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4-2-5 Man Pressure Recruiting Guide (CFB 27): Who to Recruit and Why

198 plays charted19 positions on the board

4-2-5 Man Pressure is a man coverage defense built to blitz. It lives in even, four-down fronts on 74% of its snaps.

The snap counts put two interior linemen, two edges, two sub linebackers, and five defensive backs on the field at starter share. Sub packages are the base defense here.

The strip below shows every formation the book calls, grouped the way the play-call screen groups them. Tap any bubble for the recruiting answer at that spot, then use the board for the full read.

The formations, grouped like the play-call screen

BallknowerHQ — ballknowerhq.com — nickel-overLOSNickel Over4 DL / 2 LB / 5 DBFS1SS1CB1CB2CB3SUBLB1SUBLB2RRE1NT1DT1RLE1ballknowerhq.com
Nickel Over21 plays · 10.4%
BallknowerHQ — ballknowerhq.com — nickel-wideLOSNickel Wide4 DL / 2 LB / 5 DBFS1SS1CB1CB2CB3SUBLB1SUBLB2RRE1NT1DT1RLE1ballknowerhq.com
Nickel Wide15 plays · 7.5%
BallknowerHQ — ballknowerhq.com — nickel-3-3-cubLOSNickel 3-3 Cub5 DL / 1 LB / 5 DBFS1SS1CB1CB2CB3SUBLB1RRE1DT1NT1DT2RLE1ballknowerhq.com
Nickel 3-3 Cub12 plays · 6.0%
BallknowerHQ — ballknowerhq.com — nickel-load-mugLOSNickel Load Mug4 DL / 2 LB / 5 DBFS1SS1CB1CB2CB3SUBLB1RRE1NT1DT1SUBLB2RLE1ballknowerhq.com
Nickel Load Mug12 plays · 6.0%
BallknowerHQ — ballknowerhq.com — nickel-single-mugLOSNickel Single Mug4 DL / 2 LB / 5 DBFS1SS1CB1CB2CB3SUBLB2RRE1NT1SUBLB1DT1RLE1ballknowerhq.com
Nickel Single Mug12 plays · 6.0%
BallknowerHQ — ballknowerhq.com — nickel-double-mugLOSNickel Double Mug4 DL / 2 LB / 5 DBFS1SS1CB1CB2CB3RRE1NT1SUBLB1SUBLB2DT1RLE1ballknowerhq.com
Nickel Double Mug9 plays · 4.5%
BallknowerHQ — ballknowerhq.com — nickel-load-dbl-mugLOSNickel Load Dbl Mug4 DL / 2 LB / 5 DBFS1SS1CB1CB2CB3RRE1NT1DT1SUBLB1SUBLB2RLE1ballknowerhq.com
Nickel Load Dbl Mug9 plays · 4.5%

Tap a bubble for the recruiting answer at that spot. Snap shares under each formation are that call's slice of the book.

The sign plan

Counts cover positions at 5% of the book's snaps or more. Bodies per snap decides how many each group needs. Each card jumps to its group on the board.

The board, by position group

Edges Sign 4: 2 starter, 2 rotation Speed Rusher 4 spots
RLE1Edge 61.2%Starter Speed Rusher AccelerationFinesse MovesPower MovesBlock Shedding

76% of snaps ask for the even_4down RRE_RLE job, 24% ask for the odd_tite RRE_RLE job. Designated pass rushers in the sub-package fronts. The pair aligns outside in Nickel and Dime spacing and wins with get-off, because a four-man rush has to create pressure while everyone else covers. Contain duty against scrambling quarterbacks comes with the job. Rushes from width in the three-down sub fronts. Twist games off his rush are part of the deal.

Physical 6'2 to 6'5, 245 to 270. Get-off outranks everything else.

In even, four-down fronts (76% of this spot's snaps)

Archetype Speed Rusher

Physical 6'2 to 6'5, 245 to 270. Get-off outranks everything else.

Attributes to scout AccelerationFinesse MovesPower MovesBlock Shedding

In odd, tite-spaced fronts (24% of this spot's snaps)

Archetype Speed Rusher

Physical 6'2 to 6'5, 245 to 270. Get-off outranks everything else.

Attributes to scout AccelerationFinesse MovesPower Moves

Medium confidence: Nickel 3-3 Cub is in this book and its front classification is provisional.

RRE1Edge 61.2%Starter Speed Rusher AccelerationFinesse MovesPower MovesBlock Shedding

76% of snaps ask for the even_4down RRE_RLE job, 24% ask for the odd_tite RRE_RLE job. Designated pass rushers in the sub-package fronts. The pair aligns outside in Nickel and Dime spacing and wins with get-off, because a four-man rush has to create pressure while everyone else covers. Contain duty against scrambling quarterbacks comes with the job. Rushes from width in the three-down sub fronts. Twist games off his rush are part of the deal.

Physical 6'2 to 6'5, 245 to 270. Get-off outranks everything else.

In even, four-down fronts (76% of this spot's snaps)

Archetype Speed Rusher

Physical 6'2 to 6'5, 245 to 270. Get-off outranks everything else.

Attributes to scout AccelerationFinesse MovesPower MovesBlock Shedding

In odd, tite-spaced fronts (24% of this spot's snaps)

Archetype Speed Rusher

Physical 6'2 to 6'5, 245 to 270. Get-off outranks everything else.

Attributes to scout AccelerationFinesse MovesPower Moves

Medium confidence: Nickel 3-3 Cub is in this book and its front classification is provisional.

REDGE1Edge 37.3%Rotation Speed Rusher Finesse MovesPower MovesAccelerationBlock Shedding

First job is winning the edge as a rusher. Aligned wide in 4-down spacing, he attacks upfield at the snap and turns speed into pressure. He sets the edge on the way to the quarterback, not instead of it.

Physical 6'3 to 6'5, 240 to 265. First step over mass.

LEDGE1Edge 32.8%Rotation Speed Rusher Finesse MovesPower MovesAccelerationBlock Shedding

First job is winning the edge as a rusher. Aligned wide in 4-down spacing, he attacks upfield at the snap and turns speed into pressure. He sets the edge on the way to the quarterback, not instead of it.

Physical 6'3 to 6'5, 240 to 265. First step over mass.

Corners Sign 4: 3 starter, 1 package Bump and Run, Zone 4 spots
CB1Corner 95.5%Starter Bump and Runalt: Boundary Corner Man CoveragePressSpeed

Lives on an island in press with a blitz behind him. He wins at the line with his hands and stays in phase without safety help, because the help went to the rush. Field alignment stretches his help even thinner than the boundary's, so cushion control and recovery speed decide downs.

Physical Length and recovery speed. 6'0 plus preferred with press tools.

CB1/CB2 are the outside pair; boundary vs field is alignment, the depth chart does not split them

CB2Corner 92.5%Starter Bump and Runalt: Boundary Corner Man CoveragePressSpeed

Lives on an island in press with a blitz behind him. He wins at the line with his hands and stays in phase without safety help, because the help went to the rush. Field alignment stretches his help even thinner than the boundary's, so cushion control and recovery speed decide downs.

Physical Length and recovery speed. 6'0 plus preferred with press tools.

CB1/CB2 are the outside pair; boundary vs field is alignment, the depth chart does not split them

CB3Corner 61.2%Starter Zonealt: Boundary Corner Man CoverageTackle

Covers the slot on blitz downs, often to the pressure side. Hot throws come out fast and inside, so he plays tight leverage and tackles the catch immediately. No help exists behind him once the safety rotates toward the rush.

Physical 5'9 to 6'0, 180 to 195. Quickness outranks length.

first slot body; CB_slot rows cover CB3 and CB4

CB4Corner 16.4%Package Zonealt: Boundary Corner Man CoverageTackle

Covers the slot on blitz downs, often to the pressure side. Hot throws come out fast and inside, so he plays tight leverage and tackles the catch immediately. No help exists behind him once the safety rotates toward the rush.

Physical 5'9 to 6'0, 180 to 195. Quickness outranks length.

second slot body, on the field in dime sets

Interior DL Sign 4: 2 starter, 2 package Speed Rusher, Gap Specialist, Pure Power 4 spots
DT1Interior DL 98.5%Starter Speed Rusheralt: Power Rusher Finesse MovesPower MovesAccelerationBlock Shedding

Penetrates as the 3-technique. He lines up on the guard's outside shoulder and wins the B-gap with his first step, turning run downs into losses behind the line. On passing downs he supplies the interior rush that keeps quarterbacks off their spot. 21% of his snaps come from mugged formations. Protections point extra attention at the mugged threats, which leaves the nose and tackle in more one-on-one blocks they are expected to win.

Physical 6'2 to 6'5, 285 to 310. First-step quickness outranks bulk.

NT1Interior DL 89.5%Starter Gap Specialistalt: Pure Power Block SheddingStrength

Anchors the front as the shade nose. He controls the A-gap against interior runs and holds his ground against double teams so the MIKE can flow. Pocket push on late downs is a bonus on top of the run-down anchor. 23% of his snaps come from mugged formations. Protections point extra attention at the mugged threats, which leaves the nose and tackle in more one-on-one blocks they are expected to win.

Physical 6'1 to 6'4, 300 to 330. Anchor strength outranks height.

DT2Interior DL 16.4%Package Pure Poweralt: Power Rusher Block SheddingStrengthPower MovesFinesse Moves

64% of snaps ask for the odd_tite DT job, 36% ask for the bear_heavy DT job. Plays the long end spots of the odd fronts, from a 4i on the tackle's inside shoulder in tite spacing to a head-up or outside 5-technique in base 3-4 looks. He two-gaps with length and keeps the B-gap closed so runs spill to the edge players. Rush production comes from push and hands rather than speed. Covers the guards in bear looks and multiplies in goal line fronts, where DT3 and RDT tokens add extra interior bodies. Every rep is a single block in a phone booth, so he has to win fast with power because there is no space to recover.

Physical 6'3 to 6'6, 285 to 315. Arm length outranks burst.

In odd, tite-spaced fronts (64% of this spot's snaps)

Archetype Pure Power (alt: Power Rusher)

Physical 6'3 to 6'6, 285 to 315. Arm length outranks burst.

Attributes to scout Block SheddingStrengthPower MovesFinesse Moves

In bear and heavy fronts (36% of this spot's snaps)

Archetype Gap Specialist

Physical 6'2 to 6'5, 300 to 330. Short-area power outranks any testing number.

Attributes to scout Block SheddingStrength

Medium confidence: Nickel 3-3 Cub is in this book and its front classification is provisional.

DT3Interior DL 6.0%Package Gap Specialist Block SheddingStrength

Covers the guards in bear looks and multiplies in goal line fronts, where DT3 and RDT tokens add extra interior bodies. Every rep is a single block in a phone booth, so he has to win fast with power because there is no space to recover.

Physical 6'2 to 6'5, 300 to 330. Short-area power outranks any testing number.

Safeties Sign 3: 2 starter, 1 rotation Coverage Specialist, Hybrid 3 spots
FS1Safety 98.5%Starter Coverage Specialist Zone CoverageSpeedAwareness

Plays the deep middle behind five and six man pressures. He is often the only deep defender, so alignment disguise before the snap and range after it carry the call. When the pressure wins fast he cleans up scrambles.

Physical 6'0 to 6'2, 190 to 205. Range outranks hitting.

SS1Safety 98.5%Starter Hybridalt: Coverage Specialist Man CoverageAccelerationTackle

Blitzes or replaces the blitzer. These books send him off the edge and through interior gaps, and when he stays back he inherits a tight end with no help behind him. Downhill juice plus man chops is a rare pair, which is why this body is hard to sign.

Physical 6'0 to 6'3, 200 to 215. Trigger outranks coverage polish.

No blitz attribute exists on the DB scouting panel. Blitz maps to Acceleration and Tackle here.

SS2Safety 26.9%Rotation Hybridalt: Box Specialist Man CoverageAccelerationTackle

Applies when the third safety is on the field. A fifth of man-pressure snaps carry the third safety, and he is the disguise piece: he shows blitz from the overhang and either comes or takes the slot man late. The show has to look identical both ways. 17% of his snaps come from three_high formations, where the deep-third variant applies. In these alignments SS2 plays a true deep third, so the ask shifts from overhang force to top-down coverage: stay over #2 and #3 verticals and arrive late against the run.

Physical 5'11 to 6'2, 195 to 215. Doing two jobs at one speed is the trait.

third safety; on the field in 4-2-5 3 High, 4-2-5 Even, 4-2-5 Over G, 4-2-5 Under

No blitz attribute exists on the DB scouting panel. Blitz maps to Acceleration and Tackle here.

Sub LBs Sign 2: 2 starter Lurker 2 spots
SUBLB1Sub LB 88.1%Starter Lurker AccelerationHit PowerMan CoverageZone Coverage

Holds the second level of the sub packages that carry most snaps. The job is coverage first, matching backs and tight ends underneath, with a late rush added when the assignment stays in to block. Sub fronts field both SUBLB tokens together, so this is a sign-two position. Blitz demand leads here. 24% of his snaps come from mugged formations. Walked into an A-gap before the snap, he either arrives with the rush or bails into coverage after showing it, and the bail is the hard part. Short-area burst plus coverage recovery is the trait pair that survives the assignment.

Physical 6'0 to 6'3, 220 to 240. Coverage movement outranks bulk.

No blitz attribute exists on the scouting panel. Blitz maps to Acceleration and Hit Power here.

SUBLB2Sub LB 74.6%Starter Lurker AccelerationHit PowerMan CoverageZone Coverage

Holds the second level of the sub packages that carry most snaps. The job is coverage first, matching backs and tight ends underneath, with a late rush added when the assignment stays in to block. Sub fronts field both SUBLB tokens together, so this is a sign-two position. Blitz demand leads here. 28% of his snaps come from mugged formations. Walked into an A-gap before the snap, he either arrives with the rush or bails into coverage after showing it, and the bail is the hard part. Short-area burst plus coverage recovery is the trait pair that survives the assignment.

Physical 6'0 to 6'3, 220 to 240. Coverage movement outranks bulk.

No blitz attribute exists on the scouting panel. Blitz maps to Acceleration and Hit Power here.

Off-ball LBs Sign 2: 2 package Thumper 2 spots
MIKE1Off-ball LB 10.4%Package Thumper TackleAccelerationHit Power

57% of snaps ask for the bear_heavy MIKE job, 43% ask for the odd_tite MIKE job. Hits lead blockers behind a loaded line. The front eats the linemen and he meets fullbacks and pullers in the hole, keeping his fits square in short yardage. Coverage asks are minimal here. Runs free behind the trio. The front's job is to keep him unblocked, and his job is to make that matter, flowing tackle to tackle and finishing in the open field. On pass downs he owns the middle hook and carries #3 up the seam when the call asks. Base backers rush or match man with the pressure behind them.

Physical 6'0 to 6'3, 240 to 260. Thump outranks range.

In bear and heavy fronts (57% of this spot's snaps)

Archetype Thumper

Physical 6'0 to 6'3, 240 to 260. Thump outranks range.

Attributes to scout TackleHit Power

In odd, tite-spaced fronts (43% of this spot's snaps)

Archetype Signal Caller (alt: Thumper)

Physical 6'0 to 6'3, 235 to 255. Diagnose-and-go outranks size.

Attributes to scout TacklePursuitZone CoveragePlay Recognition

No blitz attribute exists on the scouting panel. Blitz maps to Acceleration and Hit Power here.

WILL1Off-ball LB 10.4%Package Thumper TackleAccelerationHit Power

57% of snaps ask for the bear_heavy WILL job, 43% ask for the odd_tite WILL job. Fits downhill from the weak side of heavy fronts. He fills fast and takes on climb blocks without giving ground to finish runs at the line. Backside screens are the only pass work that finds him. Scrapes behind a front built to keep him clean. He presses the line when the trio holds and falls back over the top when it slants, and his tackles come at full speed in pursuit. Flat and hook drops fill the pass downs. Base backers rush or match man with the pressure behind them.

Physical 6'0 to 6'3, 235 to 255. Thump outranks range.

In bear and heavy fronts (57% of this spot's snaps)

Archetype Thumper

Physical 6'0 to 6'3, 235 to 255. Thump outranks range.

Attributes to scout TackleHit Power

In odd, tite-spaced fronts (43% of this spot's snaps)

Archetype Signal Caller (alt: Lurker)

Physical 6'0 to 6'2, 225 to 245. Closing speed outranks size.

Attributes to scout SpeedPursuit

No blitz attribute exists on the scouting panel. Blitz maps to Acceleration and Hit Power here.

Open a row for the full job and the notes behind it. The text is on the page either way, so find-in-page still works.

Below the cutoff

SAM1, 9 snaps (4.48%), ignore tier per schema thresholds.

RDT1, 6 snaps (2.99%), ignore tier per schema thresholds.

Prevent 3 Deep: 3 plays could not be mapped to a formation, so they sit outside the counts.

Built from 198 charted plays of 201 in the book. The football is verified against named coaching sources, and the attribute targets are verified against the in-game scouting screens.

Keep reading

See where 4-2-5 Man Pressure ranks for the concepts you actually call in the CFB 27 Playbook Finder.

Coverage chalk talk that matches this style: how match and man coverage work, the Box check against bunch and the Bingo check.