Thoughts on the Eastern Michigan game?

[maheo30]

Something else to add, I saw Poole, Jackson, Tabor, and Wilson all get snaps at the spot opposite Hargreaves. It seemed today was an audition for that spot. It is impossible to tell how they did from tv tape, but I thought Wilson looked the best with Poole a close second. They played off with Poole which was interesting because they didn't do that with the others.

 

[WobbleGator]

Looked really damn good. Hope we can do that against better teams.

 

[GatorJB]

Defense was great and will keep us in every game this year. The pass rush seemed to be improved from last year, and the young players got a lot playing time and still shut them out. Couldn't ask for a better performance on that side of the ball. Offensively, obviously the major improvements are encouraging, but there is still room for improvement. I thought the run game was good but inconsistent. Too many runs for little gain. The O-line is still adjusting to the new zone scheme I think. I loved the willingness to throw the ball, even with Harris in. Shows that they wanted to send a message, and they did. Just wish some of those field goals were touchdowns. This might sound crazy, but I don't think they opened up the playbook as much as it seems. It seemed obvious to me that they wanted Driskel to run as little as possible, and if I remember correctly, there were many common plays from Duke and even the spring game that weren't run in this one. I think we'll see more of the playbook next week and even more at Bama. Anyone know why Adam Lane didn't play? His absence was disappointing.

Thanks. Hope everything is OK.

 

[gardnerwebbgator]

Very encouraged that Duncechamp is apparently keeping his nose out of the offense. Let's hope the trend continues.

 

[Yankeetown]

Something else to add, I saw Poole, Jackson, Tabor, and Wilson all get snaps at the spot opposite Hargreaves. It seemed today was an audition for that spot. It is impossible to tell how they did from tv tape, but I thought Wilson looked the best with Poole a close second. They played off with Poole which was interesting because they didn't do that with the others.

Poole had a couple of excellently timed blitzes, and he really got in very quickly.

 

[Jake from State Farm]

Happy Dance!

 

[Concrete Helmet]

The good. Offense functioned pretty well for first game. A lot of passing on first down and not afraid to throw deep regardless of down and distance. Throwing to a lot of different receivers. Running backs look healthy and pose a home run threat to opposing defenses. Clay Burton actually caught passes !!! A lot of players got on the field and we still ran the base offense until the end of the game. Scored a lot of points which could create some confidence in the offensive players. Special teams were solid with no glaring mistakes. Defense looked good and everyone seemed to know their assignments. We found a couple of new pass rushers in Ball and McAllister.

The bad. Driskel is still a tad slow to come to his second read. Driskel was too tentative to run and when he did he looked like he was looking for a soft spot to land. He WILL have to move the chains and make plays with his legs this year if we are to reach our full offensive potential. Sliding feet first is probably more likely to get him injured IMO. We really need to get more younger offensive linemen a look in practice. Moore is not good and neither is Thurman. They have been around for 3 or 4 years and they just aren't going to get any better. It time to make them reserves. High snaps seemed to effect the timing on some plays throughout the game and needs to be corrected for this offense to stay on time.

The ugly. McGee's injury and 2 personal fouls against a veteran player, Leon Orr..

 

[granitegator]

I was impressed with driskel the most, debose and Dunbar dropped a couple deep balls that should have been caught. I think driskel is going to be even better as the season progresses. We did what we we re supposed to do in all phases.

I don't blame Dunbar for that one drop. He obviously landed on that shoulder and got a stinger. You could tell how his hand became useless and the ball gently rolled out. He had no feeling in that hand after landing on the shoulder. It happens sometimes, thank god it's only temporary. Now the other drops, yeah, they were ugly. No excuse for those.

Driskell lost some passing yardage and completions due to pass interference....like that he threw deep at times

 

[GMDGator]

When was the last shutout? Bottom line, there was never any need to open the playbook too much! Great win and best feeling to the start of a season since 2009!

 

[Gator Fever]

If I had to give another season prediction right now I would probably stick to 3 losses still despite the offense looking much better. I say we win half of the FSU, Bama, LSU, Georgia, SC, and Missouri games. I have watched Missouri some and that offense is still pretty dang good and they won't be a pushover probably. I do think it is very unlikely now that Tenn, KY or Vandy could pull a big upset on us - we should probably roll those 3 teams.

 

[The Original DC]

I wonder if we will try and get that freshman TE involved that caught some passes in the Spring Game - it looked like there was some potential there.

Deandre Goolsby, I would imagine his reps start increasing dramatically in practice. Also, I remember hearing/reading a lot about Joyer and Matt Jones cross training at the TE position during fall camp. But if Tray Burton continues to play well, that may not be necessary.

 

[The Original DC]

I wonder if we will try and get that freshman TE involved that caught some passes in the Spring Game - it looked like there was some potential there.

Deandre Goolsby, I would imagine his reps start increasing dramatically in practice. Also, I remember hearing/reading a lot about Joyer and Matt Jones cross training at the TE position during fall camp. But if Tray Burton continues to play well, that may not be necessary.

*Clay Burton, not Tray.

 

[Gator Fever]

Deandre Goolsby, I would imagine his reps start increasing dramatically in practice. Also, I remember hearing/reading a lot about Joyer and Matt Jones cross training at the TE position during fall camp. But if Tray Burton continues to play well, that may not be necessary.

I am not sure Clay will be really effective against the faster SEC defenses but it was nice to see him catching the ball like that. I think Joyer will lose the most snaps in this new offense but Jones should get some more passes now I would think.

 

[G8RNGA]

If I had to give another season prediction right now I would probably stick to 3 losses still despite the offense looking much better. I say we win half of the FSU, Bama, LSU, Georgia, SC, and Missouri games. I have watched Missouri some and that offense is still pretty dang good and they won't be a pushover probably. I do think it is very unlikely now that Tenn, KY or Vandy could pull a big upset on us - we should probably roll those 3 teams.

We'll all know more after KY, but I think we have a real shot at AL and maybe FSU - both are beatable. I just don't see USCe recovering - it's not in their historical DNA and they looked like the team of old. It's still early in the season, but no one on our schedule scares me at the moment.

 

[Captain Sasquatch]

When was the last shutout? Bottom line, there was never any need to open the playbook too much! Great win and best feeling to the start of a season since 2009!

We shut out both Kentucky and Jacksonville St. in 2012.

 

[Gator Fever]

If I had to give another season prediction right now I would probably stick to 3 losses still despite the offense looking much better. I say we win half of the FSU, Bama, LSU, Georgia, SC, and Missouri games. I have watched Missouri some and that offense is still pretty dang good and they won't be a pushover probably. I do think it is very unlikely now that Tenn, KY or Vandy could pull a big upset on us - we should probably roll those 3 teams.

No one scares me too bad either but you would probably say 2 should definitely be favored over us and it would be real difficult not to lose 1 of the other 4 games but time will tell I guess.

 

[GMDGator]

If I had to give another season prediction right now I would probably stick to 3 losses still despite the offense looking much better. I say we win half of the FSU, Bama, LSU, Georgia, SC, and Missouri games. I have watched Missouri some and that offense is still pretty dang good and they won't be a pushover probably. I do think it is very unlikely now that Tenn, KY or Vandy could pull a big upset on us - we should probably roll those 3 teams.

Fever, I agree! No one looks insurmountable!

 

[Concrete Helmet]

Deandre Goolsby, I would imagine his reps start increasing dramatically in practice. Also, I remember hearing/reading a lot about Joyer and Matt Jones cross training at the TE position during fall camp. But if Tray Burton continues to play well, that may not be necessary.

I think you're right about Goolsby. Burton won't be effective when we need a downfield or mid range option from the TE position. Goolsby is also excellent with the ball in his hands after the catch.

 

[The Original DC]

The D-line depth is ridiculous. We rotated ten guys; Fowler, Cummings, Orr, Bullard, Cox, McAlister, Brantley, Bostwick, Ivie and Willis, that I recall, and there may have been more. And suddenly, Caleb Brantley looks like he might be a great one!

 

[G8RNGA]

Did anyone pay attention to how deep we rotated in OL before Jeff turned the reins over to Treon? It seemed like there was a slight rotation of twos.