Crimson Red Sports

First:   Congrats to Bama player and coaches on winning the SEC Championship.  This is their next step to winning a National Championship.

Offense:  The offense was consistent all day.  There were a couple of drives, the 2nd and 3rd, that had some problems, but they overcame and finished off the game.  Bama had 7 negative plays in the game.  Three of these were tackles for losses, 1 was a sack, and they had 3 fumbles which they didn’t lose.  The offense only had 1 three and out all game.  I had Bama for 7 runs of 10+ yards and 8 passes for 10+ yards.   This is not the only balance they had.  They had 504 yards of total offense, 262 passing and 242 rushing.   If I heard the announcers correct, I thought they said Missouri had not given up over 400 total yards in a game all year.  In the red zone Bama was 3 for 3 scoring touchdowns.  They also scored 3 from outside the red zone.  They did leave 3 points on the field with the missed field goal.  This was also, in my opinion, the best game utilizing all weapons.  Bama had 5 different rec making catches in the game and they used AC as a decoy to score on the deep ball.

QB:  Sims had a great game.   He ended up 23/27 for 262 yards and he was pretty accurate on most of his throws.  But what was best was his decision making the whole game.  The first example was when he came off Cooper to hit Jones on a route where the LB jumped in the throwing lane.  He was a drop and an overthrow away from being 25/27.  There were a couple of plays where there was some miscommunication and it caused a fumble and a tackle for loss.  He did a good job keeping his eyes downfield knowing the strength of Missouri’s defense was their pass rush.  Also, his leadership came out when, and I don’t know what was happening, he was getting on Leon Brown just after Bama scored their 3rd TD.  I guess his biggest mistake was running with the ball out on the 17 yard scramble.

RB:  They ran hard.  They had more success running to the edge than they did up the middle.  Henry ended up with 141 yards rushing.  At one point he had 13 rushed for 52 yards which means he had 89 yards on his next 7 carries.  TJY had some good runs.  There was one where I thought his leg gave away on a cut, but he hit the heel of the blocker which put him off balance.  On another play it did look like his ankle gave away when he went to make a cut.  JF had another good game blocking, but did miss a couple on DB on the wide rec screen. 

REC:  This is what I expected all year.  There were big catches made by White, Howard, and Jones which went along with the numerous catches Cooper had.  At times they blocked outstanding, but there were a couple that if they were made would have turned into huge gains. 

OL:   I thought they played pretty well against a tough front.  They did have a couple of mistakes.  There were a couple of times when CR didn’t move his feet well enough to get the block on the quick defensive end.  Also, AK didn’t take a good enough step to stop the defensive lineman when the center was pulling which resulted in a tackle for loss.  I don’t know how many sacks this team was averaging per game, but they got 1.

Defense:  The defense played a pretty good game.  They had 6 tackles for loss and what I called 1 sack.  They also forced a fumble and recovered it.  They forced Missouri into 4 three and outs two of which started off the game.  They only gave up 1 run for 10+ yards.  The defense did give up 9 pass plays for 10+ yards, but most of them were in the 10-12 yard range.  Missouri had 313 total yards of offense.  They had 41 yards rushing and 272 passing.  Most of their yards came on scramble plays where they got 168 yards.  Bama allowed the QB to break contain and get the pass of several time and 4 of them hurt.  This was the only thing that kept their scoring drives alive.  Again the red zone d was outstanding.  They did give up a touchdown on a pick play, however Missouri ran it properly.

DL:  I probably don’t spend enough time on these guys.  They have played, and played, extremely well all year.  The good thing is it is not just one of them it is different people on each play.  These guys are making tackles on the sidelines and downfield if anyone gets that far.  They are why Missouri ran the ball 23 times for only 41 yards, a 1.8 yard per gain average. The biggest problem was allowing the Missouri QB to use that spin move and break contain leading to the big plays. 

LB:  They played extremely well.  Again, too me, this was DePriest game to shine.  He was all over the place.  If he wasn’t making the play he was doing the job to force the ball to someone else where they could make the play.
 
DB:  Honestly, I thought they played pretty well.  They did give up the 4 big passes, but you can’t expect them to cover for that extended amount of time.  I also, thought on a couple of those plays the Missouri rec got away with a push off. 

Penalties: Bama had two penalties that only 1 hurt.  Bama had good field position and ran the play where they flip the ball to Cooper and DW was not set long enough for the play.  This help lead to one of Bama’s 3 and outs.  They also wasted good field position here.  The second was a false start and Bama went on to score the TD.

Special teams:   There were 2 special team problems.  One was a missed field goal which took 3 points off the board.  The second was a bad snap which JK Scott made a play and go the punt off.  I was wondering did anyone else think that the Missouri punter had his knee down when he got a bad snap?  It was hard to tell from the angle they showed.

Finally:   It is down to win and keep on playing and it looks like Bama gets Urban.  Hopefully, Saban will send him into retirement again.

Please feel free to comment.

Good Luck and Roll Tide Roll 
15 and counting

Good stuff coach.

I am confused about that pick play.  We've seen that 2 weeks in a row, although different plays.  I thought that play was illegal.  I didn't think you could block a DB like that.  The Auburn play was a lot more subtle, but still should be a penalty in my mind.  They called that same play a penalty against Notre Dame in the FSU game.  Maybe I don't understand the rule.  :dunno:

If that play is allowed, then the defense doesn't have much of a chance to stop it.  I guess we have to recognize it immediately and have the DBs switch receivers, but to do that without even a fraction of a second delay, which allows just enough room to throw the ball, is tough to do.

Now we also ran that play down on the goalline, but we didn't make any contact with the defense.  We just caused a traffic jam, which is the correct and legal way to run the play (I think).

Thanks Coach for these great notes and all the notes you've done all year.

I saw the 'stumbles' by TJY and wondered if his ankle was bothering him.  Seemed like he was used less in the second half so I still wonder.  But at least now he (and all the dinged up guys) will have time to heal.  That has got to help us.

On the DBs, I do worry that a team with a strong passing attack can hurt us.  I thought GS was getting beat on several plays last night.

Thanks Coach. Great analysis again.

I thought the defense played very well. With the exception of the Hail Mary passes, Bama shut them down. I also thought that Kiffin had a great offensive game plan, and Blake executed it very well. I wonder just how bad we might have blown them out if not for the De White motion penalty. That completely stopped our momentum. I actually thought he stopped in time.

If the rec doing the pick/rub turns his head and throws his hand up, like he is asking for the ball, it is rarely called.  As the rec, they are not suppose to initiate the contact unless they are blocking.

Well done, coach.

Regarding the DBs, it is temping to chalk the long pass completions up to dumb luck, but in the past two games the opposing team is like 80% on those plays. While on TV it looks like the balls were dropped in with miraculous accuracy to well guarded WRs, is the TV picture lying? Were they really wide open, which encouraged the pass, but the DBs closed to make the passes look better denfended than they really were?

Was anyone at the game who could comment?

There are other factors to consider.  Some I mentioned above.  First, the d allowed the QB to get outside the pocket.  This extends the time a DB has to cover a rec.  It is difficult to cover someone for 4+ sec.  The second factor is I think the rec's got away with a push off on a couple of those plays.  In the AU game, they made some great throws and catches.

I think this is the difference between what Notre Dame did and what Bama, Auburn and Missouri did.  Bama was the most subtle, with the receiver slowing down to create a traffic jam without making contact.  The Missouri receiver turned around, but seemed to back into the DB, or close to it, same with Auburn.  Notre Dame receivers made contact and didn't turn around.

I thought the Missouri receiver flat out blocked the DB.  I will have to watch that play again and take a closer look.

Thanks coach!  Great analysis as always! 

I agree on the pushes by the Missouri rec. They weren't blatant but they did create just a little separation.  On to the Sugar Bowl!  BEAT OHIO STATE and ROLL TIDE!!!

That's what I thought.  It looks like a clear-cut penalty.

 :dunno:

Bama runs what really could be called a rub play - rarely any contact and if it is it is subtle. If the receiver just clogs up the DB path without initiating contact it is perfectly legal. What Mizzou did yesterday should definitely been caught and penalized. Picking is one thing. Deliberately blocking and not trying to look back for the ball is another. Also, the first long pass play given up the Mizzou receiver definitely pushed off.

I thought the defense looked like the defense of old for most of the game, stop the run and contain the QB on pass attempts. The defensive plan for yesterday should fit right in for the Ohio State game.

I will also say this: A'Shawn Robinson is an absolute STUD. He is starting to be an unstoppable force in the defensive front.

True.  And just wait until these guys are all healed and rested.

 :P

^^^THIS^^^ Barring any practice injuries in the weeks ahead, Bama should be in pretty good shape physically for the Ohio State game, something that the team hasn't been of late. :clap:

He played well as did other.  Reed, Pettway, and Xzavier well everywhere.

Denzel Duvall will be back for the Bowl.  That will just add to our strength.

tOSU QB will be making his 2nd start in the Sugar Bowl.  Get some pressure on him and rattle him.

Thank you HSC for the work you put in reviewing the games and preparing the game notes all season. This has been a good season for us and I have enjoyed reading your notes after each game and getting your input.  #+

I was at the game and have not seen the replay yet. When will it be replayed or where can I go to watch it. They are not showing as many replays of the football games since basketball has started.

Andrew White made a catch close to the Bama sideline on a 3rd down play. I could not tell if he was in bounds or not. They only show one replay at the game and I missed it. The Mizzou fans starting booing immediately after the replay. Bama rushed the next play and it was not reviewed and the Mizzou fans booed some more. Was he in bounds? That was a critical point in the game and a big 1st down for us.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVaNKSjIo5Q

Thanks.  #+

BTW, the catch you mentioned must have been the D White catch.  He caught it!  Perfect pass, good catch, and down to a knee.   :worship: :worship: :worship:

I will check again, but I think it was a good catch.

D. White catch made at around the 1:28 mark.  Toe then knee are both in bounds.