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2002
Play Spotlight- Purdue
In this
week's play spotlight I'm going to break down how Michigan scored their last
touchdown of the game against Purdue in the 4th quarter.
The Michigan Formation
Michigan came out in
the following formation:
On the
previous play the Wolverines had thrown a short pass to RB B.J. Askew
out of the backfield.
The Purdue Defense
Purdue sets up in a
zone defense. They also move a linebacker (defensive end?) up on
the right side to fake a blitz. He stays 'home' as the once the
play begins.
Purdue will blitz
but they'll send a defensive back from the left side...
The Play
First, #35 RB B.J
Askew goes into motion and resets to the left of the formation. This
is an attempt to get an extra blocker on the left side of the play.
For a reverse to work, it is imperative that the left side of line
prevents any kind of penetration into the backfield. The play
begins and #16 QB John Navarre drops back and hands the ball off to
#23 RB Chris Perry. Perry sweeps right and hands the ball off to
#27 WR Calvin Bell who sweeps left- a classic reverse play.
The Purdue Reaction
Purdue knows that
when #27 Calvin Bell is in the game a reverse is a definite
possibility. Unfortunately for Purdue they have called for a
defensive back to blitz . This blitz and subsequent path taken
by the blitzing back leads to a Michigan touchdown.
The Play
"1" is the blitzing
defensive back. He makes a crucial mistake by taking a an inside
path. He sees a gap created by a lineman who is pulling to block
for the reverse. This is an important key that he misreads.
If the offense gives you what looks to be an easy path there's a good
chance that it will take you out of position to make the play.
There is no way that this
defensive back will make a play on Calvin Bell by taking an inside
path to the quarterback. #35 B.J. Askew has been moved into
position to block this defensive back, his inside rush frees Askew to
block downfield. "2" is the defensive back who moves into
position to cover the zone left when "1" blitzes. #19 WR Ron
Bellamy makes a great play sealing off the left sideline for Calvin
Bell on the reverse. QB John Navarre gets down field and makes a
block that helps Calvin Bell get into the end zone.
Conclusion
The Purdue decision
to blitz made this a great call for Michigan. This formation
lends itself to a few more options that I expect we'll see the
Wolverines pull out later this season...
Go Blue!
Phil Callihan
UMGoBlue.COM- By Fans...For Fans
phil@umgoblue.com
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