La-Monroe Game Report Card

[StatTiger 3,188]

For the third time this season, Auburn finished the game with a pass rating in all three phases of the game. Regardless of the opponent, it was still a step in the right direction.  Auburn had a team rating of 72.2 percent (game report card) against Arkansas State and a team rating of 88.9 percent against Louisiana-Monroe. It began with a perfect score by the Auburn offense as the Tigers amassed 688-yards and 36 first downs. Last season Auburn had only six touchdowns of 35-yards or more, producing four such plays against La-Monroe. Auburn's pass rating of 268.1 was the highest efficiency rating by an Auburn pass-offense (at least 15 pass attempts) since the 1976 Tennessee game. The 410-yards rushing was the 17th most in school history. Having a top-20 finish in both phases of the offense even against La-Monroe was a great achievement by the Auburn offense. The only disappointing element of the offense was the lack of pass plays called with Franklin in at quarterback. He has now taken 39 snaps in two "cupcake" games and has attempted only one pass. 

The defense played very well, coming up short on a possible shutout due to an offside penalty. Of the Cajun's twelve possessions, ULM gained 17-yards or less during nine of the possessions. The offside penalty would have made it 10 of 12 possessions and a possible shutout. During Auburn's 20 previous games from 2009-2015 against ULM quality opponents, Auburn gave up an average of 17 PPG. This included 20 or more points during 8 of those 20 games. This year, Auburn has allowed 10.5 PPG in their cupcake games, another indicator the defense continues to move in the right direction. The last time Auburn defeated an FBS team by 51 points was the 2005 Ball State game. Auburn's top-3 tacklers against the Cajuns were all linebackers, another good sign for the Auburn defense.

Auburn took another step in the right direction today against La-Monroe. Obviously, it is not about beating an "out-manned" opponent, but it was the way Auburn was able to reach their 58-7 victory. Kerryon Johnson had a career game against a lesser opponent, but it is the way he has been running the ball since being stuffed on the fourth down play against Texas A&M. His durability and strength were questioned coming into this season. He is becoming more and more physical as the season progresses and his level of competitiveness shows during each of his carries. His mental toughness is off the charts, which makes him a dangerous playmaker for the Auburn offense. Auburn is 3-2 after a 5-game home stretch and should be 4-1 if not for some questionable decisions against Clemson. There is nothing the players or coaches can do about the two losses but they certainly can influence the outcome of their remaining seven games. It begins next week with their first road game of the season. There is no doubt this is a better team than the one that took to the field against Clemson. How good they can be, remains to be seen.     

War Eagle!

 

Game #5 Statistical Evaluation (La-Monroe Game)

Offensive Report Card
01) Avg 6-yards per play on 1^st down: [6.26] pass
02) Convert at least 40% of 3^rd downs:  [81.8%] pass
03) Avg at least 4.5 yards per rush:  [6.21] pass
04) Score on at least 1/3 of possessions:  [66.7%] pass
05) Keep 3 and out series under 33%:  [0.0%] pass
06) Average 8.0 yards per pass attempt: [15.4 yds] pass
07) Score at least 75% inside red zone:  [80.0%] pass
08) TD red zone above 60%:  [80.0%] pass
09) Avg at least 30-yards per possession:  [57.3 yds] pass
10) 40% of offensive snaps part of scoring drives:  [59.5%] pass
11) TD / Turnover ratio above 1.6:  [8/1] pass
12) TD ratio of at least 1 every 17 snaps:  [10.5] pass
13) At least 8 impact plays:  [9] pass
14) At least 2 big plays:  [5] pass
15) Pass rating of at least 126.3:  [268.1] pass
Score: 15 of 15 (100.0%) Pass
  
Defensive Report Card:
01) Avg under 6-yards per play on 1^st down: [3.59] pass
02) Convert below 35% of 3^rd downs:  [40.0%] fail
03) Avg at least 4.0 yards per rush or less:  [3.50] pass
04) Score  1/3 of possessions or below:  [8.3%] pass
05) Keep 3 and out series above 33%:  [33.3%] pass
06) Average below 7.5 yards per pass attempt: [4.21 yds] pass
07) Score below 75% inside red zone:  [33.3%] pass
08) TD red zone below 60%:  [33.3%] pass
09) Avg under 30-yards per possession:  [20.9 yds] pass
10) Less than 40% of offensive snaps part of scoring drives:  [18.5%] pass
11) TD / Turnover ratio below 1.6:  [1/2] pass
12) TD ratio of at least 1 every 30 snaps:  [65.0] pass
13) Less than 8 impact plays:  [6] pass
14) No more than 2 big plays allowed: [1] pass
15) Pass rating below 125.0:  [96.9] pass

Score: 14 of 15 (93.3%) Pass 

Special Teams Report Card:
1) Punt Average (Above 41.3):  [0.0] N/A
2) Punt Return Defense (Below 7.8 YPR): [0.0] pass
3) Punt Return Offense (Above 9.8 YPR): [12.3] pass
4) Kick-Return Defense (Below 21.2 YPR): [23.0] fail
5) Kick-Return Offense (Above 22.3 YPR): [19.0] fail
6) PAT’s (100%): [8 of 8] pass
7) FG Pct (75% or above): [0.0%] fail

Score: 3 of 6 (50.0%) Pass 

* 50% is a passing score.

[tigerman1186 537]

Totally agree with the last statement

[Auctoritas 2,828]

JF3 has attempted more than 1 pass. He had the TD today, but he also had the incompletion overthrow on the trick play against A&M (I think- may have been LSU)

[leglessdan 1,934]

10 minutes ago, Auctoritas said:

JF3 has attempted more than 1 pass. He had the TD today, but he also had the incompletion overthrow on the trick play against A&M (I think- may have been LSU)

I thought he threw a couple short dumps in those games as well. Either way, Stats correct. It's disappointing they're not allowing him to throw more. Maybe the fact we were up so much when he came in? He still needs the reps, we may need that element from him down the stretch.

[StatTiger 3,188]

38 minutes ago, Auctoritas said:

JF3 has attempted more than 1 pass. He had the TD today, but he also had the incompletion overthrow on the trick play against A&M (I think- may have been LSU)

I said 1 pass attempt during the two cupcake games.

[CR 2,447]

I didn't think Kerryon had the physical build to be the main guy at RB coming into the season. After watching him against LSU, I'm a believer. Only question remaining is if he can do it all season.

[GoAU 1,612]

2 hours ago, leglessdan said:

I thought he threw a couple short dumps in those games as well. Either way, Stats correct. It's disappointing they're not allowing him to throw more. Maybe the fact we were up so much when he came in? He still needs the reps, we may need that element from him down the stretch.

I wonder if it has anything to do with them wanting to think he's one dimenauonal and saving the throws to surprise other teams later on?

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,819]

3 hours ago, GoAU said:

I wonder if it has anything to do with them wanting to think he's one dimenauonal and saving the throws to surprise other teams later on?

I don't think throwing a football with a QB is something you want to keep in the bag and try to unveil it against good teams

[80Tiger 904]

I guess these games are nice to have but all they do is pad your stats. I am not sure you can take much of anything from these type games due to the difference in talent. I am not sure if that team would beat Arky state. Did we get better? Did we take a step in the right direction? I don't think you can truly tell or not. These games can give you a false sense of improvement. We as fans certainly thought that after Arky State. Did coaches or players? Who knows. From an improvement standpoint we would have been better served having a 1 vs 1 scrimmage. Next week should say more. While MSU may not be great they have some SEC talent. Offensively we need to score in the 30s. Defense has been showing what they can do.

[GoAU 1,612]

4 hours ago, Dual-Threat Rigby said:

I don't think throwing a football with a QB is something you want to keep in the bag and try to unveil it against good teams

I understand what you're saying, but I am speaking specifically of JF3.  If we run him 90+% of the time when he's in the game,  teams will understand the trends and will be less likely to expect a throwing threat. That's why the "wildcat" isn't extremely effective for most teams, due to the fact that the "QB" isn't a very effective runner in most cases. 

But the real reason is most likely that JF3 just isn't as accurate as SW.

[AU64 10,122]

39 minutes ago, GoAU said:

I understand what you're saying, but I am speaking specifically of JF3.  If we run him 90+% of the time when he's in the game,  teams will understand the trends and will be less likely to expect a throwing threat. That's why the "wildcat" isn't extremely effective for most teams, due to the fact that the "QB" isn't a very effective runner in most cases. 

But the real reason is most likely that JF3 just isn't as accurate as SW.

I can't ever recall a wildcat  "QB" throwing a pass.....guess it has happened but about 98% of the time ...everywhere....the guy taking the snap fakes a hand-off , then gives a quick look to see where the hole might be and runs toward it.   It's probably the least deceptive play any team runs.....looks like a pure power play most of the time. 

 

 

PS....as for passing stats as noted above....everyone plays those games.....I like it because about 40 guys got to play on Saturday in front of a huge crowd at JHS....and is a good reward for all the work they put in.

Edited October 2, 2016 by AU64

[Auctoritas 2,828]

15 hours ago, StatTiger said:

I said 1 pass attempt during the two cupcake games.

Bah, who needs reading comprehension?

You are totally correct, my bad.

[Tiger Refuge 6,675]

Nice write up as usual, Stat.

 

Just an FYI, ULM's mascot is the Warhawks, not the Cajuns.