Game notes Bama vs Ark

[hscoach]

First, let me send congrats to the Bama players and coaches on the win. The team completely dominated the game on both sides of the ball.  The negative plays provide by Arky help put Bama in a very good position where they could do what they wanted.
 
Offense:  The offense played well.  I only have them down for 4 negative plays and I think 2 of those were when the backups were in.  The other two was when EL was tackled for a loss, but there was no way DJF could reach that LB and he shot the gap.  The other was a fumble snap near the goal line, however it didn’t hurt and Bama scored anyway.  When I first watched the game, I thought the OL didn’t play very well in the first quarter.  However, they did not cause the dropped pass which stopped a drive.  They did have the 5 yard penalty that took away a first down and Bama did not overcome it.  They just didn’t have to drive far and get going.  The first play of the game, Arky ran a run blitz and stopped Bama for a short gain.  They also had 8 in the box, I would have love to have seen a check to a pass here.  The team also got to play some backups.  PE came in with a little over 4 minutes left in the third quarter and played with the first OL. In the 4th quarter the backup OL played.

QB: AJ had a pretty good game.  I have him 11for 16.  But what I really watched was his play action stats.  Here I have him 7 for 8.  On the 11 for 16, two balls were thrown away on purpose and 1 was dropped.  He could have easily have been 14 for 16.  He also accounted for no sacks, meaning he didn’t hold the ball too long.  He also made a couple of good checks at the LOS.  PE and BS got some good work in.  I thought PE got rid of the ball quickly and knew where to go with it.  BS made a very good fake on the zone read and ran for a TD. 

RB:  They all ran the ball well.  I think the only thing that stopped EL sometimes was he was in the end zone.  He made some good cuts and blocked well which makes you think he is close to being well.  TJY also ran hard and did well. He again caught the ball and made a big play.  The RB I really want to mention here is K Drake.  I think this guy is pushing for that 3 back spot.  He has a burst and the cut he made on the goal line was exceptional.

REC:   Including backs there were 9 different players catching the ball.  I will also say they blocked pretty well.  CJ made a great block on the TD by AC.  Two other fresh MS and DW made catches in the game.  The only real negative was the drop which cost a first down and stopped a drive.  The camera angle did not show what happened when AJ threw the ball away.

OL:   The OL played pretty well.  There were a couple of times when they got beat, but the ball was gone or AJ created space to get a throw off.  They rushed for 225 and averaged 5 yards a carry.  This may have been more if as I stated earlier the end zone stopped EL. 

Defense:   The D played well.  I have Arky with 15 negative plays.  Now all of them were caused by Bama, but they were there to finish the play.  There was a lot of gang tackling.  The D also had 6 three and outs or less.  Along with the negative plays I have Bama pressuring the QB 6 times.  I thought Bama coaches did a good job getting their defensive packages in according to the personnel coming onto the field.  There were still some missed tackles and a couple of busted assignments.  I will address these in the positions.  One drive Bama had 30 yards of penalties.  This was a big negative on a very positive day.   

DL:  They played well here.  The major breakdown came when #92 went for the dive and allowed the QB to run the option.  It is not his responsibility to make tackles on the dive.  He may assist, but option, cutbacks are his first responsibility.  I know I should talk about AH with the LB, but he is on the LOS so much I am going to mention him and ES here.  In my opinion, these two make plays each week.  They seem to get better each game. 

LB:  These guys also played well.  They had to play coverage and made many solo tackles when needed.  They all seem to have the ability to play run and pass.  It is really hard to tell, unless you are really checking numbers which guy is in.  Here I am talking 33, 35, and 32. 

DB:    Even though this group made some big plays, 2 ints which led to points, they also missed tackles.  Both #13 and #3 missed tackles because they did not wrap up.  This seem to be something you see every week with VS.  I know he has made some big hits, but both of them could have prevented 1st downs by making tackles by wrapping up.  Now if you noticed on VS int how he communicated the inside route it was great.  Not only did he yell, but he pointed to the guy crossing out of his zone.

Penalties:  Bama had some big penalties in this game.  The ones on D and the ones on O can hurt in close games.  Not being able to come back and get a first down after the O penalty stops a drive.  D penalties help keep drives going.    Over all I think Arky gained 137 total yards, they gained 74 more from penalties.  This needs to be cleaned up. 

Special teams:  Cade Foster kicked the ball deep all but once. That didn’t hurt because Arky fumbled the ball and Bama got it.  He proved he has the leg to make the 50+ yard field goal.  I thought he hit the missed better than the one he made.  This was also good because of the weather conditions.  CJ made a mistake and was saved by the officials.  He must fair catch the ball sometimes.  Also, after that he looked scared to field the ball. 
 
Finally,
Please feel free to comment.

Good Luck and Roll Tide Roll 
14 and counting

[Chechem]

Thanks, coach. 

The only thing I'd add is that Mandell didn't have a good day.  At least his punts were high, and not returned.  After his slow start the offense took over; he hardly had any work after that.

I thought you might discuss the jumbo package on goalline offense.  Nice to see Jesse get a chance in there.  You?

[hscoach]

Thanks, coach. 

The only thing I'd add is that Mandell didn't have a good day.  At least his punts were high, and not returned.  After his slow start the offense took over; he hardly had any work after that.

I thought you might discuss the jumbo package on goalline offense.  Nice to see Jesse get a chance in there.  You?

You are right I left off CM out.  He had a punt for 36 and one for 35.  Not a great day.  The new jumbo package can give people something to think about. 

[2Stater]

Great assessment as usual, Coach. I loved watching Jesse come in on that play. It looked like they completely fooled the Arky "D". Do you think the weather had any effect on the number of penalties Bama had? It's been a long time since a Saban coached Bama team has committed that many penalties.

[hscoach]

Great assessment as usual, Coach. I loved watching Jesse come in on that play. It looked like they completely fooled the Arky "D". Do you think the weather had any effect on the number of penalties Bama had? It's been a long time since a Saban coached Bama team has committed that many penalties.

I think the D was so focus on Jesse being a lead back they forgot about the other side.  If you noticed his blocking backside allowed CW to pull on the play. 
In my opinion, no it wasn't the weather, at least not on all of them  I know the false start was not weather related.  The face mask was called because 92 did not do his job and allowed the QB to get outside.  This means the LB had to play dive to outside and now he is in chase mode.  He was reaching for what he could get.  The late hit on the QB, I thougt was questionable, but they called it.  I don't know what happened on the punt that cost Bama 15.  The holding call was the guy prob beat the rec to the point. 

[XBAMA]

thanks Coach 
when you don't see the game these notes mean a lot 

[BAMAWV]

First, let me send congrats to the Bama players and coaches on the win. The team completely dominated the game on both sides of the ball.  The negative plays provide by Arky help put Bama in a very good position where they could do what they wanted.
 
Offense:  The offense played well.  I only have them down for 4 negative plays and I think 2 of those were when the backups were in.  The other two was when EL was tackled for a loss, but there was no way DJF could reach that LB and he shot the gap.  The other was a fumble snap near the goal line, however it didn’t hurt and Bama scored anyway.  When I first watched the game, I thought the OL didn’t play very well in the first quarter.  However, they did not cause the dropped pass which stopped a drive.  They did have the 5 yard penalty that took away a first down and Bama did not overcome it.  They just didn’t have to drive far and get going.  The first play of the game, Arky ran a run blitz and stopped Bama for a short gain.  They also had 8 in the box, I would have love to have seen a check to a pass here.  The team also got to play some backups.  PE came in with a little over 4 minutes left in the third quarter and played with the first OL. In the 4th quarter the backup OL played.

QB: AJ had a pretty good game.  I have him 11for 16.  But what I really watched was his play action stats.  Here I have him 7 for 8.  On the 11 for 16, two balls were thrown away on purpose and 1 was dropped.  He could have easily have been 14 for 16.  He also accounted for no sacks, meaning he didn’t hold the ball too long.  He also made a couple of good checks at the LOS.  PE and BS got some good work in.  I thought PE got rid of the ball quickly and knew where to go with it.  BS made a very good fake on the zone read and ran for a TD. 

RB:  They all ran the ball well.  I think the only thing that stopped EL sometimes was he was in the end zone.  He made some good cuts and blocked well which makes you think he is close to being well.  TJY also ran hard and did well. He again caught the ball and made a big play.  The RB I really want to mention here is K Drake.  I think this guy is pushing for that 3 back spot.  He has a burst and the cut he made on the goal line was exceptional.

REC:   Including backs there were 9 different players catching the ball.  I will also say they blocked pretty well.  CJ made a great block on the TD by AC.  Two other fresh MS and DW made catches in the game.  The only real negative was the drop which cost a first down and stopped a drive.  The camera angle did not show what happened when AJ threw the ball away.

OL:   The OL played pretty well.  There were a couple of times when they got beat, but the ball was gone or AJ created space to get a throw off.  They rushed for 225 and averaged 5 yards a carry.  This may have been more if as I stated earlier the end zone stopped EL. 

Defense:   The D played well.  I have Arky with 15 negative plays.  Now all of them were caused by Bama, but they were there to finish the play.  There was a lot of gang tackling.  The D also had 6 three and outs or less.  Along with the negative plays I have Bama pressuring the QB 6 times.  I thought Bama coaches did a good job getting their defensive packages in according to the personnel coming onto the field.  There were still some missed tackles and a couple of busted assignments.  I will address these in the positions.  One drive Bama had 30 yards of penalties.  This was a big negative on a very positive day.   

DL:  They played well here.  The major breakdown came when #92 went for the dive and allowed the QB to run the option.  It is not his responsibility to make tackles on the dive.  He may assist, but option, cutbacks are his first responsibility.  I know I should talk about AH with the LB, but he is on the LOS so much I am going to mention him and ES here.  In my opinion, these two make plays each week.  They seem to get better each game. 

LB:  These guys also played well.  They had to play coverage and made many solo tackles when needed.  They all seem to have the ability to play run and pass.  It is really hard to tell, unless you are really checking numbers which guy is in.  Here I am talking 33, 35, and 32. 

DB:    Even though this group made some big plays, 2 ints which led to points, they also missed tackles.  Both #13 and #3 missed tackles because they did not wrap up.  This seem to be something you see every week with VS.  I know he has made some big hits, but both of them could have prevented 1st downs by making tackles by wrapping up.  Now if you noticed on VS int how he communicated the inside route it was great.  Not only did he yell, but he pointed to the guy crossing out of his zone.

Penalties:  Bama had some big penalties in this game.  The ones on D and the ones on O can hurt in close games.  Not being able to come back and get a first down after the O penalty stops a drive.  D penalties help keep drives going.    Over all I think Arky gained 137 total yards, they gained 74 more from penalties.  This needs to be cleaned up. 

Special teams:  Cade Foster kicked the ball deep all but once. That didn’t hurt because Arky fumbled the ball and Bama got it.  He proved he has the leg to make the 50+ yard field goal.  I thought he hit the missed better than the one he made.  This was also good because of the weather conditions.  CJ made a mistake and was saved by the officials.  He must fair catch the ball sometimes.  Also, after that he looked scared to field the ball. 
 
Finally,
Please feel free to comment.

Good Luck and Roll Tide Roll 
14 and counting

Thanks, as always, HSC. Controlling the LOS on both sides of the ball are beautiful things to watch. Another businesslike approach which now seems to be the norm in these BIG games. Controlling the trenches seems to demoralize our opponents and leads to big plays for the "O" and turnovers for the "D". Thanks again, and RTR!

[bama87]

Watching the replay, the only thing that stands out is VS likes to go for the knockout instead of wrapping up. The penalties are not acceptable but those can be worked on.
One question I have is, can this team stay focused week after week. The only thing that disrupt that is our own play. That is and will be the focus of CNS and the leadership of this team.

[hscoach]

Watching the replay, the only thing that stands out is VS likes to go for the knockout instead of wrapping up. The penalties are not acceptable but those can be worked on.
One question I have is, can this team stay focused week after week. The only thing that disrupt that is our own play. That is and will be the focus of CNS and the leadership of this team.

I think that is the main question, can they stay focused?  NO doubt they have talent.  I also think more work needs to be done on pass protection especially with the two tackles.

[BAMAWV]

Watching the replay, the only thing that stands out is VS likes to go for the knockout instead of wrapping up. The penalties are not acceptable but those can be worked on.
One question I have is, can this team stay focused week after week. The only thing that disrupt that is our own play. That is and will be the focus of CNS and the leadership of this team.

I think that is the main question, can they stay focused?  NO doubt they have talent.  I also think more work needs to be done on pass protection especially with the two tackles.

I mentioned earlier in this thread their businesslike approach this year. But another thing I watch is when cameras pan over to the sideline. Even with a big lead and all the momentum, this team is not hopping up and down and showing off for the crowd. They are not 3 deep watching the game.They are in their groupings and going over with the assistants what needs to improve or what is coming next.

[hscoach]

Watching the replay, the only thing that stands out is VS likes to go for the knockout instead of wrapping up. The penalties are not acceptable but those can be worked on.
One question I have is, can this team stay focused week after week. The only thing that disrupt that is our own play. That is and will be the focus of CNS and the leadership of this team.

I think that is the main question, can they stay focused?  NO doubt they have talent.  I also think more work needs to be done on pass protection especially with the two tackles.

I mentioned earlier in this thread their businesslike approach this year. But another thing I watch is when cameras pan over to the sideline. Even with a big lead and all the momentum, this team is not hopping up and down and showing off for the crowd. They are not 3 deep watching the game.They are in their groupings and going over with the assistants what needs to improve or what is coming next.

The other difference is you notice the coaches keep coaching and coaching hard.  They are not just sitting back watching like some other coaches with a big lead.

[BAMAWV]

Watching the replay, the only thing that stands out is VS likes to go for the knockout instead of wrapping up. The penalties are not acceptable but those can be worked on.
One question I have is, can this team stay focused week after week. The only thing that disrupt that is our own play. That is and will be the focus of CNS and the leadership of this team.

I think that is the main question, can they stay focused?  NO doubt they have talent.  I also think more work needs to be done on pass protection especially with the two tackles.

I mentioned earlier in this thread their businesslike approach this year. But another thing I watch is when cameras pan over to the sideline. Even with a big lead and all the momentum, this team is not hopping up and down and showing off for the crowd. They are not 3 deep watching the game.They are in their groupings and going over with the assistants what needs to improve or what is coming next.

The other difference is you notice the coaches keep coaching and coaching hard.  They are not just sitting back watching like some other coaches with a big lead.

This team is not satisfied with being better than the rest of the teams in the country. They have their sights focused on acheiving a legacy. Competing with other great Bama teams in our storied past.

[lstephen]

Thanks, HSC!  Always look forward toyour analysis.

[ALTideUp]

Always a good read, Coach. Thanks.

[hscoach]

I was really hoping to get some more opinions on RB, Drake.

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