One of the last things you expect to see from a run-oriented offense is five receivers lining up on the field at the same time, but Kansas State effectively used that formation several times during its 24-19 victory at Oklahoma.
The Wildcats took John Hubert and Braden Wilson out of the game at times during all four quarters and went with an empty backfield on plenty of occasions. With quarterback Collin Klein’s ability to scramble for first downs, the formation offers plenty of possibilities. The Sooners twice used timeouts to plan for them when K-State marched five receivers onto the field.
“Just something different,” is how Klein described it earlier this week. “I know it’s a very good complement to a lot of our physical run game stuff. It’s neat stuff. I like it. It’s a good package.”
He also likes being in complete control of the plays.
“Yeah, definitely,” Klein said. “It’s fun. It is very versatile and we have a lot of good playmakers in all the spots.”
Following in the footsteps of Missouri beat writer Terez Paylor, who came up with the Film Room idea last week, here is a look at how K-State used the empty backfield, and how Oklahoma responded to it, on Saturday:
Read More
