I agree that almost everyone from coaches on down performed poorly in the game. My point is that Calzada is being handed a lot more criticism than the record shows he deserves.Nino Brown said:AggieAL1 said:Anything's possible. But it's the rare team that counts on some kind of long touchdown run in the waning minutes to come from behind -- in this case 10 points behind with less than nine minutes to play.Lawhall97 said:
When they saw a 3 man front it should have been an audible to a run. Spiller has the longest play of the day. Achane has proven his worth in late games with the ball in hands in the Orange bowl. The longer the game goes on the more likely there is another missed tackle and either of them are in the end zone.
The thee-man front was there all day, good play and bad. We didn't crack it often. Plus, Spiller (whose talent is immense) squeezed through a hole the size of a letter-drop to start his long run. It's awfully hard to pin your hopes on lightning striking one spot twice.
That's not the point. The point is these decisions can't come from a Calzada read yet, he's not ready for that. Jimbo needs to make that call at the line and then whatever happens with the front or coverage happens. Zach actually looks much better when it appears he's not overthinking. Just let him use his arm at this point versus he's head, the speed and processing is too much and then we get into 2nd and 3rd and long too quick with no option to put the ball in Spillers or Achanes hands.
So we had too many "and longs?" Why? Look at the second half,
We had three possessions in each quarter. On the first we lost six yards on a first down flair pass (I doubt Calzada called the play) because two veteran receivers couldn't decide who should throw a block.
The next, Spiller ran up the middle on first down and lost three yards. It was Calzada's 11-yard pass that put us at third and two for Spiller's touchdown burst. I doubt he would have gotten the call if we were, say, seven yards farther back.
The third possession we went from what would have been second and two to first and 20 because of a penalty.
On the next, Calzada threw the interception after a 23-yard completion. It was a fluke, not a failing.
Second possession,, fourth quarter: Holding penalty wiped out an eight-yard Calzada run and moved us from third and two (Spiller/Achane territory) to second and 20.
We almost had a chance to use Spiller or Achane after an 11-yard Calzada run gave us a fourth and one on our final possession. Whoops, false start on the tight end
Yes, a seasoned superior quarterback may have overcome some of these setbacks. But Calzada was in only his fourth game in almost two years and certainly isn't seasoned. Whether he is superior is to be determined.
Give the kid a break.