Building a championship football team

by Paul W. Bryant

Figure 49

[Figure 50] illustrates the width and depth of the ends and the 3-deep secondary in the 5-spoke alignment when the opposition has the football on the defensive right hash mark and the wide side of the field is to our left. It would be just the opposite if we were on the defensive left hash mark and the wide side of the field was to our right.

Figure 50

Keys for the 5-Spoke Defenders

Our 5-spoke defenders key as follows:

Ends—Our defensive ends look through the tail of the offensive ends and read the whole backfield, especially the back nearest to the defensive end.

Halfbacks—They look through the offensive end to their side and read the whole backfield. It is very important that the halfbacks know at all times where the football is; consequently, they should watch the quarterback closely.

Safety—The safety looks through the center, reading the quarterback and the whole offensive backfield. He, too, must know where the football is at all times.