Sunday Morning Coach's Corner: Game 4

[Jamos]

Yesterday's game wasn't what the fans wanted to see from Bama's standpoint but it was another win. Bama has historically been a team to play down to the lesser teams after a big game and yesterday was no exception. The offense seemed to be in a trance for most of the game but the defense did all of the exciting things by totally shutting down the La Monroe offense.

Offensively, Bama is struggling as the line play is horrendous and the receivers are nowhere near the receiving corp of last year which can be undstood because Amari Cooper is gone. The line play of the offense does not compliment the ability of the running backs on the team and until they improve, this will permit the opposing defenses to better play the passing game. There has been some moments where the running backs made some big runs but not on a consistent basis. The receivers really need to step it up. Most of them came to Bama highly rated but they aren't running good routes and drop way too many passes and that shouldn't be happening with 4 and 5 star players. The QBs seem to still struggle but I think the bad line blocking is having a lot to do with that. They are having to operate under way too much pressure from the defensive line and until that improves, the QBs will struggle and in other words, the whole offense has a lot of improving to do.

We all knew the defense would or should be the marque of this years team and so far that has been the case. There are times the secondary has looked very questionable as some of the teams have had good success with the short quick passes and so far it has been a bend but don't break defense. Yesterday that seemed to change as they played more of a smash mouth defense and had something to prove. La Monroe is not a UGA or LSU but still I thought the team played with more intensity than they have been playing and the results seemed to show that.

In the kicking department and the special teams, there still are problems there. Scott is still struggling some and I'm hoping these shanked punts go away. I watched him in pregame warm ups and he just doesn't seem to have the pop on the ball that he had last year. He would be booming them 60-65 yards with a nice spiral then but the ball looks different this year with more wobble to it. Griffith has had better success since the season started and that is good news. He is kicking the ball into the endzone on kickoffs and making some field goals. There has been some comments made by some observers that Bateman is placing the ball down for him where his is kicking the laces of the ball and that isn't good, the ball will dfo carazy things when that happens. Bateman was out early in the pregame warm ups with the snapper and they worked for quit some time on taking the snap and placing the ball. Hopefully his good kicking will continue. The special teams still look a little scary on their coverage so hopefully Griffith will continue to put the ball in the end zone on the kick offs.

So off we go to Georgia next Saturday and they have been awaiting this game. They haven't forgotten the playoff game a couple of years ago they lost to Bama at the very end of the game and I expect an all out war from them. Whatever mistakes Bama has been making in the previous games, they better improve them this week. Bama can and should win this game because they are Bama but the players have got to realize this and play like this if it is to happen.

Well here's my 2 cents worth of the game yesterday so maybe some of you have some opinions to add to this. RTR!!!!

[Chechem]

Good observations, Jamos.   

You are correct about the line play.  That's a bit of a surprise (to me).  I'd hoped this year we'd blow open some holes with regularity.  Well, not yet!

The QB play and the punting are mysteries.  Both could suddenly improve, but we don't have much time left for that. 

Georgia looms.  This may be the pivotal game of the year.  We need a win!!

Roll Tide.  E-cred to J.

[Jamos]

Good observations, Jamos.   

You are correct about the line play.  That's a bit of a surprise (to me).  I'd hoped this year we'd blow open some holes with regularity.  Well, not yet!

The QB play and the punting are mysteries.  Both could suddenly improve, but we don't have much time left for that. 

Georgia looms.  This may be the pivotal game of the year.  We need a win!!

Roll Tide.  E-cred to J.

Thanks Chech. I think the QB play will improve when the Oline improves and as you said, hopefully soon uh like next Saturday.

[Catch Prothro]

Thanks for the report J.

I'm not sure that the offensive scheme is playing to the strengths of this team. 

As an example, Bama is throwing too many deep balls given the results (several interceptions).  The OL isn't giving the QB enough time to run these plays, and the QBs lack the arm strength to make those deep throws without stepping into the throw.  The short and middle distance passes seem to have had much more success, and I'd like to see Bama putting more emphasis on these routes.

The OL also hasn't been able to control the line against dominant DL like Kimchee on run plays.  Against Wisconsin they were able to pound the ball, not so much against Ole Miss.  Still, Bama has a stable of very talented RBs, and it should be able to move the ball on the ground both pounding Henry (avoiding those DL who seem hard to block) or using the Drake on the edge when he is healthy.   

The front 7 on D have been awesome all season.  The DBs are still getting beat on deep balls and often find themselves playing the receiver instead of the football. 

I don't have much opinion on the ULM game as it was a sandwich game between two tough contests and (as J points out) Bama often plays down to its opponent.  It was nice to see the defense reject that mentality.  Now we just need to get the offense on board.

Bama faces a tough test with Georgia.  They are a balanced offense with a RB worthy of Heisman consideration and a QB who rarely makes mistakes (infrequently throwing incomplete passes.)  Bama probably will be the toughest defense they face all season; hopefully it can change some of those Georgia statistics.  Bama can't afford a shootout, but I don't see the game going that direction as long as Bama's offense doesn't turn the ball over and give Georgia extra opportunities. 

My prediction, with fingers crossed, is Bama wins a close one. 

[KoKoPuf]

Good points, Jamos. Like you, I thought the OL would be better than it has shown so far. Spotty run blocking and fair to poor pass blocking. Receivers have been disappointing, I keep thinking someone will step up and maybe it will be Ridley. Chris Black can't catch and Stewart is undisciplined and not sure handed. Maybe give Falkins or someone else a shot. Or move OJ Howard to a WR. Coker's play hasn't been Manning or Brady but right now he is not getting any help from the receivers or the OL. And most of all, no help from whoever is calling the plays.

[XBAMA]

Bama has historically been a team to play down to the lesser teams

I kept telling myself that and at the half when we had less than
100 yards passing and under 100  yards rushing I remember
a conversation I had recently with a former player ...

you see , this former player that is now in the pros paid a visit
to campus .
he told me that when he went to the weight room there was a
stench in the air ..

guys were cutting up , acting like it was a  party more than a time
to put the needed work in to be the best
so he lit them up , he told them that the championships that were
won while he was there was because of hard work , lots of it
working everyday to get better at football .

he told them if they didn't do that and continued to believe that
they were "Grandfathered In" to winning and winning championships
they were not going to win anything ...
it took work , hard work , everyday to be the best ...

I hope our guys will realize that what he said is true
I haven't seen enough of it yet myself but I hope to ...

great stuff J man thanks for sparking the thought process

ROLL TIDE !!!!

[McBaman]

Another well written post by J.  IMHO, J's comments about the OL are a key issue; that and the receivers.

CNS post game pointed out the 6 - 7 dropped passes.  He said if those were caught Coker's stats would look quite different.  Also the flow of the game would have been changed.

But I put a lot of this on the coaches.  We have an OL coach and if the OL is not playing as they can/should, it's his job to get them to do that.  We have a WR coach and if guys aren't running patterns it his job to get them to do that.  If those coaches can't get the job done, then......

At this point in the season, guys that aren't running patterns should be kept after practice to run patterns 'till their tongues hang out.

This was the 3rd straight game where on O and some aspects of special teams Bama did not look like a well coached team.  That's on the coaches.

UGA has a terrific QB who will pick apart out helpless DBs unless the D can bring pressure.  And, oh....we have a DB coach too and it's his job to get those guys to play better, to turn their d!!n heads and locate the ball.

After four games you can usually tell where a team is going.  The trend isn't good here.

[Marshal Dillon]

Yesterday's game wasn't what the fans wanted to see from Bama's standpoint but it was another win. Bama has historically been a team to play down to the lesser teams after a big game and yesterday was no exception. The offense seemed to be in a trance for most of the game but the defense did all of the exciting things by totally shutting down the La Monroe offense.

Offensively, Bama is struggling as the line play is horrendous and the receivers are nowhere near the receiving corp of last year which can be undstood because Amari Cooper is gone. The line play of the offense does not compliment the ability of the running backs on the team and until they improve, this will permit the opposing defenses to better play the passing game. There has been some moments where the running backs made some big runs but not on a consistent basis. The receivers really need to step it up. Most of them came to Bama highly rated but they aren't running good routes and drop way too many passes and that shouldn't be happening with 4 and 5 star players. The QBs seem to still struggle but I think the bad line blocking is having a lot to do with that. They are having to operate under way too much pressure from the defensive line and until that improves, the QBs will struggle and in other words, the whole offense has a lot of improving to do.

We all knew the defense would or should be the marque of this years team and so far that has been the case. There are times the secondary has looked very questionable as some of the teams have had good success with the short quick passes and so far it has been a bend but don't break defense. Yesterday that seemed to change as they played more of a smash mouth defense and had something to prove. La Monroe is not a UGA or LSU but still I thought the team played with more intensity than they have been playing and the results seemed to show that.

In the kicking department and the special teams, there still are problems there. Scott is still struggling some and I'm hoping these shanked punts go away. I watched him in pregame warm ups and he just doesn't seem to have the pop on the ball that he had last year. He would be booming them 60-65 yards with a nice spiral then but the ball looks different this year with more wobble to it. Griffith has had better success since the season started and that is good news. He is kicking the ball into the endzone on kickoffs and making some field goals. There has been some comments made by some observers that Bateman is placing the ball down for him where his is kicking the laces of the ball and that isn't good, the ball will dfo carazy things when that happens. Bateman was out early in the pregame warm ups with the snapper and they worked for quit some time on taking the snap and placing the ball. Hopefully his good kicking will continue. The special teams still look a little scary on their coverage so hopefully Griffith will continue to put the ball in the end zone on the kick offs.

So off we go to Georgia next Saturday and they have been awaiting this game. They haven't forgotten the playoff game a couple of years ago they lost to Bama at the very end of the game and I expect an all out war from them. Whatever mistakes Bama has been making in the previous games, they better improve them this week. Bama can and should win this game because they are Bama but the players have got to realize this and play like this if it is to happen.

Well here's my 2 cents worth of the game yesterday so maybe some of you have some opinions to add to this. RTR!!!!

Something no one has mentioned is the O-Line assistant coach, Mario Cristobal. If the O-line is a problem, we have to look at who the position coach is. In 2011/2012 those magnificent O-lines were coached by Jeff Stoudtland, who later took a job in the NFL. From 2013 to present it's been Cristobal. I think that could be part of the problem. Everything on offense starts with the line. The WR's are frustrating. What's going on with them. No circus catches & dropping balls that hit them in the hands. Again, what about the position coach, Billy Napier, who is in his 3rd year as a coach. This is all very frustrating and I hope for major improvement, but truthfully, I don't see if happening. Hope I'm wrong.



 

[Jamos]

I agree with everyone when you are saying the ol doesn't block or the receivers are dropping passes or whatever the problems are that we are all seeing during the games.

What I may not agree on though is that all of these things happening or not happening are the coaches faults. If you've never been to a Bama practice and watched what goes on there, you might not be so quick to put all the fault on the coaches. These players practice to great lengths at every practice on all of the the failures that we are discussing, catching passes, blocking schemes, route running, etc. and it's not like the players never get any instruction on how to do these things. I fully believe that the players are taught well but the players execution is the downfall of what's happening with them. Execution is mostly mental with the physical attributes to complete the task. Physically the players are in great shape but mentally is where I think the fault of failure is. I'm not saying all the problem lies with the players though but I think the majority of it is. When the players have as many repetitions of their responsibilities in the game as they have on a daily/weekly basis, you wouldn't think the same problems would keep happening game after game.

[XBAMA]

don't think that CNS won't keep the assistants after practice until
1am and beyond if he isn't happy with the way things went that day either

 

[Jamos]

don't think that CNS won't keep the assistants after practice until
1am and beyond if he isn't happy with the way things went that day either

 

Amen X, they pay a big price for the players failures.

[XBAMA]

I hear that he gave a 1am azz chewing to a OL coach for a certain
player that was going to hard at practice as well ...

"he is going to kill somebody , calm him down" I believe was the theme of
the talk that night ...
we were winning though and playing like champions to do it ...
   

[bama57]

Yesterday's game wasn't what the fans wanted to see from Bama's standpoint but it was another win. Bama has historically been a team to play down to the lesser teams after a big game and yesterday was no exception. The offense seemed to be in a trance for most of the game but the defense did all of the exciting things by totally shutting down the La Monroe offense.

Offensively, Bama is struggling as the line play is horrendous and the receivers are nowhere near the receiving corp of last year which can be undstood because Amari Cooper is gone. The line play of the offense does not compliment the ability of the running backs on the team and until they improve, this will permit the opposing defenses to better play the passing game. There has been some moments where the running backs made some big runs but not on a consistent basis. The receivers really need to step it up. Most of them came to Bama highly rated but they aren't running good routes and drop way too many passes and that shouldn't be happening with 4 and 5 star players. The QBs seem to still struggle but I think the bad line blocking is having a lot to do with that. They are having to operate under way too much pressure from the defensive line and until that improves, the QBs will struggle and in other words, the whole offense has a lot of improving to do.

We all knew the defense would or should be the marque of this years team and so far that has been the case. There are times the secondary has looked very questionable as some of the teams have had good success with the short quick passes and so far it has been a bend but don't break defense. Yesterday that seemed to change as they played more of a smash mouth defense and had something to prove. La Monroe is not a UGA or LSU but still I thought the team played with more intensity than they have been playing and the results seemed to show that.

In the kicking department and the special teams, there still are problems there. Scott is still struggling some and I'm hoping these shanked punts go away. I watched him in pregame warm ups and he just doesn't seem to have the pop on the ball that he had last year. He would be booming them 60-65 yards with a nice spiral then but the ball looks different this year with more wobble to it. Griffith has had better success since the season started and that is good news. He is kicking the ball into the endzone on kickoffs and making some field goals. There has been some comments made by some observers that Bateman is placing the ball down for him where his is kicking the laces of the ball and that isn't good, the ball will dfo carazy things when that happens. Bateman was out early in the pregame warm ups with the snapper and they worked for quit some time on taking the snap and placing the ball. Hopefully his good kicking will continue. The special teams still look a little scary on their coverage so hopefully Griffith will continue to put the ball in the end zone on the kick offs.

So off we go to Georgia next Saturday and they have been awaiting this game. They haven't forgotten the playoff game a couple of years ago they lost to Bama at the very end of the game and I expect an all out war from them. Whatever mistakes Bama has been making in the previous games, they better improve them this week. Bama can and should win this game because they are Bama but the players have got to realize this and play like this if it is to happen.

Well here's my 2 cents worth of the game yesterday so maybe some of you have some opinions to add to this. RTR!!!!

Something no one has mentioned is the O-Line assistant coach, Mario Cristobal. If the O-line is a problem, we have to look at who the position coach is. In 2011/2012 those magnificent O-lines were coached by Jeff Stoudtland, who later took a job in the NFL. From 2013 to present it's been Cristobal. I think that could be part of the problem. Everything on offense starts with the line. The WR's are frustrating. What's going on with them. No circus catches & dropping balls that hit them in the hands. Again, what about the position coach, Billy Napier, who is in his 3rd year as a coach. This is all very frustrating and I hope for major improvement, but truthfully, I don't see if happening. Hope I'm wrong.



 

Do you think the receivers have a lack in confidence in Coker?

[XBAMA]

I worry more about Coker not having confidence in Coker   

[Old Tider]

Bama has great recruits and great coaching, so we should great results on the field.

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