I don't think anyone --at least anyone I've seen here on BB&B-- is promoting a "run first" game plan. But when your receivers are struggling to get open, and our QB has 20 yards of wide open field in front of him, common sense needs to kick in that says "tuck it, and run". But right now, J'Mar is just very slow at making QB decisions. He just hasn't caught up with the speed of the game yet.
One other thing...J'Mar is not fooling anyone on the "fake QB keeper" handoff to the RB if he never keeps it and runs it himself. That's been a big problem. The defenses we've faced so far have essentially cheated and overwhelmed our RB's on that play, because they KNOW J'Mar is never going to keep the ball. They don't respect his ability to keep it and run. For goodness sake, you have to keep the defense guessing. And J'Mar is just not doing that right now. BTW, Jeff Driskel was very good at this. The defense couldn't cheat on the same play because Driskel was very likely to keep the ball and run it instead of handing it off. It's one reason why Driskel personally rushed for 5 TD's in 2015, and J'Mar still hasn't scored a rushing TD yet.
At this point in the season and with our record when J'Mar runs he should run like a running back. Get all he can and only go down when tackled . If we do not win Saturday the rest of the season does not mean much. Skip needs to turn him loose.
Our OC loves to run our QB. You will see them running often this weekend. If Keon Howard is playing qb and runs the ball, USM fans watching will be a nervous wreck. He has a propensity to fumble often.
I think it's hilarious that some of y'all actually believe that J'Mar's sliding is not something he's being COACHED to do. "He slides cause he's a pansy", no, he slides because we've got nothing behind him and that's what Holtz is TELLING him to do.
Time is your friend. Impulse is your enemy. -John Bogle
I know this...the past three seasons, with Sokol, Driskell, and Higgins at QB, by the midway point of the season you could see the offense had found its stride, and I had complete confidence in our O to deliver game after game. Now, I had concerns about our defense not being able to stop anyone. But, the offense was rolling after 6 games (or about to). I gave Smith the benefit of the doubt insomuch as 3 of his first 5 career starts were against SEC defenses. I posted as much too. But, the past two outings vs. S. Bama and UAB provide no excuses. A good QB would have led his team to 40+ in both games.
Now, we'll see. USM's defense is better than the previous two opponents, and their offense might eat up the clock denying our O a possession or two. This is it Smith, put up or shut up. Show us something. If he does (and I hope he does) I'll be among the first to post here saying so. I hope I have to.
Apart from the sacks, I think J'Mar has averaged about 50 yards rushing for the last 2 games. That's about what I'd like to see from him running the ball. To me, it's more about consistent rushing from the running backs.
Have you considered those Dogs?
https://www.footballstudyhall.com/pa...stical-profile
JMar is averaging about 3.7 highlight yards per opportunity. That's defined as yards credited solely to the runner (without the influence of blockers). Thats about on par with Craft (3.8).
Boston, on the other hand, is at a whopping 6.1!! Yet he has 20 fewer touches than Craft, despite nearly the same total production.
Getting back to Jack Abraham, I seem to remember at least one post indicating that he was a student of the game and spent a lot of time in the film room. If this is true, he would be a QB that is prepared to make decisions on the fly and would be a threat.
WWDog
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