Oh ok.. apparently we just gotta relax.

No, he's right. If you've ever played sports, you know it too. The line about "seeing it and not being able to tell why they did that" is the giveaway. You can, as an athlete, know the read/block/route like the back of your hand and STILL do the wrong, stupid thing if you're not relaxed- if you play tentatively. It's what I saw against ND and I hoped we'd fix it against Duke if we just overmatched them... But we didn't. We were tentative and too worried about messing up. That's what causes mess ups. Hopefully we'll regain form.
 
I believe that Notre Dame and Duke have both done something with success teams had not tried successfully in a while. They are loading up the box, penetrating the line of scrimmage, getting right on top of the OL, shooting the gaps with LB's and Safeties. In other words they are selling out to stop the B-back and to get into the lane we need to run the option down the line of scrimmage. I thought Maryland gave us fits with this approach years ago.

More recently you have heard people talk about containing our option with assignment defense, assigning someone to stop the handoff, the keeper and the pitch. Such talk is usually music to my ears because the defense tends to wait and react, making them vulnerable to cut blocking at the line of scrimmage and if we execute properly, we will block the assigned player and have success with all three options.

So, does this mean that ND and Duke have solved the offense and we are doomed? No, but it does mean that we need to run sweeps and throw wheel routes or quick slants over the middle because LB's and safeties aren't home.

Cash of Duke had 12 tackles and four hurries Saturday. He's a safety. If you are going to sell out with your safety to come and attack our option the answer is not to figure out how to run the option successfully against eight men committed to attacking us. Get the ball to where the safety ought to be. After about three quick touchdowns the defensive adjustments will open back up the option.
 
I believe that Notre Dame and Duke have both done something with success teams had not tried successfully in a while. They are loading up the box, penetrating the line of scrimmage, getting right on top of the OL, shooting the gaps with LB's and Safeties. In other words they are selling out to stop the B-back and to get into the lane we need to run the option down the line of scrimmage. I thought Maryland gave us fits with this approach years ago.

More recently you have heard people talk about containing our option with assignment defense, assigning someone to stop the handoff, the keeper and the pitch. Such talk is usually music to my ears because the defense tends to wait and react, making them vulnerable to cut blocking at the line of scrimmage and if we execute properly, we will block the assigned player and have success with all three options.

So, does this mean that ND and Duke have solved the offense and we are doomed? No, but it does mean that we need to run sweeps and throw wheel routes or quick slants over the middle because LB's and safeties aren't home.

Cash of Duke had 12 tackles and four hurries Saturday. He's a safety. If you are going to sell out with your safety to come and attack our option the answer is not to figure out how to run the option successfully against eight men committed to attacking us. Get the ball to where the safety ought to be. After about three quick touchdowns the defensive adjustments will open back up the option.


Bingo!!
 
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How many more times? It's Johnson's M.O. Look like öööö, make an adjustment, better in the second half. Seems to me the trick would be figuring out how to be good in the first half but he's never done that except of course against the crip teams. We'll be better the second half of the season. At the expense of the first.
 
How many more times? It's Johnson's M.O. Look like öööö, make an adjustment, better in the second half. Seems to me the trick would be figuring out how to be good in the first half but he's never done that except of course against the crip teams. We'll be better the second half of the season. At the expense of the first.

Eh, in the case of this season that may not be the worst thing. Problem is that the second half of the year is a gauntlet and "adjustments" only go so far.
 
It's never as good or as bad as it seems, except on special teams
 
How many more times? It's Johnson's M.O. Look like öööö, make an adjustment, better in the second half. Seems to me the trick would be figuring out how to be good in the first half but he's never done that except of course against the crip teams. We'll be better the second half of the season. At the expense of the first.

We have started 5-0 and 6-0 before.

Last season was the anomaly where we started weak and then beat the tough half of the schedule.

The option usually looks bad early. It is a timing offense. That is why Nebraska used to start with directional schools.
 
I believe that Notre Dame and Duke have both done something with success teams had not tried successfully in a while. They are loading up the box, penetrating the line of scrimmage, getting right on top of the OL, shooting the gaps with LB's and Safeties. In other words they are selling out to stop the B-back and to get into the lane we need to run the option down the line of scrimmage. I thought Maryland gave us fits with this approach years ago.

Well, really, this is exactly what everyone who has had success against us does. Like VPISU. I remember Kyle Fuller giving us fits, especially in that game at home when they wore the stupid brick helmets and destroyed us. Fuller shot through the line at every chance, jumped the snap, etc. and disrupted our whole rhythm at the QB/BB exchange. Well, Kyle Fuller is a DB who played those particular games "in the box" like a lot of teams have been using their safeties.

Point is, it's not new. Our guys should be able to handle it- heck, they KNOW how to handle it if you look at last year- but we have to execute. I know that's the most overused word in football, but we just have to execute. Shooting gaps and sending safeties always opens something else up if we execute.
 
Relax? Calm down? How about get pissed off and have some pride instead. You just lost to the doormat of D1 football for the second year in a row, and neither game was close.

Duke is not as good or bad as they seem.

But seriously, they got a good coach and some good players. Actually they got a better coach than ours and somewhat on par players. That's why we keep losing to them. I don't ever expect the Duke game to be easy as long as they've got Cutcliffe.
 
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