It’s not exactly breaking news to say that the Bowling Green offense has given Springfield fits on the gridiron over the past decade-plus, regardless of which players and coaches were manning the Blue Devil sidelines.
That theme was ever present when the Blue Devils traveled to central Wood County to take on the Bobcats in their first interdivision Northern Lakes League match, one that saw the home team come out decisively on top to the tune of a 52-22 final score.
While the Bobcats have found success in the past running their triple-option offense against Springfield, this particular evening saw them take it to an unprecedented level, rushing for a whopping 550 yards on 61 attempts and all eight of their touchdowns.
Ugly as those numbers looked on the stat sheet, what disappointed Head Coach LaCharles Smith most was how Bowling Green came to accumulate “They were just more physical than us, and I hate bowing down to that,” he said. “Obviously, they had over 500 yards on the ground and only threw the ball once. But they were just more physical than us. That’s where I want our program to be in the next three years, to be a physical NLL team. But we’re just not there yet, and we got a little taste of it.
“There was a lot of triple-option,” the coach continued. “I thought our game plan on both sides of the ball was really good, but we had a lot of missed tackles and then we had some alignment issues. We were never put in that situation of [not only] being down but getting beat up. Our kids, I like how they played in the second half because we didn’t give up, but we’ve just got to be a little bit more physical going into this next game.”
Nine different Bobcats carried the football, seven of whom averaged better than five-and-ahalf yards per carry. That diversification is a hallmark of their offense, one that is filled with misdirection plays, traps and sweeps designed to keep opposing defenses guessing on who to tackle.
It’s also designed to frustrate in the trenches, as players find themselves quickly in the backfield but nowhere near the ball carrier. That, too, proved true on this evening.
“We definitely got some gap discipline experience,” said Smith. “Our defensive linemen were getting up field, penetrating, but that’s what BG wants you to do. They want you to get misaligned, they want you to penetrate, and then they start going underneath you and getting to your linebackers.”
Being on their heels most of the night put a lot of pressure on an offense that’s still trying to round into form, particularly in the passing game. That made for a losing recipe given the team fell behind early and faced increasingly larger deficits as the game progressed.
But, always an optimist, Smith saw it as an opportunity for the Blue Devils passing game to continue progressing through reps, be they good or bad, something he sees as critical to the team’s development.
“I think we’re getting closer in our passing game,” the coach said. “Obviously, we do a pretty decent job with running the ball with Eli Beal and our offensive line. But I think passing-wise with Will Scott and our wide receivers, and again we’ve got some young receivers getting some experience, they’re growing up. I really think passing the ball was something where we did a better job.”
They also found at least modest success in continuing to move the pocket as they did a week prior against Start. Recognizing that senior quarterback Scott can run the ball and to aid the offensive line in pass protection, getting him outside the traditional pocket is not a bad thing.
This game featured that midway through the fourth quarter when Scott saw no good options on his initial read and scrambled right for a four-yard touchdown that cut the deficit to 23 and eliminated, for a time, the running clock.
“Moving Will, with his legs, he’s got a football IQ that’s very high,” Smith explained. “I think moving Will is something we’re going to look for in the future. There’s going to be games where Will needs to win us a game with his arm. It’s coming. I think our wide receivers are growing up before our eyes, and pretty soon I can take that inexperienced label off of them.”
Finding more balance on offense and rising to the challenge in the trenches and beyond on defense will be big determining factors in whether or not the Blue Devils get back on track in week five, their final test before Buckeye Division play commences in the second half of the season.
Their opponent, the Napoleon Wildcats, feature nearly as run-heavy an attack as the Bobcats, though they typically prefer to run more of a power-I set that goes right at their opponents.
And do not be deceived by their 0-4 mark entering this contest. They held a second half lead against one of the NLL’s–and northwest Ohio’s–top programs in Anthony Wayne just a week prior. They, too, have historically given Springfield fits.
“It’s going to take a better effort up front with the defensive line,” said Smith. “We did a really good job last week in our JV game. We’re going to be expecting some of those guys that are young to help us out on Friday night. They’re ready, they just don’t know it but they’re ready. We’re just going to need more bodies to help out on Friday night.”
Springfield plays at home tonight. Kick off is at 7 p.m.
