NW's Pat Fitzgerald rants: "RPO is the purest form of communism"
Pat Fitzgerald, at his Tuesday press conference, blasted run-pass options as, well, Communist Football. "Yeah, it's communism. RPO is the purest form of communism," he said when asked about the concept. He continued:
I don't understand how offensive linemen can be downfield...it used to be when you and I played, when you tripped and fell down, it was an illegal man downfield. Now, if you're just an uncovered lineman, and you go 2.3 yards, it's not a penalty, but if you go 3, it is, and nobody can see it until after the ball is thrown.
So, again, it's the rules, you can complain all you want. If I want to get it fixed, I guess I can beg to get on the Rules Committee. But it's the most en vogue change, I think, in football, that if you're a purist of football, it's not the game. It's not.
I mean, people downfield blocking, and the ball being thrown, should be illegal. But, as a defensive head coach, with defense in my background, we will absolutely 100% take full advantage within the frameworks of the rules that are given to us. So, RPO forever."
Video below:
"RPO is the purest form of communism."
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) September 11, 2018
You can't watch football without hearing "RPO" these days, and @coachfitz51 has some strong thoughts on the Run-Pass Option: pic.twitter.com/isVYvkPCvr
So, Jim Harbaugh is officially a practitioner of Communist Football! Welcome to the revolution, Comrade!
September 11th, 2018 at 5:31 PM ^
Communists can be isolationist too.
September 11th, 2018 at 6:31 PM ^
True, but in this case the QB has absolute power to decide which position to attack.
September 11th, 2018 at 6:00 PM ^
For real, though, couldn't michigan benefit from more RPOs? Since we know our OL can run block much better wouldn't it make sense to leverage this area where you can get away with run blocking on a pass to an extent?
September 11th, 2018 at 6:35 PM ^
Exihibit B of a dork trying to be cool, and people just kinda looking at him and saying, huh?
Exihibit A of course was Fitzgerald jumping up and down on the Michigan sideline a few years ago attempting to be cool.
September 11th, 2018 at 7:41 PM ^
I can't wait to heat pat once someone tells him that the forward pass is now legal in football!
September 11th, 2018 at 8:19 PM ^
Isn't A-11 the "purest form of communism?" ALL players are eligible to catch and run the football in that scheme.
Of course, A-11 was banned. The quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers of the world (like Napoleon) did not support a world where offensive linemen (like Boxer) are equals. Boxer is just there to do the hard work for Napoleon (and then get blamed if the team loses).
September 11th, 2018 at 9:00 PM ^
My only issue with this is that people still don't get called even for being 3 yards downfield. But I absolutely agree otherwise. I also have no problem with describing it as communism (usually the millenials like me are told to lighten up Francis/Sally/snowflake so it feels like a role reversal...)
September 11th, 2018 at 9:02 PM ^
with modern technology, it is very easy to enforce. video tracking software should be able to analyze the positions of linemen in real-time and flag violations for official to review.
September 11th, 2018 at 11:37 PM ^
The proper defensive response is to mug the recievers. Sparty style only more aggressive. If they won’t call pick plays or ineligible that’s what I’d do. Right from play one just be rude on anyone eligibile and dare those refs to actually call it on every play. We already know they won’t. Same with holding. Watch teams like OSU & Clemson start a game. They push the threshold for a holding call back from play 1.
September 11th, 2018 at 11:50 PM ^
BTW. When is someone going to defeat the pick play with aggression? Tell the DB to go right thru that cheating fuckers earhole at full speed because you have as much right to that piece of ground as him, and you’re not breaking a rule since you’re in coverage on a WR. Take about 1/4 of a game doing that and while you will get burned for a TD or 2. Their whole game plan will be scrap. They won’t have the starting WRs and the rest will get shy.
September 12th, 2018 at 10:56 AM ^
Because once you're past the area where press is legal, the DB has to wait until the ball is in the air, get his head around, adjust his position to hide his limbs from the ref, apply for liability insurance, recite the Gettysburg Address, plant flowers on the 50-yard line and be elected Senator before he can hit the damn receiver.
That's why offenses run the pick. Because WRs have impunity (not like OPI gets called) and DBs resort to turning contact into an art form.
I mean, DBs already run full speed into WRs and get called for PI, which is why these days QBs will often deliberately leave a deep pass short. WR slows down, DB runs into him, pass interference, free first down on a bad throw.
September 12th, 2018 at 12:00 AM ^
Pat Fitzgerald is dumb.
September 12th, 2018 at 12:06 AM ^
No team has ever tried to run the real RPO.
September 12th, 2018 at 12:14 PM ^
Hasn't NW been running the anti-manball spreadiest of spreads for years? Pat may want to check for overt leftism in his own house.
September 12th, 2018 at 12:20 PM ^
And isn't the B1G communism embodied? Take bowl money from those who earn it and give equally to all regardless of merit? Delaney is a Commie.
September 12th, 2018 at 2:11 PM ^
Capitalism is Communism if you go full circle.
September 13th, 2018 at 11:35 PM ^
I grew up under communism, and I can tell ya it would have been a lot more popular if it had featured more Denard Robinsons and less Lavrentij Berias.