So This Is What “Multiple” Looks Like
Since his arrival three years ago, Bo Pelini has said he expects his offense to be “multiple”. The fits and starts NU went through in this transition created a bit of an offensive identity crisis for the Huskers. At first, NU tried to be a power run team. Then, the 2008 offense flourished with Joe Ganz in the shotgun and throwing short passes to receivers. Call it the spread, if you must. But that’s what Nebraska became – ball control through throwing. Absent Ganz, last year’s offensive woes were born of a will to be a power run team again, but a lack of healthy offensive linemen and running backs to do it. So, now, in year number three, are we starting to see the vestiges of what Pelini’s “multiple” offense looks like?
A Myriad of Formations
Pop in the tape of Saturday’s game. You’ll see NU lined up in a number of formations and with a variety of personnel groupings. They went from both the shotgun and under center. They spread out four wide outs and had one back. They went two tight ends and two backs to get tough yards on third down.
What does that tell us? First, it is clear that they are not giving newly-minted starter Taylor Martinez the “training wheels” version of the offense. This is not going to be watered down. Next, it shows that NU has weapons in a number of key places. They have wide outs, backs, a tight end/slot/adjuster, and particularly a quarterback that can make plays. The point is to put pressure on the defense and force them to either substitute rapidly and often or face matchups they can’t win. Success will hinge on the quarterback’s ability to find that matchup. See? Multiple.
Multiple Runners
Where the dreaded NU multiplicity really shows up is in the run game. The Huskers rushed for 298 yards on Saturday. That’s good production. But it’s very different than the “run for 300, win the game” days of Osborne and Solich.
Unlike those days, the I-backs and quarterbacks were not the only or leading rushers. In fact, 11 different Huskers recorded rushes on Saturday. That number is inflated because three different quarterbacks and four different I-backs all played. But, the variety is clear. There are at least four players (sometimes five) on the field can carry the ball at any given time – the quarterback, I-back, the fullback (maybe someday!) either one of two different wide outs. As long speculated on this site, the receivers are now involved in the run game, as both Niles Paul and Tim Marlowe got carries Saturday.
What About Identity?
So, Nebraska might truly have a pick-your-poison multiple style of offense that Pelini has always wanted. But is that an identity? Do find identity, cut things down to their basic essence, their core fundamental. For Nebraska, that is the read option. Offensive coordinator Shawn Watson said as much this week, calling Nebraska an “option team” and alluding to the fact that this is what Husker fans have wanted to see for years (I swear he wanted to follow that with ... “Are you not entertained!?”).
Both the team and the fans can hang your hat on this fact – Nebraska’s offense is now defined by the quarterback run game (or the valid threat of it). If the 165 yards rushing by NU quarterbacks didn’t tell you that already, nothing will.
Yes, Nebraska will dress up the offense with a variety of personnel groups, options and match ups. That makes good sense to take advantage of their weapons and put pressure on a defense. But, Pelini – himself a defensive minded coach above all else – knows that few things are as challenging and as maddening for a defense then the threat of a quarterback run.
So Nebraska is a “multiple” offense, defined by the option play. At least for now.
9/9/2010
This comment is not regarding this post, but your 2010 stat leaders column. Who the heck is Alfonzo Evans?! We have an Alonzo Whaley, and Alfonso Dennard, and a Ciante Evans….but which one is it!? Sorry, I notice things like that… :)
9/9/2010
We must settle into an identity this year though. Last year I liked Watson 6 days a week and then came Saturday. I hope its not like that this year. I say Run first but that includes one of our two young QBs. It could be a special year.
9/9/2010
I wish people who write articles would research a little: osborne and Solich often ran wingback reverses, tightend reverses, fullback traps, etc out of just as many if not more sets. It is true that the running game is becoming slightly more sophisticated than the previous coach’s. Once again some research would reveal that pelini and Watson had a 2-day session with Osborne last offseason on how to structure a running attack. A little research goes a long ways and adds credibility to your writing. :)
9/9/2010
This is the rushing stat-line from the top nine rushers in 1985. The 1st number is # of games and then # of carries , then yards. There are rbs, fbs, wrs,tes on this list. The tenth leading rusher was actually an offensive lineman. :)
DuBose 10 203 1188 27 1161 5.7 116.1 51 8
Rathman 11 118 884 3 881 7.5 80.1 84 8
Miles 10 102 706 17 689 6.8 68.9 59 5
Sheppard 11 21 302 7 295 14.0 26.8 52 4
Clayton 11 83 399 109 290 3.5 26.4 43 5
K. Jones 10 38 249 9 240 6.3 24.0 33 3
Kaelin 11 17 137 0 137 8.1 12.5 72 2
S.Taylor 5 14 112 9 103 7.4 20.6 32 2
Kelley 9 22 95 2 93 4.2 10.3 12 1
9/9/2010
Hey there, Troy. Good point about the use of wingbacks as runners under Osborne, and frankly, under Devaney. Yes, I’m fully aware that everyone from “the Jet” to Shevin Wiggins got to be a ball carrier at one point. Osborne would line up in shotgun and direct snap it to the I-back. Was LP the first “wildcat”? Maybe.
Heck, T.O. used a guard to run the ball as a trick play. It was innovative because you never really knew who was getting it. Thank you for that very clear reminder.
Things were not nearly as innovative under Solich. Go look at the play charts when Lord and Crouch played. It was QB and RB based. In fact, with Crouch, it was almost all QB-run based. The fullback even disappeared. It was #7 left, #7 right. All day.
Don’t even get me started about how predicable it was under Callahan (3rd and more than 7? - middle screen to the back).
Missouri’s use of Maclin and Florida’s use of Harvin is really no different than Johnny the Jet on a WB counter, at least in principle. Everything old is new again, especially at Nebraska.
9/9/2010
Good take on the offense evolution under Pelini, but let me echo a few comments.
The running game TO devised was very advanced and complicated and it continued to evolve. Scott Frost was running a double wing shotgun spread a huge percentage of the time in 1997. 4 wide, QB draw traps, tunnel screens, etc…...That wrinkle didn’t exist in the 80s.
The speed option went away….
The wingback came and went, Power I football was big one year, disappeared the next. Personnel had a lot to do with this, of course.
But my larger point is complexity in the offense is relative. The TO offense was a very complex scheme, esp the blocking scheme. The past few years, under Billy C, the blocking scheme was actually more simple.
If you asked me, no team’s running scheme has matched the level of sophistication and multiplicity of TO during his era.
I sure hope it is true Watson and Pelini asked (and wanted) TOs feedback on designing plays. It would be a waste to not utilize one of the greatest offensive minds in modern football, especially when he is right down the hall and to date, his success has not been duplicated. He is still very relevant and probably his still will never cease to remain relevant to football.
I swear I caught TO with a shit-eating grin during a half-time interview last week. That kind of emotion is pretty uncharacteristic of him and perhaps the last month, switching to the B10 and watching physical smash mouth football return with an athletic QB is all he needed to feel he did his job and Nebraska is indeed back. No question Bo is heading toward the top of the football coaching profession, hopefully N gets all of his 10-15 prime years.
9/9/2010
“vestiges” should be “outlines” in this context.
Kansas City, MO
9/9/2010
I understand that the running scheme was very complex and had different looks in the past, but everyone and their grandma knew that Nebraska used to run the triple option, standard I formation down everyone’s throat. The one-off sets were to keep opponents honest on defense.
This multiple look is different in terms of “football philosophy” than anything the Huskers have run in the modern era. In a way it slightly concerns me. I do prefer it when a team has an offensive identity not tied to the mental abilities and athletic skills of a few key players. Thankfully kids now are growing up playing Madden on Playstation so their level of comprehension for a complex game is probably much better than it used to be. That way every player with athletic ability can step in and take over in case a starter goes down.
9/9/2010
Osborne was more like, “run for 500 yards, win the game.”
9/9/2010
I don’t like Watson trying to pass off the zone read as an “option” play. In colloquial English, yes it’s an option. But Nebraska fans speak football. Don’t patronize us. We are smarter than that. The zone read is not the option.
That being said, it’s a great play. Ask Vince Young. I would like to see stats on what percentage of Texas’ rushing yards came off the zone read the year they won the championship. I’m going to guess it was something between 60-75%. At times it seemed like that was the only running play they ran.
This:
“Absent Ganz, last year’s offensive woes were born of a will to be a power run team again, but a lack of healthy offensive linemen and running backs to do it. “
is backwards. The power run game was born of our offensive woes, not the other way around.
9/9/2010
Responses.
Patrick - Uh, yeah. Thanks for that. Probably should have chosen a better word.
TM - I feel you. Read option is not the same as the down the line option. But, I don’t think Watson was patronizing anyone. Remember, we saw some down-the-line option in the Holiday bowl last season. I wouldn’t be shocked at all to see Martinez run that play this season.
9/10/2010
Great article… a nice breakdown / education; just change the last “then” to “than” and switch “Do find identity” to “To find identity.” Thanks,
Frank
9/10/2010
First off, let me just say that I am not trying to be negative about things… but I can’t help thinking about what made those Osborne teams so consistently good.
Obviously there are TONS of factors go into that, but one stands out to me on the most basic level.
Those teams did ONE THING offensively (although in a very sophisticated manner) and did it WELL.
Now, sometimes the stars align and you truly can have difference-makers at all those positions. But for most college programs, that is a rare thing to accomplish. For instance, look at how much Texas went away from the running game the past few years because of McCoy’s arm.
This team may have all of the necessary parts this year, and that is very exciting. I just worry that at some point we might be fiddling with our Swiss Army knife while someone punches us in the face.