In the Trenches - Where Oh Where is Sergio...??
by burnt in ny on Sep 14, 2009 3:29 PM CDT
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Entree with an Italian troubadour tenor and lute strolling the sidelines of DKR...
"Where oh where is Sergio... where oh where can he be?....
We're looking for sacks from our favorite beast, we're not impressed in the least!"
via www.recorderhomepage.net - Wherefore art thou Sergio?!
(lute strums violently)
After two games of mostly dominant defense and All-American performances from Lamarr Houston, Sam Acho, and Earl Thomas, much of UT fandom is asking, "Where is Sergio Kindle?" We fans were expecting a one-man wrecking crew to roll up the line and obliterate the first and second-string quarterbacks of both ULM and Wyoming...Okay, maybe get a couple of sacks and have the quarterbacks looking for stray prairie dog burrows to hide in two seconds after every snap. Well, maybe just a constant steaming presence in the backfield. Still no? Alright, so maybe he was triple teamed, and we haven't seen him because he's been surrounded by offensive linemen. What's that? We can see Sergio's #2 clearly on every play?
How to explain this phenomenon of the disappearing Sergio? Take the jump.
Pass-rushing terror extraordinaire Sergio Kimble has had a strange first two games. No sacks. No monster hits. No quavering opposing coaches saying,"We just couldn't block that guy." Yet UT coaches have commented that Sergio has done a "good job," and have explained the lack of sacks on the offensive team "not going to let us get sacks." If you look at the boxscore, Sergio is down for 2 tackles and 2 quarterback hurries. Something isn't quite adding up
I thought I would get beyond the "coachspeak" and see for myself by watching the tape of the Wyoming game. So what was the deal? Is Sergio being blocked? Is he running out of plays rather than into tackles? Are the coaches working him on his pass coverage in the games against the "cupcakes?"
My assessment is that there is something physically wrong with Sergio - specifically, he is not running as well as he was last year. Given his history of injuries as a freshman and sophomore, this isn't out of the question. Given Mack Brown's history of not revealing injuried to starters if those players will play in a game, this becomes a distinct possibility. The lack of almost any effort to move Sergio around to different positions on the line or as the "Buck" linebacker provides additional evidence, given Will Muschamp's famous statement in early August that opposing coaches are going to "need a GPS" to find Sergio on gameday.
On what do I base my claim that Sergio isn't 100%? Several things. Let's start with his basic pass rush. Kindle has shown little explosion or strong first step. He typically attacks the offensive tackle and then tries to sidestep him to the outside in his pass rush. As a consequence, Sergio comes clear of the OT on almost every play, but seems to have little speed when he does so.
A second issue is that when Sergio has come free, it seems like he has lead in his shoes and it takes him forever to get to the QB. Hence Sergio has 8 QB hurries on the season but no sacks. A classic example of this occurred on Saturday when Wyoming quarterback Robert Benjamin rolled to his right and Sergio had him dead on and... Benjamin whipped by him like VY. And let's face it, Benjamin is no VY.
For the most part, Wyoming and ULM have run away from Sergio, and right at Sam Acho. On these plays against Wyoming, Sergio was always two steps behind in tracking down the play from behind. In 2009, Sergio would run down the back from the back, saving countless yards. He single-handedly kept the Texas defense in the game against Texas Tech by running down plays from the back side. But right now, this is not happening.
Come to think of it, Sergio didn't play in the spring game (for still mysterious reasons), and was in for many fewer plays against ULM than other defensive starters.
I would bet a gallon of Hagen Dasz (you pick the flavor) that we'll find out at the end of the season that Sergio was "playing through" some leg (probably muscle, but maybe knee) injury. If Sergio is injured, it's in Texas' best interest to leave him on the field, even as a decoy, since this is likely to increase the predictability of the opposing offense (run away from Sergio) and increase opportunities for other players to make plays (hello Sam Acho and Keenan Robinson). Let's hope whatever it is gets better by next week, and certainly by the RRS, because if Sergio can begin to turn his "hurries" into sacks, even the best teams are going to have difficulty scoring on the Longhorns.
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I'll play the wait and see.
Yes I’ve been wondering “where is Sergio?” myself.
Speed — You know the talk about our S&C slowing down our players. This is the first offseason where he actually hit the weights. Perhaps this has reduced his speed.
Lack of a pass rush – Yes we haven’t needed the GPS to find him yet…though we kind of do for his lack of making plays. We’ve generally played it plain vanilla so far and I fully expect our defense to get more exotic when it actually needs to. Then we’ll see the real Sergio. He also learned new moves and that could be an adjustment for him. Not having Orakpo there also makes him the focal point of the defense and opposing offenses just don’t want to let Kindle beat them.
I guess he could have an injury….I would also hate for that to happen. We really need him to be able to win the Big XII. Anyways, I hope that we don’t have to ask this question again against Texas Tech. He better be unleashed on the QB.
"Football's so important in Texas. On the West Coast, it's a social. On the East Coast, it's a culture. Here, it's a religion."
-- Major Applewhite
I'm also guessing he was really hyped up
It’s seemed to me that the Acho’s have stepped up to the plate where we thought Kindle would be.
We’ll know for sure after the Tech game. Where people are saying that we’re playing “Vanilla”, that should no longer be the case with Tech. It’s a conference game, the gloves come off.
If Sergio doesn’t show up in the TT game, then I’m jumping on the Acho bandwagon.
Macho Achos?
The Achos Supreme?
I have a very different take
It appears everyone wants Sergio to be a single minded sack machine against the cupcake lineups, while forgetting ’Rak’s slow start last year and a change in Kindle’s read responsibilities from last season.
Though I’ll be rewatching the games this week to make sure, I believe Muschamp finally has the DL playing with a singular focus on sound technique. Last season, dedfischer of BC/Tortilla Retort infamy properly noted that we had one DL in Rak who ran upfield with little regard to containment and one DE in Melton who played contain by the book. That situation led to a D-Line which could be exploited whether any of us wanted to admit it or not. Acho on the other side is a by the book player, as will be anyone else who has Muschamp in their ear from early on. Technically sound athletes reduce uncertainty in a defensive scheme, and make Muschamp’s life a lot easier.
This season, Kindle has containment assignments, and it looks like he’s “thinking” instead of strictly reacting. That quarter second of mental exercise is being seen on the field and eliminating his presence as a backside threat for the moment. After a few games and a mental readjustment, the sacks will come in bunches.
As for an injury, why exactly would Muschamp and Brown have their most devastating defender play through an injury against patsies?
proud to swim home
This makes more sense to me too
He has more pressure on him because of the pre-season expectations, and he’s probably got a lot more to think about during the plays.
That may cause some hesitation or “slowness” in his pursuits.
You would be right
If Sergio was the strongside end, as Melton was last year. Sergio is playing the weakside end. If you watch carefully, Sergio often gets free on the outside, which allows the QB to step up to avoid him. I just can’t shake the feeling when I watch that he should be closing on the QB and then he just doesn’t get there.
I know it doesn’t make sense that he would be playing through an injury, but too many times over the years I’ve seen players “disappear” or diminish in performance but still be on the field regularly. Often we find out later that they had some chronic injury. Last year this applied to Lamarr Houston, Roddrick Muckelroy, and Chykie Brown.
Regarding an injury, I remember seeing Kindle pull a ridiculous hurdle move at the end of the 3rd for a pressure as well as absolutely fail to protect his legs from a fullback block – either of which would seem odd from a player nursing a lower body injury. But, I have yet to rewatch the games – watching with a half dozen SEC fans isn’t conducive to study – and I need to be able to rewind often to figure out what is going on on the lines anyway.
So with that huge caveat out in the open, are you saying that Kindle is failing because he is forcing the QB to stay in the pocket and preventing a rollout or a scramble to the weakside? When I speak in terms of Kindle’s defensive end discipline, that’s what I’m talking about.
Muschamp repeatedly referenced in his postgame comments the necessity of keeping the quarterback in the pocket for his defense, which is why I formed the opinion without studying the film.
proud to swim home
by learned hand on Sep 14, 2009 11:01 PM CDT up reply actions
weight
how much weight did Kindle gain this year to switch to DE? That has to affect his speed.
Agree that we haven’t tipped our hand on defensive looks yet this year. At this rate we may just play one defensive set the entire year.
Vanilla Defense
Sergio still should be getting to quarterback against ULM and Wyoming even if we are playing a vanilla defense. So, I don’t buy that as an excuse. I also don’t by the injury because we can beat ULM and Wyoming without him so I think Mack and company would of held him out if he was injured. I can’t figure this out either. Maybe he only likes to show up for big games?
Thanks
for open this thread. I also, wonder myself about this question after watching this 2nd game of the season. Let’s hope not his old ankle injury starts come back to haunt him. But we’re still in early of the season, at some point, I’m sure he will become a beast again.
I hate to say it,
and it doesn’t make any sense, but I agree: he looks hurt. He looks slow, he doesn’t really fight off blocks, opposite-field pursuit is lackadaisical, etc. I get the sense that maybe he is struggling with his new reads, but there comes a point in every play where the only defensive assignment is to fly to the ball. He’s a genius at flying to the ball, but I haven’t seen ANYTHING like that from him so far this season. If he truly is hurt, we’re in big trouble. I don’t buy at all the possibility he’s been told to play possum.
Disciplina Praesidium Civitatis.
I think you're missing the point.
He’s not being told to play possum, as you put it. He’s being told to maintain containment, and that translates into a half-second delay as he has to watch:
1. Which way the OL is blocking.
2. Which way the QB is rolling / if he’s rolling.
3. Read any misdirection.
He has to do all of these things before deciding to fly to the QB. And even when he does fly to QB, he can’t afford to miss deep and give up a running lane. I think these mental adjustments translate into physical slowdowns that will take time to fix and compensate for. Say what you will about having DEs that fly straight to the QB — such Dline play can and will get beat by an above average QB and OL (lineman are taught to block upfield — behind the QB, and they love it when DEs pin their ears back because they’re easy to chip block upfield).
Also, we haven’t seen much of Kindle blitzing out of the OLB position — which is where he played most of last year. I think he’s probably more comfortable there anyways, and is in a better position to read the play from there.
The swine flu takes a Will Muschamp shot every September.
by pleaseplaykindle on Sep 15, 2009 1:06 AM CDT up reply actions
I Should Add:
Lineman love it when DEs pin their ears back unless those ends happen to be Brian Orakpo who bascially gets by them as if they’re not there. But even Rak ran himself out of plays last year.
The swine flu takes a Will Muschamp shot every September.
by pleaseplaykindle on Sep 15, 2009 1:07 AM CDT up reply actions
Check the Splits
Sergio’s impact on film is absolutely evident. When he’s not making the bone rattling hit, he’s following the feces trail of frightened prey. Sergio’s impact this year statistically may appear subpar, but remember the mantra, “stats are for losers”. Sam Acho is having a breakout year and that is largley due to Sergio’s pursuit.
Notice also the splits O-lines are taking. Wyoming almost needed a Canadian passport for their tackles to lineup as wide as they were. That’s why we saw alot of Lamar, Ben Alexander, and interior D-line making more backfield tackles. This is one way opposing offenses are trying to exploit our “suspect interior D-line”. I think now we see they are no longer suspect. These guys are full-on and kicking tail. They have really stepped up and did an amzing job handling whatever Wyoming threw at them. Ben Alexander needed a seasonal park pass by games end due to the extended visits he was taking into the Cowboy backfield. He repeatedly showed up with great penetration and motor, and remember that was at 8000 feet. Lamar Houston just totally owned Wyoming blockers by the end of the 1st quarter.
If you look closely at the highlights you will see Sergio in hot pursuit on several plays only to be a step short of a sack or tfl, especially when coming off the backside. I honestly don’t think he’s too mcuh slower, even if so, then not by a measurable step.
Tech has the same tendancy in their splits. I look for more stunts bringing Sergio looping inside or shootings some gaps if teams continue this strategy.
The moral of the story is Sergio is the man.
I think you're on it
Lots of good opinions here, but I believe this has a more to do with Boom being conservative against early patsies than anything else. Muschamp tends to single out one stud and turn him loose anywhere on the field, but only once the competition gets more sturdy.
If we get ahead early on, I look for Sergio to come at Grizzly Adams from Llano on one play, then Bandera on the next, and then – when you least expect it – the dreaded LaGrange blitz. I’m looking for Sergio to have a big game on Saturday.
Friends may come and go, but enemies accumulate.
- Thomas Jones
by beast in bama on Sep 15, 2009 5:09 PM CDT up reply actions
Agreed
Also watch Keenan Robinson. He’s looked like a lurching tiger ready to explode on someone.
I think we will see Muschamps fire at it’s finest this Saturday.
Looks like I'm not alone
Kirk Bohls isn’t necessarily buying the coaches’, and in particular, Muschamp’s spin moves, either.
Let’s say for grins that Sergio is playing contain first. That would imply that Acho is also playing contain first – so why the difference between Kindle and Acho in production? There’s still something not right
Sacks are hard to come by
Did you guys not notice that Kindle hit the Wyoming QB like 5 times in the game? He was forcing the QB to get rid of the ball way before he wanted to and this helps our whole defense. It may not show up in the box score, but Kindle’s impact is being felt. Our defense gave up 260 total yards and basically no points to Wyoming (I think we should be able to attribute the 10 points to the special teams). So what if they gave up 20 against ULM. One of those TD’s was on a 75 yard pass, and their other TD came late in the 4th quarter against mostly 3rd teamers getting their first game experience. The defense is going to be fine whether we see the sacks in the Kindle’s column or not.
He's Stiff and slow from the added bulk.
Sergio hasn’t learned to play with the added bulk yet. It’s going to take him a few more games I think. He’s a good player. Is he great? I don’t think so but he’s going to make plays once the schemes and his body catch up. I think he’s lost a step but as he gets in shape over the season he will get stronger.
I’ve been critcal of her thus far also, but I’m hoping he comes around and goes crazy on the field. Our D just needs to get pissed. The only guys on the field that celebrate are our cocky DB’s.
Let’s see what Sergio and team do vs a pretty good/underrated Tech team.
Kindle is there in a big way
I re-watched the game last night and now I don’t know where this thread came from. I thought he was dominant. He hit the QB a bunch, drew double teams, disrupted plays, etc., etc. He made Acho, Houston, the linebackers, the entire defense better. He didn’t look slow to me either. The coaches said he graded as the best D-lineman. If he had happened to get a sack or a couple TFL’s we would never be having this conversation.
This is a case where the other team game-plans around him, like double covering a badass receiver, and while that player doesn’t show up in the stats as much, the rest of the team does in a big way. Watch, Tech or someone else will pay more attention to Houston/Acho and Kindle will wreak havoc.
just FYI,
“wherefore” actually means “why.”
by rubber_soul on Sep 15, 2009 1:13 PM CDT reply actions 1 recs
i was gonna point that out too
but i didn’t want to get any shit for doing it. you are a bigger man than i.
by Orangetower87 on Sep 16, 2009 8:44 AM CDT up reply actions
I thought I saw that as well
but it was hard to clearly make out a number on Versus’ “HD”
Disciplina Praesidium Civitatis.
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