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The most publicized play in college football this weekend was LSU's fake field goal against South Carolina. Quarterback Matt Flynn faked placing the ball on the ground, then flipped it over his head to kicker Colt David, who ran into the end zone as though he had been a running back in a former life.
Not only did the play work. It looked easy. In fact, it looked so easy that other schools might be tempted to try it sooner rather than later.
My advice to Tennessee: DON'T.
I realize it comes across as un-American to oppose trick plays. And I enjoyed Boise State's Fiesta Bowl deviousness against Oklahoma as much as anyone. But just because something works for Boise State or Florida or LSU doesn't mean it will succeed at UT.
When the Vols stray from their basic offense this season, they might as well have the public-address announcer scream to the crowd: "WATCH THIS!"
Don't get the wrong idea. UT doesn't have quarterbacks tossing the ball over their heads, and it doesn't hide the ball in the bellies of offensive guards. What constitute trick plays at UT are offensive staples elsewhere.
Take the end-around, for example. The Vols tried to sneak that one past Florida nine days ago. Freshman Brent Vinson lost 9 yards. They tried it again Saturday night against Arkansas State. Freshman Kenny O'Neal gained 2 yards.
Trickery? It's more akin to freshman hazing.
Veteran players haven't fared much better. Wide receiver Lucas Taylor slipped into the backfield against Cal, took a direct snap in the shotgun formation and charged into the line. You knew Cal wasn't caught off guard when you saw Taylor's head snap back like a crash-test dummy's.
It's as though UT's designated tricksters have neon signs on their helmets flashing, "Here I come." Opposing defenses couldn't be more ready if Bill Belichick's cameramen were stalking the sideline.
I can appreciate UT's token attempts at deception. Their program has been accused of becoming stagnant. Besides, everybody knows how much fans love a trick play.
Actually, that's only half-right. Fans love a trick play when it works.
It didn't work Saturday at Ole Miss. Trailing by six points with 3:09 to play, the Rebels lined up in an unorthodox formation on fourth down. Florida coach Urban Meyer decided the Rebels might be up to something other than a punt and signaled for a timeout.
After the timeout, the Rebels shrewdly proceeded as planned. Punter Justin Sparks took the snap, faked a running punt and completed an 8-yard pass to tight end Robert Lane, who was promptly tackled short of the first down.
More advice to UT: Don't try that, either.
UT special teams have had enough trouble with the basics this season. The last thing they need is a punter passing on fourth down. Remember how that turned out against Florida two years ago?
And don't even think about faking a field goal. New kicker Daniel Lincoln, who is 8-for-8 on field goals, has become a can't-miss star. A UT holder flipping the ball over his head to a kicker is a can't-miss disaster.
You know how that would go. A defensive tackle would catch the ball in stride, and a team that has struggled to bring down 180-pound ball-carriers would embarrass itself trying to tackle a 280-pound lineman.
Unconventional plays have cost UT only a few yards so far. No opponents have turned them into touchdowns. No receivers have been maimed. The Vols aren't 2-2 because of their offense, which is averaging a respectable 34 points and 418 yards per game.
So cut your losses. Hand the ball to your tailbacks, throw it to your wide receivers and tight ends, and send a graduate assistant coach to a Boise State football seminar in the off-season if you're still determined to fool somebody.
But if you can't resist running a reverse, take the neon sign off the wide receiver's helmet.
Sports editor John Adams may be reached at 865-342-6284 or adamsj@knews.com.
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Comments » 29
andy112382#209793 writes:
Oh gosh, the Eric Locke package, how brlliant was that....thing about doing 'trick plays' like that, you can't have the guy in there for JUST plays you want to get cute with, not exactly rocket science.
wyomingvol writes:
The Statue of Liberty is`what I want!
OldNumber7 writes:
UT used to run trick/misdirection all the time and it worked great. I remember a marquee touchdown against Alabama when Manning ran a bootleg. And a perfect reverse against Washington St. was the only touchdown of a defensively fought game - again Manning. Why can't Tennessee run a trick play? Because they can barely run their offense and are not disciplined enough to execute a play that requires thought. These Tennessee teams are terribly coached and lack fundamentals. They are not consistent in any way shape or form and that means coaching is bad. Clean house. Get a new coaching staff in here to save this program. A win is not a win in this game. You have to beat quality opponents - Fulmer does not.
vol4good#206163 writes:
If you fake an end around several times in the begining of the game, the D will stop reacting to it and then walla, it works. Fakes and misdirection keep the LB and Safties in place, which opens passing lanes deep. When a D is only given two choices (run or Pass) they can key thier reads better and create matchups that favor them. That seems to be how Fl offense works (fakes, misdirection, multiple opptions). I mean on every play he could run, hand off, pass or both. TN either hands it to the TB or passes. The D doesnt have to guess, it knows. Then out of the blue Fullmer runs a crisp white new jersey out there and the entire D points and says "HE'S GETTING THE BALL!!" That is poor coaching not poor talent.
tigervol9802 writes:
So I guess I am the only person who remembers the end around pass against Florida in 06 that went for 6.
Basketball_Jones writes:
The other thing about trick plays is you have to have the athletes who can run them. For instance Florida has tons of speed, thus those end arounds work for them cause there playres are faster than most. Same goes for the Mustang package at Arkansas, McFadden and Jones are GREAT running backs, even though you know there getting the ball, there's nothing you can do about it. Tennessee doesn't have those players this year or their not in the game.
Anyone remember the hlfback pass during Shulars freshamn year when Fulmer put him in the game at tailback? I was in the nose bleed section and my buddy and I pointed it out that he was in the game, not to tricky if two 17 year olds sitting 300 yfs away can see whats gonna happen...
Another thing, I heard last night on the locker room show about how complex our receiver packages are, which is why it is so hard to grasp. If this is true then why do we only run 3 routes? Bubble screen, slants and a fade route? Doesn't sound very difficult to me
CrankE writes:
Joe Gibbs won three Super Bowls using an offensive philosophy that was basically this: We line up in just a few formations, but from those formations we can do any number of plays. Phil Fulmer right now is operating under the inverse of that philosophy. Tennessee can line up in any number of formations and from those formations can run just a few plays.
If I can't ride a bike without training wheels, what would make anyone think that I could pull off an Evel Knievel with a double back flip?
TNvolunteer writes:
Guys we do good on trick plays...We do good at making the other team look good on them!!! The last trcik play I seen work was last year against UF when Lucas Taylor took a pitch or swing pass and threw it down field to Lamarcus Coker for a score, but that is an iffy on trick plays.
I agree with Adams..A trick play with this team ia a trick its self.
Every other teams D knows whats gonna happen when Lucas Taylor lines up at QB or Kenny O' Neal goes in motion or is even on the field...We make it easy for oppossing D's to know our trick plays.
Which is why we need a head coach and with some creativity!
VolinUtah writes:
tigervol-I agree thatwas a great play against the Gators in 06, but the point was that Hardesty was a running back playing his normal position and executed the paly. When UT puts Taylor (or Crompton) in the backfield the entire world knows they are getting the ball.
This goes a long way back, but I remember being at a spring game (probably 87 or 88) when the Tight End (Von Reeves) ran a reverse and threw a TD pass to I believe Carl Pickens (out of a normal offensive set). I am not sure the VOLS have those type of unique skills now, but that was an innovative "trick play"
I also agree with the poster that discussed the Eric Locke package. That was a disaster!
GoVol writes:
'trick' plays only work when you are able to fundamentaly do everything else correctly...such as blow the D-line off the ball and control the field with authority. Until we get the very basics down the misdiretions will not fool anyone.
txsvol#372416 writes:
Why would UT take advice from Adams, a noted LSU backer and anti-Vol fan? Get rested, Tennessee, and get ready for Georgia! Go Vols! SAVol
ellisonfamily writes:
The Erick Locke package. One might think that it did not work, because that was the only time Locke was in the game. It was obvious what was happening. In part, that is true. But...could someone please explain why we could not stop Tebow last year when he ONLY came in to run the ball. I'm convinced Tebow could come into the game against UT's defense, show them the play, and point to the hole where he would run and still produce a first down or TD.
McIntireIMP writes:
The "neon sign" that John has mentioned here is not a sign at all, and it is certainly something the Vols can't remove. It's their jerseys. The bright orange is easy for the defenders to see out of the corners of their eyes so they see that receiver running to the other side of the field too easily. Plus, our blockers block too long, they need to release the defenders and let them chase the initial direction of the play so they can set up a wall for when the receiver is tossed the ball going the other way.
mloaks#222092 writes:
Jersey color? Wow, pass the koolaid! :D Tricks are impossible as long as Ainge is QB; he'd pout. If UTK wants to change things up with surprise in the mix, hire Hawaii's June Jones.
Basketball_Jones writes:
Folks the talent isn't there to run these plays...let me rephrase that, we can't coahc our talent to the level it needs to be at to run these plays....Thats been the case for years though. Don't give me Peyton Manning either. If you remember Peyton used to check off all the time in college, anyone ever think its because we had called the wrong play and Peyton was smarter than the coaching staff? He's smarter than his OC now, Peyton made Cutcliff look like a genius..Spurrier made Chavis look like a middle school coach....Imagine if Peyton had gone to Florida, he'd had thrown 50 TD's a year
Ironcity writes:
The reason the reverse didn't work against Florida is because we were running an option with a QB that had run the option once in 3 years (and got hurt) that in itself was a trick. As soon as the defense saw that they knew something was up. I think we would all like to see a little more mis direction out of our offense. I am a firm beleiver that if someone lines up in teh backfield then we should consider them touching the ball every now and then. Chris Brown lineing up in the back field does nothing but signal where the play is going.
murrayvol writes:
Football is about blocking, tackling, and execution. Thus far we've done none of the above with any real consistency.
texan writes:
It seems to me that UT trick plays are designed to use great speed and not experience against the other team's slow and weak points. So far they have been sent in the wrong direction with the wrong people. Do you guys think that's the kids fault? Give me a break. Creativity is no longer a trait of the coaching staff. Just look at the success rate.
texan writes:
Isn't the definition of a trick play a play that tricks the defense no matter what offense you are running? These kids are recruited, coached and ultimately played by the coaches.
Basketball_Jones writes:
I think its 80% coaching and 20% players. The players do what they are taught, if they are not taught properly then it does them no good. Now as far as tackling they should know that prior to coming to UT. I do think some sometimes though these kids have been bigger, stronger, and faster than everyone they played against their whole lives. Then they come to a major college and their are 80 more players just as fast, strong, and as big as they are. It makes them game alot harder when your not the dominant player anymore
ellisonfamily writes:
Rutgers, Louisville, Boise St. I realize that we do not have Florida or LSU level speed, but I know we have talent of these first three teams I mentioned. How did they whip everyone last year? No doubt they do not play in the SEC, so that is a big difference. Look what Boise St. did to Oklahoma, and look what a below average Penn St. team did to UT in the bowl season. You cannot tell me that somehow our players cannot learn like players in 10-15 other top tier programs learn. Even given our talent level, someone explain to me why we are not competing. UK does not have our speed, but we were murdered by essentially the same Arkansas team they just beat. I could go on and on with this, but all things being equal, we still lose. If it were like NASCAR, and everybody had the exact same motor, we still lose to UF by 19 instead of 39. We are losing with players of the caliber that other teams are winning with. 5-6 stinks. 9-4 ain't that good when you cannot even beat an inferior Penn St. team in a bowl game. What is the reason? Were we tired from the 75 week layoff before the bowl? Our players may not be quite top tier, but they can be trained to play much better than they are. We have 42 players in the NFL right now and many are starting. Where is this lack of talent?
invisiblekid writes:
Nice memory RocketVol, I am thinking it was Nilo Silvan that took that reverse in for a TD against Washington ST. The neon sign anology works but I think a signal flare is a better comparison. IMO, it's not so much the play call that doesn't work but the substitution patterns that get the Vols in trouble. The thing that makes Harvin so dangerous for FL(besides the athletic talent)is that he is on the field for most plays and you don't know where he is going to line up. The reason the reverses didn't work for Vinson or O'Neal was due to the fact that a flare goes up to the opposing team when they show up on the field for their 2 plays a game. I also remember the pass by Taylor against FL last year as well tigervol9802. It sticks out because the coaches went against tendencies and it was about the only trick play that has worked for the Vols in the past 7-8 years.
pdhuff#552644 writes:
A great trick play would be to hide the third plate of country-fried steak from Fulmer pre-game! That actually would lead to some grousing on the sidelines and maybe get Chavis upstairs where he NEEDS TO BE! KINDA LIKE OUT ANT-HILL DEFENCE - WHEN THE BALLS SNAPPED THEY ALL GO IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS. Go Vols.
olozbal#646632 writes:
I know it's dangerous, but I'd love to see Ainge do a naked bootleg run into the endzone just once. I saw Peyton do it once for the Colts and it was great.
Medalist writes:
The offense is performing well save the scores by opponents and rushing attempts on third and short. We don't need trick plays, we need a defense. Upcoming games v GA, AL, Ark, Ky, Vandy. We could easily have 3 more losses. Tackle, pressure the QB, pass coverage and on punt coverage stay in you lanes.
rileye writes:
we better get bob stoops before lsu does
phi0129 writes:
Dude stop posting about bob stoops after every single article..you are a tool
takebkknox writes:
Yeah, don't try to be innovative. You might be successful and give LSU a run for it's money. Just keep on keepin' on. We need to run Adams out of town and back Weesiana. He and Hyams are in cahoots and they're POISON!
utbaby#215635 writes:
Awsome article. I got a big kick (no pun intented) out of this one and couldn't agree more. O'neal needs to catch at least 3 passes downfield before the end around has a chance to work. Or maybe try this in the 4th qtr when the defense is a little tired instead of the 12th play of the game. Lucas Taylor needs to complete...let's say 1 pass....before the Taylor in the shotgun has a prayer. Quit the phooey that doesn't work and try smash mouth football for a change. Line up with two tight ends and a fullback and run the ball.
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