The G-Roll is a position that was developed by BJJ black belt Alex Ecklin. Ecklin used this position successfully whilst competing at brown belt but also uses it to this day at black belt level. The idea of the G-Roll is to enter from a conventional half guard and then go belly down. From here you can push back to attack a variety of sweeps and submissions against the opponent.
Due to the nature of the guard, a lot depends on using the weight of your legs to sweep the opposition. Because of this, the G-Roll depends on weight distribution and body awareness. Without this, it can fail even with the correct fundamentals in place.
Ecklin successfully used this move in a match against Joao Miyao that enabled him to come to a double leg takedown. With this in mind, if it can work against the likes of Joao Miyao then it should be able to work against most opponents. Other famous users include Caio Terra who has also used it under a different name. Perhaps one of its main strengths is its unknown qualities that most people aren’t aware of.
Table of Contents
Setup and Sweeps using the G-Roll
Starting from the regular half guard, you want to keep the leg entanglement which is important to keep contact with your opponent. More specifically, you want to be able to cross your feet from the Z-Guard position. Basically, if you try the G-Roll with open feet then the opponent can defend it much easier. Similarly, they can even pass or take your back, so it’s imperative to keep your feet crossed.
The next step is to avoid cross faces and create space to go belly down. Whilst this may feel vulnerable, the opponent can’t actually do much from this position with your feet crossed. From here you want to get up on your hands as if doing a press up but kick your legs and hips backward.
This puts your weight onto your opponent and forces them backward, completing the sweep. If done correctly you should end up in top half guard, securing 2 points at competition. A good way to visualize this is that you’re trying to do a bear crawl in reverse. By doing this, your legs act as weight which forces the opponent to the floor.
Although this is the main route to sweeping, it’s not the only way. From the press up position, you can also torque the opponents knee by moving your legs away from their body. This is a similar knee torque that is done from regular half guard with an underhook. Remember, the G-Roll is half guard after all. With this torque in place, you can then drive your weight into the opponent away from their leg.
Because of the torque combined with your weight, this will force the opponent into accepting the sweep. Most people’s bodies will naturally accept the sweep, but if they don’t then they risk seriously damaging their knee. This makes for a good plan B when the first G-Roll sweep is being defended too well.
Using the G-Roll as a submission
Because of the initial leg entanglement from half guard, the majority of submissions from the G-Roll are based on leg locks. For instance, if the opponent is swept fully and you keep control of their leg, you can start attack kneebars as you will be in a kneebar position. Similarly, if you angle out from here you can start attacking toeholds.
Whilst midway through the sweep you can even spin under the opponent if they stand to enter the saddle position and go for heel hooks. In short, the G-Roll can open a lot of leg locks up depending on how the opponent reacts.
Another submission from the G-Roll is the Triangle choke. This is possibly the only attack that focuses on the upper body, as previously discussed the move usually revolves around the legs. The Triangle can be attacked when the opponent bases too much to defend the sweep. Often in BJJ if someone focuses too much on one defensive it means they’re open to a counter. In this case if they protect the sweep too much they can get hit with a Triangle.
To hit the Triangle your opponent should start leaning towards you. From here you can control their head with one of your hands and then switch your body. This simulates going back to the original half guard position. However, whilst twisting back the idea is to kick your inside leg over their head. This is similar to the conventional half guard Triangle and works with good timing. As the opponent is busy thinking about the sweep it can lead to a sneaky Triangle.
Defending against the G-Roll
The G-Roll is often defended by opponents standing up and backing off when the guard player goes belly down. The idea from the top is to escape half guard as quickly and reset to a neutral position. For instance, if the top player is too passive then the sweep can be easily finished. However, if they stand up and quickly push at the feet then this forces the guard player to also reset their position to avoid a back take. Because of this, you should always be ready to stand against a G-Roll enthusiast.
Ideally, you would also stand at the very start of the G-Roll. By doing this, you could enter a variation of the De La Riva position with the opponent inverted underneath you. In brief, the idea is to maximize distance from the opponent. At the same time, you should also be trying to disengage as quickly as possible. Like many defenses in Jiu Jitsu, you want to stop the attack in the first stages to properly shut it down.
As mentioned earlier, if you do not untangle the legs whilst standing then the bottom player can still invert and start looking for heel hooks so speed is needed. Having said this, there is a second option. Here, you can actually accept the sweep and fall backward into a heel hook of your own. To do this, you need to grab the heel as you drop back. From here you may get the submission. If not, then the opponent should react in a way where you can regain the top position, or at least avoid the sweep. Whilst it’s not always ideal to accept sweeps, at least this way usually forces a reaction.
Issues with the G-Roll
As mentioned, the G-Roll isn’t perfect and can be defended early on by sharp opponents. Not only is it susceptible to a crossface as well, but it also has other issues. Perhaps the main issue isn’t from the opponent, but from yourself. Basically, it can feel quite clumsy in its setup by spreading your hips into the floor whilst keeping your ankles crossed.
If you have long, flexible legs then this is fine, but the shorter your legs are, the more it becomes an issue. Further, if you have unflexible hips or lack upper body strength then this move can be a pain. Whilst all sweeps require effort, even Alex Ecklin notes that the G-Roll uses a lot of energy to sweep with.
Further, to get this you may need to temporarily drop from your Z-Guard which may leave you vulnerable. Of course, with practice, you will get more comfortable at G-Roll entries. However, this can be quite an unorthodox position for BJJ players to use. As a result, it could be argued that the G-Roll isn’t really suited for beginners either who lack an understanding of general BJJ concepts.
Closing Thoughts
The G-Roll is an unusual position that is rarely covered when looking at the half guard. However, once mastered it has a variety of attacks and is a good sweeping option. As mentioned it can be countered like all BJJ positions but is also effective for those that love leg attacks. Overall it is a good option to learn to add variety to your half guard game and keep opponents guessing.
Although it isn’t a definitive answer to playing the half guard position, nothing in BJJ is perfect. However, if looking for an alternative game that may throw other players off, then this could be an ideal move to look into. With this said, give it a go next time you’re training and see where it takes you.
