Week 2 of Bowl Season - Continuity and New Direction
Dec 22, 2023 3:20 pm
Coach
Another bowl week with plenty of games to watch. There’s new faces and names, and it’s a chance to take a look at how some programs that are not making changes will capitalize on their continuity as well as a peek at what new staffs have in store for their programs. Coach Trent Kaufmann breaks it all down
Enjoy the games! Merry Christmas!
Coach Grabowski
Game Previews:
Birmingham Bowl - Troy Trojans vs. Duke Blue Devils
In this game, both teams have lost their head coach, with Duke’s Mike Elko going to Texas A&M and Troy’s Jon Sumrall going to Tulane. In terms of transfers and opt-outs, Troy has the advantage in that aspect, “only” losing leading tackler Jayden McDonald, who had 75 tackles this year, to the transfer portal. Duke, however, will be without a slew of defensive guys who accounted for notable production this year, as well as star QB Riley Leonard, who is headed to Notre Dame via the transfer portal.
This obviously has an impact on the numbers and the production of these offenses. However, here are the numbers: Troy finished the season No. 22 overall in TSI, while Duke finished No. 29 after being in the top 10 for a significant chunk of the season.
The Trojans’ offense was No. 65 in FBS, while the defense came in as the No. 9 defensive unit in my numbers. The Blue Devils’ offense was just 49th, but the defense was 18th, which is why those defensive departures could be impactful in this game.
This one will be anyone's guess as to how it turns out. But, also ushers in new leadership for each program in Manny Diaz and Gerad Parker. In a matchup that features new and old coaches clinics here is a compiled look at these programs.
Eric McDaniel- Troy University Defensive Line Skills & Drills
Looking into the idea of pressure and a theme of defense and rush moves Coach McDaniel guides through various rush moves and the fundamentals and footwork through this clinic.
Leverage is a must. Non-negotiable in the trenches this is not news to anyone but, the struggle to ingrain the proper positioning of the body and how the push/pull forces should feel is quite possibly the most frustrating part of coaching the defensive line.
There is so much inconsistency with it no matter how good the coach is. The GP drill displayed here is a great EDD for all defensive lines due to the nature of it being proper regardless of whether you have undersized or appropriately sized defensive linemen. It aids in the understanding of the techniques and pushing familiarity with these movements.
GP work is something that is being added in our program I encourage you to explore a plethora of option when working with these tools and incorporate the drills that you see showing up the most in real game situations.
Other Clinics from The New and Old Staffs:
Rusty Whitt - Troy, Resilience in Motion
Manny Diaz - Leverage Tackling
Adam Cushing - Creating a Consistent Offensive Lineman
Mike Elko - Developing A Championship Defense
Adam Cushing-Creating Culture:Clarify,Simplify,What Does This Make Possible
Culture and Leadership with Adam Cushing
Camellia Bowl - Arkansas State Red Wolves vs Northern Illinois Huskies
Both of these teams are coming in playing some of the best ball that they have recently. In their last two outings these teams have put up 98 and 61 combined points respectively with a 3-1 combined record. Both narrowly earned bowl eligibility with their 6-6 records.
Running game and offense are going to be at the center of this game. Who is going to get rolling and TOP may become a large determinate of the victor here as NIU looks to rely heavily on the running portion of their operation. Having gone 6-0 this season when rushing for more yardage than their opponent. The main ground rudder for NIU is Antario Brown, who nearly ended his team’s four-game losing streak all by himself with 280 yards, on 13 carries, and four touchdowns in a 55-14 victory at Akron on Oct. 7.
Looking into this matchup the clinic focus will be on NIU Head Coach - Thomas Hammock
Process of Building a Championship Program and Culture with Thomas Hammock
Building a championship program and culture is no easy task and it doesn't happen overnight. However, it does start from the head-down. Coaches must instill a common understanding, purpose, and team goals. Not to mention, standards. Holding your players to standards sets the tone for the organization, starting from the recruiting to academics, the weight room, and the field. It's important to have all team members as a part of your identity.
In this course, Coach Thomas Hammock discusses the “dip” process. How to buy into the dip as well as how to implement it. Hammock gives a breakdown of investing in the process, everything from recruiting to academics to the weight room. He describes how to create an identity for your ball club in all 3 phases.
Looking into the idea of The Dip… More than ever it applies to today's college football. There is going to be a dip. No matter how drastic. It happens in HS too. Almost no one is at the top or at their peak consistently.
Alabama had a dip. They did not make the CFB playoffs last season. This year they did. There are peaks and valleys in life and there are going to be challenges that arise. The portal more than ever has elevated these situations.
Finding a way to teach these lessons and getting young people to buy into the hardship and apply this to life scenarios is in some ways becoming the selling point of college jobs. In a society based on instant gratification can you find a way to get your young men to buy into the road less traveled. This could be a good starting point shedding light on a thought process taken prior to the volatility that we see today.
Armed Forces Bowl - Air Force Falcons vs James Madison Dukes
In a lot of ways it is too obvious that James Madison deserved a bowl appearance this year - and looking into the idea of competitive spirit it should’ve been allowed to play in the Sun Belt Championship. But after all the screaming, and politicking, and threats, and appeals, and pleas, and national outcries … it’s here, it’s in a bowl game, and it’s missing some of the key people who made it happen.
Head coach Curt Cignetti is off to Indiana along with a few of his assistants. A whole lot of parts to the amazing defense are in the transfer portal, but many of them might play in this along with QB Jordan McCloud, who’s also likely out through the portal after playing in this. And they’ll need everyone.
Air Force is more than just a nasty running game this season. It’s not going to wing it around 50 times, but it’ll throw it around ten times or so … it’s still about the nasty running game. It’s Air Force. Running is still everything, going 7-1 when running for 244 yards or more, 1-3 when it didn’t. The team has to average five yards per carry, it has to control the clock, and it has to find a way to dent the nations’ best run defense.
James Madison isn’t just good at stopping the run; it’s at a historically great level.2021 Wisconsin allowed just 61 rushing yards per game. No one else in the last 15 years came all that close to that, and then JMU allowed 61.5 per game this season. Two teams got past 100 yards - Old Dominion and Georgia State - but that’s it. Only the Panthers averaged more than 3.2 yards per carry.
This one will be tight, it will be interesting to see how the offense shifts now under Interim Head Coach Damian Wroblewski and if the Dukes can get things rolling.
Damian Wroblewski - Pass Protection Fundamentals
Coach Damian Wroblewski talks about the fundamental drills he uses to teach and work on pass protection. He also tells us about different variations that can be used for each drill.
Looking into these drills it comes back to the same components, what are you ultimately settling on as your principles? Establish this and construct your practice plan or practice menu. The great part about this is Coach Wroblewski is not only teaching the drill but, also variations that you may find more apt to your liking. Some of Coach Wroblewski’s principles are items that can apply to all programs and abilities of offensive linemen. Take this preview and think about your structure and principles that can be the basis of your OL.
Las Vegas Bowl - Northwestern Wildcats vs Utah Utes
Interim head coach David Braun was able to steady the ship. The turnovers stopped, the defensive front started to hold up a bit better against the run, and then the shockers came. The Wildcats pulled off a massive comeback to beat Minnesota, stunned Maryland, and after pushing Iowa, they went on a run with wins over Wisconsin, Purdue, and Illinois to ensure a winning season. Northwestern can win this if the running game is merely functional - the team is 6-1 when running for 90 yards or more - and if the run D can hold up.
The Utes have little to no downfield passing game, and like Northwestern, they have to run to win. They went 2-4 when running for over 120 yards, and were 6-0 when running for 220 or more - it’s feast-or-famine when it comes to the Ute offense. Northwestern allowed more than 220 rushing yards just three times.
This needs to be a relatively low scoring game - for both sides. Utah doesn’t put up a ton of points, and Northwestern should be a play or two away all game long. As long as the Wildcats hang around and don’t get steamrolled over right away, this should be interesting. But Northwestern has to connect on its third down plays. They are not bad at it, but every third down will mean everything considering Utah will hold the ball for at least 35 minutes.
Don’t expect fireworks, and even though Utah will seem like it’s dominating for stretches, don’t expect this to be another ugly Las Vegas Bowl. Five of the last six have been ugly double-digit games. Expect this to be more like the recent Las Vegas Bowl outlier - the 2021 20-13 Wisconsin win over Arizona State and Jayden Daniels. The Badgers got up early, and it was close in the second half, but the game never seemed like it was out of their control. As the lone Ute representing, let's look into Jim Harding’s Pass Pro Clinic.
Jim Harding, University of Utah - 6 Man Pass Protections
After 8 seasons as the University of Utahs' offensive line coach, Jim Harding and his O-line have been dominating the Pac-12. Averaging over 350 yards of offense per game & 9 yards per offensive attempt, this Ute's offense has been unstoppable. In this course, Coach Harding uses both game and practice footage, as well as gives you an in-depth breakdown on how to coach the 6 man pass pro, and implement it in your offense this season.
Video: 3 Digit vs 1 Digit Pass Pro
Terminology is a driver. It is the key to communication and developing a terminology that can be processed by every individual involved and alter the speed and cohesiveness that the play of your offensive line is executed at. This communication is something that is going to allow the offensive line to tell eachother quickly and progressively what they are seeing/what the defense is running. In many ways this is a great way to eliminate great defenders but also an aid for your upperclassmen to pull the play of your underclassmen up.
A widely overlooked item with this is this common terminology regardless of player call or mix ups in play call. If communication is off, it gives the line the ability to shore up the blocking assignments in real time.
Fluidity is key as you have to move with the ebb and flow of the game and play the other coordinator this enables your players to become an interactive piece in this. In the end, this gives players more ownership and responsibility which can aid in the progression and development as well as the pride and self motivation of an athlete and promotes the idea of contribution from the team.
Other Clinics from These Staffs:
RUN FITS IN ANY DEFENSE - David Braun
Northwestern Defense - Tim McGarigle
Pass Protection Progression and Techniques with Kurt Anderson
Quarterback Fundamentals - Mike Bajakian
Block Destruction, Transitions out of Breaks & Press Tech. - Matt MacPherson
Hawai’i Bowl - San Jose State Spartans vs Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
Be careful of the narrative that’s sure to come before the game.
San Jose State is hot, Coastal Carolina is not. The Mountain West team is used to the Hawaii surroundings and won’t get into the atmosphere of the vacation aspect of this, and the team down to its third string quarterback - maybe - will be just a little off.
It's not like Coastal Carolina isn't used to life in a beachy resort area. This is still a solid Chanticleer team with more than enough in place to put up a fight. It was good on the road, the defense had time to prepare for Cordeiro, and as long as the O isn’t turning it over in bunches, this will be a whole lot closer than expected.
It’s the third bowl appearance in four seasons for San Jose State under Brent Brennan. It’ll finally be on the right side of one with a little more offensive explosion than Coastal Carolina. Dan Carrel will do everything he can to stop that from happening. Check his clinic out here.
Building a Run Fit System
Dan Carrel has focused his study of the game on the how rather than the what. Designing a run fit system requires plenty of how and why types of questions. With a focus on the multiple ways to stop the run, Coach Carrel takes you through various fits and alignments including even fits, plus fits, and minus fits as well as discussing the understanding necessary for each in knowing what you are trying to accomplish.
Everyone wants to be the master of X’s and O’s but at the end of the day that isn’t realistic and as the saying goes - “Whoever has the chalk last, wins”. What is becoming more and more prevalent is the idea of winning with numbers.
Do not complicate things more than you have to. At the end of the day identify what you are defending, align it to where you see tendency and what you need to do to win but, be aware within the plan what you are inviting and incorporate a mix of these items. Wham and Insert/Iso schemes are growing and popping up everywhere. Rightfully so, it invites an otherwise unaccounted for gap in the center of a defense.
But, when the defense is predicated on winning in the run and even the pass game with numbers based on plans. They will be in a position to win. The first day of bowl games Miami(OH) uses a similar one high numbers strategy that Coach Martin talked about in a prior clinic to defend RPO’s and remain heavy on numbers.
They held their opponent to 13 points. You did your job, it's in the offense's hands and in today's football most people would assume you won that game with that information. Obviously at the end of the day wins and losses are what matters and in that case it didn't go the redhawks way but, nonetheless they were in the position to win. Similar strategies here. Check out Coach Carrel’s thoughts.
Other Clinics from These Staffs:
Make Sense of Your Self Scout - Dan Carrel
OLB Fundamentals in a 3-4 - Josh Miller
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
Coach Kauffman