| FTBL Let's hear it people. Your thoughts, over/underrated?

[imported_porkchop]

So, what say you? Is what we witnessed last night a sign of Tide dominance to come or is it more Clemson being Clemson?

Personally I think it's both. You can break down the various units and aspects of the game and probably come to the conclusion that in some instances it's a sign of the times for BAMA, while in other instances, it's all Clemson. Atleast that's what I get. I'm interested in hearing your opinion.

1. Clemson DLine/BAMA OLine

Is BAMA's oline that good this year? Blasphemy! :lol: How could anyone think that we'll have a solid offensive line this year right? I mean, that's almost unheard of for us isn't it? I mean, when was the last time we had a solid offensive line?

My opinion: BOTH

I see BAMA having a solid line this year, but not a great line. The unit is still a work in progress, but we're getting there. As bad as Clemson played last night they do have a talented group of defensive linemen. BAMA just seemed to want it more last night.

2. BAMA Dline/Clemson OLine

My opinion: BOTH

This is an easy one. Everyone knew coming in that Clemson had issues on the offensive line. Yeah there was talk in a lot of areas about unit improvement but that, to me, sounded like whistling through a graveyard. The Tide took advantage of this weakness. Nothing really ground-breaking here, as the Tide did what any good team would do. Having said that, I feel like BAMA's defensive front is coming along nicely, and will continue to improve.

3. Harper vs "the guy with 3 names"

John Parker finally looked comfortable for the first time in a long while. How can you blame him though, given that every time he gets out of bed he seemingly has a new offensive coordinator. Last night Wilson looked like the veteran (22-30, 180) senior while his counterpart, Cullen Harper looked well........

My opinion: OVERRATED

Cullen Harper is a good quarterback. I won't argue that. But, Harper is a lot better when playing the likes of Louisiana-Monroe and Duke than when playing the big boys.

15. The number of touchdown throws Harper had against the likes of Furman, Central Michigan, Duke, and La-Mo last year.

2 and 4. The number of TDs/INTs that Harper had against VaTech, Boston College, Auburn, and Georgia Tech last year.

I rest my case.

4. The backs

I'd say that while Mark Ingram had a good game last night against Clemson, he'll be tested more when playing LSU or Georgia. I am high on Ingram, but am not going to call him the next great BAMA back....yet. Coffee was serviceble. In my opinion, Coffee is a guy that can help your team because he does a lot of things well. He blocks well, he runs well, and he catches well. Coffee is not your home run hitter though, and is not a guy that will carry a team. But BAMA doesn't need Coffee to carry the team. As long as Coffee performs in his role and BAMA's offense continues to spread the wealth, I think we're good. We'll be far more dangerous offensively, than if we have to rely on Ingram or Grant or Coffee exlusively.

Spiller and Davis? Look, they're going to get theirs. They just had the misfortune last night of running into Nick Saban, who had a long offseason to plot and scheme.

My opinion: BOTH

5. BAMA/Clemson Receivers

My opinion: Underrated
If I had to use the underrated tag, I'd use it here....on BAMA's receivers. Julio Jones aside, BAMA's receivers don't get their due IMHO. That includes the tight ends.

Receiving MVP: Julio Jones. Julio didn't put up the numbers, but he didn't have to. I beleive that the Clemson staff was scared to death of Julio and really bought into the hype. BAMA coaches used this to their advantage and Jones was valuable last night in a decoy role, freeing up others to get their grabs.

6. Overall BAMA/Clemson

Buckle up and enjoy the ride. I do see BAMA improving this year and being a player in the West. It's important to note however, that BAMA is young. Youth in a conference like the SEC has its pitfalls. If nothing else, BAMA should be exciting.

My opinion: OVERRATED
Clemson will likely finish the year with a good record, assuming this loss has not broken their spirit. That's a big if. Bowden looked like a beaten man last night after the "whoopin" they took. If Clemson can rebound they'll finish well and maybe even win their conference.

Bottom line however, IMHO, is that Clemson is still Clemson. They have a long history of choking and underachieving. Bowden also (atleast IMHO) strikes me as the consumate 9-3 coach, regardless of talent or conference. Take away the Bowden name and an undefeated season at Tulane, like.....10 years ago, and you have just another average, middle of the road coach, who probably doesn't deserve half the praise he gets. JMHO.

Anyway, what do y'all think?

 

[BAMAFSTBACK]

I can agree with all of that. Clemson looked like they were either over confident or under pressure when they entered the stadium last night. They showed no emotion at all. Bama came in ready to play! And the rest is history.

 

[imported_RollTideRandy]

Harper - OVERRATED (but I’ve been saying that for two years now)
Davis - OVERRATED
Spiller - NOT OVERRATED (as good as advertised)
Clemson OL - Everyone knew this was their weak link coming in
Clemson Defense - OVERRATED

JPW - Not UNDERRATED (Performed like a 3rd year starter should)
Bama RBs - UNDERRATED (Particularly Coffee and Ingram)
Bama OL - Not UNDERRATED, Everyone Said This Unit Would Be Solid
Bama Defense - Results Inconclusive, while this unit looks improved up front, at times they looked shaky in pass coverage and defending the screen.

Conclusion: Clemson was more OVERRATED than Bama is UNDERRATED, in my opinion. Nine was way too high a ranking for Clemson.

 

[Guest]

I agree with it al;l. Good post!

 

[BigAl]

I agree with all that but one more point i dont think Clemson was in shape to play. Or should i say they hadnt done they're conditioning in the weight room like we did. Another thing i think this proves Bowden isn't much of a coach at all. They were unprepared to say the least.

 

[bamarooski]

Great post!RTR!

Right on schedule!

 

[Guest]

Simply put, I'll say "both". Bama came out with great intensity and played inspired football against what will most likely end up being a mediocre Clemson team. Clemson always either storms out of the gates and falls apart at the end of the season or stumbles early and comes on strong. I think an Alabama team that played a physical game was able to take advantage of a team that clearly did not come to play ball.

I'm holding out for the UGA game before I buy into the hype. Three easy weeks ahead of you guys bodes well though; lots of PT for younger people IF this intensity can be sustained and as anyone that ever played knows, that can be difficult.

 

[Hightideiscoming]

Simply put, I'll say "both". Bama came out with great intensity and played inspired football against what will most likely end up being a mediocre Clemson team. Clemson always either storms out of the gates and falls apart at the end of the season or stumbles early and comes on strong. I think an Alabama team that played a physical game was able to take advantage of a team that clearly did not come to play ball.

I'm holding out for the UGA game before I buy into the hype. Three easy weeks ahead of you guys bodes well though; lots of PT for younger people IF this intensity can be sustained and as anyone that ever played knows, that can be difficult.

I hate to sort of agree with the AU Tiger here, but I have a gut feeling that about 6 games into the season, we'll see how really overated Clemson may be. There's a strong chance they won't be in the top 25. That said, this is just one game, and Clemson's performance may have been an all out fluke.
Michigan lost two in a row last year and still came out winning at least 8 if I remember correctly. I say that to say, one or two games can be misleading.

My alternate theory on the post above is: Auburn fan praying that what he saw doesn't keep on going, or it could be a very interesting meeting late year.

 

[ORANGEADDICT]

your resident vol fan agrees.....Bama...UNDERRATED..clemson overrated.
Bama played with so much emotion where as clemson looked like they were a bunch of zombies.

 

[imported_porkchop]

Simply put, I'll say "both". Bama came out with great intensity and played inspired football against what will most likely end up being a mediocre Clemson team. Clemson always either storms out of the gates and falls apart at the end of the season or stumbles early and comes on strong. I think an Alabama team that played a physical game was able to take advantage of a team that clearly did not come to play ball.

I'm holding out for the UGA game before I buy into the hype. Three easy weeks ahead of you guys bodes well though; lots of PT for younger people IF this intensity can be sustained and as anyone that ever played knows, that can be difficult.

It's important for me to say this so that people know and there is no mistake: I'm not hyping BAMA. I'm happy to have the win, and I do think we're headed in the right direction. I absolutely, positively believe that Saban and company would have had Clemson's number last night anyway, due to the amount of time BAMA had to prepare. Remember, this BAMA team last year played the nation's best in AU, LSU, and UGA and played them very tight, doing it with a lot of smoke and mirrors. That's a testament to the staff, as well as the grit and determination of the kids.

Is Clemson overrated? Yeah. Is BAMA overrated or underrated? I think we're improving, but we're young. So I don't know the answer to that just yet.

There's not a person out there that can tell me BAMA didn't want it more last night. That's gotta count for something.

 

[ElephantStomp]

Clemson did play poorly, but they did so because Bama made them do so. I realize everybody is going to say Bama wanted it more than Clemson or that this was Clemson being Clemson. But, don't lose the fact that Bama played really good and made the best team in the ACC look junior college like. Remember we almost beat UGA and LSU last year. I am very proud of the way Bama played last night.

ROLL TIDE!!!!

Cory

 

[Guest]

My alternate theory on the post above is: Auburn fan praying that what he saw doesn't keep on going, or it could be a very interesting meeting late year.

As an AU fan, I'm not as concerned with how well UA played as I am with how poorly our QBs played. Trust me, I have many concerns before even getting to the Iron Bowl!

And to the other poster, I'm not saying that you personally are hyping Alabama; the media certainly is. Bama played one hell of a football game, you should all feel pretty good after knocking off a top ten team, albeit overrated, still top ten. Several posters on here have admitted that Bama fans get their hopes too high too quickly. It will be tough to keep these kids grounded with all the media attention Saban draws.

I think it will be interesting to see how this season plays out for Bama.

Keep in mind, I'm not your typical AU fan. I grew up in a Bama house--my Dad was a lifelong, die hard UA fan and we were actually season ticket holders from 1991 season until he passed in 2000. My Mom is still a huge Alabama fan, as is my wife. My gym has almost as much Bama swag on the wall as AU, so I don't actually hate Bama by any stretch of the imagination.

 

[AFF]

Clemson - overrated
Alabama - underrated

Last night Alabama did exactly what Nick Saban and McElroy have been saying they wanted to accomplish. The intensity, execution, finishing plays, use of tight ends, short passing game, being extremely physical, QB friendly, consistency in the running game.

The fact that they did all those things is what stood out to me. It was an obvious result of very good coaching and it shows that the team has bought into what he's been selling. If the coaches can continue to get this type of consistent play from them, I see no reason that we shouldn't look this good every week.

The one thing we didn't show was the ability to score quickly. If we go up against some of the other SEC opponents who are just as physical as we are, and if we were to get behind, we might be in trouble. I'd like to see us work on the long ball the next few weeks.

 

[Guest]

The one thing we didn't show was the ability to score quickly. If we go up against some of the other SEC opponents who are just as physical as we are, and if we were to get behind, we might be in trouble.

Well said. Your entire post is actually a pretty good analysis. Clemson played like crap, out of position, no intensity, etc. Bama still had to execute to make that work.

I think the point several of us are trying to make is, Clemson played just as bad as Bama played well--that doesn't sound right but you know what I mean!