Things have been hectic at the ITB Fortress but I find myself up early on Thanksgiving and with some time to kill before I head over to the family’s house and initiate the cooking sequence. Fried turkey, greens, stuffing and all the rest shall be had by all.
This Friday on the field in Red Stick, Louisiana we’ll have a veritable feast for the eyes as well when the Hogs take on the Bayou Bengals. The battle between an offense designed to tax teams at every level and a defense that is built on gambling, multiple looks and frustrating a teams attack. This is the type of match up that absolutely exemplifies what I love about football. Both attacks are so schematically beautiful.
In Arkansas we’re not talking about a three or four route, open by alignment, point and click spread offense. The Razorbacks are not a team built to make it easy for a quarterback or simplify things for a wide out. Petrino’s system is complex. They utilize the entire passing tree; everything from digs and deep outs to corners, post corners and skinny posts. Their receivers are not beholden to just being X’s and Z’s or Y’s and F’s. They’re not “inside” and “outside” guys. The initial beauty a guy like me sees in the Arkansas offense is the way they find the match ups and have no problem lining their wide receivers and tight ends up anywhere in the formation to get these match ups.
We’ve hit on LSU’s beauty more than once in this area as the Bayou Bengals are not the defense built from a blue print. This isn’t the type of team any coach in America goes out to create. No this is a defense you happen upon when you’ve got a wealth of defensive linemen, none on par with the Drake Nevis or Glen Dorsey’s of the past few seasons but all good enough to play. This is a defense you happen upon when you’ve got one number one cornerback, a number two corner who is the number one football player and a slew of “other guys” who are number two corners in their own right.
For the cornucopia of awesome that LSU-Bama was from a two great defenses squaring off standpoint this game is a test of an offense that is put together to truly tax this form of a defensive attack.
“But Felder, we’ve seen Arkansas play Bama and the Tide smashed them out. Why would this be any different?”
Well for starters the Bayou Bengals and this John Chavis defense is not Alabama. That isn’t to say they aren’t as good, they are. But they are different. Bama is technically sound, they’re safe and they play their 3-4 zone and man concepts perfectly. The Tide is akin to an orchestra playing a well rehearsed symphony in unison.
LSU is a team that is a bit more jazz. More improv than rehearsal. They take chances, they are risky and they don’t really know which part of their group is going to be the star of any given show. Mo Claiborne? Sure. Tyrann Mathieu? Perhaps. Sam Montgomery? He’ll do. Barkevious Mingo? Consider it done. Any of these four or the slew of other bodies that have come through for the big finish for the LSU Tigers.
The approach plays off huge for John Chavis’ gang and, as I’ve said before, it is a beautiful thing to watch. Shifting between man and zone concepts. Defensive backs jumping routes. Defensive backs baiting quarterbacks into bad throws. Defensive line running bodies at the running backs and quarterbacks in waves. Linebackers filling their gaps and taking shots at crossers. Anyone in the entire scheme blitzing to force a turnover. It all works.
Enter the Hogs. Garrick McGee and Bobby Petrino are working wonders with this offense and, despite their struggles, this team is built to really force LSU to make a decision. Do the Bayou Bengals continue to be “who they are” and take chances, gamble and try to make plays OR does LSU be a bit more disciplined, play their true looks and avoid gambles.
Less than disciplined coverage killed LSU a year ago. The safety play was not nearly as experienced as they are at this juncture but overall the team was sloppy in the back end and ultimately it cost them to the tune of 320 yards passing, the most they have given up in SEC play in a long, long time.
The LSU defense, in their 2011 form, is better than last years unit but Arkansas and this Hogs receiving core have improved as well. Tyler Wilson is more than capable of blowing this thing out through the air if the Tigers give him an opportunity to make it happen.
When we’re watching this game look for the Hogs to do two things; creat mismatches and make LSU guys “guess” in the back end.
As we mentioned earlier Arkansas is a fairly complex offense from a position and route standpoint. Part of what makes them dangerous is not just their slew of ten pass catchers at the wide receiver, tight end and running back position but how these players are utilized. In watching the Hogs film you’ll see players like Jarius Wright, probably a standard slot receiver in the bulk of offenses across the nation, lined up outside, inside, as the third receiver to a side, off the line, on the line and in motion. Chris Gragg, a tight end, lines up on the line, off the line, as a wing, flexed out and even as the outside man to a side. Marquel Wade, Cobi Hamilton, Julian Horton and even Garrett Uekman line up inside and outside, off the line or on it.
Throw in Joe Adams and Greg Childs lining up for the Razorbacks plus Dennis Johnson and Ronnie Wingo in the screen and outlet game and what you have is an attack that puts pressure on a defense.
Here’s why this becomes a problem for teams; when you put your base defense on the field you have your top two corners in, your best three linebackers and your best two safeties. Yes, Mo Claiborne and Tyrann Mathieu are absolutely well qualified to handle Joe Adams and Greg Childs, heck even Chris Gragg if he lines up outside vs Claiborne is a match up I’d give to LSU.
But when you’re in base personnel you also can end up with Jarius Wright against a safety, Cobi Hamilton matched up against a linebacker. Chris Gragg against a linebackers. Those are looks that no one wants. They’re bad. Bad for even the best coverage safeties and backers out there.
So defenses can adjust their personnel, throw in Ron Brooks and Tharold Simon to get into a nickel package as LSU inserts their third and fourth cornerbacks into the game. I’m taking Chris Gragg over Ron Brooks because size is a factor but Tharold Simon lined up over the Arkansas tight end should be interesting.
Basically the first thing to look for is how LSU utilizes their nickel and dime packages to counter act the match up issues that Arkansas is going to throw out there.
The next most important phase of this Arkansas offense comes after the ball is snapped when the Hogs try to make defenders guess. Forcing a corner, a linebacker or a safety to make a decision on a route quickly or take a guess on who is coming into his zone.
The levels people. This game is all about the levels.
The corner route with the intermediate out route underneath that forces the corner to decide how long he’s waiting to jump the out while his safety struggles to get over top the corner. The deep dig that makes the linebacker get depth in the hole even as he really wants to come up on the shallow cross from the tight end. The deep out that is in the flat defenders peripheral but is pushing him as the running back flares out.
It seems quite simple for the rule of thumb to always be “play high to low” or “deep to shallow” but when you’re dealing with a defense like LSU’s; one built on chances and fast reaction, this levels route combination scheme can be a killer. Safeties and corners not on the same page can turn into a big gainer. Safeties and linebackers not in sync on the seam and hole coverages.
There are a lot of moving parts here for the defense and Arkansas is going to tax them from a discipline and match up standpoint. Expect LSU to make a decision to attack Tyler Wilson early, hit him much in the same way Alabama did and then we’ll see if these players in the Tigers back seven; nickel, dime and base can win their individual battles against Arkansas and their own nature to gamble.
Happy Thanksgiving folks! Whether you’re a Woo Pig Sooie, of the Geaux Tigers or just fan of good football this game should have a lot in store for you!
