Film Study: Alabama's defense may send Auburn to CFB purgatory
As a great American linguist — by the name of Janet Jackson — once expressed: It’s funny how time flies when you’re having fun.
It seems as though it was just yesterday that the famous, or infamous (depends on what side of the coin you’re on), “Kick Six” game happened between the University of Alabama and Auburn University in the penultimate game of the Southeastern Conference’s 2013-14 season.
As legend has it, just kidding Auburn fans, Tigers’ kick returner Chris Davis caught an errant kick, returning it 109 yards as time expired to give his team a 34-28 victory and sending it to the SEC Championship Game against the Missouri Tigers.
Auburn would go on to prevail against Mizzou but would fall just short against Florida State University in the BCS National Championship Game. But in what undoubtedly separates the Tide from their in-state rivals, Alabama is once again playing for a spot in the SEC Championship Game, coincidentally against Mizzou (if the Tigers beat Arkansas), while the Tigers have fell upon hard times.
Having success is one thing; sustaining said success is a whole ‘nother animal.
But make no mistake about it; Auburn is as good as any team in the country on any given day. It has one of the most creative offensive coaches in existence in Gus Malzahn, and it has talent at key spots on the defensive side of the ball.
While the defense has been a work in progress, the offense has evolved from a rush-centric outfit to one that has the ability to be as balanced as anyone in the country. Quarterback Nick Marshall is as underrated as it gets. He’s the premier playmaker in the conference, and his ball-handling skills may only be superseded by his open-field running ability.
He has a keen understanding of an offense that has a lot of moving parts, and he has as much talent around him as anyone else in the country…including Alabama.
Bama, after being heavily doubted in the offseason and the majority of this season, fields one of its most complete teams of head coach Nick Saban’s tenure; it begins with it’s suffocating fifth-ranked defense.
The ability to stop the run is a necessity against a Malzahn-led offense; only Penn State has been better against the run, statistically, than Bama. On the second level, inside linebacker Reggie Ragland is the prototypical sideline-to-sideline blur that excels in the muddy waters of the box or in space.
He will need to have his best game to corral Auburn’s horizontal and between-the-tackles rushing attack. Fellow backer Trey DePriest may not be on the same level as the physical freak Ragland, but his ability to disengage from blocks is unparalleled.
Together they have their work cut out for them.
Bama’s defensive line is full of stars that are equally adept at shooting gaps or holding them up. It goes about 10 deep oscillating between a heavy- or speed-personnel package. The 6’4″, 320-pound A’Shawn Robinson is a game plan wrecker; there shouldn’t be a man that large whose gas tank always seems to be so full.
He can play anywhere from a 0- to a 7-technique alignment; the same can be said for fellow sophomore Jonathan Allen.
Senior Xzavier Dickson is having a breakout season as an edge-player due to his supreme pass-rush skills. And without a doubt, the effectiveness of the front seven has been of benefit to the secondary — which was billed as a potential detriment during most preseason evaluations.
While Bama isn’t in possession of a lockdown corner, both Cyrus Jones and Eddie Jackson have provided the Tide with solid play for the majority of the year; both can play off or up, in zone or man coverage.
But it’s the play of strong safety Landon Collins that ties the entire defense together. His ability to tackle in space is unparalleled, and he’s as physical of a defensive back as you’ll ever see.
Additionally, he’s shown free safety-like range with coverage skills, to boot. His versatility will be a necessity against possibly the most versatile offensive attack on Alabama’s schedule.
Dampening The Impact of Auburn’s Rushing Attack
They say if you cut the head off the snake the rest of the body will die. As it pertains to Auburn’s run game, it may be closer to the classic Greek mythological character Medusa, the figure who had a ton of snakes on her head, rather than an actual snake.
Malzahn’s offense, coordinated by rising star offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee, has a ton of moving parts which requires an abundance of eye discipline. With the majority of runs coming in option form, maintaining gap integrity is also paramount.
Although Auburn is a hurry-up no-huddle outfit, it has a very physical element to its attack. Although the Tigers do wanna press the edges with Jet Sweeps, Outside Counters, pitches and reverses, they work the inside zone as well as anyone in the country.
Anytime you mention power with Auburn you have to have it coincide with a mention of senior running back Cameron Artis-Payne. The 5’11”, 210-pound tank has to be the most underrated running back in the SEC.
He runs with with ideal pad level; he has superb vision; he has adequate speed. In fact, his 1,405 yards leads the SEC and is supported by 11 touchdowns.
This is a basic staple in Auburn’s run attack: an inside zone-read option which freezes the play-side pursuit. This particular play was ran out of “20 personnel” with an accompanying lead blocker for the potential QB keeper; Artis-Payne has good short-area agility which was on full display in that sequence.
Auburn will occasionally deploy the other running backs between the tackles, but nine out of 10 times it’s Artis-Payne who generates those type of totes.
Freshman Roc Thomas is an explosive threat who could see a few carries. He’s a threat on the inside and adds value to the receiving game as well as the threat of bending the edges. Senior Corey Grant has had a disappointing season as he looked to be a breakout star after averaging 9.8 yards per carry last season.
While averaging 5.9 is certainly nothing to sneeze at, he just hasn’t had the type of impact on sweeps and counters as we’re used to seeing.
But make no mistake about it; Marshall is as much of a threat as Grant to threaten the edges.
Case in point: Marshall made Mizzou look silly in the SEC Championship Game last season on this read-option keeper. Mizzou made the mistake of sending its edge-rusher inside instead of holding up contain.
Bama has the ability to maintain contain and it comes from all levels of the defense.
Collins, with his ability to tackle in space, is the perfect free defender to deploy against a multi-pronged attack like the one Auburn operates. In the above sequence he did a wonderful job of filling the alley and acting as a pseudo edge-defender from his strong safety post (although cornerback Jarrick Williams became the actual edge-defender).
Kansas State and the University Georgia both had masterful performances against Auburn’s vaunted rushing attack by funnelling the majority of outside runs back into traffic. Georgia, under defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt (a former Alabama secondary coach), and Bama have very similar personnel that are able to hold up at the point of attack even in speed-based packages.
Expect edge-rushers Xzavier Dickson and Ryan Anderson to play an integral part of the game plan as Bama will not want to get caught in Heavy Personnel against Auburn’s hurry-up no-huddle attack.
If Bama can limit the explosive runs, it will force Auburn to win through the air.
Defending Auburn’s Air Attack
From a personnel standpoint, it can be argued that Auburn’s offense is the very best in the conference. In addition to all the stars in the backfield, it’s in possession of two receivers with first-round NFL talent: Sammie Coates and Duke Williams.
The Tigers also have other talented NFL-caliber receivers in Quan Bray, Ricardo Louis and Melvin Ray — to go along with a standout flex tight end in C.J. Uzomah.
While Bama’s secondary has been very solid, Auburn’s vertical ability poses a serious threat to a team that has had trouble defending the deep ball.
Here we see Coates generating one of his patented explosive plays on a 9-route against LSU’s Rashard Robinson — a future star in his own right. Coates has reported 4.3 speed, and he has unique ball-skills.
Williams is a chain-mover who seems almost unguardable in the short-to-intermediate area. Bama has to be able to stop Artis-Payne with its front seven so it isn’t forced to devote extra attention to the run game.
Auburn is more than capable of beating a team through the air as the scheme is evolving.
Where the game may come apart at the seems is when Auburn’s defense has to stop a Bama offense that is every bit as talented as Auburn’s. While the Auburn defense is chock full of talent — most notably defensive tackle Montravius Adams and cornerback Jonathan Jones — it’s been known for giving up explosive plays to receivers and running backs.
And Alabama just so happens to have the most explosive receiver on God’s green earth in Amari Cooper and a couple of superstar back in T.J. Yeldon and Derrick Henry. So if Bama can establish its own power run game, against a smallish 4-2-5-based defense, it may be able to put away Auburn in convincing fashion.
But expect these two teams to play a very tightly contested game…which may come down to a special teams play.
Gulp.
