Let me give you a hypothetical...

[pollock]

Let's say you're the coach of a non-BCS college football team. One that has had some pretty reasonable success in recent years. Your bread-and-butter is running the football. Old School.

You've been blown out in 2 of your last 3 games, with your rushing attack either slowed or completely stopped. Both of the 2 winning teams used the same strategy to do it.

Now you have a road game against a pretty good BCS team. Just by this you know you're somewhat outgunned. At halftime, they're up 31-0. Your running game has gone NOWHERE. Their defense is completely ignoring the fact that you even have wideouts.

You evaluate your strategy for the second half. Do you:

A. keep running into the pile of bodies for no gain. Three and out every drive, strand your poor defense on the field because you are so G-D stubborn.

B. realize that you are getting killed, and decide to take some risks. Tell your freshman QB to throw on every single down until the defense backs off of the RB. Incompletions and interceptions be damned.

Edited September 26, 2005 by pollock

[Mad Hatter]

I think you probably keep running to get your team some more experience doing what they'll need to do in conference.

[Coffee and TV]

I think you probably keep running to get your team some more experience doing what they'll need to do in conference.

←

Because winning conference every year has really developed into progress...

[GoMeanGreen1999]

That is great Hypothetical question and I think the answer to it is simply that you have to keep running your offense. Even though it is not work, especially if that is the only offense you have. Whats the point in throwing, because as soon as you get against a team that you can run it, you will go back to it.

Now, that answer is what I always get from coaches or announcers. However, I tend to agree with what you are asking, however and unfortunately, I think the experts are probably right. Its your bread and butter, so you keep doing it, even if it doesn't work.

[LongJim]

Let's say you're the coach of a non-BCS college football team.  One that has had some pretty reasonable success in recent years.  Your bread-and-butter is running the football.  Old School.

"Your bread and butter" plays to your offensive strengths--which is the running game. You DO NOT ask your freshman quarterback to throw on every down, since your young, misfiring offensive line is a sieve in both run and pass blocking, and you run the very real risk of having passes picked and taken to the house, or getting your freshman quarterback killed, or his probably already fragile psyche demolished.

Why would you do this against a BCS team without playing a game in your own conference--which you have a very real chance of winning?

By "outgunned", you're really saying that your athletes are not quite the caliber of the "pretty good BCS team". Another reason that you do not ask your freshman QB to try to throw to "outgunned" wide receivers, or stand in the pocket behind outgunned linemen.

You've been blown out in 2 of your last 3 games, with your rushing attack either slowed or completely stopped.  Both of the 2 winning teams used the same strategy to do it. 

Hypothetically they've done this by stacking the box and daring the quarterback to beat them with the pass, probably.

What I would do is continue with the running game, while drilling my linemen during the week on their assignments, and possibly using more trap-type plays with my offense. I would also use play-action and rollout the QB more on passes, to help the offensive line, possibly even letting him keep on some occasions if he made that judgement. Hit the slant on a hot read. Might even try the middle or rolling screen pass a few times.

Being outgunned means that the offense does not have the speed to run outside effectively--they will be caught and dropped for no gain out there. The lineman are not quite fast enough to pull and block effectively against a defense of this caliber, so they will have to rely more on leverage and technique rather than strength at the point of attack. This plays right into the defense's hands because these linemen have not played together much, and most are the equivalent of sophomores as far as playing time.

At some point, though, the offensive and defensive lines will have to jell and show up--or neither the run OR pass is going to work.

Currently, this hypothetical team doesn't have the personnel or experience to throw on every down.

[BleedGreen64]

The successful coaches I know say on offense to go with what the other team "gives" up. If they are defensing the run - pass and vice-versa.

Of course you might need to change some of your personnel if they are only good in one phase of the game - versatility recruiting and practice can help one make the needed adjustments.

[pollock]

Currently, this hypothetical team doesn't have the personnel or experience to throw on every down.

←

Agreed. Please note that I'm not hypothetically advocating a permanent change in strategy. I just want to see a damn gametime adjustment. A reaction to stimuli, if you will.

[mad dog]

Wow jim... are you a coach, a player, or a former player? That was some breakdown.

[meangreanmick]

A. keep running into the pile of bodies for no gain.  Three and out every drive, strand your poor defense on the field because you are so G-D stubborn.

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For the game, we had 21 pass plays (avg 3.2 yds per pass) and 26 rushing plays (avg 3.3 yds per rush). How is that "running into the pile of bodies"?

[The Fake Lonnie Finch]

I think you probably keep running to get your team some more experience doing what they'll need to do in conference.

←

Exactly, Mad Hatter. Guys, you've got to remember what we're dealing with this year - tons of young players on defense. What good would it do to throw the ball in the second half of the blowout? To have a young defense get put back on the field over and over again, to risk getting a thin defense riddled with injuries before the rest of conference play?

Not worth it. Dickey did the right thing. We won't face a team in the Sun Belt with the speed and depth of K-State's defense. The continued repping of the offense for what we do will pay off more in the long run.

[Travis]

If it is a blow out.. then it is a blow out... might as well start trying new things and seeing what happens.

If it is a blow out... then there isn't really much pressure to do good. This whole "damage the qb's moral" crap doesn't make much sense. These "kids" are becoming adults. They shouldn't be seen as something so frail. Again, the game is already a loss. Might as well see if there is anything else in our arsenal as the game goes on. No pressure, and not much more harm than what has already happened.

[LongJim]

Agreed.  Please note that I'm not hypothetically advocating a permanent change in strategy.  I just want to see a damn gametime adjustment.  A reaction to stimuli, if you will.

←

Boy, I don't disagree. It's frustrating. I'm just not sure if that kind of gametime adjustment would do anything but make it worse at this point.

[LongJim]

If it is a blow out.. then it is a blow out... might as well start trying new things and seeing what happens. 

This whole "damage the qb's moral" crap doesn't make much sense.

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To me, it doesn't make sense to basically hand the game over to a Frosh QB with 3 games of experience against a pretty good Big 12 team and tell him to go wing it, either--particularly when your O-Line looks like a chicken-wire fence...

[LongJim]

For the game, we had 21 pass plays (avg 3.2 yds per pass) and 26 rushing plays (avg 3.3 yds per rush).  How is that "running into the pile of bodies"?

←

Good point. Kind of easy to overlook amid the severed limbs and general bloodletting out there...

[greenminer]

So tell me, Mr. Bill Lumbergh, exactly how much time dooo you spend on those TPS reports?

*cough*

well...

*cough*

Did you get the memo?

[Rudy]

I think you probably keep running to get your team some more experience doing what they'll need to do in conference.

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And by continuing to run your rb's into piles of linemen is what will get said star rbs hurt.

Those rb's arent new, they know how to run and how to find holes, Get your QB and Reciever some expierence together and get their timing down. Still run the ball, to get the linemen practice opening new holes, but try something new to succeed.

[gruu]

And how many of those "passes" were beyond the line of scrimage? Hmmm...