What is the Dive concept in 11v11 tackle football?
In 11v11 tackle football a dive runs through a hole that nine blockers create, which is the whole difference from flag football where no hole exists at all. The line steps playside together, the back presses downhill and takes the first crease that shows. It is an every-down call here rather than a short-yardage-only one.
Why Dive works in 11v11
There is an actual crease, and it is made rather than found
In flag the dive collects whatever space the defense happens to have vacated, which is usually two yards on a good down. At eleven the line displaces the front and the crease is a product of the scheme, so the same concept becomes a first-and-ten call that can produce five or six rather than an emergency call that produces two.
The back reads blocks, not gaps
A flag back is running at a space between defenders. A tackle back is reading how his linemen's blocks are resolving and cutting off the first one that gives, which is a skill that takes years and does not exist in the flag version of the concept at all.
It sets up everything downhill
Run enough times, the dive pulls linebackers forward and safeties down, and that is what makes play-action, the trap and the draw work later. In flag the dive sets up nothing, because it never threatens enough to move anybody. Here it is the foundation of the rest of the run game.
It is faster to the line than any other call
The exchange happens a stride behind the line of scrimmage and the runner is already going forward when he takes it. Nothing else in the run game reaches the line that quickly, which is why a dive can beat a defense that is technically faster than the offense: they simply have not moved yet.
It punishes a defense that has spread out
Every defender who widens to take away the perimeter is a defender standing further from the middle. A team that has been running outside successfully has usually pulled the defense apart, and the dive collects the space that leaves behind without asking anyone to win a footrace.
It is the easiest run to teach
There is one exchange, one direction and no decision. For a young team that is not a small thing: a play with no read is a play that works on the first snap of the season, and it gives a coach something to call while the rest of the run game is still being learned.
How to read it
- 1
Go on the snap, not after it
The dive is a timing play and the timing is immediate. A back who waits to see what the defense does has already lost the only advantage the concept has.
- 2
Pick a side of the centre before the snap
Straight ahead means at a gap, not at a man. The runner should know which shoulder he is aiming past before the ball is snapped rather than deciding on the way.
- 3
Take the first crease, do not hunt for a better one
Bouncing a dive outside is the most common way it loses yards. The play is built to gain two or three without drama, and a runner looking for six will usually find minus two.
- 4
Fall forward
On short yardage the last half yard is the play. Getting the ball past the marker matters more than staying upright, and a runner who is still trying to make someone miss has forgotten what was called.
What changes in 11v11
There is an actual crease, and it is made rather than found
In flag the dive collects whatever space the defense happens to have vacated, which is usually two yards on a good down. At eleven the line displaces the front and the crease is a product of the scheme, so the same concept becomes a first-and-ten call that can produce five or six rather than an emergency call that produces two.
The back reads blocks, not gaps
A flag back is running at a space between defenders. A tackle back is reading how his linemen's blocks are resolving and cutting off the first one that gives, which is a skill that takes years and does not exist in the flag version of the concept at all.
It sets up everything downhill
Run enough times, the dive pulls linebackers forward and safeties down, and that is what makes play-action, the trap and the draw work later. In flag the dive sets up nothing, because it never threatens enough to move anybody. Here it is the foundation of the rest of the run game.
When not to call Dive
It is not a first down play on its own
A dive gains what the defense is not occupying and no more. Calling it on second and eight is asking a concept built for two yards to produce eight, and it will not, however good the back is.
It stops working the moment the middle is crowded
The dive collects space rather than creating it. Against a defense that has stacked the middle there is no space to collect, and the answer is to make them spread out again rather than to run it harder.
Take it to your team
Draw your plays in the football play designer, collect them in the free playbook maker, and print football play cards so every player knows them come Saturday.
Open Dive in the designer
Opens this exact 11v11 diagram. Move anybody, change the depths, then save it to your playbook.
Open this play in the designerRelated questions
Is a dive the same as inside zone?
When should I call a dive in 11v11?
Why is my dive getting stuffed?
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Coach Ray Carroll
Coaches 5v5 flag football from kindergarten through 7th grade in San Mateo and San Carlos, California, and built RC Football to design, teach and print the plays his own teams run.