On The Sidelines: An Interview With OC Lee Hays
8/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 9, 2007
Editor's Note: Leading up to Baylor's Sept. 1 opener at TCU, baylorbears.com will be interviewing each of the Bears' assistant football coaches for insight into the position that they coach and the prospects for the 2007 season.
The architect of West Texas A&M's high-octane spread offenses from 2003-05, Lee Hays enters his second season as Baylor's offensive coordinator and first as quarterbacks coach.
In Hays' first season at Baylor, the Bears' offense averaged 23.6 points per game, its highest mark since 1996 (24.2 ppg), and 315.2 yards per contest. The spread attack also allowed Baylor to break nearly every school game and season passing record, as the 2006 Bears ranked third in the Big 12 and 11th nationally in passing yards per game (275.0 ypg). Prior to joining the Baylor staff, Hays worked at West Texas A&M (2003-05, 1999) and Texas A&M-Kingsville (2000-02, 1997-98).
The Del Rio, Texas, native recently sat down with baylorbears.com to discuss the Bears' 2007 offensive fortunes:
Overall, how is the offense coming along?
Hays: "Good. The quarterbacks are shaping up nicely. I'd like to see a few game-like situations and we'll start putting those into practice. You never know how they will perform until they get in the fire, but I think that as of right now they are doing a pretty good job.
"I think we are better than last year at every position (in the line). At receiver, I know that we lost two kids (Trent Shelton and Dominique Zeigler) who made a lot of plays for us, but as a whole the kids know the system a little bit better and they are playing a lot harder. The running backs have done a great job this fall so far and I'm excited to see them play on Saturday."
Have you seen improvement in Baylor's run game in practice?
Hays: "I think you are good at what you work on. I believe we are a little bit better up front. I'm not one to force an issue with a play that's not very good and I'll try to always call (the game) to our strengths. The guys up front are doing a lot better job with the back end and the backs have a lot to do with that, too, setting up blocks. Brandon (Whitaker) is kind of understanding how to set them up and get north and south instead of dancing.
"Finley (Jay) has shown some spots that tell you down the road he's going to be a good back. Jacoby (Jones) and Whit are the old guys, have the experience and it shows right now."
How will you determine who wins the Bears' starting quarterback job?
Hays:"Right now, that's kind of my toughest job because the quarterbacks that I have are such good kids and they all work hard. But, there can only be one (starter). Right now, it is a two-man race between Blake (Szymanksi) and Mike (Machen). We are going to let the stats speak for themselves and may the best man win."
So, you are charting every snap in practice?
Hays:"Every snap going back to the spring has been charted. I think that's the fairest way to do it. We don't have to decide (on a starter) in the next week. But pretty soon we'll start pulling reps because it's a rep-based system and the guy who is going to pull the trigger needs to get most of the reps and get him ready for TCU. That guy (the starter) has to know that I believe in him and that the offense believes in him so that we take a little stress off him. Everyone knows that he's going to have enough pressure as it is taking over for Shawn (Bell)."
Can you breakdown Blake and Michael's game for us?
Hays: "I love Blake (Szymanski). He's just a competitor, kind of feisty. He is a good athlete. Blake reminds me a lot of the young man we had at West Texas A&M (Dalton Bell) who's now playing for the Carolina Panthers. He was a guy that hadn't been in a system like this before and it took him some reps to grasp it. Right now, I'm excited about Blake. He's done a great job over the first five or six practices.
"Big Mike (Machen) is an older guy, more experienced who's been around a lot of systems. He's poised and confidant with a big arm---a pitcher's style arm.
"But, the guy I'm looking for (as a starter) is one who protects the football. He doesn't have to win it for us, but he can't lose it for us."
What about John David Weed?
Hays "John David (Weed) is probably sitting at three right now. But, it is going to be touch for anyone behind Blake or Mike right now because of the reps situation. We have to maximize the practice time that we do have and put the reps into the guys we think can do it."
How has Blake moved from third at the end of the spring to battling for the starting job?
Hays:"A little bit of it is that the light has come on for him with the reads and things like that. He's just been really poised and smooth. The thing I love about Blake is that he looked me in the eye after the spring and said, `I'm not out of it yet.' He's come in and battled ever since.
What do you have to do over the next three weeks to get better as a unit?
"Stay healthy and rep, rep, rep. It (the offense) has to be second nature. We have to throw and catch. We've got to eliminate some of the drops and make sure we are taking care of the football. Last year, the turnovers in the red zone (against TCU) killed us. We've to eliminate those so that we don't put our defense in a bad spot either. To me, the biggest thing right now is assignments and ball security.
"This offense is rep-based. When I say that, I mean the receivers catching it a 1,000 times, the quarterback throwing it a 1,000 times. People don't realize when you are completing a 5-yard ball its just like a 5-yard run. But, if you are going to control the football with short passes, you can not drop the football.
"The other thing about it is you can't turn it over. It's like the wishbone in that a lot of people touch the football--the four receivers, plus the running back and the quarterback in the spread, compared to three backs and the quarterback handling it in the wishbone. Option football has a high rate of fumbles, but it's not the interceptions which hurt us, it's the fumbles. We've been fortunate so far with our quarterbacks that they've protected the football. I think Shawn (Bell) did a great job last year and the guys I've had in the past have done a great job."
How have the new assistant coaches helped you?
Hays:" I really got lucky with the assistants that Guy Mo brought me. I'm kind of in heaven right now watching them work. It has taken a lot of the pressure off me. I've been able to sit back, script, worry about TCU and plan practices well. Out on the practice field the little things are being coached to the extreme and that's not an issue, so I can stay focused on our quarterbacks and the next play."
Have any of the freshmen caught your eye?
Hays: "I tell you what, the biggest need we had to fill was the offensive line, and we've got a couple of freshmen who are going to be huge for Baylor down the road. I'm really excited about those guys. Larry Bradley is going to be an animal. John Jones and Joe Korbel have done some great things. Joe is a walk-on, a young man that one of the other assistants was recruiting when they came here and we were able get him down here. I think he's going to be a big-time player down the road. The skill kids that came in, Krys Buerck has had a hamstring injury, so I can't say a lot about what he brings. But, I'm expecting him to be a really good one down the road. He's one of those receivers that just knows how to run routes and comes down with the football. I think he's going to be huge down the line."
Are you more comfortable in your second year at Baylor than last year?
Hays: "I am and I'm not. I just have one of those personalities where I'm always concerned about this issue or that issue. Since I've been a coach, it's always been something from one semester to the next. Now, it's getting the quarterback and trying to be healthy (out of fall camp). I always try to have a contingency plan for the next move. My biggest issue is right now is making sure that we make the right decision at quarterback."
On Deck: Larry Hoefer, Defensive Coordinator
