Game notes: SC vs Bama

[hscoach]

                                                                                  SC vs Bama

First, congrats to the Bama coaches and players on the win.  To me this was a game where Bama led the whole way, but I didn’t feel comfortable.  South Carolina had a great offensive game plan and the freshman QB did a good job executing it.

OFFFENSE:  The offense put together 571 yards of total offense, which breaks down into 495 passing and 76 rushing.  This is the lowest rushing total I can remember.  It broke a long string of games where Bama has rushed for over 100 yards.  I have Bama credited with only one 3 and out, however, they did have a 3-play drive after a turnover of the ball on downs in the SC territory which ended with a missed field goal.  As for negative plays, I have Bama with 4 tackles for losses and 2 sacks.  For plays that covered 10+ yards, Bama had 19 passing plays and 4 running plays.  On drives, Bama reached the red zone 5 times and they missed one field goal, made 2 field goals, and scored 2 touchdowns.  They did score 4 touchdowns from outside the red zone. 

QB:   Tua completed 78% of his passes and found the open receiver most of the time.  He did have a couple of off throws and it looked like that might have had something to do with footwork, especially if he was pressured.  I also looked at when Tua was pressured.  If I am correct, he was pressured 5 times.  On these 5 plays, 4 of the pressures were from the OL and RB missed blocks or overpowered while one looked like it could have been because of the coverage.  Also, he completed 2 of the passes, with one for a touchdown.  Jones came in and got some good playing time and led the Tide on a scoring drive. 

RB:   The running backs combined for 21 total rushing carries.  However, they were very involved with the passing game.  Harris had a total of 7 rushes for 36 yards and 5 catches for 87 yards while B. Robinson had 8 carries for 33 yards and 2 catches for 37 yards.  For a total they had 22 touches for 193 yards.  K Robinson came in and ran hard.  I really like this young man, he sort of reminds me of Drake fro some reason.  I will say they missed a couple of blocks on passing plays.

Rec:  Including TE’s, 7 different receivers has catches and this doesn’t count the RB’s.  Smith, Ruggs, and Jeudy all had over 5 catches.  The main 4, when you add Waddle, averaged over 15 yards per reception.  The TE’s made a couple of mistakes when the missed blocks and were called for penalties.  Where I really want to give the receivers credit is the way they catch the ball with their hands.

OL:  The OL did look a little better at times.  They did open some holes in the running game a few times.  However, I still see some areas that need correcting.  For instance, on one play the protection was sliding to the left and the RG either didn’t take the proper step and allow the DL to come inside.  It looked to me that the center had no one on him so he could have punched the backside and then slid to the left.  Also, it looked on one running play there was a missed opportunity for a combo block which was not made.  The RG was run over on a sack, however, the RB also missed the block so the play was doomed.  I also want to mention there were a few low snaps which throws off the timing of the plays.  There were also two tackles for losses inside the red zone 5-yard line.   

Def:  I thought the defense had tough assignment.  SC officially threw the ball 57 times.  However, I went back to see where the throws were attempted and my stats are off because I was looking to where the ball was being thrown.  Forty-one passes were thrown less than 10 yards from the LOS and 30 0f them were completed.  Twenty were thrown for over 10 yards and 6 were completed and one was intercepted.  There was also another short throw that was intercepted, but it was negated by a penalty.  For total yards, I have SC for 459 yards which included 324 passing and 135 rushing.  I have them credited with three 3 and outs, but a couple were 4 and outs as the ball was turned over on downs. I credit the D with 5 tackles for losses, 3 sacks, a fumble recovery and an interception.   For plays that covered 10+ yards. SC had 17 passing plays and 4 running plays.  Most of these passes were completed less than 10 yards, but the run after the catch made for the yardage.  They got into the red zone 3 times and turned it over on down once, kicked a field goal, and scored a touchdown.  From outside the red zone they kicked two field goals and scored one touchdown.  They had a great game plan and executed it well.  The glaring part of the defense was the yards that were allowed after the catches were made.  There were several missed tackles.

DL:  I thought the DL played a good game.  They didn’t have a lot of time to get pressure on the QB because of the short throws.  SC also worked the outside, so it made the DL run to the ball.  There were a couple of times contain was lost on the jet sweep.

LB:  They had a tough job with the short passes to the outside and even had to go outside the DB to get into their coverage at times. 

DB:  They had a difficult job, but if they had made the initial tackle then the stats would have been a lot better.  The DB were most of the leading tacklers because of the game plan from SC.  I will say, on the touchdown pass, Carter actually got a part of the ball, but not enough to get the ball away from the receiver. 

Special Teams:  The special teams were a mixture of mistakes and missed opportunities.  On extra points, there was a miss. There was a missed field goal.  A punt that covered only 14 yards.  I will say, I don’t think SC got part of the ball.  Kick off coverage was great since when they attempted the return, they never got to the 25-yard line.  Kick off return, they never attempted one.  The one punt return really help flip the field.  After the first special team fake, Bama was ready for the rest.

Penalties:  Bama hurt themselves with penalties yesterday.  They had 11 penalties for 92 yards.  One penalty took away an interception when they had too many on the field.  They had an offside on a 3rd and 10 which now made it a 3 and 5.  A false start turns a 2nd and four to a 2nd and 9.  You get the idea.  Fortunately, they were able to overcome some of them.  However, they did help SC keep a couple of drives alive.

Finally, Bama only punted once which was a good thing.  They left points on the field since they missed a field goal and an extra point.  However, they also left points on the field as they had to go for field goals twice in the red zone instead of putting the ball in the end zone.  I hate to say Bama scores too quick, but they put the defense back on the field in a hurry.  It will be extremely important for Bama to develop depth because of this.  The OL must improve and some of it seems to be communication as well as technique.   Penalties must be cleaned up because you can’t keep giving teams extra opportunities.  Finally, tackling has to improve and eliminate so many yards after contact.

Feel free to comment:

 17 and Counting

[Red Elephant]

Thank Coach.  I always enjoy your take on the games.

Coach Saban said in his press conference that 86 plays on defense was way too many and we needed to control the ball on offense by calling more pure run plays.  The RPOs were executed correctly by Tua, but USC was putting 6 in the box which resulted in those plays being passes.  That, and the defense not getting off the field, partly because of penalties and partly because of a lot of confusion with the young guys caused by the formations and motions.

He kept getting back to balance on offense.  I really think he was surprised with how few run yards we had at the end of the game.  Nick said even though it (RPOs) works and we run them well we can't totally depend on that because then you don't do the other things well.

It's going to be interesting to watch this team develop.

Thanks again and Roll Tide!

[2Stater]

Thanks Coach. You covered it all. Another great breakdown.

86 plays in that heat was way too much for the D. Lots of improvement needed there. They've got to quit jumping at the first hand clap too. Penalties were terrible.

All I can say about the OL is, I'll be glad when D. Brown returns.

[Chechem]

Thanks much, coach.  Excellent review and comments.

Our losses to the NFL and graduation, coupled with the losses to injuries, have left us with less experience than we've had in years.  Fortunately our schedule isn't as challenging as usual.  Still, I'm afraid this game is a taste of what we'll see for a while; tough wins and more competitive contests than we expected coming into the year.

Appreciate your work, coach.   

[ricky023]

hscoach as always a great report. One question I have is that the condition program was some what laxed or was it the Heat and Temps that seem to make the defense look slow? RTR!

[N.AL-Tider]

Great job again Coach. As usual, I enjoy reading your comments.  I would love to hear what Coach Saban would think about these game breakdowns if he were to read them...

[ricky023]

Great job again Coach. As usual, I enjoy reading your comments.  I would love to hear what Coach Saban would think about these game breakdowns if he were to read them...

I too, would like to hear CNS views on these reports. I wonder if this is what the coaches who are brought in as an adviser role is doing for the team? RTR!

[lstephen]

Thanks coach! Always enjoy your game review.  Any thoughts on why we missed so many tackles?  The guys in the secondary aren't youngsters so I wouldn't think technique is the problem.  ROLL TIDE!!!

[hscoach]

Ricky, I think the conditioning is fine, but there are some factors that go into their time of play.  First, they played more downs than shown because I don't think they count the penalty plays which means they play more than the amount of plays listed.  Second, Bama's offense scores quickly on several drives.  The offense only averaged 6.6 plays per drive.  Five of those drives were 2 minutes and 8 seconds or less.  This means the defense has to go right back on the field.  The number of plays on 6 of their drives were 5, 3, 4, 4, 3, and 5 plays.  Third, as someone noted, the injuries are probably making players play more than they would usually.  The factors can help wear out the defense.

Lstephen, the missed tackles, in my opinion,  were due to not wrapping up, not driving thru the offensive player, and trying to rip the football instead of making the tackle.

Nal-Tider, I would think Saban might tell me to mind my own business.  The thing is I am going by what I see and not knowing what has been taught/scheme.

[Chechem]

Coach, there was talk about Bama having a "bend but don't break defense" against SC.

Do you think we EVER practice such a tactic?

Just asking; was discussed during the game.

[hscoach]

Coach, there was talk about Bama having a "bend but don't break defense" against SC.

Do you think we EVER practice such a tactic?

Just asking; was discussed during the game.

I think sometimes when you build a lead, the defense tends to play that way because allowing them to score fast allows them to get back in the game if you have a turnover or two.  Think about the big lead Bama built against OU, after that they basically played a 2 shell to keep OU from scoring to fast.  It's not exactly a prevent, but it is a keep everything underneath defense.

[ricky023]

Coach, there was talk about Bama having a "bend but don't break defense" against SC.

Do you think we EVER practice such a tactic?

Just asking; was discussed during the game.

I think sometimes when you build a lead, the defense tends to play that way because allowing them to score fast allows them to get back in the game if you have a turnover or two.  Think about the big lead Bama built against OU, after that they basically played a 2 shell to keep OU from scoring to fast.  It's not exactly a prevent, but it is a keep everything underneath defense.

Yes sir and like to have gotten us beat.
Also, I like to see what type of Defense Coach Golding is running with our players. RTR!

[carl childers]

What a game of contrasts. Bama’s pass offense, when clicking, is just about unstoppable. However, their LB run fits were an out as bad as I have ever seen for a Baja defense. That is going to have to be fixed before November.

[Chechem]

What a game of contrasts. Bama’s pass offense, when clicking, is just about unstoppable. However, their LB run fits were an out as bad as I have ever seen for a Baja defense. That is going to have to be fixed before November.

Please clarify.   

[Merk]

Thanks, Coach, for another spot on analysis.

I wasn’t able to watch all the game but our defense certainly has some challenges to overcome. I believe they will get it squared away.

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