JessN: LSU wrap-up: Whether system or players, Alabama just didn’t have what it needed

JessN · Nov 10, 2019

LSU wrap-up: Whether system or players, Alabama just didn’t have what it needed
by Jess Nicholas
TideFans Editor-In-Chief
November 10th, 2019 02:51 AM

If Saturday’s loss to LSU looked a little bit like deja vu, you wouldn’t be mistaken. The reference point you’re looking for, though, isn’t necessarily a former game against LSU; it’s the national championship game from January of this year, against Clemson. In both games, Alabama essentially lost the plot in the second quarter. […]

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LeBron47 · Nov 10, 2019

Jess spot on on the second quarter ... but apart from that this game had no resemblance of the Clemson game which we never climbed back into ... this is how College football is played since “basketball on grass” has taken over the sport, it’s main effect is to confuse and wear out the opposing defense. It works... there are no dominant defenses anywhere in the sport at least of the top their teams... you fail to mention that LSU the victor in this game gave up over 500 yards as well and was helped immensely by our miscues, and an officiating crew that will be appearing in an upcoming video entitled “3 Blind Mice”... officiating did not cause our loss but it contributed in the the second quarter of the game on a critical third down pass ruled a catch after the receiver on his own went out of bounds not forced out like the excuse used so that it wasn’t reviewable... that is seven points of the 20 we gave up. Should we win out and a few of the top teams stumble we might see a rematch of tonight but the clincher is we will have to win in Barner stadium where nothing has been legally won by the barn an probably by the same dumb officiating crew we saw tonight. Just a side note LSU won the first half by a score of 33-13, in the second half we won 28 -13... the defense must have been somewhere on the field to hold them to 13 because Orgeron would have won by 100 if he could. Feel like the Clemson game not even close for me... Felt like a close loss to a great team with a bozo for a head coach instead of a beat down by a great team with “Opie” for a head coach.

CrimsonEyeshade · Nov 10, 2019

Thanks, Jess.

The games seem quite comparable: uncharacteristic turnovers by Tua that deepened the early hole. Mistakes in the kicking game, including another missed PAT that took the tip off our comeback, an inability to pressure the quarterback and tackle in the open field, and a game-long defensive futility in getting off the field on third down.

In short, the same failures that got us beaten by Clemson exposed us against LSU. The one clear difference: This time, the team didn’t quit and tried its hardest until the end. Tua was extraordinary.

NiteyNight · Nov 10, 2019

Great write up JessN. Humbling to read your view on the defense and whether or not it is a flawed system that has been figured out. Although the defense couldn’t stop LSU on their last 2 drives, I feel like the adjustments they made in the 2nd half led to several stops and gave the offense a chance. To say our offense struggled picking up first downs in short yardage situations would be an understatement—on multiple occasions they lost yardage on 2nd or 3rd and short yardage to gain. The officiating was horrible—can’t believe a bigger deal wasn’t made about them not reversing the TE Moss’ catch at the end of the first half. Total BS “explanation” that was given as to why they couldn’t reverse the call and never was it mentioned on the field that the receiver was forced out of bounds (nor was he forced out). However, we also benefited from some of the bad officiating as one of our DBs could have easily been called for 3-4 more holding or pass interference penalties. Bama’s own errors lost the game but the horrible call by the officials at the end of the first half added to steep deficit that they had to overcome.

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AlexanderFan · Nov 10, 2019

We were missing revenge and exorcising a demon. Both those coaches are masters of emotional manipulation.

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BAMAFAN4191 · Nov 10, 2019

In my opinion it's the scheme. Last year if you recall Saban's comments on the Louisville game in saying they had guys running wide open. Only difference is the 3rd overall pick erased alot of mistakes. Secondly, Alabama has never had success with big corners. That include Fitzpatrick,Brown, Eddie Jackson, and Blue. These guys where world class athletes but could not play outside corner in that system. Cause all were to heavy and lacked the agility for that scheme. 3rd Pete Golding is in over his head he never took anything away from LSU.

Bamabus Collins · Nov 10, 2019

LeBron47 said:
Jess spot on on the second quarter ... but apart from that this game had no resemblance of the Clemson game which we never climbed back into ... this is how College football is played since “basketball on grass” has taken over the sport, it’s main effect is to confuse and wear out the opposing defense. It works... there are no dominant defenses anywhere in the sport at least of the top their teams... you fail to mention that LSU the victor in this game gave up over 500 yards as well and was helped immensely by our miscues, and an officiating crew that will be appearing in an upcoming video entitled “3 Blind Mice”... officiating did not cause our loss but it contributed in the the second quarter of the game on a critical third down pass ruled a catch after the receiver on his own went out of bounds not forced out like the excuse used so that it wasn’t reviewable... that is seven points of the 20 we gave up. Should we win out and a few of the top teams stumble we might see a rematch of tonight but the clincher is we will have to win in Barner stadium where nothing has been legally won by the barn an probably by the same dumb officiating crew we saw tonight. Just a side note LSU won the first half by a score of 33-13, in the second half we won 28 -13... the defense must have been somewhere on the field to hold them to 13 because Orgeron would have won by 100 if he could. Feel like the Clemson game not even close for me... Felt like a close loss to a great team with a bozo for a head coach instead of a beat down by a great team with “Opie” for a head coach.

Very much agree with this. While our defense isn’t what it has been, when you look at the big picture, our starting QB, 20-days out of surgery, torched their defense and had more yardage than the media’s Heisman darling. This was after our rough start. Unfortunately, it would have taken the second half performance over the entire game to pull this one out, and it didn’t happen. Very proud they fought back.

B1GTide · Nov 10, 2019

IMO, Alabama showed that you are just as good as LSU yesterday. You both struggled to tackle, but a lot of the credit for that belongs with the players being tackled. Elite offensive players are hard to tackle in space, and both o lines provided the space.

You lost because the turnover gods smiled on LSU. Flip those turnovers, having Burrow make them instead of Tua, and Alabama wins in a rout.

I still believe that this team can win it all this year. Let's see where things land

bamacon · Nov 10, 2019

I was thinking that it was headed to Clemson game 2.0 but there was a huge difference. Everyone kept fighting and they almost came back. I was worried about how big the hole was and it turned out to be too much. I just hope that the you are right and the coaches will realize that the defense has to adapt as much as the offense has. I still think Bama could do some serious things if they get into the playoffs.

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jashleyren2 · Nov 10, 2019

To me, it does all come down to defense. Even in this game of the modern era, if you can’t do fundamental things in defense, you will lose to equal caliber teams. Offense is one thing; think of all the wins that OU piles up running that offensive system they have. It’s basically plug and play on QB’s. But defense lacks, and it’s why they have not sniffed a title since 2000 season. They played defense way back then. All of the Tide’s titles were obtained by being a good, sometimes GREAT, defensive team.

Have to be able to control the other team’s offense, and we can’t do it. I could see the issues with the defense going back to last season, and it came home to roost in not only the Clemson game, but against UGA in the SECCG, which we just happened to win, thanks to some questionable play calls by UGA.

I do believe this team will rally back, and should win out. Do I think they belong in the conversation with Ohio State, Clemson, and LSU? Only in offensive talent and play. But not in defense or special teams.

Saban4Ever · Nov 10, 2019

Nice write up, Jess.

Glad our team fought back in the 2nd half and made it respectable.

I know our defense is not great, but I think 3-4 major plays sealed the game for LSU: Tua's fumble early, Tua's interception/and the disaster with 26 seconds until the half, and our defense not getting that last stop on Burrow.

I thought this year would be the best shot for Bama to win another National Championship for awhile, but it looks like unless chaos happens, Bama will be in a bowl game instead. If that happens, will the team be motivated to win, or will it be like the last 2 times Bama played in a regular bowl game? I do not want to play Oklahoma if that happens !

I still cannot understand why for the 2nd big game in a row where it really matters, our coordinators were out coached, at least in the first half. We still almost won.... that is amazing. I am proud of the team for their grit and determination to try to come back. Tua was amazing in the 2nd half. Too bad the onside kick did not work.....

I hope we can keep the recruits we are after, especially Bryce Young. Rumor is LSU has a silent QB commit for next year. I assume it will be King from Houston or someone similar. Surely, not Bryce. I do know their QBs on the current roster will probably not start next year.

I think I will pull for Ohio State to win it all over LSU or Clemson, if Bama does not make the playoffs. I don't want LSU to win it and I don't want Dabo trying to catch up with Saban.

SkullDuckery · Nov 10, 2019

I’m not sure about a flawed system.

It’s still working for UGA and Auburn and New England. Our problem is coaching turnover and layers leaving early. Auburn has dlineman come back for their senior just like Clemson last year plus coaching stability on that side of the ball.

DrollTide · Nov 10, 2019

As always, it is mistakes that lose a game. Despite the weakness in all the areas you catalog, LSU needed both of Tua's bad mistakes to get the win. What we want is a defense so overwhelming that we are proof against mis-steps and screw-ups, but that is not and has never been the case when playing elite teams. Before the game I felt like we would need to hold LSU to 30 - and I was right, barring the unanticipated really bad unforced errors.

If we played them again, we would win big, and we may yet get that chance. I promise you, when LSU looks at the tape, they won't want to meet us in the playoffs.

JDCrimson · Nov 10, 2019

If we want to get back to winning titles we have to work on fundamentally rebuilding our defense. Go back and look at our defensive stats trend against our lesser opponents and you will see a trend that shows we are getting exposed against elite offensive teams.

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Jkl0802 · Nov 10, 2019

Defensive backs looked reticent to make tackles...looked more like hand fighting and pushing piles. Where is Mark Barron? Entire defense looked like we were making tackles after the RBs and Receivers ran over us. Would like to see a Rolando McClain manning the ILB again.

Intl.Aperture · Nov 10, 2019

B1GTide said:
IMO, Alabama showed that you are just as good as LSU yesterday. You both struggled to tackle, but a lot of the credit for that belongs with the players being tackled. Elite offensive players are hard to tackle in space, and both o lines provided the space.

You lost because the turnover gods smiled on LSU. Flip those turnovers, having Burrow make them instead of Tua, and Alabama wins in a rout.

I still believe that this team can win it all this year. Let's see where things land

Your ability to be optimistic about a team that you aren't even technically a die-hard fan of constantly buoys me.

Ohio State or not, you are truly a friend of this board and I always appreciate what you have to say.

As far as the game; I'm not as glum as some, though all losses are hard to take.

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AlexanderFan · Nov 10, 2019

Intl.Aperture said:
Your ability to be optimistic about a team that you aren't even technically a die-hard fan of constantly buoys me.

Ohio State or not, you are truly a friend of this board and I always appreciate what you have to say.

As far as the game; I'm not as glum as some, though all losses are hard to take.

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4 plays, none of which involved LSU or the refs, which means they can be fixed:

Tua’s fumble
The Punter’s fumble
12 players on the field during the interception
Dickerson’s unnecessary roughness

Change those four plays and it’s most likely a different game

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MajorFan42 · Nov 10, 2019

I love these write-ups and scheme vs. personnel discussions. I think the scheme is good and the personnel is good but they aren't the best fit. Alabama is best in man to man but the scheme works best as an umbrella zone. The defense lacks speed on the back end and the front lacks explosiveness. Barmore and Eboigbe seem to have the explosiveness but for whatever reason they aren't trusted. It is a big puzzle that Sark and Golding haven't quite put together. I hope we keep the staff largely in place but bring a couple of guys to help couple the scheme to the players.

bamacon · Nov 10, 2019

I know a couple have mentioned it a little but CNS will remind folks that it’s not always just the defensive players sole fault when the defense begins faltering. The offense sputtering in the first half was certainly a factor that added to the struggle. When the OL got push and started opening the ground for 22 the game changed drastically. CNS talks about tempo and controlling the game to help the defense out. I think with especially how young and inexperienced some of the other players are that they need that time to show them what they are doing wrong and how to help them. When you go three and out in 45 seconds they barely have time to catch their breath. That’s why they slowed the game down in the second half and folks complained but it was necessary and it was effective. Just have to play a cleaner game and with more consistency and focus. Have faith and keep cheering for them because they need the support. Roll Tide and I wouldn’t want to be Miss. State!!!!

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78Alum · Nov 10, 2019

Thanks for the write-up, Jess. Great job as always. I agree with most of what you and others have said.

I think it boils down mainly to a couple of things: `1) Tua's obvious rust. He was just off in the first half, not just in fumbling on the first drive but his throws were not sharp. In the second half he was spot on. 2) LSU taking away our slants and us leaving them wide open on theirs.

Our DBs seemed to be playing soft all night.

JessN: LSU wrap-up: Whether system or players, Alabama just didn’t have what it needed

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