By Tom Condardo
After last Saturday's game, I asked Pioneer head coach Neal Weidman which team in the CAL most reminded him of Saugus. He hesitated for a bit then finally pointed to Newburyport and said "they look a little like them."
The Clippers ran a power I option where the quarterback starts in the I and sprints out and has the option to pass. Weidman was quick to point out that Saugus was kind of like that but not exactly.
"It's a different kind of option," the coach explained. "They run a true Navy triple with the wings in motion and midline stuff. That'll be a challenge."
Ah, the ol' Navy Triple. That explains it.
Well thankfully we have Youtube. Below is a two minute example of the Navy Triple Option as run by....Navy! This'll give you a good idea of what to expect when the Sachems arrive at Pioneer Field Saturday morning.
Basically the Triple Option refers to the three options that Saugus junior quarterback Justin Winn has once he takes the snap from under center. 1) He can hand off to fullback Seth Roy on a dive up the middle. 2) He can toss it left or right to either Dan Cacciola or Marcus Atkins, the two wingbacks who will be lined up in back of the tackles or 3) He can keep it and run himself.
Defending the Triple Option
So how do you stop it? According to Weidman, it's another week of "assignment football" which means the Pioneer defenders have to know what gaps to defend and which players to hit. When someone doesn't carry out his assignment, option plays go for big gains.
Here's how Delaware head coach Dave Brock explained it to Matt Leon of CBS Philly prior to his Blue Hens taking on Navy this past weekend.
"You are really forced to play a style of defense that you don't play every week," Brock said. "The players have to be very, very disciplined and understand where they've been, who they have to tackle and really as strange as it sounds, you really have to put every single potential person on the ground. If you start looking for the ball, you're going to be in trouble, because you won't find it. You'll think it's inside and the ball will be pitched and you really have to be very, very disciplined and make sure that you play your responsibility."
Sounds like he really has a handle on how to stop it doesn't he?
Delaware was blown out 51-7.
To be fair, the Midshipmen turned the tables on them a little bit. They did a lot of their damage through the air as Navy quarterback Keenan Reynolds threw for 233 yards and a couple of touchdowns.
"We were absolutely committed to try and stop the run," Brock told Delaware Online, "and I still feel like we should have been able to play the couple of outs they shot down the tube on us, but we missed a couple of keys and weren't able to do that. We had a chance to play the ball a couple of times and didn't play it very well."
So there's that.
Sachems More Grounded
However, it's unlikely that the Sachems will come out throwing against the Pioneers. In the 20-6 loss to Winthrop last week, Winn attempted only six passes, three of them on their last desperation series. Of the three other passes, one went for a 25 yard TD pass to Atkins, their only score of the game, one was intercepted and one was incomplete. Saugus' other 27 plays were runs.
The Sachem line which averages 6'1" 214 will be outweighed by the Pioneers front wall which comes in averaging 6"2" 244. The The Triple Option will negate a lot of that size advantage on defense since this will be a game of quickness and discipline rather than bulk.
Saugus is young, trying to replace 15 seniors lost to graduation from last season's 6-5 squad. Returning starting lineman Marco Leto and linebacker Ian Jefferson lead the defense.
The Sachems hung tough with a solid Winthrop squad last week, trailing only 13-6 at the half.
Revenge minded?
The Pioneers do owe the Sachems some payback. This will be the third meeting between the schools and Saugus handed the Pioneers convincing beatings in the first two. The Sachems romped 35-14 in 2007 and 49-28 in 2008, Weidman's first year as head coach.
That 49 points is the second most points ever given up in a single game by the Pioneers. The most they've given up was in a 54-8 loss to North Andover in 1996. Ironically, that game was a battle for first place as Lynnfield went into the game tied with NA at 4-0. The Pioneers also gave up 49 in 2007 in a 49-21 loss to North Andover.
Game time at Pioneer Field is 11 am.
OD's Run
Also, I wanted to remind all you runners and walkers about O'D's 10th annual 5K Run/Walk on this coming Sunday, September 22 at 10 at the high school. The event is held in memory of Johnny O'Donnell, a former Pioneer football player who also played baseball and wrestled for LHS. Proceeds from the event go to raise funds for scholarships. The event serves as a tribute to and celebration of Johnny's short life with us. For further information, contact Karen Mahon at 508-528-1286 or register at the web site at www.odsrunwalk.weebly.com. I will be running and hope to see you there!
That's it for now. Check back after the game on Saturday and remember I'll be providing in game tweets at @condardogrdblog (No "I" in team, or grdblog).
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