Featured Articles

This page is an incomplete attempt at archiving the pieces for this blog and for outside publications that I think are worth going back to, well beyond their publications dates, based on reader popularity and my own judgment. Articles for outside publications are at the top; scroll down for articles from the blog.

Writings for other sites and publications.

- The New York Times Fifth Down. Click here for all my posts for the NYT at one link.

• How the Wildcat Works (10/13/2009)
• Drew Brees and the ‘Four Verticals’ (9/25/2009)
• How the ‘Percy Position’ drives the Vikings and Adrian Petersen (9/18/2009)
• Happy Feet: How Wes Welker makes the Patriots’ pass offense go.
• Zone blitzes: Conservative and risky all at once.
• A look at the Pittsburgh Steelers’ strategy.

- Matt Hinton’s Dr Saturday/Yahoo! /Rivals Blog. Click here for all my posts at one link.

• The roots of Brian Kelly’s ‘genius’ (11/12/2009)
• Breaking down Florida’s offensive breakdown (10/29/2009)
• Penn State’s modern take on old-school defense (10/23/2009)
• Oklahoma goes on the run to beat Texas (10/15/2009)
• How Florida tackles Empty Tebow Syndrome (10/8/2009)
• Auburn’s Malzahn at the gates, again (10/1/2009)
• Miami brings bombs over Blacksburg (9/24/2009)
• In which Will Muschamp takes Mike Leach head on (9/17/2009)
• The grisly demise of ‘Tressel Ball’ (9/14/2009)
• Out of the wilderness at last, the Irish want it all (9/11/2009)
• Setting Terrelle Pryor free against USC’s new D (9/10/2009)
• Oregon and Boise, livin’ on the (offensive) edge (9/3/2009)
• The long decline of Steve Spurrier (8/24/2009)
• The USC Trojan offense ain’t what it used to be (they designed it that way) (8/18/2009)
• In search of Juice’s main squeeze at Illinois.
• In which Steve Kragthorpe tries to save his skin.
• Inside Oklahoma State’s prolific balancing act.
• How the Hokie D becomes deadlier as it adapts.
• Nevada’s Pistol, by any other name, would fire as sweet.

- Every Day Should Be Saturday.

• What makes an offense terrible?
• Zone-blitzes versus man-blitzes.
• Smart Football on Bama/Clemson (Saban versus Rob Spence).

Other web stuff:

- Burnt Orange Nation: Scheme Stability.

Maple Street Press (Print):

• Gators Gridiron 2009 – “Strong Strategy” and “The Evolution of Tim Tebow.” (Click here for a PDF of the Tebow article.)
• Hail to the Victors 2009 (University of Michigan) – “Growing an Offense.”
• The Eyes of Texas 2009 – “Well Coordinated.”
• Rocky Top Tennessee 2009 – “Brand New Schemes.”

Writings from Smart Football.

• Jim Tressel’s new calling: Ball control . . . passing? (2/25/2010)
• Super Bowl Preview: Manning vs. Brees (Breakdown of the Colts’ O and the Saints’ O) (2/7/2010)
• Oregon’s zone read of the defensive tackle (12/4/2009)
• Thinking about thoughts, fourth downs, and the nature of evidence (11/18/2009)
• The “smash” route against man coverage (11/4/2009)
• Improving a quarterback’s throwing motion (with Darin Slack) (11/2/2010)
• You be the offensive coordinator/quarterback: Dealing with the blitz (10/31/2009)
• The slant concept: Iowa’s game winner (10/30/2009)
• Explanation and cut-ups of the “Power O” play (10/20/2009)
• A very simple explanation of zone runs and the differences between inside zone and outside zone (10/17/2009)
• TCU’s “inverted veer option” (9/30/2009)
• Nick Saban schools you on how to play pass coverage (9/29/2009)
• Monte Kiffin’s scheme for Urban Meyer’s offense (9/26/2009)
• Understanding coverages and attacking them with the passing game (9/17/2009)
• Defending the zone-read: athleticism and the “scrape-exchange” (8/31/2009)
• Colt McCoy’s University of Texas passing game (8/24/2009)
• Tackling a cyclone: Grantland Rice, the internet, and the death (and rebirth) of sports writing (8/21/2009)
• The zone-read, gun triple-option . . . and the quadruple option? (8/17/2009)

- From the old blog site:

• The Florida Gators/Urban Meyer offense.
• The NFL Offense: What is it? Why does every team run it? And how does it differ from college offenses?
• Has the spread offense reached its apex? (Jan. 7, 2006)
• Nick Saban’s defense.
• Auburn’s offense might be bad, but don’t call it the Airraid or Tony Franklin offense.
• The shotgun, the ‘gun, and the shotgun spread offense.
• Airraid offense information, reading material, and passing concepts (including Norm Chow’s reads).
• The Gus Malzahn/Auburn Tigers run game.
• St. Louis Rams/Mike Martz shallow cross concepts.
• The Triple Shoot Offense (by Manny Matsakis).
• The ballad of Hal Mumme.
• The Divide Route in the multiple smash concept.
• What killed the run and shoot?
• The A-11 Offense: A pragmatic approach.
• The “constraint theory” of offense.
• Three-verticals and converting pass patterns.
• Pass protection, the Super Bowl, Tom Brady, and the Blind Side.
• Packaging concepts: Putting “beaters” to both sides.
• Playing pitch and catch: Spurrier’s favorite pass play.
• How many concepts do you need on offense?
• Switch it: Add a little Hawai’i to your offense.
• Run/pass balance and a little game theory.
• Run/pass balance: Response to comments I.
• Run/pass balance: Response to comments II.
• Deep crossing route – Larry Fitzgerald style.
• Four verticals – Getting Vertical (with Dan Gonzalez).
• Organizing pass plays as concepts.
• Probability, pragmatism, and football.
• Substitutions, personnel, and formations.
• Linemen splits.
• Why you can’t just play assignment football against Paul Johnson’s flexbone.
• Shallow cross and the holy trinity from the bunch formation.
• The shallow cross, drag, and drive concepts in the west coast and spread offenses.
• Airraid practice plan.
• Notes on practicing and developing the quick game.
• The “all-curl” route concept.
• Peyton Manning’s favorite pass play: levels.
• The importance of clock offense and why spiking the ball is almost always a bad idea.
• Urban Meyer’s “crazy” or “shovel option.”
• “Fire” zone blitzes.
• Rock-Paper-Scissors, Edgar Allen Poe, and play selection.
• Paul Johnson’s flexbone meets the run and shoot.
• Conservative and risky strategies (and kurtosis)
• David strategies and Goliath strategies (more on conservative and risky strategies).
• Bill Walsh method for gameplanning.
• Norm Chow reads and concepts.
• Texas Tech’s 31 point comeback and the “hot hand” theory.
• Follow-on on the hot-hand theory.
• Bill Walsh 49ers notes on dropback passing.
• Run & Shoot passing series.
• Bill Belichick on Bill Walsh’s “Finding the Winning Edge.”
• Former Northwestern Coach Randy Walker’s effect on the rise of the spread offense.
• Matt Stafford and the Wonderlic test.
• Was Steve Spurrier’s offense a failure in the NFL?
• Football decisionmaking and the brain.
• Rise and fall of the spread via Purdue’s Curtis Painter.
• What does it mean to be crowned “national champion”?
• What makes a good runningback? How do you evaluate a team’s run game?
• The “jerk route” and the follow concept from bunch.
• Coaching points for the zone read play.
• Gunter Brewer on the four-verticals concept.
• Nevada’s horn play from pistol.
• There is no such thing as platonic ideal football.
• Sprint-out and half-roll passing.