With durrell givens getting hurt does anyone know why Gage shafer is in the game over Jared brackens? I REALY hope durrell givens is OK and ready to play next week!
gage shafer over jared brackens?
- Thread starter cloneraslin
- Start date
Negative. Jake Knott at least knows how to tackle.
EDIT: ....with one freakin' arm even!
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Gage did well for a walk-on against some very good playmakers, but wow. Hopefully Jared is just injured.
No offense to Gage, but he didn't play well. I kind of thought we were a little deeper than we are at safety but think of this. Take Johnson, Smith and Sims off the 09 defense and think about how bad that defense would have been. Essentially the same thing has happened this year and we are still respectable.
I relize now that he is a walkon. Knowing that I am not as critical. He did fine. Where is all of the debth at safety though?
I thought he played great. He ended the game with 13 tackles I think. Hard to say he can't tackle with those numbers. Regardless, he tackled a lot better than some other guys. His coverage isn't the best, but I always have trouble getting down on a guy when he struggles if it's because of something like speed or athleticism that can't really be taught.
Great? You cannot be serious. He was out of position in coverage and missed several important tackles, which is huge at the safety spot. Good tackling is judge more on how many missed tackles you have, not how many you got credit for.
He is not the problem, he played hard and is young and a walk-on. That is on the coaches not having better depth.
*Negative nancy post warning*
He was targeted all game, missed the tackle on the 75 yard TD, isn't big enough to tackle in the Big 12, isn't fast enough to play safety in the Big 12.
This loss is squarely on the shoulders of whoever is responsible for not having a scholarship player to back up Givens. Why the hell don't we just play CJ Morgan at the hybrid spot and put Broomfield back there? Are our safeties that incredibly unique from each other?
Also, Cliff Stokes is getting absolutely torched. I understand that we allow a cushion, but I doubt it is supposed to be 10 yards. His closing speed is atrocious and he is not a good tackler. Again, I thought Sam Richardson was playing well earlier this year, but he is the opposite corner's backup. I really believe SR would be a much better solution than Stokes.
The injuries to Givens and Watson are much bigger than people were talking and it showed. (Obviously Knott hurt as well but nobody is overlooking that.)
He was targeted all game, missed the tackle on the 75 yard TD, isn't big enough to tackle in the Big 12, isn't fast enough to play safety in the Big 12.
This loss is squarely on the shoulders of whoever is responsible for not having a scholarship player to back up Givens. Why the hell don't we just play CJ Morgan at the hybrid spot and put Broomfield back there? Are our safeties that incredibly unique from each other?
Also, Cliff Stokes is getting absolutely torched. I understand that we allow a cushion, but I doubt it is supposed to be 10 yards. His closing speed is atrocious and he is not a good tackler. Again, I thought Sam Richardson was playing well earlier this year, but he is the opposite corner's backup. I really believe SR would be a much better solution than Stokes.
The injuries to Givens and Watson are much bigger than people were talking and it showed. (Obviously Knott hurt as well but nobody is overlooking that.)
+1
Everything here is painfully true and it shows that we are still lacking depth in key spots.
Watson and Givens are Big 12 caliber players. But their backups clearly aren't. Luckily, Knott had a backup that is Big 12 caliber so we don't miss his loss as much (even though he is a better player than either Watson or Givens). That's what depth can do for you!
It is sad to see a team play so hard but get ripped up because a couple of the athletes on the field simply can't compete, and constantly get targeted. It's reminiscent of the McCarney days.
Honestly, I can't think of another position that doesn't have a scholarship backup. I truly can not believe the coaches trotted a walk on out against Tavon Austin, Geno Smith, and Stephon Bailey.
The thing is, we aren't supposed to spot them 10. We are supposed to spot the 4 or 5 and make the tackle immediately. We bet that the offense can't execute perfectly for an entire drive and it actually works pretty damn well. Just look at our defensive scoring allowed vs teams' averages. However, it breaks down when our corners don't have an closing speed or can't tackle.
I had no idea this secondary was so thin beyond our starters. It has been pretty apparent that the only guys worth much playing time were teh starters at the beginning of the year.
I can see why Stokes wasn't touching the field until the injury to Watson.
I can see why Stokes wasn't touching the field until the injury to Watson.
