–Pigskin Report - Week #6 - Is it X’s and O’s, or the Jims and the Joes?
30 September 2007Is it the X’s and O’s, or the Jim’s and the Joes?
By Michael Hughes
Whether by land or by air, it’s the end result that counts. It doesn’t matter what makes the sticks move or by what means a team reaches the end zone.
As noted before, several mountain teams are using some form of the Spread offense in 2007, while other area programs are finding success another way. Teams staying with the run-first philosophy are not resistant to change, especially when the going is good. There’s still a need for sticking with the old way of doing things. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, the saying goes.
At Smoky Mountain, the Mustangs are well-rested following a stunning victory two weeks ago over Franklin, one of the top 3-A programs in the state over the past few seasons. Despite statewide and national trends to stretch the defense by throwing the football in all directions, sometimes using four or five receivers at a time, the Mustangs have stuck with the tried-and-true wishbone, an offensive scheme that Bear Bryant and Barry Switzer, among others, rode to fame and fortune in the college ranks.
Football, it is often said, is all about blocking and tackling. Now in the middle of his second season in Sylva, head coach Dale Galloway sees no reason to change with the times, as it were.
“It really doesn’t matter what you run; you just need to be able to execute it well,” says Galloway. “We think what we do has some things to offer that maybe some others don’t.”
The Mustangs would rather their quarterbacks stay under center than a few steps behind, and prefer to always use a fullback, one that’s a focal point of the offense rather than a short-yardage specialist who runs interference on occasion.
“We think it makes a difference,” Galloway says. “We’re pretty [consistent] with what we do on both sides of the ball.”
The wishbone offense consists of two halfbacks split wide behind a fullback that lines up behind the quarterback in a Y pattern. Smoky Mountain coaches promote the system at every level of football in Jackson County. When boys from the middle school grades go out for the team, they learn the same scheme they will use at the next level—from the ground up, as it were.
A friend of Galloway’s once told him that no matter what system was in place, if every player did the same thing all the way through the ranks, proficiency would result. His philosophy from then on was, if you learn it early and use it often, eventually you might become good at it.
It’s all about athletes, he says. Galloway and his staff have spent untold hours preparing their charges for a scheme they can learn quickly, adapt to easily, feel comfortable with through the long haul, and execute well and with consistency.
To drive his point home, he adds another oft-used expression: “It ain’t the X’s and O’s; it’s the Jims and the Joes. You can do pretty much anything out of the wishbone.”
Coach Galloway expects a difficult game tonight at Tuscola. “They’re a much improved team,” he says.
The mad Mountaineers were embarrassed two weeks ago at Reynolds, then lost an overtime thriller at home to Erwin, but have made some advances this year. Their own offense is spread out a bit, and the Mustangs are ready for it.
“That’s another thing about not being a part of that [newer scheme],” Galloway adds of the systems his team frequently faces. “When everybody else is doing it week-in week-out, eventually we get kind of comfortable preparing for it."
Leave a reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
