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Travis Homer and the Run Game (GIFs)

ghost2

ghost2

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I went back and looked at some of Homer's runs vs. GT and ND and I came away even more impressed by his vision, patience, and ability to succeed in a variety of run concepts.

This first example is from the GT game - it's an outside power-concept run with a pulling guard (Gauthier):



You can really see Homer's patience, vision, and balance here as he cuts back behind Gauthier and follows him for a nice pickup.

Same game, this time a simple outside zone run:



Again, he finds the hole off tackle and is able to cut up and pick up good yards. Note also how well Herndon seals off his man and our outstanding downfield WR blocking.

Here's an inside zone run from the ND game:



A surprising amount of stuff going on in this simple play. First, the initial (and subtle) cut inside and burst through the hole making the initial LBs miss. Then the speed and vision to bounce to the sideline. Finally the toughness to lower his shoulder and take on the DB. By this point in the game we had already taken ND's soul, so these types of runs were just so much more fun to watch...

A different wrinkle from the ND game, this time an inside trap play with Herndon sealing the edge:



Notice the very brief hesitation to allow the hole to develop before he opens up, then the speed to get downfield and break the DBs tackle - if he doesn't trip over his feet he might have scored here.

Here's that nifty little counter play we ran vs. ND and VT:



Again, three things I love here - 1) the vision to allow the play to develop, 2) the cut and burst to get downfield, and 3) the way he finishes the play and gets another 3-4 yards after contact.

https://media.giphy.com/media/9S5skDFA7pp31mHlKC/giphy.gif

Simple screen play here, but again after securing the ball he waits for it to develop and follows his OL downfield - look at Donaldson out in front taking on his man and allowing Homer to cut inside for a big gain. Gauthier is out there too. And again, he finishes the run for nearly 5 more yards after contact.

I wanted to point out two things with this thread. One of course is the versatility of Homer as a complete running back. I don't know if he's the most athletically gifted RB we've seen, but I think he's going to have a special year for us due to his mix of vision, burst, and toughness. The other thing I wanted to mention is how relatively diverse our running game CAN be. It wasn't always last year, but Homer's ability to run zone and power, and his ability as a receiver should allow Richt to fully design a run game around his strengths, IMO. With the OL maturing - the most obvious OL in those gifs are still on the team - I think we'll see a definite improvement on the ground this year. We'll need it.
 
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One person I think we're really going to miss this year in the running game is Herndon. If you watch the videos, he's a key factor in sealing the edge in just about every big run. We're going to need to develop a physical TE/H-Back sooner than later - hopefully Irvin can hold the fort long enough for Jordan and Mallory to pick up the blocking schemes. I think we can use George in this role a bit too to help with those traps and counters.
 
ghost2 said:
One person I think we're really going to miss this year in the running game is Herndon. If you watch the videos, he's a key factor in sealing the edge in just about every big run. We're going to need to develop a physical TE/H-Back sooner than later - hopefully Irvin can hold the fort long enough for Jordan and Mallory to pick up the blocking schemes. I think we can use George in this role a bit too to help with those traps and counters.
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We will miss Herndon for sure because he was probably the best overall tight end in terms of passing threat and blocking but Jordan is a manchild blocker as well who is very good in that aspect too. Only thing is he is just a freshman.
 
I’ve been saying it for a long time Travis homer has the best burst and acceleration that we have seen from a Miami back in a long time even over duke Johnson. Lamar miller is the only running back faster than homer that we have had lately
 
ghost2 said:
One person I think we're really going to miss this year in the running game is Herndon. If you watch the videos, he's a key factor in sealing the edge in just about every big run. We're going to need to develop a physical TE/H-Back sooner than later - hopefully Irvin can hold the fort long enough for Jordan and Mallory to pick up the blocking schemes. I think we can use George in this role a bit too to help with those traps and counters.
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herndon is one of the big reasons our play dropped so much after his injury. he is a complete TE. all the skills one could ever want in a TE.
 
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Homer really surprised me he was under the radar and exploded when given the chance which says a lot about coach Brown as a teacher as well.
 
I still can't believe Notre Dame played both safeties deep the whole game. It's like they didn't bother watching film on Miami at all. They should have fired their coordinator that night.

On a serious note, I agree on Homer. He's got the patience to wait for the play to develop and the vision to see all the lanes. Surprising break away speed in the open field. Seriously underrated player.
 
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As much as that was Homer reel, Herndon put on a blocking clinic in those highlights. I knew when he went down for the season it was going to be tough sledding, and it showed. Him going down was probably one the main reasons for the 3 game slid. That's hard to replace, especially with a RS Freshman. Glad Hartley address TE this year, hopefully we can have a TE step up like Herndon.
 
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Why do ppl act surprised that Homer is talented?? His measurables are almost identical to Dalvin Cook, had a higher SPARQ rating than Cook, and was an ace special teamer out the gate.

Homer has elite level strength and speed... his vision is inconsistent but this is only his junior year, I believe he'll be running behind better blockers and he's going to be a year better than he was last season.

I expect him to be the starter the entire season.
 
As far as Herndon is concerned, all the things he's good at, Brevin is better... run blocking from the TE position wont be an issue.
 
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KrazyCane said:
Why do ppl act surprised that Homer is talented?? His measurables are almost identical to Dalvin Cook, had a higher SPARQ rating than Cook, and was an ace special teamer out the gate.

Homer has elite level strength and speed... his vision is inconsistent but this is only his junior year, I believe he'll be running behind better blockers and he's going to be a year better than he was last season.

I expect him to be the starter the entire season.
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I think a lot of it comes down to where he played HS ball. If he was from Miami-Dade he'd get more benefit of the doubt.
 
Homer's style shows why coaches stress pad level and always be moving forward. Personally, I always thought he displayed better instincts than Walton. And by that I mean I think he follows his blocks better, shows more patience, and hits his holes with full commitment - very little dancing in the backfield.

Need Realus to step up and be that lead blocker.
 
KrazyCane said:
As far as Herndon is concerned, all the things he's good at, Brevin is better... run blocking from the TE position wont be an issue.
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Perhaps, but you're comparing a senior with 4 years of college S&C to an incoming freshman who isn't on campus yet. Just from a wear-and-tear/conditioning perspective I'd be concerned about relying on either freshman TE in the same way we did Herndon last year. I have no doubt that Jordan is as or more talented than Herndon - it's just going to take a bit for that to develop in the run game.
 
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