South AL scouting report & A Buy/Sell Question for the board

[BeastMan]

http://3rdand57.com/south-alabama-up-close-and-personal/

Buy or Sell: MSU sleepwalking through the UAB game and getting somewhat of a scare was enough to get refocused and take care of business in Mobile?

I think this is a good question because pre-season I ranked our 2 most likely trap games as #1 UK and #2 USA. USA b/c it was the 3rd srtaight cupcake and the week before the season's first real test at LSU. Perhaps last week's performance was enough to get dialed in. I don't think most fans understand how dangerous the atmosphere is when we travel to these mid-majors unless you have been to one. The Troy atmosphere a few years ago was as electric as Troy could make it. MSU was their super bowl and their was a buzz around that campus and in the stadium. USA will be no different.

Now on to the preview. It's worth noting that UAB and USA have similar rosters from a recruiting ranking standpoint but I think USA's is much better. They actually have a core of nice 3-star players and an ultra athletic QB who torched MSU on the ground in 2010 when he played for Alcorn (Brandon Bridge). They also return their top 3 RBs and top 4 pass catchers. Their best defensive player is Jimmie Gipson who is from MS and was a standout at EMCC.

Any questions or concerns from the scouting report?

[Saltydog]

nt

[DudyDawg]

Looking at their first game stats and that they ran more than threw, I think we will be fine. We are built this year to deal with that.

I buy that UAB woke us up. At least it should have. Dan should make practice very intense this week. We need this game to build confidence and rhythm heading to lsu.

[SignalToNoise]

The players can have razor sharp focus that could be negated by wholesale substitutions. That is really the only thing bothering me.

[bluelightstar]

South Alabama really struggled offensively against Kent State. Of course, they were probably looking ahead to us.*

[STATEBALLIN]

http://3rdand57.com/south-alabama-up-close-and-personal/

Buy or Sell: MSU sleepwalking through the UAB game and getting somewhat of a scare was enough to get refocused and take care of business in Mobile?

I think this is a good question because pre-season I ranked our 2 most likely trap games as #1 UK and #2 USA. USA b/c it was the 3rd srtaight cupcake and the week before the season's first real test at LSU. Perhaps last week's performance was enough to get dialed in. I don't think most fans understand how dangerous the atmosphere is when we travel to these mid-majors unless you have been to one. The Troy atmosphere a few years ago was as electric as Troy could make it. MSU was their super bowl and their was a buzz around that campus and in the stadium. USA will be no different.

Now on to the preview. It's worth noting that UAB and USA have similar rosters from a recruiting ranking standpoint but I think USA's is much better. They actually have a core of nice 3-star players and an ultra athletic QB who torched MSU on the ground in 2010 when he played for Alcorn (Brandon Bridge). They also return their top 3 RBs and top 4 pass catchers. Their best defensive player is Jimmie Gipson who is from MS and was a standout at EMCC.

Any questions or concerns from the scouting report?

I think If Mullen is truly treating these games similar to an NFL pre-season then we'll see more of the "1's" getting most of the reps. Probably will still be pretty bland in our play-calling and defensive schemes.

I live here in the panhandle and there is lots of buzz about this game.

My prognosis is we're in a fight till the end of the 3rd, when we simply out personnel them.

[Raytoraid83]

South Alabama really struggled offensively against Kent State. Of course, they were probably looking ahead to us.*

You kid but they've been talking this game up for months. There have been billboards in Mobile and along the coast since the summer hyping up Souths first power conference home game. I expect there to be a decent amount of maroon in the stadium too though. When we use to play South in basketball in Mobile our fan base was normally the majority of the building.

[RossDawg82]

This is all I can predict:
We will drive and score in our first 5 plays. Then Dan brings in our second team for the second drive and we stall and cannot get it back together.

[Eric Nies Grind Time]

http://3rdand57.com/south-alabama-up-close-and-personal/

Buy or Sell: MSU sleepwalking through the UAB game and getting somewhat of a scare was enough to get refocused and take care of business in Mobile?

I think this is a good question because pre-season I ranked our 2 most likely trap games as #1 UK and #2 USA. USA b/c it was the 3rd srtaight cupcake and the week before the season's first real test at LSU. Perhaps last week's performance was enough to get dialed in. I don't think most fans understand how dangerous the atmosphere is when we travel to these mid-majors unless you have been to one. The Troy atmosphere a few years ago was as electric as Troy could make it. MSU was their super bowl and their was a buzz around that campus and in the stadium. USA will be no different.

Now on to the preview. It's worth noting that UAB and USA have similar rosters from a recruiting ranking standpoint but I think USA's is much better. They actually have a core of nice 3-star players and an ultra athletic QB who torched MSU on the ground in 2010 when he played for Alcorn (Brandon Bridge). They also return their top 3 RBs and top 4 pass catchers. Their best defensive player is Jimmie Gipson who is from MS and was a standout at EMCC.

Any questions or concerns from the scouting report?


Pretty sure Bridge just had one really long run then did not do anything else for the remainder of the game.

I can't really say I am concerned at all about this game.

[TXDawg]

Our performance in this game will be dependent upon how seriously the coaching staff takes this game. Hopefully the UAB game lit a fire under Mullen (he needs to develop a killer instinct) and we play the 1's until the game is well out of hand. However, I will not be surprised if we see the 2nd offense in the first quarter again. To be clear, I'll be PISSED, but not surprised.

[BrunswickDawg]

Pretty sure Bridge just had one really long run then did not do anything else for the remainder of the game.

I can't really say I am concerned at all about this game.
In that Alcorn game, Bridge was 13/24 for 193 w/ 1 TD; 10 carries for 77 yards & 1 TD - which was along 78 yard TD run - so 9 carries for -1 otherwise.

So far this season he is 15/25 for 161 w/ 1 TD; 13 carries for 41. Now that is 1 game against Kent St. (0-2) where they only had 341 yards of total offense.

[MarketingBully01]

I still think we win 35-14 something like that if Dan doesn't do the QB swapping every other series thing...

[msstate7]

Win easily.

I expect them to go deep off play action in first drive. I say we pick it off.

[MarketingBully01]

Yeah, I doubt too many of those Hail Mary bombs work on our secondary after this week of practice...

[sleepy dawg]

Sell bigger than shit. I don't think for 1 second that we needed to be scared of losing to UAB in order to beat USA.

The statement should read:
MSU sleepwalking through the UAB game and getting somewhat of a scare was pointless.

[Goat Holder]

I don't think most fans understand how dangerous the atmosphere is when we travel to these mid-majors unless you have been to one. The Troy atmosphere a few years ago was as electric as Troy could make it. MSU was their super bowl and their was a buzz around that campus and in the stadium. USA will be no different.

Yes it will. This game is played at Ladd-Peeples or whatever that city-owned dump is. It will be like playing Memphis, Tulane or UAB. I don't expect home field advantage will play a big factor like it does at the smaller on-campus stadiums of USM, Troy or Louisiana Tech (and now, Tulane).

It will be tougher for us simply because it's on the road, and not home. I expect to see a workmanlike effort. 30-14 type game. They'll be jacked. If we get beat, it'll be because of their talent.

[War Machine Dawg]

I'm going to sell. Mullen is treating these first 3 weeks like the NFL Preseason. Stay rather vanilla, play a lot of guys, let our depth take over late, and out-athlete overmatched teams. We'll win ugly, everyone will throw another bitchfit, then we'll see what we've really got in Baton Rouge one way or the other. The only thing that's certain is our "kicking" game is worse than most high schools and Mullen sees no problem with it.

[TrapGame]

I'm going to sell. Mullen is treating these first 3 weeks like the NFL Preseason. Stay rather vanilla, play a lot of guys, let our depth take over late, and out-athlete overmatched teams. We'll win ugly, everyone will throw another bitchfit, then we'll see what we've really got in Baton Rouge one way or the other. The only thing that's certain is our "kicking" game is worse than most high schools and Mullen sees no problem with it.

My thoughts as well.

We won't know what this team can really do until the LSU game.

[Goat Holder]

The only thing that's certain is our "kicking" game is worse than most high schools and Mullen sees no problem with it.

Yeah, that's why he trots out a new kicker every time we try a FG/PAT.

[thf24]

The only thing that's certain is our "kicking" game is worse than most high schools and Mullen sees no problem with it.

Urban said in an interview the other night that he "didn't understand the importance of special teams until recently" and hired a dedicated special teams coach as a result. While that's absolutely baffling from someone who's been in football so long, it could explain why Dan is so nonchalant about it despite it being so terrible. Hopefully he'll come around just like his mentor did.

[Pollodawg]

I hope Mullen leaves the starters in for the whole game just to let them get that many more live reps before we head to BR. If we do that, we cruise.

[War Machine Dawg]

Urban said in an interview the other night that he "didn't understand the importance of special teams until recently" and hired a dedicated special teams coach as a result. While that's absolutely baffling from someone who's been in football so long, it could explain why Dan is so nonchalant about it despite it being so terrible. Hopefully he'll come around just like his mentor did.

Interesting indeed. Seems like that could definitely be some of Mullen's problem. After all, the whole reason he made himself ST Coach in the beginning was because that's how Meyer did it at FL. I just wish The Kang could talk to him about STs and their importance. Methinks he'd set Mullen straight quick, fast, and in a hurry.

[maroonmania]

I do think our poor performance will help our guys prepare for USA more than if we had blown UAB out. I think we feel we have something more to prove now ahead of going to Baton Rouge. Still think USA ends up being a tighter game than we would like it to be.

[Todd4State]

I expect us to do the same thing with the rotating of 1A and 1B.

[Tdawg]

http://3rdand57.com/south-alabama-up-close-and-personal/

Buy or Sell: MSU sleepwalking through the UAB game and getting somewhat of a scare was enough to get refocused and take care of business in Mobile?

I think this is a good question because pre-season I ranked our 2 most likely trap games as #1 UK and #2 USA. USA b/c it was the 3rd srtaight cupcake and the week before the season's first real test at LSU. Perhaps last week's performance was enough to get dialed in. I don't think most fans understand how dangerous the atmosphere is when we travel to these mid-majors unless you have been to one. The Troy atmosphere a few years ago was as electric as Troy could make it. MSU was their super bowl and their was a buzz around that campus and in the stadium. USA will be no different.

Now on to the preview. It's worth noting that UAB and USA have similar rosters from a recruiting ranking standpoint but I think USA's is much better. They actually have a core of nice 3-star players and an ultra athletic QB who torched MSU on the ground in 2010 when he played for Alcorn (Brandon Bridge). They also return their top 3 RBs and top 4 pass catchers. Their best defensive player is Jimmie Gipson who is from MS and was a standout at EMCC.

Any questions or concerns from the scouting report?

If they can't throw the ball effectively, then we will be fine. I'm not worried about USA running the ball against us--I'm just not. I don't think we'll overlook them and, as another poster in this thread said, I think this will look like the 3rd NFL: preseason game for us--we'll play our starters consistently throughout much of the game until it is decided. While I don't think we'll overlook them, I do think it's a dangerous game. They are a good mid-major team, that has been focusing on this opportunity for months. We'll get their best shot and, while it shouldn't be good enough to win, it will likely be good enough to scare us a little. I saw the ULL regional and how electric even a small venue can be in these situations.

[BeastMan]

Sell bigger than shit. I don't think for 1 second that we needed to be scared of losing to UAB in order to beat USA.

The statement should read:
MSU sleepwalking through the UAB game and getting somewhat of a scare was pointless.

Didn't mean they needed to a scare to beat USA. The question is if the scare would lead to a more renewed focus

[woozman]

Interesting indeed. Seems like that could definitely be some of Mullen's problem. After all, the whole reason he made himself ST Coach in the beginning was because that's how Meyer did it at FL. I just wish The Kang could talk to him about STs and their importance. Methinks he'd set Mullen straight quick, fast, and in a hurry.

He did - we got our hand slapped by the NCAA when the Kang came to practice and worked with the punters a few years back.

[Political Hack]

it's a good poor performance. going to help us learn and make adjustments. Also gives the staff a good read on who can do what. they put a lot of pressure on our team: log pass in 4th down, man up on the corners, no safety help, Williams in early, slant on 3rd and short, etc...

[War Machine Dawg]

He did - we got our hand slapped by the NCAA when the Kang came to practice and worked with the punters a few years back.

I know. Thanks, VZ!

[archdog]

Whats the issue. Make them kick 200 35 yd fg a day. That should fix it.