Converting the College 4-2-5 to High School Defense - Using the 3-4 as a Change Up

The last piece of Coach Justin Conyers's high school 4-2-5 install is the change up. By replacing the tackle with a rover aligned away from the pass strength, the same personnel and the same rules become a 3-4 defense, and a roll down by a high safety turns that 3-4 into a 3-5-3. Coach Conyers gives responsibilities for all eleven defenders in the new alignment, shows the 'Steelers' front, and demonstrates that split field coverage and the zone blitz package travel intact from one front to the next.

What you'll learn

• How to change alignment to a 3-4 by replacing the tackle with a rover away from the pass strength
• Responsibilities for all 11 defenders in the change-up front
• The front used in the 'Steelers' 3-4 alignment
• Roll downs: moving a high safety up to convert the 3-4 into a 3-5-3
• How defensive assignments against motion are determined by which offensive player moves
• Line stunts including slants, pinches and jacks
• How aligning in a 3-4 still gives you split field coverage, read side or away side
• Zone blitzing from the 3-4 without having to drop the defensive end
• Why zone blitzes always come from the passing strength
• Named 3-4 zone blitzes: 'Seahawk Twist' to the weak side, 'Steeler Miami', 'Steeler Twist' and 'Bama'
• Following man blitz rules inside whole field coverage, and adjusting cleanly between 4-2-5, 3-4 and 3-5-3

Who it's for

High school defensive coordinators who want a second front without a second playbook, and coaches running 3-4, 3-3-5 or 3-5-3 looks who need the rules to stay consistent when the front changes.

About the coach

Justin Conyers was the defensive coordinator at Nansemond-Suffolk Academy in Virginia, a state champion program, before becoming head coach at Green Run High School in Virginia Beach.

The fifth and final session of Coach Conyers's series on converting the college 4-2-5 into an efficient high school defense.