Breakdown of Offense vs Utah By Player
Backfield and TE's
Rudock
I thought the pick six was egregious, he should have never even looked at that side of the field to begin with. The right side of the field had Chesson running wide open on an out route and the LB covering Isaac had 10+ yards of cushion on a 3rd & 3. The other two INT's were probably on Perry. He didn't get sacked, but he did get hit about 7 times on dropbacks (5 were in the 2nd half) plus the personal foul on the sidelines. He targeted AJ Williams on two key 3rd downs... needs to stop doing that. He should have checked the 4th down run Smith got stuffed on to the weak side. I don't know if Harbaugh allows this but we would have converted a weak side run if Kalis, Mags and Williams handle thier blocks. We were outnumbered to the strong side. Also I think he should scramble to pass not to run, as he is the opposite of fast. He played a lot better than I thought live, he was accurate on every ball but the long ones. He went 27/43 and the 16 incompletions break down as:
- 3 INT (one his fault)
- 3 deep throws
- 4 drops (Smith, Perry, Darboh[2])
- 2 Williams targets
- 1 throw high and behind Butt on which he got hit because Isaac didn't block a blitzer
- 1 failed throwback screen
- 1 PBU intended for Butt
- 1 throw away.
I count only half of those 16 being his fault not including the throw away. He was dead accurate on damn near every single pass he threw. There are only 5 passes I would deem inaccurate or uncatchable out of the 43 he attempted. That is outstanding. Even with the pick six, if Grant Perry runs his route correctly I think that we win this game. To me at least, that bodes very well for the future. On the other hand he did have a paltry 6.5 YPA which is in the CJ Brown/Joel Stave territory. That number has to go up and if he can start hitting the long balls it will. This was a off day for Rudock that looked worse than it actually was so hold off on the "PUT IN SHANE!" chants for now.
Smith
Still slow. He missed some cutbacks lanes but also found some cutback lanes. The line didn't get much movement so everything was congested and he had a tough go of it. He should probably follow Kerridge, Poggi and Kalis a bit more on lead blocks. Also had a bad drop. With Drake Johnson still out he and Isaac are the best backs on the roster and as long as he keeps churning out YAC and doesn't fumble he should continue to start unless Isaac breaks out.
Isaac
I thought he should have got more touches. He looked pretty decent on the touches he did get. He missed a linebacker blitz even though he was staring right at him and got Rudock blown up. This might be why he was stuck ont the sidelines. I think Rudock should throw to him more often if he is split out.
Kerridge
Typical great game from him. He hit people and they went backwards.
Butt
'nuff said.
Williams
They rarely ran his way so all he had were kick out blocks which he still missed about 30% of the time. He did have a nice catch that was behind him and away from his body. Maybe he can get move involved in the passing game but I doubt it. We don't really have another inline TE to play over him so he will probably continue to get snaps.
Poggi
He didn't make a lot of obvious mistakes. He pretty muched looked like Kerridge Lite out there. He did whiff on a block mid 2nd Q.
OL
This might be the 2012 line right now as far as overall performance. Pretty good in pass protection and not so much in the run game. After the past 2 years that's definitely progress. There were substanstially fewer missed assignments but we were unable to move Utah's DL off the ball. We couldn't consistently get to the second level and we had trouble sustaining blocks on the 1st level. On the bright side though, there were only TWO enforced penalties the whole night. I didn't even see any obvious holding calls the refs may have missed. Overall we got called for a false start (M. Cole) and a snap infraction (Glasgow). The OL got better as the night went on, I'mm very interested to see where we are at by midseason.
M. Cole
He had a lousy start to the game, could not make a block in space to save his life. He got a lot better as the game went on. He got beat a couple times in pass protection but mostly held up. He caused the 1 throw away Rudock had. In the run game he was inconsistent. He is good at sealing and in the 2nd half he got pretty good at blocking guys in open space but when it comes to moving people he still has a ways to go.
Braden
He was wildly inconsistent. He stilll doesn't bend very well and still leans on guys making him susceptible to swim moves and getting his blocks shed. He also plays high which allows the DT to get under him and push him backward. He got blown up on several run plays. A few times that meant making Kalis go around him and delaying the pull which allowed LB's to stop runs closer to the LOS. On the QB sneak where Rudock slipped, ith was because Braden had a DT in his chest pushing him 3 yards back, which caused Braden's right foot to take out Rudock's left, thus ending the play. His pass pro was spotty at best, he needs to anchor down and move laterally to keep guys in front of him or at least fire out at them a bit. He can't just take a lazy pass set, give a guy a punch and expect that to do the job. He can pull though which is comforting. He was called for a illegal lineman downfield penalty but it was declined.
Glasgow
He was our best looking OL as per usual. I saw him pull a few times from the center spot and he looked good doing so. He actually got some movement on their DT's which was impressive given the rest of the OL.
Kalis
Like Cole he started out with his head in his rear end but picked it up as the game went along. He needs to get more consistent on identifying who he should block when he pulls on power, ideally it should be the MIKE LB and usually it is but he should hit the first guy to cross his face. Too often he lets a guy run right past him and blow up the play and proceed to block no one. He got overpowered a few times but also got a few pancakes.
Magnuson
He was second only to Glasgow in production. I don't think I saw him miss one block and his pass protection was superb. Like the rest of the OL, he didn't get much movement but his guy wasn't making the tackle either.
WR
The WR as a whole played a hell of a lot better than I thought they would. Utah is replacing some pretty good corners from last year but they have put more than a few in the league since Wittingham got the job so its not like he just got lucky with the crop he had last year. Hopefully Utah has a good pass defense and this can be signs of what is to come this season. Obiviously I can't full evaluate the WR because 70% of the time they are off camera but from what I could tell they were more than adequate.
Darboh
He played better than I expected. He ran some good routes and played pretty physical. He had a couple catches where he bodied out the DB for the ball. He did have two drops but he is without question our best wide out.
Chesson
I thought he should have been targeted more as he was open frequently from what I could tell from the camera angle. He got open deep twice on an out and up and a seam route, if we can start hitting those it will take this offense to the HNL (Hole Nubba Lebel) and help open up holes in the run game.
Perry
He cut his out route short causing an INT and I believe he ran a corner route too shallow which also cause an INT. They were both freshman mistakes that unfortunately resulted in turnovers. He did have two huge blocks to spring Darboh on quick screens. Also was instrumental on the last drive. If he can finish his routes we have a pretty good slot reciever. Did have one drop though.
Harris
Not targeted. Too skinny. Needs 15-20 lbs ASAP. In desperate need of spinach.
B. Cole
He caught one screen pass and subsequently got blown up. Thus ended Cole's role in the offense.
September 5th, 2015 at 8:39 AM ^
But like Harbaugh said in his postgame presser, its execution that needs fixing. We were a hair off on the deep shots, the line would create some holes and get blown up on other plays, and a couple of the INT's were the fault of a freshman and a 5th year walk-on not being exactly on the same page.
Its clear to me at least that Rudock is still the best option, and hopefully we can use Oregon State and UNLV as tuneup for what should be a tough BYU team.
Did anyone get a good look at Oregon State? i looked at the final score and saw that their QB rushed for 152 yards, and their defense didn't allow a point. Any cause for concern there?
September 5th, 2015 at 9:23 AM ^
I watched parts of that game. OSU used 2 QBs, and the one they used in the second half is a freshman who looks pretty fast and elusive. Otoh, they were playing Weber State, an FCS school that has won two games each of the last three years, so nowhere near the level of play of say a North Dakota State (who WSU plays next week). John L. Smith was the WSU coach in 2012 until he jumped to Arkansas St before the season started. One of the better WSU players last night was a 5'9" middle linebacker who was injured in the second half (I think it was late 3rd quarter or early 4th) and sat out the rest of the game. A few of the WSU starters could play at the Div 1 level
OSU held WSU's offense scoreless, the only points being on a pick six, but OSU's offense didn't seem all that potent either. Twelve of their points came from FGs. OSU's defense did dominate the game, but WSU hasn't even been a competent or successful FCS team in recent years, so I don't know how much that tells us.
September 5th, 2015 at 10:08 AM ^
No. They will be bad. 2nd or 3rd worst team UM plays all year - they will be Indiana level without the Indiana offense.
September 5th, 2015 at 9:00 AM ^
September 5th, 2015 at 3:08 PM ^
September 5th, 2015 at 6:29 PM ^
September 6th, 2015 at 9:15 PM ^
I too watched that play multiple times. I agree that there is a legitimate chance that Kalis misread the play (or Kerridge did). Nevertheless, I think that the decision tree here for Smith would be - go where Kalis goes.
There was a really good chance to get first down (and more) yardage by following the lead blocker on that play. But there was also a good chance of getting tackled from behind while waiting for that to happen.
When I was listening to Harbaugh's presser it seemed a bit more 'not great blocking' than 'missing some holes'.
These are the plays that I really hope we get some more information or insight about. I LOVE watching closely during gametime, and replaying things during commericals and after the game. This play in particular made me wonder who needs to get better moving forward.
Ultimately, this may be one of those plays where the two guys just 'weren't on the same page'. Sometimes the WR cuts one way and the QB thinks he's going the other way. Happens at every level it it is rarely a clear cut 'mistake'. But if we learn where the reads are supposed to be, I feel like a more knowledgable fan.
September 8th, 2015 at 8:05 AM ^
It was like they were blocking two different plays: Kerrige and Kalis for an outside run, Poggi and Cole for an inside run. Got to get on the same page.
September 5th, 2015 at 9:39 AM ^
looks really soft to me. Doesn't see to be going full speed, and always goes down on first contact. That's how it looked live. Maybe he was better than that. Not impressed.
September 5th, 2015 at 2:56 PM ^
September 5th, 2015 at 10:05 AM ^
I like this format. I'm looking forward to seeing this after each game. So keep it up!
September 5th, 2015 at 10:06 AM ^
Thanks for the breakdown. Just curious on how you did the OL analysis - did you go back and watch every play like Brian does or were you watching bits and pieces?.
I am not that worried about rudock because I think he will recover to be what he is ... a "meh' QB which is fine as long as UM can run the ball. If we can't run the ball, we are simply screwed. The last INT was really bad for a 5th year sr - not only did he stare down Perry the whole route he then force fed the ball- that was vintage Gardner and I thought rudock would not do that after his whopping 5 INTs all last year.
We face 2 shitty defenses in a row so we won't be able to tell much about the running game and how projects for the rest of the year but at least it will help them gain confidence and learn in-game execution. I am hoping Drake is back for BYU because they carry in a top 20ish type of rush defense and with the amount of pressure Taysom Hillis going to cause us, we are going to need to score in the 30s IMO and that can't all be on rudock.
September 5th, 2015 at 11:23 AM ^
September 5th, 2015 at 12:24 PM ^
The last pick was 90% rudock staring down Perry. Perry didn't make a great cut and the DB made a great move to get under the WR.
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September 5th, 2015 at 2:03 PM ^
it doesn't matter if Perry ran a perfect route, Utah CBs would still undercut the route to get the ball. It's 100% on Rudock. Rudock kept staring at Perry and he knew that it was coming before he made the cut
September 5th, 2015 at 12:53 PM ^
-I think Perry played way to much. Nice young player, but to many snaps for him and it hurt us.
-After seeing Braden struggle AGAIN I'm ready to see Dawson. Give me some nasty in the OL that we always hear Dawson has. Some nasty/tough play makes me more forgivening of mistakes.
-(Kalis)In High School football you learn to block the first man when you pull. Never, ever let a defender run free or across your face to try and find someone to block. I played at a poorly Coached high school program and had that burned into me by junior year. I played guard and DE.
-Issac needs to use his size.
-This will be a much better team by mid season.
September 5th, 2015 at 2:10 PM ^
September 5th, 2015 at 2:01 PM ^
Rudock is at fault for one INT? He is at fault for two INTs, the overthrow of Perry. He simply overthrew him by a mile.
September 5th, 2015 at 3:20 PM ^
September 5th, 2015 at 3:26 PM ^
to blame it on Perry is silly. It was high and behind Perry so how can you say that he ran a bad route?
September 5th, 2015 at 8:29 PM ^
Because its much more likely to be a freshman not knowing the route than it is a fifth-year senior not knowing the route?
We'll probably never know, but you have to go with inherent probabilities in that case.
September 6th, 2015 at 2:12 AM ^
and Rudock simply overthrew him bad? That happens.
September 5th, 2015 at 2:44 PM ^
September 5th, 2015 at 3:10 PM ^
September 5th, 2015 at 7:21 PM ^
It is inexplicable to me how a QB who was a game manager generates three INT's. I disagree on the second INT. If you are running a route 25 yards down the field in the middle of the field you do not run a timing route. If the QB is throwing the ball to a spot before a receiver breaks, that is on the coach.
In theory mistakes can be corrected. What is less likely to be corrected is a QB's accuracy, especially when he is in the 5th year. You are who you are. I counted only three down the field completions until garbage time.
I am of the opinion part of the problems in the run game was Utah selling out to stop the run. That was the reason why Chesson was so open. If we can't get good teams to respect the downfield passing game we will have the same struggles as Iowa did. I'm not asking for air raid. But we need something.
September 7th, 2015 at 10:53 PM ^
With your assessment of Poggi.
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