I know Bama is still viewed as more of a run-first team- with much of that production coming from the QB position- but it's interesting to me that we actually average more rushing yards per game than they do- 186 to 178. And obviously we average far more passing yards per game than they do- 311 to 232.
In terms of their passing game, they have only two receivers- Burton & Bond- with more than 18 catches on the season. Bond leads them with 39, while Burton has 33. Meanwhile, we have 7 players with more than 20 catches on the season, and two of them- Bowers & Ladd- have missed significant time thus far.
Burton averages almost 23 yards per reception (most in the conference & 2nd in the country), and each of their 6 leading receivers average over 10. That tells me that they don't use a short, controlled passing game much at all. If they're throwing it, they're trying to push it downfield, and they generally do a good job with that when they complete passes. But it also tells me that for that to work, the QB either has to have ample to time to stand in the pocket & wait for those routes to develop, or break the pocket and throw accurately on the move. Now, Bama is one of the worst teams in the country (113 out of 130 in FBS) in terms of sacks allowed, at 3.25 per game (we're 6th in FBS at 0.83 per game, by comparison). If we bring pressure consistently on Saturday- especially with Bama's best RB likely out for the game- and can keep Milroe in the pocket when we do, they don't seem to excel in the quicker passing game that would allow them to exploit any holes in the defense and move the chains down the field for long drives against us. And maybe Milroe tries to force a few passes in the face of that pressure and throws some picks, like he did against Texas, one of the best defenses they've faced up until Saturday. Will be interesting to see how it plays out.
In terms of their passing game, they have only two receivers- Burton & Bond- with more than 18 catches on the season. Bond leads them with 39, while Burton has 33. Meanwhile, we have 7 players with more than 20 catches on the season, and two of them- Bowers & Ladd- have missed significant time thus far.
Burton averages almost 23 yards per reception (most in the conference & 2nd in the country), and each of their 6 leading receivers average over 10. That tells me that they don't use a short, controlled passing game much at all. If they're throwing it, they're trying to push it downfield, and they generally do a good job with that when they complete passes. But it also tells me that for that to work, the QB either has to have ample to time to stand in the pocket & wait for those routes to develop, or break the pocket and throw accurately on the move. Now, Bama is one of the worst teams in the country (113 out of 130 in FBS) in terms of sacks allowed, at 3.25 per game (we're 6th in FBS at 0.83 per game, by comparison). If we bring pressure consistently on Saturday- especially with Bama's best RB likely out for the game- and can keep Milroe in the pocket when we do, they don't seem to excel in the quicker passing game that would allow them to exploit any holes in the defense and move the chains down the field for long drives against us. And maybe Milroe tries to force a few passes in the face of that pressure and throws some picks, like he did against Texas, one of the best defenses they've faced up until Saturday. Will be interesting to see how it plays out.
