JR I am a huge Gus supporter and don't want him to go, however last night was not a Gus offense. I don't know what the fuck that was. Don't give me this bamas defense bullshit when Georgia fucking Southern ran for 300 yards. IMO a coach that is the highest paid coordinator in the nation should be able to exploit weaknesses. For us to have 40 yards total offense at halftime is pathetic. We scored NO offensive points. This game could have easily been 42-0.
We don't even run fast paced anymore.
And don't get me started on wasted timeouts.
Ga. Southern runs an unconventional offense. And by the way, Saban fucking despises having to play defense against it. I know for a fact he's turned down games vs teams that run that offense. The only reason they played Ga Southern is because when they agreed to the game, Ga Southern was a spread Air Raid team. We got people on this board that believe that flexbone offense wouldn't work in the SEC. Oh by the way, Ga Southern lost.
Gus had 2 options vs bammer, who has no real defensive weakness. Go with the base plan, and pound his head against a brick wall, or try to do something they've not seen on film, and hope something broke loose. He chose the latter. He also chose not to run fast pace. Good call IMHO. Not that it mattered.
I know I'm wasting my time (not directing that specifically at you GF) saying this...AGAIN...Gus' roots are in the Wing T. His offense is pretty much the Gun Wing T. Where the under center Wing T uses ball fakes, hiding the ball with the QB's back turned to the line of scrimmage, and misdirection, Gus uses motion and ball fakes. Wing T guys philosophy is "I'll run this, until you make the adjustment to stop it, then I'll take advantage of the predictable adjustment." When Gus doesn't have a run threat at QB, he basically has 5 base runs. Power, Counter, Zone, Power Sweep, and Speed Sweep. The speed sweep is severely compromised with no run threat at QB because that's a play he'd prefer to read. (Remember OMac getting knocked the fuck out by a DE flying up field when faking the speed sweep...that's why...DCs are funneling everything back inside) It can be run, and we did last night. The power sweep is a countermeasure to the adjustment defenses make to stop Power and Counter. Trouble is, the only real threat we have is Dyer, and he's running behind a bad OL, so, DCs are not having to adjust to stop power, they can play base, and are willing to let him have 3-4 yards up the middle. With ZERO threat in the play action passing game because our QBs fucking suck, Gus is left trying to invent ways to get the ball on the edges. See all the screen and RB flair routes.
Early in the season, nobody knew our weaknesses. They had to play us straight up. By midseason, they knew we had no play action pass threat, and that if they simply kept our run game inside they'd make us one dimensional. It's why it appears we've regressed. In reality, we've simply not improved much, and DCs can load the box against us with no worries.
You can talk about scheme, play calling, "coaching 'em up" all you want. Gus has jack squat to work with. I firmly believe that OL will improve greatly with off season workout, and experience. It will make a huge difference.
QB? I think we need to be scouring the JUCOs for a QB. I just have a feeling that Frazier doesn't have it, or they'd have played him more in a conventional role since they burned his red shirt. I mean shit, if he can't win the job from Trotter and Mosley...what the fuck? Pike? Let's hope he's as advertise AND the coaches can keep him out of trouble, but I fear he's the next coming of Stephen Garcia.
Youth isn't an excuse? Bullshit! You can't coach 2 or 3 years experience in 1, and you can't cram 2 or 3 offseason workouts in to 1. It's not merely playing a few games that makes experience. You can't make an 18 year old as physically and mentally mature as a 21 year old, and it's why a Sr. laden team won the BCS title, and why a team that has 71 scolarship players that is 2/3s Fr. and Soph. looks like a bunch of Fr. and Soph. When you have people falsely claiming teams like LSU and Clemson are as young as we are, you have to know that youth matters for people to tell those lies. Those teams are not nearly as young as us. The top 2 teams in the land are arguably LSU and Bammer. Neither starts a Fr. on either side of the ball. LSU starts 8 Sr, and Bammer starts 9. Auburn? Starts 3 Sr, and 2 Fr. The 2010 BCS Championship Tigers? Started 13 Sr (Not counting the Punter), and 1 Fr (Dyer, taking over a Sr's. slot mid-season due to fumbleitis). Sit in your arm chair and spout off about "youth is no excuse" all you want.
We've recruited well the last 3 years? Yes, and they're just now hitting the field. 24 Srs and 2 early NFL high round draft picks were the core last year. They were getting the playing and practice time.
Roof, he's had talent, and failed. Gus made the most of it when he's had it. Their bodies of work tell me all I need to know about each.
Call it making excuses, call it whatever you want. Age, and experience matter and can't be coached.