In an attempt to combine the two keys previously described, many coaches teach keying a triangle of backs, linemen, and the ball. It gives the player the potential fast flow of a back read with the caution of a pulling lineman who says “not so fast” on plays like that diagrammed in figure 9.5.
Personally, I believe having a prime key is critical. The linebacker needs a key he can depend on no matter what offense is being employed against him. The triangular system is sound but requires exceptional coaching ability. It also opens the door for a linebacker to guess because he is uncertain about the clarity of multiple keys.
Back reads are very clean although they can be deceiving with play-action passes and counters. Pure line reads are truest but take tremendous discipline and require time to learn. The triangle key attempts to mesh the two, but at
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some point one key must take priority over the other or the linebacker cannot move with confidence.
OFFenSive line StAnceS
Another advantage of reading offensive linemen is that, when a linebacker concentrates on them, they can tell a defense so much. The modern era of offense has brought excitement because of its multiplicity. Years ago an offense might learn 10 mirrored formations and three pass protections for the entire season. Today a team might install that many in two days of spring practice. It is not unusual to review a five-game scouting breakdown and find you will be facing an offense that uses 60 formations and seven pass protections. While the assignments have skyrocketed, the teaching time is roughly the same. Something has to suffer.
That something is fundamentals. Pass protection in the modern era is a priority. Coaches teach it better than in the past. Run blocking varies with teams, but squads have universally limited the number of running plays and simplified their blocking schemes. Coaches today do not stress run blocking and line stances as they did in past decades.
It is rare we cannot find an opposing lineman who will tip us off as to run or pass by his stance. We assign certain coaches on our staff to study each lineman. Our players up front routinely scrutinize opponents’ tapes for an informer. Through our research, we define the tipster and the messenger.
The tipster is the lineman we identify as an informant through his stance. On some teams we can identify only one, while on other teams we can find as many as three. Years ago it was difficult research, and a staff longed for just one guy who would spill the beans. Now almost every team has one.
Another factor has been the advent of video and exchange of end zone copies. This copy covers only from tight end to tight end and focuses on the linemen. We can now see stances much more clearly than before 1990 when only “wide copies” were exchanged.
The messenger is the defensive player in position to decode the tipster’s stance. We make him accountable for giving accurate information. Frequently we choose two or three veterans for this prestigious detail. Players love it and long to give their teammates clues before the snap.
We communicate three types of stance:
• Run stance: This body position is typified by having weight forward, head low, and back heel off the ground.
• Pass stance: The lineman who is to pass protect has weight back on his heels, head level higher, and little weight on his front hand.
• Pull stance: This can be confused with a pass stance, but if the other line- men are in run stances this is probably a pull. When the other tipsters are in pass stances, it is probably pass. Another clue for a pull stance is the lineman’s depth. Pulling 300-pounders usually must cheat back off
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the line of scrimmage to make the trip on a pull. Any penetration can derail them so they sit back off the line to avoid stunting defenses. Our defense uses coded words to communicate to the entire team the infor- mation gained from stances. In 1990, we featured two mature linebackers in Dana Howard and John Holecek. As a pair, I’ve had none better at recognizing opponents’ stances and accurately predicting the plays. In a Big Ten conference game that season, our opponent ran only four base runs from a multitude of formations. When both sides of the line tipped run, both linebackers would call “Reno,” and the front dug in for an inside or outside zone play. When one side was “Reno” and the other showed pull, or “Cobra,” the front knew it was a counter, as shown in figure 9.5. When both sides informed us of pass stances by calling “Pinto,” the defense prepared for pass or draw.
That day Dana and John not only gave us the advantage of knowing run or pass but also usually knew the type of run and its direction before the snap. That kind of display requires experience, trust, and a lot of training.
Two other examples jump out from my background. A Big Ten center put his free hand on the ground when a run was called and used only a three-point stance with pass. It was about 90 percent consistent, and so were we that day. At Colorado, we noticed an offensive guard who put his off-hand on the side of his leg when run blocking and on his thigh when in pass protection.
These obvious signs are not common, but most teams indicate the three cat- egories in some way. During spring practice one of our offensive line coaches felt the defense knew the plays ahead of time and suspected they were privy to a script. I had him stand behind the defense with me during an unscripted scrimmage. On nine consecutive plays, our defense correctly called run or pass.
Offensive line stances today can reveal a lot to linebackers who study and are observant. It is, however, more natural for linebackers who key linemen. Those who key backs or a triangle do not invest the same energy into it.