Spread offense

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The Spread Offense is an offensive American football scheme that is used at every level of the game including the NFL, CFL, NCAA, NAIA, and high schools across America. The spread offense begins with a no-huddle approach with the quarterback in the shotgun a high percentage of the time. The fundamental nature of the spread offense involes spreading the field horizontally using 3, 4, and even 5-receiver sets, as well as wide splits between the offensive linemen. This opens up multiple vertical gaps for both the running and passing game to exploit, as the defense is forced to spread itself thin across the field to cover everyone.

There are two basic forms of the spread system. The first is the pass-oriented version typified by Mike Leach's Texas Tech Red Raiders. This version employs multiple spread sets and is heavily reliant on the quarterback and coaches being able to call the appropriate play at the line of scrimmage based on how the defense sets up. The other version is the Spread Option, currently being run by the West Virginia Mountaineers. Despite the multi-receiver sets, the spread option is a run-first scheme which requires a quarterback that is comfortable carrying the ball, a mobile offensive line that can pull and trap effectively, and receivers that can hold their blocks. The essence of the spread option is misdirection. Effectively, this is the old triple option except that it utilizes spread sets. In particular, the quarterback must be able to read the defensive end and determine whether he is collapsing down the line or playing upfield contain.

The no-huddle approach is used for several reasons by spread offense football teams.

1. It makes the defense align immediately without disguise. The offense at the line of scrimmage in a formation with the entire 25 seconds left on the 25-second clock. The defense must align because the offense could potentially snap the football at any time. This allows the offensive coaches to have basically the whole 25 seconds to diagnose and determine what the defense will do. It also allows them plenty of time to make the appropriate checks.

2. It takes the pressure off the quarterback because the offensive coaches have time and the mechanics to make the checks. The quarterback's responsibility is lessened. All he has to do is indicate to his team at the line of scrimmage what check the coaches have chosen and execute.

3. The no-huddle takes defenses out of their comfort zone. The no-huddle offense bothers defenses because they can't huddle to call the defensive play. This means every defensive player has to look to the sideline to get the defensive signal from a coach. Normally, when defensive team's can huddle only one player has to look over for the signal and he relays it verbally to the rest of the team in the huddle. There is a much greater chance for error when all 11 defenders have to get the call from the sideline. Another disadvantage is that it gives the offensive coaches a much easier chance to pick up and read defensive signals that are being communicated from the sideline.

4. The no-huddle can control the game tempo and substitutions. With the offense at the line of scrimmage, there is always the possibility that the offense will immediately snap the ball and go into a hurry-up mode. That makes it difficult for the defensive team to substitute personnel and also difficult to disguise their coverages.

[edit] History of the Spread Offense

Mouse Davis is the father of the spread offense. His version is known as the RUN-N-SHOOT; however, the scheme has evolved over the past twenty years into a much more complex scheme. Today coaches like June Jones (University of Hawaii), Steve Spurrier (University of South Carolina), Urban Meyer's (University of Florida, former head coach at Utah), Guy Morriss (Baylor University) and Mike Bellotti (University of Oregon) have taken the spread offense to a new level. High School coaches across the nation have adapted some version of this scheme with great success. Several college programs have used some version of the spread offense including (but not limited to)

Professional teams have also used various versions of this scheme beginning with the former Houston Oilers and San Diego Charges (1980s) and the various WEST COAST schemes developed by Bill Walsh and the San Francisco 49ers (1980s).

[edit] References

[1] http://the.ricethresher.org/sports/2006/09/01/footballoffensepreview

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