Welcome back to the War Eagle Extra. After a slow weekend of blogging, we're back with our ever popular series Better Know an Auburn Assistant Coach.This installment (Part V I believe) is of offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, who sat with us beat hacks for nearly a half an hour today, getting a little more specific into his offense and what we can expect to see next season.
Up front, here are some of the big points before we dig a little deeper:
- The quarterback position is wide open. Everyone's going to get a shot.
- He'd like one quarterback to be THE guy. He's not messing around with a two-quarterback system.
- There is no pecking order going into the spring.
- He wants to play fast. Getting 80 plays a game is the goal. That means snapping the ball 12-15 seconds after the ballcarrier gets up from the previous play.
- He'll take what the defense gives him, whether that is on the ground or in the air.
"Really, it doesn't take very long at all for players," Malzahn said of his desired pacing. "Once they get the communication down and they get going, it's a short period of time.
"Really the coaching is the difference. Coaches are so creatures of habit and are used to doing certain things a certain way. Once the coaches get to thinking quick and all the things that go into making decisions quicker and the communication, but for players, no, it happens extremely quick."
On to the bullet breakdown ...
- Malzahn explained how coaches would coach players more than actual positions in an offense that uses its personnel in lots of different ways. For instance, Jay Boulware will coach tight end Tommy Trott whether he is used in a traditional tight end formation or as an H-back.
- On the quarterback position battle: "It’s going to be wide open. We’re coming into this thing new and everybody’s starting new, and they’re going to have to earn it. ... And early on you will see some equal reps. As soon as possible, and I can’t tell you exactly when that is, but we definitely want to narrow it down. And ideally, you’d like to go into a season with a guy. Now I can’t tell you for sure right now that that will happen, but that is a goal."
- On if he's ever considered a two-quarterback system: "No. With what we do, we’re a quarterback oriented system, and I think that you’ve got to have a guy, and you’ve got to have a guy that’s the leader. So that’s what we’re looking for."
- A mobile quarterback is nice, but not essential. "We don't have to have a 4.4-4.5 guy but we need to have a good operator. You look back at the kid we had last year at Tulsa, Dave Johnson, he ran a five flat. But he was such a great operator to read zone, he could steal you an extra 10,15 yards just through his execution. But we will have to have a quarterback that will make some plays with his feet."
- He liked what he saw out of incoming freshmen Tyrik Rollison and Clint Moseley, who he says are more similar than people think. "Both of them can make plays and both of them are used to winning. I think there is great power in quarterbacks that are used to winning. I mean, you look at both those guys winning championships, that's what they're used to doing. They're both very good leaders and they both have that it factor that quarterbacks have to have; the intangibles to make everybody else on the same page and make everyone at the best that they can be."
- He said it is rare that a freshman can come in and start at quarterback right away, but it is possible. He didn't comment specifically on Auburn's situation, though.
- Chris Todd is back throwing again after offseason shoulder surgery. It's unclear if he'll be able to go full bore during spring.
- On Kodi Burns: "I watched him and the other quarterbacks, of course I'm more familiar with him because I actually coached against him in high school. He's got a great attitude right now. I know he's been working extremely hard, as well as the other quarterbacks have. He's ready to get to spring. It'll be interesting to see."
- On Neil Caudle: "I'm thoroughly familiar with Neil, too. With the fact that when I was at Springdale, we went to Hoover 7-on-7s and Spain Park was there. Mitch Mustain and Neil were kind of buddies, they were in that Elite 11 group. I'm very familiar with him, he's a rhythm quarterback and has a very good arm, I do know that about him. He seems like a super kid. He's that type of kid that has the characteristics you look for in a quarterback, so I'm looking forward to seeing what he can do."
- On Barrett Trotter: "I'm not real familiar with him, but I've heard good things about him. I really really like him as a person. He's got that ability too where he can make a play with his arm and his feet."
- There WILL be a designated Wildcat guy. In the early going, Mario Fannin will be the player most likely to fill that role because he did it last year.
- But Malzahn also liked the prospects of incoming freshman Dontae Aycock, who played quarterback in high school but will be a running back in college. Emory Blake and Travante Stallworth could play the position as well. "With our offense, we like those versatile guys the ability to run the ball, be a receiver and throw the football. All three of those guys can do that. As a play caller, that gives you the flexibility to do a lot of things."
- Junior college athlete Demond Washington will start out at tailback and see what happens.
- The main influence for Malzahn's offense is other high school coaches. He didn't serve as an assistant anywhere for long early on, getting a head coaching job in his second year. "I got different bits and pieces from different people," he said. "Just tried to have very few plays and tried to perfect them. ... For whatever reason people think we have so many different plays, but if you really break us down, we have a few base things and we’re going to try to be the best at those things and then we’ll try to build on those and this gives you the ability to take what they give you."
- On his career path and how being a head coach might have helped him in his current role: "I'm used to taking a team and trying to identify the strengths and weaknesses and trying to make it all fit. I do think in a situation like this that can give me an advantage as far as that goes. The only system I know is the one that I've been doing since I've started, so I don't know any other systems and don't have any other information. I know exactly what I want and I know exactly what I'm looking for. And then having that high school background, I've been on the other end of it. People say I think outside the box, I don't know if that's true, but I know I'm somewhat different than the traditional college coach that may be an offensive coordinator."
- Someone asked a question about needing the head coach to buy into the system as well, a not-so-veiled reference to Houston Nutt at Arkansas, who had a difference of opinion with how he and Malzahn's offense should look. "It starts with all your coaches on the same page," Malzahn said. "When your coaches are on the same page, the players believe it better. I think there's great power in that. I'll tell you right now, our coaches are all on the same page. Coach (Gene) Chizik has done a wonderful job of hiring guys who are not only good coaches, but good people. That's why I'm in coaching, to make a difference in kids. I'm a high school guy that's just been fortunate to coach college. A lot of our coaches are just good solid people."
- He has heard the haters before (Arkansas anyone?), but doens't mind: "Obviously there were doubters. When you’re a high school coach and you go into the SEC, yeah. I’m extremely motivated. It really doesn’t make any difference as far as that goes. I have very high expectations and just really focus on my job at hand, so I don’t really get caught up. But yeah, there were doubters. But that’s OK."
- To reiterate, Malzahn wants to play fast. Eighty plays per game is the goal. "Usually that equated into wins and losses."
- On if his offense is pass-based or run-based: "It goes back to taking what they give you. Last year, we were perceived as a passing team at Tulsa. At times, we were. Against New Mexico we threw for almost 500 yards. The next week, I think we ran for 300. They were playing two safeties. They were playing cover 2. We ran the football. It was common sense. We don't go into a game saying we're going to run it this many times or pass this many times."
- He didn't touch a question about why, after watching tape, he thought last year's offense struggled. Coaches don't like to throw other coaches under the bus.
- The big question is how Auburn plans to get its offensive linemen big enough to play the smashmouth brand of football Chizik wants, yet still able to line up 80 times a game and be physical. "Our offensive line does have to be in great shape," Malzahn said. "They have to get used to playing fast, recovering quickly. We try to get our guys into basketball shape. I don't mean that as a soft word. Our guys are going to recover quickly. They're going to mentally and physically recover. Our offensive line will run more than any offensive line in the country."
- He made sure to emphasize this point, so I will italicize and bold part of it: "I want to make this point too. You hear a lot about no huddle and a lot about 'fast,' but our goal is to play fast. That's who we are. That's what we do. We're not so much a no-huddle, look-to-the-side team. You will see us do that sometimes. That's not really who we are. I like to think we're a little bit different than everyone else."
- How fast? This fast: "With the old rules, when they put the ball down, we're going to snap it within five seconds of when the referee puts the ball down. Boy, I tell you what, these new rules they put in last year, for us, are really good. We'll be extremely fast. As soon as the ball is handed to the referee, I'd say within 12-15 seconds after the guy's getting up, we'll have the ball snapped."
- He's an on-the-field coach, not a press box guy: "I like looking that quarterback in the eye and getting a feel for him. I want to be right there. I don't want to talk through somebody else. I'm used to being on the field."
- Malzahn will recruit Arkansas and Louisiana and be heavily involved with any offensive player, regardless of location.
No comments:
Post a Comment