FB: Empire 8

[dlippiel]

I guess Chris Sharpe is up for some online award/nomination for best running QB in college football history, and this video was attached to a link from one of the Springfield Facebook posts. 

Anyway, he had some big runs against Fisher it appears. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SnfZCbxzJE

(Warning to dlip, you might cream your pants after watching this one)

First of all +k to Utah goes without saying! Second, holy mother of ****! Third, that kid was unreal! As impressive as that video is it doesn't even come close to doing him justice when in person.

You guys may think dlip is way off here (he knows he knows, Mr- love the triple option!) but he really believes that Sharpe may be the best running QB in this history of college football.

Granted dlip hasn't personally watched, either on TV or in person, all the QB's on this list. Man oh man Sharpe was something!

However, watching him throw the FB...that is an entirely different story...

[UfanBill]

Not sure why Dlip would "cream his pants" while watching video of Chris Sharpe from 2008. I do know that Union beat Springfield 24-14 in their 2008 opener. Sharpe was awesome but Union had success containing him, at least that year.

[fisheralum91]

Lets get to the here and know shall we. 

Any word coming out of Fisher camp?

[@d3jason]

Maybe this has been answered before, but is this Ithaca's last year in the E8?

Looking back at the various articles, it says they will join by the 2018-19 season. That wording leaves it a bit opened ended for 2017-18.

Anybody know offhand?

[sjfcards]

Maybe this has been answered before, but is this Ithaca's last year in the E8?

Looking back at the various articles, it says they will join by the 2018-19 season. That wording leaves it a bit opened ended for 2017-18.

Anybody know offhand?

I don't know off-hand but I believe this is their last season in the E8. Someone made a comment earlier about Coach Welch's last season corresponding with IC's last year in the E8, and that was my recollection from back when the story broke.

[ITH radio]

That's right. IC joins LL in all sports in 2017. LL will keep AQ with only 6 teams in 17 but will lose it in 18 if they can't find another school to join for FB.

[sjfcards]

I got word from a contact at Fisher about their scrimmage information this year. Fisher will have an intra-squad scrimmage this Sunday morning at 9:45. They will also scrimmage U of R at 6pm next Friday, 8/26.

[dlippiel]

Not sure why Dlip would "cream his pants" while watching video of Chris Sharpe from 2008. I do know that Union beat Springfield 24-14 in their 2008 opener. Sharpe was awesome but Union had success containing him, at least that year.

UfanBill dlip is a ****ing huge triple-option fan... (on the college level) HUGE! He loved watching Chris Sharpe play. Kid was a freak of nature and the most bizarre but entertaining QB dlip has ever seen.

[sjfcards]

Not sure why Dlip would "cream his pants" while watching video of Chris Sharpe from 2008. I do know that Union beat Springfield 24-14 in their 2008 opener. Sharpe was awesome but Union had success containing him, at least that year.

UfanBill dlip is a ****ing huge triple-option fan... (on the college level) HUGE! He loved watching Chris Sharpe play. Kid was a freak of nature and the most bizarre but entertaining QB dlip has ever seen.

I would add the word frustrating to describe him as an opposing fan. That game against Fisher where he ran for 8,000 yards and 78 touchdowns was the most agonizing game I have ever watched as a fan. I felt like Fisher had him wrapped up in the backfield almost every play, and he would break it and run for 20 yards. He was unreal that day. The best individual performance I have seen at this level.

[Bombers798891]

Not sure why Dlip would "cream his pants" while watching video of Chris Sharpe from 2008. I do know that Union beat Springfield 24-14 in their 2008 opener. Sharpe was awesome but Union had success containing him, at least that year.

UfanBill dlip is a ****ing huge triple-option fan... (on the college level) HUGE! He loved watching Chris Sharpe play. Kid was a freak of nature and the most bizarre but entertaining QB dlip has ever seen.

I would add the word frustrating to describe him as an opposing fan. That game against Fisher where he ran for 8,000 yards and 78 touchdowns was the most agonizing game I have ever watched as a fan. I felt like Fisher had him wrapped up in the backfield almost every play, and he would break it and run for 20 yards. He was unreal that day. The best individual performance I have seen at this level.

Triple option guys always struck me as weird, in the sense that they always seemed to either completely kill you, or completely disappear. Here's Springfield's points against IC from 1999-2011

55
16
20
51
7
28
7
21
8
47
14
38

In just three of these 13 games did Springfield score between 17-37 points

[jknezek]

That's the nature of the triple option. Either you have the pieces necessary to run it really, really well, or it doesn't work at all. Look at W&L

10-1
2-8
5-5
8-3
8-2
8-3
4-6
4-6
7-4
7-3

When the pieces are there, it's darn near impossible to stop on a week's worth of practice without dramatically superior athletes (the triple option can help level against a mildly superior team, but there is a limit). But when the pieces don't flow, there just isn't an adjustment you can make to win another way. For more balanced schemes, and even pass wacky schemes, you have an infinite number of tweaks you can make. But for the triple option, those tweaks are much more limited. You can't just start throwing to the flat, or changing the line to pass block for deeper attempts. You generally don't even have those guys on the roster. Everything in the triple option is specific just to that scheme.

[Bombers798891]

I've always wondered what it's like being the OC on a really heavy option team.

I mean, you have to know when to sprinkle in your trick play (what we'd call a "pass") and I guess what side of the line to go to, but, I mean, how big/varied in your playbook

[jknezek]

I've always wondered what it's like being the OC on a really heavy option team.

I mean, you have to know when to sprinkle in your trick play (what we'd call a "pass") and I guess what side of the line to go to, but, I mean, how big/varied in your playbook

I bet you'd be surprised. But in my limited exposure, all the variations are much, much more subtle and almost exclusively focused on blocking and creating misdirection and confusion for the linebackers and dbacks.

[Upstate]

With Springfield being back on the schedule and the recent Sharp discussion I thought it'd be interesting to look up results vs that program. Fisher has the weirdest history vs the triple option. They dominated Springfield going 7-2 however they ended up being Salisbury's red headed step child going 0-6.

Points allowed Vs Springfield (7-2)

2004- 24 (W)
2005- 14 (W)
2006- 55 (L), 21 (W)
2007- 14 (W)
2008- 35 (W)
2009- 7 (W)
2010- 55 (L)
2011 6 (W)

Points allowed Vs. Salisbury (0-6)

2008- 58 (3 OT)
2009- 38
2011- 41
2012- 28
2013- 42
2014- 37 (OT)

The 2010 Springfield loss stung a LOT more than the 2006 loss. Fisher was 8-1 going up against a 7-2 Springfield team that wasn't lighting the world on fire. They beat Utica by 4 and scored 14 points in a loss vs Ithaca, I thought it was going to be a good win for Fisher to strengthen their pool C hopes. It didn't go exactly how I thought, the offense put up 49 (albeit there was a very late TD to bring it to a 6pt game, the offense showed up at least).

With all this being said I hope SU and Fisher never see each other again.

[fisheralum91]

Kinda quiet here lately.
Any word from Fisher Camp?