Tuesday January 10, 2012

Hard Copy

Hard Copy
In sports we find what is working for one team or player and others try to copy it. The NFL has been called a copy cat league for years.

Bill Walsh won Super Bowls with San Francisco with the West Coast offense and almost every team in the league has tried to copy his offense.

The league was primarily a 4-3 defensive league for years until some teams had success with the 3-4 and you see so much more of it today.

In college football we see Auburn and Oregon using the fast pace offense on their way to the national title game last year and so many more schools have implemented this type of attack.

After last night's thrashing of LSU by the Alabama defense, I have already received e-mails from readers asking about Clemson moving to the 3-4 like the Crimson Tide.

For the record, I like the 3-4. I love what Alabama does and how they pressure offenses from different areas. I saw Georgia make a big jump to the next level with their move to the 3-4. I just like the way it gives you much more versatility. I also like the idea of getting a better athlete on the field by replacing a defensive lineman with a linebacker. So if Clemson moved to the 3-4 that would be OK with me.

However, it is almost impossible to copy what Alabama does because it is not what they do but who is doing it. Last night after the game Nick Saban said Alabama did not do anything differently than in the first game against LSU. It is like other schools trying to copy Auburn's offense from last year but trying to do it without Cam Newton at quarterback.

The fact is that Alabama could run a 3-4, a 4-3, a 3-3-5, a 4-2-5 or any other kind of defense and be successful because they are the most talented defense in the country.

I know a lot of people don't like recruiting services and they are not the final word but I do believe they give a decent indication of the overall level of talent.

According to rivals.com the Crimson Tide have 30 defensive players listed on their depth chart. They have four five-stars, 21 four-stars and five three-stars.

By comparison Clemson has 28 players on their defensive depth chart. The Tigers have one five-star, 11 four-stars, 14 three-stars and two two-stars.

The strength of Alabama's defense is in their back eight. The Crimson Tide linebackers consist of one five-star and ten four-stars. Their secondary is made up of three five-stars, seven four-stars and one three-star.

Clemson's weakness is in its back seven. Clemson's linebackers are made up of one five-star, two four-stars and three three-stars. The secondary consists no five-stars, three four-stars, six three-stars and a two-star.

Again, it is important to remember that player development and scheme have an awful lot to do with the success of any defense and star rankings are not the only way to judge a defense. However, it is clear to me that copying Alabama's defensive philosophy begins with their recruiting success which is almost impossible to copy.

The Crimson Tide play a physical brand of football but it helps when your nose guard and defensive end are over 300 pounds. It is much easier when your linebackers are 245-265 pounders that run like deer.

It should also be pointed out that no one spends more time, money and attention to detail in player development than Alabama. Their support staff is the biggest in the country. They have spent more money on their strength and conditioning staff, their player development people, their sports psychologist and their nutrition people than any program in the country. Saban leaves no stone unturned at Alabama.

Also it is fair to point out that not all players turn out to be great in Tuscaloosa. They have their share of busts also. But they have a wider margin for error because they have so many more great players. I would compare this to the large market baseball teams like the Yankees and Red Sox. The Minnesota Twins can't afford to make the mistakes that the Yankees can overcome.

So if you were like me, you probably sat in front of your television set last night and wished that our defense could play like theirs. To be fair, 119 other fan bases probably said the same thing. The problem is that this might have been the greatest college defense of all time and one that is not going to be copied, unless it is by the Crimson Tide again in a couple of years.

The Brad Hughes All-State Insurance Agency

Prayer List
We have started a prayer list on the blog. Here are the guidelines:

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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*Please let me know when it is appropriate to take the person off of the prayer list.

Those who need our prayers include:Finn Brookover, 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, Daniel Rosborough, 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, Candee Massee, Lindsey Jordan, Sam Catoe, Tyler Felch, the Nicolopulos family, "the Jacksonville, FL guys", Kim Sims, the Coyle family, Ryleigh Tedder, Steve Lee, Kelly Trakas, Jimmy Moore, the Thomas. V Family, Emary Claire Young, Kitty Bowers,Julie and motivateLocke, the Scheider family, Lauren Kittles' family, Frank Gentry, Joyce Bussey, Stacey McKeown, Mary Priester, Dale Childs, Larry Lentz, Jr, Carl Sharperson, Scott Hannon, William Perry, Tyler Swaney, Randy Anderson, Lillian, Matt Hogan, Mark Feit, David Frame, Chad Berry, the family of Matthew M. Watson, Nancy Taylor, the Dowis family, Shervin Messer, Alan Putnam, the Olivers, Lee Tate, Ronnie Abrams, Eddie Greene, Tricia Hood, the Jackson family, Bill Vader, Nancy Taylor, Tina DeWitt, Rock Horne, Christopher Tuten, Jimmy Head, Bobby Wayne Thomas, Emma and Danielle Carothers, Robert Ditty, Murray Smith, Dot Cartee, Ayden Mills, Millie Heatley, Lynn Martin and family, Michael Pinson, Jack Bailey, Jake David family, Janice Thompson, Angie Crowley, Rachel Graves, Ira, Elsie Taylor, Mike Tolson, Poly Wells, Dr. Muriel Bishop.