The Kirk Ciarrocca Experience, Part 2
We Dug Through the Vault and Dusted Off Some 2016 Western Michigan Tape Looking for More Clues To What Kirk Ciarrocca Might Bring to Penn State. Are You Ready for Some #MACtion?!?
Before we begin, let’s explain what the heck is going on in the GIF below the headline of this blog, because surely you’re startled, confused and probably a little uncomfortable.
The Year is 2013: Dr. Jason Seaver’s real-life son gives us the Song of the Summer, The Oxford Dictionary dubs ‘Selfie’ the Word of Year, and Penn State has last names on the back of its jerseys. Oh, and in tiny Kalamazoo, Michigan, an upstart coaching staff takes the Harlem Shake craze to the next level.
Behold:
The difference between college football’s Haves and Have-Nots is on full display from the jump. Apparently, there wasn’t room in the Western Michigan Athletics budget for functioning Dry-Erase markers as P.J. Fleck’s ‘Row The Boat’ scribble on the whiteboard is barely legible. Not a great start. Thankfully, Kirk Ciarrocca saves the day and steals the show! While the rest of the Broncos coaching staff lock eyes on a Steve Prefontaine photo, Ciarrocca calmly shucks an ear of corn with laser focus. Think a furry mascot lapping the conference table with a foam T-Bone tucked under its arm is going to distract this budding offensive genius? Well, you don’t know Ciarrocca then, son.
The video ends – as it rightfully should – with a Ciarrocca dance solo that essentially puts the rest of MAC on notice that they’re about to get served. Hey Toledo, Kent State and all you other Rent-a-Win-For-a-Check schools can’t say Ciarrocca didn’t warn ya about the avalanche of funk and first downs on the horizon.
By 2016, Ciarrocca got the steps perfected, molding Western Michigan into an offensive powerhouse. The Broncos finished 13-0 during the regular season and remain the only MAC school to earn a NY6 bowl invite in the CFP era. Under Ciarrocca’s guidance Western Michigan topped the MAC in Points Per Game (41.6), First Downs Per Game (25.2), Third Down Conversions (53.7 percent), Fourth Down Conversions (88.2 percent), Red Zone Offense (65 scores in 68 trips), all while giving the ball up just 7 times all season – the fewest turnovers among FBS teams.
Since apple orchards are for BETAs, we spent last weekend taking a peek at Ciarrocca’s old old team in search of any nuggets not found in his Minnesota film. We scouted Western Michigan’s mid-October blowout win against Akron and Ciarrocca’s last game in brown and black versus Big Ten runner-up Wisconsin (still feels good to type that) in the Cotton Bowl.
MORE 5 MAN PASS PROTECTIONS
In Monday’s blog, we mentioned that Ciarrocca’s creativity in 2019 might have been stunted by the early-season struggles of his offensive line. At Western Michigan, just the opposite. The Broncos big boys were their best unit – which is saying something when you consider the WR corps included the No. 6 pick in the NFL Draft, Corey Davis. Western Michigan’s two offensive tackles – Taylor Moton and Chukwuma Okorafor – earned First-Team All-MAC and now start in the NFL for the Carolina Panthers and Pittsburgh Steelers, respectively.
With those skilled bookends providing peace of mind, Ciarrocca was able to overload the defensive secondary’s plate with five pass catchers, thus lessening double-team opportunities against his stud WR. Even when leveling up against a Power 5 defense like Wisconsin, Ciarrocca left his five offensive linemen on their own 40 percent of the time (14 of 35 dropbacks) which allowed Corey Davis to do things like this:
On paper, this should be James Franklin’s best offensive line at Penn State. Assuming the transition into the new offense (and the tutelage of new OL coach Phil Trautwein) is smooth, expect Ciarrocca’s play calling and protections to skew more toward his Western Michigan days.
RANDOM FAST TEMPO
Just like at Minnesota, Ciarrocca’s Western Michigan offense played with a deliberate tempo. Lots of check-with-me at the line of scrimmage. HOWEVER, Ciarrocca did occasionally press the gas and speed up the pace. What’s cool about this change of tempo is its randomness. There appears to be no pattern to it, which catches the defense completely off guard. Joe Moorhead often went quick after the first first down of a drive. Ciarrocca just did it whenever. Here’s random 3rd and 2 against Akron:
According to our watch, it only takes 11 seconds from the QB getting tackled to the snap of the next play – even though the formation is different! That’s pretty damn fast. Akron certainly thought so.
Twice against Akron, Ciarrocca’s sudden, unexpected shift caught the Zips D subbing which resulted in an illegal participation (12 men on the field) flag. This is the second of those plays. Western Michigan scored, anyway:
Against Wisconsin in the Cotton Bowl, Ciarrocca ramped up the tempo three times – twice on 2nd and 1 and once on 3rd and 3. All three pace adjustments resulted in first downs.
UNDER CENTER GOAL-TO-GO PACKAGE
Penn State fans – especially older Penn State fans – you might want take a deep breath before reading the next sentence. At Western Michigan Kirk Ciarrocca put the quarterback under center near the goal line! Sound the trumpets! In the two games we scouted, Ciarrocca flashed this I-Form HEAVY (6 OL) set twice – once against Akron, once against Wisconsin. Sorry for the spoiler, but both plays result in touchdowns.
Let’s count. (Mumbles to self 1…2…3) That’s 6 offensive linemen and a tight end up front, a defensive linemen – 311-pound Wesley French – at H-Back, a fullback and a tailback. Old school option play. The quarterback reads the Akron safety selling out on the pitch to 31-Jarvion Franklin, so he keeps the ball and follows the path cleared by the right guard for six. Thinking back to Clifford’s rushing touchdown against Michigan in 2019, he seems more than capable of pulling a play like this off.
Pretty much the same look except tight end Donnie Ernsberger is the H-back this time after being suspended for the Akron contest. Western Michigan quarterback Zach Terrell with the fake handoff as 38-Odell Miller cuts the end. Naked bootleg. Only problem is Miller’s cut road blocks the Wisconsin safety, who appears like he’ll be sucked up in the run fake if Miller isn’t in his way. That bit of luck gives the safety new life to make the tackle – especially since Terrell sold the fake for so long – but he doesn’t come close to making the play in space. Not a huge fan of this play, especially if subjecting Sean Clifford to less punishment was an off-season priority. But it’s a slick play call.
BIG GAME ADJUSTMENTS/SURPRISES
Mentioned this in Monday’s blog. Ciarrocca isn’t afraid to take some chances and dial-up up some sandlot stuff when he’s the clear underdog. Might not always work, or look pretty – like you’re about to see – but at least he freaking tries. And like it or not, Penn State will be an underdog Week 2 against Ohio State in the Witness-less Whiteout. So here’s hoping he pulls a rabbit-out-the-hat or corn-cob-out-the-husk when the Buckeyes come to town.
Here’s what Ciarrocca tried in the Cotton Bowl:
Western Michigan got screwed here. Refs flag 77-Okorafor – who is flexed to the slot but still ineligible – for a false start, and honestly, I don’t see it. No clue if this play works or not, but it would have been nice to find out.
Looks ugly, but this is a touchdown if Western Michigan doesn’t whiff on blocking 47 of Wisconsin.
FINAL NOTES
- In 2019, Minnesota’s tight ends caught 10 passes. In 2016, Western Michigan’s tight ends caught just 9 passes. Needless to say, Ciarrocca has never called plays for a big-body guy with elite ball skills like Pat Freiermuth before. Should be interesting to see the myriad of ways Ciarrocca plays this Ace in the deck (HINT: WATCH TOMORROW’S FILM STUDY!)
- Not really a note for this season concerning Penn State, but watching Western Michigan games showcased the rapid growth of Ciarrocca’s RPO game in four short years. In the two games we scouted for this blog entry, Ciarrocca’s RPO featured no vertical routes beyond the line of scrimmage – all bubble concepts like the first play of the Tempo section.
- Not a lot of TE Wing. More H-Back stuff with Western Michigan.
God Bless MAC Football.
Also, P.J. Fleck dressed up like a pirate for some reason during Akron week. I love how the entire team is taking notes, like some dude in a $14.99 Halloween Town, USA getup is spewing valuable wisdom worthy of jotting down. Hey P.J., pirates are cool, but they aren’t oversized-shoes-and-alligator-hat-while-holding-corn cool!
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