mm42
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- Joined
- Jul 25, 2002
- Messages
- 4,030
1- Our pass defense scheme depends 100% on QB pressure. When it is not there our pass defense always looks bad. There have been many negatives comments about our secondary, but it starts with the pressure or the defense doesn't work. In the Thursday night chat that was the #1 concern I voiced: Can we get pressure on Matt Ryan consistently? Unfortunately the answer was not just "No", but "Hell No".
2- I agree with many others who posted, that some uncalled holding appeared to contribute to BC's success in handling our rush.
3- OL: No push for running plays pretty much the whole night. However, pass blocking was pretty good most of the night. We got some holding penalties that I didn't understand compared with what BC was getting away with, but also had a few that were deserved.
4- No Turnovers! With 3 games in the books, we are the ONLY TEAM in Division I-A that has not turned the ball over. We are #6 in the country in turnover margin, also.
5- Taylor played OK. He missed some passes, but also had some dropped. He was sacked only once (and that is not just a matter of OL, but also QB play), was OK (not perfect) at finding the open receivers, spread the ball around, and had no interceptions. Taylor has now gone 3 starts in a row without an interception. (For comparison, our prior starting QB NEVER went 3 starts in a row without an interception.) Nevertheless, we have miles to go in having an effective passing game.
6- Special teams continue to be very good. We are #2 in the nation in Net Punting (WE LOVE YOU DURANT!), #5 in the nation in kickoff returns (HUGE improvement in that area), #5 in the nation in kickoff return yards allowed (HUGE HUGE improvement), and #1 in punt return yardage allowed. Travis Bell is 12/12 on PATs and 7/8 on field goals (the miss was the blocked FG against ND). The only area not shining is punt returns, where we rank #39 nationally.
Overall: A very disappointing performance by both lines, particularly considering they are supposed to be our strength. However, this was the first real team we have played, judging by how Notre Dame has performed since Sept. 1st. I remember how both lines got pushed around at home by BC in 1998, but they turned it around that year and they may be able to this year. I still see a lot of positives about this team, and no reason we can't win the Coastal division and beat UGAg if we improve on the lines.
In spite of the loss to BC, we look superior to VPI and Miami so far. VPI has the toughest schedule as they have to face Clemson, BC, and FSU from the other division. We are in the middle, with BC, Clemson, and Maryland. Miami has the easiest schedule, with BC, FSU, and NC State, plus we have to play at Miami.
2- I agree with many others who posted, that some uncalled holding appeared to contribute to BC's success in handling our rush.
3- OL: No push for running plays pretty much the whole night. However, pass blocking was pretty good most of the night. We got some holding penalties that I didn't understand compared with what BC was getting away with, but also had a few that were deserved.
4- No Turnovers! With 3 games in the books, we are the ONLY TEAM in Division I-A that has not turned the ball over. We are #6 in the country in turnover margin, also.
5- Taylor played OK. He missed some passes, but also had some dropped. He was sacked only once (and that is not just a matter of OL, but also QB play), was OK (not perfect) at finding the open receivers, spread the ball around, and had no interceptions. Taylor has now gone 3 starts in a row without an interception. (For comparison, our prior starting QB NEVER went 3 starts in a row without an interception.) Nevertheless, we have miles to go in having an effective passing game.
6- Special teams continue to be very good. We are #2 in the nation in Net Punting (WE LOVE YOU DURANT!), #5 in the nation in kickoff returns (HUGE improvement in that area), #5 in the nation in kickoff return yards allowed (HUGE HUGE improvement), and #1 in punt return yardage allowed. Travis Bell is 12/12 on PATs and 7/8 on field goals (the miss was the blocked FG against ND). The only area not shining is punt returns, where we rank #39 nationally.
Overall: A very disappointing performance by both lines, particularly considering they are supposed to be our strength. However, this was the first real team we have played, judging by how Notre Dame has performed since Sept. 1st. I remember how both lines got pushed around at home by BC in 1998, but they turned it around that year and they may be able to this year. I still see a lot of positives about this team, and no reason we can't win the Coastal division and beat UGAg if we improve on the lines.
In spite of the loss to BC, we look superior to VPI and Miami so far. VPI has the toughest schedule as they have to face Clemson, BC, and FSU from the other division. We are in the middle, with BC, Clemson, and Maryland. Miami has the easiest schedule, with BC, FSU, and NC State, plus we have to play at Miami.
