Utah Football

Archive for February, 2009

Steve R. Tucker asked:




When coaching or playing football, it is best to start with the basics. Football plays can be very complex and difficult to understand, especially at first. By starting with the simplest plays, coaches can make sure players understand the fundamentals before moving on to more advanced maneuvers.

Any football play begins with the defensive and offensive lines facing each other at the line of scrimmage. The center has the ball and snaps it between his legs to the quarterback. From this point, only three things can happen: a punt, a pass play, or a run play.

Passing Plays

Forward pass: In this football play, once the quarterback receives the snap from the center, he steps back and begins looking for an open receiver to pass the ball to. The receivers attempt to become open to catch the ball down field. Screen pass: In this pass play, the quarterback passes to a receiver or running back along the sides of the field behind the line. This field positioning is good because there are usually fewer defensive players there, but it has a downside: because the play is parallel to the line, it allows the defense more time to adjust. Usually another offensive player will run along with the receiver, acting as a screen to block potential tackles from the defense. Play-action pass: Once the quarterback receives the snap and steps back, he pretends to hand off the ball to the running back. While the defense is focused on the running back, the quarterback looks for an open receiver to pass to. If players have practiced their deception techniques, the play can be very successful. If they fail to convince the defense, the quarterback is vulnerable to tackles.

Running Plays

Trap play: In this most basic running play, the quarterback either hands off to the running back or keeps the ball himself. Then the ball carrier attempts to run through the defensive line, ideally through a hole created by an offensive blocker. Draw play: This basic football play is similar to the trap play, but instead of immediately handing off to the running back, the quarterback drops back to draw the defense toward him. He then hands off to the running back, who should be open to complete the play. Sweep play: In this offensive play, the quarterback either hands or tosses the ball to the running back. The running back then runs around the defensive line instead of breaking through it like in a trap play. The upside to this play is that the running back is usually open to make the play in this area of the field. The downside is that he is running parallel to the line and needs enough time in the play to gain yardage.