By Wesley Ross
There are countless changes that can be made to the presentation of Y cross while preserving the consistency of the progression for the quarterback. Below I will cover some of the various different looks with a brief description of each.
2×2-With a one back formation the H now puts pressure on the outside linebacker in coverage, forcing him to make an immediate jump on the flat route, opening up space for the Y.
Bunch Trips-When defenses align to bunch formations they are always worried about the space to the outside of the bunch. Just by alignment an easier path to get over the top of the Mike can be created for the Y.
Motion into Bunch-Start out with the Z on the numbers to try and get the Sam to align wider, then motion into the same bunch look previously described. Again, the objective is to provide a clear release and wider lane for the Y.
No backs and change the crosser-Can run this variation if you want the Y to stay in and block against some sort of blitz look.
Under center play action-Y cross marries well with play-action, which in air raid terms is referred to as “85”. QB opens up at 45 degrees for 3 steps and shows the ball faking the outside zone before rolling back like a bootleg. The F will take a slide step and aim at the ghost tight end. He will become the flat player after the fake. The H will block any threat off of the edge, and if there is no threat he will help backside.
Condensed wide receiver splits w/max protection-Play action with a 7 man blocking surface to try and give the quarterback an opportunity to get the ball down the field. Reducing the split of the X gives him more grass to work with as he takes a wide outside release. The beauty of pairing Y cross with play action is that it creates hesitation for the linebackers and often causes them to trigger down, opening up space for the Y. SMU coach Sonny Dykes teaches his Y on this play to take the fastest release possible, and if the Sam happens to step down hard on the run action he can release over the top of him. Backside the Z will run a post-curl route at 17 back to 15 yards.
Packaged play w/H motion and inside zone-a popular play with air raid teams is running inside zone and putting the H in orbit motion on a screen backside. The quarterback can hand the ball off or throw the screen depending on the defense’s reaction. This play just adds Y cross to it.
Play Action w/H bubble-The H now runs a bubble route to try and draw the safety and create room for the Y as he comes across. The quarterback can even pump fake the bubble, with the intent of opening up a shot opportunity with the post route by the X into the void created by the safety triggering down.
Wheel out of the backfield-Just like running mesh with a wheel out of the backfield (something Mike Leach does almost exclusively now) is done with the idea of creating more horizontal space for the crossers underneath, this can be used to enhance the stretch on the defense and open up space for the Y.
Tampa 2 Adjustment-Against a tampa 2 defense, the Y will struggle to get over the top of the dropping Mike backer, so he will instead “replace him” by working to the middle of the field and throttling down. A hard cover 2 corner makes it difficult to run an option route, so the H will instead run a sail route and try to settle down in the area between the corner and safety. The quarterback’s progression will be X, H, Y, Z.
Y deep shot-To take advantage of a split field look where the weak side safety holds, the Y can be taught to break his route off vertically for a big play.
Smash-This is a good variation to use in the red zone against quarters safeties that like to sit on the crossing route. The smash concept puts them in conflict, and the quarterback will simply peek at the corner first because it is the deepest route. The quarterbacks progression will be corner, hitch, cross, flat.
Pivot route-this version is designed to get the ball to a speedy slot receiver the ball in space against man coverage. It can be run to the field with the crossing route coming from the boundary to give the slot more room to work with.
Play action with shallow by the H-should bring the backers up and gives you a chance to hit the “usom” route (under sam over mike). The Y is stressing the weak side safety and wants to get under him and then break flat. If the Y drifts, it becomes easier for the safety to undercut him. Ideally you would like for the Y to treat the safety like he is boxing him out like a rebounder in basketball. The progression for the quarterback is X, Y, H, Z, F.
Wesley Ross Football 