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Can the Hoos use David Watford ‘s mobility more successfully? |
A bye week on the schedule and an FCS team up next left Virginia fans with little to talk about after dissecting the Oregon loss two weeks ago. That is until coach Mike London included the desire to use quarterback David Watford more as a runner among his remarks with the media this week.
That prompted fan discussions on how effective Watford can be as a dual threat quarterback. There seem to be three most popular lines of thinking on this:
- He’s not an instinctive runner and that hesitancy limits his effectiveness.
- He’s got great straight-line speed, but not as much lateral shiftiness so that limits his open-field elusiveness.
- He’s capable of being a consistent running threat IF the coaches find the right mix of plays and the offensive line blocks accordingly.
So far in the very early stages of Watford’s days as a starter, there is probably some truth in all three areas. The “not an instinctive runner” piece generally refers to the read (or spread) option plays where the quarterback puts the football in the belly of the running back and he has the option to hand off or keep it and run. The offense leaves one defender unblocked and the quarterback must read that defender to make the decision on whether to hand off or pull it back at what is often referred to as the mesh point. This is something that Watford himself told me in the preseason that he hasn’t mastered yet, but something that he continues to work to improve.
As far as open-field wiggle, that’s not Watford’s strength as a runner though he can make more people miss than he’s been given credit for so far. Plus, he’s been more effective eluding the pass rush than realized as well – he’s only been sacked twice in two games against two solid defenses. Watford also showed development from week one to week two on his tuck-it-and-run decision-making. Against Oregon, the play by play shows six runs by Watford and he gained yards on all but one of those plays, including a 10-yard gain and a 5-yard gain. There’s potential there. Plus, he does have very good straight-line speed, though. That’s evident when he gets those long strides going in space.
That, of course, brings us to the third line: he, much like Virginia’s running backs so far in 2013, needs more space to be effective. UVa has averaged just 2.9 yards per carry so far this season – that’s a team offense problem not a Watford can’t run problem. Simply put, the offensive line and the offensive coaches need to find the blocking schemes that will make the Hoos more successful.
And that’s what London hinted at this week anyway when he talked at length about offensive identity, stretching the field vertically, and, yes, using Watford as a runner more often. During the ACC teleconference Wednesday in regard to using Watford’s mobility, London said that there are “things to get him out on the corner, whether it’s play action or misdirection, little sprint outs … [and] if it’s there to make the throw, and if not, then become a running threat. I think there’s a couple things that we can do to allow his decision-making process to not improvise but to make what’s given.” In other words, the Cavaliers can move the pocket on rollouts, send the running back one way and bootleg Watford the other, and disguise the blocking to provide a cut-back counter run. We’ve also seen limited use of direct quarterback sprint-outs and draws with Watford in this offense. (A lot of the potential for Watford as a runner is discussed in this EDGE article.)
Lots of possibilities. The key is for the coaches to find calls where Watford and the offense can be comfortable and consistently successful. The catch there, of course, is that it takes time and opponents to accumulate reps and a track record to build around. It’s only the third game of the season this week and Watford’s third career start so there isn’t a lot of data and film for the coaches to study yet.
I, for one, think Watford can be a solid running option in this offense as he develops. I don’t expect the constant home run threat of some of the spread offenses there, but I do think he can be a ‘you have to monitor me’ threat to defenses and that in should help the offense progress. The first steps for that begin with VMI this week.
The Pick
Season to date: 2-0. I should be on the way to a comfortable 3-0 start …
Virginia can win if … it dominates the day defensively as expected. VMI is 1-2 this season with losses to Richmond and North Greenville. The Keydets averaged 12.0 points per game in those two losses, which included a 34-0 shutout against the Spiders. The Cavaliers have the secondary to take away the passing game that has been successful for the Keydets the last two weeks and the defensive line to dictate play up front. It should be a long day for the visitors as long as the defense lives up to its potential.
Virginia can lose if … VMI brings Oregon along for the trip? Seriously, there is very little way for UVa to lose this game due to a vast divide in talent. With that said, sloppy play – 4 turnovers and a blocked punt all led to points for the Ducks two weeks ago – on a potentially sloppy day – the weather forecast isn’t promising – would be the easiest way to produce an unforeseen loss.
And the winner is … Virginia in a blowout, but hopefully not a snooze-fest. I think we’ll see a defensive touchdown, a special teams touchdown, and some offensive punch. UVa 44, VMI 3.
