Listening to Whit talk about not having an offensive identity along with lots of talk here about Troy Taylor offense not working I started to wonder why and what is different between what Troy was doing at EW vs what is going on at the U.
First, I hope Whit understand that our identity is Run/Pass Option. That is what TT runs and that is an identity. But it feels like too many people are trying to bucket us into a run first or a pass first team and that is not what RPO is.
So, why’s it not working? Just my thoughts and observations after watching a couple of TT’s games from EW last year and working to compare them to what we have seen so far, this year. I can see pretty clearly that while Troy is clearly running the same offense It’s not being ran the same way.
Tempo – This is the first thing that jumps out at me. Eastern Washington would consistently snap the ball with between 20 and 25 seconds left on the play clock, and very seldom with below 15 seconds left. This is even with moving players all over the field and subs. Utes while we see this at times it’s not consistent, against BYU we were better but then after that time it really looks to flounder. This is primarily on the coaches being able to get the next play in but also somewhat on players and a sense of urgency, linemen getting back to the line and set quickly is a good example. When I first heard KW mention that he would like TT in the box and not on the field I didn’t think it was really needed and I like to see the QB coach on the sidelines. But after thinking about tempo it may help Troy see/envision the plays a little quicker. Regardless I think bring the tempo up will help the flow of TT’s game planning.
Quick decisions – Both Huntley and Williams are an upgrade over what Taylor had a QB last year except for making a decision quickly. Watching Gubrud he was not the fastest nor did he make the pretty throws but his decision making was quick. The mesh was quick, if not handed off Gubrud knew right away if he was running or passing and then throw was quick. Not the same with Huntly or Williams. The QB/RB mesh is indecisive then if passing Huntly is waiting too long and not taking the quick open receiver. This allowing the defense to better recognize the play if the mesh it slow the LB and Safeties are able diagnose both runners as well as the receivers. If the run is not there then because the decision was to slow the receivers have already ran to the open spot and are expecting the ball but now the safeties have a chance to react and that is no longer open. All in all decisions need to be made quicker and this is on the QB’s. They just need to trust in what they do and go with it. (also why we are getting so many illegal man down field penalties)
Middle of the field – A staple of Eastern Washington was crossing, slants and inside screens. We ignore the middle of the field. I am not sure if this is because of the above issues or by design but there a lot more passes to the sidelines than what TT utilized at EW. Even when we throw to the sideline we aren’t getting it there quickly or in the right situation. This is on the coaches and I really hope whit is truly letting TT run his show. Doesn’t feel like it.
There are other things that are playing into this and I need to remember that we are rebuilding, but I would like to see some improvement in the areas mentioned. I have a lot of faith in TT and hope he can run the offense like he did at EW. I thought that we were picking it up a little in the USC game but guess not enough yet.
First, I hope Whit understand that our identity is Run/Pass Option. That is what TT runs and that is an identity. But it feels like too many people are trying to bucket us into a run first or a pass first team and that is not what RPO is.
So, why’s it not working? Just my thoughts and observations after watching a couple of TT’s games from EW last year and working to compare them to what we have seen so far, this year. I can see pretty clearly that while Troy is clearly running the same offense It’s not being ran the same way.
Tempo – This is the first thing that jumps out at me. Eastern Washington would consistently snap the ball with between 20 and 25 seconds left on the play clock, and very seldom with below 15 seconds left. This is even with moving players all over the field and subs. Utes while we see this at times it’s not consistent, against BYU we were better but then after that time it really looks to flounder. This is primarily on the coaches being able to get the next play in but also somewhat on players and a sense of urgency, linemen getting back to the line and set quickly is a good example. When I first heard KW mention that he would like TT in the box and not on the field I didn’t think it was really needed and I like to see the QB coach on the sidelines. But after thinking about tempo it may help Troy see/envision the plays a little quicker. Regardless I think bring the tempo up will help the flow of TT’s game planning.
Quick decisions – Both Huntley and Williams are an upgrade over what Taylor had a QB last year except for making a decision quickly. Watching Gubrud he was not the fastest nor did he make the pretty throws but his decision making was quick. The mesh was quick, if not handed off Gubrud knew right away if he was running or passing and then throw was quick. Not the same with Huntly or Williams. The QB/RB mesh is indecisive then if passing Huntly is waiting too long and not taking the quick open receiver. This allowing the defense to better recognize the play if the mesh it slow the LB and Safeties are able diagnose both runners as well as the receivers. If the run is not there then because the decision was to slow the receivers have already ran to the open spot and are expecting the ball but now the safeties have a chance to react and that is no longer open. All in all decisions need to be made quicker and this is on the QB’s. They just need to trust in what they do and go with it. (also why we are getting so many illegal man down field penalties)
Middle of the field – A staple of Eastern Washington was crossing, slants and inside screens. We ignore the middle of the field. I am not sure if this is because of the above issues or by design but there a lot more passes to the sidelines than what TT utilized at EW. Even when we throw to the sideline we aren’t getting it there quickly or in the right situation. This is on the coaches and I really hope whit is truly letting TT run his show. Doesn’t feel like it.
There are other things that are playing into this and I need to remember that we are rebuilding, but I would like to see some improvement in the areas mentioned. I have a lot of faith in TT and hope he can run the offense like he did at EW. I thought that we were picking it up a little in the USC game but guess not enough yet.
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