Watched the Fiesta Bowl again...

Dennis_DeYoung said:

Just wanted to throw a couple things out there... because I suspect this is going to be very similar to the Auburn game.

OFFENSE: Matt Lubick got it. In the second half, we ran the offense I am hoping to see this year. A lot of great play calling as well. The first half offense was 'what we want to do' the second half was 'do what works'. If we run this second half offense vs. Auburn we can win.

DEFENSE: It's hard to see a team allow that many third downs and think we don't have two problems: a mental problem where we press on third downs and a physical problem which is that we lack playmakers. Guys who can just jump out and make something happen. PSU had great body language and playmakers and that was the difference in the game.

QB:

Browning - woowee what a QB! Best body language ever! What an arm. Hangs in the pocket and makes plays at key moments. If we win big games this year it will be because of him.

RB:

Gaskin - this guy is a complete fucking football genius. If you just keep feeding him he's unstoppable. He finds space so well and just freezes everyone. If he were Saquon Barkley's size he would be the front runner for the Heisman. He is just a total stud.

Salvon - needs to start his motor quicker. Once he decides what to do, he is fucking unreal. But probably a part of being a freshman is thinking too much. He's brutal on KR in this regard. Gaskin should probably return kicks in games we want to win.

WR:

Ty Jones is going to be really good. Just needs to be more consistently physical. Everyone else it is curious why they are on our team.

TE:

Sample and Kizer are both tough fuckers. Dissly will be missed, but I think we are good here.

OL:

Watty - He is a natural. Inconsistent as a LT in pass pro, but a beast as a run blocker.
Kaleb - inconsistent, but physically dominant.
Harris - He can fucking run block - if we just run a lot, he will get better and better. He cannot pass block. Let's actually never pass.

Kirkland will not be missed.

This year really depends on the ability of our OL to nut the fuck up. Because we have no depth (thanks Straußer!) it's going to be a crap shoot, but man if we just run a lot, I think we can get some good stuff done.

DL:

Vita is insane. He's a fucking wild buffalo.

Gaines is good as we know, but just can't physically dominate in the way Vita can.
Jaylen is good and has a high motor.
Levi is just getting it figured out but is physically abusive when he his motor is cranked.

Jared Pulu was a surprise for me here. He looked good against PSU. I think he'll be our #4 DT. Again, not physically dominant, but high motor, great technique and tough as shit.

Recruiting has just killed us on the DL.

OLB: BRACE YOURSELVES

The more I watch Ryan Bowman the more he looks like Hau'oli to me. Yes, he over-runs things and yes he's a guesser, but he has a really quick first step and if/when he becomes more disciplined, I see him as a guy who could end up a lot like Hau did at the end of his career. Physically the only real difference is that Bowman is like 6-0 and Hau was 6-2, but It doesn't matter that much.

Benning - in the fourth quarter vs. PSU Benning cut it loose. And he looked fucking good. He's not going to be Lawrence Taylor off the edge, but he is a beast against the run and when he stops thinking (I think this is his main problem) and just tries to bully people, he looks formidable.

Neither Benning or Bowman can cover worth a fucking shit.

ILB:

Tevis is much more suited to the inside and I think it will be a great move for him. He's physically big and tough. Stout, quick. I like him a lot.

DJ Beavers looked rusty as shit. Toward the end of the game he started doing some stuff, but ultimately a JAG.

BBK - holy christ. He is Psalm. Watched him the whole game. His motor is always half-revved, he gets blown out of everything and never makes plays. I am not joking when I say Myles Bryant would be better at LB. By the end of the game BBK didn't want any with anyone. He was dipping his head and bracing for impact.

Keishawn - just want to say a final word about Kei... physically limited, but holy fuck that guy plays with a motor. He's basically the white stereotype LB.

DB:

Byron Murphy is a fucking playmaker. He's really good in coverage (those guys had incredible WR talent and McSorley made great throw after great throw), but Murphy is so dangerous. Once he gets a full season to crank it up he is going to make plays.

Austin Joyner - AJ is another guy who makes plays. I think he's been maligned here because he's been burnt a couple times, but even in this game - he gave up a long pass play on a fluke. He is a really good player and hits really, really hard.

Taylor Rapp - Needs to be a little more consistent, but holy Jesus he is a fucking playmaker. I hope they spend some time with him working on blitz technique (and B Murph too), because those guys get upfield so rapidly, but their ability to finish plays on the QB is mediocre.

JoJo - Please learn how to take good angles this year. Please.

Myles Bryant - Okay, here's the good news: Bryant plays with an insane motor. When he is moving forward, he is absolutely a factor. Vs. bubble screens (if he can avoid being blocked) he is an ace and he is tremendous in run support. He is a playmaker when he is moving forward and the play is within 5 yards of the LOS. The bad news is that once it gets beyond 5 yards, he is lost. He is not physical enough to bump, so he ends up getting bumped off routes, he's not quick twitch enough to make plays on the ball and he's not fast enough to close. And obviously teams just throw over him and he can't do shit about it.

salemcoog said:

Can’t wait for the ASU game breakdown.

dnc said:

salemcoog said:

This is Pete’s first turn going up against a good team the first game of the season at UW. At least with a good team going in anyway. His record at BSU getting ready for big games with a long layoff, be it Bowls or openers was impeccable. If you’re truly baaaaaaackk. You win this game. If you don’t, then you’re probably the same team you were the last 2 years. Good enough to wreck most PAC 12 teams but still not ready for Primetime at the end of the Season.

It's chinteresting because Pete's generally been terrible in openers at UW. We underperformed in the Hawaii game, lost the Boise game, and didn't look very good this year at Rutgers. Only the 2016 Rutgers game was what you would have wanted to see, and that was not so coincidentally the one year we had a legitimately very good team.

I'm hoping most of the opener woes have been because of shit competition, and we'll come out strong for Auburn since as you noted Pete has it in him to start fast. He hasn't shown it much since coming to UW though.