🏈 Next year

[PhillyGirl]

Yeah I know it hurts. My heart palpitations will last for another week and I will feel nauseous for a few days. But a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step so ..

What improvements do we need to win next year? What do we need to do to succeed? What are our biggest recruiting needs? Have at it. I could use some discussion to keep my mind busy ..

I want a big playmaker in the secondary. I want to see continued progress of guys like Ragland and Henry. I want to see improved play calling, solid QB play (ah the big elephant in the room for next season!), and LESS TURNOVERS AND PENALTIES.

Saw a lack of discipline and drive tonight. I just didn't like this incarnation of our team. Lack of heart. Just didn't have "it". Dunno why exactly but it is what it is.

 

[TheChief]

Cyrus Jones says he is returning next season... where else would he go?

 

[cjaytch]

I hope our D can return to the days of sure tackling. Way too many missed tackles.

 

[PhillyGirl]

I hope our D can return to the days of sure tackling. Way too many missed tackles.

By missed tackle #57, I was like:

 

[bamafan4ever]

Cyrus Jones says he is returning next season... where else would he go?

Like most of your "analysis" this year, your sarcasm is misplaced. He had a great year and a damn good game tonight.

 

[Rolltide24]

Cyrus never crossed my mind as a potential NFL jumper. I guess it crossed his. I haven't seen him as a lock down corner like Dre or Dee. But we've got to find better secondary play in 2015. The Auburn and OSU games have exposed some great gaps and weaknesses. These 2 QB's made it look easy and Marshall isn't even a great passer.

Looking to 2015, we lose probably 80% or more of our offensive production, right? All our WR's, Simms and Yeldon and Fowler. Could be an interesting year. I only wish our 2nd string and 3rd string QBs will be as good as OSU's... I'd be scared to death to play a big game like that with our 3rd string at this point.

 

[JoshB]

Next year is gonna be tough. 10 wins would be a huge success IMO. Losing so much on offense (Shepherd and Koundjio on O-Line, White, Fowler, Vogler, and Jones skill players plus more than likely Yeldon and Cooper not to mention the QB) and defense too (Dickson and DePriest def. gone and possibly Reed, Ragland, and more than likely Collins). I can't even start to think what the answer on defense is gonna be. It wasnt just the secondary that got destroyed, never would think Id see a back run for 200 yards on that defense.

 

[silvermetalflake]

Sometimes I wonder whether people actually watch, understand, and accept the sport of football or do they just like rooting for a team, calling out a team slogan, and wearing hats?

All this petty depression and negativity over the Sugar Bowl... the play calling, the defensive this, the offensive that, Lane Kiffin this... blah blah blah.

People.... it's football and chyte happens. It's the game. Sometimes you win and sometimes you're the great Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos and get blown out 22 - 7 by the lowly St Louis Rams!! Or maybe the 12 - 4 Green Bay Packers who haven't won in Buffalo in years and AGAIN this year got blown out 21 - 13 by a Bills team that didn't even make the playoffs.

IT'S FOOTBALL!!! Understand it, accept it.... ........ or learn to play golf.

I think Bama had a great season, and I loved watching the games. There were some nail biting moments and some hair pulling.... but that's THE GAME! And I love the game. That means I can take my lumps when it doesn't go my teams way and still feel great about our boys, the coaches, and everyone who does the best they can to make the team the best they can be!!

Can't wait for next season !!!!

Roll Damn Tide.

 

[BamaFan334]

Sometimes I wonder whether people actually watch, understand, and accept the sport of football or do they just like rooting for a team, calling out a team slogan, and wearing hats?

All this petty depression and negativity over the Sugar Bowl... the play calling, the defensive this, the offensive that, Lane Kiffin this... blah blah blah.

People.... it's football and chyte happens. It's the game. Sometimes you win and sometimes you're the great Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos and get blown out 22 - 7 by the lowly St Louis Rams!! Or maybe the 12 - 4 Green Bay Packers who haven't won in Buffalo in years and AGAIN this year got blown out 21 - 13 by a Bills team that didn't even make the playoffs.

IT'S FOOTBALL!!! Understand it, accept it.... ........ or learn to play golf.

I think Bama had a great season, and I loved watching the games. There were some nail biting moments and some hair pulling.... but that's THE GAME! And I love the game. That means I can take my lumps when it doesn't go my teams way and still feel great about our boys, the coaches, and everyone who does the best they can to make the team the best they can be!!

Can't wait for next season !!!!

Roll Damn Tide.

I think those calling out the play calling are the ones that actually know what football is about. Those that like to chant a slogan and wear the logo wouldn't know how to discuss that part of the game or see where we failed. Yeah, crap happens, but not when you've got more talent and ability. We weren't beat, we beat ourselves and our coaches failed our players for the most part. I know my football and will gripe all I want because I can pinpoint exactly where our problems are and refuse to accept that kind of play we rolled out last night. It's the complacent ones that fail. Coach Saban pulled the typical after a loss in the last game speech, but I can promise you he's pissed off right now as well.

The NFL is a poor analogy because you're dealing with professionals and everyone is good. In college the University of Alabama is not expected to lose to Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Arkansas etc. and rarely do we every lose to those schools. We're better talent wise, strength wise, and recruit better all as a whole and are a tier higher than mosts. No one goes undefeated in the pros because the playing field is pretty even, considering.

 

[TheChief]

FORE!!!!!

Eh, forget that...where's my hat?

 

[Rolltide24]

We did just pick up a huge commit, literally, with Daron Payne at the Under Armour game. Should be real solid tackle.

 

[It Takes Eleven]

Offensive line will be strong again next year. We have an awesome group of O-line commits with a year under their belt in the system.

 

[RollllTide!]

Defense wins Championships............... Sorry but I am not sold on a high power fast paced offense unless you have a serious throat strangling defense. I don't buy the fact that you can't have a defense like that in todays fast paced no huddle offense. If you have the speed you need on defense and the coverage the only thing you have to worry about is a scrambling quarterback that can run. Even then the quarterback will tire out or get hurt before the game is over. I hope the coaches start realizing this and make their recruiting choices based on that fact. I am not sure CKS can do this.

I know the Oregon lovers will disagree but show me a defense that will hold a team to field goals and maybe 1 or 2 touchdowns a game (at the end) and I will show you a national champion team every time.

 

[JoshB]

Saying someone calling out the playcalling doesnt know what they are talking about or doesnt know football is pretty asinine IMO. There isn't a single person that can justify some of the plays called nor why Derrick Henry had just 13 carries. Kiffin had an amazing year as a play caller but he blew majorly in the Sugar Bowl.

 

[PhillyGirl]

Got another huge committ today in 5-star CB Kendall Sheffield over TAMU. Number 3 CB in the nation.

And as RollTide24 said, we also got 5-star DT Darron Payne over Auburn. Number 6 DT in the nation.

 

[silvermetalflake]

I think those calling out the play calling are the ones that actually know what football is about. Those that like to chant a slogan and wear the logo wouldn't know how to discuss that part of the game or see where we failed. Yeah, crap happens, but not when you've got more talent and ability. We weren't beat, we beat ourselves and our coaches failed our players for the most part. I know my football and will gripe all I want because I can pinpoint exactly where our problems are and refuse to accept that kind of play we rolled out last night. It's the complacent ones that fail. Coach Saban pulled the typical after a loss in the last game speech, but I can promise you he's pissed off right now as well.

The NFL is a poor analogy because you're dealing with professionals and everyone is good. In college the University of Alabama is not expected to lose to Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Arkansas etc. and rarely do we every lose to those schools. We're better talent wise, strength wise, and recruit better all as a whole and are a tier higher than mosts. No one goes undefeated in the pros because the playing field is pretty even, considering.

Have you been involved at field level, coaching football professionally for significant amount of time? Yes. Fine. If not... well.... until you've done it, been there, and been in the professional trenches when the heat comes down, it's all just fan-talk analogy IMO. And hindsight is 20/20. Easy to say what "shoulda been done" when you didn't have to make decisions and map out entire game strategies.

We weren't beat, we beat ourselves and our coaches failed our players for the most part.
Oh poppycock. Whenever Bama doesn't win you hear that crap.... "We beat ourselves.... " How about giving credit where credit is due. Bucknut played well, forced plays, created missed tackles, read Sims, mined the defense for run space, etc etc.

The NFL is a poor analogy because you're dealing with professionals and everyone is good.
Ahhhh ... actually, no they are not. The NFL is fulla guys who don't produce up to expectation.

 

[silvermetalflake]

Saying someone calling out the playcalling doesnt know what they are talking about or doesnt know football is pretty asinine IMO. There isn't a single person that can justify some of the plays called nor why Derrick Henry had just 13 carries. Kiffin had an amazing year as a play caller but he blew majorly in the Sugar Bowl.

I'm no expert, granted. But I would say that in light of Bucknuts' suffocating run defense that shut out Heisman runner-up Melvin Gordon and the Badgers (3rd best Run Offense in the FBS) it might just have been folly for Bama to have built a game around the very premise that Wisconsin couldn't make work. I know Henry got some fine runs, but if there had been too many the Bucks perhaps woulda figured it out and played differently to neuter our run game the same way they did with Wisconsin.

 

[JoshB]

I'm no expert, granted. But I would say that in light of Bucknuts' suffocating run defense that shut out Heisman runner-up Melvin Gordon and the Badgers (3rd best Run Offense in the FBS) it might just have been folly for Bama to have built a game around the very premise that Wisconsin couldn't make work. I know Henry got some fine runs, but if there had been too many the Bucks perhaps woulda figured it out and played differently to neuter our run game the same way they did with Wisconsin.

The game plan was obviously just that, but when you see that Blake is rattled and they are shutting Coop down at the same Henry is averaging damn near 8 yards per carry, you have to adjust. They simply didn't. There were multiple situations where we went three and out with Henry not even getting a touch. That is inexcusable.

 

[BamaFan334]

Have you been involved at field level, coaching football professionally for significant amount of time? Yes. Fine. If not... well.... until you've done it, been there, and been in the professional trenches when the heat comes down, it's all just fan-talk analogy IMO. And hindsight is 20/20. Easy to say what "shoulda been done" when you didn't have to make decisions and map out entire game strategies.

We weren't beat, we beat ourselves and our coaches failed our players for the most part.
Oh poppycock. Whenever Bama doesn't win you hear that crap.... "We beat ourselves.... " How about giving credit where credit is due. Bucknut played well, forced plays, created missed tackles, read Sims, mined the defense for run space, etc etc.

The NFL is a poor analogy because you're dealing with professionals and everyone is good.
Ahhhh ... actually, no they are not. The NFL is fulla guys who don't produce up to expectation.

So you're basically saying unless I'm on the field making snap decision calls I'm not allowed to talk about the playcalling? It's no secret our secondary was soft all year just waiting to give up the long pass. Hmm, I would have ran something different knowing this guy was a pure pocket passer and racked up 59 points in their Championship game.

And yes, I'd say being up 21-6 and losing 42-35 with multiple interceptions, giving up over 200 yards rushing when we average 88, and going three and out more times not is beating ourselves. We did not play like this all year to this extent, so that's beating ourselves. Graph it all and this will be the outlier. They weren't that much better than us, let's be honest here.

And the NFL is the best of the best. It has nothing to do with those not making expectations, because in the end these teams are all stacked with the Top .01% of athletes around the world.

I'm a realistic and honest person, and you can look back at everything I have ever posted, I don't say "oh the refs" "oh we shoulda won" "oh the NCAA is against us" unless I have something to back it up. I love my team, but I'm not a homer with Alabama glasses on. We beat ourselves whether you want to agree with it or not. Our coaches killed us, plain and simple. The playcalling on both sides of the ball was abismal. I have two examples of exactly what I'm talking about at important parts of the game. I can find 20 more I'm sure. And it's not hindsight, it's a full season of watching our team and watching theirs when they're on tv. I know our strengths, so I know our coaches know them. It's not just me saying this, others are saying it was not a Lane Kiffinesque performance. Defense has been bend but don't break all year, but we broke last night. It's not poppycock as you put it. My wife can attest to the fact I was calling the defenses and plays all night last night and what needed to happen.

 

[silvermetalflake]

The game plan was obviously just that, but when you see that Blake is rattled and they are shutting Coop down at the same Henry is averaging damn near 8 yards per carry, you have to adjust. They simply didn't. There were multiple situations where we went three and out with Henry not even getting a touch. That is inexcusable.

Agreed. They could have run Henry more in times like that. But would it really have made a significant difference in the grand scheme of things? I guess we'll never know. But if they had started running Henry more, the Buck D-line would most likely have adjusted and shut it down big time. That's what they do; and they do it exceedingly and frighteningly well. Sure people can throw around all the excuses they want... "We beat ourselves" and cliches like that.... but rather than blame Bama players and coaches, I simply credit OSU. Just when we thought we had all the answers, they changed the questions.