Defensive performance against Clemson and Kirby
- Thread starter PitMaster
- Start date
You're welcome to disagree, and you know what? You MIGHT be right. Seriously.
I just think it's a stretch. He sure wasn't preoccupied during the Michigan St prep.
CKS gave us several years of champion style defense and we have a couple of championships in no small part due to CKS. He left for a head coaching position at another SEC school because it's a good gig. Get over it.
That having been said, we were the only defense all season who held Clemson to a lesser score than what our offense/special teams were able to put up on the score board. Kirby could have left as soon as he took the job at UGA but he did not. He did have to split duties and this was seemingly agreed to by all parties at UA. I really don't think this game would have played out much differently had Kirby not taken a job elsewhere.
Let's leave Kirby alone and enjoy the fact that BAMA won another NC (first for an SEC team in the playoff era) and our players played their tails off against arguably the best offense we've played in a llllloooooonnnnnnnngggggggg time.
That having been said, we were the only defense all season who held Clemson to a lesser score than what our offense/special teams were able to put up on the score board. Kirby could have left as soon as he took the job at UGA but he did not. He did have to split duties and this was seemingly agreed to by all parties at UA. I really don't think this game would have played out much differently had Kirby not taken a job elsewhere.
Let's leave Kirby alone and enjoy the fact that BAMA won another NC (first for an SEC team in the playoff era) and our players played their tails off against arguably the best offense we've played in a llllloooooonnnnnnnngggggggg time.
The other problem is, let's turn this around.
We 'only' scored 19 points against Tennessee. Anyone wish to argue the Vols were better than Clemson last year?
In fact, the ONLY game we scored more points than the 45 we put on Clemson was the 55 on Charleston Southern.
This argument cuts two ways because nobody else scored 45 on Clemson all last year, either.
We 'only' scored 19 points against Tennessee. Anyone wish to argue the Vols were better than Clemson last year?
In fact, the ONLY game we scored more points than the 45 we put on Clemson was the 55 on Charleston Southern.
This argument cuts two ways because nobody else scored 45 on Clemson all last year, either.
You accomplished what you wanted by making the orignal post. No flames other than why now posting now other than Kirby is somewhere else.
I'll add another game for this argument, Selma. I'll bet if you go back and watch the Ole Miss game we played much worse on defense than we did against Clemson.
I have no point to prove because I don't have to be right all the time. I just believe there is room for speculation that just maybe his mind wasn't 100% on coaching Bama THAT week.
I only saw the first half (I was in Tampa visiting my sister and we got in late from the Rays-White Sox game.......kickoff was at 9pm there, I was absolutely exhausted).
That might be debatable, but since I didn't see it, I will defer to your expertise there. I know they got a bunch of yards on a fluke and an illegal play.......and the defense can't really be blamed for the five turnovers, but I know there was enough of a meltdown on here that it must have been REALLY bad.
My brother texted me from Mississippi and said, "It's not that Ole Miss is that GOOD, it's that Alabama is that BAD." And he played ball so maybe he knows what he's talking about.
In the end, distraction or not, we won it all, and I'd take it all again.
Let me reiterate a central point: 2011 was the greatest defense in college football history, NOT the 'new normal performance' for Alabama. It's amusing how many of the thoughts that wind up being expressed operate under the assumption that since our D is not at the 2011 elite level, the coaches must be slipping or something.
Cherish 2011 forever.
And let's move on to 2016.
Cherish 2011 forever.
And let's move on to 2016.
This thread is all much ado about nothing. Kirby handled the situation in a classy way by staying through the championship game. Clemson offense was just good.
This is only coming up because some people are mad at him over the Maurice Smith controversy.
This is only coming up because some people are mad at him over the Maurice Smith controversy.
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The Mel Tucker aspect was brought up several times in the Maurice Smith thread. Not everything gets regurgitated when there are multiple threads overlapping the same topics..
Let's review this thread, and then I'm putting on my "Can't Spell Dynasty Without The A" Shirt and strolling on.
Here's your first post that started this whole thing:
First of all, you were WRONG factually in calling it "our worst defensive performance in some years," and I pointed out not one, not two, but THREE examples that your claim simply isn't true at any level. I cited a game from 2013 and TWO games from 2014....all of them worse than the Clemson game.
Secondly, I pointed out that Watson got 1/5 of those yards against a prevent defense, not a standard Alabama D, that was designed to force him to eat up the remaining clock time.
Now.....instead of folding your cards or admitting the EVIDENCE doesn't support your thesis, you came back with this:
At this point, you abandoned the initial claim and pivoted because the evidence didn't support your idea.
And let me again say very clearly - you can't have it both ways. UGA hired Smart on December 6.
There sure wasn't a problem with Michigan State - for a guy who supposedly had his mind elsewhere.
So you started with Smart, pivoted to Tucker, and then - after having no evidence to support your position - you came right back to Smart, yet again:
And once again, you came back to Mel Tucker:
WHAT do you want addressed about Mel Tucker? And if Mel Tucker is the subject, why is Kirby Smart the subject in the OP?
And once again, please address the other points - it was NOT the worst performance in years by our defense and why is Michigan State excluded from the discussion?
And if your entire point is "well, I know something you don't," why did you even start a discussion to which you already (presumably) know the answer?
And that gave rise to this:
As far as the condescending remark, well I'm done here.
Here's your first post that started this whole thing:
Now, unless I'm missing something the DC - I repeat, the DC that YOU brought up.....for the 2015 team and the 2015 Clemson game...that went to UGA is a guy named Kirby Smart.
First of all, you were WRONG factually in calling it "our worst defensive performance in some years," and I pointed out not one, not two, but THREE examples that your claim simply isn't true at any level. I cited a game from 2013 and TWO games from 2014....all of them worse than the Clemson game.
Secondly, I pointed out that Watson got 1/5 of those yards against a prevent defense, not a standard Alabama D, that was designed to force him to eat up the remaining clock time.
Now.....instead of folding your cards or admitting the EVIDENCE doesn't support your thesis, you came back with this:
So you went from the ENTIRE DEFENSE not playing well because the DC was heading to UGA to the SECONDARY not playing well because Tucker was leaving.
At this point, you abandoned the initial claim and pivoted because the evidence didn't support your idea.
And let me again say very clearly - you can't have it both ways. UGA hired Smart on December 6.
There sure wasn't a problem with Michigan State - for a guy who supposedly had his mind elsewhere.
So you started with Smart, pivoted to Tucker, and then - after having no evidence to support your position - you came right back to Smart, yet again:
Then I proceeded to actually say to you, that you MIGHT be right. I don't know. There's no evidence to support it, but maybe you're right. (Uh....does it REALLY matter at this point?)
And once again, you came back to Mel Tucker:
Well, nobody can address Mel Tucker when you keep changing the subject now, can they?
WHAT do you want addressed about Mel Tucker? And if Mel Tucker is the subject, why is Kirby Smart the subject in the OP?
And once again, please address the other points - it was NOT the worst performance in years by our defense and why is Michigan State excluded from the discussion?
And if your entire point is "well, I know something you don't," why did you even start a discussion to which you already (presumably) know the answer?
And that gave rise to this:
The 1978 Alabama team lost by ten points to USC AT HOME. It was a great team, but not even close to our best team ever. The 1992 DEFENSE was from another world, no question. But football has changed a lot even since 1992, and the game is more pass-oriented than ever, making different talent necessary to play the defense. While I can't competently comment on the 1961 defense I never saw, here's something illuminating - while I don't know where to find the TEAM stats for 1961, I see that Texas was the nation's sixth ranked scoring offense in 1961 with 29.1 ppg. The sixth ranked scoring offense in 2011 was Wisconsin, with 44.1 ppg. In fact, FIFTY teams in 2011 scored more than 29.1 ppg. The Alabama defense of 2011 gave up 8.2 ppg in a passing era where teams were scoring at least 15 more ppg. The Tide defense did not give up a touchdown in the last ten quarters of the season in 2011.
As far as the condescending remark, well I'm done here.
That's it in a nutshell. Totally and completely. That was the best offense Bama has faced in the Saban era IMO, and I'm not sure that DeShaun Watson isn't the best QB we've faced in the last 30 years. I actually thought we played great defense to even hold on and win the game.
I think it was actually one of his better performances. We held them until the 4th quarter and ran out of gas. But at that point our offense had woken up against their depleted defense. It was just one of those USC-UT and tosu-Miami classic duels in the national title. We just had a little bit more than they did, but they were more equal to us than the previous 3 teams we played in the title.
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