Sometimes there’s a silver lining a school’s own official website doesn’t even examine. That lining is that Sacramento State was 4-7 in 2006, and just hung in with Fresno State, an FBS team, in a 24-3 loss. Sure, the Hornets didn’t score a touchdown, and sure, they were never “in” the game. This wasn’t like Appalachian State upsetting Michigan by any means, but you have to look at the silver lining, and that is the Hornets were beaten by FCS teams in 2006 by much more than an FBS team beat them this year. Coach Sperbeck has definitely made strides with a small roster and a redshirt freshman QB.

Speaking of Smith, he completed 13 of his 23 passes for 60 yards and did not throw an interception in his first collegiate start. Travon Jones rushed for 49 yards, and Ryan Coogler caught six balls. That information is silver lining. Cyrus Mulitalo’s 16 tackles and a fumble recovery is silver lining. Shelton and Webber logging double-digit tackles is silver lining.

The Sac State official site’s article begins with this sentence: “The Sacramento State football team opened its 2007 season with a 24-3 loss at Fresno State, Saturday night at Bulldog Stadium.” The article is filled with stats and positives for Fresno State. This article is also filled with negatives towards the Hornets like, “With the exception of turnovers and penalties, Fresno State dominated the statistics. ” And there are only two paragraphs detailing the Hornets’ upside. The author leaves the positive remarks for the Notes section, which said: “NOTES: The 21-point margin of defeat is the smallest against a Football Bowl Subdivsion opponent since 1992.”

This article may be filled with negatives, but don’t let this article fool you, this was a positive game for Sacramento State Football as a program. This is a good sign for the future of the program. Coach Sperbeck is getting this team on the right path.

Plagiarism in College Football: The Zone-Read Option
Preface:
In college as a student, you are warned not to plagiarize or you’ll fail the course, or worse, be expelled from school. But in the college football world it’s a way to you’re your team afloat. Plagiarism in college football is a way to keep up with the Joneses. Right now the zone-read option is the latest ‘thing’ to be copycatted all over the country. Even the most casual fan has heard this term “zone-read” but doesn’t usually know what it means. I have taken on the daunting task of defining, and drawing the play for you here. In the fashion of coaches all across the US of A, I have pieced together this lesson from playbooks I’ve found online and have been given by other coaches.

Who runs this play:
Florida, USF, Texas, Ohio St, Miami (2007), Virginia Tech, West Virginia, etc.

Formations: It can be run out of a variety of shotgun formations, including 1 and 2 back sets, and 3-5 receiver sets, with tight ends and without. The key ingredient is having a QB who can make the read and a TB who has good vision to find the seam in the zone-blocking scheme.

The “read” in zone-read: The “read” is a term used by coaches/players to describe a key. On offense, reads are usually made pre-snap of a key or two for each play. On a slant, the key might be the CB playing soft and the Safety playing deep. In the double option, your key is the DE on the side you’re optioning to. The OT/TE will leave the DE unblocked and the QB reads him (coming up field at the QB = pitch, covering the pitch man (TB) = keep). Here the read is almost always based off the “backside” DE, or the DE opposite the side the running backs portion of the option is going to.

This is depicted here:

The key is the ‘E’ that’s circled. If he comes upfield at the QB the QB gives to the TB. If the DE boxes up and plays contain, the QB gives to the TB. If the DE chases the QB down the line, the QB pulls out and keeps.

The “zone” in Zone-Read: Zone-Blocking is a blocking scheme based on combo blocks (double teams) on the first level (Defensive Line). The lineman will “combo” or double team the front line, driving them to the right in the top play, and to the left in the bottom play. The TB, if given the ball, will then find a hole on the right side of the line, and attack the hole. Whichever lineman that can go up to the second level (linebackers) and block them will do so, and try to eliminate them from making a play (as seen in both diagrams).

Another look is here:

And here:

Other variations: A common play seen in the zone-read package is the one diagramed below. This is the “QB Counter” and is sometimes referred to as a QB Trap. The point of this play is to misdirect the MLB to the right (his left) and have the OT or OG (here it’s the OT) run a trap and block the WLB out, thus opening a large hole for the QB to run through at both the first and second levels.

Play-Action: A common pass play out of the zone-read is the play seen below. This play is a bootleg, where the QB fakes the handoff to the TB, and boots left, with the Y and J (slot) running a drag at 5 and 7, and the Z running a post at 7 to 10 and the X running a 10 and hitch back to 7. Sometimes the X will run a Go/Vertical/Burn (whatever it’s being called in that offense) to clear the CB out on that side.

Conclusion: Hopefully now more people can understand the zone-read, and why it is called that, the reads, keys, blocking scheme, counter off of it, and the PA pass as well. This crash course is given by a Coach, and stolen from other coaches, just like the play itself!

If anyone looks over the Hornets roster you’ll notice one thing… that only one Quarterback who played a down returns from 2006. What does this mean? It means gone is Marcel Marquez’s 52.6% completion percentage, 1,910 yards passing, and 10 passing TDs. Not to mention his two rushing TDs. In his place are: freshman, redshirt freshman, and a fifth-year senior. The fifth-year senior is Crosby Wehr. Wehr threw nine passes in 2006, and eleven passes in 2005, and hasn’t shown any chance of taking himself off the bench except for a spring game where he lead the offense on a strong drive down the field. Wehr has been rumored to move to Tight End and Wide Receiver, but would any sane coach leave himself without a QB who’s taken a single snap from the year before because he moved two QB’s to Tight End?

The main redshirt freshman is Jason Smith. Smith is a California native who stands in the pocket at 6’1 and 190lbs. Smith is from Liberty High School in Brentwood where he threw for 4,443 yards and 39 touchdowns over his three-year career as a starter. Jason set a school record with 1,875 yards in 2005 and holds seven other records at Liberty as well. While he missed 2006 with a broken non-throwing hand he suffered in a baseball injury, he’s expected to not only play a lot in 2007, but start going into fall camp.

With Coach Sperbeck having cleaned out the roster of the troublemakers, and having moved players around to where he expects them to play, expect a multiple QB system in place while he gets a feel for the Quarterback position at Sacramento State, and gets a feel for the Big Sky Conference as well. Coach Sperbeck might wind up having something in common with Coach Spurrier, and that’s the multiple QB system.

Coach Spurrier put this into place when he was at University of Florida on multiple occasions. The most notable time is when he didn’t, and that’s in 1995-1996 when Danny Wuerffel took over as the Gators QB and led them to two national championship appearances, including one title win in ’96. Wuerffel finished ’96 with over 3,000 passing yards and 39 TDs to only 13 INTs. In ’95 he finished with over 3,200 yards and 35 TDs. The Gators only lost two games between 1995 and 1996. In 1993 Wuerffel came in as a freshman and led the team in passing with 2200 yards and 1700 yards as a sophomore in ’94, but split time at QB with Terry Dean.

While ultimate success is proven by national titles, the Gators did finish 1993 with an 11-2 record, and 1994 with a 10-2-1 record. The Gators finished 0-2-1 against FSU from 93-94 and 2-1 against FSU from 95-96. So while ultimate success came with a one QB system, the Gators and Spurrier did prove you could win games and SEC titles with a two QB system. The Gators and Spurrier’s definitive test of the two QB system came in the 1997 game against FSU. That game was infamous for alternating QB’s on every play in the first quarter. Those QB’s were Doug Johnson and Noah Brindise, neither led the team to a national title appearance, but the Gators did win the game.

So the question is… can Sacramento State win more games than they lose with a two QB system? I believe so. Mixing the maturity of a Crosby Wehr with the potential of Jason Smith will give Smith the experience he needs, and give the Hornets offense the experienced leader they need in Wehr. With other freshman on campus, any mixture of a multiple QB system can exist, and with Wehr’s athleticism (rumored moves to TE and WR suggest this, whether it’s an accurate depiction or not) means having both on the field could be an option to maximize the Hornets strengths. Sacramento State may not win a national title with a two QB system, but they weren’t even a .500 team in 2006, so a national title is out of reach anyway. Sacramento State is looking for a way to finish over .500, make the playoffs, and get Jason Smith experience for 2008, and a multiple QB system is the only way to achieve this.

Sacramento State Hornets

2007 Preview

2006 record: 4-7 (4-4)
Head Coach: Marshall Sperbeck (Nevada ’84)
Previous tenure: HC Foothill College (California) for 15 years.
Star Player: LB Cyrus Mulitalo, Jr.
Key Returnees: Torrell Baker WR/PR, Brent Webber SS, Mike Brannon LB, Cyrus Mulitalo LB, Brett Shelton FS, Dallas Mauga DL, James Henderson FL
Key Addition: RB Tyreece Jacks (JUCO)
Key Losses: Marcel Marquez QB, Jason Barnes WR, Andre Taylor WR/KR, Tony DeMonaco DB, Tyson Butler LB
Interesting Notes: The roster has only 2 non-California players on it, and FB Damion Shelton is one of two players playing in the NFL out of Sacramento State.

The Offense
Last year’s starting QB Marcel Marquez is now out of the picture, and in his place comes senior QB Crosby Wehr. Wehr, a back-up in ’06, had a strong spring performance, including a solid drive that totaled 64 yards and a touchdown. Wehr had very limited playing time last year, throwing only nine times all year. Wehr will be challenged by the Brentwood, California native Jason Smith. Smith is a 6’1 190lbs freshman QB who red-shirted in 2006.

The running game looks weak going into 2007 unless JUCO transfer Tyreece Jacks can come in and start right away. Jacks is an undersized back, but displays 4.4 speed according to rivals.com, and rushed for 1100 yards and 10 td’s as a sophomore. FB Seth McDaniels is the returning rushing yardage leader, but is mostly a blocking back.

Senior WR Tyler Fanucchi looked like a go-to threat in the spring after recording five catches for 85 yards. Fanucchi is a transfer from Iowa. Torrell Baker returns to the receiving corps. Baker hauled in sixteen catches last year, rushed for 131 yards, and average 7.1 yards per punt return. The WR corps will greatly miss Jason Barnes and Andre Taylor.

The Defense

The Hornets defensive unit dominated the spring game, winning 44-28 using a specialized point system that awarded points for a 3 and out, a turnover, and defensive scores. The Hornets return big time playmakers in Cyrus Mulitalo, Brent Webber, and Dallas Mauga.

The defensive line should have plenty of pass rush ability with Mauga and James Henderson returning for 2007. Mauga, a senior, recorded three sacks and nine tackles-for-loss in ’06. Henderson, also a senior, logged 6.5 TFLs, and brought down the opposing teams QB four times in 2006.

The linebacking unit returns two of it’s biggest playmakers in Cyrus Mulitalo and Mike Brannon, both only juniors. Mulitalo logged an amazing 120 tackles, 11.5 TFLs, and two sacks last season. Brannon brought down 54 ball carriers, 11 of them behind the line, and picked off two passes to boot.

Brent Webber returns to lead the defensive backs. Webber is a ball-hawking strong safety who came down with six INTs and 56 stops a year ago. He’s flanked by Brett Shelton at free safety. Shelton totaled 56 tackles last season.

Special Teams

Kicker Juan Gamboa returns for his junior season after strong outing in ’06. Gamboa was 9-12 in field goal attempts, missing two from 40+ and one from 30+. Gamboa also recorded 12 touchbacks. The Hornets lost the services of Punter Mitch Lively who averaged a solid 43 yards per punt. The return game should be strong this season with Torrell Baker returning to handle kick and punt return duties. Baker averaged 7.1 yards per punt return, and 14.5 per kick return in 2006.

Schedule
Last year, Boise State opened their undefeated season by dominating Sacramento State 45-0. This year it’s Fresno State as the first game of the season, which looks much more promising for Sac State. The only other blow out on the schedule was at the hands of Montana as the Grizz ran through the Hornets 59-14 in Missoula. If Sacramento State’s offense can come together, they could easily be a 7-4 team instead of 4-7.

Overall Analysis

The defense will have to keep the Hornets in games while the offense gets into rhythm. The loss of their starting QB and both starting WR’s will hurt, but Wehr and Fanucchi showed good chemistry in the spring game. Seven of the Hornets eleven games were decided by eight points or less, and this is only more evidence that defense will be an important factor in competing for a Big Sky Conference championship.