OFFENSE
The Good...
It is amazing what happens when you establish the run
As you know, I preach the philosophy of running to set up the pass. It will never be the other way around in my mentality. So you can imagine how much I loved the 1st quarter and the first 6 minutes of the second quarter...The next 2 and a half quarters were sheer pleasure though. This offensive line is an average pass blocking line, that isn't speculation, it is fact. They give up too many sacks and pressures to be great. They are a great run blocking line that almost live 3 yards down field. Georgia was the perfect sample for this theory. Georgia lives off being the aggressor. They want you to throw, and they want to dictate when you run and where you run. They cannot, however, stand the thought of you punching back or hitting them first. After Bama got in the hole, they went to their proven commodities- Lacy and Yeldon- to get out of trouble. Running on first down, running on second down, running on third down (when they actually go to 3rd down), and making the Dawg D just hate its life in front of a national audience.
Williams & Vogler Road Grading and Dawg Chewing Inc.
Jarvis Jones ain't shit. Rambo can hype him up and himself up, but the truth was that Bama made a subtle switch to their formations that threw Georgia off all night. They put Williams in motion to find Jarvis and break his back. Jones is a pure edge rusher, nothing more or less. You can run at him, and Bama did about 30 times, and you can run play action at him and succeed as long as the TE is on him at the snap. Lacy's first touchdown is a play where you use that play to teach young players how to be linemen based on how Williams and Vogler performed. They hit their first man, clear him, go to the second level, find their man again, clear him and hunt more. It is affectionately called "keeping your head on a swivel" and they were loving life during it. There was the play where Rambo wimped out on Lacy where Williams was leading the caravan in front. You could see his body language saying he loved how this was going because Williams wants to beat up linebackers and safeties. He got his Christmas stocking full Saturday. He also made some money on the video of his blocking prowess. NFL teams will burn a 3rd round pick on a guy who can play every down.
TJ Yeldon- "That ain't no freshman"
Cooper loves Bacon
Amari Cooper must really love bacon because he saved McCarron's about 3 times. His steal from Rambo (notice I love picking on the mouth piece) is an All American level play, and not an easy one at any level. It was the start of a long day for Georgia's defense and Rambo. Cooper's TD reception benefited greatly by the ground and pound attack that had gone on for 30 straight minutes, but when the safeties were drawn in tighter than Mark Richt's sphincter, the call was on and Cooper put another All American juke on the corner and created the space he needed to make the play. For all the hand wringing about Kenny Bell being out and using Chris Black, Bama only needed Cooper to make the vertical plays and live on the backbone of the team.
Eddie Lacy fulfills his prophecy...
It isn't like Alabama fans didn't know Lacy was good. He had been somewhat overshadowed by Ingram and Richardson, and even Yeldon at times, but when it really had to happen and when Bama really needed his best, he gave probably his greatest performance on the biggest stage. Lacy is a lot of what Georgia hates... a big, physical runner who is fast enough to break things open. The worst thing for the Georgia defensive staff (what is left of them) was to see Lacy in the second level play after play after play. As a running back, you love it. As a lineman, you really love it. As a defensive back, you tap your helmet and ask for a blow. This game needed Lacy to step up and give his greatest to date. He had Ingram on the sidelines amping him up. He had DJ Fluker in his ear amping him up. They had to have him because AJ McCarron was not going to win the game for them, only Lacy could. Thankfully for the good guys, he shouldered what at times seemed like an impossible load and won the game.
2 point conversion
I know my friends on crimsonchat.com were having a cow over the decision to go for two, but I was ok with it before the play. Their thoughts were about what mine were. Georgia was gassed, beaten, and they would need those points sooner or later, so the time to strike was then. I even was hoping they would run it because they were getting 7 yards a lick and only needed two. It also sent a message to the team that they trusted them to make the play and it sent a message to Georgia that this was what you were going to get the rest of the night and you better like it or stop it.
The Bad...
McCarron's lack of confidence
The closest thing I can compare AJ McCarron's issue to is a baseball term called the "yips" where you are trying to not make mistakes and you end up making them anyways by short arming and hesitating on throwing the ball. Everything off his shoulder was low, high, or wide and all were late during the course of the game. I know he has the injuries, but if they are going to ask you to execute, then it needs to happen. The bubble screens and arrows were just horrible to watch at times because Cooper had to create way too early to get 3 yards.
The Ugly...
Early Playcalling
I have not hid my displeasure of Nussmeyer's pass first theory. I had my best donkey punch lined up for him if they didn't start running the ball. It was so bad that you could hear the fans groan as they lost confidence in the plan early on. I get that it is his style and he comes from a pass to set up the run program, but this is the SEC, and passing is what you do to break a team not get to the breaking point. That is why the SEC dominates the BCS year after year. The maturation of the coordinator has not gone the way I think everyone would have hoped. It was near asinine to continue to throw when it was clear that the QB had no confidence in what he was being asked to do. It also was just as bad to continue to run a hurry up offense when it wasn't helping anyone but Georgia's offense. Thankfully, Saban realized that and even made mention to it in the halftime comments that once they abandoned all that gadgetry and got back to power football they looked a whole lot better. It is a shame it took 12 and a half games to see that.
DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS
The Good....
Geno Smith comes of age
My Dad and brother are tired of hearing this question, but WHY OR HOW ON EARTH DID VINNIE SUNSERI BEAT OUT GENO SMITH??????
There is not a good answer, so don't bother arguing with me. Smith played one of the finest games I have ever seen a freshman corner play. UGA loves to use the slot receiver and use him as the safety valve at times over the middle. His task was the toughest of the 3 WRs assigned for the day and he met the challenge head on and made the key play at the end of the game (on accident) by bumping the WR and causing him to not be able to stop his momentum and fall to the ground with 4 seconds left. Game over.
Ivory and Williams gut one out
To play hurt is a part of football, but to play injured is a whole different thing. Ivory and Williams, and Barrett Jones on offense, all gave legendary efforts to help Bama survive what could have been a dynasty stopping defeat. That was what was on the line, and that was what made guys with tears and sprains tape up and give it all. Ivory wasn't even expected to play, but when it was time for someone to step up, he gamed up and made a huge stop late in the 4th to force Georgia to punt. Williams forced Georgia to run outside most of the day, and that isn't where they want to be going from nor is it how Gurley likes to run. He is more north south than east to west. Once they established a dominant position in the middle of the line, the rest was easy.
Not many "true" scores
The scoreboard will fool you. Short of a blocked kick, faked punt (damn you sorry ass special teams), and a botched fake punt on Bama's part that flipped things around, Bama really only gave up 2 scores on legitimate drives all night. Once you factor out the gimmicks, Bama for the most part held their own against one of the top end offenses in the conference.
CJ Mosley can come over and kiss my wife if he wants to
The guy is a true ball player and he, when given the chance to perform, continues to make play after play after play. None were as big as the swat at the end of the game, but even before that he was being used to confuse Murray pre snap. He was showing blitz, and dropped to cover a TE, he lined up in space showing cover and blitzed at the last second, he was on the left then at the snap he was to the right, and on and on. It wasn't always effective, but most of the night Murray had made the resolution that he was going where Mosley wasn't. BTW, I was kidding bout my wife....but not really....
The Bad...
Sunseri, Where's Perry, and a case of the Belues
I know some hate that I call out players by name, but let's be honest, is there any other way to say it at this point? I realize that the depth chart is a little low at safety and corner due to poor recruiting and attrition, but for Bama's recruiting standard to be what it is supposed to be, it should not be this weak. Perry lacks the confidence or the football knowledge to understand what he sees out there. He's almost an extra linebacker out there. His mentality and movement are more in line with the way a Sam back would play. Sunseri's fault is the coaches fault. He has no business being asked to cover corners who are way ahead of him on the skill chart and TE's that he needs a stepladder to reach. It isn't lack of effort or understanding, just God didn't bless him to be a D-1 defensive back. He would have been a star in the 80s in the days of Ozmint and Mangum though. Belue's weaknesses are prime time features on opponent's film study now. He eats up a pump fake and lacks the top end speed to correct in time. He is weak in zone coverage too when they run multiple players near his zone, he cannot figure out where to cover and freezes. All of these things are not new or the first time you have witnessed them, hell Notre Dame has a catalog of them to see. It comes down to they can't be coached to correct themselves or the coaches are not recognizing the issue and correcting the schemes to shore up the weak spots. Belue's can be fixed over the next month if he is coach able. I also look at him and see the potential, but he's nothing like what some recruiting hacks hyped him up to be. Sunseri and Perry are different though. I would have put Sunseri at Money in the Dime set and Sam back on the regular depth chart. Those spots play to his strong points. Perry.....well, I would rather ask where he is than find a place for him now.
The Ugly...
Welcome Back Specialists...Welcome Back Welcome Back Welcome Back....
At some point, you have to realize that they just don't do the little things well on special teams. Botched fakes, muffed kickoffs, lining up wrong, can't kick it over the snapper's jock strap, and so on and so on. It is a total positional failure to improve this late in the year.
To answer on the fake punt that UGA executed, that was on the coaches in the booth. Their job is to see it and radio down to call timeout if they see fake and see they aren't in line for it. UGA did not hurry the play to slide it through, they just fell asleep in the booth on what their assignments were. Bama's failed fake was on either Sunseri or Mandell as one or both should have been eyeing the clock to call the ball.
Cade Foster, to be fair, did kickoff well. However that field goal wasn't a penetration block, it was dead on arrival before it had clearance from the tower. My one hope is that Adam Griffith gets as much time as he wants starting this week to work on the job next year. I have watched him kick in the clutch from those distances and hit it like they were practice shots.
RANDOM THOUGHTS....
I hate the BCS Bowls this year
I agree with Herbstreit that Northern Illinois has no business being in the BCS bowls and I really hate that Louisville is having to play Florida. Out of the BCS games, only the ND vs. Bama and KSU vs. UO game are of interest to me. The Sugar, the Rose, and the Orange Bowl all three will tank in ratings. ESPN has to be loving their long term contract for that garbage.
Tim Brando should can his own douchery and resell it on the ladies eisle.
We get it, you homer out for your team and hate Bama, we get it. Move on.
The weekend of December 1st and 2nd may have been the greatest football weekend in my life
Bama wins, and Greg McElroy throws his first touchdown and wins his first NFL game. Did you know that a Bama QB has not won a game he started since Gary Rutledge in the 80s? Before that it was Richard Todd....Brodie Croyle never won a game he started. Thus why he is now out of the league. If he gets to start against the Jaguars, I will be a big Jets fan for him as it is no secret that he's been one of my favorite players over the years of doing the GBU.
2 comments:
You nailed Jarvis Jones
C'mon bro. We're ready for the GBU for the NC.
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