Thursday, May 04, 2006

Who needs fancy playbooks?


Look, I know that every other blog under the sun has covered this - NCAA '07 looks awesome. I'm not breaking any new ground here by bringing that to your attention. It's going to be sweet and I'm going to be in the doghouse with the mistress of the house for playing it religiously every night after work.

That being said, this artice has some interesting information that hasn't been covered before - or at least that I haven't seen:


But if you're looking for maybe the biggest change in the series, all you need to do is open the playbooks. I'm talking about the biggest playbook overhaul in the history of the series. Tiburon hired two offensive gurus who watched at least three games of every team, then went in and personalized each and every playbook. There are 102 new formations in the game (86 on offense, 16 on defense), including the spread offense that includes option runs to the WR, the double slant and go, the post stop, the Nevada Pistol formation (QB stands 3 yards deep with a RB directly behind him)…there are so many new plays, it's almost overwhelming (to the point you'll get called for delay of game while cycling through all the new hotness). There is also greater variety in the formations you already know. Just because USC and Texas both have I formations, that doesn't mean they both run the same plays out of the I. Now USC's I looks more like a pro setup, while Texas uses the I to run more options.


Reading that brings to mind the question of "what exactly will be in the Tech playbook" and I'd like to suggest a few plays they probably will want include to assure an accurate Tech offensive experience:

  • 17 variations of a deep fade to the sideline with the receiver forced to catch the throw out of bounds

  • 0 plays utilizing the tight end as a receiver - playbook simply shows two RT's lined up side by side

  • 0 plays utilizing the fullback as a receiver - playbook shows a LG lined up in the backfield

  • 6 different QB draws out of the shotgun

  • 2 crossing routes. Total. Neither features an o-line scheme designed to create a passing lane

  • 24 different "stop" or "comeback" routes, only 2 "fly" or "seam" routes where the receiver runs after the catch

  • 5 different buttons matched to throwing the ball away out of bounds
And last, but certainly not least:
  • As the game winds down your offensive co-ordinator keeps changing the the down number on the board so you can't keep track of when to spike the ball or not.
I can't wait, it should be a blast.

3 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ooh! Don't forget the wormburner skipping to the WR.

3:12 PM  
Blogger Nathan said...

We figure they've got that one covered under the "accuracy" rating for our QB. To simulate 48% completion percentage with CJ on the roster though, they'd have to put that at like a 12.

Seriously is there anything more fun than checking out certain ratings for players as soon as you get the game? Like ... if there was a "route running" rating you'd immediately start looking to see if Ted Ginn Jr. got over or under a 20?

4:54 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

According to IGN, the playbooks for the Xbox 360 version won't be as advanced. Though I've seen other site claim that was BS and IGN got it wrong.

2:09 PM  

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