RE: Rice vs. Middle Tenn
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I'm not fond of the idea of incorporating elements of several run schemes. I'd rather just have one and perfect it. Flexbone is basically 10 plays--inside veer, outside veer, trap, trap option, midline, counter, counter option, inside reverse, outside reverse, and jet sweep. You can perfect 10 plays. I have watched some of Mike Leach's Mississippi State games this year. Defenses are rushing 3 and dropping 8 and clogging up all the passing lanes. I keep thinking, if only he had a basic option running game, they couldn't play him that way and it would open up the passing. So that works both ways.
Why? It is basically the same thing. MTSU ran QB lead which is not in your set of 10 but very effective and can be combined with counter and read option which is basically your option running offense. If you remember, I said the running game includes the QB and can be read option, speed option, zone (which includes lead, stretch and sweep), counter, and power.
Yes, I'm mixing various passing schemes, but the routes basically all come off your route tree, with different backfield actions--dropback, play action, and sprintout. Air Raid and yours are more drop back, run and shoot is more play action and sprintout. You can incorporate every play from the run-and-shoot and Air Raid into your West Coast numbered route system. Some are virtually identical in all three schemes--like streak in the run and shoot, verticals in the Air Raid, and I would guess 999 in your system. So there really are fewer than 40 total plays.
No. I use rollout, half roll, and play action. All of these are used to distort the coverage and can make things easier (or harder) for a receiver with regards to defender manipulation.
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Exactly, in all three phases. My only reason for preferring the option as the run game is that the people you need to run it can also play defense, which can be a big help when you are short depth. If you lose a corner, and are t then there, then maybe your second string slotback can move over to cover with more athleticism than your backup corner, or if you lose a d-lineman and one of of your backup o-linemen can move over and fill in, you can stretch out your personnel to cover shortages. That's a little bit harder to do with a pass-first scheme. But if you always have a fullback and a tight end, and recruit plenty of people at those positions, you always have some big, strong, and reasonably fast athletes who can help on defense.
But what I am saying is that similar atypical players can run my system as well as option so you don't lose any multiuse skills.
It's not easy to recruit people who can play both option and passing game, but Hawaii and Georgia Southern were obviously able to do it, so they are out there. Your QB needs to be able to run and throw, and there are plenty of those. Where we can probably do well is the kid who is a great HS QB that TexasU and aTm say, "Come here and we'll make you a corner or safety," whereas we can say, "Come here and play QB." Fullbacks and tight ends tend to be under-recruited because they don't fit a lot of Air Raid schemes, but they tend to be good athletes who can play on either side of the ball. Your flexbone o-linemen tend to be smaller and quicker, so they can fit better on the other side of the ball, but you may need some who are a bit bigger to throw the ball a lot, although not so much if you are heavy into the quick passing game. Your receivers may or may not be able to help out at DB if you have an excess of receivers. Some probably can, and that helps. I have to believe that in the past few years we have had some WRs with enough speed to move over to that side of the ball, where we needed more help than at WR.
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Yes , but it is a continuum where it is better to lean towards passing ability. Because, the pass can set up the run and it is easier to marginalize athleticism this way.
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