JOE SMITH, JOE SMITH, JOE SMITH!!!

[DogsWin]

I'll have to check the boxscores, but I believe our 6 opponents thusfar have now scored more points off our pass interceptions than we've scored off our passing TDs.

Joe Smith is averaging 5 yards/carry and is on pace to rush for ~1,000 yards. Smith had a whopping 84 rushing yards by HALF TIME at Rice last Saturday and I think he only got 3 more carries the remainder of the football game.

We need to utilize this big, strong, SENIOR running back if we are going to win our remaining 6 games. Joe showed us last year that he can carry this team on his broad shoulders. He should be equally up to the task this year with support from Ralph Davis & our 4 SENIOR offensive linemen (NFL-bound 6-6 330 Damian Lavergne, 6-5 300 Tywoin Breaux, 6-4 295 center Shawn Murff, and 6-6 290 Logan Hulett). I still don't believe there is a WAC defense which can deny Joe Smith & Ralph Davis running behind mammoth Damian Lavergne on 3rd & short.

Logan Hulett is eligible for the remainder of the year and senior safety MJ Lenard is also back for the SMU game. Hopefully senior WR Corey Berlin will be back from his foot fracture soon too- the SMU game would be a great time to see Corey again!
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Teen Webcams

[LBP]

You are absolutely right! If we would have ran the ball on every play against Rice we probably would have won that game.

[DawginBR]

I respect your right to have this opinion:

If we would have ran the ball on every play against Rice we probably would have won that game.

but, HELLO, HELLO, HELLO...

This is Louisiana Tech and we PASS the ball (or used to)..

I, on the other hand, want us to go back to PASSING the ball using the right, aggressive offense we used to run. Throw out the 2 yard and 3 yard passes (STUPID PLAYS) and bring back our nationally known, HIGH POWERED OFFENSE. Do slip in a run here and there, but lets get back to out-scoring folks.

Looking forward to a REAL air attack like we have become known for.

GO DAWGS

[TYLERTECHSAS]

I would also like to see a change of pace speed back like MOATS get some carries at SMU.

[DogsWin]

I didn't say run the ball ON EVERY PLAY- I said he had 84 rushing yards by halftime on about 15 carries. We definitely need to use this weapon a lot more- averaging 5 yards per touch!

I would like to see more of Joe Smith off tackle behind Damian Lavergne on 3rd & short instead of throwing incompletes 30 yards down the field.
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Quad-4 Engine

[TechDawgFan]

I didn't say run the ball ON EVERY PLAY- I said he had 84 rushing yards by halftime on about 15 carries. We definitely need to use this weapon a lot more- averaging 5 yards per touch!

I would like to see more of Joe Smith off tackle behind Damian Lavergne on 3rd & short instead of throwing incompletes 30 yards down the field.

Don't get me wrong here. Joe Smith is a TREMENDOUS athlete and is doing a WONDERFUL job for us. A weapon like that is a definate advantage. But realize that Joe currently ranks #55 in both yardage and #carries (98). He has also caught the ball 29 times That's 127 touches in 6 games averaging over 21 per game! Now let's put that into perspective.

Player Team Att Yds Avg Tds Rec Yds Avg Tds
Cedric Benson Texas 130 622 4.8 5 13 66 5.1 0
Steven Jackson Oregon State 118 707 6.0 4 6 21 3.5 1
Anthony Davis Wisconsin 117 545 4.7 4 5 45 9.0 0
Chris Brown Colorado 117 677 5.8 8 2 17 8.5 0
Chris Perry Michigan 104 497 4.8 6 1 -4 -4.0 0
Darren Sproles Kansas State 73 469 6.4 6 4 25 6.2 0

These are some REAL WORKHORSES from primarely RUNNING teams. Joe is right up there with them. He sees the ball more than any other single player on our team.

Now, you make the coaching call. Do you increase his touches at this point in the season and further risk injury and lose him for the REALLY important part of the season (WAC Conference Play) and put an even bigger gorilla on Luke's shoulder or do you open up the passing game now to conserve Joe for Boise, SJSU, and Fresno St.? And if you say use him now, you have some other things to address.

1. An OL that has spent 4 months focusing on pass blocking that now has to become a hole opener.
2. Backfield formation - Going to the I? Who then? We can't do it the same way we are now because that will be as predictable as the screen.
3. QB - ALL our QB's were recruited because of their passing ability, NOT their ability to run a running O. You're asking them to do something that MIGHT NOT be their best skill.
4. Depth - You're proposing smash mouth football here. While I like that, do you REALLY believe we have the DEPTH to keep that up for the next 6 games with who's on our schedule? One key injury and we're toast in that style O.
5. Playbook - AGAIN, has to be TOTALLY revised with new plays added to keep the D off balance.

I'm all for running the ball. But I don't think changing to that mid stream is the way to do it. You're going to a completely different style of ball centered around one individual who, if injured, forces you backing into a more pass happy scheme than we have now. When was the last time we averaged 21 carries a game for a RB?

TDF

[Junkyard Dawg]

TDF, I usually agree with your posts, but not this one. That way of thinking coupled with what DawginBr said is exactly what the coaches are thinking, and why we will continue to stink it up on the field.
What i saw from Rice was an offensive scheme built around the strengths of their players. That guy Herm was made to run that option veer game. If our coaches were smart, we would start every game the rest of the season with Smith and either Davis or Moats in the backfield every play, with a TE at the end of the line. Imagine what Joe could do with a lead blocker and a TE???

None of your 5 points have any merit.
1. The O line can run block and pass block. And trust me, they'd rather run block.
2. Get 2 backs in most formations. Running or passing plays.
3. The QB's will do whatever it takes to win. it's not hard to hand off or pitch.
4. We've got enough running backs. and Joe doesn't need that many more carries, just SOME FREAKING BLOCKERS, so there's no more risk of injury than normal. Reduce his catches, increase his carries.
5. This might be the only one that has merit, but it's all on the coaches, not the players. Learning new running plays is easy. The O line already knows basically what to do for each defensive set for given runs, they'll just apply it to different O formations.

besides, I don't care if it will be tough to do. They've got 2 weeks to make something happen, and this could actually get us back on track. What else can they do?

[Soonerdawg]

Junk, are you Larry Bechtal?

[TechDawgFan]

Now see, THIS is an productive discussion without tearing anyone down!!!

You acually ANSWERED all the issues I brought up. And, FYI, this IS a discussion that needs to be had between the coaches. Your proposing an I or split back set formation with Smith and Moats/Davis in the backfield. Also bringing a TE to the line leaving a two wide out set. Now we can disagree on the OL. While they may prefer going forward on the block rather than back, these folks have been running a pass block since they got here. I'd have concerns, during game time, of someone coming back in a pass block rather than penetrating the DL.

I'd also have some concerns on the 2nd back blocking. When was the last time we asked a RB to RUN BLOCK? Now we stay in the backfield and catch the extra man from time to time, but this is different. The QB is, like you said, the least of the concerns and play books, while the coaches responsibility to create, it's the PLAYERS who have to learn and execute it! We're not playing the Playstation version here :wink: And I agree that I would LOVE to see Joe run with a blocker. I just wonder if we have the stamina to do what we're asking/proposing for the next 6 games!

BTW, I've been WAITING for the 2 back set ALL YEAR and haven't seen it yet. We've HAD to had just a LITTLE practice with it having Joe, Davis, and Moats available! I would feel a lot more comfortable advocating this if I'd seen that formation AT LEAST once so far!!! Heck, we're halfway through the season already!!!

TDF

[Junkyard Dawg]

No, Sooner, I'm not.
TDF, I too thought we'd see the split this year, ESPECIALLY now that Davis lost his red shirt(someone explain this to me???). Maybe they'll try it a few times against SMU. Now would be the time to bring it out.

[DogsWin]

Absolutely I would utilize Joe Smith more running the ball (especially on 3rd & short!) and I'd certainly cut down the number of passes to him. I don't believe you win football games with your running back being your team's #1 receptions leader. Why do we have WRs if our primary receiver is going to continue to be the RUNNING BACK? <- key word "RUNNING".

And when are these "REALLY important" WAC Conference games you're talking about? I say it is ONLY the one we play next- SMU. Then it will be Nevada, then it will be San Jose, ..., the others simply don't matter at this time. Do whatever it takes to win only the next game.

Midway through the 2002 season we have thrown more interceptions than passing TDs. That is absolutely woeful for a passing team- any team for that matter! We must stop giving our opponents 14-21 points per game off these interceptions.

Again, Joe Smith had 84 rushing yards by halftime of the Rice game (176 yards vs Tulsa), just running out of the formations we're already running. I say increase his carries in these same formations we are currently in.

Who said anything about the I-formation? I'm saying increase Smith to about 20-25 carries per game & substitute Ralph Davis in for about another 10 carries- not run the I-formation. That's only about 30-35 carries per game (more if the opponent can't stop us), not a wholesale reconstruction of our offense. The offensive playbook doesn't have to change at all.

We have 2 RBs in the ~6-1 220 range & one of them might as well be sitting with us in the stands eating a hotdog. Who else in the WAC has this kind of healthy backfield power? Run the ball more behind our 4 SENIOR offensive linemen, take time off the clock, & give the defense a chance to rest.

Heck, we can always go back to 15 carries & 55 passes per game at any time. And that is what I would do at home games where we tend to play MUCH better offensively & defensively.

At the end of the day, you know what they say about doing the same thing over & over and expecting different results.
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IPAD GUIDE

[Gooddawg]

From the games I have seen I'm not sure we're good enough to run that much and win. What one team have we run the ball against effectively besides Tulsa? We tried to run some in the 2nd half against Rice and they stuffed us. Then we got too far behind. Boise State has 2 really good RBs probably not as good as ours BUT they actually USE both of their RBs unlike us for some unknown reason. If Ralph Davis doesn't play more over the next few games I'll be very disappointed. We put him in for 2-3 drives against lowly Tulsa and burned a redshirt year on him by not using his talents and he can help us win but we aren't using him.

[Tech77]

You are absolutely right! If we would have ran the ball on every play against Rice we probably would have won that game.

You weren't at the game. They were meeting our running plays in our backfield much of the time. I agree we need to change things up, but I don't think running the ball every play would have gotten us anywhere.

[DONW]

If we had ran the ball at least they couldn't have scored off our interceptions.

[DogsWin]

What one team have we run the ball against effectively besides Tulsa? We tried to run some in the 2nd half against Rice and they stuffed us. Then we got too far behind.

Folks, I'm still very frustrated because I clearly see a problem & the solution to it.

In our two WAC games thusfar Joe Smith alone has rushed for 176 yards in only a half vs Tulsa and for another 84 yards in only a half vs. Rice. In all 6 games, Smith has only put the ball on the carpet one time in his 98 carries (the 1 fumble was in our opening game vs. OK State). Smith is currently the WAC's #4 leading rusher overall, see updated stats below.

RUSHING Team Cl G Att Yds Avg TD Yds/G
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Kincade, Keylon..... SMU JR 6 167 648 3.9 3 108.0
Forsey, Brock....... BSU SR 5 96 485 5.1 3 97.0
Davis, Rodney....... FS JR 6 102 500 4.9 2 83.3
Smith, Joe.......... LTU SR 6 98 486 5.0 5 81.0

This is productivity! Joe is getting RESULTS without turning the ball over. Smith's 5 rushing TDs are almost as many scores as our meager 8 passing TDs. And how many points have our opponents converted off of our 11 interceptions? <<ARRRRRRRGGG!!!!>>

Rice did not "stuff" our running game last Saturday, we chose to pass the ball more in the 2nd half with the score LA Tech 20 - Rice 14. As we all saw, one pass was a bullet firmly into the gut of Rice DE #87 Brandon Green, which he easily returned for 7 Rice points- goodbye Louisiana Tech halftime lead. Another pass went through the hands of WR Ahmad Harris which led to another 7 points for Rice- say goodnight, Louisiana Tech. And another pass sailed over everyone's head into the arms of the waiting Rice safety who was 10 yards behind everyone. That's when the Rice fans around me cheered & laughed the loudest at the "high powered Louisiana Tech passing offense".

Final: Rice 37- LA Tech 20 (that's 23 unanswered points- 14 pts courtesy of the LA Tech passing game- without so much as a FG from us in the 2nd half).

Of course our defense also had it's problems last Saturday containing the numerous outside pitches and keeping track of Rice RB #23 Clint Hatfield catching passes all alone way downfield.

Folks, all I'm asking for is that we play more to a key offensive STRENGTH, which is being underutilized- SENIOR RB Joe Smith running the ball behind his 4 SENIOR offensive linemen (one of which is an NFL top 3 round projection). And to keep Smith rested so he doesn't start turning the ball over substitute Ralph Davis in behind that big, verteran offensive line!

I think we can be very successful running the ball ~50% of the time in road games. What we are doing now simply is not working, even against a previously 0-4 Rice team with 2 conference losses and nothing to play for except personal pride. Let me also point out that Rice had ZERO interceptions in their first 4 games, we pushed them near the top of the conference in a SINGLE GAME with our 3 gifts. You're welcome, Rice, what are conference mates for.
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Lovely Wendie99