When things aren’t going according to plan, the best solution is
to address the problems, figure out a new course of action and move
forward
GILROY — When things aren’t going according to plan, the best solution is to address the problems, figure out a new course of action and move forward.
For the Gavilan football team, the problems it encountered last year on offense called for serious reassessment and led to head coach John Lango relinquishing the play-calling duties to quarterbacks coach Wally Funk.
“We had to solidify our coaching staff a little more,” Lango said. “I am now able to go back to working with the defense, which is my specialty.”
With the coaching staff in order, Lango and his crew next faced the challenge of improving an offense that averaged just more than 17 points per game while averaging 265 yards a contest.
“Last year we liked what we were doing, but we just weren’t diversified enough,” Lango said.
Lango and his staff went back to the drawing board for a redesign of its West Coast offense, adding a few wrinkles here and there to the basic formations that were already in place. What was developed wasn’t so much an overhaul, but a tweaking of sorts to allow for more versatility in the system.
“We know we were 3-7, but six of those games we lost were by seven or less,” Lango said. “We improved each game, now we are looking to get over that hump.”
The Rams added depth to many key offensive positions and will use a platoon of seven running backs this year, as opposed to three in 2008.
“We have a lot of guys that have different running styles, and that was what we were looking for coming out of last year and into this year,” Lango said.
Clearing the way up front is a bulky offensive line, including a legitimate Division I college recruit in Wade Jacobsen. The 6-foot-6, 310-pound lineman has already been scouted by San Jose State and North Carolina, Lango said.
Joining Jacobsen up front at the other tackle position is 6-foot-5, 275-pound Jeff Grattan. Having experience at the tackle positions, Lango said, is key to his team accomplishing its goal of scoring 24 points per game.
Coming off of a season when it forced 18 turnovers, the Rams defense is expected to pick up where it left off last season. The defense surrendered a shade less than 20 points per game.
“We just need to make sure we don’t mess anything up,” Lango said. “We have to continue to do the things we did last year, which was create turnovers for our offense.”
A Week 1 bye gives the Rams a few extra days to fine-tune what they have been working on during the summer. They open the season Sept. 12 in Sacramento against American River College.
