Wished Teresa Walker a happy birthday
Recapping NIU
Good result, proud of how they stayed in the fight against a tough opponent and venue
Struggled early to get stops but the offense started well
They caught up on defense in the second half
The messaging to the team was to dictate terms and energy when they needed to recover and they got that on Saturday
To see that happen after they’ve talked about it so much was a “cool moment for the program.”
Every week is challenging from here on but they’ll focus on them and their highest level and not their opponent
How do they continue our growth as a program and work towards Saturday results
They have a ton of respect for Alabama and everyone left on the schedule but their interest is what they’re doing
What can he take away from coaching against Alabama in the CFB Playoff
“It’s not a great memory,” he said laughing
Saban is at the top of the profession for a good reason; they do a great job and run a program that recruits and develops well
There are similarities in the offense and roster (to that one) but it’s a different identity
How close is he with Nick Saban?
They’ve never really crossed paths
They’re acquaintances since they work in the conference
He enjoys hearing him talk about the game
But they don’t have a deep relationship beyond the respect
AJ Swann, his first start at Alabama
“This is a little-known fact, but my first SEC start was special teams against Alabama”
Joked that Alabama circled his name; they kicked to him twice and he had 10- and 20-yard returns and Bobby Johnson wasn’t pleased they were returning kicks
AJ will learn and grow a lot
But he set the tone from his first practice here
He’s excited to be the starting QB here
The rest of the QB depth chart and could Seals redshirt?
It’s all about what the team needs and they’re fortunate to have three QBs as well as experience and leadership
AJ will lean on those guys for knowledge and support. “It’s like having a separate set of coaches”
Said Seals has handled things as he’d expect and “he’s an absolute embodiment of our program.”
Said they’re wait to see how the season unfolds; Mike has proven he can play and he respects how he handled the last week. “They’re first class.”
On the freshmen who’ve played 4 games, will they redshirt?
Said the conversations are ongoing
Some are playing and in rotations and will play
Where they have returning depth, they have a luxury of choice
But they want their best 11 on the field
They won’t hold back if one can impact things
Some guys will be shut down
Others will continue to play
Some haven’t seen action and will
They’re try to get 4 games out of as many as they can
Injuries
Ben Cox is day to day and questionable for Alabama, it’s not long term
Castillo is the same
Miles Cecil is the same; he’s on his second week of recovery
Rocko Griffin is day to day but he saw progress today; if he’s better he’ll see carries Saturday
They’ll see if he can get out there and “mix it up.”
Smith/Berry/Carter, do they have to re-earn playing time?
They’re available to play and excited to have them back
It’s about putting them back in in ways that help and energize the team
Where they see areas for improvement, they’ll count on those guys
On leaky pass coverage
There are three things: they give up too much space on the perimeter (they can’t be at depth and backpedaling; they saw that to start the NIU game)
One of the NIU TD plays wasn’t a spacial issue, they had to extend the coverage and be more disciplined so that wasn’t as structural
Making a one-on-one tackle isn’t a winning proposition
You address that through fundamental technique
There are specific things—leverage, depth, tempo—and you have to evaluate those each play according to those details; when you handle them well you set the coverage up to success
Third thing is varying their alignment; they may play off and protect and make sure they’re not giving up the ball over their head but they don’t want to show that before the snap
All three of those things are a focus this week
The Wake Forest explosive play was a press-corner with no help vs. a good receiver and seemed to intimate that was the coaches’ fault
Sometimes they need to roll the corners up and be more aggressive but also be more smart but also “not be press-man-zero and let ‘er rip.”
It’s easy to get exposed on the perimeter
Bryce Young, does he have any weaknesses?
He’s respected and well-regarded for a reason
He throws the ball on time and create explosive runs
He can extend plays and that makes them more explosive in the pass game
He can be in the pocket and move off his mark to evade the rush
They have to do a great job in rush lanes and collapsing the pocket
They had rush-lane issues in the NIU game that cost them and that can cost them too this week
All-SEC games from here, how do you build and grow the program while playing that schedule?
This is building and growing the program. “This is what we signed up for.”
Said there’s a buzz of excitement around the program
There’s a belief around what they’re building and they want to measure up with the best
This is a chance to grow and they’ll attack it head-on
On Alabama’s pass rush, how much do they give tackles help?
They have things they can design to slow the rush
They’ve had better OL play in run and pass
That’s a testament to Blazek and Lynch
They’re also more disciplined pre-snap and they can hold the tempo of the opoosing front that way
That helps those guys too
It helps that Mike and AJ are way more ingrained in their system and so protections are being called correctly
They’ll look to neutralize the rush and get the ball to the perimeter
You can’t change your identity based on who you play
That unlocks their performance rather than let Alabama dictate it
It’s about them and what they do well and how they address their weaknesses
Recapping NIU
Good result, proud of how they stayed in the fight against a tough opponent and venue
Struggled early to get stops but the offense started well
They caught up on defense in the second half
The messaging to the team was to dictate terms and energy when they needed to recover and they got that on Saturday
To see that happen after they’ve talked about it so much was a “cool moment for the program.”
Every week is challenging from here on but they’ll focus on them and their highest level and not their opponent
How do they continue our growth as a program and work towards Saturday results
They have a ton of respect for Alabama and everyone left on the schedule but their interest is what they’re doing
What can he take away from coaching against Alabama in the CFB Playoff
“It’s not a great memory,” he said laughing
Saban is at the top of the profession for a good reason; they do a great job and run a program that recruits and develops well
There are similarities in the offense and roster (to that one) but it’s a different identity
How close is he with Nick Saban?
They’ve never really crossed paths
They’re acquaintances since they work in the conference
He enjoys hearing him talk about the game
But they don’t have a deep relationship beyond the respect
AJ Swann, his first start at Alabama
“This is a little-known fact, but my first SEC start was special teams against Alabama”
Joked that Alabama circled his name; they kicked to him twice and he had 10- and 20-yard returns and Bobby Johnson wasn’t pleased they were returning kicks
AJ will learn and grow a lot
But he set the tone from his first practice here
He’s excited to be the starting QB here
The rest of the QB depth chart and could Seals redshirt?
It’s all about what the team needs and they’re fortunate to have three QBs as well as experience and leadership
AJ will lean on those guys for knowledge and support. “It’s like having a separate set of coaches”
Said Seals has handled things as he’d expect and “he’s an absolute embodiment of our program.”
Said they’re wait to see how the season unfolds; Mike has proven he can play and he respects how he handled the last week. “They’re first class.”
On the freshmen who’ve played 4 games, will they redshirt?
Said the conversations are ongoing
Some are playing and in rotations and will play
Where they have returning depth, they have a luxury of choice
But they want their best 11 on the field
They won’t hold back if one can impact things
Some guys will be shut down
Others will continue to play
Some haven’t seen action and will
They’re try to get 4 games out of as many as they can
Injuries
Ben Cox is day to day and questionable for Alabama, it’s not long term
Castillo is the same
Miles Cecil is the same; he’s on his second week of recovery
Rocko Griffin is day to day but he saw progress today; if he’s better he’ll see carries Saturday
They’ll see if he can get out there and “mix it up.”
Smith/Berry/Carter, do they have to re-earn playing time?
They’re available to play and excited to have them back
It’s about putting them back in in ways that help and energize the team
Where they see areas for improvement, they’ll count on those guys
On leaky pass coverage
There are three things: they give up too much space on the perimeter (they can’t be at depth and backpedaling; they saw that to start the NIU game)
One of the NIU TD plays wasn’t a spacial issue, they had to extend the coverage and be more disciplined so that wasn’t as structural
Making a one-on-one tackle isn’t a winning proposition
You address that through fundamental technique
There are specific things—leverage, depth, tempo—and you have to evaluate those each play according to those details; when you handle them well you set the coverage up to success
Third thing is varying their alignment; they may play off and protect and make sure they’re not giving up the ball over their head but they don’t want to show that before the snap
All three of those things are a focus this week
The Wake Forest explosive play was a press-corner with no help vs. a good receiver and seemed to intimate that was the coaches’ fault
Sometimes they need to roll the corners up and be more aggressive but also be more smart but also “not be press-man-zero and let ‘er rip.”
It’s easy to get exposed on the perimeter
Bryce Young, does he have any weaknesses?
He’s respected and well-regarded for a reason
He throws the ball on time and create explosive runs
He can extend plays and that makes them more explosive in the pass game
He can be in the pocket and move off his mark to evade the rush
They have to do a great job in rush lanes and collapsing the pocket
They had rush-lane issues in the NIU game that cost them and that can cost them too this week
All-SEC games from here, how do you build and grow the program while playing that schedule?
This is building and growing the program. “This is what we signed up for.”
Said there’s a buzz of excitement around the program
There’s a belief around what they’re building and they want to measure up with the best
This is a chance to grow and they’ll attack it head-on
On Alabama’s pass rush, how much do they give tackles help?
They have things they can design to slow the rush
They’ve had better OL play in run and pass
That’s a testament to Blazek and Lynch
They’re also more disciplined pre-snap and they can hold the tempo of the opoosing front that way
That helps those guys too
It helps that Mike and AJ are way more ingrained in their system and so protections are being called correctly
They’ll look to neutralize the rush and get the ball to the perimeter
You can’t change your identity based on who you play
That unlocks their performance rather than let Alabama dictate it
It’s about them and what they do well and how they address their weaknesses
