Spread Option Offense Part 2 - An Option QB

techman78

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and won :)...The game Bay Bay had a awful drop and then the game winning TD catch...Burnett also had 2 picks, was a fun game.

That was a very satisfying game for me. I was with a bunch of Clemson fans and they were giving me crap the whole week before and during the game how we almost lost to Gardner Webb the week before. I had very big smiles after the game.
 

Eric

Retired Co-Founder
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That was a very satisfying game for me. I was with a bunch of Clemson fans and they were giving me crap the whole week before and during the game how we almost lost to Gardner Webb the week before. I had very big smiles after the game.

Haha that makes two of us...Heard a ton of smack the week before, nothing after.
 

Techster

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Yep. Someone on another board one time said "Georgia Tech football is always just good enough to break your heart!"

Atleast with GT there's hope that once or twice a decade we'll have a special season. National Champs and 11 wins in the 90's, 2 ACC Champ appearances in the 2000's.

A lot more than a majority of schools can say.
 

techman78

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Atleast with GT there's hope that once or twice a decade we'll have a special season. National Champs and 11 wins in the 90's, 2 ACC Champ appearances in the 2000's.

A lot more than a majority of schools can say.
So so true. Not to mention the bowl streak. I know a lot of people downplay it because there are so many bowl games now and we arent going to many premier bowl games but hey several football factories cant boast that they have been to 17 straight bowl games. 3rd longest streak in the nation!!
 

Boomergump

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So so true. Not to mention the bowl streak. I know a lot of people downplay it because there are so many bowl games now and we arent going to many premier bowl games but hey several football factories cant boast that they have been to 17 straight bowl games. 3rd longest streak in the nation!!
Good point. The bowl landscape is the same for everybody and we are number three right now, I believe. Yes there are more bowls, so what. Every team in the nation benefits from that, not just us. I am not satisfied with where we are at, but some people in the fan base just absolutely refuse to look at any of the good.
 

OldJacketFan

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Good point. The bowl landscape is the same for everybody and we are number three right now, I believe. Yes there are more bowls, so what. Every team in the nation benefits from that, not just us. I am not satisfied with where we are at, but some people in the fan base just absolutely refuse to look at any of the good.

Man ain't that the truth!
 

steebu

Ramblin' Wreck
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I love the idea of JT running the option, but I'm wondering how much midline we'll run with him at QB. I wonder if PJ would consider using a different, more powerful QB for short yardage or goal line situations?

I wonder if the midline vanishing has more to do with our Guard play than with QB's missing reads or taking a pounding. More on that below. Back in 2009 when we could count on Josh to convert 4th and 3 with midline we had Cord Howard and Joe Gilbert. Gilbert was more svelte and quicker, but Howard had good feet and (for what it's worth) made an NFL roster. Fast forward a few years and we had Uzzi who, bless his heart, could barely walk because of bad knees, Will Jackson who bounced around to multiple positions, and other youngsters getting a chance due to injuries. Shaq's a big diesel in there - but I wonder if he has the quickness and flexibility to dip and glide to the second level past a 3-technique DT.

When #92 for Pittsburgh was manhandling Jackson PJ helped him out by optioning him - so we went midline and left #92 unblocked on one of our drives. Vad hurting his ankle against NC may have also contributed to PJ's reluctance to call midline as well. I do look forward to seeing it more, though.

As for the pounding ... it's certainly there. Joshua left the game against UGA in both 2008 and 2009. Dirty hit notwithstanding, you've got to be willing to take a hit. It's silly to say that our QBs will never get hit - because defensive coaches will tell their guys to pound the QB anyway (they tell them to rough up the QB on traditional offenses, too). There are certainly things you can do to minimize those big hits ... but after all, this is football ... you're gonna get hit.

When someone asked Coach Bohannon about Justin being slight of frame and taking big hits on midline he replied, "Well, they've got to catch him first ... he's very slippery." And there's plenty of examples of smaller guys (Dee Dowis, all 5'6" of him) excelling in an option offense. Don't get me wrong - I'd rather have a quick 6'1", 215 pounder in there than a 5'6" Dee Dowis for sure ... but if Justin can avoid big hits and guys like Jordan and the others can provide quality depth I don't think it's anything to be overly concerned about. I'm more worried about Justin's freelancing and odd, bowed-out path on option plays.
 

techman78

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Im trying really hard to hold my expectations in check for the upcoming season for JT but just seeing that burst of speed on the long runs he had this season is certainly exciting. I hope we can get back to perfecting the basics this upcoming season while still mixing in some diamond/pistol stuff to keep the D's guessing.
 

GT Man

Ramblin' Wreck
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If we end up going with JT I think there will be a >50% chance it will be a dual QB system with a different guy in there on goal line or 4th and 1 type situations. Either that, or we change our approach at the goal line from what we have done the last 6 year, more roll outs getting the QB in space etc.

With the amount these QBs get hit in this system, I think dual QBs isn't a bad idea.
 
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