also: hole numbers · the 4 hole · low hole · high hole
A numbered point of attack inside an offensive play call, and, on the other side of the ball, a zone in the middle of a coverage. Unrelated, and both extremely common.
2 meanings, all below. Jump to the one you heard.
The older of the two offensive systems for naming where a run is going. Holes are numbered outward from the center and the number rides inside the play call, so a two-digit call names the back and the hole at once: 32 dive sends the 3 back through the 2 hole. The dominant convention is EVEN NUMBERS TO THE RIGHT and odd to the left: 2 is right of the center, 4 between right guard and tackle, 6 outside the right tackle, with 1, 3 and 5 mirroring to the left. Programs do vary it, and that is the first thing to establish when a coach moves, but there is a standard to vary from.
hole numbers, the point of attackgap letters, the low hole and high hole in coverageOn defense, a zone in the middle of the field rather than a space on the line. The low hole is the underneath middle, often occupied by a dropping linebacker, and the high hole is the deep middle a Tampa 2 middle linebacker runs to. Nothing to do with the offensive sense, and a defender told to sit in the hole and a back told to hit the hole are being sent to opposite parts of the field.
low hole, high hole, the polethe offensive hole numberHoles are points of attack named inside an offensive play call, so a two-digit call names the back and the hole at once. Offense only, and fading. The dominant convention is even to the right.
| Hole | Side | Between |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | left | center and left guard |
| 2 | right | center and right guard |
| 3 | left | left guard and left tackle |
| 4 | right | right guard and right tackle |
| 5 | left | left tackle and left end |
| 6 | right | right tackle and right end |
Hole numbering is what most coaches over about forty learned first, and gap letters are what most younger coaches learned first. Both are current, and a staff can run for a season before discovering it has two systems in the room.