The first thing you want to look at is how the defensive end reacts to down blocks.  You can package an outside run with an inside run and take advantage of how the defensive coordinator teaches his defensive end to play these down blocks.  If the ends you are facing are squeeze or block down step down players then you can get the ball to the perimeter off of down blocks because that end will squeeze inside.  By combining an outside run with an inside run you can really put your QB in a great situation because he can let the end react however he wants and still put us in a good situation.  By using more "sweep" type runs you can effectively get the end sealed by giving him a down block to squeeze and then blocking him further inside with a fullback.

Conversely, if you are playing ends that are up the field players then you want to have runs that go underneath them and allow your players to kick them out instead of sealing them.  You are now effectively putting your offensive players in a position to be successful by giving them blocks you know are easier to make based on the reaction or educated response of the defense.  Another way to package plays that create conflict would be combining a quick pass with a draw play.  Now you can focus on a "conflicted" LB and see if he drops to play the pass or sits in the box for the running game.

All in all this newer type of offense with extremely fast tempo and packaged plays is creating a lot of points on the scoreboard.  It is very easy to do and can be done at any level.  Always remember to be multiple yet simplistic ensuring your kids can know their assignments and execute them at full speed.

PLAY FAST