- Joined
- Feb 9, 2021
- Messages
- 14,359
Yesterdays matchup between Alabama and Oklahoma was a perfect reminder of a few lessons that need to be revisited and mentioned. The talent level in college football is as equal as it has been in a long time, which puts fundamentally sound football at a premium. And not only that - B.J. Armstrong had a quote in MJ´s "The Last Dance" talking about LaBradford Smiths 37 point game vs Jordan that stated: "Anybody can have a moment. It was his moment."
There is a number of players from yesterday who had their moment. But first:
1. Special teams only matters when you somebody ***** up. Do not **** up.
People can point to Mateer and the Sooners O-Line and we will get there in a minute, but make no mistake: Oklahomas Junior High effort on Special Teams lost them this football game. Up 17-7 with 4:23 in the quarter, the punter plainly drops the football and causes a turnover that does not show up on the stat sheet. Instead of, likely, making Alabama start with their own 20 yard line, they receive the football 1st and 10 at Oklahomas 30. 50 yards of field position are erased just like that. I always harp on possession rules and how working the clock matters in a football game - not only did Bama manage to make it a one score game, the muffed punt essentially granted them an extra possession due to the amount of time left on the clock. Ultimately, Bama wasted that possession with horrid offense (which we will get to in a second).
Second bad play - the shanked punt from the own endzone. One score game, Oklahoma is still in it and a deep punt from your punter, who has had multiple 60+ yard punts, will be just what the doctor ordered. Instead, the punter mi****s the ball and Alabama takes over at the Sooners 35. Two poor punts result in possession within the Sooners 35 yard line twice. And to top it all off, your award mentioned kicker missed a 36 yard chip shot. Yes, I know the call was close, but that kick should not have been that close from that distance for that kicker in any circumstance. Make the kick, you receive the football potentially with around a minute left and your scrambling QB may have a shot. Instead, turnover and the game is over.
2. We are in the age of the run game. Again.
Modern college football is turned away from the pass-heavy avalanche it used to be. Sure, the scoreboard may indicate that the game was an offensive firework, when in reality, it was everything else. Oklahoma started the game 5-7 on 3rd down in the first half and ended the game going 7-18. Alabama simply forfeited 3rd downs, going 2-12 for the entire game. There were gigantic dropped passes on both sides, star receivers not showing up and both QBs absolutely not up for the task. Neither Mateer nor Simpson appeared to be ready for the line games by both teams - a pretty glaring indictment for their careers moving forward and an even bigger indictment for both coaching staffs failing to prepare accordingly with several weeks of game prep. If you want to avoid that to happen, having a run game could be a key factor. Oklahomas RBs combined for barely 40 yards on 14 carries and Alabamas RBs had 54 yards on 16 carries.
If your run game is nonexistent, throwing the ball becomes a pain in the ***. Both passing games were just that. Not to mention Mateers pick six that flipped the momentum entirely, something Oklahoma never recovered from.
3. Everyone can contribute. Previous stats do not matter.
Alabama has a QB receving first round calls, and two WR that could easily be selected early in the draft. However, the stage was a bit too bright. Bernard had one grab that showed what he can do, but also one drop that showed the exact opposite. Ryan Williams was essentially shutout from the contest, catching a pass late in the game that went nowhere. Instead, a true freshman named Lotzeir Brooks was the changing factor with two TDs on five catches for 75 yards, with one of them being a tremendous effort and the kickstarter that Bama desperately needed. He had the moment I was talking about prior.
Oklahomas Isaiah Sategna III was the clear cut No. 1 in this offense, with 65 for 948 yards throughout the season - two catches for 17 yards and a TD is not enough. However, 5´9 Deion Burks, a 5th year senior and the number two guy, caught seven passes for 107 yards and was the sole guy in the passing attack that delivered big plays when needed. In such games, everyone needs to be ready to make a play. I am not starting the Jojo Trader hypetrain, but it has been four weeks since our last football game. He can easily show up with the talent that he has. But he needs to be ready.
4. Losing games is so much easier than winning them. Oklahoma lost the game.
People may giggle at that way of thinking that teams can lose games instead of the opposition winning them. In this instance, Oklahoma absolutely lost the football game over Alabama winning it. At no point did Alabama show anything of substance and the first half was basically a trainwreck for them. Instead, Oklahoma turns the ball over on two possessions, making a 17-7 game into a 17-17 game with two unbelievable self-inflicted wounds. From that point on, Bama kept ******* up less often than Oklahoma. Field goals were made, punts were adaquate, ball was not turned over, stupid penalties were not committed.
There is a number of players from yesterday who had their moment. But first:
1. Special teams only matters when you somebody ***** up. Do not **** up.
People can point to Mateer and the Sooners O-Line and we will get there in a minute, but make no mistake: Oklahomas Junior High effort on Special Teams lost them this football game. Up 17-7 with 4:23 in the quarter, the punter plainly drops the football and causes a turnover that does not show up on the stat sheet. Instead of, likely, making Alabama start with their own 20 yard line, they receive the football 1st and 10 at Oklahomas 30. 50 yards of field position are erased just like that. I always harp on possession rules and how working the clock matters in a football game - not only did Bama manage to make it a one score game, the muffed punt essentially granted them an extra possession due to the amount of time left on the clock. Ultimately, Bama wasted that possession with horrid offense (which we will get to in a second).
Second bad play - the shanked punt from the own endzone. One score game, Oklahoma is still in it and a deep punt from your punter, who has had multiple 60+ yard punts, will be just what the doctor ordered. Instead, the punter mi****s the ball and Alabama takes over at the Sooners 35. Two poor punts result in possession within the Sooners 35 yard line twice. And to top it all off, your award mentioned kicker missed a 36 yard chip shot. Yes, I know the call was close, but that kick should not have been that close from that distance for that kicker in any circumstance. Make the kick, you receive the football potentially with around a minute left and your scrambling QB may have a shot. Instead, turnover and the game is over.
2. We are in the age of the run game. Again.
Modern college football is turned away from the pass-heavy avalanche it used to be. Sure, the scoreboard may indicate that the game was an offensive firework, when in reality, it was everything else. Oklahoma started the game 5-7 on 3rd down in the first half and ended the game going 7-18. Alabama simply forfeited 3rd downs, going 2-12 for the entire game. There were gigantic dropped passes on both sides, star receivers not showing up and both QBs absolutely not up for the task. Neither Mateer nor Simpson appeared to be ready for the line games by both teams - a pretty glaring indictment for their careers moving forward and an even bigger indictment for both coaching staffs failing to prepare accordingly with several weeks of game prep. If you want to avoid that to happen, having a run game could be a key factor. Oklahomas RBs combined for barely 40 yards on 14 carries and Alabamas RBs had 54 yards on 16 carries.
If your run game is nonexistent, throwing the ball becomes a pain in the ***. Both passing games were just that. Not to mention Mateers pick six that flipped the momentum entirely, something Oklahoma never recovered from.
3. Everyone can contribute. Previous stats do not matter.
Alabama has a QB receving first round calls, and two WR that could easily be selected early in the draft. However, the stage was a bit too bright. Bernard had one grab that showed what he can do, but also one drop that showed the exact opposite. Ryan Williams was essentially shutout from the contest, catching a pass late in the game that went nowhere. Instead, a true freshman named Lotzeir Brooks was the changing factor with two TDs on five catches for 75 yards, with one of them being a tremendous effort and the kickstarter that Bama desperately needed. He had the moment I was talking about prior.
Oklahomas Isaiah Sategna III was the clear cut No. 1 in this offense, with 65 for 948 yards throughout the season - two catches for 17 yards and a TD is not enough. However, 5´9 Deion Burks, a 5th year senior and the number two guy, caught seven passes for 107 yards and was the sole guy in the passing attack that delivered big plays when needed. In such games, everyone needs to be ready to make a play. I am not starting the Jojo Trader hypetrain, but it has been four weeks since our last football game. He can easily show up with the talent that he has. But he needs to be ready.
4. Losing games is so much easier than winning them. Oklahoma lost the game.
People may giggle at that way of thinking that teams can lose games instead of the opposition winning them. In this instance, Oklahoma absolutely lost the football game over Alabama winning it. At no point did Alabama show anything of substance and the first half was basically a trainwreck for them. Instead, Oklahoma turns the ball over on two possessions, making a 17-7 game into a 17-17 game with two unbelievable self-inflicted wounds. From that point on, Bama kept ******* up less often than Oklahoma. Field goals were made, punts were adaquate, ball was not turned over, stupid penalties were not committed.
