X's and O's - Talking West Virginia and SmartFootball

PHOTO BY TRAVIS LONG - THE NEWS & OBSERVER

It seems like at every level of play, high school and up to the pro level, scores in games are getting out of control.  To think that the national championship game next week will be about defense seems a bit strange in the current offensive environment where scores in the 40's and 30's are routine and getting to 70 or 67 points against what most would call reputable competition, see West Virginia over Clemson in the Orange Bowl and Baylor over Washington in the Alamo Bowl is a reality.  

On the local high school scene the Leesville Road Pride averaged 51.5 points a game this past season and had just two games where they scored less than 40, against Garner (21 points) in the Eastern 4AA semifinals and early in the year against Jordan where they managed a paltry 39 in a victory.  At the pro level, three teams, Green Bay, New Orleans and New England all averaged over 30 points per game during the 2011 regular season.  A quick look over the past nine seasons revealed that in 2004 two teams passed the 30 point threshold (Indianapolis and Kansas City), while in 2008, 2005 and 2002 no teams averaged more than 30 a game.  In every other season during that nine year period, only a single team eclipsed the 30 point per game threshold [New England (2010, 2007), New Orleans (2009), San Diego (2006), Kansas City (2003)].  A quick glance would indicate that points scored are up and the performance that West Virginia put forth against Clemson earlier this week is just one example.

My background is more on the offensive side of the ball and I love talking X's and O's - I love the chess match of it all.  If that sounds interesting then I would highly recommend checking out Chris Brown's site SmartFootball.com.  It is hands-down one of, if not the best, X's and O's sites out there and I've rarely left the site after reading one of his posts wondering why I took the time.  It's here that the discussion about a seeming point bonanza and SmartFootball.com  coalesce.  I would encourage you if you are interested in reading a ton of great material about what Coach Dana Holgorsen and his staff are doing offensively at West Virginia or understanding in more detail the roots of their system - to venture over there and check out the following story: SmartFootball article by Chris Brown on WVU offense.  I feel confident for all those X's and O's junkies out there, you won't be disappointed.  I'd go a step further, bookmark the site!

Photographs courtesy of newsobserver.com (The News & Observer)

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