The Origin and Rise of Pancake Blocks

Football’s noblest players, offensive linemen, toil in relative obscurity. None of the game’s official statistics track their performance. Instead, they are evaluated by their coaches and others using grading systems that assess whether they carry out their assignments each play.

Given the lack of official measures of the offensive line performance, it is not surprising that unofficial measures periodically crop up; the most famous being the “pancake block.” Pancake blocks occur when a blocker overwhelms a defender and puts him on his back, bringing feelings of triumph to the offensive lineman and shame to the defender finishing the play looking skyward.

Thinking of pancake blocks naturally raises the question of when and why pancake blocks became a thing. Many sources tell us the term arose to describe the work of Bill Fralic, a two-time All America at Pitt and the second pick in the 1985 NFL draft. However, pancake blocks did not originate with Bill Fralic, despite his frequent flapjacking of opponents. We know the term did not originate during Fralic's playing days because newspaper accounts tell us Jim Carlen and his West Virginia staff tracked pancake blocks in 1966, fifteen years before Fralic entered Pitt.

Jim Carlen (standing in the center) and his staff at West Virginia tracked pancake blocks starting in 1966. Offensive line coach Jack Fligg stands to the far left and offensive coordinator Bobby Bowden kneels second from right. (West Virginia History On View)

Like other football staffs, Carlen and his coaches jumped on the relatively new trend of awarding helmet stickers to players who met specific criteria. Helmet awards originated at California in the late 1950s under Pete Elliott and assistant coach, Gene Stauber when they awarded stickers for interceptions. Carlen’s system awarded points for deflected passes, recovered fumbles, and pancake blocks, adding a sticker to a player's helmet for every twenty points earned. This motivational tool and the celebration of the awards was noted by WVU’s beat reporters each of the three years Carlen coached the Mountaineers.