The Plays: Power O

The second run going from inside to outside, is the Power play.  This is an off-tackle run that brings a pulling guard as a sort of second lead blocker that wraps around and hits the inside linebacker on the play side.  The play is designed to get you more hats to "overwhelm the defense with numbers at the point of attack."  Paul Alexander from Central Michigan has a great two page summary on the play, which "incorporates double team blocking at the point of attack, a kick out block and a lead blocker to go after the off tackle seam."  It is a very versatile play that can be run from a variety of formations.

How the Play Works:

This is pretty close to what we are running in the vanilla Power play in the Maryland playbook with no motion from the normal I.

The actual Maryland play is called "26/27 Power."  The diagram for 26/27 Power against an Eagle 53 defense looks almost exactly like this diagram to the right.

From the Smart Football blog, we have a great summary of the action in the play:


A. The Offensive Line

The linemen to the side the run is going (playside) essentially “down” block, meaning they take the man to the inside of them. For the guards and center, that includes anyone “heads up” or covering them, but for the playside tackle, he does not want to block the defensive end or other “end man on the line of scrimmage.”

B. The Fullback

 (T)he fullback (or, more often nowadays, some kind of H-back or other player) is responsible for blocking the otherwise unblocked end man on the line of scrimmage (“EMLOS”). He uses a “kick out” technique, simply meaning he blocks him from the inside to out, in order to create Lombardi’s famous “seal” going the other way.

C. The Pulling Guard

The final piece of the puzzle is the backside guard (sometimes nowadays a tackle). He pulls and “leads,” meaning he retreats, looks first for the fullback’s block to cut off of, and then heads into the crease looking to block the first defender that shows up — typically the playside linebacker. He can block him whatever direction is best; it’s the runningback’s job to find the open lane.

The aiming point for the HB is at the outside leg of the play side guard (here the RG).  The pulling guard executing what the Maryland coaches call a "horn pull" block is the lead blocker on the play since the FB has essentially become the new end of the line sealing off the outside.

The "Two" Lead Blocks

Pat Narduzzi from Michigan State draws up defense against the Power run by first explaining what the offense is trying to do. At the 0:53 mark of this explanation he gave on ESPN, Narduzzi points this out: "Our fullback is going to be the lead back up into the hole, okay, so they're going to have two possible guys come up in that hole. So that's where you get the word 'Power' - is they want to power up, they want to load up on the Sam backer." The offense is using the pulling action to get extra blockers on one side of the field to get a numbers advantage playside (in addition to the advantage of already having a TE and FB going playside).

At the start of the play, the back side guard fires out from his stance, breaking down the line of scrimmage, and the FB aims at the furthest outside defender on the line. Note the double team of the OG and OT on the front play side and that the edge defender is the DB near the line of scrimmage (only one safety is deep in centerfield - this is a 3-3-5 defense. Note the guy on the end of the line on the right standing up).

At the handoff, we can see the LB is staying to the inside, and the LG has to move up to hit him where the hole was.  The FB seals the edge man with a solid block, but is not able to kick him out.  The HB can either cut upfield inside the pulling LG or continue flowing to the outside since the FB did not get a good kick out.   Also, look at that nice combo block on the play side between the OG (#77) and the LT (#76).

In a real Power O run, the HB is supposed to hit the hole hard and resist the temptation to bounce the play outside.  The runner should rely on his blockers to get the hole open, even if it isn't open when he gets the ball.  The reason is because on a successful kick out block, a HB bouncing outside the block will end up behind the edge defender's back with the FB out of position to block - forcing the FB to take a holding penalty or allow the HB to get destroyed.  In EA NCAA, the blocking animation is a lot more forgiving, and you can actually bounce it outside as is shown here.



Sometimes you can get weird blocking against strange fronts that don't match up well against the Power O's gap down blocking. Take this play against Alabama in a 3-4 with two defenders way outside to the weak side.  We are going to end up with a nice five to four advantage in numbers at the point of attack:

The RT will end up leaving the WOLB unblocked and look to help inside on the LDE.  Executing his down block, the C will take the LDE up and to the right of him.  The RG will fire out and would normally try to pull around to block the RILB.  The FB would be our kick out block on a normal play, but we have so much numbers on the play side that the TE follows the SOLB and handles the seal instead.

What's a FB to do?  He is already in front of the play - in front of the pulling RG.  So he takes the RG's assignment.  Because of the overcommitment of the Alabama defense to taking away the weak side, we just have a lot of open space to run into.

Real Film: Michigan State vs. Wisconsin and Marshawn Lynch "Beast Mode"

Let's go back to Coach Narduzzi and let him take it on the monitor. Conveniently, he uses Wisconsin film, with some early motion that we're not interested in but that's okay. The option for the HB to bounce the play to the outside is what he's talking about at the 0:55 mark: "squeezing that thing, making sure the thing's not open and by staying square, if the back bounces outside, the D End will make the play as well as secondary help." But the main point of the play is to deliver what he shows at the 1:40 mark: "Right here, this double team here, I probably failed to mention this. That guy right there is 300 pounds (circles the DT). That guy there (indicating the OG in front of him) is 320.. (the OT in front of him) 320... so that's 600 pounds plus against a 300 pound guy, so another critical spot obviously is that double team."

And that's what we're talking about - we want to get an advantage at the point of attack. This is just like the Iso run featuring angle man blocking to a predetermined hole that you're looking to hit hard and read the lead blocker to see a cut. At the 2 minute mark, Narduzzi makes a point of sketching the hole and emphasizing how he wants his guy in the center of the hole to make both sides as even as possible. When you watch the lead block, you see the FB drop the defender to the left, meaning the right side is what's open - and that is in fact where the back has to go. The pulling OG does not manage to get in front with enough of an angle to take out the defender, so the Michigan State defense shuts the play down.

Matt Bowen from National Football Post uses the Marshawn Lynch Beast Mode Run as a prototype Power O rushing play:



- Power O, or “Bob O” (Back on Backer).
- Pull the backside guard, kick out with the FB.
- Down block by the TE, guard lead up through the hole.
- Downhill action from the RB.

Notice the Saints actually had it defended pretty well, and after the FB took the initial lead block there was a second guy flying into the hole. Lynch just breaks the tackles and turns it upfield, breaking tackles everywhere. The stiff arm on Tracy Porter is particularly nasty. But this really is Power O run by the Seahawks against New Orleans.

Here is I Left 27 Power against Utah State, who is stacking the line showing blitz: