Let’s look at some film to get a fuller appreciation for how Lincoln Riley teaches his players the finer points of football.
USC football analyst Josh Webb offers this explanation, complete with a film clip:
“Consider the game against Baylor near the end of Oklahoma’s 2015 season,” Webb began. “With Oklahoma leading 37-34 with just under five minutes left in regulation, Stoops and Riley wanted to put away a Baylor team that had thrived under then-coach Art Briles. It’s the tenth play of the drive and it’s second and goal for the Sooners. OU lines up in an H-back two-by-one formation with Perine in the backfield as the decoy. The play appears at 10:52 of the video below:
“While the play doesn’t evolve as designed on a chalkboard, it still works because of the athletes. They never quit on the play. When Perine eventually kicks out, he saves the play. The inside receiver on the strong side works across the field, dragging a few people with him, but it’s notable early on that this is a distraction route; everyone gets jammed up in the middle to no effect.
“Perine notices that logjam and a wide-open left side of the field. He immediately works to that side, forcing people out of that logjam. While some players lose track of this play, Dimitri Flowers does not. He’s the H-back. As soon as he notices he can bail on his block and help Mayfield, he immediately runs a seam route which Mayfield notices and hits for the touchdown. The play design was simple, but when it broke down, Riley had coached his guys enough on offense that they knew how to make something out of nothing.”
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