Developing the Zone Scheme Using Man Blocking Principles

In the last issue of AFM, Castleton State’s new head coach Rich Alercio shared with us the importance of the heel to toe relationship in man blocking schemes. Regardless of the blocking scheme, it’s imperative to get that second foot down and make contact simultaneously in any blocking situation – man or zone. But the key is never to let that heel of the second foot advance further than the toe of the first for reasons of being too overextended and losing the power angles that are so prominent in the technique of blocking. This issue, Alercio again gives us his heel to toe philosophy as it relates to zone blocking schemes. While many coaches teach the inside zone (an interior play that will hit within the tackle box) and the outside zone (a perimeter run scheme) in two separate ways, Alercio has found a way to combine the same blocking schemes in both runs. In theory, both zone