Breaking down the game- Football Film Study 101: Chip Kelly UCLA Offense- Run Game , Boot and play action pass game

Thursday, March 23, 2023

Chip Kelly UCLA Offense- Run Game , Boot and play action pass game

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Chip Kelly Offensive Mastermind!

There are several pieces to Chip Kelly's run game at UCLA. This article focuses on his run game and play action. He has run a great pin and pull scheme for years with always a top running game. He is also always evolving, adapting and changing his schemes and always one of the lead innovators in the sport.

Here are some stats about his run game.

2022. #5 in rushing yards, 239 yards per game,

#1 in yards per rush 6.0 yards per rush

2021 #10 in rushing, 219 yards per game

#18 in yards per rush 5.2 yards per rush

2020. #12 in rushing , 230 yards per game

#21 in yards per rush 5.1 yards per rush

Some of the plays you will see from their potent rushing attack. Most of this article was from the 2021 season, so there may be some changes in 2022.

1. Wide(outside zone) Zone

2. Duo

3. Pin and Pull

4. Jet Sweep

5. wrap

6. Inside Zone read

He combines it with his passing game:

1.Boot/play action off the run game

2. Vertical pass game off outside wide zone run game.

3. Of course Y cross(Saints is a key component)

Chip loves to run wide zone. He can run it in different ways. One way I like that he runs it is with the h back slicing across the formation. This is very effective vs man to man defenses who like to spin the coverage. You get a rotation and also can catch them out of position with a LB chasing the H back across the formation.

They ran this play 3 times for 42 yards vs Arizona in 2021.

UCLA Offense:

Jet with wide zone off slice blocking to the opposite side.

Here you get jet motion followed by a slice blocking scheme. Very effective when going against a team that runs man coverage concepts with secondary spinning.

***NOTE, if the DB doesn't run with the motion, the h back will not slice block it. The h back will actually read what the motion man does. Interesting concept. So if CB doesn't run across the formation, then the h back will stay front side and block the LB if he knows it's zone coverage.

Here's 2 clips of the play. Jet/Slice Zone

PIN AND PULL

Another play that Chip Kelly likes in the run game at UCLA is his pin and pull. He has always been a pin and pull guru from his days with the Eagles and that continued when he worked with Noel Mazzone at UCLA.

Here's their variation.

In the next few clips you will see the scheme vs LSU.

What UCLA does vs the 4-2 scheme is different in the fact that they pull the tackle and center who are uncovered like many traditional teams would do. The traditional theorists would say pull the uncovered lineman.

Teams like UCLA will utilize the QB pin and pull with a lead blocker who is the rb.

Here is my YouTube video of Chip Kelly and his Pin and Pull series.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywwtvVAUuuE

WRAP

They will use a wrap scheme at times and depending on the front will pull a different lineman or 2. VS Hawaii they were pulling the center to the side of the 2i and folding the technique with the guard and tackle on the backside.

DUO

Duo is a play that stresses double teams at the point of attack. At times you will get 2 to 3 double teams. Teams like it because it's usually a solid run scheme that can get you 3-4 yards.

UCLA runs it off their jet motion vs LSU

The first example they are condensed formation and run Jet motion.

They do a nice job with the formation and play call.

Here is my YouTube video of duo vs LSU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=au-H7vQr7As

Zone Read

Chip Ran more zone read in 22, mostly because he had a great athlete at qb. Here are some examples

Traditional zone read

Clip Below

Great double teams at the point of attack.

Nice cut off the 2 way go. RB stays skinny gets north and gets a big gain.

Unbalanced Zone Read

They run zone read with the h back coming across the formation. They get a light surface away from 3x1. They get decent #'s on the backside so Chip calls zone read. The qb gets a pull read.

The DE comes hard inside and the qb pulls the ball. The H releases to the flat so the cb has to go with him.

Huge running lane off the zone read action and h coming across nice play call vs the look.

Boot

After the run game, Chip has a great bootleg series both of jet motion and off wide zone. They will run jet and slice block it to the same side of the jet. Here they run boot for a 75 yard td vs LSU.

12/13 personnel Bootlegs is often seen in the offense.

UCLA Bootleg vs LSU

1st and 10 UCLA in 22 big personnel/13 depending on how you count the h back.

They fake jet sweep and counter and run boot to the field. Excellent design for a nice 75 yard TD.

Play action vertical passing game.

They will often run play action off their perimeter run game and can run it off any action. It is a play they run off their effective outside zone. They will get a nice horizontal stretch and throw the ball vertically. IT is a 6 man protection with the h back having a check release option.

The thing I love most about it is they run it with a 3 man vertical concept that is very tough to defend off their outside zone action.

Heres a few examples vs Fresno State.