Spread Offense IN Small Divisions

[Chakra20]

I was thinking this is the best at this level of high school competition. Small guys can run and run and run forever in many cases. But you big guys having to play both ways really hinders you. As i watched the DCA|Ezell game this became very apparent to me. When those big guys are fresh they where knocking people around, but as they got tired runs became less and less. In a spread offense your line does alot of pass blocking, which is much less exahausting than run blocking. I think any school 3A or under would be a good candidate for this offense.

 

Your line doesnt get as tired. Your players , espcially skilled players, stay interested in the game whether your up or down. You do have to be able to run the offense, but i think it is a big advanatge in smaller divisions. Greenback runs something like it Ezell does to and they have very prolific offense.

[Blue21SallyAt7]

i prefer the spread offense and love a coach who likes to throw the ball all over the field, regardless of what division or classification they are in. In high school, that is the hardest offense to scheme for, especially if you are playing a team w/tremendous team speed. Put 5 guys that can run against a team that is known for running a 4-4, 4-3, or a 5-3 and get them out of their comfort zone, and you'll have loads and loads of points and offense, as does greenback and ezell. Its awfully hard to teach 16-18 year olds how to defend very well ran comination routes and trying to defend 3-5 WR's on every play. In high school, this is the offense to run. If you have a half way decent QB, and 3 half way decent WR's, you can be dominate in high school football w/the spread offense. Look what Chris Leak at Independence does w/the spread offense. Hardest offense to stop in high school football, in any class.

[Guest Clotis]

Maybe so, till it rains.......unless you postpone the game....sorry Trousdale, cheap shot.....

[OnlineLC]

Chakra,

 

What year did Ezell start using the spead offense? If memory serves me correctly it was the 2000 season.

 

Also how well do you think it will work, with a team that has for the most part plain old vanilla athletes? It has worked well for Ezell but I can also picture some HS QB's making some really bad passing decisions resulting in turnovers.

[Chakra20]

Actually i think they started using it in 2001 Smith's second year at Ezell. I dont remeber them running it that first year. They weere a typical pro style offense that year with a fullback and tightend.

 

now you do have to have a decent QB but i think alot of that has to do with coaching. At this age level there is a lot to be said about how far coaching can go. Bot to say coach smith is the end all be all but he his oen heck of a QB coach.

 

Ezell has had some athletes but i was thinking about the less wear and tear on your big guys, because in high school you dont have to many of those. Ezell only has 8 players over 200 lbs and 3 of them are runnin backs.

[OnlineLC]

One thing I have noticed is that Ezell has been relatively injury free over the last two years (At least I have not noticed much). One thing when you run a lot you do tend to get more mass tackling and piling on which can create injuries for the line and especially the backs.

[Edited by OnlineLC on 11-17-02 7:12P]

[mp1115]

As was mentioned in an earlier post, I believe you have to have a wise QB who can make reads, progressions, and, ultimately, the right throw. The reason Ezell didn't run the spread in 1999 was the QB position. He was a great QB, don't get me wrong, but he also played defensive end. Our stregnths that year were running over people, not "finessing" (I think I just made up a word) the ball in to tight spots after reading coverages. Another factor that can make a good QB great under the spread system is the amount of time (years) spent under the coach and system. If you make your reads correctly, you can either make the right throw or get your team in the right play in the spread/no huddle system.

[gunrock]

We actually started using the spread offense in 2000, JP Shelly's junior year. Reading some of these threads talking about the QB making bad reads in this style of offense makes me remember this particular year. We went to Nashville Christian and got our butts handed to us. JP threw six interceptions. Now that was a nightmare!! But he was learning in the process and went on to become a great high school QB. In my years of coaching high school athletes I have never seen a better field general.

 

Football is about toughness, mental as well as physical, and mis-matches. Our kids run this offense everyday all year long and can run all day. You can not prepare for this style of offense in one week of practice.

 

It's down to the elite 8 with some great match ups this Friday. The games in the west part of the bracket will determine the eventual state champion, with all four teams having a shot to win. Being a realist, I am going to say that the Ezell/CPA game will more than likely come down to who has the ball last, especially if the field conditions are anything like last Friday.