How to Pull

On power, counter, and sweep, a guard (and sometimes a tackle) leaves his stance at the snap and runs flat down the line of scrimmage to lead-block somewhere else — around the edge, up through the hole, or back across on counter. Pulling is where a coordinator hides his best athlete and his nastiest finisher, because arriving at the hole and blocking a moving target is the hardest thing a lineman does in the run game.

It starts with the right open step (a bucket step), running tight and flat to the line so you don't get deep, finding your block on the move, and finishing. Coach Jay's run-game rules apply on the move too: stay condensed, close the space, and only turn the tank (your hips) when the pull demands it.

Coach Jay’s cues

• Open with a bucket stepA short ~45° open step to clear your path and point you down the line — not a deep drop step that takes you backward.
• Run flat and tightRun flat to the line of scrimmage, tight to your own linemen — getting deep gets the play strung out and gets you late to the hole.
• Find your block on the moveEyes up — read the block: kick out the first man on a trap, or turn up into the hole and lead through it. Block the man, not air.
• Close the space and finishArrive low and condensed, close the space on a moving target, and finish — pulls are where pancakes happen in space.

How to do it

1. Bucket step openOpen your playside (or backside, by scheme) foot on a short 45° bucket step to clear and aim down the line.
2. Pull flatRun flat and tight to the line — don't belly back or you'll be late and the hole will close.
3. Read the blockEyes up: kick out the edge man (trap/power) or turn up into the hole to lead — recognize it on the move.
4. Close and strikeArrive low, close the space, and strike with independent hands — block the man, run your feet.
5. FinishDrive him out of the lane and finish through the whistle.

Drills to train it

• Bucket-step opensRep the open step from your stance — short, flat, pointing down the line; no deep drop.
• Pull-and-turn-upPull flat down a line of cones and turn up into a "hole" to lead-block a held bag.
• Trap kick-outPull and kick out an edge defender at the right angle (trap) — close the space and finish.

Common mistakes

• A deep drop step instead of a flat bucket step (you get strung out and late).
• Running too deep off the line so the hole closes before you arrive.
• Eyes down — not reading kick-out vs. lead-up on the move.
• Lunging at a moving target instead of closing the space and striking.

Coach Jay's run game (2018 install) carries the pulling + trap menu in his own words; the aiming-point detail in this family of cues he credits to Joe Moore (Notre Dame).

Questions linemen ask

How do you pull as an offensive lineman?

Open with a short ~45° bucket step to clear your path and aim down the line, then run flat and tight to the line of scrimmage (not deep). Keep your eyes up to read your block on the move — kick out the edge man on a trap or turn up into the hole to lead — and arrive low, close the space, and finish on a moving target. Pulling rewards footwork, vision, and a nasty finish.

What is a bucket step?

A bucket step is the short, roughly 45-degree open step a pulling lineman takes to clear his path and point himself down the line of scrimmage. It replaces a deep drop step, which would take the puller backward and get him late to the hole. The bucket step keeps the pull flat and on time.

Which linemen pull?

Guards pull the most — they're the athletes of the interior line — but tackles pull too, especially on counter (where a guard and a tackle, or a guard and an H-back, both pull). Centers rarely pull. Pulling shows up on power, counter, sweeps, and traps.

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