'Bama's bad snapping
How much of Alabama's bad snapping was that the center was just awful at basic football, and how much of it was Michigan D-line induced?
His snapping was never sharp, but the real mistakes didn't seem to really come into play until later in the game. I am wondering if our DTs' unusual quickness and ferocity was getting the center to blink when he should have been focusing on his job.
I am seeing on the Tide boards people moaning about "if only our guy knew how to snap the ball!" as if he didn't have line up directly opposite Mason Graham. I know their center has been iffy all season, but was it worse than usual on Monday?
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:10 PM ^
100% bad snapper, he’s been doing that all year
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:16 PM ^
Meh, i blame it on Milroe being too tall.
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:27 PM ^
Milroe played short-stop for much of the season
January 3rd, 2024 at 3:32 PM ^
If you know this, and you have a month to fix it, but you don't...
Then forgive me if I can't bring myself to consider you the greatest coach in CFB history.
January 3rd, 2024 at 10:25 PM ^
Greatest recruiter. Plenty of coaches could do what he does with that talent.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:22 PM ^
While I do agree that the vast majority of the snaps are the centers fault, but Milroe is known to take his eyes off the ball as well.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:23 PM ^
Yep. Doesn't matter if you have 1992-era Cortez Kennedy lined up against you, your 1st priority has to be getting the ball into your QBs hands. Alabama C never figured that out, all year. Weird weakness for a top-tier team, but true.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:25 PM ^
Also weird that Alabama did not have another guy who could step in and snap the ball once it became clear earlier in the year that this guy could not fix the issue.
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:19 PM ^
I have been thinking a lot about this too. Undoubtedly they have someone else who can snap, but the combination of snapping, blocking (particularly after having to snap) and calling protection/diagnosing pressure is all part of it too. Alabama must have come to the conclusion that a couple of bad snaps a game was less of an issue than taking a step down in those other areas.
January 3rd, 2024 at 3:08 PM ^
5 stars everywhere on their roster except for center.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:25 PM ^
It was a known problem all year and should've cost them the Auburn game as well.
January 3rd, 2024 at 3:22 PM ^
but I also think the dude was getting the yips as the game went on. Its a huge stage and Michigans D-line was terrorizing them. His snaps were absolutely all over the place and it seemed to be getting worse as the game progressed
Somewhat shocking Alabama didn't have anyone else who could play the position better
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:10 PM ^
it was bad for them for a lot of the year. "Fourth and Milroe" against auburn doesn't happen without a crazy snap beforehand
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:11 PM ^
Seems like being able to snap the ball should be job requirement for a center.
January 3rd, 2024 at 6:53 PM ^
Yes. If he's having an issue snapping all season, you would think of maybe getting a new player as a center...but, what do I know.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:14 PM ^
Didn't seem to be a problem when they gashed us for a good amount of yards in the third and part of the fourth quarter.
But honestly, as I heard on one of the analysis on tv say, our team speed isn't just speed, it's being prepared. If their center was prepared, confident and skilled...it wouldn't have been a problem. Their boards are whining.... like, "Gosh, how good would we be if we didn't suck?"
Good D line play can have an effect all over the place, like inducing false starts, etc.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:31 PM ^
If the bad snaps don't happen, Bama probably wins. But that cuts two ways...take away the dropped punt, the missed XP, and the missed FG on Michigan's side, and they're up a lot more than 3 points at half. Shoot, what if their FG kicker misses one of his 50-yarders (as good as he is, it's hard to hit those consistently).
But at the end of the day, they had as much of a chance to win despite their poor snaps as Michigan did despite their special teams. The mistakes sort of evened the game out. And Michigan rose to the occasion at the end while Bama flinched. The better team won.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:53 PM ^
Shoot, OSU has only had one bad half against Michigan in the last 3 years.
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:13 PM ^
A half? More like only 5 bad plays.
Without those 5 plays they probably score 100 each of the past three years.
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:43 PM ^
To be fair to Ryan Day, he never specified how long it would take to hang a hundred on Michigan.
At the current pace, Day will officially hang a hundred during the 1st quarter of the 2025 game.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:15 PM ^
Kinda wild Bama having these issues given the talent on the roster they have.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:17 PM ^
My thoughts exactly.
Five stars everywhere, and Saban can’t find a guy to hike the ball correctly on a consistent basis?
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:37 PM ^
In a similar vein, I'm actually kind of shocked at how good Bama's kicker was (and punter too). It used to be that despite the peak Saban Bama teams having otherworldly talent, they never seemed to have a decent kicker. For example, remember the 2011 1v2 LSU 9-6 win over Bama that should have kept Bama out of the BCS championship game (because in 2006 the thought of a rematch was sacrilegious)? Bama's kickers combined to go 2/6 on FGs in that game...
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:16 PM ^
I think it is a mixture of all...
1. The field's grass was going to be challenging and we could see it even on our side (i.e. the PAT). And both schools had to be accustomed in that week...
2. Alabama center and Milroe had history of challenges in prior games
3. Defense was pressuring the line...
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:16 PM ^
I mentioned it elsewhere, but Brian hit the nail on the head in the pregame podcast when he said it would be an issue.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:19 PM ^
Did Bama not know this last year already ? Where's the NIL dump truck they should have driven to Drake Nugent's front door?
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:20 PM ^
I don't think a Stanford grad would get by Bama admissions.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:20 PM ^
How can a top team not be able to field a center that can reliably snap the ball? This seems both like something that could be fixed/improved and if not that you would find someone else. To me, snapping the ball is an important job for a center.
I don't know the guys history/background, but maybe Saban should have recruited a 'lowly' 3* that is able to consistently hike the ball.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:20 PM ^
Honestly, I thought Michigan's snapping on s/t was, a little off as well, along with ball placement, there could be some field issues as well, or just nerves as the announcers said.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:24 PM ^
Been doing it all year. But in fairness, if I had to snap the ball with Jenkins, Grant, and Graham exhaling into my facemask, I'd be fucking terrified.
So yeah, I get it... That guy will be buying his own drinks in Tuscaloosa whenever he comes back.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:24 PM ^
Both?
Bama's center had a history of iffy snaps. So it's nothing exactly "new" for him.
But I mean Michigan's DL was clearly a disruptive force. And the constant blitzing made it more of a nightmare for them. When you are put under pressure, you may revert to bad habits and tendencies. Like snapping the ball poorly. Or panicking on a bad snap and running straight into the line on the last play like Milroe did.
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:35 PM ^
Yep, I thought the center was rushed and the quick but low snap that was happening a lot was the result. I think he felt the pressure of the all out blitz trying to get the ball back to fast without good follow through on the snaps.
6 sacks, 10 tfl's and many pressures will do that to an offense, qb and center.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:30 PM ^
I'm just going to take the easy answer and be certain that Michigan DL was the cause
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:36 PM ^
Jalen Hurts commented on Jason Kelce's snapping technique and how fast the snap took place. He said he had to get into the "athletic position" in order to take the snap. Kelce responded with "I need my hand back."
I think their center had his hands full with our defensive front and he was visibly frustrated.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:40 PM ^
Bama has 19 OL on their roster. 12 of the 19 are 4 or 5 star prospects.
The center needs to do more than just snap the ball. Recognizing the defense and calling out adjustments is a major responsibility of the center.
There are pretty basic techniques involved in the snap. Maybe .. just maybe… the coaching staff should have focused a bit more on his technique. I’m not calling him out - if this has been an issue for a while - then, what actions / coaching. / development / help did their staff provide?
A question, since I don’t recall. Bama first series - or in the first half - did any “good snaps” wind up as a sack? The core issue - Bama was not prepared for Michigan’s slow and undersized DL. (Yes, sarcasm - I was sick and tired of hearing how big and fast everyone on Bama’s roster was - and, that Michigan couldn’t match up with them.)
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:43 PM ^
He did what he always does, so they’re basically saying “if only we had a better team.”
Michigan’s special teams mistakes were highly uncharacteristic (maybe characteristic for bowl season).
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:00 PM ^
I heard “if we had better players.” I can’t figure that out… Bama has had the most talented roster in seven of the last nine seasons - and, in the two seasons they weren’t the most talented - they were ranked second.
Maybe they think Bama should have the roster of the 49ers, Ravens,or another NFL team.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:49 PM ^
It is an amazing technical glitch, if you will, for a team such as Alabama to have, although on one of those snaps, Milroe was looking somewhere the ball certainly was not, a credit to how distracted Michigan had made him.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:51 PM ^
It's a bad center. He did get the cyan circle for a reason. But damn, you figure that Alabama could find someone, anyone who could snap and block decently on a consistent basis. Especially on the OL, you can move people around to different positions to fit the current needs of them team. I just can't believe they aren't deep enough to shift things around to find a college-level center. Or is Saban too stubborn to make moves like that? It just doesn't make any sense at all to me.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:56 PM ^
Totally. This looks to kill at least a drive or two a game, and with 'Bama having somewhat of a boom or bust offense, you can't afford to lose those possessions for something that seems this readily fixable.
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:59 PM ^
Their center is a critical piece to the 'bust' aspect of their boom and bust offense.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:55 PM ^
Previews covered this at great (and accurate) length. They've had this problem all year long. Better question is why a team like Alabama is unable to plug someone in who does not have this problem.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:57 PM ^
He was iffy all year. 40% of his snaps were at the knees or below. Saban didn't have Milroe under center for a reason, and I think it was to cover up some significant flaw that we'll hear about next year when the kid is benched mid-season for Justin Sayin.
January 3rd, 2024 at 1:58 PM ^
Bama's center has not been great this year, and this happened to be the worst game. Because it's the center position, the poor play had an outsized impact to the game.
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:06 PM ^
What's the tide's board site called? I'd like to read some really intellectual schadenfreude!!! Please.
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:20 PM ^
They are actually civilized for the most part. Unlike some "warriors" I could mention.
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:09 PM ^
he’s been low snapping for a minute. Watch the SEC championship.
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:13 PM ^
He didn't seem to be using a dead snap and I have no idea why he wouldn't. Has it fallen out of favor?
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:18 PM ^
Amazing story from Kris Jenkins.
Michigan defensive lineman Kris Jenkins witnessed it from the trenches and had the same question as any Alabama fan watching: what is going on?
"I was kind of surprised," Jenkins said in the locker room after Michigan's 27-20 overtime win in the College Football Playoff semifinal. "I was like, what happened bro? I was genuinely, like, confused. I wasn't even trying to talk trash. I was just like -- what's going on?
"He ain't say nothing."
https://www.reddit.com/r/CFB/comments/18wy62d/michigan_dl_kris_jenkins_…
January 3rd, 2024 at 2:24 PM ^
I bet he wished he had some of Michigan's white powder...