Positional Game · GAME-PASS-L4
Standing vs Seated — With an Advantage
Rung four of the passing ladder. The top player starts standing over a seated guard with a small advantage — a shallow underhook or a hand on the hip — and works to pass to a pin while the bottom player threatens to steal top priority.
Start position
POS-STD-VS-SEATED
Round length
3:00 rounds
Reset rule
Reset when the top player confirms the pin, or the bottom player enters a confirmed entanglement, puts the hands down, or wrestles up. Role rotates after each reset.
Top wins by
Pass to a pin — chest-to-chest or chest-to-back control held for three continuous seconds without being re-guarded.
Bottom wins by
Enter a confirmed leg entanglement, put the top player's hands on the mat, or wrestle up to top position.
Game Description
The fourth rung is the first from the real starting point of the phase — top standing, bottom seated — but the passer keeps a small head start: a shallow underhook or a hand on the hip. Having climbed the finish, the knee line, and the ankle line, the passer now meets a seated guard that can fight back in three ways at once.
How to Run This Game
Setup: Bottom player seated. Top player standing with a shallow underhook or a hand on the near hip.
Top wins by passing to a pin (three-second chest-to-chest or chest-to-back). The bottom player wants to keep limbs in the way, so flatten and bypass; protect your own ankle, knee, and hip line so the pass is not undermined.
Bottom wins three ways — by entering a confirmed leg entanglement, by putting the top player’s hands on the mat (the start of an off-balance), or by wrestling up to top.
Score: One point per win condition. Role rotates each reset.
Coaching Notes
This rung makes the defender’s three objectives visible — retain, steal top priority, or undermine the standing base with the legs — and trains the passer to deny all three while advancing. The small advantage keeps the problem winnable; remove it and you have the next rung. Elevated tier: leg entanglements are live, so confirm tap-release reliability before running it.
Progressions
Drop the advantage entirely: standing vs seated, the real position with nothing given.