I do not have the inside access I had in the past for Bean Bits, these are my own observations.
Mckinnley Jackson was sorely missed, incredible interior push and drive. I know he had the penalties and they hurt badly, no excuses, but he is a beast inside.
Four man front is a must going forward. I think a three man front can be effective depending on scheme and personnel, but we are a four man front team.
It is amazing to me to see Shemar, LT, Big Walt, and Anthony making plays against an outstanding O Line, and they are true fish. Amazing talent.
Jarred Kerr ain't scared, another true fish you do not hear mentioned as often. What a great class of Safeties we recruited with Bryce and Jacoby and Kerr.
We are very thin at LB, need help badly there, portal time it seems. Tarian Lee flashes at times and is faster than Russell. But man, we are thin...
I cannot recall a team with more injuries at Corner (or just in general). I thought we were deep at corner going into the season. Really need to get Tyreek back.
I think Denver has a chance to be special. He made a great recovery pass breakup against Miss State in the end zone, he tackles well, and he is loaded with confidence. I know he is immature and has hurt us with penalties. He reminds me of Leon, wants to talk smack and is too emotional. I hope he can control that and turn into a success story. Sure wish he could have help onto that pick to start second half though...
Haynes King Part 1 - well, first let me say, I hate the comments from grown men on these boards that cross the line and seem like they are attacking the kid. He showed a tremendous amount of guts last night. I cannot recall seeing a QB get knocked around like that all night long from NFL level players. He got up every time and competed. I saw more leadership last night, as he got after teammates and he was pissed at our coaches for being late with plays. The calls he has to make pre snap is insane, but he hustled his ass off to get pre snap calls in, get set, read the D, etc. When you watch DE's and LB's coming practically free up the middle and the edge, it is damn hard to play QB effectively.
Haynes King Part II - I believe Haynes would be a great #2 QB. He is not "the guy". He has an average arm at best, slow delivery, happy feet, and worst of all, not very accurate. See App State and see pass to Moose. So many game changing plays we did not hit due to poor accuracy. He does have front line speed, but he is not a natural runner and will get hurt if they keep running that damn spring option. I admire his guts and I hear he is a great team guy, great leader, etc.
It is time for Connor.
Jimbo Part I- he has a chance to bring championships to Aggie Land, but he has to find a great coordinator and be the CEO. He is a great ambassador for A&M and is an awesome recruiter, but he is god awful coordinator and it is hurting us badly. We struggle so badly with clock mgmt, dumb penalties, and unforced errors. That is on him. You cannot be the game manager head coach and also effectively be an OC. Not with his system. I truly hope he does the right thing and hires the right guy, someone that 5 star play makers will want to play for in their system. It is truly the one thing holding us back.
Jimbo Part II - can he hire the right guy? Because the OL coach is one of the worst hires I can recall ever.
Jimbo Part III - examples of non clutch calls. In every game, you have plays that you know you have to hit. In those situations, you run your BEST play. He is not clutch at calling his best plays at the critical moments.
Clemson game going for two a few years back, great momentum, horrible play call to tie the game (I think that is right).
LSU third and short to seal the game last year. Calzada rolling to short side of field to his left, never had a chance.
Last night 4th and three in 4th qtr. Screen to Achane that was horrible scheme. Will Anderson was split up out over our TE at the top. He went straight up the field, Deuce had no chance to reach him, and Haynes rolled right into him before screen could develop. Non clutch call that was not well designed at all.
Last Play - that has to be your BEST play, on the two yard line to win the game. At that point, we could have let our O Line do what they do best, run block. Give the ball to your best player (Achane) with your best run blocking scheme. The play we ran has such a low % of success, incredible we went with it. If I were an Alabama fan, that is what they want us to run. They did not want us to get Achane involved.
A good OC will have clutch plays ready for these moments.
Aki was put in a position to lose last night. He is not a tackle and they abused him.
I miss Spiller, but for a different reason than you think. Spiller was excellent at Pass Pro, and he would pop those dudes in the mouth. Achane is an awesome runner, off the charts good, but he struggle mightily at pass pro.
A word on Deuce - I am biased because I know the kid and family. He put on good weight and gained strength in the summer, best shape of his life. He should not be struggling like this. I notice that our tackles seem to take a deeper set this year, and do not get our hands on guys until later in the pass rush. I don't like that as the pass rusher has more room to stunt or make a move, plus they gain speed. I know Deuce can be great, I hope we can clean up the scheme during the break.
Donovan Green has a chance to be special.
Chris Marshall has a chance to be special.
Dewbery flashed.
This team is truly incredibly young but insanely talented, I pray they can hold this group together and add some pieces, as they could be the team to bring us the Ship!
Next Two Weeks -
Get Healthy
Fix Blocking Scheme
Get Dewberry Reps
Turn it over to Connor
If we can finish strong with great momentum, we can salvage this season and still recruit well. Jimbo hires a great OC, we win bowl game, then next year could be special.
Bean
