8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
1/20
Defending the Double Wing
The Double Wing Offense has been around since 1986, but it's roots go back as far as Football itself. DonMarkham premiered this offense in 1972 at LA Baptist HS in Mission Hills. Since then Many schools have won
numerous C.I.F, County, and State Titles. Eighty percent of California, Oregon, and Washington's rushing and
scoring leaders have come from this offense. In 1994 Don Markham led Bloomington High School to a 14-0C.I.F Title and set the national scoring record with a unheard of 65 point average.
The objective of Double Wing teams is to make you cover 10 gaps. When you spread your self out to cover
those gaps, they get more people to the ball then you have to defend. This gives them a HUGE advantage at the
point of attack. Their base play the "PITCH" must be stopped to be successful. Double Wing creator DonMarkham was quote as saying, "I have ran the PITCH play 30 times in a row one game. If they can't stop the
PITCH, the game is over."
The "PITCH" play is simple in it's invention, but overwhelming in it's application. If you don't stack the odds in
your favor, you will be ran over. Double Wing teams run up huge scores against opponents, who either have noidea at what they are facing or too PROUD to realize their own weaknesses against it.
One coach was quoted as saying that this offense would not work in Division I. Don Markham took his Colton
team to the Big 5 Conference Title game twice with his earlier version of this offense.
I compare the Double Wing offense to a chess game. They get so many pawns in the way, my queen and rooks
can not be effective. So like in chess, my strategy is to clear the field and let my queen and rooks play againsttheirs.
The PITCH's objective is like coach Vince Lombardi's famous Green Bay Sweep. They want to create a wall by
the FB sealing the outside, the TE/OT's double team sealing the inside and the Offside OT/OG/QB wedgingthrough the hole, giving the Wing back an alley to run through. Most times this alley is so big, "you could drive
a truck through it"
The PITCH play works like this, both Wings line up on the LOS. The QB reads the defensive set and d bends
done under center. At this point the Wings take their place. One Wing sets up as a Unbalanced second TE. At thesame time the second Wing sets up as a Wing Back. He takes a quick motion back 5 yards behind the Guard.
The QB snaps the ball and pitches a dead, none spinning ball chest to face high at the motioning wing. He then
pulls through the point of attack and seal outside, blocking the CB
The Offensive line has foot to foot splits to prevent stunting. The play side TE and OT double team at the point
of attack. They are taught to act like Siamese twins joined at the hip. Even though there are no gaps or runninglanes they create them with their double team.
The unbalanced TE/Wing back gaps down to seal off the LB.
The offside OT/OG pull to the POA. The OG responsibility is to seal inside. The Offside OT is to seal up any
penetration and help the OG seal inside.
The backside TE's job is to seal off backside penetration.
The FB's job is to kick out the man responsible for Force. He takes a banana route, keeping a inside relationship
to the Force man. Because of this banana technique he cant effectively kick out and never have to read the Force
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
2/20
and worry about logging him in. This technique allows him to concentrate fully on kicking out the force and
creating the seam for the Wing to run in.
The Wing back takes the pitch and reads his pulling OG/OT, many times pushing him through the hole. This
adds deception to power of the play. Many times people are there to defend but can not see the ball carrier as he
hides behind the pulling lineman. The Wing back has many options as he runs through the holes he can stay on
path, kick it outside, or the most dangerous cut back across the grain. This is devastating because most of thepursuit is coming at the POA and do not properly defend the cut back.
The five main objectives in stopping the PITCH are,
1. Cover all 10 gaps
2. Stop the overload at the POA
3. Stop the pulling Lineman
4. Stop the cut back
5. Find the ball carrier
The only way to properly cover the 10 gaps and be sound in pass coverage is to run a 9 man front with a two
deep secondary. To stop the overload at the POA we have our defensive lineman cut the Offensive line. Like
trading pawns in chess we clear the board by cutting their line. My DT for your OT, my DE for your FB, etc.By slanting and the pile created from the cutting we hope to stop the backside pulling lineman. Backside pursuit
must scrap down the LOS looking for cutback and keep our heads up looking for the ball carrier. Everyone must
play responsibility type defense. One mistake will cause a hole and give them a big play.
The way we defense the Double Wing is to line up in a 54 defense. 5 down lineman 4 linebackers 2 Safeties.The main cog in the defense is the Nose Guard. He might not make one play all night but he is vital to the
defense. The NG plays head up on the Center and slants to the play side A gap. We determine play side bymotion, best back, or tendencies. The NG can see the quick motion by the wing back with his perennial visionHe rips threw the Center trying to get into the backfield. Depending on their blocking scheme he may come
untouched into the backfield. Most likely he will be double with the OG. Minimally he needs to impede the
pulling OG/OT.
Both DT's will cut at the outside shoulder of the OT. This should cut the double team by the OT and TE. Drivethrough and cause a pile up. The DT on the pulling side should try and cut the Pulling DT. If he does not get the
cut pursue down the LOS looking for cut back. Keep an eye out for the TE blocking down or trying to cut you.
The LB to the motioning side should blitz the B gap. If the OG has blocked down on the NG a lane should open
up. The LB away from motion should slow scrap, downhill . Both LB's should read the FB. If the FB kicks outthe DE, PLB should continue his blitz up field, with WLB scraping, looking for cut back. If the FB pauses or
delays both LB's should go at the FB looking for Trap or Reverse.
The CB to the motioning side should fill C gap forcing the play outside. The strength of the play is inside so any
back running outside is by himself , defeating the purpose of the play. The PCB uses a OLE' technique, like abull fighter, avoiding all contact.
The CB away from motion slow reads and looks for reverse. If no reverse. Scrap, looking for cutback. If reverse
comes use the same technique as PCB.
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
3/20
The FS to the motioning side reads his TE. If the TE blocks he becomes an alley player filling C gap and
contains D gap if the PCB forces the play wide. If he reads pass from the TE he covers the deep jumping acorner route by the TE.
FS away from motion slides to center field and reads his TE for pass or run. If he reads reverse he now becomes
the fill/contain man to his side
If every one does their responsibility two things should happen. First we have a RB that has no where to go,
running into his line. He ends up trying to bounce outside or falls over his own man. Sometimes the RB bouncesout to a open space. While this is usually a problem it is not. The RB 's in the double Wing are used to running
behind people. They are not open field runners. A usual scenario has our line taking out their line and the CB's
end making the tackle. The Double Wing has many advantages that if left untended will cause the field to tilt intheir favor. By using the 54 and evening the odds we are able to compete with this explosive offense.
Scouting the Double Wing Team
Double Wing Teams everywhere are running up scores, racking up huge rushing gains and embarrassing manyopponents who have no idea on how to stop this New potent offense. Here are some new ideas in scouting the
Double Wing Team. Hopefully you will be able to take these new ideas and put them to work within your
defensive package.
Basic Questions
When scouting a Double Wing Team the first thing you have to take into account is, Who is the best running
back? Even though the offense is design to be evenly spread between the three backs, most teams tend to have
one featured back. The main priority in stopping the double wing is to stop the featured back. Identifying this
back is usually easy as he comes into the game with some unheard yardage gained and Touchdowns scored
You have to turn the game into stopping him and worrying about covering the aspects of the double wing later.Its no different from an featured I back or Option QB. He has to be stopped and make the other guys beat you
If the team is pretty evenly spread you still have to play the game as if one of them is the featured back. Aftergoing through this scouting check list one of the backs will stand out more then the others.
The second most important thing in scouting a double wing team is what is their best play? Typically this is
their Toss or Super Power play and is run with their best back. Your entire defense must positioned to stop that
play. That play has to be taken away from their arsenal. You have to be sound in your total defensive packageand not put eleven guys on one side but overload your defense with your best players and your best scheme to
side where the best play goes. Typically the double wing team is really strong running the Toss or Super Power
to one side and they run the Buck sweep or Reverse to the other. This allows you to put your strongest, biggest
kids to one side and youre faster, more pursuit type kids to the other.
Next you must determine, what is their best pass play? This pass tends to be a play action pass off their best
play and usually has the Tight end or Wings running deep routes. Double wing teams usually dont throw the
pass unless they see you are committing most of your men to stopping the run. Whatever scheme you run youmust keep at least two guys deep or their best pass play will be a huge gainer for them. Most Double Wing
Quarterbacks have some of the highest pass completion ratio. This is from the fact it is easy to play catch with a
wide receiver that is wide open. Even though the pass is not usually an effective weapon for the double wingteam, it is an aspect that must be accounted for when preparing to defend the double wing.
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
4/20
Finally, what is the best counter play? Double Wing teams have a counter play to their best play. That is the
play they will most likely go to when their best play is stopped. Typically it is the reverse play off the Toss orSuper Power. The Reverse play is probably the most explosive play in the double wing arsenal. The defense
has to have a sound package to hold off the Reverse until everyone can rally back to the ball.
Defenders on the reverse side have to string out the reverse play and make it go wide. With all this information
a picture should be developing about how the play calling philosophy of the double wing team. Basically, thisshould tell you who is getting the ball and where. This is just the beginning in formatting a sound defensive
attack versus the double wing.
Tendencies
The traditional down and distance tendencies usually dont work with a double wing team. The reason beingnormal offenses work on a three down pattern to get a first. Most teams if you can get them in a fourth and two
or more will opt to punt the ball. Most teams are not consistently going to go for it on 4 down. The double
wing team differs because they play four downs to get a first. They will go for it on fourth down almost everytime. They have the philosophy of they can get five yards on every play. A normal defensive situation of fourth
and five, the double wing teams pounds out a first down because the defensive team was not prepared for this
situation. The coach and players are mentally out of it because they feel like they have done their job (bring on
the punt team) allowing the double wing team the mental edge. A few of the tendencies that I have seen fromdouble wing teams are Running Back, Linemen, Right/Left, Field/Boundary, Sideline, and sequence.
The Running Back tendency I have picked up on is on 4 th down or other crucial downs they run the toss or
super power to the same back. If you can scout a opponent and get a percentage ration on how many times a
back runs toss or super power to the right side on 4th or crucial downs this will help you in determining whatfront or blitz to call. One year a double wing team we played ran the toss right 22 out of 23 times for a 96%
ratio. This was an easy call on defense.
The Linemen tendency is where they flop the line so one side is always blocking and the other is pulling. Thistendency can be a huge advantage. The defense can stack their strongest, biggest guys on their blockers and pu
faster types on the pullers side. If you use automatic blitzes from the pullers side with your Corners you mighteven run the play down. Most double wing teams do not flop their lines but some do due to personne
problems. As a defensive coordinator you must look for this easy tendency.
The Right /Left tendency is another Personnel type of tendency. Like the flopping linemen tendency the
right/left tendency works the same way. One side will block and the other will pull a majority of the time. We
played a double wing team that ran almost 98% of their toss or super powers right. This allowed us to stack that
side and put the faster guys on the other side. After charting the plays this tendency will become apparent.
The Feld/Boundary tendency is do they run the wide or short side of the field. Most double wing teams will fi
into a field or boundary type team. This tendency is a little harder to see, but can be huge advantage for the
defense. If the double wing team is a field team you can over shift your defense or slant to help with the wideside. There is no need to defend the boundary if they are more inclined to run to the field. There are many
reasons a team runs to the field with a wider area for the defense to defend and more running room as the two
biggest. The boundary double wing teams like to smash it and cut back to the wide side giving them more room
on the cut back. This tendency helps with the overall tendencies that a double wing is giving away.
The Sideline tendency is a tendency that will not show up on any normal tendency charts. Do they run the ball
to their sideline? A double wing team we played like to run the ball to their sideline especially on crucia
downs. The coach liked to see the play develop. He thought if he could see the play it would have a better
chance of success instead of the play away from him. This is a huge tendency for the defensive coordinator.
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
5/20
The Sequence tendency is does the double wing team run plays in a sequence. A team we
played always ran Toss or Super Power right on the first play and buck sweep on the second
play every half. We looked like a genius at our booster club meeting when we told them to
look for those two plays at the beginning of the game. The double wing team is trying to test
the defense and those are two great plays to test how the defense is covering them but is a
great weapon for the defensive coordinator in his game plan. We used those two plays to set a
tone by over playing them and creating a loss on both plays. Third down we except a pass or
reverse and the beginning of both halfs we have set a tone by making them punt. Thesequence tendency can be the greatest assets to a defensive coordinator.
Defensive Opponent
Another crucial part to scouting a double wing team is to scout the defense they are playing against. There aremany crucial tendencies that can be derived from watching how another team defended the double wing. The
first part of scouting a defense is to at the double wing-blocking scheme. Double wing teams have many
different ways to block defensive fronts. On the scouting sheet I want to determine what defensive front theteam is running. We can determine by this piece of information if the double wing team is running a certain
play more then another, based on defensive fronts.
The biggest part of the defensive scouting section is where is the Point of Attack? The point of attack wil
usually determine what blocking scheme they are using no matter the play. The toss, spin, and reverse run at theoff tackle position and have the same blocking scheme. If we can determine who is blocking whom we have a
better shot at defending the double wing.
Other than trap or wedge most double wing teams have these three basic ingredients to most of their plays
There will be aDouble Team, a Kick Outblock and somebody (usually three)Pullingthrough the hole. Thesethree techniques gives them an inside and outside wall with lead blockers coming through the hole.
The double team block is a two on one block with the inside blacker responsible for any blitz to the inside, this
creates the inside wall. The kick out block is usually done by the full back or guard. This creates the outsidewall. Usually the off side guard and tackle with the Quarter back lead the tail back through the hole.
As a defensive coordinator you must learn the basic blocking schemes to your defensive front. This will allow
you to figure a way to beat it and give you adequate repetitions in practice. Most practice squads do not give
you a game type look when you practice the double wing, so your defense never gets good quality practice
versus the double wing offense.
The last aspect of the defensive scouting is Coverages. You need to see how the double wing team defeats that
coverage's. This will allow you more freedom in secondary support. If the double wing team cannot pass there
is no need to cover those areas. We usually do not cover the flats. We allow them the pass completion and rally
to the ball to make the tackle. Most of the time the double wing team will not take advantage of this because itis not in the game plan.
(Diagram #1)
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
6/20
Understanding the Double Wing offense
The last major idea of defending double wing teams understands their offense. You cannot defend an offense
unless you have an idea of what it is attacking. Once you have a plan of what the double wing team is trying to
attack you can make a sound judgement on how to defend that area of the defense they are attacking.
TheDouble Wing Formation is a compressed double tight end, double wing formation with tight splits usually
foot to foot. This formation makes the defense cover ten running gaps with huge flank areas. The two tightends and wings give them a four wide receiver passing game. The two wings, full back and quarter back give
them four running backs to use in the run game
The Toss/Super Power is attacking the off tackle hole with ten players. Double teams at the point of attack akick out block by the full back, and the guard, tackle and quarter back leading through the hole. The running
backfollows his lead blockers and is looking to cut back or kick it outside. The running back usually is hidden
behind all the blockers.
The Trap is designed to give the impression of the toss and give the full back the ball up the middle behind thetrapping guard. The line does not block down linemen but blocks the linebackers. This gives them two tackles
a guard, tight end and a wing to block the linebackers. The running back and quarter back fake the rest of thedefense into thinking it is a toss play.
The Reverse is a counter to the toss play. The running back gets the pitch from the
quarterback and gives an inside hand off to the other wing. The other wing follows the
guard, tackle, and full back on the reverse. The play is essentially the toss play with a double
team, kick out and pulling linemen.
The Spin is a counter to the toss play. Like the reverse the running back fakes the toss play. The difference is
the quarterback spins around like he is pitching the ball but gives an inside reverse to the other wing. This play
is blocked the same way as the reverse play with a kick out by the guard and the full back and tackle pullingthrough
TheBuck sweep is a sweep play that has the fullback going opposite the sweep. This dive away is supposed to
keep the linebackers at home. The play has the quarterback faking a dive to the fullback and then handing thesweep to the wing back who follow both guards on the sweep. The tight and wing reach the contain defenders
This play is effective because most defenses stack the inside to stop the toss or super power. There is a bootleg
off the buck sweep but it is not usually run unless no ones cover the quarterbacks fake off the buck sweep.
The Play action pass is designed to flood a pass coverage area. When the double wing teams
see a defense commit their secondary to run force they fake the toss and throw the play action
pass at the defense. Usually its a two-man route with the wing running a flat and the tightend running a deep corner.
Many double wing teams have different pass schemes but they usually attack the same area.
The Streakis all four receivers running vertical. This is a hard play to defend. Defensive coordinators must be
ready for this pass play when setting up their defensive structure to defend the double wing offense.
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
7/20
Understanding the Double Wing Offense
TOSS
The Toss play is simple in its invention, but overwhelming in its application. If you don't stack the odds in your
favor, you will be run over. Double Wing teams run up huge scores against opponents, who either have no idea
at what they are facing or too PROUD to realize their own weaknesses against it. The Toss's objective is like
Coach Vince Lombardi's famous Green Bay Sweep. They want to create a wall by the Fullback sealing theoutside, the Tight End Tackle's double team sealing the inside and the Offside Tackle, Guard and Quarterback
wedge through the hole, giving the Wing back an alley to run through. Most times this alley is so big; "you
could drive a truck through it"
The Toss works like this, both Wings line up on the line of scrimmage. The Quarterback reads the defensive set
and bends down under center. At this point the Wings take their place. One Wing sets up as an Unbalanced
second Tight End. At the same time the second Wing sets up as a Wingback. He takes a quick motion back 5yards behind the Guard. The Quarterback snaps the ball and pitches a dead, none spinning ball chest to face
high at the motioning wing. He then pulls through the point of attack and seal outside, blocking the Cornerback.
The Offensive line has foot-to-foot splits to prevent stunting. The play side Tight End and Tackle double team at
the point of attack. They are taught to act like Siamese twins joined at the hip. Even though there are no gaps orrunning lanes they create them with their double team. The unbalanced Wing steps outside at the Cornerback
and blocks down to seal off the Linebacker. The offside Tackle and Guard pull to the point of attack. The
Guard's responsibility is to seal inside. The Offside Tackle is to seal up any penetration and help the Guard sealinside. The backside Tight End's job is to seal off backside penetration by cutting any defensive linemen in the
B gap out. The Fullback's job is to kick out the man responsible for Force. He takes a banana route, keeping an
inside relationship to the Force man. Because of this banana technique he can't effectively kick out and neverhave to read the Force and worry about logging him in. This technique allows him to concentrate fully on
kicking out the force and creating the seam for the Wing to run in. The Wing back takes the pitch and reads his
pulling Guard and Tackle, many times pushing him through the hole. This adds deception to power of the play.
Many times people are there to defend but cannot see the ball carrier as he hides behind the pulling lineman
The Wing back has many options as he runs through the holes he can stay on path, kick it outside, or the mosdangerous cut back across the grain. This is devastating because most of the pursuit is coming at the point of
attack and do not properly defend the cut back.
Buck Sweep
The Buck Sweep is an Outside play that is complementary to the Toss play. Taken from the Wing T offense the
Double wing team uses it to be more of an outside stretch play then a power off tackle play that the wing t uses
it for. Defensive teams get caught up in stopping the Toss that they compact their defense to the Toss, leavingthem vulnerable to the outside. This is where the Buck Sweep play comes in to take advantage of the defense's
compaction. The double wing team gets both guards leading the ball carrier outside.
The Reverse works like this. The wing goes in motion like he does on the Toss play. The Quarter back turns
and hands off the ball to the wing. The Full back dives the same way as the motioning wing. It looks like thequarter back has faked to the Fullback as he turns the same way as they full back is diving. This cross buck
look gives the play the deception it needs to spring the wing outside. The front side Tight end and wing reach
block anyone near the line of scrimmage. The center blocks play side to cover for the front side guard who ispulling outside for the corner back. The full back dive and the backside tackle seal block inside cover for the
backside guard who is pulling and leading the wing on the sweep. The backside tight end is faking a corner
route, while the quarter back is faking the bootleg. This backside bootleg fake should keep some of the defense
at home to cover them. The ball carrier follows his pulling guards outside and stretches the defense to the
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
8/20
sideline before turning up the field. This buck sweep play is a great change up to the constant pounding inside
of the Toss play.
Reverse
The Reverse play is a derivative of the Wing T's Criss Cross play. A double hand off reverse. This play is
devastating to over pursuing defenses. The double wing team gets all the power of the toss play with a
misdirection, deception based play. The double wing team gets the tackle, guard and full back leading through
the hole. This play is probably the second biggest gainer for the double wing team and huge play for them intight situations.
The Reverse works like this the wing goes in motion like on the Toss play. The Quarterback hands him off the
ball like the buck sweep and continues on a bootleg. The quarter back is trying to get the defensive end andcornerback to follow him or come up field. The wing, after taking the hand off, runs toward the other wing and
gives him an inside handoff. The other wing on the snap delays and runs toward the motioning wing and takes
the inside hand off and follows the pulling tackle and guard. The play side tight end and tackle double team athe point of attack. The guard blocks his inside gap and the center covers for the pulling guard. The off side
guard pulls and kicks out the defensive end. The pulling tackle leads and seals inside. The full back step like he
is running toss and bends around the quarterback and leads through the whole and seals outside. This play
works great against over pursuing defenses
Spin
The Spin is another reverse play off the Toss. The main aspect of the Spin in comparison to the Reverse is the
Quarterback handles the ball unlike the reverse where there is a double handoff. Another key element to the
deception is the full back blocks like he does on the toss giving the linebackers a false read key. This play canalso be ran to the tight end.
The Spin works like this the wing goes in motion and fakes the Toss. The play side tight end and tackle double
team at the point of attack. The guard blocks his inside gap and the center covers for the pulling guard. The off
side guard pulls and kicks out the defensive end. The pulling tackle leads and seals inside just like on thereverse play. The full back blocks the area right off the pulling tackle. The tight end blocks down to protect the
inside gap. The quarterback takes the snap and fakes the Toss pitch and Spins around and hands off to the wing
going underneath him. The other wing on the snap delays and runs toward the motioning wing and takes theinside hand off from the quarterback and follows the pulling tackle and guard.
Trap
The Trap is the Full backs main run. The Double Wing Trap is more of a delay trap than the quick hitting Wing
T trap play. The Full back trap is a hugely successful for the double wing team because of the effectiveness ofthe toss play. Most defense's tend to over pursue the to the Toss play and forget about the Fullback. The close
alignment of the Fullback to the quarterback, the Toss fake and delay action of the fullback adds to the
deception.
The Trap works like this the wing goes in motion and fakes the Toss. The front side wing blocks the cornerback. The play side tight end, tackle and guard block the Linebackers inside. They create a wall cutting off the
backside of the defense. If there is a Nose guard the play side guard blocks his inside gap and the center covers
for the trapping guard. The trapping guard traps the first defensive linemen past the center. The fullback staysin his stance and delays. He tries to hide behind the line of scrimmage. The quarterback turns and fakes the
toss play and hands off to the fullback. The quarterback either fakes a bootleg or a quick pass. The fullback
takes the ball and follows the guard. Some teams pull both the tackle and the guard on this play. In this
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
9/20
blocking scheme the guard traps and the tackle leads up through the hole. Most schemes have the backside
tackle and tight end block downfield, looking for secondary defenders.
Play Action
The Play Action Pass comes off the Toss Play. The Play Action Pass is most effective when the Toss play is
gaining big yards and the defensive backs have to step up and stop the play. There are many route combinations
but most tend to be a high/low read between the Wing and Tight End. Usually it is a two-man route but
sometimes it is run as a four-man route. The Quarterback usually has plenty of time because of the run fakeThe linemen perform an aggressive block so they do not have to pass block. Many Double Wing teams "lullyou to sleep" with a constant, pounding run game and then hit you with a Play Action Pass. They try to catchyour defensive backs "sleeping" and pass for big yardage.
The Play Action pass works like this the wing goes in motion like the Toss play. The Quarterback spins, fakes a
pitch to the wing and drops back five steps. The wing fakes receiving the pitch and runs into the line of
scrimmage and pass blocks. The Fullback kicks out the defensive end. Some teams have the fullback run a flatroute. The play side tackle, guard and center block their inside gaps aggressively. The weak side tackle and
guard set up and perform an aggressive pass block. The front side Tight end runs a corner route, trying to get
behind the defensive back. Some double wing teams have the tight end block or delay before releasing down
field. The front side wing blocks and runs a flat route. Some double wing teams have the wing and tight endswitch routes to get a picking action or they feel they have a better athlete at wing then at the tight end position.
The back side tight end either stays home and blocks or runs a Post route to draw the defensive backs away
from the corner route. Some double wing teams have the backside tight end run a dig or drag route. There aremany passing combination but most come off the Play Action of the Toss play.
Other Plays
The Double Wing has unlimited potential in its play usage. Many Double Wing teams have other plays in their
arsenal like:
Fullback Wedge
Fullback Off Tackle with Guard Trap,
Fullback Belly,
Quarterback Keeper Toss
Quarterback Spinner Trap
Many different Option Schemes
Wing Blast
Fly or Jet Sweep
Passing Schemes from the waggle to the run n shoots all streak play.
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
10/20
Defending the DW -Personnel
In choosing personnel for defending the Double Wing, the coach must look at a lot of different variables thewhen choosing a normal defensive team. Many skills of the normal defensive team are over looked for Team
skills of sacrifice, team play and each position doing their responsibility. Aggressive is needed, but flow to the
ball gang tackling type players usually does not work as smart, do your job types. The personnel needed forDefending the Double Wing needs to be evaluated before you can start to stop this potent offense.
Nose Guard
The NG needs to be a quick reaction player and is the most vital position in defending the Double Wing. The
Double Wing team tends to put their biggest, slowest, worst linemen at the center spot. This is huge advantagein defending the Double Wing team as this mismatch can be exploited. The NG must also be an unselfish, Team
player. Many of the NG's techniques will cause disruptions in the Double Wing scheme but will not show any
statistics for the NG.
Example
The best game I saw a NG play against the Double Wing he ended up with 0 tackles but he was voted MVP ofthe game. The NG rammed the center back, causing three fumbled snaps. He was constantly getting double
team from the guard leaving the LB untouched. The LB that game made 18 tackles. His biggest asset was he
stopped the backside pulling G/T 8 times and had 4 hits on the QB on their buck sweep. The center was calledfor holding 4 times as he started to tackle the NG on every play. I have used a 300-pound Division 1 player to a
119-pound wrestler at NG. The great thing about the 119-pound wrestler was he was line up across from a 300-
pound center. Most of the time you could not see him on the film but he was creating piles and keeping thepulling linemen from getting to the POA. The best NG types are 190 pound quick, fast LB's
Defensive Tackle
The DT spot has to be an aggressive type. I like the "Rudy" type of undersized player with a huge heart. Manytimes I have put in a back up who does not play much and will do what you ask 100%. A lot of the times anormal DT wants to pursue and try to make reads but this does not work. The DT position takes an unselfish
player who will make the cut and will give up his body for the rest of the team. The DT main goal is to cut his
OT every time causing a pile at the POA or stopping his OT from pulling. Either way he has taken away a hole
or someone from the Double Wing attack.
Example
The best game at this position was a guard who did not play defense ever but was very coachable. He cut his
DT and crabbed through him every play. He did his job in giving up his body and made 6 tackles in the 4th
quarter. Another great game was played by a 175 pound back up who made his cut ever time. His CB to hisside had game high 25 tackles. My 300-pound stud that would not cut played worst game. He was the best
blocker for the Double Wing team as he was constantly being pushed back on the double team. He wa
eventually benched for the rest of the game as he told me "he could not cut every play and had to play normaldefense "
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
11/20
Defensive End
The DE has to be a kamikaze, contact player. He has to "shorten the neck" of the FB and not get kicked out onthe play. The DE must make the play bounce outside so the CB can make the play. He cannot be too over
aggressive and crash so hard inside that they run the Toss outside of him. The DE must make huge disruptions
on the Toss and Reverse plays. He has to be disciplined and not go up field or he will give a huge lane for the
reverse play.
Example
The best game at this position was our short, squatty 5'5 195 DE. His wrong shouldering to a cut of the FB
bounced the play or caused a pile so many times his CB to his side had 25 tackles. Worst game was the same
over aggressive kid who started to bite on the misdirection and was getting up field too much. This left a hugelane for the Reverse. He also was crashing so hard inside that the FB logged him in and the backside G/T/QB
pulled around him and triple team the CB on the Toss play.
Linebacker
The LB position needs to have discipline players who will read their keys and not the backfield motion. Theyhave a lot of misdirection and deception to decipher and needs to be smart, heads up players. Quickness and
toughness are also needed, as they will take on many blockers.
Example
The LB's over the years have been pretty consistent in their play. They make their reads and flow to the ball
The worse case was I had two LB's who were reading the backfield flow and were totally lost. The DoubleWing team we played ran 22 reverses that game and almost every time my two-LB's run into each other as one
read the flow and the other read the reverse. That game the Double Wing team kept the ball the entire 4 th
quarter on us.
Cornerback
The CB position needs to be played by your best open field tackler. The CB spot will be in a position to make
every tackle as everyone is funneling the ball carrier to the CB position.
The CB can be any type of position as long as he can shed blocks and make tackles. This is the glory position
as this player averages about 20 tackles against Double Wing teams
Example
The best CB I have seen was our leading tackler SS who was a 145-pound wrestler. He made 25 tackles and
only missed 2 times in a 1 on 1 situation. His DT and DE to his side were unstoppable in their job of sacrificing
themselves for the CB. Many of the tackles the CB had were one on one situation and he made them most ofthem for no gain or a loss. Worst case was when I had a cover CB plays here and he either missed the tackle or
was run over. Most times he was avoiding contact and looked like he was playing two-hand touch.
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
12/20
Free Safety
The FS needs to be a smart player who can make a tackle one on one like the CB. The FS must be able to comeup quick and be a force and contain player but does not get caught in the play action and gives up the home run
pass play. Speed or size is not really an issue as heads up or smart play is more desirable. Normal DB's or even
displaced LB in the Defending the Double Wing Scheme can man the FS position.
Example
This position has been pretty consistent for me through the years. I have had weaker cover CB and outsidebackers play here along with normal safety types. They all have done a good job of making tackles and covering
the Play Action. Their pursuit was good and the made many Touchdown saving tackles. The Worst case was a
hard-hitting SS who kept coming up and making big hits on the Toss play. Even though he was doing a greatjob in stopping the Toss he gave up three huge play action passes with two of them going for scores.
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
13/20
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
14/20
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
15/20
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
16/20
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
17/20
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
18/20
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
19/20
8/3/2019 Defending Th Double Wing
20/20
Top Related