To answer Searider's question:
The option you probably ran in the 1980"s (and I coached) would have the QB under Center and sliding down the LOS while meshing with a dive back and reading defensive reactions. This dates back to the Split T offense of the 1940's, while the true Triple Option dates to the mid 1960's (I researched this for an article I wrote about 10 years ago).
Georgia Tech and Navy still run this version of the option and the theory behind it is sound.
Wishbone, Flexbone, Slot I, Veer, I Bone, and several other backfield sets were all adjusted to run some type of option. The requirements for either is an aggressive runner at the QB position, who has some ability to throw.
The contemporary Zone Reads, and there are now several versions of this now, have the QB meshing with the Dive back 4-5 yards removed from the LOS. This can be from an offset position, or from the centrally located Pistol set. The Dive back is not required to hit a very specific point on the LOS, like they are with the QB under Center. He aims for the Guard's inside leg, but once he has the ball, he has the opportunity to find the soft spot. The QB can shuffle with the Dive back on his ride to prolong the read and force the defense to commit.
The Dive back starts out further away from the LOS and the blocks have to be maintained longer. The trade off is this makes the read much easier for the QB to execute, as the Read man is isolated with space between him and the mesh, and it is harder for him to force the quick double read that gave us problems with the Veer. This is also being tied in with the bubble screen (we used to veer pop pass in a similar way), and a seam pass to keep the run support defender on the edge in reaction conflict. With the QB off of the LOS this also becomes much easier to execute.
There are teams that will motion a man into a pitch back position. In this case, the defense needs 13 men to defend the play. With the current rules favoring the offense as it is, I don't think that the rules committee will make this legal. LOL.
