Film Study Film Study - Offense vs Tulane

Boomergump

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Tulane came out in the defense we are accustomed to seeing, that is, the 4 man front with the LBs in an inverted triangle (meaning MLB deep middle and OLBs shallow behind the DEs). The safeties usually played about 8 yards deep around the hashes and CBs head up on our WRs with varying depths. If we came out with an AB in the slot, they would normally roll a safety up towards the LOS in the field side pitch lane and put the MLB on the guy in the slot. You see, the MLB in their case, I am pretty sure, was not a LB at all. To me, he looked like a safety. He was #6. Clearly, when you line up this way, you need a guy at MLB who can really run, and run all day. Tulane tried all of the normal stuff we are used to seeing. They cross charged a fair amount, fired their CBs once in a while, blitzed the A-gap, and rolled up their MLB towards the slot and blitzed him off the edge. None of that gave us much trouble, and to be truthful, it looked really routine in how we handled their curve balls. We never appeared surprised by any of it and the reads were, for the most part good. Having watched the film, I would say they really made it a priority to take away the dive and force a pitch. During the first half, the DE pretty much crashed every TO play and the OLB ran straight at JT in an effort to get the ball out of his hands. As we should, we took what the defense gave us and executed pretty well. We hit them with a bunch of counters, because they would flow pretty hard towards the motion early in the game. Clearly, they felt pressure to get to the pitch lanes. When we ran straight TO, it was like looking at a grease board diagram. I would stop the tape, count heads, call the side I thought we should run to, roll the tape, watch the DE and OLB get optioned off, then get POed because we continually whiffed on the MLB (safety) with the releasing OT. We were one man away from busting huge plays all day and it would have happened had we got this guy on the ground. When we did, we usually did hit the plays.

I am of the opinion that Tulane is better on the defensive side of the ball than they are on offense. We just have a lot of weapons and JT is seeing the field even better than last year. That open seam that "seemed" (pardon) to go unnoticed last year is being found and we have the guys who can stretch the D from AB, as receivers, and make them pay. I wouldn't want to have to defend us. They have some good players. I really like #6, #52, and #20 playing at the second level. They can all hustle and make plays. On the interior, they aren't easy to move out of there. We are just a good team on offense plain and simple.

On to the positions:

Let's start with QB and MJ's debut. I know it has been a hot topic. Personally, I thought he did really well, and I will try and be as specific as possible. First of all, I loved his body language out there. He was excited, obviously, but he was also poised and confident. In his first series he read a couple of cross charges perfectly and got the ball pitched out. His pitches might have been a little forced and fast, but they got the job done. He kept the ball when surpried off a blitz and got what he could without forcing something stupid. One thing I really liked on his long TD pass (off toss sweep play action) was that he made sure he under threw his WIDE OPEN AB TaQuon a little to insure the completion. That showed poise and experience beyond his current pay grade. It was obviously his primary target so he didn't have to check down, but it is really easy to get excited and chuck it too far when you are out there for the first time. Folks, on his second drive and long run, don't get too excited because you are not going to believe what I have to tell you. The green comb-overs lined up with a grand total of 9 players on the field on that play. I don't know how that can happen at this level but I am 99% sure it did. I stopped the tape to see their alignment, counted heads, couldn't believe my eyes, counted again, made the assumption the safeties were just out of the picture, watched the play, and there was nobody back there, unless they got scared and ran off the field after the ball was snapped. I watched the play about 7 times, accounting for every jersey number in the picture and counted heads in the EZ. My conclusion? They had nobody back there. I can't wait to hear this talked about.

JT played well. The only missed read I saw was him handing off directly into the first cross charge of the day. We are so lucky to have this guy. He can make you pay so fast. He sneaks through holes and bursts into space like static electricity flies off a door handle.

Can I have more TaQuon Marshall please? This kid is really growing on me. He plays like a senior and understands what the word EFFORT means. He blocks hard and gets after it every play. There were many plays I loved, but the one nobody is probably even aware of is how he dove to the knees to kick out a blitzer from the edge to give JT some life and then got back to his feet and cut another guy (coming from the middle) to the ground, paving the way for a modest gain that would have been a loss otherwise. He will push you all the way into the bench before he lets up. There are big plays being made everywhere from this group. Search, Lynch, and Marshall all had big ones. Tulane tried to force the ball to these guys and they were more than up for the challenge. They aren't all blocking quite the way I would like, but they are making plays. I was disappointed with Snoddy fumbling that pitch. True, it got on him quick, but his eyes were in the wrong place. That is just a lack of mental discipline and it shouldn't happen with a senior. He doesn't have as good hands as his other AB brethren, so he HAS to focus more to make up for it. It is a good thing that lapse didn't happen further down the road.

It would have been easy to say we had a great game at the OL, but our failure to get the MLB taken care of repeatedly kind of dulls things for me really. That is the OT's responsibility and I don't think EJ is going to like what the film shows. Will Bryan blocks everything he sees, including his own players, sometimes doing more harm than good. You have to love the speed and effort, but you can't be pulling with TB and knocking him down while you are trying to block his man and not your own. Chamberlain had some good pancakes on the day, but he couldn't seem to get to the MLB either. On the interior of the OL, I would say it was a good day. We get movement up front and that is what counts.

The BBs played well I thought, even though it wasn't destined to be their day. I was glad to see the counter BB option (not sure what it is called officially) is alive and well. We will see MM in space using this play a lot more I am sure. Skov runs hard and never gives up on a run, assuming he is going down. You have to love the effort, ball security, and blocking from him. He is an experienced football guy.

Our WRs owned the Two-Lane CBs blocking. We have two physical players out there in Jeune and Summers. I really like their stand up game blocking. Summers looks like a different player this year to me. He is more confident and stronger. His cuts are more decisive and he is getting more separation. I don't have a high opinion of their CBs (nor Alcorn's) so it will be interesting to see how this translates next week.

One of the things you have to love about CPJ is his observation of opponent tendencies. One play that comes to mind was not a huge play, but rather a decent gain off a quick pass to the void left by a firing corner. I wound the tape back because I wondered how he knew it was coming. They hadn't done it in several plays, so in my mind anyway, it remains a mystery. Not in his though, I'm sure.

Folks, we have a lot of weapons on offense. Enough to make chicken salad on a lot of plays and absolutely bust out on others when things are blocked right. IMHO, there is too much there, when considering the weapons combined with experience in the scheme, to realistically be stopped. I wouldn't want to have to defend us right now. We have replaced a lot of our skill position roster with what I think are actually better players. It was perfectly normal for the football world to ask the questions in the off season when we turned over so many players on offense. It is still early, but with the returns so far, I am feeling like the bar has actually been raised. We are faster as a group. We have better hands. We are more slippery. The OL is just as physical up front. I am not confident that we will score in the 60's against everybody, but we are good enough to put a ton of pressure on opposing offenses as well as defenses. They better be ready to score too.
 
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dressedcheeseside

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Thanks so much for this, as always. A few of my thoughts:

1. Maybe it's a good thing our OL had a hard time with the MLB. Maybe it gives them something to focus on this week in practice and they'll be lights out on this against the domers. EJ is a good player, good players can have bad games.
2. I've a man-crush on Skov. Listening to him in the presser he says he loves contact, even when he doesn't have the ball, because he gets to impose his will on the other guy. How can you not love to hear that? (I'm sure Mr. Dwyer had a very different view of contact than Mr. Skov.)
3. In fairness to Snoddy, the pitch was quick and up in his face. Yeah, he should have caught it, but it was a far from routine play.
4. I think that counter Bback option you refer to is called "speed option."
5. We saw less Shamire and more Klock at RG. What gives?
 

Boomergump

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I guess now that I am done watching and writing this synopsis, it was already common knowledge that Tulane had 9 players on the field for the ill-fated MJ run. I thought I was breaking some news, haha.
 

AE 87

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I guess now that I am done watching and writing this synopsis, it was already common knowledge that Tulane had 9 players on the field for the ill-fated MJ run. I thought I was breaking some news, haha.

I like your write-ups regardless. You give us something to talk about and think about, whether we agree or disagree.

2 cents: it would help me if you could break up the longer sections into smaller paragraphs.
 

Wrecking Ball

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Boomer,

JT seems more comfortable throwing to the A Backs this year. Have you noticed this?

If he can consistently hit them deep, I think we can beat Bud Foster's scheme much more comfortably. I remember years of A Backs running open against VT with oh-so-close passes sailing past them or sometimes not being seen at all.
 

slugboy

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I though the WRs did well in their routes and with their hands. We could have thrown for a lot, but the run was working.

Why couldn't we block their middle linebacker?
 

iceeater1969

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Thanks so much for this, as always. A few of my thoughts:

1. Maybe it's a good thing our OL had a hard time with the MLB. Maybe it gives them something to focus on this week in practice and they'll be lights out on this against the domers. EJ is a good player, good players can have bad games.
2. I've a man-crush on Skov. Listening to him in the presser he says he loves contact, even when he doesn't have the ball, because he gets to impose his will on the other guy. How can you not love to hear that? (I'm sure Mr. Dwyer had a very different view of contact than Mr. Skov.)
3. In fairness to Snoddy, the pitch was quick and up in his face. Yeah, he should have caught it, but it was a far from routine play.
4. I think that counter Bback option you refer to is called "speed option."
5. We saw less Shamire and more Klock at RG. What gives?

5? Maybe working on speed package at ol? After first team wears them down - do more pulling etc with Bryan and klock - head hunting down field.

2. We have lost several uga games when they pass to the fullback after a fake dive UTM. skov would be open on that as well!
 

lv20gt

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I noticed the OL needs to work on blocking LBs, as mentioned, Thomas still needs to work on attacking the read defender better, and Skov needs to stop running with his head down and start using his vision more.

Otherwise I thought the offense did pretty well. ABs and WRs look real good, and OL was pretty good overall, and the depth looked great. Don't have any concerns at back up QB at the moment either. Liked the return of the speed option, and liked that Marshall showed the ability to get tough yards inside, although there wasn't a ton of tries.

Defense was about as good as I could have reasonably hoped. Still worried a bit about depth, and LB play worries me in general, but I thought we got better pressure overall than we did last year, and forced some turnovers which is nice.
 

InsideLB

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Taquon Marshall sure has been a pleasant surprise. Yesterday I noticed his lower body definitely does not look like a true frosh. Dude's glutes remind me of Otis Nixon's of Atlanta Brave base stealing fame. Really solid looking power base....looks like a football player. I did notice on one pitch Taquon decides to go east west instead of hard north and taking what he could get. Won't do that again I bet.

Speaking of A backs, Clinton Lynch continues to impress me with a knack for making guys miss. Great job finishing that long run. Also noticed him on several blocks doing a great job. Searcy has above average acceleration for a college skill guy. His burst allows him get separation running routes and squirt through perimeter running lanes.

Summer's block on Searcy's TD run off the option was pretty amazing. Just owned that DB.

Yes, the OL and experienced QB help make AB more plug and play. At the same time it's clear to me that we've recruited well with how these young guys have stepped up. We knew Searcy would eventually emerge but Lynch & T. Marshall not a lot of guys have been talking about.
 

danny daniel

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Thanks so much for this, as always. A few of my thoughts:

1. Maybe it's a good thing our OL had a hard time with the MLB. Maybe it gives them something to focus on this week in practice and they'll be lights out on this against the domers. EJ is a good player, good players can have bad games.
2. I've a man-crush on Skov. Listening to him in the presser he says he loves contact, even when he doesn't have the ball, because he gets to impose his will on the other guy. How can you not love to hear that? (I'm sure Mr. Dwyer had a very different view of contact than Mr. Skov.)
3. In fairness to Snoddy, the pitch was quick and up in his face. Yeah, he should have caught it, but it was a far from routine play.
4. I think that counter Bback option you refer to is called "speed option."
5. We saw less Shamire and more Klock at RG. What gives?

Re Shamire. I was in the N Stands in the sun. It got very hot in the second quarter. Shamire started to drag and slugged off the field looking really tired. I have noticed from several games and scrimmages that I have witnessed in person that he has OK stamina in cooler weather but the intense heat gets to him. I believe he struggled in that hot second Q. I have been impressed with Klock as a replacement and we will probably see Shamire when he can go and will see Klock when his stamina fades. It definitely faded in the second Q Saturday.
 

MWBATL

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Thanks for the analysis, Boomer.

My one comment having re-watched the first half was that Tulane's idea of putting a big safety at MLB seemed to work. I noticed our guys were getting out to block him, then they were simply whiffing because he danced around them. He seems much quicker than our OTs and while they were there to make a block, he was successful at simply eluding them. I heard CPJ say in his post game comments we did better in the 2nd half, and I haven't watched the 2nd half, so I am not sure what changed. But it looked like a sound strategy on Tulane's part.
 

Skeptic

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I noticed the OL needs to work on blocking LBs, as mentioned, Thomas still needs to work on attacking the read defender better, and Skov needs to stop running with his head down and start using his vision more.

Otherwise I thought the offense did pretty well. ABs and WRs look real good, and OL was pretty good overall, and the depth looked great. Don't have any concerns at back up QB at the moment either. Liked the return of the speed option, and liked that Marshall showed the ability to get tough yards inside, although there wasn't a ton of tries.

Defense was about as good as I could have reasonably hoped. Still worried a bit about depth, and LB play worries me in general, but I thought we got better pressure overall than we did last year, and forced some turnovers which is nice.
Maybe we are seeing different things. I agree he should be less inclined to lower his head into a tackler, but from what I see, that is the only time he does it. Marshall, however, did run into contact a lot more than last week and still made some moves for a couple of yards, and as you say, tough ones. Hard to think that the Bback position might be better than last season when all is done
 

Skeptic

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Taquon Marshall sure has been a pleasant surprise. Yesterday I noticed his lower body definitely does not look like a true frosh. Dude's glutes remind me of Otis Nixon's of Atlanta Brave base stealing fame. Really solid looking power base....looks like a football player. I did notice on one pitch Taquon decides to go east west instead of hard north and taking what he could get. Won't do that again I bet.

Speaking of A backs, Clinton Lynch continues to impress me with a knack for making guys miss. Great job finishing that long run. Also noticed him on several blocks doing a great job. Searcy has above average acceleration for a college skill guy. His burst allows him get separation running routes and squirt through perimeter running lanes.

Summer's block on Searcy's TD run off the option was pretty amazing. Just owned that DB.

Yes, the OL and experienced QB help make AB more plug and play. At the same time it's clear to me that we've recruited well with how these young guys have stepped up. We knew Searcy would eventually emerge but Lynch & T. Marshall not a lot of guys have been talking about.
Am I the only one to think that over the seasons, our A backs have generally gotten bigger and faster, and much more athletic on the edge? Those guys are making real football moves when they turn it up field.
 
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