page_title: Option offense
section_title: Use in college football
hierarchical_section_title: Option offense / Modern use / Use in college football
caption_attribution_description: English: South Bend, Ind. (Nov. 8, 2003) -- Navy quarterback Craig Candeto pitches the ball out during the first quarter of play against Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind. during the Midshipmen&#8217;s 27-24 loss to the Fighting Irish. The victory for the Irish (3-6) not only broke the team's three-game slide at home, but also extended the NCAA record for consecutive wins over one opponent to 40 games. The last time Navy defeated Notre Dame was November 1963 when Roger Staubach was at the helm and claimed the Heisman Trophy. The Midshipmen are now 6-4 in the season. U.S. Navy photo by Chief Warrant Officer 4 Seth Rossman. (RELEASED)
context_page_description: An option offense is a style of offense in American football that is predominantly based on a running play. However, instead of a specific play in mind, the offense has several "options" of how to proceed. Based on the defense, the quarterback may hand off to a full back up the middle, hold on to the ball and run himself to either side of the field, or pitch the ball to a trailing running back. Option offenses have traditionally relied heavily upon running plays, though modern option offenses now incorporate some passing plays called the Run-Pass Option or RPOs. Because they are run-based, option offenses are very effective in managing the game clock, giving the opposing team less time to score and keeping the option team's defense from tiring. However, this also means that when the option team is losing near the end of the game, and needs to score quickly, it is at a disadvantage. These schemes rely on timing, deception, and split-second decision-making under pressure, which, in turn, require precise execution and discipline.
context_section_description: There has been a resurgence of option offenses in major college football. When implemented properly, option offensive schemes can be very successful, as demonstrated by the success of the Nebraska Cornhuskers, Oklahoma Sooners, Georgia Southern Eagles, and Syracuse Orange in the 1970s through the early 2000s. Despite its success, though, many teams favor more "pro-style" offenses that attract athletes who may want to play in the NFL, where option offenses are less popularized.
  Recently Urban Meyer and other coaches have developed extraordinarily competitive schemes using an option attack out of the shotgun formation. Meyer visited Kansas State University's Bill Snyder and learned the principles of his system.  These combine elements of the West Coast offense and the single wing with sorted elements of the flexbone and the wishbone. Meyer used his spread option offense with great success at Bowling Green, Utah, and Florida, where he won two Division I FBS national titles, and at Ohio State, where he won the 2014 College Football Playoff championship.
  Meyer's version is based on the spread attack developed by then-West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez. Rodriguez earned "pioneer" status for incorporating wishbone principles, such as the zone-read and option pitches, into the primarily passing-oriented spread offense.  However, it is unclear whether Rodriguez developed the system, Kansas State coach Bill Snyder developed the zone-read philosophy with QB Michael Bishop in the late 1990s, or whether the two coaches coincidentally developed the system at the same time.
  The option remains popular at mid-major levels as well. The Appalachian State Mountaineers, who won three consecutive titles in Division I FCS from 2005 through 2007, rely on the spread option offense. Additionally, the Cal Poly Mustangs achieved success with its flexbone-style option offense under former head coach Rich Ellerson, who has since installed the offense at Army. Lenoir–Rhyne played for an NCAA DII National Championship in 2013 running the flexbone.  Carson–Newman, Eastern New Mexico, and Harding have had a great deal of success running the triple option at the NCAA Division II level.
  Option offenses are considered to be "equalizers" on the playing field – allowing less athletic teams to compete with larger and faster defenses. Appalachian State proved this theory by defeating the heralded Michigan Wolverines at Michigan Stadium during the 2007 NCAA season. In 2013 Georgia Southern (FCS at the time) defeated Florida and in 2015 Citadel (FCS) defeated South Carolina.
  Option offenses remain very popular among the United States service academies. The Navy Midshipmen, Army Black Knights, and Air Force Falcons each use option offenses. If run properly, an option offense should be able to gain 2-3 yards before the linebackers and defensive backs can identify who has the football and make a tackle. Due in part to this, Navy rarely punts the ball, which has led many Navy fans to jokingly refer to 4th down (normally a punting situation) as "just another down." Coach Paul Johnson was particularly effective using this offensive scheme, leading Navy to 43 victories between 2003 and 2007, and Navy led the nation in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns in 2007. He left Navy for Georgia Tech after the 2007 season, where he continued to successfully run the option until his retirement in 2018.
  Former Army coach Bob Sutton joked that the Army–Navy Game could be played in an hour because the game clock rarely stopped due to both teams running option schemes. After Sutton's firing, Army went away from the option in favor of a Pro Style attack under new head coach Todd Berry. After eight years of poor performance on the field (with a record of 17-76 from 2000–2007 including the only 0-13 season in NCAA history), Army returned to a flexbone triple-option scheme in the 2008 season. Many Army alumni pushed for a return to an option-based offense in hopes of regaining the success they saw under head coach Jim Young in the 1980s and early 1990s.  Under Young, from 1983–1990, the
caption: A lateral during an option play.
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