Dan Patrick gave Dana Holgorsen a great idea
The whole interview is pretty good; but listen to this final exchange. Nice idea Dan...
Interesting study on tempo in college football
As more and more offensive coordinators in college football subscribe to the "I want to go fast!" teachings of a young Ricky Bobby, we must pause to ask an important question: does getting to the line of scrimmage faster help a team win more games? If so, does that mean the opposite holds true as well?
The team at FootballStudyHall.com examined the fastest and slowest offenses in college football in terms of plays per minute of possession. Houston led the country with 3.28 plays per minute of possession, well ahead of second-place Oregon, while New Mexico was the slowest team in college football at 1.92 plays/mop.
While the studies dives into other offshoots of this discussion, we decided to examine the 10 fastest and slowest offenses and see how those stats correlate with wins and losses.
Fastest Teams by Plays per Minute of Possession
1. Houston - 3.28, 5-7
2. Marshall - 3.20, 5-7
3. Louisiana Tech - 3.15, 9-3
4. Arizona - 3.05, 8-5
5. Baylor - 3.01, 8-5
6. Indiana - 2.95, 4-8
7. Oregon - 2.92, 12-1
8. Oklahoma State - 2.85, 8-5
9. Clemson - 2.84, 11-2
10. Akron - 2.83, 1-11
Combined, those teams went 71-54
10 Slowest Teams by Plays per Minute of Possession
1. New Mexico - 1.92, 4-8
2. Auburn - 1.96, 3-9
2. Florida - 1.96, 11-2
4. Alabama - 1.99, 13-1
5. Western Kentucky - 2.00, 7-6
6. Kansas State - 2.02, 11-2
7. Wisconsin - 2.05, 8-6
8. Maryland - 2.06, 4-8
9. Utah - 2.07, 5-7
10. Michigan - 2.09, 8-5
The tortoise group checks in at 74-54, nearly identical to the collection of hares at the top.
Admittedly this is a small sample size prone to outliers (for instance, New Mexico's 4-8 season brings the average down but was actually a smashing success on the field) but delving that deep into the numbers is beyond the point. Like anything else in football, offensive pace is much more about execution than scheme. It's not about how fast you get to the line of scrimmage, it's about what you do after the ball is snapped.
Read the full study here.
Video: D-III school goes through basic training
St. Lawrence University, a Division III school in upstate New York, has developed a special relationship with the Fort Drum Army base that they hope has helped them develop an edge to help them come fall.
Fort Drum, one of the largest bases in the Northeast, welcomed the St. Lawrence football team to their base and ran them through their basic training as well as some leadership workshops. Many FBS programs like Michigan, Toledo, and NC State instilled military style workouts last off season and coaches that we talk to love the mental edge that it gives their guys.
The coaching staff at St. Lawrence tells us that their guys were pushed to their limit and beyond, and the mental toughness and leadership qualities that they've derived from the workouts has been a huge asset so far, and will surely continue to pay off come Saturday's in the fall.
Take a look at some of the things that these small college athletes went through during the training. The overwhelming favorite for the players was the "pugil stick battles" around the 3:05 mark (and it's easy to see why).
Pretty impressive stuff.
Sick new video recruits will eat up
Is your program doing these kinds of videos? If so let us know, if not, why not?
Everything you need to know about the College Football Playoff
The commissioners have met in Pasadena for the past few days and finalized every piece of information that will be finalized about the upcoming four-team playoff. Here's what we know at this point.
Who: The top four college football teams in America, as chosen by a selection committee. The "who" of that committee has yet to be determined, although common knowledge indicates it will be a group of 15-to-20 athletic directors, former coaches and the like. Each of the five power conferences will get to submit a list of names, from which the powers that be will form a committee. Executive director Bill Hancock said Wednesday that, in lieu of weekly BCS standings, the committee will release a set of standings three or four times per season.
What: The playoff will officially be known as College Football Playoff. What the name lacks in creativity, it more than makes up for in versatility. Nowhere in the name will you find any sort of scope on the playoff - it doesn't claim to give a way a championship, like the Bowl Championship Series did, it doesn't claim to represent any sort level of the sport, the letters N, C, A and A are absent, and there's no number, so nothing will need to be changed should the field change down the road. It's simply a playoff of college football teams. Worth nothing in the life and times that we live in is that College Football Playoff is also perfectly equipped for search engine optimization. When someone consults Google to learn more about the college football playoff, the College Football Playoff will be the first link they see.
When: Starting at the end of next season and continuing through 2026(?), the semifinals and host bowls will lay claim to New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, provided neither of those days fall on a Sunday. The new system offers back-to-back triple-headers, and more often than not the actual semifinals will fall on New Year's Eve. The championship game will take place the following Monday (the day after NFL Wild Card weekend concludes), which in the first cycle will be Jan. 12, 2015.
Where: That's what was officially finalized on Wednesday. The Rose, Sugar and Orange bowls were already part of the process, and yesterday the Cotton, Fiesta and Peach (which will officially revert away from Chick-fil-A to gain inclusion into the process) joined the party as well. The Rose and Sugar bowls will host semifinals in the same year, while the Orange and Cotton will partner up and the Fiesta and Peach will take the remaining spot in the cycle. The Rose and Sugar bowls will always be on New Year's afternoon and night regardless of whether or not they're hosting a semifinal in a given year, so that means in two out of every three years the semifinals will be on New Year's Eve.
The championship game is open to bid on an annual basis. Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, will host the inaugural College Football Championship, and those on the ground in Pasadena place Tampa as a heavy favorite to get the game in 2016 or 2017. The powers that be stated sights for the 2016 and 2017 title games could be chosen in September.
In the first year of the cycle, the Peach, Orange and Fiesta bowls will be played on Dec. 31, 2014, while the Cotton, Rose and Sugar (the latter two being semifinals) will be played the following day.
Why: There are a myriad of reasons for this, but the most forefront is that the commissioners finally realized it was really tough for fans and students to attend a BCS game on a Wednesday night after the holidays were over.
How: The committee will announce the top four teams (along with their complete rankings) on the Sunday after the conference championship games. The Nos. 1 and 2 teams are guaranteed to not be at a geographic disadvantage. For instance, in a year where the Rose and Sugar bowls host the semifinals, a No. 3 LSU would not be in the Sugar Bowl. The committee smartly placed one bowl on each side of the country in each slot of the rotation.
Video: Mike Yurcich explains his style and philosophy
Excellent interview here with new Oklahoma State offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich detailing his offensive philosophy, his coaching style, and what has impressed him about the facilities in Stillwater, beyond just the nuts and bolts.
While the overall scheme may not appear to have changed a whole lot, Gundy has noted over the course of spring ball that the tempo has been taken to a whole new level under Yurcich.
It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see what Mike Gundy saw when he decided to bring Yurcich on board. He gets it, and it will be interesting to see what kind of product he's able to put on the field in the fall.
In the film room with Buckeye offensive coordinator Tom Herman
In his first season in Columbus, Tom Herman's Ohio State offense scored more points than any other Big Ten team (over 37 ppg), and finished third in the conference in total offense, averaging nearly 424 yards per game. Coming off a 12-0 season (and no more ban on postseason play), expectations are as high in Columbus as they've ever been.
Gerry DiNardo of the Big Ten Network sat down with Herman to talk about the uniqueness of the Buckeye offensive attack, and Herman also walks through their version of the inside zone play, some play action, and explains his grading system for looking at film.
This clip may be just five minutes long, but you can tell that Herman has a bright career ahead of him.
Mic'd up at Washington with offensive coordinator Eric Kiesau
Washington has done an excellent job with their mic'd up session all off season, and as spring practices come to a close for teams across the country, it becomes easier and easier to appreciate some good on the field coaching.
Offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach Eric Kiesau provides that quality instruction and some really good energy in this clip.
