- Oct 5, 2017
- 2,315
- 6,297
First, special shout out to everyone at the jabber Dave Memorial tailgate for a fun time. I actually think I may have seen Jabber in BHG (based on the memorial photo). Also, my mom may start looking at the Forum after talking to you guys...so Hi Mom (if you are reading this)! For those of you not in attendance, yes, I go to games with my mom who has been to almost every home game since 1964 and many games away from home during that span.
Anyways, happily the Colorado State game ended much differently than I thought it would. Colorado State isn't a great team, but they do have a good passing attack and I am proud of how our secondary performed overall. Also, Arky is a bad, bad team. Plenty to see cleaned up after this game, but plenty of positives.
First, let's talk about Franks. He ended up 8 of 15 for 119. He started 0 for 6 and finished 8 for 9. There are positives and negatives. I think part of the problem, not all, is he's still learning when to throw with zip and when to put air under the ball. Last year, he only had the throw it with zip mode, so it's an improvement, just not a focused one. I do think Mullen has a point that this is only his third game in the system and last year means nothing because he doesn't know what, if any coaching Franks received. Franks does need to get better at times though. It is funny though, look at any of the three games so far this season, when the offense and Franks does well and is moving, it involves a lot of the quick routes and even *gasp* routes over the middle that were largely ignored by the previous staff that allow the receivers to catch and run. I wonder who said that would be a great strategy
. Where has the struggle been? Longer routes and routes that are easy for DB's to cover. Chris Doering in a twitter thread said today that there are too many go routes and we need to see more routes with breaks in them. I agree. Anyways, lets take a look at Franks 15 passes, the good, the bad, the areas of improvement, the success and the failure.
Pass 1: Correctly picks a wide open Scarlett. Check down to the flat. Throws a soft ball that isn't hard enough all the way to get to Scarlett. Hits Scarlett in the hands, Scarlett doesn't bring it in. Pass could have been better, but a catchable ball. As I've said before, if it gets to a receivers hands, they need to catch it. That doesn't negate a less than stellar pass, but this incompletion took two to tango. Also, Colorado State completed a similarly thrown ball in the second half.
Pass 2: Perfectly thrown ball. Should've been a PI call as Lewis was wrapped up well before the ball arrived. I received several texted photos of this right after it happened and watched it on replay as well. Still, Lewis' arms and hands are free and he should pull that ball in.
Pass 3: Poor anticipation for a back shoulder throw by Franks. Go route. RB is there on the under pass. I would bet that he threw it to the first read, but wouldn't have been bad had the QB/WR been in sync. However, you need to recognize that it hasn't happened. Doesn't help that the play began with a snap at Franks' feet, but he did have time to recover properly.
Pass 4: The pick. From my seat, it looked like the right read. Post route. I still think it was, just two problems. One, Franks took too long to commit and throw the pass (Mullen commented on his tendency to take too long in the post-game as well). Two, he puts too much air under this one. If he throws one of his Franks on-a-rope throws and commits to the throw a second earlier, it's a long gain. Just listened to the broadcast breakdown of the play, I guess I'm not the only one who felt this way.
Pass 5: No one open, and rushers running free, so Franks throws it away. How do I know no one was open? I openly offered $50 to anyone around to point out who was open. No one took me up, and trust me, even a 20 yard game is a complaint where I sit. Same people who would whine if he took the sack. Good throwaway here.
Pass 6: Franks underthows Toney who is 3 yards behind his man at one point. Can't tell if it was a seam route or a skinny post. The safety gets just enough over to get a hand on it. If the ball is on-a-rope or 2 yards further, its a TD. Not a great throw. But what the replay doesn't show is Moral Stephens uncovered 10 yards down the field as Toney and Swain cleared out all the defenders. So poor throw, and possibly poor choice here. Although, the brain trust that sits behind me considered this throw to be in "triple coverage". Go watch the replay, if that's triple coverage, then everything I know about football is wrong.
Pass 7: Swing pass for 8 yards. Blockers slow to get out
Pass 8: Franks with a strike on a post route to Jefferson.
Pass 9: Screen to Toney as drawn up. Unfortunately, the blocking is awful. The Brain Trust behind me, if the blocking were better, it would be a pick 6. And that was repeated multiple times. Again, if Lewis actually blocks and Taylor gets to his man...it would be a pick 6. Wrap your mind around that. If we block on a screen and Toney is wide open...it's a pick six.
Pass 10: Franks looks off a safety and hits Swain on a post for a TD.
Pass 11: Decent 6 yard hitch to Cleveland.
Pass 12: I don't know where this ball was supposed to be? Was everyone covered and the ball just grounded? If so, why not throw it out of bounds. This was the most perplexing of the throws for me.
Pass 13: Franks with time to let a drag route develop and he hits it and the catch and run by Grims shows why he was a big get for us. Again, whoever was saying get the ball to the talent in space and let them run must be some kind of evil genius...
Pass 14: I'm pretty sure it's a designed throw for Scarlett. Franks looks like his looking at any of the deep route and then turns to Scarlett who just can't make one man miss.
Pass 15: Great pass to Van Jefferson for the TD.
So, some good, some bad, little of both. When Franks has time and thinks quick, he could be unstoppable. When he overthinks or has little time, he has problems.
The running game looked better, but I think it's more about the competition, but we did see some blockers actually getting to the second level. That long Scarlett TD? A quick outside run to the wide side of the field. My brother texted me and said, "it's what you've be asking for." Yep. And Kemore Gamble doing a good job blocking there with Van Jefferson. Also, Fred Johnson did a great job pulling on the play. Quick outside runs (though I prefer pitches) do force the defense to get wider and relieve some stress on the O-line.
The defense looked good. Some mistakes, but this Colorado State team can put up points and even last year dropped 23 in Tuscaloosa. Are there still issues? Yes. Oh, and another Brain Trust moment, they considered this "wide open". Yep, Trey Dean breaks up a pass while the guy was somehow wide open. Remember what I said was considered "triple coverage" earlier.
Special Teams
Listen, I know it's Colorado State or Charleston Southern, but how many times against how many inferior opponents in the last 10 years did we not block or return kicks for TD's? Things like this do get the players to invest in the special teams units and the dividends should show up against better competition at some point this year.
Quick Hits:
Final Thought:
If you wanna share your opinions at games loudly, you have the right to do so. Just know what you're talking about. I've already included examples of guys I rarely sit by anymore, but they did the same crap in '96, '06, and '08 as well. Or there was another guy who loudly began mocking the CSU player for fair catching the ball inside the 10, "WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT? IDIOT! NOW YOU HAVE THE BALL IN A BAD POSITION! WHY IS THE BALL BEING MOVED? WAS THERE A FLAG?" I couldn't help myself, and said, "You think by Game 3 fans would know the rules of the game." Another guy went to turn around to say something, thought about it, and realized he'd be pwned. Really, yell, scream, complain, just have a clue what your talking about. I once was told to chill during the Georgia Southern game by the Gainesville PD officer in my section because of being pissed that Muschamp's D just allowed a long TD run. I get it. Just have a clue, and don't say dumb stuff like if a play would be blocked properly it would be a pick 6 (over and over) or that a guy is wide open when the defender is so close he bats the ball away (wide open repeated over and over and over).
Anyways, happily the Colorado State game ended much differently than I thought it would. Colorado State isn't a great team, but they do have a good passing attack and I am proud of how our secondary performed overall. Also, Arky is a bad, bad team. Plenty to see cleaned up after this game, but plenty of positives.
First, let's talk about Franks. He ended up 8 of 15 for 119. He started 0 for 6 and finished 8 for 9. There are positives and negatives. I think part of the problem, not all, is he's still learning when to throw with zip and when to put air under the ball. Last year, he only had the throw it with zip mode, so it's an improvement, just not a focused one. I do think Mullen has a point that this is only his third game in the system and last year means nothing because he doesn't know what, if any coaching Franks received. Franks does need to get better at times though. It is funny though, look at any of the three games so far this season, when the offense and Franks does well and is moving, it involves a lot of the quick routes and even *gasp* routes over the middle that were largely ignored by the previous staff that allow the receivers to catch and run. I wonder who said that would be a great strategy
. Where has the struggle been? Longer routes and routes that are easy for DB's to cover. Chris Doering in a twitter thread said today that there are too many go routes and we need to see more routes with breaks in them. I agree. Anyways, lets take a look at Franks 15 passes, the good, the bad, the areas of improvement, the success and the failure. Pass 1: Correctly picks a wide open Scarlett. Check down to the flat. Throws a soft ball that isn't hard enough all the way to get to Scarlett. Hits Scarlett in the hands, Scarlett doesn't bring it in. Pass could have been better, but a catchable ball. As I've said before, if it gets to a receivers hands, they need to catch it. That doesn't negate a less than stellar pass, but this incompletion took two to tango. Also, Colorado State completed a similarly thrown ball in the second half.
Pass 2: Perfectly thrown ball. Should've been a PI call as Lewis was wrapped up well before the ball arrived. I received several texted photos of this right after it happened and watched it on replay as well. Still, Lewis' arms and hands are free and he should pull that ball in.
Pass 3: Poor anticipation for a back shoulder throw by Franks. Go route. RB is there on the under pass. I would bet that he threw it to the first read, but wouldn't have been bad had the QB/WR been in sync. However, you need to recognize that it hasn't happened. Doesn't help that the play began with a snap at Franks' feet, but he did have time to recover properly.
Pass 4: The pick. From my seat, it looked like the right read. Post route. I still think it was, just two problems. One, Franks took too long to commit and throw the pass (Mullen commented on his tendency to take too long in the post-game as well). Two, he puts too much air under this one. If he throws one of his Franks on-a-rope throws and commits to the throw a second earlier, it's a long gain. Just listened to the broadcast breakdown of the play, I guess I'm not the only one who felt this way.
Pass 5: No one open, and rushers running free, so Franks throws it away. How do I know no one was open? I openly offered $50 to anyone around to point out who was open. No one took me up, and trust me, even a 20 yard game is a complaint where I sit. Same people who would whine if he took the sack. Good throwaway here.
Pass 6: Franks underthows Toney who is 3 yards behind his man at one point. Can't tell if it was a seam route or a skinny post. The safety gets just enough over to get a hand on it. If the ball is on-a-rope or 2 yards further, its a TD. Not a great throw. But what the replay doesn't show is Moral Stephens uncovered 10 yards down the field as Toney and Swain cleared out all the defenders. So poor throw, and possibly poor choice here. Although, the brain trust that sits behind me considered this throw to be in "triple coverage". Go watch the replay, if that's triple coverage, then everything I know about football is wrong.
Pass 7: Swing pass for 8 yards. Blockers slow to get out
Pass 8: Franks with a strike on a post route to Jefferson.
Pass 9: Screen to Toney as drawn up. Unfortunately, the blocking is awful. The Brain Trust behind me, if the blocking were better, it would be a pick 6. And that was repeated multiple times. Again, if Lewis actually blocks and Taylor gets to his man...it would be a pick 6. Wrap your mind around that. If we block on a screen and Toney is wide open...it's a pick six.
Pass 10: Franks looks off a safety and hits Swain on a post for a TD.
Pass 11: Decent 6 yard hitch to Cleveland.
Pass 12: I don't know where this ball was supposed to be? Was everyone covered and the ball just grounded? If so, why not throw it out of bounds. This was the most perplexing of the throws for me.
Pass 13: Franks with time to let a drag route develop and he hits it and the catch and run by Grims shows why he was a big get for us. Again, whoever was saying get the ball to the talent in space and let them run must be some kind of evil genius...
Pass 14: I'm pretty sure it's a designed throw for Scarlett. Franks looks like his looking at any of the deep route and then turns to Scarlett who just can't make one man miss.
Pass 15: Great pass to Van Jefferson for the TD.
So, some good, some bad, little of both. When Franks has time and thinks quick, he could be unstoppable. When he overthinks or has little time, he has problems.
The running game looked better, but I think it's more about the competition, but we did see some blockers actually getting to the second level. That long Scarlett TD? A quick outside run to the wide side of the field. My brother texted me and said, "it's what you've be asking for." Yep. And Kemore Gamble doing a good job blocking there with Van Jefferson. Also, Fred Johnson did a great job pulling on the play. Quick outside runs (though I prefer pitches) do force the defense to get wider and relieve some stress on the O-line.
The defense looked good. Some mistakes, but this Colorado State team can put up points and even last year dropped 23 in Tuscaloosa. Are there still issues? Yes. Oh, and another Brain Trust moment, they considered this "wide open". Yep, Trey Dean breaks up a pass while the guy was somehow wide open. Remember what I said was considered "triple coverage" earlier.
Special Teams
Listen, I know it's Colorado State or Charleston Southern, but how many times against how many inferior opponents in the last 10 years did we not block or return kicks for TD's? Things like this do get the players to invest in the special teams units and the dividends should show up against better competition at some point this year.
Quick Hits:
- Freddie Swain showing why he was a 4-star recruit. If anything, games like this give something for other teams to account for.
- Toney does need the ball more. I don't know where the jet sweeps or end arounds we've seen so much before from Mullen. Toney would be perfect for it.
- I'm not sure what I think of Pierce. We have seen some nice runs, but late in gams against bad opponents. I think he will be great, but I'm not sure if he's much of a step up from Scarlett, Perine, or Davis (if he's available) at this point.
- I'd like to say the attendance was disappointing, but I'd have to have higher expectations for a Colorado State game the week after we lost to Kentucky for the first time in my life.
- If Tennessee and Colorado State played today, I don't know who would win, and that's a good thing for us.
Final Thought:
If you wanna share your opinions at games loudly, you have the right to do so. Just know what you're talking about. I've already included examples of guys I rarely sit by anymore, but they did the same crap in '96, '06, and '08 as well. Or there was another guy who loudly began mocking the CSU player for fair catching the ball inside the 10, "WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT? IDIOT! NOW YOU HAVE THE BALL IN A BAD POSITION! WHY IS THE BALL BEING MOVED? WAS THERE A FLAG?" I couldn't help myself, and said, "You think by Game 3 fans would know the rules of the game." Another guy went to turn around to say something, thought about it, and realized he'd be pwned. Really, yell, scream, complain, just have a clue what your talking about. I once was told to chill during the Georgia Southern game by the Gainesville PD officer in my section because of being pissed that Muschamp's D just allowed a long TD run. I get it. Just have a clue, and don't say dumb stuff like if a play would be blocked properly it would be a pick 6 (over and over) or that a guy is wide open when the defender is so close he bats the ball away (wide open repeated over and over and over).
