Bobby Bowden liked to say that first you lose big, then you lose close, then you win close, and then you win big.
Arkansas’ offense is one upgrade away from being just about unstoppable
The Razorbacks went from an SEC losing streak to being one of the country’s best teams in November and December. Now can they add an efficient passing game?
After losing big in year one, then playing close in 2014, Bret Bielema’s Arkansas is hoping to make that final jump to winning big.
One of the ways they hope to accomplish this is by getting more from QB Brandon Allen, who last year threw 339 passes for 2,285 yards and ranked No. 61 in passer rating. The hope is that new coordinator Dan Enos will help the pass improve, specifically in efficiency. But how will that be achieved?
The run still comes first
Although the OL is being shuffled around, Arkansas' starting line will include four upperclassmen and average a 6'5, 325-pound physique. And it's blocking for two returning 1,000-yard rushers, Jonathan Williams and Alex Collins.
The identity will still revolve around double-TE sets that put Hunter Henry (6'5, 250) and Jeremy Sprinkle (6'6, 243) on the field, to the dismay of undersized foes.
With all that beef and line coach Sam Pittman back to steer it, the offense is likely to see a lot of continuity where it matters. That means more power, lead draw, and zone blocking, in which the OL uses double teams to drive DL into the second level while the RB picks a seam and makes the linebackers wrong.
Arkansas’ ability to put big people on defenders, then hammer every part of the line has few equals in the college game.
Why the previous passing game was a bad fit
Arkansas fan HQ
Arkansas fan HQ
College power-run offenses are often rather simple when it comes to the passing game. That’s for good reason.
Teaching an OL to master pro-style protections and run schemes is rather complicated. Assembling tight ends who can be adept as both blockers and route runners can be daunting. Finding a QB comfortable with all the checks, rhythm and reads of an advanced passing game is time-consuming.
If the run is already excellent at attacking the inside and the perimeter, it’s a waste of time to overly focus on the quick passing game. What the offense really needs is explosive firepower. It needs constraints that play off the run game, rather than short passes that duplicate it.
Although Bielema's Arkansas has more or less succeeded in building an offense that can either pound the ball or throw, thanks to an abundance of dual-threat TEs, the Razorbacks' passing under former OC Jim Chaney was inefficient, twice ranking well into the country's bottom half in yards per pass.
Chaney is a true NFL-style coordinator. He was an originator of the one-back spread with Drew Brees and Purdue and later learned the advantages of running such a scheme with good receiving TEs instead of slot receivers.
With Bielema at the helm and Allen at QB, Arkansas isn’t built to be a real pro-style attack, but a power-run offense with as simple and complementary a passing game as can be designed.
Arkansas needs an air attack that complements its run
Enos system is going to be simpler, starting with the language used to communicate on the field and extending to the passing philosophy. It will be even more play action-heavy.
There are some solid weapons to plug into his system, particularly in the realm of ball control. Tight ends Henry and Sprinkle are likely to make the Razorbacks very efficient on third-and-medium.
On play action concepts such as this naked bootleg used in the spring game, the offense floods a left zone with receiving options after using a run fake to suck defenders to the right:
The result is an easy read and throw, plus a nice gain if Allen’s targets can do something with the ball.
The WR corps isn't filled with game-breakers, but Keon Hatcher has potential on the outside. If there's a major increase in Allen's production, it will likely be most reflected in Hatcher's numbers, with an increase from his 558 receiving yards and six TDs to something closer to 900 yards and 10 TDs.
Hatcher did a lot of his damage on slants and underneath routes, where he’d use his speed and powerful, 210-pound frame to pick up yards after the catch. (Hatcher GIFs via.)
Being able to punish teams who leave their corners on islands with cushions to take away deeper routes? That’ll always be a useful skill. Hatcher will continue to move around as a possession receiver in situations where he can catch the ball on the run.
However, Enos is also going to call for Hatcher to make use of his great hands and size downfield:
Enos’ will put Allen in position to make a quick throw, often on the run off play-action, with Hatcher and the tight ends providing high-low stress on the defense. And because the tight ends are worthy receivers downfield and Hatcher is so explosive underneath, they can switch up which target provides the deep stress and which receiver benefits at the closer level.
A particularly nasty variety will work off the play action lead draw:
Because Arkansas' backs are nimble and its linemen are excellent at screening defenders with their massive size, opposing teams have to be concerned when the QB feints a draw handoff. The result is safeties and deep defenders getting drawn to the backfield at the last minute, allowing receivers such as Hatcher space downfield when it's most valuable.
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Due to a receiving corps comprised mostly of TEs and possession receivers, the passing game isn't likely to be particularly explosive. However, Enos building the passing game around simplicity and tying it directly to the already established run game will mean efficiency.
If Allen throws the ball 340 times again, but this time gets 2,500 yards (7.4 yards per attempt rather than 6.7) while continuing to avoid interceptions (his '14 TD-INT ratio was 20-6), that could make a big difference in the win-loss column for a team that lost four games in 2014 by seven points or fewer.
In an SEC West that doesn't have many returning quarterbacks, Enos' tweaks could result in Bielema's big breakthrough.
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