1) Hugh Freeze - This loss is squarely on Hugh's shoulders. I trace it back to the calamity of that 2nd Quarter red zone trip. Take the points! We have the momentum. Why open the door on a momentum shift? We have superior talent. We do not need to out think or trick play Memphis. It kills me to watch us go 60 yards to the redzone then completely change our play calling in the redzone. Per Clarion Ledger:
“I felt good about that one,” Freeze said. “I felt good about the call. They made a great play on it.”
Here’s how big of a momentum-changer that decision was: Memphis scored 24 points on its next five drives, gaining 228 yards on 34 plays. Ole Miss gained 11 on 14, and never got past its own 39. That was the game."
Mic drop...
1b) Hugh - I'm still a supporter of Freeze. He has done a lot of good things. So far he has been a quick study when things go bad. He is growing on the job. Nice too see but frustrating when you are paying him $4.3 million. This is the SEC.
1c) Hugh - We are too much finesse. I long for a team that can thump it like LSU or Bama. Can't believe I'm saying that. In the SEC W, it is necessary. Unfortunately, I do not think Hugh is that kind of guy. He's always been a little guy so he is wired to run around them or trick play them. I know that is poor journalism to reach like that but it's what I've noticed in the first 4 years. I go back to the Arky game last year. We packed it in. Bielema ate it up on a cold rainy night.
2) OL - I'm firmly on the we need new direction on offense bandwagon. We rely upon "big" plays for offense. Never seen or heard that elsewhere. Maybe an OC who calls plays? After 4 years Luke needs to go. Us fans can't completely understand what is wrong but we know it's broken. I think it is three fold (1) poor recruiting (2) poor development/ mentality (3) schematics (that I don't understand).
(1) After 4 years we are still thin up front. Maybe 6 deep. Half have been injured or suspended.
(2) Coach O was not a head coach but he was a tough SOB and a great D line coach. We need someone like that to instill a toughness into the OL.
(3) More than I anything I'm starting to believe it is X's & O's. How can we not produce between the tackle runs for 4 years?!
3) Defense - I'm not ready to clean house on the defense. Losing Gross, CJ, Conner & Nkemdiche is just tough to over come. Plus, Tee Shepard didn't contribute like we anticipated.
That said, it seems to this arm chair critic that we are less aggressive in defensive play calling this year. Maybe we just can't get to the QB. Can't tell on TV because I do not know which plays are called.
4) Looking forward - I'm not overly optimistic. I just hope we can keep it together enough to keep our recruiting intact. Gone are visions of Nat' Championship. Tunsil back will help but the problems I saw today were well above his pay grade/ job level as I firmly believe Freeze botched this game.
“I felt good about that one,” Freeze said. “I felt good about the call. They made a great play on it.”
Here’s how big of a momentum-changer that decision was: Memphis scored 24 points on its next five drives, gaining 228 yards on 34 plays. Ole Miss gained 11 on 14, and never got past its own 39. That was the game."
Mic drop...
1b) Hugh - I'm still a supporter of Freeze. He has done a lot of good things. So far he has been a quick study when things go bad. He is growing on the job. Nice too see but frustrating when you are paying him $4.3 million. This is the SEC.
1c) Hugh - We are too much finesse. I long for a team that can thump it like LSU or Bama. Can't believe I'm saying that. In the SEC W, it is necessary. Unfortunately, I do not think Hugh is that kind of guy. He's always been a little guy so he is wired to run around them or trick play them. I know that is poor journalism to reach like that but it's what I've noticed in the first 4 years. I go back to the Arky game last year. We packed it in. Bielema ate it up on a cold rainy night.
2) OL - I'm firmly on the we need new direction on offense bandwagon. We rely upon "big" plays for offense. Never seen or heard that elsewhere. Maybe an OC who calls plays? After 4 years Luke needs to go. Us fans can't completely understand what is wrong but we know it's broken. I think it is three fold (1) poor recruiting (2) poor development/ mentality (3) schematics (that I don't understand).
(1) After 4 years we are still thin up front. Maybe 6 deep. Half have been injured or suspended.
(2) Coach O was not a head coach but he was a tough SOB and a great D line coach. We need someone like that to instill a toughness into the OL.
(3) More than I anything I'm starting to believe it is X's & O's. How can we not produce between the tackle runs for 4 years?!
3) Defense - I'm not ready to clean house on the defense. Losing Gross, CJ, Conner & Nkemdiche is just tough to over come. Plus, Tee Shepard didn't contribute like we anticipated.
That said, it seems to this arm chair critic that we are less aggressive in defensive play calling this year. Maybe we just can't get to the QB. Can't tell on TV because I do not know which plays are called.
4) Looking forward - I'm not overly optimistic. I just hope we can keep it together enough to keep our recruiting intact. Gone are visions of Nat' Championship. Tunsil back will help but the problems I saw today were well above his pay grade/ job level as I firmly believe Freeze botched this game.
