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Their secondary has always been a little soft IMO. Didn't Chad Kelly light them up a couple of times? I don't think it's scrambling QBs who give Bama a tough time as much as it is good QBs. I think Baker Mayfield would have given them all they could handle last year and he's not a running QB. Deshaun Watson beat them a couple of years ago while staying in the pocket. I think a lot of SEC teams are built to stuff the run and don't defend aerial attacks all that well.
The difference this year is that Bama's offense can win games now and they don't have to be so reliant on a dominant defense. If Bama could run wild with the likes of Hurts, McCaron, and Sims, imagine how much more the run game will open up with a 5-star/Elite 11 winning gunslinger.
Look at the last several QBs to beat them. Chad Kelly, Deshaun Watson, Johnny Manziel and Jarrett Stidham.. All dual threat QBs. Watson didn't run an awful lot when he beat them.. I don't honestly recall any of the others though I do recall Manzeil running all over the backfield at least during that game... But the threat of a mobile QB seems to give their defense fits. Whether it's due to keeping a spy in or whatever.
It seems it's more a situation where when a QB can scramble and buy time for receivers to get open, more times than not, they will.. And if the QB can put the ball to them.
Think back to the 2016 game against Clemson.. Alabama was lucky to win that one.. Not that I'm saying Clemson wasn't lucky to win in '17.. Both of those games.. The first one came down to an onside kick, the second (and first for that matter) all really came down to who got the ball last.
Look at the last several QBs to beat them. Chad Kelly, Deshaun Watson, Johnny Manziel and Jarrett Stidham.. All dual threat QBs. Watson didn't run an awful lot when he beat them.. I don't honestly recall any of the others though I do recall Manzeil running all over the backfield at least during that game... But the threat of a mobile QB seems to give their defense fits. Whether it's due to keeping a spy in or whatever.
I'd consider only Watson and Manziel dual threats among that bunch. Just look at their peak yardage.
Lamar Jackson - 1,601
Johnny Manziel - 1,410
Deshaun Watson - 1,105
Dak Prescott - 986
Jalen Hurts - 954
J.T. Barrett - 938
Chad Kelly - 509
Trace McSorley - 491
Baker Mayfield - 405
Sam Darnold - 250
Jarrett Stidham - 153
Your point is taken insofar as Kelly not being a statue. Completely immobile QBs like Wilton Speight cannot do well against Bama. But at the same time, the Tide have shut down mobile QBs like Prescott. All in all, I think it takes very special QB play to beat Bama.
All in all, I think it takes very special QB play to beat Bama.
/\ /\ /\This is very true and has always been the case. Tua is the best QB Alabama has had during Saban's era and possibly program history. Outside of Jalen Alabama has some strong back up qbs as well. They may be inexperienced but they have the skill. Tua's brother and 6'5 gun slinging Bear Bryant's grandson both have the skills for the job.
Even though it was 2 years ago Alabama beat Washington 24-7 with young and inexperienced Jalen. I watched the highlights of that game and the offense was very run heavy. The game against Louisville was different and even though you can't compare a team from 2 years ago. I have a gut feeling if Alabama would have played them for the 2018 season opener.The score would have been maybe 40 or 50 -7. Tua would have brought more offensive options than the team Washington met in 2016.
After watching the 2016 ( Washington), 2017( FSU), and 2018 ( Louisville) season opener highlights. Alabama seem to be more potent on offense in 2018.
All right, y'all. Here's the picks for Week 2. Here are the games below.
(18) TCU vs. SMU
Arizona vs. Houston
Duke vs. Northwestern
Georgia Tech vs. USF
(16) Mississippi State vs. Kansas State
UCLA vs. (7) Oklahoma
Kansas vs. Central Michigan
Colorado vs. Nebraska
(3) Georgia vs. (20) South Carolina
Memphis vs. Navy
North Carolina vs. East Carolina
Iowa State vs. Iowa
(4) Clemson vs. Texas A&M
UL Monroe vs. Southern Miss
Arkansas vs. Colorado State
Fresno State vs. Minnesota
Kentucky vs. Florida
Virginia vs. Indiana
(17) Penn State vs. Pittsburgh
(19) USC vs. (14) Stanford
Cal vs. BYU
(15) Michigan State vs. Arizona State
Pick Overall Record: 19-9
Pick Record Last Week: 17-6
Here are my picks. TCU vs. SMU (This in all honestly has not been much of a rivalry as of late. SMU is already showing signs of regression under Sonny Dykes, while TCU will more than likely dominate the Mustangs for the next 20 to 30 years.) Arizona vs. Houston (I really didn't know who to go with here. This is just a guess.) Duke vs. Northwestern (Tossup. Will give a slight edge to Duke, however.) Georgia Tech vs. USF (Neither team looked too good in Week 1, so another tough one to pick IMO. I do, however, think the Yellow Jackets win this one.) Mississippi State vs. Kansas State (Nick Fitzgerald will make his season debut here...and K-State fans are already having "the talk" related to head coach Bill Snyder. Not going to be a good day for K-State at all.)
UCLA vs. Oklahoma (After last week, this is going to be a brutal game to watch. Poor Bruins...)
Kansas vs. Central Michigan (One of Kansas' more winnable games...don't see them getting it done here, considering the fact that the last game on the road that Kansas won was at UTEP back in 2009. Don't see them breaking that streak here.) Colorado vs. Nebraska (Tossup. Nebraska did end up having their cupcake last week cancelled because of weather, but i feel like this is going to be a letdown for them.)
Georgia vs. South Carolina (My upset pick of the week. Yes, South Carolina does not have Georgia's depth, but over the years, the Dawgs have struggled in Columbia. Sometimes they win, yes, but it's usually not a blowout. And i think South Carolina's being under-estimated. Hell, even when they're bad, it's hard to beat them in Columbia the majority of the time. I also think Georgia's talent loss from last season will hurt them somewhere...and i just feel like it'll be somewhere early on.) Memphis vs. Navy (Giving the edge to Memphis here based off of what i've seen from both teams.) North Carolina vs. East Carolina (Both teams are bad...but East Carolina's even worse. Scottie Montgomery will most likely be gone after this season. Look how terribly the decision to fire Ruffin McNeill has gone.) Iowa State vs. Iowa (Gonna give the edge to the Cyclones from Iowa City in this one...i think they get off to a good start. Although, then again, i'm higher on Iowa State than a lot of people are.) Clemson vs. Texas A&M (Sorry, Aggies. But y'all are not ready for what Clemson's defense has in store for you. Their front seven is damn near unfair...about on par with Alabama's. I'll take Clemson and the 12 1/2 points.)
UL Monroe vs. Southern Miss (Personally, i think this is a game flying under the radars of many, but we'll see...i'll take Southern Miss, but i think this game will be fun.) Arkansas vs. Colorado State (Before the season started, i thought this would be an interesting game...now, however, nope. Razorbacks will run away with it and add another nail into Mike Bobo's coffin in Fort Collins.)
Fresno State vs. Minnesota (Giving the talent edge to the Golden Gophers here...but it will be close. Won't be surprised if i'm wrong on this.)
Kentucky vs. Florida (I'm never picking Kentucky to beat Florida again until they actually do it. One stat i did notice, though...Florida gave up 222 rushing yards to Charleston Southern. Who went 6-5 in the Big South last year BTW. So, if Benny Snell Jr. can run the ball enough on Florida's run defense, and the passing game from Kentucky shows more improvement...they could do it.) Virginia vs. Indiana (I think the Cavs get revenge on Indiana from last year.) Penn State vs. Pittsburgh (Potential upset, yes...but i think Penn State will bounce back from last year's questionable game and get the win here on the road.)
USC vs. Stanford (I'll take Stanford at home, despite their not-so-perfect performance against San Diego State. I think they get revenge from last season, and Tee Martin continues to be rather questionable as offensive coordinator for the Trojans.) Cal vs. BYU (BYU may be back up to their usual shenanigans, but although Cal didn't exactly look that pretty last week, i don't see BYU beating two Pac-12 teams in a row.)
Michigan State vs. Arizona State (Another surprise pick. I think Michigan State's defense will be better, but Big Ten teams historically have not fared well on the road at Pac-12 teams.)
/\ /\ /\This is very true and has always been the case. Tua is the best QB Alabama has had during Saban's era and possibly program history. Outside of Jalen Alabama has some strong back up qbs as well. They may be inexperienced but they have the skill. Tua's brother and 6'5 gun slinging Bear Bryant's grandson both have the skills for the job.
Even though it was 2 years ago Alabama beat Washington 24-7 with young and inexperienced Jalen. I watched the highlights of that game and the offense was very run heavy. The game against Louisville was different and even though you can't compare a team from 2 years ago. I have a gut feeling if Alabama would have played them for the 2018 season opener.The score would have been maybe 40 or 50 -7. Tua would have brought more offensive options than the team Washington met in 2016.
After watching the 2016 ( Washington), 2017( FSU), and 2018 ( Louisville) season opener highlights. Alabama seem to be more potent on offense in 2018.
Man. Just a bit of hyperbole here for a guy who threw all of 16 passes against a mediocre Louisville on Saturday. I mean, hey, Tua is a really good quarterback. But I think offering him up as the epoch-shattering all-timer is way premature.
Man. Just a bit of hyperbole here for a guy who threw all of 16 passes against a mediocre Louisville on Saturday. I mean, hey, Tua is a really good quarterback. But I think offering him up as the epoch-shattering all-timer is way premature.
I was thinking the same thing.. Guy has played in 2 games.
Certainly not saying he's junk or anything, but.. Let's see what happens when he's up against a good defense that has planned for him. I don't think Georgia spent any time planning for him last year.
It's like Cam Newton.. Give him time in the backfield and he'll shred you. Harass him a little bit and he tends to fall apart.
Or Dak.. When he had a good running game, he was lighting things up. Take that away and he was average at best.
Man. Just a bit of hyperbole here for a guy who threw all of 16 passes against a mediocre Louisville on Saturday. I mean, hey, Tua is a really good quarterback. But I think offering him up as the epoch-shattering all-timer is way premature.
Being the best QB of the Saban era is not a high bar.
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Originally Posted by Labonte18
Or Dak.. When he had a good running game, he was lighting things up. Take that away and he was average at best.
Difference is Tua plays with the best talent in America. Dak did not.
Bama can pretty much sub in any 4-star QB at a Power 5 school and go 11-1. I mean, Jake Coker won 2 national championships. What other program could do that with a guy who was only a 3-star QB coming out of HS and couldn't even make an NFL practice squad?
I imagine Bama will keep doing what Bama has always done: Suffocate opponents with their defense and rely on their bruising running game. Tua simply gives them a dimension they've never had before: explosiveness. It was hard stopping the run against Bama when you knew they were going to run 65% of the time. Add in a QB who can hit talented receivers in stride and it opens up that run game even more. The days of selling out to stop the run against Bama are over.
Last edited by BajanYankee; 09-05-2018 at 10:01 AM..
Even though it was 2 years ago Alabama beat Washington 24-7 with young and inexperienced Jalen. I watched the highlights of that game and the offense was very run heavy. The game against Louisville was different and even though you can't compare a team from 2 years ago. I have a gut feeling if Alabama would have played them for the 2018 season opener.The score would have been maybe 40 or 50 -7. Tua would have brought more offensive options than the team Washington met in 2016.
I'm inclined to agree with this.
Even though people say Tua has only played "one real game," that real game happened to be a national title game in which his team was 13 points down and basically on the road (they played Georgia in Atlanta for crying out loud). He was exceptional. This is not to say he won't have his ups and downs, but he doesn't strike me as the type who's going to get rattled and fold under pressure in an away game against LSU. The stakes can't get any higher than OT in a championship game.
I don't like Bama at all but they are really looking like the Golden State Warriors of college football right now.
Last edited by BajanYankee; 09-05-2018 at 10:30 AM..
Difference is Tua plays with the best talent in America. Dak did not.
Sorry.. I was thinking more along the lines of Cam and Dak so far as how they're doing in the pros. My memory is so bad I can't even remember any of Dak's college games. I was shocked the other day that I had forgotten when Tyrod Taylor lost to JMU at VT.
Quote:
Clemson vs. Texas A&M (Sorry, Aggies. But y'all are not ready for what Clemson's defense has in store for you. Their front seven is damn near unfair...about on par with Alabama's. I'll take Clemson and the 12 1/2 points.)
Seriously? That's the line? 12.5? Look.. I am concerned about this game for Clemson. I do think they win, but on the road.. I'm expecting this to be closer than apparently most people think.
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