Good- 2 weeks in a row where the offense came out sharp on the first drive and the calls/script flowed with a little bit of everything. Unlike last week though, they kept their foot on the gas.
-Thank God for Germie Bernard. I'm not sure we've had a transfer that has been as important of an addition in terms of what he brings on and off the field to UA since Landon Dickerson. I didn't get a vote, but IMO, a "C" belongs on his jersey.
-Gubb drew up and called some gems, especially early on... that was as close to the DeBoer UW offense as we've seen thus far since he's been at UA. On that note, the looks and plays inside the red zone through 2 games have been beautiful. By the way, Bama was 7 for 7 with 7 TD's in the red zone tonight.
-Start 1 to Start 2 was a nice step for Ty Simpson. I wasn't down on his FSU performance like some, but he looked more comfortable tonight and hopefully built some confidence. It helped that he was at home, his OL played better and the running game was working, but still... 17-17, for 226 yards, and 3 TD's in the first half? I know it's ULM, but that's hard to do against air. The coaches wanted him to let it rip, tonight he played relaxed and looked like he trusted his eyes more.
-Austin Mack did well with his minutes. I like the staff giving him and some others early playing time... don't love them leaking it to the media during the week (that needs to stop, though it's possible they wanted that message out), but I like the reasons behind them playing him early. On Mack, I would like to see him put a little more touch and air on some of his throws, but I'm sure he was pretty amped up tonight.
-Speaking of backup QB's and young players, that first TD throw/play by Keelon Russell was nifty. Looked a little like Bryce Young with how it played out. Russell needs a little time (won't be as much as most), but he's going to be a superstar.
-Michael Carroll was one of those younger guys with a good amount of snaps. I mentioned yesterday that if he got in there and got comfortable, he might very well steal a spot. That remains to be seen, but from what I did see on first watch, he played well. At the very least, there is about to be some fierce competition for the best 5 (which could include a shelved plan to move Formby inside?).
-Kevin Riley is so much better than I anticipated him being at this stage... His vision, quickness, burst, ability to work in traffic... those are things you can't really coach. And he's equally as impactful in the passing game. Happy to see him earning more opportunities.
-ULM sucks, but their bread and butter is running the ball. That's an area the Bama defense has been soft at. It was nice to see the Tide defense (without Keenan and Beamon) really step up and shut them down for the most part in that area. The Tide held them to 2.9 YPC and just 3 YPP overall. Bama didn't record any sacks but did get 12 TFL as a team.
-Keon Sabb, James Smith, LT Overton, freshman London Simmons, QB Reese played well. Steve Bolo Mboumoua played like he was possessed when he got garbage time reps. His Gatorade had some Red Bull in it.
-That hit/fumble/takeaway early in the 4th by Kirkpatrick Jr. and Reese was the type of play we didn't see from the defense last week. They didn't just wrap the WR up and wait for the whistle, they laid the wood and forced the issue. And good things happened. Kirkpatrick specifically, was flying around out there tonight... at least up until his targeting penalty.
-Talty hitting FG's... seeing him hit that 46 yarder in the 3rd quarter right after the officials iced him on a replay call after he hit the first one was nice.
-Lastly, all 11 Alabama offensive drives ended in scores... 10 TD's and 1 FG. Hard to top that.
Bad- I can't really think of much. Maybe Kirkpatrick's targeting? But at least he was playing his ass off and blowing guys up. So I really don't care, I just hate that it carries over to next week.
Ugly- Much like ULM points in the game, I got nothing. Bama did what they needed to do and it was a dominating win... clean, crisp, and all encompassing. Now, carry it over, build on it, and let the chips fall where they may.
Notes- Their punter sending Cole Adams into another dimension with that closeline from hell was quite something.
-Good to see Lotzier Brooks get some meaningful time and some touches. He's a weapon in a crowded room, but a weapon that needs to be used.
-Good to see Jaeden Roberts back out there playing again at guard. Really hope he can stay on the healthy side of things going forward for once.
-Kaleb Edwards is going to be a mismatch nightmare before too long.
-Bama scoring 3 TD's on the same drive, with 2 negated by very questionable penalties, was pretty neat I guess.
-Even though it was a shitty ULM team, it was good to see Bama show up and play hard. They looked sharp and well prepared. That was as much as we could have asked for... play hard, execute, and no serious injuries. They'll get 2 or 3 guys back before next week when it ramps up a bit against Wisconsin... a team Bama should still handle. But at least this UA squad is pointed in the right direction now. Now, they just have to keep it that way.
-Thank God for Germie Bernard. I'm not sure we've had a transfer that has been as important of an addition in terms of what he brings on and off the field to UA since Landon Dickerson. I didn't get a vote, but IMO, a "C" belongs on his jersey.
-Gubb drew up and called some gems, especially early on... that was as close to the DeBoer UW offense as we've seen thus far since he's been at UA. On that note, the looks and plays inside the red zone through 2 games have been beautiful. By the way, Bama was 7 for 7 with 7 TD's in the red zone tonight.
-Start 1 to Start 2 was a nice step for Ty Simpson. I wasn't down on his FSU performance like some, but he looked more comfortable tonight and hopefully built some confidence. It helped that he was at home, his OL played better and the running game was working, but still... 17-17, for 226 yards, and 3 TD's in the first half? I know it's ULM, but that's hard to do against air. The coaches wanted him to let it rip, tonight he played relaxed and looked like he trusted his eyes more.
-Austin Mack did well with his minutes. I like the staff giving him and some others early playing time... don't love them leaking it to the media during the week (that needs to stop, though it's possible they wanted that message out), but I like the reasons behind them playing him early. On Mack, I would like to see him put a little more touch and air on some of his throws, but I'm sure he was pretty amped up tonight.
-Speaking of backup QB's and young players, that first TD throw/play by Keelon Russell was nifty. Looked a little like Bryce Young with how it played out. Russell needs a little time (won't be as much as most), but he's going to be a superstar.
-Michael Carroll was one of those younger guys with a good amount of snaps. I mentioned yesterday that if he got in there and got comfortable, he might very well steal a spot. That remains to be seen, but from what I did see on first watch, he played well. At the very least, there is about to be some fierce competition for the best 5 (which could include a shelved plan to move Formby inside?).
-Kevin Riley is so much better than I anticipated him being at this stage... His vision, quickness, burst, ability to work in traffic... those are things you can't really coach. And he's equally as impactful in the passing game. Happy to see him earning more opportunities.
-ULM sucks, but their bread and butter is running the ball. That's an area the Bama defense has been soft at. It was nice to see the Tide defense (without Keenan and Beamon) really step up and shut them down for the most part in that area. The Tide held them to 2.9 YPC and just 3 YPP overall. Bama didn't record any sacks but did get 12 TFL as a team.
-Keon Sabb, James Smith, LT Overton, freshman London Simmons, QB Reese played well. Steve Bolo Mboumoua played like he was possessed when he got garbage time reps. His Gatorade had some Red Bull in it.
-That hit/fumble/takeaway early in the 4th by Kirkpatrick Jr. and Reese was the type of play we didn't see from the defense last week. They didn't just wrap the WR up and wait for the whistle, they laid the wood and forced the issue. And good things happened. Kirkpatrick specifically, was flying around out there tonight... at least up until his targeting penalty.
-Talty hitting FG's... seeing him hit that 46 yarder in the 3rd quarter right after the officials iced him on a replay call after he hit the first one was nice.
-Lastly, all 11 Alabama offensive drives ended in scores... 10 TD's and 1 FG. Hard to top that.
Bad- I can't really think of much. Maybe Kirkpatrick's targeting? But at least he was playing his ass off and blowing guys up. So I really don't care, I just hate that it carries over to next week.
Ugly- Much like ULM points in the game, I got nothing. Bama did what they needed to do and it was a dominating win... clean, crisp, and all encompassing. Now, carry it over, build on it, and let the chips fall where they may.
Notes- Their punter sending Cole Adams into another dimension with that closeline from hell was quite something.
-Good to see Lotzier Brooks get some meaningful time and some touches. He's a weapon in a crowded room, but a weapon that needs to be used.
-Good to see Jaeden Roberts back out there playing again at guard. Really hope he can stay on the healthy side of things going forward for once.
-Kaleb Edwards is going to be a mismatch nightmare before too long.
-Bama scoring 3 TD's on the same drive, with 2 negated by very questionable penalties, was pretty neat I guess.
-Even though it was a shitty ULM team, it was good to see Bama show up and play hard. They looked sharp and well prepared. That was as much as we could have asked for... play hard, execute, and no serious injuries. They'll get 2 or 3 guys back before next week when it ramps up a bit against Wisconsin... a team Bama should still handle. But at least this UA squad is pointed in the right direction now. Now, they just have to keep it that way.
