"We overlooked the flaws of this Alabama team" (no run game)

[Evil Crimson Dragon]

I did see someone point out that one thing we changed in the 4th quarter with our offense was that we put the game in Bryce's hands a bit more.

I haven't rewatched but IIRC we played a lot of what looked like 21 personnel with 2 RBs on the field. Probably trying to take advantage of Gibbs the WR and keep McClellan on the field or something.

But then the 4th quarter came and we went pretty heavily to 11 personnel and let Bryce cook with 3 WRs on the field. I'm not saying we exclusively ran 21 personnel early or 11 in the 4th (I'd have to go back and watch). We definitely looked more like a spread team in the 4th and clearly had a lot more success.

Sometimes I think they need to put it in Bryce’s hands a little more

 

[bamaga]

We had the game wrapped up if Gibbs runs that 4th and 1. No idea why he wasn't in.

Because he made the first on third down, cant‘t ask him to make the same first down twice.

 

[bamaga]

people, Bama fans, media , rival fans. Are all banging on Will Anderson. Wasn’t his best game, but he made 2 clutch plays . The sack in the 4th quarter and the FG block he didn’t get credit for.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1568728869984927748

 

[gtgilbert]

I guess one reason I hold the defense to a higher standard than the offense is because I think the results can be a little more consistent on defense, at least at the highest level. I mean if you just shut down the other team and don't let them do anything, that's that. And we saw years of Alabama dragging along an offense that often didn't get the job done, just because the defense was so darn good.

One thing I cautioned about though as Alabama moved toward a more pass happy offense, is that it does come with inherent downsides. Be it Kiffin, Sark, Daboll, or even BoB. A pass is just a much less reliable play than a run. So however you are drawing it up, and what ever you are drawing up, it can still go wrong. We saw that a couple times last game with big drops, we saw that in the championship game with backup receivers and big drops.

You can have the best offensive gameplan in the world but if you don't execute on one aspect of the passing play, it will fail (there are more potential points of failure on a pass). Now, I do blame BoB somewhat, his offense does not seem to have be as good as his predecessor (oh to have Sark running the offense and Pruitt running the defense). But, once you got away from the consistency of the power running game in favor of a pass heavy offense, things were going to become less consistent.

The interesting thing though is that last year's offense scored 39.9 PPG, which is pretty close to the 37.1 they scored with Hurts as the starter. So, part of the current issue is that Alabama has given up the reliability of a good power running game but has given up most of the gains that going more pass heavy initially gave.

so my counter to that point is that it only takes one OL to not be able to consistently maintain his blocks and your entire running GAME fails, not just a play or two. A bit of an exaggeration, but not by a lot...

 

[Snake 4 Bama]

I think the players believed all the media hype and thought Tx would just roll over. I hope this game is an eye opener for the whole team and will cause them to focus and listen to Saban. Also I think every team we play this year will spend extra time prepping for us because to beat us is to beat the best. We are everyone's bowl game.

 

[KrAzY3]

And when faced with that challenge vs Alabama, they’ve won a single time and we all know why.

It's worth noting what happened in that win though.

Alabama had two hurt WRs.
Alabama averaged 1.1 yard per run.
Georgia averaged 4.7 yards per run.

Alabama really couldn't win under those circumstances.

so my counter to that point is that it only takes one OL to not be able to consistently maintain his blocks and your entire running GAME fails, not just a play or two. A bit of an exaggeration, but not by a lot...

I think there are things you can do to buttress your running game, and part of that is a really physical runner. Alabama for instance has had a few backs that relied a bit less on the line opening up a hole than other guys. Gibbs for instance sure isn't going to go fighting through a lot of contact, he does need a hole. A physically dominant runner can do a little more. Just look what Najee did to Georgia, while Robinson averaged right at 3 yards per carry the last two meetings.

 

[editder]

Of everything that happened Saturday this is the one thing I just cannot get past. The biggest play of the game we are in the shotgun and give it to our #3 RB. Makes absolutely NO sense.

Like everyone else, I thought it was dumb that they lined up in the shotgun. But since they went that route, I believe they thought he was the best power runner, with his low center of gravity. As it turned out, it was open on the right side, and a quicker back could have exploited it.

 

[Windsortide]

No downfield threat in the passing game allows others to load up in the box.

 

[TideEngineer08]

It's worth noting what happened in that win though.

Alabama had two hurt WRs.
Alabama averaged 1.1 yard per run.
Georgia averaged 4.7 yards per run.

Alabama really couldn't win under those circumstances.

That’s the point I was making. Without both Metchie and Jamo, everything became too compressed. I think UGA’s O did a better job against Alabama’s D the 2nd game but then again, two starting corners were out.

I’m not sold the Kirby/early Saban MO is the way forward just because of how the title game went last year.

 

[81usaf92]

That’s the point I was making. Without both Metchie and Jamo, everything became too compressed. I think UGA’s O did a better job against Alabama’s D the 2nd game but then again, two starting corners were out.

I’m not sold the Kirby/early Saban MO is the way forward just because of how the title game went last year.

I really don’t know if Georgia actually did better the 2nd time around vs our defense. Aside from a big play here and there Monken has gotten owned all 3 times vs Golding. The difference was our offense. Whether you want to blame it on BoB, injuries, locker room cancers, lanning adjusting, or all of the above our offense was horrible that night. We constantly tried that damn screen that we did versus Auburn, Cincinnati, and again with Texas and constantly got blown up. But ultimately I think the national championship was no different than the other 2 meetings (2020 and 2021 SECCG) with the exception of our offense.

 

[gman4tide]

Of everything that happened Saturday this is the one thing I just cannot get past. The biggest play of the game we are in the shotgun and give it to our #3 RB. Makes absolutely NO sense.

it was all a ruse.

 

[bamafaninbham]

He got the 1st down on the previous play anyway. The officiating was atrocious.

It would not have mattered if we went directly to the line of scrimmage and ran the next play quickly so there would not be time to review. But as usual we didn't. I have seen the same thing happen time and time again the last 15 years. All of the arm chair coaches sitting at home know it was a close play(whether it is a catch or not, or did the ball carrier pass the first down line, or did we break the goal line, or whatever). We all are screaming at the TV to hurry up and run the next play before they can blow the whistle so replay can look at the previous play. But no, the team is taking their sweet time and the play clock is below 10 seconds and then the ref blows the whistle and then the review booth rules against us and we are screwed. It frustrates me to no end. And it happens at the worst times in several games every year.

 

[Jkl0802]

Why have we completely stopped the RPOs, JET Sweeps, Slants and other ways to stretch the field and defense, and create more running room at the LOS? I mean even a nitwit could look at film of when Alabama was scoring +35 a game and ask what were we doing then…that we are not doing now?

 

[gman4tide]

It would not have mattered if we went directly to the line of scrimmage and ran the next play quickly so there would not be time to review. But as usual we didn't. I have seen the same thing happen time and time again the last 15 years. All of the arm chair coaches sitting at home know it was a close play(whether it is a catch or not, or did the ball carrier pass the first down line, or did we break the goal line, or whatever). We all are screaming at the TV to hurry up and run the next play before they can blow the whistle so replay can look at the previous play. But no, the team is taking their sweet time and the play clock is below 10 seconds and then the ref blows the whistle and then the review booth rules against us and we are screwed. It frustrates me to no end. And it happens at the worst times in several games every year.

To be fair tho, if the Tide did try to go fast in these instances...the refs would go faster in stopping the next play for review. I know i'm biased, but seemingly routine plays made by the tide are reviewed way more often than other teams. Seen lots of really iffy plays be made that were not reviewed and the team that made the play didn't go fast to keep it from happening.

 

[AlexanderFan]

Why have we completely stopped the RPOs, JET Sweeps, Slants and other ways to stretch the field and defense, and create more running room at the LOS? I mean even a nitwit could look at film of when Alabama was scoring +35 a game and ask what were we doing then…that we are not doing now?

We don’t have a nitwit, he’s just a nit.

 

[teamplayer]

BOB doesn't have that kind of creative play calling in him. I'm starting to wonder if he scouts himself and knows his own tendencies.

I wish he would because everyone else seems to know them.

 

[KrAzY3]

I disagree with the characterization of passing attacks as being inherently "inconsistent," just because the completion percentage isn't 100%. The days of Coach Bryant's saying that there were three things that could happen when you passed, and two of them were bad is also passé...

If I recall correctly, the Saints lost a trip to the Super Bowl due to a blown pass interference call. Not that the Saints even did anything wrong, the refs did, but the ball was still on the ground and that's all it took. While the 30% incompletion rate is a big deal if you have no margin for error, and Bryant's quote isn't wholly inaccurate, the issue is still more complicated than that. There are many more points of failure, and passing is basically a higher risk/reward type of play.

You can get way more out of the play, but you also are taking more of a gamble. I can't recall exactly when this was or who they were talking about, but I recall well into one season the announcers noting that the Alabama running back hadn't had a single negative run. Running isn't a gamble if you can do that.

Gambling is acceptable in the NFL for instance where you are basically ok with playing the odds. In college though, there's nearly no margin for error so you can't really afford to lose many gambles. Alabama lost two games last year, and nearly lost two more. That's below Saban's standards at Alabama. Of the past 5 games, 3 have been imperiled by the lack of ability to establish the running game. You can't keep playing those odds and expect to win.

This isn't to say that I think Alabama should give up on the pass, Alabama shouldn't be overly reliant on it and they really do need to establish a power running game. For example, at Alabama, Saban has had 4 running backs in the running for Heisman. Every single year they won a championship. Alabama has also had 4 QBs in the running for the Heisman. That's a sure fire recipe for success right? Except Alabama only one the championship in those four years, the exception being when they also happened to have a Heisman candidate at running back.

A good passing game is essential to success. But you just can't be overly reliant on it. When Alabama overly relies on the passing game it creates more potential points of failure. A power running game is also as essential in my opinion. Part of what made the 2020 offense so magical is they had Najee Harris, who was a massive difference maker. Without that the offense becomes one dimensional and much more vulnerable.

I’m not sold the Kirby/early Saban MO is the way forward just because of how the title game went last year.

It's important to draw a distinction here. Saying Alabama needs a power running game and shouldn't be overly reliant on the passing game isn't the same as saying Alabama should go back to the 2011 offense where they had 16 passing touchdowns. It's worth noting though, that Alabama had 48 passing touchdowns last year, and they lost twice and nearly lost two more times. I'm basically arguing there's a middle ground that Alabama should be seeking out.

 

[teamplayer]

I think we will. Bama is not perfect like everyone builds them up to be but I am astounded that hardly anyone is giving credit to Texas and Sarkisian. He did a decent job of getting them ready.

He did do a good job, and they were definitely ready to play. However, it didn't look like two great teams going head to head, at least not in my opinion. We played very sloppily and were fortunate to win, but we did win, and that is all that matters at the end of the day. We have a lot of things that need improvement, and I hope we make those improvements before October arises. Roll Tide!

 

[dtgreg]

Why have we completely stopped the RPOs, JET Sweeps, Slants and other ways to stretch the field and defense, and create more running room at the LOS? I mean even a nitwit could look at film of when Alabama was scoring +35 a game and ask what were we doing then…that we are not doing now?

I believe one of the selling / recruiting points of the Alabama Offense under Mac, then Bryce (and maybe to attract Manning?) was to emphasize the NFL Pro Set that would prepare our QBs for the next level. Also, Bryce is a small guy. I don't need another Tua injury.

 

[bamaclimber]

This isn't to say that I think Alabama should give up on the pass, Alabama shouldn't be overly reliant on it and they really do need to establish a power running game. For example, at Alabama, Saban has had 4 running backs in the running for Heisman. Every single year they won a championship. Alabama has also had 4 QBs in the running for the Heisman. That's a sure fire recipe for success right? Except Alabama only one the championship in those four years, the exception being when they also happened to have a Heisman candidate at running back.

Excellent analysis, KrAzY3. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and insights (and not just in the paragraph quoted above, but in your entire post).