No guarantee it wouldn't have been 69-20. I'm not working from a static basis, I'm working from sitting in cajun field watching us get our azzes kicked, making no adjustments and watching the team quit. That's all I'm basing my thoughts on, what I actually saw not what I think coulda happened if a handfull of really bad things hadn't happened. In 2004 maybe if their clock operator stops the clock we win, maybe if babb doesn't line up under the guard we win. Way too many maybes on Saturday, we lost and we deserved to lose.
When your defense is predicated on playing 5 yards off everybody so you don't give up the big play, and you give up 4 huge plays... isn't that pretty much a failure?
The whole point of our defensive style is to keep everything out in front of us. So we'll spot you 28 points AND give up chunks of yardage besides that.
How's that a winning strategy?
Can the new wrinkle be a wrinkle in time so we can bring back that Jake Delhomme era defense?
First off, we don't have any edge rushers which hurts us. Tovell is not a pass rusher although is a very good linebacker. I don't mind the 3-4 but its designed to give multiple looks and flexibility in blitz schemes. The year that Hud was forced to take over defense, the same thing was occurring. We were not getting any type of push with our line and our blitzes were ineffective. We have the depth and personnel to run a 4-3 and I wish we would run it more.
We got spanked. There is really no way to debate it. Even for the folks that think that margin was predicated on a couple of defensive lapses, you can't argue the well over 500 yards of offense we gave up and the whopping near 8 yards per play that we gave up to suggest anything other than a complete domination on their part. We didn't execute properly on either side of the ball, it doesn't appear that we were really ready to play and we certainly didn't match their energy or aggression. LTU seemed to dominate us physically early and it got in our heads. Broadway was looking deep into Houston Bates' eyes all game long as I'm sure they conjured up some sort of bond as Bates was continuously chasing him around the backfield. Our OL got owned and despite what most thought going in, we are not more talented than Tech as they clearly looked the better team all game.
Now, its time to move on and hope we get our ____ together as we are looking a 7-5 or possibly 6-6 year right in the face. The way we have started this year, there is no reason to believe we will beat either Ole Miss or Boise and no reason to think we will run the table in the SBC. We can still win the conference and we can still have a great season but we need to gel now and start developing some much needed leadership on this team for that to happen.
Giving up big plays including two touchdown drives that took only 3 plays definitely hurt.
Losing 3 turnovers and getting none back hurt just as much.
But the offense performed worse than the D.
The D forced a punt after one of the fumbles and only gave up 3 on the other.
3 of LA Tech's touchdowns took a total of 63 seconds, the D was involved in two of those, both fixable big play surrenders.
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