CPJ

[cyptomcat]

He was the DL coach 83-84 at Southern, then OC 85-86 at Southern. Anyone has some info about that change?

 

[stevo0718]

I believe Erk said its what he was good at and had a knack for and switched him over. He said it in a radio show or interview at some point.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

It's actually the basis for why CPJ picked the triple option as his system. He said it was the hardest to defend when he coached defense.

 

[Skeptic]

I believe Erk said its what he was good at and had a knack for and switched him over. He said it in a radio show or interview at some point.

Might be one of those memory issues, but as I recall the Johnson interview he had already been named to succeed Russell and at a practice was moving around the field, doing what head coaches do. Russell, then AD(?) asked him what he thought he was doing and told him to get back with the offense because that is why he got the job. Either for some reason Johnson as DL coach doesn't compute.

 

[OldJacketFan]

PJ was the D line coach at Southern, 1983 and 1984. Took over as OC in 1985.

Edit okay I had a brain cramp, didn't see where the was posted before. IIRC Erk promoted PJ to OC after PJ went to him with his offensive plans and Erk liked what his brought to him

 

[slugboy]

CPJ tells a story about it--roughly CPJ: Erk, I wanna run this Run and Shoot offense." Erk: "Are you crazy! No way I'm allowing that." CPJ: "Yeah, but I wanna run out of it, instead." Erk: "Well, OK then."

 

[wuzjrbuzz]

Back in the middle 80s, I called GSU for football playoff tickets. It was early one day before I left for work. A gruff voice answered, "Football". I asked, "Is this Coach Russell?" He said, "Yes sir, what can I do for you?" I told how much I appreciated what he had done in Statesboro, then he took my order for tickets. He was answering the phone, as the ticket person was not in yet. Incredible man!

 

[Skeptic]

CPJ tells a story about it--roughly CPJ: Erk, I wanna run this Run and Shoot offense." Erk: "Are you crazy! No way I'm allowing that." CPJ: "Yeah, but I wanna run out of it, instead." Erk: "Well, OK then."

Pretty funny. And the Russell/Johnson story has grown so many legs we'll probably never get to the truth of it.

 

[swampsting]

Might be one of those memory issues, but as I recall the Johnson interview he had already been named to succeed Russell and at a practice was moving around the field, doing what head coaches do. Russell, then AD(?) asked him what he thought he was doing and told him to get back with the offense because that is why he got the job. Either for some reason Johnson as DL coach doesn't compute.

Erk wasn't AD. He had retired and had been retired and it was PJ's first practices as head coach and Erk came by to see what his star pupil was up to.
Paul was coaching defensive line and the OC, Ben Griffith (IIRC), went to Auburn. Erk moved Paul to OC. Tim Stowers was the O line coach. Melvin Bell got hurt, a career-ending injury. Southern was running the I then. Paul went to Erk and said, I want to run this offense. Stowers, who had played at Auburn, wanted to go Wishbone. PJ wanted spread option. After a while, Erk went back down to Paul's office - and let me tell you, back then in the Roost, coaches' offices were nothing palatial. Some of the football assistants used the concession stand as an office when it wasn't basketball season at Hanner Fieldhouse - and said, do what you think is best.

I think the genesis is that Erk had an opening but it was on defense, so Paul took it to get his foot in the door of a four-year program, IIRC.

 

[steebu]

Erk moved Paul to OC. Tim Stowers was the O line coach. Melvin Bell got hurt, a career-ending injury. Southern was running the I then. Paul went to Erk and said, I want to run this offense. Stowers, who had played at Auburn, wanted to go Wishbone. PJ wanted spread option.

My turn:

PJ said they were struggling to run the ball because of the injury, and they were running primarily out of the I-formation. To solve the problem, PJ told Erk they were going to switch to a double-slot formation (what we now call "Spread") to which Erk asked why he wanted to switch to a passing offense ... PJ replied that they were going to RUN out of the double slot because their star tailback was injured: keep the fullback, but move the smaller replacements to the slot and use tail motion to get them into the I.

I think the funniest PJ/Erk story I heard was when PJ and another coach found some beers in the snow and drank 'em. Later they saw Erk who was fuming about someone having stolen his beers that he had left out in the snow to cool.

As an aside, a wonderful intro to "The Paul Johnson Spread" is Tim Stowers' book, "Coaching Football's Spread Offense". Read it and you'll get a lot of good insight.

 

[Skeptic]

All becomes clearer, between swampsting and steebu and as a bonus I got a book to read. Thanks.

 

[swampsting]

I think the funniest PJ/Erk story I heard was when PJ and another coach found some beers in the snow and drank 'em. Later they saw Erk who was fuming about someone having stolen his beers that he had left out in the snow to cool.

That other coach was Pat Douglas, Brendan Douglas' dad. And PJ and Pat were inducted into the GSU Hall of Fame on the same day.

 

[MidtownJacket]

That other coach was Pat Douglas, Brendan Douglas' dad. And PJ and Pat were inducted into the GSU Hall of Fame on the same day.

That's hilarious

 

[AE 87]

He was the DL coach 83-84 at Southern, then OC 85-86 at Southern. Anyone has some info about that change?

I found this article, which is really good. While it doesn't answer your question directly, I think it suggests a reasonable inference. It seems that CPJ was an offense guy before Erk hired him as DL coach, being a successful OC for Lees-McRae before the hire. It also offers an explanation of the origin of the offense. CPJ had been doing option stuff at Lees-McRae. GS had been a R&S offense, and Erk wanted an I-formation offense. As I understand it, the flexbone formation allowed them to run traditional run&shoot stuff, motion into I-formation with one slot-back blocking down like a TE, and to run wishbone inspired option stuff.

 

[stpetewreck]

Does anyone know what kind of offense Avery HS ran?

True Story:: about 5 years ago, my mother was getting married in Robbinsville, NC at her Bed & Breakfast. After the ceremony, I (of course) was wearing some GT gear. An older man came up to me and pointed out my GT gear and told me he was Paul's coach in HS, and that was HIS offense. The tone of this older chap's voice came off (to me, at least) as non-too-pleased that Paul gets the credit for this offense.

I have no idea what the old man's name was. He appeared to be about the right age to have been Paul's HS coach. The man didn't seem like he wanted to talk, just point out that it was HIS offense. My mother (and her husband) were no help in identifying who was at their wedding that could possibly have been a once-coach at Avery HS. And in Robbinsville, NC, you have to take what mountain folk say with a grain of salt.

 

[swampsting]

Paul has said it was the offense his high school ran. I think the creation of the offense gets attributed to him by others, because he's run it for so long.

 

[AE 87]

Paul has said it was the offense his high school ran. I think the creation of the offense gets attributed to him by others, because he's run it for so long.

No, he claims to have come up with the offense he runs. However, there's this:

“Actually, a large part of what we do we ran when I was playing in high school,” Johnson, 57, said of his alma mater, Avery County High in North Carolina, where he began his coaching career in 1979 as an offensive coordinator.

“But the whole base of the offense is the same as it was in 1985,” the former Georgia Southern coordinator said. “There are wrinkles here and there, and we’ve gotten more toward running the ball than throwing the ball — dictated by personnel and kind of dictated by what we feel like gives you the best chance to win.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/college/orange-bowl/article5189733.html#storylink=cpy

 

[AE 87]

Here's the other quote that I had in mind:

“Do you know who came up with this offense?” the writer asked, eager to scribble something in his notebook.

“Yeah,” said Johnson. “Me.”

http://savannahnow.com/sports/2014-09-12/familiarity-reigns-when-georgia-southern-meets-georgia-tech

 

[Skeptic]

No, he claims to have come up with the offense he runs. However, there's this:



Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/college/orange-bowl/article5189733.html#storylink=cpy

Interesting piece. Particularly that part about MSU being 25th in the country in run defense, allowing about 125 ypg. So much for that stat.