133 out of 133 teams, even Iowa is ahead of UK.
How can we expect to recruit great offensive players to our team with those dismal numbers?
How can we expect to recruit great offensive players to our team with those dismal numbers?
UK ranks dead last in plays-per-game
- Thread starter catben
- Start date
The question is why are we doing it
The Stoops Pucker Shuffle is nothing new.
I think Stoops would be happy if the games were played with a running clock.
Your offense is moving the sticks and your D is stopping people ? Just a guess
Dont worry Ben , Coach 1954 also known as stoops will review the game films and determine we really just need to run the ball a bit more , to set up more runs , and the flash backs of the Bowden year will occur in his mind , and he will glow a bit warm .. and our last will turn into .. More Lastier !!
The MORE offensive plays a teams runs, the HIGHER the opportunity to score MORE points. Also, the higher the number of offensive plays means your defense isn't on the field as much.
The MORE offensive plays we run, the MORE opportunities our offensive players have to make plays.
How attractive is our offense going to be to recruits and transfers if we can't offer them a BETTER scheme than the other teams recruiting them????!!!!!
It's something that HAS TO be fixed!!!!
According to TOS, we’re not only dead last in the country this year, but, the 55.3 plays/game that we average is the lowest of any team since 2003. And, just as sad, the 132 team, New Mexico St, is almost 3 full plays ahead of us at 58/game. We are the football version of Dean Smith’s chickenshit 4 corners offense.
I’m not suggesting we snap the ball every 10 seconds, but, our current pace is embarrassing, IMO. Yes, we’ve had a kick return & a few defensive TDs that have stolen possessions. But, most teams do throughout a season & it’s likely not enough to skew the numbers very much, anyway. And, if you watch our games, you don’t need any stats to confirm how slowly we play. It’s painfully obvious.
I think Stoops has done an admiral job during his tenure, but this is absolutely ridiculous. Unfortunately, nothing in this regard is likely to change anytime soon.
It's mind boggling that our staff can't see how this hurts the team in several ways.
It's mind boggling that our staff can't see how this hurts the team in several ways.
It’s generally a strategy reserved for talentless teams. I get that we arent Georgia but we aren’t bereft of everything. It wears on the other defense to have more snaps, faster tempos also force the defense into more generic and less complex defenses. There is a reason stoops complains about uptempo offenses and saban did too until he embraced it. They don’t have the capacity to play it this year so they aren’t at bama but we have to get to a point where it’s not the rule we impose on ourselves that we always take forever. But 12 years in it’s apparent that he’s always going to view the world from an everything served for the defense mentality. While it saved his job for him we can’t grow that way either. No different from ‘Lincoln Riley never has a defense’ even having been at schools that can get players. When everything is built around the mentality representative of one side then that’s what you get.
It’s not that stat alone, it’s the fact that the fewer plays you run, the more efficient and mistake free you have to be. Add that stat to the following and it’s not good:
Dead last in the country in drops
111th in the country in penalties per game
119th in the country in penalty yards per game
122nd in the nation in completion percentage
Then compare that to Michigan:
123rd on the nation in plays per game
1st in the nation in least penalties per game
1st in the nation in least penalty yards per game
2nd in the nation in completion percentage
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It’s also something that can be indicative of teams having a big play offense which clearly isnt the case for us
So we are getting the WORST out of the slow paced offense.
I have asked this question for years and would love to see someone in the media ask Coach Stoops why he doesn't put a greater emphasis on attention to detail and unforced errors? At UK we must play nearly mistake free to EVER get to a higher level.
Say what you want about Harbaugh, but I LOVE a team that doesn't beat itself with untimely mistakes.
One more tidbit about how HORRIBLE we are with the play count is the fact that the 55.3 plays/game is the LOWEST number since they started tracking it in 2003!!!! That's 20 FREAKIN years!!!!
I don't care if the rules have been changed to shorten the game, that number is PITIFUL and will be use by EVERY team that recruits against us for QB's and WR's.
I think you just proved that the plays per game stat is irrelevant. It’s the drops, penalties, and poor completion percentage that are killing us.
That was my point. If you’re going to run so few plays, you have to have a very efficient offense. We do not have that
If you’re inefficient on offense playing faster will make things even worse. Unless playing faster would make us more efficient - and I see no reason why it would - you’re just compounding the problem.
If you have players that want to fight on every play, hold, jump off sides, hit players out of bounds, disrespect other players, and all the stuff that is the excuse given to a undisciplined team, it’s on the coach. This has been going on for 10 years. How in the hell do you give a coach a 9 million year contract with no Div. Championships in the SEC. It’s beyond stupid.
In the era we live in that's simply inexcusable. I don't give a damn about who our quarterback is. Recruit better. If Iowa is ahead of us on tempo, then there's nothing else to say. I long ago dubbed Iowa as the most boring team to watch. SMDH.
If I am a QB, running back, or receiver I would want to play in a faster offense. With 55 plays per game that's less opportunities for Davis to run the ball, for Leary to throw it, and for our receivers to drop it. It will hurt us in recruiting due to the fact that we are not a place that's going to allow players to put up good numbers. We threw for 120 yards the other night. That's 1960 numbers.
Stoops has used this system since being named UK's head coach, not sure why it's suddenly an issue. It wasn't when UK was 5-0. I understand how much more talented UK is than when CMS arrived. But it's still lagging behind UT, UGA, UF and Close with Missouri. Yes I know UK smoked UF. Missouri is openly buying players and has a couple billionaire alum who could each buy an NFL team. Maybe UK does too. But at best the QB/RECEIVER combo is 5th of 6th in division. A huge disappointment to BBN because it was expected to be outstanding.
Because the head coach insists on playing 1980s-style Big 10 football.
Personally, it’s about tempo for me. I feel like when we get into a good tempo, we play well, move the ball and are much ore efficient. Just because you pick the tempo up doesn't mean you'll be more inefficient.
Tell me you don't understand football, without telling me you don't understand football.
Pacing and TOP are a big deal. You shouldn't always play up tempo. You also shouldn't always play like a snail.
And in our case, we can't develop any kind of rhythm due to that and penalties. It's KILLING our offense and isn't helping our defense either.
Efficiency can also be overrated. If I only get in the RZ twice and score both times, my efficiency is insanely good! It also means I better have an impervious defense.
We rank 125th on average time of possession per game. We average 26:35 TOP per game.
We have been outscored 89-34 in the last 2 weeks. It's about scoring points in cfb today.
Some of us always saw it as an issue. I know I did. We got by though with having very good offensive lines and historically great running backs. We could move the ball and burn the clock. We still didn't set the world on fire offensively. We also have been playing undisciplined ever since he got here. You can't do that while trying to play this ridiculously slow.
Many of us knew something just wasn't right when every single offensive coordinator that comes here declines from their previous jobs. That's on Stoops. None of them look anything at all like they used to. They came from offenses that could put up lots of yards and points. Right now we're paying Georgia/Bama type money for Stoops for middle of the pack results.
Mitch Barnhart should never be allowed to hire another coach with what he's done to the football and basketball programs. Neither could make a change if we wanted to because the buyouts would be insane. Neither coach has any penalty by leaving on their own though. Barnhart is the worst negotiator I have ever seen. He gives coaches no incentive to improve with fat contracts and no threat of losing their jobs. So we are stuck unless either coach decides to leave on their own.
Have any of KY's sports media wonks questioned Stoops about the offensive plays per game issue?
Its very simply
We lead the nation in dropped passes and we get lots of penalties. You cant do that and also have the fewest plays per game as well.
We dont run many plays and a high percentage of our plays include a penalty or a dropped pass.
Its actually amazing you can have the fewest plays and also the most dropped passes. That is not good at all.
We lead the nation in dropped passes and we get lots of penalties. You cant do that and also have the fewest plays per game as well.
We dont run many plays and a high percentage of our plays include a penalty or a dropped pass.
Its actually amazing you can have the fewest plays and also the most dropped passes. That is not good at all.
Beg to differ for me Grump! If you could go back and check, you'll see this has been a gripe of mine for quite a while(years)...30+ ppg or bust.
While I agree that Mitch is not the best with contracts, Stoops would owe UK $4.5 million (used to be $1.75 million) if left after this season (that number decreases by $500,000 each year of the contract).
And I definitely disagree with your first sentence around the football program, especially the structure of his contract. The 75% buyout number much in the middle in football contracts today:
Heupel's is 100% at UT
Jimbo's is 100% guaranteed throughout his contract.
LSU is 90% with Brian Kelly
Shane Beamer is 65% at USC
Drinkwitz is at 75% at Mizzou
Napier is at 85% at Florida
Hugh Freeze is 75% at Auburn
Arnett is at 50% at MSU
Arkansas is one of the few teams in the country that does a tiered buyout based on performance. If he has an overall winning record, he will be owed 75% but if his overall record is below .500, he would be owed 50%.
I still don't get the plays per game stat and why it is so meaningful.
1. UK is scoring 31 pts a game...for 50th out of like 130 teams. I do think it will go down a bit more as we've played all of our bad teams and as the better teams are played...we are scoring less 13 vs. UGA and 21 vs. Mizzou But point is we are mediocre scoring offense.
I get we've had I can remember 3 defensive scores and some special teams that set us up....but I can't adjust that number for everyone...so let's say that evens out as the year wares on.
2. Most NFL teams do indeed snap the ball late in play clock. They all huddle up, there is pre snap motion to tell the QB zone/man and they do indeed to many shifts to confuse the defense pre snap. We all wanted Coen and NFL system....isn't this part of it?
In the end, it only matters to me if you score the ball and we aren't great but not terrible. The passing offense has been poor but the running attack has been top tier again. I agree we need to execute better on offense but this stats seems nebulous to me. And more Stoops piling on....Coen brought this style to UK.
1. UK is scoring 31 pts a game...for 50th out of like 130 teams. I do think it will go down a bit more as we've played all of our bad teams and as the better teams are played...we are scoring less 13 vs. UGA and 21 vs. Mizzou But point is we are mediocre scoring offense.
I get we've had I can remember 3 defensive scores and some special teams that set us up....but I can't adjust that number for everyone...so let's say that evens out as the year wares on.
2. Most NFL teams do indeed snap the ball late in play clock. They all huddle up, there is pre snap motion to tell the QB zone/man and they do indeed to many shifts to confuse the defense pre snap. We all wanted Coen and NFL system....isn't this part of it?
In the end, it only matters to me if you score the ball and we aren't great but not terrible. The passing offense has been poor but the running attack has been top tier again. I agree we need to execute better on offense but this stats seems nebulous to me. And more Stoops piling on....Coen brought this style to UK.
The last paragraph, I will wait until @jauk11 responds before forming any opinion 🍺
Agreed, just another way to gig Stoops. UK's situation is really simple...catch more passes, commit fewer dumb ass penalties and you're more productive. Would it lead to more wins? Having a pass rush and DBs who can stay within 10 yds of WRs would help.
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