Back in the summer, I wrote an article on the Long Tail Of The Spread Offense, and the various styles of the spread offense we see throughout all levels of football.I personally feel that the following needs to happen with Pat White in the future to ensure success in the NFL.
1) Get Bigger - I know Pat was quoted as saying he's been trying to gain body weight since birth, but it is critical that he come in next year at 6'0 205 lbs (as opposed to the 190 lbs he is now). Obviously he needs to maintain his speed, agility, etc... with the added muscle. Basically he needs a nutritionist and the Miami strength program to help him accomplish this.
2) Call Steve Young - 'If' Pat is going to remain as just a quarterback, he needs to spend some quality time with Steve Young, the ex-BYU Cougar, Tampa Bay Buc, San Fransico 49er and hall of famer. Some may forget, but Young had it rough when he entered the league out of BYU. In addition, he's physically the same as Pat White (6'0-6'1 ish, great runner/scrambler, lefty thrower, strong football IQ, nice guy, etc..).
Use the off-season to get with Young for days at a time, learn his techniques, field tactics, training methods, throwing motion as a fellow lefty, throwing on the run, situational stuff, field general ship, etc...
Parcells worked with Young during his ESPN stints, I'm sure he could make it happen.
3) If #2 (being a full-time QB) is not in the plans... If the Dolphins feel the QB experiment is over, then Pat needs to work in being a 'slash' guy. Watch film of Josh Cribbs, Brad Smith, get bigger (as #1 explains above), get reps catching passes, punts, kick-offs, taking reverse hand-offs and pitches, continue throwing the ball, etc..
I think it's safe to say that the 'wildcat' position is here to stay, I still feel Pat could be the "WildCat in HD" that the league still has not seen. Pat White can throw the football, I think you'll see that next year.
The ironic part of it all is that Ronnie Brown (of the Dolphins) in my opinion is the best WildCat runner in the league, he has such a sense for that position, especially on the runs. Pat has a great guy to learn off of.
Finally, as some of you may know Pat took a nasty helmet to helmet hit in the final game vs the Steelers. Nothing was dirty about it at all, Ike Taylor was just playing hard, and Pat was tripped up prior to contact, placing him in a vulnerable position.
He seems OK, and you couldn't find a better time to get that injury, with the off-season starting the next day.
Below is a nice interview with Pat White by Omar Kelly of the Sun-Sentinel website.
November 2005 - The 98th version of the Backyard Brawl saw WVU dominate a much slower PITT team 45-13, as admitted by head coach Dave Wannstedt: "They're just faster then us out there, we need to get faster in order to compete".
Pat White rushed for a record 220 yards and two scores, while Steve Slaton rushed for 179 yards and two scores in the game for the potent WVU spread offense.
December 2007 - The 100th edition of the Backyard Brawl had national implications, with West Virginia ranked #2 in the BCS, all they needed was a win over there rival PITT to get into the BCS Championship game vs Ohio State. The Mountaineers were a 4 touchdown favorite in the game.
With the Mountaineers dominating the two previous match-ups in 2005 and 2006, Dave Wannstedt and his defensive staff engineered a great game plan, boxing in the high powered spread option offense of West Virginia, not allowing any big plays as in previous years.
After the 13-9 upset victory, Wannstedt reflected back on the comments he made after the 2005 game, "I guess we finally got faster".
3) University of Oregon vs University of Michigan - September 2007
This game was Michigan's worst defeat since 1968, a 39-7 loss in Ann Arbor. Dennis Dixon threw for 368 yards and a career high 4 touchdowns passes, he also rushed for 76 yards and one touchdown.
The Ducks led 31-7 at halftime, and faced little opposition in the second half. According to Oregon coach Mike Bellotti the game was a "good win because I think there were some questions about how Michigan was going to bounce back, and whether we would be competitive. I think our players took that to heart." This game caused Michigan to open the season with two home losses, both to spread offense teams featuring dual threat quarterbacks.
4) West Virginia University vs University of Georgia - Sugar Bowl, January 2006
The 2006 Sugar Bowl featured the Big East champions, the West Virginia Mountaineers and the SEC champions, the Georgia Bulldogs. The game is thought to have raised the Big East's profile in the wake of losing 3 members to the ACC, and being called by some in the media as 'The Big Least'.5) University of Florida vs University of Oklahoma - BCS Championship, January 2009
Tim Tebow's two touchdown passes and Percy Harvin's two-yard run led the Florida Gators to their second BCS National Championship in three years. The Gators defeated the Oklahoma Sooners, 24-14, in front of a record crowd of 78,468 in Miami.
Urban Meyer became the first coach to win two BCS championship games, and one of only five coaches in NCAA history to win two titles in his first four years at a college.
Tim Tebow and Sam Bradford, two high profiled spread offense quarterbacks combined for four interceptions in the game despite throwing for just eight combined over the course of the regular season.
6) New England Patriots vs New York Giants - December, 2007
8) University of Texas vs University of Southern California - BCS Championship, January 2006
It would be hard to argue that the spread offense hasn't been one of, if not the most influential aspect of American football over the last decade (2000-2009). From the beginning of the decade to the present, the concept and execution of spreading the football field in order to create mismatches in both the passing and running games has changed the game forever on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball.Josh McDaniels will go down in spread offense lore as the offensive coordinator who lead the New England Patriots 2007 offensive squad to 67 touchdowns (50 passing and 17 rushing) and 589 total points.
The New England Patriots in 2007 became the first NFL team to pass more than half the time from the shotgun spread offense formation. That offense was perhaps the most dynamic single season group in NFL history.
9) David Lee - University of Arkansas (2003-2006), Miami Dolphins (2007-present)
David Lee was named “Innovator of the Year” in 2008 by the Sporting News for introducing the “Wildcat offense” to the National Football League.
Bill Parcells, the VP of Football Operations for the Miami Dolphins hired Lee to be the Dolphins quarterback coach for the 2008 season, where he still holds that position.
In college, Lee worked with Gus Malzahn in 2006 at Arkansas where they installed the 'WildCat or WildHog' formation, showcasing Darren McFadden in the single wing formation.
Currently with the Miami Dolphins, David Lee works closely with Offensive Coordinator Dan Henning and Tight Ends Coach George DeLeone to implement the Miami WildCat formation.
This formation features Ronnie Brown, Ricky Williams, and Pat White as the 'wildcat' or single wing back accepting the snap.
10) Greg Davis - University of Texas (2000-present)
Greg Davis is currently the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the University of Texas. In 2006, he was awarded the Broyles Award for the nation's top assistant coach for the 2005 season which included a national championship victory in the Rose Bowl over USC.
In that season, Vince Young established himself as one of the most dynamic dual threat quarterbacks in NCAA history, and Coach Davis implemented many zone read concepts into the Longhorn offense, using Young's dynamic running and passing ability out of the spread offense.
One of Davis's best known skill sets is his ability to coach the quarterback position. During his 11 years at Texas, Davis has developed Chris Simms, Major Applewhite, Vince Young, and Colt McCoy.
In the next two posts, we will look at some of the biggest players and individual plays in the last decade dominated by the spread offense.
Happy Thanksgiving to all our loyal readers out there, I hope this holiday season brings you much joy. Remember the 3 F's, Faith, Family, and Football!* When run correctly, the quarterback attacks the corner with the option to run or pass; if you were paying a pocket style quarterback $4-$20 million, you wouldn’t want to leave him alone on the perimeter where a strong safety or outside backer can lay him out.
* NFL quarterbacks are rarely good runners or comfortable carrying the football in space.
2) In the NFL, the hash marks are the width of the goal posts.**
* A sprint out takes away the portion of the field in the opposite direction of the play; in this case, even if you sprint to the wide-side of the field, you are eliminating 2/3 of the field as a threat.
3) The defenses in the NFL are much more sophisticated than high school.
* In the NFL, they run more man-to-man, combo, and zone blitzes; I don’t mean to imply you can’t run the sprint out against a man-to-man defense, you can, but in this case, the quarterback will be running most of the time.
As I stated before, these are the very reasons it can be extremely effective in high school football:
1) It utilizes the quarterback as a running threat
With the quarterback attacking the corner, it forces the defense to commit to either the run or the pass with a split-second decision; if the defense covers the receivers, they can’t stop the run; if they commit to the quarterback, they must come out of coverage. Normally, even if the QB is in a one-on-one situation against a defensive player, chances are he will gain positive yardage.
* Usually, a high school quarterback is a good runner or comfortable carrying the football in space.
2) In high school football, the hash marks divide the field into thirds
In high school, a sprint out pass to the wide side of the field still leaves roughly ½ the field as a threat; the receivers have more room to get open, and the quarterback has more field to elude the defense if he chooses to run.
3) High schools predominantly run zone defenses
With a sprint out, you flood the zone with the receivers and compile the defensive troubles with the quarterback’s threat to run.
Now, you might be asking, “How is the sprint out run incorrectly?” By examining how it is run incorrectly, we can see how it should be run in order to be most effective.
The most common mistakes when running the sprint out:
1) Not sprinting
By definition, the sprint out requires the quarterback to SPRINT. The QB should be sprinting to a specific point (about ten yards laterally and seven yards deep) before turning and attacking the corner. With few exceptions (an extremely talented QB against specific defenses with a designated “hot” receiver), the quarterback should not even look at the defense or the receivers until he makes the turn at that point. Often, what you see is more of a roll out in which the QB either drops too deep or runs too slowly; this minimizes the immediate threat to the defense, allowing them time to adjust and pursue, and reduces the running threat the QB should pose.
2) Not attacking the corner
When the QB reaches that turning point (10 x 7 yards), he MUST turn and attack the line of scrimmage. Too often, you see the quarterback running toward the sideline instead of toward the line of scrimmage; that is not a sprint out, it’s not really a roll out, I don’t know what it is, really, except a bad football play. The defense is taught to “string the play out” toward the sideline; in this case, the quarterback is doing it for them. If properly run, the quarterback is running TOWARD his receivers when he decides to pass or tuck it and run.
In order for the QB to be a true and immediate threat to run, he must attack the line of scrimmage, thereby forcing the defense to make a decision. This is what the whole play is predicated on: making the defense commit!
3) Waiting for the receiver to make his break/make eye contact with the quarterback
The sprint out is a quick hitting play. The quarterback often must throw the ball BEFORE the receiver makes his break. Too many high school quarterbacks wait too long to throw the ball, not only on the sprint out, but on other passes, too.
The quarterback must be trained to throw the ball to the spot his receiver is going to be open (aka: anticipate the route and throw), whether or not the receiver is looking at him when the pass is released. This ability is deadly to a defense; failure to do so allows the defense time to react to the pattern. This requires precision, timing, and familiarity with the receivers which is only accomplished through practice and repetition.
The receivers, as well, must be trained to look for the ball in the air, to be ready to catch the ball as soon as they make their breaks.
4) Bad throwing mechanics
No one said football was going to be easy. The throw on-the-run is a skill that has to be developed through much practice and repetition.
While running, the passer must twist his torso perpendicular to the target in a quick, cocking motion. Many passers do not get their shoulders far enough around – while still running – especially when sprinting out in the opposite direction of their passing arm.
For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. The throwing motion and subsequent release must immediately follow the cocking motion. This uses the momentum of the motion to assist the throw, like loading and releasing a spring. Many times QBs hesitate, creating two distinct motions, back and forth, which depletes the momentum and causes the pass to sail or flutter.
When running in the same direction of the receiver, the passer does not have to “lead” the receiver. A lot of quarterbacks don’t realize this. It’s simple physics. The ball is already traveling that way when it’s released, so it naturally “leads” the receiver.
The Sprint Out Drill
Set up the cones as shown in the diagram above. The quarterback should practice the sprint out portion of the drill to the point where he can do it by 'feel' (Kinesthetic Awareness) before receivers are added. As always, the proper stance, represented by the “X”, is the beginning of the drill (refer to the stance section). Use the cadence you will use to start each repetition. The explanation is for a sprint out to the right, simply reverse the drill when running to the left.
Here's a video below of Tate Forcier from the University of Michigan executing a sprint out pass out of the spread offense.
Pivot (A)
Pushing off with the ball of the left cleat, open the hips to the right wide enough to allow an immediate sprint toward the cone.
Sprint (B)
Sprint! Put the head down and sprint directly at the cone, keeping the ball chest high. At this point your job is to GET TO THAT CONE NOW!
Turn (C)
When you get to the cone, lift your head and make the turn toward the line of scrimmage; this is when you’ll pick up your receivers and read the defense. Don’t slow down.
Attack the line of line of scrimmage (D)
Use a STEEP angle of attack, as shown on the diagram. This forces the defense to commit NOW!
Decide (E-F)
Make your decision to throw or run QUICKLY. Don’t hesitate. It’s more important to make the decision to run or pass quickly than to always make the right decision. If you throw the ball on the receiver’s break, you have a good chance to complete it even if he is covered. If you decide to run, the sooner you decide, the more yardage you will pick up, even if it turns out you should have thrown it. The more practice and experience you get, the better your decision making will be. For starters, just decide FAST.
Throw or Run
If you run, tuck it, protect the football, and go. You are now a running back. Use the field in front of you to your advantage.
If you pass:
* Cock your shoulders perpendicular to the receiver by twisting your upper torso quickly, bringing the ball to your ear. Keep sprinting!
* In a continuous motion, snap the shoulders 180 degrees while releasing the ball with the proper throw (refer to the throw).
* Although your legs are moving, from the waist up the throw should look no different than any other throw. You must practice this until your upper body is almost separate from the lower body.
* Throw it hard. Get it there fast. It’s your job to get it there, it’s the receiver’s job to catch it.
At first, repeat the drill 10 times, then switch sides. If possible, have someone time you from the snap of the ball to the cone; try to decrease the time. When you become proficient at the sprint out, add a receiver. It is incredibly valuable for a quarterback to drill with at least one of his receivers. That can really make or break a season. However, if no one is available, set up targets to throw at. Use your imagination.
If you have a receiver to work with, run different routes – short outs, curls, medium outs, deep outs, flags … whatever you will run off this during the season. Mix it up. Have fun. Try to get multiple receivers to drill with you. Have someone play defense; if he commits to you, throw, if he covers the receiver, run. Make a game out of it. But always, ALWAYS, follow the steps precisely.
*The reason you don’t see it much in major college football anymore is because they are usually grooming pro football players (though with the spread offense and the popularity of the 'dual threat' QB, this is balancing out). Also, many of the top college coaches now have either worked in the NFL, or want to, so they run what they know, or what they think will look good for their careers. Off the top of my head, I can only think of Arizona State and Air Force that run the sprint out as a regular part of their offense.
**In college football, the hash marks are between the pro and high school hash marks.
I really like the double tight end set out of the single wing, it creates some serious gap issues, not that the single wing doesn't do that already with the '11th gap' it creates, but double tights really amplifies the effect.
Now, here's the shift I discussed briefly above:
Here you'll see that Kyle Orton shifted back to an under the center QB set from the flanker (FL) position once the defense showed its hand versus the single wing wild-horse with Moreno staying put in the one back set.
This play above shows Orton and the Denver offense executing a pass play after the shift back into a more traditional set. Even Phil Simms who was calling the play-by-play was very impressed with this 'shift' back wrinkle by the Broncos out of the Wild Horse as every play after them shifting produced positive yards with the defense being somewhat out of position.
Good stuff !
Keep spreading u'm!
--Mark
