bama concern - besides the one i wrote already
Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2008 7:40 pm
i wrote in that other thread about my bama concern in sliders thread about gettin screwed by the BCS...i'm starting a new thread because i didn't wanna hijack that thread...sorry slidey.
i wrote in that thread that i was concerned about bamas oline (specifically their left side) versus our dline and defending their running game...i believe saban will exploit this distinct advantage they do have over us...toothy brought up some solid points as well....check that thread out.
my MAIN concern i do have - moreso a florida concern than a bama concern - is that this year's team has yet to show me the ability to come back from adversity and the brink of despair on a micro level...i say micro as opposed to macro because we all know how tebow and company have fared since the loss at home to ole miss...on a macro basis, there is no one in the country that can dispute this teams mettle...granted, losing to ole miss was hardly catastrophic and we all agree, it might've helped our team with much needed focus and probably served as a proper wake up call for the remainder of the schedule....but on a MICRO level, i've not yet seen this team come from behind and prevail from the jaws of defeat....i've not seen this team HAVE to put a drive together to tie a game....i've not yet seen this team HAVE to make a fg to win...i've not yet seen this team HAVE to make a goal line stand to stay in a game...i HAVE seen this team however try to make a first down to extend a drive and we all know how that worked out for us....in that regard, we failed that test...we've come back though...but we've come back on a macro type basis....in 2006, we were pushed and we won ugly...that shows me that urbie and company FIND ways to win...shows character, shows flexibility in mindset on gameplans and objectives...fast forward to this year and we're blowing everyone out...this team has not yet been punched in the mouth yet...they've never been knocked out...how can we measure a teams ability to deal with adversity if they've never been challenged.
old wise man once told me that mike tyson, during his hey day, was NOT the best heavyweight ever...one can never be judged as such unless ones ever been knocked out...only then will one be able to be judged as one would be able to display the ability to bounce back after adversity...the gators have never been knocked down after that flash knockout that occured at the hands of ole miss...in fact, since that loss, we've been killing our opponents without breaking a sweat...don't get me wrong, blowouts are great...blowouts show superiority...not every game is going to be a blowout however...some games or aspects of games will be contested and it will be contested with ferocity and desire to prevail....how are we going to react to being down at the half by 17? how are we going to respond to giving up a kickoff for a touchdown and relinquishing the lead? how are we going to comeback to giving up a touchdown on a trick play on a critical 4th down in the 4th quarter giving up the lead? all stuff we've not yet seen and stuff i'd think need to be seen in order to qualify this team as a contender for the NC.
i wrote in that thread that i was concerned about bamas oline (specifically their left side) versus our dline and defending their running game...i believe saban will exploit this distinct advantage they do have over us...toothy brought up some solid points as well....check that thread out.
my MAIN concern i do have - moreso a florida concern than a bama concern - is that this year's team has yet to show me the ability to come back from adversity and the brink of despair on a micro level...i say micro as opposed to macro because we all know how tebow and company have fared since the loss at home to ole miss...on a macro basis, there is no one in the country that can dispute this teams mettle...granted, losing to ole miss was hardly catastrophic and we all agree, it might've helped our team with much needed focus and probably served as a proper wake up call for the remainder of the schedule....but on a MICRO level, i've not yet seen this team come from behind and prevail from the jaws of defeat....i've not seen this team HAVE to put a drive together to tie a game....i've not yet seen this team HAVE to make a fg to win...i've not yet seen this team HAVE to make a goal line stand to stay in a game...i HAVE seen this team however try to make a first down to extend a drive and we all know how that worked out for us....in that regard, we failed that test...we've come back though...but we've come back on a macro type basis....in 2006, we were pushed and we won ugly...that shows me that urbie and company FIND ways to win...shows character, shows flexibility in mindset on gameplans and objectives...fast forward to this year and we're blowing everyone out...this team has not yet been punched in the mouth yet...they've never been knocked out...how can we measure a teams ability to deal with adversity if they've never been challenged.
old wise man once told me that mike tyson, during his hey day, was NOT the best heavyweight ever...one can never be judged as such unless ones ever been knocked out...only then will one be able to be judged as one would be able to display the ability to bounce back after adversity...the gators have never been knocked down after that flash knockout that occured at the hands of ole miss...in fact, since that loss, we've been killing our opponents without breaking a sweat...don't get me wrong, blowouts are great...blowouts show superiority...not every game is going to be a blowout however...some games or aspects of games will be contested and it will be contested with ferocity and desire to prevail....how are we going to react to being down at the half by 17? how are we going to respond to giving up a kickoff for a touchdown and relinquishing the lead? how are we going to comeback to giving up a touchdown on a trick play on a critical 4th down in the 4th quarter giving up the lead? all stuff we've not yet seen and stuff i'd think need to be seen in order to qualify this team as a contender for the NC.