re: Gus Malzahn getting $$$-whipped by Vandy?

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Jim Harbaugh

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Can Harbaugh sustain that 1 great year so far at Stanford? They got their asses kicked by the only real good team that they played this year.

Vandy may be short on athletes, due to admission requirements.

But the one thing that Vandy has plenty of is money.

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not only will they still be Vandy, but they'll also be broke.

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yeah, Vandy has to worry about being broke.

the wildcat is a simple option play based out of a half wing that has been run for decades

Stanford & Northwestern don't have to play an SEC schedule...That's huge.

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when he left springdale and went to arky, he had a 4-5 WR, single back spread/ace set with lots of deep routes. it did not work

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Yeah but his QBs were Casey Dick and true frosh Mustain, and then Chris Todd his first year at AU. Not exactly the pick of the litter there. I wonder if his offense could work if given the athletes and a decent QB.

But like you said, he's the anti-Crowton and is willing to change his scheme based on the talent at hand. That's his biggest plus, imo.

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I wonder if his offense could work if given the athletes and a decent QB.

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your spread offenses will feature 5-10 yard routes predominantly, with 1 safety valve of a RB running flares and circle routes

if you consistently rely on 5 OL to block the D, you will have to have hot routes for the QB

if you rely on almost all long routes with 5 OL, your QB will get fricking murdered in a conference with pass rushers

I admire Malzahn for his modesty regarding his offenses. He admits that he simply adopts and adapts things he has seen others do. That reminds me of Bill Walsh who never claimed credit for inventing the so-called West Coast Offense. He always creditied others for providing the influences.

Here's more from the article:


Hyde got Malzahn, the former Springdale High and Unviersity of Arkansas assistant coach who is now at Tulsa, on the phone earlier this week to discuss the "Wildcat" genesis:

"Wait, please don't make it sound, you know, like I 'invented' anything," Malzahn, 43, said. "Football's a game where you use ideas that you see. I've used everyone's ideas. This isn't about me at all. Please don't make it sound that way."

OK. Fair enough. But let's study the progression of the "Wildcat" package that led to the Dolphins scoring four touchdowns with it against New England and dumbing down Bill Belichick for one day.

In the fall of 2005, Springdale High's version of Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams were receiver Damian Williams and quarterback Mitch Mustain. Both are at the University of Southern California now.

One of the plays Malzahn invented for them was a version of the Wildcat package the Dolphins used to stun New England. Springdale won the Arkansas state title in 2005.

In 2006, Malzahn became Arkansas' offensive coordinator. There he inherited talents like Darren McFadden and Felix Jones, now with the Oakland Raiders and Dallas Cowboys, respectively.

"Please don't present this as anything more than a way to get the best players on the field at the same time," Malzahn said.

He fine-tuned the Wildcat package. When Arkansas clinched the Southeastern Conference West Division against Tennessee that year, McFadden used it to run for 181 yards, score two touchdowns and throw for a third. Sound familiar, Ronnie Brown?

In 2007, Malzahn became the University of Tulsa's offensive coordinator. Suddenly, it became the No. 1 offense in the country. Meanwhile, David Lee replaced him at Arkansas. Lee inherited the Wildcat package. Using it, McFadden ran for 206 yards and completed three passes to beat top-ranked LSU.

Cut to this season. Lee is the new Dolphins quarterbacks coach. With him came the Wildcat package. He's no doubt put in variations and options to tailor it to the Dolphins' players.

"Shoot, David Lee is a smart coach and it takes a lot of guts to call it in a NFL game like that," Malzahn said.

Hey, when the basic stuff isn't working -- and don't Arkansas Razorback fans know all about the basic stuff not working before Malzahn joined the Hogs' staff -- you try something else. Even if that means digging back into the Sammy Baugh playbook of the 1930s and 1940s. This is, after all, a variation of the single wing and misdirection, and it's still about -- as Malzahn says -- getting the best players on the field at one time and causing the defense to have to react in ways it's not used to.

Hyde and Malzahn continue their conversation about Miami's success with the "Wildcat" formation:

Did he feel a tinge of pride?

[Malzahn] sighed over the phone. "Look I've got to get back to what I'm doing here," he said. "I really, sincerely don't want any credit for this. I'm a little gun-shy. I've just been blessed to be in the right situation with the right players."

i always knew those vandy folk were smart. they can put 7 years on the deal to make everyone feel better- but the fact is, they are renting him for 2-3 years and then hes gone.

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Malzahn

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