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As I stated in the post game thread of the GSU game, I was against going for it on 4th down (for several reasons) when a short field goal would have made it a one score game.
When they come out in the wildcat I was not happy, but thought:
Ok, they know what they’re doing… Not sure why in the wildcat but I guess we’re about to see something we haven’t see yet, I guess… maybe? But whatever, if you’re gonna go for it, better have something you KNOW will work. Let’s go, show me what you got…
Then they ran THAT?
ick.
it will only be as good as the recruiting DD brings in and it really is hard because you either have to sell N.C. State or win.
Absolutely. And DD’s recruiting has made huge improvements to the talent being brought into the program. But I don’t believe it’s sell “or” win, rather, it is an sell “and” win.
DD is already successfully selling his coaching staff and NC State to recruits. But Chuck did that, early on. I believe the wins will follow, and sustained winning will follow the wins. If they don’t, like what happened to Chuck, we’ll bring in the next guy.
Chuck was more flash and image. DD appears to be more grit and substance.
I understand what you are stating here about the wildcat that your giving the defense one more wrinkle during the week they have to study and respect as well as during the game. As far as the extra blocker you mean the QB then I really do not see the advantage there. I might be mistaken but in the nfl the QB at times can come out and the wildcat package comes in or can stay in and line up as a wide-out. Maybe this is done in college also. The key I know is to get into the wildcat as fast as possible.
Rashard Smith and Bryant Shirreffs both had passing TD’s last year.
Yes they did but as you said if you do it a lot it aint no surprise. That also holds true in our case with Shirreffs as we just ran it to the point he was not effective. There is a thin line when it comes to being successful and being predictable. But like you said I will give our coaching staff a chance of course. I feel in my heart he will succeed. One thing for sure he is no TOB and that I am thankful.
I am with you on when and if we have that big game we will be saying not now with the wildcat but then it works.
I felt the same way on that 4th down play in the GSU game as I was yelling put the points on the board.
I took my 11 year old granddaughter to her first football game and we met Sade the kicker as he came up to us against the wall near the field and was real polite to both of us. Needless to say she is a State fan now.
I wanted to say thanks to explaining all that you did tonight as I really appreciate it. I also want to say and I believe it was you all though I might be mistaken, thank you for info you wrote about the real reason Russell Wilson left and the TOB thing. It was the most direct to the point and accurate of an explanation ever written on SFN. Again I am not sure it was you but I think so. I am trying to remember under what topic it was under. This was just a few days ago that I read it so it must of been this past week.
I’d be lying if I said I understood what Mr. DOG is saying 😉 but I think I understand what foose is saying, plays are not always run for the expected yardage. Some are run to gain knowledge of what the defense is going to do in various situations. We fans think we know what is the best call and get upset when Canada calls a different play. We would do well to try and understand what Canada is doing in lieu of criticizing what he does looking from our limited knowledge base. This is not your father’s Oldsmobile.
Canada is reportedly one of the brighter offensive minds in college football. Even his former Wisconsin boss now at Arkansas, HC Brett Bielema, didn’t understand what he was doing sometimes. There are 2 coaches we need to hold on to besides Doeren: Canada and Veldkampt. Those 3 are gems that big programs will covet as State becomes successful. Debbie, show ’em the money.
Tuffy2, your points will be more valid as time goes by. Right now, trust Canada to know what he is doing. foose is offering an outstanding interpretation. Mr. DOG is giving a precise, condensed version of the same. Of course he’s doing it in TheCOWDOGese. I’m just holding on trying to follow it. I’m already educated 3 or 4 years past my intelligence.
^^ Yeah, that was me, over here. CD’s last post wrapped it all up rather succinctly.
With his efforts, successes, and accomplishments while representing Wolfpack Athletics, and on a larger scale, the university as a whole, imagine how that felt showing up, and not permitted to take snaps. The players saw that… Kinda explains a few things about those final two years of TOB.
This should be required reading before posting comments about NCSU offense.
3) Take advantage of the unprepared or inattentive.
If the defense isn’t paying attention, if the MLB or defensive signal caller isn’t too astute, if the defense is wearing down, a quick no-huddle into the wildcat with the QB spread wide can catch a defense unprepared and a quick gain can be made. This could be a quick call signaled in from the sidelines or maybe even called in the huddle before the previous play.
Or potentially, the defense is so caught up in adjusting to their wildcat responsibilities, they forget the basics. Imagine an OLB or CB quickly going through their mental rolodex of responsibilities as the offense lines up in wildcat. He’s transitioning from base offense to wildcat, and then the ball is snapped… Then the defender is immediately faced with the single back and the motioning slot running an option run right at him… in a fraction a second, he’s thinking “oh @#!$t, do I have the ‘QB’ or pitchman? In base, I’m supposed to have the QB, but this ain’t base and that ain’t their QB… no wait, that’s the slot as the pitchman so that means… oh *@#!, there they go… oops, sorry coach” One mistake -> BOOM, big play.Ever wonder how a big-time team’s defense could be so off in it’s coverage of a particular play? This is it.
Some are run to gain knowledge of what the defense is going to do in various situations.
And also to set up future plays. Show ’em the same play, over and over and over, then hit ’em with the counter for a big play. Bootleg, play action pass, and a reverse are three basic examples of ‘counter’ plays most should be familiar with.
Grey & Foose: I appreciate the healthy Wildcat discussion. We’re actually having a discussion as opposed to some sites where people just shout into the wind.
Let me preface by saying that I was a big fan of the DD hire. He’s the type of coach a program like ours needs to have a chance at long term success. We need to either hire that young up and comer, hope he is the real deal and then pony up to retain him (e.g. Beamer or Bobby Bowden approach) or we have to hire the complete contrarian who is probably rough around the edges and hope his edge doesn’t get figured out (e.g. Paul Johnson, Mike Leach). For a middling power conference program like ours without a ton of inherent advantages and no real track record for sustained success, hiring a middling coach from another similar program doesn’t really do anything (the TOB hire).
When we announced DD, I was fully supportive. I have been since. I think he’ll get it done and he’ll do it with substance, much like Sheridan did.
I will say that I questioned the Canada hire. I work with a huge Wisconsin fan who went there, went to every football and basketball game while there, and follows them very closely. Because of this guy (and RW to Wisconsin), I tend to follow Wisconsin more closely than any other team outside the ACC. There was a lot of glaring red flags from his time at Wisconsin. The biggest concern is that Wisconsin lost its identity with him at the helm.
While I’ve never coached football, I’m probably a lot more analytic than the average fan. I don’t watch the ball, but instead watch all the things in motion. That’s part of why I prefer to be at the game than watch on TV because the TV just fixates on the ball, and the real action and moves happen away from it. I watch basketball the same way, but the TV camera can capture a much higher percentage of the game with the standard camera views.
I think it is great to be multiple. I like giving the defense a lot of things to think about. I am fine with probing plays that set up something for later.
In fact, what I really like to do while watching a game is to try and figure out what is being set up with that probing play. I don’t view them as a waste unless they cause a turnover, kill a drive or are obviously poor with respect to down and distance (that 4th down Wildcat call you speak of is an example).Back to my concern about Canada though, I think he tries to be too many things, and thus we don’t really end up with a clear identity. What does NC State do well? Well, pretty much throw a bunch of stuff on the wall and see what sticks. The best thing that I can say for us is that we have balance between run and pass, and that’s the first time I can say that since (shudder) MOC.
You site defenses having to spend prep time, but the offense does too. We have a limited amount of practice time, and we’re spending at least some of it on the Wildcat stuff. Yes, I understand that the offense only practices what is in its package for that set, and the defense has to prepare for other options, but I think I could prep for that Wildcat pretty quickly. NC State is going for the direct run 80% of the time, will fake the hand off but make it 10% of the time and will try to pull back to throw something across the middle about 10% of the time. Now, whether the average college athlete will actually internalize that is a valid point, but I’d argue that the better the team is on the other side of the ball, the less time is needed to be spent on issues like core fundamentals, so they’re more likely to get it. I could be completely wrong though.
My favorite offenses are ones that have 2/3 base formations, but can run and pass and stretch the field laterally and vertically equally well. They’re multiple in how they attack, while not tipping intent with how they line up. I think the spread/run and shoot can do that, and I like it. The Wildcat? Ehh….
The most maddening thing to me about Bible’s offense is that we effectively conceded the run, outside of QB scrambles when Wilson was here. With Wilson, he could run enough to keep the defense honest and do something when the passing play broke down. Every other QB we had was effectively put in a more difficult position than he needed to be because we weren’t balanced. That’s why I never understood what TOB/DB thought they were going to do with Pete Thomas as their starter in that offense, but that’s another topic for another time.
On defense, we’ve played the last couple of games fairly vanilla. I’m fine with that given our youth and having two opponents that were really good at their systems. My concern is that we should have been able to physically line up and control them, and we just were not. I’m afraid we don’t have the Jimmies and Joes on that side of the ball. If we can’t get pressure with the front four, then we’re going to have to try some different things, or live with teams just cruising down the field. We really need to get stops.
If we can’t get pressure with the front four, then we’re going to have to try some different things, or live with teams just cruising down the field. We really need to get stops.
ryebread,
Likewise the respectful discussion is great.
Now to business. We have given up too much yardage and too many points but nobody has cruised down the field and IMNSHO nobody will. I assert we will put the correction in and it will make a difference.
Maybe we ARE in a manner of speaking trying different things, things you and I don’t see. I hope you don’t mean abandon what we have been working on since spring practice and start a bunch of blitzes and stunts. A very revealing comment was overheard, Doeren to Huxtable, at or near the half of the ODU game. Hux asked Doeren if there was anything else (adjustment, whatever) he wanted to try. Doeren said “Get them in the right technique.” As you know, ‘technique’ in that context is defensive coach-speak for how the D Linemen line up on the opposing linemen. Over simplified we are talking lining up on the left shoulder, nose on nose, and the right shoulder.
At this time we don’t know if adjustments and coaching will make the kind of difference we need. My understanding is we have gone from basically a nose on nose technique to a shoulder technique. Sounds simple but it’s not. One technique may different techniques and responsibilities than the other. Unless we are in the meetings and on the practice fields we will never know what’s really going on. If we want to be nationally relevant here, we have to train our guys in the most advanced techniques. (I hate it that technique has 2 entirely different meanings here.)
Often when switching from one skill technique to another, failure comes before success. Poor technique is usually easier to execute and the habits are hard to break. I had rather have our players experiencing some failure now and possess higher level technique later than have moderate success now and have a cap on our growth.
The hardest thing I’ve had to do with these guys is trust the coaches and listen to them and not myself. My football knowledge is not on the same scale with that of Doeren, Nielsen, etc.
Back to my concern about Canada though, I think he tries to be too many things, and thus we don’t really end up with a clear identity… What does NC State do well?
Too early to make a judgment. NC State doesn’t do anything well, consistently, not yet. But then, I’m a Canada believer. Time will tell if my faith is misplaced. My biggest concern about Canada is the same concern I have about several members of the staff – losing them.
You site defenses having to spend prep time, but the offense does too.
Righto. Which is why I mentioned that even if it were just one play, I’d still run it. But anyway, I’ll leave it to the coaches to determine the balance.
The most maddening thing to me about Bible’s offense is that we effectively conceded the run
No we didn’t. We always had that 1 yard plunge up the middle. 🙂
My concern is that we should have been able to physically line up and control them, and we just were not.
Ditto. We were able to though, late in both games. But that was most likely more about depth and numbers. But we were supposed to wear them down… but, at least we did one thing we were supposed to. It appeared to me the coaches were aware of this, and it went into their game planning and play calling. If what you thought you had ain’t working, use what you KNOW you got. This staff ain’t stubborn. I love that. So so refreshing. Yes, I know, I’ve said that, repeatedly. I ain’t done saying it either.
I’m afraid we don’t have the Jimmies and Joes on that side of the ball.
I think we do, but as a whole, they are raw. Freshmen used to dominating on pure talent rather than technique going up against 3rd, 4th, 5th year lineman. That, and players such as McKeever, playing a new position, transitioning from WR to DE.
But no denying it, the first part of the ODU game, the front 4 play was atrocious. But if you watched closely, the Wolfpack’s DL often ‘physically’ beat their opponent, but ODU’s OL used the DL’s own physicality against them. For example, letting the DL penetrate but ‘guiding’ them away from the play. Not unlike some tactics in martial arts.
The DL won’t always be raw. Hopefully, like the defense as a whole, there’s a base of a steep learning curve approaching.
The Wildcat totally concedes the pass, which allows the defenders to know exactly what is going to happen, and ultimately where the ball will start, and most likely stay. The advantages of the spread are effectively conceded by using the Wildcat because the edges are no longer threats. The defenders can all focus on the center of the formation.
ryebread, You’re too young to remember the single wing aren’t you? You can see single wing principles in the Wolf (our Wildcat). The extra blocker isn’t the QB but having the QB flanked out essentially has him be a blocker because he occupies a defender. This is similar to “running off” a corner, i.e., a receiver luring a defender down field in lieu of blocking him.
You say “the edges are no longer threats” and then say “the defenders can all focus on the center of the formation.” Focusing on the center of the formation has the edges be a threat, not eliminate it as a threat. The opposite is true also. The Jet has value if it doesn’t gain a yard because it draws attention of the defense to the edge. Because it is in motion before the snap, defenses have to position to stop it, not just react to it. Thus it opens up the middle. Too bad Bible didn’t apply this principle if he was going to plunge up the middle.
Bible’s offense was from the Old Testament. Canada’s offense is New Testament. (That’s meaningless but is fun to say.) 😉
fosse,
You say, “But if you watched closely, the Wolfpack’s DL often ‘physically’ beat their opponent, but ODU’s OL used the DL’s own physicality against them. For example, letting the DL penetrate but ‘guiding’ them away from the play. Hard to watch anything closely from the NEZ. lol So I didn’t see this. Much easier to correct than not being physical enough. If not sooner then later.Thanks, that bit was very encouraging to me. Now I pray I don’t have to dig up my old recipes for crow. LOL
Re: Wildcat
The below is far from an all-inclusive review, but it should get you thinking in different ways and from different perspectives.
Anyway, a few thoughts:
There is a point of diminishing returns for the wildcat offense for most teams. As referenced by someone in an earlier post, if the wildcat is a large part of the offense, a team needs talented specialist, and/or an OL that can obliterate the DL.
Without either, as the frequency of the wildcat increases, more is put on tape, more is seen by the opponent, more is learned by the opponent – of the offense, its tendencies, and the strengths of the individual players running it. At a certain point, the tactical benefits of the formation begin to diminish.
Also, in no particular order, run the wildcat to:1) Force the other team to review it.
If I were a coach and never gained a yard with the wildcat offense, I’d still run it at least twice a game. I’d do it if for no other reason than to force my opponent to burn time reviewing it. I’d run it even if I only ran one play out of it. Per NCAA rules, a coach only has so much time with his players during the week. I’d make ’em burn an inordinate amount of time at a poor ROI reviewing the wildcat and all it’s options. Even if I only showed one play on tape, every coach knows there are many options that come with it. If I only showed one play, the opposing coaches would still have to ‘guess’ at what I might also have in my bag and therefore spend more of their time reviewing those options.
At an absolute minimum, the wildcat has value for the above reason.2) Probe Weaknesses/opportunities of the opposing defense
An offense is successful in two basic ways. 1) Putting hat on hat and out-executing the opponent. 2) Taking advantage of an opponent’s mistakes. Therefore, the goal of an offense can be broken down into two essential components. 1) Minimize its own mistakes in execution, 2) Maximize the likelihood and opportunity for the opponent to make a mistake. This is why there are misdirection plays and every play has at least one counter.
Often, the first time a coach shows the wildcat in a game, it is to have the defense reveal how they plan to attack it. A wildcat play, just like almost every play, does not have only the potential utility of gaining yardage on that particular play, but it also provides information. Information that can be exploited later, during a more pivotal part of the game. So even if the wildcat play gains no yardage, it still could be serving a purpose. If it is run and gains 8 yards, great, we got a 2’fer.Say the wildcat is run, it gains zero yardage, and the coaches see nothing that can be exploited. So next time they add a variant (for example, add a motion, maybe a trap block, maybe a slightly different formation) to probe for something that does work or can be exploited.
But say the coaches do see something that can be exploited, if a slight variation were added or a counter-play were called. Then the coaches call the original play again, and again, and maybe again, reinforcing the defenses’ read. The coaches file this away for potential exploitation later in the game.
The above are scenarios in which the plays appear to fail to the casual fan, yet are still providing value to the coaches. If the plays are gaining yardage at a successful rate, then hey, no one should have complaints and all this ‘inside baseball’ stuff is irrelevant anyway.
The above is true for any offense, but by having the wildcat in the playbook, with little effort, you’ve potentially exponentially increased options, options that a defense must be prepared to stop.
3) Take advantage of the unprepared or inattentive.
If the defense isn’t paying attention, if the MLB or defensive signal caller isn’t too astute, if the defense is wearing down, a quick no-huddle into the wildcat with the QB spread wide can catch a defense unprepared and a quick gain can be made. This could be a quick call signaled in from the sidelines or maybe even called in the huddle before the previous play.
Or potentially, the defense is so caught up in adjusting to their wildcat responsibilities, they forget the basics. Imagine an OLB or CB quickly going through their mental rolodex of responsibilities as the offense lines up in wildcat. He’s transitioning from base offense to wildcat, and then the ball is snapped… Then the defender is immediately faced with the single back and the motioning slot running an option run right at him… in a fraction a second, he’s thinking “oh @#!$t, do I have the ‘QB’ or pitchman? In base, I’m supposed to have the QB, but this ain’t base and that ain’t their QB… no wait, that’s the slot as the pitchman so that means… oh *@#!, there they go… oops, sorry coach” One mistake -> BOOM, big play.
4) The obvious: Gain an ‘extra’ blocker, quicken the play
In a ‘normal’ offense, the QB receives the ball from the center, hands the ball to the RB, then removes himself from the play. In the wildcat, the QB-to-RB exchanged is removed, the QB is spread wide and occupies a DB, and NO player is removed from the play. The offense now has an extra blocker. These are obvious advantages. To determine how, where, and when to utilize these advantages is why coaches study film and probe their opponent.So, to summarize, there’s a lot more going on in there than you might think. Give the coaches the benefit of the doubt, at least for now.
Re: Wildcat
The below is far from an all-inclusive review, but it should get you thinking in different ways and from different perspectives.
Anyway, a few thoughts:
There is a point of diminishing returns for the wildcat offense for most teams. As referenced by someone in an earlier post, if the wildcat is a major cog of an offense, a team needs specialists with exceptional/unique talent, and/or an OL that can obliterate the DL. Without either, as the frequency of the wildcat increases, more is put on tape, more is seen by the opponent, more is learned by the opponent – of the offense, its tendencies, and the strengths of the individual players running it. At a certain point, the tactical benefits of the formation begin to diminish.
Also, in no particular order, run the wildcat to:
1) Force the other team to review it.
If I were a coach and never gained a yard with the wildcat offense, I’d still run it at least twice a game.
I’d do it if for no other reason than to force my opponent to burn time reviewing it. I’d run it even if I only ran one play out of it. Per NCAA rules, a coach only has so much time with his players during the week. I’d make ’em burn an inordinate amount of time at a poor ROI reviewing the wildcat and all it’s options. Even if I only showed one play on tape, every coach knows there are many options that come with it. If I only showed one play, the opposing coaches would still have to ‘guess’ at what I might also have in my bag and therefore spend more of their time reviewing those options.
At an absolute minimum, the wildcat has value for the above reason.
2) Probe Weaknesses/opportunities of the opposing defense
An offense is successful in two basic ways. 1) Putting hat on hat and out-executing the opponent. 2) Taking advantage of an opponent’s mistakes. Therefore, the goal of an offense can be broken down into two essential components. 1) Minimize its own mistakes in execution, 2) Maximize the likelihood and opportunity for the opponent to make a mistake. This is why there are misdirection plays and every play has at least one counter.
Often, the first time a coach shows the wildcat in a game, it is to have the defense reveal how they plan to attack it. A wildcat play, just like almost every play, does not only have the utility of gaining yards on that particular play, but it also provides information. Information that can be exploited later, during a more pivotal part of the game. So even if the wildcat play gains no yardage, it still could be serving a purpose. If it is run and gains 8 yards, great, we got a 2’fer.
Say the wildcat is run, it gains zero yardage, and the coaches see nothing that can be exploited. So next time they add a variant (for example, add a motion, maybe a trap block, maybe a slightly different formation) to probe for something that does work or can be exploited.
But say the coaches do see something that can be exploited, if a slight variation were added or a counter-play were called. Then the coaches call the original play again, and again, and maybe again, reinforcing the defenses’ read. The coaches file this away for potential exploitation later in the game.
The above are scenarios in which the plays appear to fail to the casual fan, yet are still providing value to the coaches. If the plays are gaining yardage at a successful rate, then hey, no one should have complaints and all this ‘inside baseball’ stuff is irrelevant anyway.
The above is true for any offense, but by having the wildcat in the playbook, with little effort, you’ve potentially exponentially increased options, options that a defense must be prepared to stop.
3) Take advantage of the unprepared or inattentive.
If the defense isn’t paying attention, if the MLB or defensive signal caller isn’t too astute, if the defense is wearing down, a quick no-huddle into the wildcat with the QB spread wide can catch a defense unprepared and a quick gain can be made. This could be a quick call signaled in from the sidelines or maybe even called in the huddle before the previous play.
Or potentially, the defense is so caught up in adjusting to their wildcat responsibilities, they forget the basics. Imagine an OLB or CB quickly going through their mental rolodex of responsibilities as the offense lines up in wildcat. He’s transitioning from base offense to wildcat, and then the ball is snapped… Then the defender is immediately faced with the single back and the motioning slot running an option run right at him… in a fraction a second, he’s thinking “oh sh!t, do I have the ‘QB’ or pitchman? In base, I’m supposed to have the QB, but this ain’t base and that ain’t their QB… no wait, that’s the slot as the pitchman so that means… oh f**!, there they go… oops, sorry coach” One mistake -> BOOM, big play.
4) The obvious: Gain an ‘extra’ blocker, quicken the play
In a ‘normal’ offense, the QB receives the ball from the center, hands the ball to the RB, then removes himself from the play. In the wildcat, the QB-to-RB exchanged is removed, the QB is spread wide and occupies a DB, and NO player is removed from the play. The offense now has an extra blocker. These are obvious advantages. To determine how, where, and when to utilize these advantages is why coaches study film and probe their opponent.
So, to summarize, there’s a lot more going on in there than you might think. Give the coaches the benefit of the doubt. At least for now.
Re: Wildcat
The below is far from an all-inclusive review, but it should get you thinking in different ways and from different perspectives.
Anyway, a few thoughts:
There is a point of diminishing returns for the wildcat offense for most teams. As referenced by someone in an earlier post, if the wildcat is a large part of the offense, a team needs specialists with exceptional/unique talent, and/or an OL that can obliterate the DL.
Re: Wildcat
The below is far from an all-inclusive review, but it should get you thinking in different ways and from different perspectives.
Anyway, a few thoughts:
There is a point of diminishing returns for the wildcat offense for most teams. As referenced by someone in an earlier post, if the wildcat is a large part of the offense, a team needs specialists with exceptional/unique talent, and/or an OL that can obliterate the DL.
Without either, as the frequency of the wildcat increases, more is put on tape, more is seen by the opponent, more is learned by the opponent – of the offense, its tendencies, and the strengths of the individual players running it. At a certain point, the tactical benefits of the formation begin to diminish.
Also, in no particular order, run the wildcat to:1) Force the other team to review it.
If I were a coach and never gained a yard with the wildcat offense, I’d still run it at least twice a game. I’d do it if for no other reason than to force my opponent to burn time reviewing it. I’d run it even if I only ran one play out of it. Per NCAA rules, a coach only has so much time with his players during the week. I’d make ’em burn an inordinate amount of time at a poor ROI reviewing the wildcat and all it’s options. Even if I only showed one play on tape, every coach knows there are many options that come with it. If I only showed one play, the opposing coaches would still have to ‘guess’ at what I might also have in my bag and therefore spend more of their time reviewing those options.
At an absolute minimum, the wildcat has value for the above reason.2) Probe Weaknesses/opportunities of the opposing defense
An offense is successful in two basic ways. 1) Putting hat on hat and out-executing the opponent. 2) Taking advantage of an opponent’s mistakes. Therefore, the goal of an offense can be broken down into two essential components. 1) Minimize its own mistakes in execution, 2) Maximize the likelihood and opportunity for the opponent to make a mistake. This is why there are misdirection plays and every play has at least one counter.
Often, the first time a coach shows the wildcat in a game, it is to have the defense reveal how they plan to attack it. A wildcat play, just like almost every play, does not have only the potential utility of gaining yardage on that particular play, but it also provides information. Information that can be exploited later, during a more pivotal part of the game. So even if the wildcat play gains no yardage, it still could be serving a purpose. If it is run and gains 8 yards, great, we got a 2’fer.Say the wildcat is run, it gains zero yardage, and the coaches see nothing that can be exploited. So next time they add a variant (for example, add a motion, maybe a trap block, maybe a slightly different formation) to probe for something that does work or can be exploited.
But say the coaches do see something that can be exploited, if a slight variation were added or a counter-play were called. Then the coaches call the original play again, and again, and maybe again, reinforcing the defenses’ read. The coaches file this away for potential exploitation later in the game.
The above are scenarios in which the plays appear to fail to the casual fan, yet are still providing value to the coaches. If the plays are gaining yardage at a successful rate, then hey, no one should have complaints and all this ‘inside baseball’ stuff is irrelevant anyway.
The above is true for any offense, but by having the wildcat in the playbook, with little effort, you’ve potentially exponentially increased options, options that a defense must be prepared to stop.
3) Take advantage of the unprepared or inattentive.
If the defense isn’t paying attention, if the MLB or defensive signal caller isn’t too astute, if the defense is wearing down, a quick no-huddle into the wildcat with the QB spread wide can catch a defense unprepared and a quick gain can be made. This could be a quick call signaled in from the sidelines or maybe even called in the huddle before the previous play.
Or potentially, the defense is so caught up in adjusting to their wildcat responsibilities, they forget the basics. Imagine an OLB or CB quickly going through their mental rolodex of responsibilities as the offense lines up in wildcat. He’s transitioning from base offense to wildcat, and then the ball is snapped… Then the defender is immediately faced with the single back and the motioning slot running an option run right at him… in a fraction a second, he’s thinking “oh @#!$t, do I have the ‘QB’ or pitchman? In base, I’m supposed to have the QB, but this ain’t base and that ain’t their QB… no wait, that’s the slot as the pitchman so that means… oh *@#!, there they go… oops, sorry coach” One mistake -> BOOM, big play.
4) The obvious: Gain an ‘extra’ blocker, quicken the play
In a ‘normal’ offense, the QB receives the ball from the center, hands the ball to the RB, then removes himself from the play. In the wildcat, the QB-to-RB exchanged is removed, the QB is spread wide and occupies a DB, and NO player is removed from the play. The offense now has an extra blocker. These are obvious advantages. To determine how, where, and when to utilize these advantages is why coaches study film and probe their opponent.So, to summarize, there’s a lot more going on in there than you might think. Give the coaches the benefit of the doubt, at least for now.
Re: Wildcat
The below is far from an all-inclusive review, but it should get you thinking in different ways and from different perspectives.
Anyway, a few thoughts:
There is a point of diminishing returns for the wildcat offense for most teams. As referenced by someone in an earlier post, if the wildcat is a major cog of an offense, a team needs specialists with exceptional/unique talent, and/or an OL that can obliterate the DL. Without either, as the frequency of the wildcat increases, more is put on tape, more is seen by the opponent, more is learned by the opponent – of the offense, its tendencies, and the strengths of the individual players running it. At a certain point, the tactical benefits of the formation begin to diminish.
Also, in no particular order, run the wildcat to:
1) Force the other team to review it.
If I were a coach and never gained a yard with the wildcat offense, I’d still run it at least twice a game.
I’d do it if for no other reason than to force my opponent to burn time reviewing it. I’d run it even if I only ran one play out of it. Per NCAA rules, a coach only has so much time with his players during the week. I’d make ’em burn an inordinate amount of time at a poor ROI reviewing the wildcat and all it’s options. Even if I only showed one play on tape, every coach knows there are many options that come with it. If I only showed one play, the opposing coaches would still have to ‘guess’ at what I might also have in my bag and therefore spend more of their time reviewing those options.
At an absolute minimum, the wildcat has value for the above reason.
2) Probe Weaknesses/opportunities of the opposing defense
An offense is successful in two basic ways. 1) Putting hat on hat and out-executing the opponent. 2) Taking advantage of an opponent’s mistakes. Therefore, the goal of an offense can be broken down into two essential components. 1) Minimize its own mistakes in execution, 2) Maximize the likelihood and opportunity for the opponent to make a mistake. This is why there are misdirection plays and every play has at least one counter.
Often, the first time a coach shows the wildcat in a game, it is to have the defense reveal how they plan to attack it. A wildcat play, just like almost every play, does not only have the utility of gaining yards on that particular play, but it also provides information. Information that can be exploited later, during a more pivotal part of the game. So even if the wildcat play gains no yardage, it still could be serving a purpose. If it is run and gains 8 yards, great, we got a 2’fer.
Say the wildcat is run, it gains zero yardage, and the coaches see nothing that can be exploited. So next time they add a variant (for example, add a motion, maybe a trap block, maybe a slightly different formation) to probe for something that does work or can be exploited.
But say the coaches do see something that can be exploited, if a slight variation were added or a counter-play were called. Then the coaches call the original play again, and again, and maybe again, reinforcing the defenses’ read. The coaches file this away for potential exploitation later in the game.
The above are scenarios in which the plays appear to fail to the casual fan, yet are still providing value to the coaches. If the plays are gaining yardage at a successful rate, then hey, no one should have complaints and all this ‘inside baseball’ stuff is irrelevant anyway.
The above is true for any offense, but by having the wildcat in the playbook, with little effort, you’ve potentially exponentially increased options, options that a defense must be prepared to stop.
3) Take advantage of the unprepared or inattentive.
If the defense isn’t paying attention, if the MLB or defensive signal caller isn’t too astute, if the defense is wearing down, a quick no-huddle into the wildcat with the QB spread wide can catch a defense unprepared and a quick gain can be made. This could be a quick call signaled in from the sidelines or maybe even called in the huddle before the previous play.
Or potentially, the defense is so caught up in adjusting to their wildcat responsibilities, they forget the basics. Imagine an OLB or CB quickly going through their mental rolodex of responsibilities as the offense lines up in wildcat. He’s transitioning from base offense to wildcat, and then the ball is snapped… Then the defender is immediately faced with the single back and the motioning slot running an option run right at him… in a fraction a second, he’s thinking “oh sh!t, do I have the ‘QB’ or pitchman? In base, I’m supposed to have the QB, but this ain’t base and that ain’t their QB… no wait, that’s the slot as the pitchman so that means… oh ***!, there they go… oops, sorry coach” One mistake -> BOOM, big play.
4) The obvious: Gain an ‘extra’ blocker, quicken the play
In a ‘normal’ offense, the QB receives the ball from the center, hands the ball to the RB, then removes himself from the play. In the wildcat, the QB-to-RB exchanged is removed, the QB is spread wide and occupies a DB, and NO player is removed from the play. The offense now has an extra blocker. These are obvious advantages. To determine how, where, and when to utilize these advantages is why coaches study film and probe their opponent.
So, to summarize, there’s a lot more going on in there than you might think. Give the coaches the benefit of the doubt. At least for now.
Re: Wildcat
The below is far from an all-inclusive review, but it should get you thinking in different ways and from different perspectives.
Anyway, a few thoughts:
There is a point of diminishing returns for the wildcat offense for most teams. As referenced by someone in an earlier post, if the wildcat is a major cog of an offense, a team needs specialists with exceptional/unique talent, and/or an OL that can obliterate the DL. Without either, as the frequency of the wildcat increases, more is put on tape, more is seen by the opponent, more is learned by the opponent – of the offense, its tendencies, and the strengths of the individual players running it. At a certain point, the tactical benefits of the formation begin to diminish.
Also, in no particular order, run the wildcat to:
1) Force the other team to review it.
If I were a coach and never gained a yard with the wildcat offense, I’d still run it at least twice a game.
I’d do it if for no other reason than to force my opponent to burn time reviewing it. I’d run it even if I only ran one play out of it. Per NCAA rules, a coach only has so much time with his players during the week. I’d make ’em burn an inordinate amount of time at a poor ROI reviewing the wildcat and all it’s options. Even if I only showed one play on tape, every coach knows there are many options that come with it. If I only showed one play, the opposing coaches would still have to ‘guess’ at what I might also have in my bag and therefore spend more of their time reviewing those options.
At an absolute minimum, the wildcat has value for the above reason.
2) Probe Weaknesses/opportunities of the opposing defense
An offense is successful in two basic ways. 1) Putting hat on hat and out-executing the opponent. 2) Taking advantage of an opponent’s mistakes. Therefore, the goal of an offense can be broken down into two essential components. 1) Minimize its own mistakes in execution, 2) Maximize the likelihood and opportunity for the opponent to make a mistake. This is why there are misdirection plays and every play has at least one counter.
Often, the first time a coach shows the wildcat in a game, it is to have the defense reveal how they plan to attack it. A wildcat play, just like almost every play, does not only have the utility of gaining yards on that particular play, but it also provides information. Information that can be exploited later, during a more pivotal part of the game. So even if the wildcat play gains no yardage, it still could be serving a purpose. If it is run and gains 8 yards, great, we got a 2’fer.
Say the wildcat is run, it gains zero yardage, and the coaches see nothing that can be exploited. So next time they add a variant (for example, add a motion, maybe a trap block, maybe a slightly different formation) to probe for something that does work or can be exploited.
But say the coaches do see something that can be exploited, if a slight variation were added or a counter-play were called. Then the coaches call the original play again, and again, and maybe again, reinforcing the defenses’ read. The coaches file this away for potential exploitation later in the game.
The above are scenarios in which the plays appear to fail to the casual fan, yet are still providing value to the coaches. If the plays are gaining yardage at a successful rate, then hey, no one should have complaints and all this ‘inside baseball’ stuff is irrelevant anyway.
The above is true for any offense, but by having the wildcat in the playbook, with little effort, you’ve potentially exponentially increased options, options that a defense must be prepared to stop.
3) Take advantage of the unprepared or inattentive.
If the defense isn’t paying attention, if the MLB or defensive signal caller isn’t too astute, if the defense is wearing down, a quick no-huddle into the wildcat with the QB spread wide can catch a defense unprepared and a quick gain can be made. This could be a quick call signaled in from the sidelines or maybe even called in the huddle before the previous play.
Or potentially, the defense is so caught up in adjusting to their wildcat responsibilities, they forget the basics. Imagine an OLB or CB quickly going through their mental rolodex of responsibilities as the offense lines up in wildcat. He’s transitioning from base offense to wildcat, and then the ball is snapped… Then the defender is immediately faced with the single back and the motioning slot running an option run right at him… in a fraction a second, he’s thinking “oh *@#$!, do I have the ‘QB’ or pitchman? In base, I’m supposed to have the QB, but this ain’t base and that ain’t their QB… no wait, that’s the slot as the pitchman so that means… oh *@#$!, there they go… oops, sorry coach” One mistake -> BOOM, big play.
4) The obvious: Gain an ‘extra’ blocker, quicken the play
In a ‘normal’ offense, the QB receives the ball from the center, hands the ball to the RB, then removes himself from the play. In the wildcat, the QB-to-RB exchanged is removed, the QB is spread wide and occupies a DB, and NO player is removed from the play. The offense now has an extra blocker. These are obvious advantages. To determine how, where, and when to utilize these advantages is why coaches study film and probe their opponent.
So, to summarize, there’s a lot more going on in there than you might think. Give the coaches the benefit of the doubt. At least for now.
Re: Wildcat
The below is far from an all-inclusive review, but it should get you thinking in different ways and from different perspectives.
Anyway, a few thoughts:
There is a point of diminishing returns for the wildcat offense for most teams. As referenced by someone in an earlier post, if the wildcat is a major cog of an offense, a team needs specialists with exceptional/unique talent, and/or an OL that can obliterate the DL.
Re: Wildcat
The below is far from an all-inclusive review, but it should get you thinking in different ways and from different perspectives.
Anyway, a few thoughts:
There is a point of diminishing returns for the wildcat offense for most teams. As referenced by someone in an earlier post, if the wildcat is a major cog of an offense, a team needs specialists with exceptional/unique talent, and/or an OL that can obliterate the DL.
Without either, as the frequency of the wildcat increases, more is put on tape, more is seen by the opponent, more is learned by the opponent – of the offense, its tendencies, and the strengths of the individual players running it. At a certain point, the tactical benefits of the formation begin to diminish.
Also, in no particular order, run the wildcat to:1) Force the other team to review it.
If I were a coach and never gained a yard with the wildcat offense, I’d still run it at least twice a game. I’d do it if for no other reason than to force my opponent to burn time reviewing it. I’d run it even if I only ran one play out of it. Per NCAA rules, a coach only has so much time with his players during the week. I’d make ’em burn an inordinate amount of time at a poor ROI reviewing the wildcat and all it’s options. Even if I only showed one play on tape, every coach knows there are many options that come with it. If I only showed one play, the opposing coaches would still have to ‘guess’ at what I might also have in my bag and therefore spend more of their time reviewing those options.
At an absolute minimum, the wildcat has value for the above reason.2) Probe Weaknesses/opportunities of the opposing defense
An offense is successful in two basic ways. 1) Putting hat on hat and out-executing the opponent. 2) Taking advantage of an opponent’s mistakes. Therefore, the goal of an offense can be broken down into two essential components. 1) Minimize its own mistakes in execution, 2) Maximize the likelihood and opportunity for the opponent to make a mistake. This is why there are misdirection plays and every play has at least one counter.
Often, the first time a coach shows the wildcat in a game, it is to have the defense reveal how they plan to attack it. A wildcat play, just like almost every play, does not have only the potential utility of gaining yardage on that particular play, but it also provides information. Information that can be exploited later, during a more pivotal part of the game. So even if the wildcat play gains no yardage, it still could be serving a purpose. If it is run and gains 8 yards, great, we got a 2’fer.Say the wildcat is run, it gains zero yardage, and the coaches see nothing that can be exploited. So next time they add a variant (for example, add a motion, maybe a trap block, maybe a slightly different formation) to probe for something that does work or can be exploited.
But say the coaches do see something that can be exploited, if a slight variation were added or a counter-play were called. Then the coaches call the original play again, and again, and maybe again, reinforcing the defenses’ read. The coaches file this away for potential exploitation later in the game.
The above are scenarios in which the plays appear to fail to the casual fan, yet are still providing value to the coaches. If the plays are gaining yardage at a successful rate, then hey, no one should have complaints and all this ‘inside baseball’ stuff is irrelevant anyway.
The above is true for any offense, but by having the wildcat in the playbook, with little effort, you’ve potentially exponentially increased options, options that a defense must be prepared to stop.
3) Take advantage of the unprepared or inattentive.
If the defense isn’t paying attention, if the MLB or defensive signal caller isn’t too astute, if the defense is wearing down, a quick no-huddle into the wildcat with the QB spread wide can catch a defense unprepared and a quick gain can be made. This could be a quick call signaled in from the sidelines or maybe even called in the huddle before the previous play.
Re: Wildcat
The below is far from an all-inclusive review, but it should get you thinking in different ways and from different perspectives.
Anyway, a few thoughts:
There is a point of diminishing returns for the wildcat offense for most teams. As referenced by someone in an earlier post, if the wildcat is a major cog of an offense, a team needs specialists with exceptional/unique talent, and/or an OL that can obliterate the DL.
Without either, as the frequency of the wildcat increases, more is put on tape, more is seen by the opponent, more is learned by the opponent – of the offense, its tendencies, and the strengths of the individual players running it. At a certain point, the tactical benefits of the formation begin to diminish.
Also, in no particular order, run the wildcat to:
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