Sunday Morning QB- I'm Still Not Happy Edition

[Coach34]

1. We came out the first two series firing away again. Air Mullen with 2 punts on the first two series. Nice job of film study Bill Walsh.

2. We go 5 wide- teams stunt, blitz, and force a quick throw with the safeties jumping WR's. This is also why we are also having trouble running out of 5-wide, the Safeties are close to the LOS. Tech goes 5 wide and completes a 12-14 yard pass and the safety doesnt enter the picture until the catch is made. I think its really more about scheme and what the safeties are told to do than actual ability- basically- "dont get beat deep and give up the big play". So thats why we play soft at Safety alot.

3. aGAIN- why in the hell play Holloway so much? DLee- 3 carries- 21 yards. He is by far the best runner of the football we have- but plays the least. He picked up the blitz fine. He caught the pass thrown to him. He did fumble but we didnt lose it. We need to be getting Lee and Williams as many live reps as possible. Holloway is a joke in pass pro- yet he plays. Holloway has dropped a couple passes- yet he plays. Holloway had as many carries almost as the Freshmen had combined. It's ****ing ridiculous and holds the offense back. #FreeDLee

4. Prescott is Checkdown Charlie. Congrats on not throwing picks- and congrats on letting your back-up show everybody how to stretch the defense vertically. Showed the stat at halftime- of Prescott's 27 1st half passes- only 3 were more than 11 yards downfield. THREE. This is why Walley and the other WR's are getting lit up by the Safeties- they dont fear the deep ball from him- so they jump routes. We have got to stretch the field vertically some if we want to be successful throwing the football against these next 5 teams coming up. Or we are going to get more WR's hurt. Prescott also held the ball wayyyy too long on his sacks. Throw the damn ball away if nobody is open.

5. Prescott didnt keep the ball on the Zone Read until our 5th possession. If you want to diagnose a problem in our run game- there's one of them. Teams have adjusted to our 5 Wide set and we have yet to counter that adjustment- there's another diagnosis. We did run the speed option yesterday for some good gains- so thanks Bill Walsh for that little bit of extra imagination. Doing something like Tech did to us on that 4th down play they ran for 25 yards would be asking too much though. Requires IMAGINATION.

6. We look like we dont watch film defensively all week for our opponents. We seem to content to let them run their offense the 1st quarter so we can feel them out- then make adjustments. Thats going to get us beat down the road. We have stopped LSU and Troy to 3 and outs to start a game- the rest have drives inside our 35 to start games or TD's. But once Manny adjusts, he does a damn good job. He is getting to know the personnel better and it shows. He stacked AJ behind one of our DT's yesterday to let AJ find a gap to attack after the snap- IMAGINATION. Our Bill Walsh on offense needs to take a hint.

7. Chris Jones stretched his lead in Tackles over Robert Kimchee to 28-17. Kimchee still leads in TFL 5.5-3.5. I know Kimchee has 4 guys blocking him every play per Bearsharkfans and Jones only gets doubled- but you would think Kimchee would have more than 17 tackles in 7 games.

8. We are too content Defensively on 3rd and long to let teams catch the ball then tackle them short of the sticks. Giving up valuable field position that way. Butttttttt- again- we dont allow as many big plays as long as we make the tackle. Explains alot of why we are 9th in Total D- but 4th in Scoring D. Bend but dont break.

9. 3rd and 8- Manny blitzes off the edge and Jackson lets the RB get into his legs- allowing Driskell to break contain. That cant happen. I still cant believe we dont have a player better than him in that position.

10. Great job by the coaches on the punt block. Obviously something we picked up watching film. Great effort by Gray coming off the edge and making the play. Great timing of the call as well. This is easily the best ST's we have had under Mullen. Graves is outstanding as a kicker. Cooke is booming the ball when Mullen leaves him in and doesnt throw Bell out there. Hell, Cooke is becoming one of my favorite players. He popped up celebrating after the fake punt last week. Then celebrated getting roughed yesterday. Most punters fake it or in fact are hurt because they arent very tough. Hell no- not ours. He knew the flag was out and he was celebrating getting hit. Love that guy.

11. Dear, DLee, Williams- all need to be widely involved in the offense to be successful. Kentucky is going to come in and play us tough. They have a couple of extra days of prep time to get ready. We need to keep getting the young guys playing time to be the best we can be when Bammer rolls up into Scott Field. Our defensive front can play with Bammer. Our offense is going to have to help. Thats where they have beaten us every time at Scott Field to waste really strong defensive eforts. Got to get better Bill Walsh.

12. https://twitter.com/Elitedawg34/status/655467873033326592

[BeastMan]

I had a crazy thought. Do you think Manny scripts his defensive calls early in games? You can't script to the t the way an OC could but you could script situational concepts to see how they attack.

[Bully13]

I saw richie brown make some good tackles. I like the way he goes low and wraps the carrier's legs up. seems like he's improving every week. he seems to know where the ball is going before it's snapped.

[Coach34]

I had a crazy thought. Do you think Manny scripts his defensive calls early in games? You can't script to the t the way an OC could but you could script situational concepts to see how they attack.

It's very possible.

[basedog]

It's very possible.

Hell no!

[Maroonthirteen]

Regarding Dak not keeping on the read option, I really think Mullen feels we can win without Dak running. Therefore he is trying to keep Dak healthy for the final 3 games.

As for the RB situation....yeah, I think everyone is scratching their head. If he just insist on playing Holloway.. Put him in the "Pearcy Harvin" role. Move Dear to the back field.

[sleepy dawg]

I agree about special teams. It's not just kicking and punting, it's everywhere. Sure we've made mistakes this year, but it also seems like we've learned from those mistakes each time. And if it wasn't for a holding call, we'd have a 99 yard KO return for a TD too.

Also, you forgot to add this:http://i.imgur.com/nTrMhYX.gif?noredirect

[defiantdog]

I had a crazy thought. Do you think Manny scripts his defensive calls early in games? You can't script to the t the way an OC could but you could script situational concepts to see how they attack.

He probably works off a call sheet where he sets up situations in cover 2 and 3 as well as nickel, zones, etc. that have certain personnel. But defensive coordinators can't go into a play with a predestined script. Both TD passes were hit because La Tech had us in man to man with a single safety with his heals on the goaline. Manny started adjusting like most DC's do against the spread, and he began putting together 3-4 looks (like the one coach described above with Jefferson lining up behind the nose). The 3-4 has become the spread killer. But you don't want to show a 3-4 set and then have La Tech run the ball down our throats. He had a solid gameplan that got exploited in man to man situations, but he adjusted by creating a gap between the receivers and DBs.

[basedog]

As for as La Tech's 1st two drives, give Driskel credit, he was right on the money with every throw. Manny gave him a different look to start the game and we had pressure on him. As the game went on, Driskel and their OL got tired as we wore them down. Yes it was a slow start but it ain't like we were conservative on our defense as we blitzed and Driskel made good reads with pin point passing. My hats off to Driskel for showing his toughness, he got hit a bunch.

45-6 in the last 49 minutes of the game was impressive and was our best output. I see improvement, and I have a chance to be favored in the rest of the games except for Bama. Not saying we will win 9 but I feel like we have a chance now.

[Liverpooldawg]

As for as La Tech's 1st two drives, give Driskel credit, he was right on the money with every throw. Manny gave him a different look to start the game and we had pressure on him. As the game went on, Driskel and their OL got tired as we wore them down. Yes it was a slow start but it ain't like we were conservative on our defense as we blitzed and Driskel made good reads with pin point passing. My hats off to Driskel for showing his toughness, he got hit a bunch.

45-6 in the last 49 minutes of the game was impressive and was our best output. I see improvement, and I have a chance to be favored in the rest of the games except for Bama. Not saying we will win 9 but I feel like we have a chance now.

Yep

[RougeDawg]

I saw richie brown make some good tackles. I like the way he goes low and wraps the carrier's legs up. seems like he's improving every week. he seems to know where the ball is going before it's snapped.

Yes. Richie has tackled well the last few games. Early in the year he whiffed on a good many, but it may have been he and others getting used to the new scheme and thinking too much. Now 7 games on our players are starting to just react and play defense. The thinking part is out of the way and we seem to be tackling better.

[Bothrops]

Considering the very limited number snaps between Lee, Williams, and Dear while looking at our remaining games, scares the shit out of me.

[SheltonChoked]

I'm re watching the game today, I'm not convinced Dak can throw the long pass. On th play to Fred Brown, it was a 45 yard pass and he just barely got it there. I'm not calling for the backups to play, but both of our freshmens have flipped the ball farther.

I'm not sure why Manny takes a series or 2 to adjust. But it happens every game.

I'm pleased with the use of gray and dear right now. I want to see more of Lee and Williams at rb.

I also saw we ran the 4 th down and the 2 point conversion play to Williams today. Still a bad throw, but he caught it. There was a defender there and he didn't get yardage. But he did catch the ball.

I'm tired of Jackson on defense.

[civildawg]

Why we still play Zack Jackson is mind boggling. Dude is terrible

[HoopsDawg]

4. Prescott is Checkdown Charlie. Congrats on not throwing picks- and congrats on letting your back-up show everybody how to stretch the defense vertically. Showed the stat at halftime- of Prescott's 27 1st half passes- only 3 were more than 11 yards downfield. THREE. This is why Walley and the other WR's are getting lit up by the Safeties- they dont fear the deep ball from him- so they jump routes. We have got to stretch the field vertically some if we want to be successful throwing the football against these next 5 teams coming up. Or we are going to get more WR's hurt. Prescott also held the ball wayyyy too long on his sacks. Throw the damn ball away if nobody is open.

[/url]

Do we not have enough intermediate/downfield routes in our offense? We look like Alex Smith and the Chiefs out there. The teams that have had success against Bama have hit them on some deep throws. And I agree, we have got to loosen up those safeties.

[HoopsDawg]

Why we still play Zack Jackson is mind boggling. Dude is terrible

We have been playing a good bit more 5 DB's with Cleveland coming in for Jackson and it has helped.

[ScottH]

1.

7. Chris Jones stretched his lead in Tackles over Robert Kimchee to 28-17. Kimchee still leads in TFL 5.5-3.5. I know Kimchee has 4 guys blocking him every play per Bearsharkfans and Jones only gets doubled- but you would think Kimchee would have more than 17 tackles in 7 games.

https://twitter.com/Elitedawg34/status/655467873033326592

Lil Kim also leads Jones in the most important stat to NFL D Line folks :

offensive concussions

[Taog Redloh]

1. We came out the first two series firing away again. Air Mullen with 2 punts on the first two series. Nice job of film study Bill Walsh.

2. We go 5 wide- teams stunt, blitz, and force a quick throw with the safeties jumping WR's. This is also why we are also having trouble running out of 5-wide, the Safeties are close to the LOS. Tech goes 5 wide and completes a 12-14 yard pass and the safety doesnt enter the picture until the catch is made. I think its really more about scheme and what the safeties are told to do than actual ability- basically- "dont get beat deep and give up the big play". So thats why we play soft at Safety alot.

3. aGAIN- why in the hell play Holloway so much? DLee- 3 carries- 21 yards. He is by far the best runner of the football we have- but plays the least. He picked up the blitz fine. He caught the pass thrown to him. He did fumble but we didnt lose it. We need to be getting Lee and Williams as many live reps as possible. Holloway is a joke in pass pro- yet he plays. Holloway has dropped a couple passes- yet he plays. Holloway had as many carries almost as the Freshmen had combined. It's ****ing ridiculous and holds the offense back. #FreeDLee

4. Prescott is Checkdown Charlie. Congrats on not throwing picks- and congrats on letting your back-up show everybody how to stretch the defense vertically. Showed the stat at halftime- of Prescott's 27 1st half passes- only 3 were more than 11 yards downfield. THREE. This is why Walley and the other WR's are getting lit up by the Safeties- they dont fear the deep ball from him- so they jump routes. We have got to stretch the field vertically some if we want to be successful throwing the football against these next 5 teams coming up. Or we are going to get more WR's hurt. Prescott also held the ball wayyyy too long on his sacks. Throw the damn ball away if nobody is open.

5. Prescott didnt keep the ball on the Zone Read until our 5th possession. If you want to diagnose a problem in our run game- there's one of them. Teams have adjusted to our 5 Wide set and we have yet to counter that adjustment- there's another diagnosis. We did run the speed option yesterday for some good gains- so thanks Bill Walsh for that little bit of extra imagination. Doing something like Tech did to us on that 4th down play they ran for 25 yards would be asking too much though. Requires IMAGINATION.
Mullen is getting Croomtastic in a couple of ways:

- Trying to make Prescott a drop-back guy to get drafted. Dude had a hole big enough to run for days 2-3 times and still threw it.

- He's trying to run his offense his way and his way only. Dude needs to turn loose, a number of ways. Let the players make plays, and get a damn OC to call plays, so he can manage the clock, challenges, and other bigger picture items. This crap has gotten out of hand. Anyways, the former is why you are getting a bunch of seniors playing and not the younger guys. Mullen: IT AIN'T ABOUT YOU AND YOUR OFFENSE - IT'S THE JIMMY'S AND JOE'S. That's why we get our ass kicked on offense whenever we face a superior talented defense.

Defense is fine IMO.

[defiantdog]

The OL might be strugglin, but that Justin Johnson is an animal at TE. The way he sealed off the edge on Dak's running TD was amazing considering he's a true freshmen playing a new position.

[Coach007]

My one complaint on defense is that I can't remember a team this season we have not given up at least a TD on their first drive.

That's bad.

[QuadrupleOption]

Mullen is getting Croomtastic in a couple of ways:

- Trying to make Prescott a drop-back guy to get drafted. Dude had a hole big enough to run for days 2-3 times and still threw it.

- He's trying to run his offense his way and his way only. Dude needs to turn loose, a number of ways. Let the players make plays, and get a damn OC to call plays, so he can manage the clock, challenges, and other bigger picture items. This crap has gotten out of hand. Anyways, the former is why you are getting a bunch of seniors playing and not the younger guys. Mullen: IT AIN'T ABOUT YOU AND YOUR OFFENSE - IT'S THE JIMMY'S AND JOE'S. That's why we get our ass kicked on offense whenever we face a superior talented defense.

Defense is fine IMO.

One of those times Dak chose to throw it ended up as a TD to Bear. So yeah, terrible decision I guess?

Other than that, I see what everyone else sees. Our O is not nearly as stout as it was last year. But it's not Dak - it's the O-line. Those guys can't run block for shit, and until they can we will continue to struggle.

[Coach34]

My one complaint on defense is that I can't remember a team this season we have not given up at least a TD on their first drive.

That's bad.

USM, NW State,LSU, Troy, Auburn didnt score on 1st drive

[Really Clark?]

My one complaint on defense is that I can't remember a team this season we have not given up at least a TD on their first drive.

That's bad.

I didn't know it's possible to give up more than a TD on a drive.

[Mutt the Hoople]

One thing I noticed about Lee and Williams-they don't switch the ball to their outside arm when running. Williams had the ball knocked out against Texas A&M when he had the ball on his inside arm.

On the other hand, the freshmans who ran that interception back for a pick-6 switched the ball at least once on his run.

[defiantdog]

I didn't know it's possible to give up more than a TD on a drive.

I mean..... I guess an extra point

[Drugdog]

Go ahead and light me up. Dak is a big part of the problem for our offense. Won't run won't throw downfield. As C34 said he IS CHECKDOWN CHARLIE. I know we can't criticize Dak but anyone with an iq above their shoe size can see this.

I love the pundits, he looks at all his reads and Guess which one he almost always chooses. Yep. CHECKDOWN.

Flame away.

[Taog Redloh]

Go ahead and light me up. Dak is a big part of the problem for our offense. Won't run won't throw downfield. As C34 said he IS CHECKDOWN CHARLIE. I know we can't criticize Dak but anyone with an iq above their shoe size can see this.

I love the pundits, he looks at all his reads and Guess which one he almost always chooses. Yep. CHECKDOWN.

Flame away.
I'm with you, brah. While I don't blame him for not going downfield (he's never been great at that), I do blame him for not running ie catering to his strength. He can practice his checkdowns all he wants, but at the end of the day, you have to stick with what you do well first and foremost.

[defiantdog]

I'm with you, brah. While I don't blame him for not going downfield (he's never been great at that), I do blame him for not running ie catering to his strength. He can practice his checkdowns all he wants, but at the end of the day, you have to stick with what you do well first and foremost.

Mullen is scared to get Dak hurt. A hurt Dak could potentially deflate our already young team.

[Drugdog]

Mullen is scared to get Dak hurt. A hurt Dak could potentially deflate our already young team.

So we have a team of P******. We have 2 very good backups that FIT Our team better. Poor excuse. Dak needs to shit or get off the pot. It's as simple as that.

[Taog Redloh]

Mullen is scared to get Dak hurt. A hurt Dak could potentially deflate our already young team.
This is a tough one. I understand your point, but at the same time, it's football, and there are injuries. Dak is a running QB first and foremost. But there again, he is not as indestructible as Cam and Tebow were. Just a tough spot.

[bluelightstar]

So we have a team of P******. We have 2 very good backups that FIT Our team better. Poor excuse. Dak needs to shit or get off the pot. It's as simple as that.

...............................................

[Coach34]

This is a tough one. I understand your point, but at the same time, it's football, and there are injuries. Dak is a running QB first and foremost. But there again, he is not as indestructible as Cam and Tebow were. Just a tough spot.

Fitz could beat everyone on our schedule except Bama. He pushes the ball down the field. We might have a chance at Bama with Prescott- but it's very small unless we start doing something different.

[Taog Redloh]

Fitz could beat everyone on our schedule except Bama.
If we open it up for him to throw.....maybe. Seems like every time Mullen trots Fitz out there, he tries to power run him and THEN drop a bomb.

Funny enough, for about the 4,000th time in MSU football history, the backup is probably more suited for the personnel that we have (ie throwing over running). That really doesn't matter though, because like you say, if we'd just make a few adjustments, this offense too would hum just like last year.

[Todd4State]

Go ahead and light me up. Dak is a big part of the problem for our offense. Won't run won't throw downfield. As C34 said he IS CHECKDOWN CHARLIE. I know we can't criticize Dak but anyone with an iq above their shoe size can see this.

I love the pundits, he looks at all his reads and Guess which one he almost always chooses. Yep. CHECKDOWN.

Flame away.

I agree with you. I don't think it's Dan and his play calling as much as Dak taking the safe choice. There were at least a couple of times against La Tech where we had a WR wide open and Dak checked it down. Plus, it doesn't make any sense for Dan to call long passing plays when Fitzgerald and Staley are in the game and not Dak.

It also hurts the overall run game because there are always nine in the box.

[Todd4State]

Mullen is scared to get Dak hurt. A hurt Dak could potentially deflate our already young team.

I think Dak is scared to get Dak hurt. Whether that be physically or draft stock.

[Todd4State]

One of those times Dak chose to throw it ended up as a TD to Bear. So yeah, terrible decision I guess?

Other than that, I see what everyone else sees. Our O is not nearly as stout as it was last year. But it's not Dak - it's the O-line. Those guys can't run block for shit, and until they can we will continue to struggle.


And it doesn't help them that Holloway goes down if you lay a finger on him and Shumpert is running up their backs.

Dak, Aeris, and Lee are ALL running fine behind them. Lee hasn't been tackled for a loss YET.

They are pretty good at pass blocking- and I would imagine that a truly bad offensive line would most likely not be as good at both pass and run blocking rather than being really good at one or the other.

[shannondawg]

Lord have mercy! We could score on every possession, make the pat, and some of you would bitch about not going for two.

[Todd4State]

Lord have mercy! We could score on every possession, make the pat, and some of you would bitch about not going for two.

Here let me help you:

http://www.scout.com/college/mississippi-state/

[BoomBoom]

Here let me help you:

http://www.scout.com/college/mississippi-state/

If a team were scoring on every possession, then game theory says you should go for two. Just saying.

[shannondawg]

Ok, I get the message, but ain't going. good one though!


Here let me help you:

http://www.scout.com/college/mississippi-state/

[Dawgcentral]

I don't think Dak is scared. I think he's really level headed and puts winning ahead of any NFL aspirations. I think he's willing to sacrifice everything in order to give MSU the best chance of winning.

But those are just my observations.

Only way I see him not sacrificing his physical health for this team is if he was told not to.

[HoopsDawg]

I think Dak is scared to get Dak hurt. Whether that be physically or draft stock.

Horrible post bud.

[chef dixon]

Fitz could beat everyone on our schedule except Bama. He pushes the ball down the field. We might have a chance at Bama with Prescott- but it's very small unless we start doing something different.

lol, come on dude

[HoopsDawg]

Go ahead and light me up. Dak is a big part of the problem for our offense.

Flame away.

Every time I read a dumb post on the internet, I think it can't get any dumber than that...Congrats Drugdog!

[Todd4State]

Horrible post bud.

Then why is Dak not playing like he was the past two years? It's not play calling- Dan calls plays where there is a deep route and Dak just misses it and checks it down. And he sure as heck isn't scrambling like he used to.

Dak just needs to let go and play and do what he does naturally- and that's make plays.

[DancingRabbit]

I don't think Dak is scared. I think he's really level headed and puts winning ahead of any NFL aspirations. I think he's willing to sacrifice everything in order to give MSU the best chance of winning.

But those are just my observations.

Only way I see him not sacrificing his physical health for this team is if he was told not to.

I tend to agree with you. Dak hasn't played as well as we expected at times, but it's hard for me to get down on him, being one of our greatest players and ambassadors ever.

[Coach34]

lol, come on dude

I'm 100% serious

Fitz could beat every team we play on the schedule except Bama. Thats not saying he WOULD- but he gives us a dimension Dakota doesnt right now- the deep ball to back the safeties off. He is literally better than Prescott at QB at that. AndI'm a huge Prescott fan- as well as Staley. But Fitz gives us something Prescott doesnt- plus Fitz likes to run the football. His decision-making is not as good or as quick as Dak right now- and that would kill him vs Bama. But I have no doubts we could be a 9-3 team with Fitz at QB the rest of the way

[HoopsDawg]

Then why is Dak not playing like he was the past two years? It's not play calling- Dan calls plays where there is a deep route and Dak just misses it and checks it down. And he sure as heck isn't scrambling like he used to.

Dak just needs to let go and play and do what he does naturally- and that's make plays.

I mean, he was 30-43. That's 70% completion percentage-almost unheard of in MSU history. He threw for 347 yards and 3 TD's. He ran 10 times for 51 yards. He hasn't thrown a pick all year. Hell, he's got the 3rd longest streak in SEC history. I agree we need to take more shots down the field, but that's on Mullen too. Some of our plays aren't designed for that. Every week, the entire pressure of the offense is on Dak. We can't win if he has a bad game. You can't say that about Jake Coker or Brandon Harris, or Florida's QB. I would say we have one of the worst 3 offensive lines in the SEC. We ran the same plays last year and had success running the ball.

[Todd4State]

I mean, he was 30-43. That's 70% completion percentage-almost unheard of in MSU history. He threw for 347 yards and 3 TD's. He ran 10 times for 51 yards. He hasn't thrown a pick all year. Hell, he's got the 3rd longest streak in SEC history. I agree we need to take more shots down the field, but that's on Mullen too. Some of our plays aren't designed for that. Every week, the entire pressure of the offense is on Dak. We can't win if he has a bad game. You can't say that about Jake Coker or Brandon Harris, or Florida's QB. I would say we have one of the worst 3 offensive lines in the SEC. We ran the same plays last year and had success running the ball.

And most of those completions are under 10 yards. I'm happy that he is completing them. But he needs to push the ball down the field more because it will open up our offense more. I know some of our plays aren't designed to go down the field- but some of the ones that are Dak is missing the guy and or he isn't even challenging it downfield.

30 completions for 347 yards is only about 12 yards per completion.

We're not saying Dak sucks- but he does need to play better than he is and we all know he is capable of doing so. For most of this year he looks uptight and he's just not playing loose and free like he used to.

[basedog]

Dak is a winner, works hard, stays out of trouble, gonna go down as one of the all time greats at Msu.

And now I'm reading his flaws, man ole man. I'd take a Dak day in and day out every year.

I rate QB's as in wins, time will tell if the backups we have will lead Msu to more victories than Dak.

I refuse to be critical of him and things he can't or should do. If that's call sunshine so be it!

[Coach34]

I would say we have one of the worst 3 offensive lines in the SEC. We ran the same plays last year and had success running the ball.

No. Just no. Dakota had 50 more carries at this point last year. We arent close to running the same offense

[Coach34]

I rate QB's as in wins, time will tell if the backups we have will lead Msu to more victories than Dak!

Well that just makes you ****ing stupid. Because defensive plays and TD's affect alot of football games. Kinda like Madkin getting credit for Wyatt coming in and winning games for him. You judge a QB on his play and success- period. Dak's play this season is not that good.

[Jarius]

Mullen keeps praising Dak for going to the check downs. That's what he wants obviously. Dak's father told my brother at the Texas A&M game that Mullen wanted Dak to run less and Dak wanted to run more than he was.

[HoopsDawg]

Mullen keeps praising Dak for going to the check downs. That's what he wants obviously. Dak's father told my brother at the Texas A&M game that Mullen wanted Dak to run less and Dak wanted to run more than he was.

The great Bill Walsh, who 34 referenced in this thread, coined the phrase Touchdown to Checkdown.

[HoopsDawg]

No. Just no. Dakota had 50 more carries at this point last year. We arent close to running the same offense

Last year, when we went 5-wide against AU or LSU Dak had massive holes to run through. Somebody probably has that screen shot of the hole he had against AU. This year, the holes aren't there. We are running the same damn offense, we just can't run the ball b/c we are playing the wrong running backs and our O-line isn't as good.

Another point about Dak, you said he is holding on to the ball too long. Well he's not getting sacked either. He's not turning it over, he's not getting sacked, he's running the offense and you are criticizing him. You must have had a bad weekend, but your posts today have all been negative.

[basedog]

[QUOTE=Coach34;432347]Well that just makes you ****ing stupid. Because defensive plays and TD's affect alot of football games. Kinda like Madkin getting credit for Wyatt coming in and winning games for him. You judge a QB on his play and success- period. Dak's play this season is not that good.[/QUOTE

You calling me stupid is stupid! I'm talking bout who and what Dak has done and represents Msu.

You at times are way out of touch when u don't agree with someone. I didn't call u out.

[Coach34]

The great Bill Walsh, who 34 referenced in this thread, coined the phrase Touchdown to Checkdown.

Montana to Rice enjoyed some great 60+ yards TD passes- how many has Dakota thrown that long?

[Maroonthirteen]

Mullen keeps praising Dak for going to the check downs. That's what he wants obviously. Dak's father told my brother at the Texas A&M game that Mullen wanted Dak to run less and Dak wanted to run more than he was.

Thanks for the info.

That's obviously the situation. When we need yards, we have called plays that are a designed QB run. Dak runs hard and doesn't slide. For the most part, When we are in control of the game (or in catch up mode), Dak doesn't run.

[Coach34]

Last year, when we went 5-wide against AU or LSU Dak had massive holes to run through..

This year- defenses arent playing us the same way they did a last year. They have adjusted. We havent. Its our move

[basedog]

Last year, when we went 5-wide against AU or LSU Dak had massive holes to run through. Somebody probably has that screen shot of the hole he had against AU. This year, the holes aren't there. We are running the same damn offense, we just can't run the ball b/c we are playing the wrong running backs and our O-line isn't as good.

Another point about Dak, you said he is holding on to the ball too long. Well he's not getting sacked either. He's not turning it over, he's not getting sacked, he's running the offense and you are criticizing him. You must have had a bad weekend, but your posts today have all been negative.

I totally agree Hoops, you made good points about Dak and QB play in general.

[Political Hack]

If you fumble continuously you can't be the primary back. Other than that, I agree with everything.

[HoopsDawg]

This year- defenses arent playing us the same way they did a last year. They have adjusted. We havent. Its our move

Agree, but that's a Mullen problem not a Dak problem.

[Todd4State]

Mullen keeps praising Dak for going to the check downs. That's what he wants obviously. Dak's father told my brother at the Texas A&M game that Mullen wanted Dak to run less and Dak wanted to run more than he was.

That is insane on Dan's part if it is true.

[SallyStansbury]

Mullen+Hev vs good teams = check downs, risk aversion, Holloway between the tackles. 34 makes excellent points about opposing defenses adjusting to our short passing game and non-existent running game. They are punishing us and it is our move.


Also, Fitz has a nice deep ball, but if he were to become the starter, he too could be taught(coached**) to check down every freakin time. Fear of "mistakes" is driving this bullshit. However, being overly conservative and at the same time predictable is a far worse mistake.

[Todd4State]

The great Bill Walsh, who 34 referenced in this thread, coined the phrase Touchdown to Checkdown.

And at the 4:45 mark of this video he says you should try to throw at least 10 deep balls a game. Dan probably needs to watch this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRU99QdXecA

[Todd4State]

Mullen+Hev vs good teams = check downs, risk aversion, Holloway between the tackles. 34 makes excellent points about opposing defenses adjusting to our short passing game and non-existent running game. They are punishing us and it is our move.


Also, Fitz has a nice deep ball, but if he were to become the starter, he too could be taught(coached**) to check down every freakin time. Fear of "mistakes" is driving this bullshit. However, being overly conservative and at the same time predictable is a far worse mistake.

Bingo.

And I'm tired of Dan being scared. It plays right into our opponents hands.

We played aggressive against LSU, Texas A&M, and Auburn last year- and yes, we had a few turnovers here and there. But we also put up tons of points and won all three.

[Prediction? Pain.]

Mullen keeps praising Dak for going to the check downs. That's what he wants obviously. Dak's father told my brother at the Texas A&M game that Mullen wanted Dak to run less and Dak wanted to run more than he was.


That is insane on Dan's part if it is true.

For what it's worth, here's what Mullen said (https://youtu.be/dFeSNrlFawg?t=4m3s) after the La Tech game on this very subject:


Q: You talk about Dak's progression as a [passing] quarterback, what have you seen from him over the past year?

A: Well, I mean obviously he's come a long way as a big-time quarterback. I think one of the things I was pleased to see today is that he's starting to get back to finding that balance of when to pull it down and start running. You know what I mean? When to pull it down and start running. I think in the first couple of games in the season, he's done such a great job of getting to his third and fourth progressions. I mean, with college kids you're lucky if they get to a second. It's one, run; one, two, run, maybe. He's gone to four. But I think he's starting to see and understand coverages where, "I'm one, two, oh, goodness, they're not covering me for a run, I can easily go run for a first down right now," instead of holding the ball in the pocket too long [until the play] breaks down and creates a sack. But the key to that is balance . . . . It's knowing what's happening on the field.

Mullen seems to be describing a flaw in Dak's approach this season that's taken some time to get worked out -- that's he's become overly concerned about seeing what every route on the field looks like on passing plays instead of seeing the 8-to-15-yard patch of green that's staring him in the face.

[chef dixon]

I'm 100% serious

Fitz could beat every team we play on the schedule except Bama. Thats not saying he WOULD- but he gives us a dimension Dakota doesnt right now- the deep ball to back the safeties off. He is literally better than Prescott at QB at that. AndI'm a huge Prescott fan- as well as Staley. But Fitz gives us something Prescott doesnt- plus Fitz likes to run the football. His decision-making is not as good or as quick as Dak right now- and that would kill him vs Bama. But I have no doubts we could be a 9-3 team with Fitz at QB the rest of the way

You're basing that off a couple deep balls you saw against mighty Troy? I'm really glad he can throw the deep ball better than Dak. Since we can't run the ball, I guess we can put Fitz out there and throw it deep on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd down and see how that goes for us. I'm sure we wouldn't have many 3 and outs or turnovers.

You also say we aren't running the same offense because Dak has 50 less running attempts this year, then in the next post say teams have learned how to defend Dak and we haven't adapted to that...

With how bad our running game has been, without Daks check downs we simply would not move the ball period. Fitz cannot run this offense with the state of our running game.

[shannondawg]

I really don't believe what I am reading. I'm outa here.

[Political Hack]

I really don't believe what I am reading. I'm outa here.

Our fans a slowly become ole miss-esq... We go on a 45-6 run to beat a pretty good OOC team handily and people are complaining more than being excited about a pretty good season we're having right now. I don't understand where the sense of entitlement has come from. We're 5-2 with 2 losses against two team with 1 combined loss to another top 10 team. We're staring a 9-3 season in the eyes and the program is on the rise. Meanwhile the fires have been lit on the plantation and were dangerously close to leaving them in the dust. There's not a lot to complain about right now from a historical perspective, and if this season pisses you off, you're going to live a miserable life as a State fan because we've got it pretty good right now.

[BullDog]

I had a crazy thought. Do you think Manny scripts his defensive calls early in games? You can't script to the t the way an OC could but you could script situational concepts to see how they attack.

you so smart. Beast plays chess

[Todd4State]

Our fans a slowly become ole miss-esq... We go on a 45-6 run to beat a pretty good OOC team handily and people are complaining more than being excited about a pretty good season we're having right now. I don't understand where the sense of entitlement has come from. We're 5-2 with 2 losses against two team with 1 combined loss to another top 10 team. We're staring a 9-3 season in the eyes and the program is on the rise. Meanwhile the fires have been lit on the plantation and were dangerously close to leaving them in the dust. There's not a lot to complain about right now from a historical perspective, and if this season pisses you off, you're going to live a miserable life as a State fan because we've got it pretty good right now.

No one is complaining about that. We're complaining because we could and should be even better than we are. Not being satisfied with 7-4 and a Liberty Bowl every few years is part of what has moved our program forward. There are no two ways about it- we should have beaten LSU. We didn't and it pisses me off. We need to beat Alabama to take the next step while also continuing to take care of business. We should be on the verge of a special season- not nine wins and three moral victories.

And all we have to do to get there is play two freshmen more at RB and throw the ball deeper and maybe play JT and Gerri more at LB. That's all we critics want. We don't want Dan fired. We don't want to fire coaches. We do want them to make adjustments and use common sense without giving us some bullshit line about the freshmen needing to work on things when they are already better than the guys getting the lion's share of carries when it's obvious to everyone that isn't in Megan's quilting bee that there are players that aren't playing as much that are better.

So, yes we are winning- but what's wrong with blowing people out? Why do we have to beat Auburn 17-9 when it can be 31-6? And Lee and Williams probably would have given us enough rushing production to beat LSU this year. Not to mention Zach Jackson completely whiffing on Fournette on one of his TD runs that Gray probably would have stopped in all likelihood. Beating the crap out of teams like Auburn on the road and then beating people like Alabama and LSU is what earns you respect if you are in the SEC.

It would be one thing if we really and truly didn't have solutions on the bench- I could probably tolerate our personnel usage better. But we DO have solutions and the fact that we don't play or use them enough is maddening as a fan. Especially when I see Holloway fumble and recover the fumble in the same game just like Lee- but guess who gets to play more and who gets to sit?

[missstdawgs4]

Dan doesn't want Dak running as much cause he's been beat up and hurt at the end of each of the last two seasons. In the two games we needed him to run in, LSU wouldn't let him and he had 18 carries against A&M. Dak will run more as the season goes on.

[Political Hack]

Dan doesn't want Dak running as much cause he's been beat up and hurt at the end of each of the last two seasons. In the two games we needed him to run in, LSU wouldn't let him and he had 18 carries against A&M. Dak will run more as the season goes on.

Quit making sense. This is a message board dammit.

[BB30]

No one is complaining about that. We're complaining because we could and should be even better than we are. Not being satisfied with 7-4 and a Liberty Bowl every few years is part of what has moved our program forward. There are no two ways about it- we should have beaten LSU. We didn't and it pisses me off. We need to beat Alabama to take the next step while also continuing to take care of business. We should be on the verge of a special season- not nine wins and three moral victories.

And all we have to do to get there is play two freshmen more at RB and throw the ball deeper and maybe play JT and Gerri more at LB. That's all we critics want. We don't want Dan fired. We don't want to fire coaches. We do want them to make adjustments and use common sense without giving us some bullshit line about the freshmen needing to work on things when they are already better than the guys getting the lion's share of carries when it's obvious to everyone that isn't in Megan's quilting bee that there are players that aren't playing as much that are better.

So, yes we are winning- but what's wrong with blowing people out? Why do we have to beat Auburn 17-9 when it can be 31-6? And Lee and Williams probably would have given us enough rushing production to beat LSU this year. Not to mention Zach Jackson completely whiffing on Fournette on one of his TD runs that Gray probably would have stopped in all likelihood. Beating the crap out of teams like Auburn on the road and then beating people like Alabama and LSU is what earns you respect if you are in the SEC.

It would be one thing if we really and truly didn't have solutions on the bench- I could probably tolerate our personnel usage better. But we DO have solutions and the fact that we don't play or use them enough is maddening as a fan. Especially when I see Holloway fumble and recover the fumble in the same game just like Lee- but guess who gets to play more and who gets to sit?

So you know for 100% fact that throwing the deep ball and running Lee and putting Fitz in will fix everything? We would be undefeated? Fitz saw good time against NWS and Troy. Two of those deep balls for TDs were left short and a great play was made by our WRs against scrub cbs in scrub time. Bama's DBs would have eaten those balls up. Have you actually thought maybe those deep routes are covered because we don't have a burner at WR that can get behind coverages. Dogging Dak is not going to fix whatever problems we have which I personally think the bulk falls on the O-line. How does the O-line get a pass but Dak and skill players take the bulk of criticism. I have not seen anything that says our O-line could run block. Dontavian Lee has looked good against lesser competition and better than our other backs probably, does he deserve more meaningful carries probably. Bottom line is nobody on here knows more about this team than Dan and co and hopefully things have started clicking. Either way we will know very soon what type of team we have.

[Coach34]

So you know for 100% fact that throwing the deep ball and running Lee and putting Fitz in will fix everything? We would be undefeated? Fitz saw good time against NWS and Troy. Two of those deep balls for TDs were left short and a great play was made by our WRs against scrub cbs in scrub time. Bama's DBs would have eaten those balls up. Have you actually thought maybe those deep routes are covered because we don't have a burner at WR that can get behind coverages. Dogging Dak is not going to fix whatever problems we have which I personally think the bulk falls on the O-line. How does the O-line get a pass but Dak and skill players take the bulk of criticism. I have not seen anything that says our O-line could run block. Dontavian Lee has looked good against lesser competition and better than our other backs probably, does he deserve more meaningful carries probably. Bottom line is nobody on here knows more about this team than Dan and co and hopefully things have started clicking. Either way we will know very soon what type of team we have.

Yes- I know for a fact that throwing more deep balls and running DLee will improve our offense. 100%. Even if you don't complete them- you make the safeties aware that you will do it and they can't jump the midrange routes as hard. That's Football 101.

Fitz's passes to Wilson were perfect. Perfect. The pass to Gray was a foot short but the CB also had great coverage. The ball shouldn't have been thrown because he was covered- but what Fitz did do was out it in a place our WR could make a play.

Mullen is a good coach- but he's not perfect. Neither is Prescott.

[TrapGame]

Dan doesn't want Dak running as much cause he's been beat up and hurt at the end of each of the last two seasons. In the two games we needed him to run in, LSU wouldn't let him and he had 18 carries against A&M. Dak will run more as the season goes on.

Bingo. And we will need Dak's legs in the last three games. A very healthy Dak vs. Arky, Bama and UNM will be huge for us.

[TheDawgiLama]

Yes- I know for a fact that throwing more deep balls and running DLee will improve our offense. 100%. Even if you don't complete them- you make the safeties aware that you will do it and they can't jump the midrange routes as hard. That's Football 101.

Fitz's passes to Wilson were perfect. Perfect. The pass to Gray was a foot short but the CB also had great coverage. The ball shouldn't have been thrown because he was covered- but what Fitz did do was out it in a place our WR could make a play.

Mullen is a good coach- but he's not perfect. Neither is Prescott.


Nor are you, for that matter.

[Todd4State]

So you know for 100% fact that throwing the deep ball and running Lee and putting Fitz in will fix everything? We would be undefeated? Fitz saw good time against NWS and Troy. Two of those deep balls for TDs were left short and a great play was made by our WRs against scrub cbs in scrub time. Bama's DBs would have eaten those balls up. Have you actually thought maybe those deep routes are covered because we don't have a burner at WR that can get behind coverages. Dogging Dak is not going to fix whatever problems we have which I personally think the bulk falls on the O-line. How does the O-line get a pass but Dak and skill players take the bulk of criticism. I have not seen anything that says our O-line could run block. Dontavian Lee has looked good against lesser competition and better than our other backs probably, does he deserve more meaningful carries probably. Bottom line is nobody on here knows more about this team than Dan and co and hopefully things have started clicking. Either way we will know very soon what type of team we have.

I didn't say anything about Fitz- Dak can throw it deep, and I want Dak to throw it deep. Also never said we would be undefeated- but I'm pretty sure we would have defeated LSU and we would have come a lot closer to beating A&M if not defeated them.

You don't have to have burners to throw it deep either- I just posted a video with Bill Walsh talking about throwing bombs to freaking Dwight Clark. And Rice ran about a 4.6 for that matter which is slower than any of our WR's aside from maybe Walley. You can use size- like Bear being 6'5" which is taller than pretty much any CB in America, you can use speed, you can use scheme like back shoulder throws or pump and go's.

Like Coach said- you want to throw it deep to get the safeties out of the box so that you can throw it short more effectively and also run it more effectively because there will be fewer defenders in the box. Football 101.

Who cares about "lesser competition" with Lee because he is performing better against "lesser competition" than the guys that are playing more? Logic says that the odds are he will perform better against "better competition" than the guys ahead of him as well.

And you probably shouldn't blame the o-line when we are fifth in the SEC in sacks allowed- one away from third place not to mention the fact that Dak, Williams, and Lee magically figure out how to get yards behind our o-line when they play.

[Todd4State]

Dan doesn't want Dak running as much cause he's been beat up and hurt at the end of each of the last two seasons. In the two games we needed him to run in, LSU wouldn't let him and he had 18 carries against A&M. Dak will run more as the season goes on.

If you are an option team, your QB needs to be running.

[Coach34]

Nor are you, for that matter.

nope. Ive made some absolutely great calls- and some really dogshit ones too. Strategy and gameplanning was always a strength tho

[Coach34]

And you probably shouldn't blame the o-line when we are fifth in the SEC in sacks allowed- one away from third place not to mention the fact that Dak, Williams, and Lee magically figure out how to get yards behind our o-line when they play.

Exactly. There's alot more to having run game problems than "the OL sux". They dont suck when Dak or DLee runs the ball. Aeris has been solid. Holloway has had his moments but he gets tackled with one hand alot which would make it hard on any OL. And as Todd said- Backing the Safeties the **** up would go a long way in helping the run game as well.

And our Pass Pro is good. We have thrown the 2nd most passes in the SEC- and 1 sack away from being 3rd in sacks allowed