Stoops not committed to an "Air Raid" offense

By: LARRY VAUGHT

LEXINGTON — Mark Stoops is not ready to say he’s fully committed to an Air Raid offense and doesn’t want to label new offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson that way.

However, the Kentucky head coach did think it was important to stick with an offense similar to what Neal Brown put together for two years at UK before leaving to become the head coach at Troy University after UK’s season ended.

Dawson has been the offensive coordinator at West Virginia and once even worked under former UK coach Hal Mumme, the man who brought the original Air Raid offense to UK. But Dawson, like Brown, also believes in a strong running game as does Stoops.

“Obviously it was important for me to keep that continuity, but I think you hear me use the word evolve an awful lot, as well. So we're constantly trying to get better and put our players in a position to be successful in all phases,” said Stoops. “But it is true; it's the same system, however you want to define it.

“There's things that draw me back to it. A lot of it has to do with attitude. I think a lot of these guys from this tree going back to coach Mumme, coach (Mike) Leach and all the people that have been under them and part of that tree since then, they have a great confidence about them that I like, that they need to bring to our offensive team and to our whole football team.

“And then it has to do with defending some things within the offense. When they're really rolling and doing things right, the offense is very difficult to defend. I think as you see different people through this tree take it and tweak it in different ways and use their little change‑ups, if you will, and there's some guys that have evolved in the run game that I like, that I think you have to have some balance. The bottom line is I believe to compete in this conference you have to be physical. You have to have some balance.”

Stoops also said UK could never have a “great defense” unless it practices against some physicality daily. He said it was important to have a coordinator who wanted to run the football.

“I think we need to be unique. I think we need to have some nuances and some creativity to move the football for where we're at, but I also think it comes down to some basic principles of football that you have to have, and that's what I love about Shannon,” Stoops said of the way West Virginia ran the ball with power but all threw the “heck out ot it” at the same time.

“What I like about this style and some of these guys, is there's some simplicity about it. It looks very complex at times, but I think simplicity is very important and continuity is very important as you're dealing with college kids and where we're at,” Stoops said. “I think Neal and the offensive staff have done a great job these first two years, and I really didn't want to take a step back and have an offensive coordinator come in and teach four (UK offensive assistant) coaches a complete new system and an entire offense.”

Stoops liked Dawson’s leadership more than anything when he was searching for his new coordinator.

“I'm sure one of the things that appealed to him about coming here was working for a defensive coach because, sink or swim, here's the keys, you do it. Sink or swim. That's what it was like when I went to Florida State, and I wanted it that way. It was either get it done or get fired, and that's what my situation was going to be,” Stoops said.

“I think that's important for guys that are on the rise, guys that want to make a name for themselves and become a head coach someday, so I think with Shannon, it goes down to all the experience he had, with the leadership. Other things I really liked about him was I felt like he's always done more with less. I like the way he's worked his way up the profession. I like the way he grinded from a young coach and really made a name for himself, working with Hal Mumme, the roots of his system. If he didn't evolve, I wouldn't have been talking to him about coming and leading our offense.”

Stoops said successful coaches realize they don’t have all the answers and search for ways to improve like Dawson has in his career.

“I just like the way he grew up through the system and really made a name for himself at small colleges and been successful all the way back with Hal and then went on his own to go to Millsaps and lead that offense, and he really led a great turnaround there. Again, it was sink or swim for him there, at a small college. The same deal, he went and ran it, changed the offense,” Stoops said. “Goes to Stephen F. Austin, they were not very successful offensively the year before he got there. He goes there, and by the time he leaves they were very successful and put themselves in a position to win some championships.”

While he was the offensive coordinator at West Virginia, Dawson didn’t call plays. Head coach Dana Holgorsen did that.

“There's no mystery that Dana is a great offensive mind and a great coach, and that's what I like about it. Shannon was so close to Dana and been with him not only these four years at West Virginia but their history goes back some time,” Stoops said. “I have no worries about him putting it together and calling plays.

“I'm very close with (WVU quarterback) Clint Trickett, as well. As you know, I worked with his father at Florida State and Clint was at Florida State when I was there, and Clint is like a coach. He's going to be a coach, and he's a guy that grew up in the business, and I had conversations with Clint, as well. He was injured down the stretch (at WVU), and he's on the headsets during games, and he's also in the meetings when Shannon is coming in and addressing the team and things like that. I have complete confidence in the way he'll lead the team and the way he'll call plays.”