Football's Best Offensive Playbook - Dwight "Dee" Hawkes

Football's Best Offensive Playbook

by Dwight "Dee" Hawkes

NEW, 144 pages

Get other American Football books here

About Football's Best Offensive Playbook

Every offensive playbook gives you Xs and Os that look good on paper. Football`s Best Offensive Playbook goes the extra yard, providing precisely illustrated plays that are proven point-producers in games.

Many of football`s greatest coaches—including Bobby Bowden, Tom Osborne, and Steve Spurrier—have contributed their expertise to the book. Each of the 100 plays comes with a clear, accurate diagram and coaching pointers that highlight key player positions and responsibilities. Many coaches list alternate formations, and most of the plays can be adapted to any offensive system. And since the book features contributions from coaches in the high school, college, and pro ranks, you`ll find plays that work at all levels.

Football`s Best Offensive Playbook is an excellent resource for:

• coaches looking to add to their playlists or develop new wrinkles for existing plays,
• players attempting to better understand offensive strategy and play selection, and
• students of the game trying to become more knowledgeable about what makes an offense click.

The book features a balance of running and passing plays organized by formation. Part I, "Running Plays," features 44 inside, off-tackle, and outside plays from coaches who have established their teams as perennial title contenders through the ground game. Greats like Bob Reade (whose teams once won 63 straight games) at Augustana College, Illinois, and John McKissick (the winningest high school coach in the country) of Summerville High School, South Carolina, contribute some of their most successful plays.

Part II, "Passing Plays," features 45 plays designed for modern controlled passing schemes, centered around precise timing and pinpoint accuracy. The plays are divided into play action and dropback passes. Contributing to this section are such notable passing architects as Dennis Erickson of perennial national championship contender University of Miami, Tom Coughlin of the NFL expansion Jacksonville Jaguars, and LaVell Edwards of Brigham Young, who has coached such great quarterbacks as Jim McMahon, Steve Young, and Ty Detmer.

Part III, "Special Plays," features 13 gadgets designed to burn cheating defenses. Included are 5 reverses, 3 throwback passes, 3 PATs, and 2 trick plays.

A Play Finder index lists plays by type of run (power, speed, or deception), pass (yardage needed and drop-back or roll-out), and formation. The book also features a key to symbols used in the diagrams and a glossary of important terms.

Strengthen your playlist with help from many of the game`s most successful coaches. Get Football`s Best Offensive Playbook.

About Dee Hawkes

Dee Hawkes began his coaching career assisting Jack Elway (now Pro Scout for the Denver Broncos) at Port Angeles High School in Washington. In 29 subsequent years, Hawkes held four head coaching positions, including stints at Department of Defense schools in Japan and Germany and 18 years at Bothell High School (Washington). In addition, he has extensive experience as a football camp director and motivational speaker.

Although he is no longer a coach, Dee remains committed to prep football as a regular contributor to newspaper and magazine columns and as an analyst for cable TV and radio broadcasts. He has also authored a book on Washington state high school football. Dee is president of the King County Chapter of the National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame and is a member of the American Football Coaches Association and Washington State Coaches Association. In his spare time he enjoys traveling, the theater, and writing. Dee and his family reside in Bothell, Washington.

Reviews of this Book

"What makes the book extra special are the coaches' insights and in-depth descriptions of each play. This kind of information is rarely shared outside of our clinics or team meetings. . . .This play book allows coaches, players, and fans alike to be students of the game."
Dennis Erickson
Head Coach, Seattle Seahawks

"Any offensive coach that wants to move the ball will benefit from this book. What you get are the best offensive plays, run by the most successful coaches in football. Each play includes the blocking rules that will handle any defense!"
Don James
Retired Head Football Coach, University of Washington

About American Football

American football, known in the United States as football, is a sport played between two teams of eleven. The objective of the game is to score points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. The ball can be advanced by running with it or throwing it to a teammate. Points can be scored by carrying the ball over the opponent's goal line, catching a pass thrown over that goal line, kicking the ball through the opponent's goal posts or tackling an opposing ball carrier in his own end zone.

In the United States, high school football, college football and professional football are played under slightly different rules. High school football is governed by the National Federation of State High School Associations, college football by the National Collegiate Athletic Association and National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, while the major professional league is the NFL.

The sport is also played in Europe, Japan and Mexico. The International Federation of American Football acts as an international governing body for the sport. American football is closely related to Canadian football but with some differences in rules and the field.

Because the game stops after every down, giving teams a chance to call a new play, strategy plays a major role in football. Each team has a playbook of dozens to hundreds of plays. Ideally, each play is a scripted, strategically sound team-coordinated endeavor. Some plays are very safe; they are likely to get only a few yards. Other plays have the potential for long gains but at a greater risk of a loss of yardage or a turnover.

Generally speaking, rushing plays are less risky than passing plays. However, there are relatively safe passing plays and risky running plays. To deceive the other team, some passing plays are designed to resemble running plays and vice versa. These are referred to as play-action passes and draws, respectively. There are many trick or gadget plays, such as when a team lines up as if it intends to punt and then tries to run or pass for a first down. Such high-risk plays are a great thrill to the fans when they work. However, they can spell disaster if the opposing team realizes the deception and acts accordingly.

The defense also plans plays in response to expectations of what the offense will do. For example, a "blitz" (using linebackers or defensive backs to charge the quarterback) is often attempted when the team on defense expects a pass. A blitz makes downfield passing more difficult but exposes the defense to big gains if the offensive line stems the rush.

Many hours of preparation and strategizing, including film review by both players and coaches, go into the days between football games. This, along with the demanding physicality of football (see below), is why teams typically play at most one game per week.

Football's Best Offensive Playbook