When Charlie Weis took over at Notre Dame, he said the Fighting Irish would have a “decided schematic advantage” over their opponents.
After five seasons of underwhelming performances, it became apparent this wasn’t the case, and Weis was fired.
Now, almost two years later and back in the college game as UF’s offensive coordinator, Weis finally has the edge he was looking for.
Not because of a new playbook or a new system, but because of his personnel.
With players like Trey Burton, Jeff Demps, Omarius Hines, Chris Rainey and Jordan Reed, Weis has the potential to line UF up in the ever-rare three-quarterback, three-running back, three-tight end, five-wide receiver set.
So far this season, the Gators have run plays with an empty backfield and five wideouts, a jumbo package with two backs and three tight ends, and almost everything in between. And they can do almost all of it with the same core players.
Chief among that group is Burton, whose position seems to change daily. He’s listed as a running back on the roster, has taken snaps at fullback, tight end and quarterback this season, and has the skills to be a receiver.
“A lot of years I’ve gone in and out of personnel groups,” Weis said, “to try to disguise running the same plays over and over. What Trey allows you to do is, a lot of those formations that you get into with multiple wide receivers, you can get into it with him.”
When defensive coordinators attempt to pick their play and personnel, one of the first things they do is look at the offensive huddle to see who’s on the field. If they see three or four wideouts, they might go nickel or dime. If it’s one or two receivers, they’ll probably go with their base 3-4 or 4-3.
But against UF, they may as well just guess.
With the aforementioned group of Burton, Demps, Hines, Rainey and Reed, the Gators can run anything from jumbo to empty with equal effectiveness.
“To take one personnel group and be able to adjust it with multiple formations puts a lot of pressure on the defense and usually gives you a good tip for what they’re going to end up doing,” Weis said.
While the value of satellite players like Demps and Rainey is obvious, the people who get underrated in the offense are Burton, Hines and Reed.
All three have wide receiver speed, hands and skills. But they also all have tight end size, with Hines the smallest of the bunch at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds.
The advantage this versatility creates is exaggerated by UF’s hurry-up, which effectively prevents defenses from making substitutions.
The Gators can call an empty play with all five split out wide, and then sprint to the line and instantly run a two-back, three-tight end goal-line set without making a single substitution.
If the defense tries to replace a few defensive backs with linebackers to counter the run set, it’s all too easy for UF to catch it in transition, maybe even drawing a penalty for 12 men on the field.
What the offense may lack in talent or quarterback play it makes up for in deception. And with an offensive mind like Weis at the helm, defenses need to be wary.
Contact Greg Luca at gluca@alligator.org.
