DC, play chart question

I know the "run it till they stop it theory" and there is only one way the theory works - If they don't stop it. So there is only one way for the theory to work but there are four ways for the theory to fail. They are 1) They stop it 2) You get penalized 3) You fumble 4) You run out of time. IMO, the theory has two other shortcomings as well. Every down you run the same play in a row, you educate the defense on how to stop it. Let's use our own practices as the example. When you're coaching a new play in practice and trying to get it right and you have a defense in front of you, it complicates running and teaching that play when the defense is standing there listening and knowing it's coming. IMO, you don't want to educate the defense on what's coming. Second, if the defense does stop your play, how do you know what play to go to next? They've stopped you. Now what?

The DC Wing T doesn't work on this principal at all. We have a very threatening FB but we don't use him to score TD's. His job is to get us first downs. A couple of years ago I had a FB that averaged 10 yards a carry. He got one TD all season. We didn't just give him the ball for eight straight plays. He usually got two carries in an 80 yard drive. But that was two first downs which equated to six more tries for the other guys to score and - if they didn't - then we'd give the ball to "Psycho Bob" again and he'd get us another first down and another three tries. The big yards occur when you fake the handoff to "Psycho Bob" and somebody else gets the ball with "Psycho Bob" now taking the head off the DE as a blocker. That "somebody else" will get far more yards that the 10 "Psycho Bob" will get you. That's because "Psycho Bob" places the defense in conflict. Does the defense ignore him and cover your other five or do they key him and ignore the other five? Whichever they do is wrong. If they elect to stop "Psycho Bob" what happens when you call "33 Quick"? Coach JB discovered that one. Again, the secondary must always make the tackle. You should be able to go your entire season without a defensive lineman making a single tackle or sack. So when the secondary defender comes up to make the tackle - who is covering his man? Remember! The DC-46 is designed to put a secondary defender in conflict. He has no "run/pass" read. Again, whatever he does is wrong. If he plays the pass, the run is open. If he plays the run, the pass is open. "Psycho Bob" makes the decision for the secondary. Since the guys up front won't tackle him, they have to. Out comes "TE Throwback". The two freight trains now pass each other in the night and - Whoa! Who's got the TE? Ask Coach JB. But you're not just using "Psycho Bob" to put the defense in conflict. Put your best all around stud at HB. Here comes "36 Toss" or "38 Cross Toss". Again, secondary has to make the tackle. Again, secondary is always wrong ("HB Pass #2 Open"). Or here comes the QB on "16". If they want to stop it, here comes "16 Pitch", "38 Option", or "Right 41 Trap". However they try and stop it, they're wrong. OK! Now you've got that WB in motion all the time. Is it "36 Power Toss"? "20 midline"? "25 Power"? Or is it - surprise! - "47 Gut Speed"? Or will you come back with "47 Buck Reverse"? And if "Pass Right #3" isn't open, "Right 67 Screen" is. Either one will get you 20-50-60 yards.

Instead of making the defense try and stop what they know is coming, your goal is to make the defense try and "guess" what's coming and try and stop that. Let's say you have a 12 play offense. The defense has a 1 in 12 chance of "guessing" the play. You have a 92% chance of them guessing wrong even before the snap. But you can put the odds even higher than that in your favor. Every time you run the ball with a snap count of "2", look downfield and see who's open. After all, the pass play is the SAME PLAY. You know the receiver will be open before you even call the play. Again, read the DE and run where he isn't. It's a no brainer. You're approaching being right 100% of the time. It's why, for 15 of the 16 years I've coached, I didn't have a punt play in my offense. It was a waste of practice time.

But, even more important than all the things I've mentioned, the #1 reason you don't "run it till they stop it" is because there is no such play in the DC Wing T - or any wing T for that matter. The closest two plays you've got to "run it till they stop it" is "38 Cross Toss" and "Power Wedge" - And neither of those two plays are wing T plays. The reason the wing T does not have such plays is because the wing T is not a "power" offense but a "deceptive" offense. The ball goes one way while the defense chases string the other. I've only had one "Psycho Bob". My other FB's have all been good but they also only average 5 yards a carry by comparison. So you really can't "power" your way downfield.

This means, in order to pull the offense off, you need 1) A halfway decent thrower at QB 2) Receivers that don't drop the ball and 3) Speed.

You need a QB that can throw 15-20 yards. You need to rep your receivers to death to catch those passes blindfolded. And you need SPEED. When a trick play works (and the DC Wing T is a "trick" play offense) you want the guy with the ball to go ALL THE WAY. You don't want him getting caught from behind. Get the ball to the kids with the fastest wheels and then make sure you have a blocker on your opponent's set of "fastest wheels" because this is the guy who will run down your guy.

OK! The play chart! The play chart:

1) Reminds you of the plays you have
2) Reminds you to throw the ball
3) Gives you your critical call

When you have a 12 play offense it's hard to remember what you've got. You could go a whole game and only use 6-7 different plays just because there's just too much stuff going on around you to distract your focus. And when you do focus it's usually on the running game and all those wide open passing opportunities are forgotten. You'll have the best passing game in your league and not be using it. The DC Wing T passing game is just the opposite of what you're used to. It's easy. It works. Ask JB. Not throwing with it is just plain stupid. The chart tells you to throw the ball. You'll see the result. It won't lie. Finally, the chart tells you defensive tendencies you may not be able to spot from sidelines. If you see a play is getting fewer and fewer yards, it means another play is "opening" up. The chart can tell you what to look for. The chart will also tell you where the defense is "soft". If you need 5 yards for a first down, check the chart and it will give you the play. But this is the ONLY time you ever call a play from the chart. Otherwise, you call your plays based on your pre-snap read and your post snap read. Don't confuse the chart with "play scripting". You can't script a wing T offense. You have to call your plays to catch a defender in conflict. That means you have to have your eyes open to see what that defender is doing. If you do it right, you'll be the only person at your game who never sees the game. That's right! You won't see "Psycho Bob" make his 10 yards because you're looking at a defender on the play and not "Psycho Bob". You'll see the game on film afterwards. Keep the questions coming because I'm not sure if my answers fit your questions.