If I'm a DC in the NCAA or NFL game planning against a team that uses this, I would just sit back in a 3-4 or nickel and bring blitzes off the corner and interior all game long. By the 4th quarter, their QB and TEs/blocking WRs/linemen would be mincemeat. Without the scrimmage kick loophole, it's just an extreme form of the spread. And make no mistake about it, these 2 guys are ALL about the money. They're actually asking schools to withdraw from their state HS athletic association to use the A-11. I'd love to be a coach explaining to their players how they're going to abandon their goal of a state championship for a chance to run the ultimate gimmick offense. To answer Bengal's question, any HS coach running the A-11 with offensive players having college potential would be doing them an extreme disservice by not allowing them to master their position.
You caught me! I saw the highlight film of this kid and was kicking myself in the head for not recruiting him. Thankfully LSU and Florida are not in the same division. Joking aside, I think whatever way LSU decides to use Shepard will benefit them. This kid has tremendous upside, and I can't wait to see what he brings to the table. I'll be rooting for him to succeed every week of the season... except the week of the Florida game, of course.
He's also smart and a leader. And he threw pretty damned well for being on a team with two awesome runners (himself and Lipscomb). RS is the real deal. Question really is - will LSU coaches want to wait for him to develop fully at QB or will they choose to play him in the slot to get his legs into the game? I think if he starts getting too much time as a non-QB, eventually he becomes Percy Harvin. Because LSU seems to be sitting solid at QB, with some good prospects for 2010 as well, if we can land one or two of them.
