Tribe Trips Dive v 3-3

Coach G
13 minutes ago
4 min read

The Tribe Trips offense doesn't just live on the sweep against the 3-3—once we've established that outside threat and forced their DL and LB to respect the edge, we turn to our dive plays to punish them inside. In six-man, where space is limited and penetration kills, having two reliable dive options (one through the B gap, one through the A gap) keeps the defense honest and prevents them from overloading one side.

We run these dives as part of our base package, all from the same trips alignment and personnel. No big formation changes, no verbal audibles needed—our players read and adjust silently based on defensive keys. That's the beauty of the system: consistency in look lets us adapt without tipping our hand.

B-Gap Dive (Broken Arm Blocking)

We call this one when we're seeing consistent A-gap penetration from the DL or when their LB is a classic read-and-react type who flows to the sweep side rather than blitzing hard. It exploits that hesitation beautifully. (Figure 7: Diagram showing Broken Arm—Y blocks out on the SDE, while the FB takes over combo/Love responsibilities with X on the DL/LB combo through A gap, dive runner aimed at B gap.)

In Broken Arm blocking, the Y flips his assignment: instead of working combo with the X on the DL, he blocks out aggressively toward the SDE (or even the strong-side CB if the SDE widens). This widens the edge and protects against any spill from the strong side.

Now the FB assumes the Y's old role—he works with the X on "Love" blocking the DL and shedding to the LB if he stunts. See Figre 8 ("Love is the term we use to temporarily double team while scraping to the next level). If two crash the A gap, they combo the closest to center first, peel to the second. The X and Y must be disciplined: never let their man cross their face into the B gap. We use the term "spill out"—force the defender to fight outside your block, not penetrate inside to the hole. If he beats you across the face, the dive dies.

Key coaching points for everyone:

QB and RB: Do not bounce this outside! This play is designed to hit the B gap hard—even if the LB blitzes through there. Discipline wins here. We preach constantly: not every play is a touchdown. Sometimes a stunt or blitz means you grind out 2–3 yards and move the chains. Take what they give.
This dive shines against CBs who sit back worried about the pass. They hesitate on run support, giving our QB extra time to read the second level and our RB a clean hole.
Pre-snap key: If the LB walks up into the B gap, no audible needed. Everyone stays on base sweep blocking (Big Daddy blocking—with our standard 26 sweep call). The dive still works because the LB's alignment opens other lanes, and our silent reads handle it. That's why we avoid verbal audibles—our base look lets players adjust eyes and feet without talking.

The FB has to be sharp reading the Y's block. An inexperienced Y might see the LB walk up then back out and think he needs to block down—creating confusion. The FB must adjust: if the Y blocks down, FB blocks out on the SDE; if the OR stays wide, FB stays on combo inside. (See Figure 9) This play can be tougher for younger/less experienced players against aggressive fronts—penetration and stunts make it physical—but when executed, it gashes read-and-react LBs and keeps them from cheating outside on future sweeps.

A-Gap Dive

We flip to the A-gap dive when defenses get more aggressive—specifically when our sweep success has the DL crossing the X's face pre- or post-snap, sliding toward the B gap to pursue outside runs. (Figure 10: Base A-gap dive—X blocks out on DL, center blocks out on WDE, FB blocks backside CB, QB blocks LB, dive runner hits A gap.)

Here, we attack the void they've created inside:

X blocks out on the DL (pushing him weak-side away from the hole).
Center blocks out on the WDE to seal weak side.
FB crosses to block the backside CB (who often crashes run support on sweep looks).
QB blocks the LB (meeting him in the hole if he flows).
Y blocks the SDE or strong-side CB (leaving the SDE unblocked if he's not rushing hard).

This is money when the SDE sits wide or rushes upfield—the Y handles the CB, and the SDE becomes the unblocked player chasing from behind. Big cutback lanes open if they over-pursue.

Variation for LB keys: If their LB is coached to follow the FB (common when they read him as lead blocker), we switch it (Figure 11: QB blocks backside CB, FB blocks LB). This creates a clean seam—the RB can hit inside the QB's block or bounce slightly outside depending on pursuit. The LB chasing FB leaves the middle open, and the FB's block on him seals it.

Both dives flow naturally from effective sweeps. When DLs and LBs start sliding to stop outside, we hit inside. When they pinch or blitz inside, we stretch outside. No one play dominates—we chain them to force tough choices.

These inside runs set up the rest: counters and play-action. Next, we'll break down our counter game against the 3-3—how we fake one way and hit back the other to exploit over-aggressive flow.