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The team with the ball (the offense) has four plays (downs) to advance at least 10 yards. If the offense succeeds in advancing at least 10 yards, they earn a "first down," and the number of tries allotted is reset. The offense is again given four tries to advance an additional 10 yards, starting from the spot to which they last advanced.
The rules of the sport strictly mandate the organization of the offense: there must be at least seven players on the line of scrimmage and no more than four players, known collectively as backs, behind it. The only players eligible to handle the ball during a normal play are the backs and the two players on the end of the line, known as the ends.
The Pistol can also feature the option play. With this offense, the quarterback has the ability to get a better look past the offensive line and at the defense. Pistol formations have gained some popularity in NCAA football, and in fact, variants of this offense were used by the 2007 and 2009 BCS National Champions, LSU and Alabama, respectively.
A QB pitches the ball. At the heart of all option offenses is the option run. This relatively complicated running play may take on many forms. All option runs, however, rely on two common principles: Whereas the traditional running play typically designates the ballcarrier prior to the snap, the ballcarrier in a true option running play is determined by reading the defensive alignment or the ...
The "two platoons", offense and defense, are an integral part of the game today. Although professional football has uninterruptedly retained the two-platoon system since 1949, in 1953 the NCAA took the collegiate game back to the one-platoon system with new limited substitution rules, changes made ostensibly for financial and competitive reasons.
The offense is required to set up a formation before a play, subject to several rules: The formation must have at least 7 players on the line of scrimmage. [1] The 7 players are not required to be next to each other and may spread out across the width of the field, but this is rare; most offenses place at least 5 players together in a continuous line.
Here, Navy is running the offense against Army in the 2008 Army–Navy Game. The triple option is an American football play used to offer six ways to move the football forward on the field of play. The triple option is based on the option run , but uses three players who might run with the ball instead of the two used in a standard option run.
The West Coast offense is an offense in American football that places a greater emphasis on passing than on running. There are two similar but distinct National Football League (NFL) offensive strategic systems that are commonly referred to as "West Coast offenses".