GetRDoneStangs
09-26-2008, 05:53 AM
Pretty cool story on the fromt page (Not Sports)) of the Abilene Reporter News...
Sweetwater's archaic wishbone still chalking up wins
SWEETWATER -- They stand as a living monument to the game's past.
Long after most high school and college football teams abandoned the ground-based wishbone offense, the Sweetwater Mustangs still live and die with the dive, keep and pitch.
The clock-melting run-oriented approach isn't in vogue -- not in an era dominated by spread offenses with multiple receivers and quarterbacks in the shotgun. But with eight straight playoff appearances and 16 in the last 18 years, it's difficult for critics to say the triple option no longer works.
"The option has always been a big part of what's happened here," said Sweetwater coach Kent Jackson, whose team enters tonight's game against Big Spring with a 3-1 record. "It's all I've every known, so when I came here eight years ago, it was an easy fit."
Developed by University of Texas assistant Emory Bellard in the 1960s, the wishbone saw its heyday during the 1970s when top-flight collegiate programs Oklahoma and Alabama used it to win a total of four NCAA championships.
Oklahoma again used it to win a national title in 1985, and Colorado used a wishbone variant (the I-bone) to win a national title in 1990.
Another wishbone variant the flexbone is still in use at the collegiate level at Navy, Air Force and most recently, at Georgia Tech where former Navy coach Paul Johnson is now coaching.
In a 22-year span from 1969-2000, triple option teams earned a share of 11 national titles. But use of the true wishbone began to decline in the late 1980s. By the turn of the century, only one collegiate program -- Rice -- was still using it on a regular basis.
The wishbone offense barely shows a pulse at the high school level, where a few isolated programs such as Sweetwater continue to ride the dinosaur.
"There have been years when we had athletes as good as anybody else," Jackson said. "But more often than not, we didn't feel like we had athletes as good as some of the teams we were playing and we felt like our scheme gave us a chance.
"But we didn't start the fire here with the option, we're just trying to keep it lit and I feel very blessed to be doing what I'm doing."
In Jackson's system, the wishbone is still the first formation taught to Sweetwater middle schoolers. They learn other formations as they mature.
The varsity Mustangs also show elements of the flexbone, the I-formation, the offset-I and a dash of shotgun. But the triple-option remains a part of every formation in the Sweetwater playbook.
For those who believe passing equates to winning, Jackson's approach can be maddening. And he admits to taking lighthearted ribbing about it at booster functions.
"If you don't get it done, there is always someone who is going to second-guess you, no matter what scheme you use," Jackson said. "But I think our record here at Sweetwater speaks for itself. We've always hung our hat on the option, we've always had our kids in a position to win, so I don't make any apologies for it."
Now in his eighth season, Jackson has posted a 66-24 record at SHS, including consecutive marks of 11-3 and 13-2 in 2004-05.
"When a team runs the option, you've got to sell your soul to it," Sweetwater offensive coordinator Cory Barnes said. "But when the kids start believing in it and get it rolling, it's a lot of fun. It's a lot of fun to watch, too, because there's a lot of precision in it. It's almost like an artwork."
But getting today's kids to appreciate an old-school form of "art" isn't always easy especially during an age where most teams have taken to the air.
At Sweetwater, however, the triple-option is firmly entrenched. By the time most football players reach Sweetwater's varsity level, they've already have four full years of experience with the system.
"It's nice having three different options on every play," quarterback Zach Birdwell said. "We've all been running it since the seventh grade, so we have a pretty good (grasp) of it."
Apparently so.
Last week the Mustangs rolled up more than 350 yards rushing against a previously unbeaten Clyde team, melting the clock with more than 70 plays from scrimmage.
Numbers, however, aren't Jackson's top priority.
"If it's all about X's and O's, we all ought to be fired, and that's the bottom line," Jackson said. "As far as what scheme you use, that's just a means to an end. We had better be doing things to build young men, build programs and build people."
Link http://www.reporternews.com/news/2008/sep/25/blast-from-the-past-sweetwaters-archaic-wishbone/
video link http://www.reporternews.com/news/sports/
Sweetwater's archaic wishbone still chalking up wins
SWEETWATER -- They stand as a living monument to the game's past.
Long after most high school and college football teams abandoned the ground-based wishbone offense, the Sweetwater Mustangs still live and die with the dive, keep and pitch.
The clock-melting run-oriented approach isn't in vogue -- not in an era dominated by spread offenses with multiple receivers and quarterbacks in the shotgun. But with eight straight playoff appearances and 16 in the last 18 years, it's difficult for critics to say the triple option no longer works.
"The option has always been a big part of what's happened here," said Sweetwater coach Kent Jackson, whose team enters tonight's game against Big Spring with a 3-1 record. "It's all I've every known, so when I came here eight years ago, it was an easy fit."
Developed by University of Texas assistant Emory Bellard in the 1960s, the wishbone saw its heyday during the 1970s when top-flight collegiate programs Oklahoma and Alabama used it to win a total of four NCAA championships.
Oklahoma again used it to win a national title in 1985, and Colorado used a wishbone variant (the I-bone) to win a national title in 1990.
Another wishbone variant the flexbone is still in use at the collegiate level at Navy, Air Force and most recently, at Georgia Tech where former Navy coach Paul Johnson is now coaching.
In a 22-year span from 1969-2000, triple option teams earned a share of 11 national titles. But use of the true wishbone began to decline in the late 1980s. By the turn of the century, only one collegiate program -- Rice -- was still using it on a regular basis.
The wishbone offense barely shows a pulse at the high school level, where a few isolated programs such as Sweetwater continue to ride the dinosaur.
"There have been years when we had athletes as good as anybody else," Jackson said. "But more often than not, we didn't feel like we had athletes as good as some of the teams we were playing and we felt like our scheme gave us a chance.
"But we didn't start the fire here with the option, we're just trying to keep it lit and I feel very blessed to be doing what I'm doing."
In Jackson's system, the wishbone is still the first formation taught to Sweetwater middle schoolers. They learn other formations as they mature.
The varsity Mustangs also show elements of the flexbone, the I-formation, the offset-I and a dash of shotgun. But the triple-option remains a part of every formation in the Sweetwater playbook.
For those who believe passing equates to winning, Jackson's approach can be maddening. And he admits to taking lighthearted ribbing about it at booster functions.
"If you don't get it done, there is always someone who is going to second-guess you, no matter what scheme you use," Jackson said. "But I think our record here at Sweetwater speaks for itself. We've always hung our hat on the option, we've always had our kids in a position to win, so I don't make any apologies for it."
Now in his eighth season, Jackson has posted a 66-24 record at SHS, including consecutive marks of 11-3 and 13-2 in 2004-05.
"When a team runs the option, you've got to sell your soul to it," Sweetwater offensive coordinator Cory Barnes said. "But when the kids start believing in it and get it rolling, it's a lot of fun. It's a lot of fun to watch, too, because there's a lot of precision in it. It's almost like an artwork."
But getting today's kids to appreciate an old-school form of "art" isn't always easy especially during an age where most teams have taken to the air.
At Sweetwater, however, the triple-option is firmly entrenched. By the time most football players reach Sweetwater's varsity level, they've already have four full years of experience with the system.
"It's nice having three different options on every play," quarterback Zach Birdwell said. "We've all been running it since the seventh grade, so we have a pretty good (grasp) of it."
Apparently so.
Last week the Mustangs rolled up more than 350 yards rushing against a previously unbeaten Clyde team, melting the clock with more than 70 plays from scrimmage.
Numbers, however, aren't Jackson's top priority.
"If it's all about X's and O's, we all ought to be fired, and that's the bottom line," Jackson said. "As far as what scheme you use, that's just a means to an end. We had better be doing things to build young men, build programs and build people."
Link http://www.reporternews.com/news/2008/sep/25/blast-from-the-past-sweetwaters-archaic-wishbone/
video link http://www.reporternews.com/news/sports/