I hope our Offense is heavily "Ingram" oriented the next few weeks.

[BamaDMD]

I think it's great that we can tinker around with the passing in the first half and then unleash Ingram in the Second half. It's pretty incredible to me that he can get in one half as much yardage as it takes some good backs a whole game to acquire.

 

[TIDEFAN17]

I always thought of Alexander as a finesse runner, find the hole, scoot past people into the secondary. Alexander had good speed, GREAT vision, and was fantastic at catching passes. Ingram has all the credentials Alexander had, only Mark will lower his head run your behind over if he has to. You couldn't ask for two finer backs and I hope Mark Ingram too, one day finds himself in the Super Bowl.

 

[bamar]

i would expect coach to continue working on the red zone. he recognizes that as the key weakness on this team. when we play the better teams, we need to finish as he has been preaching for two years now. we are a much better 4th quarter team, but, the red zone has become a problem. i believe mark will get his 20 carries, and trent will get his 7 or 8 to keep mark as fresh as possible. roy will get the type carries needed when its 3d and 1 or 2. heisman is nice, but, championships are better.

 

[theBIGyowski]

The question is...does MSU have the DBs to match up with our WRs? LSU did with Peterson...but after him there was a steep decline. That is why our other receivers were open whether GMac got them the ball or not. I imagine that Julio will have to be double teamed on Saturday...which keeps all of our other WRs in single coverage...because you know they have to respect the running game with the other safety.

I think we come out and look balanced again and Ingram gets back in the end zone.

 

[hightidesc82]

I am definately a run first and pass second kind of guy but we definately need to start hitting on all phases on offense these next three weeks to get ready for the seccg and hopefully the bcs championship because I don't think we can win those two games if our passing game is sputtering.

 

[GulfCoastTider]

I think that is exactly why we came out passing against LSU. Once we established the pass and their safeties and LBs had to back off some to cover the pass, running lanes opened up. Since the OL isn't as overpowering as last year's, against the better SEC defenses we really have to pass to set up the run. As good as Ingram and the other backs are, they can't run against 9 man fronts all the time. So I think if Ingram had gotten more touches in the first half, he probably wouldn't have had as many yards overall and we might have lost. Although, with LSU's offense, I would expect our defense to keep us in it. I think it was a sound strategy, and maybe something we should have tried more against other top SEC defenses.

As far as Ingram's carries for the next three games, I would like to see Ingram and GMac done by the third quarter in all three, hopefully by half-time against UTC.

ICK... That sounds like we're the barn!

Seriously, the freshness of Ingram's legs in the second half last Saturday made a big difference. LSU was still playing the same defense in the third quarter that they were in the first. It's just that they were already getting tired, and that bowling ball they had to tackle was getting stronger as the game went on.

Ingram is a beast. A cast iron beast. His backups ain't bad, either.

 

[Im_on_dsp]

I think Alexander had more poor talent, but Ingram is a harder worker and that goes a long way.

I know a lot about "poor talent". We had plenty of that in my household growing up.

 

[p'colabamaman]

I think Alexander had more pure talent, but Ingram is a harder worker and that goes a long way.

I don't know if you can separate talent and athleticism when you talk about these two RBs. Both SA and MI have a lot of both, and I'm not sure how to distinguish between the two. I agree that Ingram is a hard worker, maybe more of a cutter and a slasher. Alexander seemed like more of a glider. Don't know if I'm getting my point across or not, but both were/are pretty good, eh?

 

[CapstoneTider]

Capstone, beg to differ on one point . . . Up til this year, Mark came out of the game on passing downs in favor of Roy. His pass-catching has been an acquired skill and a pleasant surprise.

SA may have been the best receiver on a team that wasn't short on good receivers. Great hands and good routes. IMHO

My hope for the next three games is great balance, leaving Florida with more to plan for than it has time to do.

You are correct, it was his blocking that was always criticized by Stallings and Williams, with Riddle being the one they pointed to as the shining example. But Alexander was a good receiver and I appreciate that you refreshed that fact for me.

Ingram will be much more respected in the league, but will give and take a lot of punishement with his style. He seems to be built for longevity though, kind of like Emmit, so I look for him to have a long career.

The jury is still out (a little) on the abilities of Trent. He still has the prettiest run of the year by a mile when he broke about 6 tackles in a TD a few weeks ago. He may not have the leadership qualities of Ingram, but I wouldn't know. Do know that it appears that the drop off will be minimal when Igram leaves for the NFL, and that's not a knock on Ingram. It's just that we have two Shaun Alexander caliber backs on the same team, and if they both stay healthy could give us the best tandum next year that we have ever witnessed in our lifetime as Bama fans.

Most Touchdowns, Season
28 LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego, 2006
27 Priest Holmes, Kansas City, 2003
27 Shaun Alexander, Seattle, 2005
25 Emmitt Smith, Dallas, 1995

Most Games, 100 or More Yards Rushing, Season
14 Barry Sanders, Detroit, 1997
12 Eric Dickerson, L.A. Rams, 1984
12 Barry Foster, Pittsburgh, 1992
12 Jamal Anderson, Atlanta, 1998
12 Jamal Lewis, Baltimore, 2003
11 O.J. Simpson, Buffalo, 1973
11 Earl Campbell, Houston, 1979
11 Marcus Allen, L.A. Raiders, 1985
11 Eric Dickerson, L.A. Rams, 1986
11 Emmitt Smith, Dallas, 1995
11 Terrell Davis, Denver, 1998
11 Shaun Alexander, Seattle, 2005
11 Larry Johnson, Kansas City, 2006


Single Season NFL Rushing Yards Leaders - 1600+ rushing yards

1 Eric Dickerson 2,105 1984
2 Jamal Lewis 2,066 2003
3 Barry Sanders 2,053 1997
4 Terrell Davis 2,008 1998
5 O.J. Simpson 2,003 1973
6 Earl Campbell 1,934 1980
T7 Ahman Green 1,883 2003
T7 Barry Sanders 1,883 1994
9 Shaun Alexander 1,880 2005

 

[bobstod]

ICK... That sounds like we're the barn!

Seriously, the freshness of Ingram's legs in the second half last Saturday made a big difference. LSU was still playing the same defense in the third quarter that they were in the first. It's just that they were already getting tired, and that bowling ball they had to tackle was getting stronger as the game went on.

Ingram is a beast. A cast iron beast. His backups ain't bad, either.

I'm inclined to agree with CapitalTider on this. GMAC opened the game with seven straight passing plays. We passed more in the first half than we ran. That wasn't to rest Ingram's legs. It was stategic, not tactical. It was coaching. CNS deliberately forced LSU's defensive secondary to think pass, and to hang back. Then he turned Ingram loose in the second half, and they couldn't recover.

I think we will approach MSU in the same fashion. They may not stack the box, after having watched the films; but I think they certainly must be considering that as a first option before LSU, because the groupthink was that GMAC was in a slump, or simply not good enough to beat folks with his arm.

IMHO, that perception was in error. GMAC can beat MSU with his arm and with our recievers. If they stack the box, we will throw successfully. If they don't we will run successfully. Meantime, we will stop Dixon, and they will struggle to score.

Bama by 21.

 

[runtheoption22]

So not to jinx Mark, I'll hide this in this thread.

How GOOD could Mark Ingram be....

Through 9 games, MI has 175 carries. If pace holds, he will have 272 carries, which would put him as the 4th most in any one season in Tide history. Alexander holds the most at 302 in 1999.

MI has already moved into the 3rd most rushing yards in a single game, with 246 against USCe. Alexander holds the record at 291.

Currently, MI has 1148 yards rushing. That is only 323 yards behind Humprhey's single season record of 1471 in 1986 (236 attempts) and 235 yards behind Alexander (302 attempts) in 1999 and Coffee (232 attempts) last season. MI's current average (127.5) would put him at 1786 yards with 5 games remaining.

In rushing average in a single game, minimum of 20 attempts, MI's performance against USCe put him at 3rd all-time, at 10.25 yards per attempt; trailing Alexander's performance against LSU (14.6) and Vandy in 1998 (10.3).

With a minimum of 200 attempts, Humprehy's 1986 season saw him average 6.2 yards per carry. Currently, MI is averaging 6.6 yards per carry.

With over 1800 yards already in his career, we could be looking at a shot at Alexander's all-time record of 3565 next season.

 

[mlh]

If I was Bama's OC I'd base my game plan around getting Ingram 20-25 carries. Everything else is used to make those 20-25 plays as productive as possible. He's the best player on our offense. It's a waste to not make the most of that talent.

Feed the beast.

 

[bnhonest]

I wouldnt put ingram second to anybody I have seen in Crimson. SA was awesome, no doubt(did I ever mention he was in my english class the semester he broke the single season record). But for a pure back that can do it all...its Ingram. Shuan had this running style that was so fluid. Defenders would take their best shots, but it always seemed as if they could never get a clean shot on him. He wasnt a run-you-over kind of back.

Now Ingram...if I am a defender and I see Ingram coming at me, I am bracing for the hit instead of preparing to give it...

As noted, Ingram is a better blocker and seems like he has a little more grit about him...

 

[time_4_the_TIDE]

The jury is still out (a little) on the abilities of Trent. He still has the prettiest run of the year by a mile when he broke about 6 tackles in a TD a few weeks ago. He may not have the leadership qualities of Ingram, but I wouldn't know. Do know that it appears that the drop off will be minimal when Igram leaves for the NFL, and that's not a knock on Ingram. It's just that we have two Shaun Alexander caliber backs on the same team, and if they both stay healthy could give us the best tandum next year that we have ever witnessed in our lifetime as Bama fans.

I agree 100%...would like to add that Eddie Lacy will also be in the rotation nxt yr, and that my friend is makes it a trifecta. Ingram and Richardson are both outstanding RB's, adding Lacy into the mix is going to be sweet nxt yr.

 

[RedStar]

I think we'll see a lot more games that start off with us running the ball. We've started off the last few games passing to set up the run, and it hasn't really worked out all too well. I understand the concept, but you go with your bread and butter to set up the weaker part of your offense. Obviously I'm not part of the staff, but it makes sense to me to start off the game pounding the ball, and do it with all 3 backs.

In the 1st quarter, I'd love to see Ingram with 7-8 carries, Richardson 3-4 carries, Upchurch 2-3 carries. Once we start pushing their offensive line around and their LB's play up, then we start passing the ball.

I think a lot of our problems the last few games have been because we've tried to force the pass early to set up the run late. I'd love to see us go run heavy in the first half this weekend.

 

[time_4_the_TIDE]

I think we'll see a lot more games that start off with us running the ball. We've started off the last few games passing to set up the run, and it hasn't really worked out all too well. I understand the concept, but you go with your bread and butter to set up the weaker part of your offense. Obviously I'm not part of the staff, but it makes sense to me to start off the game pounding the ball, and do it with all 3 backs.

In the 1st quarter, I'd love to see Ingram with 7-8 carries, Richardson 3-4 carries, Upchurch 2-3 carries. Once we start pushing their offensive line around and their LB's play up, then we start passing the ball.

I think a lot of our problems the last few games has been because we've been trying to force the pass early to set up the run's late. I'd love to see us go run heavy in the first half this weekend.

You may get your wish for nothing other than fact that MSU is a running team....that allows their D to rest when they are successful. If we keep pounding earlier and our D shuts the run down their D will get tired a lot quicker.