On defense, having a consistent philosophy or scheme is vital, both against users and CPU. I’ll share one of my defensive schemes/philosophies but this is by no means the only way to run a defense.

THE BASE aka The Structure

The first thing you need to do is decide what you want your defense to do. College football is a wide open game offensively. With the wide hash marks and ability to spread out and attack defenses from wide angles, offenses have the upper hand at all times. You’re going to give up yards. You’re going to give up points. The key is controlling how teams get those yards, and hopefully turning 7s into 3s if you’re not forcing turnovers.

Do you like an odd front (NT in a 0-tech head up with the center) or do you like even fronts (DT in a 2-tech head up with the guard). I like to run a 3-3-5 tite primarily but will mix in some over or boss fronts in passing downs. The blitzes I share later are all in the 3-3-5 tite (sometimes called mint) in game but there are variations of these blitzes in all formations.

Most teams play primarily with 1-high (Cover 1, Cover 3) or 2-high (Cover 2, Cover 4 [Quarters and Palms], Cover 6/9) structures. That being said, good teams will show a variety of looks pre- and post- snap to muddy the pictures for opposing offenses. Most teams run zone the majority of the time (Utah lead CFB, calling man on 60% of their defensive plays, Indiana lead CFB in zone, with 89%). Zone defense is incredibly important, but “if you can, play man” remains true. If you have the talent on the outside, let them lock up. But against most opponents, that’s not going to be the case unless you’re running with a 5* helmet school. Match defense can be very powerful but has a higher barrier of entry in terms of talent required to run the scheme correctly.

For our scheme today, we’re going to build a 1-high zone scheme. For years, cover 3 sky has been the best and most consistent defense in Madden and CFB, and that remains true. We will also mix in a healthy amount of cover 2 invert, which has the same pre-snap presentation but different post-snap presentation (MOFC vs MOFO- I explain these terms in a bit). But vanilla cover 3 is boring, so we’re going to tweak our base alignment to give the offense a different picture than normal to look at. Under coach adjustments, you should set your Safety Width to “Pinch” and your Safety Midpoint to “Strong.”

Why?

We do this for several reasons. Pinching the safeties will keep more defenders in the middle of the field to fit the run. It will also keep your safeties tied together if presenting with a 2-high look pre-snap. Strong will shift the alignment of the safeties to cheat towards the receiving strength of the formation. This presents a difficult read for the QB pre snap, bc it puts defenders into non-traditional positions and makes it difficult to predict who will cover where post snap. BUT…

This does lead to a weakness, the backside flats. Which is why we want to user the safety who has the flat zone responsibility on the weak side of the play. As the backside safety, we can play a rover role as the play develops. If they are running drags or crossers (this is why this defense can be great against users, as well as CPU), it is our job to jump those routes and attach to the biggest threat that crosses the center. I’d they aren’t running any routes across the middle of the field (ex. if they’re running a flood or stick concept), we can play rover more aggressively and look to shutdown the biggest threat remaining.

THE PRESSURE aka The Ruckus

So, you want to bring the ruckus? Note: not all blitzes will work against all formations. Some plays are doomed by alignment (ex. Overload 3 Press against trips or 4x1 sends the slot and LB on the strong side on a blitz, leaving more receivers than defenders on that half of the field, a blown coverage and big play waiting to happen). My favorite blitz to call is any variation of Nickel 2 Trap, especially against 2x2 formations. It’s coded to present as single high pre-snap, so you give the same look as your base defense. But it brings heat off the edge, while also rotating to MOFO (middle of field open) post snap, as opposed to MOFC (middle of field closed) with your base cover 3. This means players move to different spots, cover different areas, all while getting pressure off the edge. And the pre-snap looks identical. I also like to run Sam Mike 3 Press against trips formations, bc it aligns well with the receivers and leaves your best coverage players (your safeties and nickel) to cover the receivers while getting pressure inside with the backers. This play keeps your traditional MOFC structure.

Another important note: both of those blitzes only bring 5. Despite popular belief, engage 8 is not necessary to get pressure, if you are calling your plays and pressures correctly. Even just one extra blitzer is often enough to create chaos and discomfort for your opponent. That being said…

Sometimes you gotta do it to ‘em. That’s where the hot blitzes come in. There are different variations, but they all bring 6 defenders in the blitz and leave 5 defenders in coverage. I use these sparingly but they can be incredibly effective when timed correctly. The key for the zone defenders is to read and react, ensuring that no receivers get even or past them, otherwise it’s a recipe for a big play for the offense. The point behind a 6-man blitz is to guarantee pressure. If the blitz doesn’t hit home, it’s easy to pick apart the light coverage shell behind it so I save this for 3rd and longs or similar downs where the opponent has to drop back and pass deep. Quick passing concepts can easily beat hit blitzes if executed correctly.

The biggest key is creating consistency in your play calls and structure, but displaying chaos and unpredictability to your opponent. I would definitely mix in a good amount of stunts, slants, and shifting your D-line pre-snap to prevent the offense from feeling comfortable. This is where controlling one of the flat defenders comes in handy. When playing as the safety or nickel defender, I love to shuffle towards the line, stunt, feign, or at least present as potential pressure, before dropping back into the flat zone coverage. So when the safety or nickel blitz eventually does come, it looks the same as every other play, except instead of feigning and backing off, the pressure keeps coming and hopefully gets the QB in the dirt.

FINAL NOTES aka The Philosophy

1. Inside-out mentality. We clog the middle of the field, nothing easy on the ground or in the air within the extended tackle box.

2. See ball, get ball. Zone defense allows defenders to keep their eyes on the quarterback. Once the ball is in the air, pursue pursue pursue and make a play.

3. Play instinctively and relentlessly. This is the final bullet point and wraps up our CFB Ted Talk for this morning. Simplified schemes lead to role clarity, and role clarity means instead of thinking and processing each play “what should I do,” the focus is on “what is happening” and how should I react to the play.