Missouri’s Gary Pinkel has a feeling that defenses are starting to catch up to spread attacks.
“It’s not based on empirical evidence, but I just sense so many people run versions of the spread offense – even I-formation teams – that people are getting better at defending it because they see it all the time,” Pinkel said Monday.
And Mack Brown provides more support for the it’s-the-Jimmies-and-Joes camp.
Texas coach Mack Brown has made the recruitment of anti-spread defenders an emphasis.
He said all players in the secondary, safeties included, must be able to be shut down receivers in man coverage. Linebackers have to be fast and able to cover running backs or receivers coming out of five-receiver sets. The linemen all must be effective pass rushers so the need for blitzing is reduced.
Hell, forget about the spread. Shut down safeties, linebackers that can cover receivers and pass rushing defensive tackles – what kind of offense couldn’t you defend with those kinds of players?
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Right on about Mack Brown’s comments. Does he think fans are that naive? One could assume that Browns prototypical jack-rabbit defenders might be weak defending the run, but currently Tejas is allowing only 42 yards a game rushing, tops in the nation. Is their defense that good, or is it because nobody in the Big-12 runs the ball much anymore?
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The schemes will continue to be refined/fine tuned in the spread offense universe of college, high school, and now the pros. Maybe now that defenses are defensing it with better success, it will remove the ‘gimmick’ title and bring it to an execution determined offense.
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Good site except that WVU Sugar Bowl 2006 video is still bad medicine!
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You finished with the question of what kind of offense couldn’t one stop with that kind of defense. Well, what about an old school power running game. Ya know, that 3 yards and a cloud of dust crap. If a team is built for speed and covering and pass rushing, it may well have a tough time against a power game that smashes the ball down their throat. The best example I can think of is the overly speed powered 1993 FSU defense. It was amazing, but the Notre Dame offense that year (which looked like something out of 1907) physically manhandled that defense. Just a thought.
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P.S. An old Georgia offense from the early 80’s which ran the ball up the middle 800 times a game could probably do pretty good too.
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I am in the camp that spread offenses will continue to succeed, and will become more prevalent in the pros and CFB. Defenses are on their heels in today’s game. The biggest problem is when you play some opponents with spread running attacks, and some with power running games/pro style passing. Difficult to recruit the different type athletes to defend both in college.
I like the diversity of attack spread offenses provide. It is just a more exciting brand of football to me. There are plusses to UGA in recruiting Pro Style QBs (Stafford and Murray are great examples of how we have benefited), but our offense looks dated compared to those schools who run and pass from the spread.
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What kind of offense do we run? Pro Style-hodgepodge?
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I am sure pro-style offenses can be more diversified than ours looks with motion, and more counter action (USC’s appears to have more wrinkles), but I don’t think any pro-style offense looks as complex to defend as the better run spread offenses. At ground level where linebackers are viewing the backfield from, there always seems to be players behind the line moving in different directions that cause them to make quick choices/guesses or delays their commitment that extra instant..
While I wouldn’t call our offense a “hodge-podge”, it does seem very predictable, limited, and slow developing. This comment isn’t just about the 2009 unit, I think we have been less than we could be for some time. I know CMR sends coaches out to exchange ideas with other programs during the off season, I would like to see us make some modifications.
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