#24 Oklahoma's OC Jeff Lebby on Identity in Being Fast and Physical
Jun 08, 2023 1:01 pm
Coach ,
Over the next several weeks we will be sharing a series of emails featuring clinic talks from the Preseason Top 25.
I am fortunate to have two young college coaches helping me this summer. Today Jeremiah Johnson will be sharing some ideas.
Jeremiah is tight ends full backs GA at Ouachita Baptist University. He completed the last year of his United State Marine Corps contract.
Today he will share some of #24 Oklahoma OC Jeff Lebby’s philosophy and strategy.
Coach Grabowski
Season Preview Capsule
The Sooners are looking forward to this fall and what their offense can do going forward. They had an impressive offense last season coming in at 13th in the country in total offense.
They are looking to shut down all the negative talk about them moving to the SEC and show the world that they are a team that will compete no matter what conference they are in.
Offensive Coordinator Jeff Lebby is looking to improve their already stellar offense from last season. Coach Lebby believes that his Quarterbacks will be the difference this next year. He believes that overall their Quarterback room is better then they were this time last year.
Offensive Philosophy & QB Development - Jeff Lebby, OC
Offensive Philosophy
Offensive philosophy is the most important thing when it comes to quarterback development. Of course we know that if you want to have the best quarterback you can get, you have to teach him the philosophy behind the offense you want him to run. Coach Lebby’s offense is all about personnel placement, tempo, vertical run game, and Vertical pass game, and he makes sure this is clear to the QBs in their development.
Personnel
Personnel placement is the most important part of an offensive. You need to know what your players can do and what they can’t do. It is easy to draw up plays on a board but it is hard to execute those plays when your players can't do that play. Understanding the players capabilities will allow you to shuffle around your personnel to get your best guys on their worst guys.
Tempo
Tempo! Why is tempo so important? It allows you to play at your speed and not the defense's speed. It gives you an advantage of not allowing a defense to substitute and thus allows you to use the personnel you have out there to best attack the defenders they are stuck with using on the field. Understanding how to use tempo can be one of the biggest advantages in your whole Offense. Coach Lebby explains his view on Tempo here:
Vertical Pass and Run
Vertical Pass game and vertical run game. Vertical pass game is attacking the defense with more vertical routes rather than horizontal routes. It will cause the defense to stretch down the field rather than sideline to sideline.
This will allow you to open up the field and create huge plays in the air but it will also open up run lanes for your running backs by having the defenders stretch more down the field and the run lanes become longer and wider. Having an offense that can execute the vertical pass and run game will make the defense always pick the wrong option.
He explains the role of the RPO in their offense in creating big plays in this video:
Flow of defenders allow the QB to take advantage of voids in the defense with the RPO. The Play Action is another way to attack vertically. Coach Lebby explains how they make the picture clear for the QB in order to make big plays with the play action pass.
Clearing it up
Coach Lebby believes in these principles of understanding the offensive philosophy and developing his QBs. He uses the capabilities that they have to run the offensive he has designed and formed to each individual QB he has. His offensive philosophy is adaptable to all levels of football; you just have to find the right version that fits with your players.
Like Coach Lebby emphasized, it’s about training your QBs to not just know your plays but to understand what you are trying to do with the offense. An advantage can be realized when you understand what your players can do and adapt to them. Finally, using their capabilities to use your personnel and tempo to the best of your team's ability and to use the vertical passing and running game to fit your team.
Always Learning!
Coach Johnson