To the guy who said BA should run up the middle more....

[HogFanatic]

For those who are worried Austin Allen did just fine in the scrimmage. I'm pretty confident that he would be the starter if his brother were to be injured again.

The only issue for him is leadership because he's a red shirt freshman. I spoke to him at media day and he knows the coaches are expecting him to take charge of the team in a more authoritative manner when he comes onto the field.

Tyler Wilson had the same challenge when he was the backup. The Auburn game of 2010 changed that in a hurry.

I'm sure that this is absolutely the hiccup with Austin.

I remember going to practices back when we could and watching he QB battle between Mallett and Wilson. To my eyes, there wasn't much difference in the throws those guys made. Both were extremely good at what they did.

The noticeable difference was how Mallett addressed the team in the huddle and at the line. There was a clear difference and ergo Mallett was the clear number 1 guy.

Simple as that, really. Austin has the tools, but not the leadership. He is too young, too green.

[Steef]

That IS encouraging. Thanks.

[Nipsey Mussle]

BA was a good runner before the injury with a bit more speed than people realized.  He ran a lot more in high school than most would know.  Last year's decision to play him post injury had many implications and one of them was he had to avoid contact at all costs.

By design, he threw balls away quickly and stayed pretty still in the pocket as a precaution.  He simply was an egg shell.  That's why he didn't even practice.

True, I watched him play Southside in the playoffs and he had more rushing yards than passing in that game.

[GuvHog]

True, I watched him play Southside in the playoffs and he had more rushing yards than passing in that game.

That's why I said that I didn't mind him running occasionally. If a Head Coach makes a Dual Threat QB one dimensional, he's courting disaster.

[HF#1]

I think most Bielema style coaches would prefer their QB's not take off unless....

A.  They are exceptionally gifted in the speed/strength department ala Cam Newton or Matt Jones.

B.  They can make the best out of a bad play.

In BA's case, I'd say he is probably somewhere in between.  Coach would rather him stay in the pocket and make plays with his arm but if we can utilize his quickness to keep the defense off balance then great.  Also make a few yards on busted plays. 

It has nothing to do with how fragile he is or how tough he is.  If he wasn't tough, he wouldn't be playing QB in the SEC.

[LZH]

Wishbone!

[lefty08]

Wishbone!

Welcome back

[LZH]

Welcome back

Me or the wishbone?         



Thanks lefty.

[Steef]

I think most Bielema style coaches would prefer their QB's not take off unless....

A.  They are exceptionally gifted in the speed/strength department ala Cam Newton or Matt Jones.

B.  They can make the best out of a bad play.

In BA's case, I'd say he is probably somewhere in between.  Coach would rather him stay in the pocket and make plays with his arm but if we can utilize his quickness to keep the defense off balance then great.  Also make a few yards on busted plays. 

It has nothing to do with how fragile he is or how tough he is.  If he wasn't tough, he wouldn't be playing QB in the SEC.

Agree with everything but the last line.

BA is obviously mentally tough. You can't play D1 football anywhere and not be mentally tough.

But your body has to back you up. And no amount of mental toughness can make a busted shoulder throw accurately.

Emmitt Smith once played and won a Super Bowl with a busted shoulder. But he didn't have to throw the ball, either.

[PygmalionEffect]

(sigh)

Mike, I love ya. And I care about the kid's psyche as much as his shoulder.

But you don't have to be fragile to get 'broken' in the SEC. And Brandon has proven himself to be breakable. And the backup situation isn't really improved yet.

For a few first downs?

We have three stellar RB's who will gladly hit those holes for him.

Not that what I think will make any difference at all. But that's what I think.

The hole that B.A. ran through yesterday wouldn't be there for the RB, but it's going to be there for B.A. certainly initially because the defense is going to cheat and not keep a defender back to protect it on passing plays thinking that B.A. won't run even if there is a lane, and all defenses no matter how good are susceptible to a scrambling QB occasionally.

You can't play "not to get hurt" in football, it's the quickest way to get hurt.  if he's got a wide open lane, he needs to take it and then slide when someone gets close.  He's going to take a late hit or two doing it which will tack on another 15, but he has to do it not only for the success of that down but for future downs where the defense will have to start respecting it, which can slow down the pass rush as well as cause hesitation with the run defense, and it moves the chains.

I knew his aggressiveness was hampered last year by his injury and by the coaches telling him to be careful,  it was obvious.

You've got to play to win steef, if you want to win.  No ones going to give us a win in the SEC.

[lefty08]

Me or the wishbone?         



Thanks lefty.

Obviously I meant the wishbone. Haha

[Steef]

The hole that B.A. ran through yesterday wouldn't be there for the RB, but it's going to be there for B.A. certainly initially because the defense is going to cheat and not keep a defender back to protect it on passing plays thinking that B.A. won't run even if there is a lane, and all defenses no matter how good are susceptible to a scrambling QB occasionally.

You can't play "not to get hurt" in football, it's the quickest way to get hurt.  if he's got a wide open lane, he needs to take it and then slide when someone gets close.  He's going to take a late hit or two doing it which will tack on another 15, but he has to do it not only for the success of that down but for future downs where the defense will have to start respecting it, which can slow down the pass rush as well as cause hesitation with the run defense, and it moves the chains.

I knew his aggressiveness was hampered last year by his injury and by the coaches telling him to be careful,  it was obvious.

You've got to play to win steef, if you want to win.  No ones going to give us a win in the SEC.

I hear ya, Pyg.  And generally, agree with your attitude. Football is a sport for carnivores.

But dang, one injury away from losing another 7 or 8 games...is a lousy situation to be in. It's different when you have depth, which we WILL have at QB in the future.

Catch 22.

[LZH]

Obviously I meant the wishbone. Haha

Whew, at least I can feel right back at home.

[PygmalionEffect]

I hear ya, Pyg.  And generally, agree with your attitude. Football is a sport for carnivores.

But dang, one injury away from losing another 7 or 8 games...is a lousy situation to be in. It's different when you have depth, which we WILL have at QB in the future.

Catch 22.

i think AA would be able to step up and be adequate.  It certainly doesn't help our chances if B.A. goes down for any length of time, but I think the backup situation will be a little better than last year.  This is AA's second year in the system, last year was Derby's first.

[Mike Irwin]

i think AA would be able to step up and be adequate.  It certainly doesn't help our chances if B.A. goes down for any length of time, but I think the backup situation will be a little better than last year.  This is AA's second year in the system, last year was Derby's first.

I watched him closely in the scrimmage. He was going against the two defense but other than that what he did was very similar to his brother's performance. He actually had a higher completion percentage.

Yesterday, on Media Day, I asked him about Bielema's off the wall comment about how he needed to bring his post puberty voice into the huddle. He laughed and started talking in a squeaky voice. But then he acknowledged that it was all about taking charge of the team. He said it's hard for a redshirt freshman who hasn't done squat in a game to correct a veteran player who screws up on a certain play.

Honestly, for Austin I think it's all about getting in a game and moving the chains. Once that happens he will be fine.

[Mike Irwin]

Here's a story that demonstrates the issues a young QB can sometimes face.

I was a senior captain on my HS team in the fall of 65. We were breaking in a sophomore QB who was having a lot of problems in the huddle in the first game of the season. Guys were talking back to him. In one case he called a play where the fullback was supposed to carry the ball and the fullback told him to call another play because he was tired.

So the head coach called me in the following Monday and chewed my butt out. I remember him saying, I didn't make you a captain. Your idiot teammates did that but I can damn sure put your a$$ on the bench. You get that huddle under control or else.

So the next Friday night right before the first play is called I say to everybody in the huddle, Coach says to shut TF up and let John (the QB) do the talking. So shut TF up.

Everything went fine until the 3rd quarter when John bootlegged for a 1st down only to have it called back because I had lined up offsides.

I had never done that. Not even in jr. high. So John comes back to the huddle and gives me a look but he doesn't say anything.

We made a 1st down and on the next series of downs he bootlegged again and this time he scored only to have it called back because again, I had lined up offsides .

That was one of the worst moments of my life. I wanted to crawl into a hole and hide.

So John comes back to the huddle and in a sound a couple of octaves higher than his already high pitched voice he says, NOW MIKE, STOP DOING THAT.

After a couple of seconds of silence the whole huddle broke out in laughter. In his first attempt to show leadership John had ended up sounding like Beaver Cleaver.

But it turned out to be a good thing. John broke out in a grin. I said, Sorry man. It cut the tension. We all went back to work and scored on that drive. He didn't have anymore problems in the huddle after that. But there was a thing in the locker room where the rest of the season some joker would randomly say in a squeaky voice, NOW MIKE, STOP DOING THAT.

I was the only one who didn't laugh.

[chitwnhog]

I think most Bielema style coaches would prefer their QB's not take off unless....

A.  They are exceptionally gifted in the speed/strength department ala Cam Newton or Matt Jones.

B.  They can make the best out of a bad play.

In BA's case, I'd say he is probably somewhere in between.  Coach would rather him stay in the pocket and make plays with his arm but if we can utilize his quickness to keep the defense off balance then great.  Also make a few yards on busted plays. 

It has nothing to do with how fragile he is or how tough he is.  If he wasn't tough, he wouldn't be playing QB in the SEC.

And Matt Jones has admitted recently that he injured his shoulder and was unable to throw the ball as effectively there after. IIRC he rarely threw in practice for a long time.

[hogwild210]

For those who are worried Austin Allen did just fine in the scrimmage. I'm pretty confident that he would be the starter if his brother were to be injured again.

The only issue for him is leadership because he's a red shirt freshman. I spoke to him at media day and he knows the coaches are expecting him to take charge of the team in a more authoritative manner when he comes onto the field.

Tyler Wilson had the same challenge when he was the backup. The Auburn game of 2010 changed that in a hurry.

I will never forget that game. That was one of the most amazing performances (not just skill, but the leadership and confidence he exhibited) I've ever seen.

[Maximus Tusk]

It's about taking what the defense gives you and making them pay for it. I certainly remember how demoralizing it was for us when we're on the wrong end of that type play. Conner Shaw comes to mind. Keep the drive alive!

[Granny fan]

Players can't be worried about being hurt while playing.  Be smart, yes, but don't play not to be hurt.  If memory serves me correctly, Allen was hurt on a dive into the end-zone and wasn't even hurt.  That just seemed like freak injury. 

You are correct.  Don't believe there was even contact on that play.  He just dove into the end zone and landed on that shoulder.  Watched that game on replay just the other day.  You could tell watching him walk off the field that the shoulder was injured.

[LZH]

Here's a story that demonstrates the issues a young QB can sometimes face.

I was a senior captain on my HS team in the fall of 65. We were breaking in a sophomore QB who was having a lot of problems in the huddle in the first game of the season. Guys were talking back to him. In one case he called a play where the fullback was supposed to carry the ball and the fullback told him to call another play because he was tired.

So the head coach called me in the following Monday and chewed my butt out. I remember him saying, I didn't make you a captain. Your idiot teammates did that but I can damn sure put your a$$ on the bench. You get that huddle under control or else.

So the next Friday night right before the first play is called I say to everybody in the huddle, Coach says to shut TF up and let John (the QB) do the talking. So shut TF up.

Everything went fine until the 3rd quarter when John bootlegged for a 1st down only to have it called back because I had lined up offsides.

I had never done that. Not even in jr. high. So John comes back to the huddle and gives me a look but he doesn't say anything.

We made a 1st down and on the next series of downs he bootlegged again and this time he scored only to have it called back because again, I had lined up offsides .

That was one of the worst moments of my life. I wanted to crawl into a hole and hide.

So John comes back to the huddle and in a sound a couple of octaves higher than his already high pitched voice he says, NOW MIKE, STOP DOING THAT.

After a couple of seconds of silence the whole huddle broke out in laughter. In his first attempt to show leadership John had ended up sounding like Beaver Cleaver.

But it turned out to be a good thing. John broke out in a grin. I said, Sorry man. It cut the tension. We all went back to work and scored on that drive. He didn't have anymore problems in the huddle after that. But there was a thing in the locker room where the rest of the season some joker would randomly say in a squeaky voice, NOW MIKE, STOP DOING THAT.

I was the only one who didn't laugh.

Ever seen the Harvard/Yale story about 'foddy-woddy-hot'?

[seasonhog]

Me or the wishbone?         



Thanks

[LZH]

Me, Myself, and Irene.