LEVRA | PETERSON SECOND EDITION SECOND EDITION COACHING DEFENSIVE LINEMEN COACHING JOHN LEVRA | JAMES A. PETERSON DEFENSIVE No one is more qualified to address defensive line play LINEMEN than John Levra. John’s book is the perfect tool for football coaches who want to improve the performance level of their defensive linemen. COACHING DEFENSIVE LINEMEN Wade Phillips Head Coach Dallas Cowboys Coaching Defensive Linemen is a user-friendly resource for coaches on both sides of the ball who want to better understand the key factors involved in effective defensive line play. JOHN LEVRA Carl Mauck Retired NFL player (13 years) and coach (22 seasons) The book—Coaching Defensive Linemen—offers insightful, game-tested information and advice concerning how to develop top-flight defensive linemen. Chuck Broyles Head Football Coach Pittsburg State University A first-rate reference for coaches at all competitive levels. In a clear and straightforward manner, John’s book provides step-by-step instructions for coaches who want to enhance the skills and techniques of their defensive linemen. JIM PETERSON Brian Billick Head Coach Baltimore Ravens COACHES CHOICE 978-1-58518-064-6 5 1 9 9 5 JOHN LEVRA | JAMES A. PETERSON 9 781585 180646 US $19.95 Second Edition Coaching Defensive Linemen John Levra James A. Peterson ©2008 Coaches Choice. Second edition. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Coaches Choice. Throughout this book, the masculine shall be deemed to include the feminine and vice versa. ISBN: 978-1-58518-021-9 Library of Congress Control Number: 2007931375 Book layout and cover design: Roger W. Rybkowski Diagrams: Marion von Bausler and Roger W. Rybkowski Coaches Choice P.O. Box 1828 Monterey, CA 93942 www.coacheschoice.com 2 Dedication I want to dedicate this book to every member of my wonderful family. Without their guidance and support, coaching would have been impossible. My mom and dad, Mildred and Pete Levra, provided so much for me as a young man. My wife, Rosie, and our children, Craig and Gina, have been with me every season, no matter what the outcome of our games. Their love, patience, and understanding could not have been any better. Collectively, their backing has enabled me to continue to pursue my goals in the profession, and lead a very rewarding life while enjoying the game of football. —John Levra 3 Acknowledgments I would like very much to thank all of the outstanding coaches I have had the opportunity to work with during my career for their expert advice and counsel. Each of them taught me a lot about coaching—in particular, about defensive line play. The list of coaches who have had a positive impact on enabling me to better learn my craft is quite extensive. Among the high school coaches who helped me professionally were Bill Presson, Bob Hughes, and Chuck Norris. On the college level, I thoroughly enjoyed working with Jack Scofield, Mart Crawford, Lance Van Zandt, Cliff Silva, Dick Munzinger, Lloyd Moore, Jerry Moore, and Bud Moore. Among the coaches at the professional level who willingly shared their insights and knowledge with me are Vic Rapp, Vince Tobin, Bum Phillips, Wade Phillips, Carl Mauck, Mike Ditka, Dave McGinnis, Jim Fassel, Dennis Green, Tony Dungy, Foge Fazio, King Hill, John Paul Young, Andy Everest, Jim La Rue, Tom Olivadotti, and Joe Spencer. I would also like to express my appreciation to all of the great defensive linemen that I’ve had the privilege of coaching (including Richard Dent, Steve McMichael, Dan Hampton, William “The Fridge” Perry, Trace Armstrong, and John Randle), who were more than willing to share the “little” things that helped me to improve my ability to teach the defensive line position. I would also like to acknowledge my junior high coaches (Estel Gilmour), high school coaches (Harry McDonald, Sam Nicoletti, Lefty Hamm), and college coaches (Carnie Smith, Joe Murphy), all of whom helped inspire me to choose coaching as a career. I am very thankful for both their guidance and their teachings. They were great teachers and coaches. I would also like to extend my appreciation to Kristi Huelsing and Alisha Brown for their patience and assistance in guiding me through the editorial process. Finally, I would like to thank Jim Peterson, my co-author, who convinced me that I had something of value to say and offer to coaches. He did a great job of putting the manuscript together. —John Levra 4 Contents Dedication . 3 Acknowledgments . 4 Preface . 6 Chapter 1 Becoming a Defensive Lineman . 7 2 Stance, Alignment, and Assignment . 12 3 Defensive Line Play Versus the Run . 30 4 Defensive Line Play Versus the Pass . 43 5 Technique Play Against Common Blocking Schemes . 53 6 Stunts to Stop the Run and Pass . 103 7 Defensive Line Drills . 113 8 Assessing Player Performance . 136 About the Author . 144 5 Preface Over the years, the game of football has changed in a number of ways. The players— in many instances—have gotten bigger and faster. To a great extent, the offenses have become more varied and complex. In response, the defenses have attempted to become even more intricate and focused. The one aspect of this great sport that has not changed in any meaningful way since its inception is the fact that the basic essence of the game is embodied in two fundamental activities—blocking and tackling. For many individuals, the resolute determination of a particular player of a specific team to overpower and control the competition defines the compelling nature of the sport. Having coached on both sides of the line (offense and defense), I have an acute appreciation of the physical and technical skills that are required to play football at a highly competitive level. As such, I believe that I have a rightful obligation to share with other members of the football coaching community much of the information and insights that I have been able to amass in more than four decades of coaching. Coaching Defensive Linemen, Second Edition, is a by-product of the fact that because other coaches have taken the time and energy to share their opinions and ideas with me at all stages of my coaching career, I feel that I should attempt to reciprocate both their generosity and their commitment to the game by writing this book. As such, Coaching Defensive Linemen, Second Edition, attempts to provide a straightforward, inclusive overview of all aspects involved in this critical facet of the game. Not only does the book cover how to preselect those individuals who might be most predisposed to play the defensive line at an effective level, it also reviews (in detail) those techniques that a defensive lineman must perform as expected against either the run or the pass. One of the more unique features of the book is the comprehensive chapter on technique play against the most common blocking schemes. The book also includes a chapter on drills that can be used to develop and refine the skills and techniques required of a defensive lineman. Finally, the book presents a detailed method for evaluating the level of play by a defensive lineman during an actual game. By design, I have attempted to make the information presented in Coaching Defensive Linemen, Second Edition, useful for coaches at all competitive levels. If this information enables you to be better prepared to coach the young men for whom you are responsible, then the effort to write this book will have been well worth the time. —John Levra 6 1 Becoming a Defensive Lineman Defensive linemen set the tempo for a defensive football team. A good defensive team has defensive linemen who attack the line of scrimmage and give 100 percent effort on every play. A successful defense has linemen who out-hit and out-tough the opponent. To accomplish these objectives, a defensive lineman must possess certain mental and physical qualities, including the following: • Quickness. A defensive lineman must have the ability to get off the ball on the snap and immediately shed the blocker. • Toughness. The defensive lineman must be mentally up to the task of experiencing continuous contact and defeating blocking schemes aimed to control, frustrate, and discourage him (e.g., triple-teams, double-teams, false keys, etc.). • Speed. The ability to accelerate to the ball once the blocker is shed is an indispensable requirement for a defensive lineman. Coaches should always keep in mind and remind their players that this attribute increases a defensive lineman’s opportunity to be a “great” player. • Desire and determination. A defensive lineman must possess an unrelenting commitment to perform at full throttle on every play (i.e., do his best) if he is to have any reasonable chance to excel. 7 • Strength. The defensive lineman must possess exceptional strength in both the upper and lower body that enables him to physically dominate the line of scrimmage. • Peripheral vision. The defensive lineman must possess an extraordinary ability to see peripheral developments as the play progresses. • Stamina. The defensive lineman must have the physical energy (e.g., aerobic capacity) to be able to defeat the blocker and relentlessly pursue the ball from sideline to sideline on each play from scrimmage. Quickness and Speed A strong argument can be made that quickness and speed in defensive linemen can eliminate many of the problems that a defensive line coach faces. The primary goal of an offensive lineman is to neutralize the pursuit of the defensive lineman.