I'll just get right to it this week:
1. Bama is clearly the #1 team in the nation. I'm not as upset with the loss as I am with the fact that we didn't bring our "C" game, much less our "A" game. I can handle getting beaten, but I can't handle ****** effort. As Mullen likes to say, we didn't play Mississippi State football, and that pisses me off to no end. Perhaps that's a failure by Mullen to have us ready, but I don't know how that's possible. It's the biggest game in more than a decade and we show up with that effort. It can't happen. Period.
2. Mullen, please FIRE YOURSELF!........as special teams coach. I know Coach was trolling earlier, but the fact is we're very inconsistent and usually bad in that phase of the game. The only unit that is consistently good is punt coverage. Bell has a big leg, but I'm sick of watching us hang it up, try to pin the other team deep, then let them bust it out for a big return on KO coverage. Green's missed block on the FG was inexcusable. A 6th year SR HAS to step up in those situations. If we don't significantly improve this phase of the game, we'll NEVER take the next step as a program. It's about a 4-year trend at this point, not just 1 game.
3. While I'm harping on STs, can we please see more of Tubby & RoJo returning kicks? I love Perk, but he's not a threat to break it back there. Sure, Tubby has fumble issues on occasion, but he's the only guy I feel like has a legit chance to break it whenever he touches it. I also really liked what I saw from RoJo on his 1 return.
4. We got away from what we do on offense. Where the hell was the Dak Attack on the goalline? We've used it all season, then abandon it in Tuscaloosa. I really like what Russell has done this year, but running a QB sneak with him is a terrible idea. And don't get me started on the 3rd down call and decision to pass. Just a terrible sequence all the way around.
5. I love Perk, but he wasn't getting anything Saturday. IMO, that says more about Bama's D than him. However, where was Robinson when the game was still close? He brings a serious physical presence when he's in the game. He should've gotten a few quick hitters to see if we could get some rushing yards with a more physical back than Perk. His runs late were fantastic. He always seems to move the pile and fall forward for an extra yard or two. I'm really excited about his future.
6. I would've liked to see more power sets on offense Saturday. Spreading Bama out just didn't work. Put in the fullback and H-back and run right at them. It also would've helped us block in the passing game for Tyler.
7. Unlike most, I'm not that worried about our OL. We held up pretty well overall. TR still holds the ball forever, but that goes back to our WRs being unable to get any separation.
8. Where the hell was Malcolm Johnson? Did he even have a catch? He's our most dynamic receiving threat and he wasn't used at all. Inexcusable. We've got to feed him. Also, how is it our coaches can't seem to figure out who our playmakers are? Once aGAIN, Bump disappeared in a big game. If it were up to me, we'd go with Smith, Clark, RoJo, and Tubby as our WRs. Clark is our best all around WR. Smith and TR have rediscovered their old connection, and Smith brings a physical presence for a small guy. Tubby has tremendous, game breaking speed. And RoJo might be our most underutilized weapon. He's a matchup problem with his combination of size, speed, and strength.
9. We've GOT to go recruit a legit deep threat at WR. And we need to go get a JUCO deep threat at the position, too. Until we can stretch the field vertically, we're going to continue to see what we saw Saturday night against the elite SEC teams.
10. Our DL has problems. I'll admit, I was wrong about Cherrington as a space eater. He's a 375 pound softy. He should be getting the garbage minutes, not starting. Our DT rotation needs to be PJ, Quay, Virges, and Boyd. I noticed Quay getting good penetration early. Boyd is Boyd. Solid player, but not special. PJ & Virges are big and physical. Those 4 give us the best chance on the DL right now. Overall, our DEs do a good job.
11. No complaints from our LBs. They're solid and do whatever we ask.
12. Banks had one of the worst nights of his career. It sucks, but I'm not going to ***** about it. It's the nature of the position and it rarely happens. Slay dropping the sure INT was awful. Gotta have those plays to beat a Bama.
13. I disliked our overall gameplan on both sides of the ball.
14. We appear to have come out of this game relatively healthy. That's big going forward. If we'd gotten beaten up on top of getting shellacked on the scoreboard, I'd be really worried.
15. We can beat aTm. Some of you need to take a chill pill. "Johnny Football" (worst nickname ever?) is good, but he's not a one-man gang like Cam Newton. We'll sit back in zone, take away his running lanes, and force him to throw. He's average at best when you make him stay in the pocket. The only way he beats us is if we let him run downfield. And we're going to put up points on that D. aTm is still playing Big 12 D, so we should look much better this week.
16. It's over, move on. We pretty much thought we'd be about where we are right now: 7-1 and playing for bowl position. We still have an outside shot to finish 11-1. I initially predicted 9-3, and I'm very confident that's the worst we finish. I still think 10-2 is highly likely.
17. For those that can, be there and be rowdy early Saturday. I hate the 11 AM game as much as anyone, but we've still got the opportunity for a very special season. So let's make DWS Hell for aTm this weekend. I'd be very surprised if we don't see a VERY pissed off bunch of Dawgs take the field.
As always, that's how I see it. Comments, additions, discussions, flames, or whatever welcome.
In Mullen We Trust,
WMD
1. Bama is clearly the #1 team in the nation. I'm not as upset with the loss as I am with the fact that we didn't bring our "C" game, much less our "A" game. I can handle getting beaten, but I can't handle ****** effort. As Mullen likes to say, we didn't play Mississippi State football, and that pisses me off to no end. Perhaps that's a failure by Mullen to have us ready, but I don't know how that's possible. It's the biggest game in more than a decade and we show up with that effort. It can't happen. Period.
2. Mullen, please FIRE YOURSELF!........as special teams coach. I know Coach was trolling earlier, but the fact is we're very inconsistent and usually bad in that phase of the game. The only unit that is consistently good is punt coverage. Bell has a big leg, but I'm sick of watching us hang it up, try to pin the other team deep, then let them bust it out for a big return on KO coverage. Green's missed block on the FG was inexcusable. A 6th year SR HAS to step up in those situations. If we don't significantly improve this phase of the game, we'll NEVER take the next step as a program. It's about a 4-year trend at this point, not just 1 game.
3. While I'm harping on STs, can we please see more of Tubby & RoJo returning kicks? I love Perk, but he's not a threat to break it back there. Sure, Tubby has fumble issues on occasion, but he's the only guy I feel like has a legit chance to break it whenever he touches it. I also really liked what I saw from RoJo on his 1 return.
4. We got away from what we do on offense. Where the hell was the Dak Attack on the goalline? We've used it all season, then abandon it in Tuscaloosa. I really like what Russell has done this year, but running a QB sneak with him is a terrible idea. And don't get me started on the 3rd down call and decision to pass. Just a terrible sequence all the way around.
5. I love Perk, but he wasn't getting anything Saturday. IMO, that says more about Bama's D than him. However, where was Robinson when the game was still close? He brings a serious physical presence when he's in the game. He should've gotten a few quick hitters to see if we could get some rushing yards with a more physical back than Perk. His runs late were fantastic. He always seems to move the pile and fall forward for an extra yard or two. I'm really excited about his future.
6. I would've liked to see more power sets on offense Saturday. Spreading Bama out just didn't work. Put in the fullback and H-back and run right at them. It also would've helped us block in the passing game for Tyler.
7. Unlike most, I'm not that worried about our OL. We held up pretty well overall. TR still holds the ball forever, but that goes back to our WRs being unable to get any separation.
8. Where the hell was Malcolm Johnson? Did he even have a catch? He's our most dynamic receiving threat and he wasn't used at all. Inexcusable. We've got to feed him. Also, how is it our coaches can't seem to figure out who our playmakers are? Once aGAIN, Bump disappeared in a big game. If it were up to me, we'd go with Smith, Clark, RoJo, and Tubby as our WRs. Clark is our best all around WR. Smith and TR have rediscovered their old connection, and Smith brings a physical presence for a small guy. Tubby has tremendous, game breaking speed. And RoJo might be our most underutilized weapon. He's a matchup problem with his combination of size, speed, and strength.
9. We've GOT to go recruit a legit deep threat at WR. And we need to go get a JUCO deep threat at the position, too. Until we can stretch the field vertically, we're going to continue to see what we saw Saturday night against the elite SEC teams.
10. Our DL has problems. I'll admit, I was wrong about Cherrington as a space eater. He's a 375 pound softy. He should be getting the garbage minutes, not starting. Our DT rotation needs to be PJ, Quay, Virges, and Boyd. I noticed Quay getting good penetration early. Boyd is Boyd. Solid player, but not special. PJ & Virges are big and physical. Those 4 give us the best chance on the DL right now. Overall, our DEs do a good job.
11. No complaints from our LBs. They're solid and do whatever we ask.
12. Banks had one of the worst nights of his career. It sucks, but I'm not going to ***** about it. It's the nature of the position and it rarely happens. Slay dropping the sure INT was awful. Gotta have those plays to beat a Bama.
13. I disliked our overall gameplan on both sides of the ball.
14. We appear to have come out of this game relatively healthy. That's big going forward. If we'd gotten beaten up on top of getting shellacked on the scoreboard, I'd be really worried.
15. We can beat aTm. Some of you need to take a chill pill. "Johnny Football" (worst nickname ever?) is good, but he's not a one-man gang like Cam Newton. We'll sit back in zone, take away his running lanes, and force him to throw. He's average at best when you make him stay in the pocket. The only way he beats us is if we let him run downfield. And we're going to put up points on that D. aTm is still playing Big 12 D, so we should look much better this week.
16. It's over, move on. We pretty much thought we'd be about where we are right now: 7-1 and playing for bowl position. We still have an outside shot to finish 11-1. I initially predicted 9-3, and I'm very confident that's the worst we finish. I still think 10-2 is highly likely.
17. For those that can, be there and be rowdy early Saturday. I hate the 11 AM game as much as anyone, but we've still got the opportunity for a very special season. So let's make DWS Hell for aTm this weekend. I'd be very surprised if we don't see a VERY pissed off bunch of Dawgs take the field.
As always, that's how I see it. Comments, additions, discussions, flames, or whatever welcome.
In Mullen We Trust,
WMD
