Defense: Was it better? Worse? We actually pressured the QB, got a few sacks, created some turnovers. But the blown coverages were HORRIBLE. How much blame falls on Pellini? How much of it was the players' fault? Offense: Who's to blame for the conservative 2nd half and abundance of 3-and-outs? Miles lost big leads at Oklahoma St, could this be his approach? Let's not forget how conservative Jimbo was last year with an inconsistent offense. Could be both? But does that mean they did it because of Russell's inconsistencies? Was it just bland play calling, or was bland play calling a necessity because of poor play from our offense?? Conditioning: Why was it that LSU's players were cramping up & Tennessee's weren't?? Just because our defense was out there for so long? Our offensive guys were having problems with it too... Does Miles not condition them well enough at practice? One thing I heard from someone was that Miles runs them too much at practice leading up to the game, could this be a reason for our guys cramping up? Coaching: Will changes be made? Will Miles & crew learn from mistakes? Is this what we have to look forward to during all of Miles' tenure?
The defense was better, marginally. They showed increased aggressiveness and disguised better, but they still blew a lot of coverages and were generally confused...more so in the 2nd half as fatigue crept in. All of the blame for blown assignments and confusion goes on Pelini. All of it, he had two weeks to work out the confusion and he could not. The players do not know this defense yet, and while they have some responsibility, I don't think they are so stupid that they can't learn a new system. THey should know it better at this point.
I agree the defense did look better this time around, especially with regards to pressuring the QB. Clausen was just able to make some good plays. As far as conditioning goes, I think it was really a case of the defense being out there for way too long. LSU is used to practicing in such conditions, while Tennessee is not. But with the defense out there as long as it was last night, I don't know if they could've prevented the cramping.
Defense: The first half D was much more varied in their pressure than the second half. After they put Clausen in, it seemed like we were blitzing less. And then the guys just got (understandably) worn down, which you just can't do playing a team of Tennessee's caliber. Offense: You ask the key questions. Curious about the answers. Conditioning: You can't discount the fact this was the 2nd game for these guys. There's no way to completely prepare for the intensity of games without playing them. Also, I wouldn't discount the impact on the players' routines that have been caused by Katrina. MOst of these players are finely tuned athletes, and major interruptions in their preparation and conditioning are bound to have tangible consequences. Coaching: I have no reason to think they're going to change, based on the diff b/w ASU and Tennessee. I was happy to see more blitzing, but NONE of it was effectively disguised.
The conditioning, or lack thereof, really stood out to me, as well. Under Saban, our players always had the advantage there. We have the same conditioning coach. What's the difference?
One difference that jumps out at me was SEEMINGLY less substitutions on defense. Could be a depth issue, but it could be a strategy issue as well. I dunno....
yes, yes, and yes. lol Heard the same thing about miles running them too much. the defense was pelini's fault as the players looked confused the whole night. that is coaching. the o was miles and jimbos fault. Personally i think jimbo sucks as a OC. look what some of the other OC's do around the country. and look at what he does. not even comparable. If you wanna know what coaching can do just look at clausen. Thing about it is, is that fricken sanders sucks too but atleast he makes adjustments. Anybody else last night wondering what ever happened to the playaction pass or what happened to the double post pattern? I mean seriously how come all these mid majors can score all these points but we can't with all our talent. hell they score them on good teams alot of times too with far less talent. I would take morris watts over over jimbo anyday. Why do we continue to allow clausen to throw outs and hitchs over and over again while sitting back with a 10-15 yeard cushion. thats all coaching. UT should have beaten us by 28 or more last night if they don't drop the ball and clausen plays the whole game. Even when we were uo by 21 we still sucked. We reminded me of TY. willighams first notre dame team where they got every lucky break the could. They were 8-0 and still looked like shiit. Well we are the same way. once those breaks stopped coming then we started losing. Hopefully we cut our loses at the end of the year. Short list for me would be B. Davis- enough said Jack Del Rio- enough said Mike Price- has paid his dues Norm Chow- enough said Pitt. Stealers- DC- always puts up a good D Philly Eagles- DC - same as above #1 choice- JEFF TEDFORD- be $$$ to get him here but worth it. if you just want to get rid of the DC and OC then the list for DC would be Muschamp- of course bama- dc maimi dc shiit any DC that knows what a blitz is and can stop the dink and dunk for OC I don't care as long as they know how to utilize talent. Actually i care but i get so pissed thinking about it that i draw a blank. Thing that has me so discouraged is the how the coaching staff looks confused, no adjustments, and all the penalties.
Our guys WILL get tired. This is why this 10 game stretch scares me, especially the next 4 games. 5 days until MSU, ok, that game shouldn't be a problem, but it very easily could. Then Vandy. They will score on us, but it is likely they will have some turnovers. Then Florida. Uh oh.. Who knows what to expect from that game. The players have had two games in a short period of time and are likely going to be tired. Then comes Auburn. No break.
oh and nolimit if you've been around these players much, then you begin to realize a lot of these guys eat and sleep like shiit. Most of them aren't the finally tuned athletes that you would think they are.
I don't doubt that for a minute. However, I also know there are quite a few that take this very seriously, and added stress can take a physical toll. That's all, not making a global excuse, just adding a factor that I think's a factor.
