Q&A from Arnett post game on the 17 passing attempts

[BlackSailsDawg]

Question: Will only had 17 pass attempts. Is that what Arizona was doing?

Arnett: The way that first half played out. We had a really good drive to open it. I decide to go for it. If you don?t get it, you?ve got them backed up. You like your defense?s chances to defend the field. The way the turnovers went, you were in short fields, where route spacing is tighter. Running the ball is beneficial. I told Coach Barbay after the 18-play drive, our defense needed a blow. So it became a clock situation. Try to run the ball and give the defense some wind. Just the way the game went, it became a run heavy game. We?ll see if we missed some opportunities for shot plays.



I'm not even sure what to say about that. You don't pass because of a shorter field? You don't pass it because your defense is winded?

[Dawgface]

Question: Will only had 17 pass attempts. Is that what Arizona was doing?

Arnett: The way that first half played out. We had a really good drive to open it. I decide to go for it. If you don?t get it, you?ve got them backed up. You like your defense?s chances to defend the field. The way the turnovers went, you were in short fields, where route spacing is tighter. Running the ball is beneficial. I told Coach Barbay after the 18-play drive, our defense needed a blow. So it became a clock situation. Try to run the ball and give the defense some wind. Just the way the game went, it became a run heavy game. We?ll see if we missed some opportunities for shot plays.



I'm not even sure what to say about that. You don't pass because of a shorter field? You don't pass it because your defense is winded?

We have a defensive minded coach in charge and that is his number one priority. I don't see him ever letting the offense take chances for fear of turning it over.

[the_real_MSU_is_us]

Route running pace? We planning to throw it more than 50 yards every pass play or something?

[ZedFedder]

On the postgame show, Arnett said doing that was a bad decision and foolish.

[BlackSailsDawg]

On the postgame show, Arnett said doing that was a bad decision and foolish.

Got a link to that postgame show?

[Lord McBuckethead]

Sorry to Arnett, but in the SEC the learning curve timeline is zero. Our fans expectation is to play in Atlanta for a SEC championship. That is why first time head coaches don?t do well in the SEC their first year usually, and even though that is typical it is never acceptable.

[ZedFedder]

Got a link to that postgame show?

Might be on hailstate.com somewhere. I listened on the radio as I drove home from the game.

[the_real_MSU_is_us]

On the postgame show, Arnett said doing that was a bad decision and foolish.

JOMo frequently criticized his own coaching too. Even went run heavy vs Auburn and won and said postgame he "remembered to take his coaching pills this week". What did he do after that? go right back to the same offense that had failed.

Not saying Arnett is JoMo. Not even a bit. I"m saying that coaches being self aware of their mistakes isn't the same thing as them making correct decisions in the future.

In this case, telling the OC to cut every pass play because the D needs a break is such a dumb decision I question what kinds of decisions he'll make in the future. maybe he won't make the same mistake twice, but if he could make that mistake once, what other mistakes will he make once?

I'd rather have my coaches make the correct decisions in the first place than almost lose the game and then be self aware after.

[maroonmania]

This is why so few defensive coaches get HC jobs these days. You can't be conservative and win very much. If we think we are going to ground and pound through the SEC then we are very much mistaken. Arizona was a horrible rush defense last year. I'm sure they've improved but they stopped our run game when they needed to. SEC defenses will be even tougher.

[Biguglyjoe]

"told Coach Barbay after the 18-play drive, our defense needed a blow. So it became a clock situation. Try to run the ball and give the defense some wind."

Sylvester Croom made an almost exact statement in a post game interview. I thought it was the most asinine thing I'd heard a coach say at the time. I can't believe another head coach at Mississippi State has the same approach.

[R2Dawg]

JOMo frequently criticized his own coaching too. Even went run heavy vs Auburn and won and said postgame he "remembered to take his coaching pills this week". What did he do after that? go right back to the same offense that had failed.

Not saying Arnett is JoMo. Not even a bit. I"m saying that coaches being self aware of their mistakes isn't the same thing as them making correct decisions in the future.

In this case, telling the OC to cut every pass play because the D needs a break is such a dumb decision I question what kinds of decisions he'll make in the future. maybe he won't make the same mistake twice, but if he could make that mistake once, what other mistakes will he make once?

I'd rather have my coaches make the correct decisions in the first place than almost lose the game and then be self aware after.

Joe wasn't being self aware, he was being a smartA. CZA seems to be willing to learn. Think we got to give him some time. Heck we gave Leach years to get his O going after he's been doing it for decades. CZA is starting from scratch so to speak.

CZA is very self aware of situations but he has to learn HC stuff. He is always asking for advice, he seems to listen like he did to former players about the farm, etc.

[R2Dawg]

"told Coach Barbay after the 18-play drive, our defense needed a blow. So it became a clock situation. Try to run the ball and give the defense some wind."

Sylvester Croom made an almost exact statement in a post game interview. I thought it was the most asinine thing I'd heard a coach say at the time. I can't believe another head coach at Mississippi State has the same approach.

Well when an O is getting the best of you, the best D is keeping the ball away from them. However, his mistake is that means do whatever it takes to keep the ball, not just run every play and let D pin their ears back - which is what teams do with Will because he isn't a run threat. Hard for us to do against a running QB, hard for any D. Test gets tougher this week though.

[DownwardDawg]

I've lost a LOT of confidence in our Head Coach after two weeks into the season. Hopefully he'll get it figured out but he seems lost right now.

[Leroy Jenkins]

...and before the season he said "it doesn't make sense for me to get involved with the offensive play calling when I've never coached a down of offense".

He was trying to milk that 14 point lead and it nearly bit us in the ass.

[viverlibre]

Sorry to Arnett, but in the SEC the learning curve timeline is zero. Our fans expectation is to play in Atlanta for a SEC championship. That is why first time head coaches don?t do well in the SEC their first year usually, and even though that is typical it is never acceptable.

No State fan with an IQ above 50 has that expectation and hasn't had that expectation since JoMo took an 11-1 team to 8-4. Any common sense fan has a 7-5 expectation (6-6 floor/8-4 ceiling) for this year's team.

[EdwardDrayton]

What gets us into trouble is not what we don't know. It's what we know for sure that just ain't so.
Mark Twain

[coachnorm]

When you have a quarterback that can not execute a pass more than 15 yards up field bad things are going to happen. All over college football, last Saturday, quarterbacks launched the football up field based on pre snap alignment observations. In other words, in that nano second before the ball is snaped, the decision was irrevocably determined to throw to that receiver. When this execution is achieved, defenders cannot get to the quarterback on time. Also, this quick execution will lock the defense in a one on one personnel situation even on zone coverage because the defenders cannot double up in time providing the top of the defense is at risk. This execution was understood by scores of quarterbacks in college football yesterday and possibly hundreds of contested passes were attempted and many completed.

Because Rogers has not learned what is stated, none of this applies to Mississippi State Football. This means a higher amount of offensive line holding calls, sacks, and fumbles etc. because of the deer in the headlights holding on to the ball getting confused. Remember, this does not happen in the 50-50 game that was executed in college football yesterday?

If I were calling the offense, I would be scared of another Egg Bowl misfire like in the 4th quarter. I understand the feelings about the play calling but I blame our offensive shortcoming 80% on the quarterback.

[Leroy Jenkins]

The thought process behind those Arnett comments is rough. What's best for the defense may not always be what's best for the team.

[BlackSailsDawg]

When you have a quarterback that can not execute a pass more than 15 yards up field bad things are going to happen. All over college football, last Saturday, quarterbacks launched the football up field based on pre snap alignment observations. In other words, in that nano second before the ball is snaped, the decision was irrevocably determined to throw to that receiver. When this execution is achieved, defenders cannot get to the quarterback on time. Also, this quick execution will lock the defense in a one on one personnel situation even on zone coverage because the defenders cannot double up in time providing the top of the defense is at risk. This execution was understood by scores of quarterbacks in college football yesterday and possibly hundreds of contested passes were attempted and many completed.

Because Rogers has not learned what is stated, none of this applies to Mississippi State Football. This means a higher amount of offensive line holding calls, sacks, and fumbles etc. because of the deer in the headlights holding on to the ball getting confused. Remember, this does not happen in the 50-50 game that was executed in college football yesterday?

If I were calling the offense, I would be scared of another Egg Bowl misfire like in the 4th quarter. I understand the feelings about the play calling but I blame our offensive shortcoming 80% on the quarterback.

That's false and it was proven in another thread. Rogers had more tds where the ball was 20 or more yards in the air than the famed Bryce Young.

Total BS

[HoopsDawg]

The thought process behind those Arnett comments is rough. What's best for the defense may not always be what's best for the team.

I think Arnett was just covering for Barbay a little. It was a poorly called game and Arnett knows it.

[coachnorm]

That's false and it was proven in another thread. Rogers had more tds where the ball was 20 or more yards in the air than the famed Bryce Young.

Total BS

The statement is not false and some other thread is probably speculation by someone that did not properly research that criteria. What that has been seen can not be unseen and that is a proliferation of scrub passes by Rogers and nothing changed yesterday. If Rogers could have threatened the defense, it would have not crowded the LOS to finally stop the run.

[BlackSailsDawg]

The statement is not false and some other thread is probably speculation by someone that did not properly research that criteria. What that has been seen can not be unseen and that is a proliferation of scrub passes by Rogers and nothing changed yesterday. If Rogers could have threatened the defense, it would have not crowded the LOS to finally stop the run.

It's not speculation. It was linked and the link proves that. PFF is the best stats place going right now.

Rogers had more tds than Bryce Young in 20 plus yards in the air

[smootness]

Well when an O is getting the best of you, the best D is keeping the ball away from them. However, his mistake is that means do whatever it takes to keep the ball, not just run every play and let D pin their ears back - which is what teams do with Will because he isn't a run threat. Hard for us to do against a running QB, hard for any D. Test gets tougher this week though.

The best response to an O getting the best of you is always your O also scoring. Your offense should always make decisions for the sole purpose of scoring as many points as possible, and your defense should always try to prevent as many points as possible. Any time you are taking into consideration what your offense or defense needs when coaching the other side of the ball, you are in trouble.

It does not help your defense to keep the ball for a while and then not score. And it always helps your defense to score, no matter how long it takes.

[the_real_MSU_is_us]

We don't pay for PFF and you're extremely specific on what stats you pull. We all know you have some kind of connection to WIll because all you post about is either pumping Will up, defending will, or pointing out non-Will flaws of the team that can be used to defend will (like saying Barbay sucked).

Here's the actual stats of the top 3 passers by total yards last season https://www.footballdb.com/college-football/stats/stats.html?mode=P&yr=2022&lg=FBS&conf=9

Player Team Att Cmp Pct Yds YPA TD TD% Int Int% Lg Sack Loss Rate
Stetson Bennett UGA 454 310 68.3 4,127 9.1 27 5.9 7 1.5 83 9 67 161.2
Will Rogers MSST 610 415 68.0 3,974 6.5 35 5.7 8 1.3 75t 24 222 139.1
Bryce Young ALA 380 245 64.5 3,328 8.8 32 8.4 5 1.3 65 18 128 163.2

So as you can see, Bryce had a much higher Y/A with a slightly lower comp %. How can you have more yards per pass if you aren't completing passes at as high of a rate? The only way to do that is if the passes you are completing are further downfield. That's just math.

TO be clear, Will is capable of throwing deep. His arm can get it 40 yards and he's certainly capable of accuracy and touch. The issue is that he just... doesn't. The same Y/A and Comp % game can be played with previous Leach QBs and even compared to them Will doesn't throw it far downfield. Again, basic math proves that his throws are short. Compared to Bryce, Setson, or no name Leach QBs like Potts, Will doesn't throw deep

[somebodyshotmypaw]

Arnett’s comment about running the ball because our defense was winded makes no sense. I agree that 3 running plays uses more game clock than 3 incompletions. However if your defense needs to catch their wind, you measure that by a regular clock, not a game clock. For instance, if a TV commercial time out or an official review takes 3 minutes, your players get three minutes of rest even though the game clock didn’t move.

[schddog72]

I've lost a LOT of confidence in our Head Coach after two weeks into the season. Hopefully he'll get it figured out but he seems lost right now.

From the movie "Stripes": "Lighten up Francis." It's only two weeks into the man's first head coaching gig. Cut the man some slack. We won't know what we have even at the end of the first 12 games much less after the first two games.

[Westdawg]

I?m gonna piggy-back on what Coach Norm said.
It is painfully obvious that Will is not seeing the field fully under pressure. It may be true that Will had more TDs of over 20 yds last season, but it is very clear he is not seeing the field. Norm is right in that most passing schemes have it worked in to look pre-snap for Man coverage, and give that toss deep. You may not complete it every pass, but you have to keep a DC honest and prevent the safeties and even the LBs from just pinning their ears and come hammering downhill.
We r was also obvious last night that the OC recognizes Will is not seeing field depth?it?s one reason why I believe he called a mesh play when it was 3rd and very long last night. He knew he didn?t have another option aside from maybe getting a few extra yards for his punter. It?s terribly sad. I hate it for Will, and I hate it for the team. But something?s got to change or the season is going to get very very long.
I think for Will he?s carrying that same mindset into this year as he had the past couple of years - that the whole offense and team rests on him alone and he doesn?t want to screw up. But he?s gonna have to just get out there and sling the ball and trust in those around him to do their part

[BlackSailsDawg]

We don't pay for PFF and you're extremely specific on what stats you pull. We all know you have some kind of connection to WIll because all you post about is either pumping Will up, defending will, or pointing out non-Will flaws of the team that can be used to defend will (like saying Barbay sucked).

Here's the actual stats of the top 3 passers by total yards last season https://www.footballdb.com/college-football/stats/stats.html?mode=P&yr=2022&lg=FBS&conf=9

Player Team Att Cmp Pct Yds YPA TD TD% Int Int% Lg Sack Loss Rate
Stetson Bennett UGA 454 310 68.3 4,127 9.1 27 5.9 7 1.5 83 9 67 161.2
Will Rogers MSST 610 415 68.0 3,974 6.5 35 5.7 8 1.3 75t 24 222 139.1
Bryce Young ALA 380 245 64.5 3,328 8.8 32 8.4 5 1.3 65 18 128 163.2

So as you can see, Bryce had a much higher Y/A with a slightly lower comp %. How can you have more yards per pass if you aren't completing passes at as high of a rate? The only way to do that is if the passes you are completing are further downfield. That's just math.

TO be clear, Will is capable of throwing deep. His arm can get it 40 yards and he's certainly capable of accuracy and touch. The issue is that he just... doesn't. The same Y/A and Comp % game can be played with previous Leach QBs and even compared to them Will doesn't throw it far downfield. Again, basic math proves that his throws are short. Compared to Bryce, Setson, or no name Leach QBs like Potts, Will doesn't throw deep

Man you can jump up and down... lay on the ground and have a hissy fit. You can demand all you want it to be true. It simply isn't. You can PEG me as Roger's mother, but it all it does is show that you can not dispute what I linked to so you resort to a personal attack. The yards per average does not and never has meant that deep passing isn't there. It's a product, in this case of the passing in the air raid at MSU. Taking the short passes because that's what is giving.

It does not change what I linked on PFF. MSU's WILL ROGERS had more scoring TDS on passes 20 yards in air than Bryce Young. It's friggin weird that you demand it not be true.

[BlackSailsDawg]

So as you can see, Bryce had a much higher Y/A with a slightly lower comp %. How can you have more yards per pass if you aren't completing passes at as high of a rate? The only way to do that is if the passes you are completing are further downfield. That's just math.


BTW.. That's false too. Y/A is as much about the WR breaking it open. Are you now going to argue that Bama dis not have better WRS than those at MSU? Really? So no, the only way is NOT to throw it deeper. It's false!

[Commercecomet24]

I think Arnett was just covering for Barbay a little. It was a poorly called game and Arnett knows it.

Yeah I think you nailed it right here.

[CaptainObvious]

No State fan with an IQ above 50 has that expectation and hasn't had that expectation since JoMo took an 11-1 team to 8-4. Any common sense fan has a 7-5 expectation (6-6 floor/8-4 ceiling) for this year's team.

Why. This is the most experienced team of both sides of the ball since 2014. After 2 weeks the SEC looks kind of weak, and State should have looked better in both games then they did.

The staff is not playing to its strengths on offense and the defense is in mid-season form on not getting pressure from the Dline. We play with 6 guys covering pass lanes and could fine wide open receivers all night. If you face a dual threat QB you cannot run 5 guys into the LOS trying to get to him while his 4 receivers take 6 defenders 15 yards di n field leaving a RB wide open play after play.

[viverlibre]

Why. This is the most experienced team of both sides of the ball since 2014. After 2 weeks the SEC looks kind of weak, and State should have looked better in both games then they did.

1. First-year head coach who is very wet behind behind
2. We don't have a QB with the talent to lead us to a championship.

[KB21]

Yeah I think you nailed it right here.

I hope that's the case, because if Arnett actually believes his explanation for why they were so run heavy, then we will need a new head coach at the end of the year.

[msudawglb]

Yeah, if he really went to Barbay and said to burn clock to rest the defense, we are in trouble. Offense should always....always be pedal to the floor with one goal...score. Here's a thought....if your offense scores 7, then it doesn't matter if your defense is gased. Worst they can do is give up 7 and you've burned clock. They are no closer to you if your offense scores. Does CZA tell the DC to not get an interception in fear of the offense being too gased?

[sandjunky]

Yeah, if he really went to Barbay and said to burn clock to rest the defense, we are in trouble. Offense should always....always be pedal to the floor with one goal...score. Here's a thought....if your offense scores 7, then it doesn't matter if your defense is gased. Worst they can do is give up 7 and you've burned clock. They are no closer to you if your offense scores. Does CZA tell the DC to not get an interception in fear of the offense being too gased?

Here?s a novel concept-do better at conditioning your team

[Hot Rock]

We don't pay for PFF and you're extremely specific on what stats you pull. We all know you have some kind of connection to WIll because all you post about is either pumping Will up, defending will, or pointing out non-Will flaws of the team that can be used to defend will (like saying Barbay sucked).

Here's the actual stats of the top 3 passers by total yards last season https://www.footballdb.com/college-football/stats/stats.html?mode=P&yr=2022&lg=FBS&conf=9

Player Team Att Cmp Pct Yds YPA TD TD% Int Int% Lg Sack Loss Rate
Stetson Bennett UGA 454 310 68.3 4,127 9.1 27 5.9 7 1.5 83 9 67 161.2
Will Rogers MSST 610 415 68.0 3,974 6.5 35 5.7 8 1.3 75t 24 222 139.1
Bryce Young ALA 380 245 64.5 3,328 8.8 32 8.4 5 1.3 65 18 128 163.2

So as you can see, Bryce had a much higher Y/A with a slightly lower comp %. How can you have more yards per pass if you aren't completing passes at as high of a rate? The only way to do that is if the passes you are completing are further downfield. That's just math.

TO be clear, Will is capable of throwing deep. His arm can get it 40 yards and he's certainly capable of accuracy and touch. The issue is that he just... doesn't. The same Y/A and Comp % game can be played with previous Leach QBs and even compared to them Will doesn't throw it far downfield. Again, basic math proves that his throws are short. Compared to Bryce, Setson, or no name Leach QBs like Potts, Will doesn't throw deep

No one said his overall average wasn't short.

Throwing a bunch of short ones to bring his average down happened but so is the fact he threw more deep passes for TD's than Bryce Young.

[BuckyIsAB****]

Question: Will only had 17 pass attempts. Is that what Arizona was doing?

Arnett: The way that first half played out. We had a really good drive to open it. I decide to go for it. If you don?t get it, you?ve got them backed up. You like your defense?s chances to defend the field. The way the turnovers went, you were in short fields, where route spacing is tighter. Running the ball is beneficial. I told Coach Barbay after the 18-play drive, our defense needed a blow. So it became a clock situation. Try to run the ball and give the defense some wind. Just the way the game went, it became a run heavy game. We?ll see if we missed some opportunities for shot plays.



I'm not even sure what to say about that. You don't pass because of a shorter field? You don't pass it because your defense is winded?

Hes trying to take the heat off of Barbay is my opinion. Arnett finally said something in the 4th after our QB did is what happened

[BuckyIsAB****]

The statement is not false and some other thread is probably speculation by someone that did not properly research that criteria. What that has been seen can not be unseen and that is a proliferation of scrub passes by Rogers and nothing changed yesterday. If Rogers could have threatened the defense, it would have not crowded the LOS to finally stop the run.

Yeah let?s run on first down run on second down and then tell our QB to go get that first on 3rd and 8

[KB21]

Yeah let?s run on first down run on second down and then tell our QB to go get that first on 3rd and 8

This offense is exactly what I thought it would be.

[ShotgunDawg]

We have a defensive minded coach in charge and that is his number one priority. I don't see him ever letting the offense take chances for fear of turning it over.

He?s going to have to get out of that mindset if he wants to win as a head coach

[CoachT14]

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year in passing yards total, Will is 6th in Big Pass % (percentage of pass plays 35 yards or more).

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year hi passing yards total. Will is 6th in Average depth of target.

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year in passing yards total, Will is 5th in Air Yards Percentage.

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year in passing yards total, Will is 6th in Explosive Pass Play %.

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year in passing yards total, Will is 6th in yards per attempt.

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year in passing yards total, Will is 6th in yards per completion.


Will attempted 33 passes for over 20 yards last season, which is good for 12th in the league.

He completed 14 of those, also good for 12th in the league.

Those 14 passes went for 474 yards, which was good for 13th in the league.

His completion percentage was 42.6% on those passes, which is good for 4th in the league.

His average depth of target on those 20+ yard passes in 26 yards. Good for last in the league.

His explosive percentage on those passes was 42.4%, good for 2nd in the league.


Basically Will doesn't even try. What's worse not being able to do it? Or not even trying cause you're scared?

[dawgday166]

This offense is exactly what I thought it would be.
LOL ... I didn't want you to be right and hope you're proven wrong the rest of the way but for the season so far .... 🤔🤔

[BlackSailsDawg]

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year in passing yards total, Will is 6th in Big Pass % (percentage of pass plays 35 yards or more).

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year hi passing yards total. Will is 6th in Average depth of target.

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year in passing yards total, Will is 5th in Air Yards Percentage.

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year in passing yards total, Will is 6th in Explosive Pass Play %.

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year in passing yards total, Will is 6th in yards per attempt.

Of the top 6 QBs in the SEC last year in passing yards total, Will is 6th in yards per completion.


Will attempted 33 passes for over 20 yards last season, which is good for 12th in the league.

He completed 14 of those, also good for 12th in the league.

Those 14 passes went for 474 yards, which was good for 13th in the league.

His completion percentage was 42.6% on those passes, which is good for 4th in the league.

His average depth of target on those 20+ yard passes in 26 yards. Good for last in the league.

His explosive percentage on those passes was 42.4%, good for 2nd in the league.


Basically Will doesn't even try. What's worse not being able to do it? Or not even trying cause you're scared?

Thanks for proving my point. Rogers can throw the deep ball and produces.

[KB21]

LOL ... I didn't want you to be right and hope you're proven wrong the rest of the way but for the season so far .... ����

Well, some wanted to ignore who his offensive influences were. Jim McElwain, Greg Davis...etc. Run heavy coaches.