Louisville Making Strides in Preparation for Air Force's Triple Option Offense
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Bowl season is in full swing across college football, and soon, it will be Louisville's turn to get back on the gridiron. 31 days removed from their loss to Kentucky to end the regular season, the Cardinals will attempt to head into the offseason with some positive momentum, taking on Air Force in the First Responder Bowl.
For those unfamiliar with service academy football, the Falcons are one of a handful of teams at the FBS level that still utilize the triple option offense. This is a scheme that almost exclusively revolves around option run plays involving three or more players in a single play.
Since hiring head coach Troy Calhoun in 2007, Air Force has seen a fair amount of success under his watch. The Falcons have had just four losing seasons, three double-digit win seasons, and 11 bowl appearance (including this season) with five wins.
This year has been no exception, as Air Force heads into their bowl matchup vs. Louisville with a 9-3 record, including 6-2 in the Mountain West. They almost never throw the football, averaging 8.6 passing attempts per game compared to a whopping 65.1 rushing attempts.
As a result, the Falcons put up some gaudy rushing numbers during the regular season. They sport the No. 1 rushing attack in FBS at 340.8 yards per game, powered primarily by running back Brad Roberts' 1,275 yards on the season. Quarterback Haaziq Daniels also has 705 rushing yards on the year, and the duo combines for 22 rushing touchdowns.
Even though Louisville's run defense had a solid second half of the season - sans the finale vs. Kentucky - defensive coordinator Bryan Brown knows the Cardinals will have their hands full when they face Air Force. That being said, he has liked what he has seen during practice since the regular season concluded.
"It's been going really, really well," Brown said Wednesday when asked how bowl prep was coming along. "When you play a triple option team, you got to be very disciplined with your eyes, and with gap controls and things of that nature.
"The guys are continuing to work at it, because it's different. It's totally, totally different. Each day you can tell that they're getting more comfortable within what we're trying to get done vs. the triple option, and things of that nature. It's been a great sight to see."
Louisville fans know first hand how difficult it can be to contain the triple option. The last time they faced it was back in 2018 during Bobby Petrino's final year at the helm, when Georgia Tech and then-head coach Paul Johnson marched into Cardinal Stadium and delivered a 66-31 beatdown.
Fortunately, this current staff has some experience defending it from their time at Appalachian State, especially Brown. During his time with the Mountaineers, he faced triple options teams such as The Citadel and Wofford while in the SoCon, then Georgia Southern while in the Sun Belt.
The Falcons use a triple option variation known as the flexbone. This is a formation where you have two wide receivers, a full back behind the quarterback, and then two slotbacks lined up just behind just behind the line of scrimmage close to where the tight ends usually are.
With the staff's prior experience against the triple option at past stops, they know exactly how to prepare for it. In practice, the main focus has been making sure each potential ballcarrier has a defender assigned to him, regardless if he has the ball or not.
In fact, one aspect of their preparation has been practicing without a ball just to make sure the players are assignment-sound.
"You got to make sure that somebody has the dive, somebody has quarterback, and somebody has the pitch. That's the key," Brown said. "Those are the things we're trying to get accomplished in practice, and it's going well so far."
Of course, that's only one aspect of it. Air Force's offensive line - and blockers in general - do a good job of coming off of the ball and playing with physicality. Despite a seemingly simplistic game plan of just running the ball nearly every time, the Falcons find a way to keep defenses on their toes.
"Those guys are doing a great job this season with mauling people up front," Brown said. "They also just do a good job with different little eye candy pieces that try to get a guy one step slow, or one step too fast, and then that ball's out of the gate."
Like it has all season long, being able to hold their own against this unique attack will come down to discipline. Things like gap integrity, getting off blocks, and not allowing Air Force to dominant the line of scrimmage.
"If we can do those things, and be great disciplinarians with our eyes, with our gap responsibility, and tackle really well, it'll be a good day for the Cards," Brown said.
Kickoff from Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas, Texas is scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 28 at 3:15 p.m. EST.
(Photo of C.J. Avery, Travis Levy, Jack Fagot: Jamie Rhodes - USA TODAY Sports)
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