FORMATION NAMING CONVENTIONS USED IN THE MASTER DEFENSE ELECTRONIC FLIP CHART
The Master Defense Electronic Flip Chart includes a collection of common formations, most of which were taken from the flip charts that appeared in the original (hard copy) books. At the time of the publication of the electronic edition (circa 2001), an attempt was made to add a representative sample of additional formations and to implement a naming convention that worked for both sets of formations, old and new.
Since there are many variations for naming the various components of an Offensive or Defensive scheme, the formation naming convention that we used is sure to contain some familiar and some unfamiliar terms. The Master Defense Flip Chart names the formations from the perspective of Defensive coach. It follows a common practice among many of today's Defensive Coordinators and uses the Tight End to designate the strength of the formation, and a naming scheme that includes words for the Line Formation and Backfield formation (if 2 or more backs are in the backfield).
The impact of this approach can be seen by looking at the Pro I formations and comparing them to the Twins I formation. The Pro I formations appear as most would expect, with the Formation Strength and what some coaches call the Passing Strength BOTH to the side of the strength call. The Twins I formations, however, appear to be "switched", with the Formation Strength to the side of the strength call, but the Passing Strength to the opposite side. It is important not to get caught up in "name games" and focus on the "x's and o's".
We've added an alternate Formation name when we know of one that is commonly used.