Re: Tre Lamar is the key to beating Auburn

quozzel

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Aug 15, 2017, 5:44 PM

That's always been the killer with a Malzahn offense. It resembles ours in a lot of ways - there's no doubt Morris borrowed the core concepts from Malzahn - but whereas our passing game has some really elaborate option routes and checks and about 34 flavors, their passing game is a lot more basic - and they have 34 flavors in the running game.

Like us, they want to cause some indecision with the eyeline of the LB's. Step late, read late, hesitate...whatever, that's what Gus is looking to create and he'll do it with a ton of eye candy.

The ironic part is, Kelly Bryant really is more of a Malzahn-type QB whereas Stidham would have suited what we do to a T - so Clemson and Auburn are likely going to trade offenses this year. But Stidham or no Stidham, I do think Clemson basically focuses on crushing the run and winning the LOS - and, incidentally, getting to Stidham.

Stidham is really good. He was a 5-star coming out of high school and posted some good numbers in the 2.5 games he started for Baylor in 2015. He threw for 419 yards and 3 TD's his first start, on the road at night against K-State, for instance. There's a caveat to that: K-State ranked 106th in defense that year. He lost his next game at home against Oklahoma (ranked #39 in total D that year, also crushed by us in the playoffs) and threw two picks. He had thrown for another 258 yards and a TD against Oklahoma State the next week before repeated hits (from the Cowboys' #100-rated D) took Stidham out for the remainder of the season. He transferred after 2015 and hasn't played a college game since.

So he looked good - against some absolutely dreadful defenses. It will be another thing altogether to face Clemson's D, at night, in the Valley, in what will be only his second start for Auburn. He might pull a Matt Ryan. He may also die an ugly death like Jake Bentley did.

But yeah, Lamar is the one who can control Pettway - and we need to keep him rolling downhill. I agree Malzahn will try to slow him with the eye candy and hopefully he'll be up for that. Given his background in high school (Roswell has the same offense Clemson and Auburn does), and how often he sees the Clemson O, I think it'll be easier for him than for most SEC defenders, who are used to 3-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust trench warfare, and not much eye candy.

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