Alabama’s approach to OSU last season
I watched the highlights of OSU vs Alabama in the 2021 National Championship to see what the strategy was when OSU was playing great last season.
A few take aways
Offense
- Alabama utilized their RB in the pass game quite a bit, particularly with play action. After last week I’d say we have at least two RBs who can be threats in this area.
- There were very few designed QB runs, but when the Buckeyes left a lane open Mac scrambled for a lot of “easy” yards. Cade doesn’t have to be a track star to do similar things, and in Bama’s case it forced OSU to bring a spy on a good number of plays and opened things up elsewhere.
- Smith commanded a lot of respect in the passing game. This prevented OSU from stacking the box, and anytime they committed to the run Smith made them pay. I think this would be the hardest piece to mimic as we don’t have a similar bonafide WR star with that size… maybe Anthony?
Defense
- As many on the site have pointed out, you have to prevent the big play. Alabama gave up some big plays but nothing that went all the way to the house, forcing redzone offense, and made OSU kick 2 field goals.
- Open field tackling was critical. There were many chances for OSU to break a big play, but catching someone’s feet or getting off a block quickly were critical in the first half of that game. We will definitely need Green back for this game.
- Alabama didn’t necessarily have to get home, but they made sure to run the QB off his spot to make throws harder. Notably they forced Fields up the middle if he scrambled, I didn’t see a single play where they let him run to the edge.
I want to note that OSU had Olave and Wilson out there last season with Fields as their QB, who is much better than Stroud. This offense may not be able to be stopped, but it can be controlled. Go Blue.
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:31 PM ^
Can Michigan run the Alabama plan without the Alabama players?
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:39 PM ^
Hardest part is our lack of receiver threat, which in the Alabama case prevented press coverage. We don’t have to exactly copy them, but they did win by 20+, so a flattering imitation could give us a chance.
Intentionally left out that Najee Harris treated their defense the way Haskins treated Indiana’s because there is no way we mimic that.
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:39 PM ^
Bama's offense was just as, if not more high octane than OSU's.
Defensively they had legit NFL 1st and 2nd rounders all over.
In particular, they had Surtain and Josh Jobe.
Appreciate the insight, and realize you're not suggesting anything other than how Bama beat them. But even if we did some of the same things in terms of scheme, Bama had DUDES.
They had FIVE All-Americans and FIVE 1st rounders.
So they had an offense that could outscore OSU and a defense with athletes that could match OSU's athletes.
November 23rd, 2021 at 8:38 AM ^
Completely agree. OSU has been in 5 games this year that were 1 score games in the 4th quarter. Maybe some insight/analysis on how THOSE teams managed it would be more beneficial than breaking down what the most talented team in the country did. We’re a lot closer to Oregon/Penn State/Nebraska than we are Alabama.
November 23rd, 2021 at 9:32 AM ^
Agree with the OP: how anybody beat OSU is germane.
Also agree with you: how anybody kept OSU close is relevant.
Hopefully Michigan has a backroom coaching staff that has spent every minute since our loss in 2019 putting all the pieces together for the best gameplan with the chess pieces we bring to the table.
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:33 PM ^
I have barely have watched any non-Michigan football. How are OSU's Tackles? We need Hutchinson & Ojabo to destroy the OSU tackles and make Stroud amazingly uncomfortable in the pocket. If we cannot do this... we are in for a long event. Also, how well can McDonald disguise coverages?
We have done an alright job dialing up an offensive plan, just not executing it well (drops, penalties, etc). We have the right tools, just need everyone to do their job.
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:38 PM ^
You all know that PFF loves Hutch & Ojabo...but PFF also loves OSU's OTs; they've been tremendous. This will be the marquee head-to-head matchup that NFL scouts will be paying most attention to.
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:44 PM ^
I've got a feeling Ojbao is going to come back to earth.
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:03 PM ^
I remember how their front limited Chase and Rashan against the Buckeyes, though it seems a friendly whistle helped. David and Aidan are a better combo than those two, I believe, but if those refs give the Bucks a pass on some of these holds, it's going to be another long day for the Wolverines...
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:13 PM ^
Both of them were hurt going into that game. It’s possible OSU could have handled them even if they were at full strength, but we’ll never know. I’d guess their being dinged up had more to do with their ineffectiveness than anything ohio did
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:49 PM ^
This. Also our DTs were...handled...so the QB could cleanly step up into the pocket to avoid pressure.
November 22nd, 2021 at 11:25 PM ^
QB pressure was the key to the 2018 result. OSU got plenty of it on Patterson. We didn't get any on Haskins. Winovich didn't look remotely the same in that game as he had just weeks earlier. Some of it was probably facing a better OL, but a lot of it was being dinged up.
Unlike '16 and '18, the QB and rush ends (respectively) are fully healthy.
November 22nd, 2021 at 11:40 PM ^
Haskins had the ball out, usually complete, in 2 seconds on every single pass play in 2018. If Stroud can match that on Saturday, OSU will win big again. If M’s defense is able to make Stroud read a coverage take the extra second, there should be some chances to disrupt their passing game. Not stop it obviously but disrupt it. Who knows how much disruption M will need, but a relentless pass rush and disguised coverages will be a start.
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:41 PM ^
That seems random.
Lol 10 sacks isn't luck and it's the last game of the year.
You make it sound like he's Brandon Johns shooting 60% from 3. Well, of course he's going to come back to earth.
Ojabo is a monster, he'll be going up against one of the best lines he's faced all year. He'll need his A game, but that's not to imply his numbers or his impact has been inflated to this point.
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:49 PM ^
That’s weird because I have a feeling OSU tackles will come down to earth.
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:45 PM ^
From the OSU games I’ve watched where they’ve been “contained”, it’s largely been a factor of two things - 1) Getting pressure on Stroud as he can start missing people when he has to abandon his footwork and 2) hoping OSU beats themselves with turnovers.
I do think MacDonald might be well suited to this particular game as in the NFL, you come up against teams with talent like this at the WR position. I’d expect a lot of cover 2 with Dax shadowing one of the three and living with intermediate throws to Ruckert and Henderson out of the backfield.
The other thing I picked up on is that you can help yourself by setting OSU behind the chains. So get some sacks, TFLs, and penalties and make them convert 2nd and long and 3rd and long.
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:49 PM ^
It's gonna be a RPS game of mixing up coverages to delay Stroud from getting the ball out quickly.
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:51 PM ^
You mean they just hold on every play. Cool.
November 23rd, 2021 at 7:10 AM ^
Remind, because I could be wrong but wasn't it '19 where Chase young played for osu and UM had Paye and Uche and they thought was all these dudes would terrorize qbs's on both sides but it basically didn't happen at all?
Or am I totally off? It's weird but sometimes it does happen that way. I do think how out DT's play will determine a lot. They need to play big and "own their roles".
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:40 PM ^
OSU’s tackles are NFL ready. In fact so good that one dude 6’8” 380 (and athletic) now the starting right tackle resulted in last year’s starter moving to right guard. This dude Mundford, will also be in the NFL. Geez
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:46 PM ^
Just 6’8” 380? Pssshh.
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:41 PM ^
Very good they havent faced a tandem like Ojabo and Hutch though. Their O Line is by far the best Michigan has played this year. Hutch is by far the best DE they've faced all year.
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:44 PM ^
OSU's OL gives Stroud a lot of time to calmly survey the field. He has not had many sacks.
Michigan can only hope to throw off his timing, they won't be able to sack him. He's not Clifford and the OSU OL is not the PSU OL.
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:55 PM ^
To say that two potential top 20 draft D-ends won’t be able to sack a QB at all is just a dumb take. OSU’s tackles may very well be good but Mich St, Nebraska, Penn St, Tulsa and Oregon all sacked him twice. I agree with your point that OSU Oline is not PSU Oline but Ojabo and Hutch will get opportunities.
November 23rd, 2021 at 12:02 AM ^
Agree that there should be opportunities here. NFL DE's against NFL OT's should be a great matchup and I expect the D to win their fair share of pressures/hurries/knockdowns, if not sacks.
For the record, Kiper rates Petit-Frere (literally "little brother" I think) as the #4 OT in the 2022 draft class and Munford as the #7 OG. Hutch is the #2 DE and Ojabo is the #1 OLB. Dax is the #2 Safety.
November 23rd, 2021 at 6:19 AM ^
They got zero sacks last weekend And the osu Oline is a group of all stars.
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:06 PM ^
OSU's O-line, while not perfect, is the best we've faced all year. They could say the same thing about us however.
November 24th, 2021 at 2:15 AM ^
OSU’s LT is All-B1G caliber, has a mid-first round draft grade, third tackle overall and their RT is a bigger, stronger but younger version. Let’s put it this way, their starting RT from last year is considered a top-10 NFL OT prospect and he moved inside to guard so the 6’8 365 kid could play tackle. They aren’t weak spots to be sure.
Suffice to say, we have the best DE’s they’ve seen all year…Karlaftis at Purdue is right there but it’s easy to scheme for one guy, not so easy for two.
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:34 PM ^
Alabama's approach: "Recruit" more 5-Stars
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:39 PM ^
This is nice and all, but OSU is utilizing a different defensive scheme than what they used last season.
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:57 PM ^
That’s nice and all, but your linebackers are still just as vulnerable as in the Oregon game. If only we had a guy wearing 7 that could exploit that?
November 23rd, 2021 at 12:01 AM ^
I’m not sure why you believe the LB’s are just as vulnerable, they are not the same liability they were against Oregon. Eichenburg was awful early in the year, he is playing good ball now. The rotation has been fixed with Chambers getting the snaps he deserves, not to mention the playcalling and scheme have drastically improved. Look at Walker III, the Heisman hopeful’s stats. You can’t use the Oregon game as a benchmark, it’s not the same D in scheme or experience.
November 23rd, 2021 at 12:09 AM ^
Not sure looking at Walker's stats is the best benchmark, though, as msu was behind from the get-go and really abandoned the run game, as well as Walker getting injured.
November 23rd, 2021 at 7:01 AM ^
Good point on Walker. The first 4 games of the year OSU gave up 155 yards on the ground. The next 4 games they have up 58 yards/ game rushing, and 90 yards a game over their last 3. The first two games of the year they gave up 6 rushing touchdowns, and only 3 since. They improved after taking Combs DC role away from him, and ha e continued to improve as the LB’s got adjusted to the new scheme. The secondary has been inconsistent; depending on who is playing. They are not as good as last year but vastly improved from the time they players MN and Oregon. This should be the most competitive game in the last 5 years. Even Vegas has it as a 1 score game, , this could be epic.
November 23rd, 2021 at 9:39 AM ^
opponents matter though. OSUs linebackers have been a weak spot for years. Every year in the preview & FFFF their shortcomings are always brought up. It rarely comes to fruition. Or should I say, I don't actually know if their LBs play well against us, because I don't know that I've ever seen an OSU UFR.
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:57 PM ^
This is nice but to be honest they don’t look as good as they did last year on defense. Their D-line is definitely not as good nor is their secondary.
November 22nd, 2021 at 9:42 PM ^
I like where your head’s at, but comparing us to Bama isn’t really worthwhile imo. Maybe the Oregon game we can get some takeaways from but aside from Hutchinson, Ojabo, and Dax Hill we don’t have a single player that would be on Bamas 2 deep on D. On offense that number is even less, maybe zero.
We have a shot, especially if the front 4 can get pressure without blitzing and contain the scrambles. However, I don’t think comparing the GOAT college coach who has a roster full of 5 stars at every position is a worthwhile comparison that we can glean much from. We are going to need Herculean efforts from each and every player on both sides of the ball to pull out a win.
Hutchinson has been such a great leader and I hope he can pull off a Biakabutuka type performance against OSU. This team has confidence, talent, and they believe in each other. If not for the all-time screw job in EL we would be 11-0 and they all know that as well. Finish it. Go Blue!
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:17 PM ^
I refuse to believe with both teams being 10-1 that 3 total players on our entire team would be in the top 48 players at Alabama
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:31 PM ^
I agree that it isn’t pleasant to think about. But in reality if you were to stack up the rosters side by side it wouldn’t be kind to us. Remember Deshawn Hand being the #1 overall player in his class? He didn’t start and barely saw the field until his Junior year. Najee, the #1 RB and top 10 overall player didn’t start until his Junior year and was third string his first and second years at Bama. The list goes on and on at every position.
My point isn’t that we are trash or don’t have good players. But comparing us to Bama is like apples and oranges. They’re in a totally different stratosphere than every other college team over the last 10-15 years, with the greatest college coach of all-time. Feel free to single out where I’m wrong. But other than Hutch, Ojabo, and Dax who are you trading with us if you’re Bama?
November 22nd, 2021 at 11:13 PM ^
Lol, this is fucking stupid. I would trade our entire starting defense for their 2nd string and some of their starters. Unless you think our pass defense, which someone pointed out is PFF’s 2nd ranked pass defense in the nation, somehow doesn’t have good players on it. I get they have highly ranked recruiting classes, but all that amazing talent didn’t stop them from letting up 500 yards of offense to Arkan-fucking-sas and 41 points to Texas A&M. Can you even name anyone on their second string that is better than Junior Colson? How about their second string LB that is better than Josh Ross? Also, our 2nd string RB almost has more yards than their starter, so I can guarantee you at least 1 of our RBs would start for them
November 22nd, 2021 at 11:54 PM ^
Look over their roster. They literally have 4 5-star LBs. You think because Colson starts for us he would get major PT for them? Now who’s the moron? They have 3 5-star LBs that are sophomores, and To’o To’o. Which of them do you think Colson would see the field over?
The #1 fucking players in the entire country don’t sniff the field until their junior year there. Just because you haven’t heard of them because they’re behind another All-American 5-Star, future first or second rounder, doesn’t mean our players that play early for us are better. Colson is good, but it isn’t like he’s having a Devin Bush “wow he’s going to be a two time All-American and sure fire first rounder” type of year.
Najee was 3rd fucking string until his junior year. Just because they start for us as freshmen doesn’t mean shit at Bama. BTW, currently their 2nd and 3rd string RBs (frosh and sophomore) are both 5-Star RBs. Do I hate this fact? Yes, of course I do. You seriously think any of our CBs would see the field for them?
The game he’s comparing where they beat OSU, Bama had 6 first rounders taken in the next draft (an NFL record) including a top 10 pick at CB. But yes, let’s compare game plans with the team that set the record for most players selected in the first round in the history of the NFL Draft. That should be useful information. Take off the Maize n Blue glasses and look at it from Bama’s perspective. I love our guys and I love this team but there’s a reason Bama makes the playoff every single year.
Let’s try this another way. Can I compare my attractive wife to Blake Lively or Megan Fox? Sure, I could do that since they’re all women. But what’s the point? They aren’t realistically in the same universe.
November 23rd, 2021 at 7:55 AM ^
Ryan reynolds is a lucky man.
November 23rd, 2021 at 8:34 AM ^
You're a jukebox hero!
November 23rd, 2021 at 8:49 AM ^
This is in no way to say our players can do what Alabama players do for a full game. I picked things that I thought were either scheme related or reasonable for D1 athletes to accomplish.
I think a good comparison would be how OSU used crossing routes to destroy us, and subsequent teams copied elements of that despite not being nearly as talented as them and still having it work. Things like “use your RB in the passing game” is a coaching decision vs a talent issue.
November 23rd, 2021 at 10:15 AM ^
Well if they have a bunch of 5 star players that aren’t starters and we just have one of the best defenses in the nation, I guess that means that their unknown players are better than our known players because Najee Smith rode the bench 3 years ago. Also, their 2nd, 3rd, and 4th string RB have fewer combined yards than our 2nd string RB, so I really don’t give a single fuck how highly rated they were, they can’t even beat out their starter, who is worse than our starter. Corum is one of the best RBs in the nation and he wouldn’t start for Alabama because he wasn’t rated as highly in high school?
Way to argue a point that is literally “I don’t know any of Alabama’s second string, but they were rated highly in high school so they are obviously better than every starter on one of the best defenses in the nation. Now I’m going to use analogies that have nothing to do with football so I can brag about how hot my wife is.” FOH
November 23rd, 2021 at 10:45 AM ^
I’m not going to sit here and list Bamas entire roster just to appease you. I invited you to single out where I’m wrong, and instead you’ve chosen to just generically say “their second string”. If you want to prove a point then you do the research and you list the players that aren’t as good as ours. I’ve offered multiple examples of the top player at their position being 3rd string until they are upperclassmen at Bama. You’ve just stated your opinion with zero facts.
Oh no, their starting RB doesn’t have as many yards as Corum or Haskins…I’m sure that has absolutely nothing to do with their offensive philosophy, the fact that their QB is the Heisman front runner, and is 6th in the nation in passing yards with over 3500 and 2nd in TD passes with 38.
Look, Corum is an absolute stud and should be a Heisman candidate next year if he continues his upward trajectory. Have you never watched Bama play? Their 2 backups at RB right now are both 5 stars. Just because they aren’t going for as many yards as our RBs are in our very, very run heavy schemes doesn’t mean shit. If the #1 ranked person at that position, and a first round pick, can’t break the 2 deep in his first 2 years how am I wrong? It isn’t like that’s the first time that’s happened either. It happens every year there. They’ve made the CFP 5 of the last 6 years man…if you think we have similar players on our roster you must think Harbaugh is an absolutely awful coach.
Here’s a link to their roster. Have at it hoss: https://247sports.com/college/alabama/Team/Alabama-Crimson-Tide-Football-164/Roster/
November 23rd, 2021 at 12:27 PM ^
“What 2nd string LB on Alabama’s roster is better than Ross or Colson?”
”All of them because they were all highly ranked in high school. Also, in the past, guys have been 3rd string until they aren’t.”
It is impossible to refute your point because the only thing you are referencing is high school ratings. When PFF says Corum is one of the best RBs in the nation and random nobody on the internet says he isn’t because of feelings, who do I trust?
I see 3 LBs on Alabama’s roster with 59 tackles or more. The next LB on the 2 deep has 22 tackles. Ross has 80 tackles and Colson has 51 and you don’t think either would crack the 2 deep? Hill has 53 tackles and 2 interceptions. Branch looks to be Alabama’s backup DB and he has 37 tackles and no interceptions. I would love to hear your rationale as to why Hill wouldn’t crack the 2 deep over Branch. Let me guess, because Branch was a 4 star?
November 23rd, 2021 at 1:03 PM ^
PFF doesn’t tell the whole story. Kwitty Paye was the top ranked rookie defender in preseason according to them. He has 11 tackles and 2 sacks in 9 games played. Does that sound like PFF was right that he’s the best defensive rookie in his class?
Just because a player isn’t getting PT at Bama doesn’t mean he isn’t better than 95% of the players in the rest of college football. That’s the whole point. If other teams had players of their caliber then Bama wouldn’t be making the playoff every single year. I don’t know why this is so hard for you to understand. Not getting PT at Bama does not equate to UM players being better than them. It means we need them to play because they’re our best option. They wouldn’t be the best option on their roster. If you seriously think our roster is comparable to Bama then I just don’t know what to tell you and this is a pointless argument because you’re not rational.
Just because they recruit better and have more talent doesn’t make them unbeatable…but it certainly helps (see 5 out of 6 playoff years with appearances and having 12 losses in the last 10 years). Why do you think this very blog has multiple posts breaking down the fact that stars in recruiting do matter?
November 23rd, 2021 at 2:57 PM ^
I didn’t say our roster was comparable to Alabama’s. I said our starters would absolutely be better than their 2nd stringers. Which you still haven’t said which of the 2nd string LBers would be better than both Ross and Colson. I’m not hopeful that you will though, because you are arguing that high school stars matter more than actually playing the game. Your argument boils down to “I have no idea how good all the backups are because they aren’t playing, but Alabama recruits really well so they would all be better than our players.” You said 3 total players on our roster would make their 2 deep, which is objectively stupid.
Also, if your takeaway from all the people on this site saying stars matter was that individual stars determine which players are better, then you have seriously misunderstood everything. Stars matter when evaluating overall classes, not individual talent. I could say JJ McCarthy would make their 2-deep as the backup QB using your own logic (as he is higher ranked than any QB on their roster not named Bryce Young) and I’m guessing that wouldn’t be your conclusion. Why? Because of feelings. Or something
November 22nd, 2021 at 10:33 PM ^
Mazi Smith wouldnt get snaps for Bama? Lol