I am sure some will see the thread title and instantly jump for something to complain about, but those people are sad people and aren't quite emotionally or mentally balanced. I say this because there will be a complaint about "not being happy with a win", but the truth is that I am really pleased with this win. Overall, there were only a few grimaces and grumbles, nothing to wet the bed over, but I'm sure that the staff will be barking about more than what I saw.
OFFENSE
The Good...
99 yards of hell
The tone was set by the 1st play. McElroy used a hard count and jumped the defense. It got them out of the hole and then the march was on. Ingram ran about 5 or 6 times straight, and got them in working room for a 3rd and long and Upchurch made a move or two on the swing pass that got them the 1st. After that you could see Arkansas defense have that "here we go again" feel to it. Hanks made a big catch and got the PI call later. After the end of the 3rd, it was pretty much textbook material for this team- mix in a few runs, get a play from the players, and on the 1 it is Cody time. Should I confess that I get a guilty pleasure in watching guys run away from Cody? I do.
2nd half perfection
The more McElroy plays, the more I wonder why the hell Wilson did. McElroy is so good at getting into a groove and when he does, the offense hits its strides. I thought the 1st quarter was choppy because of the drops, more on that to come, but once the players started hanging on to the ball, it gave Greg that drumbeat and the rest was downhill from there. There really haven't been that many bad throws from him thus far. He had 1 that should have been picked but he got away with it. The rest were drops and just miss fires. Just think, against UF last year, down and needing to throw, what if it is McElroy in the shotgun, would the world be a little different this morning?
Trent gets it done on his own
Richardson continues to build his folk lore with the campus and fans, and Saturday's will run will only add to it. The key to that play was when it happened. Bama was struggling to run the ball, and did after the run too, and his refusal to go down and shrugging off about 6 tackles was nothing short of amazing. I know CBS said 4, but there was a guy who wiffed and the guy in the endzone got hands on shoulder, so it counts to me. The thing Richardson continues to do that will keep him in good favor with the staff and frustrate defenses is that you don't get a clean shot on him very often. Richardson was well coached in high school about making the target small and when he sees the tackler coming, he gets his pads down and the defender gets the worst of it because all they get are helmet, pads and knees. By getting low, this also allows him to get more leverage and leg drive, and that results in the fan favorite of him carrying the pile.
Nice to see them again
Julio and Upchurch both made their return and both made big plays. Jones of course had the 50 yard TD catch on the wildcat, more on that to come, and Upchurch made a key 3rd down conversion on a screen. The offense really seems to get a boost when Roy comes in and makes a hit. I guess they feed off his energy, which is also what gets him hurt so much, but they need him in there as much as possible because good things happen when he plays.
The Wildcat finally strikes
The thing about the wildcat is that it needs really 3 things. It needs a running back who can take the direct snap, and pass occasionally, a quarterback who can do more than just stand out on the far end and smile, and a third player who can take a direct hand off and play the option with it. Saturday, they mixed in a little of all that. It was a nice option because Arkansas brought about 10 up in the box before the snap, signalling they had watched the film and read run, but the staff threw in the new wrinkle (FINALLY!!!!) and had a reverse to McElroy and sent Jones on a deep slant and the rest is pay dirt. If they do things like this with it, they might be able to run from it eventually.
Making the big plays instead of the "big play offense"
If you had said, one team would make 3 or 4 big plays and another would only make 1 or 2 big plays, I would have said the 3-4 was probably Arkansas after watching them rip UGA apart. Arkansas defense is pretty well 6 feet deep and just waiting for the dirt to be shoveled in right now. The worst job in the SEC today is the ARK DC job because you know he's out, there's no way they can be able to compete in the West giving up 30+ a week. However, you have to be able to make those plays, and Bama certainly did as McElroy and Co had probably their best day through the air.
The Bad...
The 1st series of the 3rd quarter
Hint, you will see this twice. It had a certain 2008 feeling, like the ones we saw against Ole Miss and Kentucky, where they had a lead and felt good about it. The good news is that they snapped out of it quick and lumped on 21 points almost at will in the 2nd half.
Getting Julio in the game to be "Julio"
I doubt Julio is complaining about the lack of touches or looks, and yes the team is getting 400+ yards a game with him getting what he's gotten, but the road ahead says he needs to become the guy again. I know that part of it is the change in QBs. Wilson was more apt to lean on Julio and throw to him no matter what. Greg seems more content to check down and throw short or away from Julio because that is his comfort level. The whole decoy or whatever you want to label it as thing is nice, but at some point teams aren't going to get sucked into putting 3 guys on Julio's shadow assignment and they will have better talent to cover the other 4 options. Florida comes to mind. I can't say it is just play calling because only the OC, QB, and Julio can answer that, but at some point this year, they really need to showcase him and make teams aware that Julio is still the guy who can beat any team in America when he gets 7+ touches. I am a little confused that they can spend time with gadgets where 3 tight ends go in motion, and that play looked like crap before the false start btw, or the Wildcat, but you can't get plays to your top offensive weapon?
The Ugly...
None.
DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS
The Good...
Making the statement
I will be the first to admit that I either overbought on the Arkansas offense or underbought on the Bama defense. I like being wrong in either case because they pretty well made Arkansas play on its back foot for all but 2 minutes and 17 seconds. They did what I thought they would- disguise blitzes, get more combos in their front 4 to get more pressure, play a lot of zone and keep the bubbles small, etc.- but I didn't think they could choke out the Petrino offense. They did, and it was nice to watch in action.
Stepping up for the fallen
Once upon a time, if Hightower or a guy like him went down, the team wouldn't have responded well. Reamer came in and did a bang up job on short notice. He isn't the ideal ILB, but he can do a lot of things that will help because he's smart, has good speed for a LB, and tackles well. The biggest change will be how much gap he's asked to cover because he give up a lot more weight than Donta. I look for the defense to do more of what they did after the injury. They let Reamer rush the blind side some, play a lot more space over the middle and let the 4 down cover that gap more.
Keeping the plays down to a minimum
Arkansas is a team that lives on the big plays. They had 9 plays over 10 yards, 2 on the scoring drive, and that was way down from the UGA game. Credit the defense and staff for seeing the game plan early and implementing the counter plan. Mallett is a good QB, and probably is the best passer in the conference (I can sense a crying from someone already), but is very slow and at 6-7 is a easy target. UGA failed to dust him enough, Bama hit him enough that he was hurried about all day.
Getting the 1st out of the way.
It was the end of the day for Mallett when the pick happened and it was nice that it was Bama that got the pick and the 1st for him this year. It was also good because Bama had not generated a lot of turnovers this year and has lived on withdrawals from what it had last year.
Anders
Big tip of the hat to Eryk for his play. We all know he can rush the QB. That's his thing primarily. However, when he moved to Sam, he did have to play some coverage and he did very well at it.
Keeping the ARK in the chest
We all learned in the 80s, you don't open the ARK, just don't. Tying into football, keeping ARK 3rd and long most of the day, at one point it was an average of 15 yards, was a good recipe for victory. The game ended with them converting only 2 out of the 14 they had and 1 out of 3 4th downs.
Kudos to Lionel Washington
Someone needs to give him a scholarship. Geez, you'd think someone in the truck would say "Hey Verne, it's Earnest, can ya say the damn name right you figure skater lovin sumbitch". Lionel did well on the punt block and it is something to teach young players on the punt block, when you see the protector go inside, you go out and keep going full speed until the ball is away.
The Bad...
The first series of the 3rd quarter
Told ya you'd see it again. It too had that last year feeling. Everything was tight, playing off the WR a lot and keeping everything in front of the defender. It was the exact opposite of the first 2 quarters where they played shut out ball. The end was the only 7 points and it was the end of the softness because the defense went back to what it had done prior to the series.
Mental farts
It has been a while since this crept up, but it did Saturday. Arkansas was making their fair share, but Bama was helping out too. Especially on special teams.....*&^&^%^&%&^%&&)**&*(%%^$^%%T^(^&(&()*&)(*&*&%%^$&%& of a mother's )(*()^&^%&%^*&**(^&^%.... ok, got that out of the way. 3 penalties on special teams is 2 too many. I will say that Reamer's 1st didn't look like much of a penalty, but it was called. I'm semi-ok with Dre hitting the returnman, even if it was a little early, but you can't give teams easy yards and you can't give them away either.
The Ugly...
Fan knowledge
Probably gonna get a nasty gram, but you'd thought Arkansas had gone Tonya Harding on Donta Hightower to read this site and others. I am guessing either a) not many played as much as they claim or b) none played linebacker. Most who did can tell you that you get cut out at least 2 or 3 times a game and the injury to Hightower wasn't dirty. It is just football. You get hit, it hurts like hell sometimes, and there are injuries. You play, you know that's part of it. Yes, Arkansas got caught clipping, but that doesn't make them dirty. Bama was called for clipping earlier in the year, are they dirty? They also cut block, does that mean the staff teaches dirty football???? No. The other thing that was sad was that while mourning the loss of DH, the glee some got from seeing Tebow get nailed. My feeling is that if Arkansas fans were dancing around over DH's injury, this board would have been ready to mount up and charge west. Class gets tossed around these sites way too much for a bunch of folks that can only hold the last 3 letters of it.
RANDOM THOUGHTS....
Who replaces Hightower? It has to be Jerrell Harris right???
In a word, no. There are two things that I can hold on to regardless of all the variables in this subject. First is that the Saban way is to lean on veterans as much as possible. Second is that trust is a big thing with Saban and the staff, and they will go with who they trust even if there is higher star ratings and talent behind them. See Cory Reamer v. Jerrell Harris to this point for reference there. Harris is a highly recruited player and highly hyped by fan boards, Reamer is a coach on the field and rarely is out of place, he wasn't as highly touted and is a refugee of the prior staff. Harris is still suspended and what I get from it is that it is more an internal thing than the NCAA. If he comes back this week, I don't know that Reamer moves back to Sam just yet. Will is a key position in the 3-4, it covers a lot of field and it requires a lot of reading. Harris has the speed and is a good tackler, but he hasn't played enough ball yet even at Sam to feel real comfortable with him yet. If Reamer is moved back to Sam this week, look for it to be the forgotten due to staritis member Chris Jordan. Nico gets a lot of mention from fans, but he's still learning how to play at this level in this system. Bama's in a championship hunt and looking good at doing it, sending high named recruits out for fan pleasure isn't on the menu this year. The bottom line is this folks, Donta Hightower is a special guy and he played straight out of high school because he is that good. Will is a position that just doesn't gap fill with whomever.
Who is the best?
QB- Tim Tebow is until dethroned. The best passer is Mallett, but the best field general is McElroy right now.
Team- I was impressed by Florida's take care of business approach to a hostile Kentucky game that has been a trap in the past. However, Bama has done a better job the last 2 games of taking care of the business. This may be a horse race where week by week either could be argued. The key is how hurt is Tebow and can he suit up for LSU? They may be culled out of the race if he has to sit out. This year, like last, the SECC game is going to determine the front runner and possibly the national champion. Of course, if Tebow is hurt, it could be a total mess in the SEC/BCS if LSU beat UF, Bama beat LSU, and with Tebow back Florida found a way to beat Bama. You have 3 teams, 1 loss to each other, and with the new BCS rules that only conference champs can play in the BCS championship, you have 2 teams with equal bragging rights in all honesty.
Dark horse- Auburn is the team that has started catching my eye of late. The thing about their schedule is this, while it isn't powerful, it has given Auburn a 4 week live scrimmage to get their offense in tune and ready for the SEC schedule that looms ahead. Remember, even Shula snagged enough magic to get 10 wins but wilted with the last 2 games.
Surprise in the nation- Houston is the dang where'd they come from, but 2 big wins over Big 12 opponents has them in my top 10. Also surprised by how much parity there is this year. This is probably one of those years where all but 1 team loses, or everyone loses 1 time at least. I thought Cal could be the team that knocks USCal out of the Pac10 throne, but that isn't happening. Oregon looked remedial against Boise. USC, PSU, OSU, OkieSt, etal all have been caught by surprises, or to them surprises. Iowa is about to start their march boys and girls, I don't know if Michigan has the defense to keep them down and Iowa has the D to shut down Michigan (I think) and then from there it is just Ohio State in their way.
September 28, 2009
September 24, 2009
Looking at Arkansas
I did this for Florida before the SECC, because I saw a lot of folk lore and myth about them and I see a little of that starting up now for Arkansas because they lit Georgia's defense up like a Christmas tree.
Arkansas Defense v. Alabama Offense
Really, this is where the game is at. Surprised? You shouldn't be. Arkansas will score and rack up some yards, they are built for it. The key though is on the other side and how you answer the bell. Georgia made 2 mistakes but survived them. They tried to play a game of swapping licks and you really shouldn't try that with a team that wants to run up a scoreboard. They also didn't try to ice Arkansas by keeping them off the field.
That's where Bama starts to me. Ball control. They need a lot of 10-15 play drives that chew 7-10 minutes at a time and result in scores. That doesn't mean they line up and just run a plow boy offense, but it does mean that they might want to avoid going for the home run on each series. Arkansas runs a pretty basic 4-3 and nickel for spread situations. They want to use the front 4 and usually 1 linebacker to attack and then move the play to the side they are shading the other 2 linebackers to. I didn't see a lot of blitzes that were surprises or that you couldn't see pre snap. It looks like Petrino's philosophy of defense is more or less that of Kines, a bend and don't break style that ends up broken a lot. The linebacker play isn't great, but it gets by right now. They aren't real good in space or trying to cover the backs and TEs in route. They are real stiff and when they play zone they look lost a lot. I noticed that they kept trying to bluff their SLB and then drop him in coverage but he isn't nearly fast enough or good enough to do that. He looked uncomfortable and confused as to what he was supposed to do at times when UGA had 2 routes around him.
Arkansas secondary is a hot pile of humanity that just stirs around and looks like crap. It reminds me a lot of some of the Auburn defenses in the late 90s. They play off the WR, hug the sidelines and leave the deep middle wide open to deep slants and in routes. Given the schedule, I wouldn't be surprised if they don't rank around last or next to last in pass defense at year end. Really, Arkansas is almost saying score quick and let us play offense some more the way they do things.
For the Bama offense, it starts in the run game. There is a lot of room to work in the middle against Arkansas. They never answered the bell against UGA when they ran up the middle on dives, draws, and counters where they pulled a guard into the 2 and 3 gaps. They need to use their size advantage on a small front 4 and smaller LB crew (they are all 6-1 230ish) and put helmets on helmets. If Bama can be on a constant downhill run, they will break Arkansas down and then things get easy. When they establish the run and start asserting their will on offense through the run, Arkansas will bunch and drag their safety (Harris I think is his name) into the box to run support. That only makes that deep flat opportunity more accessible.
When Bama goes to the air, they don't need to just go deep and over the middle. Even Arkansas figured out their weak spot, but when they did, it only found another gap to hit. What Bama has done well is spread the wealth, and that should confuse Arkansas more than anything. If McElroy continues to do a good job of working down his progressions and making Arkansas work hard at covering all 4 or 5 options, he will get a nice choice of about 3 guys to choose from. Cox did most of the night.
If Julio is able to go, and all indications are that he's a go, he should have a big night even if they bracket and double team him. Green was doubled and shadowed, and he found the soft gap in their bracket and Cox was able to hit him because the pressure from the Hawgs was not much. I would also expect either McCoy or Hanks to get some opportunities much like UGA's 2 guy did. They both play tall and physical enough to work over the smaller secondary. Peek also should be getting a lot of chances if they throw enough.
All in all, I don't know if they will score 50 on the defense, I hope they don't have to, but they shouldn't have a lot of problem getting up in the 30s.
Arkansas Offense v. Alabama Defense
Petrino and Bobby Cox are two peas in a pod. Both live on the big play. Petrino is one of the nation's best offensive minds and he does a lot of complicated things to disrupt the defense. Sadly, Michael Smith, who was really their best weapon last year and probably is this year, is being relegated to a smaller role as they try to open up down the field. However, they did try to stay balanced in the 3rd quarter and had success with it, but they stayed in catch up mode and had to abandon it. So, the running game is not a real factor in spite of their offensive line being huge. That area may give the Tide staff a little worry because they are all 6-4,5 and run 300+ each.
Mallett is where the offense facilitates from and how well he does is how well Arkansas is doing. Mallett was considered one of the best quarterbacks coming out of school and he probably is the best in the SEC right now as far as being a pure QB. He is big and has an arm that allows him to hit any throw he wants, but he is not mobile. He compensates for his lack of mobility by feeling the pocket and stepping up and hurrying his progressions. He is very smart and doesn't make a lot of bad throws. He has that Marino style to him in those regards. He just doesn't let the team get beat on his account and he makes most of the plays he needs to make.
There are weak spots though. 3rd and long has been a common place for them. They are only getting 1 in 4 3rd downs converted. They have only converted 6 all year in fact. That happens with passing oriented teams. They go 3 and out a good bit and stall out, and that is where the trouble starts on the other side. They have gone on 4th down 5 times and converted 4, so they are using 2 downs to get 1st down in some cases. That means the secondary needs to execute on 3rd and not give them half of what they need, they need to break the play up and keep them 4th and long. They have a pretty low Time of Possession and don't run hurry up, they just try to chew the field up on each play.
McElroy and Mallett are a lot a like in one regard, they spread the wealth. Six players have 5 or more catches after 2 games. 13 players overall have gotten touches this year. Mallett has 3 favorite targets in Childs, Wright, and Adams. DJ Williams, the SEC's best TE, is his safety blanket and red zone threat. The Razorback WR core is not real tall and there aren't the Monks, Wilsons, and Joneses that could give matchup problems because of they're size. They are a faster group than what we are used to seeing from Arkansas though. From what I have seen of them, they seem to run the routes well, but don't do some of the small things that help the QB out, like cut in front of the defender or break route and go to the QB when flushed. Most of what Arkansas does is on a timing basis and they are trying to have their guys hit their cuts at a certain point and Mallett's internal clock stays in tune with that.
For Bama to put the squash on Air Hawg, they have to come up with a lot of smoke and mirrors. I would say that 95% of the game, the Tide defense is in the nickel or dime. I've said before I like them in the dime better because they can use Barron and Green and Woodall and do a lot of things with them and guys like Hightower and Anders through it. If they are going to blitz and rush the QB, they need to be dedicated to throwing the playbook at him and not be stale with how the rush and they need to create the gaps that will allow a corner or linebacker in and blow the play up. They won't get to him too many times, but they can let him know they are around and that will cause him to start pressing and making mistakes. I think they can get in his head some, but he won't break down like others will.
I would expect to see Bama load the box with 7-8-9 players playing up on the WR and in between the down linemen to show a lot of blitz, but break into coverage at the snap. They probably will play a lot of zone because of all the things Petrino does with the WRs and use McClain and Hightower in space to cover Williams and Smith if they go into their routes. It wouldn't surprise me if they didn't overload Mallett's blind side and send the end, one of the linebackers and/or a safety/corner to force Arkansas to max protect or confuse them as to who has who before the snap.
Because Bama will play a lot of pass protection formations, there has been a lot of worry over Marquis Johnson on the Bama boards. I understand that concern, but if they are staying in zone it won't be just him. If they try to go man on man, which would probably work some, but not a great deal, then yes, I would worry too. In the zone, they may target him and Barron more, everyone else has, but the trick to zone is keeping everything in containment and reading the play. To me, the key here is between the 3 safeties, Barron/Green/Woodall, and how well they read and cover than the 3 corners. If they play like they have the last 2 weeks, they probably will be fine, but I do expect some big plays to happen against the defense that are just players getting out of position or beat.
The key overall for the defense is to improve their efficiency against the pass. They are allowing about 53 percent completion and only 1 pick all year. Mallett is hitting about 62% and hasn't thrown a pick. They have to make him force a pass and make the play on the ball this week. They can't hope that he overthrows it or the WR drops it or they can just break up a pass. He's hitting the correct shoulder too much to hope for that, they're going to have to snag a few and make the play. They have to force Arkansas to make mistakes and penalties because the mroe they throw the more that happens. Bottom line.
The more I think about the game, the more this one feels like a 42-24 type game, but I could also see it being a 38-20 type game too. Either way, Bama has the talent and the defense to win if they play their game. So, yes, I think they cover a 2 touchdown spread, but playing Bama against a spread is like letting me kick you in the balls and taking your money.
Arkansas Defense v. Alabama Offense
Really, this is where the game is at. Surprised? You shouldn't be. Arkansas will score and rack up some yards, they are built for it. The key though is on the other side and how you answer the bell. Georgia made 2 mistakes but survived them. They tried to play a game of swapping licks and you really shouldn't try that with a team that wants to run up a scoreboard. They also didn't try to ice Arkansas by keeping them off the field.
That's where Bama starts to me. Ball control. They need a lot of 10-15 play drives that chew 7-10 minutes at a time and result in scores. That doesn't mean they line up and just run a plow boy offense, but it does mean that they might want to avoid going for the home run on each series. Arkansas runs a pretty basic 4-3 and nickel for spread situations. They want to use the front 4 and usually 1 linebacker to attack and then move the play to the side they are shading the other 2 linebackers to. I didn't see a lot of blitzes that were surprises or that you couldn't see pre snap. It looks like Petrino's philosophy of defense is more or less that of Kines, a bend and don't break style that ends up broken a lot. The linebacker play isn't great, but it gets by right now. They aren't real good in space or trying to cover the backs and TEs in route. They are real stiff and when they play zone they look lost a lot. I noticed that they kept trying to bluff their SLB and then drop him in coverage but he isn't nearly fast enough or good enough to do that. He looked uncomfortable and confused as to what he was supposed to do at times when UGA had 2 routes around him.
Arkansas secondary is a hot pile of humanity that just stirs around and looks like crap. It reminds me a lot of some of the Auburn defenses in the late 90s. They play off the WR, hug the sidelines and leave the deep middle wide open to deep slants and in routes. Given the schedule, I wouldn't be surprised if they don't rank around last or next to last in pass defense at year end. Really, Arkansas is almost saying score quick and let us play offense some more the way they do things.
For the Bama offense, it starts in the run game. There is a lot of room to work in the middle against Arkansas. They never answered the bell against UGA when they ran up the middle on dives, draws, and counters where they pulled a guard into the 2 and 3 gaps. They need to use their size advantage on a small front 4 and smaller LB crew (they are all 6-1 230ish) and put helmets on helmets. If Bama can be on a constant downhill run, they will break Arkansas down and then things get easy. When they establish the run and start asserting their will on offense through the run, Arkansas will bunch and drag their safety (Harris I think is his name) into the box to run support. That only makes that deep flat opportunity more accessible.
When Bama goes to the air, they don't need to just go deep and over the middle. Even Arkansas figured out their weak spot, but when they did, it only found another gap to hit. What Bama has done well is spread the wealth, and that should confuse Arkansas more than anything. If McElroy continues to do a good job of working down his progressions and making Arkansas work hard at covering all 4 or 5 options, he will get a nice choice of about 3 guys to choose from. Cox did most of the night.
If Julio is able to go, and all indications are that he's a go, he should have a big night even if they bracket and double team him. Green was doubled and shadowed, and he found the soft gap in their bracket and Cox was able to hit him because the pressure from the Hawgs was not much. I would also expect either McCoy or Hanks to get some opportunities much like UGA's 2 guy did. They both play tall and physical enough to work over the smaller secondary. Peek also should be getting a lot of chances if they throw enough.
All in all, I don't know if they will score 50 on the defense, I hope they don't have to, but they shouldn't have a lot of problem getting up in the 30s.
Arkansas Offense v. Alabama Defense
Petrino and Bobby Cox are two peas in a pod. Both live on the big play. Petrino is one of the nation's best offensive minds and he does a lot of complicated things to disrupt the defense. Sadly, Michael Smith, who was really their best weapon last year and probably is this year, is being relegated to a smaller role as they try to open up down the field. However, they did try to stay balanced in the 3rd quarter and had success with it, but they stayed in catch up mode and had to abandon it. So, the running game is not a real factor in spite of their offensive line being huge. That area may give the Tide staff a little worry because they are all 6-4,5 and run 300+ each.
Mallett is where the offense facilitates from and how well he does is how well Arkansas is doing. Mallett was considered one of the best quarterbacks coming out of school and he probably is the best in the SEC right now as far as being a pure QB. He is big and has an arm that allows him to hit any throw he wants, but he is not mobile. He compensates for his lack of mobility by feeling the pocket and stepping up and hurrying his progressions. He is very smart and doesn't make a lot of bad throws. He has that Marino style to him in those regards. He just doesn't let the team get beat on his account and he makes most of the plays he needs to make.
There are weak spots though. 3rd and long has been a common place for them. They are only getting 1 in 4 3rd downs converted. They have only converted 6 all year in fact. That happens with passing oriented teams. They go 3 and out a good bit and stall out, and that is where the trouble starts on the other side. They have gone on 4th down 5 times and converted 4, so they are using 2 downs to get 1st down in some cases. That means the secondary needs to execute on 3rd and not give them half of what they need, they need to break the play up and keep them 4th and long. They have a pretty low Time of Possession and don't run hurry up, they just try to chew the field up on each play.
McElroy and Mallett are a lot a like in one regard, they spread the wealth. Six players have 5 or more catches after 2 games. 13 players overall have gotten touches this year. Mallett has 3 favorite targets in Childs, Wright, and Adams. DJ Williams, the SEC's best TE, is his safety blanket and red zone threat. The Razorback WR core is not real tall and there aren't the Monks, Wilsons, and Joneses that could give matchup problems because of they're size. They are a faster group than what we are used to seeing from Arkansas though. From what I have seen of them, they seem to run the routes well, but don't do some of the small things that help the QB out, like cut in front of the defender or break route and go to the QB when flushed. Most of what Arkansas does is on a timing basis and they are trying to have their guys hit their cuts at a certain point and Mallett's internal clock stays in tune with that.
For Bama to put the squash on Air Hawg, they have to come up with a lot of smoke and mirrors. I would say that 95% of the game, the Tide defense is in the nickel or dime. I've said before I like them in the dime better because they can use Barron and Green and Woodall and do a lot of things with them and guys like Hightower and Anders through it. If they are going to blitz and rush the QB, they need to be dedicated to throwing the playbook at him and not be stale with how the rush and they need to create the gaps that will allow a corner or linebacker in and blow the play up. They won't get to him too many times, but they can let him know they are around and that will cause him to start pressing and making mistakes. I think they can get in his head some, but he won't break down like others will.
I would expect to see Bama load the box with 7-8-9 players playing up on the WR and in between the down linemen to show a lot of blitz, but break into coverage at the snap. They probably will play a lot of zone because of all the things Petrino does with the WRs and use McClain and Hightower in space to cover Williams and Smith if they go into their routes. It wouldn't surprise me if they didn't overload Mallett's blind side and send the end, one of the linebackers and/or a safety/corner to force Arkansas to max protect or confuse them as to who has who before the snap.
Because Bama will play a lot of pass protection formations, there has been a lot of worry over Marquis Johnson on the Bama boards. I understand that concern, but if they are staying in zone it won't be just him. If they try to go man on man, which would probably work some, but not a great deal, then yes, I would worry too. In the zone, they may target him and Barron more, everyone else has, but the trick to zone is keeping everything in containment and reading the play. To me, the key here is between the 3 safeties, Barron/Green/Woodall, and how well they read and cover than the 3 corners. If they play like they have the last 2 weeks, they probably will be fine, but I do expect some big plays to happen against the defense that are just players getting out of position or beat.
The key overall for the defense is to improve their efficiency against the pass. They are allowing about 53 percent completion and only 1 pick all year. Mallett is hitting about 62% and hasn't thrown a pick. They have to make him force a pass and make the play on the ball this week. They can't hope that he overthrows it or the WR drops it or they can just break up a pass. He's hitting the correct shoulder too much to hope for that, they're going to have to snag a few and make the play. They have to force Arkansas to make mistakes and penalties because the mroe they throw the more that happens. Bottom line.
The more I think about the game, the more this one feels like a 42-24 type game, but I could also see it being a 38-20 type game too. Either way, Bama has the talent and the defense to win if they play their game. So, yes, I think they cover a 2 touchdown spread, but playing Bama against a spread is like letting me kick you in the balls and taking your money.
September 20, 2009
The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly- North Texas
Since Road House, Next of Kin, Red Dawn, and Point Break are some of my favorites, this edition has a tribute to Patrick Swayze because he usually made a good fight/action movie.
OFFENSE
The Good....
Nobody puts Baby in the Corner. (Dirty Dancing)
Might as well get the best known out of the way. After a questionable fumble, and a punt downed at the 5, the Tide were in the corner early. Last week, this might have been a problem, but this week, they took the ball and marched on a 13 play, near 6 minute drive that pretty well took the wind out of the sails of the Mean Green. The offense took the ball on a passing spree where 9 of the 13 plays were called passes, completing 7, missing one (Dial should have reeled it in), and McElroy evaded the rush and found paydirt. It was a solid drive that pretty well set the tone that Bama was going to do what it needed to and leave the tricks and fluff behind them.
Be nice until it is time to not be nice. (Road House)
Let's be honest, North Texas was about as poor a team as you could find on the BCS map. Bama needed a North Texas though because they really need to start running some backups through live action and get them ready in case of injuries. If they had elected to send the starters out for the full 4 quarters, it may have been 90-7.
Getting to see what is on the bench.
We knew what some guys had, but then you have Star Jackson, David Ross at center, Chance Warmack and others that had not played any serious time to date. The bench was emptied as far as the staff cared to and it is safe to say, if they didn't play after Saturday, they probably aren't going to. I was pleased with Jackson, he needs some work on his touch and reads, but overall he looked well practiced and was prepared to play in this game. That's a key I like to watch for in the reserves, do they look ready when they head in. Now, is he SEC starter material right now, no, but he can clean up games for a while and then get ready for prime time down the road. Terry Grant had the most carries he's had in ages, and some of that was due to Goode's injury, but he looked ok as well. Grant will be the 3rd or 4th guy as long as he can get his burst in the open field, but when you ask him to be an every down, run between the tackles guy, he falls behind the crowd because Ingram, Richardson, and Upchurch can be those guys.
Marquis Maze found the ball
He had 2 snags against Va Tech, and was shutout by FIU, but he stepped up his game and had his best showing of the season. Maze does a good job of getting separation in the red zone, and did well to stay in McElroy's eyes all day.
Greg's perfect day.
He didn't have to do a lot but he was locked in and looked All-SEC on Saturday. He did a great job of putting the ball right where it needed to be on all but 1 pass. I think having 2 softer games after Virginia Tech and before Arkansas has benefitted McElroy more than anyone because he's gotten some live scrimmage drill opportunities to work on his reads and getting comfortable with other WRs not named Julio Jones.
Better, more simple, gameplan
It isn't a surprise that when they just go with who they are and stay with their bread and butter game, and quit all the Wildcats and silly reverses and the gimmicks, and just play their game, they look SO much better. I don't know if the gimmicks are gone for good, but when they were up big, it was pretty much a time to do it or go to the reserves and go vanilla. They chose conservative vanilla. I know it is fun to talk about and neat to see and the average joe fan likes to see the wrinkles come out, but with a green OL, a green QB, an identity challenged WR core, you need to see them master the base offense first. I think they have done that now.
The Bad...
Another dirt digger snap...
Good job by Jackson to get on top of the ball, but it would be nice if at least one center can make the snap to QB connection cleanly for 1 week. .
The Ugly...
A Bad Call
I really can't tell how the 1st play of the game is a fumble in any definition or reference to a real fumble. I know the NCAA wants the refs to hold off on the whistles more so that plays can be reviewed properly, but in this case, they missed it on all accords.
DEFENSE
The Good...
"It’s basic dog psychology, brah. If you scare them, get them pissing down their leg, they submit… you control them. (Point Break)
That has to be one of my favorite lines. Minus one play, it was pretty well a pimp slapping with no baby powder. They didn't get a sack, but didn't need to, they didn't pick it off, but they didn't need to. All that they did need to do is keep it in front of them and let North Texas do the rest. The end result was a very impressive day that only yielded 3 total plays over 10 yards all day. That's enforcing your will on others without force if I have ever seen it.
Better preparation
The defense looked better and looked like they were practiced and ready for the most part. Last week, they looked a little sluggish and went through the motions at times, but this week they had the fire lit early and did all the right things when needed. I thought, minus the TD, even the backups looked solid and did all that they needed to do.
Depth building continues
Each week that the young players and reserves get to play, the more confidence and growth we will see in them. I could see improvement in guys like Barron, Kirkpatrick, Green, and others as they start to get the concept of the defense and the strategy. They all look less hesitant and more decisive in their reads and angles. They need to be, next week is the first test of the year on the secondary. A guy that had kinda fell off the radar was Chris Jordan. I noticed him several times Saturday as he got more PT and I liked his nose for the ball. He has some mechanical things to workout, and most backups do when they are 1st year players, before he becomes a Will or Mike, but he is coming along.
Barron bails out Johnson
You wanna know what a Bama message board looks like if Barron doesn't deflect the pass? It looks a lot like week 1 where a good number of fans had tired of Marquis Johnson's failure to cover. Johnson was a good two steps beaten and if the WR gets the ball, it is an easy 6 because nobody was within range of him. Last week, I said I thought Johnson improved, but Saturday there were times where he looked lost and then the Barron save, he bit and just got left behind. I will give MJ credit though, he never quits after he gets passed, he at least tries to catch the guy.
Arenas on the loose
You can tell that they took him to the side after the season and told him to get it together. Comparing Arenas on the returns from last year to this year is a completely different guy. The result may be that he doesn't house a kick or punt return, but the consistency and quality of the returns will be better overall. The biggest thing is he has found patience in his return game and isn't trying to make every return an ESPN highlight. If it is a return that will get him 5 yards, he takes it, and if he sees a chance to run a gap and turn it up field he is showing discipline and finding the gap when it forms instead of being there as the gap is starting to form. The tricky thing will be, in conference play, do teams continue to punt to him because he's not beating them on the scoreboard directly, or do they punt away and try to play the field? So far, all three opponents have punted to him and he's getting good field behind him on average, so hopefully that continues.
The Bad...
You think you’re so smart, man, but you’re just a bunch of scared kids (Red Dawn)
You ever wondered what it looks like when guys don't practice what they are doing much? See Saturday's lone score by North Texas. I would say that the last time guys like Reamer and Barron practiced in their respective positions on that play was about 4 or 5 weeks ago in summer drills. I think with more reps that both would do well in those spots (Will/Money and Star I think was what they were) but they need to communicate better and this will be something the staff uses to have another learning experience / building lesson in practice because they have to grasp at something. In all fairness, North Texas used the Wheel route at the best time and did a good job of executing by taking the WR over the flat and drawing the defenders into him and opening the tailback up on the sideline. It was hard to tell on TV what happened, if Reamer bit on the wrong WR or if he thought he was zone and was supposed to be man or if Barron didn't cover the right man or whatever, but regardless it didn't work.
The Ugly...
How the flippin hell do you miss 2 extra points????
This is getting to be beyond control. I just wonder, if this were another position, would Tiffin be their guy right now? If he were named Sanchez, would we still be getting down to the dirty with him? (Schrute buck if you got that) At some point, Bama will need him to step up and make a play, and right now, I don't think that you, or I, or Coach Saban, or even Leigh himself could tell you if he could come through. Some X Box genius will come forward with the very weak line of "kicking ain't easy, I'd like to see you hit it" genre of reply, but folks, that's not it. The it is that he's there to do 1 think, kick the damn ball through the regulation uprights. What is more bizarre is that he is a guy who can hit a 50 yard field goal with ease, but struggles when it is closer in? Walls said it Sunday, I've said it for 3 weeks, and folks you better start preparing your excuses now because somewhere between now and January, this is the guy that will be in control of a trip to Orlando or Pasedena or Dallas or worse. I threw up just a little at the thought of this team finishing in Dallas.....
OFFENSE
The Good....
Nobody puts Baby in the Corner. (Dirty Dancing)
Might as well get the best known out of the way. After a questionable fumble, and a punt downed at the 5, the Tide were in the corner early. Last week, this might have been a problem, but this week, they took the ball and marched on a 13 play, near 6 minute drive that pretty well took the wind out of the sails of the Mean Green. The offense took the ball on a passing spree where 9 of the 13 plays were called passes, completing 7, missing one (Dial should have reeled it in), and McElroy evaded the rush and found paydirt. It was a solid drive that pretty well set the tone that Bama was going to do what it needed to and leave the tricks and fluff behind them.
Be nice until it is time to not be nice. (Road House)
Let's be honest, North Texas was about as poor a team as you could find on the BCS map. Bama needed a North Texas though because they really need to start running some backups through live action and get them ready in case of injuries. If they had elected to send the starters out for the full 4 quarters, it may have been 90-7.
Getting to see what is on the bench.
We knew what some guys had, but then you have Star Jackson, David Ross at center, Chance Warmack and others that had not played any serious time to date. The bench was emptied as far as the staff cared to and it is safe to say, if they didn't play after Saturday, they probably aren't going to. I was pleased with Jackson, he needs some work on his touch and reads, but overall he looked well practiced and was prepared to play in this game. That's a key I like to watch for in the reserves, do they look ready when they head in. Now, is he SEC starter material right now, no, but he can clean up games for a while and then get ready for prime time down the road. Terry Grant had the most carries he's had in ages, and some of that was due to Goode's injury, but he looked ok as well. Grant will be the 3rd or 4th guy as long as he can get his burst in the open field, but when you ask him to be an every down, run between the tackles guy, he falls behind the crowd because Ingram, Richardson, and Upchurch can be those guys.
Marquis Maze found the ball
He had 2 snags against Va Tech, and was shutout by FIU, but he stepped up his game and had his best showing of the season. Maze does a good job of getting separation in the red zone, and did well to stay in McElroy's eyes all day.
Greg's perfect day.
He didn't have to do a lot but he was locked in and looked All-SEC on Saturday. He did a great job of putting the ball right where it needed to be on all but 1 pass. I think having 2 softer games after Virginia Tech and before Arkansas has benefitted McElroy more than anyone because he's gotten some live scrimmage drill opportunities to work on his reads and getting comfortable with other WRs not named Julio Jones.
Better, more simple, gameplan
It isn't a surprise that when they just go with who they are and stay with their bread and butter game, and quit all the Wildcats and silly reverses and the gimmicks, and just play their game, they look SO much better. I don't know if the gimmicks are gone for good, but when they were up big, it was pretty much a time to do it or go to the reserves and go vanilla. They chose conservative vanilla. I know it is fun to talk about and neat to see and the average joe fan likes to see the wrinkles come out, but with a green OL, a green QB, an identity challenged WR core, you need to see them master the base offense first. I think they have done that now.
The Bad...
Another dirt digger snap...
Good job by Jackson to get on top of the ball, but it would be nice if at least one center can make the snap to QB connection cleanly for 1 week. .
The Ugly...
A Bad Call
I really can't tell how the 1st play of the game is a fumble in any definition or reference to a real fumble. I know the NCAA wants the refs to hold off on the whistles more so that plays can be reviewed properly, but in this case, they missed it on all accords.
DEFENSE
The Good...
"It’s basic dog psychology, brah. If you scare them, get them pissing down their leg, they submit… you control them. (Point Break)
That has to be one of my favorite lines. Minus one play, it was pretty well a pimp slapping with no baby powder. They didn't get a sack, but didn't need to, they didn't pick it off, but they didn't need to. All that they did need to do is keep it in front of them and let North Texas do the rest. The end result was a very impressive day that only yielded 3 total plays over 10 yards all day. That's enforcing your will on others without force if I have ever seen it.
Better preparation
The defense looked better and looked like they were practiced and ready for the most part. Last week, they looked a little sluggish and went through the motions at times, but this week they had the fire lit early and did all the right things when needed. I thought, minus the TD, even the backups looked solid and did all that they needed to do.
Depth building continues
Each week that the young players and reserves get to play, the more confidence and growth we will see in them. I could see improvement in guys like Barron, Kirkpatrick, Green, and others as they start to get the concept of the defense and the strategy. They all look less hesitant and more decisive in their reads and angles. They need to be, next week is the first test of the year on the secondary. A guy that had kinda fell off the radar was Chris Jordan. I noticed him several times Saturday as he got more PT and I liked his nose for the ball. He has some mechanical things to workout, and most backups do when they are 1st year players, before he becomes a Will or Mike, but he is coming along.
Barron bails out Johnson
You wanna know what a Bama message board looks like if Barron doesn't deflect the pass? It looks a lot like week 1 where a good number of fans had tired of Marquis Johnson's failure to cover. Johnson was a good two steps beaten and if the WR gets the ball, it is an easy 6 because nobody was within range of him. Last week, I said I thought Johnson improved, but Saturday there were times where he looked lost and then the Barron save, he bit and just got left behind. I will give MJ credit though, he never quits after he gets passed, he at least tries to catch the guy.
Arenas on the loose
You can tell that they took him to the side after the season and told him to get it together. Comparing Arenas on the returns from last year to this year is a completely different guy. The result may be that he doesn't house a kick or punt return, but the consistency and quality of the returns will be better overall. The biggest thing is he has found patience in his return game and isn't trying to make every return an ESPN highlight. If it is a return that will get him 5 yards, he takes it, and if he sees a chance to run a gap and turn it up field he is showing discipline and finding the gap when it forms instead of being there as the gap is starting to form. The tricky thing will be, in conference play, do teams continue to punt to him because he's not beating them on the scoreboard directly, or do they punt away and try to play the field? So far, all three opponents have punted to him and he's getting good field behind him on average, so hopefully that continues.
The Bad...
You think you’re so smart, man, but you’re just a bunch of scared kids (Red Dawn)
You ever wondered what it looks like when guys don't practice what they are doing much? See Saturday's lone score by North Texas. I would say that the last time guys like Reamer and Barron practiced in their respective positions on that play was about 4 or 5 weeks ago in summer drills. I think with more reps that both would do well in those spots (Will/Money and Star I think was what they were) but they need to communicate better and this will be something the staff uses to have another learning experience / building lesson in practice because they have to grasp at something. In all fairness, North Texas used the Wheel route at the best time and did a good job of executing by taking the WR over the flat and drawing the defenders into him and opening the tailback up on the sideline. It was hard to tell on TV what happened, if Reamer bit on the wrong WR or if he thought he was zone and was supposed to be man or if Barron didn't cover the right man or whatever, but regardless it didn't work.
The Ugly...
How the flippin hell do you miss 2 extra points????
This is getting to be beyond control. I just wonder, if this were another position, would Tiffin be their guy right now? If he were named Sanchez, would we still be getting down to the dirty with him? (Schrute buck if you got that) At some point, Bama will need him to step up and make a play, and right now, I don't think that you, or I, or Coach Saban, or even Leigh himself could tell you if he could come through. Some X Box genius will come forward with the very weak line of "kicking ain't easy, I'd like to see you hit it" genre of reply, but folks, that's not it. The it is that he's there to do 1 think, kick the damn ball through the regulation uprights. What is more bizarre is that he is a guy who can hit a 50 yard field goal with ease, but struggles when it is closer in? Walls said it Sunday, I've said it for 3 weeks, and folks you better start preparing your excuses now because somewhere between now and January, this is the guy that will be in control of a trip to Orlando or Pasedena or Dallas or worse. I threw up just a little at the thought of this team finishing in Dallas.....
September 15, 2009
Random Thoughts
Since the GBU is much longer, I kinda let this part of the skit die on the vine a bit. So, maybe this will be acceptable...
What do we know about the SEC teams and when will we know?
Right now, there have been a handful of teams in the SEC that have been tested already. Teams like Bama, Tennessee, Georgia, and LSU have gone out of conference and played some quality opponents and we know a little bit about who they are. That really isn't the whole story yet, but if you are asking me....
Auburn- Auburn has a night game with West Virginia, but how good they are is unknown. The true rubber meets road at the end of October. 4 of the last 5 are ranked, and 3 are currently in the top 10. I'll be honest, they have looked good against the level of competition, but I question if they are prime time yet or not. They look bowl eligible and their game with UT may decide who wins a weedeater and who gets a banjo.
Arkansas- Year two of the Petrino Project hits the road this week. The next 3 games are going to test the Hawgs capacity to play in December. They get UGA, Bama and aTm. By that point we'll know more about them, but even if there is doubt, they get AU, UF, and Ole Miss after that.
Florida- Florida is just on cruise control. They have UT this week and while it isn't a push over they aren't a threat to Florida. Circle October 10th though, they head to LSU for a night game. As anyone can attest, Baton Rouge at dark is a deadly place, football and otherwise. I think after that game, we will know all we need to know, if anything, about how good this team is.
Kentucky- They like Arkansas now have the real test. They get state rival Louisville, then they have 2 key home games against UF and Bama. They probably will be fighting with Auburn and Tennessee for a lower bid. They play both along the way.
Ole Miss- Ole Miss has probably the luckiest schedule that the SEC could ever have given. They have 30 guys oinking in the infirmary last week and got a bye. This week is a semi-bye with SE Louisiana. Their October 10th showdown with the Tide and Halloween night game with Auburn will be the only time we see much from them until their near end battle with UT and LSU.
So how would they stack up? Bowl Wise?
To me I see 3 top end teams, one that can be there, and several mid-tier teams brewing.
Top Tier
At the top you have Florida, then Bama is about 2 paces behind them right now. If UF just thrashes UT by 60, they probably open up a bigger gap. The top tier sees a little air between Bama and the next 2 in Ole Miss and LSU because they have both looked good but haven't been shaken yet. Ole Miss is the one I'm not sure yet about how good they are. They drubbed Memphis, but so did MTSU....
Mid Tier
I'll be honest, I didn't think Auburn would be very good this year, but they have bought in and that's always key. The top end of the middle is really a 2 horse competition between UGA and Auburn. Given how bad Georgia's defense has played thus far, I'd almost put Auburn ahead of them. USCar has been so unstable that you don't know if they are the team that mauled around with NC State or the team that couldn't help themselves against Georgia. Kentucky hasn't got the talent to be the top of this tier, but they are well coached. Tennessee is really a tweener right now between tiers. If they get slapped around by their higher end foes, they really aren't here, but if they can pull at least one surprise, they have credibility.
Bottom Tier
Arkansas isn't a bad team, but their schedule is brutal. Their record may not reflect the strength this team has. The Hawgs go to Bama, Florida, Ole Miss, and LSU. That's a killer schedule alone, but they have UGA and aTm at home as well as Auburn and South Carolina. Vandy has returned to earth now, after last year's Cinderella season. For Vandy, it is all about execution and the failure to do such on the flip side. Their wins in the SEC last year are pretty well summed up by that. They took advantage of the other team's mistakes and didn't make many. This year, they are retooling, for Vandy anyways, and probably aren't going to make many waves this year. Mississippi State has a lot of recruiting to do. They did put up a fight with Auburn, but they are still 2 years away from having the talent to run the spread option and build a defense that can work with that type of offense. I think Mullens is a good coach and top end recruiter, but he's got a lot of work to do before MSU is a threat in the West for anything more than the Independance Bowl.
I think the bowl picture right now is, and I know this is waaaaaaaaay early:
(by rank)
Florida- BCS
Bama- BCS
LSU- Cap 1
Ole Miss- Cotton
Georgia- Outback
Auburn- Peach
USCar- Music City
Kentucky- Liberty
Tennessee- Independence (The Lane Train derails that bad)
Arkansas- home for the holidays, a 5-7 mark may be a victory with their schedule
Vandy- home for the holidays, they could find 6 wins with some help, but I doubt it strikes twice
MSU- home for the holidays, and on the recruiting trail in a hurry.
The new SEC Network...
I keep seeing stuff on message boards that say they are dissatisfied with it. My thought is this, when the HELL did Bama v. North Texas ever become TV worthy before??? Yes, this year has some time conflicts, but this schedule was inked before the deal if memory serves. I am not too spoiled if it isn't in the HD format or if the HD is not top end, like ABC's is. All of that is nice, and I enjoy the picture too, but I don't have to have it. I watched the FIU game from my laptop, so if I can handle that quality, the rest is cake. I am surprised that most cable providers in the SEC region didn't put ESPNU as a part of the basic packages since most don't buy the expanded packages unless they are movie fanatics. Personally, I don't like that I pay what I do for 70+ channels when I watch maybe 10, but it is what it is.
As to the scheduling, sure it could be a little less compact, but at least they are on. At least we can watch USCar v. UGA and Bama v. FIU at the same time or LSU v. Vandy. Given that 4 or 5 years ago, we were all sitting around going "will the Bama game be on X or PPV" and really the entire conference was at the mercy of scheduling fate to the point that some games were doomed to JP/Raycom hell, we've come a long way baby. Enjoy the games for the games, not the picture quality or any nerdy near "Dothan" reason.
What do we know about the SEC teams and when will we know?
Right now, there have been a handful of teams in the SEC that have been tested already. Teams like Bama, Tennessee, Georgia, and LSU have gone out of conference and played some quality opponents and we know a little bit about who they are. That really isn't the whole story yet, but if you are asking me....
Auburn- Auburn has a night game with West Virginia, but how good they are is unknown. The true rubber meets road at the end of October. 4 of the last 5 are ranked, and 3 are currently in the top 10. I'll be honest, they have looked good against the level of competition, but I question if they are prime time yet or not. They look bowl eligible and their game with UT may decide who wins a weedeater and who gets a banjo.
Arkansas- Year two of the Petrino Project hits the road this week. The next 3 games are going to test the Hawgs capacity to play in December. They get UGA, Bama and aTm. By that point we'll know more about them, but even if there is doubt, they get AU, UF, and Ole Miss after that.
Florida- Florida is just on cruise control. They have UT this week and while it isn't a push over they aren't a threat to Florida. Circle October 10th though, they head to LSU for a night game. As anyone can attest, Baton Rouge at dark is a deadly place, football and otherwise. I think after that game, we will know all we need to know, if anything, about how good this team is.
Kentucky- They like Arkansas now have the real test. They get state rival Louisville, then they have 2 key home games against UF and Bama. They probably will be fighting with Auburn and Tennessee for a lower bid. They play both along the way.
Ole Miss- Ole Miss has probably the luckiest schedule that the SEC could ever have given. They have 30 guys oinking in the infirmary last week and got a bye. This week is a semi-bye with SE Louisiana. Their October 10th showdown with the Tide and Halloween night game with Auburn will be the only time we see much from them until their near end battle with UT and LSU.
So how would they stack up? Bowl Wise?
To me I see 3 top end teams, one that can be there, and several mid-tier teams brewing.
Top Tier
At the top you have Florida, then Bama is about 2 paces behind them right now. If UF just thrashes UT by 60, they probably open up a bigger gap. The top tier sees a little air between Bama and the next 2 in Ole Miss and LSU because they have both looked good but haven't been shaken yet. Ole Miss is the one I'm not sure yet about how good they are. They drubbed Memphis, but so did MTSU....
Mid Tier
I'll be honest, I didn't think Auburn would be very good this year, but they have bought in and that's always key. The top end of the middle is really a 2 horse competition between UGA and Auburn. Given how bad Georgia's defense has played thus far, I'd almost put Auburn ahead of them. USCar has been so unstable that you don't know if they are the team that mauled around with NC State or the team that couldn't help themselves against Georgia. Kentucky hasn't got the talent to be the top of this tier, but they are well coached. Tennessee is really a tweener right now between tiers. If they get slapped around by their higher end foes, they really aren't here, but if they can pull at least one surprise, they have credibility.
Bottom Tier
Arkansas isn't a bad team, but their schedule is brutal. Their record may not reflect the strength this team has. The Hawgs go to Bama, Florida, Ole Miss, and LSU. That's a killer schedule alone, but they have UGA and aTm at home as well as Auburn and South Carolina. Vandy has returned to earth now, after last year's Cinderella season. For Vandy, it is all about execution and the failure to do such on the flip side. Their wins in the SEC last year are pretty well summed up by that. They took advantage of the other team's mistakes and didn't make many. This year, they are retooling, for Vandy anyways, and probably aren't going to make many waves this year. Mississippi State has a lot of recruiting to do. They did put up a fight with Auburn, but they are still 2 years away from having the talent to run the spread option and build a defense that can work with that type of offense. I think Mullens is a good coach and top end recruiter, but he's got a lot of work to do before MSU is a threat in the West for anything more than the Independance Bowl.
I think the bowl picture right now is, and I know this is waaaaaaaaay early:
(by rank)
Florida- BCS
Bama- BCS
LSU- Cap 1
Ole Miss- Cotton
Georgia- Outback
Auburn- Peach
USCar- Music City
Kentucky- Liberty
Tennessee- Independence (The Lane Train derails that bad)
Arkansas- home for the holidays, a 5-7 mark may be a victory with their schedule
Vandy- home for the holidays, they could find 6 wins with some help, but I doubt it strikes twice
MSU- home for the holidays, and on the recruiting trail in a hurry.
The new SEC Network...
I keep seeing stuff on message boards that say they are dissatisfied with it. My thought is this, when the HELL did Bama v. North Texas ever become TV worthy before??? Yes, this year has some time conflicts, but this schedule was inked before the deal if memory serves. I am not too spoiled if it isn't in the HD format or if the HD is not top end, like ABC's is. All of that is nice, and I enjoy the picture too, but I don't have to have it. I watched the FIU game from my laptop, so if I can handle that quality, the rest is cake. I am surprised that most cable providers in the SEC region didn't put ESPNU as a part of the basic packages since most don't buy the expanded packages unless they are movie fanatics. Personally, I don't like that I pay what I do for 70+ channels when I watch maybe 10, but it is what it is.
As to the scheduling, sure it could be a little less compact, but at least they are on. At least we can watch USCar v. UGA and Bama v. FIU at the same time or LSU v. Vandy. Given that 4 or 5 years ago, we were all sitting around going "will the Bama game be on X or PPV" and really the entire conference was at the mercy of scheduling fate to the point that some games were doomed to JP/Raycom hell, we've come a long way baby. Enjoy the games for the games, not the picture quality or any nerdy near "Dothan" reason.
September 14, 2009
The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly- FIU
Well, it was the dreaded let down game that has haunted Coach Saban since he arrived. At some point they will be firing on all cylinders and wanting to crush these types of teams like the USC's and Florida's and Oklahoma's do. I don't think anyone was happy with the play at halftime, I know Saban wasn't, hell he was still talking about it after the game. I'd agree, even after watching it over on CSS and online, it still didn't look great, it looked flat.
OFFENSE
The Good...
Downhill running.
It is amazing what happens when you just get into the helmet on helmet stuff and quit trying to out think folks. Richardson has nothing but good things ahead of him. His running style plays well into the big sets that they run with. More on that to come. TR has just a very small tackle area and as FIU's secondary and linebackers can attest, when you hit him, if you hit him, you don't get a real good soft spot to lay into him. You hit a pad or helmet when you get him. He has a very good leg drive and moves the pile because he's just that strong. Upchurch, before he got hurt, was moving up and down the field well. Upchurch's injury, if it takes more than a week or two, may throw him to 3rd string because Richardson showed off his blocking skills and didn't do bad. Ingram was still weak from the flu, but looked good for the situation, but he won't be back up on the fluid levels until later this week.
I was really really pleased to see a few names we had all written off step up due to injuries and illness. When Julio went down and Upchurch went down, and the offense kinda sputtered around some, it was good to see McCoy and Alexander and Grant all come to play, finally, and play rather well. I would be surprised to see Jones play a whole lot, if at all, so they need to take this opportunity to step up and play well to get more reps when the games get serious.
Greg being Greg
This game was a better example of who McElroy is and how he likes to play. He's a very controlled quarterback that knows his game and executes it. He is ok with the scrambling and stuff he had to do last week, but when he's allowed to play in the pocket, he is very good at checking down and finding the reads. What is more impressive is even when he is rushed, he steps up and still makes a very catchable pass. I think the WR/RB/TE's appreciate the fact that they aren't having to climb the ladder and get popped by head hunting safeties this fall and are probably going to work harder to get to him.
The big 3 get going
I mentioned the TE's earlier, but really the game was about Peek, Dial and Williams getting going at what they do. Peek is a good blocker, not great, but he is the first TE Bama has had in a long time that could do a good job blocking and be a threat in the passing game. Dial is probably a better blocker and has good hands, but doesn't have Peek's athleticism to get clear the way he does. Williams is still raw in a lot of respects but he can block and that's really all they want him to do for now. Smelley played, but he looks unsure about what his role is for some reason.
The Bad...
Playcalling in the 1st Half
It is still too cute. Last year they came out firing and fizzled late, this year they fizzle then erupt. I guess it is good that they are able to wear down opponents and beat them in the 4th, but what happens when they play a team with an adequate offense? We can hypothesize ourselves into oblivion about how good or bad things would be, but I'd rather know that this team can come out, kick the shit out of somebody and go on. It isn't like FIU was awesome or good no matter how much Stewart the water pale says they are, they weren't. They had one player that might, MIGHT, have been on the 2 deep for Bama, that's not enough to make them a real opponent. The stats tell a half truth in the end. They are scoring and getting yards, but it takes them a long time to get them.
From Center Right is not playing well at all
We can again spin and shake things around about it, but folks, when you go to the Center and look down the right side of the line, it isn't working as well as it should. I lost track Saturday and didn't want to count Sunday, the number of penalties that just killed drives because of a holding or false start. The other thing that worries me is that they just don't blow people off the line. FIU's defense wasn't that impressive or that big and imposing, Va Tech's was, but this one should have been a steamroller session. I'm willing to give Jones a learning curve pass, but Vlachos while not being a starter has played center long enough to be better than what he's played. I've labored over Drew Davis to the point I'm just not going to. The same 4 people whine the loudest about him.
The Ugly...
Nothing really.
DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS
OFFENSE
The Good...
Downhill running.
It is amazing what happens when you just get into the helmet on helmet stuff and quit trying to out think folks. Richardson has nothing but good things ahead of him. His running style plays well into the big sets that they run with. More on that to come. TR has just a very small tackle area and as FIU's secondary and linebackers can attest, when you hit him, if you hit him, you don't get a real good soft spot to lay into him. You hit a pad or helmet when you get him. He has a very good leg drive and moves the pile because he's just that strong. Upchurch, before he got hurt, was moving up and down the field well. Upchurch's injury, if it takes more than a week or two, may throw him to 3rd string because Richardson showed off his blocking skills and didn't do bad. Ingram was still weak from the flu, but looked good for the situation, but he won't be back up on the fluid levels until later this week.
Cody the fullback
There is something sinful in enjoying watching smaller players duck him on the goal line than take him on. I'll deal with that sin just fine.
Stepping upI was really really pleased to see a few names we had all written off step up due to injuries and illness. When Julio went down and Upchurch went down, and the offense kinda sputtered around some, it was good to see McCoy and Alexander and Grant all come to play, finally, and play rather well. I would be surprised to see Jones play a whole lot, if at all, so they need to take this opportunity to step up and play well to get more reps when the games get serious.
Greg being Greg
This game was a better example of who McElroy is and how he likes to play. He's a very controlled quarterback that knows his game and executes it. He is ok with the scrambling and stuff he had to do last week, but when he's allowed to play in the pocket, he is very good at checking down and finding the reads. What is more impressive is even when he is rushed, he steps up and still makes a very catchable pass. I think the WR/RB/TE's appreciate the fact that they aren't having to climb the ladder and get popped by head hunting safeties this fall and are probably going to work harder to get to him.
The big 3 get going
I mentioned the TE's earlier, but really the game was about Peek, Dial and Williams getting going at what they do. Peek is a good blocker, not great, but he is the first TE Bama has had in a long time that could do a good job blocking and be a threat in the passing game. Dial is probably a better blocker and has good hands, but doesn't have Peek's athleticism to get clear the way he does. Williams is still raw in a lot of respects but he can block and that's really all they want him to do for now. Smelley played, but he looks unsure about what his role is for some reason.
The Bad...
Playcalling in the 1st Half
It is still too cute. Last year they came out firing and fizzled late, this year they fizzle then erupt. I guess it is good that they are able to wear down opponents and beat them in the 4th, but what happens when they play a team with an adequate offense? We can hypothesize ourselves into oblivion about how good or bad things would be, but I'd rather know that this team can come out, kick the shit out of somebody and go on. It isn't like FIU was awesome or good no matter how much Stewart the water pale says they are, they weren't. They had one player that might, MIGHT, have been on the 2 deep for Bama, that's not enough to make them a real opponent. The stats tell a half truth in the end. They are scoring and getting yards, but it takes them a long time to get them.
From Center Right is not playing well at all
We can again spin and shake things around about it, but folks, when you go to the Center and look down the right side of the line, it isn't working as well as it should. I lost track Saturday and didn't want to count Sunday, the number of penalties that just killed drives because of a holding or false start. The other thing that worries me is that they just don't blow people off the line. FIU's defense wasn't that impressive or that big and imposing, Va Tech's was, but this one should have been a steamroller session. I'm willing to give Jones a learning curve pass, but Vlachos while not being a starter has played center long enough to be better than what he's played. I've labored over Drew Davis to the point I'm just not going to. The same 4 people whine the loudest about him.
The Ugly...
Nothing really.
DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS
The Good...
2nd half adjustments aka they decided to rush...
The first half had rushes on the FIU QB, and they had struggles, but at the half the fire was lit and the rest was downhill. One of the main things I noticed in their adjustments was the use of more matchups in situations than just saying this is our guy at WE/SE or NT/DT. For example, you saw Dareus line up outside at end on one play, the next you would see him at NT. Hightower was at Money on the Nickel and then at Strong End in the Dime. Anders would be at Jack/Strong End in the Nickel and then Weak End on the Dime. They did a lot of this and really, I think they look better in the Dime than the Nickel thus far. The upgrades of Barron and Green to the Dime unit give them more opportunities to blitz with different looks and assignments and not get caught in a mismatch or a draw.
Even when sluggish, they only give up 7
I don't think even the staff would tell you that the defense came out and played lights out. When you come out a little flat, maybe even a little soft, and only give up 7 points on your defense, that's a good night. FIU had 0 run game and really they didn't even try after a while to run. Credit the front 5-6 most of the night for making the FIU offense one dimensional early and often.
Javy's Return Game
When the game was still tight, whether they were down 1 or up 6, the only spark they were getting at those points was Arenas. I've been impressed with his new found patience at return man. It may cost him a TD or 2, but I'll trade those 2 for a year's worth of quality returns and not putting the offense in bad situations like he did at times last year.
Better night for Marquis Johnson
After a week's worth of fan mail that I'm sure was less than stellar, he responded in a way a corner needs to, especially a senior corner, he played well. I thought for the most part, he held his own with a much taller WR and he made adjustments during the week and wasn't overplaying or jumping the route too soon. It will be interesting in seeing if he can keep that up. I can however see why he held his job against Scott, who struggles with playbooks, and Dre Kirkpatrick who needs more PT before he can really be an option.
Getting some depth on the chart
It was nice to see the defense go 2 and 3 deep at several spots with Gentry, Kirkpatrick, Woodson, Square, and others get some major PT. It is a shame that Square is down for the rest of the year because I liked what I saw from him and liked what he allowed the defense to do with him at Jack/End or at Tackle. I hope to see several more next Saturday because they are going to have to build depth for this season's flu bug and for long term success.
The Bad...
One Flat Start...
You play how you practice and between the 3 Bs that they had to get over (bumps, bangs, and bruises) from a tough opponent, I imagine the week of practice was limited early on. Then add the flu and other situations they are dealing with, and you get that softer than usual, for lack of a better term, practice week. The result was a defense that pinned its ears back at times and then went through the motions at other points. The 3rd and long conversion on the first series was just a bad series of events because there wasn't much of a rush on a QB in his own endzone, and the coverage man (Green) stumbled and the opening was there. That was followed up by a substitution error that had the staff calling timeout. They were able to regroup after the TO, but giving up the field the way they did was a tone for the half.
The scoring drive was pretty lifeless when it got down to it because they got marched on. Special teams didn't help matters by kicking off out of bounds. The first play was a 16 yard pass, but there was a 15 yard penalty and Bama had FIU 1st and 25. You would think this would be the part where they step it up and shut them down, they did for a bit but then gave up a pass interference penalty and a 25 yard completion to Hilton. They had a chance to bristle up and end it with a field goal, but after a Barron sack, they picked on him with that tall WR. After that, the defense started to wake up, and only gave up 3 plays over 10 yards afterwards.
The Ugly...
Special Teams Bungles
I see 3 things happening on special teams that are going to continue to frustrate fans and coaches. First is that they are using inexperienced players in the unit. I see a lot of backups and freshmen being used, the only starter I see being used is Barron. Rogers has done this for 4 years, but he lacks speed to track down a burner. The second issue is that they take the worst angles on plays. On the TD Saturday night, that is the thing you will see 3 or 4 players do. Marquis and Upshaw (who is too slow for ST) both commit inside and just open up the field to Hilton. The rest wasn't much more than a finish the drill exercise and not get caught giving up on film. The third thing I see is just the lack of control they have on the kicks. Tiffin got a scolding for kicking out of bounds when he was trying to avoid Hilton, but they have kicked to the wrong man 2 weeks in a row or not done their scouting well enough to know not to tease fate. You would think that Arenas in practice would be a good test run for your ST unit, but I can't say that they look well practiced.
September 8, 2009
The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly- Va Tech
Well we finally get to talk about football games and not the ifs and thens of it. I said it after the game and I continue to say it, my hat's off to Virginia Tech's Defense and Special Teams. Some fans had tried to piss on their heritage a bit, but nobody, and I mean nobody should take away the effort and skill they have in those areas.
In the past, I would do a micro overview, but after a little thinking and time spent watching the game, I decided to change it up just a bit. I haven't seen a replay because of the holiday, but if I do, I'll update....
OFFENSE
The Good...
2nd half play calling
Everyone who texts me or talked to me during the game heard a steady line of "they need to just run and gear this thing down". That started around the end of the 1st half, but in the second half they got down to basics and went more helmet to helmet and got their OL into something that they were more comfortable with. After they got back to who they were, a run heavy offense, they were able to open the passing game up more (see the before and after of McElroy's stat lines) and keep Va Tech on its heels more.
Mark Ingram / Roy Upchurch
Things weren't going real well for a while and really if Upchurch doesn't come out and change the tone with his running style, I don't know if we are as happy as we are. The duo of Ingram and Upchurch give Bama a very strong presence at all times and allows them to run or pass with either in the game because both are serviceable pass blockers in the backfield. I think that is where the biggest improvement in Ingram was Saturday was in his blocking. His running was not different, he still runs hard and gets better as the game goes on. He still does his thing with the ball in his hands, the only difference is that he gets the bulk of the carries now. Upchurch gives this team a lot of flexibility when he's in and they need to dedicate to getting him in more touches and opportunities because he gives them a boost and it keeps Ingram fresh. He did have the fumble, but hell, that was probably the first time in his life anyone caught him from behind on an open dash.
Greg McElroy's grit
The first half wasn't how it was supposed to go in storybooks, that much is true. However, Va Tech threw the sink, the water, and the baby with it at him. He took way too many shots and spent too much time escaping rushes early on to get settled down. I don't think anyone will question his toughness after Saturday. After Saturday, I think he earned the job for as long as he needs it because there aren't many QBs that can take that kind of punishment, regroup, and win the game. I'm real impressed with McElroy's passes, he can hit about all the passes he needs to and they seem to be in the right spot and on time for the most part. The ability to put a ball over the WR's shoulder and away from the defender isn't easy, but he makes it look easy. He is still developing timing with Hanks and Maze, but in time they'll all be in stride. The next 2 weeks will help with that.
James Carpenter's debut
I bet he wished they could start with a Sister Mary and get his feet wet that way, but hey you have to start somewhere. Overall, I thought he did well. He needs to be careful about planting his feet in and getting stationary too soon at times, but overall I thought he did a very good job of picking up the right rusher and keeping Greg's blind side clean for the most part.
Peek performance
His blocking isn't as good as advertised, but his route running and hands are. I still love to see him lower his shoulder and get nasty with defenders. I don't think he gets cheated out of his time on the field because he makes sure he gets at least 2 hits a game.
The Bad...
1st Half game plan
I would be with a good number of fans during the game that thought it was too cute. I didn't like that they came out for the first play in the "Wild Tide". I know some fans were geeked for it, but Va Tech's players and D staff had to be more geeked because it was a big white flag saying "we don't think we can just line up and beat you". I thought the pass calls were plays that were too long for the defense that was there. If your QB has at best 5 seconds and the plays are taking 10 to develop, the odds aren't good. They tried to use the counter plays and that was like throwing gas on a fire because Tech was too fast. Once they got done with the cute, I'm going to out think you playcalling and got back to just being what they are, it was good. But for about the first 25 minutes of the 60 minutes, it was pretty bad.
A long look at what the next 12 weeks are like Mr. Jones
Julio got shadowed, doubled, tripled, you name it he got it. There wasn't a lot of shock in that. What was a little shocking was that he let it get to him. There was the drop and then there was a play around the end of the first half where McElroy threw a fade to the corner and Jones pulled up and thought it was going out of the endzone. The ball hit the pylon. It isn't the end of the world, and some will get defensive, but the point is that this is what 2009 will look like all year. They won't give you single coverage, they won't give you easy opportunities, but you have to make opportunities. At times he did that, and he did keep working on most of the routes, but he needed to be more assertive early and just wasn't.
Costly errors at the worst time
I lost count of how many penalties negated good plays or put them back in 3rd and longs, and there were missed assignments and the INT in around the red zone. It was a night where Bama was its own worst enemy and they were playing themselves as much as Tech.
Vlachos in the shotgun
The check for the new rug at the Dome will be sent by the Vlachos family because his snaps dug worms and the poor football had more carpet burns than Jenna Jameson. A big part of the timing issues they had were because the snaps were low and the QB and Ingram were having to dig the ball out and recompose which takes time, time they didn't have, and it left things in a rush all night. Snapping with a guy on top of you is hard, but that's just a part of it. The rest of the 100 some odd D1 teams do it, so it is what it is. The next 2 games need to be a dedication to getting the snaps up at the hands of the back and executing the play on time.
Smelley had a stinker
When your own player turns and gives you hell, you know you aren't having a good day. Smelley wasn't intended to be a run blocking H Back/TE. Nobody expects that of him, or at least I didn't think they did until Saturday. They probably will look at film and decide to revamp the way they use him and go with more Dial and Williams in motion.
The Ugly...
Never a good thing to see a lineman's cleats in the air.
There were several times during the night where the O Line just got abused. Now, the stat tards will rush out and say "hey they only gave up 2 sacks" or something like that, but how many rushes were there and how many times did McElroy have to abandon the play and run for his life? How many TFL's were there? It wasn't a terrible game by the offensive line, but 3 years in, they should and could be better. Even the "veterans" looked overwhelmed by Tech at times. Much was made of Davis on the BOL message boards this holiday weekend, and some of it was worthwhile and some wasn't, but he has got to step up. He has to be a leader in a group of untested players. That is what the other linemen did for him last year, it is time for him to do his part, and he did on run blocking, but his pass blocking is still not good. He would make a better guard because his footwork is slow and his stride to the right is not fast enough, and at guard he could avoid some of those issues by playing in a smaller space.
DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS
The Good...
Gameplan
It wasn't like Tech was going to stretch the imagination with their offense. That's not who Virginia Tech is or has ever really been. However, they can beat you with their offense if you don't respect them. I thought they had scouted Tech very well and had the players ready so that when Tech lined up, they were ready presnap to get in position. They came at Tyrod with a lot of different packages and rushed him from all corners. Short of 2 or 3 plays, they just about owned Tech.
Starting corner play
I thought Jackson and Arenas pretty well closed shop on Tech's outside WR's. When Tech stretched the field, both guys had covered their zone/man as well as needed. I think the big surprise of the night was the use of Jackson as a blitzer. Overall, I thought both came on strong and made plays all night whether the ball was at them or not.
Front 7 play
Minus the well discussed blowup, the front 7 just owned the game. They may not have gotten as much pressure as they would have liked, but they did control a veteran offensive line for 4 quarters. I liked the play of Dareus and Washington and I hate that Washington's best play was pretty well erased by penalties, but they were aggressive all night and it gave them a boost when they needed plays the most. Cody is still a run stopper and isn't going to be a presence on passing situations like he is on the run, but he can take up space and allow a linebacker to get in there. Anders also did very well in his first full time duty. He isn't the best run defender you'll ever see, but he was doing better than last year at following the play and getting involved. I was pleased with the communication and direction that they had all night. You could see presnap that everyone was communicating up front and there weren't a lot of blown plays where a guy was out of position. I wasn't surprised as some that Hightower didn't play hand down, with Tech being a very running back/running QB oriented offense, they needed another sure tackler in the box even in nickel and dime situations to shadow and cover.
The Bad...
One really bad set of downs....
In a way, it was good to see them have to deal with adversity, but in another way, it could have been from non-self inflicted wounds. The wheel route debacle that lead to McClain getting upset at Johnson as well as the staff being mad at him and Barron was about communication. The issue was that Johnson thought he was playing man on the inside route, but it was a zone ( I think when a play goes that wrong you can't tell much on TV) and he gave up his position on the HB that he could have covered. Instead, he released him and there was a good gap of space between him and Barron. The staff was irked, I think, that he didn't read the play faster and get there sooner than the 4 or 5 yard line. That alone was enough, but then the next play was just as bad. Zo makes a play and gets the defense out of the hole, but McClain loses his head for 15 seconds and loses all the mo that was gained. I wouldn't have been nearly as pissed about it if it were Scott or Dre because they were freshmen/sophomore/1st year players and those things happen. A senior, on the other hand, who should know the playbook rather well by now shouldn't have that kind of error. Of course, with Marquis Johnson, you have to have a once a game moment that you shake your head or else you wonder if he played.
As to the McClain topic, let's get that out of the way. He didn't push the ref, but he did push his hands away and that alone is enough to get the hook. If it had been ACC refs, he probably does, never thought SEC refs would be a help to Alabama. In the end, it isn't about intensity or how awesome it was to see him that fired up or anything under the category of stupid shit theories, it is about keeping your head in the game and letting cheap hits, namecalling, whatever go. You get to pay them back all night, but giving them 2 penalties that just sucked the wind out of the team for a bit was not helping. Like the above play, if it was a freshman that wouldn't be as disappointing, but a 3 year starter and a captain like McClain knows better. His week of practice may be a tough one.
The Ugly...
Return Coverage
Geez, I don't think that boy has stopped running yet. If you go back, Tech never scored on a drive that wasn't setup by special teams. Even the INT was setup because the punt put them back deep. In the end, you take out that, Tech's offense does nothing, but instead you have bad play after bad play that just put them way too deep in Bama territory to have a real stand. I didn't realize how slow they were until Saturday. With Barron out of the unit, they just aren't as steady. Woodson had a good hit, but does anyone remember it or do they remember the 200 yards worth of yards given up?
What did the five fingers say to the face?
For Johnson, who to his credit made the right angle and got to him, was SLAP! Nobody ever wants to be posterized, but in this case, if he had tried to tackle him instead of grab him, he maybe avoids the p'wned moment of the week.
In the past, I would do a micro overview, but after a little thinking and time spent watching the game, I decided to change it up just a bit. I haven't seen a replay because of the holiday, but if I do, I'll update....
OFFENSE
The Good...
2nd half play calling
Everyone who texts me or talked to me during the game heard a steady line of "they need to just run and gear this thing down". That started around the end of the 1st half, but in the second half they got down to basics and went more helmet to helmet and got their OL into something that they were more comfortable with. After they got back to who they were, a run heavy offense, they were able to open the passing game up more (see the before and after of McElroy's stat lines) and keep Va Tech on its heels more.
Mark Ingram / Roy Upchurch
Things weren't going real well for a while and really if Upchurch doesn't come out and change the tone with his running style, I don't know if we are as happy as we are. The duo of Ingram and Upchurch give Bama a very strong presence at all times and allows them to run or pass with either in the game because both are serviceable pass blockers in the backfield. I think that is where the biggest improvement in Ingram was Saturday was in his blocking. His running was not different, he still runs hard and gets better as the game goes on. He still does his thing with the ball in his hands, the only difference is that he gets the bulk of the carries now. Upchurch gives this team a lot of flexibility when he's in and they need to dedicate to getting him in more touches and opportunities because he gives them a boost and it keeps Ingram fresh. He did have the fumble, but hell, that was probably the first time in his life anyone caught him from behind on an open dash.
Greg McElroy's grit
The first half wasn't how it was supposed to go in storybooks, that much is true. However, Va Tech threw the sink, the water, and the baby with it at him. He took way too many shots and spent too much time escaping rushes early on to get settled down. I don't think anyone will question his toughness after Saturday. After Saturday, I think he earned the job for as long as he needs it because there aren't many QBs that can take that kind of punishment, regroup, and win the game. I'm real impressed with McElroy's passes, he can hit about all the passes he needs to and they seem to be in the right spot and on time for the most part. The ability to put a ball over the WR's shoulder and away from the defender isn't easy, but he makes it look easy. He is still developing timing with Hanks and Maze, but in time they'll all be in stride. The next 2 weeks will help with that.
James Carpenter's debut
I bet he wished they could start with a Sister Mary and get his feet wet that way, but hey you have to start somewhere. Overall, I thought he did well. He needs to be careful about planting his feet in and getting stationary too soon at times, but overall I thought he did a very good job of picking up the right rusher and keeping Greg's blind side clean for the most part.
Peek performance
His blocking isn't as good as advertised, but his route running and hands are. I still love to see him lower his shoulder and get nasty with defenders. I don't think he gets cheated out of his time on the field because he makes sure he gets at least 2 hits a game.
The Bad...
1st Half game plan
I would be with a good number of fans during the game that thought it was too cute. I didn't like that they came out for the first play in the "Wild Tide". I know some fans were geeked for it, but Va Tech's players and D staff had to be more geeked because it was a big white flag saying "we don't think we can just line up and beat you". I thought the pass calls were plays that were too long for the defense that was there. If your QB has at best 5 seconds and the plays are taking 10 to develop, the odds aren't good. They tried to use the counter plays and that was like throwing gas on a fire because Tech was too fast. Once they got done with the cute, I'm going to out think you playcalling and got back to just being what they are, it was good. But for about the first 25 minutes of the 60 minutes, it was pretty bad.
A long look at what the next 12 weeks are like Mr. Jones
Julio got shadowed, doubled, tripled, you name it he got it. There wasn't a lot of shock in that. What was a little shocking was that he let it get to him. There was the drop and then there was a play around the end of the first half where McElroy threw a fade to the corner and Jones pulled up and thought it was going out of the endzone. The ball hit the pylon. It isn't the end of the world, and some will get defensive, but the point is that this is what 2009 will look like all year. They won't give you single coverage, they won't give you easy opportunities, but you have to make opportunities. At times he did that, and he did keep working on most of the routes, but he needed to be more assertive early and just wasn't.
Costly errors at the worst time
I lost count of how many penalties negated good plays or put them back in 3rd and longs, and there were missed assignments and the INT in around the red zone. It was a night where Bama was its own worst enemy and they were playing themselves as much as Tech.
Vlachos in the shotgun
The check for the new rug at the Dome will be sent by the Vlachos family because his snaps dug worms and the poor football had more carpet burns than Jenna Jameson. A big part of the timing issues they had were because the snaps were low and the QB and Ingram were having to dig the ball out and recompose which takes time, time they didn't have, and it left things in a rush all night. Snapping with a guy on top of you is hard, but that's just a part of it. The rest of the 100 some odd D1 teams do it, so it is what it is. The next 2 games need to be a dedication to getting the snaps up at the hands of the back and executing the play on time.
Smelley had a stinker
When your own player turns and gives you hell, you know you aren't having a good day. Smelley wasn't intended to be a run blocking H Back/TE. Nobody expects that of him, or at least I didn't think they did until Saturday. They probably will look at film and decide to revamp the way they use him and go with more Dial and Williams in motion.
The Ugly...
Never a good thing to see a lineman's cleats in the air.
There were several times during the night where the O Line just got abused. Now, the stat tards will rush out and say "hey they only gave up 2 sacks" or something like that, but how many rushes were there and how many times did McElroy have to abandon the play and run for his life? How many TFL's were there? It wasn't a terrible game by the offensive line, but 3 years in, they should and could be better. Even the "veterans" looked overwhelmed by Tech at times. Much was made of Davis on the BOL message boards this holiday weekend, and some of it was worthwhile and some wasn't, but he has got to step up. He has to be a leader in a group of untested players. That is what the other linemen did for him last year, it is time for him to do his part, and he did on run blocking, but his pass blocking is still not good. He would make a better guard because his footwork is slow and his stride to the right is not fast enough, and at guard he could avoid some of those issues by playing in a smaller space.
DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS
The Good...
Gameplan
It wasn't like Tech was going to stretch the imagination with their offense. That's not who Virginia Tech is or has ever really been. However, they can beat you with their offense if you don't respect them. I thought they had scouted Tech very well and had the players ready so that when Tech lined up, they were ready presnap to get in position. They came at Tyrod with a lot of different packages and rushed him from all corners. Short of 2 or 3 plays, they just about owned Tech.
Starting corner play
I thought Jackson and Arenas pretty well closed shop on Tech's outside WR's. When Tech stretched the field, both guys had covered their zone/man as well as needed. I think the big surprise of the night was the use of Jackson as a blitzer. Overall, I thought both came on strong and made plays all night whether the ball was at them or not.
Front 7 play
Minus the well discussed blowup, the front 7 just owned the game. They may not have gotten as much pressure as they would have liked, but they did control a veteran offensive line for 4 quarters. I liked the play of Dareus and Washington and I hate that Washington's best play was pretty well erased by penalties, but they were aggressive all night and it gave them a boost when they needed plays the most. Cody is still a run stopper and isn't going to be a presence on passing situations like he is on the run, but he can take up space and allow a linebacker to get in there. Anders also did very well in his first full time duty. He isn't the best run defender you'll ever see, but he was doing better than last year at following the play and getting involved. I was pleased with the communication and direction that they had all night. You could see presnap that everyone was communicating up front and there weren't a lot of blown plays where a guy was out of position. I wasn't surprised as some that Hightower didn't play hand down, with Tech being a very running back/running QB oriented offense, they needed another sure tackler in the box even in nickel and dime situations to shadow and cover.
The Bad...
One really bad set of downs....
In a way, it was good to see them have to deal with adversity, but in another way, it could have been from non-self inflicted wounds. The wheel route debacle that lead to McClain getting upset at Johnson as well as the staff being mad at him and Barron was about communication. The issue was that Johnson thought he was playing man on the inside route, but it was a zone ( I think when a play goes that wrong you can't tell much on TV) and he gave up his position on the HB that he could have covered. Instead, he released him and there was a good gap of space between him and Barron. The staff was irked, I think, that he didn't read the play faster and get there sooner than the 4 or 5 yard line. That alone was enough, but then the next play was just as bad. Zo makes a play and gets the defense out of the hole, but McClain loses his head for 15 seconds and loses all the mo that was gained. I wouldn't have been nearly as pissed about it if it were Scott or Dre because they were freshmen/sophomore/1st year players and those things happen. A senior, on the other hand, who should know the playbook rather well by now shouldn't have that kind of error. Of course, with Marquis Johnson, you have to have a once a game moment that you shake your head or else you wonder if he played.
As to the McClain topic, let's get that out of the way. He didn't push the ref, but he did push his hands away and that alone is enough to get the hook. If it had been ACC refs, he probably does, never thought SEC refs would be a help to Alabama. In the end, it isn't about intensity or how awesome it was to see him that fired up or anything under the category of stupid shit theories, it is about keeping your head in the game and letting cheap hits, namecalling, whatever go. You get to pay them back all night, but giving them 2 penalties that just sucked the wind out of the team for a bit was not helping. Like the above play, if it was a freshman that wouldn't be as disappointing, but a 3 year starter and a captain like McClain knows better. His week of practice may be a tough one.
The Ugly...
Return Coverage
Geez, I don't think that boy has stopped running yet. If you go back, Tech never scored on a drive that wasn't setup by special teams. Even the INT was setup because the punt put them back deep. In the end, you take out that, Tech's offense does nothing, but instead you have bad play after bad play that just put them way too deep in Bama territory to have a real stand. I didn't realize how slow they were until Saturday. With Barron out of the unit, they just aren't as steady. Woodson had a good hit, but does anyone remember it or do they remember the 200 yards worth of yards given up?
What did the five fingers say to the face?
For Johnson, who to his credit made the right angle and got to him, was SLAP! Nobody ever wants to be posterized, but in this case, if he had tried to tackle him instead of grab him, he maybe avoids the p'wned moment of the week.
September 3, 2009
The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly- Defensive Backs
I love how I can speak highly of someone and the one growth area addressed is all one talks about. You'd think after doing this for almost a decade folks would know that's coming....
This is the final installment before the season, thank God, and after Saturday's games we get back to the fun part.
LAST YEAR RECAP
2007 was a growing pain season for the secondary and 2008 was the application of the lessons from those pains. 2008 witnessed the growth of Woodall and Jackson as starters, and the use of Arenas as the "Star". It also was the reminder of what a good smart player can do for an entire team in RJ.
THIS OFFSEASON
Who is back?
Chris Rogers- Was highly thought of out of high school, but has yet to really show any of the things he did then. Rogers showed a flash or two playing with the backups, but is not fast enough to play top end WR in the SEC. He seems to like playing up on the line against WR than trying to read QBs and formations. He will play a reserve/special teams role again this year.
Justin Woodall- He was a ballhawk who tied Steve McNair’s INT record of 16 in 2004. That kinda is the high point until now. I thought he played better than RJ for a good part of the early season. He is a very good tackler and has a good nose for the ball. He has practiced in rotation with RJ over the last couple of years so he will be ok at the playcalling aspect, but he hasn't had to do a lot of it in live game situations. Woodall is an adequate cover guy but excels in run defense. Look for the defense to try and use him as the hidden linebacker in their pass defense packages.
Marquis Johnson- I’ll be honest, I missed the evaluation on him. I thought this guy would be the real deal, but he, like most of the prior staff’s signees, lacks speed to cover corners at this league’s level. He seems to always do just enough to keep the youth movement off him. Johnson isn't a bad corner, he reads the plays well, but when he gets turned around he isn't fast enough to adjust and compensate for his mistake. He is more comfortable in the zone where he can roam and react than he is one on one. I would say he probably stays the starting nickle corner and it infuriates the "when will BJ Scott have a breakout game?" crowd.
Javier Arenas- Has been the excitement part of Bama football for 3 years now, but this year has to be the cover corner. He is considered a late 1st round pick, but I don't know how much of that is for his corner play and how much is because he is a returnman and a solid corner. I think he is in the right position when they go to the Star because that gets him off the taller WR with the post up situations that he has to face. Arenas is quick, but not "fast". He has good acceleration, and can readjust if he makes a read error, and can stay in step with about any WR in the SEC. He is very physical and loves to bump off the snap and isn't afraid to blitz or tackle. I think the biggest area that he needs to address is can he be a true corner or is he a 3rd corner?
Kareem Jackson- he was a quiet signee of Saban’s original class. He enrolled early, applied himself, and started in the nickel and eventually base formations in 2007. He did a lot of learning that year and got good tutelage from Saban and others. Last year he hit the dreaded sophomore slump and some fans have the bullseye on him a bit with all the top name recruits on board. Jackson is a strong corner who is physical and smart, but isn't really that fast. He like Arenas is quick and makes good cuts and angles to close in on faster players. He needs to get more confidence in his instincts and look for the ball at some point. Saban teaches them to face guard the receiver, but he also wants them to find the ball in the process. If he can trust his instincts and break off the face guard and find the ball, he will probably be All SEC this year.
Ali Sharrief- Sharrief is haunted by the Sugar Bowl when it came down to it. The staff saw that he's just not able to play in coverage at the big level. He is a good reserve and a good special teams guy, but he just isn't a great starter type of player.
Tyrone King- Another walkon getting the best of the poor situation around him on dime situations. Two things may cut into his PT this year- Robbie Green and Mark Barron.
Mark Barron- Probably the top signee for the secondary in 2007-8. He is a pure football player that can play coverage, tackle, and rush off corner. He is a natural strong safety who loves to move towards the action with his first step. He struggles with coverage schemes at times, but that is more about learning than skill. You can tell he has not been taught the ins and outs of being a DB in high school and that is probably more about him playing 4 positions or whatever the final count was. Because he did all those things, he is a hard nosed guy. Likes the contact and likes giving it. He just needs time and coaching to understand his role a little more because he hasn't been a safety very long.
Robby Green- Was kinda lost in the recruiting shuffle a bit, but has been a standout since enrolling with the staff. Green is a good cover guy, who can play on the island some and play in the zone. He is extremely smart and knows how to play to his strengths. He doesn't have a lot of wasted motion when he plays, he makes it look natural when he cuts, turns, adjusts to the play. He really isn't a bad tackler for his size and given he was a corner this time last year. He is smart and comes from a coach family so he has a lot of upside. I think he co-starts still with Barron and when they go nickle or dime he comes in to let Barron move more.
Robert Lester- Lester played with Julio Jones, and some will say that is why he was signed. I think he has a future at FS, but he has to bulk up substantially to play there. He has the raw talent to play D1, but he needs some bulking up and coaching to help him adjust to this level of play. He can see the play and has good closing speed to help in coverage, a must for a cover 2 type team, but he has troubles with the mechanics of playing the run and/or pass at times. His hips get stiff and he locks in instead of a more natural movement at times. As is, he's in danger of getting in that good but not as good as situation with both Barron and Green in his class.
Wes Neighbors- We all know his family, but they were all linemen. This is the first Neighbors that played a skill position. He has a good head for the game, and he seems like a real motor guy, but when you look at the roster, do you see him playing ahead of these guys? I wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t bulk him up and try to move him to Sam like they did with Reamer.
Who is gone?
Rashad Johnson- He started out as a walkon running back and finished the starting FS for the defense and really was the leader. They will miss that part of his game, the physical parts they can cobble together in a group, but the leadership and heart isn't as easy.
Alonzo Lawrence- I think this is one of those where the staff would like a reset button and go elsewhere. Zo was extremely raw and not very football smart. He was fast and got by on that. He was too talkative when he should have been listening and learning. The staff's patience was worn out by spring and if you watch the A-Day again, count how many times someone had to yell at him and get him in position.
Who is new?
Dre Kirkpatrick- Dre is the highest rated player Bama signed in some services and others he was up there with Fluker and Richardson. He is the last of a dying breed of shut down corners. He is fast, physical, instinctive, and gets into the head of WR's at will. When you watch him on video, he looks effortless in his back pedal to stride. There are no flaws in his game mentally or physically. He gets beat because the pass is perfect, not because he bites or gets faked out. He actually can play zone coverage which is rare coming out of HS. He isn't afraid to tackle and for a corner tackles well. He could play FS down the road due to his tackle skills. I am dead serious, I cannot see any major work that needs to be done, I've hunted it and watched all star games trying to find something, he isn't perfect, but coming out of high school, he's well ahead of the curve. The only thing remote is if he moved to FS, he'd need to develop his body more, but I don't think they will move him there unless 2 or 3 corners are just plain better than him.
Rod Woodson- Woodson is a fan favorite because he loves to lay wood in the flat. Out of all the guys that Bama signed this year, he has the best motor of the group. His intensity is unmatched, but that also causes problems at times. He tends to over pursue when he gets worked up. Very strong, benches 315 squats 400, that's weight room warrior there. Will be a favorite on special teams for years to come because he has no fear flying into bigger players. Like all big hitting linebackers/safeties, he sometimes forgets to wrap up, and nothing pisses Saban off more than that. Has a good understanding of his position and uses the field to his advantage, takes great angles to the ball, and never gets offline to a play. When he pursues, he sometimes over pursues or doesn't wrap up, will have to get consistent with that in college. I think he probably plays special teams and the staff continue to work with him on rounding off the edges. I think if he can step in, Barron may move to Sam and give them more options with the speed and cover capacities of both on the field.
THE DEFENSIVE BACKS
The Good…
Experience
They replace RJ, and that is a big replacement to make, but they are very skilled and deep with tested players in Woodall, Johnson, Jackson and Arenas. Green and Barron have some PT as well.
Depth improvements
Adding Kirkpatrick along with last year's redshirts/special teamers gives this secondary probably its deepest rotation in several years. Saban is a big secondary man and wants a lot of playmakers and athletes there, so this trend probably continues for a while.
Shutdown capacities
The lost leader
The fact that the staff didn't get set with its RJ replacement is a sign of how things are. As good as Barron and Green can be, they aren't going to fill the gap and nobody else has yet either.
Lingering memories
The last image we had of the secondary was the surgical beatdown from Utah. They have a lot to prove as far as how they handle adversity and being one on one without a lot of help. They get a soft pass happy schedule, but that doesn't reward them in December and January unless they are playing teams like UGA and PSU.
The Ugly…
Not much to find.
What the experts think….
Athlon’s
Athlon’s ranks the DB unit 3rd in the conference listing just better players as their logic on that. They think Arenas is flashy and Jackson is cerebral. They mention that both had one INT, but nobody wanted to throw at Arenas.
Lindy's
This is the final installment before the season, thank God, and after Saturday's games we get back to the fun part.
LAST YEAR RECAP
2007 was a growing pain season for the secondary and 2008 was the application of the lessons from those pains. 2008 witnessed the growth of Woodall and Jackson as starters, and the use of Arenas as the "Star". It also was the reminder of what a good smart player can do for an entire team in RJ.
THIS OFFSEASON
Who is back?
Chris Rogers- Was highly thought of out of high school, but has yet to really show any of the things he did then. Rogers showed a flash or two playing with the backups, but is not fast enough to play top end WR in the SEC. He seems to like playing up on the line against WR than trying to read QBs and formations. He will play a reserve/special teams role again this year.
Justin Woodall- He was a ballhawk who tied Steve McNair’s INT record of 16 in 2004. That kinda is the high point until now. I thought he played better than RJ for a good part of the early season. He is a very good tackler and has a good nose for the ball. He has practiced in rotation with RJ over the last couple of years so he will be ok at the playcalling aspect, but he hasn't had to do a lot of it in live game situations. Woodall is an adequate cover guy but excels in run defense. Look for the defense to try and use him as the hidden linebacker in their pass defense packages.
Marquis Johnson- I’ll be honest, I missed the evaluation on him. I thought this guy would be the real deal, but he, like most of the prior staff’s signees, lacks speed to cover corners at this league’s level. He seems to always do just enough to keep the youth movement off him. Johnson isn't a bad corner, he reads the plays well, but when he gets turned around he isn't fast enough to adjust and compensate for his mistake. He is more comfortable in the zone where he can roam and react than he is one on one. I would say he probably stays the starting nickle corner and it infuriates the "when will BJ Scott have a breakout game?" crowd.
Javier Arenas- Has been the excitement part of Bama football for 3 years now, but this year has to be the cover corner. He is considered a late 1st round pick, but I don't know how much of that is for his corner play and how much is because he is a returnman and a solid corner. I think he is in the right position when they go to the Star because that gets him off the taller WR with the post up situations that he has to face. Arenas is quick, but not "fast". He has good acceleration, and can readjust if he makes a read error, and can stay in step with about any WR in the SEC. He is very physical and loves to bump off the snap and isn't afraid to blitz or tackle. I think the biggest area that he needs to address is can he be a true corner or is he a 3rd corner?
Kareem Jackson- he was a quiet signee of Saban’s original class. He enrolled early, applied himself, and started in the nickel and eventually base formations in 2007. He did a lot of learning that year and got good tutelage from Saban and others. Last year he hit the dreaded sophomore slump and some fans have the bullseye on him a bit with all the top name recruits on board. Jackson is a strong corner who is physical and smart, but isn't really that fast. He like Arenas is quick and makes good cuts and angles to close in on faster players. He needs to get more confidence in his instincts and look for the ball at some point. Saban teaches them to face guard the receiver, but he also wants them to find the ball in the process. If he can trust his instincts and break off the face guard and find the ball, he will probably be All SEC this year.
Ali Sharrief- Sharrief is haunted by the Sugar Bowl when it came down to it. The staff saw that he's just not able to play in coverage at the big level. He is a good reserve and a good special teams guy, but he just isn't a great starter type of player.
Tyrone King- Another walkon getting the best of the poor situation around him on dime situations. Two things may cut into his PT this year- Robbie Green and Mark Barron.
Mark Barron- Probably the top signee for the secondary in 2007-8. He is a pure football player that can play coverage, tackle, and rush off corner. He is a natural strong safety who loves to move towards the action with his first step. He struggles with coverage schemes at times, but that is more about learning than skill. You can tell he has not been taught the ins and outs of being a DB in high school and that is probably more about him playing 4 positions or whatever the final count was. Because he did all those things, he is a hard nosed guy. Likes the contact and likes giving it. He just needs time and coaching to understand his role a little more because he hasn't been a safety very long.
Robby Green- Was kinda lost in the recruiting shuffle a bit, but has been a standout since enrolling with the staff. Green is a good cover guy, who can play on the island some and play in the zone. He is extremely smart and knows how to play to his strengths. He doesn't have a lot of wasted motion when he plays, he makes it look natural when he cuts, turns, adjusts to the play. He really isn't a bad tackler for his size and given he was a corner this time last year. He is smart and comes from a coach family so he has a lot of upside. I think he co-starts still with Barron and when they go nickle or dime he comes in to let Barron move more.
Robert Lester- Lester played with Julio Jones, and some will say that is why he was signed. I think he has a future at FS, but he has to bulk up substantially to play there. He has the raw talent to play D1, but he needs some bulking up and coaching to help him adjust to this level of play. He can see the play and has good closing speed to help in coverage, a must for a cover 2 type team, but he has troubles with the mechanics of playing the run and/or pass at times. His hips get stiff and he locks in instead of a more natural movement at times. As is, he's in danger of getting in that good but not as good as situation with both Barron and Green in his class.
Wes Neighbors- We all know his family, but they were all linemen. This is the first Neighbors that played a skill position. He has a good head for the game, and he seems like a real motor guy, but when you look at the roster, do you see him playing ahead of these guys? I wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t bulk him up and try to move him to Sam like they did with Reamer.
Who is gone?
Rashad Johnson- He started out as a walkon running back and finished the starting FS for the defense and really was the leader. They will miss that part of his game, the physical parts they can cobble together in a group, but the leadership and heart isn't as easy.
Alonzo Lawrence- I think this is one of those where the staff would like a reset button and go elsewhere. Zo was extremely raw and not very football smart. He was fast and got by on that. He was too talkative when he should have been listening and learning. The staff's patience was worn out by spring and if you watch the A-Day again, count how many times someone had to yell at him and get him in position.
Who is new?
Dre Kirkpatrick- Dre is the highest rated player Bama signed in some services and others he was up there with Fluker and Richardson. He is the last of a dying breed of shut down corners. He is fast, physical, instinctive, and gets into the head of WR's at will. When you watch him on video, he looks effortless in his back pedal to stride. There are no flaws in his game mentally or physically. He gets beat because the pass is perfect, not because he bites or gets faked out. He actually can play zone coverage which is rare coming out of HS. He isn't afraid to tackle and for a corner tackles well. He could play FS down the road due to his tackle skills. I am dead serious, I cannot see any major work that needs to be done, I've hunted it and watched all star games trying to find something, he isn't perfect, but coming out of high school, he's well ahead of the curve. The only thing remote is if he moved to FS, he'd need to develop his body more, but I don't think they will move him there unless 2 or 3 corners are just plain better than him.
Rod Woodson- Woodson is a fan favorite because he loves to lay wood in the flat. Out of all the guys that Bama signed this year, he has the best motor of the group. His intensity is unmatched, but that also causes problems at times. He tends to over pursue when he gets worked up. Very strong, benches 315 squats 400, that's weight room warrior there. Will be a favorite on special teams for years to come because he has no fear flying into bigger players. Like all big hitting linebackers/safeties, he sometimes forgets to wrap up, and nothing pisses Saban off more than that. Has a good understanding of his position and uses the field to his advantage, takes great angles to the ball, and never gets offline to a play. When he pursues, he sometimes over pursues or doesn't wrap up, will have to get consistent with that in college. I think he probably plays special teams and the staff continue to work with him on rounding off the edges. I think if he can step in, Barron may move to Sam and give them more options with the speed and cover capacities of both on the field.
THE DEFENSIVE BACKS
The Good…
Experience
They replace RJ, and that is a big replacement to make, but they are very skilled and deep with tested players in Woodall, Johnson, Jackson and Arenas. Green and Barron have some PT as well.
Depth improvements
Adding Kirkpatrick along with last year's redshirts/special teamers gives this secondary probably its deepest rotation in several years. Saban is a big secondary man and wants a lot of playmakers and athletes there, so this trend probably continues for a while.
Shutdown capacities
When this crew is on its game, they can be very stingy and tight with yards and scores. The schedule is kind to them again with very few quality passing attacks on the roster outside of Ole Miss. Arkansas and LSU have the chance of being there too, but we won't know until Saturday or the next few, how good they are at QB.
The BadThe lost leader
The fact that the staff didn't get set with its RJ replacement is a sign of how things are. As good as Barron and Green can be, they aren't going to fill the gap and nobody else has yet either.
Lingering memories
The last image we had of the secondary was the surgical beatdown from Utah. They have a lot to prove as far as how they handle adversity and being one on one without a lot of help. They get a soft pass happy schedule, but that doesn't reward them in December and January unless they are playing teams like UGA and PSU.
The Ugly…
Not much to find.
What the experts think….
Athlon’s
Athlon’s ranks the DB unit 3rd in the conference listing just better players as their logic on that. They think Arenas is flashy and Jackson is cerebral. They mention that both had one INT, but nobody wanted to throw at Arenas.
Lindy's
They also rank them 3rd and cite the experience as well. They talk more about the competition to replace RJ more than the talent they have around them.
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