2016 Starting Lineup Projection

[mcgufcm 4,096]

Taking the read away minimizes bad reads and exchange mishaps. On the former, giving a read just introduces an element of unpredictability in a good or a bad way. If I have a dominant offensive line, a bad read might be the only way to blow the play. If I trust my guys to create the gap where I want the gap, why risk the play by adding a read? Just run the ball who you want to run the ball.

On the latter, ballhandling is a true skill. Nick's ability to ride the back down the line, pull, and hit the hole was damn near black magic. Some QBs are fumble-prone. Some QBs are just bad at the deception element of the read, which makes the play easier to diagnose. Read plays take longer to develop, and if those plays are easier for the defense to diagnose (i.e., it's easy to find the ball), all you've done is give them a running start.

Those are just two reasons. Another reason to eliminate the read is if a guy isn't a running threat. If you're running the read option with the back as the interior runner and the QB as the edge runner (common) and you have a QB that can't catch the edge, then adding a read adds nothing to the play other then delaying the back and potentially short-circuiting his cutback lane.

[Tiger 8,826]

Thanks for the insight, guys. It helped me understand a bit more. I know it's not as easy as "oh you can run? ok make these reads." but now I understand that it minimizes quite a bit of the risk involved. I know with JJ and SW we probably didn't want them to keep it very often but man defenses were just giving them all kinds of space by abandoning the idea that it was possible that the QB kept the ball. I'm really hoping JF3 is the guy that can juke his way out of poor pre-determined "reads" like NM did. Even when it looked like NM should've given the ball to Tre or CAP 90% of the time he was able to get around the first guy waiting for him.

[meh130 1,043]

He never made any run reads before he got to AU so it's not something he is comfortable w/ or likes.

This is not correct. Carver had an inverted veer/outside zone read play out of the jet sweep motion. It looks similar to a wildcat play with the jet sweep and a fake handoff, but it was an option play with a mesh with the jet sweep with the playside DE not blocked and the QB reading the playside DE.

They did not run it much, and it probably did not represent the majority of JJ's running yardage, but the play went for two Carver touchdowns against Auburn HS.

It is correct. I watched every game he played in high school. Everything was predetermined for him. No reads. All the movement was litterally window dressing. And I remember those AHS plays well. He was told presnap where to go. No real read.

Interesting, leaving players unblocked then not reading them, but I could see it working if the defense is instructed to always take the RB.

[ellitor 33,093]

He never made any run reads before he got to AU so it's not something he is comfortable w/ or likes.

This is not correct. Carver had an inverted veer/outside zone read play out of the jet sweep motion. It looks similar to a wildcat play with the jet sweep and a fake handoff, but it was an option play with a mesh with the jet sweep with the playside DE not blocked and the QB reading the playside DE.

They did not run it much, and it probably did not represent the majority of JJ's running yardage, but the play went for two Carver touchdowns against Auburn HS.

It is correct. I watched every game he played in high school. Everything was predetermined for him. No reads. All the movement was litterally window dressing. And I remember those AHS plays well. He was told presnap where to go. No real read.

Interesting, leaving players unblocked then not reading them, but I could see it working if the defense is instructed to always take the RB.

They knew how AHS, and specifically Reuben would play in space.

[AUEngineer2016 407]

Interesting...and telling.

I have been beating this drum for too long so I will finally ask here: Can someone with more extensive football knowledge tell me what the advantage of not allowing your QB to make reads, in particular in the option run game, is? I can understand in the passing game with a mentally limited QB telling him "either throw here or take off" to limit game changing interceptions. But isn't an option run play's success directly tied to what the guy being optioned does post-snap? Is the coach just taking the 50/50 guess as to how that player will defend the play once the ball is snapped? Asking because Gus has done this and now I'm hearing it's happening on the HS level. This seems like it is not doing the kid any favors in developing his game.

The only reasons I can think of to take the run reads out of the QBs hands is if you want to use dressing but get a certain player the ball. The other is the same you mentioned for pass plays, coaches not trusting the QB to make correct decisions. W/ Gus's trust issues this is especially a possibility when you lose Gus's trust in you like JJ did.

Taking the read option away is also an attempt to have players play faster and with less mental errors.

For example, if a QB is making a read, he has to call for the play to start, catch the snap, turn and extend the ball to the mesh point, find the defender, determine what the defender is doing, then make a decision on what to do, then actually do it. A lot of the turnover issues associated with the read-option are caused by the QB not making a decision quickly enough and leaving the ball in between the QB and the RB. If all he has to do is call for the play to start, turn and extend the ball, then tuck it and run, it eliminates a lot of the potential for error. It also allows him to start thinking about running earlier, rather than thinking about the decision of whether to keep it or hand the ball off.

[alexava 6,973]

Nick Marshall only fumbled once that i can remember with indecision. The end of the aTm game when he should have left it in CAP's belly. That may be the most impressive thing about him is his ability to make that decision and almost always correctly.

[IronMan70 3,277]

Nick Marshall only fumbled once that i can remember with indecision. The end of the aTm game when he should have left it in CAP's belly. That may be the most impressive thing about him is his ability to make that decision and almost always correctly.

Both of them could have scored on that play too. The 7-1 AU team going into that game was never the same after that. At least the offense, to their credit, did recover 2 weeks later.

[Tiger 8,826]

Nick Marshall only fumbled once that i can remember with indecision. The end of the aTm game when he should have left it in CAP's belly. That may be the most impressive thing about him is his ability to make that decision and almost always correctly.

Both of them could have scored on that play too. The 7-1 AU team going into that game was never the same after that. At least the offense, to their credit, did recover 2 weeks later.

You could even say that one fumble sent our program into a tailspin that we haven't recovered from yet.

[lionheartkc 6,150]

Nick Marshall only fumbled once that i can remember with indecision. The end of the aTm game when he should have left it in CAP's belly. That may be the most impressive thing about him is his ability to make that decision and almost always correctly.

I agree that it was very rare that he fumbled, but not so much that he almost always made the correct call. His yardage dropped dramatically in 2014, partially because he was passing more, but a lot of is was because he didn't have Prosch and Robinson to make up for bad reads. In fact, I distinctly remember that all of the talk about Gus calling the play instead of letting him make the read started when his success making the reads, especially in the red zone, dropped off that year.

[AUwent 3,749]

Nick Marshall only fumbled once that i can remember with indecision. The end of the aTm game when he should have left it in CAP's belly. That may be the most impressive thing about him is his ability to make that decision and almost always correctly.

Both of them could have scored on that play too. The 7-1 AU team going into that game was never the same after that. At least the offense, to their credit, did recover 2 weeks later.

You could even say that one fumble sent our program into a tailspin that we haven't recovered from yet.

We really need to tarnish all the positive memories they have of JHS this September.

[Tiger 8,826]

Nick Marshall only fumbled once that i can remember with indecision. The end of the aTm game when he should have left it in CAP's belly. That may be the most impressive thing about him is his ability to make that decision and almost always correctly.

Both of them could have scored on that play too. The 7-1 AU team going into that game was never the same after that. At least the offense, to their credit, did recover 2 weeks later.

You could even say that one fumble sent our program into a tailspin that we haven't recovered from yet.

We really need to tarnish all the positive memories they have of JHS this September.

I'll drink to that

[AUwent 3,749]

^I'm kind of worried about how our new tackles will match up against Garrett. A&M will be the game, in my view, that tells us where we are as a program.

[thaitopher 807]

^I'm kind of worried about how our new tackles will match up against Garrett. A&M will be the game, in my view, that tells us where we are as a program.

I don't think many tackles for any school will match up well against Garrett.

[AUwent 3,749]

^Well, he didn't have much luck getting to JJ (of all QBs). Does anyone see our offensive line improving or even staying the same? Because if we suffer regression up front, we're up a creek.

[mcgufcm 4,096]

Obviously, there is risk replacing both OTs, but we have the option to bring back the entire interior of the line. So, yeah, there's plenty of opportunity for the OL to improve. Center is an under-appreciated position, and we struggled there last year (Golson's first year playing the position). I expect him to be a lot better. I expect Kozan to continue his improvement, and I expect Smith to be a star if he's playing RG next year. We have question marks on the outside, but we have a solid foundation to build on.