Our Balanced Offense...

[Skeptic]

I work with Clemson fans and they always say "If we just play assignment football we'll stop it, no problem." We have an OL that's going to average 6'4 300+ lbs this year, the fastest QB in the country, one of the fastest RBs in the country on the edge, a slew of tall, fast WRs. Oh, and now a 235 lb. BB who seems to have a severe mean streak. But you know...assignment defense will stop it.

Hard to figure where all that "assignment" stuff started. It implies a defender is "assigned" to an offensive player, which is nuts in option football. All defenses are assignment by definition: everybody on both teams has an assignment. What they mean past that I've never figured out.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

The funny thing is that if they counted our pitches as passes, we'd still have a pretty darn high ypc average because our yac is so high.

Hard to figure where all that "assignment" stuff started. It implies a defender is "assigned" to an offensive player, which is nuts in option football. All defenses are assignment by definition: everybody on both teams has an assignment. What they mean past that I've never figured out.

Our O tempts defenders into abandoning their assignments and to attack the ball. Defenders are preprogrammed to swarm to the ball. Ignoring the ball carrier directly in front of you is counter to the defender's instincts and, yes, training.

 

[Josh H]

I remember a quote from PJ. I'm going to paraphrase as I can't find it, but someone talked to him about how his offense makes defenses play "assignment football". PJ's response was something along the lines of "Because yeah, when you line up against a five wide-receiver empty backfield...you can just do whatever you want on defense".

 

[AE 87]

I remember a quote from PJ. I'm going to paraphrase as I can't find it, but someone talked to him about how his offense makes defenses play "assignment football". PJ's response was something along the lines of "Because yeah, when you line up against a five wide-receiver empty backfield...you can just do whatever you want on defense".

This is true, but I think it's a question of degrees and the nature of the assignments. I think most running attacks allow defenders to swarm after handoff, as cheese said, pronounced cheesehead, while option attacks force you to stay with your assignment longer. Also, your assignment may not change much week to week in your base, but you have to learn a new assignment against us. So, in that sense you move from the instinct developed thru repetition and drill to a focus on the new assignment.

So, I think the reference to assignment defense has meaning but is, as cpj suggests, not as big of a deal as some make it out to be.

 

[forensicbuzz]

Just to pile on, when playing against the option, the defense cannot play with reckless abandon. The corners and safeties have to stay outside, instead of attacking. There's less read-and-react by the linebackers, so the aggressiveness of the defense is tempered. When the defense becomes more tentative, and the offense is aggressive, it tends to favor the offense (who knows what's going to happen and where). Since the option is not a major component to most offenses today, the defenders are taught to attack the ball. If evceryone does that with the option, you'll get burned.

 

[cuttysark]

The toughest component about option football is that probably 99% of the time unless it's an obvious passing down with more than two WR's, the base formation is always the same.

No TE meaning there is no strong side or weak side of the formation, and that is the hardest element for the defense as they can't cheat to one side or the other against GT.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

The toughest component about option football is that probably 99% of the time unless it's an obvious passing down with more than two WR's, the base formation is always the same.

No TE meaning there is no strong side or weak side of the formation, and that is the hardest element for the defense as they can't cheat to one side or the other against GT.

I agree, but we did run some unbalanced stuff last year. Not a lot, but some. When we did it was beautiful!

 

[TheGridironGeek]

I think some might have made this point before, but I just wanted to make the observation that we really do run a more balanced attack that the stats reflect for one simple reason - the only passes that count as such are forward passes...

I bet if you counted the rocket tosses and the plays that result in an option to A-back sweeping out of the backfield as what they are - passes (just not of the forward kind) - we'd look far more like a conventional offense (at least statistically)...

I'm definitely up for any new statistical system that would reflect your points. Option give-reads and pitches should count in a QB's stats too, maybe not as rushing yards but for something.

 

[Dottie1145]

I'm definitely up for any new statistical system that would reflect your points. Option give-reads and pitches should count in a QB's stats too, maybe not as rushing yards but for something.

Are BCS bowl wins and beating the dwags not enough for you people? Who cares about the stats? JeT will earn his recognition.

 

[potatohead]

I agree, but we did run some unbalanced stuff last year. Not a lot, but some. When we did it was beautiful!

I love longestdays videos. They remind me of product development meetings I have to sit through (it's probably the voice), but in this case it's a presentation that is cool.

 

[TheGridironGeek]

Are BCS bowl wins and beating the dwags not enough for you people? Who cares about the stats? JeT will earn his recognition.

Okay Ross Perot, if you can think of a better way a nerdy out-of-region fan can help a team in the off-season other than helping invent a new stat system that could eventually help Tech QB's get more recognition and face less negative recruiting, let's hear it. And yes, I'm planning to buy tickets and travel down for a game one day soon, but I really can't yell all that loud & vevuzelas are banned in American stadiums so my impact on the outcome will be negligible.

 

[TheGridironGeek]

I agree, but we did run some unbalanced stuff last year. Not a lot, but some. When we did it was beautiful!

I really love what Navy did this year putting an extra OL on the field as a TE with a slotback on the other wing. Chewed up Ohio State for 3 quarters. Hopefully CPJ will learn from his students and try it on for (extra) size.

 

[TheGridironGeek]

This is true, but I think it ruins the fun.

Fully 1/3 of the fun of rooting for a team that plays like GT does is bathing in the frustration of fans of rival teams. Going on message boards and seeing posts like "THEY"RE GOING TO RUN IT EVERY PLAY, WHY DOESN'T OUR STUPID DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR REALIZE THIS!?!?" and giggling to yourself is a great hobby

"Our idiot players can't figure out a middle school offense"

Don't bother trying to enlighten people, or defend what you do. Just enjoy it, and bask in the schadenfreude.

I'm just happy GT is a college team, the ignorance of option football gets even worse on the other 2 levels. Typical NFL storyline: "*Running QB X* had a horrible game in Sunday's win, going 11-for-26 for 125 yards (and rushing 20 times for 500 yards and 7 TD's) but had a wonderful game in last week's loss, going 30-for-45 for 300 yards (and rushing 15 times for -50 yards and 4 fumbles)."

Meanwhile here in Eastern MO (admittedly not a hotbed) the prep-level media coverage and fan reaction can be mind-bendingly stupid. You will literally hear an announcer call a triple option pitch: "What an amazing trick play design! The QB faked to the fullback, pretended he was going to run, then at the last minute, pitched the ball to the outside runner! I wonder who drew that up on the chalkboard!" I swear my bugle has gotten sore from the face-palming.