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PROVO — Every football coach in America preaches "balance," defined as an equal number of passes and runs. In order to keep the defense off balance, the offense must threaten both to pass and run on virtually every play, so the conventional wisdom goes.
At the end of the game, the total number of runs should roughly equal the total number of passes. Thus, balance is achieved. And in the words of Mike Leach, this definition of balance is "stupid."
I witnessed Leach's philosophy firsthand when Coach Robert Anae assumed the offensive coordinator position at BYU. Balance, as Coach Leach and Coach Anae defined it, was more about total distribution, than run/pass delineation. This "distribution" definition of balance is premise number one in the Mike Leach offense. Throw the ball 55 times, run it 15 times, but ensure that 12 different players get 3-5 touches each, and balance has been achieved.
Just looking at the run/pass numbers for a Mike Leach offense is especially misleading, given that the one player who historically touches the ball most (excluding the quarterback and center) is the running back.
"Is a swing pass or a five-yard option route really that different than a run?" reasons Leach. In Leach's last season at Tech, the 3rd leading receiver was the running back, with 57 catches. The previous season, the top two running backs combined for 81 receptions.
If "balance" is premise one, "vertical" is premise two.
The staple play in the Leach offense is "four verticals, running back option" and all of its variations. Sending four receivers deep (one receiver down each sideline and one receiver down each hash mark) forces defenses into one-on-one coverage. John Beck once remarked to me that in the NFL, there is no such thing as open: only single or double coverage. Leach has this mindset when it comes to coaching his quarterbacks. Once the quarterback sees one-on-one coverage, the ball is coming, and now its up to the receiver to make a play. If the defensive backs are playing especially deep, the verticals automatically turn into 10-15 yard curls. If the DB's are pressing, then the ball is going over the top.
A key benefit of the four verticals is that it creates 20-30 yards of space for the running back to operate. In 2003, Taurean Henderson, the starting tailback at Texas Tech, took advantage of this space and hauled in an NCAA-freshman-record 98 receptions. This was in addition to his 153 rushes. As I studied the Leach offense several years ago, I was endlessly amazed at how often the quarterback would come to the line and give the symbol for four verticals.
I will be watching for that symbol once again on game day.
This "vertical" approach is especially dangerous when you have players like 6'3" Marquess Wilson, who had over 1,300 yards receiving last year - more yards than consensus All-American Robert Woods. Both Woods and Wilson played in the same conference against the same defenses. Woods, however, had Matt Barkley, the projected first pick in the 2013 draft throwing to him.
Premise three in the Leach offense is "score."
This is accomplished most obviously by effectively utilizing premise one and premise two. However, the less obvious reason that Leach offenses are able to score so many points is that Leach artificially creates a longer game by not running the ball much. After each run, the clock continues to tick; after each incompletion, the clock stops. This minor difference, combined with the fast tempo between plays, translates into several extra offensive plays per game.
Whereas the majority of teams run 60-70 offensive plays per game, Leach shoots for 70-plus plays per game. The more plays, the more chances to score. Over Leach's last four years at Tech, the offense averaged 21 rushes and 53 passes per game, for an average of 74 plays per game.
