Glad someone else noticed the hold. Likewise the PF call on Muncie during the drive was bogus. None of this means we lost because of the refs but it does bother me the SEC refs are so poor.
I've been reading the back and forth between all of us and with the exception of a few "sky is falling and Les killed my first born son so he MUST GO" hair on fire posts by the usual suspects there have been many critiques of what is wrong that hit home. Those include WR drops, OL issues, QB play AND coaching. Each is an element in what ails the team this year. However maybe each is only a symptom of the central issue. As often pointed out and like $TigerFan$ postulated above there was a very narrow difference between winning and losing last week. It was a game we could have won. Why didn't we and don't the issue noted above explain enough? As many have also noted there is a narrow difference in talent and depth in teams along the top so little things show big. It seems to me the real difference is in the team's head. They don't have the will to win and NOT to lose. We had that in 2007 and the last 2 years. 2008 & 9 and so far this year so far not so much. It is that combination of maturity, leadership and confidence that we lost with the 18 seniors and juniors and HB7.....and the turmoil caused by the injuries. It is so much easier to contribute than to lead ... and really those who were the leaders and rock of the team last year are gone. I don't leave the coaching staff out either. It takes the ability to instill and cultivate those talents as much as it is to teach players how to play and put them in position to succeed. There isn't a formula that a cook or chemist can follow but an art that takes a chef to create. It happens to every team even when they seem to be on the top. It happened to Saban at LSU in 2004 and at AL in 2009. It happened to Urban, Mack Brown, etc, etc so Les isn't immune. BTW it really makes B Bowden's streak of top 5 finishes look strong. Point is it is happening to us this year. Did we lose all of our leaders? Were the rest unable to take the mantle of leadership? We we all too confident? Did we lose focus by making revenge for Jan 9 the reason for the season? Who knows I guess the question now is can the crucible of the past few games mold the team and generate the will and focus and leadership needed to regain the edge we seem to have lost? I don't know but it has happened before so we can hope. Sorry if this seems vague but the more I watch college ball the more I believe in the importance of the "will to win" LSU had it last year in spades and coupled with the depth of talent made for one of the greatest seasons in or history. The team, players and coaches both need to find it to turn the year around.
Yep .. I said the same thing on another thread. Something's missing ... and It's not talent. Even on the OLine ... everyone of those guys were drafted because they are talent ... not next years talent, but they were talented when they were signed. Granted, they season with each other as time goes on, but injuries happen, and they know it .. and they know they have to be ready to step in. Maybe it's best that LSU lost this weekend. Maybe the "expectation" was too great. Now maybe they can settle down and start playing ball.
Our only 2 drives in the 3rd qtr were our 2nd and 3rd longest drives of the game, and we put up more yards in the 3rd than any other qtr... 1st: 72 yards 2nd: 4 yards 3rd: 89 yards 4th: 40 yards
In the 1st half our D was great, in the 2nd half, our D was terrible. You can't blame it on them being on the field too long when most of the damage was done to them in the 3rd qtr (both TD drives were in the 3rd qtr with one going a few plays into the 4th) Florida's yards per quarter against us: 1st: 14 yards 2nd: 18 yards 3rd: 142 yards 4th: 86 yards It's crazy how our D was so great during the first half but so terrible during the second
Mingo is playing at about 70% right now he says the ankle is fine but we seen him with the boot...has only slipped a spot because UGA's Jarvis Jones has moved ahead regardless of what happens he will be a first round Pick
That is true and as a couple have pointed out there was a blatent hold at the point of attack on the first TD run. However two facts are hard to ignore. First there was a major TOP difference from the 1st qtr on. In the end Fl ran 20+ more plays than we did. Second Fl converted over 50% of their 3rd downs maybe higher in the 2nd half. This leads me to believe that: 1) the D got tired and B) The D got desperate and lost discipline in the 3rd qtr. I saw several times when a D lineman or LB ran right out of the play. I don't know if it was due to called stunts, missed assignments or just young guys trying to make a great play. Successful D relies on great players doing their assignment. Like on the O Line, one player going the wrong way leaves a hole to exploit. This D is very very good but not as dynamic as the last two years. As a result we need better offensive performance or we will see more relatively weak (tired) 2nd halfs by the D.
It all factors in. They got tired physically, yes, but they got tired mentally, as well. The ineptitude of the offense probably got in their heads, as has been mentioned earlier. If all three phases aren't playing on equal or at least comparable levels, the weakest group drags the other two down. I like the post above concerning how close we seem to be to pulling it together. Ball security, focus/discipline, and injuries are our biggest concerns. Even the playcalling is vastly improved from previous years, minus a few calls here and there (especially in the red zone). I wonder how much a genuine LOSS, not just a poor performance in a win, will affect them. Will they come out swinging, or will they give up and pout? I almost believe this next game to be a make or break for the team's psyche. If they put in the effort to correct their mistakes and win, maybe it will signal a turnaround. If they lose, they just might begin to tailspin.
