First, I thought this what our most complete game yet on offense, defense, and special teams.
Offense: Great gameplan by the staff. We controlled the clock all night and did a good job of keeping Houston's offense off the field. We showed a number of wild looking formations that I hadn't seen before and really chewed up yards on the ground. Again I say, Vic Ballard is the most complete back we have, and his balance, leg drive, and ability to always seem to fall forward for positive yardage reminds me of Mark Ingram at Alabama. Not saying he's just as good overall, but very comparable in terms of balance and vision. Also, Q. Saulsberry did an awesome job filling in at center when Brignone went out. Personally, I thought he provided our best play at center so far this season....really stabalized the blocking up the middle. And apparently Tyler Russell can run a little....who knew?
Defense: Diaz's approach to this game really intrigued me. On the opening drive, I swear it looked like he intentionally came out lined up in a base 4-3 defense, didn't shift or stunt, and proceeded to let Houston march down the field and score to see what their offense would look like with whoever played QB. After that, he put the clamps on.....shifts all over the place, stunts, lots of pressure, and the illusion of bringing pressure. The stat sheets may not show it, but I thought Pernell McPhee was phenomenal. I felt sorry for the guy blocking him because you could have called holding on him every time. Also, great job by the secondary.......our tackling still leaves something to be desired though.
Special Teams: I thought we played really well here. Coverage teams got better as the night went on. We hit a 47 yd field goal with yards to spare, recovered a muffed punt which led to an quick score, and found ourselves another return man in Langston. I really hope he gets more opportunitites going forward.....looks like he could be a game breaker.</p>
Offense: Great gameplan by the staff. We controlled the clock all night and did a good job of keeping Houston's offense off the field. We showed a number of wild looking formations that I hadn't seen before and really chewed up yards on the ground. Again I say, Vic Ballard is the most complete back we have, and his balance, leg drive, and ability to always seem to fall forward for positive yardage reminds me of Mark Ingram at Alabama. Not saying he's just as good overall, but very comparable in terms of balance and vision. Also, Q. Saulsberry did an awesome job filling in at center when Brignone went out. Personally, I thought he provided our best play at center so far this season....really stabalized the blocking up the middle. And apparently Tyler Russell can run a little....who knew?
Defense: Diaz's approach to this game really intrigued me. On the opening drive, I swear it looked like he intentionally came out lined up in a base 4-3 defense, didn't shift or stunt, and proceeded to let Houston march down the field and score to see what their offense would look like with whoever played QB. After that, he put the clamps on.....shifts all over the place, stunts, lots of pressure, and the illusion of bringing pressure. The stat sheets may not show it, but I thought Pernell McPhee was phenomenal. I felt sorry for the guy blocking him because you could have called holding on him every time. Also, great job by the secondary.......our tackling still leaves something to be desired though.
Special Teams: I thought we played really well here. Coverage teams got better as the night went on. We hit a 47 yd field goal with yards to spare, recovered a muffed punt which led to an quick score, and found ourselves another return man in Langston. I really hope he gets more opportunitites going forward.....looks like he could be a game breaker.</p>
