The next pass play to add to our playbook is the I Formation Cross In, which can be used as a short yardage staple to complement the run. It recenters the ball on the field after you have run the ball to the right several times since both targets are to the weak side. The route combination here is something called a Dig-Drag concept because it is a read off the Tight End running a drag route across the formation and the Split End on the weakside running a dig route. Take a look at this with a Don Coryell pass route tree, a little different from the one on National Football Post, but used in the Top Gun QB Academy Multiple West Coast Offense manual:
In our formation, the TE is the inside receiver. The outside receivers are using the standard Don Coryell passing tree:
The SE is running a 6 dig route and the FL is running a 8 post route. Earlier from the "inside receiver tree," we have the TE running a 2 drag route. That means this play is running a three digit Coryell-style 628 combination. From the Top Gun Manual, we have the example:
The labeling has it reversed and it should be Slot Left 628 Flat Backs Gone, but that's okay. What we're really interested in here is the 628 is exactly the patterns in the NCAA 12 play Cross In. Flat Backs Gone just means the split backfield running backs are going out into the flats and leaving nobody home to help block. For a non-flipped version, a little later in the play action section of the Top Gun Manual there is this play:
That looks almost identical to Cross In. The only difference is that this is using the Iso play action (the "Fox 2" in the name). Otherwise, we again have 628.
The Dig-Drag Concept
The Dig-Drag concept is very nice because it stretches the defense horizontally and vertically at the same time. The sideline to sideline route put pressure on man coverage to stay with the receivers. Against zone your guys running are in and out of each defender's area of responsibility, getting open as they cross seams in the coverage. That's the obvious horizontal stretch aspect, but what is the vertical stretch in the play?
We're going to go old school with a 1983 video of Illinois Head Coach Mike White diagramming his version of Cross In, "77Y Shallow Cross":
At 32 seconds in, White says "the key to this play, and I think the viewer saw it all day, is that Tim Brewster (TE) comes across on a shallow pattern which consumes the linebackers. In other words if there's one linebacker or two linebackers, they seem to come up and pay their respects to Brewster, which allows Dave Williams (SE) to come across behind. And then this (Williams) is basically a secondary receiver for Trudeau. He looks at Brewster. If Brewster's not there, he throws it over the top (to Williams)."
This great article at Smart Football gets into the versatility of the shallow cross. The section relevant to what we are doing is labeled Hi/Lo and has the following diagrams:
The base read is in-shallow-RB dump-off. (As a footnote, Texas Tech reads it always shallow-in-RB. I think this is probably the better read for lower levels QBs, since it ensures they will get the ball off quickly and get a sure completion, only throwing the route over the middle when the defenders maul/jump the shallow.)
We are using the Mike Leach read progression that goes short to deep. This is converting the play from a deep to short progression the same way we did with X Post, applying the ideas behind the levels concept to a play with multiple routes cutting across the field at different depths. Chris Hatcher from Valdosta State tells us why the label Hi/Lo is used: "The complimentary pattern to the mesh is our shallow cross. The objective of this pattern is to give the mesh look but have a high-low read on the linebackers." You only have to look at diagrams 3, 4, and 5 to immediately see it is the same thing.
So what is that post pattern on the other side of the field for? The Top Gun Academy slide packet on The Base Progressions in any Passing Game has a fantastic slide on this labeled "Dig with a post alert":
What they mean by "post alert" is that you have a deep ball that can be thrown behind the defense if you see an opportunity. It's nothing more than a little check you can make that might be there if you are lucky and/or think your protection can hold a zero blitz long enough for your guy to beat press coverage. Otherwise, look at the read progression suggested and think back to the Texas Tech progression and Chris' note from Smart Football. This is telling the QB to take the "normal" dig to drag read rather than our reverse quick hitting read.
Adding a Bootleg Element
Now we are going to further modify the execution of the play beyond reversing the dig-drag read by adding a designed bootleg type run-pass option. This is going to give us the same benefits that we got from a naked bootleg in the PA Comeback Slide by potentially adding a rushing threat and changing the launch point of any pass the QB throws. The defender to key on at the snap is the edge defender:
Highlighted in cyan, what we want to know as the QB backpedals from center is this: "Is the edge defender rushing the QB?" If the linebacker drops into coverage and the DE does not try a deep speed rush around the edge, the quarterback can safely drift out of the pocket in the same direction as the shallow crossing route. This will put extra pressure on the defenders to the weak side, who must decide if they want to cover the TE crossing the field or move up to stop the QB from running.
Look at the coverage we are getting. The CB is running back with the SE down the field while the WLB is moving over to the flat. The MLB is coming across the field with the TE, and will hand him off. The safety is coming up from his deep spot to take away the curl underneath. If we throw to the TE, he is going to get destroyed by that outside linebacker. Likewise, we can't run with the QB because the LB is just waiting there for anyone to come into his area. This is where the vertical stretch of the dig-drag concept comes into play.
The defense is overcommitting to taking away short options like the drag and scramble. As the safety comes up to the underneath zone, it leaves a hole in the 3 Deep layer for the SE to dart into. The quarterback is throwing basically on the break so that the receiver's route is not given away and the ball is delivered to an open patch of turf where the WR runs to go get it.
Goal Line Offense
An excellent use of this play is for short yardage and goal line situations. Because the TE crossing route is so fast to develop and the throw is really short, it is ultra high percentage. This is a play that you can count on for 2 or 3 tough yards when you need them. Those tough yards can even be at the goal line, and adding a running option makes it even better. Take this play on Heisman against Kansas State at the goal line. Again we want to read the edge defender to see if he collapses the edge:
Since he does not come upfield and instead drops back into coverage, the edge is open and the QB can roll out. The inside of the defense crashes the middle to stop a run up the gut leaving everything open to the outside. The corners are in man coverage, so even the weakside corner back is ridden out into the back corner of the end zone by the wide receiver. This leaves nobody home on the backside:
QB tucks and runs it in untouched:
The Cross In play at the end of this drive also punches it in for a TD, but the rusher contains the edge and the QB throws to the TE instead: