Clemson Football: Could the Tigers take a page out of ULM’s playbook?

Could Clemson football’s offense take a page out of Louisiana Monroe’s playbook? It’s not likely, but it may work in Tiger Town.

The biggest question for Clemson football this season, according to Tiger fans, is how Dabo Swinney and company will handle the quarterback situation.

There’s a faction of Tiger fans that want Kelly Bryant to be the starter. There’s also a faction that are ready for either Trevor Lawrence or Hunter Johnson to take over.

While many believe that Bryant will begin as the starter, most that I’ve talked to think that either Lawrence or Johnson will unseat Bryant before the year is over.

So, if that is the case, what would be the role for the senior quarterback? It is too late, in my opinion, for a position change.

Bryant is too explosive, though, to not get on the field in some way. That being said, I began to research two-quarterback systems, but more specifically two-quarterback formations.

That’s when I stumbled on film from Louisiana Monroe’s 2012 offense.

Two QBs on the field at one time?

Here’s a look at Louisiana Monroe running a two-quarterback offense to perfection against Baylor.

Now, I know it’s just Louisiana Monroe and they’re playing Baylor, who is not exactly known for being a defensive power.

That being said, I think there are some aspects of this offense that could work for the Tigers, especially with all the talent that Clemson football possesses at the QB position.

Do you see how the QB1 hands the ball off to the QB2 and then the QB2 has an option to either hit a man on a short pass over the middle or run the ball? Couldn’t you see Trevor Lawrence fitting into that QB1 role and Kelly Bryant into the QB2?

The QB2 basically runs the option with the opportunity to pass or run the ball depending on how the defense plays him. The QB1 runs the traditional quarterback role. Out of this, you can use play-action to set up the deep ball, you can run the read-option run with both quarterbacks and work in running backs.

It keeps the defense on their heels and makes the linebackers have to keep their eyes in the backfield, which leads to hesitation.

The one problem that I see, however, is the fact that this ULM offense doesn’t go fast enough. They are going no-huddle, but aren’t snapping the ball very quick because guys are reading signals and calling them out from the sidelines.

I will also point out that this isn’t something you could do full-time on offense. But I do believe this could be something that Clemson could incorporate into their offense to get the talent on the field.

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It may seem gimmicky, but it could work. At some point, though, the Tigers will have to make the decision on one quarterback. It will be interesting to see how things play out, but this could be a way that Clemson could include Kelly Bryant in the offense if he were to get beat out by one of the younger talents in the fall.