Off Week Discussion/OL/Running Game/Play Calling

[BamaMoon]

Didn't know where to put this post, but since it's the off week, maybe just a new discussion of several things.

First off, we should be excited we are 7-1 going into the home stretch. Who would have thought that after week one? Now we have an off week to get rested and clean some things up. Great job by all: coaches and players!

I think Ty finally had an off game and we should have expected it. I said at the beginning of the season he might have a "slump" at some point due to his limited starting experience. I hope it was limited to this game. He missed at least 3 GB tagetted passes that with better acccuracy would have been 3 possible TD plays. He was just slightly off, but it may have been he was hurried because of the pass rush of the Cocks. I think TS will probably be much better against LSU.

Now, to the run game and our OL issues. I've reached the conclusion we've got to "dance with who brought us." I don't know if this OL can ever get too much better at run blocking. And, if I have one complaint about RG's play calling, it is that he puts us in some difficult spots in tight games just "trying" to run when it seems like we aren't going to be able. This gets us in alot of 2nd and long and 3rd and long and behind the chains. I think there were 3 straight drives against USCe in the second half where we tried to run on first down and got behind the chains. In a one score game like this game seemed to be the whole time, IMO, we need to forget the run game (especially the inside run game) and just do what we do best, which is letting Ty work with our WRs and running backs who are good receivers. Sprinkle in the occasional run on 2nd and short but let Ty work!!!

This might not be a popular opinion, but I don't think the run game problems are all on the OL. I think Jam is just slow to hit the hole (maybe because of injury still?) but that's what it looks like. D. Hill does a better job IMO.

What else y'all got?

 

[CoolBreeze]

I like this team and where we are as a program right now. Got a lot of problems but just glad to limp into this bye week with this winning streak. The team and staff will have to figure some stuff out on the fly going forward and seems we have come up with the right stuff in the nick of time on occasion. Cannot say whether this is a championship team yet or not but they have proved me wrong on my thoughts after the freeshoes loss. This is not a dominant team and we are going to struggle in some games down the road, especially against those teams that have good defenses, but I like our chances in any situation based on what I have seen so far.

 

[CoolBreeze]

Why Alabama football feels 'no ounce of non-belief' into second 2025 off week

Alabama football is as confident as it's ever been heading into November. Here's why.

www.tidesports.com

 

[tusks_n_raider]

I think we just have a mediocre to bad OL.

LT is still horrid. He needs to be replaced or at least split some game reps trying to find a replacement.

The Refs were letting both teams get away with murder.

Against us it was them letting USCe DBs tug on our WRs all night and that blew up a lot of plays where Ty gets criticized as being ‘off’.

But for us… Proctor was holding all afternoon. Just riding and holding on for dear life after getting whipped at the snap. He even straight tackled a few rushers and they didn’t flag any of it.

It’s really really difficult to run an offense with a right handed QB when his blind side protection is getting manhandled.

Ty was off on a few throws yeah but most of it was having no time before being in immediate danger and his WRs getting mugged with no PI flags.

We have OL problems though. My guess or my hope is we just don’t have the right personnel vs it being a coaching issue.

They aren’t particularly good at run or pass blocking.

Grubb also has spells of impatient play calling, stubborn play calling, and waaaay too cute play calling.

I like him overall and at times his aggressiveness bails us out but he’s bad about putting us in spots to HAVE to be aggressive because he’s not taking the layup plays that are there.

It’s Year 1 for him vs SEC Defenses though so maybe he is just still finding his way.

We for sure need some portal help at OL though.

 

[Bamabuzzard]

I'd like for a reporter to ask why is it that no matter who we put on the OL, we still cannot open holes to run through and is not being able to run the ball a concern for the staff. I just wonder is it more of a coaching issue than a player issue. Somethings not getting through to the players.

 

[Joefus]

I’ve said this too many times already but I hope we break the bank and pick up Pittman and the fired vt coach. Kd seems to like our oline coach tho so maybe it isn’t coaching. My take is our o line is mediocre and too big/slow. I also think our two best running backs are hill and dear. They are the only two backs that flash on screen and make you take notice of their undeniable talent. I was gonna do a good bad ugly post but quickly realized it was just gonna be me complaining hill doesn’t have more touches.

Honestly if we could’ve snagged a legit LT in the portal and moved 74 to RT and Fornby to RG from the jump I think we’d be rounding into a decent line at this point. Our LG would still be splitting time with vandermark (sp?) but we’d be a lot more functional as a line. We gotta switch to lineman that top out at 315 ish for this style of offense. Watching our guys try to get to the second level before the ball carrier is rough

 

[UAH]

I think we just have a mediocre to bad OL.

LT is still horrid. He needs to be replaced or at least split some game reps trying to find a replacement.

The Refs were letting both teams get away with murder.

Against us it was them letting USCe DBs tug on our WRs all night and that blew up a lot of plays where Ty gets criticized as being ‘off’.

But for us… Proctor was holding all afternoon. Just riding and holding on for dear life after getting whipped at the snap. He even straight tackled a few rushers and they didn’t flag any of it.

It’s really really difficult to run an offense with a right handed QB when his blind side protection is getting manhandled.

Ty was off on a few throws yeah but most of it was having no time before being in immediate danger and his WRs getting mugged with no PI flags.

We have OL problems though. My guess or my hope is we just don’t have the right personnel vs it being a coaching issue.

They aren’t particularly good at run or pass blocking.

Grubb also has spells of impatient play calling, stubborn play calling, and waaaay too cute play calling.

I like him overall and at times his aggressiveness bails us out but he’s bad about putting us in spots to HAVE to be aggressive because he’s not taking the layup plays that are there.

It’s Year 1 for him vs SEC Defenses though so maybe he is just still finding his way.

We for sure need some portal help at OL though.

It did appear to me that we were attempting the same wide receiver patterns where there has been success in prior games. Ty was under pressure on every play with no time for a three step drop and 20 yard pattern. In those situations there has to be quick throws underneath to frustrate and slow down the defense. I am not the one getting the big bucks and there were some tremendous plays called late in order to win the game.

 

[mlh]

I think we have some guys on the team this year who saw all the BS and locker room issues last year and vowed that things would be different this year when they were "in charge." We seem to have a lot of team unity and support and leadership - all things I didn't see last year. As a result, we're able to bounce back from bad plays and not get frustrated and not panic in the face of adversity and just play the next play. I never expected to see it and I'm so happy that's where we are.

I think there are definite issues with the OL and I think it's as much coaching as it is talent. Grubb does a great job of maximizing the talents of TS and our WRs in the passing game, but he doesn't seem to know what to do in the running game. He tries to force runs up the middle but when we attack the corners we seem to have success. Why not just go with it? Stretch the defense, spread them out, and give out RBs lanes to hit on cutbacks or try to get around the corner.

I think sometimes Grubb gets a little too cute. OTOH, the two-point conversion play was awesome. Shift the QB and RB to the left. Snap it directly to the RB. Hand the ball off to the QB rolling out to the right who fakes a reverse handoff to the WR. Then an easy pass to the TE for the score. This play totally confused their defense. Great call.

This team is gaining confidence and building trust and forming a tight unit. I think they will be hard to beat down the stretch. After the 4-game gauntlet, it was not surprising that we would come out flat and struggle this week. But we found a way to win. The defense stepped up and kept us in it. Then the offense woke up and put together a couple of great drives at the end of the game to secure the W. Outstanding!

RTR!

 

[some_al_fan]

I think we just have a mediocre to bad OL.

LT is still horrid. He needs to be replaced or at least split some game reps trying to find a replacement.

The Refs were letting both teams get away with murder.

Against us it was them letting USCe DBs tug on our WRs all night and that blew up a lot of plays where Ty gets criticized as being ‘off’.

But for us… Proctor was holding all afternoon. Just riding and holding on for dear life after getting whipped at the snap. He even straight tackled a few rushers and they didn’t flag any of it.

It’s really really difficult to run an offense with a right handed QB when his blind side protection is getting manhandled.

Ty was off on a few throws yeah but most of it was having no time before being in immediate danger and his WRs getting mugged with no PI flags.

We have OL problems though. My guess or my hope is we just don’t have the right personnel vs it being a coaching issue.

They aren’t particularly good at run or pass blocking.

Grubb also has spells of impatient play calling, stubborn play calling, and waaaay too cute play calling.

I like him overall and at times his aggressiveness bails us out but he’s bad about putting us in spots to HAVE to be aggressive because he’s not taking the layup plays that are there.

It’s Year 1 for him vs SEC Defenses though so maybe he is just still finding his way.

We for sure need some portal help at OL though.

Proctor's backup was in on the Proctor's running play and he was pushed back that stopped that run.
That means that unfortunately we don't have anyone better than Proctor at this point

 

[TDBama78]

Procter is an oversized, less than adequate ability to slide on a speed rush, and I think he a bit of a gentle giant,but he's ours and we'll do the best we can with him, mr.obvious here but as much as we throw it and as fast as DE are we got to have more mobilidy and a mean streak at both tackles

 

[Rocky Mtn Bob]

I'm slicing and dicing.....

I think we just have a mediocre to bad OL.

This! So our coaches need to figure out how to finish the season with who we got.

The Refs were letting both teams get away with murder.

Against us it was them letting USCe DBs tug on our WRs all night and that blew up a lot of plays where Ty gets criticized as being ‘off’.

But for us… Proctor was holding all afternoon. Just riding and holding on for dear life after getting whipped at the snap. He even straight tackled a few rushers and they didn’t flag any of it.

It’s really really difficult to run an offense with a right handed QB when his blind side protection is getting manhandled.

AMEN! ... to all of that.

We have OL problems though. My guess or my hope is we just don’t have the right personnel vs it being a coaching issue.

They aren’t particularly good at run or pass blocking.

This, in spades.

We for sure need some portal help at OL though.

With all the coaching changes, it looks as if the portal will be busier than ever nearing the end of this season.

 

[AlexanderFan]

Procter is an oversized, less than adequate ability to slide on a speed rush, and I think he a bit of a gentle giant,but he's ours and we'll do the best we can with him, mr.obvious here but as much as we throw it and as fast as DE are we got to have more mobilidy and a mean streak at both tackles

They lack the mean to be sure, but Proctor is inconsistent. When Proctor is on he’s the best in college football.

Not many guys can stab a guy off his feet like he did last game.

 

[TDBama78]

They lack the mean to be sure, but Proctor is inconsistent. When Proctor is on he’s the best in college football.

Not many guys can stab a guy off his feet like he did last game.

Procter at 320, he'd probably feel like an anorexic ballerina but I guarantee he'd be a much better player, his first step and explosiveness would improve alot

 

[RammerJammer14]

Procter at 320, he'd probably feel like an anorexic ballerina but I guarantee he'd be a much better player, his first step and explosiveness would improve alot

Frankly no human being should weigh 370lbs. I know he is tall and all these guys lift but that just isn’t healthy. The human frame isn’t designed for that kind of mass. It’s got to be hell on his knees!

300lbs is kind of ridiculous too if you think about it.

Ok, off my soap box.

 

[dtgreg]

We just need a Marley to **** Proctor off like Roosevelt Patterson before every game!

 

[AlexanderFan]

Frankly no human being should weigh 370lbs. I know he is tall and all these guys lift but that just isn’t healthy. The human frame isn’t designed for that kind of mass. It’s got to be hell on his knees!

300lbs is kind of ridiculous too if you think about it.

Ok, off my soap box.

You’re not wrong, but some frames can handle it when they’re young. You can see all the NFL guys drop significant weight when they retire.

 

[RammerJammer14]

You’re not wrong, but some frames can handle it when they’re young. You can see all the NFL guys drop significant weight when they retire.

For the sake of their long term health, I hope so. I’m in my mid 30s now and I’m starting to feel the dumb stuff I did in my 20s and thought I could get away with starting to catch up to me, lol. Tore a ligament in my shoulder doing too many pull ups one time and I swear I can feel the barometric pressure changing now!