After a grueling 1st game here are my thoughts.
A win is a win. Most people said this would be a tough game and they were right. Lets get in to the game itself.
Coaches. Stooping entered his 13th year needing to do something different. We didn't get it. I know it is hard to change a coaching philosophy after being dedicated to it for so long and I have to say we have had some success with it. But change has to come. I think Stoops has too much say in how the offense is run. You hired Hamden to be the OC, let him do his job. Speaking of Hamden, he needs to get a better feel for the game. This is not the mountain west. This is the SEC. There is an expectation of what SEC football is about, and what we saw is not it. The defense looked really good and gives some hope for the season. I do not like the bend-but-dont-break philosophy. Not saying we need to blitz every down. I think the defense did a good job of this for the most part.
Offense. I am not going to dog on Calzada as much as others. He did not play his best game for sure. The interception was not on him as his arm was hit as he threw it. The safety was a boneheaded play. It was a RPO and he should have handed the ball off. On the other hand, he should have never lined up in the shotgun in the end zone. Too many things can go wrong. He did take too many shots downfield. This is not all him. The ball need to come out quicker which is why the WR's need to create better separation early in the play. Machlin had 1 catch, I think and he is our most experienced receiver. I like to the the tight end group getting more involved. Unfortunately the TE's need to stay in and block more. Yes there was the fumble, but it was a really good play on the defense. Normally you see the defense try and punch the ball from the rear to knock it loose. This one came from the front. I have heard some say he didn't have a good grip on the ball, but to me it looked like he had good form on the ball. It would have been better to have it with 2 hands protecting the ball. Our RB's were pretty darn good. I didn't know McGowan was as good as he was. Dowdell was exactly what I expected, but maybe he has more speed than I expected. Wilcox has probably played his last as a Wildcat. He is talented, but his off the field stuff is too much. The O-Line played pretty good. Yes there were some mistakes, I thought they played better than expected. Burton did well at center. No issued with snapping the ball. A few low snaps, but no high snaps that I can remember.
Defense. Afari will be a problem for a lot of teams. He played a great game. The DB's seem to be playing a little closer the line, which I like. Don't give the offense too much space. It is a balancing act. The secondary played a solid game. The defensive line did a good job for the most part.
Special Teams. Good game from this group. The free kick after the safety was huge. They came out with ok field position after that kick, but it could have been worse. The punting unit played well. Good distance and height on kicks and good coverage. I guess my only beef with the kicking game was the trajectory of the ball on PAT and FG. The ball seemed to hook left a lot. On PAT's and short FG's it won't matter much, but on longer FG's, it could matter.
Well there's my thoughts on Game 1. We will need to pick it up against Ole Miss. Better talent and better athletes.
A win is a win. Most people said this would be a tough game and they were right. Lets get in to the game itself.
Coaches. Stooping entered his 13th year needing to do something different. We didn't get it. I know it is hard to change a coaching philosophy after being dedicated to it for so long and I have to say we have had some success with it. But change has to come. I think Stoops has too much say in how the offense is run. You hired Hamden to be the OC, let him do his job. Speaking of Hamden, he needs to get a better feel for the game. This is not the mountain west. This is the SEC. There is an expectation of what SEC football is about, and what we saw is not it. The defense looked really good and gives some hope for the season. I do not like the bend-but-dont-break philosophy. Not saying we need to blitz every down. I think the defense did a good job of this for the most part.
Offense. I am not going to dog on Calzada as much as others. He did not play his best game for sure. The interception was not on him as his arm was hit as he threw it. The safety was a boneheaded play. It was a RPO and he should have handed the ball off. On the other hand, he should have never lined up in the shotgun in the end zone. Too many things can go wrong. He did take too many shots downfield. This is not all him. The ball need to come out quicker which is why the WR's need to create better separation early in the play. Machlin had 1 catch, I think and he is our most experienced receiver. I like to the the tight end group getting more involved. Unfortunately the TE's need to stay in and block more. Yes there was the fumble, but it was a really good play on the defense. Normally you see the defense try and punch the ball from the rear to knock it loose. This one came from the front. I have heard some say he didn't have a good grip on the ball, but to me it looked like he had good form on the ball. It would have been better to have it with 2 hands protecting the ball. Our RB's were pretty darn good. I didn't know McGowan was as good as he was. Dowdell was exactly what I expected, but maybe he has more speed than I expected. Wilcox has probably played his last as a Wildcat. He is talented, but his off the field stuff is too much. The O-Line played pretty good. Yes there were some mistakes, I thought they played better than expected. Burton did well at center. No issued with snapping the ball. A few low snaps, but no high snaps that I can remember.
Defense. Afari will be a problem for a lot of teams. He played a great game. The DB's seem to be playing a little closer the line, which I like. Don't give the offense too much space. It is a balancing act. The secondary played a solid game. The defensive line did a good job for the most part.
Special Teams. Good game from this group. The free kick after the safety was huge. They came out with ok field position after that kick, but it could have been worse. The punting unit played well. Good distance and height on kicks and good coverage. I guess my only beef with the kicking game was the trajectory of the ball on PAT and FG. The ball seemed to hook left a lot. On PAT's and short FG's it won't matter much, but on longer FG's, it could matter.
Well there's my thoughts on Game 1. We will need to pick it up against Ole Miss. Better talent and better athletes.
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