Repost from different thread, but thouight I'd post here as well...
Just a few thoughts on today....
C.J. Barnett...wow. Guy was great during the time he played. Some great break-ups, and any completions on him, he made sure the receiver paid for it. Really thought he played well, especially against a very good receiving core in Miami. Any concerns I had about his size/physicality were answered today, IMO. Hope his injury isn't serious...
John Simon...can't say enough about this guy. He collapsed running lanes all day, and made Harris step away from the pocket all day. The guy so rarely gets swallowed up, and Miami was double teaming him on a regular basis. When you have a player that commands double teams like this guy does, it just opens up pressure from guys like Nathan Williams and Cam. His stats don't say it, but what a great day...
TP got away with a lot today. This was a game where we could have just as easily commented on the bad decisions and the things that went wrong, but the INT's were dropped. I really liked when he stepped up and made big plays with his feet. Still wish he ran more physically, but I'm not going to complain. The kid played hard today, and brings a lot of confidence to the offense. I think the team really looks to him for confidence, and he stayed pretty poised today.
Our special teams are/were very poor. Outside of a solid outings by Ben Buchanaon and Devin Barclay, our special teams are beyond concerning. I don't know if it means burning redshirts or just taking walk-ons off of the units, we need more athleticism on kick coverage. It's risky to put starters on kick coverage, but you just can't have coverage teams costing you games by not being able to cover punts and kick-offs. I wonder if JT ever thought about burning Sabino's shirt today??
How nice is it to have real weapons at returner? Jamaal Berry did a nice job answering with some solid kick returns of his own. Jordan Hall had some nice punt returns as well. I give JT credit for putting trust in some young guys. Knock on wood, but it's a testament to these guys not putting the rock on the ground. JT rarely lets underclassmen have this kind of responsibility....
Good to see Mike Adams hold up today. I was really concerned about Allen Bailey collapsing the pocket today, but that never happened. Mike Adams did a nice job in pass protection. The lack of hearing Bailey's name is a testament to that.
Can we please scrap the 5 wideout sets? I hate them. Terrelle still doesn't look comfortable in making the quick decision, and our protection collapses quickly. It just seems like a recipe for disaster.
Boom Herron ran hard today and I liked it. The guy gets very little credit from our fanbase, but he showed his metal today. While Saine tip-toed behind our offensive line, Boom find his lane and hit them hard. As soon as he came into the game, he showed he was the better back against the opponent today. I give Saine credit for having amazing hands and he has a place in the offense, but unless the offensive line opens a hole the size of a semi-truck he has some deficiencies. And tip-toeing behind the line waiting for holes to develop is one, especially against an aggressive defense like Miami. Boom was our offensive MVP, IMO.
Nathan Williams is a beast...Holy God. You're a special player when you can put your hand in the dirt and get pressure on every passing down, but you can also drop into coverage 25 yards down-field. Are you kidding me? On his pick, the guy was in a 20 yard drop. I know we're used to seeing our DE's drop into coverage, and even Cam made a pick today, but the depth of that particular play has me shaking my head. Nathan Williams showed his value today. I'm extremely happy to have him back. We haven't gotten the production I expected from Solomon Thomas in Nathans absence unfortunately.
Cameron Heyward...enough said. He can't be blocked. All-American, first round pick.
JerMale Hines. Any questions about him at safety were answered after today. What an amazing tone he set right off the bat. Laid out Miami's TE on the first passing play, and then came back and blew up a screen on the second play. He honestly reminds me of a Taylor Mays that doesn't get abused in coverage. He plays very disciplined, but very fast. And he hits like a linebacker. This guy is under-appreciated...I think he is our third best defensive player.
DeVier Posey just continues to impress. In an offense where the QB is so athletic and often makes plays with his feet, it can be easy to get discouraged and take plays off. DeVier just gets open whenever his number is called and makes the play. If he played with a pocket passer, he might be a household name like A.J. Green or Julio Jones, but DeVier is a beast.
Tyler Moeller plays FAST. That's all. His numbers weren't crazy today like against Marshall, but he blew plays up, and stuck his neck in plays that other players cleaned up. He's incredibly valuable to this defense. I'm not sure we'll see a STAR of his caliber any time soon. He's that good at his position.
That's all I can think of for now. Really proud of the teams effort today. We were kick coverage away from dominating this game. Our defense is truly special, and the offense will continue to improve, IMO. I like our chances this season...