I don’t know if you caught this among the rest of last weekend’s craziness, but Washington State managed to beat Utah with this unusual stat line: 13 rushing attempts, zero rushing yards.
I’ll let Dean Wormer do the math for you.
As you might expect, Leach was unconcerned about that, to the point of dismissal, using it to make a point he’s offered before.
“There’s nothing balanced about 50% run-50% pass, ’cause that’s 50% stupid. What is balance is when you have five skill positions and all five of them are contributing to the effort in somewhat equal fashion — that’s balance. This notion that if you hand one guy 50% of the time and then you throw it to a combination of two guys the other 50% that you’re really balanced. You probably pat yourself on the back and tell yourself that. People have been doing that for decades. Well, then you’re delusional.”
That sound you hear is the 2010 Mike Bobo throwing his crayon box.
Get The Picture 
His math only works if you have 1 running back. But if you have 4 or 5…
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No one has ever said he or his offense was balanced.
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Zero yards rushing means “everyone is contributing?” Come on Pirate!!
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Their running back, James Williams, had 5 carries for 13 yards and 3 catches for 44 yards. They had 9 additional receivers who recorded catches. So he’s not wrong.
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He’s wrong, though (deluded?) in thinking that his style will lead to anything better than a few wins and his own gratification. Hasn’t anyone around here figured out that he’s just an inverted version of Paul Johnson?
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“My system works when my assistants and players don’t f it up. You’re too stupid to understand it.”
…
Ok, you have a point.
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Of course he’ll never win any hardware. I don’t care, because he ain’t coaching the ‘Dawgs.
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“… inverted… Paul Johnson…”
My tiny brain is working overtime blocking that from my imagination.
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I just heard an even louder sound eminating from both Smart and Cheney’s office.
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Ok, so Leach uses the tools at his disposal.
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I’ll listen to his BS when he has a team that can compete at the national level. ‘Til then he’s just a nutjob that can’t get a job at a real school (because he’s a nutjob).
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Totally agree. He’s only amusing if he’s not coaching your favorite team.
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Sure wish he’d gotten that UT job.
Maybe he sees Tech as a step up? That would be a lot of fun.
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Football is running the ball and stopping the run. Those who can win. Those who can’t lose. The rest is decoration.
A random exception is meaningless.
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I thought it had something to do with which team scored more points, but maybe I skipped over that part in the rulebook.
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Tackling and blocking are worth zero points!!! None! Why do any of that when it’s not a part of your bottom line?
Maybe, and I’m just spitballing here, points are a by-product of other things happening on the field? Maybe?
The most physical team wins most of the time. It doesn’t have to be all of the time to be a meaningful observation.
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A solid running game is the ultimate trump card. You can dominate your opponent, sustain drives, control the clock, keep your defense rested, succeed in critical down/distance situations, etc. The running game is special because not only does it allow you to score more points, it keeps the other team from scoring more points, which in my mind is the ideal form of balance.
Do I think UGA gets a little too predictable and conservative at times on O? Yes, at least a couple of times every game. But when you hear Kirby talk about a young team still developing through jog/run/sprint stages, it makes sense that they are prioritizing the run during live action. I expect/hope they are working on a more sophisticated passing attack during practice for when “balance” has to yield to “score more points.” Perhaps as early as LSU.
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From 1978 to 2008 1,100 teams ran for over 200 yards in a single game. 88% of those teams won the game.
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Those are NFL numbers btw. The correlation of rtdb to winning is even stronger at the college level.
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Wash State has learned to excel at defense. They sit at #34, stopping the run (122 ypg) and are better at it than Alabama. WSU is also 9th in overall defense.
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Tangentially, Washington State has one of the best logos in sports. Hands down.
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Love the Pirate. In the isolation of one game, he is right. Only problem with this philosophy is, like with many triple option teams, you still have to have a Plan B. The Bear was the only coach I saw with a pass option off the option offense he ran. If Leach had a running back and OL that could take advantage of running opportunities he would be unstoppable. (UGA and Bama actually do have it it all, maybe ohio as well, imo.) But not looking at 50/50 as the ultimate “balance” is smart. Pirate, getting it done in another obscure location. His press conferences are a hoot.
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You gotta take what they give you to be good and you gotta take what you want to be great.
That requires being proficient both running at passing.
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Nice aphorism. Imma maybe use that.
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Can we get WSU and gtu together in a game before one, or both, of the geniuses gets fired? I guess they could play for some kind of belt, unless somebody can muster up an old hog calling trophy at a yard sale.
Of course the game itself wouldn’t be the big draw. We’d definitely need before and after dueling press conferences.
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