Total Offense: Balance is the Key

10 impact stats to build a championship team.
#8 - Total Offense
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A team’s total offense, many coaches will say, will not just help determine a win or a loss, but ultimately, whether the season is a successful one. Today, having a high-powered passing game but a limited running game – or the reverse – just doesn’t cut it. To be consistently successful, a balanced offense is necessary.

“I feel you have to have balance in your offense to be a consistent winner,” says Rush Propst, coach of Hoover High School (AL) and winners of four state titles in the last five years. “I believe even more important than time of possession is the number of total offensive snaps your team takes. It’s important to have that balance and we strive for a ratio of 55% rushing to 45% passing. We know if one of our receivers catches 12 balls and the other’s are limited, we’re in trouble. We want more equal distribution.”

A good example may be Rice. The Owls led all Division I-A schools in rushing offense but only finished 3-8 partly because they ranked 117th and last in passing offense. “Part of the reason balance is needed in rushing and passing is because the defenses have gotten better and more sophisticated,” said Pittsburg State’s offensive coordinator Tim Beck. The Gorillas led all Division II schools in scoring last fall, averaging nearly 56 points per game.

“Defenses are clearly better coached than ever before and the technology involved in the end zone camera enables coaches to see various offensive formations and tendencies. The digital equipment today lets the opposing defensive coaches break down the tape by formations so if you are run or pass-heavy, they can clearly prepare for that easier than for a complete two-dimensional game.” While putting in a few new plays each week, Beck looks at what the defense is doing as the game unfolds. “Depending on what the defense is doing will dictate what we do offensively.” Last year the PSU Gorillas averaged nearly 600 yards of total offense in 15 games.

Hardin-Simmons’ Jimmie Keeling also believes in a balanced attack. “ Our goal each game is to get over 400 yards in total offense – rushing and passing – with the spread of about 200 each,” says Keeling. “I feel being strong in both categories makes you more difficult to defend. Using multiple formations may also confuse the defense, exspecially if they haven’t seen them on tape.” Last season the Hardin-Simmons Cowboys were one of three Division III colleges to average over 500 yards per game in total offense.

“If you’re only one-dimensional it’s going to come back to haunt you sooner or later,” says Mission Viejo’s (CA) head coach Bob Johnson. Last year’s CIF Southern Section Division II champion with a 14-0 record, the Diablos have won 55 of their last 56 games. “As a defender it’s an easier sitution if you know – in most instances – that a run is the next play based on a team’s offensive tendencies. We’ve had 1,500 yard rushers but want to balance it out – not too pass-happy or not too run-happy as an offense.”

Head coach Bob Stitt of Colorado Mines helped orchestrate one of the top offenses among Division II colleges last fall. “It’s very important to be able to do both – rushing and passing – very well. If a defense is able to take one part of your offense away, you can go to the other part. If a defense forces us to throw the ball, that’s fine. Or, if our passing attack is defended well, we’ll go to our running game. Our philosophy is to take what the defense allows us.”

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Next month AFM continues it’s 10-part series by breaking down each of the top 10 statistical categories in building a championship team. November’s subject: Passing Efficiency. To view the original article on ‘10 Impact Stats to Build a Championship Team’ that appeared in the July issue of AFM, log onto www.AmericanFootballMonthly.com.

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