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A new feature for right after the game this season: Our rapid reaction. Here's ten thoughts to ponder as the game hits the history books:
--Blake Sims was solid, not spectacular. He had his mistakes - missed throws, a couple bad decisions - but just one big one (INT in own territory up 7 in second half). For what it was, a first start against a Power 5 team at a neutral site, not too bad.
The good: 1) He completed his first pressure throw - a 3rd-and-11 on own 5 with his dropback in the end zone - finding Cooper across the middle for 12. A good sign for sure. That drive became a 13-play TD drive. 2) He showed poise, he was aware of the play clock on a first-and-10 in the red zone and got a timeout. He looked to have good control of the offense and the personnel. 3) He eldued the rush well, and turned that into a big gain as he brought Alabama on a late drive for a field goal just before halftime.
The bad: 1) Missed a wide open Amari Cooper on first drive and had to settle for three, throwing it at Cooper's feet. On a bootleg rollout 2) He missed a wide-open De'Andrew White for first down yardage on the third possession. 3) He had some errant throws that missed targets that were either dropped or hauled in with the WR in poor position. Those were masked during a 13-play scoring drive to take a 17-10 lead, however. 4) Bad overthrow to Cooper on that 4th and 6 out of the third quarter. Fourth down, have to give him a chance to make a play.
-Who looked really good: Amari Cooper and Derrick Henry. Clearly the stars of the day for the Tide and guys it'll ride all season long.
-I said all week I'd be concerned more if the defense struggled than if the offense struggled. That happened in the first half. The front four got almost no pressure and was hardly disruptive save for a Xzavier Dickson sack in the first quarter. West Virginia was 4 of 7 on third downs and passed for 168 yards in the first half. Was it HUNH issues in the first half? (something Saban dismissed somewhat in fall camp), We know Alabama didn't stop the pass, we know it didn't controlling the line of scrimmage when on defense. WVU was firing passes out quickly, not very conducive to a big pass rush, but more troublesome was the fact that WVU backs were able to get 3 and 4 yards past the line of scrimmage before seeing resistance.
Really, the only thing that slowed WVU's offense down was itself with a myriad of drops ending promising drives. A high snap ended another one early in the fourth when WVU had to settle for three.
--How about the offensive line -- No major issues from LT Cam Robinson, a true freshman. No penalties in the first half. Starting opening holes for Henry and Yeldon on the second possession, a 14-play, 95-yard drive that lasted almost seven minutes. Not perfect, no gaping holes - which were expected against a defense that ranked in the triple digits last year - but nothing that inflicts a major cause for concern.
Not perfect - had a couple holds in the second half and Sims had to buy time with his feet, but piling up yards behind the front wasn't anywhere close to Alabama's biggest issue. Could be questions at guard, though. Leon Brown and Alphonse Taylor rotated at right guard throughout the game with Brown getting the start. Brown was called for a false start in the fourth quarter along with two holds and was pulled in favor of Taylor.
-Bradley Sylve struggled throughout. He made one nice play on a second down pass over the middle, but other than that, he was picked on during the first drive for 3 completions (leading to a FG). He also gave up the 28-yard touchdown pass that tied the game at 10-10. It was a great throw and catch for sure, but he never got his head around and wasn't in real position to challenge the play without pass interference because of his position. Have to wonder if a true freshman (Humphrey/Brown) orientation process these next two weeks vs. overmatched foes could be in the cards.
And in Saban's coverage scheme, sometimes it's difficult to tell exactly who is at fault, even when it seems obvious. Case in point: During a WVU field goal drive in the third quarter, Nick Perry was grabbed with two hands by DC Kirby Smart and pulled from the game. Perry has been working on Sylve's side behind him all game. So something to consider, too.
-No sign of OJ Howard anywhere. Not so much as a target through the first three quarters. His first was Sims throwing a bad ball into double coverage in the fourth quarter in a seven-point game for an INT.
It was all Cooper all the time for Blake Sims, but with new a QB it's understandable that Sims is relying on what he's most comfortable with to move the ball down the field. Also, there's been a lot of chip blocking and TE blocking help for Cam Robinson on the left side, limiting TE routes in the pass game.
-Hey, how about Adam Griffith?
-Hey, how about JK Scott?
-De'Andrew White's arm was in a sling and he didn't play during the second half. Had a great run after catch in the first half, and losing veteran targets isn't going to help a new QB.
- I believe that the ebb and flow of the game hurt Coker's chances to get in there. Not suggesting Sims played poorly, but if the issue is that Coker hasn't grasped the playbook - Saban said Sims was ahead in that regard and that's what got him the start - then putting him in a 7 or 10 point game wasn't going to happen. Ideally a big halftime lead would have probably meant more Coker, but when it's tight Saban isn't going to divert from where he's most comfortable. Of course by that time Sims had settled in and was doing positive things.
A new feature for right after the game this season: Our rapid reaction. Here's ten thoughts to ponder as the game hits the history books:
--Blake Sims was solid, not spectacular. He had his mistakes - missed throws, a couple bad decisions - but just one big one (INT in own territory up 7 in second half). For what it was, a first start against a Power 5 team at a neutral site, not too bad.
The good: 1) He completed his first pressure throw - a 3rd-and-11 on own 5 with his dropback in the end zone - finding Cooper across the middle for 12. A good sign for sure. That drive became a 13-play TD drive. 2) He showed poise, he was aware of the play clock on a first-and-10 in the red zone and got a timeout. He looked to have good control of the offense and the personnel. 3) He eldued the rush well, and turned that into a big gain as he brought Alabama on a late drive for a field goal just before halftime.
The bad: 1) Missed a wide open Amari Cooper on first drive and had to settle for three, throwing it at Cooper's feet. On a bootleg rollout 2) He missed a wide-open De'Andrew White for first down yardage on the third possession. 3) He had some errant throws that missed targets that were either dropped or hauled in with the WR in poor position. Those were masked during a 13-play scoring drive to take a 17-10 lead, however. 4) Bad overthrow to Cooper on that 4th and 6 out of the third quarter. Fourth down, have to give him a chance to make a play.
-Who looked really good: Amari Cooper and Derrick Henry. Clearly the stars of the day for the Tide and guys it'll ride all season long.
-I said all week I'd be concerned more if the defense struggled than if the offense struggled. That happened in the first half. The front four got almost no pressure and was hardly disruptive save for a Xzavier Dickson sack in the first quarter. West Virginia was 4 of 7 on third downs and passed for 168 yards in the first half. Was it HUNH issues in the first half? (something Saban dismissed somewhat in fall camp), We know Alabama didn't stop the pass, we know it didn't controlling the line of scrimmage when on defense. WVU was firing passes out quickly, not very conducive to a big pass rush, but more troublesome was the fact that WVU backs were able to get 3 and 4 yards past the line of scrimmage before seeing resistance.
Really, the only thing that slowed WVU's offense down was itself with a myriad of drops ending promising drives. A high snap ended another one early in the fourth when WVU had to settle for three.
--How about the offensive line -- No major issues from LT Cam Robinson, a true freshman. No penalties in the first half. Starting opening holes for Henry and Yeldon on the second possession, a 14-play, 95-yard drive that lasted almost seven minutes. Not perfect, no gaping holes - which were expected against a defense that ranked in the triple digits last year - but nothing that inflicts a major cause for concern.
Not perfect - had a couple holds in the second half and Sims had to buy time with his feet, but piling up yards behind the front wasn't anywhere close to Alabama's biggest issue. Could be questions at guard, though. Leon Brown and Alphonse Taylor rotated at right guard throughout the game with Brown getting the start. Brown was called for a false start in the fourth quarter along with two holds and was pulled in favor of Taylor.
-Bradley Sylve struggled throughout. He made one nice play on a second down pass over the middle, but other than that, he was picked on during the first drive for 3 completions (leading to a FG). He also gave up the 28-yard touchdown pass that tied the game at 10-10. It was a great throw and catch for sure, but he never got his head around and wasn't in real position to challenge the play without pass interference because of his position. Have to wonder if a true freshman (Humphrey/Brown) orientation process these next two weeks vs. overmatched foes could be in the cards.
And in Saban's coverage scheme, sometimes it's difficult to tell exactly who is at fault, even when it seems obvious. Case in point: During a WVU field goal drive in the third quarter, Nick Perry was grabbed with two hands by DC Kirby Smart and pulled from the game. Perry has been working on Sylve's side behind him all game. So something to consider, too.
-No sign of OJ Howard anywhere. Not so much as a target through the first three quarters. His first was Sims throwing a bad ball into double coverage in the fourth quarter in a seven-point game for an INT.
It was all Cooper all the time for Blake Sims, but with new a QB it's understandable that Sims is relying on what he's most comfortable with to move the ball down the field. Also, there's been a lot of chip blocking and TE blocking help for Cam Robinson on the left side, limiting TE routes in the pass game.
-Hey, how about Adam Griffith?
-Hey, how about JK Scott?
-De'Andrew White's arm was in a sling and he didn't play during the second half. Had a great run after catch in the first half, and losing veteran targets isn't going to help a new QB.
- I believe that the ebb and flow of the game hurt Coker's chances to get in there. Not suggesting Sims played poorly, but if the issue is that Coker hasn't grasped the playbook - Saban said Sims was ahead in that regard and that's what got him the start - then putting him in a 7 or 10 point game wasn't going to happen. Ideally a big halftime lead would have probably meant more Coker, but when it's tight Saban isn't going to divert from where he's most comfortable. Of course by that time Sims had settled in and was doing positive things.
