We'll have plenty of company. After the semifinal results every fanbase is desperate for that type of offense.
Several years ago I was wishing Alabama's great defense got a crack at Oregon. That would have been a beautiful example to hoist for years, the basic team mauling modern. It would have been far worse than anything Stanford or Boise State ever did to Oregon. Unfortunately Oregon always found a way to dodge that meeting. And now Alabama's defense has steadily declined, to the point I wasn't surprised at all against Ohio State. It looked like last year's bowl game against Oklahoma all over again, merely different names and style of play from the opponent.
The best college spread teams use tempo to run the ball. Often the rushing attempts are 45-55 on average. That makes it legit and dangerous. The prior versions like Mike Leach's that relied on short passing were garbage and are still garbage.
Fortified basic teams can still have their way with those spread teams, but it requires top talent and smarts. You gets tons of variance in those games, one style dominating for brief stretches and then the other style taking over. Note the amazing run of points in either direction when Alabama plays Auburn, or when Oregon plays Stanford. One year Andrew Luck had a big early lead at Oregon and then got run out of the park. Alabama led Auburn 24-0 at home in 2010 before Auburn rallied to steal it. Fascinating games. Florida State vs. Oregon had that same type of potential if Florida State maintained a defense similar to their 2011 through 2013 versions, and not the soft vulnerable group they fielded this season.
I posted on USC boards beginning last November that 2014 set up perfectly as Oregon's best chance ever, as long as Mariota returned. Stanford lost a ton of guys from the 2013 team and Oregon got them in Eugene. Michigan State may be compared to Stanford philosophically but when you're from a foreign conference and don't know the Oregon personnel and tendencies like Stanford does, it won't translate the same.
I prefer the McElwain approach, the one he used at Alabama. Lots of open field concepts between the 20s but seamless shift to power football in the red zone.
The spread teams aren't going away. Not even close. This isn't the Run and Shoot with flawed concepts throughout the field, encouraging the defense to attack. The simple fact that optioning that defensive end creates such a natural cavity on either side, along with hesitation and confusion, has changed football as we know it. Still, it feels more satisfying when you snuff out that type of team with a basic approach. If we're ever relevant again, I want to recognize the Canes uniforms and offense and 4-3 attacking defense. Otherwise we're just a clone, and probably not a successful one.
Notice that Urban Meyer forged his squad to defeat Alabama, not Oregon. The announcers emphasized that last night. He uses tempo but also throws the ball aggressively downfield, and his defensive front four looks widebody tough, not much different than the group that faced the Canes in the Fiesta Bowl. Ohio State this season has pulled off more remarkable stretches of play than I ever remember from Oregon. They brutalized Michigan State as underdog and likewise with Wisconsin. Last night they scored 28 unanswered points against Alabama. The third string quarterback may be exposed in the title game. Regardless, if we are emulating either one of those programs it should be Ohio State's blueprint, not Oregon. Ohio State can play standard power football if needed. Oregon cannot.
