Quick Takeaways: Ohradzansky’s Offensive Game Planning System
- Players First: Call plays for your trusted playmakers, not just scheme
- Formations as Weapons: Use formations to simplify reads and create advantages
- Be Aggressive: Shoot your gun, take control of the defense
- Stack Your Plays: Let one play set up another (in-game, week-to-week, year-to-year)
- Timing Matters: Revolutionary plays aren’t needed—the WHEN and WHY create success
When it comes to offensive game planning in football, University of Findlay Offensive Coordinator Kyle Ohradzansky has a deceptively simple philosophy that’s rooted in one of college football’s most legendary programs. Learning from Mount Union’s Larry Kehres in Alliance, Ohio, Ohradzansky built his offensive philosophy on three foundational pillars: Players, Formations, Plays—in that exact order.
“Our offensive philosophy is simple,” Ohradzansky explains. “It’s players, formations, plays.”
This isn’t just a catchy phrase. It’s a comprehensive play-calling strategy that football coaches can implement immediately to maximize their playmakers, simplify decision-making, and create layers of deception that compound over time. Here’s how Ohradzansky’s system works—with real game examples that show the power of convicted, strategic play calling.
Players First: Trust Your Playmakers in Critical Situations
The foundation of effective offensive game planning starts with a player-first mentality. Ohradzansky breaks it down into two simple principles:
1. Play the best players
2. Play who you trust
“Jason wasn’t a jet sweep guy. We trust somebody else to do that,” Ohradzansky says, referencing Jason Moore, who went on to play for the LA Chargers after wrapping up his third season in the NFL. “Our little 5’6″ slot, we wouldn’t trust him to go up after a jump ball in the end zone like we would trust Jason to go up after one.”
This player-specific approach to offensive philosophy in college football means understanding that different playmakers excel in various situations. Your job as a play caller? Get the ball in your playmakers’ hands.
“At one point in time, we had two NFL receivers here, and if we didn’t get them touches, well, who’s the dumb ass there? Not the players, coaches,” Ohradzansky admits. “They’re the ones that win games, not us.”
Real Example: Player-Driven Play Calling
During a critical red zone possession against Westchester, Shippensburg faced 3rd and 5. The coaching staff called a naked bootleg with a jet sweep motion—but the play wasn’t selected for its scheme. It was called because of one specific player they trusted to execute in that moment.
“The reason for this call, the why behind this call is because of this kid right here,” Ohradzansky explains. “We knew that he was going to do it exactly right in a critical situation on a third and five in the red zone, and he was going to make a play because he was the one who had proven that he was going to do that going into this week.”
Result: Touchdown.
Lesson: This play call was not made for the scheme—it was made for the player.
When you prioritize players over scheme in your offensive game planning, you’re not just calling plays; you’re also considering the context in which those plays are executed. You’re putting your athletes in position to win games.
Formations as Weapons: Simplify Reads and Create Advantages
Once you’ve identified your playmakers, the next step in football formation strategy is to use formations to create advantages while making your players’ lives easier.
“As a play caller, we can use formations to be a weapon for us,” Ohradzansky says. “But we can also use them to make our players’ lives easy.”
At Findley, the offensive staff aims to be multiple—finding the numbers, angles, and leverage that put the ball in the end zone. But formations aren’t just about creating confusion for the defense. They’re designed to simplify decision-making for your quarterback and skill players.
Real Example: Using Formations to Help Your QB
Finley ran a basic curl concept against a defense that varied coverages and attempted to dictate the offense’s play. The quarterback was talented but struggled at times with certain reads.
The solution? Add a simple bunch motion to the curl concept.
“We tried to make it really easy on the quarterback,” Ohradzansky explains. “Just threw a simple motion onto a bunch and ran our curl concept. But because of the movement of the defense, the quarterback knew, based on scouting report, that that safety had that receiver.”
By using formation movement, the coaching staff confirmed the coverage for the quarterback before the snap. The motion didn’t just create a numbers advantage—it eliminated the read.
Result: Easy completion, successful play.
Lesson: We took a concept, used a formation, and made it easier for a player.
This is the intersection of players and formations. Your formations should serve your players, not complicate their jobs. When you use motion and alignment to confirm coverages or create leverage, you eliminate the guesswork from execution.
Aggressive Play Calling: Stack Your Plays for Maximum Impact
The third pillar of Ohradzansky’s offensive game planning system is where the magic happens: stacking plays.
“Be aggressive with your play calls. Shoot your gun, don’t leave anything in the chamber, let it go,” Ohradzansky says. “Stack plays. Be creative and let one play lead into another.”
This is where red zone play calling and situational football become an art form. It’s not just about having great plays in your playbook. It’s about sequencing those plays to create compounding advantages—in-game, week-to-week, and even year-to-year.
In-Game Stacking: Let One Play Set Up Another
Example: Hillsdale Game
On 2nd and long, Findlay came out in an empty formation with slants to the field and a go/out route to the boundary. The quarterback made a good read, ripped the slant, and converted to 3rd and manageable.
But that wasn’t the real purpose of the play.
“We’re using this not only to get us out of the second long, we’re using this to confirm what we already knew based on the game plan going into this game, that we were going to get zone and get these guys dropping out of here when we were in empty,” Ohradzansky explains.
The Payoff: On 1st and 5 in the red zone, Findlay jumped back into empty formation. The defense dropped their linebackers into zone coverage—exactly as expected.
The Call: Empty QB draw.
“It’s not anything revolutionary. It’s just an empty quarterback draw. But the timing of the play call was phenomenal. It was absolutely tremendous,” Ohradzansky says.
Result: Big play, touchdown drive.
Lesson: Use your base plays to confirm defensive tendencies, then exploit them immediately.
This is how to call plays in football at the highest level. You’re not just reacting to what the defense gives you—you’re setting them up for what’s coming next.
Week-to-Week Stacking: Build on What Defense Has Seen
Stacking plays doesn’t stop when the game ends. Ohradzansky’s staff builds play sequences that span multiple weeks, especially against conference opponents they’ll see again.
Example: Screen to Tight End
In the red zone, Findlay ran a short motion screen to their 6’6″, 260-pound tight end—a play popularized in the NFL. The big body caught the ball and dove into the end zone for a touchdown.
Simple, effective, on film.
The Setup Was Complete.
The following week against the same opponent, Findlay faced 4th and 2—a critical situation. Head Coach Cory Allen (who was calling plays at the time) didn’t hesitate.
“He gets on the headset, fourth and two. He doesn’t hesitate, and he rips this call off. Convicted. This is what we are going to do. We believe in it. We’ve repped it. This is where we’re going with it.”
The Call: Same motion action as the screen—but this time, a tackle wrap (handoff underneath).
The defense expected the screen. Findlay ran the ball behind it.
Result: Conversion, momentum shift, pivotal moment in the game.
Lesson: Stack your plays week-to-week. Let the defense’s memory work against them.
This is offensive coordinator game planning tips at their finest. You’re not just game planning for this week—you’re planting seeds for future possessions and future games.
Year-to-Year Stacking: The Long Game in Play Calling
The most advanced level of stacking plays football is building sequences that span multiple seasons.
Example: Building on the Previous Year
The year after Findlay ran that tight end screen, they faced the same opponent again. On a critical down, they gave the defense the exact same motion and action.
“We got people moving and shaking all over the place,” Ohradzansky says.
But instead of the screen or the tackle wrap, they ran a completely different play—building off the action the defense had seen not just weeks ago, but a full year earlier.
Result: Successful play, defense caught off guard.
Lesson: Your play-calling can compound over the years. Build a library of actions and formations that you can layer new plays onto.
This is the ultimate expression of the ‘players, formations, plays’ philosophy. You’re using formations and motions as a language that you can speak in different dialects—keeping the defense guessing while your players execute with confidence because the action is familiar.
The How, The Why, The When: What Makes Play Calling Successful
At the end of the day, Ohradzansky’s offensive game planning system isn’t about having the most creative plays in your playbook. It’s about execution, timing, and conviction.
“You wouldn’t say that any of those plays are necessarily revolutionary, but the how we called them, the why we called them, when we called them, were what led to the success of those plays,” Ohradzansky concludes.
Here’s what that means for your play-calling strategy in football:
The HOW: Are you calling plays that fit your players’ strengths? Are your formations making their jobs easier or harder?
The WHY: Does this play set up something else? Are you building a sequence or just calling plays in isolation?
THE WHEN: Are you calling this play at the right moment? Have you set it up correctly? Does your team believe in it?
When you combine player-first decision-making, formation weapons that simplify execution, and aggressive play stacking across games and seasons, you create an offensive system that’s greater than the sum of its parts.
Take Control: Make the Defense Play Catch-Up
Ohradzansky’s final principle is about mindset: Take control from the defense. Make them play catch-up to us and force them to defend the entire field.
This isn’t just about tempo or being multiple. It’s about being a convicted play caller that forces the defense to react to you, not the other way around.
“Shoot your gun, don’t leave anything in the chamber, let it go.”
That’s the mentality of a 10% coach—someone who’s committed to excellence, constantly learning, and willing to be aggressive when the moment calls for it.
Ready to Elevate Your Offensive Game Planning?
Kyle Ohradzansky’s Players, Formations, Plays philosophy is a masterclass in strategic, player-driven offensive football. Whether you’re a high school offensive coordinator or a college position coach, these principles can transform how you approach play calling.
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About Kyle Ohradzansky
Kyle Ohradzansky is the Offensive Coordinator at the University of Findlay (Ohio), where he’s built his offensive philosophy on principles learned from legendary Mount Union coach Larry Kehres. His player-first, aggressive approach to play calling has helped develop multiple NFL-caliber players, including LA Chargers receiver Jason Moore.
About Coach and Coordinator Media
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