Power running / Power option offense

[pk556]

What formations would you guys recommend for a power running / power option offense. I have been tinkering with this and would like to hear some other opinions on it. I am not really sold on the option part of this , it just seems broke to me . Keep in mind I will be using this in a OLD against users.

[jhempel.msre]

I used the Power Option in '11 as my primary offensive weapon and I used it well. Very well. I don't know much, but I do know how to run the Power Option in this game. To put it simply...

...the Power Option (as well as most other types of Options) is completely broken in '12.

I owned '12 for a month before I retuned that heap of garbage.

[bgeno]

Quote: Originally Posted by jhempel.msre

I used the Power Option in '11 as my primary offensive weapon and I used it well. Very well. I don't know much, but I do know how to run the Power Option in this game. To put it simply... ...the Power Option (as well as most other types of Options) is completely broken in '12. I owned '12 for a month before I retuned that heap of garbage.

In other words, you don't have anything productive to add to the topic.


I-forms worked the best for me when I ran power option in my first NCAA 12 dynasty. Actually, I felt like I-forms out of twins (to the strong side/side with no receivers) made power option too effective, so I handicapped myself and didn't call any plays like that.

I would send the fullback in motion and snap the ball right after he starts moving so he can get ahead of the QB, otherwise, unless you have a really fast fullback or a sluggish QB, your fullback will slow you down if you try to follow him or you will negate his effect on the blocking if you outrun him.

The double wing (flex bone) forms have power option in them as well, and I found it to be pretty effective.

Personally, I stayed away from the shotgun option plays as they don't seem to work much.


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[PowerofRed25]

Quote: Originally Posted by pk556

What formations would you guys recommend for a power running / power option offense. I have been tinkering with this and would like to hear some other opinions on it. I am not really sold on the option part of this , it just seems broke to me . Keep in mind I will be using this in a OLD against users.

I posted this in another thread and also on another board. This is the type of offense I run now, a Tom Osborne style power run/option scheme.

The Ozbone Offense

I've been trying to figure out how to utilize a star fullback better and decided to recreate the old Nebraska offensive scheme from Osborne's days. It is as authentic as possible, straight out of Nebraska's 1997 playbook, formation for formation, with a few tweaks. It also includes some stuff from the 70s and 80's as well as the first few Solich years. Here are the formations, with the Nebraska name for the formation in parentheses. These are listed in order, as they appear in the playbook.

Ace

Big (Ace)
Big Twins (Trips)
Slot (Spread)
Y Trips (Wide Trips)
Spread (Double Wide)

I Formation

Tight (Tight)
Twin TE (Special)*
Y Trips (Unbalanced)
Normal (Pro)
Twins Flex (Wide)
Slot (Open)
Slot Flex (Open)

Flexbone

Normal (Double Wing)
Split Wing X (I)*
Slot Left (Spread w/WB)
Trips Right (Wide Trips w/WB)
Wing Trips (Slot Trips w/WB)

Shotgun

Split (Not used)
Split Slot (Not used)
Normal (Spread Gun)
Y Trips (Wide Trips Gun)
Spread Flex (Shotgun)
Empty Base (No Backs, under center in Nebraska's book but the lack of QB runs under center forced me to use gun for this)

Goal Line

Maryland I

Now there are a few notes here. The formations with *'s are actually formations where the inside slot WR was a wingback who was utilized in the run game as a pitch man, just like in the flexbone. To replicate this, I installed the 4 extra Flexbone formations that weren't there. Only Double Wing (Flex Normal) is a true Nebraska formation, the other 4 are just replications of Nebraska's Slot Trips, I and Special formations. It isn't a stretch at all, the base alignment is the same, the second wing back is just moved down from the I. It was the only way to get it right. Additionally, we used to run FB Dive/Trap with all of our single back sets, simply by moving the Ace back up to what would be FB depth. That is why the 4 extra Flexbone sets are used.

The other notes are the gun formations. Under Osborne, Nebraska only utilized one shotgun formation called Shotgun, it was a 2x2 Spread set. Under Solich, they added gun versions of Wide Trips and Spread. I used Air Force as a base so I was stuck with a few gun formations. I left Split and Split Slot in. Empty Base was added because Nebraska used an Empty under center set in the 90's (No Backs), but under center empty in the game is useless, so I used Empty Base. Split and Split Slot are not used Nebraska formations, but they follow the pattern of simply dropping the QB back to the gun out of the single back and I sets. So Split, Split Slot would be Pro Gun and Open Gun. I haven't gone gun in three games with this though.
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Plays

It is tough to replicate the plays because the most used plays for Nebraska are either not in the game or don't work right in the game. The most used run plays were 41/49 Pitch (an off tackle quick pitch, Nebraska used it this year. LSU's quick pitch is a similar play). Toss plays don't work in the I in this game, so I had to dump this. The other one I dumped was the Belly series, a FB dive and then a fake FB dive and double option. There isn't a fake to the FB, double option to the IB in the game, I just replaced it with triple option. Note that Nebraska has never really run triple option, it just looked like it, there was no dive read though. The trap game Nebraska used also isn't blocked right in the game. I just run FB Dive/Iso.

So all of my under center formations have the following: Counter, Iso, Power. That is my entire run game, found in every Ace or I formation. In all my I formations I also have a Triple Option and Load Option (Arc Option). I also have Lead Draw's in there, which is a very Nebraska play.

Play action could not be replicated well, Nebraska ran option passes more often than anything and they simply do not work in the game. I have a few quick screens, especially in my wing (Flex) sets as the quick pass audible. Most of my passing game is designed rollout and QB Sprintout plays. My favorite is Ace Y Trips QB Sprintout. If I'm passing more than 10 times a game in this playbook, I screwed up somewhere.
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Play Calling

This is power run first, option second. I power run to set up the option, it is just like Nebraska did it. My base play is Iso and Counter off of it. I run Counter more simply because most people load the strong side of the formation and I get 2 guards pulling to the backside. When I'm getting people tighten up the box, I go triple and load option. As Coach Osborne said, our option plays are another team's pass plays. We expect to go 7 yards+ when we call option. I'm the same, option is my big hitter. My QB isn't that athletic, just enough to get it outside. I use Flexbone to run FB Dive and then quick hit with the triple and speed options off of it. I also use Flexbone to throw from time to time.

The big thing for me in the run game is motion. I use WR's to motion and block on almost every play. That is very authentic to Nebraska as we used the Split End and Flankers to crack on almost every outside play. I make sure to avoid tendencies by running away from the motion every so often. The counter/power game is absolutely filthy when you can get a WR to blow up the end man on the line and then get pulling linemen out front. I use a lot of Wing motion in Flex, although more often than not I'm going to the FB rather than the Wing.

If you love power football, option football, that old Nebraska way of doing things, I invite you to test this offense out. There are very few things more rewarding than putting up 40 points and 400 yards vs a human opponent running 50 times a game and just outsmarting and outworking them. You need patience though, get used to 10 play TD drive instead of 4 play TD drives and if you can't go a game without shotgun and slinging it around, this isn't for you.

Let me know if I can help make this work for any of you wanting to try it. I put the playbook up on the site, but just formations, not plays. I can help with plays if you need it. http://www.playbooks...tom.php?pb=1741