No-huddle can offset NCAA change

[NewsCopy]

LITTLE ROCK - Considering the fallout, the NCAA move to speed up college football must be the brainchild of defensive coaches. With the new rules reducing the time the ball is in play by five minutes or so, teams will run fewer plays, maybe 10 or so per game. Can less total offense be far behind? Last year, Arkansas averaged 5.2 yards per play. If the Razorbacks had run 10 fewer plays per game, it would follow that their offense would decline by 52 yards per game. Georgia was the best in the Southeastern Conference in 2005, averaging 6.2 yards per play, and Auburn was next at 6.0. Shortening the game could affect the passing yardage even more than the rushing figures. For instance, a year ago, Georgia and LSU averaged more than 8 yards per pass play and four other league teams topped 7 yards per try. Arkansas was next to last in the SEC, averaging 5.6 yards per pass attempt. The trickle down also could be reflected in individual stats. Arkansas running back Darren McFadden averaged 6.3 yards per rush last year on his way to a freshman record 1,113 yards. If he had one less carry per game, his average would have been 95 yards per game instead of 101.2. Knowing that, will the Arkansas staff go out of its way to make certain that McFadden gets a specific number of carries per game? If so, does somebody else get squeezed? Teams could maintain their plays per game if only there was a way to circumvent those time-wasting 65 or 70 offensive meetings a few yards from the line of the scrimmage. You know the ones where the player with a low number on his jersey tells his teammates what play has been called by coaches on the sideline. The rest of the story By Harry King

[Turbine]

I wonder if UL has a small advantage here since we have been in the no huddle for 4 years.