The Option Offense - Making a Comeback?

[knapplc]

We may have simply capitalized on the steroid issue a bit more than the other teams due to a S&C program that was well ahead of its time. The juice doesn't do much without the iron...

 

Everybody's a bit testy about the steroid issue, eh?

I've had the steroid conversation at a baseball forum (not here) about 100 times. I'm done with it. The genie's out of the bottle, and it's not going back in.

[307husker]

I suppose I should have known what you talk about on other forums... My bad.

[zoogs]

I love the option as well, but we are recruiting serious talent to Nebraska at the same time. It's all in what we make of it. I feel that Stew had a really oversimplified view of this. When he said "If NU ran the option last year, they would have won the Big 12," for instance. Yea, maybe....or maybe we would have lost three more games. You just never know.

 

Is the offense a notably more simple offense to begin with? I feel like that's selling a very intricate system short. Especially since we weren't in our heyday really a triple option team or anything, like the service academies, but a power offense that incorporated the option. A lot is still on the QB's shoulders.

 

In our offense, for example, it's sort of the same thing, isn't it? Backs, linemen, and receivers have their craft, but scheme wise the guy with the most on his shoulders is the QB. I feel like this is true regardless of the offense. No matter what kind of offense we run, it's sort of live-or-die by the QB, and if you have a liability at QB, it's a tough situation you better hope you're able to overcome with an unusually stout running game and a conservative gameplan. Sort of the nature of football, isn't it?

 

Additionally, I don't get the point at all about how running the option obviates certain recruiting needs. Large, athletic OL, for one thing. We've been over this in this thread, as well as how we thrived on being physically dominant from the OL, something we can't be any more, not to that degree. And strong armed QBs? It might mean we don't need pure pocket passers, but it means we need electric dual-threats who are smart, tough leaders and the better their arm strength and passing ability, the better for us. It's just sort of substituting one need for another. We will still need to find exceptional QBs, and those are in rare supply no matter what kind of offense you run.

[dubsker]

The option game, a solid inside run game, and the ability to pass would be a thing of beauty.

 

It was...

 

And hopefully it will happen again very soon.

 

 

well, its always good to keep your options open.

 

Unfortunately, to run the option as a thing of beauty requires a lot of practice. There's only so many hours in the day so I'm not sure if any college offense can ever truly be a jack of all trades. There are a lot more qb's who can run and throw very well these days, though, so maybe. I just think it would be really hard to do all aspects of a multiple offense at an elite level (thinking Texas Tech's ability to spread the field and pass coupled with a TO like option offense). I would love for Watson to prove me wrong though. That would be great.

 

I personally would settle for being an effective passing team with a good power run game under center.

 

I got a kick out of this. Seems that boring old offense we used to run - and used to get mocked for running in the "modern" era - is now all the rage. So much so that Stewart Mandel and Andy Staples wrote a blurb about it in their latest project:

 

 

9. Option offense: Ready for a comeback?

 

The future won't belong solely to the pro/spread hybrid. As the spread flourished this past decade, defenses adjusted. More teams adopted a 3-4, allowing more flexibility to spy a quarterback who might double as a fullback.

 

That shift in defensive philosophy means it's time for a new-old offensive fad. And since bell-bottoms and platform shoes have already enjoyed minor renaissances, it seems only fair that coaches bring back that staple of the '70s football experience: the option. We're not talking about the occasional pitch play. We're talking about the holy trinity of the dive back, quarterback keeper or pitch.

 

Paul Johnson, who probably has leisure suits and tearaway jerseys in his closet, has proven at Navy and Georgia Tech that the option still works. How well? In Johnson's second season at Tech, he won the ACC title.

 

Most people think the option is a boring, grind-it-out scheme. Not true, said Tom Osborne, an option aficionado who coached Nebraska to national titles in 1994, 1995 and 1997. "Most of the zone plays you see now, if you block things perfectly, you may make seven, eight, nine yards," Osborne said. "If somebody misses a tackle, you might go a long way. In option football, if you execute correctly, you've got enough people to block everybody and theoretically score a touchdown on most every option play."

 

The option could be the answer for teams that recruit great defenses but struggle to assemble great offenses -- we're looking at you, Nebraska and North Carolina. Had Nebraska run the option last year, the Cornhuskers probably would have won the Big 12 title.

 

The three rarest specimens on the recruiting trail are, in order, elite defensive tackles, strong-armed quarterbacks and large, athletic offensive linemen. Nebraska already recruits elite defensive tackles, so that's not an issue. Running the option eliminates the need for the other two. Teams wanted former Cornhuskers quarterback Tommie Frazier as a safety, and he won two national titles running the option. Meanwhile, there is an ample supply of athletic, 6-foot-3, 280-pound linemen -- ideal for the trapping and cutting required by the option -- being ignored by most big-time programs. So what's the holdup? Johnson already has proven the option can work in a BCS conference. It's time to bring it back on a grand scale.

 

It's funny how people still don't seem to get what Osborne was doing, though. Claiming that the Option offense eliminates the need for "athletic" linemen is absurd. Other than that, I thought this was pretty entertaining.

 

I think what he's saying is when you have an offense like Navy's or Georgia Tech's, the blocking techniques allow you to have smaller linemen that really get off the ball quickly as your scheme is built around outnumbering the defense at the point of attack. The blocking schemes and techniques make size a little less make or break.

[bshirt]

We had large, athletic linemen.

 

But now they test for steroids...

People are kidding themselves if they blame only one or only a few select teams for steroid abuse. There have been reported juicing cases at many division one football schools. Everybody did it. We had some steroid abusing linemen, but you can bet your last dollar that they faced some serious defensive linemen that juiced as well.

 

As far as the topic at hand, I love the option. It is a relatively simple offense to execute with easy to learn blocking schemes that can be perfected quickly. It favors schools that aren't recruiting hotbeds for talent.

 

Think about it. This team is based in Lincoln, Nebraska. It is a relatively small city in a state that has a relatively small population. The talent here isn't grand by any means, which makes recruiting difficult. Schools like Texas, Florida, USC, etc. have access to the talent to run whatever offense they want. But, when you live in a state that doesn't offer the same pleasantries, it makes sense to run an offense that doesn't require an abundance of highly rated talent.

 

Amen!!

 

It's depressing to know we dumped an awesomely successful smashmouth-option offense that worked beautifully at NU for decades for...ahem....well, what we have now.

 

Of course, we can continue to pretend we have and will always have Florida/USC/etc five star talent at all the skill positions. We then can continue to generate 10,000 excuses for marginal at best offensive production (especially when we're not playing SunBelt teams). Also when our qb is not a senior. Not to mention the advantage of recruiting and developing road graders that will spend most of their practice time on run blocking.

 

But there's hope. If TO & Bo start to take control of the offense and return to some kind of power running with various options (heh) then NU will return to it's rightful premier status as a consistent top 5 program.

 

I think it will really happen!

 

Ok, I'm off the soapbox....I just couldn't resist.

 

GBR!!

[Hercules]

You might want to re-read the final paragraph. He claimed that LARGE athletic linemen aren't required by the option, and that there are a lot of athletic linemen in the 6-3, 280# range that we would have our pick of since other schools overlook them.

We had large, athletic linemen. It's a minor thing, but something I noticed.

 

On some of those mid-90's teams, Nebraska's linemen were plenty big, but not the kind of linemen other teams recruit. If you're running a pro-style offense, you're looking for guys that were 6'6" or 6'7" and have huge wingspans. Nebraska's dominant lines in the mid-90's were more stout, and they had great feet. They generally ranked more in the 6'2" range. So it is a different type of athlete. However, I have no idea if the type of athlete we had on offensive line in the mid-90's was any more rare than your typical pro-style offense lineman.

 

As far as the option offense goes, it's still the toughest offense to defend when it's run correctly.

[HuskerNMO]

We had large, athletic linemen.

 

But now they test for steroids...

People are kidding themselves if they blame only one or only a few select teams for steroid abuse. There have been reported juicing cases at many division one football schools. Everybody did it. We had some steroid abusing linemen, but you can bet your last dollar that they faced some serious defensive linemen that juiced as well.

 

As far as the topic at hand, I love the option. It is a relatively simple offense to execute with easy to learn blocking schemes that can be perfected quickly. It favors schools that aren't recruiting hotbeds for talent.

 

Think about it. This team is based in Lincoln, Nebraska. It is a relatively small city in a state that has a relatively small population. The talent here isn't grand by any means, which makes recruiting difficult. Schools like Texas, Florida, USC, etc. have access to the talent to run whatever offense they want. But, when you live in a state that doesn't offer the same pleasantries, it makes sense to run an offense that doesn't require an abundance of highly rated talent.

 

Amen!!

 

It's depressing to know we dumped an awesomely successful smashmouth-option offense that worked beautifully at NU for decades for...ahem....well, what we have now.

 

Of course, we can continue to pretend we have and will always have Florida/USC/etc five star talent at all the skill positions. We then can continue to generate 10,000 excuses for marginal at best offensive production (especially when we're not playing SunBelt teams). Also when our qb is not a senior. Not to mention the advantage of recruiting and developing road graders that will spend most of their practice time on run blocking.

 

But there's hope. If TO & Bo start to take control of the offense and return to some kind of power running with various options (heh) then NU will return to it's rightful premier status as a consistent top 5 program.

 

I think it will really happen!

 

Ok, I'm off the soapbox....I just couldn't resist.

 

GBR!!

 

The magic of the option offense at Nebraska left when TO retired. Sure, we had some good years with it under Solich, but he and the staff couldn't keep it going. The true brilliance wasn't just the players, and the X's and O's, but rather the coaching staff that spent decades together perfecting the teaching and practice of it, along with TO's playcalling abilities.

[HuskerJosh]

Wasn't Nebraska one of the first schools to implement steroid testing?

[Scratchtown]

I got a kick out of this. Seems that boring old offense we used to run - and used to get mocked for running in the "modern" era - is now all the rage. So much so that Stewart Mandel and Andy Staples wrote a blurb about it in their latest project:

 

 

9. Option offense: Ready for a comeback?

 

The future won't belong solely to the pro/spread hybrid. As the spread flourished this past decade, defenses adjusted. More teams adopted a 3-4, allowing more flexibility to spy a quarterback who might double as a fullback.

 

That shift in defensive philosophy means it's time for a new-old offensive fad. And since bell-bottoms and platform shoes have already enjoyed minor renaissances, it seems only fair that coaches bring back that staple of the '70s football experience: the option. We're not talking about the occasional pitch play. We're talking about the holy trinity of the dive back, quarterback keeper or pitch.

 

Paul Johnson, who probably has leisure suits and tearaway jerseys in his closet, has proven at Navy and Georgia Tech that the option still works. How well? In Johnson's second season at Tech, he won the ACC title.

 

Most people think the option is a boring, grind-it-out scheme. Not true, said Tom Osborne, an option aficionado who coached Nebraska to national titles in 1994, 1995 and 1997. "Most of the zone plays you see now, if you block things perfectly, you may make seven, eight, nine yards," Osborne said. "If somebody misses a tackle, you might go a long way. In option football, if you execute correctly, you've got enough people to block everybody and theoretically score a touchdown on most every option play."

 

The option could be the answer for teams that recruit great defenses but struggle to assemble great offenses -- we're looking at you, Nebraska and North Carolina. Had Nebraska run the option last year, the Cornhuskers probably would have won the Big 12 title.

 

The three rarest specimens on the recruiting trail are, in order, elite defensive tackles, strong-armed quarterbacks and large, athletic offensive linemen. Nebraska already recruits elite defensive tackles, so that's not an issue. Running the option eliminates the need for the other two. Teams wanted former Cornhuskers quarterback Tommie Frazier as a safety, and he won two national titles running the option. Meanwhile, there is an ample supply of athletic, 6-foot-3, 280-pound linemen -- ideal for the trapping and cutting required by the option -- being ignored by most big-time programs. So what's the holdup? Johnson already has proven the option can work in a BCS conference. It's time to bring it back on a grand scale.

 

It's funny how people still don't seem to get what Osborne was doing, though. Claiming that the Option offense eliminates the need for "athletic" linemen is absurd. Other than that, I thought this was pretty entertaining.

 

 

always liked our offense but under solich we became slow at it in the later years. guy couldn't recruit the speed Osborne was able to.

dedhoarse

[Lil' Red]

If we were to fire Watson I think we might want to try going to the option. Navy and Georgia Tech have shown it still works and we have the QB's for it.

[HuskerNCo]

'The magic of the option offense at Nebraska left when TO retired'.

It ain't coming back. Jeez, let it go people, let it go. please...

[omahapanda]

Of course the option can still work, and work well, within a college system. One only needs to look at what Navy did to Missouri last year.

 

I am not personally, however, a fan of the wingbone, which is what Johnson runs. Osborne ran it sparingly, mostly when Fryar was there.

[bshirt]

'The magic of the option offense at Nebraska left when TO retired'.

It ain't coming back. Jeez, let it go people, let it go. please...

 

Yeah, thank God it's gone and not coming back. Now we've got all those awesome horizontal passes and a running threat that does great vs SunBelt teams.

 

 

TO or Solich for 31 years never had an offense that could match last year.

[HuskerNMO]

'The magic of the option offense at Nebraska left when TO retired'.

It ain't coming back. Jeez, let it go people, let it go. please...

 

Yeah, thank God it's gone and not coming back. Now we've got all those awesome horizontal passes and a running threat that does great vs SunBelt teams.

 

 

TO or Solich for 31 years never had an offense that could match last year.

 

Notice I said at Nebraska, the option offense by itself isn't a miracle worker, but it can be effective. It just ticks me off when people think the option itself made Nebraska effective, it was TO and the coaching staff that did it! There were TONS of teams in the 70's, 80's and 90's that ran it with little success. Heck, even when TO didn't have the proper athletes it sometimes didn't work, especially in big games. And it was even worse when Solich took over, our 2003 offense was arguably worse than our 09 offense, and our 2002 offense was pretty bad also.

 

2003

24.8 PPG

345 YPG

4.9 Yards Per Play

24 Turnovers

37% 3rd Down Conversion %

 

2002

27.4 PPG

373 YPG

5.4 Yards Per Play

24 Turnovers

37% 3rd Down Conversion %

 

2009

25.1 PPG

323 YPG

5.2 Yards Per Play

23 Turnovers

38% 3rd Down Conversion %

[huskers17]

I'd love to see a return to that style of play...It really does make it easier to recruit QBs (you could take LaTravis Washington, Taylor Martinez and other ATH/QB type guys each year and let them do what they do best.), and it's a good way to control the tempo of the game.

 

The only real drawback of the option offense is the inability to play catch up or generate quick scores. You really have to have a good defense in order to keep the other team in check while you execute your game plan. I truly believe that the running game and a good defense is still the most effective way to win games consistently...but I grew up watching the Bears and Cornhuskers, so I may be biased