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Game Thread 2015 Sugar Bowl: (1) Alabama vs. (4) Ohio State, Jan 1st @ 8:30p ET, ESPN (civilized thread)

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jwinslow said:
My perception:

High-scoring shootout: OSU can hang quite nicely with Alabama.
Low-scoring slugfest: definitely favors Bama, though OSU's big play ability on O (and creating TOs on D) can help them overcome that.
If Sims plays badly: I think Bama still has a decent shot to win, though he'll need help with a stout defense bailing him out.
If Cardale plays badly: I think OSU has a much slimmer chance of winning. Bama will sell out to stop EzE and Cardale must make them pay through the air (and a little bit on the ground).

While Vegas is strictly in the business of projecting perception, not outcomes, I think their point spread is pretty fair. This is a pretty good Buckeye team but not a great one. Fortunately I don't believe there are any great teams this year.
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This is a Buckeye team that is one starting QB from being undefeated and the overwhelming #1 going into the playoff.

The Buckeyes might be the underdogs at the book, but mark my words, this team can compete with, and dominate, anyone.
 
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Gcashwell said:
How does bosa do against guys who are much bigger than him? Austin shepherd and Cam Robinson have about 45 lbs on him.
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Honestly, it depends on their technique. He will use technique and speed to get around blockers. They will also move him around to find the most favorable position. Although against a smaller blocker, he will pick that guy up and use him to sack the QB (a la Penn State)
 
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Gcashwell said:
How does bosa do against guys who are much bigger than him? Austin shepherd and Cam Robinson have about 45 lbs on him.
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6'8" 333 RT Rob Havenstein - Wisconsin - 1st team All-B1G, 4th team AA (Phil Steele)
6'5" 320 RT Austin Shepherd - Alabama
6'5" 315 LT Arie Kouandjio - Alabama

His hands, motor and leverage are his best attributes. His athleticism is pretty good but there are others who are as quick as him.

Sparty was the only team that slowed him down.
 
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lvbuckeye said:
What? Bama has Cooper, and then an EIGHTY catch drop to the #2 receiver.
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Thus why the MSU comparison holds - but for different reasons.
MSU has nobody outside Lippett, whereas Bama's QB is utterly dependent on Cooper. Put Cook on Bama's team and they've got a more even distribution (but no read-option game.)
Kiffin showed he's aware of this weakness against Missouri, as he made concerted efforts to get White involved. It'll be interesting to see if they've worked more on this during the bowl break, or if they'll just rely on the tape they put up against Missouri keeping us honest.
 
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jwinslow said:
6'8" 333 RT Rob Havenstein - Wisconsin - 1st team All-B1G, 4th team AA (Phil Steele)
6'5" 320 RT Austin Shepherd - Alabama
6'5" 315 LT Arie Kouandjio - Alabama

His hands, motor and leverage are his best attributes. His athleticism is pretty good but there are others who are as quick as him.

Sparty was the only team that slowed him down.
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I think Cam Robinson will be playing on him some too. Cam is a true freshman.
 
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jwinslow said:
6'8" 333 RT Rob Havenstein - Wisconsin - 1st team All-B1G, 4th team AA (Phil Steele)
6'5" 320 RT Austin Shepherd - Alabama
6'5" 315 LT Arie Kouandjio - Alabama

His hands, motor and leverage are his best attributes. His athleticism is pretty good but there are others who are as quick as him.

Sparty was the only team that slowed him down.
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Got damn, Wisconsin has some monsters!

I dont think you can beat Joey Bosa without two men doing it. He's that good. He does, however, take himself out of the play on occasion with his aggressiveness as does the rest of our Dline. Where we are really susceptible to the run is on traps and cut back plays where we basically provide the running lanes because of push and speed. Against Wisconsin we did not play our normal defensive aggressiveness, we just maintained lanes and held the LOS. That made everybody better and allowed for no running room.

If we can do that vs Bama we'll get them in 3rd and long situations where we can attack the QB. If Sims is really accurate and efficient, it'll be a very hard matchup for us. Conversely this is also what we want to do on offense. Win 1st and 2nd down to win the game.
 
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Bosa does what he does every game despite always being out weighed but being 285 pounds is a big defensive end mind you.

What gives him the ability to dominate people taller and heavier is his initial quickness and his length. He's just as powerful as any offensive lineman but when you can move 285 pounds like you are a 250 pound rush end its hard to have that blend of power and speed.

What he does really well is he gets great initial punch and extention with his arms. He uses his length well and keeps himself from getting engulfed by players larger. The way you stop him is you must make a effort to frustrate him because he will get frustrated from time to time. You do this by doubling him and chipping him with backs and your tight ends.

Against MSU it was a lot of the above but Bosa got held and even tackled a lot without any holding penalties so you have to also have a officiating crew willing to let the teams play. I never complain about officials because you will benefit from time to time as well and after all they're human and amazingly they're correct a heavy majority of the time. In saying that the tackle from MSU was getting away with murder on Bosa (Bosa posted pictures to prove this on twitter).

As said we will move him inside because while as heavy as a tackle his length and his acceleration is really unmatched. He's compared to JJ Watt and for good reason.
 
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Gcashwell said:
I wish Shane Ray would not have gotten ejected in the seccg. I wanted to see how the OL would handle a 14 sack rusher.
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Alabama has always had issues pass protecting issues in my opinion, Lane Kiffin's offense seems to be a quick release style offense which has somewhat hid this issue this year but making Blake Sims hold the ball a little longer with your fast D-ends would cause havoc.... If ain't mistaken, going from memory only, Ole Miss and Arkansas were able to stop Lane's quick passing patterns, forcing bama to try plays which involved holding the ball a little longer and we know how those games turned out... ( Loss to Ole Miss... and a 14 to 13 victory for Bama).

I must admit though, their DB's lost the Ole Miss game though.
 
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Our DL really needs to play disciplined, gap assignment ball against Bama. Joey has been the least disciplined of the group but if he can reign himself in, while still being aggressive, we have a shot at limiting the Tide's running game. The other two DE's Frazier/Miller are probably the most disciplined of the group.
 
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