We now run an up tempo read option only it isn't very up tempo and the read portion seems more pre-determined. Absent is the smashmouth version of the HUNH with far more pulling guards and the ever present motion that often presented problems for the opposition. And now we are predictable.
JMO but I think since the end of last season Malzahn expected the defense to be far better-which it had been up until the early hole we dug for ourselves this past Saturday in Starkville. check
*Garrett returning, Reed moves to CB, Lawson has surgery before fall camp, Whitehead suspended indefinitely.
Lashlee worked with Marshall's footwork in the off season to improve the QB's accuracy. check
*Duke Williams came on board to pair with Sammy Coates. check
*Look at Duke, what a talent! Coates now playing through knee injury.
We lost Prosch and Robinson and didn't have a like replacement in line for either. check
*Troubled H-Back/TE Parks booted, reserve FB Batten knee injury, starting guard Kozan knee injury.
*The quality depth of the offensive line remains suspect as witnessed by the lack of substitutions.
I think Gus committed to more of a finesse type spread thinking we could pull it off with the expectations of improvement by the defense, a better passing game with the possibility that the same hardnosed mentality would still exist with our run game...which it hasn't. In fact we seem to continually put ourselves behind the chains with incompletions, mental errors, dropped/batted balls, missed blocks, penalties and odd play calls. We seem to lack that flow we once had although statistics seem to indicate otherwise. Whatever it is, it's very frustrating to watch.
Understand maybe streamlining to a more simplified attack-after all, the team that beat us in the BCSCG ran something similar to what we have now with success and they didn't have a running threat at QB like Auburn. Not saying Johnson isn't my preferred choice at this point, only that Nick is this team's QB.