The style of offense Malzahn runs

[trublu4au]

Since Arkansas fans are clamoring for Gus, I thought I'd share the style of offense he runs in an effort to clear up some misconceptions mainly foisted on us by a media that doesn't know what they're talking about.

The main thing you hear from media outlets/fans when discussing Malzahn's offense is SPREAD. Nothing could be further from the truth. Malzahn does not run a spread offense nor has he ever at Auburn.

Gus Malzahn was actually influenced by Delaware. He's named after a coach there instrumental in inventing the offense you see him run. Malzahn runs a modified Delaware wing-T offense. It was developed in the 1950's long before the spread came on the scene. The offense is actually over 50 years old. If you want a more in depth look at his offense there's a book named "The Delaware Wing-T: An Order of Football". Gus read it and follows it almost verbatim.

At its core the Delaware wing-t is a run first offense that relies on misdirection and play action passes. It is probably the most potent rushing offense out there as evidenced by the ridiculous rushing numbers it puts up. The reason why you don't see it more is because the Delaware Wing-t originally was flawed in that it didn't have a strong passing game. In a normal Delaware Wing-t the QB is under center and the passing game suffers as a result. This is what Gus Modified. He put the QB back in the shotgun and added deep passes to keep defenses honest and give the QB more time for slow developing long pass plays.

The base set is a 3 WR set with small splits on the Oline. There's usually what they call a wingman who is often misidentified as a slot receiver although he can and does run routes from time to time. He usually comes across the backfield on just about every play and presents a run threat to the boundary. LB's and Ends have to account for him as a run threat or they get gashed. (Spread offenses usually go 4 and 5 wide and have large splits on the Oline and they tend to pass a lot. You'll see a lot of empty backfields in those offenses, hardly ever in Malzahn's offense. The idea of a spread is well, to spread you out. Malzahn's offense isn't about spreading you out as much as it is about messing up your keys on defense. If you want to see a spread offense in action look no further than Mike Leach. That is a spread. What Gus runs is not.)

Anyways back on topic. The system is designed to screw with your keys on defense. Formations look similar but have branches where they can attack every area of the field. Defenses are forced to cover the entire field. They have to account for the RB dive. They have to account for the wingman who is a run threat to the boundary. They have to account for the QB who is also a run threat either inside or outside. Finally they have to account for play action deep passing routes. What makes the offense hard to stop is how the formations look. You cannot tell what is about to be ran on you by looking at the formation. He could go deep, run the boundary or up the middle. You cannot tell what is about to be ran by watching how the oline blocks either. Malzahn often sends pulling olinemen the opposite way that the play is designed to go. By the way Olinemen pull a lot in the scheme.

Gus also added another touch to the Delaware wing-t. He decided to run it at breakneck pace. His book which most are aware of really contains no football schemes. It's more about running offense with pace. If you want the X's and O's read the book I mentioned above.

Anyways let's look at a few of the staple plays from the offense.

The Bucksweep:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/JO-xRheGH1Ela23iVAijFI7V5NU=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4889894/BuckSweepVsTenn.gif[/gifv]

Play action Deep verticle:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/pWPq6LzBnjHj2xglI4zyYBLn9wo=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4964266/AceFourVerts.gif[/gifv]

The counter:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8hWjcA_n5Fe_iYqn6WzixJyDOpo=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4869858/CounterLaneVsBama.gif[/gifv]

The base formation is as follows:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/NVc7ewdFEZkXeLgjibi1TUEUx68=/0x0:640x480/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:640x480):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4838240/BaseFormations.gif[/gifv]

One of the reasons why you hear talking heads say Gus only runs about 4 or 5 plays is because they are clueless.  No, he runs about three formations from which multiple plays can be ran off the same formation.

What gets me is coaches who are supposed to be students of the game don't even know what Gus runs. ESPN and the other bozos certainly don't. I have only seen it once where the announcers got it right. That was the SECCG in 2013 where CBS made sure to do their homework and told everyone he was running the Delaware wing-t. CBB was bad about this. He actually referred to Malzahn's offense as a spread and insinuated that Malzahn doesn't play real American football. Malzahn runs power football folks and it's about as American as you can get. It's why 3 out of the 5 years he's been coach at Auburn he has had the SEC's leading rusher. That's not a coincidence. You don't lead this conference in rushing that many times with finesse.

So now that you've seen the good, what are the drawbacks to his offense?

INTERMEDIATE ROUTES.

Gus' offense for whatever reason doesn't attack the middle of the field too often. If it's a pass it's either a screen, deep route, or Rb dump. He also doesn't utilize the tight end as much as he should. He can also get into a funk where he runs the ball up the middle too much on first down and as a result his playcalling gets very bland and he ends up losing to teams he shouldn't. That's what happened to him at LSU this year. He got up by 20 on them in a hurry then in the second half he called 17 straight up the middle first down plays.

However, when Gus is on fire his offense is unstoppable even by Saban's great defense. Points can mount up quickly. It's one of the reasons why Auburn holds the record for most points scored in the SECCG both times he coached in it. When was the last time Arkansas hung 50+ points on a good team?

Is Malzahn's offense a good offense? Yes. Is it perfect? No. If Gus wants to take it to the next level he's going to have to mix up first down playcalling, utilize the TE more, and put more intermediate routes into his system. Everything else is fine though.

[trublu4au]

Sorry about the URL's missing let me try to link them.

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8hWjcA_n5Fe_iYqn6WzixJyDOpo=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4869858/CounterLaneVsBama.gif


https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/JO-xRheGH1Ela23iVAijFI7V5NU=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4889894/BuckSweepVsTenn.gif

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/pWPq6LzBnjHj2xglI4zyYBLn9wo=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4964266/AceFourVerts.gif

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/NVc7ewdFEZkXeLgjibi1TUEUx68=/0x0:640x480/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:640x480):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4838240/BaseFormations.gif

[ipigsooie]

Nice breakdown. And you are correct. Most people think he runs a true spread.

[Bubba's Bruisers]

Sorry about the URL's missing let me try to link them.

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8hWjcA_n5Fe_iYqn6WzixJyDOpo=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4869858/CounterLaneVsBama.gif


https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/JO-xRheGH1Ela23iVAijFI7V5NU=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4889894/BuckSweepVsTenn.gif

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/pWPq6LzBnjHj2xglI4zyYBLn9wo=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4964266/AceFourVerts.gif

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/NVc7ewdFEZkXeLgjibi1TUEUx68=/0x0:640x480/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:640x480):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4838240/BaseFormations.gif

So are you a fan of GM or do you want him gone?  We always hear that the AU fans want him to get lost.

[ShadowTheHedgehog]

Will never work in the SEC.

[hawginbigd1]

Thank you, this is reason #2 i don't want Gus, passing game is elementary at best. Cant win unless you have way above average talent which we will never have . #1 is i believe he is a snake.

[3dawghawg]

Thanks that was a very good explanation of his offense.

[trublu4au]

Malzahn was never my first choice to replace Chizik. I wanted Gary Patterson who has now interviewed at Auburn twice for the job. He wants the Auburn job badly but our GOBN just like yours keeps turning him down because he's not a yes man.(Gus is a yes man and does what the GOBN tells him to do).

I'll say this, I don't think Malzahn is coming to Arkansas. He already has it made at Auburn. He has top tier talent and is competing for championships already. It would be a step back for him to take over Arkansas and rebuild everything from scratch. I don't think he takes the job. however from this fan's point of view, you're welcome to him. He was never my first choice. I think Gary Patterson would be better for Auburn.

[hawgball40]

Bobby Petrinos offense is much more intricate but simple for qbs to master:

http://smartfootball.com/passing/bobby-petrinos-shallow-cross-concept-concepts-routes-and-protection

[Bubba's Bruisers]

Malzahn was never my first choice to replace Chizik. I wanted Gary Patterson who has now interviewed at Auburn twice for the job. He wants the Auburn job badly but our GOBN just like yours keeps turning him down because he's not a yes man.(Gus is a yes man and does what the GOBN tells him to do).

I'll say this, I don't think Malzahn is coming to Arkansas. He already has it made at Auburn. He has top tier talent and is competing for championships already. It would be a step back for him to take over Arkansas and rebuild everything from scratch. I don't think he takes the job. however from this fan's point of view, you're welcome to him. He was never my first choice. I think Gary Patterson would be better for Auburn.

Seems odd, because Petrino doesn't seem like a yes man, yet the AU GOBN supposedly wanted him.  But yes, Patterson would be a home run hire for either program. 

[Hogsolo]

Bobby Petrinos offense is much more intricate but simple for qbs to master:

http://smartfootball.com/passing/bobby-petrinos-shallow-cross-concept-concepts-routes-and-protection

Great offense.   Man I miss those 3,500 passing yards and crossing routes.   Coby vs LSU?   Wright vs A&M?   Good times.

[bphi11ips]

Malzahn was never my first choice to replace Chizik. I wanted Gary Patterson who has now interviewed at Auburn twice for the job. He wants the Auburn job badly but our GOBN just like yours keeps turning him down because he's not a yes man.(Gus is a yes man and does what the GOBN tells him to do).

I'll say this, I don't think Malzahn is coming to Arkansas. He already has it made at Auburn. He has top tier talent and is competing for championships already. It would be a step back for him to take over Arkansas and rebuild everything from scratch. I don't think he takes the job. however from this fan's point of view, you're welcome to him. He was never my first choice. I think Gary Patterson would be better for Auburn.

Auburn should count its lucky stars Ken Hatfield left Arkansas when he did. Otherwise, Frank Broyles would have replaced him with a real coach rather than an OC elevated in a pinch.  And Arkansas would have kicked Auburn's ass more often than not instead of only half the time like we did before you copied your big brother and hired a coach from Arkansas. We've only beaten you once since.

[trublu4au]

Why stop there? Tuberville is from Arkansas too.

[trublu4au]

Honestly I think you guys hire Norvell and we retain Gus. Even if Auburn loses the Iron Bowl I don't think Gus will leave. Money is not the issue as both programs have great facilities and money. The issue is a total rebuild vs. everything already in place. I don't think Gus leaves.

[12247]

Patterson is best at getting his players mentally ready to play, therefore, most believe he can do more with less and he can.  It is mindset.  He knows defense and thats a plus for a HC to understand.  Patterson would be a very good coach for anyone including TCU.  Gus seems to provide folks with the materials to have a good defense.  He also has a good offensive approach and I do agree with trublu4au that GUS or his OC get all caught up in the run it up the middle approach.  That alone, cost them the LSU game.  Damn poor play calling.

[hawgball40]

Honestly I think you guys hire Norvell and we retain Gus. Even if Auburn loses the Iron Bowl I don't think Gus will leave. Money is not the issue as both programs have great facilities and money. The issue is a total rebuild vs. everything already in place. I don't think Gus leaves.

I sure hope you're right lmao

[Matt Burks]

Since Arkansas fans are clamoring for Gus, I thought I'd share the style of offense he runs in an effort to clear up some misconceptions mainly foisted on us by a media that doesn't know what they're talking about.

The main thing you hear from media outlets/fans when discussing Malzahn's offense is SPREAD. Nothing could be further from the truth. Malzahn does not run a spread offense nor has he ever at Auburn.

Gus Malzahn was actually influenced by Delaware. He's named after a coach there instrumental in inventing the offense you see him run. Malzahn runs a modified Delaware wing-T offense. It was developed in the 1950's long before the spread came on the scene. The offense is actually over 50 years old. If you want a more in depth look at his offense there's a book named "The Delaware Wing-T: An Order of Football". Gus read it and follows it almost verbatim.

At its core the Delaware wing-t is a run first offense that relies on misdirection and play action passes. It is probably the most potent rushing offense out there as evidenced by the ridiculous rushing numbers it puts up. The reason why you don't see it more is because the Delaware Wing-t originally was flawed in that it didn't have a strong passing game. In a normal Delaware Wing-t the QB is under center and the passing game suffers as a result. This is what Gus Modified. He put the QB back in the shotgun and added deep passes to keep defenses honest and give the QB more time for slow developing long pass plays.

The base set is a 3 WR set with small splits on the Oline. There's usually what they call a wingman who is often misidentified as a slot receiver although he can and does run routes from time to time. He usually comes across the backfield on just about every play and presents a run threat to the boundary. LB's and Ends have to account for him as a run threat or they get gashed. (Spread offenses usually go 4 and 5 wide and have large splits on the Oline and they tend to pass a lot. You'll see a lot of empty backfields in those offenses, hardly ever in Malzahn's offense. The idea of a spread is well, to spread you out. Malzahn's offense isn't about spreading you out as much as it is about messing up your keys on defense. If you want to see a spread offense in action look no further than Mike Leach. That is a spread. What Gus runs is not.)

Anyways back on topic. The system is designed to screw with your keys on defense. Formations look similar but have branches where they can attack every area of the field. Defenses are forced to cover the entire field. They have to account for the RB dive. They have to account for the wingman who is a run threat to the boundary. They have to account for the QB who is also a run threat either inside or outside. Finally they have to account for play action deep passing routes. What makes the offense hard to stop is how the formations look. You cannot tell what is about to be ran on you by looking at the formation. He could go deep, run the boundary or up the middle. You cannot tell what is about to be ran by watching how the oline blocks either. Malzahn often sends pulling olinemen the opposite way that the play is designed to go. By the way Olinemen pull a lot in the scheme.

Gus also added another touch to the Delaware wing-t. He decided to run it at breakneck pace. His book which most are aware of really contains no football schemes. It's more about running offense with pace. If you want the X's and O's read the book I mentioned above.

Anyways let's look at a few of the staple plays from the offense.

The Bucksweep:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/JO-xRheGH1Ela23iVAijFI7V5NU=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4889894/BuckSweepVsTenn.gif[/gifv]

Play action Deep verticle:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/pWPq6LzBnjHj2xglI4zyYBLn9wo=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4964266/AceFourVerts.gif[/gifv]

The counter:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8hWjcA_n5Fe_iYqn6WzixJyDOpo=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4869858/CounterLaneVsBama.gif[/gifv]

The base formation is as follows:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/NVc7ewdFEZkXeLgjibi1TUEUx68=/0x0:640x480/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:640x480):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4838240/BaseFormations.gif[/gifv]

One of the reasons why you hear talking heads say Gus only runs about 4 or 5 plays is because they are clueless.  No, he runs about three formations from which multiple plays can be ran off the same formation.

What gets me is coaches who are supposed to be students of the game don't even know what Gus runs. ESPN and the other bozos certainly don't. I have only seen it once where the announcers got it right. That was the SECCG in 2013 where CBS made sure to do their homework and told everyone he was running the Delaware wing-t. CBB was bad about this. He actually referred to Malzahn's offense as a spread and insinuated that Malzahn doesn't play real American football. Malzahn runs power football folks and it's about as American as you can get. It's why 3 out of the 5 years he's been coach at Auburn he has had the SEC's leading rusher. That's not a coincidence. You don't lead this conference in rushing that many times with finesse.

So now that you've seen the good, what are the drawbacks to his offense?

INTERMEDIATE ROUTES.

Gus' offense for whatever reason doesn't attack the middle of the field too often. If it's a pass it's either a screen, deep route, or Rb dump. He also doesn't utilize the tight end as much as he should. He can also get into a funk where he runs the ball up the middle too much on first down and as a result his playcalling gets very bland and he ends up losing to teams he shouldn't. That's what happened to him at LSU this year. He got up by 20 on them in a hurry then in the second half he called 17 straight up the middle first down plays.

However, when Gus is on fire his offense is unstoppable even by Saban's great defense. Points can mount up quickly. It's one of the reasons why Auburn holds the record for most points scored in the SECCG both times he coached in it. When was the last time Arkansas hung 50+ points on a good team?

Is Malzahn's offense a good offense? Yes. Is it perfect? No. If Gus wants to take it to the next level he's going to have to mix up first down playcalling, utilize the TE more, and put more intermediate routes into his system. Everything else is fine though.

Not everyone is clamoring for Gus. There are a LOT who are not.

[GoHogs1091]

Will never work in the SEC.

I presume Nick Saban has been watching and studying the film to see how Venables shut down Malzahn's High School Wing-T offense.

Here is what Venables stated last season.

https://www.seccountry.com/auburn/clemson-dc-brent-venables-used-google-to-stop-auburns-wing-t

2016  Malzahn's offense against Venables' defense

Auburn   87 Total Rushing Yards on 41 Rushing Attempts   An avg. of 2.1 Yards per Carry   13 Points

2017  Malzahn's offense against Venables' defense

Auburn   38 Total Rushing Yards on 42 Rushing Attempts   An avg. of 0.9 Yard per Carry   6 Points

Malzahn though may score more against Saban than the 6 points he scored against Venables this season.

[SooieGeneris]

The misconceptions of Gus' offense, especially around these parts, have been largely due to what he did in HS at Shiloh and Springdale and then Tulsa.

He left here due to Nutt's intent to bring in David Lee and demote him. So, he was off to Tulsa to work for Todd Graham, who I don't think he knew that well, but they were acquainted from coaching clinics, if I recall correctly.

Anyway, at Tulsa, Gus threw the ball all over the lot as he did at Springdale, but against his offense, you always have to respect the inside run or he will gash you all day.

All that motion and misdirection is mostly window-dressing to get defenders eyes in the wrong place, but he will get you with trickery if the defense stays home.

He has always believed in a strong running game, but more so after he went to Auburn. For some reason, I don't think he has ever had a QB he has trusted enough as a passer to throw it the way he did at TU.

That may be by design due to wanting a dual threat in the SEC. Of course, it would have been a waste to try to turn Newton into a pocket passer as Cam Newton was and is the most freakish athlete at QB I have ever seen.

A guy with the body of a TE or DE just isn't supposed to be able to run and throw like he does. I have always heard that Chizik didn't want Newton and Gus had to talk him into it. Is that right?

To go back to Gus' Tulsa days, I believe they had a different starting QB every season he was there. We played them at least once when he was there, beating them in a close game.

I seem to recall, they threw a lot more than his Auburn teams have, so I really think that is a case of Gus adapting to his personnel to the SEC, which as we all know is a "line of scrimmage" league.

[ShadowTheHedgehog]

I presume Nick Saban has been watching and studying the film to see how Venables shut down Malzahn's High School Wing-T offense.

Here is what Venables stated last season.

https://www.seccountry.com/auburn/clemson-dc-brent-venables-used-google-to-stop-auburns-wing-t

2016  Malzahn's offense against Venables' defense

Auburn   87 Total Rushing Yards on 41 Rushing Attempts   An avg. of 2.1 Yards per Carry   13 Points

2017  Malzahn's offense against Venables' defense

Auburn   38 Total Rushing Yards on 42 Rushing Attempts   An avg. of 0.9 Yard per Carry   6 Points

Malzahn though may score more against Saban than the 6 points he scored against Venables this season.

This is a great read.

I just sent this to CBB: http://lmgtfy.com/?q=how+to+beat+mizzou

[Pecos Hog]

Thanks!

[Bacons Rebellion]

Everything that has been will be, everything that will be is, everything that will be has been.

"Broyles startled his new staff by passing out copies of the Delaware Wing-T manual just published by Forest Evashevski, the Iowa coach whose team had gone to the Rose Bowl, and Dave Nelson, the widely-esteemed coach at Delaware. They had taken the complex offense they had played in at Michigan under Fritz Crisler and adapted it to the T-formation. Broyles saw this mixture of the single wing and the Bears T as the way to attack the 5-4-2 defenses which had whipped the split-T. And Arkansas, he thought, had the quicksilver backs for the tricky criss-crosses and reverses. He even imported Nelson and his line coach Milo Luke to help teach it in the spring.

Broyles' reputation as a offensive genius had preceded him; he had captivated high school coaches at the Arkansas all-star game clinic in the summer of 1957. The fans listened to him outline his plans in 1958, spellbound, delighted, all agog over the unusual league game with Baylor for a season opener.

Never were so many high hopes so thoroughly doused. On a foggy night in Little Rock, before a sellout crowd, Baylor won, 12-0 and that high-geared Arkansas attack malfunctioned, earning three first downs. When Broyles called for punts on second and third downs when his impotent team was backed up, some fans booed. Baylor had surprised with a defense no one had though would work against the winged-T; it had worked."

[trublu4au]

Yeah Venebles did his homework last year. The way to stop Malzahn's offense is press corner running cover 3 with a deep safety who's only job is to not let anyone behind him. Then all you have to do is load the box. Loading the box in and of itself is not enough. You have to respect the deep ball. And you need fast LB's able to cover ground quickly because it is hard to deal with the multiple threats along the front. You need LB's capable or changing direction in a hurry. Their keys will not work. Venebles did not stop Malzahn the first time he played him. Auburn lost to FSU due to special teams breakdowns and it had nothing to do with Veneble's D. After getting gashed that first time he went online to try and understand what high school coaches have known for years.

This is not new stuff here and I'm surprised other coaches aren't doing this against Malzahn. This offense has been around over 50 years and  there have been multiple people trying to figure out how to stop it. Books have been written specifically on how to stop it. All you have to do is a little bit of research. That's why I said Malzahn's offense isn't perfect. He needs more intermediate passing routes and the TE more involved.

What high school coaches do to stop the wing-t is usually they utilize what they call a 44 ghost defense. It gives fits to this offense. Like I said it's nothing new. the college football world has yet to catch up on something that is over 50 years old.

44 ghost

4 down linemen
4 LB's(one is the ghost. sorta like a roverback able to help in run and pass support)
3DB's running cover 3 with the deep safety.

[Hogs-n-Roses]

Honestly I think you guys hire Norvell and we retain Gus. Even if Auburn loses the Iron Bowl I don't think Gus will leave. Money is not the issue as both programs have great facilities and money. The issue is a total rebuild vs. everything already in place. I don't think Gus leaves.

How many of your offensive and defensive linemen will be gone after this year?

[GoHogs1091]

Yeah Venebles did his homework last year. The way to stop Malzahn's offense is press corner running cover 3 with a deep safety who's only job is to not let anyone behind him. Then all you have to do is load the box. Loading the box in and of itself is not enough. You have to respect the deep ball. And you need fast LB's able to cover ground quickly because it is hard to deal with the multiple threats along the front. You need LB's capable or changing direction in a hurry. Their keys will not work. Venebles did not stop Malzahn the first time he played him. Auburn lost to FSU due to special teams breakdowns and it had nothing to do with Veneble's D. After getting gashed that first time he went online to try and understand what high school coaches have known for years.

This is not new stuff here and I'm surprised other coaches aren't doing this against Malzahn. This offense has been around over 50 years and  there have been multiple people trying to figure out how to stop it. Books have been written specifically on how to stop it. All you have to do is a little bit of research. That's why I said Malzahn's offense isn't perfect. He needs more intermediate passing routes and the TE more involved.

What high school coaches do to stop the wing-t is usually they utilize what they call a 44 ghost defense. It gives fits to this offense. Like I said it's nothing new. the college football world has yet to catch up on something that is over 50 years old.

44 ghost

4 down linemen
4 LB's(one is the ghost. sorta like a roverback able to help in run and pass support)
3DB's running cover 3 with the deep safety.

When has Venables been at FSU? 

Venables has faced Malzahn 3 times, 1 time while at Oklahoma and 2 times while at Clemson.

Over those 3 games, Malzahn has averaged 13.33 points per game against Venables.

[hogsanity]

Great offense.   Man I miss those 3,500 passing yards and crossing routes.   Coby vs LSU?   Wright vs A&M?   Good times.

You do know BA threw for almost 3,500 yards in 2015 & AA for over 3k in 2016.  BA broke many of the passing records at the UofA.

[trublu4au]

sorry i'm getting old wrong guy

[trublu4au]

I got him mixed up with  Georgia DC last year

[RedRazorHog]

I disagree with the guy that said it would not work in the SEC.  It does work in the SEC.  The WingT is and has always been incredibly hard to defend, and it creates havoc for the D-Line as well as the LB's as they have to shift to deal with the movement of the guards, and also the wing back.  This is one of the reasons why Gus's offense does work well and why he has RBs that do so well.  The WingT is solid, and with a group fo long receivers it can be absolutely devastating.  I'm all for bringing Gus and the WingT here!

[PORKULATOR]

Nice breakdown. And you are correct. Most people think he runs a true spread.

I always considered it the Veer with motion. Bobby Bowden developed the Veer to improve upon the passing flaws in the Wing T. Malzahn add the moving parts and the HUNH.

[Tequilin' Time]

Malzahn was never my first choice to replace Chizik. I wanted Gary Patterson who has now interviewed at Auburn twice for the job. He wants the Auburn job badly but our GOBN just like yours keeps turning him down because he's not a yes man.(Gus is a yes man and does what the GOBN tells him to do).

I'll say this, I don't think Malzahn is coming to Arkansas. He already has it made at Auburn. He has top tier talent and is competing for championships already. It would be a step back for him to take over Arkansas and rebuild everything from scratch. I don't think he takes the job. however from this fan's point of view, you're welcome to him. He was never my first choice. I think Gary Patterson would be better for Auburn.

Not my first choice either,  or 2nd or 3rd.   But,  I'm not holding my breath for those with hiring power, whoever that is going to be, to check with me for my opinion.

[RockyMtnHog]

I think that Arkansas has the talent to run a spread offense better than the Pro Style that we are running now.  Teams that cannot recruit the 4 and 5 star athletes are usually better using the spread.  We did pretty well with the Power Spread back in 2011.

[Hogwarrior]

Since Arkansas fans are clamoring for Gus, I thought I'd share the style of offense he runs in an effort to clear up some misconceptions mainly foisted on us by a media that doesn't know what they're talking about.

The main thing you hear from media outlets/fans when discussing Malzahn's offense is SPREAD. Nothing could be further from the truth. Malzahn does not run a spread offense nor has he ever at Auburn.

Gus Malzahn was actually influenced by Delaware. He's named after a coach there instrumental in inventing the offense you see him run. Malzahn runs a modified Delaware wing-T offense. It was developed in the 1950's long before the spread came on the scene. The offense is actually over 50 years old. If you want a more in depth look at his offense there's a book named "The Delaware Wing-T: An Order of Football". Gus read it and follows it almost verbatim.

At its core the Delaware wing-t is a run first offense that relies on misdirection and play action passes. It is probably the most potent rushing offense out there as evidenced by the ridiculous rushing numbers it puts up. The reason why you don't see it more is because the Delaware Wing-t originally was flawed in that it didn't have a strong passing game. In a normal Delaware Wing-t the QB is under center and the passing game suffers as a result. This is what Gus Modified. He put the QB back in the shotgun and added deep passes to keep defenses honest and give the QB more time for slow developing long pass plays.

The base set is a 3 WR set with small splits on the Oline. There's usually what they call a wingman who is often misidentified as a slot receiver although he can and does run routes from time to time. He usually comes across the backfield on just about every play and presents a run threat to the boundary. LB's and Ends have to account for him as a run threat or they get gashed. (Spread offenses usually go 4 and 5 wide and have large splits on the Oline and they tend to pass a lot. You'll see a lot of empty backfields in those offenses, hardly ever in Malzahn's offense. The idea of a spread is well, to spread you out. Malzahn's offense isn't about spreading you out as much as it is about messing up your keys on defense. If you want to see a spread offense in action look no further than Mike Leach. That is a spread. What Gus runs is not.)

Anyways back on topic. The system is designed to screw with your keys on defense. Formations look similar but have branches where they can attack every area of the field. Defenses are forced to cover the entire field. They have to account for the RB dive. They have to account for the wingman who is a run threat to the boundary. They have to account for the QB who is also a run threat either inside or outside. Finally they have to account for play action deep passing routes. What makes the offense hard to stop is how the formations look. You cannot tell what is about to be ran on you by looking at the formation. He could go deep, run the boundary or up the middle. You cannot tell what is about to be ran by watching how the oline blocks either. Malzahn often sends pulling olinemen the opposite way that the play is designed to go. By the way Olinemen pull a lot in the scheme.

Gus also added another touch to the Delaware wing-t. He decided to run it at breakneck pace. His book which most are aware of really contains no football schemes. It's more about running offense with pace. If you want the X's and O's read the book I mentioned above.

Anyways let's look at a few of the staple plays from the offense.

The Bucksweep:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/JO-xRheGH1Ela23iVAijFI7V5NU=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4889894/BuckSweepVsTenn.gif[/gifv]

Play action Deep verticle:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/pWPq6LzBnjHj2xglI4zyYBLn9wo=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4964266/AceFourVerts.gif[/gifv]

The counter:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8hWjcA_n5Fe_iYqn6WzixJyDOpo=/0x0:560x315/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:560x315):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4869858/CounterLaneVsBama.gif[/gifv]

The base formation is as follows:
[gifv]https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/NVc7ewdFEZkXeLgjibi1TUEUx68=/0x0:640x480/720x0/filters:focal(0x0:640x480):gifv():no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4838240/BaseFormations.gif[/gifv]

One of the reasons why you hear talking heads say Gus only runs about 4 or 5 plays is because they are clueless.  No, he runs about three formations from which multiple plays can be ran off the same formation.

What gets me is coaches who are supposed to be students of the game don't even know what Gus runs. ESPN and the other bozos certainly don't. I have only seen it once where the announcers got it right. That was the SECCG in 2013 where CBS made sure to do their homework and told everyone he was running the Delaware wing-t. CBB was bad about this. He actually referred to Malzahn's offense as a spread and insinuated that Malzahn doesn't play real American football. Malzahn runs power football folks and it's about as American as you can get. It's why 3 out of the 5 years he's been coach at Auburn he has had the SEC's leading rusher. That's not a coincidence. You don't lead this conference in rushing that many times with finesse.

So now that you've seen the good, what are the drawbacks to his offense?

INTERMEDIATE ROUTES.

Gus' offense for whatever reason doesn't attack the middle of the field too often. If it's a pass it's either a screen, deep route, or Rb dump. He also doesn't utilize the tight end as much as he should. He can also get into a funk where he runs the ball up the middle too much on first down and as a result his playcalling gets very bland and he ends up losing to teams he shouldn't. That's what happened to him at LSU this year. He got up by 20 on them in a hurry then in the second half he called 17 straight up the middle first down plays.

However, when Gus is on fire his offense is unstoppable even by Saban's great defense. Points can mount up quickly. It's one of the reasons why Auburn holds the record for most points scored in the SECCG both times he coached in it. When was the last time Arkansas hung 50+ points on a good team?

Is Malzahn's offense a good offense? Yes. Is it perfect? No. If Gus wants to take it to the next level he's going to have to mix up first down playcalling, utilize the TE more, and put more intermediate routes into his system. Everything else is fine though.

Long post to say nothing!  Gus plays to the strength of his Personnel period!  If he has a gunslinger QB, he will throw (current QB).  If he has a mobile QB he will go RPO.  If he has a stud or 2 stud RBs, he will go run heavy (losing effort at LSU).  So call it whatever kind of O you want to call it, it's all about personnel with Gus.

[Cinco de Hogo]

I've said this a hundred times, Malzahn's HUNH can be ran with any offense and I do mean any.  You could run the wishbone from HUNH.

[Pork Twain]

I am not huge on Gus or Norvell, but how often will Gus be facing Venables , one of the best defensive minds in football?  At least Gus fields a defense, which is more than can be said for Norvell.

[Hogwarrior]

I am not huge on Gus or Norvell, but how often will Gus be facing Venables , one of the best defensive minds in football?  At least Gus fields a defense, which is more than can be said for Norvell.

You are correct and if he comes to the Hill, he will bring his DC with him!

[RockyMtnHog]

You guys might hate me but I would take either Gus or Norvell.  I would take Venables too.

I am done with the Bret Bus!

[longpig]

The natural state is a better place without Gus and Kristi.  Keep them.