But posters have told me the last couple of days we can't do that. We are an uptempo offense. Can't slow down a polished mechanism like our uptempo offense. Runs too smooth to slow down and run ball control. Too hard to do. That's what I've been told.
I guess I'm getting called out here. For starters, weren't you upset with me for "putting words in your mouth?" Pot...meet kettle. I never called our offense smooth or polished. On the contrary, our offense is quite the opposite - choppy and inconsistent.
This started when I made the claim that Tommy Armstrong might be able to spark both sides of the ball. Taylor's erratic play when injured (and often when healthy) is deflating for the defense. Another poster responded that QB play didn't really matter, we just need to control the clock and limit turnovers. I responded that our offense just isn't built that way. Like most of you, I wish it were. I think we all miss the days when NU was a power running team that dominated time of possession. We just simply are not that team anymore.
I'll again make the comparison to Alabama. Saban was asked the other day if he ever thought about going up-tempo/no huddle. His response was in the vein of "That's not really our style. To play offense like that, you have to practice like that." If I had a broad point, it's simply that. We practice up-tempo....it's our "style." We are running an average of roughly 15 more offensive plays per game than we did back in the '90s. With limited practice time, it's difficult to be the ball control, power running team and the up-tempo spread team at the same time.