Ryan Trevathan is in his second year as offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach at Division II Arkansas Tech.
Trevathan came to Arkansas Tech after serving as offensive coordinator at Pearl River Community College (2017-18) and Northeast Community College (2015-16).
Trevathan comes from the Hugh Freeze coaching tree.
Prior to becoming an offensive coordinator and climbing the collegiate coaching ladder, he spent time learning under Freeze at Ole Miss and Arkansas State.
At Ole Miss, Trevathan served as a quality control coach at Ole Miss in 2014 and as a graduate assistant working with tight ends from 2012-13. He also spent time as a student assistant coach at Arkansas State under Freeze in 2010-11.
Trevathan has taken everything he has learned from Freeze and implemented it into his offense at Arkansas Tech.
He discussed learning from Freeze on the show “Tennessee Two-A-Days” and how the offense has not changed from a philosophical and execution standpoint.
“We are still the exact same, now our terminology has changed, and of course over the years we have added a little bit of different types of RPOs, because the RPOs have just really taken off — we got into them at Ole Miss,” Trevathan said. “Everything is the exact same. I could walk into their staff meeting right now (at Liberty) and get on the board and we would have the same terminology. Our head coach here at Arkansas Tech, Kyle Shipp, was a graduate assistant in 2010 under Freeze when he was the offensive coordinator, so he knows the same offense and often times we will speak in old terms of plays, which is easy for us to communicate.
“It is the exact same offense, not a lot of variations. When I get to watch Liberty on TV, it is really easy for me to see what is going on and what is happening, and all of the schemes they are running. It’s fun to do.”
Freeze’s teams have featured various quarterbacks in Ryan Aplin, Bo Wallace, Chad Kelly, Stephen Calvert and Malik Willis.
“You can easily see the type of quarterback that you need in that offense,” Trevathan said in describing the type of signal-caller that can make this offense be successful. “I say need, but would like to have to be successful. Someone that is very smart, that understands the offense. I would say more of a thrower, primarily a thrower, but can run well enough. There are quarterbacks that are very dangerous, and you have to plan for them, and the running game is their strength. I do not think that you have to have a true runner, a quarterback that is primarily a thrower, but is a threat at running.
“With the things that we run, when you get down into the red zone, it gives you an extra hat and you can get a running back on a blocker, or on a defender blocking, and nobody accounts for the quarterback, so you just even your numbers up.”
Inside Hugh Freeze’s offense
“I will never change what we do offensively. I don’t know all but what we’ve done, it’s had success everywhere we’ve been. It’s what I am familiar with and what I feel comfortable calling the game with, so we’re doing the same stuff.” — Hugh Freeze on the show “Tennessee Two-A-Days”
The offense centers around putting defensive personnel in conflict. Conflicts can be caused by a zone read on the defensive end, reading the second level and placing linebackers in conflict of their assignment.
The offense operates with an understanding of how to attack linebackers that are in a run fit and attached to the box. His offense displays a fast read with the quarterback eyeing what linebackers are going to do. This helps the quarterback conduct a pass or a run option.
Freeze demands his offensive personnel to have an answer to a zone blitz, allowing for tempo. This is known as a three-man surface in Freeze’s offense.
His offense can also have three-man surfaces in motion. For instance, a short motion with a tight end against a zone blitz can open up a play against the high safety.
With a tight end in motion, he can block a cornerback, providing a three-man surface. The quarterback can then throw a hitch screen to the outside with a stick screen to the inside.
This also allows for an inside zone run if the quarterback elects to not throw a hitch or screen pass, or attack the high safety. The quarterback must read the MIKE linebacker and see if he decides to play the outside screen or stay within the box.
Freeze’s offense caters to where his offensive personnel can have an advantage numbers-wise.
His offense also has a wide receiver on the outside that is able to have one-on-one matchups, once defenses play the run or screen. The quarterback can decide quickly if the defensive personnel has committed to playing the run or screen, and then throw to the outside wide receiver for a favorable matchup.
“Going into game planning, we always, through formations, whether it is 10-personnel, 11-personnel, 20, 12, whatever it is, you want to see how every formation affects the box,” Trevathan said. “From there it is just a numbers game. My receivers on all base runs get to run hitches for 90 percent of our base runs, which they like. It is really easy on the quarterback, it is a very quarterback-friendly system. He has a lot of power out there, a lot of freedom to make a lot of throws and a lot of checks, whether it is 3×1, 2×2, whatever it is, we are always looking at for a way to get our best players the ball.
“Going back, even specifically, and I learned a lot at Ole Miss obviously, we had some really great receivers — the Evan Engram’s, Laquon Treadwell’s — there was always a way, a plan to get those guys the ball 8-10 times a game. Regardless of what was going on, they were going to get some catches, but making sure there were specific calls that we know that we need to get this man the ball. That is one big thing that I have carried over in my career, is making sure our best players touch the ball with a minimum number in our mind going into the game.”
Transforming programs
Freeze has been able to create a winning program at all three head coaching stops at the FBS level: Arkansas State, Ole Miss and Liberty.
His latest stop at Liberty, compiling a 17-6 record with a bowl victory in two seasons, has placed him in discussion for Power Five head coaching jobs and within the Southeastern Conference.
Freeze has roots in Tennessee, a state in which he is thought of in high regards from his time as head coach at Briarcrest Christian School (1995-2004) and Lambuth University (2008-09).
“I you ever spend any time around Coach, he can captivate a room and can grab a room real quick,” Trevathan said of Freeze and his ability to quickly transform a program. “I got to see the transformation at Arkansas State, which was unbelievable. If anybody knows anything about that program, they will deeply agree.”
The entire show with Trevathan discussing his career and coaching for Freeze at Arkansas State and Ole Miss can be listened to here or below.
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