What Should be our Offensive Philosophy?

[uconnphil2016]

Obviously, folks are pretty darn tired of our three yards and a cloud of dust (or more often, -2 yards and a cloud of dust) mentality. Watching a team who is radically run first yet simultaneously ranked 98th in the country in rushing offense is painful. The philosophy HCBD has can work, we just obviously are either not coaching it properly or don't have the personnel to implement it. This begs the question--given who we have, what system would you guys on the BY like to see our team implement?

Personally, I really wish we would become a predominantly read option offense. I loved to watch Nick Marshall at Auburn and I think that the read option would suit or offense much better than the current system. Shirreffs' primary talent is his size and ability to run the ball, and we'd better implement that in a read option system. It would also allow us to keep defensive fronts on their heels whereas our current system sort of relies on our guys overpowering opposing fronts in the trenches--that just isn't going to happen. By keeping the opposing D on their heels, we can mitigate the fact that our offensive line gets driven back on almost every play. Read option would also help us to set up big, explosive plays while still maintaining the run-first mentality and clock control that Diaco prefers. Lull them to sleep with Shirreffs and Newsome--two players who are great in space, by the way--and then sling one to the TEs or to Noel Thomas every once in a while. I'm no football expert and can't pretend to be, but this is what I wish for our offense.

 

[kemba]

It really isn't as run heavy as people say. BS has 20, 13, and then 20 carries each game. A large portion of those are passing plays that turn into runs, mostly because of the line, but also BS getting happy feet, and not moving through his reads quick enough.

As far as this year, I just don't think we have the players to have a strong offense. I hoped we did coming into the year. I wish the line took a major step forward. Or that Ron Johnson just had a down year last year and was ready to break out. Or some other receiver like Beals stepped up to be another stud next to Noel. But it hasn't happened and its not the playcalling thats kept that from happening. That's not to say the playcalling hasn't been terrible at times, and I'm not saying we are playing the best we possibly could on offense, but I don't think the ceiling is very high this year

Now whether we have the right philosphy for the long term I'm not sure.

 

[CTMike]

I don't want a specific philosophy, per se. I think Diaco is a smart guy (sometimes too smart for his own good but I digress)... I don't buy the argument that "he's a defensive guy he can't do offense". Defense is the yang to the offense's yin, if you will. There isn't one without the other. He should be very skilled at analyzing a defense and determining the weaknesses. I think he alluded to this concept when he was first introduced as coach. How are they set up? What are their tendencies? This should feed in to the game plan to say : based on our offensive capabilities.... when we see X, our best chance for yards is Y. Get to the line quickly. Read the D. Have a few plays to choose from. Get the play call in by (whatever aribitrary time left on the play clock) and execute. Make the required adjustments during course of play based on the results.

As noted ad nauseum, I feel Diaco has a very specific, plodding style that he wants to force until he's left with no other alternative. Tl;dr... be proactive and tailor plays/game plans to opponent weaknesses instead of trying to score the bare minimum of points.

 

[B1GEast]

To put a lot of points on the board

 

[JMick]

shotgun based WCO like the Giants and Packers run. Takes a bad line out of the equation.

 

[JMick]

As noted ad nauseum, I feel Diaco has a very specific, plodding style that he wants to force until he's left with no other alternative. Tl;dr... be proactive and tailor plays/game plans to opponent weaknesses instead of trying to score the bare minimum of points.

It's evident that Diaco wants his chunk plays to be from deception and misdirection. Whether that be counter runs (which we barely run - seriously, when's the last time we ran a counter?) and play action. The problem is that both are long developing and we don't have the line to hold blocks for play action

 

[BlueMAB]

I'm no expert, but I don't think we have the OL to run a read option, they struggle to sustain blocks. Better put, they struggle to block.

We can't run an offense until we get our OL straight. I'd like to see a more west coast offense with quick short passes, but that's not guaranteed to work either. I'd like the TEs involved earlier, and more passes on first down. Throw deep once or twice just to keep the defense honest. Yeah, we "could" go three and out, or we could end up with a deep interception. That's not very different from our run, run, pass, punt scheme now.

I would like for someone to explain to me why we ran a QB sweep on 3rd and 8. The only thing I can think of, is later in the year, we'll get a QB sweep to the right, with a backwards pass to Davis behind the LOS and a deep pass to Thomas down the sideline.

 

[JMick]

I'm no expert, but I don't think we have the OL to run a read option, they struggle to sustain blocks. Better put, they struggle to block.

We can't run an offense until we get our OL straight. I'd like to see a more west coast offense with quick short passes, but that's not guaranteed to work either. I'd like the TEs involved earlier, and more passes on first down. Throw deep once or twice just to keep the defense honest. Yeah, we "could" go three and out, or we could end up with a deep interception. That's not very different from our run, run, pass, punt scheme now.

I would like for someone to explain to me why we ran a QB sweep on 3rd and 8. The only thing I can think of, is later in the year, we'll get a QB sweep to the right, with a backwards pass to Davis behind the LOS and a deep pass to Thomas down the sideline.

I'm fairly confident those QB sweeps are RPO's

 

[ZooCougar]

Obviously, folks are pretty darn tired of our three yards and a cloud of dust (or more often, -2 yards and a cloud of dust) mentality. Watching a team who is radically run first yet simultaneously ranked 98th in the country in rushing offense is painful. The philosophy HCBD has can work, we just obviously are either not coaching it properly or don't have the personnel to implement it. This begs the question--given who we have, what system would you guys on the BY like to see our team implement?

Personally, I really wish we would become a predominantly read option offense. I loved to watch Nick Marshall at Auburn and I think that the read option would suit or offense much better than the current system. Shirreffs' primary talent is his size and ability to run the ball, and we'd better implement that in a read option system. It would also allow us to keep defensive fronts on their heels whereas our current system sort of relies on our guys overpowering opposing fronts in the trenches--that just isn't going to happen. By keeping the opposing D on their heels, we can mitigate the fact that our offensive line gets driven back on almost every play. Read option would also help us to set up big, explosive plays while still maintaining the run-first mentality and clock control that Diaco prefers. Lull them to sleep with Shirreffs and Newsome--two players who are great in space, by the way--and then sling one to the TEs or to Noel Thomas every once in a while. I'm no football expert and can't pretend to be, but this is what I wish for our offense.

The philosophy should be to actually score touchdowns.

 

[VAHuskyFan]

1. Recruit to your philosophy.
2. Coach to the strengths of the players you have.

We are #109 in the country in rushing yards/carry.

We are #5 in the country in completion percentage.

This suggests we should throw the damn ball more.

We have put up 5.7 points per half in the first halves of our three games (when trying to execute a power running attack).

We've scored 14.7 points per half in the second halves of games once forced to open up the passing attack.

This suggests we should throw the damn ball more.

 

[uconnphil2016]

1. Recruit to your philosophy.
2. Coach to the strengths of the players you have.

We are #109 in the country in rushing yards/carry.

We are #5 in the country in completion percentage.

This suggests we should throw the damn ball more.

We have put up 5.7 points per half in the first halves of our three games (when trying to execute a power running attack).

We've scored 14.7 points per half in the second halves of games once forced to open up the passing attack.

This suggests we should throw the damn ball more.

Yup. And passing the ball obviously doesn't mean eliminating the run--it sets up the run. Otherwise, like we saw against Maine, you end up with the whole squad in the box.

 

[BlueMAB]

I'm fairly confident those QB sweeps are RPO's

Not all of them, unless BS is deciding right from the snap that he's running. Possible, but I don't think he's afraid to throw the ball.

 

[JMick]

Not all of them, unless BS is deciding right from the snap that he's running. Possible, but I don't think he's afraid to throw the ball.

Most of them are RPOs. And he would be deciding from the snap on many of them. RPOs are just numbers and/or matchup games.

 

[freescooter]

You guys don't like run-run-throw short-punt?

 

[Husky25]

This is going to be long but the long and short of it is UConn's offensive philosophy should be execution. I re-watched the 4th Quarter last night only because the replay was on SNY, so it was for entertainment purposes only. Below is the play by play from ESPN (in conjunction with TCF15's upload) with brief comments of UConn's 1st first half offensive drives:

1st Drive

• 1st and 10 at CONN 44
• (13:51 - 1st) Bryant Shirreffs run for 3 yds to the UConn 47
• (Planned QB bootleg)

• 2nd and 7 at CONN 47
  (13:51 - 1st) Arkeel Newsome run for a loss of 2 yards to the UConn 45
  (Play blown up by DL over Levy (Not surprising. Rutherford should take his take his starting spot once Hopkins and Vechery return. OTOH, UVA #9 was a beast all game. Saw last night...3.5 TFL)

• 3rd and 9 at CONN 45
  (13:51 - 1st) Bryant Shirreffs run for 8 yds to the Virg 47
  (shot gun, well covered. No receiver turned around until they got 1st down yardage.)

2nd Drive

• 1st and 10 at CONN 25
  (7:18 - 1st) Bryant Shirreffs run for 1 yd to the UConn 26
• (Should have been a quick pass. Well covered, but also well protected. Shirreffs may have been able to throw if he waited a second longer.)

• 2nd and 9 at CONN 26
  (7:18 - 1st) Bryant Shirreffs pass complete to Noel Thomas for 16 yds to the UConn 42 for a 1ST down
  Nice Play. Shot gun. Shirreffs hung in there. Was hit as he threw by #13. about 3.5 seconds Snap to Pass)
• 1st and 10 at CONN 42
  (7:18 - 1st) Ron Johnson run for no gain to the Virg 42 for a 1ST down VIRGINIA Penalty, personal foul (15 Yards) to the Virg 43 for a 1ST down
  (NB #21 beat Bloom to stop Johnson.)

• 1st and 10 at UVA 43
  (7:18 - 1st) Bryant Shirreffs run for a loss of 1 yard to the Virg 44
  (Pass Play call. Shotgun. Left side overloaded and broke down quickly. Poor pick up blocking by Cozier, Rutherford and Peart.)

• 2nd and 11 at UVA 44
  (7:18 - 1st) Bryant Shirreffs pass incomplete to Noel Thomas
  (Pass play and blitz. Nice job by the line. If the ball did not hit Thomas in the hands, it would have hit his face mask. Unacceptable).

• 3rd and 11 at UVA 44
  (7:18 - 1st) Bryant Shirreffs sacked by Micah Kiser and Zach Bradshaw for a loss of 4 yards to the Virg 48
  (Pass play and pressure. Nice job by the line and initial block by Newsome. Shirreffs steps up and is tackled by the guy Newsome originally blocked.)

3rd Drive

• 1st and 10 at CONN 25
  (12:42 - 2nd) Bryant Shirreffs pass complete to Hergy Mayala for 11 yds to the UConn 36 for a 1ST down
  (Pass Play. 3 man rush. Line did well. 3 sec. S2P.).
• 1st and 10 at CONN 36
  (12:42 - 2nd) Bryant Shirreffs pass complete to Ron Johnson for 3 yds to the UConn 39
  (Swing Pass. Decent execution).

• 2nd and 7 at CONN 39
  (12:42 - 2nd) Bryant Shirreffs run for a loss of 1 yard to the UConn 38
  (Supposed to be a read run option. Shirreffs kept the ball. Peart blown up by #9.)

• 3rd and 8 at CONN 38
• (12:42 - 2nd) Bryant Shirreffs pass incomplete to Ron Johnson
  (Couldn't tell if Johnson was the safety valve or 1st read on a screen. SNY's TV coverage is in love with the telephoto lens and focuses on the ball, but Johnson was well covered. Looks like the Slot was open too, but may not have achieved 1D yardage. plus he did a square out and would have been ripe for a TAINT on the long throw from the opposite hash).

4th Drive (Huskies on the Board).

• 1st and 10 at CONN 19
  (8:15 - 2nd) Arkeel Newsome run for a loss of 2 yards to the UConn 17
• (By this point UConn needs to key in in DL#9 - Andrew Brown. Unbalanced line left, but Brown blows by Levy like he's standing still. Hopkins and/or Vechery can't heal up fast enough).

• 2nd and 12 at CONN 17
  (8:15 - 2nd) Arkeel Newsome run for 38 yds to the UCONN 45 for a 1ST down VIRGINIA Penalty, face mask (15 yards) (Quin Blanding) to the Virg 30 for a 1ST down
• (Great execution. Peart is unbalanced right pushes Brown into the middle where he is sealed off Newsome runs right and counters left. Facemask =+15 yards.)

• 1st and 10 at UVA 30
  (8:15 - 2nd) Arkeel Newsome run for 19 yds to the Virg 11 for a 1ST down
  (Don't see Brown on the field and UConn takes advantage. Newsome cuts right to where Brown would have been and angles left through the 2nd and 3rd level. Good block by Lemelle.)

• 1st and 10 at UVA 11
  (8:15 - 2nd) Ron Johnson run for 4 yds to the Virg 7
  (nicely executed trap play. Rutherford pulls. UVa run blitz the weak-side LB. Good seal by Bloom and Knappe.)

• 2nd and 6 at UVA 7
• (8:15 - 2nd) Bryant Shirreffs run for 4 yds to the Virg 3
  (Shotgun. Looked like a called rollout pass. Peart is unbalance right, but Knappe can't pick up the blitz. May have been Levy's assignment. His man (#1) eventually closes off the middle from the scrambling Shirreffs. Bryant lowers his shoulder for an extra yard.)

• 3rd and 2 at UVA 3
  (8:15 - 2nd) SHIRREFFS, Bry. sacked for loss of 5 yards to the VA8 (KISER, Micah), PENALTY VA offside 1 yards to the VA2, NO PLAY.
  (Penalty was insignificant to play, but Shirreffs was slow to get up after getting flattened. Looked like UVa was stunting. Peart stayed with DE and DL kept pursuit once Shirreffs left the pocket. LB got the credit for the non-sack, but Rutherford never engaged a defender. Also, can't ask Ron Johnson to sustain a block vs a DL like that very often, but can't let the most valuable part of your team eat dirt like that either.)

• 3rd and 1 at UVA 2
• (8:15 - 2nd) Ron Johnson run for a loss of 2 yards to the Virg 4
  (Looked like there was a hole between Cozier Peart, but Johnson goes off Cozier's right hip following Rutherford who clogs up the hole. RJII cuts outside where the Nickleback shoots through whatever space RJII thought he saw. OTOH, if RJII breaks a tackle it very well may have been a TD. Eric Fried saying that Diaco wanted a measurement on the previous play after the penalty. Pi$$ed at refs.).

5th Drive (Final Drive of 1st half that means anything).

(Gresh got it wrong, IMO, on the fair catch. Returners are allowed a 2 yard halo, regardless. UVa player was very close to Lemelle. It should have been a penalty.).

• 1st and 10 at CONN 13
  (1:29 - 2nd) Bryant Shirreffs pass incomplete to Hergy Mayala
  (Great protection. Brown was bottled up on a double team and Shirreffs just overthrows Mayala, Mayala could have arguably caught it. Can't tell if the corner got a finger on it.)

• 2nd and 10 at CONN 13
• (1:29 - 2nd) Bryant Shirreffs sacked by Micah Kiser for a loss of 3 yards to the UConn 10
  (Blitz out of a prevent defense where the MLBs come through the A and B gaps on the Left side around Levy (surprise, Surprise) Johnson tried to chip #53 again. Brown lined up two yards outside Knappe and was a non factor. Couldn't see the coverage.)

• (1:11 - 2nd) Timeout VIRGINIA, clock 01:11

• 3rd and 13 at CONN 10
• (1:11 - 2nd) Bryant Shirreffs pass complete to Tyler Davis for 9 yds to the UConn 19
• (Davis lines up in the backfield and ends up in the flat. Unfortunately, he finds himself out of bounds, but it's not exactly his fault. Personally I would have either called for an initial readin the middle of the field (Mayala), but the entire 2nd line is guarding against a 1st down.)

• (1:05 - 2nd) Timeout CONNECTICUT, clock 01:05
  How do you not get lined up fast enough for a punt?

What I noticed through the 1st half is:
1. UConn ended 4/5 drives on 3rd and long and were 0-4 on 3rd Down. Coincidence? HA!! Need to convert 3rd downs, but it's much easier to convert 3rd and shorts.
2. Levy is Samra-like awful (responsible in my eyes for the sack to end the half too.). Time to give Dan Oak a shot? How can he be worse?
3. UVa #9 - Brown and UVa #53 Kizer were beasts. So blame cannot entirely be laid at UConn's feet, per se, but they are not entirely off the hook either.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

shotgun based WCO like the Giants and Packers run. Takes a bad line out of the equation.

If we had a two time Super Bowl MVP or a league and Superbowl MVP at quarterback I would be all for it.

 

[RedStickHusky]

Optimally you'd be capable of executing a variety of styles and then game plan to the opponent. Against a Houston, for example, I think the time of possession, keep them off the field and shorten the game philosophy might make sense. Against a Maine or Virginia, that same philosophy lets the opponent hang around in a game they otherwise might not. Whatever we're running though, we need more drives to end with points and we probably need to establish more of a vertical threat as early as possible to keep defenses from selling out in the box.

 

[JMick]

Optimally you'd be capable of executing a variety of styles and then game plan to the opponent. Against a Houston, for example, I think the time of possession, keep them off the field and shorten the game philosophy might make sense. Against a Maine or Virginia, that same philosophy lets the opponent hang around in a game they otherwise might not. Whatever we're running though, we need more drives to end with points and we probably need to establish more of a vertical threat as early as possible to keep defenses from selling out in the box.

It's really tough to set up the vertical passing game without a run game or setting it up through hitch'n'go's and sluggos

 

[FartMan69]

Get the ball out quickly and let the skill players make plays. The Pats have obliterated defenses getting the ball out to the flat or quick slants over the middle. They've managed with a make shift line and turned a college QB into a pro bowler. So basically just get the ball out quick.

 

[Redding Husky]

I prefer a big, athletic offensive line ... 6 yards and a cloud of dust.

 

[huskymedic]

Time to give Dan Oak a shot?

There was a passing reference that he's dinged and may be day-to-day.

 

[RedStickHusky]

It's really tough to set up the vertical passing game without a run game or setting it up through hitch'n'go's and sluggos

True, but if they can just figure you're not going to take any shots they can jump all the short routes and cheat into the box. Run to pass or pass to run, either way it's about making the defense defend more field.

 

[jdb50]

I would keep the plays with Shirreffs under center with 2 or 3 TE's to a minimum. Only one of Myers, Bloom, and Lee on the field at a time. Would rather see 3 WR's or 2 WR's and Davis to keep less defenders in the box. With our QB under center by the time he takes the snap and turns to make the hand off 5 yards back the blocking is breaking down, it is too slow. The QB sweeps take too long to get outside, just go to read option if that is what we want to do. Something I have been surprised at is having Davis be the holder on place kicks. With him playing from scrimmage I would think we would have a backup QB do this in case he get's dinged up.

 

[TouchdownHusky]

1. Recruit to your philosophy.
2. Coach to the strengths of the players you have.

We are #109 in the country in rushing yards/carry.

We are #5 in the country in completion percentage.

This suggests we should throw the damn ball more.

We have put up 5.7 points per half in the first halves of our three games (when trying to execute a power running attack).

We've scored 14.7 points per half in the second halves of games once forced to open up the passing attack.

This suggests we should throw the damn ball more.

This post is right on target. Throw the ball, throw the ball, throw the ball. Been saying for years, the quickest way to even the playing field in terms of talent (and UConn's offense hasn't shown that it has the necessary talent) is to get a QB and a couple of playmakers and spread the field with a lot of quick throws.

 

[freescooter]

I will say we seem to have a penchant for slow developing plays. Both running and passing seem to be designed that way. I'd like to see more short quick slants and outs. Virginia effectively ran some quick throws to their backs who went in motion turned up field and got the ball. Seems like Newsome would be perfect for those type of plays for example. The running attack also seems to rely on slow developing read and react plays rather than straight forward runs. Johnso in particular doesn't seem well suited for that type of running.