Frank Beamer's last home game in Lane Stadium ended with a disappointing, if familiar, result. Hokie Nation has grown accustomed to watching their defenses overachieve while their offenses underwhelm, and sadly Saturday was no different. The offense managed just over 400 yards and required a pair of late UNC fumbles to tie the game and send it into overtime. So what went wrong on Saturday? Why didn't Michael Brewer, Scot Loeffler and company find more success before their late surge?
A Strong Playbook
No one can accuse Loeffler of doing a poor job of designing plays. Loeffler is an excellent tactician who knows how to space his players across the field, horizontally and vertically, in order to isolate defenders. Loeffler can then either force an opponent into a no-win situation or deploy a superior athlete against a defender in order to secure a mismatch. Even against UNC DC Gene Chizik's "bend don't break" conservative defense, Loeffler was able to find single coverage and push the ball down the field at times.
On this play, Loeffler managed to get Bucky Hodges, one of his better weapons, in one-on-one coverage down the field. Loeffler lines his receivers in a balanced formation and then brings Greg Stroman across the field pre-snap to fake the sweep. The motion forces the defense to rotate into a cover 3 zone and, when combined with the fake hand off to Sam Rogers, also slows down the pass rush of the defensive line. Ryan Malleck runs a post to the middle of the field to occupy the safety while Bucky streaks past the corner and draws a pass interference call.
This is a really, really well designed play. Not only does Loeffler buy his QB plenty of time by using a double play-action, he leaves the field corner covering air while flooding the zone to the boundary. Take a second look and you'll see the boundary sideline has three receivers at three different levels, it's almost impossible for the defense to match up. Stroman threatens the flat, Bucky threatens deep down the field, and if they're all covered you have Isaiah Ford coming across the field behind the flat defender on an intermediate crossing route. This is the type of quality pass structure that has Loeffler has impressed me with since he arrived in Blacksburg.
A good offensive coordinator doesn't just have to have good play designs. He also needs to be able to call the right play at the right time, something Loeffler doesn't get enough credit for. Loeffler has made some really good calls at critical moments over the past three years, and I think the above play is a great example. It's late in the third quarter, the offense is four yards out, and Loeffler calls a quarterback draw for his small signal caller.
Now this is 100% the correct play call. UNC is expecting a pass and they have the right coverage called to prevent any easy route combinations to get an open receiver. The commitment to stop the pass has left only five defenders in the box and Loeffler knows a QB draw will give him an extra blocker in the run game. It's a gutsy call though because if the defense makes a great play and stops Brewer here, Loeffler has set himself up to take a lot of flak. The average fan isn't going to look kindly on a 3rd-and-four QB draw coming up short, and it would lead to plenty of second guessing. That is not a play call I would have the stones to make, but Loeffler knew UNC's tendency, he saw alignment and trusted his instincts. You have to respect that.
Virginia Tech's game tying touchdown was another well conceived and bold play call. The throw is going to Isaiah Ford all the way. It is based on one of Loeffler's favorite route combinations.
Via: 11W
Loeffler will normally try to get Bucky (#3) open by using Ford (#2) to pick his defender. If he feels a defense is prepared for the rub, Loeffler will occasionally throw in a wrinkle. He will have Ford "miss" the pick and sit in that space behind Bucky's defender for a short completion.
This touchdown was a wrinkle inside of a wrinkle. The defense is prepared for both scenarios by running a zone coverage and switching responsibilities. The outside corner takes Phillips on the corner route, the inside corner jumps Bucky's route (preventing a pick), and the linebacker is prepared for Ford to sit in the space the linebacker normally would have vacated if he had chased Bucky. Here's the double bluff. Right as the linebacker starts to close on Ford's snag route, Ford pulls a double move and slides past the linebacker for an easy touchdown.
This is a beautiful play that the defense had no chance of stopping.
Struggling With The Basics
If Scot Loeffler has proven that he can design plays and he has proven that he is capable of calling the right plays at the right times, why is his unit struggling three years into his reign as offensive coordinator? The answer is simple. The offense continues to make simple mistakes which lead to stalled drives.
This third down sack ended a drive because the offensive line failed to pick up the simplest of stunts by the defensive line. UNC uses a cover 2 man scheme (man coverage with two deep safeties over top) which means they are only going to be rushing four men. It looks as though Bucky Hodges has an opportunity to break his route out in front of the safety down the field, but Brewer is brought down before Hodges has a chance. What a disheartening play. These are the type of simple stunts the offensive line should be able to block in their sleep by this point in the season.
Augie Conte and Wade Hansen have to work as a unit to absorb this stunt. As soon as Conte sees his defensive tackle cross his face, he has to be prepared for the defensive end to jump inside. Instead, Conte engages the defensive tackle with both hands and isn't capable of getting back into position to prevent the penetration and sack. I don't care how good Scot Loeffler's plays are, if he shows up to the eleventh game of the season with a healthy offensive line that can't stop this stunt he hasn't prepared his team. UNC would finish the game with 5.0 sacks, their highest total of the season.
The Hokies went hurry up no huddle after a successful eight yard play on first down. In their rush, they didn't line up correctly and Rogers ended up running into a handful of unblocked defenders. Nothing about this play makes sense. It looks like the offensive line got the call that the play was a zone run to the boundary while Brewer and Rogers thought it was a zone run to the field, but to make matters worse Malleck is also lined up on the wrong side of the formation.
It is awfully late in the season to be lining up for plays incorrectly, especially considering Loeffler uses the same handful of plays everytime he goes hurry up. At the very least, you would expect the experienced Michael Brewer to spot that something is wrong and get everything sorted out before he hikes the ball. These type of procedural mistakes are unacceptable at this point in the season, and I have to wonder if Loeffler's complex playbook is setting his players up for substitution and alignment errors.
On a third-and-long from the edge of field goal range, Brewer has to realize that he under no circumstances can he take a sack. As soon as he sees the deep routes aren't open, he has to be looking for (wide open) Sam Rogers as his check down. A second year starter, the senior quarterback has to be aware of the game situation and get rid of the ball before he gets hit. The reason this play hurts so much is because this drive started on UNC's 30 yard line after the defense forced a fumble. So the defense made a play, gave the offense a short field, and all the offense has to do is play smart football and try to punch it in. If it can't, it's still within field goal range to take the points and see if the defense can't get another short field. BeamerBall is working!
Except, the opposite happened. On first down Michael Brewer very nearly gave the ball right back when he threw the ball into the hands of a defender who luckily dropped it. On third down the offensive line got called for a holding penalty, and on the replayed down Brewer got sacked to knock the team out of field goal range.
What Excuses?
This was supposed to be the year everything turned around on offense. It's Loeffler's third season at Virginia Tech, he has had plenty of time to teach his scheme. Outside of Michael Brewer's broken collarbone, there haven't been injuries to the skill positions or offensive line (a unit which has benefited from the emergence of Travon McMillian at running back). Loeffler has good plays and he has good players. The Hokies are too talented to be ranked No. 89 in total offense, No. 64 in scoring offense, No. 84 in FEI, and No. 81 in S&P+.
Comments
Isn't this just as much (or more) Searels' fault than Loeffler's? I realize that the coaches have to work together to execute the game plan from the OC, and subsequently prepare the players for what's happening, but why is Loeffler singled out here in the failure of the O-line? He bears some responsibility, but wouldn't it be more intuitive to get after the position coach before the coordinator?
I agree with what you're saying, but here's a quasi-counterpoint.
After a full season and a half coaching with Searels, Loeffler should be able to have a conference with him to clear up these types of issues. That seems like a relatively simple stunt that this O-line shouldn't be struggling with. Searels may be responsible for teaching the O-line to handle that stunt, but Loeffler is responsible for making sure Searels is doing his job.
I agree with that, and to an extent that's what I tried to quickly articulate. The OC is responsible for the performance of his assistants in the same way the HC bears the ultimate burden for the success of the team. I just found it a bit strange that Mason chose to say, "[Loeffler] hasn't prepared his team." This, to me, sounds more like a technique breakdown than anything and I'm curious why Loeffler bears the blame for it, aside from the overarching OC responsibility to prepare the team.
I agree with you. This kind of thing is on the position coach.
An OC has to know his units strength and weaknesses and adjust. He is ultimately responsible for all of the offense's position coaches just like FB is responsible for the coordinators. Too much has been going consistently wrong on the offensive side to not blame SL.
It's seriously unfortunate. Loeffler's career is like a Shakespearean Tragedy. He's obviously not a dummy. He knows how to expose a defense and take advantage of schemes and mismatches. That's only half the job, though. If you can't get the players to buy in and understand then you're doing something wrong. That much is clear. I don't think Loeffler is a bad person or a bad offensive mind. I just don't think he's a good teacher. Something is getting lost in translation.
Honest question - is he a bad teacher or are these bad students?
My guess is it's probably somewhere in the middle. I think Lefty will have wild success in the right situation. Not sure VT was it.
Letfy's play calling is like the Oregon Trail game, the conditions are right to forgo paying the injun to cross the river and forge on anyway...
I just lost an ox, two spokes, and 64 lbs of meat...
I wish more fans would read this. The play calls are there it's the execution, now that still might be on the coaches but the plays getting called seem to be the right ones.
Whatever good play calls he may have get thrown out by me when he runs sweeps or stretches to the short side of the field consistently. I am not typically one to call for jobs but Scot needs to go. He can design plays, but a lot of the time his calls are baffling.
French or Mason will have to speak to that. How do those plays work into his scheme.
I've been trying to reason in my head Lefty's positives and negatives all season. His schemes are good. Play calling MOST of the time is great. Then the head scratcher occurs. Like the 2nd down play in OT: Travon going outside tackle to boundary side. We had been pounding Sam (when we did run the ball) all 4th quarter running N-S (yes he did go outside tackle some but he turned it up-field just about every time and he was successful for short yardage). We needed to get at least 2-3 yards min to get us to at least 3rd and very short. I did not understand Travon to the right side.
That play broke the bank for me. I didn't understand why that play, with that personnel, at that CRUCIAL time.
I thought that or the next play was the perfect time for the same play that got us the lead vs OSU - but what do I know on this topic... nothing.
Sorry Lefty, I think you have done VT a service and helped us transition from the Offense basement to the 1st floor, but we need to be on the rooftop. You have shown you can be a great QB coach. Circumstances didn't help you, but it is what it is. We all rise to our own level of incompetence.
Time for VT to move on offensively.....with Bud as HC!!
I doubt very seriously if Bud will be HC at VT this year. I'm not convinced he'll even be retained. I'm preparing myself mentally for a Bud-less VT squad next year. I recommend you do the same. If he's retained, well, lucky us!
I know this might not be a popular statement but the playbook needs to be more creative and less complex. While Loeffler may be a genius at designing plays what good are they if you can't line up and run them. I will say one thing, he needs to scout his own tendencies because I could have told you what would be the 1st 2 plays of the overtime and so could Fedora. Look at Baylors playbook and tell me how complex they are. It's like a b-ball coach trying to run a double low post with a team full of 6 foot guys. Adapt to your personel and play to their strength. IMO.
I was hoping you would get into the fundamentals of the running scheme. Of all the things that bug me about Loeffler, that's the worst. This game, we actually went I-Formation more than we had seen all year. But, still, how many power plays did we run out of that? Seemed like the I-Formation was primarily used for play action. And when it mattered, we went back to the slow developing veer plays to run the ball and it failed, again. It is a complicated play requiring herculean blocks from Rogers and Malleck.
i didn't understand why we didn't run up the gut more often. UNC showed 6 men in the box quite often. run at them. What happened to "taking what the defense gives you"?
One of the problems is that we haven't done it all year.
I'm really looking forward to what the new HC and his OC can do with our offensive weapons. Just need a QB to stay around, I'm fearing that both Motley and Lawson will leave. We are a QB away from an 8-9 win team next year.
I'm fairly confident that our offense will look significantly better next year. We have a bunch of talent. VT is an attractive job opening. I trust Whit to hire a guy who will be able to get the best out of our current roster. I'm pretty sure, with how soft our schedule is next year, that the next coach will be able to get this team to at least 9 wins next season. UT, UNC and ND are the toughest match-ups we have. The rest of our schedule is a cake walk for any of the top 5 or 6 coaching candidates on the market. With VT being a top 5 destination for a good coach that should put us in a pretty good position.
Yeah, I had to look up our schedule to see what it looks like. I would rank them, from toughest to easiest:
1. @ND
2. neutral.UT
3. @UNC
4. @Pitt
5. v.Miami
6. v.GT
7. @Duke
8. v.ECU
9. v.UVA
10. v.BC
11. @SU
12. v.Liberty
Step 1 is we need to start protecting our turf. It's a reasonable goal to have an undefeated Lane Stadium slate. Step 2 is to stop losing games we shouldn't lose. Split UNC/Pitt and you are looking at 9-3 at worst. If both Lawson and Motley transfer, we will be fighting for a bowl again.
I don't see Lawson transferring. I think the new coach will reach out to him as well as incoming recruits and try to keep them all in town. I don't see the benefit Motley would get from transferring either. If he doesn't think he has a shot to win the QB job against Lawson at VT, then where does he think he has a shot?
I could see maybe one of them leaving but not both. If they do, though, I think the new coach would be able to make Durkin at least serviceable. Our schedule is pretty manageable, even with a question mark at QB. I don't agree entirely with your rankings but I'd say you're pretty close. I think BC will be tougher than UVA. They typically are. My concern with the new coach, since he's probably going to be offensive minded, is what will he bring to the table defensively? I don't have a lot of confidence that Bud will be retained. I think we'll have to rely more on our offense than our defense next year and BC's defense scares me a lot more than UVA's.
I also think Duke will be tougher than GT next year. GT has been historically bad this season and I don't see them turning it around quickly. Cutcliffe, IMO, is a better overall coach than PJ and I expect Duke to right the ship faster than GT. Miami is a toss-up. They have a bunch of talent and if they get the right coach they could leap-frog Pitt and maybe even UNC. Or, they could repeat recent history and hire a knuckle-head who will have Miami firing on about 1/3 of their cylinders which would be good for about GT-ECU level competition. No way of knowing, really.
Why would both QBs leave? Motley has a little chemistry with the skill position players, he'll have a leg up on anyone else coming in. The only reason I could think of for both leaving is if we bring in a offensive system that neither can run
One continuing trend I've noticed, our communication sucks. It takes too long to communicate a play from the booth to the QB. And then, once the play has been called in, pre-snap adjustments get lost on at least one skill position player every snap. I can't calculate how many times I have seen a receiver with his hands in the air looking at either Brewer or the sideline two seconds before the snap. Now this could possibly be a came of rope-a-dope, where Lefty is intentionally having his player feign confusion the same way Jim Brown use the feign injury, but my gut tells me there are so many variables in a Loeffler play, not everyone can keep track of everything going on.
If you're a defender and you see your cover assignment throwing his hands up right before the snap, you have a pretty good idea the ball is most likely not coming his direction, seeing as though he has no idea what the hell is supposed to do.
Confused Ryan Malleck agrees with you.
If Lefty would stop speaking Klingon/Sputnik during his practices, maybe the coaches and players could understand and be on point.
haha...this made me chuckle
this seems to be a pattern. i remember reading some of the explanations Stiney would give as to why a certain play didn't work and it would seem like a dissertation. I consider myself an educated person, and if you lose me in an explanation that's supposed to be rather simple, then you're probably over-complicating it. Now, if I'm confused, it's probable the players that are supposed to be running the play are as well. Sometimes the K.I.S.S. principle is best.
Theoretically that KISS system is perfect with teams like OSU and USC; teams with top talent & ability can dictate a simpler course of action. It's up to the less talented teams to adjust and hold on for dear life; compensating with more complicated schemes.
Occasional flares of Tyrod and Vick allow us to compete on the national scale every couple of years. We manage okay as far as talent is concerned.
Our defense has held their own for a long time. Yet our offense has only held their own only when our top talent succeeded in spite of the offensive system. Seldom in synch with it.
We have a communication issue keeping us from ever staying competitive on that side of the ball. If the best athletes we can field are Brewer, Teller, Ford and Mc Millan, then we do have the means to be a pretty great team. Somehow somewhere Bud Foster learned to speak fluent student-athlete, and the Offensive staff skips that course every time.
Frank Beamer endearingly admits that we've played above our level through some of the ten-win seasons; perhaps he's just modest enough to downplay the flaw that has been VT offensive communication all along.
It seems we've never really developed the ability to translate the "How" with the "Here's why" in our offensive language. When it truly mattered, Tyrod, Vick and LT could simply take their dose of Fuckitol, willing us to close victories. (The miracle vs. Nebraska never happens no matter how many times you draw it up; somebody amazing just does that for you when circumstances permit.)
Brewer is pretty damn good, but without the "why" on the field, he isn't executing the "better scheme" reliably (Go HERE... roll dice, odds are favorable). I'm sure in film review it comes together. But to communicate real-time like Bud is a gift (Go HERE; because that fucker right THERE). We have yet to find an offensive counterpart that can do it, too.
Great writeup. Personally I'm done trying to analyze the offense, I'm just glad Loeffler is out of here 2 games from now and we never have to worry about his BS again.
and there I was thinking that after Loeffler was made OC, we wouldn't have to worry about BS again...
Nice!
I miss BS's rushing offense.
did you ever think you'd say that?
Man, I'm going to get a kick out of everyone if for some reason Loeffler is retained on the next staff.
Fair criticism of Loeffler. Its good to see some of the positives he does bring to the table along with why the offense remains unsuccessful. Hopefully our next OC will right the ship
I do miss some of Stiney's play action pass plays. They were beautiful, Tyrod, even Sean Glennon could make those look pretty. We even played more than two tight ends back then. Oh the Jeff King days.
I actually think that Loeffler's play action passes are some of the best designed I've seen, I just wish that he'd take the time to establish the run. If he was part of a staff where he was forced to line up under center and run the ball, he would have a lot more success.
Do you think Loeffler could realistically land in Chestnut Hill? I do.
It's almost like you have to have him as a Co-OC with someone who can get him to pair down the playbook or help bridge the gap. I agree that he's not a dummy at all, but there is something seriously missing. Maybe he should jump to the pros where they have the time and focus to be able to learn his playbook.
So in summary Loeffler is bad because the line missed a stunt and Brewer took too many sacks? I think some people are looking for excuses to blame Lefty.
What did you want me to do, write 10,000 words and break down every mistake the offense made the entire game? I rewatch every snap of the entire game multiple times, formulate an educated opinion, and then have to boil that opinion down into an article that doesn't take all day to read. I don't appreciate the implication that I cherry pick a couple of plays here or there to throw together a hit piece. Trust me, I would much rather praise our team then criticize and I went out of my way to show the things that I believe Loeffler does well.
An offensive coordinator has two responsibilities.
- Design an offense
- Teach the team to run that offense
Loeffler is fielding an offense that consistently screws up the basics. Consistently. In every phase of the game (run, short pass, play action, deep pass). The offense had barely 400 yards on Saturday and only tied the game after UNC fumbled twice late in the 4th quarter. If I wanted to show 15 plays of how the offense wasn't able to execute the basics, I could have. How is that not on the offensive coordinator? compare the offense to the defense. Bud Foster's unit has had way more injury/dismissal problems than Loeffler's had and his unit faced a much tougher opponent on Saturday... yet Foster's unit was the one to punch above it's weight. Not Loeffler's.
Scot Loeffler has no excuses. He has a healthy offensive line that has played together all season, he has the same two wide receivers and two tight ends playing that have played all season, he has a breakout star at tailback, he has a second year starter at quarterback who his entire team respects. He has more than enough talent at the skill positions to create mismatches.
If you want to breakdown the film and give me the reasons as to why Loeffler isn't responsible for the product that he puts on the field I'd love to read it.
you keep tossing phrases like "only 400 yards of offense" out there.. 400 yards is pretty good for a pro-style, ball-control offense with limited big-play capabilities.
Our offense isn't intended to be a run 'n gun 600 ypg scheme that maximizes # of possessions over length of possession... it's an offense based on the synergistic (with the defense) concept of marching deliberately down the field & scoring while keeping the ball away from the other team.
In this particular game we possessed the ball for 7 more minutes than UNC (33:26 vs 26:34). That's at least a couple of possessions they didn't get, and for a big-play offense like theirs, limiting the total number of opportunities is key. Big reason we were able to force over time.
edit - I should point out that I don't think Loeffler is a great OC, I just think you're using examples that don't really make the case that he's an average (or below average) OC all that well :P
I don't think the point is how many yards we got (or didn't get, depending on how you look at it) but more about how we consistently struggle with really basic stuff. When basic fundamentals can't be consistently executed by the players that has to fall back on the coaching. Something is seriously wrong if the players are struggling to execute. Mason is pointing out that the problem isn't play design or play calls so much as just flat out inconsistent play from the players. Coaches are tasked with teaching the players the basics and building on that. IF they can't get the players to get the basics right how can they build on that? It's going to breed inconsistencies. And that is supremely frustrating because we see flashes of what this offense could look like but we just can't put it all together enough to win games against formidable opponents.
I call that "stating facts".
It's really not that good, but we'll agree to disagree on that front. Also, this offense has plenty of experienced playmakers at this point. It's not the same team that was outmatched at the skill positions last year.
I agree completely. My article explains why the offense failed to
1) march deliberately down the field
2) score
An offense that ACTUALLY scores on those possessions would have helped us win this game, though. The way Bud has the D playing, we could have easily won this game with a competent scoring offense. I get the theory of controlling the clock and playing keep away from UNC, limiting their possessions. Not to sound like Madden, but in order to win, we've got to be able to actually put some points on the board when we have the ball. If it weren't for some big turnovers and crucial stops by the D, we wouldn't have been able to force overtime at all down two scores.
Too many empty possessions and 3 and outs from our offense. That puts too much pressure on our D and doesn't give them time to rest, ultimately leading to breakdowns and scores from UNC. There's a good reason Bud wants an offense that will make something out of its possessions and put some points on the board.
agree 100% a 3 and out possession is a big failure for a ball-control style offense. Although sometimes I think Beamer finds it acceptable to trade punts if he picks up field position.
Which is why I'm surprised more Loeffler detractors aren't pointing out how his creative play calling on 1st and 2nd down frequently puts us in low percentage situations on 3rd down.
There have been vocal posters complaining about the imbalance between running and passing on 1st down. I think there was one game (don't remember specifically) where we threw 70% on first down. That's mind boggling.
My article critical of Loeffler's 1st down tendencies
Let's just say that yes the O wasn't up to snuff this game. But are you really going to blame Lefty for our losses over the course of this season? Not his fault our Mike LB couldn't do jack against a Duke RB who put his ass on the ground. And not his fault the D couldn't stop anything against a few of our other opponents too.
Rail at Lefty for this game, but using him as a focal point for your anger for this year's performance is completely ludicrous.
I'm not at all saying he is to blame for the whole season. The defense definitely gets their fair share of the blame. But the defense has had plenty of attrition this year, and we're playing with a very green secondary and a weakspot at linebacker. Lefty has had everyone, sans Brewer, for the entire season. It was the 11th game of the season, and mistakes that shouldn't be made at this point in the season were being made. And that was the difference on offense. We have a second year veteran QB in Brewer, no losses on the OL, a great RB in McMillian, and the same receivers and tight ends as we've had all year. If anything, this offense has regressed as the season went along. Why are we still not lining up correctly and making mistakes? Why are they not executing consistently? Why is the line still not blocking correctly? That is what is frustrating - the fact that we can't seem to get the little things right. Those little things make a big difference in big games.
THANK YOU!
I'm kinda sick of all the Loeffler haters out there. Again, its not the offense's fault we are where we are this year. In fact, i'd argue we are as successful this year (and not worse off) BECAUSE we have Lefty's offense!
Did we not move the ball at times? Sure. But it's not like we weren't moving up an down the field others. And if your case is to show how bad the O was this game, then you need to pare it with the successful games we've had this year DESPITE not having Brewer for a third of them!
Yeah we're not going to have Lefty around next year, but the amount of arm-chair QB'ing and hating on him is frustrating. He deserves some criticism, but not to be the entire scapegoat.
I am not a Loeffler hater. I wrote a completely reasonable article stating that in the third year of Loeffler's reign as offensive coordinator, he has fielded his third consecutive offense which fails to execute his game plan. I even provided the evidence.
If Loeffler's offense was overmatched athletically, that would be understandable. It's not. It's an offense that simply doesn't execute. That's on him.
Please don't tell Mason how to write.
His article is an analysis of the offense's performance against North Carolina amidst the themes of Loeffler's tenure. Mason did the fair thing, he noted both the successes and failures of the offense against the Tar Heels with regards to those themes.
We get it from both sides: 1) "You're too critical of Loeffler, Beamer, etc..." 2) "You're not critical enough of Loeffler, Beamer, etc...". At the end of the day there's what happens on film, and Mason, French, Et al. do their best to interpret it.
If you want to counter Mason's argument, then do as substantial an evaluation and share your conclusion. This isn't pissing excellence or convincing me to take you seriously.
Don't ask Mason to make your argument for you.
I'm not, so quit putting words in my mouth.
The article itself isn't what bothers me. I'm quoting what I have contention with:
Lefty isn't the reason the Oline can't pick up a basic stunt. Sure the "buck stops somewhere" and you can point fingers at the OC and he'd probably gladly fall on that sword, but it's not his fault our Olineman can't do stop a basic maneuver and even Wake Forest destroyed us with last year. Tell me how that's his fault? Short of him getting him in pads out there I don't really understand what else he can do. To suggest that he wasn't preparing the O properly is to question his ability as an OC, and I'm quite sure that while Auburn wasn't rosy for him for much discussed reasons, his tenure with Temple wasn't a fluke.
Brewer holding on too long for sacks? How is that on Lefty? Nobody wants turn-overs, but Brewer needs to recognize as a 5th year starting QB that he needs to check-down or throw the ball away and not take a sack. Once again, short of having a mic in his ear, Lefty can't control what Brewer does.
To be clear, I have no issues stating that the O wasn't pulling its weight for this game. However, Loeffler-designed and Loefller-executed teams have won us games this year when the Foster defense wasn't "punching up to its weight". To state that he has no excuses and not give him some slack is being over-critical and not warranted based off of this years performance, and certainly not off of one game.
Me looking for the performance that should protect Loeffler from criticism
So he has had four consecutive years of poor offensive production, but his one year in a non-power 5 conference should prevent us from questioning his ability? That is an awfully long leash you are providing him.
This will be my last reply because the above mischaracterization of my argument is silly. The lack of execution doesn't just include "Brewer holding on too long for sacks". Poor execution permeates every aspect of the offense. I would go so far as to say that "Poor Execution" is the defining trait of this offense.
Rewatch just about any game over the past three years and you will see an offense that struggles to get out of its own way. I waited three years to write an article this critical of Loeffler, and the reason I finally wrote it was because three years of game tape shows he isn't improving execution.
Look at the improvement of execution at Michigan in under a year. An offensive coordinator that can't get his team to do what he wants isn't a good one.
You're right in that continuing a back-and-forth argument online is pointless, but really though?:
I thought it was painfully obvious that his stop at Auburn where he didn't have the right people for his scheme was painfully obvious, as highlighted in multiple TKP articles such as this.
Further:
It's hard to have your team run your scheme when they aren't truly suited for it. We've had a piss-poor OL for the past few years and this year, remarkably, they've made strides forward - so perhaps we should give SL the credit he's due there then. Short of one bad game against Pitt (and even if you include the UNC game), we've done remarkably well in how our OL had done prior to his arrival - so what kind of perfection are you looking for off the bat?
Lastly:
....We're not Michigan. We simply didn't have the talent that they and other high-profile schools have that drag in four-five star talent on a consistent basis.If you have 6'2 220 lb guards then you're gonna have a bad time trying to do anything against a talented DL line. No one said we can't get there, but you need depth to dominate a team completely and we just don't have that. It's simply ridiculous to have expected such a massive turn around and compare us to these type of schools.
This isn't the National Football League. Sure in the NFL I'll buy that coaches really don't have to spend much time developing players and teaching them fundamentals because in the NFL if you make those mistakes, you just get fired. However teaching fundamentals is absolutely part of the job of a college coach. When players continue to fail in regards to the basics and fundamentals of the game as much as this offense has then they are simply not being taught/developed properly. That falls directly on the OC and by extension to his staff (or vise versa).
So it seems that majority of the blame should go to Coach Searls then since he's the OL coach? Not sure I agree with that either.
We probably shouldn't get caught up with total yards, when playing a team like UNC we're gonna get more possessions than playing a team like Pitt.. Probably yards per possession or points per possession would be a more telling stat
That's the issue - we rarely march down the field, we rarely score, and we rarely keep the ball away from the other team.
Three stats I'd like to see, that I think would change your opinion:
I do think that, if we want to be a 'ball control offense' we can get by with <500 ypg, but it's essential to maximize those three stats. Let's pretend we only have five drives/game, but each goes 90 yards, averages 6 minutes, and we score TDs on three of them, FG's on the other two. That's a super efficient offense.
The biggest issue with Lefty's offense is how many drives 'stall out.' What % of drives are 3 & out? What % of drives do not result in ANY score?
I don't know where to find these stats, but I'd wager that the first three statistics mentioned above are far too low, and the the number of 3 & out's and scoreless drives are way too high.
SL, or any coach for that matter, can do no wrong to some on this board. Hope they enjoy following his career at some FCS school next year.
Sorry if that read as an attack or disparaging remark, that was not my intention. I just saw too many people blaming the entire loss on the offense. It is a team game, win or lose, all three elements had bad plays.
I think Scot has done some nice things, and I also agree with you that we should not be making fundamental mistakes this late in the season. I do wonder how many of those mistakes are because our OC didn't pick his staff? But the first rule of being an OC should be find something that works, if the players aren't getting it maybe you need to rethink what you are doing.
Play design and situational play calling have always been his strengths. We've seen his idea of the "walk in" touchdown executed to perfection several times. However, my biggest concern, and I think his biggest weakness as a coordinator (outside of execution errors explained above in the article) is the play to play game flow play calling. Running outside to the short side of the field with Sam Rogers against a 6 man front, not running Travon on 1st and 2nd down when he is hot, running Travon in those situations when he isn't. These head scratcher play calls combined with the aforementioned lack of execution by the o-line or others leads to our offensive inconsistency.
+1. Well said. Certainly better than my ramblings down below.
OC Loeffler has some plays that work well and I've seen flashes of brilliance. Best example I can think of are those option plays he drew-up for Motley during the Miami game.
What I can't put my finger on is the schizophrenic nature of his play calling. There is usually one or two quarters that our offense shines, and then the wheels seem to come off the vehicle. What gives?
What I can't put my finger on is the schizophrenic nature of his play calling."
"...finger on is the schizophrenic nature..."
"...schizophrenic..."
Just kidding.
Great conversation everyone, continue on.
Great analysis.
Loeffler does some things well. But I've seen enough. As great as Sam Rogers is, I don't really want to see a play called where he takes a handoff and runs laterally.
I can't wait for the spread offense that _____________ (Fuente, probably) installs next year.
Maybe Loeffler's offense is to complex for our players? I don't doubt that the guy can coach QB's and he knows how to design plays; I just don't know how successful he has been as OC for VT... To be fair to the man, to a certain extent, it's not all on him.
On his current coaching staff, he probably had input only on Coaches Searles and Zon Burden. He didn't pick Shane as RB coach, and in the hierarchy of the team, Shane out ranks him as Associate Headcoach. Nor did he pick Bryan Stinespring as his TE coach & recruiting coordinator.
Then there are the unfortunate circumstances of coaching turnovers due to Coach Grimes leaving after one year and Coach Moorehead leaving at year two of his tenure.
Then there is the fact that in year two he didn't have his starting RBs for half a season and towards the last four games, we were down to our 4th and 5th string RBs? Logan Thomas as QB for one year in his first year as OC and then Michael Brewer as a new QB in his second year as OC, only to lose him for 3-4 games due to a broken collar bone in his third year as OC.
To say that OC Loeffler has had difficult circumstances is putting it lightly. But ultimately, the buck stops with him, because he accepted the position of OC. IMHO, I think he needs to pair down his playbook for the college level. Next year, if he is still here, he will have a new QB again. Three years of data would seem to indicate that we would have a 6 or 7 win team with a new QB who needs to grasp OC Loeffler's playbook. I don't believe that would be acceptable to our fanbase.
oh! Wait.....
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Shit!! We Have That!!
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