Well, it's pretty evident the Aggies made the right move with the defensive coordinator. The offensive side of the ball, especially the playcalling and line play, leaves a lot to be desired.
I don't know who you play the rest of the game at QB. ASU is bringing blitzes from everywhere and A&M is not picking them up well at all. When they rolled Kyle Allen out of the pocket, he was effective. They went 94 yards on one drive doing that -- and then stopped. Kyler certainly brings a spark with his feet and adds a dimension that slows ASU down, but his he's still iffy throwing the ball (both passes to RSJ were low and short). If you can't pass protect, then you have to play Kyler. I know some of you are going to rip Allen, but geez.
You can't play Damion Ratley anymore. His drops cost a touchdown and a first down. Ed Pope needs to be in there if you're not going to play Speedy (and I think they are from here on out).
The play calling has been atrocious. They're facing a defense blitzing every play and are running routes 10 yards or further. There were only two slants thrown the entire first half. The screen to Carson for the TD was brilliant -- and the only time A&M used ASU's aggressiveness against it. It's baffling. If James White is healthy, and he's been in on special teams, he should've gotten the ball more.
On the other side of the ball...wow. This is different. You'd think it'd take a while for the Chavis scheme to take effect, and it hasn't at all. They've looked great. First, Myles Garrett is the truth. He's been all over the place and Evan Goodman cannot handle him. He's beating him so badly off the snap it's embarrassing. And ASU refuses to double him, which is insanely stupid.
The rush defense has been excellent. ASU is averaging 2.3 YPC and there's nowhere to run in the middle, no matter who's in there. Daylon Mack is already SEC ready, but every tackle they've put in there has done their job nicely.
The biggest thing has been the tackling in space. A&M had to contain D.J. Foster and they've done that. Justin Evans has hammered him several times and Devante Harris has knocked him around twice. They're not missing tackles and everyone's running to the football. They're taking care of their assignments and not worrying about the rest. The pressure has made it so Bercovici can't go down the field. He's 12-16 for all of 62 yards. ASU has 109 yards of total offense. That's it.
Justin Evans has been phenomenal. This guy hits everything. He's the safety the Aggies have been missing for a half-decade. Donovan Wilson has split time with Noel Ellis, but he's made plays when he's been in there too.
To win, the Aggies have to keep doing what they're doing on defense and figure out a way to use ASU's aggressiveness against it. Slants, screens, draws, stuff like that. And then they need to get back to College Station and learn how to beat people up at the line of scrimmage.
Oh, and let Christian Kirk keep returning kicks.
I don't know who you play the rest of the game at QB. ASU is bringing blitzes from everywhere and A&M is not picking them up well at all. When they rolled Kyle Allen out of the pocket, he was effective. They went 94 yards on one drive doing that -- and then stopped. Kyler certainly brings a spark with his feet and adds a dimension that slows ASU down, but his he's still iffy throwing the ball (both passes to RSJ were low and short). If you can't pass protect, then you have to play Kyler. I know some of you are going to rip Allen, but geez.
You can't play Damion Ratley anymore. His drops cost a touchdown and a first down. Ed Pope needs to be in there if you're not going to play Speedy (and I think they are from here on out).
The play calling has been atrocious. They're facing a defense blitzing every play and are running routes 10 yards or further. There were only two slants thrown the entire first half. The screen to Carson for the TD was brilliant -- and the only time A&M used ASU's aggressiveness against it. It's baffling. If James White is healthy, and he's been in on special teams, he should've gotten the ball more.
On the other side of the ball...wow. This is different. You'd think it'd take a while for the Chavis scheme to take effect, and it hasn't at all. They've looked great. First, Myles Garrett is the truth. He's been all over the place and Evan Goodman cannot handle him. He's beating him so badly off the snap it's embarrassing. And ASU refuses to double him, which is insanely stupid.
The rush defense has been excellent. ASU is averaging 2.3 YPC and there's nowhere to run in the middle, no matter who's in there. Daylon Mack is already SEC ready, but every tackle they've put in there has done their job nicely.
The biggest thing has been the tackling in space. A&M had to contain D.J. Foster and they've done that. Justin Evans has hammered him several times and Devante Harris has knocked him around twice. They're not missing tackles and everyone's running to the football. They're taking care of their assignments and not worrying about the rest. The pressure has made it so Bercovici can't go down the field. He's 12-16 for all of 62 yards. ASU has 109 yards of total offense. That's it.
Justin Evans has been phenomenal. This guy hits everything. He's the safety the Aggies have been missing for a half-decade. Donovan Wilson has split time with Noel Ellis, but he's made plays when he's been in there too.
To win, the Aggies have to keep doing what they're doing on defense and figure out a way to use ASU's aggressiveness against it. Slants, screens, draws, stuff like that. And then they need to get back to College Station and learn how to beat people up at the line of scrimmage.
Oh, and let Christian Kirk keep returning kicks.
