re: Justin Fields ran a 4.51 at Nike Camp

Luckily for us, we'll all find out during the 2nd quarter of Week 1

So here’s the question..

With every team out there bringing out a dual threat guy...are you REALLY taking anyone out of their game plan when you bring that same guy out? Who’s harder to defend? An accurate pro style QB with time or a DT QB?

We faced 3 DT QBs and say 4 with Tua. Who scared you more....those guys or good passers (ie Stedham, Mayfield, those kids with Ol Miss and USCe, etc.)?

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So here’s the question..

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Ultimately, it's a valid one... at some point, the contrarian approach is going to be the pro-style passer rather than the DT. But as you said, we played maybe 4 DT QBs this year in 15 games... throw away 2 of them if you want (App State and the other cupcake) for degree of difficulty, and we still played against 13 (14 with Tua) different QBs... so roughly 1/3 were quality mobile/DT guys, and 2/3 were more traditional *or* were not as much of a threat as a DT at a minimum - with some debate as to who those were.

FWIW though, Mayfield is a mobile QB, even if he's not a true "DT". And Patterson at Ole Miss was a DT recruit (as was his replacement this year I think, the hawaiian dude). Those guys were much scarier as QBs than Stidham, Bentley, or even Lock at Mizzou.

Accurate passers scared us this year because of our issues in the defensive backfield outside of Baker... but on the whole, QBs who are actually truly dual threat (meaning they are threats throwing or passing, not just that they occasionally do it) are more difficult to game plan against. See: Alabama in 2015 and 2016 against Clemson.

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What else can a guard do in any given play?

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With different defensive fronts there can literally be dozens of blocking rules that come into play. So you might down block on a play and double the nose with the center against a 3 man front. Then later on with the same play the defense walks up a backer on the outside and the d-line shifts over and you wind up with a 4 man front look now. Might be the same play but your assignment is different since you are covered up with a defensive lineman. What happens if you run the play again later and they are back in the 3 man front but now they shoot a backer into B gap? Who picks him up?

It's not as simple as saying pull left, pull right etc.
Since you mention pulling, the guard has different steps/techniques/angles for the block. Is he pulling out wide on the sweep? He has to take a pull step and get a little depth before clearing and turning up to lead block. Is it a trap block or is he kicking out the end? Once again a different angle he has to take with the approach to the defender with totally different footwork. Does the play call for him to pull and then wrap? Are we down blocking? Reach blocking? Drive blocking? Chipping to backer? Scooping on the backside? Zone blocking? Pass blocking? Screen blocking? All these blocks have angles and intricate footwork.

So when you break the huddle you have to:
1. Know the play and the snap count
2. Know the the defensive front and your rules on the play.
3. Evaluate the angle of approach you have to take on your assignment. Remember the specific block that you have to make with the specific footwork that the block requires. If it's a pass play you have to potentially worry about blitzes and various other stunts you have to pick up as well as not getting beat by the man in front of you if you are covered up. Is it slide protection? Which way are we sliding? Are we gap hinging it? Kick stepping?

It's not a bunch of big men running mindlessly into each every play. It's a violent but very intricate dance. Takes smarts to play OL. The center is usually designated as the play caller up front. If you notice pre snap he is usually calling out and pointing to the front that he is seeing. The other linemen may be making calls as well depending on what they are seeing. It's a complex thing.

It's not fair to compartmentalize OL play down to the 5 or 6 things you list that guard can do every play. It's much much more than that.

You are over complicating things. They train their body to know the different types of blocks their coach is asking them to do.

When they approach the line they are to identify the front, as you said, and start making calls. Calls will be different for many different scanrious but have to be simple enough to cover all of the different scenarios you mentioned. For instance, the Guard and tackle might have three different calls for one play.

However, I would agree with you that you have to be smart to play on the line. It is very difficult and it’s has become increasingly difficult to play the position as the game has become more technical and defenses create different looks.

Often times the center has the highest IQ on the team. In all honesty, I would argue that OL is probably the most difficult position to play in the field.

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You are over complicating things. They train their body to know the different types of blocks their coach is asking them to do.

When they approach the line they are to identify the front, as you said, and start making calls. Calls will be different for many different scanrious but have to be simple enough to cover all of the different scenarios you mentioned. For instance, the Guard and tackle might have three different calls for one play.

However, I would agree with you that you have to be smart to play on the line. It is very difficult and it’s has become increasingly difficult to play the position as the game has become more technical and defenses create different looks.

Often times the center has the highest IQ on the team. In all honesty, I would argue that OL is probably the most difficult position to play in the field.

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You are right the angles and footwork are repeated so much that it becomes muscle memory. But I was trying to paint a picture of what is involved for someone that basically compartmentalized OL play into 6 movements.

One of the little nuances of the game that I like to watch is the OL pre-snap. I love seeing the center making the calls because it's such an under appreciated part of the game that most people watching have no idea about when if comes to life in the trenches. I've always said the smartest guys on the team are the QB's and OL.

fricking oline CLINIC on the GSB.

God I love this place.

Totally disagree about fields running ability not being a game changer. Having a legit QB run game, It’s like playing 12 versus 11 advantage to the offense.

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Watch Harrison's 31 second 86 yard TD drive to end the half against Dalton. The TD pass that ended the half was much more impressive than anything that Tua has ever done.

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Tua's pass to end the national championship game was far more impressive than a last second Hail Mary attempt against Dalton.

You have to take level of competition into play as well when evaluating here. Obviously Fields was the higher ranked recruit, but I'd like to at least see him do it at the college level instead of doing the same thing with him that we did with Eason.

Harrison’s offense seemed very much like chuck and duck due to a lack of athletes. It didn’t do near the justice for how good Fields is. His Potential as a passer can be seen more in 7-on-7.

To the poster above, most high school coaches micromanage their offense and dictate exactly where they want the ball to go before they have even broken the huddle.

College systems are rules based. They try to teach the kids rules and the players have to stick to the rules. For example:

If you see 2 high safeties your progression would be 1-2-3.

If you see 1 high safety, your progression would be 3-2-1.

If they rotate from 2 high to 1 high, you progress away from rotation.

If you get a blitz you throw to the blitz or they may say you are to throw away from the blitz. (This is really just up to preference and the scouting report of the defense.)