-
Follow us on Twitter @buckeyeplanet and @bp_recruiting, like us on Facebook! Enjoy a post or article, recommend it to others! BP is only as strong as its community, and we only promote by word of mouth, so share away!
- Thread starter ScriptOhio
- Start date
UpNorth_Buckeye
Assistant Coach
There really isn't a good one. That's basically the only one. FYI, if you're not an msu fan, you're a douche.
Upvote
0
Their pass defense is very inconsistent. You also need to consider what we are used to from them in 2012-2014, which is 1-2 elite nfl corners and a host of good safeties. They were literally suffocating in 2013 and if it were not for a bevy of laughable flags by Homer refs in their game vs ND, they would have played fsu in 2013 and broken Jameis in half. They were shaky early this year and then got even worse when injuries hit.
I don't frequent their red cedar board so I cannot vouch for it but it's a popular one. One of your Bama brethren asked me to break down sparty and I think I could do that this weekend as I've watched a lot of them.
They had a very talented but injury ravaged line that could not run on anyone. They had pretty good tailbacks, especially the true freshman they stole from Ohio. They simply couldn't clear any lanes. They seemed to gel late this year, though the OSU game is misleading in that our DC stuck with his game plan and never wavered. He felt their weak grinning game could not hurt OSU and kept his safeties back in coverage. When the opposite came true he never adjusted.
Cook used to be extremely hot and cold. He has been pretty consistent this year and largely carried the entire offense on his back. They frequently get behind the downs and he makes clutch throws with great touch caught by physical wrs that can fight for the football. He was not himself down the stretch with his injury and it showed.
Upvote
0
UpNorth_Buckeye
Assistant Coach
The biggest question mark regarding MSU's secondary is that they were very poor, and then have been good the last 3 weeks. The issue, though, is that it was against an average at ABSOLUTE best OSU pass offense (#FireBeck) in a hurricane, an awful PSU team, and Iowa. So pretty much not facing much of a passing threat whatsover. I think Bama wins something like 24-17. Maybe even by 10 points.
Upvote
0
Gcashwell
Heisman
Bama's passing attack is pretty lackluster as well. They have great receivers, but they are young and it shows sometimes. Interestingly enough, Coker's stats are about on par with those of Cook. MSU looks very capable of slowing down the run. I don't know about their depth on the DL though.
Upvote
0
UpNorth_Buckeye
Assistant Coach
Their DL is legit, and at least decent depth. The place to attack them is the secondary.
Upvote
0
UpNorth_Buckeye
Assistant Coach
They give up 230 yards a game through the air and 113 yards a game on the ground. And their passing defense is even worse than that and their rushing defense is even better than that due to them facing Air Force. Taking that game out they give up 99 yards a game on the ground and 237 yards a game through the air. They give up 3.3 yards per rush and 7 yards per pass attempt (removing the Air Force Game).
Now I know you're not going to turn into Texas Tech on them. But I also don't see Bama winning with the 50 rushing attempt type of game that they've done the past couple of weeks. 50/50 is probably what they will be going for. Not 2/3 running like they were the past couple of weeks. Maybe 55-60% rushing at most just because you can't get too much away from Henry.
Upvote
0
Sparty's front seven is legit. Sr DE Shilique Calhoun has been considered a 1st to 2nd rounder since last season. So DT Malik McDowell will be a 1st or 2nd round draft pick when he's eligible in 2017. Sr DT/DE Lawrence Thomas, Sr DT Joel Heath, and RS Fr Craig Evans have all contributed. Behind them Sr OLB Darien Harris and Jr MLB Riley Bullough are names you'll hear the announcers call a lot.
Finished the season 7th nationally against the run at 113.1 ypg.
http://www.ncaa.com/stats/football/fbs/current/team/24
The way to beat Sparty is to go over the top of their defense and test the inexperienced secondary, which is something Ohio State seemed unwilling or unable to do because of the weather and lack of rhythm on offense.
If I'm a Bama fan what would really concern me is that this is an upper-classman lead Sparty team with a ton of big game experience. In the last three years they've won two B1G CCGs while paired opposite undefeated 12-0 opponents both times, won a Rose Bowl over Stanford, a Cotton Bowl over Baylor, and are 36-4 (including 2-1 against Ohio State).
The moment won't be too big for them like that Capital One Bowl several years ago.
Upvote
0
AuTX Buckeye
Founder & Pres of the Flemming/Holtmann Fan Club
Yahoo Pickem Champ
Former Game Champion
Pac-12 Refs doing the title game... break out the :popcorn:
Upvote
0
Sparty always plays an aggressive, simpler defense that allows their athletes to attack downhill and punish the opposition. If you aren't balanced, they will beat you up and steal your lunch money. Two years ago when they had two shut down corners, they did this regardless of how balanced you were. Now they are athletic but inconsistent on the back end and can be beaten deep and on intermediate or crossing routes.
Their DL might be the best in the league and that is saying something with the talent in Columbus. Calhoun is a monster pass rusher. McDowell is a 5 star combo DL that is very disruptive and still looks skinny at 300 lbs. Heath has been a long time contributor and stout DL and Thomas is another 5 star guy with good athleticism and size.
They always have pretty aggressive lbs but this year they are a bit more athletic than usual. Riley Bullough is the latest in a long line of Bulloughs over many generations to play for sparty. Unlike his brother, he possesses pretty good speed and quickness but still packs the toughness and physicality their family is known for. Frey is another athletic guy who is a bit of a tweener.
Their safeties can also come up and support the run. Both were Ohio state recruits. In the end they lost one and passed late on the other. Both have plenty of talent but aren't that consistent in coverage though they are improving. That said, If they get to play in a street fight primarily stopping the run, they are well equipped for that brawl.
Josiah Price has been a long time contributor to their passing attack. He isn't a matchup problem but is a very steady guy and a pretty good blocker. The other tight end is a better athlete but a less consistent player and sometimes has costly penalties.
Their left tackle is an elite draft prospect as is their center. Both were badly wounded and or missed time altogether this season, causing their strong OL (on paper ) to really struggle for large portions of this season. Unlike the possibly misleading performances of their defense when facing average passing attacks, I think they really gelled and came into their own down the stretch. PSU, OSU and Iowa all have terrific front 7s and the latter two have terrific secondaries as well.
Ironically, when connor was injured, they finally began executing without him instead of relying on him to do almost everything. They always wanted to lean on the run but simply couldn't accomplish that goal.
Dantonio is also an aggressive coach when it comes to trick plays ,especially on special teams.
Upvote
0