He's got to connect on that DE and either hold him while the double team opens a huge hole or else drive him away. That means the battle for this play is often fought and lost with the attempted kick-out block by the fullback. Opponents usually follow "block down, step down" rules and when the DE sees everyone crashing inside he'll look to step inside as well so there won't be a gaping hole for the guard to lead through.
The play of the two running backs is crucial for this play, particularly for dealing with the way defenses prefer to stop this scheme. The backside guard is pulling across to lead into the hole that the double team's displacement should create. Here's how it looks in its purest form:Īgainst this look, the play-side tackle and guard block down on the 3-technique and look to drive him both laterally and vertically before climbing up to the backside linebacker. It's a great play from the I-formation where the roles of the play were originally drawn up. Power has three main elements that define the scheme: A double team at the point of attack, a kick out block of the EMOL (end man on the line of scrimmage, either a DE or an OLB in a 3-4), and a lead block through the resulting hole. Here's how it works and the different takes you tend to see of the scheme around college football: Classic power The way in which power creates new gaps at the point of attack and the physical nature in which that occurs both tend to trigger defenses to respond in a knee-jerk fashion, which is why power is probably the best scheme in football for setting up play-action deep shots. Every coach that wants to base their run game around a non-power scheme will undoubtedly start by justifying how he can do so while still bringing a physical approach. Power usually has both features, a double team at the point of attack meant to drive a DL off the ball and then a lead blocker coming around looking to blow up a linebacker. While inside zone can be a physical scheme when it emphasizes double teams on DL and lead runs like "Iso" have their value in making linebackers decide if they're about that "blow up the block" life. Systems that make power a foundational part of their offense and do it well are often rewarded with tags like " manball," " power-coast," or " smashmouth spread." Despite the prevalence of the passing game in modern football, if you ask most coaches across the country what their favorite play is you'll often hear back "power" which is often just referred to as "God's play." The play is ideal for how it offers a physical, hammering answer for any defensive problem while also setting up the best play-action opportunities of any running scheme in the game.