Fending off blitzes is crucial for Florida State, which failed to do that in a loss to Clemson.
By BRIAN LANDMAN
Published November 13, 2003
TALLAHASSEE - It begins simply enough.
After passing along the play call in the huddle to the rest of the offense, Florida State quarterback Chris Rix approaches the line of scrimmage and surveys the defensive alignment.
"Stack. Stack," he might bark out.
That alerts his teammates that he reads a blitz. Center David Castillo, as he does on every play, points out where the middle linebacker is and the guards and tackles locate their blocking responsibilities, such as the weakside linebacker or free safety.
The running back mentally thumbs through his checklist of what he needs to do when a blitz comes, whether that's to block or flare out for a pass. The receivers watch as Rix points out if a corner or safety inches closer to the line of scrimmage then change to a "hot" or quicker route.
"It can be a three-step, it can be a slant, it can be a three-step stop, it can be a fade," receiver P.K. Sam said.
"You make a sight adjustment (depending on which defender in the secondary might be blitzing) with the receiver and you both have to be on the same page," Rix said.
Once the ball is snapped, Rix has maybe one second to decide where to throw.
Simple enough, right?
It can look that way when everything works as it did in the resounding win at Notre Dame. But it can look as daunting as assembling a puzzle blindfolded as the Seminoles demonstrated in an embarrassing loss at Clemson on Saturday.
"I can't say I expected Clemson to come so all-out; I expected blitzes but they brought it all (eight and nine defenders)," offensive coordinator Jeff Bowden said. "We didn't respond like we could have."
They had better this Saturday against visiting North Carolina State in a game the Seminoles must win to clinch the ACC title outright and the Bowl Championship Series berth that goes with it. Though the Wolfpack, coached by former longtime FSU defensive assistant Chuck Amato, hasn't shown a penchant for blitzing, it might now.
Amato watched last weekend's game as did, in all likelihood, Florida coach Ron Zook.
"Clemson didn't show a lot of blitzing and they did it," Rix said. "We haven't seen a lot of it on film from N.C. State, but we have to be prepared for it because they could bring it every down just like Clemson did."
With Clemson blitzing so frequently, the Seminoles gave up on trying to run the ball into a stacked box. Greg Jones and Leon Washington combined for 10 carries and 18 yards; the team rushed for 11 yards total.
That put the pressure squarely on Rix and the receivers.
"You have to be able to throw and catch the football," FSU coach Bobby Bowden said.
"It's all on them," Jeff Bowden echoed. "When you bring a guy you can't block, it doesn't matter what you line up in, it all comes down to the quarterback and receiver."
Rix has been up and down throughout his career and has been a lightning rod for criticism. In his past two games, he has six turnovers.
"We tried to make them one-dimensional and make Chris Rix beat us," said Clemson linebacker John Leake, who had his first sack of the season Saturday.
Rix overthrew some open receivers and threw behind some others in completing 16-of-31 for 194 yards and no touchdowns. In addition to his two interceptions and one lost fumble, he absorbed three sacks.
"There's definitely no consistency," Bobby Bowden said. "I won't say he can't do it, but I'd say we didn't do it (Saturday)."
Jeff Bowden said one problem was that Clemson defended the receivers' "designed adjustment" and they had to try something they hadn't practiced as much. For example, in a couple of instances, a receiver was supposed to run three steps downfield.
He took five.
Those two extra steps took precious extra time.
"For a quarterback, that's a lot," Bowden said. "You hate to say you naturally don't execute (that) as well, but we didn't. If we get them, we hit them big."
Rix also misread some blitzes as the Tigers peeled a defensive end off into coverage, which took away the swing pass. Washington caught two such balls, for a 1-yard gain and a 5-yard loss.
"Some of our adjustments weren't getting there in time," Sam said.
"There's a lot of stuff going through your head, of course, but we practice it enough and most of the time we execute fairly well," Rix said. "Last week we struggled with it, but we're working on it this week and I think we should have a good chance executing."
His linemen agree.
"I do expect more blitzing and I hope they do," tackle Ray Willis said. "If they blitz and you pick it up, that's what you want. You pick it up and execute the throws, it's a touchdown. Like against Notre Dame, we picked it up and executed and it was a touchdown."
