Challenges, potential of infusing spread

The San Jose Mercury News has put up an article about how many will be watching Cal’s unveiling of the “Ted-Spread” offense at Tennessee. Coach Jeff Tedford again makes the reminder that the spread is only an “added dimension”, not a major change of philosophy.

However, he says the “No. 1 concern” of this is the shotgun snap: in a spread play, the quarterback stands in the shotgun position, requiring a long snap from the center (offensive line). Sophomore Alex Mack, taking over with the departure of Marvin Philip to the NFL, only has one year of experience with this type of snap. The article has a few quotes from fellow Pac-10 coaches praising Tedford’s previous system, but also expressing some concern over the introduction of this added element.

With these risks come a lot of potential. We’ll have to wait for September 2 to see the “Ted-Spread” action.