You remember huddle presence, the catchphrase of two Sooner seasons ago, used to laud quarterback Paul Thompson's experience and deportment?
Huddle presence has become code for leadership. How does a quarterback carry himself? That's what the guy really meant with his question.
For the truth is, Bradford had no huddle presence Saturday in the Red-White Game. For the best of reasons. He had no huddle.
The Sooners have joined the growing horde of teams experimenting with no huddles. Larry Fedora brought the new-fangled offense to Oklahoma State in 2005. Missouri and Kansas now run it, too, and so will Colorado in 2008. Texas Tech picks its spots for the no-huddle, and apparently so will OU this coming season.
"It's the trend,” said Sooner defensive coordinator Brent Venables. In the same way the wishbone took over college football in the 1970s, and the spread did the same almost a decade ago, the no-huddle is all the rage in the 21st century, going from fad to standard in a season or two.
"I don't think offenses would do it if it weren't advantageous, to a degree,” Venables said.
Bob Stoops says he ordered implementation of the no-huddle for mathematical reasons.
"I want to get as many at-bats as they do,” Stoops said. "I don't want anyone having more snaps than we do.”
That's misguided thinking, of course. The no-huddle doesn't mean more snaps for one team. It means more snaps for both teams. Teams don't play on separate clocks. Quicken the pace, and it means more snaps for everyone. And if both teams go no-huddle, it means even more snaps all around.
Wilson, OU's offensive coordinator, ran the no-huddle for four years at Northwestern. Twice, his Northwestern team led the nation in offensive plays. But I'll bet Northwestern ranked high in plays allowed, too.
That's the delicate nature of the no-huddle. Even if it helps your offense, it can hurt your defense.
"To me, the problems are, can you protect your defense?” Wilson said. "At Northwestern, our defenses weren't any good. We didn't really worry about helping them.”
Different deal in Norman. Defense has done a thing or two over the last 10 years. Stoops can't afford to implement an offense that would damage his defense.
That's why Wilson must be careful.
For example, coaches say OU this spring practiced about 60 percent huddle, 40 percent no-huddle. That's acceptable to Venables. But consider the plight of defensive coaches who constantly must practice against no-huddle offenses. Yes, their defenses can get proficient against guarding the no-huddle.
But instruction time suffers. With no huddles — remember, the defense doesn't huddle when the offense doesn't huddle — coaches coach on the fly, barking directions while the defenders line up, or wait until the film room.
The theories behind the no-huddle are solid. The no-huddle keeps defenses from getting too fancy, since coaches can't easily insert different personnel, and defenders can get gassed if the offense really wants to turn up the tempo.
"They wear you out mentally,” Venables said.
This is a good spring for the Sooners to try the no-huddle. Veteran quarterback in Bradford, veteran offense, including every lineman returning. Maybe even a good season to pull it out, particularly if Wilson can pick his spots and spring it on an unsuspecting foe.
But Stoops and staff must be careful to not let the no-huddle infringe on the OU defense's mission.
That great football mind, George Will, once said football combines the two worst elements of American society: "It is violence punctuated by committee meetings.”
Will apparently never coached defense. Sometimes those committee meetings are valuable.
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OSU should be a lock or, at least be a favorite for the big12 south this year.No way O-who will even come close to winning the south since,the Gooners have lost alot of there talent in the draft and,due to graduation so,we should take them out at Boon pickens stadium no problem.....I think Texass will be our biggest challenge so,I give my pokes a 50/50 shot on winning in austin....Zac Robinson and,Dez Bryant are going to own all big12 defenses this year.Plus,,Our defense will be be much improved with all the redshirts and,the top quality depth coming in from the JUCO ranks ...Buy your tickets now Pokes fans,we will be in KC for the BIG12 CG....Go Pokes,Big 12 champs 2008
Give the Coaches a break, you can have the best coaches but if the players don't carry out the plays it fails, not the coaches fault. The bowl game loss, was not the coaches fault, the players were the ones on the field. Go Sooners
Just like all the other BOB STOOPS teams they will falter at the end of the season...Every year I here"We are going to be good on defense and,we have not missed a beat" Im sick of all the hype.Show me you can win a bowl game Stoops!!!!
You make millions of dollars and,you have not done a thing since the 2000 team!!!You need to step up and start earning your paycheck!!!!
I love my Sooners but,Im not about to fall for the same line again....
A great and necessary move. It certainly increases the pressure on the defense of the opposition. With our generally superior talent, having this arrow in our quiver is a welcome addition. Thank you Bob and Kevin!
Pete is right. The no huddle sets up teams with less talent to compete. It puts teams in a bind defensively and spreads the field giving the offense a chance for the defense tomake a mistake. As much talent as OU has, just line up and cram it down someones throat
If OU can get this no-huddle offense down, imagine the numbers that Bradford could put up. 4,000-4,500 yds and 40+ TD's without a problem. He would hold every single season passing mark and all the career marks by the end of his Junior year, provided he comes back for a junior year. I like the idea of the no-huddle, but OU can still use their ball control offense in the 4th quarter to run down the clock.
One could argue that "huddle presence" is even more important in the no huddle. Obviously, since there is no huddle I am refering to strong command of the field, getting everyone on the line, communicating the play, then executing. The only thing missing would be the in huddle "pep talks" which probably occur very infrequently in spite of what movies teach us. I know they didnt happen much in high school.
OU is playing against the "No Huddle" more often, so it makes better sense that practicing against it more, should make the defense better able to deal with it on game day. Also, no one OU plays should have a better offense, so the math say's the more plays run benefits OU. One can argue that it's a trade off for the defense, but the pluses far outweigh the negatives for the team IMHO.
Pete there have been some MNC teams that have used it, and also some teams with some pretty stellar offensive numbers. Very simply, the defense does not have time to adjust to the offensive formation, or get the personel into the proper position. They can't "cheat" on their coverages.
If they continue to call the same 3 plays in the same order or just line up in formation where they expose the play, Huddle or no huddle the other team will know what is comming. We have been so predictable over the last few years that by the end of the season anyone with a little game film can see our next move. Our talent is usually so strong that we have continued to win even when the other team knew who was getting the ball. I hope that along with the change we become a little more unpredictable! Maybe then we will win the Big Game! Boomer Sooner!!!
I doubt Stoops will run it more than half the time. He likes the ball control game late when protecting a lead. To me, time of possession is as important as the number of snaps. Let the other tream play defense as much as possible.
I think if it works for teams with less superior talent (Tech, Kansas, and yes, Oklahoma State) it makes sense for a talented team. The more plays there are the more it would appear to favor a more talented team. The lesser talented teams you would think would want to shorten the game, keep it close, and hope to have a shot at the end.
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OU quarterback Sam Bradford will have to get used to the no-huddle offense this year. BY STEVE SISNEY, THE OKLAHOMAN
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You make millions of dollars and,you have not done a thing since the 2000 team!!!You need to step up and start earning your paycheck!!!!
I love my Sooners but,Im not about to fall for the same line again....