Virginia Tech vs. Tulsa Independence Bowl Preview: Scouting the Golden Hurricane's Offense

Hokie Nation was ecstatic when Justin Fuente was hired to replace legendary Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer. Fuente is considered to be an offensive master. He turned around a dismal Memphis program in just four years, and the Tigers are currently ranked No. 7 nationally in scoring offense. Tulsa made a similar move last year, the Golden Hurricane hired Philip Montgomery away from Baylor where he was the offensive coordinator. After installing an offensive system similar to what he ran at Baylor, coach Montgomery has overseen an offensive revival at Tulsa. A school that had the 59th offense last season jumped all the way to 14th in 2015 (averaging about 8 yards less per game than Fuente's Memphis). Bud Foster is trying to do his part to make sure Frank Beamer ends his career with a win, but he'll have his hands full trying to contain Tulsa's powerful offense.

Stopping Tulsa's Run Game

Tulsa is undeniably a pass first team. The Golden Hurricane is No. 11 nationally in passing yards per game (329.8) while gaining 172.92 yards per game on the ground (63rd). Don't think Tulsa can't hurt Virginia Tech on the ground though. Although Tulsa operates out of a small number of formations, they can get creative with their blocking angles. Defenses that don't have enough defenders in the box (or who don't gap fit correctly) are going to pay the price.

Tulsa is able to rip off a long run against Oklahoma when the Sooners' defenders attack the wrong gaps. Tulsa runs an inside zone read from the shotgun, but they bring the H-Back across the formation to cut the defensive end. This is a common tactic of modern spread teams who are facing defenses that "scrape exchange" the zone read. (Defensive end attacks the running back to force a QB keep while a linebacker "scrapes" across the formation to tackle the QB.) This basic blocking wrinkle causes chaos. The left tackle attacks the inside shoulder of the defensive end, sealing him away from the running lane, while the rest of the offensive line executes a double team on both defensive tackles. The H-Back sliding across the formation prevents the other defensive end from crashing down the line and catching the running back from behind.

Oklahoma should have had the numbers to stop this play before it started. Watch the safety aligned to the boundary. He is in position to attack the gap that the running back pops out of, but instead he runs towards the other side of the offensive line. I suspect that the safety was responsible for the H-Back in pass coverage and simply followed his man across the formation, but it's impossible to say why he reacted as he did without knowing the defensive play call. Regardless, by the time the back hits the hole, that safety is hopelessly out of position and the back gains 40+ yards before he is caught from behind.

Tulsa isn't a great rushing team, but it will be crucial for Foster to shut down what running game they do have if he wants a dominant defensive outing. He can't afford to play the entire game with two deep safeties and not enough numbers in the box because it will allow Tulsa to pick up easy yards and stay ahead of the chains without risking an incompletion or an interception. Luckily for Hokie fans, Foster has spent the past two seasons devising a way to shut down spread rushing attacks.

Bud Foster has relied on the Bear defense against spread formations (particularly formations with less than 4 wide receivers) to limit the options of an offense. The Bear's five defensive linemen do a great job of preventing double teams at the point of attack while also keeping blockers off of the Mike linebacker. It's not just the number of defenders in the box which make it hard for opposing backs to have sustained success against the Bear, it's the simplicity of the scheme. The alignment of the running back in the backfield determines which gap each defensive linemen and linebacker is responsible for, reducing any confusion that can lead to big plays (like Tulsa had against Oklahoma above).

In the games where the Bear has struggled against the run, it has been mobile quarterbacks who have done the damage. Luckily for Foster Tulsa starting quarterback Dane Evans (No. 9, JR, 6-1, 218) isn't a huge threat on the ground (84 carries, -27 yards). He is a decent athlete but, similar to Michael Brewer, I consider him more of a first down threat than a homerun threat. Despite his lack of breakaway speed, Tulsa has used him on the ground before.

This is a play very similar to the inverted veer, designed to read the defensive end and have the QB hand off or keep up the middle based on the end's positioning. Dane Evans makes a good read and does what he can to pick up decent yardage, but you can see why his ground game probably isn't keeping Foster awake at night. However, Tulsa does have a backup quarterback who could make an appearance and cause problems for Foster's Bear defense. Chad President made a few appearances for Tulsa as a rushing quarterback and had some success. He rushed for 49 yards on five carries against ECU. If Tulsa decided to put together a QB run package for the Independence Bowl, it wouldn't be the first time this year that a non-Power 5 team used an athletic back up to try and break the Bear.

Forcing The Issue

Stopping the run is important against Tulsa only because it makes the real work, stopping the pass, easier. Forcing Tulsa into predictable throwing situations will help every defensive group on the field. The defensive line can pin its ears back and rush the passer with greater confidence, the linebackers won't be as easily fooled on play-action passes across the middle, and the secondary can focus on sticking with their man without having to peek into the backfield while worrying about run support duties.

In a perfect world, Tulsa wants to face a defense that sits back and tries to keep everything in front of them. They thrive at completing high percentage passes, knowing this will keep them ahead of the chains. Tulsa's wide receivers and quarterback are usually on the same page and rely on sight adjustments against zone coverages to find the open man. Once Dane Evans spots his man and gets the ball to him, Tulsa's receivers do a good job at securing the catch and trying to get all the extra yardage they can.

This is the type of play I saw time and again when Tulsa played a defense that gave them space to operate on the perimeter. This is a route combination specifically designed to defeat off coverages. Both slot receiver and outside receiver run short curl routes, occupying the slot defender. This allows the quarterback to hit the outside receiver with a quick throw before the cornerback can break on the play. Once the ball is in his hands, the receiver makes a man miss and he has the first down. Although, even if the first defender does rally in time and makes the tackle the play results in a third-and-short. Only a poor throw or a dropped pass can help the defense here, but Tulsa practices this play too often to mess up a gimme like this. They know that defenses are scared of their vertical passing game and want to protect their corners, so they practice these zone-beaters constantly to take advantage of the space on the perimeter.

Bud Foster isn't the type of defensive coordinator who is going to let his secondary get picked apart on short pass after short pass. It's no accident Virginia Tech is No. 2 nationally in opponent completion percentage. I expect Foster to try and take away the easy runs using the Bear front and then try to take away the easy completions by playing press coverage on the perimeter.

Foster is hoping he'll see a lot of this against Tulsa. Plenty of defenders in the box to stop the run, a single high safety to poach any deep passes that are floated up, and tight man coverage on the outside. Having tight coverage won't just prevent easy completions, it will take away the space needed by receivers to make a move and gain yards after the catch.

Combating Single Coverage

Bud Foster might want to force Tulsa into predictable passing situations against single coverage, but he wouldn't be the first defensive coordinator to try that. Tulsa spends a lot of time attacking man coverage and they have a few ways to try and spring their playmakers at the receiver position.

The run-pass package play has been the most important offensive revolution since the proliferation of the zone read. Tulsa uses it very effectively here against Oklahoma, who has six defenders in the box to protect against the run and is playing man coverage on the perimeter with a single high safety. Watch how deep down field the offensive line gets, as far as they are concerned this is a run play. It's impossible to tell if the decision to throw this ball comes from the sideline or from the quarterback, but either way the fake run effectively limits the pass rush. It forces the linebackers to get upfield to fill their gaps, opening up the middle of the field for the quarterback.

The outside wide receiver does a great job at releasing to the inside of the corner. We've talked in the past about Torrian Gray's use of inside leverage in coverage, but it'll be crucial for his young corners to prevent receivers from crossing their face and getting to the middle of the field. This is especially difficult when the offense has two receivers on the same side of the formation because the receivers can cross each others paths. This can create a natural pick as the two defenders follow their respective men. When in man coverage, the corners can't rely on help from the linebackers or the safety to provide much support. This is a battle they have to win on their own. The ability of the corners to redirect the wide receivers up the sideline (forcing a much lower percentage throw) will be key. If they can't, Foster may have to back off on the perimeter and rely on zone coverage.

Tulsa doesn't play in a power five conference, but they do have some good talent at their skill positions. WR Keyarris Garrett (No. 1, SR, 6-4, 221) at the receiver position is no joke. He has 1,451 yards, 88 receptions to go along with his 7 touchdowns on the season. He is a big body who runs great routes and has sure hands. He'll be a mismatch against most corners he faces, and Tulsa uses that to their advantage.

On this play, Tulsa lines up with three receivers to the field and Garrett isolated to the boundary.

If Tech's corners can't do better than this at stopping Garrett from releasing inside, Tulsa is going to score plenty. They use this formation commonly against man coverage, relying on their playmaker to win his battle. If the defense wants to play man coverage to prevent the offense from completing easy uncontested throws, this is the alternative. Tulsa's best receiver in tight man coverage. Forcing Garrett up the sideline is half of the job, even when they accomplish that they still have to make a play on the ball throw down the field.

Virginia Tech can't just focus on Garrett though, regardless of how talented he is. Each one of Tulsa's receivers are capable of making plays. They are all comfortable running go routes and making plays on the ball deep down the field. One area of concern for me will be the matchup of slot receivers against Tech's nickelback. Tulsa likes to run lots of switch routes when they have two receivers on the same side of the formation.

The concept is, at core, a two man concept. Two receivers release and "switch": The outside guys angle inside for 5-6 yards before pushing vertical, while the inside guy runs a "wheel route" under the outside guy, rubs right off of his hip, and then turns up the sideline. That's when they play gets interesting.

Often times they use it to get the outside receiver (usually Garrett) open to the middle of the field, but they love targeting the slot receiver down the sideline on wheel routes as well. Tech's nickelbacks have occasionally struggled against vertical routes this year when in man coverage.

Tulsa presents the same type of unique challenge to Bud Foster's defense as ECU did. They are a pass first team that executes the short pass game with a lot of precision. Tulsa punishes "bend don't break" defenses by completing a high percentage of short passes while stressing yards after catch to their wide receivers. Opponents who leave two safeties deep are going to be punished on the ground, although those that rely on a single high safety better be prepared to defend down the field against a competent deep thrower. There are no easy answers against this offense, however Bud Foster does have more talent at his disposal than Tulsa's coaches do. The defensive line will be the key to this victory. Stuffing the run will put Tulsa into 3rd-and-long situations, allowing Foster and Gray to break out there 30 package. Pressuring the quarterback will be vital, even more than usual, as quarterback Dane Evans will find teammates deep if he has the time to let them break open. Tulsa has had a lot of success on offense this year, but they haven't seen many defensive lines as athletic as Virginia Tech's.