Back-up for Woody
- Thread starter Cycsk
- Start date
I've said it before, but I'm convinced that our best chance to win is through a power running game. Not necessarily I formation, but developing maulers up front and finding more powerful runners. K-State in conference and the bowl season proved that most of our conference opponents can be bullied. Look at what an awful Minnesota team did to Tech and how Syracuse punished WVU. We are much more likely to recruit and develop guys who can succeed in that type of system than we are to find highly skilled passers and game-breaking receivers.
We had three good running backs with different skill sets and we did a poor job of utilizing them all. That's on Mess.
If our offense is ineffective because we are utilizing the wrong available personnel, that may be on Pope for a game or two. If it's that our personnel are not being optimally utilized because we are using the wrong offense, then it is on Mess.
When the offense has been this inefficient for multiple seasons, it is on the entire offensive staff and CPR.
After watching also-rans like Minnesota and Syracuse hand it to teams against whom we could not run the ball and watching our offense get pushed around by Tulsa ... I don't know how you can think we don't need to make some major changes.
He doesn't call the plays. If he decides its Woody time, and Mess decides to run zone read, that isn't Pope's call.
Depends on the definition of complete overhaul. When there are so many little things that need to be corrected in regards to fundamentals and schematics at every unit and phase, I would say a complete overhaul is needed.
I don't know a lot about fundamentals, but as far as schematically the offense IMO should still be a spread offense, it's what we have been recruiting for. But it's obvious that small changes are needed in terms of play calling and perhaps types of personnel.
I agree, and there's no reason we can't have the qb line up under center once in awhile and run some basic quick hitting run plays or qb sneak when needed, and that's on Mess. No reason not to run some play action passes from under center occasionally too to keep defenses honest. Woody could have done more for for this offense this year, and it reminds me of how Ryan Koch was wasted under McCarney until the Missouri game when he had to carry the ball due to injuries, and he showed what he could do. As far as Woody's replacement in a year, I think Joel Lanning could be a good one if he doesn't stay at qb. He will probably play in the 230-240 range and have good speed and running skills. He's got a strong arm, but was a lot more of a runner than a passer at Ankeny, and was a running back before he was a qb.
It seems like hes been stopped in short yardage plays as often as he has picked them up this year.
Part of that could be that he's been so seldom used for anything else and it's obvious to the defense what's coming when he comes in for a short yardage situation. Also I think you've got a better chance of converting short yardage from under center than out of the shotgun.
When the defense is playing Woody getting the hand-off in those situations, it is not going to be consistently successful. I was actually somewhat content with how often Mess used that anticipation against the defense.
Not this fallacy again. Our recruiting is not the NFL draft, never-mind the fact the results suggest our recruits do not fit this scheme. What exactly about our recruiting, which is to sign the best possible athletes and players, is innate to this system? We have WR recruits of all shapes and sizes. We use RBs of all manners, and recruiting a bigger back is one off-season away. All high school Olinemen need development, and any style of offense works with having mobile, physical, and skilled linemen. Our current scheme is not an equalizer in recruiting, if anything it is so flawed that worrying how our recruits fit is pointless.
I agree with this. The frequent posters seem to have built him up in their minds as this physical tackle breaking force, which isn't really the case. My observation was that he has most often went down with first contact/first defender. Even if you look at the runs against OK St he was tackled by the first defender he met. I think the game against KU this year he was more effective than he has ever been. He had a really nice mix of power and moves. I think he earned more carries that game. I get annoyed with the Shontrelle bashing. Sure he makes too many moves sometimes but he gets more yards after first defender than White and Woody combined and with our line that is necessary.
I've heard this a few times. Isn't there coordination between the personnel in the game and the play being called? If not, that explains why Woody goes left/right sometimes rather than forward (e.g. safety in first game against Tulsa). Doesn't quite make sense to me.
And Rodney Coe was a running back out of HS IIRC. But I believe we need him more at DE next year.
We don't have the tools for any other offense though. You have a major fallacy that we sign the best possible athletes we can get, which frankly isn't true. We, like most other college teams, recruit athletes for our system. We have purposely recruited smaller O-lineman. None of our current quarterbacks have played in another system to the best of my knowledge. It's pretty simple, if you change the system you start all over again. I think I've asked you this before but what system do you recommend we run? Obviously you must have another system in mind that would work better.
