Originally Posted by
Herd
If by 5 yard hitch you mean . . . the center screen pass where DJ chips on the on coming rusher and then slips out (2 times successfully vs. MN)? The bison seem to protect that play deep in the vault, and only pull it out on very specially occaisions. We killed Robert Morris and MN with it, but it is used sparingly.
I think NDSU doesn't want teams to see a clear tendency of runnng that screen play too often, that's the only thing that makes sence to me. Duing the first two games of the year before MN, I could not believe that they had not run that center screen, so I think the coaches try to keep it in the vault, to keep the element of surprise. Watching film on NDSU, its easy to see how much success that play has generated, and the bison don't want teams to see it on film multiple times per game.
Great question, I have asked myself that question multiple times this year. DJ is very skilled catching it underneath and making big thing happen in 1-on-1 situations, where he usually wins.