Coachesclinic.com Featured Matchup: Davidson College vs Presbyterian

• By Caleb Hopkins

After a close game in March, the Presbyterian College Blue Hose face-off against the Davidson College Wildcats once again. Kevin Kelley, the coach that never punts, clashes with Scott Abell, the triple option perfectionist.

Presbyterian College Blue Hose

Presbyterian College is in its first season as an FCS team, manned by Kevin Kelley, the 9x state champion head coach of Pulaski Academy also known as “the coach who never punts.” In their first game, Presbyterian QB Ryan Hefley threw for 10 touchdowns using a combination of empty and quad formations with play-action screens and vertical combinations. 

Going into Davidson week, Presbyterian is the #1 Passing Team in all of college football averaging 461 yards per game. They also are the #4 scoring team in the FCS at 45.0 points per game.

Kelley is a great example of a small program coach coming who is breaking the constraints of play calling.

Imagine a team that:

- Always goes for two

- Does not punt

- Never fields a punt

- Always executes an onside kick

When asked about his special team’s philosophy, Kelley said. “... since 2001, over 48% of NFL teams have converted a 2 point conversion, surpassing the point total of the 94% that just executed a 1 point PAT.” 

Following analytics has been a recent trend in football, with more and more teams going for 2 and converting, like the Baltimore Ravens and the University of Mississippi.

Kelley gives you his favorite 2 point play, the Sprint-Out by a single receiver out of a 4x1 formation, spreading the defense out and making the opponent make split-second decisions.

UNSTOPPABLE: Coach Kelley`s 2pt Plays

As an FCS school, Presybertian does not have the overall size most coaches think of when they hear “college athletes,” but that is not going to stop Coach Kelley and his team in any way, shape, or form. 

Kelley coaches in an unorthodox manner, putting his ENTIRE OFFENSE in 2 point stances, providing better vision to recognize stunts and find the middle linebackers more efficiently. Kelley also preaches that 2-foot splits spread out the defense, giving the QB clearer pre-snap reads while prematurely opening up the running lanes.

Check out his easy passing concept out of quads, but instead of just one route combination, he gives you FIVE for your playbook.

Attacking defenses with the Quads formation

Get Coach Kelley’s full bundle on unconventional plays, techniques, and philosophies that will make your program UNSTOPPABLE here Coach Kevin Kelley’s Complete Unstoppable Series 

His passing game bundle is available here #1 Passing Offense in America.

Davidson Wildcats

Head coach Scott Abell and the Davidson Wildcats have been crushing the Pioneer league, earning their first conference title and playoff berth in 52 seasons. Abell comes at you aggressively, using a balanced attack of pass and run plays, an offense which ranked 2nd in rushing, and a defense that ranked 4th last season.

Currently, the Wildcat rushing attack sits at #4 in the FCS at 287 yards per game.

But will the unorthodox coaching style of Kevin Kelley be too much for Abell and the Wildcats to stop?

Not a chance.

Coach Abell has his quarterback in the shotgun, giving him better vision pre-snap, already giving the offense the advantage. He needs his team to be great at their primary concepts, and dynamic in their secondary concepts.

Abell shows you a few formations his team uses, giving them the advantage in the triple option game. 

Coach Abell notes, “You don’t have to practice 500 formations in practice, a 3x1 is a 3x1 formation.”

Here is his simple coaching with PHENOMENAL RESULTS

Creating a Dynamic Gun Option

Scott Abell knows he’s going to have to create some confusion, and his stats show just that. Since begging to coach in 2010, just implementing the triple-option concept, Abell was in the top 6 in rushing yards at any FCS program. Over a 49 game stretch, Abell was 42-7 as a head coach, absolutely dominating opponents. 

Here’s his base triple-option lined up against an odd front. Given on the first read, the running back split the safeties coming up to fill the QB run, breaking away for a 60-yard score.

Building Base Triple Run Game With Shotgun

Coach Kelley’s no punt philosophy was mentioned in TIME magazine’s best inventions in 2009. He was also named to Sports Illustrated’s Most Intriguing College Coaches of 2021.