Bomber 3-3-5 - Coverages

Steve Specht's base defense at St. Xavier is an odd stack — a 3-3-5 — and his coverage philosophy is built on the picture it creates: read-scheme technique in the box, five defenders across the back end, and a disguise that makes every call look the same until the snap. This session is the coverage half of that system. Coach Specht teaches the underneath techniques by name, gives each one its rules and responsibilities, then stacks them into a full menu of zone, man and pattern-match calls.

What you'll learn

• Positioning of the base 3-3-5 defensive alignment behind the odd stack
• Man coverage keys for the 'Seam' and 'Hole' techniques, with rules and responsibilities
• The 'Loose Man' technique paired with an underneath matching-zone philosophy
• Trips (3x1) and doubles (2x2) checks
• Adding the 'Hole/Curl' technique and the combined Seam/Hole-Curl rules
• 'Storm' coverage adjustments and the 'Bump' technique
• Zone concepts with the Robber technique, plus deep zone techniques and the Funnel Flat
• The full coverage menu: 'Fire', 'Storm', 'Ice', 'Snake', 'Mouse', 'Bronze' and 'Silver'
• Four- and five-pattern concepts for coverages 3, 2, 4 and 6

Who it's for

High school and college defensive coordinators, secondary coaches and linebacker coaches who want to play multiple coverages out of one look without adding new alignments.

About the coach

Steve Specht was head coach at St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati, a two-time state champion program built on his 3-3-5 odd stack defense and its layered coverage disguise.

Video two of Coach Specht's four-part 3-3-5 series, illustrated throughout with game film of the coverages in action.