CC Eagle

Hey everyone... Not here to pile on. Just wanted to say it was a hell of a game. Us Georgia Southern fans honestly don't know what we just saw. We've had a couple of coaches try to be more pro style or pass-heavy, but we've never had it come together so quickly or seen it work so well. In nearly every other season of GS football, the couple of minutes left for the last drive would have been met with quick pitches to the boundary that everyone expected and lame duck throws downfield hoping for a miracle. If it's any consolation, we've got Wisconsin on the schedule next year. I hope to put this game out of everyone's mind while jumping around on the Badgers.

I'm a diehard college football fan. I'm well-versed in Nebraska football. I've even had some arguments with GS fans for having a stance that the I-formation Nebraska option of the early-mid 90s was more explosive and versatile than our flexbone. Rule changes have really reduced the effectiveness of the option and even the incentive to have a good running game, but - as an offense first guy - there's nothing more entertaining than watching highlights of an option team playing a good defense that just doesn't get how to stay on assignments or be accountable for their gaps.

Man... we could spend all day talking about what GS has or hasn't run for the last few years and all the different feelings that fans have. Here's the best cliff notes version I can give you. - GS totally abandoned the Paul Johnson flexbone triple option in 2006 when Brian Van Gorder was hired. He tried to force an under center, pro style offense with no consideration at all to personnel. We went 3-8 for our second losing season in modern history and BVG ran off that December. - Chris Hatcher (birthed out of the Hal Mumme air raid tree) came in next. He was smart enough to use our elite running quarterback, hybridizing his pass heavy offense into a spread option scheme that worked pretty well. But the next two years devolved into a pass-heavy offense that never got explosive. - Jeff Monken took over and brought back the flexbone. He basically willed us to two consecutive FCS semifinal runs through threats and intensity. We had a lot of talent that had to be reconfigured to work in the flex and he managed it well. - Monken was hired away by Army and Willie Fritz was hired for our first season as an FBS school in 2014. Fritz's staff opened up the formations and tactics, but still leaned heavily on the option and had the offense ripping off huge plays left and right. GS went 8-0 in conference play in its first FBS season and went 9-3 with a GoDaddy Bowl win in 2015 in our first season of bowl eligibility. - Fritz left for Tulane ahead of the 2015 bowl game. Tyson Summers was hired and everything went to pieces. GS started 2016 3-0, but Summers and his staff managed to neuter the offense despite nearly everyone from the previous season returning. Summers and his OCs preached that they were running an option offense despite it being very obvious that they were dying to do something else... You'd get 5-10 totally forced option pitches per game, followed by ineffective QB-read plays and no blocking when it came time to pass. - Summers went 2-7 after the quick start in 2016 and was canned halfway through 2017 after starting 0-6. Chad Lunsford took over as interim and seemed to spark morale, winning two games down the stretch. - Lunsford had never been higher than Special Teams Coordinator/Asst. HC, but he took a still-talented team and rode it to a 10-3, bowl-winning season in 2018. He got the team to bowl games in both 2019 and 2020, but his staff didn't recruit well and the high morale couldn't make up for the lack of talent last season. The fanbase barometer also waned as he took a page from Summers and insisted that we were a "gun-option", "run-first" team despite the game plan usually not looking like that. - Clay Helton was named new HC midway through 2021, but stayed away from the team and allowed our interim to play out the season before Helton made any staff decisions or involved himself in practices or game planning. - It's safe to say that the option is no longer in the picture. We have some QBs farther down the depth chart that are mobile (and maybe run-first), but Vantrease isn't looking to run or pitch. MAYBE, he'll pull a handoff for a naked boot if he sees the perfect storm of offensive and defensive alignments. - We still have some very good running backs, but the OL is more focused on pass protection and the running game will look like very basic inside/outside zone and not a misdirection or option attack.

Georgia Southern fan checking in. None of us are sure what to expect on Saturday. Some are freaking out about looking pretty bad for looking shaky for most of the first half vs. Morgan State and don't want to hand out any credit for a much better second half and the fact that the defense didn't allow a point. Some are conveniently ignoring our own ongoing questions about how well our D-line or new offense can perform and instead directing manic energy towards Nebraska's own fanbase angst. Personally, I think it's all about how the line play goes. If GS can keep Vantrease comfy in the pocket, we have some guys who can make big plays if given the chance to run around in space. Similarly, it seemed like Northwestern turned the tide when they were able to at least make Thompson roll out or throw without his feet totally under him. Our secondary is our strength and almost all of our DBs are effective vs. both the run and the pass, but it will go a long way towards our chances if the front 6-7 can keep the run game in check and allow our secondary to keep passes in front of them and bide their time for the chance to make impact plays.