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Cyclone football spread to the limit
By Bobby La Gesse
Date Posted: 2008-08-17
As injuries spread the Iowa State secondary thin last season, the spread offense had no problem picking it apart.
The Cyclones closed 2007 with only three cornerbacks and watched Missouri and Kansas ring up 87 points and 932 yards against them.
But ISU's problems with the spread ran deeper than the depth chart as Texas Tech and Texas both put up more than 40 points and combined for more than 1,000 yards of total offense on the ISU defense.
Needless to say, if the Cyclones are to improve upon last year's 3-9 record, they will have to defend the spread better in coach Gene Chizik's second season.
"The position we were in last year, having three corners and going to play Missouri and Kansas, you can't match up," ISU secondary coach Shawn Raney said. "You have to have good athletes on their good athletes. Now we feel like we have the guys in here that can do more of that stuff."
They'll have to.
The popularity of the spread offense has swept across the nation as defenses have struggled to contain an offense that relies on spacing and exploiting mismatches. And it has found the most success in the Big 12 Conference. No other conference scored more points (33.4) or gained more yards (438.1) than the Big 12 last year.
Each team in the Big 12 North has the spread offense in its playbook. Baylor and Oklahoma State, two of the Cyclones' crossover games with the Big 12 South, rely heavily on the spread to produce points.
"The spread offenses, they are all different and they aren't all the same," Chizik said. "The quarterbacks in this league are phenomenal. The defenses are still trying to catch up."
The Cyclone secondary could be in a position to close the gap.
ISU returns all four starters in the secondary even though senior safety Chris Brown, who tore his ACL and MCL at the end of spring practice, isn't sure if he'll be ready for the opener.
At cornerback, returning starters senior Chris Singleton and junior Allen Bell are battling with sophomore Devin McDowell for the two starting spots. An impressive batch of newcomers, led by junior Kennard Banks and freshman Leonard Johnson, are expected to give the Cyclones enough bodies to better match up with the four- and five-receiver sets they are bound to see this season.
"They've really, really tried to respond to (what we're teaching them), and we are by no means a finished product, but they are trying to become all around full players right now and understand the game better," secondary coach Jeff Koonz said.
They already understand they are the first and last line of defense against pass-happy offenses such as Kansas and Baylor.
"If we break down, the whole defense breaks down," Singleton said.
But the secondary can't stop the spread on its own. If the defensive line breaks down, spread offenses will make the most of the open running lanes it creates as linebackers and defensive backs are forced to cover receivers who line up from sideline to sideline.
"Everyone has to make a play sometimes," Bolt said. "Defensive lineman can't get cut off. Linebackers have to tip balls. Cornerbacks can't get beat deep."
And the easiest way to ensure that is to make sure everyone sticks to his assignment.
"Bottom line is we have to have great fundamentals and play within the scheme and know which coverage we are playing and run fits when," Koonz said. "It doesn't matter if it's four wide, three wide, two wide, five wide."
Bobby La Gesse can be reached at 232-2161, Ext. 358, or rlagesse@amestrib.com.
By Bobby La Gesse
Date Posted: 2008-08-17
As injuries spread the Iowa State secondary thin last season, the spread offense had no problem picking it apart.
The Cyclones closed 2007 with only three cornerbacks and watched Missouri and Kansas ring up 87 points and 932 yards against them.
But ISU's problems with the spread ran deeper than the depth chart as Texas Tech and Texas both put up more than 40 points and combined for more than 1,000 yards of total offense on the ISU defense.
Needless to say, if the Cyclones are to improve upon last year's 3-9 record, they will have to defend the spread better in coach Gene Chizik's second season.
"The position we were in last year, having three corners and going to play Missouri and Kansas, you can't match up," ISU secondary coach Shawn Raney said. "You have to have good athletes on their good athletes. Now we feel like we have the guys in here that can do more of that stuff."
They'll have to.
The popularity of the spread offense has swept across the nation as defenses have struggled to contain an offense that relies on spacing and exploiting mismatches. And it has found the most success in the Big 12 Conference. No other conference scored more points (33.4) or gained more yards (438.1) than the Big 12 last year.
Each team in the Big 12 North has the spread offense in its playbook. Baylor and Oklahoma State, two of the Cyclones' crossover games with the Big 12 South, rely heavily on the spread to produce points.
"The spread offenses, they are all different and they aren't all the same," Chizik said. "The quarterbacks in this league are phenomenal. The defenses are still trying to catch up."
The Cyclone secondary could be in a position to close the gap.
ISU returns all four starters in the secondary even though senior safety Chris Brown, who tore his ACL and MCL at the end of spring practice, isn't sure if he'll be ready for the opener.
At cornerback, returning starters senior Chris Singleton and junior Allen Bell are battling with sophomore Devin McDowell for the two starting spots. An impressive batch of newcomers, led by junior Kennard Banks and freshman Leonard Johnson, are expected to give the Cyclones enough bodies to better match up with the four- and five-receiver sets they are bound to see this season.
"They've really, really tried to respond to (what we're teaching them), and we are by no means a finished product, but they are trying to become all around full players right now and understand the game better," secondary coach Jeff Koonz said.
They already understand they are the first and last line of defense against pass-happy offenses such as Kansas and Baylor.
"If we break down, the whole defense breaks down," Singleton said.
But the secondary can't stop the spread on its own. If the defensive line breaks down, spread offenses will make the most of the open running lanes it creates as linebackers and defensive backs are forced to cover receivers who line up from sideline to sideline.
"Everyone has to make a play sometimes," Bolt said. "Defensive lineman can't get cut off. Linebackers have to tip balls. Cornerbacks can't get beat deep."
And the easiest way to ensure that is to make sure everyone sticks to his assignment.
"Bottom line is we have to have great fundamentals and play within the scheme and know which coverage we are playing and run fits when," Koonz said. "It doesn't matter if it's four wide, three wide, two wide, five wide."
Bobby La Gesse can be reached at 232-2161, Ext. 358, or rlagesse@amestrib.com.
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