Stallion wrote:here's 4 examples of the vertical passing offense in one game. And I believe Padron missed on at least 2 others. June Jones has stated several times that the difference between the Tech/UH style offense is that he runs a vertical passing game while TT/UH(note they've shared coordinators) run a horizontal passing game. Robinson may lead the country in ypc over the last 2 years because they want to stretch the field which causes DBs and LBs to cover 50 yards instead of 20 yards and even if the ball isn't thrown deep it opens up the shorter passing game to bigger plays because the defenders are covering much more of the field. Bo levi Mitchell I guarantee to you averaged 5-6 "vertical bombs" per game-that's a bunch especially if a QB proves he can hit those passes.
first i'll start with AR ypc. 2009 he avg 17.0 ypc, number 37 in the country, in 2008 hey avg 17.7 ypc, number 11 in the country.
and if you want to compare QBs yds/attempt (couldnt find it per completion)
2008- BLM 7 yds/attempt (T-58)
Keenum 8.5 yds/ attempt (11)
Harrell 8.2 yds/attempt (19)
2009
Padron 9.6 yds/attempt (1)
Keenum 8.1 yds/attempt (21)
comparing those two has a high degree of fault in it, because of the difference in attempts and completions Padron 135/201 and Keenum 492/700. However, it is a fair comparison if you base it off the fact that Padron completed 67.2% and Keenum completed 70.3%.
back to the rest of your point. throwing deep balls makes the db's respect the threat, but consistently completing routes in the 5-15 yard range opens up the deep ball. WHat came first the chicken or the egg? The reason I believe that Padron had a higher yards per attempt then blm is three fold. 1. completed more passes which directly correlates to a higher yd/attempt average. 2. Padron's on completions on short routes were better placed then BLM, allowing the receivers to run after the catch. 3. By completing numerous short routes, safeties began to play closer to the line of scrimmage allowing for more one on one coverage on deep balls, especially on the fade routes, you hardly saw a safety in position to make a play on the ball.
as i previously stated deep ball can open up the short routes and vice versa. But in this offense the short passing game is an extension of the running game. After wearing a defense out all game on short routes you have more opportunities to hit homeruns later on in the game. WIth the exception of the Nevada game, you did not see a lot of bombs from Padron early in the game. You dont see alabama chucking the ball down the field every series to open up their running game (although with julio jones they probably should).
as for blm averaging 5-6 vertical bombs... i dont think he was the best indicator of how this offense is supposed to perform. I also saw him throw a number of touchdowns to opposing teams, including a defensive end, which i highly doubt is in his progression