Crimson Red Sports

As many of us know Blake Sims has performed better than expected.  One thing I really like about this is, it hasn't gone to his head  Cooper is having a fantastic year and is a huge part of the success of the offense.  My disappointment, if you can call it that, is that more rec are not involved in the offense.  I am not saying don't throw the ball to Cooper if he is open, I just think there are options that haven't come thru yet.  After watching the spring game I wasn't sure Robinson was ready for a left starting position in the SEC.  He has proved me very wrong.  Another pleasing fact is the performance of the OL.  They have made some mistakes but they have had a lot more positives than negatives.  On defense, Cyrus Jones has become a very good cover guy.  It seems teams go away from him more than at him.  Bama has had the luxury of playing both Jackson and Brown at corner and they have performed satisfactory.  One of the biggest surprises is Ragland at linebacker.  In my opinion he has become one of the biggest hitters on the D.  As far as special team, Scott is a game changer because he can flip the field and cause teams to have to drive over 70 yards.  I don't know, but I would like to know the average starting field positions for teams this year after a punt.  Now, this year kind of reminds me of when Bama lost to LSU.  They made too many mistakes in that game against LSU to win the first time.  The same thing happened when they played Ole Miss.  I hope the same results come about. 
A few disappointment are the numerous penalties Bama has had this year.  These are some of the mistakes that hurt them in the Ole Miss game.
Finally, the new rankings came out and they don't mean anything at this point.  There are too many head to head games that need to be played.  If Bama plays the way they are capable they can get back to the NC game.

Hopefully, you will add your own assessment.

Good assessment.  I will say that Ragland is probably my favorite player on the team after watching some of his vicious tackles.  Rolando who?  ??? ???

It's Orlando McCain.  HTH

 :lol:

You're dead on, Coach. To expand on what you were saying about the receivers, I thought, as we all did, that OJ would have a breakout year. Obviously, that hasn't happened. D White has played well, but sparingly, due to the injury bug that has inflicted many players.

After the spring game, I was also expecting more from Ardarius Stewart. I don't remember him catching but one or two passes all year. In reality, we have a stable of receivers that aren't being used. That said, Cooper is a once in a generation type talent and Blake will ride that race car until the wheels fall off.

Would like to see more consistent production from the RB's, too. Granted, we are getting pretty thin at that position, but it seems like it's been feast or famine much of the year for them.

The "D" has been a work in progress, particularly for the D-backs not named Cyrus Jones. He has been a pleasant surprise. After the Auburn and Oklahoma games last year, I never would have guessed he would improve as much as he has. If we could get EJ and particularly TB to step it up a notch, I don't think there would be any real weaknesses on the defense. Even Nick Perry has been showing out, lately.

And you are right, Ragland has been in beast mode nearly all year. What a pleasant surprise he's turned out to be.

We have a great chance to win out, but we still have 3 brutal games against top notch SEC West teams. My concern isn't necessarily how well we'll play, although we certainly need to, but can we keep from getting beat up any more than we already are? Cannibalization and attrition may keep the SEC West out of the playoff picture altogether. But I like our chances.

My biggest disappointment of this season has been the mental aspect of the team. There is so much talent on this team but mental mistakes only make them look very average at times. When I say mental mistakes of the team, I am referencing to the coaches with their time frame of play calling and the players missing their assignments.

I also think there are some other stars of the team waiting to shine but injuries have slowed some of them down thus far. Some of the injured are returning to the team so maybe we are about to see this team jell and go all the way to another championship.

Yeah, that team-chemistry aspect is difficult to figure.

I don't recall a year with so many penalties as this year.  But it's been a bit better the last 2 weeks.  Maybe we're over the hump.

Other than Humphrey, which young players are you referencing, J?

Mostly on the defensive side of the ball, Anderson, Hand, Devall, Dickson, Tomlinson, Williams, etc.. The defense has been playing better but when some of the walking wounded get back to good health, I think the "D" will take the team to their ultimate goal. On the receiver side, I think the team has a lot to be seen that hasn't been used yet. With the remaining games being the toughest part of their schedule, I think we will see more fireworks in the games ahead than what we have seen so far.

I agree that there may be more to be seen from the offense but we won't see it until it is needed.  I also think the loss of KD took some options away.  Good thread all, and ROLL TIDE!!!

I have been not really disappointed but surprised that the TEs and FBs have not been more involved in the offense. There is very good production, but looking at past LK offenses, I thought those two areas would be utilized more.