Tire Store Report -- Sugar Bowl Edition

TO COMMENT ON THIS POST, PLEASE CLICK ON THE ABOVE LINK.

Uncharacteristically, we'll be brief.  Blech, that was nasty.

Sadly enough, Commissioner, those grades are precisely what the 2014-2015 iteration of the Crimson Tide earned in what turned out to be its final game of the season.  The Sugar Bowl has turned bitter for the Alabama faithful.

You know it has been a long and unpleasant evening when the bright spots are the freshman punter, who likely kept Alabama in the game till the very end and the place kicker who appears to be recovering from whatever injury or injuries have been plaguing him since about the third week in the season.

You were right to focus on the season as a whole.  For a team in rebuilding mode, whose coach declared this time last year it was time to restart The Process, and picked by many to lose three or four games, this team outdid itself, as did its coaches.  It should never be said that a season which saw Alabama add another SEC Championship to its list of achievements was anything less than successful.

In the Sugar Bowl, however, this looked like a young, confused team -- in over its head and unprepared for the big stage.  In some ways, that is both troubling and puzzling.  However, with this season done there is little to be gained from asking questions about why we didn't run more plays with Fowler leading Henry around the left side with tight end assistance, why we continued to run blitzes that our players didn't seem to understand and were not affecting the quarterback, why our linebacking corps was so thin that two injuries resulted in players who would only be expected to see the field in games like homecoming were suddenly required to play critical roles, why this team never really developed the consistent ability to put away an opponent early when it had a significant lead, and why this many games into the season we still didn't seem to be able to get a play from the sideline in to the huddle then to the line of scrimmage without the play clock nearly expiring.

Three questions are worth asking: First, did we over think and over plan for this game? Second, were we expecting a bit much of this team of overachievers? Third, what will the 2015-16 campaign be like?  Unfortunately, if we were smart enough and had the ability to see the future so we could answer questions like those, we'd have already won the Powerball, and be reading The Grades from our private island in the Caribbean, while our man Jeeves brought our drinks with those little paper umbrellas in them down to the beach.

No, we don't have the answers, not at all.  We probably won't spend much time even asking those questions any more.  Instead, we'll fairly quickly move on to some questions that we can get clues about in the Spring -- who will be next year's quarterback, will Drake fully recover from his horrific-looking injury, will Bo Scarborough be able to live up to his recruiting billing, and why shouldn't we be picked to win the SEC West. 

Stay tuned, my friends.  Spring practice begins in about 12 weeks.  Coach Cochran is working his weight room magic and almost before you know it this year's Sugar Bowl will be nothing more than motivation to achieve more in the future. 

Thanks, Commissioner, for keeping us all informed, entertained, and connected for another season.  We note and are proud of your other accomplishments this past year, but we are glad your campaign and judicial duties found their appropriate spot -- which is to say behind the quality and timely production of The Grades.

Roll Tide, everyone.  Beat Wisconsin.

Ohio State Grades

In the eight seasons that Nick Saban has been Alabama's head football coach, I doubt that there has been a team that over-achieved as much as the 2014 squad. At the end of the 2013 season, even prior to the departures of Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, Adrian Hubbard, Jeffrey Pagan, Vinnie Sunseri, Eddie Lacy and Cyrus Kouandjio to the NFL draft with a year of eligibility remaining, Coach Saban said that he was starting The Process over with this team. 

In addition to filling the losses on defense, replacements had to be found for both kicking specialists, long snapper, three starters on the offensive line, and quarterback. Auburn was coming off of a season where the Tigers played for the BCS Championship, and the rest of the SEC West-with the possible exception of LSU which suffered draft losses equal to the Tide-was stronger top-to-bottom than any year in recent memory.

It was a daunting task. The A-Day Game provided little comfort for championship aspirations. Early wins over West Virginia and Florida were encouraging, but when Alabama lost an error-filled game in Oxford on the first weekend in October, many fans were convinced that more losses awaited. Here is where over-achievement comes into the picture. 

A one-point win on the road against Arkansas, was followed by a brilliant performance that destroyed and humiliated Texas A&M. Then came a gutsy overtime win in Baton Rouge that dispelled any lingering doubts about Blake Sims' competitive character. A trip to Rocky Top hung another capital "L" on the Big Orange, prompting my Son And Heir to point out that the Vols not the Tide, have a record over a decade more appropriate to a program suffering the lingering effects of crippling NCAA sanctions. College Game Day was on hand as the number one team in the country brought its undefeated record and "Hail State" bravado into Tuscaloosa, only to be defeated decisively by a physically superior and relentless Alabama team.

The 2014 Edition of The Iron Bowl saw Alabama sorely tested by a mobile quarterback, and offensive mistakes. The Tide trailed by 12 points with the third quarter half gone, only to win by 11 on the strength of five consecutive touchdown drives. 

A decisive victory over Missouri capped the season, and secured for Alabama its 24th SEC Championship. Coach Saban captured the moment when he told the on-field reporter "This win is a big deal."

By winning the SEC CG, Alabama also claimed the top seed in the first ever College Football Playoff. The 42-35 loss to Ohio State keeps Alabama out of the playoff final. It also exposes some of the chronic issues that have dogged the Tide this season. 

You would think that 35 points would be enough to win any game that Alabama plays. Well, you would be wrong. It was not enough to beat Ohio State, and would not have been enough to beat Auburn. 

You would also think that any opposing offense, starting a red-shirt freshman at quarterback for only the second game of his career, would have a really hard time of it facing down and distance situations of: 3rd & 6, 3rd & 8, 3rd & 9, 3rd & 10, 3rd &10, 3rd & 9 and 3rd & 8.  Well, you would be wrong again. Cardale Jones rushed for first downs twice on runs of 12 and 20 yards, and completed passes of 14, 26, 47, 40 and 26. For those of you keeping score at home, that's 165 yards of total offense on seven plays that ought to have been followed with punts, not repositioning the chain. For the game, OSU converted 10 third down plays; 7 of those 10 came on third and long!

You might also think that starting an offensive possession at the opponent's 23 yard line, in the 4th quarter of a one-score game would be the opportunity to take the lead once and for all. Well....there you go again....that's what you get for thinking. Lane Kiffin called for a rollout pass to OJ Howard in the end zone. Howard beat the coverage, Blake rolled out, set his feet, and..... Well, the play-by-play sheet just says "intercepted by Bell, Vonn at the OSU 1, returned 7 yards to the OSU 8."  In reality, Blake did not put the ball where Howard could get it. Vonn make a good play on the ball, but a throw to the back of the end zone would have been a TD. The PAT would have given the Tide the lead. Instead, after an exchange of punts, OSU's running back, E. Elliott, broke an 84 yard run for another Buckeye TD to make the score 42-28 with just over 3:00 to play in the game. 

Although the Tide scored quickly to pull within seven points, held the Bucks and got the ball back with time enough to score again, Ohio State did an excellent job defending the Tide's two-minute offense, and intercepted Blake's last-gasp pass to the end zone as time expired.

As bad as this loss was, it cannot erase what the 2014 Crimson Tide accomplished this season. My purpose in writing The Grades, is to analyze each game and score the performance of the team's component parts. Because of the way Alabama was beaten, today's analysis and scores are not flattering, but they do not diminish what the Tide has achieved this year. Ever mindful of the great accomplishments of the 2014 Crimson Tide, here is how I grade the game:

Offense: D The Tide gained 407 yards of total offense [170 rushing] and earned 21 first downs. Blake completed 22 of 36 passes for 237 yards. He threw two TDs and was intercepted three times, including one that was returned for a score. 

Derrick Henry was the leading rusher with 97 yards and a TD on 13 carries. TJ Yeldon added 47 yards and a TD on 10 rushes. Blake ran 10 times, gained 49 yards and scored a rushing TD.

Amari Cooper caught 9 passes for 71 yards and 2 TDs. DeAndrew White caught 3 passes for 65 yards. Henry, Howard, Jalston Fowler, Chris Black and Brian Vogler each caught 2 passes.

The Tide faced third down 13 times in the game but converted only 2 of those possession downs. Twice, Alabama attempted a 4th down conversion and made the first down both times.

Alabama had 15 meaningful offensive possessions in the game. The Tide had only four sustained drives [79, 84, 65, 40] while five times, the offensive ran only 3 plays before punting. The other two punts followed one 4-play drive and a 5-play effort.

Defense: F There is something seriously out of kilter with Alabama's defense, especially in the defensive backfield. I have already noted the absence of key defensive players who left with eligibility remaining, but there is no good reason why this defense has had a problem getting off the field on third down, especially when the distance to gain is supposed to make the opposing offense one-dimensional. Giving up numerous conversions on long third-downs was a feature of the last three games Alabama has played.

The tendency has been to blitz and leave the DBs in man coverage. Give the OSU offensive staff lots of credit for excellent film study. We had a corner who could not execute, and when we went to zone, Cardale Jones was able to find open receivers on deep crossing routes behind the LBs and in front of the safeties. Kirby Smart has some 'splaining to do.

OSU gained 537 yards of total offense and converted 10 of 18 third downs. Jones was 18 of 35 in passing, with a TD although he was intercepted once. OSU ran a reverse pass that was good for a TD. Cyrus Jones had excellent coverage, but the OSU receiver made a fantastic play on the ball.

Landon Collins tied his career best single game with 12 tackles. He also recovered a forced fumble and broke up a pass. Reggie Ragland made 7 tackles including 2 for lost yardage. Nick Perry, Trey DePriest and Geno Smith each made 6 stops. When two of the top five tacklers are safeties, you have an indication that the opposing team is wining at the line of scrimmage. 

All total, the Tide made 11 tackles for lost yardage, forced [Jackson] and recovered [Collins] a fumble, intercepted a pass [Cy. Jones] and broke up 7 passes.

Special Teams:

Punting: A+ J.K. Scott was nothing less than brilliant. His 7 punts averaged 55 yards gross per kick and 53 net yards per kick. Five of his punts were for more than 50 yards and he dropped 5 inside the OSU 20 yard line. 

Kickoffs: A- Adam Griffith returned to kick off duty and attained a gross yards per kick average of 64 yards. The coverage team allowed OSU an average of 14.6 yards per return while the return team achieved an average of only 11.5 yards per kick.

Place Kicking: A Griff did not attempt a field goal but was perfect on 5 PATs.

Coaching: F The participation report lists 54 players who saw action and the Tide was only penalized 4 times. One of those penalties was an utterly stupid taunting infraction by sophomore DB Maurice Smith who, having played no role in Reuben Foster delivering one of his guided missile tackles on a kick return, decided that the thing to do was to stand over the stunned Buckeye return man and tell him how hard he had been hit.

The failing grade earned by Kirby Smart is enough to justify the mark being awarded to the staff as a whole. 

In his post-game comments, Coach Saban was very gracious towards OSU, complimentary of his players for what they achieved over the season, and classy in taking responsibility for the result on the field. 

The time has arrived to close the book on the 2014 Alabama football season. For everyone associated with the program, for fans and the readers of this blog, that end comes one game sooner than we all would have preferred. That disappointment, however, should not over shadow the fun that we have all had following this team. With the perspective that time will eventually provide, I believe that this season may well go down as one of the most enjoyable seasons of the Saban era. 

Coach Saban said it better than I ever could, when he responded to a question asking for his perspective on the season: "You don't have to get a trophy to be a winner," he said, "and these guys next to me [Blake Sims and Landon Collins] and all the ones back in the locker room, are winners, and I am incredibly proud of what they have accomplished this year."

And so should we all.

Roll Tide, y'all. 

The Commissioner