--- title: "Pepper Drill Volleyball: Pass, Set, Hit Sequence & Variants" description: "Pepper is a volleyball partner drill where two players dig, set and hit the ball back and forth without a net. Get the setup, sequence and key variations." url: "https://www.coachboard.app/library/volleyball/pepper-drill" sport: "Volleyball" category: "Drill" level: "all-levels" dateModified: "2026-09-24" --- # Pepper Drill — Volleyball Drill Pepper is a volleyball ball-control drill in which two partners keep one ball alive by alternating contacts in a fixed dig, set, hit rhythm, with no net between them. Pepper is the warm-up you see on every volleyball court before a match, and it is popular for a reason: two players and one ball produce a continuous chain of digs, sets and controlled attacks. Each contact has to set up the next one, so sloppy platforms and wild sets are punished immediately by a dead ball. Because the hitter is attacking at a partner rather than away from them, pepper trains a skill most drills skip: hitting with control. Coaches use it to groove arm swings at partial speed, to read a hitter's shoulder before the dig, and to settle nerves before a game. It also scales down well for beginners and up for advanced players. ## Objective Build ball control on all three contacts by keeping a controlled dig-set-hit rally going between partners, while training diggers to read the hitter and hitters to place the ball. ## Setup - **Area:** Any open floor strip about 6 × 3 m; along the sideline or behind the endline works - **Players:** 2 per ball (3 for the three-person version) - **Equipment:** 1 ball per pair, Optional cones to mark a 5 m distance - **Duration:** 5–10 minutes as a warm-up, up to 15 minutes as a skill block - **Level:** all-levels (U12+) ## How it works 1. **Set the distance** — Partners stand facing each other 5–6 m apart (closer, around 4 m, for beginners). Both start in a low ready position with weight forward and the platform ready. 2. **Start with a controlled pass** — Player A tosses to themselves and passes a high ball to Player B. B sets it back up to A, about 1 m above A's hitting shoulder, so A can hit it without moving. 3. **Hit, dig, set, repeat** — A attacks at half speed straight at B's midline. B digs it up to A, A sets it back to B, and B attacks at A. The contacts alternate partners every time in the order dig, set, hit, so each player keeps rotating through all three skills. 4. **Score the rally** — Count consecutive contacts. Beginners aim for 10 in a row; intermediate pairs aim for 30; advanced pairs play 90 seconds without a drop and increase hitting pace every 30 seconds. ## Coaching points - Diggers read the hitter's shoulder and arm swing, then freeze in a low, still position before contact instead of drifting. - Angle the platform so the dig goes up and back to the partner, not straight up or over their head. - Hitters snap the wrist and hit down with topspin at the digger's belly button; power is secondary to placement. - The set is the reset: a high, soft set lets both players catch up if the dig was rushed. - Talk on every ball: "dig", "set", "hit" out loud keeps the rhythm and rehearses match communication. ## Variations - **Three-person pepper** — Line up three players with a setter in the middle. The end players take turns hitting at each other over the setter; the digger passes to the setter, the setter turns and sets the digger, and the digger becomes the next hitter. The setter has to square up to a new target on every set. - **Down-ball pepper** — Hitters swing with a full standing arm swing from a set 1.5 m high, driving a flat, fast ball at the partner. It trains the down-ball attack coaches call when the pass is off and gives diggers more realistic pace. - **Pepper over the net** — Play the same sequence across the net, one player per side. Every hit must clear the net, which raises the set height and forces the digger to cover more court. ## Build it in Coach Board On a Coach Board volleyball court, place two players 5 m apart with a ball and animate one full pepper cycle: dig, set, hit, then the same three contacts back. Loop it slowly for younger players so they learn the order of touches, then duplicate the board to show three-person pepper with the setter turning in the middle. [Volleyball coaching app](https://www.coachboard.app/sports/volleyball) · [Start 14-day free trial, no card](https://my.coachboard.app) ## FAQ ### What is the pepper drill in volleyball? The pepper drill is a partner exercise where two players keep one ball in the air by taking turns to dig, set and hit it to each other. It is used to warm up, build ball control on all three contacts and practise hitting with placement rather than full power, usually without a net. ### Why is it called pepper? The name is usually traced to baseball, where pepper is a pregame drill in which a batter tapped quick, short hits to fielders standing close by. Volleyball borrowed the name for its own quick, close-range back-and-forth warm-up. The drill has nothing to do with the spice; the name describes the rapid pace. ## Related - https://www.coachboard.app/library/volleyball/passing-drill.md - https://www.coachboard.app/library/volleyball/digging-drill.md - https://www.coachboard.app/library/volleyball/hitting-drill.md - https://www.coachboard.app/library/volleyball/beginner-practice-plan.md --- [Volleyball coaching app](https://www.coachboard.app/sports/volleyball) · Animate and share this drill with your team: https://my.coachboard.app