Smart Football: Good Article on "Spread is Dead"
http://smartfootball.com/defending-the-spread/true-spread-apexing
The gist of the article is that the Spread is not dead yet, but defenses seem to be catching up because they see it so often now.
It goes on to talk about Texas' defensive recruiting against the spread and how the spread might evolve to counteract the defenses.
October 29th, 2009 at 5:58 PM ^
I'm sure you remember his original, linked within that post. Chris sort of thought the same thing two years ago. I think it's a slightly better read.
Original
It's also been rehashed in these parts plenty. Some of the newer people may want to give it a looksie.
October 29th, 2009 at 7:29 PM ^
He said all players in the secondary, safeties included, must be able to be shut down receivers in man coverage. Linebackers have to be fast and able to cover running backs or receivers coming out of five-receiver sets. The linemen all must be effective pass rushers so the need for blitzing is reduced.First, I thought that was obvious. Then I looked at our defense, and realized that maybe it's not obvious at all. Seriously though, I'd like to see a big ole' power run team take on Texas (do they have any scheduled?) so that we can test the hypothesis that speed players can't stop the power players.
October 29th, 2009 at 7:34 PM ^
Depends what you call a power run team. OU has a huge O-line that can pound the ball. They handled that pretty well.
October 29th, 2009 at 7:58 PM ^
OU's O-line lost four starters from last years team though, and currently ranks 71st in rush yards for the year, so I don't know how much you want to hold that up as an example.
October 29th, 2009 at 8:07 PM ^
Yeah, but I still think their O-line is better than anything Texas faces this year. OSU and A&M are both in the top 35 in rushing yards per game, but OSU isn't your run of the mill power rushing team. I don't think A&M really is either. Neither of those teams has the talent on the OL when compared to Texas either.
October 29th, 2009 at 8:18 PM ^
Winconsin (oops that was a typo, but I find it rather humorous) vs Texas
Who do we talk to in order to set this up?
October 29th, 2009 at 8:33 PM ^
They have a series in about 6 years or so set up with Cal. That's about as close as it gets until they play Alabama in the MNC, which is a good possibility.
October 29th, 2009 at 8:38 PM ^
Of course, most teams aren't Texas and can't load up on defensive speed, which is why most spread attacks are still successful.
At any rate, I get the sense that this article is more geared toward pass-oriented spreads, like Purdue's.