Discussion Topic - Slowing Down our Offense
After watching our D give up huge second halves two weeks in a row, I was thinking it may be time to slow down how fast our offense plays. With how many times we turn the ball over, and how inconsistent the offense has been, why not shorten the game. I understand RR loves getting as many offensive drives, but he used to have a decent D (for his conference) to back the offense up.
Thoughts? If you were the coach?
November 7th, 2009 at 8:21 PM ^
begging for the offense to slowdown, sometimes they go too fast and with so many young players you just know their heads are spinning out there.
November 8th, 2009 at 12:16 AM ^
the long term plan is whats important here, not salvaging this already waste of a season.
November 8th, 2009 at 12:16 AM ^
the long term plan is whats important here, not salvaging this already waste of a season.
November 7th, 2009 at 8:26 PM ^
Why should RR have to make adjustments to his football philosophy just because the players he has are not a good fit? Wait until he has his players - next year we will be amazing.
November 7th, 2009 at 8:28 PM ^
Well, it comes with the territory of Rich Rod's offense. Once we have more depth on defense and our offense gets humming a little bit more as our young players mature, all will be right with the world.
November 7th, 2009 at 8:33 PM ^
While I agree with the sentiment, our offense has been moving the ball for the most part. Last year, we were near the top for most three and outs, if memory serves me right. I think that hurt the defense, as it was always out there. This year seems to be the opposite. Our defense can't get off the field, and our offensive rhythm suffers as a result.
November 7th, 2009 at 8:39 PM ^
I think Texas Tech should have ran the ball more in 2008.
November 7th, 2009 at 9:20 PM ^
I understand your argument, but any team will take points vs. clock in most situations. More scoring means the other team's offense has to play catch-up, which means more situations where risks are taken and the possibility for turnovers/stops go up. I rather this team score 30+ points and at least have a chance to win a game versus slowing the game down and still have the same crappy defense give up 30+ points. It might be antithetical to UM's past, but right now this offensive needs to keep scoring, even if it leads to turnovers and is at the expense of the defense. The defense is not going to win the next two games; the offense might.
November 7th, 2009 at 11:41 PM ^
I realize that you would want to score 30 points a game and try to win, but we won't do that often and we haven't recently. I wouldn't expect 30 against Wisco or OSU. I am looking ahead to better teams that will attack this play style (like PSU did). Honestly, I think we could still score about as much as we would anyhow if we slowed things down. AND maybe, just maybe, we could hold up a little more with the D. Who knows. I agree that the D is not going to win the next few games, so I can understand.
I'm drunk so I'm sorry about any lousy grammer, but if we are playing for a near perfect offensive performance with the young folk, why not slow it down so you can plan each play and shorten the game.
Go blue. I'm just down like all of us, and like talking about how we can get better. Here's to 2 years from now when we have legit depth on the line and talent across the board at our starting positions.
November 8th, 2009 at 11:00 AM ^
UM has scored more than 30 points 5 times this season, and under 4 times (ignoring Baby Seal). They also scored 28 and 20 points in two close losses to Iowa and MSU. The defense has given up 30+ points 6 times this year, and that is against a myriad of opponents. The defense is bad, and no amount of rest or shortened games will cover up the fact that walk-ons and low-tier recruits litter the field. I understand the argument - maybe with a few less possessions, the defense can get some stops and are not run down as much. They tend to get 3-4 stops a game, so maybe spread them out across less possessions and the game is closer. But at this point, the issue is more about efficiency by the offense than helping the defense - if the defense can promise you 3-4 stops a game, the offense needs to score more often on its possessions and just try to beat the team. As Brian pointed out, this defense is opponent neutral - they give up yards and points no matter who you are. For this year, the team needs to score as much as it can and pray it is enough.
November 8th, 2009 at 5:31 AM ^
sdfsdfsd
November 8th, 2009 at 5:31 AM ^
yes i am