The Option...

[whiskeyboarder]

Just a quick* question to gauge opinion to assess whether anyone shares my hunch.

BTW, this may have been been discussed on a previous thread but, to be honest, so many other threads devolved into petty arguments that I often became discouraged from reading them in their entirety.

In any case... from what I have read here, it seems that quite a few of us noticed that the new option play that our offense ran was effective the couple of times it was implemented in the first half against UF.  I am referring to the triple option, and not necessarily the read option that USF has used previously, but did also on Saturday.

We were forced to abandon the running game a bit on Saturday in the second half as we were playing catch up.  However, is it possible, that we also stopped running the option, though effective, purposely?  This is my hunch, and perhaps it is a stretch.  But winning the UF game is no where near as essential to this program as being successful in the Big East this year (I guess that's debatable, but at the very least, being successful in the Big East is probably more doable for USF this year than beating UF...).  Given the composition of this year's roster, do you think it is possible that Coach Holtz judged the play effective and then moth balled it so as to keep it under wraps until the Big East season unfolds?  Is it possible that the option, and not just the read option version, may become a big part of our in-conference game plan? 

My theory is that we will see the option off and on during the next two games to allow us to maintain proficiency at game speed.  But it will mostly be kept hidden.  Then, during the Big East season, it may become a staple of our offense. 

It just seems too effective and too well catered to the make-up of this team not to use regularly.  It eliminates reliance on our weaknesses (WR and BJ's accuracy) and emphasizes our strengths (BJ's athletic ability, play makers like Murray and Lamar, and an athletic OL). 

In a previous thread, someone suggested that switching to an option offense midseason would be akin to throwing away the season.  I counter that I beleive Coach Holtz had the foresight to see the success that such an offense could have for this team and may have planted the seeds for its implementation BEFORE the season.

What do you think? 

Sorry for the lack of concision.

*Not so quick.

CLIFFS:

• Option worked well against UF in first half.
  
• We stopped running the option.
  
• I think we may be hiding how heavily we will rely on it to make it more effective during the Big East schedule.
  
• Your thoughts?
  

[Skingraft]

Yeah, started smelling that myself.....

[nobull.Bulls]

I thought it worked great with Lamar as the option.

I think we will see it occasionally, but I doubt it becomes a staple. Unless we add a pass option into the mix...

[whiskeyboarder]

I thought it worked great with Lamar as the option.

...

This is the play, in particular, I am referring to.  Referring to it as a "triple" option is probably incorrect, but I wanted to differentiate from the read option that this offense has ran since, at least, Grothe's freshman year.

You bring up a good point and, quite honestly, I don't have the football acumen to identify how to incorporate a passing game into this type of offense.

My mind, though, does boggle when I think of the options that this offense would have relying on the option.  I recall that we used to, occasionally, run an end-around, or reverse, with Taurus Johnson that tended to be effective.  Maybe I am going too "Mike Martz crazy" here, but I would love to see the same play, but with T-Rex getting some offensive playing time and being used in the TJ role. 

We have a ton of playmakers; its just a matter of utilizing them to their fullest to be effective, in my opinion.

[South_Florida_Flip]

Referring to it as a "triple" option is probably incorrect

In the truest sense of the triple option play it might be.

The read option is still part of the play we were running and then there is the "orbit motion" (see Greg's Blog) as the QB starts outside.

Very effective looking play. We were running into the second half with good success. I'm sure we'll see it plenty the rest of the season.

[whiskeyboarder]

...

The read option is still part of the play we were running and then there is the "orbit motion" (see Greg's Blog) as the QB starts outside.

Very effective looking play. We were running into the second half with good success. I'm sure we'll see it plenty the rest of the season.

Thanks for directing me to Greg's blog.  I just checked it out and it looks like two of his ten (11) points in reflecting upon the gametape refer to the success of the option.  So maybe I am on to something.  On maybe I am just remarking on something that is obvious to everyone else. 

[South_Florida_Flip]

If you could throw a passing part of that play in, say to the TE, then it would be extremely effective.

[whiskeyboarder]

If you could throw a passing part of that play in, say to the TE, then it would be extremely effective.

...And we saw Shields and Ketchel utilized, and I know that Coach is big on Gidrey from his ECU days, so maybe this is in the works as well.

[nobull.Bulls]

If you could throw a passing part of that play in, say to the TE, then it would be extremely effective.

Exactly. Florida added in a shovel pass to their option, which worked well for a year (it got stuffed all saturday and against Miami OH)

But with a TE running a slant or the WR on that side running deep, I think it could get very interesting

[usf97]

I am all for using the option more and have been calling for it since the Ronnie Banks era.....too bad we had to fire 3 or 4 Offensive Co-ordinators and a Head Coach before someone figured out a way to implement it.

I think a we should keep a good mix of it....I don't want to see the Tommie Frazier or Eric Crouch era implemented but a variation of it. I would agree....I hope we hold some of it back till the West Virginia game.