True ... you can tell in the first half that it really seemed like he was playing in a way to not make a mistake. Kinda felt the same way about Watson as well though. You can tell before Clemson's first score that Watson played like he could tell that Bama's D was as good as advertised.
A bit of love for Jalen Hurts for his efforts ...
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I don't think people forget that he was a true freshmen. This is a constant reminder every time someone points to the inability for this year's team to throw the ball downfield. It doesn't matter what his experience was when looking at the strengths and weaknesses of this Alabama team and whether it was championship caliber.
I'm hoping for the QB coaching to do some tweaks on his mechanics and then he needs to improve on working through his progressions when looking for receivers. A little improvement on quickening his decision making as well as his release can lead to a lot more confidence at hitting receivers that are open but not necessarily wide open.
Would it be possible to hire (even for part time) a quarterback guru on staff that would be available to all the qb's? We seem to have a huge budget for about everything. Seems like this could be doable.
Don't think the NCAA would allow it. If they would, we would have already done it.
There is a limit on the number of coaches that can work with players and more importantly, there are limits on the amount of time and time periods that coaches can have working with players. A player can do pretty much anything on his own away from the University. (at least that's my understanding) The quarterbacks coach probably has as much ability as any QB-guru-for-hire so if he were allowed by the NCAA to work with the players all summer he would probably do it.
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Several passes looked much like a lot of Mike Vick's old throws - directly on a line for every pass. There's such a low margin for error in those throws. It also makes it hard to make the over the LB in front of the Safety type throws that really keep a defense off of the run game.
I have no reason to believe this isn't something he can get a lot better at, so hopefully we see the fruits of it next season.
I have no reason to believe this isn't something he can get a lot better at, so hopefully we see the fruits of it next season.
I'm afraid one of the factors in the low passes is that he's still a half second to a second and a half at getting them off. That leads to a feeling of "Oh boy! Gotta get it in there." Whereas, a second or so earlier, he could add some loft to it and still get it there before the DB arrives...
His main problem is he can't read the defense. Hopefully he can improve during the offseason with film study and a more attentive OC.
I don't think Hurts needs to make any huge leaps forward, it's just improvement in a few key areas that could be huge. I mean, the way some people are talking (not you) you'd think he didn't throw for 2780 yards and 23 TDs. Statistically speaking, Jacob Eason as a passer was worse in pretty much every statistical category. Less yards, 16/8 TD to INT ratio compared to 23/9, 55.1 completion percentage compared to 62.8, 120 rating compared to 139. I don't think anyone is calling Jacob a bad passer either, oh yeah Hurts faced tougher defenses to.
So, I think once he reads defenses a little better, his overall vision improves, and he has a little more touch? Just pretty simple progression for a freshman quarterback, he could be scary good. I just hope he doesn't form ingrained bad habits or regress.
I'm super proud of Hurts for what he has accomplished this season and I know he will get better in the offseason. His dad is a coach, and he's good friends with Kevin Sumlin. Between the coaches and Saban's connection, He will definitely work with the best coaches available out there to improve his throwing. I think he'll probably will use the same one that Coker and AJ has. David Morris. I think that's the best coach out there that can help him develop velocity and deep ball.
No complaints from me regarding Jalen. A true freshman rallied the team from four points down with four minutes to go in the fourth quarter of a national championship game, what's not to like about that. Four and a half months ago, most of us knew absolutely nothing about this kid. He and his family visited the State Capitol this summer and one of our Troopers had a chance encounter with them. Jalen, even then, introduced himself as the quarterback for Bama for the 2016 season. We said, "sure", ha. Kudos to Jalen for believing in himself and making believers out of us. So looking forward to next year, already.
I wish they had let him play with the same sense of urgency he showed on the last drive all night. We just scored to fast.
Remember -- he was the SEC Offensive POY...the problem for us is that we compare him to 5th year seniors. Yes, he does need to work with a QB coach on accuracy -- and with SS on reading defenses. The quicker he can do that the quicker will be his development.
I'm shocked that it took 33 posts for someone to bring up that he was SEC Player of the Year. He will be fine. Just fine.
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I've made it clear I think he has tremendous upside. However, those stats really need a closer look. You did realize that those jet sweeps, followed by a long run, count as passes?
Jalen will be fine, but it will be good to evaluate his passing numbers without so many jet sweeps and WR/bubble screens that don't require downfield vision, check downs, etc.
Jalen Hurts has a lot of room to improve as a passer. The thought on him in recruiting was that he'd be a project player because he was a very raw passer (well behind many of his other peers in that high school recruiting class). The fact that his weakness as a passer really didn't come to a head until the very best competition we faced is a testament to his growth from the moment he got on campus.
But lets remember, Deshaun Watson looked a lot like this in 2014...couldn't really throw it efficiently and made plays mostly with his feet. Hopefully Hurts will have a similar progression...
But lets remember, Deshaun Watson looked a lot like this in 2014...couldn't really throw it efficiently and made plays mostly with his feet. Hopefully Hurts will have a similar progression...
Jalen did an awesome job last night like he has done all season long..He did his job & put us in position to win the game..Can't ask more than that from your Starting QB..Thank You Jalen & job well done son..RTR!!!!!!
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