Forgot the e. Forgive me.Well, since my name is really "Earle," I'm used to the "Early" pronunciation, particularly from foreign/ignorant solicitors...
Early thoughts on Clemson
- Thread starter bamacpa
- Start date
I think the QB run will be a big part of what they do next Monday. Teams know that you have to be able to run and pass to beat us, and having a QB who can pass well and also add some big runs really puts a lot of stress on our defense. I think it will be a nail biter type of game, and one team will survive to be a 15-0 national champion. We need to clean up our tendency to lose focus and execution during games if we want to be that champion. If we play a clean game for 60 minutes, it will be us. If we don't, it probably won't.
If you look at the top 25 after week 15 Clemson played 2 teams in the top 25.
They beat #19 A&M by 2 and #20 Syracuse by 3.
Bama beat #5 UGA by 7, #11 LSU by 29, #18 MSU by 24, #19 A&M by 22 and #22 Missouri by 29.
If you look at numbers we played the tougher schedule.
Clemson beat top 25 teams by 2.5 PPG, we beat them by 22.2 PPG.
You can play with numbers, strength of schedule, etc. I think we are better prepared to play this game based on the teams we played. We have proven just how good we are. Yes, Clemson has a very good team. But have they proved just how good they are? We will find out Jan 9th. I believe we will win by 20. RTR
They beat #19 A&M by 2 and #20 Syracuse by 3.
Bama beat #5 UGA by 7, #11 LSU by 29, #18 MSU by 24, #19 A&M by 22 and #22 Missouri by 29.
If you look at numbers we played the tougher schedule.
Clemson beat top 25 teams by 2.5 PPG, we beat them by 22.2 PPG.
You can play with numbers, strength of schedule, etc. I think we are better prepared to play this game based on the teams we played. We have proven just how good we are. Yes, Clemson has a very good team. But have they proved just how good they are? We will find out Jan 9th. I believe we will win by 20. RTR
T Lawrence is fast on the straight run. We have to collapse the pocket around him and not give him time to pick out receivers or a running lane up the middle! We will put more pressure on him than ND and he does not have the escape ability of a K. Murray! I believe we will hit him hard and often and force him to hurry passes!
And using Lincoln Riley logic....we beat UGA 28-7 from 3 minutes left in the second until the end of the game
We can stop Etienne; other than the one long run when the LB blew his assignment, he was held to Fournette type numbers. Also, other than the three long passes, Lawrence didn't impress me. He didn't seem to have a good feel for his progressions, and until ND stopped blitzing him, he was above average average at best. We just have to limit those big plays.
Oh, and PLEASE, CML, 1st play from scrimmage, run a pick to Jeudy out of the slot.
Oh, and PLEASE, CML, 1st play from scrimmage, run a pick to Jeudy out of the slot.
His arm strength definitely impressed me because he looked like he was throwing flat footed and he could flat out sling it. He just didn't look very comfortable and his receivers really bailed him out with good catches. Notre Dame kind of hung around even though they lost what I was led to believe their best cover corner in Love. Lawrence is fast, but Kyler Murray could really get to top speed quickly.
Have you seen the discipline of The LBs? Well, we haven’t seen it either. The only thing consistent about it is its inconsistency. They HAVE to play better.
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Cajun, you've won Tidefans.com for the last day of the year!
And using Lincoln Riley logic....we beat UGA 28-7 from 3 minutes left in the second until the end of the game
Murray is quicker, shiftiest and much harder to tackle; TL is “long stride” fast but he’s no Murray.
Bama can shut their running game down, and like most games this is mandatory; I don’t see Clemson scoring 35 points.
OTOH, Bama can take advantage of Clemson’s secondary, provided Tua gets enough time. That’s the key to the game IMO.
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To answer a few questions:
1. I don't think anyone Clemson played would beat Bama and vice versa
2. Not sure about signature wins since many teams we played had up and down games throughout the season. We beat an undefeated #3 ND and you guys beat a #4 OU handily in the playoff.
3. As far as scoring goes on offense and defense, both teams had fairly comfortable leads this year and played backups giving the other teams scoring opportunities while taking away scoring opportunities on offnese. Hell, Clemson put backups in in the 3rd quarter against ND and Swinney's kid even got to run the ball (I laugh how it seems every coaches kid is a preferred walk-on.. Must be nice). On points allowed per game, Clemson is #2 at 12.9 and Bama is #7 at 16.2 where Bama is #2 in points per game at 47.7 where Clemson is #4 at 44.3
Now we can argue conferences and players here or there but in reality both teams are pretty damn close giving the slight edge to Bama.
1. I don't think anyone Clemson played would beat Bama and vice versa
2. Not sure about signature wins since many teams we played had up and down games throughout the season. We beat an undefeated #3 ND and you guys beat a #4 OU handily in the playoff.
3. As far as scoring goes on offense and defense, both teams had fairly comfortable leads this year and played backups giving the other teams scoring opportunities while taking away scoring opportunities on offnese. Hell, Clemson put backups in in the 3rd quarter against ND and Swinney's kid even got to run the ball (I laugh how it seems every coaches kid is a preferred walk-on.. Must be nice). On points allowed per game, Clemson is #2 at 12.9 and Bama is #7 at 16.2 where Bama is #2 in points per game at 47.7 where Clemson is #4 at 44.3
Now we can argue conferences and players here or there but in reality both teams are pretty damn close giving the slight edge to Bama.
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This is a reasonable assessment.
It's easy to get sucked into the "who have you played" argument. On paper, both of these teams are very very good, and we've played Clemson enough to know you aren't paper tigers. Dabo and the boys can bring it. I think Bama wins but at the same time, these are scrappy affairs with everything on the line and Clemson has a lot of playmakers and talent and has shown a lot of resiliency. Will be a hell of a game.
I love how people want to compare Murray to Lawrence. I think I would take my chances with the 5'11 guy over the 6'6 one that might be the #1 overall QB in the draft this year if he was eligible.
Lawrence's passer rating is 154.8 against some pretty weak defensive units. Tua's passer rating is 205.2 against some very, very tough defenses. The gap between a 155 and 205 passer rating is HUGE. It is far wider than the numbers suggest. Most QBs with a passer rating of 155 don't get drafted. That is how common that number is.
Also, Lawrence has not hit a 200 passer rating one time since he was named starter - not once. He hit 200 twice early in the season as a backup, in mop up duty. Tua hit the 200 mark ten times this year - TEN TIMES (and one additional game at 199.7).
Tua is not just better than Lawrence - he is so much better that the two cannot even be compared.
And, for folks worried about Lawrence's running ability - he has 157 yards rushing the entire season - a 2.9 YPC average. Tua, with an injured leg for 9 of 14 games, has 199 yards rushing - a 3.8 YPC average.
Tua >>>>>>>>>> Lawrence
Also, Lawrence has not hit a 200 passer rating one time since he was named starter - not once. He hit 200 twice early in the season as a backup, in mop up duty. Tua hit the 200 mark ten times this year - TEN TIMES (and one additional game at 199.7).
Tua is not just better than Lawrence - he is so much better that the two cannot even be compared.
And, for folks worried about Lawrence's running ability - he has 157 yards rushing the entire season - a 2.9 YPC average. Tua, with an injured leg for 9 of 14 games, has 199 yards rushing - a 3.8 YPC average.
Tua >>>>>>>>>> Lawrence
Just to give perspective on the last four seasons. Alabama and Clemson are combined 109-7. Out of the 7 losses three were to each other. When Alabama and Clemson aren't playing each other they're combined 106-4 in the last 4 years. Clearly the two best programs right now..
Ours may not be 6'6(funny how he went from 6'4" all the way up to 6'7" that I saw in an article over the weekend) but we have a potential#1 overall pick at QB as well, and he is back near full strength. This ain't your granddad's bama team. I expect a hard fought game. Give me tua all day. I can't help but think back to last year when their vaunted d line with first round picks across the two deep got dominated by our o line. I know it is different year but the whole line was a no show in last year's contest, and it is the same personnel. Let's not forget they returned with this matchup in mind.
I think the concern with Lawrence running ability is that our man coverage scheme let's the quarterback get lost sometimes and he has the ability to make a huge play, possible pick up a 3rd and long if everyone is in coverage
And I look forward to seeing Post Doctoral Fellow Renfroe finally graduate this year...Hard to believe it's only been 14 years.
Seriously though, the dude is infuriatingly clutch. I will be just as glad when he's gone as I was when Mike Evans graduated from ATM.
Sure, he might pick up one or two first downs with his legs in the game. So might Tua. Heck, even Fromm could do that (he has -22 yards rushing on the season). I am not concerned about that in the least.
With Murray you had to contain - with Lawrence, you are going to rush the passer. Lawrence is going to get hit many times in this game. When ND got to him, he was dramatically affected. Alabama is a far better pass rushing team than ND.
IMO, this game all comes down to Tua. If he plays his game, you win going away.
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