Key to the Game: OSU’s Defense Can’t Get Caught Looking

During his weekly press conference, Mike Gundy noted one the main issues that plagued his defense against Iowa State.

“Guys are getting violated with our eyes, getting caught in the backfield and getting run by,” Gundy said about his secondary.

He was right and that problem led to several big plays for the Iowa State Cyclone offense.

Cyclone freshman quarterback Brock Purdy looked like a star in Stilly. His ability make plays with his legs forced the young Cowboy safeties to respect the run on nearly every snap, which led to exactly what Gundy mentioned above. They got caught flat-footed, with their eyes in the backfield and by the time they realized it… they were already beat.

The Cowboys head to Manhattan, Kansas this weekend for their second road game of 2018, and are going to be put in similar situations going up against the Wildcats offense. Coach Bill Snyder has always been a big fan of getting the “extra guy” advantage, and what better way to do that then to run with the quarterback.

The Wildcats go-to for designed QB runs is the Quarterback Power. You can see how they gain a numbers advantage in the clip below. The only player unaccounted for by a blocker is the safety, who is nearly 20 yards down the field. With some solid blocking, this allows Jesse Ertz to pick up some solid yardage before being brought down by the deep safety.

Skylar Thompson, who is slated to start on Saturday, saw a lot of success with it last year against the Pokes.

Successfully running the quarterback puts the opposing defense in a tough situation. They have to use an extra defender to account for him or use coverages that might be a little more risky than usual. Snyder’s key goal in the running game has always been the numbers advantage.

K-State will also utilize the quarterback in the zone-read game. If you force Thompson to keep it, he can beat you himself.

Or hand it off to talented running back Alex Barnes.

In addition, the KSU quarterback always almost has the option to pass. They’ve had some really solid play designs in relation to run-pass options (RPOs) in recent years, and they’ve continued that trend this season under new offensive coordinator Andre Coleman.

In the breakdown below from 365 Schemes, you see the quarterback keep the ball on the RPO.

And, then you see a pass off of the RPO.

The way the Wildcats set up the pass option of the RPO is to get things going with the designed quarterback runs and zone-reads mentioned above. The Wildcats are looking to make the defense wrong every time, and we saw the Cyclones make Knowles’ and company wrong on multiple occasions last weekend in Stillwater.

K-State will be looking to put the Cowboy linebackers and secondary in a run-pass conflict on every play. Oklahoma State will have to be extremely disciplined this weekend in Manhattan if they want to leave with a victory. They will not only have to worry about stopping Barnes, but they also have to account for the quarterback run with Thompson. Knowles will need to continue his solid job of mixing up blitz packages, but he will also need to mix up coverages to combat K-State’s RPOs.

Even though Thompson had a solid day passing a season ago against OSU, I think the key to this game is to make him beat you through the air. Byron Pringle ain’t walking through that door.

The Cowboys have shown they are able to get pressure on multiple quarterbacks this year and I believe they will be able to get to Thompson and get to him early. If so, Oklahoma State will have a good shot to win this game.