What may have happened

[slickdawg]

Spring: 2012, with the graduation of Chris Relf, we commit to gearing our offense from a run spread option for a pocket passing QB in Tyler Russell. Spring and fall camp focus on this highly. Tyler sets a boatload of passing records in the 2012 season, but he has a bad couple of last games. #2 QB Dak Prescott sees limited action, usually in short yardage situations and has a limited set of "Dak" plays.

Spring 2013: Tyler Russell is our guy, record setting QB at State. We've tooled the entire offense around him and his tremendous arm. We are so engrained in this and so dedicated to it, we gave up the second fewest sacks in the SEC in 2012, even though we all feel Tyler holds on to the ball too long at times. He's a 5th year senior, it's his team, custom made for him. He is seeking redemption for his last two games.

In Spring ball: We have one healthy scholarship QB (Tyler) who was coming off a knee issue from Dec/Jan. Dak had turf toe surgery and was out for spring ball, and not cleared until late July. We lost five receivers to graduation including all the starters. We're counting on a JUCO WR (Chappelle) and some incoming HS players (Wilson, Ross, etc) to step up.

Summer / fall camp: Tyler has worked with our receivers, Dak has been limited and has to play catch up.

Game 1, Oklahoma State, Tyler looks crisp, marches us down field, Tyler scrambles and slides, OSU LB hits him up high, takes a shot to the head. Completes a check down to LDP, Tyler is 5/5 thus far. Next play, Tyler just about throws a pick at the goal line, aiming for Tubby. LDP runs a play, Tyler calls timeout next play. Throws to LDP in the flat for a first down, negated by Morrow holding. Tyler then has to throw it away. We kick a FG.

Next series, starting at out own 15, Perkins runs right for 19 and 20, then up the middle for 2, then 5. Russell floats it too high in the flat for LDP, tipped, picked. The DB didn't have possession before he stepped on the line, but that's a different story. My point is, Tyler wasn't the same after the hit. We run four straight plays, then pass, it's a bad pass, and picked.

Later in the game, Tyler officially gets a concussion, Dak has a baptism by fire. Dak isn't the refined pocket passer that Tyler is, but he is more mobile.

Tyler is out a month, we have to take our true run spread option QB and put him behind the reigns of a schematically pass oriented offense.

You don't spend two years prepping for a pass oriented offense, then easily switch back to the run oriented spread. That's a task for spring camp, not during the season. I believe this is a major contributor to why we are where we are.

Also, I should add, injuries at safety are killing us. Losing Jay Hughes early in game 1 for the season, then various injuries to Dee Arrington, we are basically on a third string safety. Kendrick Market has been getting better and better, and has made some great plays, but Hughes is like having another coach on the field. Arrington is a vicious tackler.

We have four games left this season, and I hope we will all four. I know the odds of that are low, but I'm a Mississippi State fan, and I'm cheering for our players and coaches without exception. If we need to have a coaching change, that discussion happens after the Egg Bowl. Until then, #HAILSTATE

[Harrydawg]

Very good write up....all pretty much fact.

[Political Hack]

this is where I've been coming from all season. that game, that drive, that hit, tanked our damn season. And then Auburn destroyed any hopes we had of an 8-9 win year.

If Dak wouldve been available during the spring I don't think it would've hurt us so much, but we had prepared all year for a pocket QB and then had to switch to Dak. I have a feeling we'll get better and better on offense as the season progresses, but that was a HUGE adjustment that the staff wasn't planning on making.

[ShotgunDawg]

this is where I've been coming from all season. that game, that drive, that hit, tanked our damn season. And then Auburn destroyed any hopes we had of an 8-9 win year.

If Dak wouldve been available during the spring I don't think it would've hurt us so much, but we had prepared all year for a pocket QB and then had to switch to Dak. I have a feeling we'll get better and better on offense as the season progresses, but that was a HUGE adjustment that the staff wasn't planning on making.

I agree with this, and that's why I am withholding judgment. However, IMO, there comes a point where the coaches have had plenty of time to figure things out. 8-9 games should be plenty of time for young players to become experienced and the offense to start clicking.

[HoopsDawg]

We are running the same damn offense we have been running for 5 years. Same plays, same schemes, same offense. Don't take my word for it, take Mullen's and every coach we have played against. When Tyler is in, we just run less read option.

Also, we have been pretty lucky on injuries. Every team in the country has injuries. Ole Miss had 6 defensive starters out and still beat LSU.

[Political Hack]

We are running the same damn offense we have been running for 5 years. Same plays, same schemes, same offense. Don't take my word for it, take Mullen's and every coach we have played against. When Tyler is in, we just run less read option.

Also, we have been pretty lucky on injuries. Every team in the country has injuries. Ole Miss had 6 defensive starters out and still beat LSU.

the playbook is hundreds of pages deep. They run different sections of it with different personnel. playbook doesn't change... but the pre-season prep, personnel decisions, TEs vs WRs, etc ... all hinge on whether you're running a ground and pound or air raid offense. Tyler was going to throw is 30-40 times a game... now Dak is throwing it 40+ times a game because that's what we prepared the team to do coming into the season, and is why you see everyone screaming "run the damn ball."

[CJDAWG85]

Awesome thread.

[Jack Lambert]

this is where I've been coming from all season. that game, that drive, that hit, tanked our damn season. And then Auburn destroyed any hopes we had of an 8-9 win year.

If Dak wouldve been available during the spring I don't think it would've hurt us so much, but we had prepared all year for a pocket QB and then had to switch to Dak. I have a feeling we'll get better and better on offense as the season progresses, but that was a HUGE adjustment that the staff wasn't planning on making.

We don't even have a full back on the roster. I don't know that plays into it or not but just how many D 1 teams do not have a full back?

[ChevChelios]

I would tend to agree with this but if you watch the pass plays called they are the same damn routes EVERYTIME from different formations. The slot will run a corner route, the split end to that side will run a stick(sit) route and the hb will run a flat route. Then you have the only PA call... verticals and lastly Jameon running a pivot route from 5 wide while we are running that same concept on the backside. That is not tailoring a offense to a pass oriented QB. Its not even enough for a spread option attack. That is my only grip with Dan..

[DawgsBite34]

I agree with this, and that's why I am withholding judgment. However, IMO, there comes a point where the coaches have had plenty of time to figure things out. 8-9 games should be plenty of time for young players to become experienced and the offense to start clicking.

GOLD. We can make all the excuses we want but when TR is the starting QB our offense, against any team with a pulse looks like pure hot garbage. That is on coaching. Find myself saying this over and over again about Mullen. Talent is there but the coaching isn't. I miss Relf honestly. We ran a smashmouth offense with him before Mullen ruined his confidence after the 2010 season. Relf turns into a beast that year but nope during that spring Danny Two Gloves ''opens up'' the starting QB job. Pretty much slapping Relf in the face, then we get screwed in a heartbreaker at Auburn in 2011 and our offense aint been the same since

[FlabLoser]

[engie]

I think this is correct in how it happened. However, I still ultimately blame Mullen for how that transpired. His QB recruiting and his hard-headedness on "tailoring the offense to Russell" ultimately set the offense back 2 years.

If he had come in with experience and/or humility, he would have realized that the offense wasn't going to work well under Russell and was sabotaging the identity of our team, he would have allowed him to transfer somewhere that could help his career, and he would have thrown the kitchen sink at getting Bo Wallace and/or the handful of other QBs he's missed on in recruiting.

It's just crazy to me to "tailor" anything to a single roster player(that had been injury prone in his career, no less) when we don't have a single other player on roster that can replace them in that role...

[justwin]

Spring 2013: Tyler Russell is our guy, record setting QB at State. We've tooled the entire offense around him and his tremendous arm. We are so engrained in this and so dedicated to it, we gave up the second fewest sacks in the SEC in 2012, even though we all feel Tyler holds on to the ball too long at times. He's a 5th year senior, it's his team, custom made for him. He is seeking redemption for his last two games.

I see your point and most of the others, but I strongly disagree that we tooled the entire offense around Tyler b/c we basically gave up the entire rushing attack by going with LaDarious as our in between the tackles primary running back. Said differently, what would our 2012 offense look like if we used a Vick/Dixon type RB instead of Perk. We had at least 2 of them on the roster with Griffin and Robinson. The reason our offense stalled in the last 5 games was the personnel usage of Perk between the tackles. It's really that simple. Defenses don't have to blitz as they can stop Perk 9/10 times with their front four when running inside.

Tyler holds the ball b/c teams can drop 7 in coverage b/c they don't respect the inside run.

After 40 years of forward passing futility, we finally have a guy who can make every throw and what do we do....we go with the smallest RB on the roster full time who can't make most of the blocks nor break most of the tackles. Sadly, it's not Perk's fault.

GO WITH THE BIGGER RBS LIKE GRIFFIN AND WE'LL START WINNING.