Well, the season has started and we are no closer to knowing Jack Schitt than we were Friday. All in all, it was a vanilla game where they were trying not to show any more than they had to, but they ended up showing things they didn't mean to show....
OFFENSE
The Good....
Red Zone Efficiency.
Last year was a joke in the red zone. So, it isn't a surprise that Alabama came out with the intention of being better at it. They converted every redzone into touchdowns on Saturday and that is a good start for this offense. The less "settling for field goals" the better because they cannot continue to just settle for the safe points and win this season.
A-maze-ing White Hot Start
To read any message board, you would think that Bama didn't have a receiver except for Duron Carter who wasn't ready to play. Maze turned in a veteran performance when asked to be the guy. I also was rather pleased with White's efforts. He made a few freshman errors, but he more than compensated for them. Between the two of them, it was a very good 1-2 punch to use for both QBs.
4 drives, 3 touchdowns
Lost in all the complaints, which are coming just humor me and keep reading, was the fact that Bama scored on 3 of its first 4 possessions. Ask Auburn or Kentucky how that would have felt for their offenses? Granted, this wasn't a great KSU team or a great defense, but they took care of the business early on and put the game out of reach by the start of the 2nd quarter.
Eddie Lacy Spin Class
Lacy is still a work in progress, but when he finds daylight, he's about as dangerous as any player Bama has. Lacy gives a good change of pace and energy to the offense and his drive and motivation is there which is contagious to an offense that needed that at times. I look for them to probably give Lacy a few more carries as he was more effective than Richardson, but don't worry folks, TR isn't going to lose that many snaps.
The Bad....
Russian Roulette never has a winner
If you have read me at all over 10 years, you know my dislike of the rotating QB theory. It is a proven momentum killer and it did just that for Alabama Saturday. McCarron scored twice out of 3 tries to start the game. By the time he was back in, he was cold and had lost his rhythm in the game. He never got it back. Sims came in cold and between that and this feeling that he was afraid of losing his chance for making a mistake, made mistakes. More on the QB debate in Random Thoughts.
The Offensive Line Sucks
I keep reading this thought through the message board world that says Cyrus K should start. I have read that all these players did fine with the exception of Warmack. Now, after watching live, I probably would have agreed with you. However, after watching the replay and watching every play over about 3 times, I can safely say that NONE of the starting 6 (Jones, Warmack, Vlachos, Steen, Fluker and Cyrus) had great games. They all had a few good plays and a few bad plays. Some of this was due to the 2nd round of Russian Roulette being played, but a bigger issue was the play calling. The play calling left a lot to be desired and it really got the OL off on a passive foot and they never really geared down and beat Kent State up front until the 4th quarter. I was very disturbed by the amount of disruption that KSU was able to get. They were able to abuse all 6 guys at different points in the game. Warmack was the main goat on pass coverage, but none of them exactly fired off the line like a champion. Steen struggles in passing situations still, Fluker's feet are like cement too often, Jones looks uncomfortable, and Vlachos looks out of shape still. Cyrus needs to get adapted to the speed of the game, so his gaffes were less noticeable based on the bar I would have set, but for the folks yelping to start him or else, I didn't see anything that just told me that he was greater than the others. More on this too in Random Thoughts.
Game Management from the Sidelines
While the final score says all is well and it was great. 5 turnovers doesn't equate to a good day for any offensive player or coach. I really was surprised that they tried to throw as much as they did. I guess they had this theory that they would showcase both QBs and get them broken in properly, or something like that, but as much as it would be nice to see Bama have a high powered passing game, I would have settled for one that could get more than 2 yards a carry after 3 quarters.
The Ugly....
Turnovers
All four turnovers were just bad plays by the QB. AJ's first one was him reverting back to the AJ that Saban seethes and spews about. He tried his damnedest to get the ball in between 4 defenders but sailed it. Sims' first pick was a hesitation throw that was to the wrong side, but Norwood was about as helpful as tits on a boar. Sims' second interception was another hesitation and late throw that should have gone for 6. AJ's second pick was on Williams who got his hands on it, but you don't rifle a ball to a TE. After watching the game again, there were about 5 other plays where both QBs should have been picked off and would have if a better team had been out there.
DEFENSE
The Good...
The Red Tide Swarmed
Bama pretty well sent a message with its defense Saturday. If you are gonna play Alabama, pack your lunch because you are gonna work for it. I was really pleased with the front 7 for the most part, or the front 6 as it was most of the game. I thought the secondary had a good game, not great, but good enough to keep KSU pinned down all day. The tackling was better and the players looked to be in better shape than a year ago. I really was pleased to see the new guys up front- Jesse and Quinton- get as much time in as they did and see them contribute right away. Williams is in the right spot at inside end and he did get a good surge all day. Dial spelled him and his first move and burst was very impressive as well.
No big plays
Usually in these types of games, the defense proves its point and then gets a little sloppy. That didn't happen Saturday. Even after the starters were retired for the afternoon, there wasn't that point where you were thinking, damn how'd that happen or how on earth did that guy get that open? Instead, Kent State was suffocated for 60 minutes by the Tide Defense and their desire to really not give up a single yard if they could help it.
Hightower & Upshaw- Harassers at Large
The two rush ends in most of Bama's pass defense packages really did a great job of disrupting off the ends and confusing the KSU offense all day. Upshaw, when healthy, is probably a top 10 pick in the NFL draft, and he needs to be able to play at this level all year long. Hightower played like a guy who really loves the game and knows what it means to him. I think between the injury robbing him of some of the luster of the 09 championship and the 2010 season being sub-par by their standards, he wants this season to be special and he wants to be that leader. I was really pleased to hear after the TD that Donta got in the OL's face and busted on them for their effort. I wish Bama had 5 with his heart and motor right now.
DePriest and Sunseri- Future Harassers at Large
I really like both guys. Trey announced his college intentions with an earhole to the KSU returner early in the game. Vinnie was popping ball carriers all afternoon and really is a good looking defensive back. He stays in position and for a guy with limited PT and college experience, he is well ahead of where he should be. TDP has the makings of another great linebacker for the Tide. He moves to the ball and doesn't let the linemen get on him. I liked how he was able to use his strength to keep them off of him long enough to make tackles and assists.
The Bad....
Too many opportunities dropped
Not exactly what you are thinking by that title. KSU dropped a ton of passes. I mean a lot. The momentum of the game could have been a lot different had they made half of the drops they had. The biggest thing I noticed both times I watched the game was how soft and slow Dre Kirkpatrick and Millner were to break to the play at times. Dre's passed on numbers are going to be high again this year because he plays off the ball too much and doesn't break to the ball fast enough at times. He missed an INT on one or two plays, but he was rewarded by the Football Gods by 2 or 3 drops from the KSU WR that were easy first downs. Millner really was spared on one that could have been a huge gain early but the WR just muffed it on the sidelines. I would guess in film and practice this week they work a lot on their reaction timing because it looked a lot like Arkansas only there wasn't the same level of athlete out there....this time.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Not gonna break them out, but overall it was a good day for the specialists. The high point was Maze's return skills on display that totaled 135 yards in returns. I thought the coverage teams were solid too as there was only 1 that got outside of containment. The punting was good and the kicking was good. I don't know why they tried a 54 yarder, but I guess they wanted to see what would happen. The only concern I have here is Maze and that is in 2 parts. Part one, I worry that he can't take the abuse of returning kicks for a full season and play WR. Part 2, he and really all of them need to remember a fair catch is honorable.
RANDOM THOUGHTS
QB Musical Chairs and how it is bad for business
I really wasn't wowed by either guy. I get where the average consensus is to just play AJ and move on. However, it is one game and there are a few facts left out of the discussion in the mob mentality out there. First, this was the first time Sims ever saw live college action. Second, when AJ got his first run of the offense last year, it was against beaten and worn down teams. Sims didn't get the luxury of playing in games where the defense was pulverized and all he had to do is show up. So, his learning curve is going to be steeper by default because he's facing fresh teams.
That doesn't mean, however, that he should start or take more than 30 percent of the snaps with the 1s this week. I also think that the Internet and these wannabe "Insiders" that constantly post garbage that is either made up or stretched to the point that the fact is so small that it cannot be recognized has really made a mess here. There is a faction of fans who will go ape shit if AJ McCarron loses the job at some point. The Mobile Bama fan base and surrounding areas will not want to believe he's not the one. After one game, most of us would believe that to a point. There is another fan contingent that thinks Sims is the next great QB and anything less than him is the tits. Phillip Ely's mom and dad are rooting for him.....
Anyways, the issue that I have with this is that neither really played great for the whole game. If Sims gets a TD, the basic metric is even. I did notice a few things that did concern me about how the coaches handled it. For starts, lots more short pass plays for AJ like screens and slips and slants whereas Sims had a lot more long drawn out plays. I don't recall one HB screen for him. I also noticed they tried to experiment with the OL more when Sims was in. Moving Jones to center a couple of times and to guard on others. It makes me wonder was he really "starting" or were they using him as a back up.
In the end, the main issue will be who can really take things over. McCarron did look the part early, but he didn't really pick it back up after his first sitting. Sims looked a little bit better after his 2nd pick and he calmed down some. I don't think they will use the same rotation going forward, and I really hope if they want to rotate QBs that they do it more on situation than time.
I would do almost anything for an offensive line that was mean
Whether it is playcalling or recruiting or coaching, the offensive line has not improved a lot from year to year. I never like a passive start for an offense. I like to see them establish the run and impose their will on defenses and get the O Line geared in and hitting. Ask any OL you know, they don't even have to be good ones, if they like to start out pass blocking or run blocking. They will almost all tell you they like run blocking. Why? Well, they get to hit somebody. It gets them moving forward and makes them the aggressor. It actually gets them into the game. Pass blocking takes them out of the game and makes them more of the liability because the only good thing they do on pass blocking is not let their guy get past them.
I don't remember Stoutland's lines at Miami being that soft or weak. I am willing to accept, if it is the case, that there is a lot of de-programming of bad habits that need to happen. However, these guys should know how to hit a helmet and he needs to ramp up his efforts to get them going. PSU won't be a slouch nor will Arkansas in 3 weeks. The fact that 2 Heisman caliber players have now gone 14 games with sub-par numbers for the most part is just unacceptable. Richardson's touchdowns were about all him if the truth be told. The fact that at the one, they couldn't surge to push AJ in the endzone is not acceptable. I don't give a rat's hairy shit if it was the first game. That's pathetic at any point, especially against a low end bottom feeder like Kent State. I don't want to hear one stupid comment about how Kent State's run defense was in the top whatever, and blah blah blah. Who did they play last year that could run or had a national program like Alabama? All that posturing and spin is just Shula-esque spin that I didn't like then or now. The bottom line is that these guys need to be beaten down in practice more until they find their mean streak.
So, who should start, that's really what you want to hear right? Well, I would just assume they try and find 2 new guards because that's where they are weakest. Warmack is just too heavy and slow to pass block any bull rush or stunt. Steen has terrible footwork and gets out of position too often. I noticed twice that he slid to support Fluker who had his guy without issue, and let the gap open and the defender lit Sims up both times. Fluker had a fair day, but he's gotta remember to move his feet and stay active and not sit down before he gets a hand on his guy. The Sims fumble wasn't helped by Phillip waiting too long in the pocket, but Fluker let a short White boy get on him and blow up his QB. Now, all of these guys do better at run blocking, but I saw them get up high and bent too often because they are still used to making their first motion backwards it seems. I will say that it was nice to see them bring back Warmack on the counter tre as the pulling guard. Lacy had 2 nice runs behind Warmack pulling as lead blocker.
What did this game teach me?
Utah State vs. Auburn- Auburn isn't as good as they were a year ago, but they are still good enough to win in the clutch. Also, Bama fans have way too much Aubsession. There were probably more fans watching the Auburn game over the Bama game. To scan the threads on BOL during the game it would seem that way. Focus on the uno guys....
Georgia vs. Boise State- Georgia has a bad case of the quits. It wasn't long in the 2nd quarter before you could see UGA's defensive linemen grabbing their knees for air. Boise wasn't gassing them with any speed or really even a speedy hurry up, they were just playing through and Georgia's conditioning was horrible. How does one get cramps in the air conditioned goodness of the Georgia Dome???? Richt is so fired his spray tan will melt.
Oregon vs. LSU- Never doubt the Hat. For years, Bama fans said he'd tap out once Saban's players were gone. Still waiting. The Hat does make some stupid mistakes and he is crazy.... that bottle their own piss for drinking crazy not ha ha crazy....but he seems to rise to the challenge of the big games and win. All the circus about losing players to suspension and all the talk about Oregon's speed did nothing to the fact that LSU has a heck of a defense and a stout running game.
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