[winflop]

/
5) I just don't understand how college kickers can kick-off out of bounds.

Went to a Council lunch with Coach Alamar.  The kicker is aiming to land the ball at or near the goal line between the hash and the sideline.  It's an aggressive mentality but it's what he coaches them to do, and sometimes they miss.

7) I think that part of the explanation for play-calling was that the coaching staff already had a game-plan in place when CM decided not to play. They then likely had to throw out many plays (including those that had CM and Love in at the same time, and those in which CM split out), and then when Chryst went out, even more.

I'm sure they had to throw some things out when Chryst went down, but they had a week of practice on campus and a few days of prep in El Paso.  That's more time than they usually get between games during the regular season, so I think the gameplan reflected the presonnel who suited up.  I may go back and re-watch the Stanford offense plays and write down the specific plays, but I remember using four-letter words and Shawgren on several occasions.  I'm sure a few of them were the no-motion wildcat, which I will now call the Mildcat.  I just hate that formation in general, especially with Scarlett.

8.) Cam Scarlett. Hmm.

Yeah.  Very concerning because it's not clear who is backing up Love next season.

9.) Given that it is supposed to be our strength, I think that the DBs could have played better, to be honest; some critical pass plays seemed to be uncovered.

Probably the third-best QB we saw all year behing Luke Falk & Jake Browning who absolutely shredded us.  He needs to improve on the mental mistakes (both picks and the late sack that took them out of FG range) but he's got some SERIOUS talent.

10) Outside backers, especially Alfieri and Tyler, were good if unspectacular (except for that very athletic trip up by Alfieri ... wow). Same for inside backers, though I am less sure. Maybe they played better than what I saw. Did Noor Davis play?

I thought the OLBs played very well.  One of their jobs is edge rushing & containtment and they largely did pretty well.  ILB was another matter.  That was a weakness all year and I'm not sure what to expect next year.  None of the six guys playing there has impressed, but at the same time we've been so spoiled for the last several years that maybe expectations need to be reset.

[winflop]

/
5) I just don't understand how college kickers can kick-off out of bounds.

Went to a Council lunch with Coach Alamar.  The kicker is aiming to land the ball at or near the goal line between the hash and the sideline.  It's an aggressive mentality but it's what he coaches them to do, and sometimes they miss.

7) I think that part of the explanation for play-calling was that the coaching staff already had a game-plan in place when CM decided not to play. They then likely had to throw out many plays (including those that had CM and Love in at the same time, and those in which CM split out), and then when Chryst went out, even more.

I'm sure they had to throw some things out when Chryst went down, but they had a week of practice on campus and a few days of prep in El Paso.  That's more time than they usually get between games during the regular season, so I think the gameplan reflected the presonnel who suited up.  I may go back and re-watch the Stanford offense plays and write down the specific plays, but I remember using four-letter words and Shawgren on several occasions.  I'm sure a few of them were the no-motion wildcat, which I will now call the Mildcat.  I just hate that formation in general, especially with Scarlett.

8.) Cam Scarlett. Hmm.

Yeah.  Very concerning because it's not clear who is backing up Love next season.

9.) Given that it is supposed to be our strength, I think that the DBs could have played better, to be honest; some critical pass plays seemed to be uncovered.

Probably the third-best QB we saw all year behing Luke Falk & Jake Browning who absolutely shredded us.  He needs to improve on the mental mistakes (both picks and the late sack that took them out of FG range) but he's got some SERIOUS talent.

10) Outside backers, especially Alfieri and Tyler, were good if unspectacular (except for that very athletic trip up by Alfieri ... wow). Same for inside backers, though I am less sure. Maybe they played better than what I saw. Did Noor Davis play?

I thought the OLBs played very well.  One of their jobs is edge rushing & containtment and they largely did pretty well.  ILB was another matter.  That was a weakness all year and I'm not sure what to expect next year.  None of the six guys playing there has impressed, but at the same time we've been so spoiled for the last several years that maybe expectations need to be reset.