Anderson at FB

[Chin Diesel]

Two big follow-ons or future implications of GA in the game.

He showed he has hands. And he showed he has an accurate arm. Important why?

Coaching staffs can handle getting "got" by a trick play when it's the first time a team runs it.

No staff wants to be the second one to fall for it. Once the play is on film, it's considered a professional slap in the face to have the same play work against your team the second time it's run.

It's another wrinkle for D coordinators when TB is in the game. Since Boyle isn't mobile, teams up to now have just flooded the lanes and put on instant pressure. One successful trick play later? One less player to stack the box, one less safety who starts running down hill towards the line, one less blitzer from the outside who can pin his ears back.

It's nuance. Defenses have to identify the player personnel package UConn has sent in to the game and know how to defend it.

I have to give Verducci and the staff a ton of credit. They have managed to identify plays that should work against each of the opponents and have successfully practiced it during the week. Some have worked, some haven't but they have all been good calls in the game.

 

[BlueDogs]

I thought for the most part Verducci called a terribly conservative game that put enormous pressure on the D. But, a W hides a lot of sins. What we saw yesterday was a team that willed itself to a win and that easily could have folded after the 100 yard return.

 

[coachcap]

This coaching staff is getting an identity as innovative. Innovation means that the opposition can't assume that play against UConn will be predictable. Unpredictability is a weapon in itself as it can lead to mental overload on every play. Kudos to the coaching staff.

 

[Chin Diesel]

This coaching staff is getting an identity as innovative. Innovation means that the opposition can't assume that play against UConn will be predictable. Unpredictability is a weapon in itself as it can lead to mental overload on every play. Kudos to the coaching staff.

Absolutely. Instead of practicing defending one play say 20 times and becoming very proficient at recognizing all the wrinkles a team has to learn 2-3 plays and get fewer reps learning each one.

I know it sounds basic. But there is validity to it.

 

[Palatine]

This coaching staff is getting an identity as innovative. Innovation means that the opposition can't assume that play against UConn will be predictable. Unpredictability is a weapon in itself as it can lead to mental overload on every play. Kudos to the coaching staff.

I love the trick plays. I liked the unbalanced line. But our offense is very conservative and predictable. We have about three runs and four passes. Hopefully over time we will diversify. But I don't think we have a rep as innovative just yet. It's nice that we seem headed in that direction.

 

[spsct]

I love the trick plays. I liked the unbalanced line. But our offense is very conservative and predictable. We have about three runs and four passes. Hopefully over time we will diversify. But I don't think we have a rep as innovative just yet. It's nice that we seem headed in that direction.

I think, unfortunately, losing 2 key players in the second series forced them to throw half the game plan out. It was extremely conservative last night, but at the end of the day the kids executed and the coaches called the right plays for the players they had.

 

[BNich]

Regardless of how you viewed the game plan after the injury to BS and TM, Boyle managed the game well and the defense did more than enough to nullify (for the most part) an explosive Houston offense. To think the game plan was anything less than exceptional IMO is incorrect. For a team that hadn't scored less than 33 points all season, Uconn sure made them look pretty pedestrian. And to force 4 TO's something the defense didn't do enough of a year ago was huge. When you lose your leader at QB, of course it is going to affect the game plan and play calling for the rest of the game. But Boyle did was he had to do, played turnover free football and helped this team secure the HUGE Win!