UA fans, a question about Saban's future direction for program.

Bama's defense is predicated on the perfect play call. It works well with a slower tempo. But once teams are able to ramp up the tempo, Bama's defense is effectively neutralized.

I think you're seeing his defense change before your eyes. He's started recruiting more fast twitch guys at linebacker and end this year as opposed to the thumpers he's signed in the past.

Now, we're still going to have 250-260 pound linebackers, but we're going to have some 220-240 pounders that can run too.

Guys like Keith Holcombe, Ronnie Clark, and Christian Miller are 210-220 pounders recruited to play linebacker.

In the past, he didn't take a guy that size at linebacker unless they stood out as a special football player (Mosley)

McClain, Hightower Ragland, Hubbard, Dickson, Upshaw etc. These are all huge, powerful guys. There is always going to be a place for guys like that on this defense, but in the past there was only a place for guys like that on this defense. Saban is starting to adapt to some of the offenses that are springing up in this league.

No one evaluates a recruit like saban, and most of us know that he has set measurables that a kid has to meet to be recruited at his position. I think some of those measurables ranges are starting to change

Instead of looking for 4 linebackers that wil lplay at 250 one day, he's looking for 2 that will play at 250 and 2 that will play at 230. That's what it looks like to me with the way this class is shaping up anyway.

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UA's issue is Bama can't defend a legitimate dual threat QB worth squat.

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This is ultimately due to our inability to create pressure with 4 down linemen.

If you look at our key games the past 2 years even in our championship season we struggled converting 3rd downs. That is another reason why we have struggled against some of these teams because we haven't had these long clock killing drives.

OJ Howard only getting 17 receptions seems unacceptable. He should be such a deadly weapon, but he was never really unitized.

Our screen game also disappeared for some reason.

Okay, appreciate the clarification regarding Nuss. It'll be interesting to see who the new OC will be.

And kudos to Saban for adapting to changing reality...very Bryant like.



And Swoopin.....suck a dick.

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Was Nuss 'given time to pursue opportunities elsewhere'?

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the writing seems to have been written on the wall. It appears that he was gone during bowl practices what with Kiffin coming to "evaluate" the offense.

In terms of defense, someone like Pettway is an upgrade over Hubbard. Pettway had a knack for getting to the quarterback. He's also good at takeaways :rimshot:
I think he will help contain a lot better than Hubbard. Hubbard was sometimes Clowneyesque in the way he'd take off plays.

Also think our cbs will be better next year. Saban's defense is complicated for young cbs, but they are typically improved year two. I do wish that we'd simply some of the checks to make it easier on the cbs, but that's not how Saban operates.

With Nuss I think there were some idealogical differences. I think it was the SECCG where Saban said at half that we needed to run the ball more. This was just a few weeks after the ATM loss when Saban commented to Eli Gold "I don't know why we didn't jus run the ball." I think Nuss was great at coming up with game plans beforehand, but lacked in-game adjustments. Also criminal that Henry had eight carries in the OU game while Yeldon is not 100%. Strong rumors suggesting that he had hurt his hip earlier in the season, and he also did something to his ankle at the Miss State game. Don't know how it can be justified that a hobbling Yeldon is better than a healthy Henry. Henry in high school would get a lot of carries, so it's not like he isn't used to it.

Funny how perceptions develop. Bama has defended several legitimate dual threat QB's. As someone said earlier, Saban's defense is predicated on taking away what a team wants to do offensively and make them uncomfortable. When Bama has lost, the opposing QB has been able to make plays when he may have been uncomfortable with what he was given.

Still, two of our big losses the past 2 years(A&M last year, Auburn this year) it was our offense that failed to convert a critical 4th down in the 4th quarter.


The defense is fine. We didn't have the personnel this year to run it the way he wants to. The CB's were exposed a few times, and it caught up with us in the Sugar Bowl against a hot QB. The defense will be fine, but we may still see some more tinkering with it. We've already seen some. But the offense was just too stagnant this year. With the talent we had, that should not have happened. It was time for a change, and I look forward to seeing what changes are made.