Well, that was bad. I know some people have gone off the deep end re: Mullen since Saturday, and I appreciate your opinions, but I am not there yet. I will say, however, that I think Mullen absolutely deserves some criticism for the offensive output this year. It is year 3 and we put up 210 yards against Arkansas? Barely break 300 total yards over the course of 2 straight SEC weeks? That is just bad. I realize Bama was included, but still. People are talking about OL and WR, and that is justified, but that is only part of the problem. So, what is the problem?<div>
</div><div>1. Recruiting. If our OL is really this bad, sending us right back into the dark days of Croomesque offensive output, this is really an indictment of Mullen and Co. We all knew there was going to be some dropoff, but for the coaches to not forsee it being this bad is a huge gaffe. Same goes for the WR. However, I think the WR bashing is slightly overblown. I just can't believe this group is that bad from a pure skill standpoint. I do believe that Clark, Smith and Bumphis would all be 2nd or 3rd receivers on most of the other SEC rosters. I think they are being used poorly and coached poorly. </div><div>
</div><div>2. Scheme/Playcalling. Still way too many mistakes here. Russell got sacked a couple of times Saturday before ANY of his receivers were out of there breaks. This wasn't because the D got there that fast, it was because we were running ridiculous slow-developing routes when we know the OL is a liability. Favre comes in and we inexplicably start running shorter routes, including the quick throw to Robert Johnson, which has proven to be one of our best offensive plays (yet Johnson stays on the bench). It is like we try to design more difficult plays just because Russell has a big arm, and forget that we still don't have an OL. As another poster said earlier, we schemed ourselves into a couple of sacks in other ways also. One time Hemphill was lined up over Bequette I think, and we pulled him into the 5 gap (where he found nobody to block) when he could have just stood where he lined up and prevented the sack. We are failing at getting the ball to our playmakers in space, which is the foundation of the spread offense. 80% of our completions are to a stationary receiver with no prospect of running after the catch. The RBs are grossly underused in the passing game. Our situational playcalling is just bizarre. Going for it on 4th down on our side of the field was one thing, the play we called was even worse. The red zone series vs. Bama, the end game series v. Auburn, I could go on and on. Given the obvious handicaps we have at OL and WR, we can't afford to compound that with bad coaching. </div><div>
</div><div>3. Personnel. The QB carousel has to stop. At least it has to stop going like it is now. I don't have a problem bringing Favre in like we did for the first touchdown where we only asked him to run, but I still think I would let Tubby or Bumphis or Ballard take the ball in a pure wildcat if we are going to do that. Forget the threat of a pass, we aren't a true passing threat anyway. Russell is our best QB and he should have the opportunity to finish drives, particularly when he has the hot hand. Tubby and R. Johnson need to see the field more. I know Tubby puts the ball on the ground, but the performance of our offense this year makes the risk necessary. Marcus Green needs to be relegated to a blocker/safety valve only. We are wasting snaps running corner routes and deep seam routes with him. </div><div>
</div><div>That said, I am fine with just going to a bowl game. Assuming we beat Ole Miss and get to 6-6, I am content with that, particularly given the schedule we played this year. The season was wrecked in Week 2 and it is what it is. I just hope we figure some things out and a better contingency plan next year when we will again be undermanned on the OL. </div>
</div><div>1. Recruiting. If our OL is really this bad, sending us right back into the dark days of Croomesque offensive output, this is really an indictment of Mullen and Co. We all knew there was going to be some dropoff, but for the coaches to not forsee it being this bad is a huge gaffe. Same goes for the WR. However, I think the WR bashing is slightly overblown. I just can't believe this group is that bad from a pure skill standpoint. I do believe that Clark, Smith and Bumphis would all be 2nd or 3rd receivers on most of the other SEC rosters. I think they are being used poorly and coached poorly. </div><div>
</div><div>2. Scheme/Playcalling. Still way too many mistakes here. Russell got sacked a couple of times Saturday before ANY of his receivers were out of there breaks. This wasn't because the D got there that fast, it was because we were running ridiculous slow-developing routes when we know the OL is a liability. Favre comes in and we inexplicably start running shorter routes, including the quick throw to Robert Johnson, which has proven to be one of our best offensive plays (yet Johnson stays on the bench). It is like we try to design more difficult plays just because Russell has a big arm, and forget that we still don't have an OL. As another poster said earlier, we schemed ourselves into a couple of sacks in other ways also. One time Hemphill was lined up over Bequette I think, and we pulled him into the 5 gap (where he found nobody to block) when he could have just stood where he lined up and prevented the sack. We are failing at getting the ball to our playmakers in space, which is the foundation of the spread offense. 80% of our completions are to a stationary receiver with no prospect of running after the catch. The RBs are grossly underused in the passing game. Our situational playcalling is just bizarre. Going for it on 4th down on our side of the field was one thing, the play we called was even worse. The red zone series vs. Bama, the end game series v. Auburn, I could go on and on. Given the obvious handicaps we have at OL and WR, we can't afford to compound that with bad coaching. </div><div>
</div><div>3. Personnel. The QB carousel has to stop. At least it has to stop going like it is now. I don't have a problem bringing Favre in like we did for the first touchdown where we only asked him to run, but I still think I would let Tubby or Bumphis or Ballard take the ball in a pure wildcat if we are going to do that. Forget the threat of a pass, we aren't a true passing threat anyway. Russell is our best QB and he should have the opportunity to finish drives, particularly when he has the hot hand. Tubby and R. Johnson need to see the field more. I know Tubby puts the ball on the ground, but the performance of our offense this year makes the risk necessary. Marcus Green needs to be relegated to a blocker/safety valve only. We are wasting snaps running corner routes and deep seam routes with him. </div><div>
</div><div>That said, I am fine with just going to a bowl game. Assuming we beat Ole Miss and get to 6-6, I am content with that, particularly given the schedule we played this year. The season was wrecked in Week 2 and it is what it is. I just hope we figure some things out and a better contingency plan next year when we will again be undermanned on the OL. </div>
