From Grantland: The option offense?

[klerushund]

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; "><p style="font-style: italic; margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1.6em; ">"In hindsight, I'm annoyed that I didn't pick the Virginia-over-Georgia Tech upset. This kind of bad loss happens at least once a year to the Yellow Jackets, and the ingredients were all there Saturday:</p><p style="font-style: italic; margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1.6em; ">1.Mediocre team who are
2.Playing at home and
3.Had a bye week to prepare</p><p style="font-style: italic; margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1.6em; ">That last part is crucial, and its why Tech has had such bad luck in bowl games (0-3 under current coach Paul Johnson, with an average of 8 points per game). When you can only do one thing — even if you do that one thing spectacularly well — an average team with enough time can shut it down. UVa held Tech to 272 rushing yards, and Tech's passing game responded the way it usually does against adversity; quarterback Tevin Washington went 2 of 8 for 24 yards and two interceptions. To put it mildly, the option offense is not designed to play from behind, and Virginia's early 14-0 lead was debilitating.</p><p style="font-style: italic; margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1.6em; ">This loss helps explain my frustration with Georgia Tech. By opting for a specialized offense with very little diversity, it resign itself to never winning a national title. That being said,<span style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; ">many</span>teams will never win a national title. In fact, most teams won't even win a conference title. But, in theory, at least most teams have a chance. With the option offense, Johnson deprives the school of even the most remote hope. The very nature of the option sets its own ceiling. So I ask the following question of Georgia Tech fans in all sincerity. Would you rather:</p><p style="font-style: italic; margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1.6em; ">A:Stay with the option offense, be very good and occasionally win 10 games in a season, but always struggle against a team with a bye week to prepare and never win a national title, or …</p><p style="font-style: italic; margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1.6em; ">B:Switch to a more standard offense, have some down years, but give yourselves the theoretical chance to win it all?</p><p style="font-style: italic; margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1.6em; ">My choice would be B, but maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it's better to have sustained excellence, even if that excellence is self-limiting."</p><p style="font-style: italic; margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1.6em; ">
</p><p style="margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1.6em; ">Interesting question. I've often wondered this myself. GT is a program with some real limitations (not unlike MSU). They've managed to beat those limitations by running a niche offense. Of course, as this writer points out, it probably means they aren't going to win many big games (especially games where the opponent has more time to prepare).</p><p style="margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1.6em; ">What does the pack say? Would you rather run a more common offense and have the chance (however small) to be spectacular or run a niche offense, forgo the spectacular, but be more consistently good?</p></span>

 

[patdog]

GA Tech isn't going to be contending for any national championships (and very few conference championships in a very mediocre ACC) no matter what offense they run.

 

[00Dawg]

But that's from an MSU perspective. And I don't think it 100% deprives your school of the opportunity to compete for the title. Defense wins titles, not offense. Tech still scored 21 points in that game, and the score at the end of the 3rd quarter was also the final score: 3 points is hardly a debilitating margin.
If you win 10 games a season for long enough using a specialized offense, you should be able to use that success to recruit the defensive players you need to win the big games.

 

[klerushund]

...GT has some unique challenges and they're using their system to mitigate those challenges. I'm not saying I want State to run the flex bone, but I do think that winning at MSU means thinking divergently, i.e., like Paul Johnson and GT, in order to shorten the gap between the haves (Bama, LSU, etc.) and us.

 

[UpTheMiddlex3Punt]

Several decades ago, half the league ran some form of option, and those teams were winning titles. The thing is those teams were the biggest and best of the bunch. Georgia Tech, much like Mississippi State, will not be winning a national title in the foreseeable future because they simply do not have the talent level to win every game of a season plus championship games. They just don't.

 

[Dawgzilla]

I had never considered off week's being that much of an advantage, though. I think it kind of depends upon your defensive coordinator. For example, we could have payed Georgia Tech in a bowl game, and I still think Torbush would have gotten lit up.

I think the best MSU could ever hope for with the spread option is a 10 win season. Of course, right now I will take a 10 win season. I just don't think we'll ever score more than 20 against Nick Saban.

My other question is, what advantage does the spread option actually give us? I heard all this talk about getting the ball to your best players in space, and I'm just not seeing that. Without a decent passer at QB, we need a good run scheme, and I think I prefer the spread option to the I formation, but only by a little. Now that Russell is the QB, I think I would prefer an entirely different offensive scheme....one that doesn't require your QB to get hit by DEs and LBs every other play.

 

[Todd4State]

What I would do is run the Air Raid- EMCC runs it, so obviously there are kids in Mississippi that can handle it. And they're recruiting only a small area of the state as of last year. Which also happens to be Oktibbeha County. To me, it's the most exciting offense out there, it puts up more points than any other offense I have seen in general, and it's tough to defend.

The difference is, I would also make sure I had a good defense- like we have now and good special teams. That was Texas Tech's downfall- especially the defense.

The flexbone would work for us- I have no doubt about that. Especially if we're going to keep recruiting like we are. But I think that our fans will eventually get tired of having the problems that were mentioned in the original post. We would also have to be prepared to not get any top flight QB or WR propects if we run that- our fans will ***** about that too.

Bottom line as far as scheme- whatever it is:

1. It's only as good as our players.

2. It will be fine as we have competent play callers. In other words- not Woody McCorvey.

3. We should not be "married" to a single offense but rather be prepared to run what our personnel can. Sometimes we may have a Tyler Russell. Some years we may have Omarr Conner. Both are pretty good QB's, but they have different strengths and weaknesses. Whatever type of QB we have, we should run whatever fits their strengths.

 

[klerushund]

...would like to see more air raid concepts in our game plan.<div>
</div><div>Of course, the bottom line is line play. It doesn't matter if you run the veer or the run-and-shoot, if you can't block you aren't going to move the ball.</div><div>
</div><div>I found this interesting because I've been pondering how MSU can close the gap between us and the big boys. As it stands now, we need the perfect storm (a great team by our standards, lucky breaks in big games, and bad situations at LSU, Bama, etc.) to compete for the West. It seems that one way to close that gap is a schematically (Texas Tech, Georgia Tech, etc.).</div><div>
</div><div>With another team joining our division, with our same colors and a bigger fan base and better recruiting base, we are going to have to really "think outside the box" (hate myself for using that phrase) to distinguish ourselves.</div>

 

[studentdawg87]

A team takes on the identity of its coaches and system, and I have yet to see a single Air Raid team that is physical. Not. One. In order to win in the SEC or defeat legitimate powerhouse teams you have to be able to run the ball and control the clock to an extent, and there has never been an Air Raid offense that can do that.

When you are throwing the ball 50 times a game, your defense is going to be forced to be on the field far more than it should be. If Tuberville, an excellent defensive coach, can't build a solid defense at Texas Tech while running the Air Raid, then no one is going to be able to. It simply can't be done.

And are you really going to compare us to EMCC? Just because something works at a Mississippi Juco doesn't mean it will work in the SEC. Mississippi typically produces good running backs and defensive players, not QBs and WRs. If us or Ole Miss is going to be successful in the SEC, we are going to have to able to run the ball and play damn good defense.

The only other style of spread that could work at State is the Holgerson style spread (It isn't a full Air Raid; his teams can usually run the ball well.), and even then you would still get bludgeoned to death by the likes of LSU and Bama.

The SEC is all about strong running games and dominant defenses, usually led a NFL-caliber DL. There is a reason SEC schools almost always ***-rape spread schools from other conferences when they meet them in a bowl game.

 

[klerushund]

...you don't have to remind anyone around here what the SEC does well. It's blatantly obvious.<div>
</div><div>But we aren't going to beat Bama or LSU but once a decade by doing the exact same thing they do only with inferior athletes. We will NEVER out-recruit them. So we have to look elsewhere for advantages.</div><div>
</div><div>
</div>

 

[studentdawg87]

NT

 

[futaba.79]

in the 90's by being as tough or tougher than them. They had great teams from 91-96 and we should have won more than the one we did. Then we actually beat them 3 out 4, even though they still had more talent. We were able to do so by being big and strong, running the ball and being tough on D. That's the only model that will work here.

Getting beat 70-28 5 or 6 times a year is very unappealing to me. Win or lose, I'd much rather have teams dread playing us.

 

[mredge]

21 years seems like a long time ago, but it is not like an Ole Miss National Championship either.

 

[Todd4State]

Just because Texas Tech can't.

I think the real reason why the air raid teams- and there aren't many- aren't physical or good on defense is because their head coaches don't pay enough attention to defense. Leach used to move just about everyone to WR. He felt like it didn't matter if the other team scored 56, he could score 57. That was a personal flaw that he had.

The scoring "too quickly" thing is silly. If a flexbone or pro-style or spread option team breaks off a 75 yard TD run, do you think they get upset because they scored too soon?

My point about EMCC was that we had the personnel in Mississippi to run it. I agree about having a good defense- that is where we would differ from Texas Tech. Again, that was a personal flaw of Mike Leach.

The SEC is simply the best conference in America, and it's because of the players. We beat the crap out of Michigan last year and LSU beat the crap out of Oregon this year- does that mean the spread option wouldn't work in the SEC?

I'm telling y'all- we're missing the boat on this. Air Raid, aggressive defense = funnest team to watch in the SEC.

 

[Mullenation]

One of the reasons LSU and Bama have such good defenses is because often times they put their best athletes on defense. Obviously they get enough talent to have some true WR's and skill players on offense, but a lot of times when they are recruiting 4 and 5 star "ATH" listed players, those players are put on defense. At State, we have to make smarter decisions about where we put our players. Running the Air Raid you have to have a lot of WR's and skill players. MS historically puts out really good RB's, not WRs. We wouldn't be able to handle a prolific air raid and good defense.

 

[LR1400]

As described above..... The model for State is physical good to great defense, good to great running game. Period.

Urban Meyer said in his book that he put his best players on defense. We should do the same and it kind of looks like we do.

 

[studentdawg87]

There is a reason for that, and it is a reflection on the style of play. If we are ever going to beat LSU and Bama, we are going to have to be able to shorten the game and be equally as physical. That **** can't be done when you run a pussified offense that throws it 50 times a game. West Virgina and Oregon have extremely explosive offenses, and we played LSU closer than both of them because we are physical.

East Carolina is a prime example of why you shouldn't run the Air Raid. Under Skip Holtz, they were one of the few teams in C-USA that played good defense and ran the ball well. They also won the C-USA crown his last two years there. As soon as Ruffin McNeil took over their defense went to ****. McNeil is a defensive guy.

A smashmouth team that plays good defense and can run the ball will beat a pass-happy spread team if both teams are equally as talented. Hell, Bill Snyder is relying on an old-school style of ball to defeat various Air-Raid style offense in the Big 12. And Mike Leach did want to have a good defense. That wasn't his area of expertise, but he wanted to have a good defense. Every smart coach does, and Leach is as smart as they come.

You know you a **** ton about baseball, but you are simply wrong about a lot of things when it comes to football.

And once again, you can't compare State to a Juco. That is absurd.