Soft culture never more evident

#1
LibertyVolance

LibertyVolance

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2006
Messages
1,456
Likes
1,534
#1
When we held the ball and Charlotte defended, yesterday was a stalemate at best in terms of strength and size with a middling cusa team. We had a measly 10 1st downs to their 13 and net run yardage of 20 something yds. They stuffed our run game like they were Alabama's front line.

The soft culture of linemen recruited for spread finesse is a poor fit in CJP's new offense. Everybody knew that changing the culture of softness was bound to be Pruitt's biggest challenge and not yet a year into his tenure, it remains and looms as the biggest going forward.

We armchair coaches speculate on the need to win 2 of the next 3 to get bowl eligible, but I'm not sure the team itself puts a high priority on doing that. For some of them, playing these final 3 out and getting to the offseason and the holiday break may be their preference. From where the sun now sits, I don't see them sniffing a bowl and winning one of the last 3 is more probable.

Therein lies this prevailing culture of softness CJP walked into. It was always going to be tough. The progress to this point seems agonizingly slow. Want to shake things up and possibly generate some excitement heading down the stretch? Try the QB who actually was groomed to play in a pro set offense. The Cats and Mizzou are no doubt going to pin their ears back and pressure Guantanamo, cram us into a short field like Charlotte did so well but with better personnel. Show some flexibility, Pruitt. Don't be stubborn to the point of limiting your options. If Chryst isn't effective and self destructs, you can always return to your #1 QB anytime during the game. What's there to lose? I doubt most of us and certainly not the oddsmakers expect us to win anyway.
 
  • Like
Reactions: feathersax, blouder1, Rocky Top Raby and 11 others
#2
#2
LibertyVolance said:
When we held the ball and Charlotte defended, yesterday was a stalemate at best in terms of strength and size with a middling cusa team. We had a measly 10 1st downs to their 13 and net run yardage of 20 something yds. They stuffed our run game like they were Alabama's front line.

The soft culture of linemen recruited for spread finesse is a poor fit in CJP's new offense. Everybody knew that changing the culture of softness was bound to be Pruitt's biggest challenge and not yet a year into his tenure, it remains and looms as the biggest going forward.

We armchair coaches speculate on the need to win 2 of the next 3 to get bowl eligible, but I'm not sure the team itself puts a high priority on doing that. For some of them, playing these final 3 out and getting to the offseason and the holiday break may be their preference. From where the sun now sits, I don't see them sniffing a bowl and winning one of the last 3 is more probable.

Therein lies this prevailing culture of softness CJP walked into. It was always going to be tough. The progress to this point seems agonizingly slow. Want to shake things up and possibly generate some excitement heading down the stretch? Try the QB who actually was groomed to play in a pro set offense. The Cats and Mizzou are no doubt going to pin their ears back and pressure Guantanamo, cram us into a short field like Charlotte did so well but with better personnel. Show some flexibility, Pruitt. Don't be stubborn to the point of limiting your options. If Chryst isn't effective and self destructs, you can always return to your #1 QB anytime during the game. What's there to lose? I doubt most of us and certainly not the oddsmakers expect us to win anyway.
Click to expand...


I would like to understand what the OLINE does differently ( IF ANYTHING) with KC vs JG?
KC hasn’t been on the ground like JG has in the small amount of playing time he has had.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BigDave, ShoalCreekVol, KBVol and 2 others
#5
#5
Freak said:
My question after yesterday is this: if this line isn't suited for a power run game, why do we insist on trying to force it on them?
Click to expand...

I can only assume they don't really care what the final outcome is this season, as it's going to at best be a very bad product on the field and are hoping that this experience will help fuel change next season.

I'd personally be more encouraged if we were seeing any improvement rather than regression.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ShoalCreekVol, 08Vol and LibertyVolance
#7
#7
Freak said:
My question after yesterday is this: if this line isn't suited for a power run game, why do we insist on trying to force it on them?
Click to expand...
That's been the conundrum all year long. It's obvious they've chosen to eat the ugly for the sake of implementing the system they want. Otherwise they wouldn't be running it 30+ times a game.

The offense is probably at its best in empty sets with the ball coming out quick.
 
  • Like
Reactions: TBrown, BowlBrother85, froggytn and 1 other person
#11
#11
VolArmy74 said:
I can only assume they don't really care what the final outcome is this season, as it's going to at best be a very bad product on the field and are hoping that this experience will help fuel change next season.

I'd personally be more encouraged if we were seeing any improvement rather than regression.
Click to expand...

Yep, the regression since Auburn is very concerning.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 08Vol
#12
#12
GAVol said:
That's been the conundrum all year long. It's obvious they've chosen to eat the ugly for the sake of implementing the system they want. Otherwise they wouldn't be running it 30+ times a game.

The offense is probably at its best in empty sets with the ball coming out quick.
Click to expand...
Or spreading out the formation to try to open some running lanes. I don’t care how many blockers we have, more guys in the box is a bad thing for our run game, IMO.

And what about the sweep play to CFA? We ran it one time and gained ten yards.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BanditVol, ShoalCreekVol, HuntlandVolinColo and 2 others
#13
#13
Freak said:
My question after yesterday is this: if this line isn't suited for a power run game, why do we insist on trying to force it on them?
Click to expand...

I mostly agree with GAVol, but I think it's worth pointing out the difference between SC and UNC-C. It's clear we weren't going to open up the playbook versus UNCC if we didn't have to. As such, the coaches went to the 'default scheme' which is the power run game. We definitely went away from that versus South Carolina, but it takes more planning. I suspect we'll see something different over the next two weeks versus Kentucky and Mizzou. No reason to get inventive against UNC-C when our D stuffed them all day.

What it really does, however, is showcase just how bad our O-line looks without a lot of tricks to hide their flaws. And there are only so many of those "tricks" to use.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BanditVol, jarnol32, OrangeAllDay and 4 others
#15
#15
VFLneedsSPEED said:
I would like to understand what the OLINE does differently ( IF ANYTHING) with KC vs JG?
KC hasn’t been on the ground like JG has in the small amount of playing time he has had.
Click to expand...
Right, he hasn't been on the ground like JG has. He's a big guy at 6'5" and weighs in around 240. He has more experience, sees and reads a defense better in what we have seen from him. JG has taken more punishment behind this OL than a human should endure in one season of football. At times, it is hard to watch the punishment he is taking on some hits. He is a statue with little of any mobility. I thought Matt Simms was the most unaware statue of a QB we ever had until JG came along. He was being body slammed when he threw up that sky ball that was miraculously caught by a totally surprised Palmer. As Basilio humorously said on his postgame show, it looked like the defensive backs were getting in position for a fair catch.

Can Chryst do better? Quite possibly. For all the completions JG made yesterday on mostly short throws, we only managed 10 FDs. That is bad management and did little to advance the offense. Just one score offensively when you erase the punt return TD. Will it change the Oline personnel? No, but it could be that Chryst sets them in better situations. He came from a smart school at Stanford where they were always physically challenged in terms of recruiting stars, but they had to play tough mentally and physically to compete.
 
  • Like
Reactions: covert29, LivinginthePast, ShoalCreekVol and 1 other person
#16
#16
Freak said:
Or spreading out the formation to try to open some running lanes. I don’t care how many blockers we have, more guys in the box is a bad thing for our run game, IMO.

And what about the sweep play to CFA? We ran it one time and gained ten yards.
Click to expand...
That and more misdirection is something Doug Mathews has pointed out as some offsets to be utilized to counter being outmanned up front. Something to counter the DL strengths. Let's face it that our RBs don't get their legs churning up high like the Henry/Harris type back at Bama that just ramjet through defenders, but they also are denied the holes those guys have to run through.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ShoalCreekVol
#17
#17
Freak said:
My question after yesterday is this: if this line isn't suited for a power run game, why do we insist on trying to force it on them?
Click to expand...
I have wondered the same thing... A good coach adapts to his personnel until he gets his players in the program.... I think he came in with the Alabama mentality, which is okay.... He just doesn't have the players to implement that philosophy yet.
 
#18
#18
Freak said:
My question after yesterday is this: if this line isn't suited for a power run game, why do we insist on trying to force it on them?
Click to expand...
This is exactly what I'd like to know. I think part of it is the staff being stubborn in instilling their offensive scheme, and the other part keeping JG from getting killed.
 
#19
#19
VFLneedsSPEED said:
I would like to understand what the OLINE does differently ( IF ANYTHING) with KC vs JG?
KC hasn’t been on the ground like JG has in the small amount of playing time he has had.
Click to expand...
My opinion- could be wrong. JG is obviously going to be with us down the road. Expierence for him will be valuable later as long as he stays out of the hospital. My observation of JG vs . KC is that is seems KC has a little better peripheral vision and can anticipate the oncoming sack. How many times has JG been blindsided and fumbled? Yes he has balls for standing in there and taking hits, but is it necessary? KC seems to float around a little better and get the ball out.

On another note, ever wonder if Bama’s Tua would be a Heisman candidate if he played behind our OL?
 
  • Like
Reactions: BanditVol, sechamp2012 and LibertyVolance
#21
#21
Freak said:
My question after yesterday is this: if this line isn't suited for a power run game, why do we insist on trying to force it on them?
Click to expand...
Even so, you expect to see progress. The lineup has shifted multiple times. They still have a ton of alignment and procedure penalties.
 
#22
#22
LibertyVolance said:
When we held the ball and Charlotte defended, yesterday was a stalemate at best in terms of strength and size with a middling cusa team. We had a measly 10 1st downs to their 13 and net run yardage of 20 something yds. They stuffed our run game like they were Alabama's front line.

The soft culture of linemen recruited for spread finesse is a poor fit in CJP's new offense. Everybody knew that changing the culture of softness was bound to be Pruitt's biggest challenge and not yet a year into his tenure, it remains and looms as the biggest going forward.

We armchair coaches speculate on the need to win 2 of the next 3 to get bowl eligible, but I'm not sure the team itself puts a high priority on doing that. For some of them, playing these final 3 out and getting to the offseason and the holiday break may be their preference. From where the sun now sits, I don't see them sniffing a bowl and winning one of the last 3 is more probable.

Therein lies this prevailing culture of softness CJP walked into. It was always going to be tough. The progress to this point seems agonizingly slow. Want to shake things up and possibly generate some excitement heading down the stretch? Try the QB who actually was groomed to play in a pro set offense. The Cats and Mizzou are no doubt going to pin their ears back and pressure Guantanamo, cram us into a short field like Charlotte did so well but with better personnel. Show some flexibility, Pruitt. Don't be stubborn to the point of limiting your options. If Chryst isn't effective and self destructs, you can always return to your #1 QB anytime during the game. What's there to lose? I doubt most of us and certainly not the oddsmakers expect us to win anyway.
Click to expand...
Well thought out and exactly as I see it
 
  • Like
Reactions: LibertyVolance
#23
#23
GAVol said:
That's been the conundrum all year long. It's obvious they've chosen to eat the ugly for the sake of implementing the system they want. Otherwise they wouldn't be running it 30+ times a game.

The offense is probably at its best in empty sets with the ball coming out quick.
Click to expand...
Yes, there are going to be growing pains with such a radical change in offensive philosophy. The "soft culture" was the finesse system that Butch Jones had implemented. Pruitt is trying to force a square peg into a round hole but it's for the benefit of recruiting (let's show Wanya Morriss and Darnell Wright and high school RB's the offensive we are going to be running). This was always going to be a throw away year anyway...
 
  • Like
Reactions: Titan&Volfan4life and LibertyVolance
#24
#24
Proud Army Wife said:
This is exactly what I'd like to know. I think part of it is the staff being stubborn in instilling their offensive scheme, and the other part keeping JG from getting killed.
Click to expand...

Yes a staff is supposed to come up with plays which can be executed. Either some guys are not trying to block or staff is not giving them some advantageous sets to make some blocks! Staff is either stubborn or line is not trying. One of the two! Maybe both! For crying out loud, use passing to open up a run game when the other coach has clearly comitted to stopping the run game. At least use some misdirections and sweeps mixed with the run game. Can we run traps all day into unblocked dlineman? Obviously we can.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Proud Army Wife
New posts
You must log in or register to reply here.
Advertisement



Back
Top