The below is what I'd like to see on top of the outstanding running game we've had in the last two games. Because I think there's more out there that accounts for Joe's inconsistency/weaknesses, and if we can cover over those IMO we can score enough to beat Bama. We've got a borderline-elite Defense, the best return man in the country, a great punter (who IMO still has a fake in him), a better-than-average FG kicker, and a KO man who boots 99% of them out of the end zone.
1) ~5 designed runs for Joe. Every time he's either run the option, a QB sweep ((both, interestingly, running to his left), or just run a designed QB draw we've gotten positive yardage. Not always big plays per se, but positive gains that keep things moving and certainly are better than an incompletion or sack or even worse a pick. Just another weapon to work into the gameplan in an offense that needs as many as it can get right now.
2) This might have simply been due to how A&M specifically was playing defense OR it could have been because Heupel doesn't trust the non-Bru WRs to block them correctly (a fair consideration) but we only threw one RB flare pass (think Sampson go ~8 yards) and zero WR screens. I think those easy plays - which Joe has thrown really well - need to get back into the rotation. Again, if we simply don't trust the WRs to block them up then ok, although one would think Keyton and a TE could do it...
3) To that point, I do think we could try and get Sampson and even Wright split out into the slot and utilized as a WR in lieu of a backup WR. Not for Hyatt-type deep balls but just as a way to get them additional non-handoff touches.
4) Get Dee Williams just a handful of touches. He's not a WR so I don't expect to see him run even one route, but on either an in-motion pop-pass (which the few times we've done it have gone to Squirrel) or one of the aforementioned WR screens. He's just so electric and Heupel would be remiss to not try and incorporate that into the offense given its current struggles.
5) Easy sideline comebacks and outs. We ran an out to Squirrel on the first play of the game and Joe just missed the pitch and catch, but he's generally been pretty good on those. Same for the simple comeback on the sideline. I know Heupel wants to take deep shots, and I'm 100% good with doing that ~5 times a game - especially if we either have a mismatch ala Hyatt vs. their Safety last season OR if we're getting correctly called PI - but I think he just needs to tell Milton that instead of his first read being deep it needs to be to something easy.
1) ~5 designed runs for Joe. Every time he's either run the option, a QB sweep ((both, interestingly, running to his left), or just run a designed QB draw we've gotten positive yardage. Not always big plays per se, but positive gains that keep things moving and certainly are better than an incompletion or sack or even worse a pick. Just another weapon to work into the gameplan in an offense that needs as many as it can get right now.
2) This might have simply been due to how A&M specifically was playing defense OR it could have been because Heupel doesn't trust the non-Bru WRs to block them correctly (a fair consideration) but we only threw one RB flare pass (think Sampson go ~8 yards) and zero WR screens. I think those easy plays - which Joe has thrown really well - need to get back into the rotation. Again, if we simply don't trust the WRs to block them up then ok, although one would think Keyton and a TE could do it...
3) To that point, I do think we could try and get Sampson and even Wright split out into the slot and utilized as a WR in lieu of a backup WR. Not for Hyatt-type deep balls but just as a way to get them additional non-handoff touches.
4) Get Dee Williams just a handful of touches. He's not a WR so I don't expect to see him run even one route, but on either an in-motion pop-pass (which the few times we've done it have gone to Squirrel) or one of the aforementioned WR screens. He's just so electric and Heupel would be remiss to not try and incorporate that into the offense given its current struggles.
5) Easy sideline comebacks and outs. We ran an out to Squirrel on the first play of the game and Joe just missed the pitch and catch, but he's generally been pretty good on those. Same for the simple comeback on the sideline. I know Heupel wants to take deep shots, and I'm 100% good with doing that ~5 times a game - especially if we either have a mismatch ala Hyatt vs. their Safety last season OR if we're getting correctly called PI - but I think he just needs to tell Milton that instead of his first read being deep it needs to be to something easy.
That'll do Joe, that'll do.
