CRFF Roundtable Week 7: Kansas

As is expected with a slow week that occurs when the Oklahoma State Cowboys play the Kansas Jayhawks the response was a little lackluster. In this weeks roundtable we looked at what OSU has to improve on most before the coming weeks of brutal schedule.

ME: "One thing that stands out to me is that the offense is either hot or cold. We are either moving the ball with ease or going three and out. What's the deal? Why does this happen?"

GRAHAM COFFELT: "Play calling. It's simple. We went from a four-play playbook against Tech, to a six-play playbook against ISU. Great and wonderful but until we add some variety and KNOW OUR PERSONNEL, because it seems we still don't at times, it will remain hot and cold."

GERALD TRACY: "It's play calling by far. A lot of these plays we run work, but not WHEN they run them. Running a reverse run on 3rd and 2 doesn't help then, but could be a great play in a different situation."

CORY TREECE: "Oh you mean like running Hill between the tackles when we've got two perfectly serviceable backs that can do that well?

For me it feels like they aren't taking what the defense gives them constantly enough. ISU was content on sitting back, and allowing the underneath throws, so why not run more intermediate stuff like tunnel screens or out routes, instead of chucking it up deep?

I thought late in the year last season, Yurcich did a great job at mixing looks for the inside receivers (mainly Stewart). Apparently, they took those plays and flushed them down the toilet. You mean to tell me you don't thing Hill can't run those plays perhaps better than Stewart!?"

NICK LOZANOVSKI: "There is minimal consistency in the ground game, which forces us to be one dimensional when our one dimension isn't amazing."

EVAN JONES: "Experience. I think the play calling has been average at best, but the youth of this team is the key. Right next to that is our O line. It's hard to have consistency in the offense when our lineman are missing g assignments and struggling to win a 7 vs 5 match up in the trenches... Against Iowa State.

As Coach Jones has always said, players have to execute. You could have the best coach in the country with a team who doesn't execute, and he still has a bad team, regardless of his play calling."

DEREK HATRIDGE: "I think it's play calling and miscommunication. Robert Allen said on the radio after the half that the staff spent a considerable amount of time together discussing how to clear up the communication "from the booth to the field." I think it just takes a while for everyone to get on the same page, which can bite the Pokes in the rear if they don't get it figured out."

THOMAS FLEMING: "The offensive line was abysmal at best, and Yurcich gets to a slow start with his play calling. In the first half alone, Yurcich called around 33 run play-calls, albeit almost all of them had a pass in them, whether it be a pop pass, bubble, fade, etc. That doesn't' mean that they ran the ball in all of those plays; rather in many cases Garman passed to the tagged routes. But still, he needs to get a little bit more creative. They don't use many screens, jet motion, swing motion out of the backfield, nothing. There is very little offensive diversity. You also cannot have consistent success running it on first, running it on second, and drop-back passing on third. Finally, they need to find a better way to use Tyreek in the run game, because what's happening now isn't working."

ROBERT WHETSELL: "More play calling to me than anything. The offensive line still has a lot of growing to do, so knowing that, I think the game plans have been awful. Nothing looks like it's designed to take pressure off the line. Too much going on that demands the line block really well. Seriously, I've seen the two pages in their simple playbook under the headline 'Get Tyreek the ball in space,' and I don't see any off tackle plays."

We all have our own opinions on whats wrong with the offense but they seem to follow the same theme. Play calling, O-line, and get Tyreek the ball more. What are the problems in your opinion? What do you want to see us discuss in the future?