The Good, The Bad and the Ugly: Georgia vs. Ohio State Drives 5 & 6
Missed tackles, numbers problems, and the sad story of stand-still routes.
Drive 5
1st & 10 at the -38 (7:33 2Q)
Facing MOFC Man, the Bulldogs once again figure out how to even up the numbers and fix the potential problem. They are able to do this because the right TE blocks out on the linebacker who is not over him man to man — that linebacker is off the ball and reacts to the TE blocking out thus pulling his attention away from the run making him late to help on the run. So this TE gets the Chick-fil-A two-for-one deal.
Georgia gets all the way down to the 10 yard line and runs two outside runs to score a touchdown.
Drive Summary:
3 plays, 62 yards, TD (1:34)
Score:
OSU 21 - UGA 21
Drive 6
3rd & 6 at the -37 (3:41 2Q)
This play was a critical 3rd down conversion against Tampa 2 where Georgia hit a deep curl for an explosive 28 yard gain. I wrote about this play here:
1st & 10 at the +35 (3:10 2Q)
Georgia is in an unbalanced 12 personnel formation so they are showing eight gaps to the defense. The Buckeyes pass off the motion so that doesn’t affect the numbers — they still have eight defenders for the eight gaps. So why does this play work especially when there is a free runner through the weak B gap?
Well that defender (#12) running through simply doesn’t make the tackle but the LT (#59) should’ve come off on him since the TE was coming across the formation to take the end. Had that happened, the only unblocked defender would’ve been the cornerback who’d unenthusiastically bumped into the run box after the motion. The weak linebacker (#22) also puts himself out of position by bumping outside — maybe he is taught that, I wouldn’t know, but it leaves the defense with three defenders outside the C gap. As it would be, he ends up making the tackle 15 yards later since he goes unblocked as well.
So this play works because Ohio State didn’t fit the run well despite having eight defenders in the run box. Whether it was a the unbalanced or a momentary lapse in reason, they still had the chance to make the play but they missed the tackle which, along with blocking, is the ultimate football fundamental.
1st & 10 at the +20 (2:29 2Q)
This play is the antithesis of the play prior. Georgia aligns in the same unbalanced look without the motion. Now Ohio State is showing 0 with seven defenders in the immediate run box and two safeties ready for action. This look isn’t terrible for the Bulldogs despite there being nine defenders for the eight gaps since the safeties will be fitting from depth — but it isn’t ideal.
Now unlike the play prior, this play doesn’t work because Georgia doesn’t block well. The RT and C don’t handle the combo and Ohio State stops the play for no gain. Though a relatively unexciting play for the offensive mind, I include it because this play is somewhat of an anomaly. Not a bad design, and it doesn’t have the best chances for an explosive because Ohio State had nine defenders (it was in the red zone too so perhaps that’s why) but it shouldn’t have been a no gain play. This matters on this drive because the Bulldogs end up getting into a tough 3rd down play.
3rd & 10 at the +20 (1:49 2Q)
After another unsuccessful attempt at a post-wheel concept, the Bulldogs are facing 3rd and 10. Ohio State is showing MOFO Man and seven potential blitzers which they bring five of. Our first focus will be on the numbers problem present at the OL.
Ohio State is showing three rushers to the right side and four to the left. The farthest potential rusher on the left takes the RB so maybe Georgia knew that as they slid right here. What they miscalculated was that the end on the right side dropped leaving three Georgia blockers for only two rushers. So now on the left there were only two Georgia blockers for three rushers. The amazing feat, however, is that the left guard absolutely beasted both rushers all by himself. But the QB’s drop, which was a result of an anticipation of pressure, ends up hurting the OL and himself.
The pass concept is snag-corner, a quick game (ish) play usually of a three step drop. Bennet chooses to just shuffle back at a leftward angle away from the pocket. This decision hurts the play because he runs himself into pressure. The LT takes his man outside but that’s exactly where Bennett is headed.
Now Bennett is forced to get the ball out quickly. Whereas if he’d taken a drop angled right to align with the concept and land behind protection, he might’ve had that extra split second he needed to see the corner route develop. Despite a completion, it’s 3rd and 10 and the snag route is unlikely to get it against man (it’s a stand-still route). The corner by the TE faces collision issues, but he makes it out alive.
Against Cover 0, the corner route is the best option — so I’m not sure why Bennett didn’t give him a chance. So this play doesn’t work because the OL was facing a numbers problem and Bennett didn’t take an advantageous drop. The secondary reason is the route that got the ball — against man coverage routes that run away from defenders are what work most often. A broken tackle is all you can hope for with stand-still routes. As a result Georgia has to settle for a field goal, but they take the lead — which they won’t see again for until less than two minutes left in the 4th quarter.
Drive Summary:
8 plays, 53 yards, FG (2:28)
Score:
OSU 21 - UGA 24
Where Do They Stand
The first half for Georgia is over and Ohio State will score another touchdown to bring the first half score to be 28-24 in the Buckeyes favor. Georgia’s success has come from explosive plays.
While they’ve had a couple modest pickups that have helped move the chains, their ability to create explosive runs and willingness to push the ball down the field in the passing game is what’s keeping them in the game. That well runs dry for a bit in the second half and we will explore why that happened.
The second half starts tomorrow with drives 8 & 9.
Until then,
Emory Wilhite
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