The wide zone system in the college game

The Shanahan style of offense is better known for its use at the NFL level but it's becoming a more popular choice in college.

One of the most popular offensive systems right now in the NFL is the wide zone-based offense, the system of choice for prominent coaches Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay.

It was papa Shanahan (Mike) who originally popularized the offense along with his legendary wide zone offensive line coach Alex Gibbs. Together they incorporated two defining features which are major credits to the system to this day.

• Undersized offensive linemen chosen for quickness and scrappiness over sheer size.

• Defined reads for the running back which have repeatedly had the effect of allowing wide zone teams to seemingly pick up guys off the street and have them go for over 1,000 rushing yards.

Kyle Shanahan (Mike’s son, if you didn’t know) and McVay have had to expand the system as NFL defenses have worked out how to frustrate offenses overly dependent upon a single run scheme, but the interesting question has always been why more college programs didn’t utilize the system more? Isn’t a system that turns anonymous running backs into stars and works without recruiting rare specimens along the offensive line the ideal college system?

Well, that’s starting to change with a few programs taking up the mantle. It makes considerable sense for the college level for any programs committed enough to make it work. Today we’re going to describe the system and why it can build a winner.