Why Washington State's signature running play is a perfect fit for Maxwell Woods

From youth football to the Cougars' backfield, Woods has built his game around the outside-zone run that Kirby Moore now favors

Sep 19, 2026; Pullman, Washington, USA; Washington State Cougars running back Maxwell Woods (3). | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

If there is one play in football that tailback Maxwell Woods couldn’t live without, it is the outside-zone run.

Fortunately for him and fellow running backs Kirby Vorhees and Leo Pulalasi, the “stretch” run play is a staple in Washington State University’s rushing attack under first-year coach Kirby Moore.

“At the end of the day, the point of outside zone is to pick up yards,” Woods said.

For his youth team just outside Minneapolis, Minnesota, Woods dominated the league just by getting to the outside on runs.

“I was always pretty fast growing up,” Woods said, “so I would get the ball on the outside and run around everyone.”

At Chanhassen High School, where he rushed for 3,700 yards and 40 touchdowns for his career, Woods had a quality offensive line to follow on outside-zone runs.

“They created great holes or blocks for me to run through,” said Woods, who was named “Mr. Football” in 2023 as the state player of the year in Minnesota, leading his school to the Class 5A championship.

After Woods signed with South Dakota State out of high school under then-coach Jimmy Rogers, and at WSU last season after Rogers spent one year leading the Cougars’ program - he was showcased once again in an outside-zone scheme.

South Dakota State’s head coach Jimmy Rogers talks with the players after practice on Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024 at Dana J. Dykehouse in Brookings. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

And now, that is what Moore ran successfully as the offensive coordinator for three seasons at Missouri - and how he now prefers to attack defenses in the run game this season at WSU.

“There are similarities to how Coach Rogers taught it and how Coach Moore teaches it,” Woods said. “But there are differences, too.”

The best way to visualize what a running back sees on a “stretch’ play is to imagine watching your entire line shift horizontally while blocking, and you have to pick a lane to run through while the blockers are engaged with defenders and still in motion.

It’s almost like running through a swinging gate.

“It’s understanding the flow of the (offensive linemen) blocks,” Woods said.

Sep 19, 2026; Pullman, Washington, USA; Washington State Cougars running back Maxwell Woods (3) carries the ball against the Duquesne Dukes during the second half at Gesa Field at Martin Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Mike MacIntyre, the first-year defensive coordinator at Oregon State, noticed immediately, scouting the Cougars before the team’s Pacific-12 Conference matchup Saturday in Corvallis, how effective Moore’s offense was in finding outside-zone runs success, including Pulalasi’s 54-yard touchdown scamper at the end of the first half.

“They had two big runs also to win the game, and they had two holding calls (wipe them out),” MacIntyre said.

“You have to play your rules and play them well, because they are counting on you screwing up a gap.”