Carry over in Blue Raider offense makes for a unit that’s faster, sharper in 2023

8/12/2023 3:24:00 PM | Football

The first fall in three seasons with a returning OC is playing dividends across the field for MTSU

By: Sam Doughton, MTSU Athletic Communications

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — It was evident early in August that things were just a little bit smoother for the Blue Raider offense in fall camp.

There were big signs every day in camp, for sure. Runs that were stuffed at the line early last camp now found holes for good gains. Passes that were not quite timed correctly in the first week in 2022 had rhythm from the start. The subtle signs, getting play calls in just a bit faster, the lack of need for subs on longer sequences allowing the offense to move with tempo a bit more efficiently, perhaps flashed even brighter.

There have been good stretches and bad stretches, like any team has in camp, of course, but offensive coordinator Mitch Stewart perhaps summed up the mood in the offensive meeting rooms best earlier this week.

"What's that saying? 'We're not where we need to be but thank God, we're a lot further than where we were,'" Stewart said. "Any time you get some carry over, any time it's not the first time that somebody's hearing the way you're doing things, it's going to be beneficial to you."

Whether it's just enjoying the benefits of having nearly everyone in the rotation have a year in Stewart's Air Raid scheme under their belts, the extra work put in by Matt Hickmann's strength staff to build up additional stamina in the unit or just a bunch of guys making strides in their personal games at the same time, there's a sense of confidence on the offensive side of the ball that's started from Day 1 and continued through the first couple weeks of camp.

There's plenty of change to be had all over the offense, as the Blue Raiders replace six starters, including their quarterback, top three receivers and two first-choice offensive linemen, from a season ago. But the continuity in the language of the offense has helped get people on the same page faster, while also allowing for more specific emphasis within each position group during the fall.

"It shows how much work we put in since the end of last season," quarterback Nicholas Vattiato said after a first day of practice he called 'phenomenal'. "Throughout the spring, throughout all the summer workouts, we've built a lot of chemistry and camaraderie with each other, and I think that showed today."

With that confidence still comes plenty of questions ahead of MTSU's season opener in Tuscaloosa on September 2. As Stewart alluded to, both he and head coach Rick Stockstill emphasize the long way the team has to go to get to where they'll be comfortable for kickoff against the Crimson Tide. After two weeks, however, the potential answers to many of those questions are starting to take shape.

Offensive Line

The jumps the offense has made early, being ahead of where they've been in past Augusts, might be most closely attributed to the chip-on-the-shoulder mentality of the offensive line, who's taken great strides in the trenches this fall. In the words of running back Frank Peasant: "I've never seen so many pancakes out there since I've been here."

Center Wilson Kelly attributes the growth to the camaraderie of the whole unit, which has gelled together early throughout the depth chart.

"We're way ahead of where we have been before," Kelly said. "A lot of guys are coming in watching film on their own. The group this year, more than anything, is really bonding together. That's something we ain't had here in a long time."

Both Kelly and guard Keylan Rutledge mentioned the desire for the offensive line to not be the topic of conversation around the program last year. As much as they try to tune out the noise week-to-week, the unit has clearly made a renewed effort to improve both individually and as a collective. Stewart thinks that given the youth and injuries in the room last season, the offensive line might be a bit hard on themselves. But clearly, it's manifested in a positive way thus far.

"The biggest thing I can say about that group is that they're well aware of that, they're self-aware of that," Stewart said. "They know what those woes were and they've really really worked hard to put that behind them and create an edge."

Consistency in camp has been key as well, with Sterling Porcher, Ethan Ellis, Kelly, Rutledge and J'Shun Bodiford both staying healthy and playing at a high level together to continue to get reps as a unit, while key returnees like Jacqui Graham and newcomers like FIU transfer Julius Pierce do the same on the second unit.

And while the excellent Blue Raiders defensive line continues to put pressure on the group day-after-day, Peasant is right: the offensive line continues to find ways to win reps, whether it's giving their quarterbacks extra time or giving the running backs bigger holes to start bigger gains.

Quarterbacks

Vattiato has earned praise from teammates and coaches alike this camp, as the redshirt sophomore has stepped into a leadership role in the offense following the graduation of Chase Cunningham. Blue Raider fans are very familiar with the 2021 Bahamas Bowl MVP, who was able to redshirt last season and make a spot start for Cunningham, completing 22-of-29 passes for 203 yards in a 24-14 win over Charlotte in Murfreesboro.

The physical traits that brought him to Murfreesboro, from his arm strength to his arm accuracy to his sneaky mobility, are all making the typical jumps one would hope to see from a guy in his third season of college football. But where Vattiato has made the biggest impression is his leadership, with Stewart saying that the Plantation, Fla. native, while always a great lead-by-example guy, has found his voice in the spring and into the summer.

"He's really taken control of that huddle," Stewart said. "He's not afraid to jerk somebody in the facemask and go 'Hey listen, this is the way it's got to be done.'"

Stewart credits quarterback coach Brent Stockstill with instilling that leadership in Vattiato as well as the other quarterbacks in the room: DJ Riles, Kyle Lowe and Ren Hefley.

"A lot of that comes from Brent," Stewart said. "The way that he talks to those guys, the leadership he allows those guys to show. The leash he gives them, so to speak, to make their own choices and decisions and live with those on the field."

The younger Stockstill, for his part, praised every quarterback in the room for the work they've put in during the offseason, saying he's proud of each one of them.

It's clear all four guys have taken strides from the spring in their reps in 11v11 drills early in camp. Riles has shown great running ability, which is to be expected given his spot time at running back a season ago but has flashed more of the pass first mentality that brought him into the program from Carver High School. Lowe, meanwhile, continues to refine the arm talent, while Hefley is far more comfortable with the offense than he was in the spring.

Running Backs

The word of the month for Jeff Beckles running backs room is "mentality."

"We're given more attention on 12-yard gains instead of five," Frank Peasant said.

With both new and returning players in the rotation this fall, there has been extra emphasis placed on creating explosive plays out of the backfield, which both Beckles and Stewart says comes down to mentality more than anything else.

"Everybody thinks that an explosive play comes from when you're wide open, I wish that were true," Stewart said. "But if you watch explosive plays, they come when somebody breaks a tackle, when somebody makes somebody miss, when somebody does something extraordinary. And that's a mentality thing."

The easiest way to see that emphasis in action is on the days without pads, where tackles on defense are merely taps on the jersey. Even if the play is whistled dead, Beckles noted, his running backs will run on through as if the tackle was missed or broken.

"Just get that mentality in them, that mindset, so when they're in a game and it looks like they're about to get tackled, I hope in their mindset they're thinking, 'No, he's not going to tackle me. I'm going to get that extra yard.'"

Peasant continues his power back role, while Terry Wilkins has come in stronger than ever before, giving him plenty of reps with the ones in practice, along with Northern Illinois transfer Jaiden Credle, who flew onto the radar for the staff during the spring. But perhaps the surprise of camp to outside observers is true freshman Jekail Middlebrook, who arrived during the summer workout period and has already started rotating in with the other three backs.

A state champion two-way football player at Langston Hughes High School in Fairburn, Ga., the Fayetteville, Ga. native shined in the team's first scrimmage this week, breaking off multiple long touchdown runs, with the head coach Rick Stockstill commenting that the moment didn't seem to big for him, which was a good sign.

His position coach says his vision at the position is exceptional, particularly given his age.

"Sometimes others, they see it, but it takes them a while to get to that hole," Beckles said. He sees it and BAM, he's through the hole right there. When we saw that, we said we've got to increase his reps.

"Now it's just how much of a workload he can handle, how much mentally can he handle. But we've been impressed with him. He can help us."

Wide Receivers

The position group with the most left to answer in the coming weeks is the wide receivers, as Stewart, who leads the inside receiver group, and Shane Tucker, who leads the outside receivers, work together to replace Jaylin Lane, Yusuf Ali and Izaiah Gathings, who combined for 1884 yards on 180 total receptions a season ago.

DJ England-Chisolm will likely be one of those outside receivers, with the speedster deep threat continuing to cause fear to opposing DBs on the outside. Elijah Metcalf continues to earn a bigger role as well after a solid 26-reception, 309-yard season in 2022 working primarily as a rotational piece out of the slot, where he continues to get most of his reps.

Finding a second outside receiver, where Javonte Sherman, Bryce Bailey and Jaylen Ward have earned reps early, remains the position battle to closely watch in the coming weeks, as Rick Stockstill noted no one had a position solidified.

Regardless of who ultimately gets the nod, Stewart is excited about the additional stamina the wide receiver group has as a whole, allowing the starting unit to go longer on the field without subbing out, which also allows for more of the Tempo of his Air Raid scheme to be unleashed.

"Our play capacity is so much better," Stewart said. "We run these racks of four, racks of five, racks of six, we're no longer coming off the field looking like we're about to barf. We're wanting another play, we're wanting another series."

His inside receivers are also loving the direct instruction from their offensive coordinator, a slight responsibility reshuffling Stewart said was mainly due to the WR-H position, which the Blue Raiders use as a hybrid slot receiver and tight end. That fight to replace Gathings (now with the Kansas City Chiefs) might be the tightest competition going in camp right now, where Jeremy Tate Jr., USF transfer Holden Willis and Jacob Coleman are all getting high-quality reps day-to-day.

"They better not come out here and waste a day," Stewart said of what that group has learned so far in August. "All of those guys have a great skill set, they're big dudes that can run, that can catch and they're willing blockers.

"It's one of those deals where it's a lot of fun, because the moment you decide that you're going to take a play off here, take play off there, show up late to a meeting, we're going to switch that depth chart. Sometimes I'll just do it just to see how they'll react."