Grading the Game - Baylor
by John Berkowitz on Dec 30, 2011 11:03 AM PST
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PrintHow in the world do you go about grading a game like this?
I guess if your offense scores 56 points in a single game you have to give them an A. When your defense gives up an unthinkable 67 points you have to give them an overall F.
We all knew Baylor was going to move the ball but giving up nearly 500 yards on the ground with the majority of that happening via big plays in the second half is simply inexcusable.
Quarterback
Keith Price was simply magnificent in a record breaking performance for a Husky QB. He was 23-37 for 438 yards, 4 TD passes, 0 interceptions, 39 yards on the ground, and 3 TD runs. This is what Keith is capable of when he is healthy. He wasn't perfect but he was able to put together big play after big play all night until late in the fourth quarter when the Husky offense stalled on a fourth down which basically ended the game with a little over three minutes left to play. Grade A Plus
Running Back
Chris Polk had 30 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown. Those numbers are pretty good but this wasn't one of his best games. Give Baylor credit for making some great one on one shoe string tackles to contain him in the second half. His fumble deep in Baylor territory in the third quarter reversed the entire fortune of the game. It basically resulted in a 14 point turnaround that the Huskies never recovered from. Grade A Minus
Receivers
I thought the receivers did a great job last night. How many dropped balls did you see? I can't really remember any as of this morning. Price spread the ball around the entire field. Seven different Huskies caught the ball. ASJ, Kearse, and Aguilar caught five apiece. Kearse who was knocked out of the game with an apparent concussion had 198 total receiving yards and a touchdown. I think the loss of Kearse in the fourth quarter was a contributing factor in the loss of this game. Having him on the field for the final drive would have made a big difference. Grade A
Offensive Line
It is tough to rip the offensive line when your offense puts 56 points on the scoreboard and generates 620 total years. That being said they didn't get it done in crucial situations in the second half when the game was on the line. Chris Polk needed a little more help last night and he didn't get it. Keith Price needed a little more protection on the flanks and he didn't get it. That was really the story of the track meet/game. Grade B
Defensive Tackles
I am going to break out the tackles from the ends this week because it is only fair. These guys were surprisingly gassed by the first series of the game. Conditioning is a huge problem here because our tackles were unable to keep up with the tempo that Baylor was playing at.
On a lot of plays these guys couldn't even get completely set in their stances because they were so winded and tired. Baylor makes it difficult to substitute but I didn't see anything last night that made me think their offense was better than Oregon's.
Did Alameda Ta'amu spend his entire December chugging down gallons of egg nog? You can't make plays when you are standing up and these guys were voluntarily standing up the entire evening which is just pathetic.
The Washington defense yielded 482 rushing yards with the majority of that happening in the second half when the entire UW defense was too tired to tackle.
One positive note to take from all this is that Danny Shelton (if he keeps his conditioning on track) has the potential to be an All Pac 12 player in the future. Grade F
Defensive End
I thought we did a pretty good job getting after the quarterback last night. Josh Shirley sacked Robert Griffin III three times and Andrew Hudson got to him once. Both of these guys have great potential and all they really need is another year in the weight room. All that being said they (like the entire UW defense) were terrible against the run. Grade C Minus
Linebackers
Cort Dennison finished his Husky career the way he started it and that was by giving a supreme effort in his last outing as a Husky. He was in on 15 tackles and played the game sideline to sideline the entire evening trying to make up for other guys mistakes. Washington gave up 482 rushing yards so you really can't give the entire unit anything but a big fat F even though the line in front of the was collapsing from the very first series. These guys missed way too many tackles when it counted in the second half. Grade F
Defensive Backs
With the exception of a bomb given up at the expense of Quinton Richardson the secondary kept everything pretty much in front of them for the majority of the night. They held RG3 to under 300 yards passing and only one TD pass. Run support was just terrible from the safety positions...but you can say that about the entire winded and gassed team. Grade F
Special Teams
Erik Folk finished his Husky career with a miss that cost the Huskies three badly needed points. The punting...what little there was of it on both sides of the ball was fine. Kasen Williams finally broke a punt return for a big game that put the Huskies is a position to seemingly put the game away early in the third quarter. Sankey and Callier did a nice job returning kicks.
Danny Shelton's kick off return and subsequent fumble while entertaining cost UW the chance to rally for another TD and try an on sides kick. I have no idea of what the hell he was thinking when he jumped in front of a UW up back to steal the ball and do his best Chris Polk imitation. Grade B Plus
Coaching
I have seen Sark call better games but I have never sen hm put 56 points on an opponent before. Even though the Huskies lost that is a legendary offensive performance that will not soon be forgotten. That being said he got too cute at times and didn't attack the Bears enough North/South to my liking with Chris Polk. I would give the offensive staff an A minus if I was rating them separately.
Nick Holt gave all the little "Holt Haters" out there plenty of ammunition heading into the off season. Statistically it was the worst defensive performance in Washington history. Sark and Woody will stand by him for another year but this mess isn't getting any better. I think it is probably best for all concerned that a change is made.
Most of the problems on defense last night were attributable to the fast tempo of the game and the defense just being too fatigued to finish. Baylor was running plays before our guys were even lined up correctly...it was pretty pathetic.
Is Baylor that much faster than an Oregon or Arizona?
Grade C
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This game was the ultimate emotional roller coaster
The offense had us on the edge of our seats, in full righteous jubilation. Unfortunately, that full measure of ecstasy was subsequently ripped to shreds by the ineptitude of the defense. Every buoyed hope was met with tragic failure, and the resulting taste left behind was ultimately bitter. Our offense gave everything they had and them some, and with that effort they deserved better than what the final score revealed.
Our offense was exhausted, rightfully so.
You could see it on that Aguilar comeback route on the last possession. It was a huge mental and physical factor in the last moments of the game.
That was the advantage that the Baylor offense had on us. They could just run it up the gut and that was it.
Overall, I’m just really sad because I know that Keith Price would get some major nat’l love for this win.
thisjustinlee.wordpress.com
In my opinion Baylor has a much better offense than oregon only because they’ve got several very good WR’s and RG3 is much more accurate than Thomas. If Baylor had a top 40 defense they’d probably be undefeted.
Your comment
is right on the mark. Baylor’s Griffin will be a high first round draft pick as a QB, whereas Oregon’s Thomas will never play a down as an NFL QB…. although he could have some success as a third-down back or slot receiver, perhaps. And no Oregon wideout on this year’s roster would have made the three-deeps at Baylor.
by Saltherring on Dec 30, 2011 11:53 AM PST up reply actions
Get real
RGIII being a better QB than Darron Thomas doesn’t even begin to explain getting 482 rushing yards rung up on you by a team that to date had averaged 215 ypg rushing.
BTW, RGIII was about 60 yards below his average passing game last night. He had a “meh” rushing average too, despite one spectacular run.
If Baylor was “much better,” it’s only because they had a month to figure out how to exploit the game of Quentin Richardson, the lack of conditioning of your DTs, and the lack of both strength and mobility of all of your linebackers.
Ah Look! My California Angels are now all grown up!
by Canard on Dec 30, 2011 1:23 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs
Every FBS and FCS team in the NCAA would look great
on neutral turf against a two handed touch defense such as yours.
Ah Look! My California Angels are now all grown up!
by Canard on Dec 30, 2011 6:48 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs
We're working on it!
But right now….it’s an “SNL Skit”.
There's no way that the o-line deserves a B.
The pass protection was decent, but that was largely a factor of Baylor being content to only rush 4 most of the time. But the run blocking was largely terrible. Take out the one big run Polk had, and he had 90 yards on 29 carries. Against a downright bad run D.
B+ in pass protection, and an F+ in run blocking. C- overall.
And don't forget
The inability to block a 3-man pass rush on the 4th and 8 play with 3min left. Who knows what may (or may not) have happened had Keith not been pressured and forced to throw early. That, if nothing else, with the game on the line is enough to merit a lesser grade from my point of view.
by TualatinDawg on Dec 30, 2011 11:27 AM PST up reply actions
I agree
I give the Oline a F. Everything Chris got was on draw plays that split Baylor’s defense. Everything we ran outside the tackles was stuffed. Our Oline got absolutely no push whatsoever, it was easy to see from where I was sitting. I also think Sark called too many outside handoffs and not enough right at Baylor’s defense. I think Chris with a head of steam would have been hard to stop.
by datboyeddiep on Dec 31, 2011 9:45 AM PST up reply actions
WOW
just wow.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"The 2012 USC team has some serious unfinished business to attend to and I intend to play a part in it." - USC QB, Matt Barkley
I can't often find logic to agree with Ted Miller, but this:
a defense that is no more stout than a petunia garden is unacceptable.
can’t be said any better.
Our DTs aren't very good athletes
With the way offensive football is evolving into no-huddle and quicker tempos, Going into the offseason we have to get these guys in better shape. You can’t play fast with that much table weight. Also, I think we have to look at who we are recruiting at DT from this point forward. If you can’t run as a DT … we can’t use you. I want to see leaner, stronger DTs, who can run and don’t fatigue quite so easily.
All I saw was purple
I want to see leaner, stronger DTs, who can run and don’t fatigue quite so easily.
I’d like a rub and a tug to start each morning, but getting my wife to agree to it every day is about as likely as finding the perfect physical specimen at tackle that you’ve just described.
Start with less table fat
We are just flat out fat at D tackle and we are slow because of it.
All I saw was purple
Find defensive tackles that aren't.
I don’t think you realize how incredibly rare a combination (leaner and stronger) you’re looking for.
Our guys each need to drop about 25 lbs. to start. We are too slow out of the stance and continue to get locked up in blocks. We are too heavy and can’t move. Carrying that much wait causes fatique. Oregon’s DTs weren’t considered 5 star recruits, but if you look at them they aren’t overly weighted down. Their guys can move and get off on the snap. We need to drop some weight and get these guys playing more athletically. And we need to begin recruiting fellas at DT who don’t necessarily need to carry that much girth. Girth is not ideal (maybe at NT). It’s all about speed and strength- not Girth! I thought we learned that back in 1991?
All I saw was purple
How many of "their" DT's can....
Also return Kick offs?!
What is interesting to me
is that our defense was able to hold Baylor to 3 points in the second quarter. (has to be one of the lowest in their season) After a terrible first quarter they started attacking the QB and it seemed to be working. Not sure what happened in the 2nd half but we went back to our 1st quarter play.
Every player on the defense played terrible. To single out Cort has having to cover for everyone implies strongly that he played well himself… which was not the case. Multiple times I watch Cort one get blown up or two is not athletic enough to make plays. He was chasing players the entire game.
Lastly… bye bye Quinton.. just another Odea player who cannot play at D1 level. I would rather play with 10 people than to have to play another season with him out on the field.
Great comment.
What happened to our defense is that Baylor spread out our defense with bubble screens and then ran the ball right down our throat. Their wideouts (unlike ours) can really block…or perhaps it’s our wimply corners who can’t fight off blocks and make tackles. In any case, when our outside LBs and safeties have to shift outside to cover/tackle wide receivers, the middle of the field is left wide open.
by Saltherring on Dec 30, 2011 12:01 PM PST up reply actions
And Cort
cannot make the open field plays. I dont blame him but he is just not athletic enough.
He will play on Sundays
Not for long time…but someone is going to want him on their roster for a couple of years.
UW Dawg Pound - SBN Seattle
by John Berkowitz on Dec 30, 2011 1:05 PM PST up reply actions
He looks slow, and really stiff to my eye.
I don’t think he plays.
I'm so positive, you'll need AZT later.
I think he makes a roster based on his will
but doesn’t see much playing time. He will be in the league though, that’s better than any of us can say.
by datboyeddiep on Dec 31, 2011 9:47 AM PST up reply actions
Price = A+
The guy was perfect as perfect can be. He was responsible for 7 TDs. I’m not sure why you gave him an A-. If it’s because he didn’t covert on 4th down and 8, I would argue that was due to the O line allowing Baylor to get some good pressure on Price to throw wild.
All I saw was purple
A plus
Price was given an A plus unless he changed it.
by bigtrain21 on Dec 30, 2011 1:31 PM PST via Android app up reply actions
Holt Mills Gone????????????
“Washington: We are told that Sark has informed his defensive staff that changes will be made. We are told Nick Holt and safeties coach Jeff Mills will not return. "
How reliable is the website?
I’ve heard of it, but really don’t know anything about. I wouldn’t mind it if they were right.
"Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing."
"Legends are made on the shores of Lake Washington"
Pretty reliable
They are usually pretty spot on….and since Sark hasn’t come out with a denial consider it a done deal.
UW Dawg Pound - SBN Seattle
by John Berkowitz on Dec 31, 2011 9:02 AM PST up reply actions
i never thought price would have 7 td's in a losing effort
he should get some heisman hype going into next season
this fact brought up by Condotta
UW allowed 777 yards in that game to officially make this year’s defense the worst in school history in terms of yards allowed per game (453.3), passing yards allowed per game (284.6) and total points allowed (467). The yards and points allowed stats each broke marks that had been set during the infamous 0-12 season of 2008 that led to Sarkisian’s hiring.
My Dad was telling me that at the game
It’s sad. We have to make a change, there is no choice.
by datboyeddiep on Dec 31, 2011 9:49 AM PST up reply actions
Proof is in the Pudding...for the defense
Well the offensive execution was impressive. It was really nice to see Kearse and Aguilar play like they did. KP is a stud and is going to do some really good stuff for us the next two years especially with KW and ASJ.
I am not sure what to say about the defense except that was the worst collective defense I think I have ever seen. I have consistently supported Holt through the season, but looking at where we are after three seasons a change needs to be made. The schemes and calls and teaching is just not there.
Let’s hope next year we get back to Husky Football!
DEFENSE - F COACHING - F
Sark gets no more credit from me until he shows he has the balls to fire his incompetent friend.
As for “little Holt Haters” we were right all along based on the evidence, which is how adults make decisions.
The national media is laughing at the UW defense right now. Great for Recruiting by the way!
It might be actually
Kids like to play early…can’t imagine it’s tough to beat out a D they gave up “the jackpot”.
by B Money on Dec 30, 2011 3:16 PM PST via Android app up reply actions
"Little Holt Haters"
I am of the opinion that it is pretty gutless to demand that somebody be fired unless you have the guts to publish your own public contact information.
Most of the moderators here at SBN still use pseudonym’s…I dropped mine and started using my real name when I decided it was time (third year) to demand that Willingham be fired. I figure if you are man enough to demand that someone be fired you should use your own name.
As far as firing coaches go…we all know when it is time…and so do the people in charge.
UW Dawg Pound - SBN Seattle
by John Berkowitz on Dec 31, 2011 9:10 AM PST up reply actions
Come on man
Real name or not, either Holt gets fired or expect more of these outcomes in tghe future. There is no way anyone can say anything to protect him or doubt the nay sayers who’ve been there all season long with “Fire Nick Holt”. They were correct. Our offense played almost a perfect game and our defense played like something I’ve never seen in a Husky uniform before. Gannaway is not fast, he is a bruiser, and made our defense look slow. There were holes big enough to part the red sea and all of us could have ran right through those holes for 90 yards as well. I’m sorry, but the only option is to fire Nick Holt.
I hear all the defense, “we are not deep yet, he doesn’t have the athletes, we are too young”. Then I sit here in Austin and watch UT play 9 freshman on defense and Manny Diaz has these guys playing like one of the best in the nation. There is absolutely no excuse for what we had to watch our defense do Thursday. It was an embarrassment and Sarkisian will fire Holt. There is no way a Husky offense puts up 56 points in the fashion we did and still lose by multiple scores!
by datboyeddiep on Dec 31, 2011 9:54 AM PST up reply actions
I'm firmly
in the “Fire Holt” camp. Prior to last night I was in the one more year camp, not any more. A month to prepare and this is what we got? Fire him, now.
Jack
Agreed
I was in the one more year camp until now…it is time to make the change and it looks like the folks in charge agree.
UW Dawg Pound - SBN Seattle
by John Berkowitz on Dec 31, 2011 9:12 AM PST up reply actions
Good
I was also in the one more year club. I’ve also been a part of the Fire Nick Holt club. Unfortunately what I watched placed me firmly in the fire Nick Holt club! There is no other option.
by datboyeddiep on Dec 31, 2011 9:57 AM PST up reply actions
I hate our outside linebackers soooo much
They don’t do anything right against the run.
They can’t shed blocks and are too small to take on offensive linemen or fullbacks. Heck even a wr is a challenge. If by some miracle they go unblocked they still can’t get to the edge to contain the outside run. On the 1% chance they are in position they still can’t make a tackle. Bad DL and OLB play is a frustrating…
by Edgar for Pres on Dec 30, 2011 6:00 PM PST via iPhone app reply actions
They are young, inexperienced, and undersized...
They are what they are at this point…good thing is that those who really can evaluate think kids like Timu and Fui will be pretty good next season.
UW Dawg Pound - SBN Seattle
by John Berkowitz on Dec 31, 2011 9:13 AM PST up reply actions
I've seen Fui and Timu get better as the saeason progressed
They were awful before. Fui had a great game against Wazzou and unfortunately got injured early against Baylor. Timu did some good things in the Baylor game. What I saw worse than our linebackers was our secondary NOT fighting through blocks on fly sweeps. Even Sean Parker quit on a lot of plays. The only person in our secondary that fought hard was Desmond Trufant, he was trying his best to run down the Baylor backs when they broke through. Although he didn’t succeed, the effort was there.
by datboyeddiep on Dec 31, 2011 10:02 AM PST up reply actions
Keith Price will arguably be the greatest UW QB ever...
I said it before the Alamo Bowl. Can we bury all the subliminal rooting for Nick Montana now?
And stop with the Sark “coaching up” Keith Price crap…you can’t coach those intangibles!
Keith Price is our QB and the unquestioned leader. Enjoy it, while you still can.
Price
I hate to come off like Nostradamus….but I did predict that neither Montana or Heaps would be good enough to beat Keith Price out…that being said I never thought he would be this good…the kid is a true Heisman candidate.
UW Dawg Pound - SBN Seattle
by John Berkowitz on Dec 31, 2011 9:15 AM PST up reply actions
I never did either
I’m so happy for Keith and for myself as a Husky fan. Dude played lights out. It’s a shame he took a loss in that game cause I don’t think there is another BCS qualifier that would lose by 11 points while scoring 56. Only the Huskies defense could do that!
by datboyeddiep on Dec 31, 2011 9:58 AM PST up reply actions
He shouldn't get a pass
….but exactly how motivated were Ta’amu and Thompson this year? It seemed to me that they both took a step back in conditioning and effort in comparison to the previous season.
Jack…the one thing that really blew me away was how gassed the defense was on the first series of the game…that was amazing.
UW Dawg Pound - SBN Seattle
by John Berkowitz on Dec 31, 2011 9:17 AM PST up reply actions
I thought they came out flying.
It didn’t last very long, however.
No question this defense has a shit-ton of quit in it. When they decide they’re whipped, they’re SERIOUSLY whipped.
And that’s my main problem with Holt. I said in a post yesterday that as a college coach, your job is not to lead, but rather to teach people to lead. And then, to let them do so, something that, evidently, Nick Holt does not do. He’s got a defense full of minions, rather than captains. Nothing is anybodies responsibility (but his), and accordingly, nothing is anybodies fault.
This armchair analysis may not be entirely fair. It could be the seniors themselves who failed to step up. Or perhaps they tried, but just didn’t have the talent and the on-field results to pull it off. But what this team really needs is 4-5 guys who brought what Mason Foster brought.
More importantly
Hope come nobody holds Sark accountable for that. It goes back to things that were not Holts fault that he gets blamed for. I’m tired of the myth that Sark is great and Holt is bad. This site isn’t so bad, but in general UW fans are so blind sometimes.
by B Money on Dec 31, 2011 4:06 PM PST via Android app up reply actions
Yes
Ta’amu didn’t seem to bring or even find an A game other than the Apple Cup all year.
It didn’t dawn on me during the game the D line was gassed but I did wonder why they were still looking at the sidelines when Baylor was lining up to run a play…that aspect may be harder to see on TV than when you’re sitting in the stands. The guy sitting next to me was screaming the whole 4th Q “Why are they still in dime”?
I think we need a change there as well.
We don’t look like we are getting stronger at all. But after watching from the Washington end zone I got a great view of the scheme Holt was putting out there. Baylor was constantly in 4 receiver sets and every time a linebacker was on the slot receivers. Cort was constantly shooting the wrong gaps on run plays. Our secondary quit on almost every play that was a run, it somewhat looked like they were waiting for someone else to make a play.
We need to make several changes for us to become a contender. I’m actually worried with Mike Leach coming to Wazzou, us falling behind them if we don’t make changes. I love what Sark has done so far, but with the rise in expectations, I want more. We all want to compete for Rose Bowls? We can’t with this staff in place as is.
by datboyeddiep on Dec 31, 2011 10:07 AM PST up reply actions
Strength and Conditioning
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203476804576615132832620902.html
This is the kind of program we need…"Moffitt stressed plyometric training. He had them flip tires and push sleds, varying the resistance based on what he called the coefficient of friction. He charted how much each player moved at every practice, down to the yard. He went online and searched for new exercises, he said, until his “eyeballs bled.”
One of Moffitt’s favorite metrics is relative strength—a measure of how much work a player can do per pound of body weight. Defensive backs, he said, should score in the upper fives, defensive ends in the low fives and defensive tackles in the mid fours. If a player has a too-small number, Moffitt said, it’s a sign that his “non-functional” mass is slowing him down.
Moffitt believes that if a football player can lose 10 pounds while improving his relative strength, he’ll be more efficient in games. “We’re not going to roll a bunch of skinny minis out there on the field; that’s not our goal,” he said. “But we want every ounce of weight to be force-generating.”
Brockers, the tackle, said it took some convincing for him to buy in. “I was afraid that I wouldn’t have the strength or size” to take on 320-pound offensive linemen, he said. But after trimming down from 315 pounds to 305, he said he feels just as strong as he did last season—in addition to having more speed and stamina."
Couldn't agree more.
Lewis and Sark need to reevaluate the area’s of emphasis for this team. We need to be more explosive and altogether faster. Plyometrics and speed training should be a huge emphasis this off season.
"Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing."
"Legends are made on the shores of Lake Washington"
Great point, Jack.
Lewis has been a bit of a rock star so far at UW. It’s time to reassess our strength and conditioning program. We need to either reorder our priorities, add additional emphasis on speed and explosiveness, or possibly make a change in staff. Right now we still don’t pass the look test compared to USC and Stanford, I want more players with tree trunks for legs.
"Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing."
"Legends are made on the shores of Lake Washington"
"in addition to having more speed and stamina"...Hmmm?
That’s what I want more of…
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