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Obli's Observations - I have some thoughts

Obliviax

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Aug 21, 2001
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  • This looked just like the Illinois game...heavy run, the opponent ran a ball control offense....while not covering the spread, a comfortable win
  • As I stated before, the grass looked really bad and not from football. Weird.
  • I thought Quinton Martin looked really good. PSU went to him early on a flat pass, which surprised me, and Martin ran over a defender while showing good quicks.
  • Allar seemed nervous to start but the staff got him to settle down. I think he missed 2 of his first 4 throws and was also sacked do we were 2 of 5 pass player.
  • Once that settled down, Allar was 17 of 24 for 237 yards, 10 yards per completion, a TD and zero INTs. Martin had 3 receptions for 18 yards and Clifford surpassed 100 yards passing with 107 on three receptions.
  • Rushing, Allen had 21 carriers. The rest of the team had 5 not counting Allar who, I don't think, had a single running play that wasn't supposed to be a passing play.
  • I thought UCLA's QB looked really good. He is a soph making his first start and I thought he did well. Overall they had 260 total yards to our 322 and won the TOP with almost 33 minutes (to our 27).
  • we had 8 drives. Punt, Punt, TD, TD...half....FG, TD, Punt, FG (OK, we had a :15 drive to end the game so we technically had nine drives) Summation is that of the 8 drives, we scored on five.
  • Great to make Field Goals...kid looked confident and they all were no-doubters.


  • I saw us use tempo more. That seemed to be a new wrinkle. Several times we ran no-huddle but that isn't new. What seemed to be new was us running out the skill players from the huddle. Then sprinting the OL to the LOS and snapping the ball before the D was ready. It didn't seem like it was really effective but I don't recall seeing it
  • We also ran a QB sneak/tushpush with almost 3 yards to go. We made it but it was weird to run that play with that far to go.
  • we aren't getting turnovers. Zero turnovers against ILL and UCLA. The good news is we didn't turn if over either.
  • I feel like the Allen defense is less aggressive. Perhaps that is why we are not getting the Turnovers. Maybe USC will be different.
 
  • This looked just like the Illinois game...heavy run, the opponent ran a ball control offense....while not covering the spread, a comfortable win
  • As I stated before, the grass looked really bad and not from football. Weird.
  • I thought Quinton Martin looked really good. PSU went to him early on a flat pass, which surprised me, and Martin ran over a defender while showing good quicks.
  • Allar seemed nervous to start but the staff got him to settle down. I think he missed 2 of his first 4 throws and was also sacked do we were 2 of 5 pass player.
  • Once that settled down, Allar was 17 of 24 for 237 yards, 10 yards per completion, a TD and zero INTs. Martin had 3 receptions for 18 yards and Clifford surpassed 100 yards passing with 107 on three receptions.
  • Rushing, Allen had 21 carriers. The rest of the team had 5 not counting Allar who, I don't think, had a single running play that wasn't supposed to be a passing play.
  • I thought UCLA's QB looked really good. He is a soph making his first start and I thought he did well. Overall they had 260 total yards to our 322 and won the TOP with almost 33 minutes (to our 27).
  • we had 8 drives. Punt, Punt, TD, TD...half....FG, TD, Punt, FG (OK, we had a :15 drive to end the game so we technically had nine drives) Summation is that of the 8 drives, we scored on five.
  • Great to make Field Goals...kid looked confident and they all were no-doubters.


  • I saw us use tempo more. That seemed to be a new wrinkle. Several times we ran no-huddle but that isn't new. What seemed to be new was us running out the skill players from the huddle. Then sprinting the OL to the LOS and snapping the ball before the D was ready. It didn't seem like it was really effective but I don't recall seeing it
  • We also ran a QB sneak/tushpush with almost 3 yards to go. We made it but it was weird to run that play with that far to go.
  • we aren't getting turnovers. Zero turnovers against ILL and UCLA. The good news is we didn't turn if over either.
  • I feel like the Allen defense is less aggressive. Perhaps that is why we are not getting the Turnovers. Maybe USC will be different.

Allen's is less of a pressure defense, more of a positional defense. I loved Manny Diaz defense but it did perform better against 3rd tier teams and not so well Ohio State and Michigan. There might be benefits to Allen's less aggressive D against elite teams.

I think the PSU corners have played well, especially given they're transfers. Safety's a work in progress after losing Winston. It is weird for the whole team to have only 1 INT to this point. Maybe that will change this weekend.
 
Allen's is less of a pressure defense, more of a positional defense. I loved Manny Diaz defense but it did perform better against 3rd tier teams and not so well Ohio State and Michigan. There might be benefits to Allen's less aggressive D against elite teams.

I think the PSU corners have played well, especially given they're transfers. Safety's a work in progress after losing Winston. It is weird for the whole team to have only 1 INT to this point. Maybe that will change this weekend.
The Diaz scheme was susceptible to any good running game. Wannstedt maybe described Diaz's scheme best, "...cover the run on your way to the passer".
 
The Diaz scheme was susceptible to any good running game. Wannstedt maybe described Diaz's scheme best, "...cover the run on your way to the passer".
The thing that I noticed about Moss in the Wisconsin game is that he's very adept at avoiding the pressure, which is omnipresent, just enough to find an open receiver. Therefore, the line needs to maintain their rush positions and integrity and not converge at one spot. Also, this is going to be a game in which the d-backs are going to have tackle very well because their receivers are going to make catches; you need to make them go on long drives.
 
The thing that I noticed about Moss in the Wisconsin game is that he's very adept at avoiding the pressure, which is omnipresent, just enough to find an open receiver. Therefore, the line needs to maintain their rush positions and integrity and not converge at one spot. Also, this is going to be a game in which the d-backs are going to have tackle very well because their receivers are going to make catches; you need to make them go on long drives.

In the Minnesota game, the pressure eventually started to overwhelm him. The majority of his incompletions came in the 4th quarter. Minny would simulate pressure and only rush 3 or 4. They would line their CBs up in man then drop in zone quite a bit.

Moss didn't show much scrambling ability. The OL seems to neutralize half their playbook because they can't pass block long enough for the down field stuff to get open.

Much to the dismay of many here, I think we play our base defense early on and adjust for the 2nd half. The real x factor here is how USC does containing our offense.
 
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In the Minnesota game, the pressure eventually started to overwhelm him. The majority of his incompletions came in the 4th quarter. Minny would simulate pressure and only rush 3 or 4. They would line their CBs up in man then drop in zone quite a bit.

Moss didn't show much scrambling ability. The OL seems to neutralize half their playbook because they can't pass block long enough for the down field stuff to get open.

Much to the dismay of many here, I think we play our base defense early on and adjust for the 2nd half. The real x factor here is how USC does containing our offense.
We can also confuse the picture by showing blitz and dropping into zone coverage OR bring corners and safeties when there is no sign of blitz coming. Mix it up give him too much to think about then hit him when you get the chance.
 
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  • This looked just like the Illinois game...heavy run, the opponent ran a ball control offense....while not covering the spread, a comfortable win
  • As I stated before, the grass looked really bad and not from football. Weird.
  • I thought Quinton Martin looked really good. PSU went to him early on a flat pass, which surprised me, and Martin ran over a defender while showing good quicks.
  • Allar seemed nervous to start but the staff got him to settle down. I think he missed 2 of his first 4 throws and was also sacked do we were 2 of 5 pass player.
  • Once that settled down, Allar was 17 of 24 for 237 yards, 10 yards per completion, a TD and zero INTs. Martin had 3 receptions for 18 yards and Clifford surpassed 100 yards passing with 107 on three receptions.
  • Rushing, Allen had 21 carriers. The rest of the team had 5 not counting Allar who, I don't think, had a single running play that wasn't supposed to be a passing play.
  • I thought UCLA's QB looked really good. He is a soph making his first start and I thought he did well. Overall they had 260 total yards to our 322 and won the TOP with almost 33 minutes (to our 27).
  • we had 8 drives. Punt, Punt, TD, TD...half....FG, TD, Punt, FG (OK, we had a :15 drive to end the game so we technically had nine drives) Summation is that of the 8 drives, we scored on five.
  • Great to make Field Goals...kid looked confident and they all were no-doubters.


  • I saw us use tempo more. That seemed to be a new wrinkle. Several times we ran no-huddle but that isn't new. What seemed to be new was us running out the skill players from the huddle. Then sprinting the OL to the LOS and snapping the ball before the D was ready. It didn't seem like it was really effective but I don't recall seeing it
  • We also ran a QB sneak/tushpush with almost 3 yards to go. We made it but it was weird to run that play with that far to go.
  • we aren't getting turnovers. Zero turnovers against ILL and UCLA. The good news is we didn't turn if over either.
  • I feel like the Allen defense is less aggressive. Perhaps that is why we are not getting the Turnovers. Maybe USC will be different.
I too was impressed by the UCLA QB.

And disappointed that we allowed him to establish confidence early without really attempting to rattle that confidence.

I am hopeful that we are being purposefully vanilla on 'D' but that was my thought process with Yurcich's offense last year.

As it turned out that was the whole offense and there were no meaningful new wrinkles to employ against the OSU or UM.

New year. New coordinators. We can hope ....
 
In the Minnesota game, the pressure eventually started to overwhelm him. The majority of his incompletions came in the 4th quarter. Minny would simulate pressure and only rush 3 or 4. They would line their CBs up in man then drop in zone quite a bit.

If PSU can get consistent pressure rushing 4, that's big. Moss is less of a threat to run than even Allar, so Carter can quit playing spy and just rush the passer. They have inexperienced tackles.

USC receivers have great size -- their top guy is 6-4 and another is 6-6. But they don't have breakaway speed from what I saw vs. Minn. Still, dealing with that size is going to be challenging for the corners -- it's like dealing with TE size all the time.
 
We are purposely vanilla on D for the first half of games. Do you not see the difference after halftime? UCLA had -19 yards in the 3rd quarter. Negative nineteen.
Perhaps.

Coaches rarely make adjustments to their gameplans at halftime when the tactics that they employed in the 1st half are successful.

How will TA's approach of making shut down adjustments at halftime work against the OSU's of the world?

Or the USC's?

We're going to find out (and I hope that you are right) ....
 
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We are purposely vanilla on D for the first half of games. Do you not see the difference after halftime? UCLA had -19 yards in the 3rd quarter. Negative nineteen.
Dave, I think USC has much more offensive ability than UCLA. Need to have selective aggressiveness to start. My concern is same as it was with Diaz, the blitzes always seem to leave the middle of the field wide open. I would mix up coverages (man & zone) and drop off a few Lineman into coverage a couple times. I'm not a proponent of bringing jailhouse break blitzes until there is a lead and the opposition has to throw.
 
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We are purposely vanilla on D for the first half of games. Do you not see the difference after halftime? UCLA had -19 yards in the 3rd quarter. Negative nineteen.
Yeah, the safeties are lining up way deep IMO early in the game (I get concerned when they're not even in the TV picture) but the defense does make adjustments as the game goes on.

Will one of the young LBs (Daakari Nelson, Ta'Mere Robinson, Anthony Speca) emerge to help 13 and 41?
 
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Perhaps.

Coaches rarely make adjustments to their gameplans at halftime when the tactics that they employed in the 1st half are successful.

How will TA's approach of making shut down adjustments at halftime work against the OSU's of the world?

Or the USC's?

We're going to find out (and I hope that you are right) ....

Coaches always make adjustments. It's rare that teams are completely shutting the opponent down.

Hopefully, he makes some good ones against the Buckeyes! And USC.
 
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If PSU can get consistent pressure rushing 4, that's big. Moss is less of a threat to run than even Allar, so Carter can quit playing spy and just rush the passer. They have inexperienced tackles.
FWIW PSU is middle of the pack in sacks. USC is dead last. Does that mean a shootout?
 
Yeah, the safeties are lining up way deep IMO early in the game (I get concerned when they're not even in the TV picture) but the defense does make adjustments as the game goes on.

Will one of the young LBs (Daakari Nelson, Ta'Mere Robinson, Anthony Speca) emerge to help 13 and 41?
Probably playing back until they can gauge the speed and route running. Don’t get beat early attitude.
 
  • This looked just like the Illinois game...heavy run, the opponent ran a ball control offense....while not covering the spread, a comfortable win
  • As I stated before, the grass looked really bad and not from football. Weird.
  • I thought Quinton Martin looked really good. PSU went to him early on a flat pass, which surprised me, and Martin ran over a defender while showing good quicks.
  • Allar seemed nervous to start but the staff got him to settle down. I think he missed 2 of his first 4 throws and was also sacked do we were 2 of 5 pass player.
  • Once that settled down, Allar was 17 of 24 for 237 yards, 10 yards per completion, a TD and zero INTs. Martin had 3 receptions for 18 yards and Clifford surpassed 100 yards passing with 107 on three receptions.
  • Rushing, Allen had 21 carriers. The rest of the team had 5 not counting Allar who, I don't think, had a single running play that wasn't supposed to be a passing play.
  • I thought UCLA's QB looked really good. He is a soph making his first start and I thought he did well. Overall they had 260 total yards to our 322 and won the TOP with almost 33 minutes (to our 27).
  • we had 8 drives. Punt, Punt, TD, TD...half....FG, TD, Punt, FG (OK, we had a :15 drive to end the game so we technically had nine drives) Summation is that of the 8 drives, we scored on five.
  • Great to make Field Goals...kid looked confident and they all were no-doubters.


  • I saw us use tempo more. That seemed to be a new wrinkle. Several times we ran no-huddle but that isn't new. What seemed to be new was us running out the skill players from the huddle. Then sprinting the OL to the LOS and snapping the ball before the D was ready. It didn't seem like it was really effective but I don't recall seeing it
  • We also ran a QB sneak/tushpush with almost 3 yards to go. We made it but it was weird to run that play with that far to go.
  • we aren't getting turnovers. Zero turnovers against ILL and UCLA. The good news is we didn't turn if over either.
  • I feel like the Allen defense is less aggressive. Perhaps that is why we are not getting the Turnovers. Maybe USC will be different.
This team reminds me of the 85/86 team in some ways. Not necessarily explosive but can ground and pound you all the way to a win. Not saying they will go undefeated but with our D we should be within victory in every game.
 
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We seem to start out in basic man with outside leverage leaving the slant open to exploit. We switch it up after half and shut it down for the most part.

Pick plays work early as well because we don't switch assignments when picked. After half we seem to. It is always the same plays.
 
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We seem to start out in basic man with outside leverage leaving the slant open to exploit. We switch it up after half and shut it down for the most part.

Pick plays work early as well because we don't switch assignments when picked. After half we seem to. It is always the same plays.
When they start switching out of that silly 4-2-5 and go to variations of the 44 45 and 52 they become dominate.
 
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