Tuesday September 07, 2010

Offense Review of North Texas Game

Offense Review of North Texas Game
Each week I want to review the previous game with a look at both sides of the football. On a normal week we will look at the offense on Monday and the defense on Tuesday but since yesterday was Labor Day, we have moved this back one day.

So here are a few thoughts I had about the offense on Saturday:
*The big play offense did not leave with C.J. Spiller and Jacoby Ford. The Tigers hit on five plays of more than 20 yards including three of 49 or more yards.

*Clemson has been known for the great backs the last five years with James Davis then Spiller. The Thunder and Lightning tag might have legitimate company though. Andre Ellington opened the game with a 60 yard touchdown run and had 12 carries for 122 yards with two touchdowns. Jamie Harper had nine carries for 102 yards with one touchdown and had an eight-yard touchdown reception.

*I was encouraged by the young wide receivers Saturday. DeAndre Hopkins had two catches for 23 yards including a terrific move on a screen pass. Hopkins also had a bone crushing block. Freshman Bryce McNeal had two catches for 34 yards including a 30-yarder. I thought Jaron Brown played well with his 2 catches for 14 yards and an 18-yard run on a reverse.

*I was concerned by the two drops early.

*Kyle Parker was not as sharp as we have seen him but the drops had a little to do with that. Also, I am concerned about the number of times North Texas flushed Parker out of the pocket. The other negative I saw was Parker’s poor decision on the interception in the end zone.

*The offensive line play was good but not great. From the stands that was my first impression and that is what I thought after watching the video. Brad Scott said the same thing yesterday. There were signs of excellent play. David Smith had the best game according to the coaches. I also saw Dalton Freeman have a few great plays including a couple of key blocks on touchdown runs.

*I thought the play calling was pretty good. I would have loved to see the Tigers run the ball more but that is just a personal preference. Also, it is hard to get too upset at the with the offense when the defense could not get off of the field.

*The offense came out of the game without any injuries which was another positive.

*I think Tajh Boyd probably expected more from himself in his first college game. The red-shirt freshman did not look crisp in mop-up duty.

*Fifteen first downs is low but that number is low because of the big plays by the Clemson offense and the fact the defense could not get off of the field.

*The 246 rushing yards is a little more than I expected but that number was inflated with the long runs of 60 yards by Ellington and 49 yards by Harper.

*The Tigers threw for only 177 yards but that was on 10 of 21 passing. This was not Parker or Boyd’s best game but there were some positives coming from the young wide receivers.

*Clemson had 423 yards but they came on only 46 plays which is 9.2 yards per play.

*The Tigers limited their turnovers to only one but it was a big one with the interception in the end zone.

*Clemson also limited their penalties to 5 for 48 yards.

*Red zone was another strength from this game though. Clemson went three for four in the red zone with three touchdowns.

*The Tigers offensive line allowed only one sack for one yard Saturday.

*Two of nine in third down conversions was not up to standards but this is not a major, long-term concern.

*The Tigers average starting position their own 26 yard line.

*Hopkins was the only true freshman to play Saturday.

*The participation chart looks like this:
QB-Parker 42, Boyd 6

RB-Ellington 23, Harper 19, McDowell 6

FB-Diehl 17

WR-Brown 16, Clear 16, Hopkins 16, Jones 15, Dye 15, Ashe 14, McNeal 13, Ford 12

TE-Allen 42, Traylor 7, Smith 3, Nobles 2

OL-Freeman 45, McClain 39, Hairston 34, Smith 32, Walker 30, Price 19, Cloy 16, Thomas 14, Sanders 6, Ramsey 3, Simmons 3

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If you are offended by prayer or prayer lists then I apologize in advance. The blog is free and the prayer list will be on the bottom of the page so you don’t have to read it.

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Those who need our prayers include:Finn Brookover, RTG-Pawsitive Tiger, Mary-Louise Pawlowski (John's daughter), Jo Ann Bachman, Kenneth Bryant, Pruitt Martin, Got igers and his family, David Rowland, Leonard, Gillespie and his family, Jim S, Christine Hepfer, Daniel Rosborough, Amy Murphey, The Huffman family, Nancy Winkler, John Reeve, Ethel Southard, Vinnie Brock, Kaitlyn L, Susan Miller, Joyce Harley, Steve Proveaux, Jeffrey Greene, the Hutto family, Sherl Drawdy, Caleb Kennedy, Teresa O'Connor, Matt Jacobs,Perrin Seigler, Carole White Begley, Candee Massee, Lindsey Jordan, Sam Catoe, Tyler Felch, Steve Cato, the Nicolopulos family, Cason Palmer, Scott Jackson, "the Jacksonville, FL guys", Kim Sims, the Coyle familty, Ryleigh Tedder, Steve Lee, Richard Crawford, Kelly Trakas, Jimmy Moore, Steve Williams Jr, Steve Williams III, Kim Thomas, Reid Thomas, Sam Thomas, Linda Wiggs, Emily Claire Young, Dr. Wallace Honeycutt, Stacy Fowler, Kitty Bowers,Julie and Austin Locke, the Scheider family, Lauren Kittles' family.