Am I the only EF coach who dislike this rule?

"When in Detroit, do as the Detroitians do."

BUT....that Defense didn't win the GLEFL SuperBowl so it is beatable! IMO you gotta counter what the Offense is trying to do and if that means 4 Backs bulldozing you down the field, what's a Defense to do? Especially against FOB tackling!?! If you remember I played Jim Davis' Hulks a few years ago and ALL 11 of my defenders touched him on almost every play but they didn't get a FOB!?! So the ONLY thing to do is to let an OL or 2 or 3 fly past and try to swoop in from the sides or around the back, but you gotta have some sort of resistance to stop the push! That means the 2-2 stack: 2 DL over the OGs pushed thru with LBs 5 yards back. That creates the Anvil, and hopefully your DEs and OLBs can create the Hammer. Read "The Art of War" for more examples.

Bottom line, like it or not, thems the Rules. Practice against it and figure out how to attack it instead of posting polls. You've wasted at least an hour of quality practice time.

You and Pat C. shouldn't have a hard time figuring it out - he's a former undefeated Champ and you're a former regular Division winner, so stop pulling the harp strings and practice.

You put people in the best possible position to be sucessful. If that means run a two man line then so be it. Why would any coach worth his whistle waste two defenders on every play when another team is obviously stronger? When a person plays a two man line, then the offense has to re-adjust to compensate. Besides, I am not against any rule that goes against the "strongest team, no strategy" wins theory. Just one man's opinion.

jimbo is one of those guys that does not see my point, along with some other guys I have to play with.

You guys always answer me by telling me to beat it on the field. This is not my point. It is before you even put the rule in place. Why would you let these little figures go on their own? They do not know when to turn around and make a block or tackle. This is what my poll is really about.

I know I have to figure out how to beat it on the field. Now I am asking for some pointers now, because I am MAKING A TEAM NOW for this kind of play.

I did not waste my time, because i already got some ideas from a couple of you.

Thank you,
Tony

...NONE of my guys would run downfield even if there wasn't a single defender lined up on them. I understood your question and I do see your point. There are still a few things I don't like, BUT restricting the D to traditional mano-y-mano formations is not gonna solve anything. This is football, not Rock 'Em, Sock 'Em Robots. It's still 11-on-11 and your guys gotta get there and make the play regardless of the other guy's formation(s). AND...you have 60 WHOLE minutes to figure it out.

[Geno H]

It's a football formation.And we are playing football.

Geno H

[WolverineFan]

Tony you know most people in our league pass.I have wanted to DLs for years.In other tourneys people allow two DLs to.I am pretty sure The Buzzball tourney allows only two on the line.But you have to remember if you use two blitzer that makes 5 or 6 DLs.That takes away from you safty play.Plus that helps people want to run alittle bit.

In real football not all DLs are lined up in the middle.Some are outside of the OL with two in the middle.

Tony you are my boy and I am just being me.Shut the trap and play.LOL

[FrustratedFinFan]

Here are some ideas:

If the "D" isn't respecting your tackles, then make some fast ones and run the tackle eligible pass more often. I bet that will get some attention to your tackles.

Have your tackles on ITZ dials or tweaked to loop back and out.....use them to kick out that swarm of loopers coming from each side. Go 4 wide with your receivers to force your opponent to cover more and blitz less.

I don't really like the look of a "D" stacked to the outside, but it works in electric football.....so, you will see more of it. It can be beaten. Work on quick hitting runs up the middle and short passes.

A strategy divider and rules for placement of linemen and such might help...but many leagues don't use the divider.

[Reginald Rutledge]

I think leagues have put rules in place moreso because it creates a crutch for them to compete, not to make it realistic. I am one of those who go by the philosophy of "Don't worry about what's in my lockerroom, worry about your own". To me, this means simply that if I am on defense, I should be able to run any type of defensive scheme I want. If I want to run 11 men in a straight line, that's my choice. But I think the rules should be created in a manner that does not restrict the offensive team to have to run right at "the storm". They should be able to audible into a formation that penalize the defense for blitzing in such a manner.

You can't dictate to another team that they must place a man over yours because you can't account for him. Football is all about trickery, deception, and surprise. The Zulu warriors changed the way of defensive tactics in African colonization times. They did not play according to time honored traditions of previous wars. They were the aggressor. They took chances! They surprised the opponents. Similarly, that must be done in football (I think). If I am forced to place every man over yours, it takes away elements of surprise. To me, that's the cerebral part of electric football. Like Jimbo said, you've got 60 minutes to figure it out!

As long as rules are in place that restricts either team from doing things that makes them great, the outcome is predictable. But if you allow defenses to do what they want to do and then allow offenses to counter it in a meaningful way, the game becomes very exciting. Buddy Ryan would be ********ed off right about now if he could not run the 46, or Arnsbarger would be very unhappy if he could not run the 53, etc. Air Coryell would be very upset if you told him he had to just use 2 wide outs and no other packages, or the Run and Shoot, etc.

Don't restrict the game by your play. Restrict the other team by your ability to play and execute. If you execute efficiently, the other team will be trying to create rules to handicap your team's ability.

Just another coach's perspective.

Reginald Rutledge

[sweetka]

Here's the funniest part. The rules were put in place because we were BEHIND the times. It was funny to a lot of people when I played a guy in the Superbowl a few years back whose men weighed up to and over 7 full grams. My biggest man was 3.9 grams and get this:

He could virtually stack his men while I had to cover each lineman, then place my linebackers at least 10 yards off the line of scrimmage. It's amazes me that I beat him during the regular season. How Neanderthal.

Our rules are going through constant evolution because our young, innovative coaches are finally on the tournament circuit, and see a better, productive, and more exciting way to play the game. This is not about any individual, although Jimbo's analogy was on point, it's about enhancing game play and providing a level playing field for both strong or fast teams.

My lineman are athletic, AKA, the Denver Broncos. They run, not wait until someone comes in contact before they mow them down the field. Am I gonna shove everyone down the field, no! But don't slip up or it's 7 because those loose guys will pop or shield your backers and safeties. The days of just plodding along are gone in the Great Lakes. If you really take a look at the playoff stats you will notice that the real reason Jimmy made the Superbowl were twofold:

1. He constructed one helluva a fast defense, not overpowering, quick
2. He finally got off his duff and threw the ball.

Those were the two things that hindered him in previous years. Sure, he'll pummel you if you don't pay attention, So will Norb, but they got it like that.

I commend the Great Lakes and Jim Davis for EVOLVING! We will continue to look for better ways to upgrade gameplay through tournaments and equipment. We have evolved so immensely that coaches that once frowned on our rules are considering joining our league. Some have in fact.

Tony, my advice to you is to start going to the tournaments and see how the game is really played. Leagues tend to go at a slower pace. There's even small rumblings of consideration of strategy dividers down the road and that was something I USED to scoff at. However, with the ITZ effect it doesn't sound bad at all to some of us. Hopefully, our "travelers" will bring something new and innovative by attending the "Shootout". We can't stand still brother or we'll get ran over!

We have set the bar high, we vote on everything, and as always we respect your opinion and anyone else who has provided insight into this post. Welcome back to the family Tony!

Respectfully,

Ken Allen
Great Lakes EFL

[Coach K-LO]

Ken and Uncle Reggie makes very excellent points.

There was a time in the past that rules (or game play) was designed to stop things from happening that has been useful for a team or style.

NHFL uses what I call the double pass (TT pass to a signpost; THEN run to a spot) to give both the offense and defense a play on the ball......

You have the "turn and burn" where if you hit the receiver with the pass, you can turn him upfield and continue (burn) the play.......

the original way I learned the emulation/pass placement you could not alter the intended receiver BEFORE the sticks were placed.......

As you can see, there are many alternate ways of doing the same thing. If a team wants to press you from the outside - make them pay for it.

Look, I have my own 'dislike' in terms of the cover corner.... because most guys use their strongest TTC base on that player to lock down your WR. When they first came out, most of your WR were on rookie bases. I have said in the past that the playing field should level and the cover-corner should be on a rookie base, too. However, my way of thinking on this was fine, but limited. Since then, most WR are now on TTC (or prolines) to match the defense.

Take the time to develop your "gameplan" for those opponents who want to run 2 DL at you.