Gameplan

Welcome back to The Call Sheet!

Week 5 of the college football season was littered with intriguing matchups, many of which did not disappoint. Yet, in a week where we’re left with numerous big headlines, Alabama and Georgia stole the spotlight. Although the game ended thrillingly, it opened as a shocker, with the Crimson Tide leading 28-0 a few minutes into the second quarter. TLDR:

• Cover 1

  • Alabama Jumped On Georgia Early

Cover 1

Alabama Jumped On Georgia Early

Many college football fans witnessed another instant classic between Alabama and Georgia on Saturday night, but early on, the game had the makings of a blowout. Bama jumped out to a commanding 28-0 lead and went into halftime up 30-7. The Crimson Tide scored touchdowns on their first four possessions and had the Bulldogs reeling going into the break. During his halftime interview, Kirby Smart was in shock and shared that Alabama’s use of empty formations was something new that his team had not prepared for.

It was clear that Kalen DeBoer devised a specific plan to attack Georgia out of empty, knowing the Bulldogs would be in man-to-man coverage. They would score out of an empty formation on Alabama’s opening drive with a quarterback pin-n-pull. Jalen Milroe reached the endzone untouched because the safety in man coverage on the slot receiver stepped inside, leaving Georgia with a soft edge to their defense. He moved so far inside that the pulling guard had no one to block.

DeBoer’s offense is well-known for utilizing shifts and motions while running simple plays and concepts. That was no different on Saturday, as the Tide used motion to get to an empty formation, putting Georgia defenders in a bind. For their second touchdown, Bama lined up in empty, motioned the back into the backfield, and then motioned him out so they were in empty at the snap of the ball. Once again, Georgia was in man coverage and gave up six points to Jam Miller on a wheel route. Milroe delivered an absolute dime on this play, but the weak-side linebacker was in a difficult spot, a couple of steps behind Miller as he motioned out of the backfield.

Lining up with the strength of the formation into the boundary (short side of the field) can be just as effective as using shifts and motions. Late in the first quarter, Alabama lined up in Trips Nub with three receivers into the boundary and jet-motioned to power read. With Georgia out leveraged playing with another soft edge, Germie Bernard raced to the endzone to put the Tide up by three scores. Had the play-side outside linebacker gone upfield to tackle Bernard, Milroe would have kept the ball and followed the pulling guard into the endzone.

Just a few minutes after going up 21-0, Alabama faced a 4th & 1 from Georgia’s 36-yard line. The Crimson Tide lined up in an unbalanced formation and put the ball in the hands of their star quarterback. Milroe kept the ball and scampered down the sidelines for another touchdown. Casual football fans would call this zone read. However, it’s duo read. This is a unique play call, but it makes sense, given how aggressive and fast-flowing Georgia’s defense is. Zone running schemes are slow-developing and do not typically coincide with offensive linemen firing hard off the ball. A gap scheme run, such as duo, requires the play-side linemen to get moving and knock back the defensive line. Moreover, running duo, in this instance, shortened the edge faster than zone would have, allowing Milroe to gain a first down untouched. He reached the endzone because the safety stepped too far inside with the quickly shortened edge (thanks to running duo).

Georgia ultimately clawed back into this game and took the lead with just over two minutes remaining, but Bama would go on to win 41-34. Those four opening touchdowns showcased how dangerous the Crimson Tide can be offensively with Kalen DeBoer at the helm and Jalen Milroe under center.

If you’re new, you can catch up on previous posts here. Thank you all for spending a little bit of your day with me. See you next week!