Texas State’s offense will be fast.
Like, really, really fast.
So fast, in fact, the team set a goal to average 90 offensive plays per game this season. That would’ve topped the NCAA in the FBS last season. Tulsa led the country with 86.3, while Texas State was 29th with 77.2 per game.
Texas State has a new coach, however, in Everett Withers, who spent the last two seasons at FCS James Madison.
James Madison averaged 528.8 yards per game last season, good for second at the FCS level. The team also averaged 79.1 plays per game, good for seventh. The average for the MAC last season was 73.57 plays per game.
So if there’s any Ohio fans expecting a boring, run of the mill, non-conference game to begin the season, think again. Texas State will come out fast and furious; it would be a mistake to chalk this up as an easy win.
Scouting the offense:
Now that we’ve established just how fast this offense really is, let’s breakdown how Texas State will likely run it.
Using this YouTube video, which is all a broke college kid can find on his laptop, I looked at a sample James Madison game from last season, using it as a guide for what Texas State might try to do to attack Ohio.
Tarell Basham told me last week that Withers does not like to sub on offense. This creates a problem for the defense because if the offense changes personnel, the defense would be allowed time to make the necessary substitutions. That’s not ideal for an offense that wants to “#PartyInTheEndZone.”
For the sake of argument, let’s pretend that Texas State is transferring over the exact same offense that James Madison ran last season.
The film doesn’t do it justice, but the offense runs at a rapid pace.
James Madison lined up with five offensive linemen, a quarterback and running back, a tight end/wingback and three wideouts nearly every play I watched.
The tight end/flanker, played by numerous players on the Dukes, was either in a down position next to an offensive tackle, or offset directly behind him. He occasionally lined up in the slot.
Vad Lee, the quarterback, always lined up in shotgun––I did not see him line up under center in the games I watched. Texas State quarterback Tyler Jones will likely do the same Saturday.
Withers likes to line-up in trips right or deuce-right, rolling the quarterback to the right, due to his handedness.
James Madison ran quick strike, efficient passes in order to continue getting positive yards and keep the chains moving. Frequently, the back-side receiver would run quick, short routes, as the three receivers to the strong side would run a combination of a corner, stop, slant or comeback route.
Let's look at a sample play, starting at 8:25 on the video.
James Madison lines up in trips right, with the tight end/flanker lined up in the slot.
Lee takes the snap, with the offensive line and running back flying out to the right to get reach blocks on the defense.
The back-side receiver turns immediately, but is essentially taken out of the play. The defense, which appears to be playing zone coverage, slides immediately to its left to cut off passing lanes.
The running back is used as a blocker to take out the defensive end, while the tight end runs a dig route, the "X" receiver (middle of the three) runs a corner route, while the Z (farthest out) runs a curl route.
In just three seconds, at 8:28, Lee has made his decision, and fires the ball to the Z receiver running a curl route. The play results in a quick seven yards and a first down. The play lasted six seconds.
Judgement:
Plays like that could hurt Ohio and its young secondary. Ohio must get pressure on Jones to stop the momentum and keep Texas State from moving the chains. Ohio should be able to shut down the powerful offense, but if Texas State gets going, it could turn into trouble.
Read tomorrow for a breakdown of the Texas State defense. The Post will do a weekly series of "X's and O's," breaking down what Ohio's opponent will likely run in the game upcoming that week.
