JessN: Short Yardage: Alabama to run with Daboll; Ole Miss in a mess

BamaMoon

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My only concern with slowing down too much - your defense seemed to get faster as your offense got faster. Was this because you started recruiting different players, or because you practiced against that faster tempo? Maybe both - probably both.

I believe that you need to practice against tempo to be ready for it in a game.
I think now that we've run that system in the last 2 or 3 years that we'd be able to have a scout team simulate it in practice for our defense.

But, more than that, I think CNS adjusted his recruiting of defensive players and that had the biggest impact on us being faster and more prepared for the spread/HUNH teams.
 

RTR91

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Nov 23, 2007
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My only concern with slowing down too much - your defense seemed to get faster as your offense got faster. Was this because you started recruiting different players, or because you practiced against that faster tempo? Maybe both - probably both.

I believe that you need to practice against tempo to be ready for it in a game.
Didn't hurt the defense went against the offense in practice, but I believe there are two bigger factors at play - recruiting and Jeremy Pruitt.

Saban started recruiting a different style in 2012 and 2013. Some guys didn't work out and transferred. Others (Tim Williams) took some time to get on the field. We reaped those benefits the last two years.

Pruitt kept the defense simple. Rarely did we see him changing the play at the last minute leading to some confusion on the the field.
 

Bamabuzzard

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Didn't hurt the defense went against the offense in practice, but I believe there are two bigger factors at play - recruiting and Jeremy Pruitt.

Saban started recruiting a different style in 2012 and 2013. Some guys didn't work out and transferred. Others (Tim Williams) took some time to get on the field. We reaped those benefits the last two years.

Pruitt kept the defense simple. Rarely did we see him changing the play at the last minute leading to some confusion on the the field.
This was one of the very few things that drove me NUTS about Kirby. Too many times we'd try to change the defensive alignment at the last minute and we'd get caught out of position. The less players have to think the faster they play. In many ways simplicity in scheme creates team speed.
 

gtgilbert

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I'm all for dialing our offense back toward the pro-style attack. However, it comes with a price tag, just like moving the dial more toward what Kiffin was running cost us something.

We found out that going to a more HUNH, spread style offense allowed us us to spread teams all over the field, run at such a pace that they tire and harder for them to make adjustments on the fly. It also makes the defensive game planning for the other team harder. However, it cost us in defensive fatigue and cost us the ability to consistently run the ball with power on offense, consequently us not being able to control the clock. Because for that style offense to truly work you have to make first downs more so than you would running a pro style or your defense peters out. *You have to consistently make first downs no matter what offense you run but in a fast paced offense they are truly at a premium*

Conversely, in a pro style attack you're able to control the clock more (even with three and outs, you use up more clock in this type offense) with a more run oriented offense. Your defense has fresher legs when they get on the field. You use physicality in the running game to wear down your opponent rather than pace. Play action passing becomes more available because teams will have to commit more bodies (in theory) to stop the run as the game wears on. We saw this with Coker, Sims and McCarron under center. It got to a point in games where the defense was forced to commit more bodies to the LOS or continue to allow our rb's to break off six, seven and ten yard runs. That's when Coker, Sims and McCarron would begin to pull the ball back and unleash downfield with single covered WR's. A thing of beauty when executed properly. However, the price tag is defensive game planning and scouting is simplified with this type approach. For the most part, this style offense doesn't stretch a defense both vertical and horizontal like a spread offense does. The defensive is able to substitute more frequent and you're not "catching them off guard". So execution of basic plays are crucial. You're running less plays so each play now carries more weight/value.

I hope Daboll finds a good mix and a healthy balance with going back toward the run oriented offense yet incorporating concepts of the spread within the offense when necessary. We have the talent to do it. Again, I go back to the Kentucky game and a few other games this past season where one series we lined up in the HUNH/Spread then the next series line up in power for the entire series and marched right down the field in 8-10 plays and powered it in for a score. That is impossible to defend. Teams do not have the depth or the talent to combat that. But you have to have an OC who can balance it. Kiffin was unable to.
One thing to keep on mind is that the hunh isn't specific to a scheme. There is no reason we can't run hunh for tempo, AND have our formations be based on a pro set multiple scheme instead of a spread. In a way that could be the most effective to control the clock. Line up immediately after the play is over to prevent subs, but still drain the play clock down before the snap. Power runs would keep the clock moving and wear down the other DL both by preventing subs and with the physicality of just running right over them.
 

Bamabuzzard

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One thing to keep on mind is that the hunh isn't specific to a scheme. There is no reason we can't run hunh for tempo, AND have our formations be based on a pro set multiple scheme instead of a spread. In a way that could be the most effective to control the clock. Line up immediately after the play is over to prevent subs, but still drain the play clock down before the snap. Power runs would keep the clock moving and wear down the other DL both by preventing subs and with the physicality of just running right over them.
Agreed. That's why I qualified my statement in the last paragraph that I hope Daboll can find a balance between the two. HUNH is mostly run in spread offenses. But it would be nice to incorporate HUNH concepts into the pro attack while keeping the physicality of the pro attack.
 

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