While the spread offense has taken over college football, more programs should focus on an older style of offense in order to turn their fortunes around. One way that college football teams can level the playing field against schools with superior recruiting capabilities would be to follow Navy’s lead and run the option on offense.
The spread offense gained popularity because it evened the playing field between the “haves” and the “have-nots” in college football. The biggest advantage that the power programs have in college football is on the lines. The traditional powers are able to stock their rosters with the top offensive and defensive linemen in the country.
Before the spread, the top programs were able to pummel the lesser teams with dominant offensive and defensive lines. The spread negated the need to have top linemen on both sides of the ball.
When the quarterback is getting the ball out of his hands in less than three seconds, you do not need to have offensive linemen who can pass block for five seconds. The wide splits that spread teams use along their offensive lines increase the distance between the defensive linemen and the quarterback. That negates the opponents pass rush.
The option offense can do the exact same thing for a program. The option spreads defenses out horizontally and makes them defend the entire field, just as the passing spread offense does.
To defense the option, a defense must display a lot of discipline throughout the entire game. Every defender has to take care of his responsibility and lane on every play or the defense is going to give up a big play.
Navy was matched up against Middle Tennessee State in the 2013 Armed Forces Bowl. Both teams entered the game at 8-4. Navy is not able to recruit the same kind of athletes that MTSU can because the athletes have to conform to Naval Academy standards.
Middle Tennessee State had more speed than Navy as a team, but Navy beat the Blue Raiders 24-6 to win the bowl game. The Midshipmen rushed for 366 yards and three touchdowns against the MTSU defense.
The Blue Raiders kept the game close in the first half. Navy ground the MTSU defense into submission in the second half and outscored the Blue Raiders 14-0 after halftime.
Middle Tennessee State had an entire month to prepare for Navy’s offense yet they were still unable to stop it. Blue Raider head coach Rick Stockstill stated that preparing for Navy is a special challenge. “It is hard to simulate on the scout team what Navy does,” Stockstill said.
What Navy does, is run the ball well and wear opposing defenses out. The Midshipmen are No. 2 in the country with an average of 332 yards rushing per game. They average 5.5 yards per rush attempt.
Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo has set multiple academy records for winning during his six-year tenure in Annapolis. He has used the option offense as the cornerstone of his program, and has composed a 49-30 overall record with five bowl appearances in six seasons as head coach.
Since so few teams use the options these days, any team that runs the offense will be tough to prepare for. If Navy is hard to prepare for in a month, then imagine trying to prepare for them in a week.
Other programs could have the same consistent success as the Naval Academy if they switched to an option offense. Plenty of teams like Ohio State and Oregon use aspects of the option in their zone-read spread offenses, but only Georgia Tech and the service academies use the option as the primary component of their offense.
When you run the option you grind up yards and time of possession. A good option offense can cover up defensive weaknesses because the long, drawn out drives on offense will keep the opposing team’s offense on the sideline.
The athletic directors at the smaller FBS programs need to pay attention to what is going on at Navy. If the Naval Academy with all of their restrictions can win games by running the option, then there is no reason why programs like Louisiana Tech, Florida International and Tulane should shy away from trying it.
Athletics are the front porch to a university. If a team wins football games and qualify for a bowl game, then they will garner national attention to the university that they represent. The option offense can help put colleges on the map and should be more prevalent in college football today.
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