Cole Cubelic reviews AU OL

[McLoofus 35,182]

Here's a series of tweets from Cole Cubelic (@colecubelic- absolute must follow IMO- he's no homer) reviewing our OL's performance against Louisville, both collectively and individually.

On overall OL performance:

Thoughts on Auburn OL: assignments were good. Didn't see many busts. Saw great effort from one guy & really good effort from another......

AU OL: Finishing plays is biggest issue IMO. 71 was only consistent finisher vs UL. Too many defenders getting free late & effecting play.

AU OL: Thought straight drop back protection looked great. QB seemed more comfy as well. I'd expect to see more to remove negative rhythm.

AU OL: holding penalties can't continue. 4 of 5 were legit. Guys getting in bad spots & grabbing. Unacceptable. UL had a solid plan moving.. guys around & stunting. Saw some inside twists on short yardage plays. Tells me longer developing plays need to be canned there. Attack LOS

On Braden Smith:

AU OL: 71

Played the best game of the group. Has ton of power but youth shows at times. Bottom line he finishes! Going to find someone....

AU OL 71: Gets feet tangled at time & when he gets in space unexpectedly he panics a little. Carries weight over toes at times. RAW mistakes

@ChiverDerek: He really stood out to me as well. Seems to have a real nasty streak.

@colecubelic: I'd take 5 of him & figure it out along the way....

On Austin Golson:

AU OL 73: Pretty good for 1st start at center. Feet get heavy at times but has good grasp of his job. Gets hands inside well for bigger guy.

AU OL 73: want to see more finish. Not a real angry player yet. Solid in pass pro. Handled assignments & duties of center well. Will be fine

On Shon Coleman:

AU OL 72: same issues at LY, back bender when tired. Too aggressive with punch. Could really benefit from more lower body flexibility...

AU OL 72: frame is built for the position but can't seem to put it together. Feet get slow & steps get sloppy. When technique is ok he's ok.

On Avery Young:

AU OL 56: Roller coaster game. Really good at times, really avg others. Still struggles to keep feet apart. Not athletic enough to recover.

AU OL 56: When he decides to finish he does. Flashes really nasty play. Would like to see that on every down. Skill set enough to be great.

On Alex Kozan:

AU OL 63: didn't look comfy. Assignments fine. Technique sloppy. Seemed to lack some power when engaged with defenders. Steps were an issue.

On Devonte Danzey:

AU OL 53: Plays hard. Aggressive. But feet were all over. Hopped his way to 2nd level most of the game. Love attitude especially being a sub

AU OL 53: was strong in space LY, for some reason couldn't get his feet in ground vs UL. Gives effort & looks for contact. Issues not major.

In summary:

AU OL: Little above avg all together. Limited busts/turning guys free. Group will need to finish more to be a great OL. More physical middle

Last note on AU OL: Not many others helped much in run game. H-backs struggled & 1 is usually strong blocking in run game. Wasn't vs UL.

Then a little Q&A...

On tackle position:

@cantbeonyou: do you think its time to look at somebody else at both Tackle positions?

@colecubelic: It's 1 game..... Right tackle is fine. Just few bad habits.

On performance relative to competition:

@RittyRich: played a little average vs. top-tier DL = great vs. average DL/scheme?

@colecubelic: Not great due to one guy giving great effort. Two others played good. Very athletic front. Mixed things up.

On possibility of Smith changing positions:

@GlennisCurry: do you see 71 and 56 switching positions at any point?

@colecubelic : No.

@Da9ers5: I'd like to see Braden at LT

@colecubelic: He's in the correct spot.

On Smith's holding penalty:

@Auburnman10: On holding call against 71, did he get foot stepped on? He did the right thing IMO grabbing hold. Don't let QB get mashed

@colecubelic: Yes. Don't really have choice. He was going down regardless. Not taught that but? Correct call. See @vine on my TL

@JDowdy43: is that a ticky tacky call?

@colecubelic: No. Correct call.

Last but not least, Cole things Duke should be getting 10-12 targets in every game.

[gr82b4au 5,568]

Last but not least, Cole things Duke should be getting 10-12 targets in every game.

I agree with this.

[au75 75]

Thanks great read.

[gravejd 3,269]

Thanks for posting! Love the insight into individual OL play

[jenn4AU 24]

Probably be more interesting to see if he (like the Big 10 refs) thought the Louisville OL played a perfect game with no holds.....

[chimesAU 89]

Meh... I could've told y'all all that.

[WarEagle1983 2,185]

Been following him for a while on twitter. He's certainly not a homer. He's actually can be pretty tough on some the OL guys..in the past but he's usually spot on about is constructive criticism.

[AU-24 3,063]

Probably be more interesting to see if he (like the Big 10 refs) thought the Louisville OL played a perfect game with no holds.....

Other than a few tackles by their O-line (2 tackles from behind on the AU D-lineman) and a few grabbing jersey strips by their wide outs, I didn't see any holding from Louisville...

[wakeriderof87 31]

Probably be more interesting to see if he (like the Big 10 refs) thought the Louisville OL played a perfect game with no holds.....

Other than a few tackles by their O-line (2 tackles from behind on the AU D-lineman) and a few grabbing jersey strips by their wide outs, I didn't see any holding from Louisville...

So approximately 4 or 5 holdings?

[McLoofus 35,182]

Sweet, I was totally hoping this would turn into yet another thread where we complain about Louisville's holding last Saturday. Very instructive for what we might expect out of our OL going forward. Crucial, really, for projecting how our season will go IYAM.

[alabamabrown14 9]

Very informative...I agree with Duke needing to be targeted more...he seems like he needs to be involved more in order to give max effort every play

[au03cobrafan 0]

I'd love to see how Louisville's OL graded for a good comparison.

[mcgufcm 4,096]

My guess is their grades wouldn't be particularly great. We had a lot of tackles for loss and even more where we laid hands on a runner in the backfield. The OL doesn't get a bump just because the QB is an elite athlete.

I thought Coleman looked better than Cole gives him credit. The left side of the line was very productive in the run game in the second half, and Coleman/Danzey had a lot to do with that.

I definitely agree with his point on Duke. We underutilized him. He's not Amari Cooper. He doesn't create space with sharp routes and quickness, but in any one-on-one matchup, Duke is basically open because creates space with his body and catches better in traffic than anyone else in college football. That means he doesn't need to space that others need to catch the ball. We have to force him the ball when the matchup is there.

[hewlejd 6]

If anyone lives in the Huntsville/Madison area, Cole has a radio show that airs from 6-10 in the morning on 103.9 FM. I listen every morning on my way to work. He's definitely one of my favorite people to listen to talk football. Really knows the game.

[jenn4AU 24]

Sweet, I was totally hoping this would turn into yet another thread where we complain about Louisville's holding last Saturday. Very instructive for what we might expect out of our OL going forward. Crucial, really, for projecting how our season will go IYAM.

Since nothing we discuss here has any effect on the outcome of any game.....I think it will be ok.

[IronMan70 3,277]

Probably be more interesting to see if he (like the Big 10 refs) thought the Louisville OL played a perfect game with no holds.....

Other than a few tackles by their O-line (2 tackles from behind on the AU D-lineman) and a few grabbing jersey strips by their wide outs, I didn't see any holding from Louisville...

Same here. Other than their O line trying to pull off jerseys from behind, grabbing shoulder pads from behind and wrapping their arms around the neck from behind, I mean I didn't see any Louisville holding either.

ps. I saw what you did there and I did it too.

[McLoofus 35,182]

Sweet, I was totally hoping this would turn into yet another thread where we complain about Louisville's holding last Saturday. Very instructive for what we might expect out of our OL going forward. Crucial, really, for projecting how our season will go IYAM.

Since nothing we discuss here has any effect on the outcome of any game.....I think it will be ok.

True, but it would've been nice to have one thread free of the incessant whining.

[jenn4AU 24]

Sweet, I was totally hoping this would turn into yet another thread where we complain about Louisville's holding last Saturday. Very instructive for what we might expect out of our OL going forward. Crucial, really, for projecting how our season will go IYAM.

Since nothing we discuss here has any effect on the outcome of any game.....I think it will be ok.

True, but it would've been nice to have one thread free of the incessant whining.

Sorry you see the truth as whining.

[McLoofus 35,182]

Sorry you see the truth as whining.

If my daughter complains that she didn't get dessert, then it might be the truth. If she's still talking about it 4 days later, she's whining.

(Particularly if she's doing it in the middle of a conversation about a different topic when there are multiple- like, SO many- other conversations already dealing ad nauseam with her "truth". Alas, here I am pissing all over the thread now.)

I'm surprised nobody's brought up Cole's thoughts on Kozan yet. He was projected to be one of our best guys.

[alexava 6,973]

Sorry you see the truth as whining.

If my daughter complains that she didn't get dessert, then it might be the truth. If she's still talking about it 4 days later, she's whining.

(Particularly if she's doing it in the middle of a conversation about a different topic when there are multiple- like, SO many- other conversations already dealing ad nauseam with her "truth". Alas, here I am pissing all over the thread now.)

I'm surprised nobody's brought up Cole's thoughts on Kozan yet. He was projected to be one of our best guys.

lol

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,641]

That 2013 OL has looked better and better every passing game since the Alabama game

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,641]

Sweet, I was totally hoping this would turn into yet another thread where we complain about Louisville's holding last Saturday. Very instructive for what we might expect out of our OL going forward. Crucial, really, for projecting how our season will go IYAM.

We could just talk about the opposing OL holding every game like last season??? That seemed to be productive

[keesler 5,924]

Sorry you see the truth as whining.

If my daughter complains that she didn't get dessert, then it might be the truth. If she's still talking about it 4 days later, she's whining.

(Particularly if she's doing it in the middle of a conversation about a different topic when there are multiple- like, SO many- other conversations already dealing ad nauseam with her "truth". Alas, here I am pissing all over the thread now.)

I'm surprised nobody's brought up Cole's thoughts on Kozan yet. He was projected to be one of our best guys.

[mcgufcm 4,096]

That 2013 OL seemed like one of the best offensive lines in SEC history even as it was happening. No hindsight was necessary to appreciate the way that group dominated games.

As for this discussion, McLoofus, I don't think folks are talking about Kozan because I think his struggles were apparent. He looked like a shell of the guy we saw in 2013, which depressed me. As a result, I focused on how much better Danzey looked in the second half than he did last season. I expect him to start this week. He was the more physical guy, and the run game took off with him and Barber in the game.

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,641]

That 2013 OL seemed like one of the best offensive lines in SEC history even as it was happening. No hindsight was necessary to appreciate the way that group dominated games.

As for this discussion, McLoofus, I don't think folks are talking about Kozan because I think his struggles were apparent. He looked like a shell of the guy we saw in 2013, which depressed me. As a result, I focused on how much better Danzey looked in the second half than he did last season. I expect him to start this week. He was the more physical guy, and the run game took off with him and Barber in the game.

I didn't say it looked bad, I said it looks better