Purdue Game Thoughts
Purdue is BAD … preface everything with that
Good to see a strong focus on running the ball
Mills moving out to RT may be a preview of what is to come … nothing against Ass Party at RT but Mills is an opportunity to level up there vs next year
Champ getting some RG snaps was also good to see … it was his 2nd game of the year and that opens up a window for him to play the remaining 2 games and not burn his redshirt … he's a likely upgrade today
Note that a lot of our bigger runs today (notably the Washington long TD) were to the offensive right side
Mohammed continued to show that he's a capable RB2 but lacks the skills that you'd like out of your RB1 at least through 2 years … gets what he should and nothing more
Washington likely needs to play a little more given that his speed provides a level of explosiveness that this offense lacks … would be interested in seeing some power/lightning with 2 RB sets in the backfield to go with Demond
Demond continues to probably be too conservative with the ball and not make enough tight area throws to give his receivers a chance to make a play … prior to the fumbled snap in the red zone prior to the 1st score Demond missed 2 different "open" receiving options that weren't easy throws but were throws that you'd like to see a QB make
While I can appreciate Demond's ability to pull the ball down and get positive yardage in situations where there isn't a clean throw, it also holds the offense back … but tucking and getting 2-4 yards big picture is a win for the defense compared to throws 10-20 yards down the field … if you just leverage expected value calculations it becomes clear pretty quickly how the offense will improve as Demond gains comfort in these situations
Defense largely did what it was supposed to against a team without a QB or really any sign of an explosive player …
Easy to see where ZRS stands out defensively as a play making LB that can make game changing plays when compared to a room/defense full of "do your job" guys
It's a good rebound win after the Wisconsin debacle …
When the team is playing well and leaning on (bad) teams … the good is at the top end of the conference
When the team is playing poorly (primarily on the road) … the bad is about as bad as it gets
The consistency to this point is the inconsistency … and yes, that often is a byproduct of a young team AND a coaching staff that is struggling to find ways to get them comfortable consistently
UCLA offers a final opportunity for this team to play a solid road game this year … will be interesting to see how they respond given that the travel and/or weather shouldn't be an issue
Comments
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What do you think they do with Azzopardi if they move Mills to RT next year? I know I've heard media thought about moving Mills to LT but I don't know if I see it.
Taulealea at RG is exciting. When everyone was healthy, GHatchett seemed like the weakest link.
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Paki came out of high school as a great athlete who needed to put on weight. He’s 6’5” 310 now. I always thought him bumping out to RT would be his ending spot. I like the idea of big John Mills and Champ owning the middle of the line. With a short QB, keeping pressure out of his face is really important and the two giant thumpers seem like a great way to keep him clean. I assume Greene is the presumptive starter at LT next year? You don’t flip him from Oregon without paying him starting LT money and UW isn’t flush with cash enough to not play him.
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None of these olineman have shown anything against anyone with a pulse
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"Leverage expected value outcomes." This is some pup level trolling prose with some haie fake wiki warrior googling. +1
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I think that there's a real chance that Kodi Greene could start as a true freshman
Ideally you need about 8 OL that are able to play at a moment's notice with injuries and to aide in competition. We've seen this year how injuries and a lack of depth can be a big issue.
Who knows what the portal holds with offers, etc.
I'd probably lean towards trying to keep Azzopardi on the roster for next season and force Greene to actually win the LT job versus it being handed to him.
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I'm not sure what Paki's best fit is going forward
Generally I want my RT to be an absolute mammoth that can be a devastating presence against the run … I see that with Mills
What I see with Paki is a guy that is probably a little more athletic and capable of playing across the entire OL but I'm not sure I see the size/length as a T (at least compared to what Greene and Mills bring)
It's possible that Paki is the 6th OL for UW next year getting a ton of snaps when it comes to covering a number of positions whether its tied to injury, keeping guys fresh, etc.
With Demond I think it's really important to have an athletic enough OL that can be agile enough to move the pocket and create lanes with him so that the X is always moving in terms of where his throw point is … regardless of who we have on the interior is going to be full of 6'5" and 6'6" type of dudes in the Big10 … that's table stakes
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Important to keep in mind:
Willis was injured versus Ohio State and missed the games against Maryland, Rutgers, and Michigan
Mills was injured versus Maryland and missed the Rutgers and Michigan game
Both Landon and Azzopardi were injured vs Wisconsin and missed the Purdue game
In our weakest offensive games there's been OL-related injuries impacting them all
It's pretty obvious that they trusted 6 OL this year (starting 5 + Paki)
As the year has progressed you got the sense that they trusted Champ but wanted to preserve his RS
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Counting on a true freshman to start at LT is not a good plan. The OL is a year away and hopefully some help comes. I don’t think we have all that bad of a group and it will improve with the right coaching.
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Counting on a true freshman I agree is not a great plan … need to have enough talent on the roster for him to earn the job
That said, he's got the background and pedigree that would suggest that playing as a true freshman is definitely doable
If you can get your RT/RG combo in a spot where you're able to lean on them a bit then that gives you a luxury to be able to provide some help to the young LT until he proves he doesn't need it
