Tidbit on the MSU game - pressuring the QB

skrayper77

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I was rewatching some highlights on the MSU game, and one thing that struck me was that we actually got into the backfield many times where Fitzgerald made a play with his legs. It wasn't a lack of a pass rush so much as open containment on another side that allowed for a long scramble.

Now, I'm not saying that we'll be blowing up Stidham, but he's not in the same galaxy of mobility as Fitzgerald. I personally think that MSU has the better offensive line than Auburn though; if we can get back to our level of run defense, we should be able to pressure Stidham. I mean, we got penetration rushing 3 on the hail mary plays.
 

deliveryman35

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Ive noticed a lot that we are often getting good pressure and hurrying the qb but we seem to lose contain easily as well. Im guessing this will be a major focus in practice for the next two weeks.
 

RammaJamma10

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We need to work the usual formula- stop the run on first and second down, get them into 3rd and medium/long, and then blitz and add to the ever growing number of sacks Stidham takes.

::easier said than done::
 

Bamabuzzard

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I was rewatching some highlights on the MSU game, and one thing that struck me was that we actually got into the backfield many times where Fitzgerald made a play with his legs. It wasn't a lack of a pass rush so much as open containment on another side that allowed for a long scramble.

Now, I'm not saying that we'll be blowing up Stidham, but he's not in the same galaxy of mobility as Fitzgerald. I personally think that MSU has the better offensive line than Auburn though; if we can get back to our level of run defense, we should be able to pressure Stidham. I mean, we got penetration rushing 3 on the hail mary plays.
Stidham's lack of mobility should remove the actual and perceived threat of running. With QB's like Fitzgerald, he impacts the defense whether he actually runs or not. Just the threat of him running forces the defense to slow down and be more conservative. That will not be the case in the IB.
 

Con

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auburn OL is real good.. huge difference from MSU.
I keep seeing this and hearing this. They kept touting their 4 senior OL the other day and if you look at their rushing yards I might agree, but how does this great OL give up so many sacks to Clemson and they were giving up a lot of pressure the other day. I think we may be able to do a little better against their run game because of the style Johnson runs with. He is patient and doesn't seem to hit the hole with authority, which may give us more of a chance to get him before he gets going.
 

Bamabuzzard

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I keep seeing this and hearing this. They kept touting their 4 senior OL the other day and if you look at their rushing yards I might agree, but how does this great OL give up so many sacks to Clemson and they were giving up a lot of pressure the other day. I think we may be able to do a little better against their run game because of the style Johnson runs with. He is patient and doesn't seem to hit the hole with authority, which may give us more of a chance to get him before he gets going.
Limiting their success on first down will be key as well. That killed us against MSU. They were gaining 4-6 yards on first down which kept their playbook wide open all through third and fourth downs. Regarding the Clemson game, it's hard to use that game as an example because since that game, development and adjustments have been made by the players and staff. So it's not really the same team. Gus does this about every year. His teams start out looking like they may not win five games all year. Then as the year goes on they get better each week and by the end of the year they are a very different team.
 

B1GTide

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I keep seeing this and hearing this. They kept touting their 4 senior OL the other day and if you look at their rushing yards I might agree, but how does this great OL give up so many sacks to Clemson and they were giving up a lot of pressure the other day. I think we may be able to do a little better against their run game because of the style Johnson runs with. He is patient and doesn't seem to hit the hole with authority, which may give us more of a chance to get him before he gets going.
They are very good in run support - less so at pass protection.
 

Tideflyer

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Limiting their success on first down will be key as well. That killed us against MSU. They were gaining 4-6 yards on first down which kept their playbook wide open all through third and fourth downs. Regarding the Clemson game, it's hard to use that game as an example because since that game, development and adjustments have been made by the players and staff. So it's not really the same team. Gus does this about every year. His teams start out looking like they may not win five games all year. Then as the year goes on they get better each week and by the end of the year they are a very different team.
I`d say that qualifies as " good coaching " (?).
 

92tide

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I keep seeing this and hearing this. They kept touting their 4 senior OL the other day and if you look at their rushing yards I might agree, but how does this great OL give up so many sacks to Clemson and they were giving up a lot of pressure the other day. I think we may be able to do a little better against their run game because of the style Johnson runs with. He is patient and doesn't seem to hit the hole with authority, which may give us more of a chance to get him before he gets going.
a lot of our issues this past saturday came from poor tackling, at all 3 levels of our defense. i don't know if we were just having an off day or what, but we were not tackling very consistently most of the night. that is not usually the case.
 

Con

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a lot of our issues this past saturday came from poor tackling, at all 3 levels of our defense. i don't know if we were just having an off day or what, but we were not tackling very consistently most of the night. that is not usually the case.
I don't think we were trusting the new guys to do their job.
 

BamaMoon

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Stidham's lack of mobility should remove the actual and perceived threat of running. With QB's like Fitzgerald, he impacts the defense whether he actually runs or not. Just the threat of him running forces the defense to slow down and be more conservative. That will not be the case in the IB.
I think that is a huge factor. We couldn't press the point of attack near as often in the QB/RB exchange. While Stidham's passing ability has to be respected, his running threat will not test our defense as much. We should be able to attack the point of exchange more against Auburn.

I don't know if it's true but some have said we used a little more of the bend but don't break style against MSU because of the QB. I do know we have up a lot more 3-5 yard runs than normal.
 

uaintn

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I think B1G has it right. The Barn's o-line is better at run blocking (and they are pretty good) than pass blocking (meh). And one or more good running backs can make an o-line look better than it is. And a not very mobile quarterback can make one look worse. Our issue is finding someone in the middle of the field besides 32 that can fill a gap and at least stop a RB at the point of attack till help arrives (much less be driven backwards).

I'll also agree with the LoS assessment the other way. Our offensive line must play well. Auburn's front, especially the down linemen, is its strength. If you can get past the front seven (or maybe 8, in our game) either by opening holes with strength or scheme and/or passes over them, they get decidedly pedestrian.

After the game, I'll bet you can look at average yards gained by them on first down and have a pretty fair idea of how things turned out.
 

Snuffy Smith

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I think that is a huge factor. We couldn't press the point of attack near as often in the QB/RB exchange. While Stidham's passing ability has to be respected, his running threat will not test our defense as much. We should be able to attack the point of exchange more against Auburn.

I don't know if it's true but some have said we used a little more of the bend but don't break style against MSU because of the QB. I do know we have up a lot more 3-5 yard runs than normal.
Put another way - I don't think Stidham will be blowing up our corners or safeties and pushing them backwards 3-5 yards.
 

Bamabuzzard

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a lot of our issues this past saturday came from poor tackling, at all 3 levels of our defense. i don't know if we were just having an off day or what, but we were not tackling very consistently most of the night. that is not usually the case.
When they lined up that big TE at WR several times and threw it out to him. For whatever reason Tony Brown and the other guys were trying to tackle him high rather than hitting him below the waist. I'm not sure how many times it happened, but everytime they did that he "drug'em" another five to six yards. But overall I agree. Bad tackling all night.
 

BamaMoon

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Maybe we should play the Iron Bowl at the beginning of each season while Gus is still figuring things out. He does seem to get better mid season. Saban is much more prepared before and during the season. ��
I said the same thing in another thread. If we played the Barn each year in September they'd rarely, if ever, beat us. This is especially true the last several years and it's not just with Gus as coach.

When Cheese Dip had sCam Newton they almost got beat by MSU in September because he hadn't figured out what he had yet. But by November each year, they typically are playing better by the time we meet 'em. Granted, they usually have lost 2 or 3 games by then so they usually only have the motivation to beat Bama and declare the season a success.

This year, unfortunately, there's a little more riding on it.
 

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