THE TWO-MINUTE OFFENSE

UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO

M y lecture today is on the Two-Minute Offense. When screwed up and that was the longest ten seconds of
you talk about Two-Minute Offense, you are talking my life. We could have gotten t w o chances at the end
about something t h a t somebody screws up every zone and probably could have won the game because
week. It doesn't matter whether you are talking high of the momentum. Watching those ten seconds come
school, college, or pro. Our job as coaches is t o make o f f the clock, I made up my mind a t that point that any
sure w e are not the ones screwing i t up. I know that quarterback I coached would know how t o handle that
people sit and watch games in the last t w o minutes situation.
and can't believe some of the things that are done. But
you and I know when i t gets that time in a game and The first thing you want t o do in the last t w o minutes
the game is on the line, that sideline is not as calm as is CHANGE YOUR OFFENSE. If you are a wishbone team
i t might have been. The press box communication gets you have t o come up w i t h something a little different
kind o f garbled because people are losing their cool. than you normally do. Choose an offense that best fits
That is w h y you have t o be fully prepared t o find a way your scheme. W i t h your personnel, MAKE SURE YOU
t o win the game. A-l: least if you screw i t up you'll have HAVE YOLlR BEST PLAYERS IN THE GAME. W h a t
a reason for w h y you screwed it up. amazes me sometimes is watching teams that have
three or four good wide receivers, but have t w o o f
I'm n o t going over specific plays because o f the them sitting on the bench a t this time, while a big tight
different types o f offenses there are. I'm going t o end is still in the game.
concentrate on a checklist so that you will lhave all the
right equipment that i t takes t o be successful in this W h e ~ Ii s t a r t talking about three and four w i d e
situation. The second part of my talk will be on how receivers the next important thing is PROTECTION.
t o coach the quarterback so he knows what you are N o w you have t o protect w i t h six guys instead of
looking for in those critical moments. seven. Whatever offense you choose you need the
ability t o protect against seven guys. That keeps you
I started coaching a t UCLA as a graduate assistant. I f r o m having t o t l i r o w h o t p a t t e r n s and sight
had t h e opportunity t o coach Troy Aikman. A f t e r I adjustments t o pressure. W h e n t h e defensive
became a full-time assistant w e finally made i t t o the coordinators g e t a l i t t l e threatened, they s t a r t
Rose Bowl. W e played Wisconsin in 1993, the year reaching for their gldns, which w e call a blitz. If your
before I l e f t t o go t o Colorado. We didn't play very well quarterbackdoes~i'thave the equipment t o handle the
and had a lot of turnovers. But at the end of the game blitz, you are not sound. I think you have t o always
w e were only down 21-16 and had a chance t o win it block seven w i t h your scheme. That doesn't mean you
w i t h a touchdown. There were about 40 seconds left are going t o keep seven in t o block, i t simply means
and w e were going right down the field. We had it t o you have the ability t o block seven if you need to.
the 40-yard line going in w i t h a third down and eight.
We hit J. J. Stokes w i t h a pass and he turned i t into a In the Two-Minute period you need t o go t o your ROLE
big gainer t o the 18-yard line. There were 10 seconds PEOPLE. Don't be so dependent on one guy that when
l e f t on the clock. We had a first down but no tinie-outs. he is out of the game you can't keep i t going. This is
W e signaled the quarterback t o throw it in theground not so necessary for -the Two-Minute drive, but in the
and run the clock play. He looked a t us, took the snap, four- or eight-minute drive i t is extremely important.
and g o t sacked. There w a s no w a y t o g e t all our Maybe you're behind by t w o touchdowns and you have
players back and snap the ball. Wisconsin knew w e t o go t o the hurry-up earlier. Maybe you don't have
backups a t every position, but at least you have given
some thought about the substitution pattern. There
is nothing more deflating t o a team in the Two-Minute
Drill than t o have a tired player.
The next thing you have t o do is choose PLAYS AND
FORMATIONS. The key here is not t o have too many.
A t UCLA our total package was available in the Two
Minutes. The positive was he could call anything he
wanted. The negative was i t was too much for the
quarterback t o have at that time of the game. There
was too much thinking involved. I think you should limit
the amount of plays you need. I scouted a I-~ighschool
team whose Two-Minute Drill was one play and one
formation. They kept running the same play over and
over again. That is a little simplistic, but there is a
lesson t o learn. What you can handle is what you can
execute. If you can execute what you are doing you
have a much b e t t e r chance o f being successful.
Whether i t be plays or formations, make sure you don't
have too many things t o t r y t o be good at.
The next thing is when t o CHUCK OR TOCONTROL THE
BALL. Let me give you an exarr~pleof this before I talk
about it. If i t is late in the game and you have 70 yards
t o go with 1 minute and 10 seconds t o go, what is your
thinking? For sirr~plearithmetic, so you can get an idea
about how t o call plays, that rninute and 10 seconds is
70 seconds. We have t o go 70 yards in 70 seconds. A
control play by definition is a play that you are going
t o hit 80 percent of the time, which is designed t o go
10 yards. You may throw i t for five yards, but by the
time the run is completed you have between 8-lo yards.
The control play is the quarterback looking t o get the
completion. He is looking for the big play but will take
the completion that is given him. If I have t o go 70 yards
in 70 seconds, I have time t o take seven straight
possession passes and be in the end zone using the
controlled game.
I am not in a desperate situation. I don't have t o throw
the opposite of the CONTROL pass, which is the
CHUCK pass. A chuck by definition is a pass I'm going
t o t r y t o hit for 20 yards or more. If I change the
numbers from 70 seconds t o 40 seconds, I can't afford
t o take the yardage 10 yards at a time. I have t o shoot
for bigger things.
In the Two-Minute offense you have t o have both
CONTROL AND CHUCK PASSES. You need one of each
of these passes and probably t w o in the CONTROL
pass for every formation you decide t o use.
Make sure the plays you plan on using in .this portion
of the game are PLAYS YOU ARE FAMILIAR WITH.
Make sure the plays are adaptable t o any coverage.
Just as your team has a Two-Minute Offense, the
defense has a Two-Minute Defense. Most Two-Minute
Defenses have one base variety, whether it is a cover-
2 or cover-3 structure. Defensive coaches don't like t o
play a Prevent Defense. They think Prevent Defenses
prevent them from winning. But they structure their
Two-Minute Defense with that in mind. They have built
into the structure of the defense not t o give up the
big play and keep everything in front of them. After
the offense completes a couple of .the control passes,
the coordinator goes for his guns and comes with the
blitz. Your plays have t o be adaptable t o Cover 2 and
3, and your protectior~has t o hold up t o the blitzes that
will come if you are successful in completing some
ttlrows. When the blitzes come, your receivers have
t o know i t and be able t o beat the man coverage.
As you are putting together your inventory for this
offense, you are going t o need SPECIALTY PLAYS. The
first type of play you need is one for the RED ZONE.
You want your quarterback t o know what t o call when
he gets into the RED ZONE. RED ZONE offense is
critical. You need plays from every formation you are
going t o use t o attack the end zone.
Next you have t o have a list of CLOCK-STOPPER PLAYS.
We need a signal for grounding the ball. Everyone
comes back t o the same formation and on the first
sound the ball is grounded. You need t w o plays which
will get you chunks of yardage but a t the same time
allow you t o get the ball O I J ~of bounds. A t the high
school and college level w e have an advantage
because the clock stops on made first downs. But i t
only stops temporarily. We want patterns designed so
that w e are looking a t receivers in levels. In every
situation w e have the opportunity t o get the ball out
of bounds.
Everyone has t o have a HAlL MARY PLAY. Two years ahead and he didn't want t o take any chances. He
ago Colorado had a HAlL MARY PLAY against Michigan. wanted him to run three quarterback sneaks and punt
That play was shown all over the country. The funny the ball. He w e n t into the game and ran the first
.thing about that game was just before half w e had the quarterback sneak. He broke a tackle and gained 30
same play. I t was just about t o the same part of -the yards on the play. On the second sneak, he gained 20
field. Two o f the three wide receivers got knocked yards. He came to the line of scrimmage, ran another
down on that play just before halftime. At halftime quarterback sneak, broke a tackle and went t o the
w e made an adjustment on the wide receiver's pattern five-yard line. On the next play the kid punted the ball.
t o g e t t h e m away f r o m t h e chuck a t t h e line of The coach got the kid off and asked him wha-t he was
scrimmage. Little did w e know w e would have t o use thinking. The quarterback said, "I figured w e had the
that play again. But this time i t worked and all the dumbest coach in America."
prayers were answered.
There are a couple of different ways t o call the plays.
The LAST PLAY is a tough call for the quarterback. This You can let your quarterback do it, or you can signal it
is somett-ling a lot of people don't take time t o do. If in. If your quarterback is calling the plays, you have a
you have no time-outs and time for only one play, the sharp kid. There is less pressure on the quarterback t o
quarterback has t o call the play, what is he going t o call the plays in the Two-Minute Offense than there is
call? A t Colorado w e have three LAST PLAYS. We have on all the crazy people on the sideline. If you have the
one for inside .the 20. We have one for the 35-20. We experienced quarterback who can call the plays, that
have one for outside the 35-yard line. A lot of people is the way t o go. Unfortunately, those types graduate
don't take the time t o practice it. What you get is the after four years and you're left w i t h the inexperienced
quarterback throwing the ball undernea.th and the quarterback.
receiver getting tackled as time is running out.
If you go t o signals you'll get a screw-up just when you
A play which is overlooked all the time is a MANEUVER don't need it. Sometimes i t gets cumbersome in the
PLAY. This type of play is used t o center the ball for a thought process. Sometimes you send a play in
field goal attempt. Right after the game w e played because i t is easier than the signal. What I like is a
against Michigan w e went t o Texas. It was a 31-31 cornbination of both. W e signal in the formation. We
football game and w e were driving for the winning field are going t o help him with the formation and that's it.
goal. We had the ball on the right hash mark with a Once the formation comes i n t o t h e game t h e
right-footed kicker. We had not practiced a play t o quarterback knows he has three choices from that
move the ball t o the center of the field. We ended up formation. He has t w o CONTROL PASSES and one
running a play and lost -three yards. We were fortunate CHUCK PASS. Based on the situation, the quarterback
because w e made the kick. Three years earlier when I knows what t o call. If he has 70 yards and 70 seconds
was a t UCLA w e had the exact same play against USC. t o do i t in, he can go t o his COI\ITROL passing game.
We didn't have a centering play. The play w e ran lost That means he has t w o plays t o choose from. He is
about four yards and the kick hit the crossbar and the feeling the game because he is playing and he knows
game ended in a tie. It takes about t w o minutes t o put which pass he will use. If the situation calls for the
this type of play in and you will have i t for the rest of CHUCK PLAY he has only one choice. It doesn't require
the season. You know how kickers are. If they don't like all t h e hand signals and reduces t h e chance of
t o kick o f f of one hash or the other, make sure you can mistakes.
accommodate them.
The next part is critical. You have t o practice the
The next thing is COMMUNICATION. That is extremely offense. For most high school teams a common way
important. That brings t o mind the story about -the t o practice the Two-Minute Drill is after practice on
coach whose first-team quarterback got hurt. He took Tliursday before the game on Friday. It is hard t o find
the second quarterback and told him they were way time t o practice this part of your game plan. I have a
suggestion. During t w o - a - d a y s w h e n you are after si-tuation on the board and have him give me the
conditioning your team, this is a good time t o practice play he is going t o run. We want t o get a t least 30
the Two-Minute Drill. If you are going t o signal plays drives on the board in an hour's time. I make notes t o
in, this is a good time for you t o practice also. If the myself about things I want t o put the quarterback
quarterback is going t o call the plays, this gives him through.
valuable experience. We don't let them huddle. One of
our coaches will act as the referee, and they are t o There are three situations you have t o deal with.
assume that every play stops with the clock running. Number one is when you need a touchdown. Number
W e can practice getting out of bounds. This is a two, and it could just as easily be 1A, because you need
conditioning period also. Everyone has t o run and catch t w o touchdowns. The third situation is when you need
up w i t h the ball and do things like i t was a real game a field goal. The least talked about need for -the Two-
situation. You get a lot of work done on your Two- Minute drill is a t the end of the first half.
Minute Drill and get in that conditioning you need.
In coaching t h e quarterback, the f i r s t thing the
Most defenses in a Two-Minute situation have a base quarterback has t o be ready t o do is lead his team t o a
defense. I t is generally going t o be a 2-or 3-deep touchdown a t the end of the game. All w e have t o tell
structure. When you practice the Two-Minute DrlII, put our team is t o play as fast as possible, get out of
a pass skeleton out there. You don't need the rush, but bounds whenever possible, and get into the end zone.
you do need t o see coverages. This gives you a chance On the quarterback's checklist, the first thing he wants
t o see if the play you have picked goes against the t o know is where he has t o take the team. The next
defenses you think they will play. Against a 2-deep thing he wants t o know is how many time-outs he has.
w i t h 5 under, you want a high-low principle in your The only reason for a time-out is t o get more plays.
patterns. The patterns want t o isolate one defender We don't use the time-out t o make decisions or think
and have a receiver under him and over him. That keeps about what w e are going t o do. All those decisions
him from covering both patterns. These patterns work should already be made before now. We all fall into
the field vertically. Against the 3-deep you want t o those pitfalls and use the time-outs for those reasons.
stretch laterally because they are going t o have only
four underneath defenders. On a touchdown drive the quarterback is going t o use
his first time-out a t or around one minute and 30
The last thing you have t o do in practicing the Two- seconds. For the sake of the lecture, let's say the drive
Minute Drill is t o make sure your protection holds up started at 1:42 t o go and 70 yards. On the first play
against the blitzes you are going to get. That has t o w e get a first down. We don't call time-out. We try t o
take place in a team period w i t h defense. This lets you beat the movement of the chains while the clock is
check your plan out before you get into agame and find stopped. We might lose 2 or 3 seconds, but w e will
out you are on the wrong track. It is better t o find out gain a play. The clock starts a t 1:34 and w e hit another
in practice instead of in the game, when i t is too late. control pass, which is good for 8 yards. With 1:27 w e
take our first time-out. A lot of people don't believe
I told you not t o stop the drill t o coach. It has t o be a that is the time t o call time-out. But if w e do w e
continuing drill t o give the right mind-set of what is probably save one and possibly t w o plays depending
supposed t o be going on. But there is a certain amount on how far your receivers have t o come back t o the
o f decision making t h a t has t o be done on the line of scrimmage. You have an opportunity t o use a
quarterback's part. The perfect I:ime for that t o happen time-out right there and you don't k n o w i f t h a t
is during the two-a-day workouts. That is when you opportunity is going t o come again. The worst sin is t o
have a lot of individual meetings with the quarterbacks die at the end of agame with time-outs in your pocket.
coach and the quarterbacks. I have a board w i t h the If he uses a time-out at 1:37, I'm not going t o get too
field divided up on it. I want every situation known t o nitpicky about the 1:30. That time keeps it simple and
man t o come into these meetings. I give him situation not hard t o keep track of. If you have only t w o time-
 outs, take one of them around the minute mark. If you He has t o have a good understanding of when t o use
have only one time-out, take it around the 30-second the CLOCK PLAY. Killing the clock takes about five
mark. seconds. Throwing the ball into the end zone takes
about five seconds per play.
W e don't worry about scoring too fast. If you start
worrying about that, you get too conservative. If you I coached Troy Aikman a t UCLA. We were number one
don't score, you'll hate yourself. The idea is t o score. in the country and 7-0. We w e n t to Washington State
If you do, you put the situation back on your defense. t o play. Dennis Erickson was still the coach there. He
When you need a touchdown, take it any time you can had a great quarterback. We were ahead 27-6 and
get it. The field goal is another matter. You want t o looked like w e were going t o steamroll these guys.
take all the time o f f the clock before you kick the field They caught fire. The game came down t o the end with
goal. them leading 34-30. They had t o punt the ball t o us.
This is why I go back t o the inventory t o make sure I
There are t w o philosophies about what t o do if the have the right personnel in the game. Our Two-Minute
quarterback gets sacked. First w e want t o coach the Offense was a three-wide receiver, two-back offense.
heck out of the quarterback so he doesn't take the This meant one of our best players, the tight end, was
sack. We want him t o throw the ball away if he can. not in the game. But w e knew w e needed a big chunk
But sometimes it doesn't happen. If you get sacked and of yardage, so w e weregoing t o a four vertical pattern.
you havea time-out left, call it. I have reasons for that.
A f t e r a sack, your offense is demoralized. The sack We told the quarterback as soon as w e completed the
breaks the rhythm of your drive. The time-out gives four vertical pass, t o run the clock play. W e would
your linemen time t o catch their breath and lets your trade the yardage for the play. We got it all worked
team relax. You will have much more success on your out and Troy knew exactly what he was going t o do.
next play if you call the time-out then. They punted the ball and our punt returner almost
broke it for a touchdown. Instead of getting the ball
The next thing is the RED ZONE. The quarterback needs on our 20, w e got it on their 40-yard line. W e went in
t o know that the RED ZONE is different from a play with our three wideouts and one tight end. We hit the
selection standpoint. He also needs t o k n o w the tight end right down the seam t o the six-yard line.
mentality of the defensive coordinator. This is the There were 30 seconds left. Troy got up there and
place that defenses are most likely t o jump into man threw the clock play just like I told him t o do. It would
coverage t o t r y t o make a big play. When the game is be a good story for this clinic, but unfortunately w e
in the balance, a coordinator wants t o make something missed the next three plays and got beat. We went
happen. How many of you saw the Michigan-Virginia from number one t o number seven. Terry Donahue said
game on national TV in the first game of the season? he hated throwing the ball and wanted t o go back t o
Michigan moved right down the field t o the 12-yard line. running it, and I died a miserable death, The point is
With 15 seconds t o go. They had four plays from there. what can go wrong will go wrong if you don't have the
On that fourth down, what do you call? Virginia stayed things you need down in those areas of the field.
zone and got beat. The quarterback needs t o know
that in the RED ZONE there is a good possibility for a A normal play takes about 10 seconds t o run. I t
blitz. Down in the RED ZONE w e definitely need a probably takes a little longer than that, but that gives
seven-man protection. you a good number t o work w i t h in the CONTROL OR
CHUCK SCHEME. If I said a normal play took 14 seconds
The LAST PLAY needs t o b e schooled i n t o the t o run, it gets too hard t o get the numbers together.
quarterback. He needs t o know exactly what his last
play is going t o be in each section of the field. Make Let me show you a drive from last season. W e played
sure he understands the divisions of the field. Kansas State in the last game o f the season. W e
 needed to beat Kansas State t o go t o the Cotton Bowl.
, It obviously was a big game. As you can see, w e had
! just fallen behind and there was 2 2 4 left on the clock.
We had 80 yards t o go in a hostile environment. The
i down and distance was in our favor because 2 2 4 is
more than enough time. The CHUCK was not in the plan.
Also, running the ball becomes part of your CONTROL
PACKAGE. You can still run the ball when you are ahead
of the clock indown anddistance. Kansas State in .their
base Two-Minute Defense chose t o be in a 2-deep look.
We attack this w i t h a high-low receiver. Our tight end
w e n t d o w n the field and tried t o g e t behind the
linebacker, but the linebacker carried him. We ended
up coming underneath the linebacker with adrag route
t o the wide receiver. We got eight yards and there was
no reason t o panic. We got t o the line of scrimmage. I
signaled the formation, and the clock was still not a
factor yet. We threw a control high-low with the slot
receiver and back out of the backfield. The slot
receiver went over the top and the back was wide
open. We did the same thing on the next play and got
a big play over the top t o the slot receiver and gained
about 20 yards.
After .that play I switched the formation because with
their coverage I knew w e could get single coverage on
one of our receivers. The quarterback knew we were
still in CONTROL. He took the easy completion into the
boundary. We still had all our time-outs left. We were
still protecting with six because w e hadn't reached the
red zone. We had hit three passes in a r o w on the
defense and I g o t the feeling their defensive
coordinator was getting uncomfortable. It was going
too easy for us and the rhythm was too good. I felt
the coordinator was coming w i t h something. It was
1st-and-10 and w e had gained 40 yards in three plays. I
was going for the big play. We tried t o throw a fade t o
the inside receiver into the wide field. We got what
w e wanted, but the ball wasn't thrown in the right
place. They made a nice play and knocked it down. I
was blocking seven. He didn't blitz, but he went t o man
coverage. It was 2nd-and-10, but because of the down
and distance, w e were still in a CONTROL MODE.
A t this point I was guessing again. I felt since the
coordinator has had his first taste o f success, he
would stay in his man coverage. I ran a little option into
the boundary. Now w e were down t o the 20-yard line
and the clock was still not a factor. But w e were in
the RED ZONE, so I've got t o think blitz. I protected
with seven, looking for man coverage in the secondary.
The slot receiver ran a seal route, which w e hoped t o
take t w o defenders with him. We tried t o eat up the
free safety by running a post w i t h a trail post coming
behind it. The free safety had t o play one or the other.
We guessed right. They came on .the blitz, w e went
over the top, and scored a touchdown in about one
minute's time. That was a six-play, 80-yard drive, which
took about a minute. Every one of those plays was a
CONTROL PLAY w i t h the exception of the RED ZONE
PLAY, which was a CHUCK. But since w e were in so
close, that happens.
If you need a field goal instead of a touchdown, our
thinking changes. This is different for everyone
because everyone's kickers are different. The first
thing w e need t o know is the goal. Where do I have t o
get the ball? A rule of thumb for us is about the 25-
yard line. Most kickers are pretty successful from 42
yards and in. Your kicker may be better than that or
worse than that. The quarterback needs t o know
where he has got t o go. He needs t o know if the ball
has t o end up on the left hash, right hash, or the center
of the field. I always want t o save a time-out for the
field goal kicker. If I only have one time-out, I don't take
i t until I'm ready t o kick, ur~lessI get sacked. If I get
sacked, I'm going t o use it. If I have t w o time-outs, I'll
\use the first one at or around 30 seconds, and the
second one just before .the field goal. If I've got three,
then it is one minute, 30 seconds, and right before the
field goal.
The RED ZONE for a touchdown is different for a field
goal. The RED ZONE for the field goal really starts
around the 50-yard line. If the quarterback knows the
pressure is coming he has the opportunity t o hit the
HERO with a big play, The HERO is a guy when he sees
man coverage, he has the ability t o get open inside.
When the quarterback realizes he has man coverage
he is going t o his HERO. The easiest route t o get open
on against man coverage is some kind of inside route.
Around the 50-yard line the defensive coordinator
realizes the offense is getting close t o their objective.
You need t o know the comfortable zone for the
defensive coordinator. 'The quarterback needs t o know 'The last thing before I leave you is t o show you h o w I
that so he can anticipate the pressure coming. This do this. I need some volunteers. I need some former
doesn't mean the quarterback is calling RED ZONE quarterbacks who will admit it. I need three people.
PLAYS, but he has t o have RED ZONE thinking in terms All right, w e have Don, Phil, and Ricky. I need one more
of what t o expect from the defense. guy. Here he is. You are going t o be the fourth-string
quarterback. It is your job t o screw everything up. You
The quarterback has t o understand when a drive are going t o be the crowd noise. Don is going t o be the
changes from a field goal drive t o a touchdown. As quarterback, Phil keeps the clock, and Ricky keeps up
the clock dwindles away, w e run out of time for the with the time-outs. Let's say w e have t w o time-outs.
field goal and w e have t o go for the touchdown. Our This is something you can do in the evening when you
thinking has t o change to LAST PLAY type of thinking. have a quarterback meeting. I t g e t s f u n and
The quarterback has t o know he is not trying t o get competitive. For this example w e have only t w o
t h e ball t o t h e 25 any more, he is going for the formations. We have a left and right formation. I want
touchdown. If w e can't kick the field goal, what is the you t o always put the formation t o the field. Our
last play going t o be from the 30-yard line? You have CONTROL PASS is going t o be 1and 2. Our CHUCK PASS
t o have a smooth transition in your thinking t o is going to be 3 and 4. We are going t o start on the 20-
eliminate panic. It takes 25 seconds to run a play, get yard line on the right hash mark w i t h 1:05 t o go.
your team off, get the field goal team on, and execute
the kick. It takes 15 seconds if you have gotten a first
down wi-th your last play before the kick.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Coach Neuheisel has a board on the
This is where the MANEUVERING PLAY comes into floor. The board is marked like a football field. He keeps
play. Once w e get to where w e want t o be in a field track of t h e ball w i t h a pin. He has t h e f o u r t h
goal drive, w e want t o slow down and use the clock. quarterback make all kinds o f noise. The f i r s t
This will also bleed the defense of their time-outs. We quarterback has t o make t h e calls. The third
don't want them t o have time t o come back and beat quarterback is calling the time-out loud, as long as the
IJS. quarterback is not speaking. If the quarterback is
calling his play, he keeps the time t o himself. Coach
In the San Francisco-Dallas game three years ago in Neuheisel has control of the situation. He tells the
Candlestick Park, there was a good lesson t o learn. quarterback the results of each play and when the
W i t h t h e score 24-14 in favor o f the 49ers, the clock is stopped for a first down. He gave a great
Cowboys tried t o s t a r t a drive deep in their o w n demonstration about down and distance and clock
territory. They threw three incompletions and had to management. Everyone really liked what they saw. The
punt the ball. The 49ers got the ball with 36 seconds f i r s t quarterback calls t h e plays, -the second
t o go on about the 50 and hit Rice for a touchdown with quarterback keeps the clock, the third quarterback
t w o seconds t o go in the half. That was .thegame, and keeps track of t h e time-outs, and t h e f o u r t h
they went on t o win the Super Bowl. How many times quarterback .tries t o cause confusion. Coach Neuheisel
have you seen coaches send their quarterback out to leads the quarterback down the field and ends up in a
run out the clock before the half? The fans will always LAST PLAY situation for the quarterback.
BOO. They want the offense t o stay aggressive. I think
there is a w a y t o do both. W e are going t o stay Next he turns on the film projector and shows the last
aggressive and take some chances. But once w e miss play of tlie Colorado-Michigan game in 1994 in the BIG
one, w e are going back t o bleeding the clock and HOUSE, which Colorado won on a HAIL MARY PASS on
staying conservative. We want t o be aggressive but the last play of the game. That concluded his lecture.
be smart a t the same time.