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Bodacious Bevo

Burnt Ends
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Posts posted by Bodacious Bevo

  1. 2 hours ago, crash_davis said:

    We lose Worthy, JWhit, Sanders, and probably Mitchell. That's probably 95% of the passing yards. Those guys will be replaced by dudes who haven't or have barely taken any snaps nor caught passes. This was Quinn's year to make himself money. He may be better next year, our passing numbers just may not show it.

    Good thing the NFL doesn't draft based on passing numbers!

    • Like 1
  2. 2 hours ago, Longhornfrenzy said:
     
     

    Lunch with Liucci:

    Segment 1 (00:00:00 - 15:42:03)

    • It was a wild week. I said it last night, I had to mix in some family stuff. It's fine. Everything is good. It was stressful. This stuff is not fun. There is an adrenaline thing of chasing down a story, getting the story and juggling it. So many of these kids' parents listen. It's one of my favorite parts of the job. They can become lifelong friends. 
       
    • It is annoying when you put a story out, and you have people trying to go out of their way to villainize the person who put the story out because the kids found out via social media. There are things you can say bad about me. The one thing you cannot say is that I do not consider other people in everything I do, especially in this instance. It's a small group. I like to look people in the eye and say, “You do not know a damn thing about me, the process or what went on.”
       
    • My first concern was not letting anything out prior to that game. That was a fun night for the kids. They had a freaking blast. I was careful in not wanting to be manipulated in any way in terms of the timing. There were people who had an idea or knew and were saying they didn't agree with it. It was people who mattered. 
       
    • That decision was made at the highest level, and that was my thought. I did not see it being walked back because of the level of decision it was. Ross Bjork said it was his recommendation to the Texas A&M’s President. They took it to the board. The people at the top had to sign off on that. Once they did, there was no walking it back. 
       
    • It takes a toll on you walking around that stadium that night knowing what might happen. Some people don't like us because they dont like success. There has been a success here, and they hate when you talk about things like this. I'm calling that small group right now. Selfish would have been announcing that during College GameDay when kids are sitting at the hotel. I waited until the national people were getting word at 6:45 a.m. on Sunday morning. I was making phone calls, stressing and wringing my hands over it.
       
    • A. You want the story. We deserve the story. I had had it since the inception of it, but at the same time, it meant a lot to me to make sure it was done, and there was no stopping it.
       
    • B. I wanted Jimbo Fisher to know. I was as positive as I could be that he knew before leaving that building Saturday night without calling him, thus interfering in the process. It was tough. 
       
    • Here's the thing with Jimbo Fisher. Kevin Sumlin made comments about the toll the job took on his health and family. Jimbo came up from West Virginia, didn't have a lot, and went to Samford to play football. He wasn't a five-star. Forget what you think about him. Think about the human here. He worked his way up to the peak of his profession. He was coaching in front of 100,000 people, doing what he loved, not knowing that was going to be his last time to coach here. 
       
    • I don't know if Jimbo will ever coach again. I think he will. Is he even 60 yet? He loves it. Maybe he does, but not in that type of environment. All of a sudden, he is fired, and he has $75 million. Maybe he goes and sits on his farm in West Virginia.
       
    • There is a human element we forget sometimes. He has $75 million, but do you think that guy wasn't devasted when he got the news? In the moment, it's OK to consider the human there that failed at what he was paid to do. I was thinking about that yesterday. There's a human side. There is a family side too. I am not saying you should not fire coaches. Of course, you should. That is the sport. They are compensated very handsomely, but that doesn't change the fact that it's not really a day to celebrate when you make a change when the guy isn't winning as much as you want or expected them to. 
       
    • This machine, and this is why I think they to be careful about who they hire, this thing does not have championships. We don’t have trophies around here. I was just talking to Greg McElroy and Cole Cubelic. The expectations are absolutely reasonable. They are not based on history. Even though A&M historically hasn't won like powerhouse programs, expectations have nothing to do with history. 
       
    • I said prior to the Mississippi State game that a win wasn't going to be enough. Before that meeting, I felt bad energy/vibes coming out of Ole Miss in terms of the wolves circling. Ole Miss, the wind was blowing in a certain direction. These road trips get you. 

    Segment 2 (15:42:03 - 20:57:00)

    • The thing about the Kevin Sumlin vs. Jimbo Fisher graphic, was not only was it annoying, but people would fall into the "Should not have fired Sumlin" rabbit hole. That wasn't the point of it. 
       
    • They need to make a good hire this time. I really like the message Josh Pate has said about A&M. It is a tremendous job. You could win massively here. You have to find the right guy, and they haven't. You hope they aren't heading to the dark ages. 
       
    • A&M needs this hire to hit. You see programs that have a lot of history going through dark periods more than A&M has, This will be a 7-5 team or 8-4 with a ton of talent.
       
    • I know, some of it will go out the door during the transition. I think a lot of that would happen anyway. That was part of the concern. It happens to everyone. This is really important for Ross Bjork, the decision maker, to get this one right. Get the right guy and get him quickly, and don't give me this crap, I don't want to hear. 

    Segment 3 (20:57:00 - 22:53:08)

    • "The board told Jimbo he was let go on Saturday. He stormed out of the locker room and left for the ranch. That is not true. There is a lot that is not true that I get. 
       
    • Don't give me the "We need a strong coach. He needs to be organized and be friends with everyone." That is something you put on your list that we desire. Have that on the list. Plenty of people check that box and can recruit lights out. Everyone can put elite players on the field. The biggest part of the job is keeping this team together as much as you can because if you do, you have a winner on day one.

    Segment 4 (22:53:08 - 36:01:10)

    • I love it for Elijah Robinson. He deserves it. The players are happy with it, and I think coaches on staff, like Bobby Petrino and D.J. Durkin. They will respect that. 
       
    • This could be fun for Elijah. This could be a good audition for him. Not only around here but for anywhere. Elijah is Elijah. He is real. He is lovable. He will show love but also push you and make you better. There is a reason he is paid as much as he is to be a position coach. They could not afford to lose him. He is an elite recruiter. 
       
    • Of everyone on that staff that you want to keep, no matter what your next head coach is, it's Elijah Robinson. Period. It doesn't mean it can't work without him. You can't get caught up on one coach or player during a transition, but I think it would be incredibly important and beneficial to the next coach if he is a prominent member of that staff.
       
    • I can't even put into words how far that would go in terms of keeping guys here, recruiting efforts and putting together the right staff. The connection of Elijah and Terry Price, I would have said the same damn thing about TP when Kevin Sumlin was fired. Fisher retained Price. We all know what TP's value was. Elijah is the exact same way. 
       
    • How cool would it be to see Elijah go 3-0? Go beat LSU in Baton Rouge, and go win a bowl game. Have this team get to nine wins. All of these things are important in terms of retention and setting the coach on the path to win right away. You have the potential to say whoever walks in there, has a loaded roster from day one. I don’t think we will quite be able to say that because of the damn portal nowadays.
       
    • Durkin is a hell of a recruiter. He is a pro's pro. He is another guy who is loved in the building. He is doing a great job on the recruiting trail. Guys like that stand out. Between that and making a quick hire, you have the potential to retain a lot of this. You will lose some. There are no two ways around this. You will lose guys you want to keep, and they will make a big deal of it on social media. If you hire the right coach and they sell it right, you can have a contending team on day one at Texas A&M. 
       
    • This week, they are talking to people. You would love to see it wrapped up in a couple of weeks. From the end of Mississippi State to the end of LSU is two weeks. You would love to see a decision by the middle of that week following LSU. 
       
    • There isn't a name that has floated to me that I have not thought about. I think Kliff Kingsbury is a really intersting one. Go get Dan Lanning. Go get Dan Campbell. Go get Kalen DoBoer. Look at what he is doing right now at Washington. Those are highly unlikely, but if you start talking about these other candidates, I like a lot about Elko. Kliff is intriguing. Somebody mentioned Todd Monken. He is doing great work with the Ravens and Lamar Jackson. He won a couple of national titles with Stetson Bennett at Georgia. 
       
    • It's day one. I try to tell y'all exactly what is happening, and what is exactly happening is there is not a standalone candidate. There are not two or three. There's a list. They will use the search firm that A&M is contracted out to. They will use that to weed out a lot of it so A&M can narrow it down.
       
    • There is no one or two guys sitting at the top of a list right now. As of Monday morning, that is not the case. I know people say every AD walks around with a list in his pocket. Well, yeah. Ross probably has a list, but this is different because of the money you are paying Jimbo. 
       
    • All those guys I mentioned will get calls. They may get advice on who they should hire. Mike Elko, if he had not left for Duke, he would have been the perfect inside promotion. What's even better is now he has Power 5 experience.  
       
    • There is one person I haven't dove into it, but had Luke Fickell not taken to the Wisconsin job last year and been at Cincinnati one more year, would Fickell be the guy that every A&M fan would want? I don’t know if he would come. When we think about these things, don't forget about stuff like that. 

    Segment 5 (36:01:10 - 44:27:09)

    • Not evolving to the game was part of it, but Jimbo certainly tried in terms of recruiting, portal and NIL. Offensively, was slow. There was a lot. Maybe tried to do too much of it on his own. That's hard to do. Sometimes coaches don't realize that. Some personalities want to do everything on their own. It worked for him at FSU.
       
    • College football is so unique in how much it changes almost every five years. Whether it be the rules, style of play, the portal, NIL, or realignment, it's ever-changing. 
       
    • They don’t have a recruiting coordinator yet. They never added that. They don’t have a high school relations guy. They made hires, but they weren't out there.
       
    • The other thing that got him is there was some misfortune with those quarterback injuries. Has the caliber of the staff gone down? I think some of it, though, was big misfortune. People don't like hearing that, but it's real. 
       
    • In 2020, they would have been really damn good in a regular season. They might have been better. A&M had the layout to be the second-best team in the SEC that season. Who is to say that if Ohio State had played more games, they would not have dropped one? A&M would have been 12-1. Ohio State loses one game, and A&M is in there. 
       
    • Describing his tenure, it was really close. They could not quite get over it. There are a million reasons why. It was not just one. 
       
    • When they were putting together that No. 1 class, had they finished off the 2020 season in style... Maybe you get additional recruits. That was the moment, dropping those road games, that was your chance. That is when it could have flipped

    IIRC ATM benefitted a lot from the rescheduling in 2020. I think they had UGA as their SEC East matchup. So saying they would have been 12-1 in a normal year is kind of lazy. They were looking at a 10-2 ceiling. And where did the 12 come from? The conference championship even though they wouldn’t have gotten in over Bama? 

  3. 5 hours ago, Goredho said:

    I don’t know that he’s changed the culture.  I am afraid it might be the same culture with a vastly upgraded roster.  The talent level of the average player on this team is as good as it’s been since at least the Colt years (VY for oline) and yet we’re still trying our damnedest to lose to teams with vastly less talent.  The ugly we saw in this game is no longer an isolated, outlying sample from this team.  It’s happened in multiple games across both QBs.

    Dude we had BJ Foster quitting on game-losing plays then entering the portal and being welcomed back. Our coach wouldn’t say certain players’ names. He wouldn’t say hi back when some of our star players acknowledged him in the hallways. Mehringer nearly caused a mutiny in a WR room full of good dudes. Guys were portalling out and that was pre-NIL era. The culture is vastly improved. 
     

    Organizational culture is like personality for an individual. It won’t win you every individual game but it will absolutely contribute to positive outcomes in the long run 

    • Hook 'Em 5
  4. This board has really gone downhill. The BOW incel thing should've been three pages of material. How will we ever get back to getting 1k on these threads? 

    2 hours ago, NoName said:

    I'm legit shocked there isn't one out there written by someone on this site.

    Then again maybe that's why @Machinatorleft us, to write his version that leads to Texas winning 20 straight national championships.

    Bryan Cranston Please GIF by Emmys

    There is. I just remembered to dedicate some pages to access protocols and not being photographed so easily. 

    • Haha 1
  5. 2 minutes ago, Vertigo said:

    It really is incredible to hear them publicly admitting this. Let’s play devils advocate for a moment. You fire Jimbo at the end of the 2024 season instead of 2023 just so you have a chance at winning that single, likely meaningless for them, regular season game. 

    What impact does that have? Well, for starters, the 2025 class is going to be a monster in state class. None of the top talent is going to go to a dead man walking coach with a boring offense. That means that they are jeopardizing at least 3 or even 4 seasons including 2024 for a single game with a bunch of mercenaries.

    That could mean three straight subpar classes (23, 24, 25) for their next coach. The portal has changed the nature of rebuilds but damn that’s grim 

    And another thing. Championships are built by stacking classes. They preached that the first five years under Jimbo. But now they think that they can win on the strength of a single class. They’ve bled out a bunch of guys from ‘21 (but those were just scrubs!) and the early returns at positions of need for ‘23 have not looked good. 

  6. 11 minutes ago, Constant said:

    Guyton plays RT. He said Banks is not the best tackle playing in this game. Not sure I agree, but his evidence was the Kansas tape. More specifically, Ikard believes the way to defeat Texas’ o-line is through the guards and I would agree there. 

    I actually agree that Banks isn't the best tackle in this game. That's Christian Jones. 

    • Hook 'Em 1
  7. 13 hours ago, ousux said:
    14 hours ago, Rickylovesweed said:
    Ovie likely picked LSU simply because it was his best option.
    Nobody worth a shit could have possibly wanted a player that Texas was getting rid of. 

    Have any of our portal jumpers gone on to great success somewhere else...like ever?

    Is Angilau starting at Oregon? Bru McCoy had a decent year last year and was on pace to match it this year but fractured his ankle. 

  8. 1 hour ago, closetojumping said:

    One other thing to think about regarding the matchup with the Texas front 7 and KU's OL - I'm guessing they go big on the outside and rotate Collins and Broughton outside a bunch while keeping Sweat/Murphy/Carter/Etc. fresh in the middle until it's obvious the dude is going to have to pass to keep them in the game. 

    One of the most important things about the Texas D is that it has optionality. Luginbill, Burton and Gerry were talking about this - they can go big when they need to and they can get lean and keep up with the jack rabbits when they have to do so.

    The edge point will be interesting to watch. Waddlington has talked about how Kansas attacked Illinois's 280lb, projected first round edge. We have lots of optionality and the speed at LB if they try to spread out Collins/Broughton. We could also switch to having Hill/Bush/Blackwell opposite Sorrell. And Burke should definitely factor in with his length. Lots of ways PK could choose to go. 

  9. Dunlap's offensive/OL deep dig for Baylor

    Spoiler

    Skill Player Snap Counts and Game-by-Game Percentages of Offensive Snaps (2023 Through Week 4)

    Deep-Dig-2023-Skill-Player-Participation-3.jpg

     


    ***please note that exact snap-count numbers may differ from other sources at times, as the Deep Dig does not count plays as offensive player snaps that are blown dead due to penalty, punts, extra points, field goals, spiked balls, victory formations, kneel-downs, etc.***

    Personnel-Grouping Frequency Overall and by Game (2023 Through Week 4)

     

    Deep-Dig-2023-Personnel-Utilization-by-Game-3.jpg


    Tight End Total Snap Counts and Alignment Data (2023 Through Week 4)

     

    Deep-Dig-2023-TE-Usage-Chart-3.jpg


    Team Target Share By Week (2023 Through Week 4)

     

    Deep-Dig-2023-Target-Share-By-Game-4.jpg


    Deep Dig OL Grading Scale (each snap by each player is graded as its own independent event)

     

    Deep-Dig-2021-OL-GRADING-SCALE.jpg


    OL Grades (Baylor)

    LT Kelvin Banks - 58 snaps

    1 TFL allowed
    DEEP DIG GRADE: 78.45

    LG Hayden Conner - 55 snaps

    1 run-stuff, 1 QB hit allowed
    DEEP DIG GRADE: 75.36

    C Jake Majors - 55 snaps

    1 pressure allowed
    1 snap infraction penalty
    1 knockdown
    DEEP DIG GRADE: 76.09

    RG DJ Campbell - 60 snaps

    1 run-stuff allowed
    DEEP DIG GRADE: 77.33

    RT Christian Jones - 54 snaps

    1 TFL allowed
    1 knockdown
    DEEP DIG GRADE: 78.33

    Reserves

    RT Cam Williams - 6 snaps

    No disruption allowed
    (4 of 6 snaps with positive grades)

    C Conner Robertson - 5 snaps
    No disruption allowed

    LG Neto Omeozulu - 5 snaps
    1 run-stuff allowed

    LT Malik Agbo (not counting Jumbo TE snaps) - 2 snaps
    No disruption allowed


    OL Grades by Week (2023 Through Week 4)

     

    Deep-Dig-2023-OL-Grades-by-Week-1-2.jpg


    OL Snaps-per-Disruption Allowed (2023 Through Week 4)

     

    Deep-Dig-2023-OL-Snaps-Per-Disruption-3.jpg


    OL Snaps-per-Disruption Allowed BY WEEK (2023 Through Week 4)

     

    Deep-Dig-2023-S_DIS-OL-BY-WEEK-1.jpg


    2023 OL Snaps-per-Disruption Allowed Versus Historical Precedent (2023 Through Week 4)

     

    Deep-Dig-2023-Historical-Comparison-FINAL-3.jpg





    QUICK FINAL THOUGHTS

    The takeaways from this game are simple and easy to understand regarding the Texas offensive line, and the charts likely spell out what is happening with the group better than we might be able to.

    The story coming into the Kansas game is the continued progression of DJ Campbell, who, slowly but surely is working his way up into a reasonable realm in the snaps-per-disruption-allowed metric. After Week 1 versus Rice, he was sitting at a mark that -- if you compare the charts above -- was literally the worst we've ever seen. Wake up four weeks later, and not only is he nailing down some reasonable-to-very-good game-to-game grades, but he's also seen his level of disruption cut by over half on a per-snap basis. Look at the snaps per disruption allowed (by game) chart above for reference.

    This is important because DJ Campbell is an interesting player to watch progress. The high-water mark with this player is so absurdly high that we can almost just accept the warts that come along with it as is. That is to say, if we get 10 plays and 7 of them are DJ Campbell at the height of his powers, 1 where he's average and 2 where he screws the pooch and probably allows the play to be disrupted, we'd almost be apt to take that deal.

    Almost.

    Because, when the highs are so good, it makes up for the mistakes. The ones that Steve Sarkisian talked about as being so frustrating because he looks at DJ Campbell at his best, sees those mistakes, and thinks to himself, "You're better than that." What happens when the mistakes start to become fewer and far between? What if ... you know ... he develops?

    Develops in the same way we've seen from Christian Jones, whose development arc from two seasons ago to now is borderline unthinkable. Prior to his breakout season in 2022, many here in our dark basement were absolutely sure that Jones should be benched. Laughably now looking back, for guys like Andrej Karic (because how can he be worse than what we've seen thus far out of Jones) or even Hayden Conner (who, thanks to trouble allowing upfield penetration on outside-zone concepts thus far has been the line's biggest relative disappointment, and certainly its top liability).

    What we have in Christian Jones should be considered by close observers to be a future NFL pick, and likely a high one. Through four games, he's allowed the least disruption on a per-snap basis of any OL the Deep Dig has ever seen over the course of a season. He'll likely go on to play in the Senior Bowl this winter and probably become a Day 2 pick who could end up being as highly coveted as former Longhorns OL like Connor Williams or Sam Cosmi.

    Everyone knows Kelvin Banks is going to go much earlier than that in his NFL draft a year later, and one scary thing (not so much for Texas fans, more so for opposing teams) is that we haven't really seen a signature Kelvin Banks game yet thus far in the 2023 season. He's playing like the high-level D1 talent that we know him to be, while clearly still maintaining that elite-level upside that's hiding in plain sight, ready to be deployed at any moment.

    With two NFL tackles, one quickly emerging elite-potential guard, one center, who -- at the very least -- is not committing costly mistakes and one other guard who is playing at a lower level than he has historically which could indicate positive regression moving forward, it leads to one clear finding: the Texas OL -- which has been an overall team strength this season -- is still trending up.

     

    • Hook 'Em 3
  10. On 9/23/2023 at 7:09 PM, Coach pop a bitch said:

     

    I haven't seen anyone mention this but on the Bush sack here, Alfred Collins throws the RG back a full yard on first contact and causes the splitting TE to trip and miss Bush. Collins is having a pretty good year even if it's not showing up on the stat sheet.  

    • Hook 'Em 1
    • Haha 1
  11. Weigman's parents sound exhausting lol. Which is good for our entertainment value I guess

    For those unaware, HIPAA only applies to healthcare providers. The doctor and staff that saw Conner can't share his information unless it's for medically important reasons. Other providers in the clinic can't access his records. All that stuff is recorded by EHR systems and easily checkable

    The leak came from someone the Weigmans themselves told. Or a member of the team/staff. That stuff happens. Was the end game to use a high ankle sprain as an excuse through the end of the year? Sounds weird but I guess we're talking about a fanbase that believes the flu knocked out half the team for two weeks

    ETA: If you're going to be helicopter parents and don't want your kid to get injured, don't let him play football and especially don't let him play for Fisher/Addazzio (and I think Dameyune Craig would have been the QB coach at the time lol). If you're going to let your kid be an adult and make his own decisions, then don't go chewing out coaches and talking about suing message boards when adversity strikes

    • Hook 'Em 8
  12. Dunlap's Defensive Deep Dig

    Spoiler

    Defensive Snap Counts By Week and Percentage of Total Defensive Snaps Played Through Week 4

    Deep-Dig-2023-Defensive-Player-Participation-3.jpg

     


    Defensive Productivity Market-Share Percentages and Snaps per Production Caused Metrics Through Week 4 (snaps per disruption caused is colored coded from blue/best to white/median to red/worst - the number next to the name indicates movement in the rankings since last week):

     

    Deep-Dig-2023-BAY-PROD.jpg



    Quick Hits and Thoughts

    T'Vondre Sweat has a chance to be a first-round pick
     - he's back on the top of the rankings, and now, after four games, it's time to start talking about the fact that he's looking like the most complete DL we've seen at Texas since Malcom Brown. Can he keep it up? That is yet to be seen. But let us be clear: if he keeps this up through the season (that is, staying the best player on a really good Texas defense while maintaining elite efficiency) it would be 100% foolish and silly not to think about him among the top players in all of college football.

    His snaps/disruption caused efficiency through four games (including one versus Alabama, so it's not a slate of total cupcakes) blows guys like Keondre Coburn out of the water. It's better than Poona Ford as well, and Ford was always an anomaly of a player. He wasn't an easy package to stamp as a surefire stud at the next level. Short with really long arms, Ford was an athlete no doubt, and very, very effective at Texas, but the overall package wasn't there.

    With Hassan Ridgeway, it was there physically, and Ridgeway is still earning an NFL paycheck all these years later -- but even Ridgeway had an on/off switch that you don't notice from Sweat. On top of that, Sweat has smoother feet and better general athleticism than you noticed from Ridgeway, who made his hay by simply being a giant, unmovable object with fits and spurts of angry violence.

    Sweat is almost 50 pounds heavier than the giant Ridgeway was in his final season at Texas with sweeter feet, more active hands (and eyes) while engaged, an uncanny ability to get up in the air and use hand/eye coordination to knock down footballs, all the while pressing off of blocks to free himself for such a task. He's constantly splitting double teams to make plays, and when he's not, he's usually holding up two players on the line of scrimmage to keep his linebackers clean. He leads the team in run-stuffs by a wide margin while also being tied for the team lead in QB hits.

    Ryan Watts comes back to Earth - Everyone saw Watts get burned twice in coverage against Baylor and it certainly exposed something in his game that will need to be accounted for. While he's a big, imposing figure on the boundary, he can find himself in trouble when having to get into the hip pocket of really fast wide receivers on vertical routes and simply run with them.

    On the second coverage burn, the one on the TD to the middle of the end zone, Watts' coverage actually looked alright at the catch point ... he didn't seem too far off from making the play and we almost just considered it a completion allowed. Basically, a good catch made in good enough coverage. But if you watch it back, the ball was underthrown and there was no way Watts would have been in any sort of position to make a play had the receiver not had to slow down a little bit to come back to it.

    Watts is still a great player, and the team's best outside corner, but it is a kink in the armor that's worth monitoring and keeping in the back of our minds when he's set to face burners who have good enough stem work at the line of scrimmage to get free release on him along with an ability to get vertical fast. In those spots, he's going to need more focused, intentional and better help over the top than he was getting from the safeties versus Baylor.

    Byron Murphy is a bulldog - With all the talk about Sweat, it's important to remember this. He's awesome. He has awesome feet and athleticism, too. Just watch the guy on offense, my goodness. Not only the TD catch, just watch how he positions his body and attacks defenders as a lead blocker on kick-outs and leads at the goal line. Sark called him a pit bull at his Monday PC and it made our heart sing because that is exactly how we've always categorized him around here.

    Anthony Hill has an evolving role with the return of Mo Blackwell - With Mo Blackwell's return, the staff has a small issue on its hands that's a good one to have, technically: having two players you really want on the field in Blackwell and Hill that have similar if not semi-redundant skill sets as they pertain to the personnel groupings the defense has deployed thus far.

    Both players seem best-suited to play the outside or flex linebacker in the second of two sub-packages where the team brings in a third LB. In one of these packages, Jett Bush is the third LB and that is the heavier, run-stopping package. In the passing-down package, that 3rd LB had been Hill to start the season, and he'd been so good in that role that it almost felt like a really good player in Blackwell might get Wally Pipp'ed.

    In order to placate both sides (we assume) and certainly in an effort to simply have the best players on the field, the staff seemingly came up with a creative solution. Make sure Hill knows he's still the "starter" in "his" 3-LB package as he was before. The staff deployed the package as we've seen through the first three games twice within the first two series of the Baylor contest. But then, we saw an all-new 3-LB package. Let us explain ...

    The run-stopping package looks like this

    Jack - usually Alfred Collins instead of Barryn Sorrell
    Nose - Usually Murphy
    DT - Usually Sweat
    Buck - Usually Barryn Sorrell instead of Ethan Burke
    MLB: Ford
    WLB: Gbenda
    OLB: Bush
    No Nickel Back

    The more speedy, longer down-and-distance package looks like this

    Jack - Previously Kristopher Ross, now usually Barryn Sorrell
    Nose - Usually Murphy
    DT - Usually Alfred Collins
    No Buck
    MLB: Ford
    WLB: Gbenda
    OLB: Hill
    Secondary stays in nickel

    The NEW, also speedy and very interesting sub-package including Blackwell looks like this:

    Jack - Usually Sorrell
    Nose - Murphy or Sweat
    DT - Broughton or Collins
    Buck - Burke
    MLB: Ford
    WLB: Hill
    OLB: Blackwell
    No nickel back

    It can be deployed all over the field in various situations, and relies on Blackwell's very good skills in coverage to handle No.3 receivers, TEs, or RBs out of the backfield, allowing him to be somewhat of a rover, while giving Hill the opportunity to get reps at the inside will linebacker (a base role he'll likely grow into next season once Ford and Gbenda are gone). It also allows the staff to bring Hill down on the line of scrimmage from his off-ball position to be more of an edge or flexed presence.

    Handling this situation must have been a tough needle to thread, but we have to hand it to the staff that this is a better solution than those of us here in the dark and dingy basement would have conjured up.

    Onward to the offense.

     

    • Hook 'Em 6
  13. 19 hours ago, fuggled said:

    I'm glad somebody got this thread going again.  A couple years ago I had posted about challenges I was having with our first planted tank here.  Thanks to some of the advice on this thread, I've really been able to get it dialed in.

    Here's what it looked like at first just throwing some plants in there without knowing what we were doing.  The house sitter didn't help leaving the light on all the time.

    ADCreHevNat2GN-NW9_rrznXfZpWg24jxW8E7uxOaNv-gI2cHZjW1-in4fosYqPUf8KngePK9AMmkHBWJQcu_EyudRD8fOuDzPDlJJFTaDjPmIcphiMZ-P6mux0dbyOZIJzMLVc2MB1RlxDWhyT-RWVWp8fQel1mz5MnZp7T68UPnlx-k8EZg9K_GrPYfCVTmgOtbXceuja7XeZ30Sdf_Rfg6PEDOk0LnRejJmUv2Qq9kFRGZmIIitsFxgtl2CUcLfqmnx9l4MHXS6C1nTxqYuCgnxsKWOGmjOhxQTUeDIo1oamgPcnzDUgY1Rhuwej5vqvXhrg_isdWVfIjyRYsqWsRhbm-yJuYk3lTmmQAR4TpTuq5j-fBOLSxHLV2i3_AA0NMNA8lJzGhz0F560_r0hXOJfAieoDOBXeDin39N5tYaHSInYTeH0xwt3gxXcNv7qQab_hrjxxoJsVQrGibws2p-3yi844v3TkgGVKoAvZjKJB2ipu0luKnuw3MpnIs9w3QFRQMayII_4RDGhg5n-Nsf98VYFuCiIY2CDNjVMQYkttdkQH3hEQU1x2r5CM_kFOpC3ytrp2cqE_LymCs_P8F76YrhTJQYKDgjRABiJ-VXVEglBYlt5toe8QceXqRMRZvM9IlR8TmEjv4afjp0T4JAbiPqSthe7hvAv2-qcdl1ImY10zGkQo57cCOglL48Vlr7nUeg5oG7-SBGA2hUsp8qMQDNC7L06m3TD5N_CGcRxXSEvJYO1-1kzX26RiK2PS0KgPdtc1d223pWHGQBXXItmIVoF7k9_mYmjIPczxGzuduwLEeBEfWqNfPLjFsCQdiyjKYkAUg_V9Mn9RgoEJmjCnX41Qe7_r4MZgvV42HJitv4NgBWe6v8jwnymvLV7-gZV3U9YUBVpSjRzZjbQJKaIM=w1297-h973-s-no?authuser=0

     

    Six months later we'd done a lot of experimenting and things were looking much better:

    ADCreHc2UE6acdlYj0B9MEb7PYMknGaIU6latNaP9dnurlhCIvOc2K5PkIeThaLEPfFcg2zosOfVkhPUvi3-tJkW4v-mNATlqlTVyVxi6KbLwPDVZ6Zsx1WMAwyOXPkjDTrz8XrSj34G3XWveBODQWVja-i4SxlPZ1aVxaWCe7_SAsx0PEMw3qScix-3BQi-6CZIPQdftc5JqyK02WNG1ROuLOchPMJLCYxPZSWhTiEJWXYnHBZM70eBKyeRKu2ec36tYOtMSHXFH9RqGOEkWqVRNHPfJXv78SgaoweN_88j92-XHNew9n2UYTKT399VBNiXiGT45QGfBAq4vyQe2zCvvOz6ekoumT5tWgg9_iJpUGqejuiLONcE4gv6C8MdrspcHm8j-QFmDfPTGxUDtUClp2L1K7rDhotOCMOY7HzqGGo5Yj7UvvklUbCvpyTcphcKY9bhlBkniS2YdEK-HC_zszFKUoZhMiuxoic3C1ckfRIOnYQdpuHnDjKUlAXngvftPuc1ZAB1E5S_hfn3vnNVqCXJN9B1MsQ3vNnAkt_oMaONdBWPOE59QKCtlJdTHNh-3UdwjPAfkTOAwByLNGRKOFhFEyn7OLwTb57RbT2Gzhn5mRsyjfPQa3eDxTBUJ5xiXRZo8M6JAabXCTVqK1bXeeOW4nRJ7DyKDW-0ggrh0vuEdhtimH56qETRRq4_Cr3IatvkitGnhKc-z0wmE8hUzeQlrdnzgbSZneXU2_Sej-TD1qsf2m9AzrM1ca2srvW0WkRIDUivf2Vt91NMerc40F9u7qPCrb9fUgQ9TACDXpAJkvMp17RxLXvVd-xagQOLRZfyGOLOHl9mY39XIWrm1BxBlHKYSxXKfxOpKUP4F-rFQo7IjBqCL8hOjsGhleSOlejihe_Ddm1dmUjNC-wFe3E=w1297-h973-s-no?authuser=0

     

    After another 12-18 months, we had a lush little ecosystem going that I felt confident I could sustain.

    ADCreHfegNBqUUGctd14kOQFvXAMKgNBA9qnkstmrkJpFFkHzZeGdpd2CDtxAVj4tnwO9BZU_byV8iOiLFy698Lixr-v_FKwck7HrlDnFwFXYkj4tTDkvK07rr0iWqDvh_lYBvsquGXjkA2IP-u0McqDahy2m1tiE4JNzilGXdYMLmYdzYksCa5gIyWmXj91rM5Gg3vsRDxhBQOzmADdds2be1FPTIurZ_nQW-xzlHbV9p-y1s7rZVqMpaQhCOgyjiVcYr5fitUI-oRZPKQ-PZGbP069XUtbHLVxni1A-KpjrZqcu6wTNimcTMGnXHZtisEps6ioM2WViImzpOAZu8srLK5zKhI0-AxNnejG33t7ppNmZLZ68cbH7kwf0ghf1XzFgy1GP9CqqCVrtjFUW9rAYwckWHlFyAwGBVyg7F8pt9XwUr6eH7v4h6dr5uAsLs88yU1wErZt5fPOhBsEWkoyV-MJEYiFGdaNeAa-5pyVpbHERB1KaR8AJw0r_Qhor9akeuRjFaXnKudLOcmPReh8hdLrnbHti5a7_3PJJBfmPwfCxDkIE2e-6JvqFuE9tDlry1Ww-otfurNheUOyaHL8FEv51380NKjXxCWpJtOp8GqiZkIyA8BiZiGCnMiEKHHqTQTWLYaPapix84JEYKVxTwQrIU9k1t7ZJNS9tRFyWWge65asFHxb2zqAF78i5THS548WeMaLGsiizXT9HAyIxA7ted2fuwifY3IDDCWRoSQK8p2cjlqfCKkTJCTif4ACzq91GsBKaq_hMRIE_Dg9KL2c0uv3I8oiKiR4YkfToIOp2kUtpN4gGmjYzdQ7bOhZ7hqAJ4V41i9-pVwJO35__SY7Nv4eXAJBmI6G-whhp7XDHawAwrr9p0z2ItrMuRZoZmpROJUgFMBbFOi6mqJdMBQ=w1292-h973-s-no?authuser=0

     

    It was a long journey, but we learned a lot from.  After that experience, I decided to take a shot at building out a new aquascaped tank now that I knew a little about what I was doing.  I'm about 9 months into that process now.  Once I have a little time, I'll share some photos of that tank.

    You gotta tell her that a 20 is going to be more stable and easier to maintain, plus it doesn't really take up much more room.

    Tank's looking good! I love planted tanks. 

     

    I got impulsive and got a half dozen cherry shrimp over the weekend. The best of the bunch is berried so that's pretty dope. I just hope there's enough biofilm for hte little guys to survive on once they get here. Also I've decided what I'm doing with the second tank. It's going to take awhile for me to grow out the plants for it but I'll post pictures once I'm there. 

    Question for the group: Have y'all had shrimp that developed a lighter stripe down their backs? I googled and some places say it's genetic but they didn't have it when I got them so I'm wondering if it's a reaction to the new tank. 

  14. 12 hours ago, cmontexas said:

    Fan guesses as to where guys on this team get drafted in 24

    Ewers-Top 10. He'll kill it in the workouts and someone will fall in love

    Sweat- rd 1. Monster

    Sanders-late 1st-2nd. I've previously argued that NFL teams tend to prefer 6'5+ tight ends early, but he's continued to improve plus Kincaid went 25th last year and JT is better and bigger and healthier.

    Worthy- rd 2. Ideal scenario he's an elite #2 receiver with big play capability. 

    Collins rd 3-4

    Ford- rd 4-5

    Mitchell rd 4-5

    Jones rd 4-6

    Watts rd 5-6

    Catalon rd 7-udfa

    Whitt udfa

    Keilon and Kitan could stick around on ST. Brooks could be a late pick if he continues to play like he has and decides to go. Sorrell and Murphy are on boards also,  it would be mutually beneficial to get them back I imagine

     

    Here's where I'd have them. I think Brooks, Collins, and maybe Mitchell (is his mentality more like LJH or JWhitt?) are the best bets to return. Murphy should go make his money imo.

    Round 1: Quinn, Sanders

    Rounds 1-2: Worthy, Barron

    Rounds 2-3 Ford, Sweat, Murphy

    Rounds 3-4: Jones, Collins

    Rounds 5-7: Brooks, Mitchell, Gbenda

    UDFA: Watts, Crawford, Robinson, Whittington, Catalon,

    Notes: I believe in Sweat but first round is tough. My big question with Collins and the draft is whether teams view him as flexible or a tweener. Mitchell could rise with a couple big games and a good combine. I think Jones will rise once he gets to the senior bowl and interviews. Watts would get drafted if he played special teams. 

    • Hook 'Em 2
  15. 5 minutes ago, Had Enough said:


    This isn’t exactly right. Wyoming threw for 136. Their longest was 20 yards. You know the one right over Crawfords head. Their other deepest completion was Watts/Catalon. They did isolate Thompson twice for firsts. He also had a PBU on 3rd and the pick when attacking with quick outs.

    Baylor took deep shots on Taafe/Watts and Catalon/Watts.

    The staff has a plan, and they work it.

    Right, neither of those teams were able to put together a complete game going after those duos. Wyoming and Baylor have major issues so it wasn't a big deal that they had some success, but I mention it as something that I expect teams to start incorporating into their game plans. Similar to how opposing defenses should be bringing a lot of different pressure looks vs our OL (though we seem to be improving). Basically, a good offense can probably count on having a couple successful plays doing that each game. 

    I thought about including Catalon in the safeties list, but I don't really know what to think of him so far. He's stood out crashing down against the run a couple times, but it's TBD on his ability and range defending the pass. It's hard to evaluate DBs anyways since we really only see the times they're targeted. Watts/Thompson/Taaffe/maybe Catalon are just the ones being targeted most so far it seems. If anyone has advanced stats or grades I'd be interested in seeing if they support that or not. 

  16. The only consistent weakness I see on this defense is athleticism when Watts is paired with Thompson or Taaffe. Those are the duos that we've seen Wyoming and Baylor go after with quick outs and deep shots, respectively.  

    But the fact that we have to get that specific to name a weakness and that's it's easily fixable (managing the rotation) is great. Two years ago it was 'the biggest weakness of many is when they run the ball outside in either direction.' Great development work.

    The rotation was pretty tight for Alabama IIRC. So this really seems like the staff trusts almost every scholarship player to play but also knows the margin for error each week. Great job all around by the defensive staff. 

    • Hook 'Em 3
  17. Getting into the hobby so thought I'd give this thread a bump. I'd love to see it get more active again. 

    I'm almost a month in with my 10g. I'm pretty happy with the scaping for it- I got a sampler pack of plants and once the small portions propagate I think it'll look pretty good (for a first timer at least!). I put four mystery snails in and they're making good progress eating down the diatoms. I'm planning to turn it into a cherry shrimp colony in a couple weeks.

    The second tank is kind of on standby for now. Keeping the cycle going while I decide what to do with it.  I want to do an iwagumi style tank, but that'd involve draining it to get the carpet going and I don't want to restart the cycle, so I might wait for another tank to do that (I have four 10g kits that I bought used for $100). 

    Long term I think I'm going to roll with 4x 20g long tanks. I'll use dividers to section off smaller partitions as needed. Breeding really interests me and I think I'm going to try my hand with guppies. Lots of strains out there and I might get funky with it and try to select for stuff like behavior and brain size. There's a surprising amount of academic research on guppies. 

    IMG_3839.thumb.jpg.26024dcce890c23826143233d5abef5a.jpg

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