GoldAppleCorps

With an OC being the "eye in the sky" and rapid communications to the sidelines, the static defense is an automatic liability. If you line up and stop moving, the opposing offense knows exactly what you're about to do. Modern offenses have pieces on the field at all times to attack your weakness. The only way to give yourself a chance is to be shifting up until the snap - thus forcing the offense to play together in "real time" - diagnosing the defense and their individual responsibilities while the play is running. The Texas defense needs a fireplug in the middle to cause a roadblock (thank you, Poona Ford). Running up the A gap is the easiest play in football, and must be stopped with pure mass. After that, Todd Orlando just asks, "What kind of athlete are you?". Take the 10 best ones and start sorting them out. You may line up as a DE, but your actual responsibility may be to rapidly drop to cover a hook. The putative ILB might be an outside pass rusher - to be replaced by a deep safety now covering the inside gap. This is why Tom Herman wants a dominant TE. That's not really a non sequiter. Tight Ends get to cheat the rules. If every OL could block or catch a pass, football would be an insanely different game. As it stands, the TE alone is allowed to block (thus wanting a DE to match him) or run a passing route (usually needing a fleeter LB or stealing a S for coverage). In the cat and mouse game going on, the TE can scramble up everyone's coverages by doing both on the same play. Even catching a 10 yard pass puts him in the world of DBs - usually too small to effectively tackle him. Finding a true multi-skilled TE is rare. However, his presence demands a defense's focus.

Having him sign financial aid papers and likely enroll in classes today was a big first step. Today is the 4th day of the spring semester and the official "add/drop" end. After today, you'd need special dispensation from the registrar to enroll in a class. If you're not enrolled as a student, you're not on the team. If he signed an aid package, my guess is he's got his class schedule. He would then be an official student for the spring semester. After this, it gets murky, and anyone who tells you they're "certain" about what's going to happen is only following their heart. USC released him from his LOI, but this literally makes zero difference. LOI's are only interesting until classes start and you're enrolled. Classes started at USC, and he was enrolled in them. He can likely un-enroll from USC without academic penalty, but (to quote U.E. McGill) the NCAA is a little more hard nosed than that. Essentially, the NCAA considers him to be a student at USC for the spring semester the same as if he transferred in May. He will need a waiver to gain immediate eligibility, and there really aren't any comparable incidents to compare. Officially, you need to claim some sort of compelling circumstance for a waiver. Justin Fields transferred to tOSU, and is claiming that a racial incident on a baseball field caused him undue hardship at UGA. The general consensus is that this stands a good chance of satisfying the NCAA, and earning a waiver. If that's the threshold (and I'm not belittling the severity of racial abuse at all), then it seems that some unrelated incident (I wouldn't use the "my coach left" argument - it happens all the time) might be proffered to prevent 1 week from costing him an entire season. I'm gruntled that the NCAA is well known for its rapid, fair, consistent, and common sense responses - and not being the least bit capricious and arbitrary.

If school has already started, and he's started classes, then we've moved beyond NLI. Tuition money has already been used on scholarship.

I'm sure you know this, but it can be a one-way street or a two-way street. If the player wants to put his name in the portal, he can do it any time he wants, with or without anyone else's permission or notification. However, the default position is that, from the moment his name is in the portal, he's essentially off the team. His financial aid will continue through the current semester, but won't renew for the next one. He can't have any contact with the team or use the specific facilities like a player. In addition, the current coaches can no longer contact him. That's the default position, because with agreement, the player and the coach can waive any or all of these stipulations. Texas did that with each player they placed in the portal. The prospective transfers were allowed to continue with the team, and the players allow the coaches to still work with them. When this happens, the only real world change is that other teams can now have their recruiters contact the player.

I remember those days...

I dont see why just about every backup these days doesn't enter the portal. Keep your options open. If you dont like them then stay put. Entering the transfer portal CAN HAVE (if your current school chooses) permanent consequences. The default position is that any student entering his credentials into the portal immediately loses his scholarship and access to his current team. Essentially, it ends your affiliation with your current school and allows coaches to contact you. Of course, you still have to abide by any "sitting out" penalties. It's not necessarily that easy. I say "necessarily" because these penalties can be completely dismissed if the current school agrees. I'm hoping this is Texas' position on almost every request. Texas is a "name" school, and gets interest from everyone. Let's just accept that players buried on the depth chart are going to look around. This isn't ideal, but it's gonna happen. I want Texas to have a reputation of making it easy to do, so that Texas gets 1st crack at their skill set. With the current set, no one is going to have 3 starters ready to go on their QB bench. Embracing the "new normal" and optimizing it is the way to go.

He has everything needed to be an elite NFL receiver. He did not get a chance to show it consistently this season because the Texas offense was still figuring out where all the pieces would fit. If he'd stayed another year, he'd be near the top of the receiver boards. A lot goes into being a collegiate athlete. It's another year of books, classes, conditioning, etc. plus another season playing "for free". I don't know what his overall situation is. I wish the NFL would let kids wait until the beginning of March to declare. The exhaustion right after the season finishes is too easy to simply want to earn a paycheck for that work. LJH put the Longhorns on his back and moved the whole program up a couple of notches. We'll always be grateful, and wish him the best of luck.

When you're unsure of your coverage reads, these are the exact type passes that put your heart in your throat. Deep balls mean you've got to find a safety or nickel that went over the top. A mistake ends up being a 40 yard punt type turnover. In close, where the money is made, everyone is a candidate. Did the ILB rotate over? The DE drop and become a robber? An extra safety spin down? Anyone could be in that passing lane, and the only one between a defender and the endzone is the QB and some hapless Guard on swing duty. Goof that one up, and they're playing the fight song. Fromme is a perfectly cromulent QB. He can make textbook reads and textbook throws by using textbook mechanics. The Texas Defense handed him a Tijuana Bible and asked him to freelance. With essentially 3 turnovers to open play, he got put in the worst possible situation - needing to change the momentum without benefit of an overpowering run game.

I love linemen that embrace the nasty. To paraphrase GS Hartman, "It is a hard heart that kills.". It's a thankless position where you live in the weight room preseason, and on the trainer's table during it. The only way you can endure it is if you honestly enjoy slamming people into the ground. The thought of someone pushing you over has to infuriate you. Connor Williams and Poona Ford had it. It's been too long and too far between at Texas over the last decade.

How much misdirection did UGA run during the regular season? You can't just decide to add those plays if you don't have a grounding in them. You end up with pulling tackles tripping over centers and WRs fumbling the hand off exchanges. Their defense tried to add pass rushing wrinkles, and ended up getting tied in knots.

The Texas defense suffered this exact confusion in both games against UMd. Once you start thinking instead of playing, you're finished. Thanks, Sushi, for all your work. Learning to watch things like this really increases my understanding of football. PS: Watch Sam Cosmi work this play. From leaving his stance, to the short, choppy tap steps he takes (always keeping his base firm), and working hand over hand across his assigned target until he reaches position - then working downfield picking out n-ary level defenders to block. When fans see a QB that can't find open receivers or RBs who can't gain ground, in reality it's the OL that aren't up to the task. Herb Hand, Yancy McKnight, and the incredible dedication by guys who only hear their number called for penalties enable this type of production.

LJH creates value just by walking between the numbers. At that point, he's committed to being in the play. Sounds obvious, but it gives the opposing DC fits. Now, he has to choose the group he wants to use to defend, and he has to stick with it. Is LJH coming on as a RB? WR? When he lines up adjacent to Collin does the safety help? Which one? If he's with Devin and a TE, who takes the speedster and how will you play the power? Both, one, or neither could block. He isn't overly fast, but he's fast enough that the DBs trying to tackle him after the catch just bounce off. Before the catch, he's like a power forward posting on a guard. Even when there's a defender near him, he's still open. Grabbing the 60 yard bomb is nice, but what really runs an offense is the guy you look to on 3rd and 7. After an incomplete pass and a rushing attempt, that 1st down looks lovely. Another season in the training room, and another year playing with a fully developed offense and a QB that knows how to use his toys will have the NFL talent scouts making plans.

Frankly, this is what I'd hoped would happen (obviously). Playing body on body, UGA would still be the more physical team. However, Big 12 offenses are built, schematically, to create 1 on 1 matches all over the field and exploit any point where they're superior or win their battle. To counter that Orlando's Texas defense is a master of disguise. They move, shift stunt, loop, feint, fake, etc to hide their formation. A QB can't just simply set his protection at the start. The OL has to react in real time, as do the backs and ends. A 320 Georgia OL can dominate our 290 LB DE, but can't handle the looping DE that disappeared and was replaced by two DBs - each going different directions. In the meantime, the DE has dropped into shallow zone or found the A gap that the Center vacated. The seasonal game film of our defense was just slightly different from what we actually did. Credit Todd Orlando for the tweaks, and the players for implementing it. There were several instances where Fromme simply missed (badly) wide open receivers. I believe that stemmed from indecision about where the coverage truly was. The Texas defense capitalized on several turnovers, but could have had 3 more with better focusness.

Don't rush an ms paint man. Rush an ms paint man, ya get rotten ms paint.

So you're saying that what we do well on offense is exactly what UGa doesn't do well on defense? Coaches like running inside because is does everything you want to do in a football game. It reduces opportunity for turnover, is simple, and allows you to control the clock. However, here in Big 12 land, we know there's no sense in controlling the clock until there's less than 5 minutes left in the game. Over 5 minutes, there's still plenty of time for 3 changes of possession and 2 TDs! Of course, now we're talking about execution. Those pop passes where Sam overthrows Beck wide open in the middle after a fake, or those flare screens where the WR either misses the football, or his buddy misses a block, are just wasted downs. I continue my excitement about testing the relative differences in conference styles represented in this game!

Playing in the Big 12, you rapidly get used to the idea that "1 on 1 is open" - especially when your WR is a power forward like LJH. The ability for Big 12 QBs to consistently drop balls in stride over the top of a receiver or place it exactly on a back shoulder at the boundary (and the receiver's training to expect it there and run that route) means a defensive secondary has to provide either help or the threat of help everywhere on the field. It's setups like this that make for a good bowl game. We'd contend that Big 12 defenses look poor compared to the SEC due to the otherworldly abilities of the QBs and WRs that the State of Texas' football programs turn out. They would claim that their offenses are equally talented, but the legendary SECSECSEC speed of their defenses negates those weapons. Usually, a top tiered Big 12 offense would only play an also-ran SEC team during non-con, if at all. We just never get to test this in a live fire exercise. Texas isn't the top Big 12 offense. There's zero reason, though, for them to run head first into a brick wall defense begging them to play within 3 yards of the LOS. Trying to allocate resources against Johnson, LJH, Duvernay, Beck, and Watson is tough for any defense. Your write up reminds me of our game against Baylor. I've seen Baylor play more than just about anyone else here. With pressure in his face, the QB panics and runs. When a defense does the "rush 3 drop 8", you're just allowing the receivers to run until they find an opening.

This is what bowl season should be about. You build a college football team to win your conference. In the early Big 12 days, you weren't winning the conference unless you beat Nebraska's Big Red Machine. Stopping that option meant heavy DL and massive LB. 5-2, 4-3, and 4-4 were normal defensive formations. Then Leach and OU unleashed this crazy, run the small guys everywhere terror. It left those hulking LBs helpless. Obviously, we know that today's Big 12 requires lots of DBs and preferably hybrid players that can spin down from safety to LB, then LB to DE. Georgia is built for that Bama offense. Now, Alabama does many things at an A+ level, but they'd prefer to run the ball. Smart is, well, smart and knows defenses have to stop the run first. He recruits his defense with the bodies to do that. I guarantee you he's not happy thinking about Johnson, Humphrey, Duvernay, and Watson on the field at one time. Controlling the A gaps is impressive, but useless when there's a 6' 6" receiver running the seam. Being a 300Lb DL is a great run stopper, but they tend to wither when asked to pass rush 50+ times. Coming out of your stance, slogging into an OL, pushing around, then getting near the QB one second too late, then turning around, digging in, and doing it again is vomit inducing. They're just not used to playing the game 20 yards at a time. Georgia is a dominating team rightly ranked in the Top 5. Texas is rightly the underdog, and will need to show its toughness to have a chance. However, a good bowl game should highlight the differences between conference styles. Texas/UGA should be a perfect example of that.

Georgia plays more "honest" (meaning they're not going to try a bunch of misdirection or "spread the field" stuff) offense than just about anyone we play. They like to simply win their battles at the LOS and proceed NFL style down the field. This is actually going to be a very interesting aspect. Texas built its defense to counter the Big 12 "defend every inch" offenses where a ton of speedy receivers run everywhere and the QBs drop footballs right over their shoulder. As such, the Texas defense tries to keep the offense guessing about their structure and pressure until the snap. Rather than size, each OL member then has to decide which of the 3 players lined up near him is his responsibility. The idea is to cause gap and assignment problems. The SEC doesn't use this defensive concept very often. It will be interesting (and a critical part of the game) to see how Georgia's OL handles the different style.

Herman wasn't talking with Beaty, at least substantially, about OU's scheme or how to beat OU. Herman was primarily interested in finding out, when Beaty was scouting Texas in preparation for the game, did he find any "tells" or tip offs that helped his defense anticipate a Texas offense play - or vice versa. Things like how an OL sets his feet, whether a RB is aligned (!) with a foot back or flat, etc, can tip a defense as to what play is calling. If an OC is doing his job right, he has several plays that look like the same pre-snap alignment. For a given down and distance, the OC should be able to run several variations from the same set. An even bigger bonus is if the passing trees (how the receivers start out after the snap) share the same "stem". By running several similar plays earlier in the game, the object is to have the defensive back thinking "Hah! I got this!", try to jump the route, then run by him for an easy TD. Because of this, defenders look to get an edge by noticing small things like foot sets (does the tackle have his back foot dropped deeper in pass protection?) and other alignments. Herman has people that can tell him everything that OU has put on tape. Only an opposing coach could tell him about his tendencies or predictability because, if he knew, he wouldn't do it.

This is one of those awesome things where like 10 people heard the original statement and maybe 2 of them cared. Now, thanks to the Big 12 front office, it made ESPN and gets national attention. Like being in Jr. Hi, getting called "booger eater" by a bully in the halls. An assistant principal overhears it, starts yelling "Calling this nice man 'booger eater' is demeaning! No one wants to be called 'booger eater'. 'Booger eater' is an awful thing to say, very hurtful, and can't believe you called this kid, standing right here in front of me, wearing a red shirt and jeans I'd say about 5'2" sandy blond hair, a name like 'booger eater'! I demand you apologize right now for calling him 'booger eater'!" Now, everyone around the world is seeing Hager, in all of his Willie/Wooderson awesomness, reminding us of our duty to constantly comment on OU sucking! You can't buy this type of branding!

I don't need speed on the edge so much as I need discipline. Obviously, faster is better, but too often this season all semblance of defensive integrity got lost when a DE or LB decided to crash down on the ball fake rather than contain. We have a stupid amount of speed in the defensive backfield. Just keep the ball carrier foxed at the LOS. If he's running towards the sideline, a safety or DB (or heck, even a DT that recovered) will be along directly to finish the tackle. Know your role. Play your role.

Ok, there's full on defensive mental errors, like whomever's playing DE/LB responsible for outside contain continually crashing inside on a fake HB dive while allowing the runner to escape around him. Bro, I get it. You want to make the TFL, but there's tons of guys in there! You're the only one we have outside. Stay home until you're REALLY SURE it isn't a fake. On the other side, you've got the error of doubt. Orlando's defense has to be played full speed. It has moving pieces that have to reliably show up. When the starters are injured or out, the backups are trying to think their way through it. They're checking around them to make sure they're doing the right thing (they almost always are), but by that time, it's too late. The time to play your assignment is gone. What should have been you and your buddies boxing a RB out of bounds turns into him juking you in open space. When that happens, the defenders start doubting themselves. They play slower and think more, and the problem gets worse. We all know the players put themselves in peak physical condition during the summer. Getting mentally tough, though, is something that only experience will provide. Except for Caden Sterns. He needs to pause for a beat. About 5 times now, I've seen him beat the RB on a blitz to the mesh point - only to flash right by and miss everyone! Next time, he needs to stop once he's come clean through a gap. Just tell the QB, "Go ahead. I'll wait".

76712 - offa Hwy 84 TeXaS!!!

While packing up the desk to split: FIGHT!!!