Analyzing Walt Bell’s Offense

Ever since DJ Durkin was hired to become the head football coach at the University of Maryland, the question at the front of all fans’ minds was who he would tab as his offensive coordinator. Athletic director Kevin Anderson had stated his wish to have an exciting, wide-open offense at the very beginning of the University’s coaching search, and they will certainly have one next season. Walt Bell is one of the brightest young offensive minds in the country, and he is the new offensive coordinator for the Maryland Terrapins. Let’s take a look at what he brings to the table.

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Walt Bell

Position: Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Coach – Maryland
Resume: Assistant Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Coach – Arkansas State (2014-2015)
Recruiting Coordinator/Tight Ends Coach – North Carolina (2012-2013)
Wide Receivers Coach – Southern Mississippi (2011)
Graduate Assistant – Southern Mississippi (2010)
Offensive Quality Control Coach – Oklahoma State (2009)
Graduate Assistant – Memphis (2007-2008)
Graduate Assistant – Louisiana-Lafayette (2006)
Playing Career: Wide Receiver – Middle Tennessee State

At just 31-years old, Bell is one of the most dynamic young offensive minds in college football. His offenses move very quickly, and feature some of the most innovative play-calling in the country. Under his leadership, Arkansas State currently boasts the 14th-highest scoring offense in the nation, and is averaging 40 points per game. In his first season with the Red Wolves, his offense broke five school records, and was the 18th-best scoring offense in the country. His offensive scheme will be broken down below.

In addition to being an excellent offensive play-caller and coach, Bell is also an accomplished recruiter. He served as North Carolina’s recruiting coordinator for two seasons, tapping into the fertile recruiting ground surrounding Chapel Hill. During those two years, he helped to recruit five different 4-star recruits to North Carolina, while also coaching current NFL tight end Eric Ebron.

The Offense

Bell’s offense can be clearly classified as an up-tempo spread scheme which puts a strong emphasis on the running game. His goal is to spread opposing defenses out with 3-4 wide receivers and run the ball right at them. He doesn’t use multiple tight ends or fullbacks, and his quarterbacks never go under center. He utilizes a diverse screen game, and will also take shots down the field. His quarterbacks tend to be involved in the running game, but they don’t have to be to have success.

2015 Arkansas State Red Wolves: 62% Run Plays, 38% Pass Plays
2014 Arkansas State Red Wolves: 56% Run Plays, 44% Pass Plays

As you can tell from these splits, Bell is committed to running the football. This season, his offense has three different running backs with over 600 rushing yards each, and 28 touchdowns between them. His quarterback has over 400 rushing yards and 5 touchdowns. His quarterback wasn’t fully healthy this season, but in 2014, he passed for over 3,200 yards with 24 touchdowns and just 7 interceptions. He also ran for nearly 800 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Personnel and Formations

Bell’s base personnel is 11 personnel (1 RB, 1 TE), and he will use his tight end on the line of scrimmage, in the wing, and split wide. The versatility of his tight ends allows him to move very quickly and feature a multitude of formations. He will also use 20 personnel (2 RB, 0 TE), and likes to use motion in the backfield to confuse the defense. Finally, he will use 21 personnel (2 RB, 1 TE), but will sometimes simply move his slot receiver into the backfield to create this look.

This offense features both pistol and shotgun formations, but operates out of the shotgun the majority of the time. The only pistol formation that Bell uses is one out of 11 personnel, with the tight end either on the line of scrimmage or in the wing. Motion and tempo are prevalent in this offense, and misdirection is used in a number of different ways to keep opposing defenses on their toes.

The most versatile personnel is obviously 11 personnel, and Bell will operate out of it the majority of the time. He will use 1×3 and 2×2 looks, with the tight end moving around the most of any player. He will also occasionally motion his running back out of the backfield to stretch the defense even more.

Base Plays

Let’s take a look at a few of the base plays that Bell’s offense is built upon, keeping in mind that these are run at a very fast tempo.

Inside/Outside Zone Runs

Like most offenses today, Bell’s offense is built on a zone running scheme. This zone scheme is very easy to teach an offensive line to execute, and typically uses smaller, more athletic offensive linemen (especially guards and centers.)

He will also combine these runs with read concepts for his quarterback, where he will read the backside defensive end/outside linebacker. However, not all of his runs feature this read, as he wants his running backs carrying the ball most of the time.

Below is an example of an inside zone run:

Below is an example of an outside zone run:

Bell will use a balanced number of these inside and outside zone runs, though he leans slightly towards calling more runs between the tackles. As with all of his running plays, his wide receivers must be able to block.

Power/Trap Runs

In addition to the basic zone runs, Bell will also use power and trap runs by pulling his guards and leading the way for his running backs. He does this as more of a change-of-pace, and will only run a few of these plays each game.

Below is an example of a power run (notice the backside guard pulling):

Below is an example of a trap run (notice the playside guard pulling):

One of his favorite plays to run is the inverted veer, which is a version of the power run. It includes a read option for the quarterback, but is designed to get the ball to a speedy running back on the edge. However, if a defense is keying on that read, the quarterback has the option to pull the ball and follow the pulling guard.

Below is an example of an inverted veer:

Screen Passes

In addition to the diverse running game that Bell features in his offense, he also boasts a variety of screen passes. Most of these passes play directly off of his running plays, making it difficult for the defense to guess what play is coming next. He also features a number of packaged plays, which give the quarterback an option to either hand the ball off or throw a screen pass on the back end.

Here is an example of a tunnel screen:

Here is an example of a flanker screen (notice this is a packaged play):

Below is an example of a swing screen to the slot receiver (notice the orbit motion):

 

Below is an example of a running back slip screen (notice the orbit motion to create confusion):

Play-Action Passes

Most of Bell’s passing concepts include play-action off of one of his running plays. He will sometimes pull a guard to play off of one of his inverted veer plays or sometimes he will simply play off of one of his zone runs.

Below is an example of a play-action rollout pass (off of an outside zone run):

Below is an example of a play-action pass off of an inverted veer (notice the pulling guard):