Defensive Film Review: Appalachian State

This is long and I encourage you to read this installments.  I'm making a conscious effort to keep it as understandable as possible if you are a casual fan. However, if you want to learn, you still have to try even if it's only a concept or two per week that you fully digest. I'll use pictures for the pivotal plays if you learn better visually.  If you rewatch the game, or even specific parts of it, this can be used as a companion piece.  And yes, I know this is the defensive review but I always like to lead off here by discussing the offense.

• I thought I was watching an SNL sketch when they cut to the booth and "Mr. Electricity" Tom O'Brien was in the booth. How did this walking cure for narcolepsy make it past a screen test for ESPN? Sure, O'Brien is knowledgeable and very well liked, but, TV commentator for the Worldwide Leader? Ok.
  
• The kickoff coverage was horrendous this week. I would need the "all 22" film to fully examine the issue. Somehow, by personnel or strategy, this needs to be fixed. A better team will, obviously, better exploit this weakness.
• Watson's interception on the first drive was mostly on Peake. Not a bad read or bad throw by Watson. Peake seemed to slow down in his route. A little more effort from Peake and that ball could've been caught. There was also a low throw by Watson to Peake in the 2^nd drive where Peake appeared to not give maximum effort as well.
• Watson saved his two worst throws for the 2 minute drill at the end of the 1^st half. Hyatt struggled on that series and then the Twist stunt allowed their DE, Blair, to get the sack to end the drive.
• Watson's ZR keep on the 2^nd drive should've been a RB give. If he gives it to Gallman, he may still be running. I don't want Watson running it anyway but, when you see that, it makes it a little more questionable.
• Bad Snap Meter: Guillermo 2, Norton 2. Norton snapped the one that went over DW's head. Shades of the goalline against FSU last year. Not only is it a drive-killer but its open season on DW in the scramble for the ball. Guillermo also got a holding penalty that got a TD called back.
• Hunter Renfrow again showed that he deserves a spot in the WR rotation. He was good in blocking and showed off his sure hands again this week. He reminds me of Jaron Brown.
  
• Upon further review, on several run plays we got good surge out of the OL, but Gallman did not see the hole well enough. If he ever fixes his vision issues, he is going to be a monster.
• We had to sit through Ammon Lakip's growing pains at the beginning of last year and we can hope that we're going through those same growing pains with Huegel now. Will he handle the pressure tonight at UL?
  
• There is no truth to the rumor that ASU's WR "Mc El Fresh" is the hottest new thing on the Scotch-Mexican Hip Hop circuit.
• On that note, it was interesting to see Bobby Beathard's Grandson on the field for ASU at WR. Beathard, the former NFL GM, built Superbowl teams in Washington and San Diego by trading away his first round pick almost every year.
• I'm not sure which LB that QT said Venables wanted but, the OLB #6 for App State, Keenan Gilchirst (6'2", 200, former 2-star), is a football player and I would not be surprised to see him in the NFL. He did a lot of shedding of Tiger block attempts and made some really nice plays. Two of the most impressive plays were when he shed Crowder and made a stop on Gallman for no gain and then when he ran down Ray Ray on the long kickoff return. Ronald Blair, who had two sacks and was quite disruptive at times,is another guy that stood out. He gave us good film on where we need to get things fixed this week.
• The Artavis Scott vs. Shaq Lawson Dance-Off needs to be televised. Both guys have some sweet old-school "Uncle at the BBQ" type moves. If they do this, I am going to have to request that the Whip/Nae Nae be barred from the competition.

Here is a key for my shorthand in alphabetical order in case you need to refer back to it as you read this: 22 Front = Both DTs lineup on the guard. Alley = area between the OT and WR.  BCB = Boundary Cornerback, Blast = FB lead play in the C gap with a kick out on the DE or seal on the LB. Bullet -ILB A or B gap blitz.  Crack- WR blocks down on S or LB.  C0, C1, C2, C3, C4 (quarters) or C6 (quarter, quarter, half) = coverage scheme by the secondary. Diet 4-3 - 4-3 alignment with Nickel personnel. Dog (overload)- LB and S/NB blitz on the same side. EM = end man on the line of scrimmage. FCB = Wideside or field cornerback,  Iso = FB lead play in the A or B gap. IV= Inverted Veer. IZ = Inside Zone or Zone blocked play inside the tackles. Jailbreak - 7 or more blitz.  LOS = Line of Scrimmage. Man = man to man coverage.  OV = Outside Veer or option play where the FB dive hits the B or C gap.  OZ = outside zone run or zone blocked play off-tackle.   PA =Play Action, PBU- Pass broken up.  Power = FB/RB/H-B kicks out EM, backside OG leads into B gap hole. Power Sweep = FB lead to the D gap with OG pulling around. Sky - SS moves up two yards, takes flat, CB and FS take deep third.  Slant Right/Left - entire DL slants in one direction in unison. Fire- S, NB, LB blitz from the outside D gap.  Soft Coverage - CBs/NB playing well of the WR until he gets to the 1^st down line. Stretch = zone blocked run just inside the last offensive player on that side.  Student Body Left/Right = FB lead play to the D gap with all uncovered linemen pulling.  Stack - the 3 LBs are stacked behind D linemen.  Stalk - WR blocks CB in front of him. Sweep = FB/ H-B lead play to the D gap.   TE stunt - Tackle shoots outside gap and end loops around on the inside. TFL = tackle for loss. TO - Triple Option. Trap - playside DT is left unblocked, backside OG pulls and takes him out, RB runs underneath. Twist stunt = one DT crashes on a slant and the other DT loops around and fills the hole he just left.

Coach/Player shorthand:  BB = Ben Boulware, BJ = B.J. Goodson, BV = Brent Venables, Car = Carlos Watkins, Mac = MacKenzie Alexander, OD = Dorian O'Daniel, Shaq = Shaq Lawson, Tank = Cordrea Tankersley, War = Christian Wilkins

Thoughts within a play will be separated by a comma (,)

Each plays will be separated by an ellipsis (...)

First downs separated by a paragraph

Comments on a drive will be done in italics

Offensive Personnel will be listed as a 3 digit number where it goes # of RBs, # of TEs, # of WRs like 212, which is 2 RB, 1 TE, 2 WR.

Appalachian State comes into the game on a 7 game win streak dating back to last year. They return 18 of 22 starters off of last year's team and four players listed on the 1^st Team All Sun Belt Preseason Team and are projected to finish 4^th in the Sun Belt according to the media.

1^st QUARTER

1^st Drive, ASU 43, 14:53, 0-0

1^st and 10, No Play, ILLEGAL PROCEDURE ASU, the jitters+crowd likely caused that one, 5 yards...1^st annnnnnnZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ, excuse me, Tom O'Brien was talking, 1st and 15, Gun 2RB 3WR (ASU Pistol look, shown above with a TE) vs. Nickel WLB Bullet, Lead OZ wide, Shaq tosses the OT aside and gets him for a loss of 1...2^nd and 16, HUNH ASU Pistol vs. Nickel WLB Bullet C4, fake stretch, bootleg to the boundary, QB hurried by BB, throws deep out into double coverage, oh my, knocked away by Kearse, Mac was there as well, incomplete...3^rd and 16, Gun 104 Trips Wide vs. Dime of Doom Double LB X, Blitz can't get home, pass complete on the curl in front of Mac, run out of bounds by Green, gain of 14...4^th and 2, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel, QUICK PUNT by the QB

As you can see above they run the 2 RBs out of the Shotgun look in more of an I Formation look from the pistol. This is the formation Louisville had success against us with in the 2Q last year.  So, it's a good thing we got a little primer on this before Thursday's game. We had heard that Kearse was the WLB in Dime but BB was still in. They threw at Mac twice in that drive and went 1-2 for 14 yards.  Also, did you try to hit the play button in the photo above? :)

Watson throws a pick on 3^rd down and we have a SUDDEN CHANGE situation

2^nd Drive, ASU 46, 12:17, 0-0

1^st and 10, ASU Pistol 212 Unbalanced Line vs. Nickel 8 in the box WLB Bullet, IZ, Lawson abuses the OT again by shedding him and jumping into the hole, RB jumps outside into the arms of TB, loss of 3...2^nd and 13, HUNH ASU Pistol 212 vs. Nickel WLB Fire, Lead OZ, Pagano darts in and almost gets the RB in the backfield, Dodd draws a triple team and does well to hold it, Goodson makes the tackle, great job Dodd!, gain of 2, 3^rd and 11, ASU Pistol 212 vs. Nickel, straight drop, good pass pro by them, sideline fade is incomplete and double covered, PUNT.

An Unbalanced Line is where they put the OG and TE on one side of the Center and the OG, RT, and LT on the other side of the C. I'm very happy with a 3 and out on Sudden Change and the fact that they've been in good field position and haven't gotten anything out of it.  We're 2 for 2 in 3 and Outs as well.

3^rd Drive, ASU 36, 7:09, 3-0

1^st and 10, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel (Wilkins, Carter in), play action OZ, lots of time to throw, check down to the RB, pushed out of bounds by Mac, gain of 6...2^nd and 4, ASU Pistol Trips Wide vs. Nickel Double Bullets Wide Side, Stretch, Dodd does an awesome job setting the edge, turns it in, War gets Cox for no gain...3^rd and 4, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel Double Bullets Boundary Zone Blitz, Shaq drops into coverage, they try a slot wheel but throw to the underneath hitch because Dodd is in the QBs face, Green is all over it but drops the pick 6 opportunity...PUNT

It's nice to see good communication on the slot wheel route this week. Yes, Venables is really bringing the heat this week. Good Lord. We're blitzing almost every play. Can't argue with the results though...Three 3 and outs in 3 drives.

4^th Drive, ASU 30, 3:41, 3-0

1^st and 10, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel (Blanks back in), Counter Wide, Goodson misreads it, HB seals BB, uh oh, but War comes underneath the OG and gets the RB for a loss of one, what a play!...2^nd and 11, HUNH ASU Pistol vs. Nickel WLB Bullet C4, straight drop, throws to the fade route on the boundary, Tank doesn't get his head around and gets called for the PI, bad call because the ball was going to land out of bounds, 15 Yard Penalty...

1^st and 10 ASU 44, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel MLB Bullet, Blast, RB hits the hole vacated by the blitz, BB scrapes to get him for a gain of 5...2^nd and 5, Gun 212 Orbit Motion vs. Nickel FCB and NB Zone Blitz, straight drop, Mac peels off his blitz to pickup the HB, Dodd dropped but now replaces Mac, good team IQ there, setting up the middle screen wide, perfect call against our defensive call, nobody home, finally brought down by Kearse at the 23, Shaq and BB dinged up and come off the field, gain of 28...

1^st and 10 CU 23 (Bryant in), ASU Pistol 212 Orbit to the boundary vs. Nickel WLB Bullet, play action jet sweep, BB flushes the QB out of the pocket, throws on the run to the corner of the endzone, INTERCEPTION by Kearse.

Throwing up jump balls against Kearse is not advised.

Well, we finally gave up a first down. They are showing the tendency to want to run to the right.

The middle screen hurt us last year but, I think this time it was more just having the perfect offensive call against a defensive call.

2^nd QUARTER

5^th Drive, ASU 14, 13:40, 3-0 CU

1^st and 10, Gun 212 vs. 4-3 Over with a Presnap Shift into a Bear Front.  Ok, I can't recall seeing this look yet from Venables against a non-option team. This is basically our 4-3 Bone look.

BB and TB move to basically what amounts to stand-up DE/Rush LB positions. WLB Fire, Play action off stretch, BB applies the pressure, thrown away out of bounds, incomplete... 2^nd and 10, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel, Stretch, great surge by the playside DT, DE sets the edge, met at the LOS by BB and tackled for no gain...3^rd and 10, 5 Wide vs. Dime of Doom Zone Blitz, BB blitzes, Car drops back into coverage, QB throws a shallow crosser, INTERCEPTED by Car, returned for the TOUCHDOWN CLEMSON.

6^th Drive, ASU 28, 11:42, 10-0 CU

1^st and 10, Gun 104 vs. Nickel, IZ, met at the line by Pagano, cleaned up by Goodson, gain of 1...2^nd and  8, HUNH Gun 104 vs. Nickel, straight drop, we rush 3 and drop Shaq to the flat, QB tries to throw the slant but BB is in front of it to pick it off, INTERCEPTION.

Their QB was just staring down the WR.

Watson drops a beauty into Peake for the TD. We get points of a turnover and momentum is all on our side right now.

7^th Drive, ASU 19, 10:10, 17-0 CU

1^st and 10, ASU Pistol 212 vs. Nickel WLB Fire (Carter, Baker, Johnson, Wilkins in), Counter into the blitz, Shaq sheds his man and tackles the RB for a loss of 3...2^nd and 13, Gun 104 vs. Nickel MLB Spy, straight drop, QB has time, finally gets flushed out of the pocket by Dodd, throws to a Dig and almost intercepted by Carter, incomplete...3^rd and 13, Pistol 4 Wide vs. Dime of Doom NB Fire C6, Draw, RB gets hole up the middle, cuts right, tries to run away from Goodson but Carter cuts him down, gain of 3...PUNT

Some 2s mixed in this series...same result. Another 3 and Out for the Tigers.

Gallman has his big run on the draw play for a TD.

8^th Drive, ASU 38, 5:48, 24-0

1^st and 10, ASU Pistol 212 vs. 4-3 Over NB Fire (Carter, Baker, Byers in),  play action to the boundary, WR Screen wide into the blitz, uh oh, Kearse makes the play for a gain of 8...2^nd and 2, HUNH Gun 104 vs. Nickel WLB X, Dodd drops into coverage in the seam, throws a crosser to the slot WR, bad throw, he was open, Carter in coverage, Incomplete...3^rd and 2, Gun 104 vs. Nickel WLB Bullet MLB Spy, pressure from Dodd, Lawson, and BB, thrown away out of bounds, Incomplete...PUNT

Watson comes back and throws a 59 yard bomb TD to Peake as he was rolling right. Wow.

9^th Drive, ASU 32, 1:56, 31-0

1^st and 10, Gun 104 vs. Nickel WLB Bullet, MLB Spy, Both DEs Drop (Wilkins in), straight drop, BB is coming hard, tried to set up a middle screen but Lawson is there, thrown into the dirt, incomplete...2^nd and 10, Gun 104 vs. Nickel, OZ, masterfully gobbled up by Shaq and then War, gain of 1...TIMEOUT CLEMSON...3^rd and 9, Pistol 104 vs. Dime of Doom C2 man under, we don't blitz and only rush 3, complete to the curl underneath to McElfresh, blown up Gibson after the catch, McElfresh is hurt on the play, gain of 5...PUNT

10^th Drive, ASU 25, 0:45, 31-0

1^st and 10, Pistol 104 vs. Nickel C2, OZ to the boundary, got past Shaq, brought down by Tank, gain of 7...2^nd and 3, Pistol 104 vs. Nickel C2, same play, OZ to the boundary, Car gets pushed into Shaq this time, big hole, run out of bounds by Green, gain of 35...

We had our LBs further back in alignment and both safeties rolling back in C2. So, if the RB can get past the DL, it's going to be a nice gain but also, keep the clock moving. So, that's the trade-off here.

1^st and 10, CU 43, 0:22, Pistol 104 vs. Nickel C2, straight drop, great pass rush by the DEs even though they were being held, a Shaq Sack, loss of 11...TIMEOUT ASU...2^nd and 21, Gun 104 vs. Dime of Doom WLB and MLB spy, the spy call is basically to dare the QB to throw over the middle and keep the clock moving, thrown to the corner route, incomplete...3^rd and 21, 0:12, Pistol 104 vs. Dime of Doom, OZ to the boundary again, they have a hole but it is closed up by Car who drags the OG to the back, sheds him, and makes the play for a loss of 2 ...TIMEOUT CLEMSON... :02, They run a dive to run out the clock...HALFTIME

Halftime Thoughts

• You can't really complain about facing 10 drives in the first half and giving up 3 points. That can be a full game of drives for pro-style teams.
• Six "3 and Outs" out of the ten drives.
• On top of that, we get a defensive TD, so our defense outscored their offense in the first half, 7-0.
• At the 2:00 point of the 2Q, we had allowed 58 yards in 25 snaps. That is, of course, a severe beating even without all the turnovers. You add in the turnovers and the TD and it is epic domination that reminds me of the Clemson team that I grew up with in the 80s.

3^rd QUARTER

11^th Drive, ASU 5, 13:00, 31-0

1^st and 10, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel WLB Bullet, Counter to the boundary, Shaq and BJ get him for a gain of 4...2^nd and 6, ASU Pistol Trips Wide vs. Nickel, B gap Iso, great closing speed by Green to make the play, loss of 1...3^rd and 7, Gun 104 vs. Nickel C6, straight drop, low throw to the DIG vs. Tank, WR dropped it, incomplete...PUNT

Against a better team, they probably convert that catch for the first down.

DeShaun throws a bomb for a TD to Scott on the first play. Just like Wofford, you get the feeling that we could've thrown these type balls all day long and racked up 70+ points.

12^th drive, ASU 18, 10:10, 38-0

1^st and 10, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel WLB Fire, Illegal Procedure ASU, back 5 yards...1^st and 15, ASU Pistol Unbalanced Line vs. Nickel WLB Fire, OZ to the unbalanced side, Dodd sheds the tackle and makes the play, good hustle from BB coming from the backside, no gain...2^nd and 10, Gun 104 vs. Nickel WLB Bullet MLB X, Shaq peels off to the flat, straight drop, QB dumps it off to the flat, Shaq buries him, incomplete...3^rd and 10, Gun 104 vs. Dime of Doom, DELAY OF GAME ASU...3^rd and 15, Gun 104 vs. Dime of Doom MLB Spy and WLB Delay Blitz, BB gets home and forces the throw away...PUNT

8 three and outs in 12 drives.

2^nd team offense comes in and goes 3 and out.

13^th drive, ASU 24, 8:00, 38-0

1^st and 10, ASU Pistol 212 vs. Nickel Bear Front WLB Fire (Robinson, Byers, Bryant, Rogers, Baker, Carter, Johnson in), IZ, Bryant gets absolutely caved in by the OT on a down block, RB sees it and cuts to daylight, BB overruns the play on the blitz, Robinson sheds the C and makes the play for a gain of 2, excellent job by Robinson there and saved a big gainer probably...2^nd and 8, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel NB Fire, same play IZ, this time Robinson can't get there and the RB is off to the races, brought down by Tank for a gain of 15...

1^st and 10, ASU 41, ASU Pistol Orbit Motion vs. Nickel BCB Fire, Counter Option Wide, give to the FB, bad read, stuffed by Byers, loss of 1...2^nd and 9, ASU Pistol Trips Wide vs. Nickel, Blast Wide, Rogers turns it in, Byers and BB make the play, gain of 3...3^rd and 8, Gun 104 vs. Nickel C1, straight drop, throws the deep out, open on Baker, good throw and catch this time...gain of 16

1^st and 10, CU 41, Gun 104 vs. Nickel, straight drop, good pass pro, fade thrown out of bounds, good coverage by Tank, incomplete...2^nd and 10, ASU Pistol Orbit Motion vs. Nickel WLB Fire, Lead Option Wide, FB give, runs underneath BB's blitz, run down by Green and Johnson, gain of 10...No egregious bust here, just BB coming in a little too out of control.

1^st and 10, CU 31, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel (starters back in at DL), OZ, Dodd sheds the OT, BB fills, awesome job by Dodd, gain of 2...2^nd and 8, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel (Williams in at WLB), PA off IZ, HB quick hitch, dropped...3^rd and 8, Gun 104 vs. Dime of Doom NB Fire, Roll Wide, 10 yard out complete in front of Carter, breaks the tackle of Carter and then Baker, tackled by Green, gain of 23...

1^st and 10, CU 8, ASU Pistol Orbit Motion vs. Nickel, TO, pitch to the WR, tackled from behind by Green, gain of 6...2^nd and G from the 2, Pistol 113 vs. Nickel, Dive Wide, tackled for no gain by Goodson...3^rd and G from the 2, ASU Pistol Orbit Motion vs. 4-3 Under, TO give to the FB boundary, DL reestablishes the LOS 2 yards back, awesome job, Dodd stops the dive for a loss of 1...4^th and G from the 3...TIMEOUT ASU...Gun 104 vs. Nickel (Joseph in at MLB), DELAY OF GAME ASU...4^th and G from the 8, DELAY OF GAME ASU...4^th and G from the 13...FIELD GOAL IS GOOD

Not a good series for Baker and Carter there.

4^th QUARTER

Long kickoff return by Ray Ray yields no points as Huegel misses the FG.

14^th drive, ASU 20, 14:55, 38-3

1^st and 10, ASU Pistol Orbit Motion vs. 4-3 Over (Joseph, Williams, Huggins, Bryant, Byers, Yeargin, O'Daniel, Gibson, Johnson, FIELDS in), Counter Option to the boundary, Huggins gets driven back and planted, the pile takes out Jalen, Joseph takes dive, Bryant is late on taking the QB, OD can't get off the block for pitch and gets pancaked, QB keeps it, poor decision, Bryant and Fields get him on the sideline for a gain of 8...2^nd and 2, ASU Pistol Orbit Motion to the boundary vs. 4-3 Over, TO give to the FB, Huggins gets abused again, OG gets to the 2^nd level to take out Joseph, Byers gets off his block to make the play for a gain of 1...3^rd and 1, ASU Pistol vs. 4-3 Over, IZ, DL is stout this time, OD makes the play for a gain of 1...

1^st and 10, ASU 30, ASU Pistol vs. 4-3 Over, OZ to the boundary, ASU puts on a blocking clinic, HUGE hole, RB gets 52 yards...

1^st and 10, CU 17, ASU Pistol vs. 4-3 Bone (Jabril in), OZ wide, Jalen is on roller skates and can't set the edge, Joseph with great pursuit to get the RB as he turns the corner, gain of 4...2^nd and 6, ASU Pistol Trips Wide vs. 4-3 Bone, OZ, Jalen gets sealed, RB bounces it outside immediately, it's a footrace to the corner against Joseph which the RB wins, OD gets off the stalk block to save the TD, gain of 6...

1^st and G, CU 5, ASU Pistol vs. 4-3 Over, IZ, Huggins and Robinson get plowed, Jalen hits the RB at the LOS but gets drug 4 yards...2^nd and G, CU 1, ASU Pistol vs. 4-3 Under, PA IZ, both ILBs sell out for the run, HB slips into the endzone, easy pitch and catch for the TOUCHDOWN ASU.

UGLY. We got our asses physically kicked by Appalachian State. They really wore out the side with Bryant, Huggins, and Jalen. It was nice to see Mark Fields in there even though he almost got us a 15 yarder for fighting.

Dr. Schuess gets a ball tipped at the LOS and intercepted. SUDDEN CHANGE.

15^th drive, 50, 9:50, 38-10 CU

1^st and 10, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel (2s still in) checked to 4-3 Bone, PA OZ Wide, everybody bites but Bryant, then Bryant gets sealed and knocked down giving the QB the edge, gain of 12, HOLDING on the TE that sealed Bryant, whew...1^st and 20, ASU Pistol vs. 4-3 Over, OZ to the boundary, everybody blocked well again, Bryant comes off his block to get the RB for a gain of 6...2^nd and 14, Gun 113 vs. 10 men out there C2 Man Under, we rush 3, nobody open, QB takes off for a gain of 2, OFFSIDES CU, geez...2^nd and 9, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel Bone (Carter in), OZ Wide, no backside fill from Jalen but the RB doesn't see it, tackled by Yeargin for a gain of 4...3^rd and 5, Gun 104 vs. Nickel WLB Bullet MLB spy, straight drop, throw batted down by Huggins, incomplete...4^th and 5, Gun 104 vs. Nickel WLB Bullet, Speed Option Wide, Bryant whiffs on the QB, geez, QB keeps and gets the first down, tackle by Carter, had he pitched the ball, it probably would've been a TD...

1^st and 10, CU 37, ASU Pistol Orbit Motion Wide vs. Nickel, Counter Option to the boundary, Carter does an awesome job of slow playing the QB and forces an errant pitch, Carter gets on top of it for the TURNOVER.

They had us there. We were fortunate to not give up another score. Awesome job by Carter on the QB and great hustle to get the ball.

3 and out with Kelly Bryant at QB

16^th drive, ASU 12, 5:50, 38-10 CU

(Lost a play of the film) 2^nd and 5, ASU Pistol vs. 4-3 Over, Counter Wide, Yeargin gets sealed and gives up the edge, RB gets the corner, Gibson gets him down the sideline for a gain of 22...

1^st and 10, ASU 39, ASU Pistol vs. Nickel Bone, OZ, Huggins gets destroyed again, RB has terrible vision and just runs into an engaged Joseph, gain of 5...2^nd and 5, ASU Pistol Orbit Motion vs. Nickel WLB Fire, Counter Option to the boundary, selfish FB takes the give and runs right into a pile, no gain...3^rd and 5, ASU Pistol vs. 4-3 Bone, PA TO, quick flare to the WR who would've had a first down had he not slipped and fell down, gain of 2...4^th and 3, ASU Pistol vs. 4-3 Over, straight drop, Yeargin applies some pressure, throws to the curl, too high, incomplete...TURNOVER ON DOWNS

Some ASU mistakes saved us there.

Bryant loses his helmet and takes a shot. Bianchi drops a 1^st down ball. We kick a FG.

17^th Drive, ASU 23, 0:53, 41-10

1^st and 10, ASU Pistol vs. 4-3 Over, OZ Wide, Huggins makes a pile and doesn't get pushed back, nice job, cleaned up by Bryant, gain of 4...2^nd and 6, ASU Pistol vs. 4-3 Over, IZ, Jabril gets off his block and hits the RB in the backfield but can't wrap up, RB escapes wide, but Gibson is there to shut it down, loss of 4...GAME OVER

DEFENSIVE SUMMARY:

Stats:

88 yards given up in the first half/209 yards given up in the 2^nd half

Watson threw for 140 yards in the 2^nd quarter.

DeShaunny Football is ranked 10^th in TQBR Nationally. Former Clemson QB, Chad Kelly is currently #1.

National Rankings

Scoring Offense: 20

Scoring Defense: 12

Total Offense: 47

Total Defense: 19

"Yards Per Carry": 82

Yards Per Carry Allowed": 55

"Yards Per Attempt": 40

"Yards Per Attempt Allowed": 7

"Yards Per Play": 63

"Yards Per Play Allowed": 10

Total Plays: 38

Sacks: 98

Tackles For Loss: 7

Turnover Margin: 58

Kickoff Touchback %: 103

Punting: 90

Opponent First Downs: 5

Opponent 10 yard+ plays: 16

Kickoff Returns: 5

Opponent Kickoff Returns: 104

Plays Run: 38

The eye test says...

• Lots of blitzology from Venables in the first half. There were several plays of the Zone Blitz variety where the DEs are dropping into the seams or chasing the RBs into the flat. I said in my schematics preview that the mark of a good coach is that he is able to adapt his system to the skill set of his personnel. Well, that was on full display against App State.
• I am a little concerned that we blitzed too much, however, if the plan was to practice all of these new blitzes in a game situation, then I completely understand. Let's go with that.
• Ryan Carter is officially off the 5-Heart list. I thought he played pretty well. He is still a coverage liability at times, but he is nowhere near as bad as he was in the spring in that regard.
• The 2^nd string DL got their lunch money taken by the App State OL. I didn't see a single player that looked ready for primetime snaps.
• Honestly, though, the 2nd half is what I thought it would look like the entire game before the season started. So, I was wrong and I'll drop some Horowitz points for that one. The player development is, like last year, ahead of the curve.
• Welp, the preliminaries are over and it's time to play P5 competition in Primetime. Now, we will truly get to see if all those early enrollees and rushed player development will pay off in a big game situation. Let's get it on!

PLAYER REVIEW:

Game Ball: Ben Boulware (He's got a little Seau in him. He just wreaks havoc with his motor and instincts. He is fun to watch)

All American Level Performance: Jayron Kearse

All ACC Level Performance: Shaq Lawson, T.J. Green

Solid: Everybody else except...

Less than solid: Adrien Baker, Austin Bryant, Albert Huggins, Jalen Williams, Jabril Robinson, Richard Yeargin

Past Game Balls: Scott Pagano (Wof)

Also, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that the Tiger's pushup quality was an A+ this week.  He executed very slow, deliberate (yes, a little sarcastic), pushups.  As you can see, all eyes were on the Tiger after the first FG. Look at all the students beaming with pride as The Tiger executes Marine quality pushups.  That's what I'm talking about!