Link: How the 'Pop Pass' has Changed Alabama's Defense Since Dominant 2011 Season

I hope we can get off the field on 3rd down this year. That hurt us last year big time.

BamaMoon said:

Haha...when I saw "pop pass" it made me think of the play we ran in Jr. High football that was literally a 3-5 yard pass from the qb to tight end in the gap between the inside and outside linebackers.

The tight end always got "popped" on that pass.

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That was my Middle School Play...I was the TE! And we ran it over and over...and I got popped a lot. We just drove down the field 5-10 yards at a pop. We also ran a TE reverse, LOL.

RTR91 said:

From the comment section of the article:

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It was illegal then too, but was not called. That's 4 yards down the field. LOL

uafan4life said:

And when you allow offensive lineman to engage, i.e. block, defenders three, four, or even five or more yards downfield those plays become 10 times harder to defend.

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"This"

USCBAMA said:

Actually even an eligible receiver cannot be blocking downfield before a forward downfield pass is thrown. Here are two examples of penalties straight from the 2013/2014 NCAA rule book.

Here is how rule reads in 2013/2014 rules book.

The FB downfield blocking on that play was a penalty under the rules in place at the time.

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I agree completely. Like I said, it is a pick play.

I just keep hearing people use this play as an example of an offensive lineman over 3 yards downfield. There are plenty of examples. Like someone else said, this play may have even had a linemen downfield too. I don't know. I haven't reviewed the tape that closely to see where the actual linemen were when Marshall actually threw the ball. The problem is people keep using this as an example and circling or pointing out the fullback saying, "See look he is WAY over 3 yards!" Yes it is a penalty the way he blocked since it was a pass play, but it is not an example of the lineman downfield problem being discussed. When you use a false premise to prove a point, it hurts your argument.

Example:

bamablood6 said:

It was illegal then too, but was not called. That's 4 yards down the field. LOL

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RTR91 said:

The DL is stacked with talent. A'Shawn and Jarran both trimmed down. Apparently, Cochran reads TF because the players have lost some weight in order to be faster and stay on the field longer.

Look at the secondary the media saw in practice yesterday:



Four of those guys were recruited as CBs, and Cyrus was a 4* ATH because of his ability to play CB and WR. This secondary looks to be more ballhawking due to the CB experience at every position.

Another reason for optimism about the defense: Tosh Lupoi

From an al.com article about Rashaan Evans:



Aaron Suttles of The Tuscaloosa News tweeted this on August 14:



There's not just one area that makes fans, coaches (some coaches believe this defense can rival the 2009 and 2011 defenses) and media hype up this defense. Tucker looks to be an upgrade as a DB coach, and Lupoi comes across as a drastic improvement over Lance Thompson.

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This is the kind of stuff that just makes me excited about this upcoming year. I love seeing the adjustments our coaching staff makes year in and year out to be better. Coach Saban is never satisfied.

mittman said:

I agree completely. Like I said, it is a pick play.

I just keep hearing people use this play as an example of an offensive lineman over 3 yards downfield. There are plenty of examples. Like someone else said, this play may have even had a linemen downfield too. I don't know. I haven't reviewed the tape that closely to see where the actual linemen were when Marshall actually threw the ball. The problem is people keep using this as an example and circling or pointing out the fullback saying, "See look he is WAY over 3 yards!" Yes it is a penalty the way he blocked since it was a pass play, but it is not an example of the lineman downfield problem being discussed. When you use a false premise to prove a point, it hurts your argument.

Example:

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ARTICLE 8. a. During a down in which a legal forward pass crosses the neutral zone, illegal contact by Team A and Team B players is prohibited from the time the ball is snapped until it is touched by any player or an official (A.R. 7-3-8-II).

b. Offensive pass interference by a Team A player beyond the neutral zone during a legal forward pass play in which a forward pass crosses the neutral zone is contact that interferes with a Team B
eligible player. It is the responsibility of the offensive player to avoid the opponents.

And this is an eligible receiver 4 yards down the field before the pass is even thrown or caught by an eligible team mate (But I guess 4 yards past the Line of scrimmage is in the Auburn neutral zone)---Just because he thought the QB was going to run...But he didn't (Tricked Cyrus and their FB) .....and if you did review that film you would see more instances of OL blocking downfield. And if I was breaking down film for you I could show you plenty...

I said it was illegal and didn't specifically say what the penalty was....but it was 4 yards past the LOS with the QB with the ball in his hand and the guy was blocking/in contact expecting his QB to run. I didn't even have to see a jersey number, all I needed to see is the QB with ball in hand, and someone blocking 4 yards down field. Blown call by the officials.

Thanks, these all make sense. I had forgotten about the departure of Thompson.

RTR91 said:

The DL is stacked with talent. A'Shawn and Jarran both trimmed down. Apparently, Cochran reads TF because the players have lost some weight in order to be faster and stay on the field longer.

Look at the secondary the media saw in practice yesterday:



Four of those guys were recruited as CBs, and Cyrus was a 4* ATH because of his ability to play CB and WR. This secondary looks to be more ballhawking due to the CB experience at every position.

Another reason for optimism about the defense: Tosh Lupoi

From an al.com article about Rashaan Evans:



Aaron Suttles of The Tuscaloosa News tweeted this on August 14:



There's not just one area that makes fans, coaches (some coaches believe this defense can rival the 2009 and 2011 defenses) and media hype up this defense. Tucker looks to be an upgrade as a DB coach, and Lupoi comes across as a drastic improvement over Lance Thompson.

Click to expand...