Oregon.

[M Club]

Oregon is so good I bet on a Thursday night road favorite and still won actual money.

[Dinsdale]

Here Sam goes again...

Do the teams Oregon plays look bad because they're bad, or because Oregon makes them look bad?

Bama seems to be feasting on complete shit -- are they complete shit because they're shit, or because Bama makes them look like shit?


Don't bother, Sam -- Oregon wins because their opponents are so bad, and Bama plays in the MIGHTY SEC, and are beating the best teams in the land... we've heard it before, and you certainly can't stop yourself.

[Van]

Yeah, because Michigan's offense and Oregon's are so similar, as are their athletes.

In the end, Sam, Bama will win or lose based on talent, not Saban's supposed singular ability to stop the spread. If they smash Oregon's spread offense, rest assured that they also would've smashed any attempt by Oregon to run a conventional offense.

It's not Saban's schemes, it's the athletes. A few skill guys aside, Bama with their collection of five-stars may simply have too many athletes for two- and three-star Oregon to handle. Should that be the case, you can also rest assured that Oregon's hurry-up spread will still give them a better chance of success than would lining up and attempting to butt heads in a traditional three-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust attack.

[Mace]

Not to interrupt this circular argument, but I tend to agree with Van. Alabama's superior talent, plus the fact that they are very well coached (by more than just Saban), puts them in position to win every game. Any number of other coaches could stop the spread offense with Saban's players as he's not breaking any new ground in the X and O department, but has the talent on the team to execute. Should the Tide meet Oregon, I'll pick 'Bama to win because they have superior talent to Oregon's and are probably better coached. Recruiting is also a huge part of coaching and Saban's staff apparently excels in that department. They recruit players to thei offense and defense, a do the Ducks, but 'Bama gets the better athletes. Oregon has a great team, as do other programs in the country, but I think 'Bama is on another level rigtht now. The rest are simply fodder.

Superior talent + great coaching = National titles

[Van]

'Spray, when this has been a team's schedule...

Jackson St
Auburn
@Troy
South Alabama
@Kentucky
Tennessee
Middle Tennessee

...there is no way to know how good they are, and there certainly is no way to know that they're a "HELL of a lot better" than ASU. Five out of seven at home against absolute dogshit, and even their two roadies saw them facing truly horrible teams?

WGARA. Need I remind you of how over-the-moon with gushing praise you were regarding Florida St...that is, until they finally faced a team with a pulse. Considering how bad Mississippi St is nearly every year, they're going to have to play somebody before we'll have any clue as to whether they're any good now.

[Van]

'Spray, South Carolina did not beat Bama last year. Bama's only loss came in that missed FGs game against LSU.

South Carolina didn't even play LSU or Bama last season, and they won't play Bama this year either.

[Van]

Damn, Sam, you're just sidestepping every comment possible these days, aren't you?

In any case, let's see if maybe we can't clear this up for you. No, Saban's success with his defenses isn't about his "disguised coverages." Rather, it has entirely to do with the fact that he has been able to line up boatloads of athletes who simply overpower their opponents both in terms of power and speed. He isn't tricking anyone, he's beating them in the trenches and outrunning them on the perimeter. Mostly he's just pounding them into the turf.

Of course he deserves credit for his willingness ability to oversign so many bloodthirsty thugs top-shelf student-athletes, and therein lies his greatest strength as a coach: turning a blind eye regarding someone's inability to read recruiting. Beyond that, however, let's not kid ourselves. He's playing with a full house against teams offering up nothing more than a pair of sevens.

[Dinsdale]

No, Saban's success with his defenses isn't about his "disguised coverages."

While his dirty program does indeed recruit great athletes, I disagree.

Disguising defenses is HUGE in CFB. Most coaches don't delve too deeply into it (although Allowaloti isn't too bad, either), but Saban & Co. do an excellent job of it.

Generally, you see disguised D's in the NFL every play -- CFB players, with their limited BIG TIME experience, generally aren't all that great at it. Saban (and even Miles) focus on it, and reap the benefits... which is actually impressive, considering the fucking idiots they fill their rosters with.