Thoughts about the O line moving forward

#1
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WilliamDuVOL

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#1
I keep seeing posts ripping the O line here and while I agree they looked bad for most of the game this past weekend, keep in mind the level of competition here. Keep in mind the lack of depth and experience. Keep in mind the starting LT being out. All of that considered, what can we expect moving forward?

OU may very well be one of if not THE toughest defensive fronts we face this season. So I wanted to start a conversation about what to expect.

My thoughts:
-They will get better with experience, and I think OU was a wake up call for some of them to know how they have to play, look at the latter portion of the game where we actually outplaued OU for a good 10 minutes. (I'm pointing to an article here that someone posted earlier, will grab link if need be.)

-OU's front 7 is insane. Will anyone else we face be that solid? If not, it should only look up from here.

-I saw someone point out that minus Worley being sacked, we actually averaged a really good YPC on rushes versus OU, partially thanks to Hurd's long breakout but still... put that in perspective. It's improvement versus great talent. Against lesser fronts I expect to start seeing a good running attack.

-Our offense will look better against other defenses if they can't pressure Worley like OU, and our passing game should start to improve.

-Overall, after seeing that we could even somewhat hang with OU, I don't think it's too farfetched to say we are going to win a game or two more than expected this year.
 
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#2
#2
I'm not sure yet if OU has the best DL we'll face all year but I will say that I think the disparity between where OU's DL was when we faced them to the OL we had is probably the biggest gap. Having 2 true Freshmen on the road in a very hostile environment on the same side is insane. Having 2 of your 5 OL being different starters in game 3 from game 1 is also insane. These guys haven't worked with each other any over the season... much less Fall or Spring Camp.

I anticipate our OL will play better, gel and communicate better as the year goes on and that gap will lessen, even if we're facing better DLs.
 
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#3
#3
OU exposed the line for what it is, but the problems were there from the jump. It was there for Utah State and ASU, they just weren't good enough to exploit them.

They had better come together as a unit quickly. QB's can't take that kind of punishment week in and week out.

I do agree that OU's front 7 was/is as good as we will see all year.
 
#4
#4
We won't face a front 7 better than OU's, but we will face a couple on the same level. I think the OL will take a big step forward after the week off. If they don't we may just be outmatched all season.

To be honest that was the only noticeable advantage in that game saturday. We played blow for blow just about everywhere else.
 
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#5
#5
TBtheGBwiththeTD said:
We won't face a front 7 better than OU's, but we will face a couple on the same level. I think the OL will take a big step forward after the week off. If they don't we may just be outmatched all season.

To be honest that was the only noticeable advantage in that game saturday. We played blow for blow just about everywhere else.
Click to expand...

I don't think true freshmen are going to develop that quickly.
 
#6
#6
Look at what Striker did against bamas oline in the sugar bowl and that was a senior laden line. I was actually a little surprised that OU didn't dominate the way I thought they could. This team is growing and getting better day by day and I am excited to see what this team looks like during the bowl season. There was a huge hump this team climbed over that has been hurting UT for a few seasons with this team actually fighting to the end of the game. GBO!
 
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#7
#7
UTjonez said:
Look at what Striker did against bamas oline in the sugar bowl and that was a senior laden line. I was actually a little surprised that OU didn't dominate the way I thought they could. This team is growing and getting better day by day and I am excited to see what this team looks like during the bowl season. There was a huge hump this team climbed over that has been hurting UT for a few seasons with this team actually fighting to the end of the game. GBO!
Click to expand...


Not to hijack this tread... but watching Striker play, I was impressed and I wanted to hate him, but dang he's fast and has a nose for the ball. I'll look forward to seeing him in the NFL soon.
 
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#8
#8
I think they actually improved as the game went on. The conditioning of this team seems to be outstanding. I expect this OL to gel and show improvement week to week. At some times we had true freshman playing the entire right side of the field and at RB. The fact we had no false starts in a hostile environment is a good sign of Good days are coming.
 
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#10
#10
They need to be a lot better and need more quality depth. I think both gets improved through recruiting.

This year is just going to be a work in progress. I heard it was something like 14 TFL by Oklahoma which is just insane.

If "improvement" is 8-10 TFL against lesser defenses, then that still won't cut it.
 
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#11
#11
I was tough on the line Saturday night.

They are young and got
Man handled a lot. However, in the second half they showed a few times they could execute.

They will improve. Truth is we all should have known this was coming.

I expect them to gel together as the season goes on.

I also hope this staff can pull in some big time OL recruits.
 
#12
#12
WesternNCVol said:
I was tough on the line Saturday night.

They are young and got
Man handled a lot. However, in the second half they showed a few times they could execute.

They will improve. Truth is we all should have known this was coming.

I expect them to gel together as the season goes on.

I also hope this staff can pull in some big time OL recruits.
Click to expand...

Who is "we" are you french? :) Lots of people weren't surprised and lots of people called it...
 
#14
#14
TBtheGBwiththeTD said:
We won't face a front 7 better than OU's, but we will face a couple on the same level. I think the OL will take a big step forward after the week off. If they don't we may just be outmatched all season.

To be honest that was the only noticeable advantage in that game saturday. We played blow for blow just about everywhere else.
Click to expand...

I agree!!!!:clapping:
 
#17
#17
AllVols said:
Not to hijack this tread... but watching Striker play, I was impressed and I wanted to hate him, but dang he's fast and has a nose for the ball. I'll look forward to seeing him in the NFL soon.
Click to expand...



Striker would fit in perfectly at Baltimore or Pittsburgh!!!!!
 
#18
#18
OU has the bes DL that we will face. That being said, I am not entirely willing to concede that OU will be in the playoffs. Big Game Bob is well known for tripping up along the way and I could see the Baylor Bears upsetting them if Bryce Petty stays healthy, although that game is in Norman.
 
#19
#19
The OU Def has NFL quality talent. UT O-Line held its own on several series, while being schooled on several. With the character that I expect they have, the O-Line will respond very well. The O-Line cannot overcome 3 years of S&C or experience, but they can slow down the pressure.
 
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#20
#20
as an ou fan i thought we'd get a better push run blocking than we did. and yes we got to worley often but there was a period in the 2nd half his pocket was there and your d forced alot of 3 and outs too. next years game is gonna be a 4 qtr nail biter,especially with khalil on your d line. he was one we really wanted. kids gonna be great.
will root for the vols til next sept:)
 
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#22
#22
GahLee said:
OU exposed the line for what it is, but the problems were there from the jump. It was there for Utah State and ASU, they just weren't good enough to exploit them.

They had better come together as a unit quickly. QB's can't take that kind of punishment week in and week out.

I do agree that OU's front 7 was/is as good as we will see all year.
Click to expand...

They're as fast, just as good I'm sure, but they were on us like a cheap suit. But since Butch and co. had to basically start from ground zero when it comes to OL/DL, I personally will give the man 4 years to build depth at those positions and hope that kind of a lull never happens again. To me, it begins and ends with the big uglies, that's what you win with.
 
#23
#23
Tennman said:
I think they actually improved as the game went on. The conditioning of this team seems to be outstanding. I expect this OL to gel and show improvement week to week. At some times we had true freshman playing the entire right side of the field and at RB. The fact we had no false starts in a hostile environment is a good sign of Good days are coming.
Click to expand...

this all day long and twice on sunday !
 
#24
#24
What's the likelihood we see some 2 TE jumbo sets? Is that formation even compatible with the offense Bajakian runs?
 
#25
#25
Thoughts about the O line moving forward



My thoughts. Yes. They need to learn to move forward.




Seriously. It was worse than I expected, but not by much. They will improve with experience. How much is yet to be seen.
 
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