I will say this up front. There is a natural tendency to overlook this game because of how we jumped all over them last year. No way to sugar coat it, we gave them a good ole fashioned butt whoopin. Let’s enjoy a quick trip down memory lane…
The score was 35-3 and it was not that close. Tyler Johnson was 22-27 for 313 yards and three TDs. We knocked their QB out of the game early and their offense just never got it going. We went into the half up 28-3 then went on a soul crushing nearly nine minute TD drive our first possession of the third quarter. We doubled them up on time of possession. We out-gained them 514-190. It was a B E A T D O W N. The carnage was televised for the world to see on NFL network. I really enjoyed re-watching the game in prep for this. Let’s watch the highlights together shall we?
Feel good? Ok, now get it out of your system. I’m here to tell you that the Jaguars are a much-improved team this year and I think it will be a much closer game than we saw last season.
For what it’s worth, I think South Alabama is a natural rival for us. Especially right now as there are a ton of connections between the two programs. Let’s look at a few. Coach Clark was their defensive coordinator for four seasons. UAB assistant coaches Richard Owens and Bryant Vincent served with coach Clark on that staff. Assistant coach Jay Simpson played at USA under Coach Clark and got his first coaching opportunity there. One of our defensive starters (Tyree Turner) transferred to us from USA. We have nine players on our roster from the Mobile area ourselves.
Finally, eight Blazers (headlined by Gerald Everett Cody Clements and Kalen Jackson) transferred to USA when a certain group of rat bastards shut down our football program. So yeah, we may have only played once, but there is some history there and this should definitely be considered a rivalry game.
The Jaguars have a shiny new on campus stadium this year and we are their second opponent in it. Hancock Whitney Stadium seats 25k but attendance was capped at a socially distanced 6000 for their opener and it appears that they are following a similar guideline for our game. A limited number of tickets are available on Stubhub.
The betting line currently has us as a 7.5 point favorite but I’ve seen it listed as low as us at -5 after an initial line of -6.5. the O/U was set at 51 but has been trending downward and currently sits at 47.
As of now Weather looks like it could be an issue. 50% chance of rain with a chance of thunderstorms and kickoff temps in the mid-70s.
The game will be on ESPN with Marr Barrie doing play-by-play and Mike Golic Jr. providing commentary.
South Alabama Overview
The Jaguars went 2-10 with the two wins being over Arkansas St and Jackson St. So lets just say the Jags were a bad football team last season. They do seem improved on both sides of the ball this year, especially offensively. They are 1-1 with a 32-21 victory over Southern Miss and a heart breaking 24-27 loss to Tulane in the opener of their new stadium.
Offensively they remind me a bit of us (not a compliment) with the added wrinkle that they have a legit QB run game and will call things like QB Power and QB outside & inside zone. It kind of reminds me of our offense in the Joe Webb days in that regard.
Defensively they are a base 3-4 team and will switch to a 3-3-5 in nickel situations (compared to our 2-4-5 look in nickel.) They struggle to generate a pass rush without blitzing.
I think we are more talented than the Jags, but it will be a much more tightly contested affair than last year’s game.
Prediction: It will be closer than many of us would like, but I see us winning by a TD. 27-20 Blazers.
The Jaguar Offense:
They call it the “Power Spread” offense. Three WRs with a RB and TE. Their TE’s are blockers first, pass catchers second. They do have three very good receivers though in Tolbert, Baker, and Wayne. All three are fast, all three are between 6’1 -6’3. Last year they were a run first team and had more rushing than passing yards on the season.
This year they are getting much more production from the QB position and are much improved in the passing game as a whole. So far on the season they have 684 passing yards compared to 228 rushing. They are averaging 10 points more per game than they did last year despite playing two quality defenses in Tulane and USM.
They favor the vertical passing game and like to take deep shots. When their running QB is in the game, they use him like a power back and call outside zone and read option plays to their running back who excels at starting inside then planting his foot and quickly bouncing outside.
Their offensive line is average. Both USM and Tulane were able to get pressure without blitzing. I think our pass rushers should have a good day.
They have committed to playing two QB’s against us with the starter being Chance Lovertich who is a pure passer and takes the QB run game mostly out of the equation in exchange for giving them a QB who can better read defenses and make the right pass. Both QB’s will play and their coach described their rotation system as being “Make it, Take it” as in if a QB moves the ball well he will stay in until he doesn’t, then the other QB will get his turn to do the same.
Who to watch when USA has the ball:
#1 QB Desmond Trotter 6’3 200 Local Kid, Played his prep ball at Shades Valley. How does this grab you for a senior season of 6A HS ball: Passed for 2326 yards and 17 TDs while completing 73% of his passes. Ran for 1704 on 231 carries (7.3 YPC) and 23 rushing TDs. When he got bored with shredding opposing defenses, he would punt the ball, averaging 37 yards per kick. He’s a strong runner but not a home run threat. He actually played sparingly against us last year in garbage time. We did not recruit him so I’m sure he is motivated. Has had some turnover problems. He has a strong but inaccurate arm. Is a weapon running the ball but more as a power runner (like Cam Newton) than a home run threat.
#5 Chance Lovertich QB 5’11 185lbs Let’s get this out of the way, no way he’s the 5’11 they list him at. Likely closer to 5’9 with cleats on. That said he’s a good QB. Moves well in the pocket, has a bit of a gunslinger mentality about him. He’s actually fun to watch. Was a winner in high school and JUCO. Only his lack of height kept him from being recruited by bigger programs. He’s been listed as the starter for our game. Tulane was able to keep him under pressure & uncomfortable. We need to be able to do the same.
#26 RB Carlos Davis 5’10 205lbs Good speed, gets his pads low and has a quick change of direction. Another player who has probably been given a sympathy inch on his official roster height.
#8 WR Jalen Tolbert 6’3 195lbs Their best receiver. Good size and speed. Knows how to high point the football. Reminds me a bit of Austin Watkins. He has 12 receptions for 268 yards and an insane 22.3 YPC average on the year.
#15 Kawaan Baker 6’1 215lbs Good size, fast. So far has 11 catches for 211 yards. Good for 19.2 yards per completion.
The USA Defense:
They run a base 3-4. They pretty much stick to having three down lineman and bringing their “Bandit” linebacker as a 4th rusher in their base pass rush. They play a "Bend don't Break" style of defense. They play more zone coverage than the first two teams we have played and blitz less often than the two teams we have played.
Probably stronger against the run than the pass even if the stats don’t quite bear that out (they have played two good running teams and have held up reasonably well.) All in all I would say that while they are not quite as talented over all on defense as they are on offense, they do have some good players. My assumption is that they will need to blitz to get consistent pressure but that they are hoping to not have too and be able to sit back in zone and confuse a young QB getting his first start.
Who to watch when we have the ball:
#48 NT Gi’Narious Johnson 6’0 295lbs Strong. Gets leverage by getting low on the offensive linemen and uses his strength to shed his block. Reminds me a bit of a poor man’s Garret Marino. He would be more effective as a 1-gap DT than as a nose, but he stays pretty active despite getting doubled most every play.
#46 Nick Mobley 5’11 210lbs High football IQ. Their leading tackler and the signal caller for their defense. A local kid from Thompson in Alabaster, he was undersized and lightly recruited coming out of high school. He walked on at South but quickly earned a scholarship. Another player benefiting from another sympathy inch from the USA media guide, he makes up for being undersized with speed and quickly recognizing what the offense is doing. He’s a guy who seems faster on the field simply because he figures out where he needs to be a split second quicker than most. If you question whether or not he has extra motivation to play against the hometown team who didn’t recruit him, no need too. He had more tackles against us last year than in any other game of the season.
#12 DE Jeremiah Littles 6’2 290lbs Probably the most consistent pass rusher amongst their d-line. Stout against the run as well.
#7 OLB Chris Henderson 6’4 240lbs They use him a little bit like we use Jordan Smith. Plays at the line of scrimmage. He’s an edge rusher first but will drop back in zone on occasion.
Highlights:
(This post was last modified: 09-22-2020 07:51 PM by BlazerMatt.)
I think we will know early how its going to go. If they can keep two safeties back and stop the run, our offense will have trouble moving the ball.
On the other side, I think we should be able to get pressure bringing four, especially in our 2-4 nickel look when Wright and Smith are playing defensive end. If I'm wrong and their QBs have time to throw, then watch out.
I think our defensive line two years ago when we had Rush and Marino in the middle made us a legit top 10 D nationally. I think last year our defense was still good, but took a step back and being ranked as high as we were statistically had a lot to do with the quality of competition we played. So far this year I dont think we have an interior lineman who has shown he has to be double teamed and will cause havoc if you dont. Lacking that force in the middle makes it a lot easier to contain our edge rushers because you can double team them in passing situations.
They have a good RB in Davis. Their QB Lovertich throws a good ball, I'd compare him to Lucero. Not an easy game this year but I think our DB's can handle their WR but big question is can our offense come out & enforce their will on USA. Does the D have a coming out party & show out? Weather will play a factor w/ wind/rain if it's still in the neighborhood & that may benefit us more than them. I call this game more a rivalry game than USM
One thing that I'll add is that I was one of the original founding members (club Treasurer) of the USA football club in the early mid 80's, so I have vested interest in what I sowed/bled in those days to what it has grown to. I have torn emotions over UAB v USA probably much like those households w/ one spouse being AUB & other being UAT fans
(This post was last modified: 09-23-2020 12:24 PM by blazerwkr.)
(09-23-2020 01:41 PM)MobileBama1 Wrote: Any of you going to the game? Hoping rain will be out early afternoon
My and my buddy bought USA season tix so we could go to this game. We went to the Tulane game and it is a cool but tiny stadium. USA could easily end up being be my 3rd favorite team. Tomorrow night though, I think my Blazers will crush them.
the sky will be mostly cloudy, but just a small risk of a shower during the game. Temperatures will fall from the low 80s at kickoff, into the upper 70s by the final whistle.
(09-23-2020 05:15 PM)BlazerMatt Wrote: Updated game weather forecast:
the sky will be mostly cloudy, but just a small risk of a shower during the game. Temperatures will fall from the low 80s at kickoff, into the upper 70s by the final whistle.
Will there be any lightning strikes in Starkville, MS? Gotta be safe...
You know what I noticed in the UAB/USA highlights? Several glimpses of a bunch of disinterested fans in the stands. Maybe because the game wasn't competitive but nevertheless......
(This post was last modified: 09-23-2020 06:18 PM by HiddenDragon.)
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South Alabama Game Preview
