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Aug. 13—PULLMAN — A wide smile washed over Jack Pedersen's face. Standing in front of a microphone after a recent Washington State fall camp practice, the senior tight end recognized the question immediately.
What would you do if you got a chance to draw up Akron's season-opening drive?
Here's the rub: Leading up to this season, Akron football is running a promotion where a random season-ticket holder will be chosen to work with head coach Joe Moorhead to script the Zips' first drive of their home-opener against Robert Morris. Since it was announced last week, the off-the-wall idea has inspired all kinds of commentary and ideas. In a recent television interview, Moorhead joked that if the winner's ideas result in a touchdown, he "might hand them my call sheet and headset."
Over the past few days of fall camp, which wrapped up Day 7 on Thursday, The Spokesman-Review asked WSU players what they would do if they were selected as the winner. What kinds of plays would they run? What types of players would be involved?
Here are their answers.
Jack Pedersen, TE
"It's gonna be a lot of 12 personnel, 12 and 13 personnel. I think play one, I'm going duo. I'm going duo. I'm just setting the tone. I'm setting the tone. We'll stay in 12 for play two. Probably a nice little play-action pass to either our Y or H, big shot. Now say we're on the 50 or something like that. We'll roll a little tempo, tempo run game and we'll change it up.
Maybe we'll go 13 now. It's probably like second-and-6. We're on, like, the 46. Dump it down to our H tight end, whatever. Now it's first-and-10. He gets a big run. Now we're on like the 25, and we're just going to call a leak play to the tight end, and it's touchdown number one, and Akron's off and rolling."
Keith Brown, LB
"I'd make sure that we have at least one linebacker running the ball. So I'd put a linebacker at running back, a linebacker at quarterback, our starting offensive line (all linebackers). I'd have one of our D-tackles at like tight end, and we'd just run the ball down the A-gap or the B-gap. Run some toss every single play. To the linebacker."
Jeremiah Bernard, S
"Definitely start with some quick game, get the ball moving. Maybe an outside run or something, and then once we get a first down, maybe like an end-breaker crosser, and then on that second-and-short play, we're gonna take a shot. And then after that, play on from there."
Linus Zunk, DE
"I'd probably just try to run down their throat. I don't know. Counters, power. Mix some zone read in there, but yeah. Probably just downhill runs."
Jaylen Thomas, S
"I'm throwing bombs. Deep balls, the whole time. If that don't work, screens."
Kyle Martin, OL
"We're running the ball. Run the ball. Little play-action, take a shot here and there, see how it goes."
Jamarey Smith, DB
"Shoot, I'm all guns. Throw the ball deep."
Branden Ganshamoorthy, WR
"I mean, I'm a receiver guy, so I'm gonna get the ball to the edge. I'm gonna spread the defense from east to west and run the ball. Get some duo action in there, and yeah, I'd probably just say air it out."
Maxwell Woods, RB
"That is a tough one. I'm definitely no coordinator, so I'm not too sure how I would start that. As a running back, probably gonna want to start with like an outside or inside zone, maybe. But I don't know. Whoever that lucky winner is, hopefully they can get a nice little touchdown for Akron."
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What would you do if you got a chance to draw up Akron's season-opening drive?
Here's the rub: Leading up to this season, Akron football is running a promotion where a random season-ticket holder will be chosen to work with head coach Joe Moorhead to script the Zips' first drive of their home-opener against Robert Morris. Since it was announced last week, the off-the-wall idea has inspired all kinds of commentary and ideas. In a recent television interview, Moorhead joked that if the winner's ideas result in a touchdown, he "might hand them my call sheet and headset."
Over the past few days of fall camp, which wrapped up Day 7 on Thursday, The Spokesman-Review asked WSU players what they would do if they were selected as the winner. What kinds of plays would they run? What types of players would be involved?
Here are their answers.
Jack Pedersen, TE
"It's gonna be a lot of 12 personnel, 12 and 13 personnel. I think play one, I'm going duo. I'm going duo. I'm just setting the tone. I'm setting the tone. We'll stay in 12 for play two. Probably a nice little play-action pass to either our Y or H, big shot. Now say we're on the 50 or something like that. We'll roll a little tempo, tempo run game and we'll change it up.
Maybe we'll go 13 now. It's probably like second-and-6. We're on, like, the 46. Dump it down to our H tight end, whatever. Now it's first-and-10. He gets a big run. Now we're on like the 25, and we're just going to call a leak play to the tight end, and it's touchdown number one, and Akron's off and rolling."
Keith Brown, LB
"I'd make sure that we have at least one linebacker running the ball. So I'd put a linebacker at running back, a linebacker at quarterback, our starting offensive line (all linebackers). I'd have one of our D-tackles at like tight end, and we'd just run the ball down the A-gap or the B-gap. Run some toss every single play. To the linebacker."
Jeremiah Bernard, S
"Definitely start with some quick game, get the ball moving. Maybe an outside run or something, and then once we get a first down, maybe like an end-breaker crosser, and then on that second-and-short play, we're gonna take a shot. And then after that, play on from there."
Linus Zunk, DE
"I'd probably just try to run down their throat. I don't know. Counters, power. Mix some zone read in there, but yeah. Probably just downhill runs."
Jaylen Thomas, S
"I'm throwing bombs. Deep balls, the whole time. If that don't work, screens."
Kyle Martin, OL
"We're running the ball. Run the ball. Little play-action, take a shot here and there, see how it goes."
Jamarey Smith, DB
"Shoot, I'm all guns. Throw the ball deep."
Branden Ganshamoorthy, WR
"I mean, I'm a receiver guy, so I'm gonna get the ball to the edge. I'm gonna spread the defense from east to west and run the ball. Get some duo action in there, and yeah, I'd probably just say air it out."
Maxwell Woods, RB
"That is a tough one. I'm definitely no coordinator, so I'm not too sure how I would start that. As a running back, probably gonna want to start with like an outside or inside zone, maybe. But I don't know. Whoever that lucky winner is, hopefully they can get a nice little touchdown for Akron."
Continue reading...
