Some 2010 observations/questions...

I have seen the stats and don’t think they tell the whole story in this particular case. IMO the defense is the strongest unit on the field, but I wouldn’t say they are above reproach. Then there is no room for improvement. :) My original post wasn’t directed to attack the defense, just some observations of this team vs. past Muschamp defenses while at UT.

It is true that coach boom has not acted like himself this yr. Because of our horrible offense and turnovers, it has put our defense in bad positions this yr and probably prevented coach boom from doing certain things.

However, there were numerous times that we needed desperately to get a 3 & out but we failed to get a stop. Also, our red zone d has failed us this yr big time. It seems we give up td’s instead of fg’s anytime a team gets inside our 25.

it has been a complete fail from the entire team this year.

I don’t think we have any leadership on any side of the ball, defense included. I think everybody expected Acho to take the role, but it just hasn’t happened.

As for pre-snap adjustments, look at the talent we lost last year. Muckelroy was quite the loss, but would you really put him above ET or Sergio? I don’t think anybody expected this defense to miss ET as much as it does, and Blake Gideon has been completely exposed now that he’s out from under ET’s shadow. Our defensive losses consisted of pretty smart guys and maybe our current crew just doesn’t know how to adjust as quickly.

Pass rush: Lack of depth and lack of development of talent, IMO. We have been destroyed by injuries this year, but that’s no excuse, every football team gets injured, we should have enough talent ready to step in and assume the role. See: RBs, O-line as well.

I’m not going to say anything about Chykie, his UT career is over due to injuries and I wish him the best. Nobody can say the guy didn’t try.

As for Gideon, I have written many a times on this site how much he makes my blood boil as well. I hate his little bull shit sprinter’s lunge after allowing a 60 yd TD run because of his shitty angle, his kill shots (twice this season on our own players), the way he gets dump trucked by 150 lb RBs and his tendency to run his mouth all the time, even when we’re getting our shit kicked in at home and the game is out of reach. This list could go on forever, but I’ll end it right there.

1. Why so many injuries? Is there a conditioning problem?
2. Why do we seem to be so thin at so many positions? Is it recruiting or the injuries?
3. Why can’t we find a good tight end who can catch the ball?
4. Why don’t we have a half-decent RB?
5. Why can’t our receivers catch the ball?
6. Why do we announce we are going to a more balanced attack with a power running game, and then abandon it when we fall behind, as if a 2-3 yard passing “attack” is going to move us down the field any quicker?
7. What happened with DJ Monroe? We were first told he couldn’t pass block, then that he didn’t know the playbook. If he was stupid, lazy, or incompetent, why didn’t we know that before we signed him?
8. Regardless of what you think of GG, why hasn’t the back-up QB gotten any meaningful playing time this year, especially after seeing what happened when Colt went down in the MNC game? Why take the red shirt off McCoy2 to only play one series against Rice? After 5 int’s in one game, we were told McCoy2 didn’t come in because he wasn’t warmed up. When the coaches realized the silliness of that excuse, they said GG gave them the best chance to win and that they didn’t want to “crush” him. Then the rumors began to leak out that McCoy2 wasn’t ready for prime time. Why recruit a player (regardless of his name) if you are afraid to play him? How do you know what he can do until he actually is in a game? And finally why do you recruit a QB if you think his ego is so fragile that it will be “crushed” were he to be taken out for even part of a game?