First of all, Texas A@M's hurry up offense didn't bother us. We were flat as a pancake in the first quarter after a huge win in Baton Rouge.
That got us behind 20-0, but in all honesty, Texas A@M could have run slow tempo QB sneaks and gotten the same result. We simply didn't show up emotionally. Once we adjusted, we pretty much shut them down the rest of the game but it was a bit too late.
Yes, Georgia ran the hurry up at the end of the game...but we were in a prevent and killed ourselves with missed tackles.
Now, that being said, the biggest vulnerability our defense has shown since Coach Saban's arrival has been passes to backs out of the backfield and quick passes across the middle or in the short zone to the tight end. In each case the coverage has been by a linebacker.
Our backers are recruited and geared to stop the run and they're not the best in coverage. I'd attack that in a big way. The problem is that Coach Saban already knows this and has probably made adjustments...lol...so who knows what we'll do. I'd expect a lot of blitzes by the backers with the short coverage switching to a corner. We'll see.
As far as attacking our offense I'd not only stack the box but I'd run blitz and pass blitz. A.J. has a tendency to lock on one receiver and he has a tendency to hold the ball too long. He is not very good when under intense pressure, but then, not many QB's are.
The problem again however is that our offensive line is so good that, if you blitz, and one guy misses a tackle or an assignment, or blows a man to man coverage, that A.J. may end up on his butt, but one our running backs will be racing untouched to the goal line, or catching a screen a racing to the goal line, or one of many capable receivers will completely burn the secondary for a long TD pass.
Not many people understand that we're far from one dimensional. We probably have more dimensions than most teams in the country and we are EXTREMELY hard to defend.
Ultimately though Notre Dame has no choice but to try and stop the run first because, if they can't do that, they don't have a prayer.
Ironically...if they do stop the run, then A.J. may pass for 400 yards and five touchdowns.
I think Brian Kelly poses the biggest challenge Bama has faced as far as being an outstanding coach. He reminds me a lot of Saban actually. The question is, do they have the horses?
We'll see on Monday Night and may the chips fall where they may.
RTR!
sip