How Georgia Tech countered their option to the primary upset of the faculty soccer season

“RUN THE BALL.”

That was of the primary phrase out of Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key’s mouth after the Yellow Jackets secured a monumental upset victory over No. 10 Florida State in Dublin, Eire. The 24-21 victory was their first win over an AP top-10 workforce since 2015, which additionally occurred to be towards Florida State. It’s not typically that you just see FSU get pushed round, however the Georgia Tech offense did precisely that.

Key, a former offensive line coach, and offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner engineered an offense that ran for 190 yards on the bottom, and an EPA per carry that positioned within the eightieth percentile. Fairly tidy in case you ask me.

Whereas the Yellow Jackets threw a wide range of run sport appears on the Seminoles, they’d probably the most success operating counter. Of their 190 dashing yards, 105 got here off of the usage of counter runs. They used this as their bread and butter, and battered the vaunted Seminoles’ line of defense into submission.

Florida State is a predominantly 4 man entrance, with an attacking model of play. If you wish to get after them on the bottom, having to hit them with hole scheme runs and use their aggression towards them is the most suitable choice. The place the Yellow Jackets did this nicely is through the use of movement and breaking out the pistol offense to disguise the energy of the play. The Seminoles lined up in an “Over” entrance, that means they have been sliding everybody in direction of the facet the tight finish was on. When Georgia Tech would line up, it might find yourself trying like this:

You see this individual in movement? Yeah he additionally performs a task right here. Florida State can also be a heavy man protection workforce; they completed 2023 seventh within the nation in man protection snaps per Sports activities Data Options. Why is that this so necessary? As a result of the nickel defender is locked in man protection, the Noles largely should defend the run out of a six man field, having the recruit their assist from the security and never from a nickel defender. Georgia Tech knew this, and would use that eye sweet of movement to maintain the nickel out of the run match and trigger confusion on the second stage of the Seminoles’ protection. From there, it was all about math and angles with their counter runs.

As a result of the 3-Method DT is to the middle’s left, he steps to his left and washes him down, permitting for the left guard and tight finish to drag to the offense’s proper. The proper deal with performs a double workforce on the opposite defensive deal with, then strikes as much as the bottom linebacker so as to reduce him off from making a play.

The place Florida State went mistaken is how they approached the pulling guard and tight finish. There are a lot of methods to tackle pullers: you’ll be able to “field” it, that means you hit the puller along with your inside arm and attempt to power the again inside. You may “spill” it, hitting the puller with the exterior arm and power the again exterior. Or you’ll be able to “dent” it, which is solely operating by way of a MFers face. Nevertheless, if one man dents and one other man spills, then we’ve got an issue. Everybody must be in sync on the similar time, and the Noles have been merely not executing at a excessive stage. The defensive finish (54) closes the house for the run accurately, after which he form of tries to each field and dent the puller, and finally ends up doing neither. The linebacker (quantity 9) comes down and dents the tight finish, however as a result of the top will get washed out like light denims, there’s no person within the hole, and the again runs for six yards. I’ll take that day-after-day of the week and twice on Sundays.

Even when the Noles tried to deliver a security down early in a blitz to defend the counter, the way in which they went about it on the second stage was poor, resulting in large performs. Defending the run is a workforce sport, everybody must be so as and Florida State’s second stage was the trombone that was too flat. This was the primary play of the second half, going for 36 yards on the identical GH (Guard/H-back) counter that beat their butts within the first half. If it ain’t broke, don’t attempt to repair it.

You may see the defensive finish (No. 11) do a fantastic job of discarding his down block, and is there to probably make a play. Nevertheless, as a result of the security doesn’t hand over his exterior arm, the Noles are going to should field this at linebacker. Nevertheless, the linebacker dents as a substitute and the freeway opens.

Even Georgia Tech QB Haynes King was getting concerned within the run sport, and when he was concerned movement turned a lot extra necessary. The Yellow Jackets begin off in empty, with 4 receivers lined as much as the proper and one all the way in which out to the left. The tight finish goes in movement, however the linebacker to that facet can’t go away with him, as a result of the Seminoles needed to maintain the numbers benefit to that facet. A good notion, particularly with all of the RPOs offenses are bringing to the desk. So, now the Seminoles have 5 gamers within the field, with six folks blocking for Georgia Tech.

I used to be by no means good at math, however I do know six is larger than 5. Because of this one of many safeties must be introduced down off the roof to make a play, and he comes down late to attempt to get entangled. The tight finish will get a fantastic block on the lone linebacker to pin him to the within regardless of a great dent by the top, and the QB finally ends up one on one with the security. King won’t have been the best passer, however he made some gutsy runs when his quantity was referred to as.

I needed to throw this similar facet counter run by the Yellow Jackets in right here too, as a result of it’s a pleasant means of utilizing escort movement to offer the tight finish a operating begin right into a block. Once more, my AP check rating in Physics wasn’t the most effective, however I do bear in mind power equals mass instances acceleration, and an object in movement will keep in movement until an equal or stronger object stops it. Take a look at how the linebacker has to remain on the bottom of this run and might’t recover from, and the opposite linebacker doesn’t tackle the block nicely sufficient to trigger an issue.

Now the query is the way you defend these counter runs in case you can’t constantly play them accurately? Nicely, the reply comes from a really related spot: the Georgia Tech protection! The Seminoles love operating counter, however the Yellow Jackets swarmed the FSU offense to the tune of 98 yards on 31 carries, and did quite a lot of it by way of stealing gaps utilizing stunts and efficient second stage blitzes. Let’s have a look right here at one I assumed was actually good by GT. The Yellow Jackets set their entrance to the tight finish that’s off the road of scrimmage, however watch what occurs on the snap.

The defensive deal with to the proper steps to the proper of the guard, that means the middle finally ends up stepping and blocking air. This opens the door vast open for a linebacker firing on the snap and blitzing the place the middle left. This causes an issue for the offense as a result of that’s a LOT of house for the left guard to attempt to cowl towards a linebacker who has a operating begin. So regardless of being at a 7-6 numbers drawback within the field, the Yellow Jacket protection will get a deal with for loss as a result of they steal a niche utilizing efficient second stage blitzing.

Georgia Tech won’t have extra expertise than the Seminoles, however they went into Dublin and executed their offensive and defensive gameplan so significantly better than their ranked counterparts.

Run the dang ball.