Is Greg Dortch the Key to a Revamped Wake Forest Offense? - SCACCHoops.com

Is Greg Dortch the Key to a Revamped Wake Forest Offense?

by Adam Bridgers

Posted: 8/16/2017 12:36:01 PM


How the redshirt freshman can help to revitalize the Wake Forest offense

It’s no secret that the Wake Forest offense has struggled in the past couple of seasons. Despite going 7-6 and beating Temple in the Military Bowl, the Deacon offense managed just 20.4 points per game (118th out of 128 in the nation) and 311.5 yards per game (124th out of 128th in the nation) last season. This is where I believe redshirt Freshman Greg Dortch can have a huge impact this season.

It has been a long time since the Deacs have had a versatile receiver who excels in both the pass game and the run game on the roster. We saw it a bit from Michael Campanaro in his freshman season (29 attempts for 123 yards), however he finished his career with just 51 rushes for 238 yards. The last time the Deacs truly had this type of player was exactly 10 years ago, in the days of Kenny Moore and Kevin Marion. Wake Forest wasn’t an offensive powerhouse in those days, but they scored a respectable 27.8 points per game (56th in the nation).

I think that Greg Dortch can be the next Kenny Moore type player for Wake Forest. While we will certainly have to wait for the regular season to see what pans out, we have already seen a brief glimpse Dortch’s ability in the last fall scrimmage. Dortch caught 6 passes for 99 yards and ran the ball 3 times for 67 yards and a touchdown. If Dortch can produce similar numbers in the regular season, it would allow the Deacs to completely revamp the offense.

Let me explain using the college football fan’s best resource. Highlights? Game film on Youtube? Stats? Nope. I’m talking, of course, about NCAA 14 on Xbox 360.

When you have a player at the slot position that can motion into the backfield and be a threat carrying the ball, the defense has to take notice. Since the offensive player is coming in motion, he has already built up some speed at the snap, making him all the more dangerous.

This threat will likely make the opposing defense start sliding toward the sideline to keep the receiver from getting to the edge. At that point, the offense can start to sprinkle in play action and misdirection plays that will drive the defense crazy. A quarterback who has the ability to run the ball, like Kendall Hinton, could simply fake the ball to the receiver to get the defense moving, and then pull it out and take off in the other direction.

After that, the defense is so unsure of what is coming next that they freeze up, not wanting to make a move before they know where the ball is going. At this point, Hinton can pull the ball out and throw it right over the heads of the linebackers, who were so concerned about whether Dortch or Hinton had the ball, that they didn’t even realize Chuck Wade just ran right by them.

These are just a few of the many things you can do with a guy like Greg Dortch in the slot position. There are a ton of other way that the Wake Forest offense could take advantage of the way his abilities and the running abilities of Kendall Hinton mesh together. I’ll throw in a few more just for fun.

The simple bubble screen is a great way to get a receiver with a good running ability into open space where he can take full advantage of his skill set. We saw this few times with Tabari Hines last season (a bowl game TD comes to mind), but we really didn’t go to it all that often.

The option play is another great play that we could take advantage of, especially with a guy like Hinton as quarterback.

After a couple of those to get the defense creeping up right where we want them, we give them the ole fake-option-bomb to Scotty Washington in 1 on 1 coverage. Any time you can get a 6-5 guy in 1 on 1 coverage it is a win for the offense.

So what am I actually suggesting here? Am I saying this is the type of offense we should run because it works nicely in a video game? Obviously not. I am simply trying to show that a guy like Greg Dortch allows the offense to have a more diversified set of plays. The Wake Forest offense has struggled the past couple of years partly due to how predictable they have been. Last year, the Deacon receiving corps ran the ball 8 times for just 2 yards. Hopefully Dortch will increase both of those numbers. If the Deacs can mix up the playbook and keep the defense guessing, even a little bit, the offense should improve greatly this season.

What are your thoughts on the offense as we encroach upon the first game in just a few weeks?

DISCLAIMER: I am fully aware that this video game and actual football are very, very different. This was just a fun away to explore the way we can mix up the offense.

 

 

 

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