They Have Figured Out Paul Johnson's Offense

[Mack]

"They have figured out Paul Johnson's Offense"

I have heard this comment along with many others thrown around since 2008. And I heard it again Saturday after the Duke game. Fans don't like to lose and the first person "they" (we're not all this way) blame is CPJ and his offense. And I'm sick and tired of it. And if we lose again... well I'll hear it again I'm sure.

But if you are a GT fan then by God BE A GT FAN!

Adversity has struck! Stand up and be a GT Fan!

Just because we lose or the offense gets stalled by a defense does not mean CPJ has lost his edge or the offense no longer works. It means we got beat in a football game and scored less points. That's it. Plain and simple.

If we truly have only 5 plays in our playbook (which is another misnomer) then why the hell did it take expert defensive coordinators so long to figure out???

Our offense has so many variations of a single play. It's EXECUTION.

Defensive coordinators have good players and good game plans. And, sometimes those good players and good game plans win out over our good players and our good game plans.

2013: Bud Foster had a great game plan against us and our offense did not perform well.
2014: We played well and won. Did Bud Foster Unfigure Out Paul Johnson's Offense???

Auburn: Everyone raves about Rhett Lashlee. Everyone was ready to hang CPJ and go hire this dude as HC before the 2014 season. Auburn began the season at #6. Now they are 2-2 and unranked. Oh, well I guess they have figured out Rhett Lashlee's offense!

Game plans and execution. Game plans and execution. We are not executing. Period.

We have one of the best head coaches in all of college football. Ever. Be thankful.

We are 2-2.
We are growing as a team. We are learning from mistakes and correcting them.
The sky is not falling.

GO JACKETS! THWG!

Agree give me better athletes than you have and if coached well I think I win.............many folks have started with option football and done well until they run out of players to run it.....folks forget we ran the wishbone under Pepper and Bama,MSU,Aubie,Okie,Neb,Texas etc ran the option offense but when defenses had better players sucess on offense dropped....happens that way if mine is better than yours I will win.

 

[IronJacket7]

You know, one can be a GT fan but not necessarily a CPJ fan. I personally like him as a coach and have learned to appreciate the offense (though it isn't my favorite, it can be very effective) I think we are going to get better this year. But he isn't perfect and can be questioned by fans who are good fans.
Just my 2 cents.

No one is perfect.

And to piggyback on what you are saying... You can pick ANY team and ANY coach in ANY sport... You are NEVER going to agree with everything He/She decides as a coach. But what fans can do is support there coach and not bad mouth them as a person or professional when things don't go according to plan. And that is in no way directed towards you MikeGT, its just a generic view of coaching. I have coached. It ain't easy. You will never be liked, loved, or agreed with at all times. But you can be respected.

 

[IronJacket7]

The worst thing about this situation is that we are wasting a year of having Justin Thomas

I don't necessarily view it as a waste. Do I want to win 9-10 games and win a big bowl? Absolutely. And its there for the taking. But players grow and learn more sometimes when you lose than when you win. I hate it more than anyone. I hate to lose. But you can learn more from losses/mistakes than you can from wins/everything going your way. JT is still growing mentally as well, not just our underclassmen.

 

[Eli]

I love our offense. I always have, my problem is execution. I understand we have inexpiernce in the back field and at the WR position but there is no excuse to have over 100 missed assignments in two games. It's mind boggling

 

[dressedcheeseside]

Our offense is unique and thus has unique advantages and disadvantages.

One of those disadvantages is that it requires very precise execution to be effective. Very precise timing and spacing between all the moving parts on every play is critical. Just a fraction of a second behind or half yard out of place can be the difference between a huge gain and a loss and this assumes you know your assignment which we don't. This is why I insisted in the offseason that our offense is not "plug and play". The evidence I used to support this idea was how long it took our skill guys last year to become effective. Now, it is further evidenced by the new skill guys struggling.

A. Know your assignment. (And there's a difference between knowing it in the meeting room and knowing it on the field on the LOS on 3rd and 5 at ND in the 4th qtr with the game on the line.)

B. Execute that assignment with speed and precision and in perfect sync with everybody else.

You can't just pop a guy into the line up for the first time and expect these things because they were a great athlete in hs.

On the OL, they should be better, but I think the skill guy performance has a lot to do with what's going on with them.

 

[GTonTop88]

We are stacked with talent and will be on our offensive line and backfield for quite some time, just need a good option QB to orchestrate the offense after JT. Just going through some growing pains right now. We should be a lot better by the end of the year.

 

[BabyJacket1990]

"They have figured out Paul Johnson's Offense"

I have heard this comment along with many others thrown around since 2008. And I heard it again Saturday after the Duke game. Fans don't like to lose and the first person "they" (we're not all this way) blame is CPJ and his offense. And I'm sick and tired of it. And if we lose again... well I'll hear it again I'm sure.

But if you are a GT fan then by God BE A GT FAN!

Adversity has struck! Stand up and be a GT Fan!

Just because we lose or the offense gets stalled by a defense does not mean CPJ has lost his edge or the offense no longer works. It means we got beat in a football game and scored less points. That's it. Plain and simple.

If we truly have only 5 plays in our playbook (which is another misnomer) then why the hell did it take expert defensive coordinators so long to figure out???

Our offense has so many variations of a single play. It's EXECUTION.

Defensive coordinators have good players and good game plans. And, sometimes those good players and good game plans win out over our good players and our good game plans.

2013: Bud Foster had a great game plan against us and our offense did not perform well.
2014: We played well and won. Did Bud Foster Unfigure Out Paul Johnson's Offense???

Auburn: Everyone raves about Rhett Lashlee. Everyone was ready to hang CPJ and go hire this dude as HC before the 2014 season. Auburn began the season at #6. Now they are 2-2 and unranked. Oh, well I guess they have figured out Rhett Lashlee's offense!

Game plans and execution. Game plans and execution. We are not executing. Period.

We have one of the best head coaches in all of college football. Ever. Be thankful.

We are 2-2.
We are growing as a team. We are learning from mistakes and correcting them.
The sky is not falling.

GO JACKETS! THWG!

His record vs FBS schools is barely above .500! Just saying The only down fall to his offense is none of the top guys want to play in it.

 

[BabyJacket1990]

We are stacked with talent and will be on our offensive line and backfield for quite some time, just need a good option QB to orchestrate the offense after JT. Just going through some growing pains right now. We should be a lot better by the end of the year.

What makes you think we are "STACKED" with talent ?? Nobody that I have seen yet, is a game changer. Do they look good with pads on ? Umm, depends on who is looking at them.

 

[IronJacket7]

His record vs FBS schools is barely above .500! Just saying The only down fall to his offense is none of the top guys want to play in it.

So you don't like CPJ or....?

 

[Animal02]

I don't necessarily view it as a waste. Do I want to win 9-10 games and win a big bowl? Absolutely. And its there for the taking. But players grow and learn more sometimes when you lose than when you win. I hate it more than anyone. I hate to lose. But you can learn more from losses/mistakes than you can from wins/everything going your way. JT is still growing mentally as well, not just our underclassmen.

I also have to wonder if the loss of TB is having an effect on JT. Playing a little more tentative, not taking quite the risk knowing you don't have as solid a backup. There are hundred of factors like that which can change the way you play.

 

[IronJacket7]

I also have to wonder if the loss of TB is having an effect on JT. Playing a little more tentative, not taking quite the risk knowing you don't have as solid a backup. There are hundred of factors like that which can change the way you play.

Very good point.

 

[IronJacket7]

His record vs FBS schools is barely above .500! Just saying The only down fall to his offense is none of the top guys want to play in it.

"Top Guys" eh? What is your definition of a "Top Guy"???

Rivals/Scout/ 247 and all their infinite wisdom?

 

[Skeptic]

ND and Duke did actually "figure out" the option offense, and made their defenses against it work. It seems to me based on limited experience is that the way to beat an option offense is to get up in the QB's grille before he is ready to option, as they both did consistently, leaving Thomas no option at all except to keep it and try to get something although he no longer had a numbers advantage but in fact had lost it to them. Finished off with LBs spying and tracking him, the offense was toast. If you have the intestinal fortitude to look at the tape, and boy did it take all of mine, he was faced with it again and again when they poured through from the tackle and end gaps. That in turn forced him to bow out from the LOS and wrecked the pitch relationship, had they given him time to make that read. If there is a secret it is to beat Tech's O line down on the play side. They did. Now we have to see if the problem is fixed, and Johnson has proved adept at fixing things, or if UNC will be Week Three of this. I have my fingers crossed.

 

[IronJacket7]

ND and Duke did actually "figure out" the option offense, and made their defenses against it work. It seems to me based on limited experience is that the way to beat an option offense is to get up in the QB's grille before he is ready to option, as they both did consistently, leaving Thomas no option at all except to keep it and try to get something although he no longer had a numbers advantage but in fact had lost it to them. Finished off with LBs spying and tracking him, the offense was toast. If you have the intestinal fortitude to look at the tape, and boy did it take all of mine, he was faced with it again and again when they poured through from the tackle and end gaps. That in turn forced him to bow out from the LOS and wrecked the pitch relationship, had they given him time to make that read. If there is a secret it is to beat Tech's O line down on the play side. They did. Now we have to see if the problem is fixed, and Johnson has proved adept at fixing things, or if UNC will be Week Three of this. I have my fingers crossed.

ND and Duke:
Good game plan? Yes.
Good execution of their game plan? Yes.

Opposing DCs know or should know CPJ's offensive plays, his tendencies, and an overall idea of how they want to prep their defense on how to defend it. Along with any other offense they face on their schedule. That is their job as a DC. Just like CTR has knowledge of opposing offenses we face.

But when someone says, "They have figured out CPJs offense" I think they are disrespecting CPJ and his knowledge of the game. And I think it is a narrow minded statement that reveals one thing: That person's lack of faith CPJ as our coach.

ND executed a well laid out game plan by CBVG. He may not be so lucky next time.
DUKE was very fortunate... We gave them 20 points off of Special Teams mistakes.

 

[MWBATL]

(1) I happen to like CPJ and have felt all along that his scheme gave us a chance because we were never going to be able to recruit the same top tier talent that the SEC schools (and Clemson/FSU/Louisville) can recruit.
(2) Having said that, I think while he is a very smart coach and an offensive genius, he isn't perfect.
(3) IMHO, his biggest weakness is that he has his system and he tries to fit everyone into that system. (You could argue it is also a great strength, I suppose...). The difficulty with that approach is that when we face adversity, CPJ has a tendency to double down on his system and not try to branch out to try other approaches that might work well agains the defensive schemes he is seeing;
(4) Most any running offense is going to suffer when the other team puts 8 (sometimes 9) in the box to stop us. That is what has happened to CPJ and his scheme cannot defeat that without a viable passing attack. We have had 3 good seasons under CPJ, 2008, 2009, and 2014. In 2008 & 2009 we had BeBe at WR and last year we had Smelter & Waller...all NFL caliber WR's. In years we don't have that, we flounder. (No, don't bother quoting me overall offensive stats which are piled up agains the likes of Syracuse or N C State....look at the offensive results against the good teams on our schedule...VPI&SU, Miami, Georgia & Clemson.)
(5) There's no real magic or rocket science to #4 above...I think it is true for just about any offense that if you become too one dimensional, good defenses can shut you down. You can get away with it against weaker teams, but against good defenses, you MUST become diversified, or you look like we did against VPI&SU or Miami. Against UGa we have had decidedly more success than this theory would argue for, but it holds quite well agains the other good teams on our schedule. (It is also true that our success against UGa in some years was predicated on successful passing, as was the case in 2013 with Vad Lee).

So, overall, I like CPJ and like his system, BUT I think he can be too stubborn about fitting into his way of doing things, and I really, REALLY think he tends to ignore the passing game far too much, and refuses to ever subscribe to the idea that you might need to pass to establish the run.

Teams are following #4 against us this year. I don't think it is the O line screwing up that is hurting us nearly as badly as the lack of a passing game. Want to back Cash off our center every play? Throw and complete a few passes...that'll pull him back off the LOS. Thinking that somehow just blocking better will solve this is ...not right, imho. We can stumble to another 6-6 type season that way, but if you really want to rebound in a big way, I think CPJ HAS to establish a passing threat.

Oh, one other thing I will give CPJ credit for. I think he wants to win more than any of us on this board, and I do believe he is willing to try to change things to get there. So, while I reserve the right to criticize him, and think he has indeed been out-coached the last tow games, I still think highly of him and wish him (and us) well.

 

[eetech]

You know, one can be a GT fan but not necessarily a CPJ fan. I personally like him as a coach and have learned to appreciate the offense (though it isn't my favorite, it can be very effective) I think we are going to get better this year. But he isn't perfect and can be questioned by fans who are good fans.
Just my 2 cents.

Of course he should be questioned when he does something wrong/stupid (he had some pretty questionable decisions last year as well which he was questioned about).

The problem is that the people who do the "questioning" usually ask inane stuff, such as whether the offense has been figured out, rather than actually relevant stuff, such as why our team is still failing at executing absolutely basic stuff on which our offense (heck, EVERY offense) is built on, such as blocking by linemen, receivers, etc. And why our Special Teams have reverted to becoming a game losing liability from being neutral at worst last year (and often an asset).

 

[GTonTop88]

What makes you think we are "STACKED" with talent ?? Nobody that I have seen yet, is a game changer. Do they look good with pads on ? Umm, depends on who is looking at them.

On tape our 2015 class looks way better than any class we have had since 2007. Top to bottom and arguably elite talent wise also. Last year we went 11-3 with a bunch of career long backups in the backfield. A line that was backups to a supposedly stacked line in 2012 which turned out to be under performers and a defense that ranked near the bottom in yards allowed. You probably couldn't put together a class RBs from 2008-2014 that would be better athletes than the ones in this class going off of high school footage alone. Not to mention JJ Green, Dedrick Mills, and Xavier Gantt joining the backfield next year. Searcy and Leggett will return from injury. Our backfield is looking good for years to come.

 

[Boomergump]

I also have to wonder if the loss of TB is having an effect on JT. Playing a little more tentative, not taking quite the risk knowing you don't have as solid a backup. There are hundred of factors like that which can change the way you play.

I would say it looks like JT has taken MORE risks the last two games, just trying to make SOMETHING happen. Just me.

 

[Captain killem]

If anyone thinks AJ Gray is not elite talent you really need to evaluate your football knowledge.

 

[AE 87]

(1) I happen to like CPJ and have felt all along that his scheme gave us a chance because we were never going to be able to recruit the same top tier talent that the SEC schools (and Clemson/FSU/Louisville) can recruit.
(2) Having said that, I think while he is a very smart coach and an offensive genius, he isn't perfect.
(3) IMHO, his biggest weakness is that he has his system and he tries to fit everyone into that system. (You could argue it is also a great strength, I suppose...). The difficulty with that approach is that when we face adversity, CPJ has a tendency to double down on his system and not try to branch out to try other approaches that might work well agains the defensive schemes he is seeing;
(4) Most any running offense is going to suffer when the other team puts 8 (sometimes 9) in the box to stop us. That is what has happened to CPJ and his scheme cannot defeat that without a viable passing attack. We have had 3 good seasons under CPJ, 2008, 2009, and 2014. In 2008 & 2009 we had BeBe at WR and last year we had Smelter & Waller...all NFL caliber WR's. In years we don't have that, we flounder. (No, don't bother quoting me overall offensive stats which are piled up agains the likes of Syracuse or N C State....look at the offensive results against the good teams on our schedule...VPI&SU, Miami, Georgia & Clemson.)
(5) There's no real magic or rocket science to #4 above...I think it is true for just about any offense that if you become too one dimensional, good defenses can shut you down. You can get away with it against weaker teams, but against good defenses, you MUST become diversified, or you look like we did against VPI&SU or Miami. Against UGa we have had decidedly more success than this theory would argue for, but it holds quite well agains the other good teams on our schedule. (It is also true that our success against UGa in some years was predicated on successful passing, as was the case in 2013 with Vad Lee).

So, overall, I like CPJ and like his system, BUT I think he can be too stubborn about fitting into his way of doing things, and I really, REALLY think he tends to ignore the passing game far too much, and refuses to ever subscribe to the idea that you might need to pass to establish the run.

Teams are following #4 against us this year. I don't think it is the O line screwing up that is hurting us nearly as badly as the lack of a passing game. Want to back Cash off our center every play? Throw and complete a few passes...that'll pull him back off the LOS. Thinking that somehow just blocking better will solve this is ...not right, imho. We can stumble to another 6-6 type season that way, but if you really want to rebound in a big way, I think CPJ HAS to establish a passing threat.

Oh, one other thing I will give CPJ credit for. I think he wants to win more than any of us on this board, and I do believe he is willing to try to change things to get there. So, while I reserve the right to criticize him, and think he has indeed been out-coached the last tow games, I still think highly of him and wish him (and us) well.

Thanks. This is a thoughtful post; however, I would like to offer another perspective. (my numbers don't correspond to yours)

1) I think every offensive (or defensive) coach has an offensive (or defensive) philosophy.

2) They then recruit toward that philosophy. They adjust to the capabilities of their players within their philosophy/system.

I think the stuff CPJ did to adjust for Vad is more than I've seen from any other coach.

3) I may not understand your comment that CPJ doubles down instead of branching out, so I apologize if this is off-the-mark: The plays you run in a game have to be part of, or fit within, your system/playbook/things you've practiced. You can't just do something completely new and different. You also call plays which you think they have a good chance of executing based on what they've shown you in practice.

For example, saying that we should throw a particular timing-route may be a good idea in theory, but if we've never been able to get the timing down in practice, it wouldn't be smart to assume that we'd magically get it right in game.

4) Your comment that we should "throw and complete a few passes" is genius. I'm sure that when we threw the ball 24 times against ND and 22 times against Duke, that was the problem: we didn't include "complete" in the play call. I'm surprised that you don't think the need for "blocking better" was part of the problem there.

I appreciate the thoughtfulness of your post, but I just don't think you thought through the issues all the way. Take it for what it's worth.