HSC FLY ATTACK

Dr. John Ward’s creation, the Half-Spin Counter (HSC) series. His semi-
spread Single Wing attack has benefited hugely from his combination of
the old Washington Redskins Counter Gap play in one direction and a
sweep play in the other direction, where the ball is hidden from the
defense long enough to cause confusion about the path of the ball — is it
heading off-tackle one way, or around end the other?

I’ve blended the HSC backfield action, with its simple step-and-twist by
the player receiving the direct snap, and the Fly Sweep series I have been
using for years from under center in the Wild Bunch, into something I
think is simple, powerful, and a much better basis for a shotgun spread
ground game than the normal Option, Dart, Draw & Zone (ODDZ) attack
that so many spread teams rely on these days.

The HSC-Fly attack is simpler to teach, involves no reads by any of your

backs, and is far more deceptive than the ODDZ system. In particular, it
adds much better deception to the shotgun Fly series than is possible from
a spread offense where the Fly hand-off takes place forward, in full view
of the defense.

First, a diagram showing how I name the various positions:

THE 10 SERIES: H Fly Motion, F Half-Spin

There is no substitute for total effort in faking, especially in the Fly Sweep
series. Coach Mark Speckman of Willamette College in Oregon could not
be clearer on this point — ANYONE can be a great faker, all it takes is
hard work, repetition, and commitment. If anyone questions the reason
for working so hard on good faking, just tell them that a perfect fake is
worth AT LEAST two perfect blocks. Isn’t it easier to get defenders to take
themselves out of the play from time to time than to have to physically
drive them out of the play, down after down ?

Marrying the Fly series to Half-Spin Counter action means the backfield
provides no clues to the defense about the eventual destination of the
ball. It also means, however, that all the plays in the series must be
repped to perfection. Not only the 11 Green Light Sweep by H, but the 16
Counter play by the F back require exact timing and execution. The play-
action passes by the QB (10 Y Stick is an example of what is possible) are
less exacting in their timing, but H and F should always carry out their Fly
fakes on every 10 series play where they are not carrying the ball
themselves. In addition, H should make a point of accelerating into every
fake he carries out in this series, since defenders are hard-wired to
respond to acceleration.

The key to a successful Fly Sweep is to block defenders, on or off the LOS,
from over the Tackle to outside. Inside the Tackle, linemen should either
release for the second or third levels, or else (as shown above with the
Bunch Guard) pull and kick out the force defender out wide to give the
sweeper a block off of which he can cut. This will happen in cases where
there are four defenders outside the playside Tackle.
Y and Z are responsible for two of the widest defenders — in the case
above, for numbers 2 and 3 counting in from the sideline, while the Bunch
Guard handles #1. Because the closest defender to his outside - #4 - is
on the LOS, the Bunch Tackle must Reach that man just long enough for
the sweeper to get outside — roughly one second.

The F back takes the snap while stepping forward with his Bunch-side foot
just over the midline, simultaneously pivoting on his back foot and turning
his shoulders toward the approaching sweeper while keeping his eyes
fixed on the Spread Tackle’s butt. (If any defender comes screaming off
the Spread Tackle’s backside, we will attack him with the F back after the
hand-off.) The F back holds the ball out so H can Reach and Take it
cleanly.

H goes in Fly motion and will be behind Spread Tackle’s outside leg, and
just deeper than the QB, when the ball is snapped. He will Reach and Take
the ball from the F back, then head for the hashmarks, numbers, and
sideline. This is not a cutback play — he should not think about cutting
back unless the designated blocker (Bunch Guard, in the case above)
completely whiffs on his block on the cornerback. F back follows through
with his fake of 16 Counter.

Once defenders start flowing with the Fly Sweep, we can counter back
against the grain with the classic Washington Redskins Counter play. Here
the F back will take his HSC steps, but keep the ball pinned tightly to his
back hip as H performs a Reach-Take Fake and accelerates into his Fly
Sweep fake. F, meanwhile, pushes off with his back foot and follows
Bunch Tackle into the hole.
Line blocking will vary depending on the front we’re facing, but there are
four different ways to block it. “Counter Gap” means everyone from
Spread Tackle to the Center is blocking down at a “severe angle”; that is,
at 30 degrees to the line of scrimmage. Bunch Guard pulls and kicks out
the first wrong color that shows outside of Spread Tackle, while Bunch
Tackle “runs the funnel,” looking for the first wrong color inside or deeper
than Spread Tackle.

“Counter Trey” calls for a double team by the TE and Tackle; but since
there is no TE on the Spread side of the formation, this call can only be
used with 24 Counter (below).

“Counter Deuce,” illustrated above, involves a double team by the Spread

Tackle and Spread Guard; finally, “Counter Ace” involves a double team
by the Spread Guard and Center. If “Counter Ace” is called, the Spread
Tackle will severe-angle block for the first wrong color that shows over the
top of the double team. Y and Z help seal off the backside of the play; if
you call this at the right time, the defenders closest to them will be out
wide chasing H’s Fly Sweep fake anyway.

Play action off of the HSC/Fly backfield action, but this time the QB gets
the direct snap and drops to pass. X runs Choice routes (a Run & Shoot
that alters X’s route based on the defender’s leverage).
Y Stick attacks the void in underneath coverage in the Hook/Curl zone. H
turns his Fly fake into a Swing route, looking for the ball as soon as he
breaks outside; Y runs a Stick, breaking outside at +6, while Z runs a
landmark Fade (actually more like a 45 degree Slant Out route) that puts
him about 16 yards wide of Bunch Tackle and at about +10-12 when the
ball is thrown. From a quick 3-step drop, QB’s read is the first underneath
defender inside the playside Cornerback.

QB is thinking Stick — the Swing pattern becomes a reaction if the

defender takes the Stick away. Alternately, experienced QB’s can look the
“read” defender into the Swing route and come back to the Stick.

• VERSUS ZONE: The Bunch-side flat defender is QB’s read. If he

hangs and takes away Y’s Stick, throw the Swing immediately to
give H space to run to. If he jumps the Swing, Y will have lots of
space to make the catch. Hit his downfield number with the ball to
let him spin and head straight downfield in the same motion.

• VERSUS MAN: H’s play fake complicates his man’s job enormously
— there are too many bodies to run through to cover the Swing with
any reliability. Switching won’t work, either — notice all three
patterns are breaking outside, leaving an inside switcher with
nothing but air to cover. Bumping coverage is probably the best
solution, but we probably have a speed mismatch somewhere, most
likely Z’s Fade — if QB can hold the ball and wait, we can hit a big
play.
THE 20 SERIES: Z Fly Motion, QB Half-Spin

The basic mechanics of the 20 series are similar to the 10 series, but this
time it is Z coming in Fly motion and QB doing the half-spin footwork. If
your QB is not the Tim Tebow type, you don’t need to make him run the
Counter play off-tackle to succeed with this series — but a good Counter
Boot from time to time will keep backside defenders honest.

The Spread Tackle must Reach the man on his outside; if he is too wide,
we will either find a different way to block him or else run a different play.
The rest of the line blocks on tracks through to the second and third
levels. Step through the playside gap and find the most dangerous shirt of
the wrong color to block downfield. Cut off enough pursuit, and the 6-8
yard Fly Sweep will turn into a big play.

X and H have similar assignments, releasing deep to keep the secondary

in doubt about whether the play is a run or pass, then stalk-blocking the
first defender to cross their face. Y takes an Outside Vertical release and
tries to take a defender or two with him. F passes in front of the QB at the
snap and provides additional deception — is he carrying the ball on an
inside Trap? He makes it harder for the defense to see the Fly exchange
as well.

QB takes the snap while stepping forward with his Spread-side foot just
over the midline, simultaneously pivoting on his back foot and turning his
shoulders toward the approaching sweeper while keeping his eyes fixed on
the Bunch Tackle’s butt. If any defender comes screaming off Bunch
Tackle’s backside, we will ask the QB to slow him down, either by blocking
him or by faking Counter Boot away from the sweep.
Z goes in Fly motion and will be behind Bunch Tackle’s outside leg, and
just deeper than the QB, when the ball is snapped. He will Reach and Take
the ball from the QB, then head for the hashmarks, numbers, and sideline.
This is not a cutback play — he should not think about cutting back unless
X completely whiffs on his block on the cornerback.

Not only is there a fourth way to block the play in the 20 series, but the
backside blocking also changes from 16 Counter. Spread Guard pulls and
kicks out the first wrong color past Bunch Tackle’s butt (or Y’s in Counter
Trey), but now the “funnel player” is H. Spread Tackle blocks as though he
were Hinging on the backside of a sprint pass — he steps to protect his
inside gap first, then pivots backside, drops and forces defenders to go the
long way around if they want to get to the ball.

When double teams are used, they remain conditional in this sense — if a
defender shoots hard for the gap inside the double team, the inside (post)
blocker must protect that gap and block down on the stunting defender. If
that happens, the outside (power) blocker will come down on the other
defender by himself, and the blocking will adjust to Counter Gap on-the-
fly.

Once again, both Z and F need to carry out their fakes with enthusiasm —
if Z accelerates into his Fly Sweep fake, he can take three defenders out
of the play without laying a finger on anyone. That’s the power of good
faking.
This is a valuable addition to (or substitute for) the Counter play for your
QB. It offers a play-action passing threat, and if he has any speed at all he
can make some yards outside of containment (rather than off-tackle as
with 24 Counter, where you may not want to risk your QB on a regular
basis).

Spread Guard will pull and try to log the EMLOS defender to the Bunch
side. QB will give a good Fly Sweep fake to Z, who must really accelerate
out of the fake to give this play credibility. The F back fills for the pulling
Guard.

Y releases as cleanly as possible, inside or outside a tight defender, then

vertical to about 10 yards, and cuts to the Corner from there. H runs a
Shallow Cross route, while X has a Post on the backside. QB looks for Y,
then H, then runs for the first down marker. We will only look for X on this
play by pre-determined decision. In that case, he can be given a Post-
Corner route for a “transcontinental” throwback play.

The Passing Game

The Run & Shoot pass route packages made famous by Mouse Davis and
more recently June Jones work very well from the shotgun, as Jones has
proved in recent years at Hawaii. Motioning Z across the formation to
create Run & Shoot Trips (3×1) causes problems for many defensive
coverage systems which are designed to defend 2×2 receiver formations.
The pass route packages and complementary plays included in this series
(61 Short is an example of what can be done using Run & Shoot motion)
are designed to exploit those problems.
Z goes in motion until he’s about 6 yards from X, then runs a Slant; H
runs a Seam, and X runs a Short — he ends up over the spot where Z was
located at the snap, at a depth of +3 or so. Y runs an Outside Vertical. QB
reads the first underneath defender inside X. If he drops back to cover the
Slant route, hit the Short route; if he hangs in place or moves up to cover
the Short route, throw the Slant behind him — quickly.

• VERSUS ZONE: QB takes a quick two- or three-step drop, reading

the underneath defender over Z (in C3, the strong safety). If he
hangs in place or squats on X’s Short route, drill the ball on your
third step to Z as he breaks in. If the SS runs with Z, deliver a firm
ball to X, allowing him to cut downfield after the catch (do not gun it
— X is running toward you). H’s Seam keeps the next underneath
defender inside from gaining too much width. As the C3 DBs drop,
the Spread side should open up to give the QB a clear read.

• VERSUS MAN: Techniques for defeating man coverage differ for

some routes. First, X will work hard to gain separation at the LOS
with a quick “shake and bake” — out-in-out steps in fast succession,
followed by a hard cut inside once X’s defender turns his hips out. X
will continue to fight for separation, right past Z’s position at the
snap. Z and H run their patterns much the same as against zone,
but they are looking for quick separation and a quick pass. QB
should lead X with the ball if he decides to hit the Short route. This
throw requires practice, but will pay big dividends.