I would have loved to see Tua come in late, but I knew it wouldn't happen.I agree, but this is Coach Saban's M.O. and I would have shocked beyond belief if Tua had came in without Jalen getting injured.
I would have loved to see Tua come in late, but I knew it wouldn't happen.I agree, but this is Coach Saban's M.O. and I would have shocked beyond belief if Tua had came in without Jalen getting injured.
To be fair, almost every great head coach follows this pattern - a belief in the players is part of what makes them successful. Spurrier is the only great head coach that I can remember who would pull his QB in the middle of a game for poor play - and he did it frequently.I agree, but this is Coach Saban's M.O. and I would have shocked beyond belief if Tua had came in without Jalen getting injured.
Go read about the performance of Joe Namath in the Orange Bowl and you will see a coach who was trying to win a game. The desire to win the game was placed above all other considerations.To be fair, almost every great head coach follows this pattern - a belief in the players is part of what makes them successful. Spurrier is the only great head coach that I can remember who would pull his QB in the middle of a game for poor play - and he did it frequently.
Sorry, before my time. If you have to go back 52 years for an example, I think that my point is pretty validGo read about the performance of Joe Namath in the Orange Bowl and you will see a coach who was trying to win a game. The desire to win the game was placed above all other considerations.
I don't know about that. It felt like half our yards were on Jalen rushes.I sure would like to have seen Tua come in last night. He couldn't have done any worse.
"The best player" is relative to what type offense is being run. Which as I've mentioned above, the staff needs to make a hard-line decision on what type offense they want to run and commit to it. There is absolutely no doubt Tua has more passing ability than Hurts. He has natural passing traits that you simply cannot teach. He is very instinctive as a passer. His ceiling as a passer is waaaay higher than Hurts'. So if the staff wants to go with a more pro style offense in which the quarterback passes the ball and the running backs run the ball. I think Tua is the "best fit" for the position. However, if the staff wants a more 2017 "Clemson" style offense then Tua is no longer the "best fit". I used Clemson as an example because it was the last game I watched last night and their quarterback situation is very similar to ours. Their QB 2017 is a better athlete/runner than passer, and since Watson left. Their offense has taken a step backwards from it's passing efficiency. But, if you look at what they've done, it is what we will ultimately have to do if the staff wants to get the best out of Hurts. They don't ask their current qb to do the things Watson did in the passing game. If the staff wants to get the best out of Hurts they need to stop asking him to do things he simply isn't good at and more than likely will never be better than average at.Jalen will have issues on 3rd down and 5+ regardless of the play caller. He had issues last year with both Sark and Kiffin calling plays. Can he improve that? Yes. But I think its time to give Tua a shot going into next year. I'd even be ok with a 2 QB system because I think that Jalen brings a lot to the table. But I'd be very disappointed if the coaches don't at least give Tua a shot to win the job.
Saban has always said the best player will play, so if it turns out Tua is better then why not play him? If Jalen wins the job? So be it. We will roll with him.
I don't think you can say any of that definitively."The best player" is relative to what type offense is being run. Which as I've mentioned above, the staff needs to make a hard-line decision on what type offense they want to run and commit to it. There is absolutely no doubt Tua has more passing ability than Hurts. He has natural passing traits that you simply cannot teach. He is very instinctive as a passer. His ceiling as a passer is waaaay higher than Hurts'. So if the staff wants to go with a more pro style offense in which the quarterback passes the ball and the running backs run the ball. I think Tua is the "best fit" for the position. However, if the staff wants a more 2017 "Clemson" style offense then Tua is no longer the "best fit". I used Clemson as an example because it was the last game I watched last night and their quarterback situation is very similar to ours. Their QB 2017 is a better athlete/runner than passer, and since Watson left. Their offense has taken a step backwards from it's passing efficiency. But, if you look at what they've done, it is what we will ultimately have to do if the staff wants to get the best out of Hurts. They don't ask their current qb to do the things Watson did in the passing game. If the staff wants to get the best out of Hurts they need to stop asking him to do things he simply isn't good at and more than likely will never be better than average at.
I trust Saban is smart enough that when the season is over and he has time to assess the entire season from an offensive perspective. He will see that mix-matching offensive styles sounds good in theory but is very limited in application, and will make hard line decision to go with one or the other. Or at least that's what I hope he does.
I think Alabama's struggles against the elite teams has been masked by a poor SEC the last two years. Certainly helps explain the night/day difference in play.Maybe Jalen has been making up for a lot of other deficiencies this year. As you get into better competition those deficiencies get exposed.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I have seen a lot of "poor execution" comments from Saban over the years - too many for me to assume that he will make a change without the issue being forced. He didn't change his defenses until he was forced to accept that his old style would no longer get it done against spread offenses that go fast. But we can hope.I trust Saban is smart enough that when the season is over and he has time to assess the entire season from an offensive perspective. He will see that mix-matching offensive styles sounds good in theory but is very limited in application, and will make hard line decision to go with one or the other. Or at least that's what I hope he does.
*You were specifically addressing the quarterback position so I'm discussing it from that position. I completely understand other areas of the team play into it as well.I don't think you can say any of that definitively.
*Its also not just about the QB but the strengths and weakness of the entire team. Are we just going to waste the talentwe have at WR by making them run short stuff all the time?
And I can guarantee you that an offense that can run and pass is a bigger threat than one that can't pass consistently. That's part of what makes Kelly Bryant a more limited player than Watson. Is anyone here actually as afraid of this Clemson offense as we were of last years?
**Tua can run too btw so I don't even think its a guarantee that Jalen would be better in any offense except a pure running georgia state triple option style offense.
Again, Jalen is going to have problems on third and long and third and medium regardless of the offense IMO.
I wasn't aware we were making a decision about a QB in a vacuum for fun?*You were specifically addressing the quarterback position so I'm discussing it from that position. I completely understand other areas of the team play into it as well.
**Just as Tua's natural passing ability is obviously better than Hurts'. Hurts' pure athleticism is obviously better than Tua's. Tua's running ability is effective in spots. But no way he would be better than Hurts if QB runs were a consistent and primary component of our offense. Outside of Hurts' superior overall athleticism, Tua's size and smallish frame wouldn't last through an entire season if QB runs were a major component of the offense.
I know he meets with underclassmen who are draft eligible to discuss whether he feels they need to go or stay. I wonder if he allows the players to give feedback on their thoughts of the offense. For example, when talking to Bo and/or D Harris, is it likely that in their decision process they express to CNS the lack of opportunities to run the ball is playing into their decision to comeback or not? If so, you would think that would at least plant the seed in Saban's mind that "Hey, I may need to think about this and how it impacts future RB's we recruit." Because don't think for one second HS running backs don't see how our RB's are used and incorporate that into their decision making process.I have seen a lot of "poor execution" comments from Saban over the years - too many for me to assume that he will make a change without the issue being forced. He didn't change his defenses until he was forced to accept that his old style would no longer get it done against spread offenses that go fast. But we can hope.