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After reflecting...

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buckeyebowhunter's picture
September 8, 2014 at 1:11pm
4 Comments

I watched the game a second time.  In my humble opinion it isn't as simple as blaming one single unit or coach, there is plenty of blame to go around.

Quarterback:  I give props to JT for his poise, but he still has a ton of work to do.  He has to recognize blitzes and make sure he checks off with the receivers and protection.  A tall order no doubt for an inexperienced player, but it has to be learned quickly or expect every team we play to bring the same amount of pressure.

Running Backs:  Wow, losing El Guapo hurt, not just in the running phase of the game, but the blocking phase as well.

Wide Receivers:  Drops and lack of separation.  Period

Tight Ends:  Hard to complain here since in two game our tight ends have combined for 0 receptions.  Doing a good job of blocking, but non-factors otherwise

Offensive Line:  Wow, just wow, this group has a lot of work to do.  I know VT was sending more than they could block, so the sacks aren't entirely their fault, but they were being abused on the line, regularly being pushed back off the line.  

Offensive Coordinator:  I believe most of the blame goes to Coach Herman, not because we lost, but because of poor game planning.  You should know that with a young offensive line, young receivers and a new QB teams are going to be bringing pressure and you have to game plan for that.  JT Barrett, with all his intangibles, has below average arm strength.  You have to adjust to personnel.  When the defense isn't going to give you much time, you have to use your backs and Tight ends in the passing game to keep them honest.  We didn't see this.  What we saw was deep out and seam routes from the receivers which takes more time to develop than we had and doesn't play to his QB's strength.  The receivers should've been running slants and curls.  Quick hitters.  I also thought Herman should've moved the pocket more on rollouts, because everytime JT stood tall in the pocket he got buried or so it seemed.  Just about as poor of a game plan as I have seen out of Herman.  

Defensively:  I thought we had some bright spots and some forgettable moments.  Curtis Grant is a great run defender, but his pass defense needs some serious work. What I am not sure of though is why it was necessary to use him in coverage.  In our 4-3 base with two safties and two corners playing man, there is no need.  Both Lee and Perry would be better options to cover, and if they were going five wide you bring in the nickel.  Even though we are playing man on the edges were are still playing within a zone scheme and that's why our Grant had to pick up receivers.  We have to decide what we are.  Either an attacking defense and trust our DB's or a conservative defense and keep help back.  Playing a quasi-zone isn't going to be good enough.  

Overall, the offense was the problem, but the defense needs to get better too.  On the offensive side each and every assistant coach, and especially Tom Herman needs to re-evaluate themselves this week and get back to work.  Otherwise expect a repeat sooner rather than later.

 

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