What to do with Aaron Williams

Football:

I read an excellent bit on matching coverages to multiple fronts that got me thinking about how Muschamp will utilize his veteran corners next season.

Last year Aaron Williams was probably the 2nd best defensive back on the roster and he spent his time covering slot receivers, assisting in the running/screen game, and generally being avoided by offenses. There weren’t any great options for attacking the secondary last season, especially with Sacho, Kindle, Houston, and whoever else bearing down.

The short middle of the field generally had Aaron Williams nearby with Earl Thomas roving around and the deep middle was fairly adequately patrolled by Blake Gideon. When teams took their shots it was typically in the flats against the Browns or deep down the sidelines against them in hopes that Gideon couldn’t get there to help (a solid bet).

Now unless Christian Scott is a Roy Williams for the modern Big 12, possible, Aaron Williams is almost certainly the best defensive back. Last year Earl Thomas (and Gideon to some extent) were put in position to make things happen while the corners did the dirty work in man coverage. So how can Muschamp put AJ in position to force turnovers or is that a role Muschamp usually delegates to his safeties?

One way to get him active is simply to move him around to harass whoever is the no. 1 target on an opposing offense. However the reason he was moved inside was for his strength against the run as opposed to skinny Curtis or Chykie who Alabama revealed to be probably the weakest tackler of the bunch. On the flip side, the difference between the Brown bros and Aaron in outside coverage isn’t nearly so large a gap as the edge he holds inside.

So then what’s the answer? Another year covering the slot? Moving one of the Browns inside some to match up Aaron Williams where ignoring him derails an offense? Zone coverage could create a lot of opportunities for Aaron to be a robber and be more of an aggressor but it negates the strength of Texas in playing man coverage on the outside and potentially exposes the lack of excellence in zone this team has demonstrated to this point.

In the long term I speculated that Muschamp might take advantage of the depth at safety to use a Ben Wells or other coverage-prone safety as the nickel and stay in “big nickel” more of the time while playing more zone in general. You know it must kill Muschamp not to be able to stuff running quarterbacks and attack with multiple positions keeping their eyes on the quarterbacks. Especially after the A&M game.

For next year it seems like the most likely course of action is simply leaving Aaron Williams to do more Eric Berry-style dirty work inside and hope his excellence is uncontainable. At some point next year teams will have to throw near him because throwing at the Brown Bros. is becoming even less of a winning strategy. I would be calling runs and play action over the middle on the safeties mixed with screens and flares from unbalanced formations all day were I an opposing coordinator rather than just trying to beat these guys straight up.

Of course it would also be immensely entertaining to line him up 28 yards back every now and then and watch the fireworks.

David Ubben has his weak/strong “analysis” up for Texas now. You will be disappointed to learn that Texas doesn’t have a proven starter at the “playmaker” position but is looking good in the secondary, as I’ve just detailed, as Curtis Brown and Blake Gideon are back after their honorable mention seasons…I’m interested to see if Ubben ranks the top 40 or so Big 12 players like Tim Griffin did last year and who he selects for the list. It’s not an easy undertaking (mine would be fairly heavy on OU/Texas) being knowledgeable on every Big 12 squad but I question Ubben’s football IQ.

As far as Texas concerns about playmakers, I would say go-to receiver is a more accurate label for the biggest concern. Marquise Goodwin is a playmaker, Malcolm Williams has lots of playmaking potential, someone from Chiles/Kirkendoll/freshmen I suspect will provide another strong receiver and I think it’s possible Chiles actually finally realizes his potential on the field. With a quarterback who can lead a receiver like Gilbert and strong line play you will always see plays made. The question is whether someone can overcome heavy defensive attention and convert a 3rd and long.

Dedfischer took a break from whatever it is he occupies himself with (some mysteries are best unresolved) to preview the Tech offense and continue his love affair with Tech linemen. Tech really looks like Texas most dangerous opponent for 2010, even more so than the mercenary legions or the roidhuskers. They have some good pieces in the trenches on both sides and veteran leadership at quarterback (if they can resolve their choice).

Their ability to run the ball, potentially test the depth of Texas’ secondary with any injury, and that they get Texas in an early draw makes them the most likely loss in my book. They aren’t loaded with pass-rushers but that’s probably less of a need with Hix and Mitchell just settling in.

Basketball:

I forgot to add moral decay to the metaphor of the fall for 00′s OU sports, it was too easy…and so it was that Tiny Gallon waddled into the sunset.

Word over at Boomer and Sooner is also that “TMG”, which deductive reasoning leads me to believe is their creative nickname for Tommy Mason-Griffin, has up and left. NorthDallasSooner is right, guys like that just aren’t worth having in the program. I wish TMG absolutely no luck in using his dribble penetration and off-balance jumper against NBA defenders although I think he will need it.

Brickhorn had a nice piece on the move to a 96 team tournament. I agree entirely with his points, introducing more teams into a single elimination tournament is a terrible means to determining a champion, only for making more money. The current 64 team tournament isn’t even a particularly great means for picking a champion.

Let’s say of the 64 teams, none of them can consistently beat every other team because of matchup difficulties. Let’s say the best record that would happen in probability is 59-5. Well, if that team plays one or more of those 5 teams en route to the championship than their chances of being champion isn’t going to be great. Let’s say the 2nd best record is 55-9 and the 3rd best is 54-10 and the third best team wins. Do you feel content that they are a worthy champion? Granted those potential records came out of the Nickel Rover BS machine but the point is that tournaments are a questionable means of determining the best team, especially if they are single-elimination where anomaly’s are virtually certain, they’re just more entertaining.

I love entertainment, but I also want titles to be a good indicator of the best team.

Article Tags:

Aaron Williams, anticipating Muschamp, Building lofty expectations for Scott like Trips for Hamilton, enema of the state, Oklahoma Sooners, Texas Longhorns, Texas Tech, these corners are going to inflate somebody's sack totals, who are the playmakers?

25 Responses

ChrisApplewhite said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 8:43 pm

If Marquis Goodwin is our starter at the playmaker position then we are fucked with a cactus.

I think the most reasonable expectation, for now, is that Gilbert is the playmaker on the team, and everyone else will just be there to help him.

I love Timmons’ potential, and this new system, should it come to pass, should benefit Malcolm Williams. Goodwin is an exciting option in the slot, although I worry about consistency with that group.

If I had to put money on it today, I’d guess that we go as Gilbert goes and two of our best 4 receivers didn’t play last year (including the “tight ends”).

Until we get a good look at what the coaches have in store we won’t really know anything. Two years ago the game was “can Colt find the open guy quickly.” He could. Last year it was “can anybody get open other than Shipley,” and that was mostly a no. I can’t say what the answer is for this year because I don’t even know the question.
Nickel Rover said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 8:55 pm

CA, good to see you found your way out of the desert. Goodwin isn’t a polished player but he has a knack for making plays in big games, some great hands, and is faster than probably anyone else on the field.
But I agree, the greatest hope is that we’ll see something like the 2008 OU offense with no elite WR talent but Bradford making everyone look good with his accuracy. I’m not counting on Goodwin to be able to consistently get open in big spots, especially without the practice time.
I think the difference between a great offense and a decent one is something like a 2,000 yard rushing season. Not from one player obviously. If the running game is a chain-mover then Gilbert should have what he needs to look like Bradford.
trkhorn said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 9:32 pm

I totally agree that a 65 team single elimination tournament is a shitty way to pick a true champion. Who doesn’t think Kansas would smoke UNI in a best of 3? However, other than that little nitpick the tournament is pretty entertaining(and I doubt the NCAA would ever even consider getting rid of single elimination), which is why I’d be in favor of adding what essentially amounts to 15 extra play-in games(that don’t necessarily involve no-names). How much worse would it be? Instead of 4 days of greatness, you get 6.
raoulduke said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 10:15 pm

Aaron Wiliams? His tears cure cancer and club foot.
kafka said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 10:23 pm

The first round of a 96 team field might be 32 games rather than 16 games. This would mean 64 teams left after the 1st round, with 32 teams getting byes in the first round.

If the horns don’t have a solid running attack next season, Gilbert will have a tough time vs the good D’s. The retooled UT O line is not going to pass protect that well in the first half of the season (which includes games at Tech and NU, a home game vs UCLA, and OU in Dallas. The top priority for Gilbert in those tough games will be to minimize turnovers.

If the horns can run well enough to make play action passing work, then Gilbert can flourish. If the horns have a crappy run game, then Gilbert is going to be throwing under pressure vs nickel and dime defenses. That would not be pretty.

GD coaching a smash mouth downhill running attack (without Vince or Rickey) seems very unlikely.
Patrick Bateman said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 10:30 pm

Poor TMG, he just wanted equal rights……and equal pay. If Tiny and Willie are getting theirs, then he wanted in on the action. Sounds like he just went to the wrong source….
Nickel Rover said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 4:30 am

Kafka, true, that’s not a good recipe for any quarterback to find success. Everyone is so doubtful of Davis building a running a game, which I suppose is not totally unwarranted, but Texas had excellent running games in 98, 04, 05, 07 and several other 1,000 yard back seasons. I think Texas can at least build a running attack that will plow over the not-OU defenses of the world.
jonestopten said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 5:06 am

Nickel — great piece (as usual–tough do day in and day out). Aaron Williams looks to me like the most talented, and versatile, player on the Texas defense since perhaps Michael Huff. Your thought that he should stay in the slot because that is where our best competitive advantage lies (relative to the Browns’ abilities) is insightful (I am guessing Muschamp has had the same thought). The slot, of course, is where Huff spent a lot of his time. His harrassment of Ted Ginn in Columbus still warms my heart.

What’s ridiculous is that I can just throw out a comparison to an AA and Thorpe-winning defensive back with a straight face…and it’s not even much of a stretch. On most fan blogs, such comparisons are simply wishful thinking. Not here. Texas’s almost FSU-like ability to reload on defense is getting absurd. I like being spoiled.
Bartoncreek said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 6:33 am

Isn’t the assumption that Scott/Gideon start at S with Williams/Brown at CB? That would mean the other Brown is nickel and Wells would be dime.

AW is a game changer. I don’t know how best to use him, but isn’t it nice to have faith that your coach will figure it out? It’s been a long time since I felt that way.
Barrett Mathews & Mike Davis said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 6:35 am

“If I had to put money on it today, I’d guess that we go as Gilbert goes and two of our best 4 receivers didn’t play last year (including the “tight ends”).”

hi!
NY Horn said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 6:53 am

Barrett Mathews is our lord and savior.
Nickel Rover said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 7:01 am

BartonCreek: Williams is considered the first corner but for the reasons I mentioned he’s also the guy that moves inside for the nickel, which is just about every play and the Browns play outside. I’m sure the easiest assumption is that Scott and Gideon start at safety but I’m holding out hope that it’s not the case.
Watching open practice and given Muschamp’s attitude it feels just likely enough that Gideon won’t hold down the starting job if Vaccaro or someone can handle the duties well enough and has way more natural ability, which we know to be the case.
I’m sure it’s Mack that’s the real obstacle in replacing a decent multi-year starter with a younger talent who still needs to learn on the job some.
kafka said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 7:07 am

But in 98 UT had Rickey, in 2004/2005 Vince was running the show, and 2007 featured Jamaal. Those guys can fix a lot of running attacks. The question is whether UT can run well enough to keep opponents mostly out of nickel and dime packages. That is quite a challenge. It will be surprising if OU is the only team that UT struggles to run against next season. The spring game will show how much progress GD has made in revamping the horns’ running attack.

Having said all that, I agree with Mack focusing much more on the run. It should reduce the stress on Gilbert and his receivers and should also help the new OL (my experience is that run blocking is easier and more fun than pass blocking).

It will be a big change in terms of blocking and running scheme. The OL will be learning a new way of run blocking. The TBs will be learning a new way of running. The transition will be complicated by having to concurrently break in a new QB and OL. As if all that is not challenging enough, there is little time to work out the kinks because there are 4 tough games in the 1st 6 games. Last, but not least, GD has been quite open about being much more interested in passing than running. For the new running attack to work well, Mack will need to be much more involved in the nuts and bolts of the offensive coaching than usual.
Nickel Rover said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 7:17 am

If texas is really making the move towards more 2-back formations then they probably won’t have as much opportunity to run against the nickel because no one will have extra corners in to cover Barrett Matthews and Greg Smith.
anonymous said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 7:46 am

Texas did not have an excellent running game in 2007.
kafka said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 7:58 am

I’m convinced that Texas will go mostly with a TE (Smith) plus an H back (Mathews). If that forces opponents into playing 3 or 4 real LBs and only 4 DBs, that should simplify things for Gilbert in terms of reading coverage and reduces the zone blitz varieties the D can throw at Gilbert. Probably also means that Tre or Fozzy will be covered by an LB.

The Mack Brown web site has good interviews from Monday with Muschamp and GD. Chiles has been moved to slot. That should improve the blocking on WR screens. Fozzy and Tre have separated from the pack at TB. GD is wondering what to do with Whale. Bye bye QB zone read run.
NY Horn said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 7:59 am

Our running game in 2007 consisted of JC getting the corner and then taking it to the house for 80 yards, outrunning the entire defense in the process.
kafka said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 8:09 am

Jamaal was amazing in 2007, especially in the second half of the season. He was the decisive factor in a couple of games at least.
Fico said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 9:36 am

“I’m convinced that Texas will go mostly with a TE (Smith) plus an H back (Mathews). If that forces opponents into playing 3 or 4 real LBs and only 4 DBs”

Defensive back personnel was not a problem for any team we faced last year. It mattered not that teams were in nickel/dime/ or base 4-3 against us. What mattered is teams were able, for the most part, to maintain a 2 deep shell against us, limiting our big play potential in the passing game. What our running game has to do more than anything is convince the defense to drop a safety into the box. At the very least, it must force teams out of a two deep shell and into a cover 4 look where play action against safeties with run responsibility will become much more effective. I couldn’t care less if we never have another 1000 yard rusher so long as Texas, as a team, can run the ball effectively enough to drop a safety (or two) into the box.
ChrisApplewhite said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 9:58 am

Rover – I like Goodwin, don’t get me wrong. But a track guy who can’t practice in the offseason is generally not going to be someone you can count on. I like him right where he is, a speedy change up that can hurt you 2-3 times a game.

We need reliability from someplace and nobody on this roster has ever shown any. I like Timmons, but he’s new. I like DJ Grant and Mike Davis, too, with the same caveat.

It’s looking like we’ll either need Gilbert to be excellent right out of the gate, or actually develop a running game. Not sure which is worse.

The good news is that we will have an excellent defense again (count me in the camp that expects to see Aaron Williams in the troublemaker spot next year) and the offense won’t need to be great right away.
NY Horn said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 10:07 am

Report on ESPN that Bradley is moving back to Washington and will declare. Tourney hopes for next year just took a major shot.
NY Horn said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 10:07 am

Oops, nbadraft.net, not ESPN
Vasherized said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 10:39 am

Well that sucks.
06_UT said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 10:53 am

“What to do with Aaron Williams”

Unleash Hell. That’s my vote.
Burnt Orange Wookiee said:

March 23rd, 2010 at 11:38 am

A Corey Joseph commit would be nice about now.

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25 Responses

ChrisApplewhite said:

Nickel Rover said:

trkhorn said:

raoulduke said:

kafka said:

Patrick Bateman said:

Nickel Rover said:

jonestopten said:

Bartoncreek said:

Barrett Mathews & Mike Davis said:

NY Horn said:

Nickel Rover said:

kafka said:

Nickel Rover said:

anonymous said:

kafka said:

NY Horn said:

kafka said:

Fico said:

ChrisApplewhite said:

NY Horn said:

NY Horn said:

Vasherized said:

06_UT said:

Burnt Orange Wookiee said:

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