cool_clinic_notes.21.. - Hawg Tuff

2011 Offensive Line
Coaches Handbook
Featuring Lectures From the 2011 C.O.O.L. Clinic
Featuring presentations made by several of America’s most outstanding coaches, including Bob Bostad, Paul Boudreau,
James Campen, Jeff Grimes, John Hevesy, Sean Kugler, Jim McNally, Sam Pittman, George Warhop, and Tony Wise.
A Brief History of the C.O.O.L. Clinic
The concept of a clinic geared specifically toward addressing the needs and interests of offensive linemen came to
fruition in 1982, when a group of about 18 coaches met with Jim McNally, an assistant coach with the NFL’s Cincinnati
Bengals, in the Bengals’ training facility. This situation continued for a few years, before the clinic eventually became
too big for the Bengals’ facilities. In response, McNally moved the clinic to a hotel in Cincinnati in the mid-1980s.
Among coaches at the initial meeting were Bob Wylie and Paul Alexander, both of whom were to remain involved with
C.O.O.L. Clinic over the years.
In 1995, McNally left the Bengals for a position on the staff of the Carolina Panthers. Bob Wylie, whom McNally had
asked to be the caretaker of the clinic, then conducted the clinic for one year in Tampa, Florida. Upon being hired by
the University of Cincinnati, Wylie brought the clinic back home to Cincinnati in 1996.
Since that time, the C.O.O.L. Clinic has been at the same hotel in Cincinnati, although it has changed names over the
years from the Clarion Hotel, to the Regal Hotel, to the present-day Millennium Hotel. Traditionally, the C.O.O.L. Clinic
has been held the third week in May each year to accommodate the large number of college coaches who incorporate
this event into their spring schedule.
About the Mushroom Society
The Mushroom Society was established by a group of professional offensive line coaches. The mushroom
logo signifies the similarity between the “O-line” coach and the fungus—both are kept in the dark and fed
garbage, yet continue to flourish! C.O.O.L. (Coaches of Offensive Linemen) are proud to be mushrooms.
A SPECIAL TRIBUTE TO PAUL BOUDREAU—A FOOTBALL LEGEND
Paul Boudreau has been the offensive line coach for the Atlanta Falcons since 2008.
Boudreau has coached in the NFL since 1987, including stays with the St. Louis Rams
(2006-07), Jacksonville Jaguars (2003-05), Carolina Panthers (2001-02), Miami Dolphins
(1999-2000), New England Patriots (1997-98), Detroit Lions (1994-96), and New Orleans
Saints (1987-93). Prior to coaching in the NFL, Boudreau served as a college coach,
including stays at the United States Naval Academy (1982), Dartmouth (1979-81), The
University of Maine (1976-78), and Boston College (1974-75). A native of Arlington, MA,
Boudreau was an offensive lineman at Boston College (1971-73). Boudreau and his wife,
Joan, have two children, Paul and Jill.
Paul Boudreau
ISBN 978-1-60679-179-0
5 1 9 9 5
9 781606 791790
US $19.95
Browning
2011 Offensive Line Coaches Handbook Coaches Choice

2011
OFFENSIVE LINE
COACHES
HANDBOOK
FEATURING LECTURES FROM
THE 2011 C.O.O.L. CLINIC
Edited by Earl Browning
www.coacheschoice.com

© 2010 Coaches Choice. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States.
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any
form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without
the prior permission of Coaches Choice.
ISBN: 978-1-60679-179-0
ISSN: 1945-1172
Telecoach, Inc. Transcription: Emmerson Browning, Kent Browning, and Tom Cheaney
Diagrams: John Rice
Book layout: Bean Creek Studio
Cover design: Bean Creek Studio
Front cover photo: US PRESSWIRE
Back cover photo: Bob Donnan—US PRESSWIRE
Special thanks to John Widecan of the University of Cincinnati for taping the lectures.
Coaches Choice
P.O. Box 1828
Monterey, CA 93942
www.coacheschoice.com
2

Contents
Speaker Team Topic Page
Bob Bostad University of Wisconsin Wisconsin’s Perimeter Run Game ......................................5
Paul Boudreau Atlanta Falcons Tying the Run-Action Pass Game and
Run Game Together ............................................................... 10
James Campen Green Bay Packers Practice Organization and
Offensive Linemen Fundamentals ................................... 23
Jeff Grimes Auburn University The Openside Gap Scheme Run Game ............................. 41
John Hevesy Mississippi State University Counter Run Game and Play-Action Pass ..................... 46
Sean Kugler Pittsburgh Steelers Gap Scheme and Keys to Film Study for
Offensive Linemen ................................................................ 52
Jim McNally NFL Consultant and Footwork .................................................................................. 69
Former NFL Coach
Sam Pittman University of North Carolina Ways to Get the Ball Outside ........................................... 78
George Warhop Cleveland Browns The Perimeter Run Game .................................................... 83
Tony Wise Retired NFL Line Coach How to Coach the Power Play
From the Tight End Side ...................................................... 94
Question & Answer Session ..................................................................................................................................................107
About the Clinic Director .......................................................................................................................................................... 111
About the Editor ...........................................................................................................................................................................112
3

Thank you. It is my great pleasure to be here. I still
learn so much by coming to this clinic. It is really
great to speak with you today.
We are primarily a power team and an inside
zone team. As a third play, we are a pin-and-pull
team. We use these three concepts. I want to talk
primarily today about the pin-and-pull scheme. We
have five different plays within this scheme. The
reason we run this offense is because of the inside
zone, and the power is designed against the same
type of teams. The system is designed to allow us
to attack the defense where we are outnumbered.
We are going to be outnumbered a lot of times.
We do not have a quarterback who can run out of
sight in a day. We are a traditional, offensive-style
football team. We have to look at the advantages
and disadvantages of running this scheme.
Advantages
• Efficiency
• YPC explosiveness
• Complements run menu
• Every down run pressure
• Broadens your attack
This year, one fifth (or 20 percent) of the plays
we ran from this scheme were explosive plays. We
consider explosive plays to be a gain of 12 or more
yards per carry. It complements our run menu. As
I said before, we are primarily an off-tackle power
team and an inside zone team. We can run part
of our offense out of every formation, and with
our best personnel that we start the game with.
Certain movements or pressures may give us some
issues, but we can adjust. I believe this type of
scheme complements our power and inside zone
attack. Really, you are working to the same guy,
whether it is inside zone or outside zone, but you
change the angle a little. You still have the same
Bob Bostad
Wisconsin’s Perimeter run GAme
university of Wisconsin
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problems, though, in my opinion. This puts a little
more pressure on the defense.
This play has been a good play for us, on every
down. We run it on first and second down, but it is
a great change-up for us on third down. It is also a
great pressure run play. Every defense wants to
run their zone blitz pressure package at you. When
you have your tackle pulling on their outside safety,
and you have everyone blocked on that side, you
have the defense in a real bind. So it is good versus
pressure, and you have some answers against the
defense. More than anything else, you have a plan.
It broadens your attack.
Disadvantages
• Rules/assignments
• Match-ups
• Edge blockers tight end
Some rules are very easy and stay consistent.
Sometimes, they can get a bit cloudy, specifically
when you are pulling people. Not everybody wants
to pull guys. They may feel that they are not athletic
enough to pull linemen and get the job done.
Match-ups can be difficult. You might have a
tackle pulling on the safety, which is great if they
fit, but sometimes that is not a good match-up.
Sometimes, the defensive back is a pretty good
athlete and can get around that lineman, who may
not be as mobile.
We play a lot of two tight ends formations. We
are asking those guys to set the edge for us. That
is a huge undertaking for them. We play with some
undersized tight ends. Sometimes, those smaller
tight ends still match up well. They set the edge
that you want.
Let’s go through the play. Obviously, you are
going to teach all of the aspects of this play, if

you elect to run it. You are going to tell them to do
it the way you teach them to do it and in the way
you want to develop. Let’s just start from the
beginning.
We just call the play “flex.” Our quarterback is
going to open up at 4:30 or 7:30 with his footwork,
depending on which side he is going to. He will naked
fake away from the play. He is not in a rush on the
fake, and he will not be leaning to make the handoff.
Our tailback lines up with his heels at seven yards.
Everything matches, whether it is power play
or inside zone play. His footwork is to open with
his playside foot. His landmark is one by one yard
outside of the tight end. His run will be at the tight
end. He wants to read the block of the tight end.
We run it with one tight end, and sometimes with
two tight ends. The quarterback is going to learn
through repetition.
Another big thing for the tailback is to key the
second puller. We are a big second puller–type
team. I want to win the real estate battle right
away. The closest guy to get there will be the
playside tackle. We want our guards to be the
muscle guys who can handle the inside running
game. Our second puller is going to be the center. As
far as athleticism is concerned, he is just underneath
our tackles. He needs to be just as fleet of foot as
our tackles. The running back must find the point of
entry (Diagram #1).
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Diagram #1. Flex—tackle and center Pull
I want to emphasize a coaching point here. The
quarterback and the tailback are not in any hurry.
The running back’s first step is going to mirror the
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same steps as an inside zone play. The difference
will be on the second step, where the shoulders of
the running back are really opening up and squaring
up. By that time, things are done. The running back
reads the pulling center’s block and makes his cut
off that block.
As far as the receivers are concerned, we will
never compromise. The receivers are always going
to block a corner or safety, and nothing more or
nothing less. We will not have a match-up with a
wide receiver on a linebacker, because that is not
a good match-up for us. We make it easy for the
receivers group. They only have to block someone
their own size, and we keep it simple. If I am blocking
as an X- or a Y-receiver, I am going to block the man
over me. If I am a slot receiver, I will not block the
linebacker that is in my general area. We make him
move up a level to the safety because we do not
like the match-up with the linebacker.
If you are on the playside, you are blocking the
man on you. If you are on the backside, you are going
to count one to two. The number-one guy is the man
on you. You are going to go to the next defensive
back to your inside, and block that defender. A lot
of receivers have a tendency to hop prior to their
first step. By the time they come down on the hop,
the play is already going, and people are moving
everywhere. I coach them to take a directional lead
step pointed on their angle of departure, right at
that #2 defender. I want them to gain ground and
get their body physically going in that direction
immediately. The closer to the line of scrimmage
the second defender is, the flatter the angle he has
to take.
We want to get our face masks to the playside
number with our linemen. Obviously, the defenders
are going to fight for containment, but we have to
fight to get around him. If we get the edge, we will
have a pretty good play.
The playside tight end has a reach block.
Philosophically, I want the tight end to have the
very best angle on his block. We want the tight end
blocking down on the 5, 6, or 7 technique. We do not
want to create a bunch of different issues here. We
want to keep it simple. The tight end blocks down
and the tackle pulls. We call that a Ted block.

When we game plan this play, we look for the
soft edge. We do not run this against 9 techniques,
if we can help it. If you are getting a lot of 6
techniques, and a lot of 9 techniques, the defense
does not believe you can run the ball on the inside.
Make sure you are getting situations where you are
running to the open area and to the soft edges. If
you ask the tight end to block the 9 technique, that
is a hard way to make a living.
If we motion the tight end over against a 9
technique, we do not want him to take a large split
from the tackle. We want our normal one-and-a
half-foot split. We do not want to create any extra
real estate issues that he has to negotiate. We
are going to reach the 9-technique end with a flat
first step to the playside, and the second step is to
his crotch. I want to go with the face mask to the
playside number, and then I want to work through
that number. I want to be on it right now. I want to
get the edge right now.
Our playside tackle needs to be our best athlete.
We want him to pull 99.9 percent of the time. He is
going to pull to the first force defender. This is
where you get into a gray area because that could
be anybody. He still block the first force defender
no matter who it is. The aiming point is inside foot
to inside foot, with his hat across the defender.
What that does is to cover up the defender. We do
not want to be on edges, and we do not want to be
overextended on the outside half, or underextended
on the inside half. In the past, we have had a lot of
defenses try to cut our puller. Our response to that
was to cut their cutter.
I need to make a coaching point here. You must
pre-snap read the pulling area. Your players have to
have a bit of wherewithal and understand where
the ball is going. They need to know where the
receivers are and if we are going to an openside, or
if we are going to a two-receiver side. That will help
them understand who the first force defender will
be. If a defensive back is standing there alone, he is
most likely going to be the first force defender.
We had 170 pin-and-pull scheme plays this year.
I break them down into first pullers and second
pullers. I track the pulls by the number of steps and
measure them. When you coach it that way, it is
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a great way to make sure your kids are practicing
what they do on the game field. The #1 puller is
at five steps before he hits the contain or spill
guy. You are going to be most effective if you are
stepping with your fifth step, which is an outside
foot. You either take the defender wide, or stop him
and stay square to protect the path of the running
back. He cannot allow the defender to get a quick
underneath tackle.
The second puller is a four-step take. He is
stepping one, two, three, and on four, he is making
contact with the defender, and he is driving his man.
This is when he is going to be the most effective and
the most powerful. If it is not on the fourth step, it
is a little bit of a gray area. You want to make it as
simple and clear as you can for that running back.
Everything is about making it good for the running
back.
We reach block with the playside guard. Our
guards are going to get good at reaching because
90 percent of the time, they are not going to pull.
It does not matter if it is a 1, 2, or 3 technique; the
aiming point is the same: face mask to the playside
number.
We do not get real technical. You may step a
little differently for each alignment, but your aiming
point is still face mask to the playside number. One
thing he needs to understand is the closer he gets
to the center, he does not have to protect the path
as much. The only time that they would change is if
we get a 4i look. If that happens, the tackle blocks
down, and the guard is the first force defender.
The guard has to reach the 3 technique. I want
to get the face mask to the playside number right
away. We are not going to work through it. My off
hand is in the breastplate, and I want to punch that
guy in the chest. I do not want to set it in there.
It is a punch. The second hand is going to be our
cheat hand. We try to get it on the upper arm of the
defender, and we are going to drive through on the
aiming point.
The center has to make a call to determine
who is going to pull, either the center or the guard
(Diagram #2). We make him declare. The key is who
is covered and who is uncovered. If I am uncovered,
I am pulling. Generally, the center is pulling and is

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Diagram #2. Flex—tackle and Guard Pull
blocking the Mike linebacker or the inside linebacker.
If the center is covered, he is going to reach the
defender, and he is going to bring the backside
with him. However, those things can change. If the
second puller is pulling, he has to watch and protect
against frontside run-throughs.
We are an open pull team. We do not teach
skip pulls. We open pull, and we try to accelerate
and get out there as fast as we humanly can. The
second puller has to find his point of entry. The
center will have about nine steps into the D gap and
contain area. That is what we use to try to simulate
what he is going to see in a game. We want to have
some type of muscle memory that he can carry
over to when we are playing a game.
This is the only way we can get out on the
play unless we are going to play the tackle run all
day. They have plenty of guys for us. They have us
outnumbered almost every time. This is the only
way we can get out and even up the numbers.
The backside is about intersecting angles. It
is really simple. It is about going as fast as you
humanly can and getting to the backside A-gap
or B-gap linebacker. We do not want to wait for
anyone. We do not want to say it is Mike, Will, or
anybody else. We want to get the linebacker who
is in the A or B gap. The backside tackle also takes
an intercept angle. He does not wait on anyone. As
he sees things develop, he keeps climbing to find
somebody to block downfield.
T
Thanks a lot, guys. I really appreciate your time.
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ABout the Author
Bob Bostad is in his fifth season as an assistant
coach at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
He was named run game coordinator in February of
2007 and became the Badgers’ offensive line coach
in January 2008 after coaching tight ends his first
two seasons. The 2010 season proved to be one
of the most successful in school history, thanks in
large part to the efforts of the offensive line.
Averaging 245.7 rushing yards per game,
Wisconsin finished 12th in the country. The Badgers
nearly made history as they fell just four yards
short of having three running backs run for at least
1,000 yards in the same season. No team in FBS
history has ever done that.
The Wisconsin offense shattered the school
record for scoring average, leading the Big Ten and
finishing fifth in the country with 41.5 points per
game. The Badgers also tied a Big Ten record with
46 rushing touchdowns and set a school record by
averaging 5.47 yards per carry.
Bostad also oversaw the development of a pair
of All-Americans. Gabe Carimi, the 2010 Outland
Trophy winner, was a consensus All-American,
while John Moffitt was first-team All-American by
the Associated Press.
Wisconsin is one of just five teams in the
country that has averaged at least 200 yards rushing
per game in each of the last four seasons. Last
year, despite starting six different combinations at
offensive line, UW led the Big Ten in total offense,
scoring offense, and rushing offense, while
allowing just 23 quarterback sacks, its lowest total
since 2004. Running back John Clay earned Big Ten
Offensive Player of the Year honors while leading
the Big Ten and ranking eighth in the country with
1,517 rushing yards. Two offensive linemen, tackle
Gabe Carimi and center/guard John Moffitt, were
named first-team All-Big Ten.
In 2008, Bostad helped guide a running game that
averaged a Big Ten–leading 211.2 yards per game,
good for 14th in the country. Running backs P.J. Hill
and Clay combined for 2,045 yards and became the
first Badger duo to run for at least 800 yards in the
same season since 1994. Hill cracked the 1,000-yard