Scobel Wiggins Photography

The underlying question seems to be what are the strategic differences between Mixed play and Open or Women's play. Most strategic considerations are, in fact, the same no matter the team. We all have to worry about broken marks and what to do against teams that are killing us deep. So what makes Mixed different? I believe the main difference lies in the fact that the range of athletic ability is greater for a Mixed team than for Open or Women's. Certainly athletic ability varies on Open or Women's teams, handlers aren't usually as fast or tall as deep receivers, but because both men and women are on the same field in mixed, the differences are greater. This difference affects many aspects of strategy by changing what I refer to as "relative field size."

Before going further I'd like to explain what I mean by relative field size. All other things being equal, the larger the playing field, the easier for the offense to score. (Up to a certain point. Of course, scoring on a mile-long field would be difficult for anyone). The reason for this is that the defense has more area to cover and the offense has more options. There are many factors that can affect relative field size and they affect all teams. Wind or inclement weather conditions can shrink the field, making it difficult to complete passes to certain areas of the field. Teams design offenses and defenses specifically to increase or decrease the relative size of certain areas of the field. Horizontal stack works to increase the size of the field in front of and behind the stack, while vertical stack increases the size on the left and right of the stack. Your standard zone defense attempts to make the deep area of the field smaller, forcing the offense into making lots of shorter passes. These are just basic examples that affect all teams, but they illustrate the idea.

How does relative field size affect Mixed teams? Athleticism affects relative field size, and as stated above, the athletic ability of a Mixed team's players will likely vary considerably. The best women are going to be slower and outjumped by the best men. The faster the defense, the smaller the field. The faster the offense (relative to the defense), the larger the field. Note that this does not mean that the faster team will always win, simply that the team with the advantage in speed (or height, or jumping ability) will have a larger relative field size when on offense than their opponent.

Athleticism is not the only way to make a field larger. Good throwers also make the field larger for example, but that's the same for every team.

Fewer men on the field will make the field larger, making it easier to score. If this were the only factor, you would always choose to go 3:4 on offense. In reality, most teams do not go 3:4 regularly, even at the elite level (though as the level of competition increases, more teams play four women). There are many factors that may suggest you go 4:3. If your women are weaker than your opponent's, playing more women probably won't benefit you. Likewise if you only have a few women, you probably don't want to tire them out by playing them more. Or maybe your men are just deeper. There are hundreds of variables that could suggest 4:3 or 3:4, what you want to do is balance these while attempting to maximize relative field size. Even beyond 4:3 or 3:4, there are ways to use your players to increase the size of certain areas of the field. If you are running a horizontal offense and want to be able to open up the deep area of the field, running more women downfield will help do that.

I am not suggesting that women on Mixed teams should only be used to take men off the field. I am in no way suggesting that women's roles are limited in Mixed so teams can get away with having weak women. Quite the opposite, top level Mixed teams must have good women, and they must use them for more than just getting good matchups for their men. Every team should play to its strengths. Just as in Open or Women's, there are many factors that must be considered when determining strategy. The only real strategic difference for Mixed is the difference in relative field size which can be created by manipulating gender ratios. Maximize your relative field size and you will maximize your chances to win.

Michael Wood co-founded Atlanta's Rival in 2003 and has captained them each year since. He led them to 3 Nationals berths ('03, '06, and '07). In 2004 he began coaching Southern Polytechnic State University and was previously a contributor to the (now mostly defunct) Ultimate Frisbee Strategy/Coaching blog. Oh, and he's crazy allergic to grass.