Obsession with the tight end

[Keith7]

I don't understand why so many people on here have an obsession with getting the tight end involved in the passing game.

I don't know how many times this season I've seen Thompson bounce a throw to Powers or the ball hit Powers in the hands only to bounce right off. It seems the team is trying to get the TE involved, but the key components just are not cooperating.

That being said, I began to wonder how important a TE is to some of the nation's top teams.

The answer I came up with?

Not very. Well, with the exception for Wisconsin, whose TE is their third leading receiver.

Here is a breakdown of what I found:

Bama – Michael Williams: 10 receptions, 152 yards, 2 touchdowns; fourth leading receiver. Seven percent of team’s receptions.

LSU – Deangelo Peterson: 11 receptions, 125 yards, 1 touchdown; fourth leading receiver. Eleven percent of team’s receptions.

Oklahoma – James Hanna: 10 receptions, 111 yards, 1 touchdown; fifth leading receiver. Five percent of team’s receptions

Boise State – Gabe Linehan: 12 receptions, 158 yards, 2 touchdowns; fifth leading receiver. Eight percent of team’s receptions.

It seems a TE is nothing but an after thought for the nation's top teams. These guys are averaging three to four receptions per game. So why would forcing passes our JUCO tight end be the difference in our offense?

Right now our leading receiver is Dunbar. Looking at the stats, we should be complaining about not throwing it to our wide receivers -- not whining about not throwing it to our catching challenged tight end.

[Travis Scott]

the success of Jason Witten has warped our thinking.

[emmitt01]

Then you're misunderstanding what those stats are telling you. The TE isn't supposed to be among your leading receivers...not unless you're the cowboys and your QB needs a securiyty blanket. The TE is supposed to be a chain mover. Five to ten receptions a game would be perfect. We DON'T have receivers like those top teams. We have no vertical threats. So, since teams are going to continually stack the box against Lance we need to get our TE into the pattern to take advantage of the space and to keep at least one LB honest.

But what do I know, our offense is a well oiled machine right now.

I don't understand why so many people on here have an obsession with getting the tight end involved in the passing game.

I don't know how many times this season I've seen Thompson bounce a throw to Powers or the ball hit Powers in the hands only to bounce right off. It seems the team is trying to get the TE involved, but the key components just are not cooperating.

That being said, I began to wonder how important a TE is to some of the nation's top teams.

The answer I came up with?

Not very. Well, with the exception for Wisconsin, whose TE is their third leading receiver.

Here is a breakdown of what I found:

Bama – Michael Williams: 10 receptions, 152 yards, 2 touchdowns; fourth leading receiver. Seven percent of team’s receptions.

LSU – Deangelo Peterson: 11 receptions, 125 yards, 1 touchdown; fourth leading receiver. Eleven percent of team’s receptions.

Oklahoma – James Hanna: 10 receptions, 111 yards, 1 touchdown; fifth leading receiver. Five percent of team’s receptions

Boise State – Gabe Linehan: 12 receptions, 158 yards, 2 touchdowns; fifth leading receiver. Eight percent of team’s receptions.

It seems a TE is nothing but an after thought for the nation's top teams. These guys are averaging three to four receptions per game. So why would forcing passes our JUCO tight end be the difference in our offense?

Right now our leading receiver is Dunbar. Looking at the stats, we should be complaining about not throwing it to our wide receivers -- not whining about not throwing it to our catching challenged tight end.

[oldguystudent]

I love tight ends. Especially in the spring semester when the hot pants come out.

[The Fake Lonnie Finch]

The threat of a tight end...and fullback...and H- or U-back...is that the defense has to serious account for it with it's pass defense.

Part of the reason Dodge failed is that opponents didn't have to worry about those positions so they could send players on blitzes from any point on the field without giving anything up in pass coverage.

Those positions are weapons. Look at Ladarius Green of Louisiana yesterday! What is the obsession with tight ends? If used properly they protect your quarterback, run game, and give you more options in both.

[Big Green]

I don't think we have an obsession with trying to get the TE involved on our offense. I think it is more about going to into battle with all of the weapons that the rules allow. Why have a six-shooter and only put five bullets in it? The facts are that we have no deep passing threat and as has already been said in this thread and the TE is even more valuable in this case.

I have watched all of the games either in person, on ESPN3 or via replays and I have seen our TE, miss two balls that he may should have caught. I also saw him make two catches when the ball was thrown behind him (the FAU game). I remember him going across the middle in the FIU game and getting killed but held on to the ball. Ask any defensive coach and he will tell you that the TE and a running QB are the toughest players to prepare for. When the TE is covered it is usually by a LB that is 4-5 inches shorter.

[emmitt01]

Anyone watch the New England offense against Dallas? Especially the game winning score. What was with their obsession with the tight end!!!??

[Keith7]

Anyone watch the New England offense against Dallas? Especially the game winning score. What was with their obsession with the tight end!!!??

Yea because we are an NFL team and Andrew Power is a Pro Bowl caliber TE. Great point.

[Big Green]

Anyone watch the New England offense against Dallas? Especially the game winning score. What was with their obsession with the tight end!!!??

Bill Belichick has an obsession with TEs. Its called throwing to them 14 times to beat the Cowboys. The game winning TD was to Hernandez, a TE.

[Green Mean]

Yea because we are an NFL team and Andrew Power is a Pro Bowl caliber TE. Great point.

Well to be fair he was playing against an all pro team in front of 100K people.

[The Fake Lonnie Finch]

I don't think we have an obsession with trying to get the TE involved on our offense. I think it is more about going to into battle with all of the weapons that the rules allow. Why have a six-shooter and only put five bullets in it? The facts are that we have no deep passing threat and as has already been said in this thread and the TE is even more valuable in this case.

I have watched all of the games either in person, on ESPN3 or via replays and I have seen our TE, miss two balls that he may should have caught. I also saw him make two catches when the ball was thrown behind him (the FAU game). I remember him going across the middle in the FIU game and getting killed but held on to the ball. Ask any defensive coach and he will tell you that the TE and a running QB are the toughest players to prepare for. When the TE is covered it is usually by a LB that is 4-5 inches shorter.

This is it right here: "Why have a six-shooter and only put five bullets in it?" Great analogy.

Here are six bullets a college offense can go into a game with

(1) Quarterback

(2) Running back

(3) Fullback

(4) Wide Receiver

(5) Tight End

(6) H-Back/Utility-back

As I see it, we're going into games with three bullets - Lance, our QB, and a rotating circus of receivers. We're going into the fight half-loaded. Why?

I hate to continually go back to the examples of Texas and OU; but, they are the big dogs of the region. Both regularly use fullbacks and tight ends in the run and pass game. Blocking, catching, running. These are assets to those two schools and a big part of their successes.

Are we blind to it? I want badly to believe that Canales wants to use these positions, but just didn't have any available when Dodge hired him. I do like Mike as a coach. But, we've got to use every position to our advantage.

Lance is not going to be able to make his own way with the lines stacked. We have to force opponents off the ball by going over the middle to tight ends. Waggling out TEs and Fullbacks/H-backs. Something else.

[Keith7]

We have a tight end. He is used. In fact he has accounted for six percent of all receptions this season. Compare that to the other TEs I posted.

Add in his drops (I can think three off the top of my head) and the skipped DT passes and his reception percentage would likely be higher than any of the other TEs I posted about.

I'm telling you guys. The problem is the young, inexperienced and often undersized offensive line. If they open holes for Dunbar or don't have DT scared crapless then tight ends wouldn't even be an issue.

Also, the TE you guys want to start throwing to so much had TWO receptions all season at his junior college last year. I know he is a three star recruit and there were a lot of expectations for him but I just don't think he is the type of player you guys are expecting.

[UNTMike81]

Well I was going to say it would be nice to have Coach S. Leftwich back, but his Panthers are 3-3.

Go Mean Green!!!

[Big Green]

We have a tight end. He is used. In fact he has accounted for six percent of all receptions this season. Compare that to the other TEs I posted.

Add in his drops (I can think three off the top of my head) and the skipped DT passes and his reception percentage would likely be higher than any of the other TEs I posted about.

I'm telling you guys. The problem is the young, inexperienced and often undersized offensive line. If they open holes for Dunbar or don't have DT scared crapless then tight ends wouldn't even be an issue.

Also, the TE you guys want to start throwing to so much had TWO receptions all season at his junior college last year. I know he is a three star recruit and there were a lot of expectations for him but I just don't think he is the type of player you guys are expecting.

What does having two receptions last year in JUCO have to do with the offense at North Texas this year? The JUCO offense was a run oriented offense that featured the best running back in all of JUCO, Reggie Bullock. Power was thrown two balls last year. That is no reflection on his ability to catch since he caught all that was thrown to him. That simply shows he was a valuable blocker and they didn't need to throw to move the ball.

If Dunbar has no holes to run through, we need to throw. If the OL doesn't give the QB much time to throw, you shorten your routes and the TE then becomes one of the primary receivers. There is a major problem with DT not going through a progression, instead he stares down his target and makes it easy for the DBs to read and break on the ball. The ball often comes out late also giving DBs time to break on the ball.

I think the main reason everyone, me included, is talking about getting the ball to the TE is because he is wide open on most all of his routes just like when DT threw the interception on Saturday, Power was wide open, no one within 8-10 yards of him. How do you not see a target this big? We need to take advantage of the TE/LB mismatch (6'5" vs 5"11-6'2"). In fact, the TE/H Backs on the team can catch much better than the WRs and make much fewer mistakes. The WRs are having problems running the right routes and remembering the plays.

[The Fake Lonnie Finch]

Well I was going to say it would be nice to have Coach S. Leftwich back, but his Panthers are 3-3.

Go Mean Green!!!

3-4, but who's counting:

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/teams/ppd

[KRAM1]

Then you're misunderstanding what those stats are telling you. The TE isn't supposed to be among your leading receivers...not unless you're the cowboys and your QB needs a security blanket. The TE is supposed to be a chain mover. Five to ten receptions a game would be perfect. We DON'T have receivers like those top teams. We have no vertical threats. So, since teams are going to continually stack the box against Lance we need to get our TE into the pattern to take advantage of the space and to keep at least one LB honest.

But what do I know, our offense is a well oiled machine right now.

Agree. Don't expect the tight end to be the leading receiver. Just a factor. To ignore the tight end is giving up on a valuable weapon and allowing the opposing teams to focus elsewhere in short yardage especially. Any semblance of a passing game...yes, even to the tight end, may well free Dunbar up a bit. And, then you give the defense more to worry about instead of just teeing off on Dunbar. It's not an "obsession" with the tight end, it's good football sense...at least to me.

[Keith7]

We throw to the TE as much as any of the top 5 teams in the country was the point I was trying to make. I don't understand how we can make him any more involved without actually handing the ball off to him.