What are some of your general thoughts of our offense and defense from Saturday's game, and future of them both? Below is what initially comes to mind for me, but interested in hearing what everyone else has to say!
Offense:
I feel like Clifford has regressed over the past couple of years. Not sure if this is due to changes in OC or not working on his craft. Whatever it may be, he just doesn't have the "IT" athleticism that could have taken this team to another level. I hope Yurcich is working with the next "future" QB (whoever that may be). I think he needs the QB to understand his system and build and grow together.
What happened to the Lawn Boys? Under 50 yards rushing is not good. I think we have talent at the RB position, but we need a star. OL does not help this issue either. However, it would be nice to have a RB that can make plays... big plays.
Dotson has stepped up over the past couple years, but man, Parker Washington played a heck of game. Very consistent and definitely took the load off of Dotson. He is definitely our next man up at WR.
I am a fan of our Tight Ends. Down field blocking looked amazing. The set in which Yurcich had these big boys split out and dumped underneath was a site to see. They were bullying DB's to the ground. This group is young and will continue to be a large part of Yurcich's scheme.
At times our offensive line provided Clifford with some great protection. Sean's pocket presence and going through WR reads has become very poor. However, OL needs some help.
Defense
There was one player that stood out to me, and maybe it was just me... but #23 Curtis Jacobs was an absolute ANIMAL on the field. This kid will be our next breakout defensive star. He was intense, sacrifices himself, and finds the play. This kid has potential to be a great.
I think our DL played well. In my opinion, we have plenty of depth and room to grow and think this unit will be solid over the next couple of years. Continue to get Ellies and Izzard play and also rotate in some of our younger players to get meaningful repetitions.
DB's played fairly solid. Olave had 3 receptions for 44 yards and 1 score. 38 of those coming on one play with some miscommunication. I noticed some hiccups on a few plays, but I love our underclassmen DB's. I think Joey Porter Jr. is a lockdown corner. He is only going to get better.
*The key for the next few games is not about wins/losses. I think the program needs to focus on keeping some of our younger players out of the portal and retain as many recruits as we can. There will be a lot of distractions and moving pieces over the next couple of months. If Franklin doesn't hold things together, I'm hoping someone from the coaching leadership team can step up and maintain qualify control. My gut feeling is Franklin is tapped out and the players will be too. We could be in for an ugly finish. Hopefully I'm wrong!
Offense:
I feel like Clifford has regressed over the past couple of years. Not sure if this is due to changes in OC or not working on his craft. Whatever it may be, he just doesn't have the "IT" athleticism that could have taken this team to another level. I hope Yurcich is working with the next "future" QB (whoever that may be). I think he needs the QB to understand his system and build and grow together.
What happened to the Lawn Boys? Under 50 yards rushing is not good. I think we have talent at the RB position, but we need a star. OL does not help this issue either. However, it would be nice to have a RB that can make plays... big plays.
Dotson has stepped up over the past couple years, but man, Parker Washington played a heck of game. Very consistent and definitely took the load off of Dotson. He is definitely our next man up at WR.
I am a fan of our Tight Ends. Down field blocking looked amazing. The set in which Yurcich had these big boys split out and dumped underneath was a site to see. They were bullying DB's to the ground. This group is young and will continue to be a large part of Yurcich's scheme.
At times our offensive line provided Clifford with some great protection. Sean's pocket presence and going through WR reads has become very poor. However, OL needs some help.
Defense
There was one player that stood out to me, and maybe it was just me... but #23 Curtis Jacobs was an absolute ANIMAL on the field. This kid will be our next breakout defensive star. He was intense, sacrifices himself, and finds the play. This kid has potential to be a great.
I think our DL played well. In my opinion, we have plenty of depth and room to grow and think this unit will be solid over the next couple of years. Continue to get Ellies and Izzard play and also rotate in some of our younger players to get meaningful repetitions.
DB's played fairly solid. Olave had 3 receptions for 44 yards and 1 score. 38 of those coming on one play with some miscommunication. I noticed some hiccups on a few plays, but I love our underclassmen DB's. I think Joey Porter Jr. is a lockdown corner. He is only going to get better.
*The key for the next few games is not about wins/losses. I think the program needs to focus on keeping some of our younger players out of the portal and retain as many recruits as we can. There will be a lot of distractions and moving pieces over the next couple of months. If Franklin doesn't hold things together, I'm hoping someone from the coaching leadership team can step up and maintain qualify control. My gut feeling is Franklin is tapped out and the players will be too. We could be in for an ugly finish. Hopefully I'm wrong!
