One of the biggest mistakes OL coaches make is creating a new set of rules for every scheme they install.

Inside Zone has one set of rules.

RPOs have another.

Pass Pro has another.

Before long, your players are trying to memorize instead of play.

We’ve found the opposite works better.

If I had to choose one blocking concept that has impacted our offense more than almost any other, Zone Lock would be near the top of the list.

Not because it’s complicated.

Because it’s simple.

Our rule is straightforward:

• The playside (Center, PSG, PST) blocks zone.

• The backside (BSG, BST) blocks the first two defensive linemen.

That’s it.

Those two rules show up throughout our offense.

We use them in our Zone Insert scheme to create movement at the point of attack while securing the backside.

We use the exact same concept in our Zone Lock RPOs, allowing our offensive line to play fast while the quarterback reads a defender.

Then we carry it into our Half-Slide Pass Protection.

The playside works together in zone, while the backside locks onto the first two down linemen in man protection.

Three different concepts.

One consistent way of thinking.

I’ve become convinced that great offensive lines aren’t built by teaching more rules. They’re built by reusing the same rules as often as possible.

Every time a player hears a familiar coaching point, their confidence grows. Communication improves. Mental errors decrease. Practice becomes more efficient because one drill carries over to multiple parts of your offense.

That’s what we’re really trying to build - not just a collection of plays, but a complete offensive system where one concept shows up over and over again.

Another busy week inside the Vault.

This week was a little different.

I had the opportunity to present at the Trench Mob Summer Clinic alongside several outstanding college offensive line coaches. If you missed it, you can click below and use it with your own program.

TRENCH MOB PRESENTATION

Here’s everything that was added this week:

• 3 Schemes Every OL Should Understand

• Run Game Pairings

  • Zone Read + Midline

  • Why they fit together and when to call each

• How We Teach It:

  • Duo Rules

• GameDay Diaries update

  • Journal

  • Practice plans

  • Handouts

  • Pictures

  • Videos

• Chapter 1 of the GameDay Gap Scheme System

• Painkiller #36

  • 8 Things OCs Should Be Doing This Summer

• 56-Question Offensive Game Planning Worksheet

• 3 new drill videos added to the library

Coming next week:

• More of the GameDay Gap Scheme System

• Another How We Teach It release

• Another Run Game Pairings breakdown

• 6 Steps Every OL Should Learn

• More drill videos

• More GameDay Diaries

• More OL Problems & Fixes

• Painkiller #37

The Vault keeps growing every week. So does its value.

Thanks to everyone who subscribed, shared the newsletter, attended the clinic, or simply followed along. I appreciate everyone one of you.

See you next week.

Coach Chad Johnson

Clinic notes.

Copied drills.

Screenshots from YouTube.

Pages torn out of old playbooks.

I was collecting information.

I just wasn’t building a system.

Every offseason I’d find another drill I wanted to try.

Another blocking technique.

Another way to teach combo blocks.

The problem wasn’t that any of those ideas were bad.

The problem was they didn’t fit together.

Monday we’d teach one thing.

Tuesday we’d coach it a different way.

Wednesday we’d introduce another drill we’d seen online.

By Friday, our players weren’t learning a system.

They were trying to remember a hundred disconnected coaching points.

That’s when it finally hit me.

Great offensive lines aren’t built by collecting more ideas.

They’re built by connecting the right ones.

Everything has to point in the same direction.

Not as five separate downloads…..

But as one complete run blocking system.

Run Blocking Fundamental System

Every great offensive line starts here.

These are core techniques and principles your players must understand before any scheme can consistently work.

Drill Video Library

Knowing what to teach is only half the battle.

This library shows exactly how we teach those fundamentals on the field with drills that connect directly back to the system.

OL Teaching Library

One of the biggest challenges for offensive line coaches isn’t finding information.

It’s organizing it.

The OL Teaching Library brings together the concepts every OL coach needs to teach — from the core run blocks and pull techniques to two-man combos and other foundational skills.

Instead of piecing together all of your clinic notes, you’ll have one organized library you can return to throughout the season.

It becomes the reference point for everything you teach.

How We Teach It

The difference between good coaches and great teachers is often the words they use.

This series takes you inside our classroom to show the language, coaching points, and progression we use every day. It’s easily adaptable for you and your OL.

GameDay Diaries

Finally….

You get to watch the entire system come to life.

Real players.

Real practices.

Real problems.

Real adjustments.

You’ll see exactly how everything connects from the first summer workout to the season.

Final Thoughts

You don’t need another random drill.

You need a system.

These four resources were designed to build on one another.

Learn the fundamentals.

Watch the drills.

Improve your teaching.

Then watch it all come together with a real offensive line.

That’s how better offensive lines are built.

Final Thoughts

These aren’t five random thrown together resources.

They were designed to build on one another.

• Learn the system

• Watch the drills

• Teach the material

• Improve your teaching language

• Watch the system come to life with a real offensive line

If you’re serious about improving your run game, I believe this is the best place to start inside the Vault.

What’s Next?

Next week I’ll spotlight another group of Vault resources that work together to solve a different coaching problem.

Below you can access these 5 resources and also 500+ other resources inside the Vault.

Read more

Thank you for taking the time to watch today’s clinic. I hope you found a few ideas that can help you build a more organized, consistent offensive line room.

Click the button below to download the presentation FREE. Feel free to share it with other coaches who may find it useful.

Thanks again and have a great season.

TRENCH MOB PRESENTATION

Explore 300+ additional Offensive resources inside the GameDay Systems Vault.

Subscribe now

We’ve got a lot to unpack for a Friday in June.

Before anything else, I want to recognize the eight coaches who believed in GameDay Systems early enough to become Founding (Lifetime) Members.

These coaches took a chance on what I was building and helped get this thing off the ground.

• Coach Hayse

• Coach Jensen

• Coach Davis

• Coach Vigdal

• Proving Grounds SSP

• Coach Lozano

• Coach Matlock

• Coach Malo

Thank you. I sincerely appreciate your support and your belief in what we’re building. You have my personal phone number if you ever need anything. It’s my way of saying thank you for believing in GameDay Systems from the very beginning.

GameDay Diaries – Week 4

We wrapped up Week 4 this week.

Monday we were back outside working football fundamentals:

• Base blocks

• Combination blocks

• Communication

The practice video and journal have been added to the Vault.

The weather had other plans the rest of the week, so we moved into the OL room. We spent Tuesday through Thursday talking schemes, identifying plays, and discussing why certain concepts fit together. I also created several new Google Slides presentations and added those to the Vault.

Week 4 is now complete.

We’ll be off next week for the July 4 holiday, although I may get some voluntary work in with any linemen who want to come.

Trench Mob Summer Clinic

Tomorrow I’ll be speaking at the 2026 Trench Mob Summer Clinic.

There will be 20 speakers throughout the day — 19 college offensive line coaches…and one dumb old high school coach.

If you’re looking to learn football, grab a notebook, settle into the recliner, and spend the day with us.

And just tell your wife you’re “at clinic” tomorrow so you don’t have any honey-do’s.

Drive Security Update

Over the next week or so, I’ll be upgrading the security of the Vault.

You may receive an invitation from Google Groups. If you do, simply accept the invitation. That should be all you’ll ever need to do.

Once you’ve accepted, you’ll continue to have access to the Vault just like before — this is simply to better protect the resources and ensure only active paid members have access.

Thanks for your patience as I make this upgrade.

One last note…

The Founding (Lifetime) Membership will soon increase from $250 to $350, and eventually I’ll close it altogether.

If you’ve been considering becoming a Founding Member, now is the best time.

Thank you again for being part of GameDay Systems.

Coach Chad Johnson

A full day of offensive line talk.

20 coaches.

Streamed free on YouTube.

That’s pretty dang cool.

This Saturday, the 2026 Trench Mob Summer Clinic will feature 20 OL coaches speaking throughout the day.

I’ll be on at 11:30 Eastern talking about:

Building a Complete OL System for High School Football

But honestly, the coolest part is the event itself. I’ll be joining 19 college coaches.

A full day for OL coaches to learn, take notes, steal ideas, and hear different perspectives on the position.

If you coach offensive line, this is worth checking out.

Contact Coach Ian Tatum on X to sign up.

To better protect premium resources and make sure only active paid members have access, I’m upgrading the security of the GameDay Systems Vault.

Over the next week, you may receive an automated Googl…

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It’s pouring rain this morning in North Louisiana, so our OL met upstairs in our position room after their workouts.

To begin the meeting, I asked my guys a couple of simple questions.

“How many of you know the difference between Zone and Gap?”

“How many of you know if Duo is a Zone, Gap, or Man scheme?”

One or two of the older guys had an idea. We have 22 linemen.

Most of them had no clue.

So, I drew it on the board.

No defense. No skill guys. Just the offensive line.

Zone

• All 5 linemen stepping toward the play call.

Gap

• Playside linemen blocking backside gap with a kick-out player and puller.

Duo

• All 5 linemen blocking backside gap and working vertically to linebackers.

Within a few minutes, the light bulbs started coming on.

And it reminded me of a mistake many coaches make, myself included.

We teach plays instead of teaching schemes.

I don’t care if the play is called:

Hurricane

Tornado

Zulu

Zorro

Lightning

Thunder

The offensive line is running Zone.

The play name is simply a label. A tag.

The scheme is what matters.

I want my players to hear “Tornado (Split Zone)” and immediately think:

“That’s Zone Right.”

I want them to hear “Lightning (Zone Bluff)” and immediately think:

“That’s Zone Left.”

Zone blocking is Zone blocking to the OL.

The same idea applies to everything else we teach.

Teach your players plays that are the same scheme or are “same as.”

Zone Insert, Zone Lock, and Half-Slide Protection all share the same blocking responsibilities.

Half Zone. Half Man.

The footwork changes, but the identification process stays the same.

5-Man Half Slide and 6-Man Half Slide have the same OL rules.

Half Zone. Half Man.

The more connections players can make, the faster they learn.

As coaches, we often make football harder than it needs to be.

Players don’t need more terminology.

They need more understanding.

The goal isn’t for players to memorize 40 different plays.

The goal is for them to understand 4 or 5 core schemes, simply recognize the play call, and apply those rules to everything they do.

Confused players try to memorize every call. Every play. They treat them as different things to know.

Great players understand schemes and know how to apply the rules to each of them.

I get a lot of messages from coaches who are coaching the offensive line for the first time.

Some are young coaches just getting started.

Others are veteran coaches who have been asked to switch positions.

Almost all of them ask the same question:

“Coach, where do I start?”

If I were starting over tomorrow as a first-year offensive line coach, I wouldn’t try to learn everything.

I’d focus on building a system.

Over the last several months, I’ve built a collection of resources inside the Vault that I believe can help shorten the learning curve for young offensive line coaches.

Here are the resources I would start with.

1. Offensive Line Manual

This is the foundation.

The 97-page manual covers offensive line fundamentals, techniques, communication, coaching points, and the things I believe every offensive lineman should know.

2. Complete Offensive Line Practice Structure

One of the hardest things for young coaches is figuring out what to do during practice.

This resource walks through how we organize indy, group periods, team periods, meetings, and player development.

3. Offensive Line Run Blocking System

This system focuses on and breaks down the one-man and two-man blocks every offensive lineman needs.

Rather than teaching dozens of techniques, the goal is to master the fundamentals that show up every Friday night.

4. Drill Library

Need drills for stance and start?

Combo blocks?

Pass protection?

Hand placement?

Correcting common mistakes?

The drill library continues to grow every week.

5. GameDay Diaries

This may be the closest thing to looking over my shoulder during a season.

Practice plans I use.

Meeting notes.

Video from practice.

Coaching thoughts.

Adjustments.

Successes and mistakes.

It’s all documented.

6. Bonus Resource: What To Look For During Practice

One of the biggest mistakes young coaches make is assuming a good practice automatically leads to good game performance.

This resource, located in the OL Teaching Library, discusses what coaches should actually evaluate during practice and how to determine if players are truly improving.

If I were a first-year offensive line coach tomorrow, these are the first resources I would study. Unlock all of these resources plus the complete GameDay Systems Vault below:

Read more

Chapter 1 of the GameDay Gap Scheme System is now live in the Vault. You can find it in the “What’s New” Folder.

Inside Chapter 1:

• Why Gap Schemes Still Win Football Games

• Our Gap Scheme Philosophy

• Why Coaches Love Gap Scheme

• Why Players Love Gap Scheme

• The Three Pillars

• Universal Concepts and Foundations

This is just the beginning. This is the foundation the rest of the system will be built on.

The next sections will cover:

• Universal Gap Scheme Rules

• Power

• Counter

• Power Read

• Adjustments

• Drills

• Film

If you’d had a chance to read through Chapter 1, I’d love your feedback before I continue building the rest of the system. Email me at coachchadjohn@gmail.com

Coach Chad Johnson

It was hot. It was muggy. And it felt like a Louisiana summer practice.

We were outside for about 40 minutes today and got good work in.

Today we worked:

• Stance & Start

• 2 - Point Explosion

• Fit, Drive, Finish

• Base Blocks

• IZ Combos

Nothing complicated. Just fundamentals.

When it’s hot, attention to detail matters even more. Fatigue has a way of exposing poor technique, so we focused on maintaining good body position, pad level, and movement throughout every drill.

We finished with combo blocks. Great run games are built on linemen working together, and that’s a skill that has to be developed every single day in my opinion.

The foundation is being laid one practice at a time.

Day 1 notes, coaching points, and drill video have been added to the journal.

Back at it tomorrow. We continue to build.

Coaching is important. Football is important.

But being a great father is the most important job any of us will ever have.

I hope you were able to spend some time with your family today.

As for the Vault, another busy week.

We wrapped up our time at the Louisiana Line Camp, added several new resources to the Vault, and made significant progress on the upcoming GameDay Gap Scheme System.

Here’s what went in this week:

• More GameDay Diaries content from Nicholls State

  • Drills

  • Notes

  • Coaching Points

  • Videos

  • Camp Observations

• Revised Offensive Master Game Planning Checklist

• New Defensive Master Game Planning Checklist

• Run Game Pairings:

  • Split Zone + Zone Bluff

  • Full explanations included inside the Vault

• How We Teach It:

  • The First 2 Steps

• More drill videos added to the library

  • Including a defensive drill video

• Added another OL Problems & Fixes entry with Video

• Wrote the first 3 chapters of the GameDay Gap Scheme System

Coming next week:

• More GameDay Diaries content

• Another How We Teach It release

• Another Run Game Pairings release

• More drill videos

• More previews and additions to the GameDay Gap Scheme System

• Additional Duo graphics and teaching materials

• Revisions and updates to some of the older systems already inside the Vault

And, as always, whatever else comes up during the week.

2,500 coaches in the community.

500+ already inside the Vault.

The Vault keeps growing every week.

Coach Chad Johnson

A lot of coaches ask me what I’m currently working on and where the Vault is headed.

Right now, I’m building the GameDay Gap Scheme System.

The goal is to create a complete resource covering:

- Power

- Counter

- Power Read

- Installs

- Adjustments

- Drills

- Film

At the same time, the Vault continues to grow every week.

- New drill videos are added almost daily

- GameDay Diaries are updated every single day during summer workouts and camp

- New checklists, evaluations, and planning tools continue to be added

- Older resources are constantly being updated and improved

One thing I’ve learned over the last few months is that the Vault isn’t just a collection of files anymore. It’s becoming a complete library of systems, resources, videos, and coaching tools.

Three months ago, the Vault was mostly a collection of manuals. Today it includes systems, drill videos, daily journals, evaluations, game-planning tools, checklists, and resources for both offensive and defensive coaches. The goal has never been to create more files. The goal is to build a complete coaching library that helps coaches save time and find answers faster.

More coming soon.

Coach Chad Johnson

GameDay Systems

Coach,

So that’s it’s easy to find and enter the Vault, I pinned this post to the homepage.

(Make sure you are signed in with the email that you signed up with)

Read more

Thank you for your support. I’m always looking for ways to improve the Vault and provide more value. Please take 60 seconds to complete the survey below.

I read every response.

Coach C…

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We wrapped up our final session today and headed home. As always, I learned a lot, took a ton of notes, and came away with several ideas that will help our offensive line a lot this fall.

Over the last four days I added nearly 100 drill clips, coaching points, notes, and observations to the Vault. If you’ve been following along in the GameDay Diaries, I’ll be posting a complete camp wrap-up with my biggest takeaways.

A few things that stood out to me:

• Great offensive line play still comes down to fundamentals.
• Most problems can be traced back to footwork and pad level.
• The best players consistently do ordinary things well.

Thank you to everyone who followed along this week. I hope the videos, notes, and journal updates gave you a few ideas you can take back to your own program.

One quick reminder: Vault pricing increases on Friday. Current members will keep their current rate. If you’ve been considering joining, now is the best time to lock in the current pricing before the increase.

I’ll have the complete camp recap posted soon.

Coach Chad Johnson
GameDay Systems

“Where are all the drill videos?”

If you’re looking for the drill cutups I’ve added over the last few months, in the Vault go to:

📁 06 Film and Evaluation
→ 📁 Drill Cutups

There are 50+ drills covering stance, footwork, combo blocks, pass protection, pulls, aiming points, finishes, and more.

If you’re looking for the videos from the Louisiana Linemen Camp this week, go to:

📁 01 2026 Series
→ 📁 01 GameDay Diaries - Monday
→ 📁 Week 3

There are nearly 100 video clips from the last four days of camp showing drills, coaching points, techniques, and practice organization from coaches across the camp.

I’ve also included notes and observations throughout the week in the Week 3 Journal so you can see not only what was drilled, but why it was being coached that way.

Take a look when you get a chance. There’s a lot of good material in there.

— Coach Chad Johnson

We wrapped up the final session this evening and had another productive day. The overcast weather helped, and our guys continued to make noticeable progress.

Today we worked outside zone, inside zone, and gap-scheme fundamentals. It’s been fun watching techniques, communication, and confidence improve from Day 1 to now.

I’ve added a bunch of drill videos, coaching points, notes, and observations to the Vault for members who want a closer look at what we’re doing.

Just one day and one practice remain.

Also, don’t forget: Vault pricing increases in a couple of days. Current members keep their rate, and the yearly option remains the best value at a 37% discount.

See you tomorrow for the final day.

The journal has been updated with notes from all 8 stations, along with video from the drills we worked today in the 3 practices. One of the best parts of attending camps is hearing coaching points from different coaches and seeing how they teach the same fundamentals.

*Pretty neat sidenote, NFL Hall of Famer - Alan Faneca - is one of the instructors here. There are coaches from the Raiders, Chiefs, Dolphins, and Bears also here instructing on the defensive side.

We’ll wrap up the night with our position meeting at 9 pm to talk through the day — what we did well, what needs improvement, and what we need to focus on tomorrow.

Photos, videos, and notes are all in the Vault.

Chad

Another busy week inside the Vault.

Just added:

Full week of GameDay Diaries content

• 3 days of drills

• 1 meeting day with a google slide outline

• Coaching points, notes, pictures, and videos included

Continuing coverage from the Louisiana Linemen Camp through Tuesday

• Drills

• Videos

• Coaching points

• Thoughts and observations

How We Teach It:

• Covered / Uncovered Rules

Run Game Pairings:

• Putting defensive ends in conflict with Power Read and QB Power

3 Questions Every OL Should Answer Pre-Snap

Defensive Halftime Adjustment Worksheet

Revised Offensive Game Planning Checklist

8 Daily Fundamentals to Evaluate During OL Drills

Painkiller #34

• 8 Things to Remember When Defending a Sudden Change

Painkiller #35

• 8 Things OL Coaches Should Be Doing This Summer

Added 6 new drills to the Drill Video Folder

Announced the upcoming GameDay Gap Scheme System

• Releasing in July

• Power

• Counter

• Power Read

• Installs

• Adjustments

• Drills

• Film

Don’t forget:

Monthly membership pricing increases this Friday.

Coming next week:

• More GameDay Diaries updates from the Louisiana Linemen Camp

• Run Game Pairings returns Tuesday

• How We Teach It returns Wednesday

• Painkiller #36 and #37

• More drill videos

• An article on what Offensive Coordinators should be doing right now

• Continued development of the GameDay Gap Scheme System

• Early pieces of the Gap Scheme System will be released as they are completed

Almost 2500 coaches in the community.
500+ already inside the Vault.

This thing keeps growing every week, and we’re just getting started.

Coach Chad Johnson