18Champs
Member
Opening comments
Not a lot different about feelings in the last game in terms of how we played after watching the film. I think a lot better in the second half than the first. But I think the question that I'd ask is, how much did the other team stop us and how much did we stop ourselves, whether it was a dropped ball, missed assignment, not getting the ball out of our hand where we need to, giving up a play on defense, whether it's not the right run fit or gap fit, whatever. These kind of execution things are really, really important, especially when the whole emphasis is that we need to play better overand over and over again, especially when you play better teams. I think we had some outstanding performances in the game and I think our team is making progress, but I think we need to continue to do that. Every week in the SEC is a real challenge and a real test. That certainly won't be any different this week playing on the road at Arkansas, which I think has got a really, really good team. Quarterback (Austin Allen) is playing great for them. They're very well-coached. They've got some really good skill players, wide receivers, a couple of good running backs. They've got eight starters back on defense. They're playing really well on defense. The punter has done a great job for them all year long. This is a really strong opponent who has only lost one game this year. Certainly have shown the ability to close out games and win close games in the end.
We don't have any real injury problems. We have a couple of guys who will be out there in black shirts today. ArDarius Stewart will resume practicing this week. We're hopeful that he'll be able to get through the week and make the kind of progress to be able to contribute in this game
Really happy that Josh Jacobs got named SEC Freshman of the Week. That's a great honor for him. He did a fantastic job in the game.
On what Saban's thoughts would be if players came to him wanting to join in show of protest
I would listen to what the players have to say and really try to understand their point of what they want to do and respect their opinions of what they need to do. Look, I've never been in a lot of situations like that are occurring now. The only situation like that I was ever involved in was when I was a student at Kent State and the National Guard was there and we had an unfortunate incident.
How people respond and how people react to that is an individual thing. I would do the best that I could to try to understand why a player wanted to do that. I think that everyone is entitled to individual differences and believing in what they want to believe in. We have never used our team here to demonstrate that. You have never heard me comment politically on anything. I think we try to keep things to be team things and for guys to respect that part of what we do.
On if it was important for Jeremy Pruitt to have gone out on his own as a DC
I think anytime someone gains experience doing the job that they're now in charge of, that knowledge and experience is always beneficial to someone. I don't think there's any question about the fact that being a coordinator someplace else away from here probably gave Jeremy a lot of that experience. I think he does a good job for us and I think it helps him do a good job for us, and I'll continue to support him to help him do that.
On the difficulty of evaluating quarterbacks
I think quarterback is one of the most difficult positions to evaluate. I don't think it's hard to evaluate the physical skills that are required to play the position. But I think some of the most important things in playing quarterback is decision-making, judgment, timing, leadership, accuracy under pressure. Those things are much more difficult to evaluate until a player is actually called upon to do that in your particular system. This is probably why, in some cases, there are more mistakes made on quarterbacks picked in the first round than anything else in the NFL. I think you have to have the right stuff to play the position. And that right stuff part of this requires physical ability, but it also sort of gets into the mental makeup -- judgment, decision-making, processing information, making quick decisions -- that go a long in making a guy an effective quarterback.
On what Arkansas does offensively that tests defensive line depth
I think this team has probably demonstrated this year that they have one of the best balanced teams that we're going to play. I think they're running the ball for almost 200 yards a game and throwing it for over 200 yards a game. I don't think they're one-dimensional at all. They're very physical. They're going to run it downhill. They've got good backs and a good offensive line to do that. But I think their quarterback is playing extremely well. They've got great play-action passes that go with their running game and they've made a lot of explosive plays this year with their skill players. I think the combination of those two things is what challenges the defense, not only up front, but also in the secondary.
On how backup QB Cooper Bateman looked late in the game vs Kentucky
He did fine. He was only in there for one series, but I thought he did a job of moving the team and executing well.
On Cam Robinson's performance vs Kentucky
I thought Cam was a little more aggressive in the game. Certainly played physical in the game. I think Cam has played well all year long, but I think sometimes when you have an outstanding player like that, you always have high expectations for what he does. He certainly did a good job of fulfilling those expectations in this last game. We were able to get some movement on the line of scrimmage and have the kind of balance we want to have on offense.
On Tim Williams' performance in the second half after being suspended for the first half
When he got his opportunity in the second half, I thought he played really, really well. He was excited about having the opportunity. Hopefully with the other things that we had him do, this will be a learning experience that will help grow and develop habits that will be beneficial to his future.
On if there was a point before the season that he realized that Jalen Hurts had the level-headed mental makeup it takes at QB
I don't think you really ever know for sure that a guy has that mental makeup until he gets in there under fire and see what kind of decisions he's going to make under fire. I think the fact that Jalen fumbled the ball on his first snap as a college player and then came back and played pretty well in the first game, and then went to Ole Miss and got behind 24-3 and sort of worked his way back in the game and played better as the game went on. I think even last week we didn't get off to a good start offensively in the first half. He was not of particularly on target would be a good way to say it, but sort of rallied and played a lot better in the second half and made a lot better reads and a lot better throws. I think those things he has demonstrated through his performance. I thought he had the right disposition at the position, but you never know for sure until they get in the game and see how they respond when things go well and when things don't go well.
On Arkansas QB Austin Allen
He's a very good athlete, but I've been very, very impressed with his decision-making, his judgment and his ability to make (throws). He's got a very good arm. He's made a lot throws to the field, throws downfield. Executes their offense extremely well. Does a good job of faking on their play-action passes. He's got the highest completion percentage of any quarterback in the league and probably one of the highest efficiency ratings. He's a very effective and efficient player.
On Eddie Jackson when he has the ball in his hands
Eddie's a very instinctive player. He's a very instinctive guy in just about all aspects of how he plays and what he does. When he's back there returning the ball or when he gets an interception, he shows those same instinctive abilities to make the right cut, to make the right choice, the right decision (on) how to setup blockers and those types of things. On the punt return part of it, we've got to do a better job of getting the ball fielded. There's been too many balls that could have been fielded (and) that cost you too many yards (when they're not fielded). Regardless of who is back there, we need to do a better job of that. Eddie has always shown great judgment to get that part of it done. The number one thing on punt return is possession of the ball.
Not a lot different about feelings in the last game in terms of how we played after watching the film. I think a lot better in the second half than the first. But I think the question that I'd ask is, how much did the other team stop us and how much did we stop ourselves, whether it was a dropped ball, missed assignment, not getting the ball out of our hand where we need to, giving up a play on defense, whether it's not the right run fit or gap fit, whatever. These kind of execution things are really, really important, especially when the whole emphasis is that we need to play better overand over and over again, especially when you play better teams. I think we had some outstanding performances in the game and I think our team is making progress, but I think we need to continue to do that. Every week in the SEC is a real challenge and a real test. That certainly won't be any different this week playing on the road at Arkansas, which I think has got a really, really good team. Quarterback (Austin Allen) is playing great for them. They're very well-coached. They've got some really good skill players, wide receivers, a couple of good running backs. They've got eight starters back on defense. They're playing really well on defense. The punter has done a great job for them all year long. This is a really strong opponent who has only lost one game this year. Certainly have shown the ability to close out games and win close games in the end.
We don't have any real injury problems. We have a couple of guys who will be out there in black shirts today. ArDarius Stewart will resume practicing this week. We're hopeful that he'll be able to get through the week and make the kind of progress to be able to contribute in this game
Really happy that Josh Jacobs got named SEC Freshman of the Week. That's a great honor for him. He did a fantastic job in the game.
On what Saban's thoughts would be if players came to him wanting to join in show of protest
I would listen to what the players have to say and really try to understand their point of what they want to do and respect their opinions of what they need to do. Look, I've never been in a lot of situations like that are occurring now. The only situation like that I was ever involved in was when I was a student at Kent State and the National Guard was there and we had an unfortunate incident.
How people respond and how people react to that is an individual thing. I would do the best that I could to try to understand why a player wanted to do that. I think that everyone is entitled to individual differences and believing in what they want to believe in. We have never used our team here to demonstrate that. You have never heard me comment politically on anything. I think we try to keep things to be team things and for guys to respect that part of what we do.
On if it was important for Jeremy Pruitt to have gone out on his own as a DC
I think anytime someone gains experience doing the job that they're now in charge of, that knowledge and experience is always beneficial to someone. I don't think there's any question about the fact that being a coordinator someplace else away from here probably gave Jeremy a lot of that experience. I think he does a good job for us and I think it helps him do a good job for us, and I'll continue to support him to help him do that.
On the difficulty of evaluating quarterbacks
I think quarterback is one of the most difficult positions to evaluate. I don't think it's hard to evaluate the physical skills that are required to play the position. But I think some of the most important things in playing quarterback is decision-making, judgment, timing, leadership, accuracy under pressure. Those things are much more difficult to evaluate until a player is actually called upon to do that in your particular system. This is probably why, in some cases, there are more mistakes made on quarterbacks picked in the first round than anything else in the NFL. I think you have to have the right stuff to play the position. And that right stuff part of this requires physical ability, but it also sort of gets into the mental makeup -- judgment, decision-making, processing information, making quick decisions -- that go a long in making a guy an effective quarterback.
On what Arkansas does offensively that tests defensive line depth
I think this team has probably demonstrated this year that they have one of the best balanced teams that we're going to play. I think they're running the ball for almost 200 yards a game and throwing it for over 200 yards a game. I don't think they're one-dimensional at all. They're very physical. They're going to run it downhill. They've got good backs and a good offensive line to do that. But I think their quarterback is playing extremely well. They've got great play-action passes that go with their running game and they've made a lot of explosive plays this year with their skill players. I think the combination of those two things is what challenges the defense, not only up front, but also in the secondary.
On how backup QB Cooper Bateman looked late in the game vs Kentucky
He did fine. He was only in there for one series, but I thought he did a job of moving the team and executing well.
On Cam Robinson's performance vs Kentucky
I thought Cam was a little more aggressive in the game. Certainly played physical in the game. I think Cam has played well all year long, but I think sometimes when you have an outstanding player like that, you always have high expectations for what he does. He certainly did a good job of fulfilling those expectations in this last game. We were able to get some movement on the line of scrimmage and have the kind of balance we want to have on offense.
On Tim Williams' performance in the second half after being suspended for the first half
When he got his opportunity in the second half, I thought he played really, really well. He was excited about having the opportunity. Hopefully with the other things that we had him do, this will be a learning experience that will help grow and develop habits that will be beneficial to his future.
On if there was a point before the season that he realized that Jalen Hurts had the level-headed mental makeup it takes at QB
I don't think you really ever know for sure that a guy has that mental makeup until he gets in there under fire and see what kind of decisions he's going to make under fire. I think the fact that Jalen fumbled the ball on his first snap as a college player and then came back and played pretty well in the first game, and then went to Ole Miss and got behind 24-3 and sort of worked his way back in the game and played better as the game went on. I think even last week we didn't get off to a good start offensively in the first half. He was not of particularly on target would be a good way to say it, but sort of rallied and played a lot better in the second half and made a lot better reads and a lot better throws. I think those things he has demonstrated through his performance. I thought he had the right disposition at the position, but you never know for sure until they get in the game and see how they respond when things go well and when things don't go well.
On Arkansas QB Austin Allen
He's a very good athlete, but I've been very, very impressed with his decision-making, his judgment and his ability to make (throws). He's got a very good arm. He's made a lot throws to the field, throws downfield. Executes their offense extremely well. Does a good job of faking on their play-action passes. He's got the highest completion percentage of any quarterback in the league and probably one of the highest efficiency ratings. He's a very effective and efficient player.
On Eddie Jackson when he has the ball in his hands
Eddie's a very instinctive player. He's a very instinctive guy in just about all aspects of how he plays and what he does. When he's back there returning the ball or when he gets an interception, he shows those same instinctive abilities to make the right cut, to make the right choice, the right decision (on) how to setup blockers and those types of things. On the punt return part of it, we've got to do a better job of getting the ball fielded. There's been too many balls that could have been fielded (and) that cost you too many yards (when they're not fielded). Regardless of who is back there, we need to do a better job of that. Eddie has always shown great judgment to get that part of it done. The number one thing on punt return is possession of the ball.
