A simple recipe: For your special punt return and block team. (Football).

UPON MY ARRIVAL AT Greensboro College in 1999, Coach Marion Kirby entrusted me with the task of upgrading the team's kicking game.

We approached it with a "simple can be successful" philosophy that enabled our punt return and blocking unit to block five punts and rank first in the conference and 15th in the country.

Like most coaches, we sought to put the best athletes on the field, but were willing to settle for the people with the best instincts versus trick plays.

From the standpoint of a field position and ball-security, we had to start with the punt returner -- a player with great confidence, fearlessness, and the ability to adjust and catch the ball. Speed and elusiveness would be the icing on the cake.

Throughout our first three games, we experimented with different people until we found the guy we were looking for -- an athlete who was to become the 17th ranked punt returner in the country for a unit that averaged 12.8 yards per return.

Our next priority was to find at least one natural kick blocker (the #2 man in the Diag. 1) and at least one player who was extremely quick off the ball to pressurize the long snapper (#5 in the diagram).

Those were the two people we could build around. The punt returner would be allowed to have input in the selection of the #10 position - the blocker who must body-guard the punt returner. (Check #10 in Diag. 1.)

We worked with our special return unit four days a week, focusing on intensive five-minute drills on the basics:

Monday: half-line blocking drill.

Tuesday: punt-return.

Wednesday: blocking.

Thursday: review and adjustments vs. trick plays.

Base alignment vs. a tight-end punt formation (Diag. 1):

#1, one yard outside of the end.

#2, on inside eye of the end.

#3, head up on tackle.

#4, on outside eye of guard.

#5, head up on long snapper.

#6, on outside eye of guard.

#7, head up on tackle.

#8, on outside eye of end.

#9, one yard outside of #8.

#10, 15 yards deep, one-man leeway left or right.

Base right return vs. a tight punt (Diag. 2):

#1, before snap, bail to 20-yard depth, think fake first, block out first color or up the chute.

#2, go for block in the wall.

#3, before snap, bail to 15-yard depth, think fake first, look for end man or first color.

#4, go for block in wall.

#5, go for block in wall.

#6, stretch the guard's block, think fake first, in the wall.

#7, before snap, bail to 15-yard depth, think fake first, look for tackle or first color.

#8, jam end man, force inside release, take wall to returner or first color.

#9, before snap, bail to 15-yard depth, think fake first, look for end man or first color.

#10, set up 20 yards deep, one-man leeway, think fake first, look inside for 3 man or first color.

R, determined depth, secure ball, find chute.

Block left vs. tight punt (Diag. 3):

#1 to #5, go for block in the wall.

#6 to #9, same as for right return.

#10, set 15 yards deep, one man leeway on left side, think fake first on left side, look for color on left side.

R, set up at determined depth, secure ball, find chute on right side, anticipate kick away from pressure.

Because of the simplicity of the return and block, we were able to teach the concept to the unit quickly and easily. Once the players understood what we wanted to accomplish as a unit, things began to take shape and it became east to make adjustments to blocking schemes or formations prior to or during the game.

The players began to relay information to the coaches in meetings and on the field, and the unit became a catalyst for all of our special team units.

Coaches can make up a sheet consisting of four or five diagrams of the punt formation for use as a scouting report on the punt return and blocking (Diag. 4).