Tulane is Next

[Buzzoff]

My thoughts...
No injuries
Win by at least 3 Td
Need to see successful pass rush.

 

[GTech63]

I think we will see how far our team has come in a year with Tulane as the measuring stick.

I like that we threw the ball around a little (unnecessarily) against Alcorn. We should use this game to throw it around a lot more.

Also, I really don't care how many points we score. Let's leave the first team O out there until we've seen enough. If we blow out Tulane, so be it. This is all about getting our first team O ready for South Bend. That's it. They need more reps.

Defense? Sacks? I don't care. Stops on 3rd and long? Again, I don't care. Just play some D. Don't lose the game. Get the necessary reps in so we're ready for the season.

/

I am still ticked off about Duke last year. Cutliffe seems to know how to develop a D. I see this as a comparison to the Dukies also. I would like to see a final score in the 60 to 10 range. Playing our 1 and 2s at least 2 Qtrs and start of 3rd. A 28 or 35 to 0 half time score would be great.

 

[Animal02]

He plays with 10 other guys. The offense needs reps to come together as a unit. If the first team O plays a quarter and take the bench, that isn't a good thing.

/

I doubt the 1st string will only play a quarter in this game. After a grueling camp, weeks of practice...it is a helluva a motivator and pat on the back to the 2/3 strings to play so much on in the first game. Some will likely not see that much playing time the rest of the year....but will still be there at practice every day.

 

[Boomergump]

If nothing else, for those who know, does it help our coaches prep when they have game film vs. a common opponent?

Great Question! I will answer as if I know, but in reality, I just think I know. First of all, coaches get to see game film on all their opponents. It is part of an agreement. So, having Duke play Tulane doesn't provide any extra tape for our coaches, but rather condenses things where they don't have to have two separate recordings. They will have access to all Tulane's games and all Duke games, either way. I would say having an opponent's film is way more important for CTR than it is for CPJ. Watching the Duke vs Tulane tape will help him greatly because that is what he will be seeing on game day minus any special packages that those teams have in store. The meat and potatoes will be the same. For Johnson, nobody plays defense against us like they do against the rest of the football world, so it has little value. He needs to find film of the last time they played an offense like ours. Fortunately, in Tulane's case, that was us last year. I have heard of Johnson seeking tape several years old, when playing a new opponent (or a new DC) just to find out how they did it then.

For this reason, I think it is so special that we have a coach who has been around, seen it all, and can adjust on the fly during games if he has to, without having to game plan like crazy. There is truly only so many ways a team can line up against us without totally exposing themselves to complete anguish. CPJ has seen all the tactics and he knows the counters to the tactics like we all know our phone numbers. Does CPJ game plan? Absolutely, but it is more for the kids to make sure they execute well on a certain set of plays that coach thinks will work. If you notice, we rarely come out in the same formations every game (other than the standard flex) running the same plays. CPJ keeps a bit of a rotation going so DC's will have a hard time preparing. Just defending the standard TO well, with a week's prep, is hard, let alone what bag of wrinkles CPJ has up his sleeve for that week. Take the Orange Bowl as an example. Those unbalanced line BB gives with the playside pulling guard came out of nowhere for that rookie MSU DC.

 

[Whiskey_Clear]

Someone once said a team improves the most between game one and game two. Probably some truth to that when it comes to cleaning up mental errors / jitters / brain farts. Tulane seemed to have several examples of those vs Puke. I expect they will clean things up and give us a better game. I think we win by more than 14 but I'd take the under on a 30 pt spread. I'm not gonna hit the panick button if they play us closer than they did vs Puke.

 

[slugboy]

Well, I thought I'd look at the predictor numbers (F+, Sagarin, etc.) just to see what the Tulane match up looks like. Most of them aren't in yet. Maybe they'll be there tomorrow. They don't mean anything yet, anyway.

ESPN has it's "FPI (Football Power Index)", that favors us over Tulane by about 26 points. It also predicts us going 8-4. There are some others guessing we'll be about a 12 point favorite.

I'm not sure if Tulane is pass-happy, or just got in that position against Duke. They only ran for 25 yards and total offense was about 10x that.

They gave up a kick off return for a touchdown. They also gave up a 25 yard punt return. They won the turnover battle with two fumble recoveries.

Either Duke is really good, or Tulane is really bad. Maybe both.

 

[AE 87]

Well, I thought I'd look at the predictor numbers (F+, Sagarin, etc.) just to see what the Tulane match up looks like. Most of them aren't in yet. Maybe they'll be there tomorrow. They don't mean anything yet, anyway.

ESPN has it's "FPI (Football Power Index)", that favors us over Tulane by about 26 points. It also predicts us going 8-4. There are some others guessing we'll be about a 12 point favorite.

I'm not sure if Tulane is pass-happy, or just got in that position against Duke. They only ran for 25 yards and total offense was about 10x that.

They gave up a kick off return for a touchdown. They also gave up a 25 yard punt return. They won the turnover battle with two fumble recoveries.

Either Duke is really good, or Tulane is really bad. Maybe both.

Fwiw, Tulane was sacked for 20yds, so they rushed for 45.

 

[00Burdell]

I actually want to see a little adversity. Maybe some 3rd & longs or have our 1s on defense have to make a stop inside the 20 or 10. Just to see how some these young guys react

Good point - wouldn't mind the younger guys feeling some heat and pressure.

I'd be happy with 31 -10 and a really focused week of ND prep.

Hate to overlook anybody but we just need to knock Tulane out of the way and get ready for business.

 

[slugboy]

Fwiw, Tulane was sacked for 20yds, so they rushed for 45.

I saw that and should have mentioned it. 45 yards still isn't good. I'm guessing this means their line isn't very good, or Duke's rush is really good?

Hard to tell without watching the game, and I had a hard time convincing myself to watch much of Duke vs. Tulane. Here's the ACC highlight video. The camera views aren't great, but I see gaping holes in Tulane's defense.

 

[Wrecking Ball]

Great Question! I will answer as if I know, but in reality, I just think I know. First of all, coaches get to see game film on all their opponents. It is part of an agreement. So, having Duke play Tulane doesn't provide any extra tape for our coaches, but rather condenses things where they don't have to have two separate recordings. They will have access to all Tulane's games and all Duke games, either way. I would say having an opponent's film is way more important for CTR than it is for CPJ. Watching the Duke vs Tulane tape will help him greatly because that is what he will be seeing on game day minus any special packages that those teams have in store. The meat and potatoes will be the same. For Johnson, nobody plays defense against us like they do against the rest of the football world, so it has little value. He needs to find film of the last time they played an offense like ours. Fortunately, in Tulane's case, that was us last year. I have heard of Johnson seeking tape several years old, when playing a new opponent (or a new DC) just to find out how they did it then.

For this reason, I think it is so special that we have a coach who has been around, seen it all, and can adjust on the fly during games if he has to, without having to game plan like crazy. There is truly only so many ways a team can line up against us without totally exposing themselves to complete anguish. CPJ has seen all the tactics and he knows the counters to the tactics like we all know our phone numbers. Does CPJ game plan? Absolutely, but it is more for the kids to make sure they execute well on a certain set of plays that coach thinks will work. If you notice, we rarely come out in the same formations every game (other than the standard flex) running the same plays. CPJ keeps a bit of a rotation going so DC's will have a hard time preparing. Just defending the standard TO well, with a week's prep, is hard, let alone what bag of wrinkles CPJ has up his sleeve for that week. Take the Orange Bowl as an example. Those unbalanced line BB gives with the playside pulling guard came out of nowhere for that rookie MSU DC.

Thanks for explaining that!

Ok, another couple questions for you. Do you think the focus for Skov this week will be keeping his head up? I am wary of neck injuries with his running style as is, plus he misses some open lanes past the scrum when he cant see them.

In your film review for offense you mentioned the blocking had some missed assignments - is this normal for early in the season? Is it easily correctable?

Lastly, re our OL depth, how bug a drop off is there between 1s and 2s? I realize it varies by position.

 

[AE 87]

Thanks for explaining that!

Ok, another couple questions for you. Do you think the focus for Skov this week will be keeping his head up? I am wary of neck injuries with his running style as is, plus he misses some open lanes past the scrum when he cant see them.

In your film review for offense you mentioned the blocking had some missed assignments - is this normal for early in the season? Is it easily correctable?

Lastly, re our OL depth, how bug a drop off is there between 1s and 2s? I realize it varies by position.

I think our 2s played most of 2nd and 3rd qtrs on ol. Deepest we've been, imo.

 

[Carober18]

In your film review for offense you mentioned the blocking had some missed assignments - is this normal for early in the season? Is it easily correctable?

That's a good question. Boomer, when you say missed assignments, I assume that consists of both missed blocks (e.g., Summers on the first play) and flat-out mistaking the assignment a player is supposed to have on a play (i.e., trying to block the wrong person)? I think there's only so much that can be done to correct a missed block. It is an effort, ability and execution thing, and the guy who is being blocked is trying to avoid being blocked. Unfortunately, I think Smelter was one of the best blocking WRs GT has had.

 

[Boomergump]

Thanks for explaining that!

Ok, another couple questions for you. Do you think the focus for Skov this week will be keeping his head up? I am wary of neck injuries with his running style as is, plus he misses some open lanes past the scrum when he cant see them.

In your film review for offense you mentioned the blocking had some missed assignments - is this normal for early in the season? Is it easily correctable?

Lastly, re our OL depth, how bug a drop off is there between 1s and 2s? I realize it varies by position.

Well, I think it is way more dangerous for a defender to be lowering his head for a tackle than it is for a runner to be lowering his head anticipating contact. The reason being, when a tackler comes in with his head down he is most likely aligning his entire spine directly towards the runners COG or thigh area in an effort to bring them down. That is very dangerous. When a runner lowers his head it is usually in an attempt to get a shoulder down low to thwart a tackler coming in low. I haven't noticed a problem with Skov, but you have made me curious enough to watch.

As far as missing assignments go, yes, it is more common in the early season, and yes, it is very correctable. Because the situation is fluid in any game, you never get it 100% right, but we had too many Thursday night. What is especially disappointing to me is that this was happening with our first team offense, who is very experienced along the line. It shouldn't really matter if it is the first game, unless we are installing new blocking packages that these guys haven't used under fire yet. It may indeed be the case, but I would be surprised if it were so.

Regarding your last question, I want to preface my response with a disclaimer that I didn't review the second half where the 2's were playing as an entire unit. But I will comment on a few subs who did rotate in with the 1's. I think Will Bryan is the best (or destined to be) OT we have on the roster right now. He just doesn't know it yet. He is very physically gifted young man who is learning. Should he replace either Joe or Chamberlain right now? No. They know their jobs better than he does. However, he is effective from what I can see. There is a lot of talent and no drop off. Klock is also a good player. Clearly he is #3 compared to Devine and Braun. He is a little different player, but there is no sizable drop off with him. I think the world of Marshall too. He is not at Burden's level, but he is tough and good. So, with those guys subbing in and playing, we are still a solid group. I really don't have a lot to comment on the others. So, in my mind, we are 8 deep with starter level quality at least. We'll find out more as play on through the season.

 

[Longestday]

The assignment issues was the reason I skipped the first two series of O. There were a lot of missed assignments by the OL. That makes it hard to review because I am not 100% sure who they are suppose to block... I just know someone was completely unblocked that should have been blocked or attempted to block. The OL got better by the third series.

 

[Boomergump]

That's a good question. Boomer, when you say missed assignments, I assume that consists of both missed blocks (e.g., Summers on the first play) and flat-out mistaking the assignment a player is supposed to have on a play (i.e., trying to block the wrong person)? I think there's only so much that can be done to correct a missed block. It is an effort, ability and execution thing, and the guy who is being blocked is trying to avoid being blocked. Unfortunately, I think Smelter was one of the best blocking WRs GT has had.

We had some whiffs, like you say. However, when I see two guys taking the same defender while another one runs free, that has got to be a screw up. I don't always know who is supposed to take who, but I can tell when a guy is turned loose and our blockers are looking around with their heads on a swivel. In any case, I don't think it is something to be obsessed over as a fan base. We just need to clean it up. Better players will make more tackles than this group did if we keep turning them loose. No time like the present to get that done.

 

[Carober18]

Great. Thanks.

 

[chrsw003]

Were going to beat Tulanes ***. Im thinking something like 56-7. Will show how far we've come in a years time. Can't wait for the ND game. Feel like it could be one of those program changing type games. National tv game, underdogs on the road, win the game and look good doing it everyone will be like **** .... These guys are good, and fun to watch

 

[danny daniel]

Well, I think it is way more dangerous for a defender to be lowering his head for a tackle than it is for a runner to be lowering his head anticipating contact. The reason being, when a tackler comes in with his head down he is most likely aligning his entire spine directly towards the runners COG or thigh area in an effort to bring them down. That is very dangerous. When a runner lowers his head it is usually in an attempt to get a shoulder down low to thwart a tackler coming in low. I haven't noticed a problem with Skov, but you have made me curious enough to watch.

As far as missing assignments go, yes, it is more common in the early season, and yes, it is very correctable. Because the situation is fluid in any game, you never get it 100% right, but we had too many Thursday night. What is especially disappointing to me is that this was happening with our first team offense, who is very experienced along the line. It shouldn't really matter if it is the first game, unless we are installing new blocking packages that these guys haven't used under fire yet. It may indeed be the case, but I would be surprised if it were so.

Regarding your last question, I want to preface my response with a disclaimer that I didn't review the second half where the 2's were playing as an entire unit. But I will comment on a few subs who did rotate in with the 1's. I think Will Bryan is the best (or destined to be) OT we have on the roster right now. He just doesn't know it yet. He is very physically gifted young man who is learning. Should he replace either Joe or Chamberlain right now? No. They know their jobs better than he does. However, he is effective from what I can see. There is a lot of talent and no drop off. Klock is also a good player. Clearly he is #3 compared to Devine and Braun. He is a little different player, but there is no sizable drop off with him. I think the world of Marshall too. He is not at Burden's level, but he is tough and good. So, with those guys subbing in and playing, we are still a solid group. I really don't have a lot to comment on the others. So, in my mind, we are 8 deep with starter level quality at least. We'll find out more as play on through the season.

I completely agree with your assessment of Bryan, Klock, and Andrews. They are good quality backups with little drop off from our starters. Fromayan has played more than Bryan and Klock and can play tackle or guard. He is probably our 9th OLineman with some drop off but solid. After that there is a noticable drop off (Spring Game and second half Alcorn).
B Morgan will RS and we have not seen him in action. I thought Whitely was rated below Stickler and Brown when recruited but lately he is playing ahead of them, even over Brown (which is a surprise to me). Stickler came in under weight and I am not sure where he stands now. Seager and Muns and Anderson are walk-ons with some prior year playing experience. Muns played second team in the Spring Game with A Marshall out. In addition there are 4 true freshmen walk-ons which we know nothing about. Muns is a Jr and Seager a Sr but the rest are underclassmen with time to mature and develop, and hopefully several will..

 

[slugboy]

Sagarin numbers are in, and favor us from 30-33 points (holy cow!).

I can't believe those numbers would be right. That's enormous.

Anyone found any useful video (beyond the 3 minute highlight reels on YouTube)? Tulane's highlights involve running on the field and throwing for what's apparently 7 yards.

 

[alaguy]

Sagarin numbers are in, and favor us from 30-33 points (holy cow!).

I can't believe those numbers would be right. That's enormous.

Anyone found any useful video (beyond the 3 minute highlight reels on YouTube)? Tulane's highlights involve running on the field and throwing for what's apparently 7 yards.

dook beat them by 30 DOWN THERE.We are rated higher than dook--we should be favored by 30+ at home