🏈 Both lines, tackling, coaching staff, etc.

['65 Cobra]

I think most here are at least frustrated looking at the team's performance in general - doesn't look or feel like a championship team... At least not yet.

Yesterday, I was extremely frustrated with the poor tackling, their 100 yard runner, the overall lack of pressure on their QB, and the all-too-often horrendous O-Line play.

Is this how it's going to be, or is there reason for hope? Consider these factors:

• look at how many new coaches we have. I like to think that they will settle is as the season progresses
• the loss of Dylan really hurts. We have two freshman back there getting a baptism by fire. Who will step up as the leader of this defense?
• Follow up question on D as it pertains to poor tackling and being out of position: Do we need to simplify to allow these guys to get their sea legs and gradually increase complexity? Could the poor tackling (across the board) be the result of having too much to worry about on any given play?
• Lots of new faces in new places on the O-Line. Do they gel? Do we keep trying new combinations?

We've been spoiled by the Saban machine for sure. I think all of the above factors speak to a team and staff trying to find their rhythm while dealing with a whole bunch of new faces in new places. My hope is that they find their groove before we play TAMU in just under a month. What say you?

 

[#80]

Broke our 69 straight game streak for rushing for 100 yds.

 

[rick4bama]

Great sum up on the game yesterday. #80 I for one can handle that Bama didn't get it 100 yards rushing. But we did had a back with not one but two TD pass.

Alabama RB Najee Harris became the first Alabama RB in the last 20 seasons with multiple receiving touchdowns in a game. He also became the first SEC RB with multiple receiving touchdowns in a conference game since Alvin Kamara in Week 6, 2015.
https://twitter.com/ESPNStatsInfo/status/1172980939493953536/photo/1

 

[JoseyWalesTheOutlaw]

This bunch is a work in progress for sure. They have 4 weeks to get healthy and better b/4 they take on the Fighting Jimbo's. Yesterday should have been great for those young guys getting experience under fire. Bama is going to need some injury luck going forward on both sides of the ball.

 

[SnakeFan]

I kept telling myself yesterday, it’s only the 3rd game, they (OL/DL) will gel, they will learn, they will get better.

 

[alabama mike]

IMO, we try to do too much on defense at times and need to keep things simple against teams we are heavily favored in. It’s frustrating to see bad pursuit angles, turning the wrong way on coverage, very very poor tackling technique and busted coverages. Spoiled? Yes! Fixable? I hope so before we see A&M and LSU.

 

[JoseyWalesTheOutlaw]

Just finished watching the game for the 2nd time .

What I saw

#12 Skyler Delong looks like a scared kid
#35 is getting a little heavy. He seems to know the defense but Will and his staff schooled him yesterday...he's a playa though
#14 Shavers actually made a play on that fake punt but Slade Bolden had to close that out for him...good play
We need #47,#90,#92,#58 ,#4 to grow up fast in these next two games
#79 is the worst starting center Bama's had since Saban took the keys
#8 was confused on defense but #10 was just as confused and did little to contribute. Hell he was as lost as #8. The next time Nick heads to Utah or Nevada to recruit someone needs to cancel the flight.
#69 is a good addition to the team...the boy gives it all he has
#5 Carter gets turned around on every receiver down the field
The jury is out on the DC/ILB coach on this team. If #36 can't take the spot at this point then he will never be a starter at Bama. His elevator must be stuck on the ground floor.
Have to give Will and his staff credit for going all in on this game. It is Ok to give the other fella credit for doing good work.

Roll Tide

 

[Sgt. Lincoln Osiris]

One thing is concerning, for sure.

When we needed to "take the air out" in the 3rd to give our D a blow, we didn't just line it up and cram it down USC's throat. Think about that. South Carolina of all people. We didn't trust our line to get enough of a push up front to just run the damn ball. We went primarily dink-and-dunk air attack.

Hopefully this line gels and the young 'uns up front will get their sea legs before October rolls around and the defenses get much tougher.

Hopefully...

But what I'm seeing so far doesn't have me too confident.

We shouldn't need 400+ yards passing to beat somebody like South Carolina.

 

[mando]

I thought after the first quarter we actually had decent success when we tried to run the ball we just did not try to do it enough. Out of 76 plays we only ran the ball 25 times. Unfortunately we only averaged 3.0 yards per carry. I would have thought we had better per carry yards but I guess not.

Personally I am most concerned with the D. I thought Muschamp did us a favor by not just lining up and running the ball. I was surprised to see that they only had 135 yards rushing. Sure felt like a lot more when they were gashing us. They also had 31 first downs. Think about that for a second... Those are more pre-saban type stats. Gotta get that side of the ball fixed. If I am a coach I am playing ball control and keepin Tua on the sidelines.

 

[SnakeFan]

Just finished watching the game for the 2nd time .

What I saw

#12 Skyler Delong looks like a scared kid
#35 is getting a little heavy. He seems to know the defense but Will and his staff schooled him yesterday...he's a playa though
#14 Shavers actually made a play on that fake punt but Slade Bolden had to close that out for him...good play
We need #47,#90,#92,#58 ,#4 to grow up fast in these next two games
#79 is the worst starting center Bama's had since Saban took the keys
#8 was confused on defense but #10 was just as confused and did little to contribute. Hell he was as lost as #8. The next time Nick heads to Utah or Nevada to recruit someone needs to cancel the flight.
#69 is a good addition to the team...the boy gives it all he has
#5 Carter gets turned around on every receiver down the field
The jury is out on the DC/ILB coach on this team. If #36 can't take the spot at this point then he will never be a starter at Bama. His elevator must be stuck on the ground floor.
Have to give Will and his staff credit for going all in on this game. It is Ok to give the other fella credit for doing good work.

Roll Tide

Thanks JWTL for the analysis! Yes, CWM put up a fight, he wasn’t rolling over

 

[SnakeFan]

Just a thought ... Do you think CNS and CSS we’re holding back a bit on the running game and fine-tuning the passing game for the A&M‘s and the LSU’s type games we have later on? Giving them something to think about in the RB pass routes... something more to prepare for

 

[planomateo]

Almost 200 yards between the two, hard to look at that glass as half full. I think it's all about putting our play makers in a position to get yardage, either running or receiving the ball.

 

[50+yeartidefan]

All accurate....but .... what was more concerning....the RBs getting that extra yard or 2 or 3 when being tackled.... havent seen that since HC Shula days
Goes from second and 9 to second and 5-6.....lot different
Thats technic and strength....

 

[JoseyWalesTheOutlaw]

Hard to believe that Bama might start 5 true freshmen vs SoMiss.

94,8,35,9,and 92...…...

 

[NickelDoubleDog]

SC did a lot of things to confuse the young ILBs. They have good coaches - they threw for 500+ on Clemson last year.

Still, other than a garbage TD they got in the last seconds against backups, after a bogus targeting call, the D didn't give up many points. And one TD is a pass Battle picks off the rest of the year.

As for the running game, I saw improvements and the backs ran hard. It will keep improving as OL come back and get healthy. Owens will have to improve to keep his spot or else Ekiyor will take it.

 

[Bamabacker]

Coach Saban's post-game usually explains things very well. "We don't have the depth for the defense to be on the field 86 plays a game." Then you have the double-edged sword since Tua has been at the helm. Scoring drives are short and the defense can't make enough stops on third which gives us short possession games. Us Bama fans don't like it. As long as opponents challenge our offense to stop the run... we gonna pass. No since in complaining about a short game, we are moving the ball pretty damn efficient against a fair SC defense.

I think the game itself continues to change from year to year making it near impossible to control the line of scrimmage the way Bama did in the past.

 

[NickelDoubleDog]

Coach Saban's post-game usually explains things very well. "We don't have the depth for the defense to be on the field 86 plays a game." Then you have the double-edged sword since Tua has been at the helm. Scoring drives are short and the defense can't make enough stops on third which gives us short possession games. Us Bama fans don't like it. As long as opponents challenge our offense to stop the run... we gonna pass. No since in complaining about a short game, we are moving the ball pretty damn efficient against a fair SC defense.

I think the game itself continues to change from year to year making it near impossible to control the line of scrimmage the way Bama did in the past.

I think you have the crux of the issue precisely pinned down. In many ways, the style of offense with RPOs and how skilled the QB and WRs are doesn't play complementary to the defensive philosophy. The D has always been one that will keep 2 deep safeties whenever possible, stop the run with fewer guys by 2 gapping and having elite DL/OLBs, and make an offense drive the ball because it requires elite execution over a lot of consecutive plays to end in scores (especially TDs). That played out this past weekend - USCe didn't score many TDs - one was a junk late TD.

The byproduct, however, is that on offense a called run becomes a pass if they want to go RPO and Tua accurately reads the D cheating on the run. You don't run the clock down as much, you possess the ball less, and you put your D back out there who is running a scheme to be on the field MORE.

In some ways, a higher risk, higher reward D scheme complements RPO teams better. You need just one negative play to put an offense off-schedule and force a punt. You also may give up more big plays, but the tradeoff seems to be there. This is what Clemson, Texas, and Ohio St do on defense.

 

[Tidestalker]

I think you have the crux of the issue precisely pinned down. In many ways, the style of offense with RPOs and how skilled the QB and WRs are doesn't play complementary to the defensive philosophy. The D has always been one that will keep 2 deep safeties whenever possible, stop the run with fewer guys by 2 gapping and having elite DL/OLBs, and make an offense drive the ball because it requires elite execution over a lot of consecutive plays to end in scores (especially TDs). That played out this past weekend - USCe didn't score many TDs - one was a junk late TD.

The byproduct, however, is that on offense a called run becomes a pass if they want to go RPO and Tua accurately reads the D cheating on the run. You don't run the clock down as much, you possess the ball less, and you put your D back out there who is running a scheme to be on the field MORE.

In some ways, a higher risk, higher reward D scheme complements RPO teams better. You need just one negative play to put an offense off-schedule and force a punt. You also may give up more big plays, but the tradeoff seems to be there. This is what Clemson, Texas, and Ohio St do on defense.

Man... Some good stuff there from you and Bamabacker. The game being played today is just different...

I think you hit on some very good points. The "negative" plays are so important. That's why I'm so bullish on the importance of sacks.

I said it a few times last year but I do think there's an outside the box way to approach the D. To take on the likes of Oklahoma, Clemson, etc... An idea would be to play your 2's for at least 1 full series each half. Like, play them all at 1 time and let the starters rest & charge up.

I know the potential for scoring drives is more likely... But it keeps the starters from looking like swiss cheese in the 4th quarter. Plus, fresh 2's can be just as good as tired 1's! They could come in and create a negative play... Ours are super talented but lack experience. Well that's a good way to get it, right?

The biggest adjustment I'd like to see is how to end the game with your best player not completely gassed. Those last couple drives are the most important... JMO

 

[UAgrad93]

Coach said it on his show last night, too many plays for the defense and not enough depth built up yet and we really made a concerted effort to run the ball. 19 carries for 81 yards by RBs, 2 sacks for -12, a 1 yard QB sneak, a Waddle jet sweep for 5, a Bolden wildcat play for 2, and a knee for -1.

 

[NickelDoubleDog]

For all the hand wringing on how bad some think the OL is, Landon Dickerson was named SEC OL of the week. Didn't give up a sack or hurry or miss an assignment the whole game.

Wasn't someone saying he should be benched after the USCe game? LOL