Report card: As season reaches halftime, Alabama needs tutoring

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Report card: As season reaches halftime, Alabama needs tutoring
By Jess Nicholas
TideFans.com Editor-in-Chief
Oct. 7, 2007

The 2007 college football season is half over, so it’s time to take a position-by-position look at the state of the program since Nick Saban took over the team.

Quarterbacks: C+
Many fans would probably assign a much lower grade here, and it would be deserved if not for the fact that Alabama has proven it can run the two-minute offense with precision. The win against Arkansas, the last-minute drive to tie Georgia and late drives against Florida State are major pluses and cannot be overlooked, but there have been major minuses as well. Starter John Parker Wilson has regressed overall since 2006. His mechanics are not as sound and aside from the last-minute heroics, his play has been only barely effective. Backups Greg McElroy and Nick Fanuzzi got into the Western Carolina game, but have not played since. Fanuzzi did not attempt a pass in that game. The coaches have remained steadfast in their support of Wilson so far, but it will be interesting to watch his progress for the second half of 2007. Unfortunately, Wilson has been trending downward the last three weeks.

Running backs: B+
Terry Grant opened with three stellar games in a row, but has fallen out of the spotlight in recent weeks as the competition has toughened and the carries have been piling up. Glen Coffee started against Houston and will probably start again against Ole Miss. Coffee has more natural strength and is a better fit to run between the tackles, but he lacks Grant’s burst. Roy Upchurch hasn’t played much, but has been effective in most of the limited opportunities he’s received. Jimmy Johns has become a total non-factor except on special teams. Johns could most accurately be called the backup fullback at this point, but Alabama doesn’t use a fullback much. Baron Huber plays mostly in short-yardage situations and has just one touch of the ball, a reception, so far in 2007. The good news here is that Alabama’s running backs have been better than expected in the preseason. On the flip side, Alabama must find a way to reintegrate Grant into the game plan; his playmaking abilities are too great to ignore.

Wide receivers: A-
D.J. Hall seems to set a new record every week, but it’s been the supporting cast that has raised the most eyebrows. Senior Matt Caddell emerged from obscurity to become a valuable possession receiver. Mike McCoy has been solid as a starter opposite Hall, and is one of Alabama’s best downfield blockers in the running game. Beyond those three, Alabama has gotten meaningful contributions out of different players from week to week. Against Florida State, it was Keith Brown. Nikita Stover, who had been missing in action for a month, caught a touchdown pass in the first quarter against Houston. Will Oakley and Earl Alexander have also played important roles. But perhaps the most significant performance has been that turned in by tight ends Nick Walker and Travis McCall. Alabama’s tight ends were thought to be suspect prior to the season, but Walker and McCall have been key components of both the passing and the running games. Alabama’s wideouts still struggle getting separation from time to time, but mostly, this unit has been the best thing going, offensively.

Offensive line: B+
Were it not for some flaws exposed in the Florida State game, Alabama might have ranked more highly in this category. For the most part, Alabama has fixed its run-blocking problems that were the fault of the previous coaching staff’s teaching philosophy, but there is still more deprogramming needed before the patient can be considered completely cured. Pass protection has gotten better as well, although not quite as good as hoped. Center Antoine Caldwell is an excellent blocker, but problems with shotgun snaps have caused a bit of a quandary for Alabama coaches as they decide whether the line is better with Caldwell at center or moving to guard. Depth has been good, and anytime Alabama has needed to go to the bench, the results have been superb. Consistency could be better, and that’s been the biggest impediment overall to the line receiving a higher grade.

Coaching/playcalling: B+
Head coach Nick Saban has even groused about his own staff’s playcalling the last two weeks, but overall, Alabama has shown good balance and has been decently intuitive. There have been virtually no trick plays called, and Alabama’s increased use of the Ace package as a base front and its power running game is evidence of this staff’s heavy pro-football influence, particularly from offensive line coach Joe Pendry, who is essentially second-in-command of the offense behind offensive coordinator Major Applewhite. Position by position, coaching is clearly better at wide receiver, tight end and offensive line. Alabama’s running backs coaching was good enough to compete in 2006, but results were skewed by the horrible line play, so it’s difficult to say how much improvement has been made there. Quarterback play has diminished, calling into question the coaching at that position, but Applewhite’s track record would suggest the problem lies somewhere else. Taken as a unit, there is little question Alabama has improved upon its coaching levels from 2006.

OFFENSE OVERALL: B
Alabama ranks 53rd nationally and 6th in the SEC in total offense, and 46th and 6th in scoring offense. In scoring, Alabama is averaging 30.7 points per game, up from 22.9 points per game in 2006. Where Alabama is struggling at the moment is in its quarterback play, which may or may not include adjustments the coaching staff needs to make to minimize what’s required of John Parker Wilson. If Wilson is the best quarterback Alabama has and is not capable of running the preferred playbook, Alabama will have to limit the playbook, or develop different plays that don’t call for quite so much risk from Wilson’s throws. A “B” grade in this category means Alabama has improved since 2006; however, it is somewhat troublesome given the fact the offense was expected to carry the defense in 2007. The last three weeks, it has been up to the defense to generate the big play to win the game, and only once in those three weeks has the defense been successful. The offense, specifically the quarterback issues, need to improve in the season’s second half.

Defensive line: C
Alabama’s defensive line was perceived as its biggest weakness coming into the year, and that fear has been realized. Taking away what Alabama did against the beleaguered offensive lines of Western Carolina and Houston, Alabama got most of its line pressure against passing games in the Vanderbilt contest. Against Arkansas, Georgia and Florida State, Alabama could not get consistent pressure against the quarterback. Against the run, however, Alabama has probably been a little better than expected. Injuries have been a big problem for this unit, claiming Byron Walton’s career in the preseason and then knocking starting nosetackle Brian Motley out of the first four games of the year. Motley might be 100 percent in time for Ole Miss, but that’s still not certain. Wallace Gilberry has played very well at end given he’s usually the only one getting consistent pressure. Lorenzo Washington, who spelled Motley in his absence, played better than expected but still not to a level that anyone would call dominating. At the tackle/end position manned by Bobby Greenwood, Greenwood has had his moments, good and bad. Again, an injury has altered the situation there, putting Brandon Deaderick into a starting role. Unfortunately, the situation as a whole will probably be cured only by recruiting, and/or the weightroom. Alabama’s options for 2007 are to try to stay as healthy as possible, scheme as well as possible to cover weaknesses and hope for the best.

Linebackers: C+
Injuries and inconsistent play have conspired to hold this group back, as has a lack of depth, which makes for tired starters in the second half. Darren Mustin was a most pleasant surprise at inside linebacker, and Prince Hall’s re-emergence gives Alabama some breathing room at true freshman Rolando McClain’s position. But with no other inside linebackers available – Demarcus Waldrop, Marcel Stamps and Cory Reamer have been tried there, with varying results – Alabama is dangerously thin. At outside linebacker, Ezekial Knight has been a force, but again, there is no depth. Zach Schreiber left the team after one week, and Eryk Anders, Chavis Williams and Charlie Higgenbotham have yet to play much beyond special teams. The other outside linebacker position is the Jack linebacker manned by Keith Saunders, but Saunders has played down as an end more often than up as a linebacker. Saunders has also been knocked out of three different games, although he’s returned each time. His backup, Brandon Fanney, is not as consistent. There are speed issues here at a couple of positions, and that factor combined with the lack of instincts by some of the faster players on the bench, may result in some tweaking of the recruiting strategy for the upcoming class.

Defensive backs: B-
The Castille/R.Johnson duo gets an A- that is cancelled by the C- for the Carter/whoever-is-at-the-other-CB duo. Aside from two quarters against Houston, Rashad Johnson has come from walk-on land to become one of the most effective safeties in the SEC – a fact not nearly as surprising when you take into account who his coaches are. Simeon Castille hasn’t been the breakout star many thought he’d be in 2007, but he’s been mostly solid. The problems have come at the other two positions. Kareem Jackson took a big step forward towards claiming the corner position opposite Castille Saturday. Lionel Mitchell played a lot during nickel situations, while Marquis Johnson – who played almost the entirety of the FSU game a week before – played only on special teams. The coaches are still trying to find the right mix. Marcus Carter still holds the free safety position, but Ali Sharrief continues to draw closer, and against Houston, Alabama trotted out walk-on Tyrone King Jr. to play the dime position shared at times by Sharrief and Carter. Sharrief was injured in the game, however, which might set him back. The secondary, for the most part, has handled its assignments, but it’s a week-to-week thing with this group.

Coaching/playcalling: A
When the three units are ranked C, C+ and B-, yet the defense is probably twice as good as expected in the preseason, there has to be some coaching going on. That’s the case for Alabama, as Saban and staff have managed to make a very difficult transition period go by rather seamlessly. Alabama’s defense held Houston, and gave the offense plenty of chances to win games against Georgia and Florida State. The defense also put the clamps on a Vanderbilt offense that, at times, can be very effective. Alabama’s defense is still a work in progress, and things will get dicey week to week, but the coaching has been about as good as could be expected.

DEFENSE OVERALL: B-
Alabama ranks 40th in total defense in 2007, compared to 23rd at the end of 2006. The ranking for scoring defense, however, is virtually the same, although the average of points yielded has greater separation: 32nd in 2007 (20.8 ppg) vs. 31st in 2006 (19.2 ppg). In 2007, Alabama is balanced; the Crimson Tide is 45th against the run and 44th against the pass, while the 2006 defense was 46th against the run but 19th against the pass. In pass efficiency defense, Alabama is better this year than last (35th vs. 38th). This wasn’t supposed to turn out this way; Alabama was supposed to encounter far more problems in switching from Joe Kines’ soft-zone 3-3-5 set to Saban’s pressure-oriented 3-4/4-3 defense. But it might still happen if Alabama suffers key injuries at any one of four or five positions. In other words, enjoy the improvement, but don’t get too cocky. It also bears mentioning that Alabama, so far, has not proven especially good at doing any one thing in particular, and that the team is ranked no better than 6th in the SEC in any category.

SPECIAL TEAMS OVERALL: B
Until the Houston game, punter P.J. Fitzgerald had been average at best. Against the Cougars, Fitzgerald had one of his best days as a Tider, giving hope that he might use that performance as a springboard to finishing the season strong. Placekicker Leigh Tiffin has been good, but not great, but generally he has executed the kicks he needed to execute. For the first three games of the season, the kick return units were excellent; the next three, not so much. Jonathan Lowe had a fumble against Georgia that could have been critical, and Javier Arenas was reduced to a non-factor against both Florida State and Houston. Still, this unit is a far cry better than last year’s, which fell apart in some games and was totally ineffective in others. Alabama, however, would have probably scored an A in this category prior to the Georgia game, so the trend needs to be reversed in the second half of the season.

Check back after the Auburn game for an end-of-season grade.