FOOTBALL

GAME ANALYSIS
By

Michael Stoeber

2012XOSDigital.Version2.AllRightsReserved.PrintedintheUSA

Nopartofthisbookmaybereproduced,storedinaretrievalsystemor
transmittedinanyformorbyanymeans,electronic,mechanical,
photocopying,recordingorotherwise,withoutthewrittenpermissionof
XOSDigital.

XOSDigital
18004907767

FootballGameAnalysis/Page1of144

DEDICATION
Tomywife,June,anddaughter,Elizabeth:Footballisapassion
youveletmeindulgein,yetyoualwaysremindmeofmylifes
prioritiesfaithfirst,familysecond,footballthird.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
ThankyoutoallofthecoachesIhavehadthepleasureof
workingwiththroughtheyears.Ivaluetherelationshipsinthis
professionandcannotlistallofyouwhohaveleftamarkinmy
life.

IwouldespeciallyliketothankRonZook.Iamstilltryingto
learntosleeptwiceasfastsoIonlyhavetosleephalfaslong.
YouweremybiggesthelpearlyinmycareerandIcouldnever
thankyouenoughforalloftheopportunitiesandmemoriesyou
havegivenmeinthisjourney.

SpecialthankstoXOSDigitalfortheirsupportinpublishingthis
book.ThiswasagreatplacetoworkandIamgratefulfor
knowingallofthegreatpeople.

Finally,IcannotsaythankyouenoughtotheJacksonville
Jaguars,especiallyMikePerkinsandTonyKhan.Afterallofthe
teamsIhavevisitedandworked,Icouldnotimagineaplace
betterplacetobeineithercollegeorprofessionalfootball.Itisa
veryspecialplacetoworkandIamveryfortunatetobeapartof
thisteam.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page2of144

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION

SECTION1BASICINFORMATION
Chapter1TheGameAnalysisSystem.......................................7
Chapter2DataFields.............................................................14

SECTION2DATAFIELDS

Chapter3SituationalData.....................................................21
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)
(9)
(10)
(11)
(12)
(13)
(14)
(15)
(16)
(17)

PlayNumber.....................................................................................22
Quarter.............................................................................................23
SeriesNumber..................................................................................23
SeriesSequence................................................................................24
SeriesBegin......................................................................................24
Down................................................................................................26
Distance...........................................................................................26
D/D...................................................................................................27
DDGrouping....................................................................................27
FieldPosition....................................................................................30
FieldPositionGrouping....................................................................31
Shortyardage/Goalline...................................................................32
RedZone/ComingOut......................................................................33
Hash.................................................................................................34
ScoreDifferential.............................................................................36
Two/FourMinute.............................................................................37
Situations.........................................................................................39

Chapter4FormationData......................................................40
(18)
Personnel...............................................................................40
(19)
FormationGroup...................................................................45
(20)
FormationStrength...............................................................54
(21)
TELocation............................................................................56
(22)
Set..........................................................................................57
(23)
Shotgun..................................................................................60
(24)
Backfield................................................................................60
(25)
Formation..............................................................................64
(26)
Alignment..............................................................................64
(27)
Boundary...............................................................................66
(28)
Movement.............................................................................69
(29)
Audible/NoHuddle................................................................71
(30)
BunchFormation...................................................................72
(31)
StrongSideSplit/WeakSideSplit........................................72
FootballGameAnalysis/Page3of144

Chapter5PlayData...............................................................73
(32)
(33)
(34)
(35)
(36)
(37)
(38)
(39)
(40)
(41)
(42)

Run/Pass/NoPlay.............................................................................73
PlayType..........................................................................................74
PlayCode.........................................................................................78
BlockingScheme..............................................................................85
BlockingAdjustments.......................................................................86
PassConcepts(Passingplaysonly)..................................................87
PassDescription(Passingplaysonly)...............................................90
ReceiverJerseys................................................................................92
ReceiverPositions............................................................................93
ReceiverRoutes................................................................................93
OffensivePlay..................................................................................95

Chapter6PlayOutcomeData................................................96
(43)
(44)
(45)
(46)
(47)
(48)
(49)
(50)
(51)
(52)
(53)
(54)
(55)
(56)

HoleHit(Runningplaysonly)...........................................................96
PassResult(Passingplaysonly).......................................................97
PassZone(Passingplaysonly).........................................................98
QBPressure(Passingplaysonly)....................................................100
BallCarrier/Receiver......................................................................100
JerseyNumber................................................................................101
PlayDirection.................................................................................101
Action.............................................................................................102
Gain/Loss.......................................................................................103
Penalty...........................................................................................104
PenaltyYards.................................................................................105
PenaltyJersey.................................................................................105
Win/Loss........................................................................................105
SeriesEnd.......................................................................................107

Chapter7DefensiveData....................................................108
(57)
(58)
(59)
(60)
(61)
(62)
(63)
(64)
(65)
(66)

DefensivePersonnel.......................................................................109
Front...............................................................................................110
Deployment/FrontAdjustment......................................................117
AttackPoint(Runningplaysonly)..................................................117
Stunt...............................................................................................119
PressureType.................................................................................120
Pressure..........................................................................................121
CoverageGroup.............................................................................122
Coverage........................................................................................123
Defense..........................................................................................123

SECTION3DATAANALYSIS

Chapter8SelfScoutAnalysis..............................................124
Chapter9GameAnalysisReports........................................125
AppendixADataFieldTable...............................................136
AppendixBTechnicalScoutingTechniques..........................138
AppendixCCheatSheets.....................................................140
FootballGameAnalysis/Page4of144

INTRODUCTION

Havingcomputersoftwareandvideowithoutagoodplanonhow

tostudytherelationshipsofmeasurablefactstopredictfuturedecisions
andtrendsisjustasusefulashavingacarwithoutkeysitmaylookgreat,
butitwillnotgetyouanywhere.

Thekeytosuccessfulscoutingissystematicallydefiningwhatyou

seeonthefield,andthenknowinghowandwhattolookatafterithas
beendefined.Twoofthemostcriticalelementstosuccessfulscoutingare:
First,decidinghowyouwilllabelwhatyousee;andsecond,decidinghowit
isthenenteredintothecomputer.Thisbookwillhelpdefineasystemof
datafieldsandterminologytogetthebestresultswithwhatevercomputer
scoutingsystemyouareusing.

Myexperienceintheareaofgameanalysisfirstevolvedover16

yearsattheUniversityofFloridaandtwoyearswiththeJacksonville
Jaguars.DuringmyyearsatFlorida,Ihadtheprivilegeofworkingwith
defensivecoordinatorsJamesBates,JonHoke,BobbyPruitt,BobStoops
andRonZook.Floridaalsohadmanyotheroutstandingassistantcoaches
towhomIowealot.Itistheirexpertiseandknowledgethathasformed
thefoundationofthissystem.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page5of144

ForfiveyearsIservedastheleadfieldrepresentativefortheXOSSagio
GameAnalysisprogram.Inthisposition,Iinstalledandcustomizedthe
programforover50NFLandNCAADivisionIAfootballteams.Itwasa
greatopportunityfordiscussinggameanalysisandgameplanpreparation
withsomeofthebestinthebusiness.ItisthroughtheseexperiencesthatI
havefurtherrefinedthissystem.
Itismyhopethatthisbookwillhelpyou(andyourstaff)getorganized.
IshouldnotethateverydefensivecoordinatorIworkedwithatFloridaand
Jacksonvillewasdifferentintheirpreparation.Likewise,everyinstallation
oftheXOSSagioGameAnalysisprogramhasalsobeenunique.Thisbook
isnotaturnkeysolution,butratherareferencemanualandideabookto
getyoustarted.Iwelcomeanyfeedbackandsuggestions.Pleasefeelfree
tocontactmeatstoeberm@nfl.jaguars.com

Thanksandbestofluck!
MichaelStoeber

FootballGameAnalysis/Page6of144

SECTION 1 BASIC INFORMATION

Chapter 1 The Game Analysis System
Beforeexploringthedetailsandimplementationofthisgameanalysis
system,itisbesttofirstunderstandthewhatandwhyofusingsucha
system.
What is a Game Analysis System?
Agameanalysissystemisdifferentfromnormalscoutingbecauseofits
approach,methodologiesandresults.Thissystemisatechniquewhich
whenappliedtoyourothergamepreparationeffortswillresultinbetter
preparedplayersandtheincreasedabilitytopredictoffensiveplaycalling
tendencies.Thesystemcanbedefinedasthedetailedstudyofstrengths
andweaknessesby:
1)Havingaterminologysystemcapableofidentifyingvirtuallyevery
possibleoffensivealignmentandplay,
2)Usingthesystemtoidentifyindividualplayelements,
3)Groupingsimilardatavaluestogethertosummarizethe
information,and

FootballGameAnalysis/Page7of144

4)Analyzingthegathereddatainvariousformatsthatareboth
informativeandeasytoread.
Youhavetheoptionofusingtheterminologyasdefinedinthisbookor
substitutingyourownterminology,aslongasitfitswithinaframework.It
istheframeworkthatisimportant.Withoutit,youwilllosemuchvaluable
information.
Why perform game analysis?
Aftermanyhoursofwatchingvideoandevenmorehourstypingdata
intothecomputer,anormalresponseisWhyamIdoingthis?The
answerissimple:Asacoach,itisyourjobtogetinsidetheheadofyour
competitortobetterselectyourownplays.Thegameoffootballisafine
balanceoftheadvantagesanddisadvantagesforboththeoffenseand
defensiveteams.
OffensiveTeam

DefensiveTeam
Advantages

Knowssnapcount
Knowswheretheplayisgoing

More useofhandsandarms,which
improvesbalanceandallowsplayers
toavoidblockers

Disadvantages
Limitationstouseofhands
75%ofpenaltiesareagainstthe
offense
Successfulplayrequiresthe
coordinatedexecutionofall11.

Unknownsnapcountandplay
direction
18areastostopwithonly11
defenders

Chart 11 Offense vs. Defense

FootballGameAnalysis/Page8of144

Throughproperscoutting,adefenssivecoachcan
nhelptomin imizehis
dgethisplaye
ersinthebestpositions.Innorderto
teamsdisadvvantagesand
trulystopanyyoffensivepllaywithoutguessingorhaavingplayers worry
aboutdualre
esponsibilitiess,adefensew
wouldneedto
ohave18plaayers.This
breaksdownto10playersstostoptherun(onefore
eachgap+onneto
accountfortthefullbackgap)andeighttplayerstosttopthepass. (Fiveshort
passzonesan
ndthreedeep
ppasszones))

Figu
ure 12 18 A
Areas to Defe
fend

Footb
ballGameAnaalysis/Page9of144

Comingffromadefenssivecoach'sm
mindset,18playersontheefieldat
onetimewouldsurelymaakedefendinggthefieldalo
oteasier!Hoowever,
sincetherule
esonlyallow11,adefensivecoachmusstrealizethatteachof
hisdefensive
ecallswillhavvecertainstre
engthsandw
weaknesses.FFor
example,ifadefenselinesupwithonlyysixdefende
ersinthebox versusa
ndefendingtthepassandttheir
onebackformation,theirrstrengthisin
weaknessisiindefendingttherun.Theyycanplayavvarietyofcovverages,
frommanfre
eetoquartercoverage.However,theo
offensehass ixblockers
forthesixde
efendersinth
hebox,meaniingthesafetie
eswillneedttohelpon
runsupport((dualresponssibilities)orth
heycannotpllaytruegapccontrol
defense.Co
onversely,ifth
hedefensepu
utssevendeffendersintheebox,the
defensivestrrengthsandw
weaknessesarrereversed.Theircoveraage
selectionism
morelimited((andpredictable!),butthe
eyhaveonem
more
defenderthaantheoffense
ehasrunblocckers.

Figu
ure 13 Deffensive Align
nment Versu
us OneBack Set
FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page1
10of144


Thewholeartofgameanalysisispredictingwhatplay(orplays)an
offensewillprobablyruninordertocalladefensivealignmentandplayto
stopit.Therearetwodifferentlevelsof"competition"oneverysnapto
considerandscout:tacticalcompetitionandtechnicalcompetition.

Tactical Competition Evaluations

Tacticalcompetitionistheoffensiveschemeandplaycallingversusthe
defensiveschemeandplaycalling.Thisisateam'sstrengths,weaknesses
andtendenciesversusitsopponentsstrengths,weaknessesand
tendencies.Thisbookwillprimarilyfocusontacticalcompetitionasitrelies
onthestrengthofcomputeranalysisprobabilityandpredictability.

Technical Competition Evaluations

Technicalcompetitionistheoneononebattlewhereplayerspittheir
skill,speedandstrengthversusanotherplayerontheotherteam.Itis
focusinginonanindividualplayersskillsets,likedriveblockingora
quarterback'sdrop.Whiletechnicalanalysisisimportanttocompletely
understandyouropponent,itissomethingthatisnoteasilyanalyzedby
thecomputer.Rather,ittakesinpersonobservationanddetailedfilm
studyplusadeepknowledgeofthegametorecognizeindividualstrengths
FootballGameAnalysis/Page11of144

andweaknesses.Forexample,alookatthequarterback'sdropmight
showthathehasatendencytoholdtheballdownlowbeforehethrows,
makinghimvulnerabletobeingstripsacked.Thiswillnotshowuponany
computerreports,butthispieceofinformationcouldmakethedifference
inaclosegame.[Sometechniquesintechnicalscoutingwillbeaddressed
inAppendixB.]
What information should I record?
Thisisadifficultquestionandanswerswillgenerallyvaryovertime.
Oneschoolofthoughtistorecordeverypossiblebitofdata.Whilethisis
greatintermsofbeingabletoprintareportoneveryconceivablemetric,
thetimecommitmenttobreakingdownthecoachingfilmandentering
datacanbetoogreat.Inaddition,importantinformationcouldpossiblybe
lostinthepile.
Theoppositeschoolofthoughtistorecordtheminimumamountof
information.Whileyoucanflythroughthebreakdownanddataentry
phases,therewillbemanyreportsthatcannotbeprintedbecausethedata
isnotenteredintothecomputer,leavingvitalquestionsunanswered.
Thus,thefirstmajorquestiononemustanswerinthegameanalysis
systemWhatinformationdoIneedtorecord?
FootballGameAnalysis/Page12of144

Thebestwayofdeterminingwhatinformationtorecordistofirst
determinewhatreportsarewantedintheend.Ifacoachwantsareport
showingalloftheroutestheoutsidestrongreceiverruns,thenthat
informationneedstoberecorded.[Section2ofthisbookgoesintodetails
onmanydatafields.]
WhenIwasattheUniversityofFlorida,weusedeachofthefields
discussedinthisbookatonetimeoranother.However,weneverusedall
ofthematthesametime.Differentdefensivecoachingstaffshaddifferent
reportrequests,resultingintheadditionorsubtractionofindividualfields
onayearlybasis.
Also,becausethisinformationisassociatedwithvideo,anyvideodata
needsshouldalsobetakenintoaccountwhenselectingthedatafieldsto
becollected.Thebottomlineisyoufirstneedtodeterminewhat
informationyouwant/needtoknowinordertodeterminewhatdatais
neededtoproducethatinformation.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page13of144

Chapter 2 Data Fields

Basicstatisticalanalysiswillgiveacoachingstaffsomeinformation.
However,thisanalysiswillnotbeascompleteandwilloftenbemore
difficulttodecipherandunderstand.Therearefourmaindifferences
betweenagameanalysissystemandbasicstatisticalanalysis.Theyare:
1. informationalgroupings
2. individualelements
3. computercalculationsand
4. mergefields
#1 - Informational Grouping
Inordertobetterunderstandthebigpictureofcomplexthings,we
tendtolooktogroupsimilarthingstogetherinordertobettergraspit.
Footballisnodifferent.Theadvantagesofgroupinghoweverextend
beyondgroupingjustdown/distanceandfieldpositiontogether(i.e.,short
yardageplaysorgoallineplays).Forexample,mostdefensivecallsare
madeknowingonlydown/distance/fieldpositionandwhattypeofthe
opponentsplayersareonthefield(numberofwidereceivers,numberof
runningbacks,etc.).Yet,somedefensivecoachesdontlookfortendencies
basedonoffensivepersonnel.Bygroupingtogetherallplaysbasedon
FootballGameAnalysis/Page14of144

whatoffensiveplayersareonthefield,acoachcangetabetterideaofthe
fullrangeofplaystheopponentmightcallbeforetheoffenseeverlinesup.
Inadditiontopersonnelgroupings,similarformationsshouldalsobe
groupedtogether.Mostsystemsaskyoutoprovidetheoffensive
formationasyouseeit.[Examplesofsimilaroffensiveformationsmightbe
FlexAce3,AceGun5,AceSlot3,WingAce3,AceX,etc.]Ifyoudonot
groupsimilarformationstogetherinthiscaseAceimaginethehardship
oftryingtoanalyzetendencieseverytimetheopposingoffensealignsinan
Acetypelook.
Groupingtendenciesbygeneralalignmentwillprovidecriticalkeysto
defensiveplaysandwillhelpminimizethesometimesoverwhelming
volumeofinformationifateamhasanumberofvariationsonabase
formation.
Athirdexampleofgroupingisbysimilarplaytypes.Ateammightrun
threeorfourdifferenttypesofscreenpassesandincertainreportsitis
importanttoknowexactlywhateachscreenis.However,thereareother
timesyoumayjustwanttoknowthatitwasascreenpassingeneral
withoutcomplicatingreportsanddilutingtheinformation.Thiscallsfora
methodthatwillsummarizeallsimilarplaytypestogetherintoonegroup.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page15of144

[Specificsregardingpersonnel,formationgrouping,andplaytypesas
wellasdown/distancegroupandfieldpositiongroupfieldsarediscussedin
furtherdetailinthenextsectionofthisbook.]
#2 - Individual Elements
Theabilitytosplitfieldsintomorebasicpiecesofinformationisjustas
importantasgroupingsimilaritemstogether.Offensiveformationsand
playsaretwofieldsthatareoftencomposedofmultipleelementsthatmay
needtobeanalyzedindependently.
Inthecaseofoffensiveformations,mostprogramshaveyouenterthe
formationintoone(orsometimestwo)fields.Irecommendusingatleast
threefieldstodescribehowateamwasalignedatthesnapoftheball
namelyset,strengthandbackfield.Setisthealignmentofthewide
receiversandthetightends.Strengthiswhichdirection(leftorright)they
alignto.Backfieldisthealignmentoftherunningbacks.Becausethese
fieldsareseparate,acoachingstaffcananalyzejustbackfieldtendencies
withoutthecomplicationofwidereceiversortightends,oranalyze
tendenciesofbasesetswithoutconsideringthevaryingbackfield
alignmentsorformationstrength.Forexample,acoachcanlookatevery
playtheopponentranwhenthebacksalignedinan"I",regardlessofhow
FootballGameAnalysis/Page16of144

therestoftheoffensealigns.Thisabilitytoisolatepartofananswerfor
furtheranalysisandstudymakestheinformationthatmuchmorevaluable.
#3 Field Calculations
Goodcomputerscoutingsoftwareprogramsshouldautomaticallyfillin
asmanydatafieldsaspossiblebaseduponwhatyouhavealreadyentered
forthatplay.Forexample,aboundaryplayisanyplaywherethehashdata
fieldvalueandtheformationstrengthdatafieldvalueareequal.Relying
ontheusertodetermineifbothvaluesarethesameandtoentera
positiveanswerintoathirdfieldisverytimeconsuming,proneto
mistakes,andunnecessaryconsideringtheabilityofcomputerstoday.
Someofthefieldsthatshouldbeconsideredforcomputercalculation
basedonotherfieldvaluesincludeholehit,shortyardage/goalline,red
zone/comingout,boundary,playdirection,down/distancegroup,andfield
positiongroup.
#4 - Merge Fields
Justasinformationalgroupingsareimportantfortheabilitytoanalyze
similarplaystogether,therearesomefieldsthataresimplythe
combinationofdifferentdatafieldsintoasinglevalue.Havingasingle
valuemakesthereportingprocesseasier,makesdatacolumnsonthe
FootballGameAnalysis/Page17of144

reportseasytoreadandalign,andisquiteusefulifthedataisexportedout
toavideoeditingsystem.Somemergefieldsincludedown/distance,
personnelFF(personnelfield+formationgroupingfield),formation(set
field+backfieldfield),R/PType(R/Pfield+playtypefield).
Data Field Definitions
Thereare66differenttypesofdatafields(totaling79fields)explained
inthenextfourchaptersofthisbook.Eachfieldisexplainedindetail
individually.Foreachfielddescription,atablecanbefoundasthenew
fielddescriptionisstarted.Withineachtableyouwillfindbasicattributes
ofthefieldsuchasfieldtypes,formula,fieldlengthandvaluelimits.These
rowswillonlyappearifitisappropriateforthatfield.

FIELDTYPESThisisthetypeoffield.Typesarelimitedtoeither
numeric(numbersonly)ortext(numbersandtext)soany
program,includingagenericspreadsheetprogramlikeMicrosoft
Excel,iscapableofhandlingthistypeofdata.

FORMULAThisrowwillnoteifthecomputershouldbefillingin
thevalueforyou.Whetherornotitcanbeautomaticallydone
dependsonyoursoftware.Thetypesofformulasare:

FootballGameAnalysis/Page18of144

PERSISTENTThisformulawillautomaticallyfillinthe
valuesofthepreviousplay.Theonlytwopersistentfields
outlinedinthisbookarequarterandscoredifferential.

AUTOThisformulacalculatesanumericalvaluebasedon
thepreviousplay.Forexample,acomputerprogram
shouldautofillinvaluessuchasdown,distanceandfield
positionbasedonthepreviousplaysvalues.

MERGEThisformulaiscombiningotherdatafields
togetherintoamergedvalue.Thebestexampleofthis
fieldisformation,whichisthecombinationofsetand
backfield.

CALCULATEDThisformulawillgiveavalue(ornot)based
onthedatafoundinotherfields.Thebestexampleofthis
fieldisredzone/comingout,whichplacesanRorCif
theballisattheappropriateyardline.

**CALCULATEDThesefieldscouldbecalculatedbythe
computer,buttheremightbeadesiretouseitasanormal
datafieldsothestaffwillhavetheflexibilitytodecidewhat
thefinalvalueis.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page19of144

FIELDLENGTHThisisthecharacterlengthofthefieldbasedon
theterminologyfromthisparticulargameanalysissystem.The
lengthcanbeexpandedorshorteneddependingonyourown
terminology.

VALUELIMITSThisreferstoalimitofthevaluesthatareallowed
tobeentered.Ifthereisavaluelimitlist,noothervalueswouldbe
allowedtobeenteredintothisfield.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page20of144

SECTION 2 DATA FIELDS

Chapter 3 Situational Data
Situationaldataisthebasicinformationabouteachplaybeforeany
decisionsaremadebyeitherteam.Thisistheframeworkintowhichall
otherfieldsfit.Thissituationaldatasectionhasthreesubsectionsgame
situation,down/distance/fieldposition,andothersituationaldata.

Therearemanysourcesofsituationaldatainformationinadditionto
gamedaycollectionorvideotapeanalysis.ForNFLteams,thisinformation
ismadeavailablebytheleagueofficeintheformofGSISdata.For
collegiateteams,playbyplayreportsproducedbythemediarelations
staffcontainallofthesituationalinformation(andmore).
Inadditiontorequestingcollegiateplaybyplaylistsfrommedia
relationsstaffs,manyplaybyplaysarefoundonathleticInternetwebsites
aswellasthirdpartywebsitesthatproviderealtimedataduringfootball
games.Unfortunately,thereisnosolutionatthehighschoollevel.
Determinationofthesituationdatastillrequiresthewatchingofthe
video.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page21of144

Game Situation
Thisdataisusedforidentifyingoneplayfromanotherandgrouping
offensivedrivestogether.Therearefivefieldsinthisgroup:playnumber,
quarter,seriesnumber,seriessequence,andseriesbegin.

(1) Play Number

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH

Numeric
AUTOStartsat1,advancesby1perplay
1

Playnumberisthesimplestfieldbecauseitisnothingmorethana
chronologicallistingofplaysinagame.Thisnumericassignmentshould
onlyincludetheopponent'soffensiveplays.Ifyouarewatchingatapethat
includesanopponent'sdefensiveandspecialteamsplaysaswell,disregard
thoseotherplays(suchaspuntsandfieldgoalattempts,regardlessofthe
downanddistance).
Anaveragecollegeorprofessionalgamewillusuallyhaveabout170
totalplays.Thisequatesto6080offensiveplays,6080defensiveplays
and2540specialteamplayspergame.Inordertoaccountforwhat
happensonthefield,evenoffensiveplaysthatdon'tactuallycountdueto
apenalty(suchasdelaysofgame,presnaptimeoutsandotherdeadball
situations)arerecordedasanoffensiveplay.
FootballGameAnalysis/Page22of144

(2) Quarter
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Numeric
PERSISTENT
1
1,2,3,4,5

Thisfieldrecordswhichquartertheindividualplayactuallyoccurred
during.Ifthegamegoesintoovertime,recordtheentireovertimeperiod
as5.

(3) Series Number

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH

Numeric
AUTOStartsat1,advancesby1perSeries
2

Everytimetheoffensereceivestheballfromtheotherteam,increase
theseriesnumberbyone.Thisincludesaftertheopeningorsecondhalf
kickoff.Thepurposeofthisfieldistogroupeachoffensiveseriestogether.
Mostgamesaveragearound1214seriesagame.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page23of144

(4) Series Sequence

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA

Numeric
AUTOStartsat1,advancesby1perplayuntil
thereisaseriesendvalue.Playafteraseries
endsstartsbackat1
2

LENGTH

Astheplaynumberfieldisanumericlistingoftheentiregame,the
seriessequencefieldisanumericlistingwithineachseries.Everytimethe
serieschanges,theseriessequencefieldresetsto1.Thismakesfindingthe
firstplayofaserieseasy(asitiswhentheseriessequenceis1).

(5) Series Begin

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
2
KO,PT,FM,IN,FG,EX,OT

Whentheoffensereceivestheballfromtheopposition,recordhow
theballwasreceivedusingthefollowingtwoletterabbreviations:

KOKickoff(includingfreekickfollowingasafety)

PTPunt

FMFumble

FGMissedFG EXExtraPoint

INInterception
OTOther

SPECIALSITUATIONS
FootballGameAnalysis/Page24of144

Ifthereisaspecialteamsplaywherethedefensehastheball
temporarilybeforetheoffenseregainscontrol,itisanewseries.Example
On4thdown,TeamApuntstoTeamB,butTeamBroughsthepunter.The
resultofthepenaltyisa1stdownforTeamA.Recordseriesendonthe3rd
downplayas"PT"(punt).Onthenextplay,recordtheseriesbeginas
other"OT"(Other),advancetheseriesnumberbyoneandresettheseries
sequenceto1.
Ifthereisanoffensiveplaywherethedefensehastheballtemporarily
beforetheoffenseregainscontrol,itisnotanewseries.[Example:Team
A'srunningbackfumblesandtheballisrecoveredbyTeamB'sdefense.
Whileattemptingtoreturntheball,therecoveringdefenderfumblesand
TeamArecoverstheball.]
Thereasonforhandlingthesetwosituationsdifferentlyisthatinthe
firstcasetheoffensiveteamleftthefield,whileinthesecondcasethe
offensedidnotleavethefield.
Down/Distance/Field Position
Asthegrouptitlesuggests,thesefieldsinvolvedown,distance,and
fieldposition.Inadditiontothethreebasicfields,therearefiveother
fieldsforgroupingpurposestomoreeasilysummarizeandanalyzethedata
FootballGameAnalysis/Page25of144

later.ThesefieldsareD/D,DDGroup,FPGroup,shortyardage/goalline,
andredzone/comingout.

(6) Down
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Numeric
AUTObasedondistance,gain&seriesend
1
1,2,3,4,5

Thisissimplywhatthedownis.Entera5fortwopointconversion
attempts.

(7) Distance
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH

Numeric
AUTObasedondown,gain&seriesend
2

Thisissimplythedistanceremainingfora1stdown.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page26of144

(8) D/D
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH

Text
MERGECombinesthedownvalue,aslash
andthedistancevaluetogether.
4

Thisfieldismadeupbythedownvalue,followedbyaslash,andthen
thedistancevalue.Thereasonforthisfieldistosimplifyreports(one
columnofinfovs.two)aswellasprovidethismergedinformationtoa
videoeditingsoftwaresystemyoumightbeusing.Someteamswillalso
convertthedownvalueofthe1stplayofaseriestoaPratherthana1.
Inthisway,P/10and1/10playsareclearlydifferentiatedfromone
another.

(9) DD Grouping
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH

Text
CALCULATEDBasedondownanddistance
values
20

Inordertoeasilygrouplikedownanddistancestogether,weusea
groupingindicator.Dependingonthecomputersoftwareyouareusing,
thisfieldshouldbeautomaticallyfilledinbasedonyourenteredvaluesof
thedownanddistancefields.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page27of144

Theautomaticfillinfunctionforthisfieldisanimportantfeatureto
lookforinanyscoutingprogram.Adesirableprogramshouldallowyouto
adjustthemeaningof"long","medium"and"short"for2ndand3rddown
playseasily.Thereasonthisisimportantisthatdifferentcoachesand
teamshavedifferentdownanddistancecharacteristics.
Theruleofthumbisthattheshortgroupsfor2ndand3rddownplays
shouldbethosedownanddistancesituationswhentheteamhasamuch
highercharacteristictorun,themediumgroupsarethosewhentheyare
closerto50/50andthelonggroupsarethosewhoshowstrongpass
characteristics.AfewcoachingstaffsadjustthisDDGroupingdefinition
weeklytoadjusttotheiropponenttendencies,butmostdonot.
Anotherconsiderationistheabilitytodivide1stdownplaysinto
differentgroups.Ideasforgroupdivisionscouldbeifitisthefirstplayof
theseriesornot,orifitis1stdownand11yardsormore,oranyother
possibledivision.Ifyouwanttoseeallthe1stdownplays,thecomputer
caneitheraccessindividual1stdownfieldgroupsoritcangroupallofthe
1stdownplaystogetherintoonevalue.
Oneareaofscoutingoftenoverlookedislookingatthedownand
distancesituationbasedonthepreviousplaysresult.Forexample,a
coachmighthaveatotallydifferentmindseton2ndandlongifhehadrun
FootballGameAnalysis/Page28of144

theballwithnosuccesson1stdownversushavingthrowntheballon1st
downwithnosuccess.Thishiddentendencyisrarelyrealizedorstudiedby
coachesandcouldbequitevaluabletopredictplaycallingduringthe
game.
Dependingonyoursoftware,youmayormaynotbeabletohavethe
sameplayappearinmultiplegroupsatthesametime.Thisisaveryuseful
featureasitwillallowthecoachtolookatdifferentDDGroupswithout
limitingthevaluesfromalargergroup.[Forexample,havingbothafirst
playofseriesgroupaswellasanall1stdowngroups]
CRITERIA
1st&10playsthatarenotthefirstplayoftheseries
1stdownthatarefirstplayofseries
1stdownand11+yardstogo
1stdown&lessthan10togo
All1stdowns
2ndandXL(11+)
210afterincompletepass
2ndandlong(710)after1st downpass
2ndandlong(710)after1st downrun
2ndandmedium(46)after1st downpass
2ndandmedium(46)after1st downrun
2ndandshort(13)
3rdandlong(69)
3rdandextralong(10+)

3rdandmedium(35)
3rd/4thandshort(12)
4thandlong(3+)

Table 31 Sample of DD Grouping definitions

FootballGameAnalysis/Page29of144

(10) Fie
eld Positiion
Attributte
FIELDTY
YPE
LENGTH
H

Nu
umeric
AU
UTO3,basedondown,d
distance&gaiin

Fieldpossitionistheacctualyardline
etheplayinittiallystartsfrrompriorto
thesnap.Ifttheballisontheoffense'sssideofthefiield(moreth an50yards
togoforato
ouchdown),putaminussiggninfrontoftheyardage value.For
example,ifth
heballisonttheoffense'sown20yard line,thisvaluuewouldbe
20.Ifthebaallisonthede
efensessideofthefield,tthevaluewilllbe+20.If
theballisonthe50yardlline,recordittas+50.[NottethatFieldPPositioncan
0(+0=touchdownwhile0equalssafe
ety)]
neverequal0

Figure 32 Field P
Position Exam
mples

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page3
30of144

(11) Field Position Grouping

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH

Text
CALCULATEDBasedondownanddistance
values
20

LiketheDDGroup,thisfieldisusedtoeasilygroupplaystogetherthat
occurinthesameareaofthefield.Differentcoacheshavediffering
opinionsastothebestwaytobreakupthefieldandthisshouldbeupto
eachrespectivecoach/staff.Somecoachesalsoliketochangethevalues
weeklyespeciallyredzonevaluesdependingonateam'soffensive
philosophy.However,werarelymodifiedthevaluesattheUniversityof
Florida.
CRITERIA
1to15(comingout)
16to49(openfield)
+50to+36(pluszone)
+35to+21(fringezone)
+20to+13(highredzone)
+12to+4(lowredzone)
+3to+1(goalline)
Table 33 Sample of Field Position Grouping definitions

FootballGameAnalysis/Page31of144

(12) Short yardage/Goal line

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
**CALCULATEDBasedondown/distanceand
fieldpositionvalues
2
SY,GL

EvenifyouusetheDDgroupingfieldtodefine3rd/4thandshortoruse
thefieldpositiongroupingtodefinegoalline,thisfieldisvaluableina
varietyofreportformatstoeasilyidentifycertainplaysamongotherplays,
especiallyinplaylistformats.Iftheplayisashortyardageplay,the
computerentersa"SY".Iftheplayisagoallineplay,thecomputerenters
a"GL".Ifaplayisbothashortyardageandagoallineplays,thecomputer
willrecordthisplayasagoallineplay.[Mydefinitionofashortyardage
playis3rdor4thdownand12togoandmydefinitionofgoallineplaysis
anyplayfromthe+3tothegoalline.]
Someteamswillbasetheshortyardageandgoallinedefinitionsbased
onoffensivepersonnelinsteadofconsideringdown/distanceandfield
position.[Forexample,inordertobeconsideredashortyardageplay,
somedefensivestaffsmayrequiretheoffensetoalsoaligninaheavy
personnelpackage.AfourWRsetona3rdand1playwouldnotbe
consideredshortyardageinthissituation.]Ifthisisdesired,thefieldwill
FootballGameAnalysis/Page32of144

needtobeadatafieldandtheuserwouldneedtomarkthefieldbasedon
thestaffsdefinition.

(13) Red Zone/Coming Out

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
CALCULATEDBasedonfieldpositionvalues
2
RZ,CO

Justliketheshortyardage/goallinefield,thisfieldisusedtoidentify
redzoneorcomingoutplays.Iftheplayisaredzoneplay,thecomputer
entersa"RZ"(usuallydefinedas+20to+1).Iftheplayisacomingout
play,thecomputerentersa"CO"(usually1to10,butcanoftenvary).
SPECIALSITUATIONSTWOPOINTCONVERSION
Ifitisatwopointconversion,itshouldberecordedas5thand3onthe
+3.Theseriesbeginvaluewillbe"EX"(extrapoint)andtheseriesend
valuewilleitherbe"TD"(touchdown)or"DN"(Down),basedontheresult
oftheplay.[Theseriesendfieldisdiscussedlater]Don'tforgettorecord
thisoneplayasanewseriesasthepreviousplaywouldhavehadaseries
endvalueof"TD"(touchdown).Thecomputerwillputa"GL"inshort
yardage/goallinefieldanda"RZ"inredzone/comingoutfield.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page33of144

Other Situational Data

Otherdataisjustwhatthetitleimpliesallotherdatathatdoesnot
refertoplayorderordown,distanceorfieldposition.Thesefourfieldsare
horizontalballposition(hash),scoreindicators(scoredifferential),game
clockindicators(two/fourminute),andothersituations.

(14) Hash
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
2
R,RM,M,LM,L

Theimportanceofhashmarksdependsalotonthelevelofplay.
Becausetherearesuchbigdifferencesinthewidthofthehashmarksfrom
highschooltoprofessionalfootball,therearedramaticdifferencesinplay
callingtendencies.
Thequestionofwhetherthehashisconsideredleftorrightisbasedon
eitherthequarterback'spointofview(fromtheoffensiveperspective)or
themiddlelinebacker'spointofview(defensiveperspective).Whatever
pointofviewyoudecidetofollow,allotherleftandrightdecisions(namely
formationstrength)mustbedoneusingthesameperspective.For
defense,themostcommonwayistousethemiddlelinebacker'spointof

FootballGameAnalysis/Page34of144

viewtodeterrminerightorleftasitise
easierforthe defensiveplaayersto
relatetothisvalueonthe
efield.
Aneasierrassessmentisjustevaluaatingthepositionoftheofffensive
tackle.Ifthe
eOT(inanorm
malalignmen
nt)isbetween
nthehashmaarkandthe
sideline,rath
herthanbetw
weenthehash
hmarks,considerthehash aseither
leftorright.Ifbothoffensivetacklesaarebetweentthehashmarkks,consider
dle.Forhighschoolhashm
marks,widentheleft/righttdefinition
itinthemidd
andforprofe
essionalhashe
es,shrinkthe
eleft/rightde
efinition.
Someteaamsdenotele
eftmiddlehash(LM)andrrightmiddlehhash(RM)
tobemorespecificastottheballsorigginallocation..
Figure 34 H
F
Hashmarks

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page3
35of144

(15) Score Differential

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH

Numeric
PERSISTENT
3

Offensiveplaycallingchangesconsiderablybasedonthescore
differential.IntakingalookatallregularseasonNFLgamesfor4seasons
(20082011),ifanoffenseteamisaheadby8pointsormore,theyare11%
morelikelytoruntheballinanattempttoruntheclockandplay
conservativelyregardlessofotherfactors.Conversely,whenbehind8or
morepoints,theoffensewasmorethan18%morelikelytothrowtheball
inanefforttocreatebigplaysandscorequickly.

PLAYS

st

PASS

RUN

1 3series

35,119

19,299 55.0% 15,820 45.0%

+/3pts

24,047

14,109 58.7%

9,938

41.3%

4% morepass

minus47

13,133

8,789

66.9%

4,344

33.1%

12% morepass

minus8+

25,310

18,451 72.9%

6,859

27.1%

18% morepass

plus47

11,763

5,951

50.6%

5,812

49.4%

4% morerun

plus8+

19,544

8,560

43.8% 10,984 56.2%

11% morerun

TOTAL

128,916 75,159 58.3% 53,757 41.7%

Table 35 Run/Pass by Score Differential

Therefore,scoredifferentialhasabighandincoachesabandoning
theirnormalplaycallingtendencies.Inyourevaluationstage,youmay

FootballGameAnalysis/Page36of144

wanttoevaluateateam'splaycallingwithoutincludingoneextremeorthe
other.

CODE
3
E
B
B+
A
A+

GROUP
Firstthreeseriesofgame
Even
Behind
Behindbig
Ahead
Aheadbig

CRITERIA
Series<=3
Scoreisplusorminus3points
Offenselosingby47points
Offenselosingby8+points
Offensewinningby47points
Offensewinningby8+points

Table 36 Sample of Score Differential groups of reports

Thevalueofthisfieldcaneitherbeasetscale(asshowninthetable)
orsimplytheoffensiveteam'sscoreminusthedefensiveteam'sscore.
Optiontwowouldproducearesultwithpositivenumberswhenthe
offenseiswinningandnegativenumberswhentheoffenseislosing.For
example,theteamyouarescoutinghasascoreof20andtheiropponent's
scoreis14,thescoredifferentialis+6.

(16) Two/Four Minute

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
2
2H,2G,4,F

Justasscoredifferentialaffectsoffensiveplaycalling,theclockalso
factorsintoplaycalling.Iftheoffenseisinitstwominuteorhurryup
FootballGameAnalysis/Page37of144

offense,marka"2"inthisfieldto(1)beableidentifytheseplaysamong
otherplaysincertainreportformats,or(2)selectoromittheseplays.We
canfurtherexpandedthesefieldtodenoteifitwasatwominutesituation
beforehalf(2H)oratwominutesituationattheendofthegame(2G).
Somecoacheswillhavedifferenttwominutetendenciesbasedonfirsthalf
versussecondhalf.
ItisalsopossibletomarkFforfastpaceoffense.Thisiswhenateam
innotinatwominutesituation,butisrunningplaysataveryfasttempo.
Someteamshaveonlyalimitednumberofplaystheycanrunatafast
tempoanditisworthstudytoseehowplaycallingvariesfromnormal
rhythmtouptempo.
Inaddition,youshoulddenotewhenateamisinanobviousfour
minuteoffense,whentheoffenseisattemptingtorunasmuchtimeoffthe
clockaspossible.Eliminatingtheseplaysfromconsiderationwillalsogive
youabetterevaluationoftheirbaseoffense.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page38of144

(17) Situations
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
8

Thisisafieldtomarkspecificplaystocheckiftheopposingcoachhas
hiddentendencies.Amongthepossibilitiesofthisfieldisthefirst1stdown
aftercrossingthe50yardline(150)oraplayafteracalledtimeout
(TO).Alotofsituations,suchasfirst15playsofthegameorplayaftera
turnovercanbedeterminedbydataenteredinotherfields.Thisfieldisto
markthosetypeofplaysthatcantbedeterminedbyothermeans.
SITUATIONSTHATWOULDNEEDTOBEMARKEDINTHISFIELD CODE
First1stand10playaftercrossingthe+50
150
st
First1 and10playaftercrossingthe+25
125
Playaftertimeout
TO
SITUATIONSTHATCANBEDETERMINEDBYOTHERFIELDS
(Notneededtobemarkedinthisfield)
Firstplayofgame
PlayNumber=1
Firstplayofsecondhalf Quarter=3andpreviousquarter=2
Suddenchange
Seriesbegin=FMorIN
P10afterturnover
Previousseriesend=FMorIN
Playaftersack
Previouspassresult=S
PlayafterTFL
Previousgain<0andpreviouspassresult<>S
Table 37 Sample of Situation definitions

FootballGameAnalysis/Page39of144

Chapter 4 Formation Data

Formationdatareferstowhattypeofoffensiveplayersareonthefield
andhowtheyalign/movepriortothesnap.Iwilldescribeusing15
differentformationdatafieldstoaccomplishthistask.Thefieldsare
personnel,formationgroup,formationstrength,set,shotgun,backfield,
formation,alignment,boundary,movement,audible/nohuddle,shotgun,
bunch,strongsidesplitandweaksidesplit.

(18) Personnel
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
3

Oneofthemostimportantitemstoknowiswhatoffensivepersonnel
areonthefield.Everyformationhas11players.Withineveryformation,
therearefiveoffensivelinemen(ineligibleplayersnumberedbetween50
and79).ThisleavessixplayersSince99.9%ofallplayshaveaquarterback
onthefield,thepersonneldatafieldneedstoonlytrackwhotheotherfive
playersare(i.e.howmanyrunningbacks,tightendsand/orwidereceivers
areonthefield).

FootballGameAnalysis/Page40of144

7.1.b.1Atleastsevenplayersontheirscrimmageline,notlessthanfiveofwhomshall
benumbered50through79.Theremainingplayersmustbeeitherontheir
scrimmagelineorbehindtheirbackfieldline.
7.2.3Eligibilityrulesapplyduringadownwhenalegalforwardpassisthrown.All
defensiveplayersareeligibletotouchorcatchapass.Whentheballissnapped,the
followingoffensiveplayersareeligible:
a.Eachplayerwhoisinanendpositiononhisscrimmagelineandwhois
wearinganumberotherthan50through79.
b.Eachplayerwhoislegallyinhisbackfieldwearinganumberotherthan
50through79
c.Aplayerwearinganumberotherthan50through79inpositionto
receiveahandtohandsnapfrombetweenthesnapperslegs.

Insert 41 Collegiate Offensive Personnel Rules

7.5.1OffensiveTeam:Theoffensiveteammustbecompliancewiththefollowingat
thesnap:
a.Itmusthavesevenormoreplayersonitslineand
b.Eligiblereceiversmustbeonbothendsofthelineandalloftheplayers
onthelinebetweenthemmustbeineligiblereceivers.
5.1.2AllplayersmustwearnumeralsontheirjerseyinaccordancewithRule5,
Section4,Article3(c).Suchnumeralsmustbebyplayingpositionsasfollows:
(a) quarterbacks,puntersandplacekickers:119
(b) runningbacksanddefensivebacks:2049
(c) centers:5079
(d) offensiveguardsandtackles:6079
(e) widereceivers:1019and8089
(f) tightends:8089
(g) defensivelinemen:5079and9099
(h) linebackers:5059and9099

Insert 42 NFL Offensive Personnel Rules

Irecommendusingatwodigitpersonnelnumbertorefertothe
offensivepersonnel.Thepersonnelnumbercodeisthenumberof
runningbacks,followedbythenumberoftightends.Forexample,if
therearetworunningbacks,atightendandtwowidereceivers(in
additiontotheQBandfiveOL),thepersonnelnumberis21.Ifthereisone
back,atightend,andthreewidereceivers,thepersonnelnumberis11.
FootballGameAnalysis/Page41of144

VersusUFDefense1996200
Pers
21
11
20
10
12
22
Others

Snaps
1,271
1,031
695
569
440
224
165

4,395

Percent
28.9%
23.5%
15.8%
12.9%
10.0%
5.1%
3.8%

NFLRegularSeason2011

Pers
11
12
21
22
10
20
00
Others

Snaps
13,034
6,970
6.004
2,833
1,005
761
702
997
32,306

Percent
40.3%
21.6%
18.6%
8.8%
3.1%
2.4%
2.2%
3.1%

Chart 43 Offensive Personnel versus UF Defense 19962000

Inthecaseof"inbetween"players,youmustclassifythemaseitheras
arunningback,atightendorawidereceiver.Forexample,someteams
mighthavean"H"backorsomeotheruniquepositionontheirdepth
chart.Inthesecases,classifyplayersasarunningbackifheeverreceivesa
handofffromthequarterback(wingmaninaWingToffenseorspread
backinthespreadoffense)and/orifhenormallyalignsinthebackfield,as
atightendifhedoesnotgethandoffsandnormallyalignsnearthe
offensivetackles(eitheronorofftheLOS),orasawidereceiverifhe
normallyalignsoutwideandwouldbeadifficultmatchupforalinebacker
tocover.
Somecoachespreferusingnamestorefertopersonnelgroupsrather
thannumbers.Examplesincludenameofcards(King,Queen,Jack)or
colors(Blue,Green,Red).Thisisacceptableaslongaseveryoneisonthe
FootballGameAnalysis/Page42of144

samepage.Theideaistopredefineeachofthepossiblegroupswitha
uniquecode(ornumber)sothereisnoconfusionamongcoachesand
players,especiallyduringthepressureofagame.
ThereasonIrecommendusingthenumbersystemistheabilitytouse
thefirstdigit(thenumberofrunningbacks)istobeabletogroup
personnelnumbersbybacks.Togroupanyplaywherethereareonlytwo
backsonthefield,pullanypersonnelcodebetween20and23.Forthree
runningbacks,selectanycodebetween30and32.
Thereasontheseconddigitisfortightendsratherthanwidereceivers
isgenerallybecauselinebackerscoverbothrunningbacksandtightends
whiledefensivebackscoverwidereceivers.Denotingthenumberofbacks
andtightendsmakeiteasiertoknowthenumberofbigskillplayerson
thefieldversusthenumberofwidereceivers.
Thenumberofwidereceiverscaneasilybecalculatedbyaddingthe
twodigitstogether,andthensubtractingitfromfive.Forexample,22
personnelhasonewidereceiver(2RBs+2TEs=454=1)and10
personnelhasfourwidereceivers(1RB+0TE=151=4).Isuggest
usingthetwodigitnumberratherthanathreedigitnumberasitiseasier
tocommunicate,especiallyduringtensegamedaysituations.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page43of144

Althoughthisisageneralrulethatdoesnotapplytoallteams,thereis
aquickwaytoguesstherun/passpossibilitybasedonthisnumber.Ifyou
addthetwodigitsthatmakeupthepersonnelnumbertogether,thehigher
thenumber,thegreatertherunpossibilityincreases.Theonlyexceptionis
ifthefirstdigitisazero(norunningbacksonthefield).Ifso,treatthesum
ofnumbersaszeroaswell.

Sumoftwodigits
0(00/01/02)
1(10)
2(11/20)
3(12/21/30)
4(13/22/31)
5(14/23/32)

Qty
96
569
1,726
1,711
232
61

R/PRatio
92.7%Pass
73.1%Pass
69.3%Pass
53.7%Run
79.7%Run
80.3%Run

Chart 44 R/P Ratio of Personnel vs. UF Defense 19962000

Sumoftwodigits
"0"(nobacks)
"1"(10)
"2"(11/20)
11pers
20pers
"3"(12/21/30)
12pers
21pers
"4"(13/22/31)
22pers
"5"(14/23/32)

Qty
702
1,005
13,795
13,034
761
13,002
6,970
6,004
3,623
2,833
179

R/PRatio
94.7% pass
87.1% pass
75.8% pass
76.4% pass
66.1% pass
52.1% pass
58.6% pass
55.4% run
64.1% run
65.0% run
66.5% run

Chart 45 R/P Ratio of Personnel in NFL regular season 2011

FootballGameAnalysis/Page44of144


Sometimestherearedifferentplayersinthesamepersonnelgroup,
suchastwotruerunningbacksandatightendratherthanarunningback,
afullbackandatightend.Thesedifferencescanbedenotedbyaddinga
letterafterthenumericalcode.Intheexampleabove,wewoulddenote2
trueRBsandaTEas21P.AnotherpopularvariationintheNFLisOLas
eligibleTEs.WedenotethepersonnelasifheisaTE,thenaddOLtothe
back.Forexample,2receivers,1RB,1TEand1eligibleOLwouldbe
22OL.

(19) Formation Group

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
10

Formationgroupsaredirectlyrelatedtothepersonnelnumber.Once
youdeterminethepersonnelnumber,youwillonlyhaveuptofour
possiblechoicesfortheformationgroupings.Thereareatotalof23
differenttypesofformationgroups(notcountingspecialexceptions).
Formationgroupsarebasedsolelyontheplacementofwidereceivers
andtightendsoneithersideofthecenter.Notethatrunningback
placementshavenoroleindefiningformationgroup.Runningback

FootballGameAnalysis/Page45of144

placementis definedinth
hebackfieldfiield,whichisdiscussedin detaillater.
ningbackisliinedupinan
normalWRorrTEslot,theyyarenot
Evenifarunn
consideredw
whendefininggthisfield.
Somecoaachesprefertousethesamenametorefertoafor mation
regardlessoffthepersonnelvalue.Forexample,a2x2mightbbecalled
Doubles,regardlessifitw
was10,11ore
even12perso
onnelonthe field.I
mendthisaspersonnelan
ndformationggroupinform
mationmight
dontrecomm
notalwaysap
ppeartogetherinreports.Inthiscase,youwouldntknow
whocomprissedtheDoubllesformation
n.Inthissyste
em,a2x2ooutof10
Aceand
personnelwo
ouldbeDoub
bles,2x2outo
of11personn
nelwouldbeA
2x2outof12
2personnelw
wouldbeTech
horTEAce.
Forthep
purposeofdiaagrammingth
heformation groups,thew
wide
receiversare
eshownaswh
hitecircles,tightendsareshownasblaackcircles
andallothersareshownaasgraycircless.

NOB
BACKFORMA
ATIONS
00,01,02
2,03PERSONNEL=EMPTYY/QUADS

Figure 4
46 No Back
k Formation Groups
FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page4
46of144

ONEBAC
CKFORMATIO
ONS

10PEERSONNEL=DOUBLES/TRIO

11PEERSONNEL=ACE/TRIPS//TRYPS
12PEERSONNEL=TECH/TECHTWINS/TEA
ACE/TETRIPPS

(11) ACE TE
E/WR on strong side / 2 WRs
W on wk side

k Formation
n Groups
Figure 47 OneBack

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page4
47of144

TWOBA
ACKFORMATIONS

20PEERSONNEL= 3WIDES

21PEERSONNEL=PRO/TWINSS

22PEERSONNEL=PROT/TEPR
RO

23PEERSONNEL=3TE

Figure 48
8 TwoBack Formation
n Groups

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page4
48of144

THREEBACKFORMAT
TIONS

30PEERSONNEL=SPLIT

31PEERSONNEL=3BACK

32PEERSONNEL=TIGHT

Figure 49
9 ThreeBacck Formatio
on Groups

becoveredinthissection. However,
Noteveryalignmentccanpossiblyb
these23form
mationgroupingscanacco
ountforthevvastmajorityoofthem.In
mylastfouryyearsatUF,w
werecordedaatotalof4,39
95playsplayeedagainst
ourdefenseaandonly37p
playscouldno
otbegrouped
d.Thatmeanns99.2%of

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page4
49of144

allplayswescoutedweregroupedintooneofthese23groups.Ofthe37
exceptions,theseplayscouldbegroupedintothreetypesofexceptions.
ThefirsttypeiswhenaplayerotherthantheQBalignstotakethe
directsnapfromcentertoeitherrunorpasstheball(theWildcat,for
example).ForWildcatformations,IrecommendaddingWCtothe
beginningoftheformationgroupname,suchasWCACEorWCTRIO.If
theQBstaysonthefield,treathimasaWR.
ThesecondtypeiswhenaWRoraTEalignsinthebackfield,creatinga
passcoveringmismatchagainstalinebacker,orgettingintoarunning
backfieldalignmentafterthedefensehasalignedinapassdefending
personnelgroupandalignment.Fortheseformations,addthepersonnel
totheendoftheformationgroupname.Forexample,iftheTEalignsin
thebackfieldasafullback,callit"Pro12"(itlookedlikeProformation
group,butconsistedof12personnelonthefield)
Thethirdtypeoccurswhentheoffensivelinemenaligninaunique
locationinordertotrytocatchthedefenseoffguard.Forthese,develop
yourownformationgroupnamethatisbothuniqueanddescriptive.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page50of144


Figure 41
10 Formatiion Group Exxceptions
POSITION LETTER CO
ODES
Asyoum
mighthavenoticedinthefo
ormationgro
oupingdiagram
ms,wide
receiverandtightendlettterdesignatio
onsaredeterminedbytheeirlocation
inrelationto
otheformatio
onstrength.TThepurposeofdesignatinngthe
receiver'sletterbylocatio
onistogroup
preceiverroutesandjerse ynumber
bythegeneralalignment totheformattionstrength.Alleligiblerreceivers
arenumbere
edfromtheoutsidereceive
eronthestro
ongsidetothheoutside
receiverontheweakside
e.Numberthereceiversusingtheterm
ms#1
strong,#2strrong,#3,#2w
weakandthen#1weak.FForexample,iifthereisa
widereceiveralignedasthefarthestoutfromtheccentertothefformation
ealwaysa"Z"".Ifanyeligi ble
strength,heis#1strongaandtherefore
receiversare
estackedonebehindanoth
her,theonecclosertothe LOSis
numberedfirrst.

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page5
51of144

#1SttrongWR=Z
#2W
WeakWR=A

#2Stro
ongWR=S
#1We
eakWR=X

#3WR=U

eside,#4isd esignated
SpecialexceptionifttherearefourWRsonone
bytheletter"Q"(forQuads)
dletterdesign
nationisdefinedfirstbyth
henumberofftightends
Tightend
andthenbytthelocationw
withineachfo
ormation.IftthereisonlyooneTE,he
isalwaysa"YY".WithmulttipleTEsets,theletterasssignmentsareegenerally
donebythesstrongsideTEontheLOS,,followedbyweaksideTEEonLOS,
followedbysstrongsideTEEoffLOS.Seetheformatiiongroupchaartsfor
exactletteraassignments.

1stTEE=Y

2ndTE=E

3rdTE=U

Figure
e 411 Posiition Letter C
Codes

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page5
52of144

UNBALANC
CED FORMA
ATIONS AN
ND COVERE
ED RECEIVE
ERS
Unbalanccedisatermusedtodesiggnateasituattionwheretw
woreceivers
areontheLO
OSonthesam
mesideofthe
eformationA
ANDallother eligible
receiversare
elocatedonthesamesideonthecente
er.Ifallrecei versareon
onesideofth
heformation,thenusethe
eterm"Unb""followedby the
personnelnu
umberastheformationgroup.Iftherearereceiverssonboth
sidesofthefformation,bu
uttworeceive
ersonthesam
mesideoftheeformation
areontheLO
OS,usethestandardformaationgroupthatdescribessthe
receivers'loccationsandm
maketheadjustmentinthe
esetdatafiel dwiththe

prefixof"Covver"(Seesettformoreinfformation)
Figure 4
412 Unballanced Form
mations

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page5
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(20) Formation Strength

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
1
L,R

Onceyouhavedeterminedtheformationgroup,youwillneedto
determinetheformationstrength.Alloftheformationgroupdiagramsare
shownasstrengthleft(MLB'spointofview).
Therearetwomaindecisionstomakeindevelopingyoursystem
regardingformationstrength.
Yourfirstdecisioniswhetherornottodefinetheformationstrength
firstbythetightendlocationorbythenumberofpossiblepassreceivers.
Thedecisionwillmostlikelydependonyourdefensivescheme.Wedidit
bothwaysatUFdependinguponourschemeanddefensivecoordinator.
Ifyoursecondary'salignmentisindependentofyourdefensivefront,
thenyouwillprobablyprefertoassignstrengthbasedonpassreceiver
threats.Ifyoursecondary'salignmentisdependentonthefrontalignment
andthefrontalignmentisbasedonthefrontstrength,youwillwantto
basestrengthontheTElocation.[Notethatalloftheformationgrouping
diagramsinthisbookareshownasstrengthleftbasedontheTElocation.]

FootballGameAnalysis/Page54of144

Yourseconddecisioniswhosepointofviewyouwanttouseeither
thequarterback'sorthemiddlelinebacker's.Thisisimportantbecausethe
quarterbacks'rightisthemiddlelinebacker'sleft.
Asdiscussedpreviously,thesamepointofviewyouusetodetermine
formationstrength(QB'sorMLB's)needstobethesamepointofviewyou
needtousetodeterminethehashvalue.
RULESFORFORMATIONSTRENGTHBASEDONTELOCATION
Checkthefollowingrulesuntilfulfilled.
1.)Ifonesidehasmoretightendsthantheotherside,thecallistothat
side.
2.)Ifthetightendsarebalanced(ornotthere),buttherearemore
widereceiversononesideoftheformationthantheother,thecall
istothesideofmorewidereceivers.
3.)IfTEandWRsarebothbalanced,buttheballisonahash,thecallis
tothefield.
4.)Ifbalancedandinthemiddleofthefield,strengthisright.We
definedittotherightbecausemostquarterbacksarerighthanded
andthereforethrowstotherightaregenerallyeasierthanthrows
totheleftintermsoffootworkandvision.

RULESFORFORMATIONSTRENGTHBASEDONPASSINGSTRENGTH
Checkthefollowingrulesuntilfulfilled.
1.)Ifonesidehasmoreeligiblereceiversthantheotherside,thecallis
tothatside.
2.)Iftheeligiblereceiversarebalanced,buttherearemorewide
receiversononesideoftheformationthantheother,thecallisto
thesideofmorewidereceivers.
3.)IfTEandWRsarebothbalanced,buttheballisonahash,thecallis
tothefield.
4.)Ifbalancedandinthemiddleofthefield,strengthisright.We
definedittotherightbecausemostquarterbacksarerighthanded
andthereforethrowstotherightaregenerallyeasierthanthrows
totheleftintermsoffootworkandvision.
FootballGameAnalysis/Page55of144


Figurre 413 Form
mation Stren
ngth

(21) TE Location
n
Attributte
FIELDTY
YPE
LENGTH
H
VALUELLIMITS

Texxt
1
L,R
R

Ifyoudefinetheform
mationstrengtthfieldbased
donpassingsstrength
ecordtheTEllocationinthefield.Ifyouudefine
ratherthanTTElocation,re
formationstrrengthbasedonTElocatio
on,youdono
otneedtouseethisfield.

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page5
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(22) Set
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
18

Therootofeverysetisitsformationgroupname.Adjustmentprefixes
and/orsuffixeswillbeaddedtodenoteanyalignmentchangestothesetin
comparisontothewaytheyappearontheformationgrouppages.Any
adjustmentsthatoccuronthestrongsideofthesetwillbelistedinfront
oftheformationgroupname.Anyadjustmentsthatoccurontheweak
sidewillappearbehindtheformationgroupname.Youcanhavemultiple
prefixes,multiplesuffixes,oranycombinationofbothprefixesandsuffixes
tocorrectlydescribeagivenset.Notethatifthereismotionontheplay,
describethesetatthemomenttheballissnapped.Anymotionswillbe
denotedinthemovementfieldthatisdescribedlaterinthischapter.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page57of144


Figu
ure 414 Se
et Adjustmen
nts
Inadditio
ontotheadju
ustmentprefiixesandsuffixxesasdescribbedabove,
anynobacksetsmustalsobedescribe
edinfurtherd
detailtoaccoountforthe
FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page5
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players'exacctalignment.ThereasonEEmptyandQu
uadformationngroups
aredifferentfromallothe
ergroupsisbecauseEmptyyorQuadscaanbeany
Personnelco
ombinationoffwidereceive
ersandtighte
endspossibleefrom00to
03.InordertodefineEmptyformation
ngroups,imaaginethe#1w
weak
receiverisno
otthereandtthendescribe
etheformatio
ongroupthattwould
exist.(Seefiggure413)Addthisvalueaasasuffixtottheroot"Emppty".For
Quadformattiongroups,im
maginethe#1strongrece
eiverisnottheereand
addthisvalueasasuffixttotheroot"Q
Quad".Anyottherformatioonprefixes
nctiontothisnamingmethhodof
andsuffixesccanalsobeusedinconjun
emptybackfiieldsets.

& Quad Form
mations
Figure 415 Empty &

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page5
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(23) Shotgun
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
1
G

Justasthefieldnameapplies,thisfieldrecordsifthequarterback
alignsinashotgunalignment.Playcalls,especiallyrunningplays,differ
basedoniftheQBisinashotgunalignmentornot.

(24) Backfield
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
3

Thereare18differenttypesofstandardbackfieldswithhundredsof
possiblevarieties.Backfieldsarebaseduponthebackfieldchart,whichin
turnisbaseduponformationstrength.[Notethatifthereisbackfield
motionontheplay,backfieldshouldbedefinedasitisthemomenttheball
issnapped.]Anymotionswillbedenotedinthemovementfieldthatis
describedlaterinthischapter.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page60of144


Figure 41
16 Backfielld Number L
Locations
Ifthereaarenorunningbacksinthe
efield(personnelgroupstthatstart
witha0),the
ebackfieldvalueisautomaatically"EM"foremptybaackfield.

STAN
NDARDONEB
BACKBACKFIEELDSETS
3Tailbaack'sstandard
dlocation(be
ehindQB/4orrmoreyards deep)
2Fullbaack'sstandard
dlocation(be
ehindQB/with
hin4yards)
4Tailbaackshiftedtoformationstrength
5Tailbaackshiftedaw
wayfromform
mationstrenggth
PPistolalignment(Q
QBshotgunw
withRBdirecttlybehind)

Figurre 417 One
eBack Exam
mples

NDARDTWOBACKBACKFIELDSETS
STAN

IFullbacckinthe"2"location,tailb
backinthe"3
3"location
INFullb
backinthe"4"location,tailbackinthe""3"location
IFFullbaackinthe"5""location,tailbackinthe""3"location
NRFullb
backinthe"4
4"location,taailbackinthe"2"location (backson
thesameleve
t
el)
FRFullb
backinthe"5"location,tailbackinthe"2"location((backson
thesameleve
t
el)
SPRunn
ningbacksinthe"4"andtthe"5"locatio
ons
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Figure
e 418 Two
oBack Exam
mples
STANDAR
RDTHREEBA
ACKBACKFIELDSETS
STK(StackI)Allthreebacksinastraigghtverticallin
nea"2",a" B",anda
"3"(Designatethe
emiddlebackkwiththeletterB)
T(T)Allthre
eebacksinastraighthorizzontallineaa"4",a"3",annda"6"
(Usea"3"rathertthana"2"todenoteadiffferencebetw
weenaT
backfieldandawishbonebackkfield.)
BON(Wishb
bone)Allthre
eebacksinah
horizontallinewiththefu llback
move
edupcloserttoQBa"4",a"2",anda"6"
SHO(Shoot)Doublewinggsetwithfullbacka"6",a"2",anda""7"
FR6(WingTTStrong)Affarset(a"2"anda"5")withthethirdR
RBinthe
stron
ngwingpositiion("6")
NR7(WingTTWeak)An
nearSet(a"2"anda"4")w
withthethird RBinthe
weakkwingpositio
on("7")
PIS(PowerIStrong)Ibacckfieldwithaathirdoffsetb
backtothefoormation
stren
ngtha"2",a""3",anda"4""
PIW(PowerrIWeak)Ibackfieldwithaathirdoffsetbackawayfroomthe
form
mationstrengttha"2",a"3"",anda"5"

Figure
e 419 Thre
eeBack Exam
mples
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UNUSUAL BACKFIELD
DS
nately,notevverybackfieldfitsoneofth
hestandardddefinitions.
Unfortun
Foroneortw
wobackbackffields,usethe
ebackfieldnu
umberingchaartandthe
widereceiverlettercharttodefinethe
elocationoftthebacks.Reememberto
remainconsttantinyourd
definitionsascomputersofftwareconsidders2Xand
X2twodifferrentbackfield
ds.Agoodruleofthumbistoalwaysp lace
numbersbefforeletters.Iftherearetw
wonumberso
ortwoletterss,Isuggest
numbersbefforelettersan
ndplacedinaalphabeticallyyorder.This helpsin
namingconsistency.
Forthree
ebackunusuaalbackfields,trytocombinesomeofthhestandard
twobackbacckfielddefinittionswithanadditionalnu
umber/letter todescribe
thethirdbacck.(i.e.aI6backfieldisan"I"backfield a"2"anda"3"with
anadditionalbackaligned
dasastrongw
wing"6")

Figurre 420 Unu
usual Backfiields
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(25) Formation
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH

Text
MERGECombinationofformationand
backfield
22

Thisfieldisthemergedvaluesofsetandbackfieldwithadashin
between.(i.e.IfsetisFxAceGn,andbackfieldis4,formationwould
beFxAceGn4)Thiswillallowreportstoconsidertheentirespecific
alignmentofall11offenseplayersinonefield.

(26) Alignment
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
3

Alignmentreferstoalignmentofalleligiblereceiversoneithersideof
thecenter.Forexample,both10personnelDoublesformationsand11
personnelAceformationsarealignedina2x2look.Thisfieldvalueisthe
numberofeligiblereceivers(includingrunningbacks)locatedoutofthe
backfieldonthestrongside,followedbyax,thenthenumberofeligible
receiversontheweakside(includingrunningbacks).Itdoesnotcountany
playersinthebackfield.Basedonwheretherunningbackaligns,anAce
formationcouldeasybea2x2,a3x2ora2x3.IfaWRwastomotion

FootballGameAnalysis/Page64of144

inthebackfie
eldtojoinarunningback,thealignmen
ntnumbercoouldthenbe
2x1or1x2
2.Thepurpo
oseistobeabletoevaluateroutecom
mbinations
outofsimilarralignments,regardlessoffdifferentpe
ersonnel,setsand
backfields,asswellasunde
erstandthep
possibledefen
nsiveadjustm
mentsand
playstheyco
ouldfacebase
edonreceiverlocations.

Figure
e 421 Alig
gnment Exam
mples

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(27) Boundary
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH
FIELDVALUES

Text
CALCULATEDBasedonhashandstrength
values
1
B

Boundaryplaysareanyplaysinwhichthehashvalueandthe
formationstrengthareequal.IfyouusetheTElocationfield,theboundary
formulawouldbeBiftheTElocationandhashvaluesareequal.Inother
words,theseareformationsinwhichtherunningstrengthoftheformation
istotheshortsideofthefieldratherthanthewidesideofthefield.
Offensivecoachesmightaligntheirformationtotheboundaryinorder
toisolatewidefielddefendersortogetaspecificdefensivealignmentand
theuseandfrequencyofsuchoccurrencesareimportanttoanalyze.
Motions, Shifts & Trades Fields
Asthetitlesuggests,allpresnapmovementarecategorizedintothree
groupsmotions,shifts&trades.Motionisthepresnapmovementof
oneplayerthatmayormaynotstillbeinmotionatthetimetheballis
snapped.Ashiftisthesimultaneousmovementofmorethanoneplayer
withallofthemcomingtoacompletestopforatleastonesecondpriorto
thesnapoftheball.Tradeisthetightendshiftingfromtheendman
FootballGameAnalysis/Page66of144

positionoftheoffensivelinetotheotherendmanpositiononthe
offensivelineandresetting.[Notethattightendmotionwherethetight
enddoesnotresetastheendmanonthelineofscrimmageisdefinedasa
motion,notatrade.]

7.1.5.aIfaplayisprecededbyahuddleorshift,allplayersoftheoffensive
teammustcometoanabsolutestopandremainstationaryintheirpositions,
withoutmovementofthefeet,body,headorarms,foratleastonefullsecond
beforetheballissnapped.
7.1.3.b.4Oneplayermaybeinmotion,butnotinmotiontowardhis
opponentsgoalline.Alinemanmaynotbeinmotionatthesnap.Other
playersmustbestationaryintheirpositionswithoutmovementofthefeet,
headorarms.

Insert 422 Collegiate Rules Regarding Motion

FootballGameAnalysis/Page67of144





Figure 423
F
Motion, Shif
ift and Trade
es Exampless
Thereare
etwomainw
waystodefine
emovement.Thefirstme thodisto
defineanden
nterinseparaatefieldstheoffensesinittialalignmentt(pre
movementse
et,premovementstrength,andpremovementbacckfield)and
thenanotherrsetoffieldstodenotetheirlocationatthesnapofftheball.
Theadvantaggesarethatittiseasytovissualizetheiriinitialalignmeent.Also,
reportscane
easilybegene
eratedbasedontheinitialalignment.TThe
disadvantage
esarethattheenteringofthreeadditio
onalfieldsisttime
consumingandcumberso
ome.Itisalso
odifficulttop
putalloftheiinformation
onanumberrofthereporttformats,andtheexactm
motion(andeeven
FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page6
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sometimestheexactplayer)mightnotbeabletobedeterminedby
comparingthefields.
Thesecondmethodistodescribethemovementinacodetowhich
premovementalignmentcanbefiguredout.Thisisthemethodthatwill
bedescribedindetailbelow.Theadvantageofthissystemisthatitcan
easilybeassociatedwithpostmovementformationonalmosteveryreport
format.Thedisadvantagesofthissystemisthatitishardertovisualize
premovementalignmentandit'sverydifficulttoprintreportsdescribing
premovementalignmentbasedonthisfieldonly.Inthisbook,motions,
shiftsandtradesareallcombinedintoonefield,butseparatefieldscanbe
usedifdesired.
Itispossibletouseeithermethodorevenbothmethods
simultaneouslybasedonwhatyouwantyourreportstoshow.Aswithall
fieldsinthisbook,itisimportantforyoutodeterminewhatinformation
youneedtoseeonyourreports.Thiswilldictatewhatfieldsyouwillneed
touse.

(28) Movement
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
8

FootballGameAnalysis/Page69of144

Eachofthethreepossibletypesofmovementmotion,shiftandtrade
willbedescribedseparately.[Notethatitispossibletohavemultiple
typesofmovementonthesameplayandthisfieldiscapableofdenoting
that.]
MOTIONTHATDOESNOTSTARTORSTOPINTHEBACKFIELD
Asexplainedearlier,set,strengthandbackfielddefinitionsdescribethe
players'alignmentatthetimetheballissnapped.Themotioncoding
systemforanyplayernotinitiallyalignedinthebackfieldconsistsofthree
parts.
Differentsystemscanbedevelopedbasedonwhatinformationyou
want.Ihaveworkedwithsometeamsthathavedevelopedadetailed
systemofidentifyingthehorizontallocationthatisusedtodescribethe
motionmanspath.Ihavealsoworkedwithotherteamsthathavesimply
markedthisfieldwithaMtodenotethattheplayhadaplayerinmotion.
Whowasinmotionandwheretheymotiontowasnotimportanttothem
intheirreports.
Theimportantpartistodeterminewhatyouwanttoknowandthen
developasystemtorecordthisinformationinaconciseandconsistent
manner.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page70of144

(29) Audible/NoHuddle
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
1
A,N,C

Justasthefieldnameapplies,thisfieldrecordsifthequarterback
visiblyaudiblesatthelineofscrimmageoriftheoffenseisinanohuddle
situation.Placean"A"inthisfieldiftheQBaudibles.Iftheoffenseisin
nohuddle,placean"N"inthisfield.Allnohuddlesituationsalsoimplyan
audiblebythequarterback.
Withsomecurrentcollegiateandhighschooloffenses,itmakessense
tomarkaudiblesinwhichtheQBoreventheentireteamfirstlookstothe
sidelinewithaCforcheckwithme.TrueQBcalledaudibleplaysversus
playchangescalledfromthesidelinecouldbequitedifferentandtherefore
shouldbestudiedseparately.
Dependingontheoffensivesystem,aquarterbackmighthaveonlya
fewaudiblesheisabletocall.Toknowwhatthoseaudiblesarewillgive
youadefiniteedge.Forteamsthatcheckwiththesideline,youmightbe
abletodeterminepatternsintheircallsandmakeplansforitinyour
gameplan.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page71of144

(30) Bunch Formation

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
1
B

Thisfieldistorecordanybunchalignmentofeligiblereceivers.The
purposeistobeabletostudyrouteconceptsandtendenciesforsituations
whichcouldrequiredefensiveadjustments,suchasaBanjocall.

(31) StrongSide Split / WeakSide Split

Attribute(sameforbothfields)
FIELDTYPE
Text
LENGTH
1
VALUELIMITS O,N,A,H,M
Thesetwofieldsrefertothesplitsofthe#1strongreceiverandthe#1
weakreceiver.Notethatthiscouldbeanytypeofreceiverwidereceiver,
tightendorrunningback.Thepurposeistotryandidentifycertainroutes
tendenciesbasedonwidestreceiverlocation.Thecodesare:

O=Outsidebetweenthenumbersandthesideline
N=Numbersthisisbeingalignedonthenumbers
A=Alleythisisthespacehalfwaybetweenthehashand
thetopofthenumbers
H=Hashthisisalignedwithinthreeyardsofthehash.
M=Middlethisisthespacebetweenthehashes

FootballGameAnalysis/Page72of144

Chapter 5 Play Data

Theplaydatasectionfieldsgiveacompletedescriptionoftheoffensive
playthatwasrun.Theimportantpartofthesefieldsistobreakthe
informationinpiecesthatcanbeanalyzedindependently.Thissection
couldhaveasmanyas23differentfieldsshouldyouchoosetousethem
all.

(32) Run/Pass/No Play

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
1
R,P,N

Ifitisarunningplay,enteran"R".Ifitisapassingplay,entera

"P".Iftheplayisstoppedbeforethesnaporimmediatelyafterthesnap
butbeforeyoucoulddeterminewhattheplaywasgoingitbe,enteran"N"
forNoPlay.Ifaplayisruntoitsfullconclusion,andthencalledback
becauseofapenalty,enter"R"or"P"andthenreflectthepenaltyandthe
penaltyyardsinthepropercolumns.Theonlyreasonstouse"N"isto
identifyplaysthathavenovalueinbeingscouted.ForNFLteamsthatget
GSIS,thisrun/passfieldcanbeautocalculatedbythepassresultcolumn

FootballGameAnalysis/Page73of144

andanotherfield(noplayorskip)wouldthenneedtodenotethatif
playhasnovalueandshouldnotbeincludedinanyreports.

(33) Play Type

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
1
Limitedtothe17valueslistedbelow

Aplaytypeisawaytogrouptogethersimilarplaysforreporting
purposes.Thisfieldwillbeextremelyusefulinsummarytypereportsas
wellasplayerreportsinbeingabletogroupthetypeofplaystogether.
Idefined17differentplaytypesinthisbook,10differentruntypes,six
differentpasstypesandonefortrickplays.Youcandefineasmanyoras
fewplaytypegroupsasdesired.
AnotherwayIhaveusedtheplaytypefieldinthepastisbygrouping
runsintojustfourgroups,namelyonebackinsideruns,onebackoutside
runs,twobackinsiderunsandtwobackoutsideruns.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page74of144

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

C
D
F
L
O
Q
R
T
W
Z

10RunPlayTypes
Counter
Draw
FBRuns
Lead/Iso//Power
Option
QBRuns
Trap
TossorSw
weep
Wham
Zone
Figurre 51 Runn
ning Play Ty
ypes

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Figure 52 Running P
Play Types Co
ontinued
FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page7
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1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

SixP
PassPlayType
es
3 Quick
5 Dropbackk
6 Sprint
P Playactio
on
S
Screen
B Boot,Wagggle,PARoll

Figu
ure 53 Passsing Play Ty
ypes

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TrickPlays
1. XAllTricksplays(runsorpasses),suchasreversesordoublepasses
o TrickRunAnyrunningplaywheretheTB,FBorQBisnotthe
ballcarrier
o TrickPassAnypassingplaywheretheballisthrownby
anyonebuttheQB

(34) Play Code

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
6

PLAY CODE DESIGNATION FOR RUNNING PLAYS

Inthissystem,wedescribedallrunplaysbyatwodigitnumber.

FIRSTDIGITFORRUNS
Thefirstdigitdescribestheballcarrier'slocation.Usethesamechart
asyouusedtodefinethebackfield.IfaWRoraRBinaWRlocationcarries
theball,usetheirletterdesignationasdefinedinformationgroupdiagram.
SECONDDIGITFORRUNS
Theseconddigitdesignatestheholetheoffensiveplayisdesignedto
attack.Therearegenerallytwowaystodefineholehitvalues.Thefirst
methodistodesignateholehitvaluesbydirection.(i.e.Alloftheholesto
therightareevennumberedandalloftheholestotheleftareodd
FootballGameAnalysis/Page78of144

numbered.)Whilethisinfformationwillalwaystellyyouiftheyraantheball
orleftintherreports,itcan
nnotbyitselftellyouifitw
wasrunto
totherighto
theformation'sstrongorweakside.
ond(andmyp
preferred)me
ethodistode
enoteholehittvaluesby
Theseco
formationstrrength.Fore
example,allevennumbere
edholesareaalwaysto
theformationstrongside
eandalloddn
numberedho
olesaretotheeweak
side.Wecandetermineiftherunwasstotherightorleftbyusi nga
calculatedfie
eldcalledplayydirectionthatwillbedesscribedlateriinthebook.
0=Middleofccentertooutsiidelegofcente
erontheform
mation'sstrongside
1=Middleofccentertooutsiidelegofcente
erontheform
mation'sweaksside
2=Outsideleggofcentertoo
outsidelegofgguardonthefo
ormation'sstroongside
3=Outsideleggofcentertoo
outsidelegofgguardonthefo
ormation'swe akside
4=Outsideleggofguardtoo
outsidelegoftaackleonthefo
ormation'sstroongside
5=Outsideleggofguardtoo
outsidelegoftaackleonthefo
ormation'sweaakside
6=Outsideleggoftackletoo
outsidelegoftightendontheformation'ssstrongside
7=Outsideleggoftackletoo
outsidelegoftightendontheformation'sw
weakside
8=Outsidetheoutsidelego
oftightendontheformation
n'sstrongside
oftightendontheformation
n'sweakside
9=Outsidetheoutsidelego
hereisnoTE,determine6/8h
holeor7/9holeasiftheTEw
wasthere.
NOTEifth

Fig
gure 54 Ho
ole Hit Based on Formattion Strengtth
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Notethatthedefinitionstateswheretheballisdesignedtoattack.
Somerunningplaysareclearlydesignedtoattackonecertainhole,but
becauseofthedefense,theballcarriermaycuttheballbackorbounceit
outside.Byrecordingtheattemptedlocation,youaredenotingwherethey
willbetryingtorunitagainiftheyrunthesameplayagainstyou.
PLAY CODE DESIGNATION FOR PASSING PLAYS
Theplaycodevaluesforpassingplaysareusedtodefinethedirection
anddetailsofthepassprotectionscheme.
PLAYACTIONPASSES
Playactionpassesaredefinedsimilartotherunningplays,exceptthey
willstartwiththeletterP.Thenextdigitdenotesthebackthatwas
fakedtoandthenthelastdigitthenumberholethefakewasto(i.e.34isa
runofthe3backtothe4hole).P34isaplayactionpassfakeofthe3back
tothe4hole.
SCREENS
Otherpassesthathavearunplayfake,suchasplayactionscreensand
boots,aredescribedthesamewaywithasuffixendingtoidentifywhat
typeofplay.Aplayactionscreenpassislabeledsimilartotheplayaction
pass(aPfollowedbytwonumbers).However,ascreentypesuffixis
FootballGameAnalysis/Page80of144

thenaddedtonotewhattypeofscreeniswas(i.e.P34SWGisarunplay
faketothe3backinthe4holefollowedbyaWRswing/bubblescreen).
Ifthescreenisrunwithoutplayaction,addQKforathreestepand
DBforafivetosevenstepdropandthenaddthescreensuffix(i.e.QK
SWGisathreestepWRswing/bubblescreen).

FootballGameAnalysis/Page81of144


Figu
ure 55 Scrreen Examplles
FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page8
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BOOTPASSES
Bootpassesaredonethesamewayasplayactionscreenpasses.Use
thefollowingboottypesuffixes(i.e.P34BT):

Bootsuffixesanddescriptions

Boot(BT)PlayactionwithQBrollingoppositedirectionofall
RBs

Waggle(WG)Playactionwithbackssplit,QBrollsopposite
directionof2ndRB

PARoll(PA)PlayactionwithQBrollinginsamedirectionof
RBs

QUICK,DROPBACKANDSPRINTPASSES
Thereareanumberofmethodsyoucanusetodescribepass
protectionschemesthatdontinvolvearunplayfake.
OnemethodistosimplyindicateQKforquickpass,DBfor
dropbackpass,andSPRforsprintpass.
Asecondmethodistousetheoffensivetypeterminology.Anexample
wouldbe2Jetor3Jetprotection.Inthiscase,putthe2or3in
thisfieldandplaceJetinthenextfield(blockingscheme).

FootballGameAnalysis/Page83of144

Athirdmethodistodevelopadetailedcodetoidentifythebasic
elementsofthepassprotectionscheme.Asystemisdescribedbelow.
[Noteifyouuseallpartofthefollowingcode,playcodelengthneedsto
beexpandedto10characters.]
LOCATION
FIRSTDIGIT

SECONDDIGIT

DESCRIPTION
NumberofstepstheQB
drops

Numberofblockers

THRIDDIGIT

Directionthecenterblocks

FOURDIGIT

Directionthebacksblock

DASH
ADD.LETTERS

Lettersofadd.Blockers

CODE
3=Quickpass
5=5/7stepdrop
8=Sprintstrong
9=Sprintweak
Numberfrom5to0
(0means10)
0=dropsstraightback
1=blocksweak
2=blockstrong
0=Nobackblock
1=allbacksblock
weak
2=allbacksblock
strong
3=backssplit
Addsseparateincode
Thepositionlettersof
anyadditionalblockers

Table 56 Defining Pass Protection Schemes

CodeExamples

3711YT(Quickpasswithsevenblockers(TE&TB),OCandTBblockweak)
5520(Dropbackpasswithfiveblockers,OCblocksstrong)
8622T(Sprintstrongwithsixblockers(TB),OCandTBbothblockstrong)

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(35) Blocking Scheme

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
12

BLOCKING SCHEME DESIGNATION FOR RUNNING PLAYS

Entertheblockingschemeusedbytheoffensiveline(i.e.WhamorCtr
FB).Forexamplesonmyterminology,referbacktotherunningplaytype
table.Thislistisfarfromcompletehowever,andthedecisionofhowto
consistentlynamespecificschemeswillbeoneofthechallengesyouwill
face.
BLOCKING SCHEME DESIGNATION FOR PASSING PLAYS
Thepurposeofthisfieldforpassplaysistogroupthepassprotections
togetherintolargegroups.Youmaydecidethatyoudonotneedthis
groupingofpassprotectionscheme.Ifso,justleavethisfieldblankforall
passplays.
PLAYACTIONPASSES,INCLUDINGPLAYACTIONSCREENSANDBOOTS
Enterageneraldescriptionoftheprotection.Forexample,PALead
Weakwouldidentifythisplayasaplayactionpassusingleadweakrun
action.
QUICK,DROPBACKANDSPRINTPASSES
FootballGameAnalysis/Page85of144

Ifyoudecidedtousemethodtwoindescribingnonplayactionpass
protectionsintheplaycodefield(usingoffensiveterminology),simply
enterthepartoftheschemenamethatdoesnotindicatedirection,suchas
Jet.Ifyouusedanyothermethod,enteragenericnameofthetypeof
passprotectionscheme.ExamplescouldbeSlideStrongorBigonBig.
Thiswillassistingroupingpassprotectionstogetherforfurtherstudy.

(36) Blocking Adjustments

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
10

Thisfieldistodenoteanyblockingschemevariations,suchasafold
blockbythecenterandapullblockbytheguard.Wedidnotusethisfield
oftenaswemanuallydrewupeveryblockingvariation,butsomecoaches
mightfindthisinformationuseful.Aswithallofthedatafields,youmust
remainconstantinyournamingpracticessothesameblockadjustment
doesnotappearastwodifferentadjustmentstothecomputer.
Forselfscoutpurposes,anyactualoffensivelinecallscanbedenoted
here(suchasTagorCOG)tostudyiftherightcallsarebeingmadeand
howeffectiveeachcallis.Thisisalsoextremelyusefullaterinmakingof
trainingtapes.

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(37) Pass Concepts (Passing plays only)

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
2
Limitedto12concepts

Passconceptsisawaytogroupsimilarpassroutephilosophies.This
fieldwillenableyoutolookfortrendsinroutepatternsbasedondata
fields,suchasdown,distanceorformation,withoutgettingoverwhelmed
withalloftheroutedetailsandvariations.Thefollowingisasystemto
grouproutesinto12differentgroupsalthoughaswithallterminologyin
thebookyoucancreatemoreorlesstomatchyourneeds.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page87of144

Fourconceptsdealwiiththetypeo
ofpassandth
heformation.

Figure
e 57 and 58
8 Route Con
ncepts

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88of144

Eightcon
nceptsareforrplayactionaanddropbackkroutecombbinations.

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page8
89of144

(38) Pass Description (Passing plays only)

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
25

Thisfieldisusedtorecordthepassroutes.Therearetypicallyfour
schoolsofthoughts.

Option1Recordthereceiverthrowntoandtheirroute(i.e.X
GOorZCORNER).

Option2Developanumberedroutetreeandrecordallofthe
receiversinanumberedform.Werecordedfromthe#1
strongreceivertothe#1weakreceiver.Ifaneligiblereceiver
isblocking,weputadashinitsspot.Forexample,969"
means#1strongand#1weakreceiversrango(9)routes,#2
strongreceiverranadig(6)andtheothertwoeligible
receiversblocked.

Option3Usethisfieldasamergefield.Youwouldnot
recordanythinghere,butusethefiveroutefieldsdescribed
latertomergeintoonecharacterstring.Thevaluewouldbe
similartooptiontwoinwhicheachofthereceiversroutesare
described,butwouldbemoredetailed.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page90of144

Option4For
O
rselfscoutpu
urposes,ente
erthenameoofthepass
plays(i.e.Ralp
p
phorCornerss)asyouwou
uldcalltheplaayinthe
huddle.
h

Again,whatoptionyo
ouwanttousewillreallyd
dependonwhhatyou
wanttogeto
outofthisfieldinyourrep
ports.

Figure 59 N
F
Numbered R
Route Tree F
For Option 2

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page9
91of144

Detailed Pass Route Analysis

Thenextthreefields(whichareactuallyfifteenfields)wouldrecordthe
jerseynumber,positionandroutesofeveryeligiblereceiverforeachpass
play.Byrecordingthisinformation,youwillbeabletogetanindepthlook
attheentirepasssystem,includingwherespecificplayersalignincertain
formations,whatroutesarerunoutofthedifferentpersonalgroups,what
routesarerunbythe#1strongreceiverincertainsituations,alltheroutes
ranbyaspecificplayer,etc.
Thesefieldsaretimeconsumingtorecordbutwillprovideyouwitha
wealthofinformation.Itisimportanttodeterminehowvaluablethis
informationistoyoubeforedecidingonusingthese15fieldsornot.

(39) Receiver Jerseys

***Notethatthereareactuallyfivefields#1StrJer,#2StrJer,#3Jer,
#2WkJer,#1WkJer***
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Numeric
2

Thisisthejerseynumberofthereceiversastheyarealignedfrom#1
strongto#1weak.(Referbacktoformationgroupforreceiver
designations)

FootballGameAnalysis/Page92of144

(40) Receiver Positions

***Notethatthereareactuallyfivefields#1StrPos,#2StrPos,#3
Pos,#2WkPos,#1WkPos***
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
1

Thisistheletterornumberdesignationofthereceiversastheyare
alignedfrom#1strongto#1weak.

(41) Receiver Routes

***Notethatthereareactuallyfivefields#1StrRte,#2StrRte,#3
Rte,#2WkRte,#1WkRte***
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
4

Thisistheroutecodeofthereceiversastheyarealignedfrom#1
strongto#1weak.Theroutesaredefinedusingatwolettercode.The
reasonwedidnotusethenumberedroutetreeisbecausetherearemore
than10possibleroutesanditiseasiertoreadandinterprettheroute's
abbreviationratherthanusingatwodigitcodeoracombinationof
numbersandabbreviations.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page93of144

Thefield isfourcharacterswideinordertoacco
ommodated ouble
moves,suchasapostcorrner,orahitchandgo.Inthesecases,ccombine
theroutecod
destogether(i.e.postcorrneris"ptcn"andhitchanndgois
"htgo").

Figure 510 P
F
Pass Routes

FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page9
94of144

(42) Offensive Play

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
40

Thisfieldisthemergedvaluesoffieldstodisplaytheentireoffensive
playcall.Forrunplays,combineplaycodeandblockingschemevalues
(addblockingadjustmentifyouuseit).Forpassplays,combinethefields
usedtodenoteprotectionwiththefieldsusedtodenotepassroute.You
maydecidetouserouteconceptratherthanpassdescriptiondepending
onhowdetailedyouwantthefieldvaluetobe.Thiswillallowreportsto
considertheentireoffensiveplayinonefieldwhichishelpfulforplaylist
reportsandtextoverlaysoncomputervideosystems.

RUNPLAYS

FORMULAEXAMPLES
PlayCode+BlockingScheme+
BlockingAdjustment

PASSPLAYS
(usingplaycodeand
blockingforpassprotection
andplaydescriptionfor
route)
PASSPLAYS
(usingplaycodeand
blockingforpassprotection
andthefiveplayerroutes)
PASSPLAYS
(usingplaycodeandroute
concept)

PlayCode+Blocking+PassDescription

PlayCode+Blocking+Route#1S+
Route#2S+Route#3+Route#2W+
Route#1W
PlayCode+RouteConcept

Table 5 11 Formulas for Offensive Play

FootballGameAnalysis/Page95of144

Chapter 6 Play Outcome Data

Thissectiondealswithwhathappenedspecificallyonaplay.While
playoutcomeisnotalwaysasimportantaswhattheopponentwas
attemptingtorun,thesefieldscanrevealtendencies,specificallyplayer
tendenciesbasedonplayexecution.

(43) Hole Hit (Running plays only)

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH

Text
**CALCULATEDLastnumberofplaycodefor
runplaysonly
1

Thisisthesecondappearanceoftheholehitvalueasthenumberwas
previouslyusedaspartoftheplaycode.Therearetwooptionsforthis
field.Optiononeistousethesamevalueasenteredastheseconddigitof
theplaycodevalue.Ifyouusethismethod,thecomputercan
automaticallyenterthevalueinthisfield,butyoumustbeconsistentin
yourplaycodevalueentries.Optiontwoistousetheactualholetheball
wasrunthrough.Thefirstoptionisgenerallypreferablebecausethat's
wheretheoffensewilltrytoruntheballagainiftheycallthesameplay.
However,somecoachesliketodenotetheexactlocationofwheretheball

FootballGameAnalysis/Page96of144

wasrun.Ifthisisthecase,entertheactualholehithereandleavethe
designedholehitdesignationastheseconddigitoftheplaycodevalue.

(44) Pass Result (Passing plays only)

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
1
C,I,D,P,S,R

Therearefivepossibleresultsforeverypassplay.Theyare"C"fora
completedpass,"I"foranincompletepass,"P"foraninterceptedpass(a
pick),"S"forasack,anda"R"foraquarterbackscramble.Asackis
anytimetheQBistackledforalossandascrambleisanytimetheQBhas
nogainorgainsyardage.[NotethatthereisadifferencebetweenaQB
scramble(adesignedpassplay)andaQBrun(adesignedrunningplay).
Nothingshouldbeenteredinthisfieldifitwasadesignedrunningplay.]
Forselfscoutbreakdowns,youcanmarkincompletepassesthatwere
catchableas"D"fordroppedpasses.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page97of144

(45) Passs Zone ((Passing

g plays on
nly)
Attributte
FIELDTY
YPE
LENGTH
H

Texxt
2

Irecomm
menddefininggpasszonesb
byformation strengthrathherthanby
directionforthesamereaasonsIrecom
mmendedhole
ehittobede finedby
eterminetend
dencieswithoout
formationstrrength.Youaareabletode
consideringfformationstre
ength.Youcandefineasm
many,orasfeew,zones
asyoufeelarrenecessarytogetacomp
pletepictureoftheoffensse'sintent.
Thisexample
einthisbookisastandard
dfiveunder,tthreedeeppaasszone
lookwiththrreescreenpasszones.
SS=StrongScreen,MS=Mid
ddleScreen,W
WS=WeakScre
een
ook,WC=WeaakCurl,WF=W
WeakFlat
SF=StrongFlaat,SC=StrongCurl,MH=Ho
SD=DeepStro
ong,MD=Dee
epMiddle,WD=DeepWeak

Figure 61
F
Pass Zones
FootbaallGameAnaalysis/Page9
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Thefiveunderneathzonesstartatthelineofscrimmageandextendto
adepthofabout1012yards.Thewidthofthehookzoneisfromoffensive
tackletooffensivetackle.Thewidthofthecurlzonesarefromthehook
zonetothewidthoftheoutsidereceiver.Thewidthoftheflatzonesare
fromtheoutsidereceivertothesideline.
Themiddlescreenzoneandthedeepmiddlezonesaredefinedby
extendingverticallinesfromthetightendpositions.Thestrong&weak
screenzonesanddeepstrong&weakzonesistheareafromtheseTElines
tothesidelines.
Iftheresultofthepassplayisasackorascramble,entera""inpass
zone.Iftheballwasthrownawaytoavoidasack,enteranXinpass
zone.Bydoingthis,allpassplayswillhaveanentryinthisfield,allowing
youtoquicklyidentifythatallpassplayshavebeenaccountedfor.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page99of144

(46) QB Pressure (Passing plays only)

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
1
P,H,S

ThisfieldindicatesiftherewasanypressureputontheQB.Thisis
usefulforwatchingthevideoofallQBpressuresandanalyzeifthereare
commonreasonsforit(i.e.specificblockingschemeflawsorapoorpass
blockinglineman)aswellastotracktheQBsreactiontobeingpressured.
Thisisalsoanexcellentfieldtouseforselfscoutoffensivestudypurposes.

P=QBPressure/Hurry

H=QBHit

S=QBSack

(47) Ball Carrier/Receiver

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
1

Thisistheletterornumberdesignationoftheballcarrier.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page100of144

(48) Jersey Number

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Numeric
2

Thisisthefieldofthejerseynumberoftheballcarrier.

(49) Play Direction

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
CALCULATEDBasedonholehit,passzone
andformationstrength
1
L,M,R

Ifyoubasedholehitvaluesandpasszonesvaluesonformation
strengthasIrecommended,youcanusethisfieldtodetermineany
tendenciesbasedonrightorleft.Iftheholehitvalueis4/6/8orifthepass
zonevalueisSS/SC/SF/SD(startswithS),theplaydirectionvalueisequal
totheformationstrengthvalue.Iftheholehitvalueis5/7/9orifthepass
zonevalueisWS/WC/WF/WD(startswithW),theplaydirectionvalueis
oppositeoftheformationstrengthvalue(i.e.ifstrengthisright,theplay
directionisleftorviceversa).Iftheholehitvalueis0/1/2/3ofifthepass
zonevalueisMS/MH/MD/X/,theplaydirectionvalueisautomatically"M"
formiddle.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page101of144

Thisformulacanbeadjustedifholehitsweredecidedbydirection
ratherthanformationstrengthbycombiningformationstrengthinthe
formula.

(50) Action
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Numeric
5
Flow,Flood,Split,Empty

Actionisusedtodescribethemovementofplayersduringtheplay.If
fourormoreplayersareonthestrongsideoftheformationeitheratthe
snaporbytheirmovementduringtheplaytheactionisflow.Ifthree
ormoreplayersareontheweaksideoftheformationeitheratthesnap
orbytheirmovementtheactionisflood.Ifitremainsthreeonthe
strongsideandtwoontheweakside,itissplit.Iftheyaligninanempty
set,thevalueisempty.Thepurposeofthefieldistodetermineany
patterntotheareasofthefieldtheoffensiveplaycallerlikestoattackin
certainsituations.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page102of144


Figure 62 Action Examplles

(51) Gaiin/Loss
Attributte
FIELDTY
YPE
LENGTH
H

Nu
umeric
3

Thisisthenumericalvvalueofthep
play'syardage
egainedorloost.Ifthere
islostyardaggeontheplayy,useanegattivenumber. Ifyouareusiingthe
penaltyyardfield,recordthegainofth
heplayasiftherewasno penalty.
egalshiftpennalty.Put
Forexample,,arungainsssixyardsbuttthereisanille
6inthegaiinfieldandput5inpen
naltyyards.

FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1
103of144

(52) Penalty
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
6

Thisisatwodigitcodetodenotethetypeofpenaltyontheplay.It's
suggestedtobeasconsistentaspossible,butstrictadherencetocodingis
notascriticalasotherfieldssincethisfieldismoreforrecordkeeping
ratherthanscoutingpurposes.Belowisasampleofpossiblecodesthat
canbeused.

OFOffsides

IMIllegalMotion

HDHolding

FMFacemask

PFPersonalFoul

AsuggestionforthisfieldistoaddaOinfrontofeveryoffensive
penaltyandaDinfrontofeverydefensivepenaltytobeabletoeasily
sortandreportovertheresults.Inthiscase,itwouldbeOIMforan
offensiveillegalmotionpenaltyorDFMfordefensivefacemaskpenalty.
Ialsorecommendrecordingthepenaltyevenifitisdeclinedasitwill
moreaccuratelyreflectwhathappenedonthefield.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page104of144

(53) Penalty Yards

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Numeric
3

Thisisthenumericvalueofanypenaltyyardagegainedorlost.Ifthere
islostyardageontheplay,recorditasanegativenumber.

(54) Penalty Jersey

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Numeric
2

Thisfieldisforthejerseynumberoftheplayerwhocommittedthe
penalty.Themainreasonforthisfieldisforselfscoutingpurposestotrack
theplayerswhocommitpenaltiesandthetypeofpenaltiestheymost
oftencommit.

(55) Win/Loss
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
*CALCULATEDBasedondistanceandgain
1
W,L

Thisfieldistotrackwhethertheoffensiveplaywasasuccessfulplayor
not.ThemostcommonformulaforNFLteamsisbasedonyardsgainedin

FootballGameAnalysis/Page105of144

relationtodistanceneededfora1stdown.Hereisalistofthatformulas
criteria:

On1stand10,aresultthatgainsfourormoreyardsisconsidereda
winfortheoffense.

Onanyother1stdownsituationandonall2nddownplays,aresult
thatgainsatleasthalfthedistanceneededfora1stdownis
consideredawinfortheoffense.

Onany3rdor4thdownplay,aresultthatgainsatleasta1stdownis
consideredawinfortheoffense.

Whiletheremightbesomereasonyouwanttoseewhatplaysare
successfulwhiledoinganopponentscout,themainreasonforthisfieldis
selfscoutanalysis.
Otherdefinitionsofasuccessfulplaycanbeused,suchasyardsgained
perplay.Thereareanumberofpossiblevariations,suchasanyrunthat
gainsfourormoreyardsorpassthatgainssixormoreyardsregardlessof
thedownanddistance,etc.
Someteamsprefertomanuallyenterthevalueofthisfieldtoreflect
playsthatmightnotreflecttheformula,butaredesiredplays.For
example,againof12ona3rdand15playcouldbeawinifitplacedthe

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offenseinFGrange.Usingtheautomaticformula,thisplaywouldbea
loss.

(56) Series End

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALELIMITS

Text
2
FG,TD,PT,SF,FM,IN,HF,GM,DN

Theseriesendfieldisusedtonotewhentheoffensescores,losesthe
ballduetoaturnoverorsafety,ortosignifytheendofthefirsthalfor
game,etc.
Useoneofthefollowingtwoletterabbreviationstoindicatehowthe
seriesended.Notethataseriesendduetoapuntorfieldgoalwillactually
appearonthe3rddownoffensiveplaylinepriortotheactualspecialteams
playasthespecialteamsplayisnotconsideredanoffensiveplay.Thenine
possiblevaluesforseriesendare:
FGFGAttempt(madeormissed) TDTouchdown

PTPunt

SFSafety

FMFumble

INInterception

HFHalftime

GMGame

DNDowns

FootballGameAnalysis/Page107of144

Chapter 7 Defensive Data

Thelastsectionconsistsofdatafieldsthatdescribewhatdefensethe
opponentoffensewasfacinginthegamesyouarescouting.Thiswillallow
youtoidentifyplaysrunagainstsimilardefensestoyoursaswellas
eliminateplaysversusdefensiveschemesyoudonotrun.Forexample,if
youplayalotofpressmancoverage,youwillwanttoseewhattheydo
versuspress.Didtheythrowalotofslantsorfades?Whatrouteconcepts
didtheylike?Thesamegoesforfronts,stuntsandpressures.
Knowinghowtheywantedtoattackcertaindefenseswillgiveyouan
understandingofwhattheirgameplanmightbeongameday.Forallof
thesefields,Irecommendusingasmuchofyourterminologyasyoucan.
Thesefieldsarealsoveryimportantforselfscoutpurposesasitis
importanttoknowwhatdifferentdefensiveschemesarebeingplayed.Itis
alsogoodtoseeyoursuccessandfailureratesversusdifferentdefensive
calls.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page108of144

(57) Defensive Personnel

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
6

Recordwhattypeof
defensiveplayerswereon
thefield.Examplescouldbe
Base(REG),Nickel(NK),Dime
(DM),orGoalLine(GL).
Thesegroupsaregenerally
basedonthenumberofDBs
onthefield.Anothermethod
istouseatwodigitnumber
withthefirstnumber
denotingthenumberof
defensivelinemenandthe
seconddigitreferringtothe
numberoflinebackers.(43
means4DLs,3LBsand
therefore4DBs)

DL
2011
LBDB NFLAvg

Def
Pers

Total
Pct

GL

0.4%

BIG

2.0%

REG

45.0%

NKL

39.6%

DM

11.8%

QTR

0.7%

641
542
632
353
443
533
623
344
434
524
155
245
335
425
515
146
236
326
416
047
137
227

0.2%
0.1%
0.1%
0.2%
0.8%
0.8%
0.2%
15.8%
28.8%
0.4%
0.1%
10.2%
8.7%
20.5%
0.1%
0.7%
5.0%
3.1%
3.0%
0.0%
0.6%
0.1%

128

0.0%

DOL

0.0%

Table 71 Defensive Personnal

FootballGameAnalysis/Page109of144

(58) Front
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
10

Unlikeoffensiveformationswithitsrulesregardingplayersontheline
ofscrimmageandeligiblereceiver,defensivealignmentarequitevaried.
Usethisfieldtorecordthedefensivefrontalignment.
Inthisbook,Irecommendatwodigitnumericalcodingsystembased
ondefensivealignmentwithadjustmentwordstodenotevariations.The
firstdigitreferstothefrontalignmentovertheoffensivecenterandguards
andtheseconddigitreferstothealignmentofthelinebackers.Additional
tagwordsfurtherdefinetheexactalignmentofthedefenders.
1ST
DIGIT

FRONTFAMILY

20

UNDER

30

ODD(3DL)

40

EVEN

50

OVER

60

ODD(4DL)

70

ODD(4DL)

80

BEAR

90

BEAR

ALIGNMENT
Centerandweaksidecovered,
strongsideguarduncovered
Centercovered,bothguarduncovered
3orlessdefensivelinemeningame
Bothguardscovered,
centeruncovered
Centerandstrongsidecovered,
weaksideguarduncovered
Centercovered,bothguarduncovered
4DLingameextraEndstrong
Centercovered,bothguarduncovered
4DLingameextraEndweak
Centerandbothguardcovered.
ExtraDE(43)onstrongsideor34personnel
Centerandbothguardcovered
ExtraDE(43)onweakside

Table 72 First digit of front definitions

FootballGameAnalysis/Page110of144


2NDDIGIT
LINEBACKERALIGNMENT
3
BothSamandWillonLOS
5
SaminLOS,WilloffLOS
7
SamoffLOS,WillonLOS
9
BothSamandWilloffLOS
Table 73 Second digit of front definitions
Belowisalistofsomeofthevariationwords.Anumberofthemare
usedinthesamplediagramsonthefollowingpages.

1. WIDEDEmovesfrom5techtoa6or7tech(movesfromOTtoTE)
2. SHIP/WHIPSinHIPorWinHIP.HipreferstoLBoutsideDEandoff
LOS
3. MUP/SUP/WUP/JUPLinebackerwalkedupintogap
4. SFACE/WFACESorWalignsheaduponTEwithDEmovingoutsideLB
5. SALK/WALKSorWiswalkedoutoveraslotreceiver
6. BOSLBersshiftedtostrongsidefromtheirnormalalignment.
7. BOWLBersshiftedtoweaksidefromtheirnormalalignment.
8. WEAKDT(s)shiftedweak
9. STRONGDT(s)shiftedstrong
10. TITEDT(s)shiftedintight(bothin1technique)
11. JOKERStrongsafetymovesdowntoLBalignment
12. FISTFreesafetymovesdowntoLBalignment
Ifthereisotherpersonnelonthefieldotherthanregular(43or34),I
suggestputtingatwolettercodedenotingthepersonnelonthefieldin
frontofthetwodigitcode.(i.e.NK57isa57frontwithaDBinplaceofthe
Willlinebacker).

FootballGameAnalysis/Page111of144

Figure 74 Under front examples

FootballGameAnalysis/Page112of144

Figure 75 Even front examples

FootballGameAnalysis/Page113of144

 Figure 76 Over front definitions

FootballGameAnalysis/Page114of144

Figure 77 Odd front definitions

FootballGameAnalysis/Page115of144

Figurre 78 Bear ffront definittions

FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1
116of144

(59) Deployment/Front Adjustment

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
10

Asmentionedbefore,thisfieldisusedtorecordthespecificdefensive
adjustmentstoaparticularformation,suchasup,faceorhip.This
couldshowcertaintendenciesversusspecificdefensivealignmentswhile
allowingthefrontfieldtoserveamajorgroupingfield.

(60) Attack Point (Running plays only)

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
3

Mostoffensivecoachesliketoruncertainrunningplaysversuscertain
defensivealignments.Defensivelinetechniqueisafieldtorecordthe
alignmentofeverydownlinemantothesideoftheoffensivecenterthat
theballisbeingruntoward.Thisnumberwillbeeitheratwoorthreedigit
numberbasedonthenumberofdownlinemen.
Thestandarddefensivelinetechniques(asstandardasanythingin
footballterminologyis)are
0headuponthecenter

S"shaded"outsideshoulderofthecenter
1insideshoulderofguard

FootballGameAnalysis/Page117of144

2headuponthegu
uard
3outsid
deshouldero
ofguard

i"4I"insideshoulderroftackle
4headupontackle
5outsid
deshouldero
oftackle
7inside
eshoulderoftightend
6headupontightend
9outsid
deshouldero
oftightend
8extrem
melywidealignment

Thekeyttorememberringthesecod
desisthateve
ennumbersaareheadup
(0oncenter//2onguard/4
4ontackle/6ontightend))while1and 3areon
theguard,iaand5onthettackle,and7and9onthetightend.
Forexam
mple,aruntotheweaksid
deofanunderfrontwoulddbe35(a
3techniqueaanda5techn
nique)whileaaruntothesttrongsideof anunder
frontwouldb
beS59(ash
hadednose,aa5technique
eanda9techhnique).

Fig
igure 7 9 Attack Poin
nt
FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1
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(61) Stunt
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
10

Thisfieldistorecordvariationsofdefensivelinemenmovementthat
arenotastraightrush.Itcouldbeusedtodenoteoneplayerstunts(such
asapirate),twoormoreplayerstunts(TT,TE,etc),and/orany
defensivelinemanthatdropsintocoverage(DEspyorzonedrop).

Figure 7 10 Stunt Examples
FootballGameAnalysis/Page119of144

(62) Pressure Type

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
6

Justasitiswithotherfields,itisimportanttogroupsimilardefensive
pressures.Weusedthepressuretypefieldinavarietyofmethods,from
justmarkingaBforanypressuretousingthetablebelowtodenotethe
numberofrushers,thecoveragetypeandthedirectionofthepressure.It
isimportanttofigureoutwhatyouwanttogetoutofthisfieldbefore
definingit.
COVERAGE
ZN=
Zone
Coverage
ZB=
Zonewith
dropping
DL
MN=
Man
Coverage

RUSHERS DASH
DIRECTION
Number Dash W=allextrarushersfromweak
oftotal
sideofformation
rushers
S=allextrarushersfrom
strongsideofformation
O=allextrarushersfromthe
outside(bothstrongandweak)
I=allextrarushersattackingthe
insidegaps(Agap)
C=combinationofthefour
groupslistedabove.
Table 710 Pressure Type Examples

FootballGameAnalysis/Page120of144

ZN5-I (Zone cover, 5 rush, inside)

W

Z4-S (Zone cover, 4 rush, strongside)

E T

W E

ZB5-W (Zone cover, 5 rush, weakside)

W

W E T

J
E

MN5-S (Man cover, 5 man, weakside)

M
T E

ZB5-C (Zone cover, 5 rush, combo)

MN6-S (Man cover, 6 man, strongside)

W

E T

Figure 711 Pressure Type Examples

(63) Pressure
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
10

Thisfieldistodenotethespecificpressure.Optiononeistouseyour
defensiveterminologyasmuchaspossibletodefinethepressure.Option
twoistorecordwhoexactlyisblitzingandthroughwhatgaptheyare
rushing.Foroptiontwo,weusedletterstodenotestrongsidegaps
(A,B,C,D)anduseanumberequivalentforweaksidegaps(1,2,3,4where

FootballGameAnalysis/Page121of144

A=1,etc).Forexample,MA/W1meansMikeinstrongsideAgapandWill
isweaksideAgap.Avalueof$D/W3wouldmeanstrongsafetyinstrong
sideDgapandWillinweaksideCgap,andsoforth.

Figure 712 Pressure Gap Locations

(64) Coverage Group

Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH
VALUELIMITS

Text
3
2,3,4,ZB2,ZB3,MC,MP

Thisfieldistorecordthemajorcoveragegroups.Thepurposeistoget
anideaofrouteconceptsandroutesranversuscertaincoverageschemes
withoutdealingwithallofthevarieties.Forexample,youcanseeallofthe
routeconceptsversuscover2withouthavingtodealwith2cloud,2
bump,2sky,etc.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page122of144

COVERAGE
CODE DEFINITION
GROUP
ZoneCover2
2
Any2deepcoverage(2cloud,2sky,etc)
ZoneCover3
3
Any3deepcoverage(3,3roll,qtr/qtr/half)
ZoneCover4
4
Any4deepcoverage
ZoneBlzCov2 ZB2 Any2deepcoveragewithDLdroppingand
extrarushers
ZoneBlzCov3 ZB3 Any3deepcoveragewithDLdroppingand
extrarushers
ManCoverage
MC Mancoveragewithnoextrarushers
ManPressure
MP Mancoveragewithextrarushers
Table 712 Seven Coverage Groups

(65) Coverage
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
LENGTH

Text
10

Justlikethepressurefield,thisfieldgivesyoutheoptiontodenotethe
specificcoveragetheopponentfaced.Itishighlyrecommendedtouse
yourownterminologyindefiningthecoverage.

(66) Defense
Attribute
FIELDTYPE
FORMULA
LENGTH

Text
MERGECombinationofFront,Stunt,
PressureandCoverage
23

Thisfieldisthemergedvaluesofthedefensecall(Front+Stunt+
Pressure+Coverage)tocombinethetotalcallintoonefield.
FootballGameAnalysis/Page123of144

SECTION 3 DATA ANALYSIS

Chapter 8 SelfScout Analysis
Selfscoutanalysisshouldbecompletedasclosetotheopponent
analysismethodssuggestedinthisbookaspossible.Thiswillallowyouto
evaluateyourselfasanopposingcoachwould.
Iwouldsuggestusingyourownterminologywheneverpossible,buttry
nottocombineoreliminatefieldsifpossible.Forexample,yourhuddle
callmightbeAceRight,ZoneRight.Inthiscase,thefieldswouldbe

Set=Ace
Strength=L
TELocation=R
Backfield=3(backisinhomeposition)
PlayType=Z
Playcode=34
BlockingScheme=Zone

Irecommendsettingasidetimeeveryweekforselfscout.Thiswill

enableyoutorunalast46gamescouteveryweekifdesired.Thisisthe
numberofgamesmostteamswillbreakdownwhenscoutingyou.A
runningselfscoutwillalsoenableyoutorunayearendselfscout
immediatelyafteryourlastgameorinadditionalpreparationtimeyou
mighthavebeforetheplayoffsorbowlgame.
FootballGameAnalysis/Page124of144

Chapter 9 Game Analysis Reports

FewcomputersoftwareprogramshavetheflexibilitySagiodoessoa
numberofreportsIcouldrecommendareimpossibletoreproduce.In
addition,everystaffisdifferentenoughthatallthereportvariationswould
justbeoverwhelming.Instead,Iwilldiscusswhatyourthoughtprocess
shouldbeintheareaofreports.
Donotlimityourself.Youshouldconsiderawiderangeofreportsto
answervariousquestions.Areasforwhichreportsshouldbeproduce
include

WEEKLYCOACHESSCOUTINGREPORTreportsdesignedto
showopponenttendencies,strengthsandweaknesses.The
reportswillrangefromoverviewsoftheirentiresystemtovery
specificdetailedreportstolookataspecificsituation,suchas
goallinescheme.

GAMEPLANREPORTSreportsspecificallydesigntoassistin
theformationofyourgameplan.Itfocusesspecificallyonthe
itemsyouwillbeidentifyingduringagametomakeyour
defensivecalls.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page125of144

WEEKLYPLAYERSSCOUTINGREPORTreportstogivetothe
players.Usuallymoresummaryindesignwiththepurposeto
communicatevitalinformationandkeysfortheiruse.

GAMEDAYREPORTSreportsdesignedtodenotetendencies
andtrendsinagamedayformatthatwillallowcoachestotrack
howcloseorhowfartheopponentisfromthetendencies
previouslytracked.

INSEASONSELFSCOUTREPORTSweeklyreportstoidentify
yourownoffensivetrendsandtendencies,generallyusingthe
lastfourgames.

ENDOFSEASONSELFSCOUTREPORTSreportsdesignedto
evaluateyouroffenseplayovertheentireseason.The
purposeofthesereportsistoevaluateyourselfduringtheoff
seasonandmakeadjustmentsforthenextseason.

Also,foreachofthesixareaslistedabove,youshouldfirststartwith
reportsthataresummaries.Thisisthebaseuponwhichyoucanthendig
deeperintodetailsandmeaning.Youcanthensupplementthesesummary
reportswithmoredetailedreports.Yougenerallywillstartwithreports
basedonsituationdata,thenstartaddingadditionaldatafromtheother

FootballGameAnalysis/Page126of144

chaptersastheyappearinthebook,namelyformationdata,playdata,play
outcomedata,andthenfinallydefensivedataanalysis.
Next,gobacktothefirstquestionyoumustanswerintheGame
AnalysisSystem.WhatinformationdoIneedtorecord?Lookatthedata
youarerecordingandmakesureyouaretakingadvantageofitall.Ifyou
arenottakingadvantageofsomeoftheinformationbeingrecorded,you
shouldeitherdevelopmorereportstousethisdataorstoprecordingit.
Thepurposeofthissystemisnotonlytobedetailedinyouranalysis,
buttoalsobeefficient.Inordertobeefficient,youmustconstantly
analyzeyourworkandwhatyouareaccomplishingwithit.
Lastly,youmustrealizethatthesameinformationcanbedisplayedin
dozensofdifferentways.Acertainreportformatmightbegreatforyouto
understandandcomprehendtheinformationquickly,butthatsamereport
mightlooklikegibberishtoanothercoach.Igroupreportsintoeightmajor
differenttypesofreportlayouts.Anyoneoftheeightformatstylesora
combinationofformatscouldbeusedtoansweranyquestion.Eachstyle
isdescribedalongwithsomesamplestogetanideaofhowinformation
canbepresented.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page127of144

Report Forrmat #1 - Play

P
list
Thisrepo
ortformatisaastraightlistingoftheplayydataincoluumnform.
Eachlineisaplaywithitsassociateddata.Somecomputerprog ramshave
examplemigh
htincludecol orcoded
theabilitytosetcolorcategories.Ane
ernsofoffenssivesubstitutionsinagam
mecanbe
personnelgroupssopatte
seen.
questiontheseereportswou
uldanswer
Sampleq
Canyyoushowmetheplayinfo
ormationinga
ameorder,m
makingeach
perso
onneladifferrentcolor?

128of144
FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1

Report Fo
ormat #2 - Detail (One
e-dimensio
onal)
Thisrepo
ortshowsthe
edetailofasinglefieldove
eravarietyoff
predefinedfiields.Thisreportcouldalssobecalledaatallyreportaasit
talliestheffrequencyofthefieldsocccurrencesagainstasetoffvalues.

Sampleq
questiontheseereportswou
uldanswer
Canyyoushowmetherun/passsratioofdiffeerentsituationnsbasedon
perso
onnelgroupin
ng?

129of144
FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1

Report Forrmat #3 - Crosstab

C
(T
Two-dimen
nsional)
Thisrepo
ortissimilarttosettingupaagridwithdiffferentfieldsacrossthe
topanddowntheside(th
heXandYaxis).There
eportthengivvesyouthe
ofplaysthatfitwitheacho
ofthegridboxes.
occurrenceo

Sampleq
questiontheseereportswou
uldanswer
Canyyoushowmethefrequenccyofoccurren
ncesofplaytyypesfor
eachdown/distan
ncegroup?

FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1
130of144

Report Forrmat #4 3-Way

3
Com
mparison (tthree-dime
ensional)
Thisrepo
ortformatisssimilartothecrosstab,buttactuallygiveesyou
moredetail.Insteadofju
ustgivingyouthefrequenccyoftheXaandY
ntersections,thisreportdiisplaysthede
etailsfromatthirdfield
datafieldsin
whentheplaayoccurrence
eisequaltob
boththeXaandYdatavvalues.

Sampleq
questiontheseereportswou
uldanswer
Know
wingthedown
nanddistancceandtheofffensivepersonnnel,what
wereetheoffensiveeformationa
andplaycallsforeachcom
mbination?

FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1
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Report Forrmat #5 - Graphic

G
Reports
Thisisarrepresentatio
onoftheplayydataingraphicform,suc hasina
barchartand
d/orpiechartt.Thisgraphiicrepresentattionofthein formation
isyetanothe
erwaytohelp
pyouinterpre
etthedata.

Sampleq
questiontheseereportswou
uldanswer
Canyyoushowmegraphicallyttheoverallrun
n/passratioaandthetop
perso
onnelgroups runandpasssratios?

132of144
FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1

Report Forrmat #6 - Hit

H Chart
Thisrepo
ortisapointo
ofattackreprresentationo
oftheplays.TThevalueof
theholehitaandpasszone
efieldsaregrraphicallydisp
playedtoshoowwhere
theballwasrunorthrown
n.Goodcom
mputerprogramswillautom
matically
nthereport.
drawinthefformationson

questiontheseereportswou
uldanswer
Sampleq
Canyyoushowmeaformation hitchartwith
hrunholesanndpass
zonesaswellasa
aplaylist?

FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1
133of144

Report Forrmat #7 - Play

P
Drawin
ngs / Pictu
ures
Thisrepo
ortformatisttheuseofap
playdrawingaand/orastill imagein
additiontoth
hetextdescriiptionoftheplay.Apictureiswortha thousand
words.Good
dcomputerprogramswillletyouprintreportsusinggplay
drawingsand
d/orvideostillswiththeasssociatedplaydata.

questiontheseereportswou
uldanswer
Sampleq
Canyyoushowmeapictureand
daplaydraw
wingforeachpplayin
gameeorder?

FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1
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Report Forrmat #8 - Special

S
Rep
port
Aspecialreportformaatallowsthecomputertoanalyzedataa,reporting
backspecificanswerstospecificquestions.

questiontheseereportswou
uldanswer
Sampleq
Canyyoushowmetheanalysisofthepassingroutes,incl uding
show
wingmeallofftheroutecom
mbinationsbasedonalignnment?

FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1
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Appendix A Data Field Table

Down
Distance
D/D
DD Grouping
Field Position
FP Grouping
Short yardage/ GL
RZ / Coming Out
Hash
Score Differential
Two/Four Minute
Situations
Personnel
Formation Group
Formation Strength
TE Location
Set
Shotgun
Backfield
Formation
Alignment
Boundary
Movement
Audible/No-huddle
Bunch Formation
Strong-side Split
Weak-side Split

N
T

9
10
11
12
13

Situational Data

7
8

14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21

24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31

Formation Data

22
23

LENGTH

**CALULATED

Series Begin

MERGE

N
N

CALCULATED

1
2

FIELD NAME

AUTO

PERSISTANT

N
N

3
4

Play Number
Quarter
Series Number
Series Sequence

SECTION

(N)umber/(T)ext

FIELD TYPE

1
1

X
X

2
2
2
1

20

3
20

T
T

1, 2, 3, 4, 5

KO,PT,FM,IN,FG
,EX,OT
1, 2, 3, 4, 5

2
4

N
T

VALUE LIST

2
2

SY, GL
RZ, CO

2
3

R, RM, M, LM, L

2H, 2G, 4

T
T

8
3

T
T

10
1

L, R

L, R

T
T

18
1

T
T

3
22

T
N

X
X
X

T
T

3
1

T
T

1
1

A, N, C
B

T
T

1
1

O, N, A, H, M
O, N, A, H, M

FootballGameAnalysis/Page136of144

43
44

47
48
49
50
51
52
53

Play Outcome Data

45
46

54
55
56
57
58

60
61
62
63
64
65
66

Defensive Data

59

LENGTH

42

R, P, N

1
6/10

12

T
T

10
2

T
N

20
2

T
T

2
4

**CALULATED

40
41

T
T

CALCULATED

38
39

MERGE

36
37

Play Data

35

Run/Pass/No Play
Play Type
Play Code
Blocking Scheme
Blocking Adjust
Pass Concepts
Pass Description
Rec Jerseys (5)
Rec Position (5)
Rec Routes (5)
Offensive Play
Hole Hit
Pass Result
Pass Zone
QB Pressure
Ball Carrier/Rec
Jersey Number
Play Direction

AUTO

33
34

VALUE LIST

PERSISTANT

32

FIELD NAME

(N)umeric or
(T)ext

SECTION

FIELD TYPE

40

T
T

1
1

C, I, D, P, S, R

T
T

2
1

P, H, S

N
T

2
1

Action

Gain/Loss
Penalty
Penalty Yards
Penalty Jersey
Win/Loss
Series End
Def Personnel
Front
Deployment/
Front Adj
Attack Point
Stunts
Pressure Type
Pressure
Coverage Group
Coverage
Defense

T
N

6
3

N
T

2
1
2

10

10

T
T

3
10

T
T

10
3

T
T

L, M, R
Flow,Flood,Split
Empty

TD, FG, PT, FM, IN,

SF, HF, GM, DN

10
40

FootballGameAnalysis/Page137of144

Appendix B Technical Scouting

Techniques
Technicalscoutingistheevaluationofindividualplayersandtheirskill
sets.Irecommendeachcoachformulateacompletesetofquestionsfor
eachoffensivepositionQB,RB,TE,WR,OT,OG/OC.Eachweek,the
defensivepositioncoachshouldcompleteaformforeachofthestarters
theirplayerswillface.

DTcoachcompletestheOG/OCforms

DEcoachcompletestheOTforms

LBcoachcompletestheTE/RBandQBRunGameforms

DBcoachcompletestheWRandQBPassGamesforms

Thisprocesswillnotonlyenableyoutoscouteffectivelyandefficiently,
buttheinformationrecordedcanalsobeveryvaluabletotheplayers.
Questionsforeachpositionwillvarybythedefensivestaff,theirdefensive
scheme,andthetimeavailabletoscout.Hereareafewexamplesof
questionstheDBcoachcouldaskabouteachWRonaweeklybasis.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page138of144

WR TECHNICAL EVALUATION SAMPLE QUESTIONS

NAME___________________________JERSEY#_______________

HT________WT_________SPEED__________CLASS___________

SCHOOL_______________________HOMETOWN______________

1. DoestheWRalwaysaligntotherightortheleft?
2. DoestheWRalwaysaligntoandawayfromtheformationstrength?
3. DoestheWRalignintheslot?
4. WhatroutesdoestheWRalignrunwhenhisoutsidefootisforward?
5. WhatroutesdoestheWRalignrunwhenhisinsidefootisforward?
6. Doeshetiprunorpassinanybodylanguage?
7. Inpresscoverage,whattypeofreleasedoestheWRattempt?
(inside/outside?speedmoveordoublemove?)
8. Ishephysical?
9. Doesheusehishandsingettingseparationinpassroutes
10. Doesheusehishandswellinrunblocks?
11. Doeshecutblock?
12. Whatroutesdoesherunwhenhemotions?
13. Whatroutesdoesherunon3rddown?
Etc,etc,etc.

FootballGameAnalysis/Page139of144

Appen
ndix C Cheat S
Sheets
SERIES BEGIN
N KO - Kickoff (including
(
free kick following a sa
afety)
FM Fumble
e IN - Intercep
ption
FG - Misssed FG
EX - Extra Point

PT - Punt
OT - Other

PERSONNEL Number of RBs, followed

f
by num
mber of TEs
FORMATION

ONEBACKFORMATIONS

TWOB
BACKFORMATIO
ONS
203WIDES(2WRstrong1W
WRweak)
21PRO(WR
R/TEstrong,WRweeak)
21TWINS(TTEstrong,2WRsw
weak)
22PROT(WR/TEstrong)
2TEstrong,WRweeak)
22TEPRO(2
233TE(2TEEsstrong,TEweakk)
30SPLIT(1WRoneachside)
313BACK(TEstrong,WRweeak)
32TIGHT(TEEstrongandweakk)

10DOUBLES(2WRsoneach
hside)
Rweak)
10TRIO(3WRSstrong,1WR
11ACE(W
WR/TEstrong,2WR
Rsweak)
11TRIPS(T
TEstrong,3WRsw
weak)
11TRYPS(2
2WRS/TEstrong,WRweak)
12TECH(W
WR/TEoneachsid
de)
12TECHTW
WINS(2WRs/TEsttrong,TEweak)
12TEACE((2TEsstrong,2WRsweak)
12TETRIPS(WR/2TEsstron
ng,WRweak)
133TECH((2TEsstrong,TE/W
WRweak)
133TTWIN
N(WR/2TEsstrongg,TEweak)
133TTRIP(3TEsstrong,WRweak)

P
POSITION LETT
TERS
WR/#1Stron
ngWR=Z,#2Stro
ongWR=S,#3WR
R=U,#2WeakWR
R=A,#1WeakWRR=X
st
nd
rd
TE/ 1 TE=Y,2 TE=E,3 TE=U
B
BACKFIELD
ONEBACKBA
ACKFIELDSETS
3behindQB/4ormoreyds
2behindQB/within4yds
4TBshiftedtostr
5TBshiftedawayfromstr
PPistol

TWOBACKBACCKFIELDSETS
IFB"2",TB"33"
INFB"4",TB""3"
IFFB"5",TB" 3"
NRFB"4",TBB"2"
FRFB"5",TB "2"
SPRB"4"andd"5"

F
FORMATION AD
DJUSTMENTS
FFX
(Flex)
TEisfourormoreyardsoffOTT
TTO (TackleOver) BacksideOTlinesuponstronggside.TEdoesnottswitchplaces.
TEandbackssideOTexchangep
N
NUB (Nub)
places
N
NR (Near)
WRis13ydssoffOTandisonLOS
SSL
(Slot)
WRis13yarrdsoffOTandisoffLOS
W
WG (Wing)
WRis13yarrdsoffTEandoffLLOS
TTI
(Tight)
twoormorereceiversare34ydsapartandare13ydsfromOT
C
COV (Cover)
enterontheLOS
twoormorereceiversonthessamesideofthece
B
BU (Bunch)
twoormorereceiversare34ydsapartandare4ormoreydsfroomOT
IN
N
(Inverse)
hnormalpositionon/offLOS

**2recsideReceiversswitch
EEX
(Exchange)
nmentposition
**2recsideTEandWRexchangenormalalign
A
A
(InvtypeA
A) **3recsideReceiversswitch
hnormalon/offLO
OSwithmiddlerecceiveron
B
B
(InvtypeB) **3recsideReceiversswitch
hnormalon/offLO
OSwithinsideorooutsideon
X
XA (ExchangeA) **3recsideTE&WRexchan
ngenormalpositio
onwithTEbeingm
middlerec.
X
XB
(ExchangeB) **3recsideTE&WRexchan
ngenormalpositio
onwithTEbeingo utsiderec.
G
GN (Shotgun)
nmentbehindthe center
Quarterbackinashotgunalign

FootbaallGameAnallysis/Page1
140of144

WR/TE MOVEMENT
1. FirstpartistheletterornumberofplayerATTHETIMEOFTHESNAPOFTHEBALL.
2. Thisisfollowedbyadash
3. Numberofeligiblereceivers(notcountingtheQB)thisplayercrossesfromhisinitial
alignmenttohisspotatthesnapofball.
4. Endwithmotioncode.(APforacrosscenter,IPforintowards,butnotcrossingcenter,
OPformotionawayfromcenter)
Exceptionstothisrule(1)0IP=Rat(2)Motionandreturnisletter,dash,letter
RB MOVEMENT
Number/letterdescribinginitialspot,dash,andthennumber/letterdescribinglocationatsnap
STRONG-SIDE/WEAK-SIDE SPLIT
O=Outsidethisisthespacebetweenthenumbersandthesideline
N=Numbersthisisbeingalignedonthenumbers
A=Alleythisisthespacehalfwaybetweenthehashandthetopofthenumbers
H=Hashthisisalignedwithinthreeyardsofthehash.
M=Middlethisisthespacebetweenthehashes
PLAY TYPE
RunPlayTypes
1. CCounterTwoblockerscomingfromthebackside.(Alsoonestepcutbackplay)
2. DDrawDefenderscomeupfield,showingpassblocking,followedbyadelayhandoff
3. FFBRunsAnyrunningplayswherethefullbackistheballcarrier
4. LLead/Iso/PowerPlaywithaleadblockerwhocomesfromtheplaysideofformation
5. OOptionPlaysthatcanhavemorethanonepossibleballcarrier
6. QQBRunsQBastheonlypossibleballcarrier(don'tconfusewithoption)
7. RTrapCrossingblockersthatblockdefensivelinemen
8. TTossorSweepTossingorhandingtheballtotheRBtogooutsideofoffensivetackle.
9. WWhamoneblockercomingfromthebackside.
10. ZZonePlaysthathaveprimarilyoneononeblockingandnoleadblocker
PassPlayTypes
11. 3QuickQBtakesthreestepsandthrows
12. 5DropbackQBtakesfiveorsevenstepsandthrows
13. 6SprintQB"rollsout"(movessideways)towardsthesideline.
14. PPlayactionOffensefakesarunningplaytoholdLBandslowdownthepassrush
15. SScreenQBthrowstoadesignedpasstoareceiverbehindtheLOS.
16. BBoot,Waggle,PARoll
13. BootFakesarunningplay,thenQBrollsoppositedirectionofalloftheRBs
nd
14. WaggleFakesarunningplay,thenQBrollsinoppositedirectionof2 RBandinthesame
directionasfirst.

PARollFakesarunningplay,thenQBrollsinthesamedirectionofalloftheRBs
17. XAllTricksplays(runsorpasses),suchasreversesordoublepasses
o
TrickRunAnyrunningplaywheretheTB,FBorQBisnottheballcarrier
o
TrickPassAnypassingplaywheretheballisthrownbyanyonebuttheQB
PASS RESULT
"C"=Complete,"I"=Incomplete,"P"=Interception,"S"=Sack,"R"=QBscramble,"D"=Dropped

FootballGameAnalysis/Page141of144

ROUTES
CBComeback
CLCurl
CICircle
CNCorner
CRCross
DEDelay

DR Drag
DODeepOut
FDFade
FLFlare
FTFlat
GOGo

HT Hitch
INIn
OPOption
OTOut
PTPost

QO QuickOut
SLSlant
SMSeam
SPSpot
WHWheel

PASS CONCEPTS
QK/Quicks
MV/Movement
BN/Bunch
HV/Heavy
HO/Horizontals
IN/Individuals
DR/Drive
LV/Levels
IS/InsideStack

AllroutesinvolvingathreestepQBdrop
RoutesinvolvingtheQBmovingoutofthepocket,eitherbysprintorboot
Routecombinationsoriginatingfromabunchedformation
Allroutesrunoutaheavyformation,suchasSY/GL
Underneathroutesdesignedtohighlowanunderneathdefender
Underneathroutesthatdonotintersect
Routesinvolvingtwocrossers(oneshallow)thatstartfromthesameside
Routesinvolvingtwocrossers(oneshallow)thatstartsfromoppositesides
Combinationlocatedbetweenthenumberswithstackedroutes
(underneath&deep)
OS/OutsideStack Combinationlocatedoutsidethenumberswithstackedroutes
(underneath&deep)
CR/Crosser
Routecombinationsinvolvingatleastonedeepoverroute
VT/Vertical
Routesdesignedtoattackdeepareasofthefield

PASS ZONE
ScreenZones
Underneath
DeepZones

SS=StrongScreen,MS=MiddleScreen,WS=WeakScreen
SF=StrongFlat,SC=StrongCurl,MH=Hook,WC=WeakCurl,WF=WeakFlat
SD=DeepStrong,MD=DeepMiddle,WD=DeepWeak

QB PRESSURE
P=QBPressure/Hurry,H=QBHit,S=QBSack

ACTION
FLOWIf4+playersareonthestrongsideofformation,eitheratthesnaporbytheirmovement
FLOODIf3+playersareontheweaksideofformation,eitheratthesnaporbytheirmovement
SPLITIfitremainsthreeonthestrongsideandtwoontheweakside
EMPTYIftheyaligninanemptyset,thevalueisempty.
SERIES END
FGFGAttempt(madeormissed)
FMFumble
DNDowns

TDTouchdown
INInterception

PTPunt
HFHalftime

FootballGameAnalysis/Page142of144

SFSafety
GMGame

F
FRONT

1ST
DIGIT
20
30
40
50
60
70
90

FRONTFAMILY

ALIGNM
MENT

UNDER
ODD(3DL)
O
EVEN
OVER
ODD(4DL)
O
ODD(4DL)
O
BEAR

Centerandweak
C
ksidecovered
Centerco
overed,bothguaarduncovered( 3DL)
Bothguardscovered
Ce
enterandstronggsidecovered
Centercovered,extraendstrong(4D
DL)
Cente
ercovered,extraaendweak(4D L)
Ce
enterandbothgguardcovered

2ND DIGIT
3
5
7
9

LINEBA
ACKERALIGNMENT
BothSaamandWillonLLOS
Samin
nLOS,WilloffLO
OS
SamofffLOS,WillonLO
OS
BothSaamandWilloffLLOS

A
ATTACK POINT
00headuponthecenter
11insideshoulderofguard
i4iinsideshoulderoftackle
77insideshoulderoftightend
88extremelywidealignment

P
PRESSURE TYP
PE
C
COVERAGE RUSHERS
Z=Zone Num
mber
C
Coverage
ofto
otal
M=
rush
hers
M
Man
C
Coverage
C
COVERAGE GRO
OUP
COVERAGEGROU
UP
ZZoneCover2
ZZoneCover3
ZZoneCover4
ZZoneBlitzCover2
ZZoneBlitzCover3
M
ManCoverage
M
ManPressure

S"shaded"shoulderofthecentter
utsideshoulderoffguard
2headupontheguard 3ou
5ou
utsideshoulderofftackle
4headuponttackle
6headuponttightend 9ou
utsideshoulderofftightend

DASH
Dash

DIRECTIO
ON
W=allextraru
ushersfromweakside offormationn
S=allextraru
ushersfromstronggsideofformationn
O=allextraru
ushersfromtheou
utside(strong&w eak)
I=allextrarusshersattackingthe
einsidegaps(Agaap)
C=combinatio
onofthefourgrou
upslistedabove.

CODE
2
3
4
ZB2
ZB3
MC
MP

DEFINITION
Any2deepcove
erage(2cloud,2skky,etc)
Any3deepcove
erage(3,3roll,qtr/qtr/half)
Any4deepcove
erage
Any2deepcove
eragewithDLdrop
ppingandextraru shers
Any3deepcove
eragewithDLdrop
ppingandextraru shers
Anycoverageplaayingman with no
oextrarushers
Anycoverageplaayingmanandhassextrarushers

GameAnalysis/Page143
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FootballG