"This spring, and I hate it from coach Orlando, but it’s what we need as a team. We’re going to slow the defensive installation down a little bit. So, today was nothing but odd with quarters coverage. That was it, for however as many plays we went as a team. Thirty-two plays, something like that. Tomorrow will be nothing but four-down quarters, or man-free. Saturday, there will be very limited blitzes. We’ll progress very, very slowly, but we’re going to allow the offense to get at least comfortable."
This is going to surprise many of you, but I just don't have a hot take on the strategy Tom Herman is using to help aide his offense, which is still apparently in the baby steps phase of development, despite returning almost all of its starters.
All I have are a bunch of random thoughts about it that go in multiple directions and don't lead to any type of consensus position, so let's run through a few of the things that have been bouncing around in my head.
a. I've spent the last 36 hours pondering the situation and off the top of my head I can't ever remember a college or pro head coach admitting that he's essentially telling one side of the ball it has to play as basic and vanilla as possible because the other side of the ball can't handle it.
Ever.
We all know the offense is a mess, but for Herman to admit to the public that he's deliberately holding the defense back to benefit his offense is fascinating because of its honesty more than anything else. It speaks to the absolute vulnerability of one side of the ball in a way that should make everyone clear just how much development and remodeling the offensive side of the ball needs. If I'm an offensive player, I would be embarrassed that my head coach believes that my side of the ball is so poor that he's having to tell the defensive players to hold back.
b. If I'm Herman, I'd let my offensive side of the ball know, including my coaches, each and every day that he's holding back the defense until the offense has proven it can walk and chew gum at the same time. It could prove to be quite the motivating tool.
c. It says a lot about the confidence Tom Herman has in Todd Orlando that he believes his defensive coordinator can whip up an elite-level defense capable of carrying the squad in big games in a fraction of the time the offense will have to fully prepare for the same contests. Most coaches I've met believe there's no second of practice that can be wasted and each and every hour available must be used fully. That Orlando has to wait on installing the pieces of his defense that I'm sure he finds critical, while the offense takes baby steps, puts a lot of pressure on the second-year Texas defensive coordinator. It can't be something that Orlando is conceding without some push-back, it just can't.
d. I've written about this subject a lot over the few years and the response has often been that I'm making excuses for one side of the ball for the sake of making excuses, but since Tom Herman seems to subscribe somewhat to this line of questioning, I'll ask it again ... does having one side of the ball great in college football make it nearly impossible for the other side of the ball to match it?
I've always believed that one of the reasons the Alabama offense isn't a picture of sexiness is that it faces of against a great defense every single week in practice, which must make finding a rhythm on that side of the ball very difficult. The same is true about defenses that have to face elite offenses every day in practice.
Yes, quality competition should bring out the best in everyone, but if one side of the ball is simply superior to the other side of the ball (and it plays out that way on the practice field every day), then it's hard for the inferior side to truly improve if the only answer is to "get better."
It just doesn't seem to work that way.
If you're a developing quarterback and you're forced to play against an elite back seven on defense each day in practice, it's hard to make sizable progress if you're getting your passes knocked down or intercepted every other play. If you have a young defense and it finds itself matched up with an elite offense every day in practice, it's hard to make improvements if the offense has better players.
I'm not saying that it's impossible to have both a great offense AND a great defense in college football, but we sure don't see it very much. Those that can pull it off the best typically have a bunch of NFL players on both sides of the ball, which allows them to simply overwhelm competition with talent, but the number of programs that have that volume of NFL talent is probably limited to one hand's worth of fingers.
That Herman seems to have had these same thoughts and is trying to find ways to get around the rub of what having a bad ass defense means to his own offense is gutsy and unorthodox.
I guess my number one response to this entire situation is, "Hey, he's not banging his head into a wall by doing the exact same thing as the coaches did a year ago and expecting the results to change."
Number two
In addition to being a motivating tactic for the offensive players, I have to believe that it serves as one for the offensive coaching staff as well.
Imagine being an offensive coach and having your head coach tell you, "Well, we'll just have the defense play with both hands tied behind its back until you guys can get your players in a position to play against a defense that can use its hands."
Number three
Spread your wings and fly, Casey Thompson. You already have a president of your fan club in Alex Dunlap. I believe he called dibs on Tuesday.
Number four
This is what a five-star freshman wide receiver prospect looks like when he arrives on campus.
Number five
There's a very good chance that Lake Travis wide receiver Garrett Wilson will be the No. 1 player in the state in the next LSR 2019 rankings when updated next month.
Number six
I got a look into the world of being a parent of four-year old twins last night when we took the kids to San Antonio for the Disney Junior Dance Party at the Majestic Theater.
The times are a changing.
Number seven
Well, I have good news and bad news about my quest to lose about 50 pounds.
The bad news is that I didn't lose any weight this week. The combination of family coming into town and the twins having their fourth birthday simply put me in a position where I consumed foods that aren't on my list of acceptable foods, while using the 3Xfatloss.net program. A little birthday cake here, some Ritz crackers there and a bowl of cereal for dinner on one night left me in a position where I simply needed to get back on track.
The good news is that starting on Monday, I was able to get back into my 3X routine and after three straight nearly perfect days (I still need to drink more and more water), I feel like I'm on the right path. The better news is that while I fell off the wagon, I didn't binge at all and didn't gain any weight that I had previously lost.
Using the 3X teaching videos and the plan it has in place proved to be just what I needed. I didn't need to beat myself up, I just needed to get back on track.
Mission accomplished.
This is going to surprise many of you, but I just don't have a hot take on the strategy Tom Herman is using to help aide his offense, which is still apparently in the baby steps phase of development, despite returning almost all of its starters.
All I have are a bunch of random thoughts about it that go in multiple directions and don't lead to any type of consensus position, so let's run through a few of the things that have been bouncing around in my head.
a. I've spent the last 36 hours pondering the situation and off the top of my head I can't ever remember a college or pro head coach admitting that he's essentially telling one side of the ball it has to play as basic and vanilla as possible because the other side of the ball can't handle it.
Ever.
We all know the offense is a mess, but for Herman to admit to the public that he's deliberately holding the defense back to benefit his offense is fascinating because of its honesty more than anything else. It speaks to the absolute vulnerability of one side of the ball in a way that should make everyone clear just how much development and remodeling the offensive side of the ball needs. If I'm an offensive player, I would be embarrassed that my head coach believes that my side of the ball is so poor that he's having to tell the defensive players to hold back.
b. If I'm Herman, I'd let my offensive side of the ball know, including my coaches, each and every day that he's holding back the defense until the offense has proven it can walk and chew gum at the same time. It could prove to be quite the motivating tool.
c. It says a lot about the confidence Tom Herman has in Todd Orlando that he believes his defensive coordinator can whip up an elite-level defense capable of carrying the squad in big games in a fraction of the time the offense will have to fully prepare for the same contests. Most coaches I've met believe there's no second of practice that can be wasted and each and every hour available must be used fully. That Orlando has to wait on installing the pieces of his defense that I'm sure he finds critical, while the offense takes baby steps, puts a lot of pressure on the second-year Texas defensive coordinator. It can't be something that Orlando is conceding without some push-back, it just can't.
d. I've written about this subject a lot over the few years and the response has often been that I'm making excuses for one side of the ball for the sake of making excuses, but since Tom Herman seems to subscribe somewhat to this line of questioning, I'll ask it again ... does having one side of the ball great in college football make it nearly impossible for the other side of the ball to match it?
I've always believed that one of the reasons the Alabama offense isn't a picture of sexiness is that it faces of against a great defense every single week in practice, which must make finding a rhythm on that side of the ball very difficult. The same is true about defenses that have to face elite offenses every day in practice.
Yes, quality competition should bring out the best in everyone, but if one side of the ball is simply superior to the other side of the ball (and it plays out that way on the practice field every day), then it's hard for the inferior side to truly improve if the only answer is to "get better."
It just doesn't seem to work that way.
If you're a developing quarterback and you're forced to play against an elite back seven on defense each day in practice, it's hard to make sizable progress if you're getting your passes knocked down or intercepted every other play. If you have a young defense and it finds itself matched up with an elite offense every day in practice, it's hard to make improvements if the offense has better players.
I'm not saying that it's impossible to have both a great offense AND a great defense in college football, but we sure don't see it very much. Those that can pull it off the best typically have a bunch of NFL players on both sides of the ball, which allows them to simply overwhelm competition with talent, but the number of programs that have that volume of NFL talent is probably limited to one hand's worth of fingers.
That Herman seems to have had these same thoughts and is trying to find ways to get around the rub of what having a bad ass defense means to his own offense is gutsy and unorthodox.
I guess my number one response to this entire situation is, "Hey, he's not banging his head into a wall by doing the exact same thing as the coaches did a year ago and expecting the results to change."
Number two
In addition to being a motivating tactic for the offensive players, I have to believe that it serves as one for the offensive coaching staff as well.
Imagine being an offensive coach and having your head coach tell you, "Well, we'll just have the defense play with both hands tied behind its back until you guys can get your players in a position to play against a defense that can use its hands."
Number three
Spread your wings and fly, Casey Thompson. You already have a president of your fan club in Alex Dunlap. I believe he called dibs on Tuesday.
Number four
This is what a five-star freshman wide receiver prospect looks like when he arrives on campus.
Number five
There's a very good chance that Lake Travis wide receiver Garrett Wilson will be the No. 1 player in the state in the next LSR 2019 rankings when updated next month.
Number six
I got a look into the world of being a parent of four-year old twins last night when we took the kids to San Antonio for the Disney Junior Dance Party at the Majestic Theater.
The times are a changing.
Number seven
Well, I have good news and bad news about my quest to lose about 50 pounds.
The bad news is that I didn't lose any weight this week. The combination of family coming into town and the twins having their fourth birthday simply put me in a position where I consumed foods that aren't on my list of acceptable foods, while using the 3Xfatloss.net program. A little birthday cake here, some Ritz crackers there and a bowl of cereal for dinner on one night left me in a position where I simply needed to get back on track.
The good news is that starting on Monday, I was able to get back into my 3X routine and after three straight nearly perfect days (I still need to drink more and more water), I feel like I'm on the right path. The better news is that while I fell off the wagon, I didn't binge at all and didn't gain any weight that I had previously lost.
Using the 3X teaching videos and the plan it has in place proved to be just what I needed. I didn't need to beat myself up, I just needed to get back on track.
Mission accomplished.
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