Offense a work in progress

Also, please don't disrespect historic Nebraska offenses simply because "the numbers" are comparable. (if they are.......I didn't bother to even look it up)

I don't care what the stats are today. Offenses all over the country are setting school records. The game has changed. The pace has changed. I'm sure no huddle offenses and other factors contribute to the rise in numbers across the country, not just Nebraska.

Tim Becks offenses never executed on a consistent basis. Those historic Nebraska offenses executed beautifully across the board on a regular basis.

 
BigRedBuster said:
Someone needs to define finesse for me.
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I don't think defining anything with "outside tackle runs" and "shotgun runs" as finesse is accurate with reality. That said, I'm not sure how to correctly characterize Nebraska's blocking scheme.

Bottom line, I think there was a lack of effective teaching overall. You start with the "QBs are just RBs who throw" philosophy. And the head coach's involvement in the offense always seemed to result in oddness. I think Bo played no small part in that over the years.

 
Our offense seemed finesse from a casual point of view. Lots of zone and stretch. Read options. But when you really get down to it there was a lot of power concepts. Ohio St's offense could be viewed as finesse as well. But watching that title game, that wasnt exactly finesse.

 
The Dude said:
BigRedBuster said:
Someone needs to define finesse for me.
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I think people just mean spread when they say that. The philosophy of "going where they ain't" (Tim Beck's offense) instead of "running them over" (Wisconsin/Stanford/Tom Osborne's offense)
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I'm sorry but that is not an accurate characterization of Tom's offense.

Tom was a master at play calling. If all you are going to do is line up and run over people, then it doesn't take a master at play calling. All it takes is bigger and stronger players. What he did in games was he ran plays that baited the defense to do certain things and then he ran counter plays to take advantage of that.

The option with the counter of the full back trap is a perfect example. He would run option and beat them over and over again until the LBs would cheat to the outside. That leaves the defense perfectly vulnerable to the full back trap. The running game and the deep option pass plays are another example. Beat them with the run and bait the defense to cheat too close to the LOS and then run, what looks like, an option play only to have the QB step back and bomb one deep behind the defense.

These are both examples of what made is offense click and it all has to do with going where the defense isn't.

Another one is a play that when I hear certain fans talk about I just have to go
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. I don't think there is one option play that is more maligned by Husker fans than the option to the short side of the field.

Truth is, TO loved that play because the defense was lined up to defend the other side with more real estate.

According to the definition of "Going where the defense isn't"...these are all examples of TO's offense being a finesse offense.

 
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What's the most effective way of stopping and disrupting conventional option plays? Penetration. That's where the traps would come in.

And like you said, the short side of the field thing drove the casual eyes nuts. But the angles and cut back lanes from over pursuit that it created were beauty.

 
BigRedBuster said:
The option with the counter of the full back trap is a perfect example. He would run option and beat them over and over again until the LBs would cheat to the outside. That leaves the defense perfectly vulnerable to the full back trap. The running game and the deep option pass plays are another example. Beat them with the run and bait the defense to cheat too close to the LOS and then run, what looks like, an option play only to have the QB step back and bomb one deep behind the defense.
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Every time this comes up, it makes me shake my head at Frank. Early on in his head coaching tenure - after a game where the fullback had more carries than they usually did in a year under TO - he was asked on the radio show why they ran the trap so much. His response was basically "You have to run inside to set up the option outside." Apparently he hadn't been paying attention the previous 30 years. I knew early on he wasn't going to make it.

 
The term "Basketball on grass" was first used in the 80s and 90s when talking about florida teams that threw the ball a vast majority of the time on short dink and dunk routes. Now, yes...that creates matchup problems in space with receivers. But, that doesn't necessarily mean zone blocking schemes...etc. And, our offense last year was nowhere close to what Spurrier was running in the early 90s at Florida.

Also, almost all offenses try to create mismatches in space. Our option plays during TOs era loved to have a single DB trying to tackle Mike Rosier on the outside. They created that by sucking the LBs in to stop the FB and the DE had to take the QB. That leaves a poor little DB in space trying to tackle our RB.

 
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It is plain and simple, we need O linemen to come to Nebraska. Were are not known for the option anymore and lost in the carousal of coaches this past decade or so and changes of schollies and rules along the way. Before Devaney came to Nebraska, it had been 50 seasons we were lagging in football (When we entered WWII), will it take that long again to find a HC that can at least keep us in games and win CC's? The walk on program, I hope will have players who are on the offense line.

 
BigRedBuster said:
The term "Basketball on grass" was first used in the 80s and 90s when talking about florida teams that threw the ball a vast majority of the time on short dink and dunk routes. Now, yes...that creates matchup problems in space with receivers. But, that doesn't necessarily mean zone blocking schemes...etc. And, our offense last year was nowhere close to what Spurrier was running in the early 90s at Florida.

Also, almost all offenses try to create mismatches in space. Our option plays during TOs era loved to have a single DB trying to tackle Mike Rosier on the outside. They created that by sucking the LBs in to stop the FB and the DE had to take the QB. That leaves a poor little DB in space trying to tackle our RB.
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Most teams zone mostly zone block most of the time, these days--it ain't "mano y mano" anymore, FTMP. Osborne's triple option offense was considered 'smash mouth' since they ran the ball 80+% of the time, as much up the gut as to the edge, and mostly used man on man blocking schemes.

I don't think you can find too many CFB offenses these days that wouldn't be considered relatively "finesse". Most are all spread out and passing the ball all over the place, along with some read option type thing. That's just the way the game is played today. Beck's offense, still slightly run heavy, is mid range finesse, IMO.

 
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