Again, while we can sharpen up the "fine points" of OUR play versus THEIR tactics, it isn't EITHER offense that is the key to whether or not we can win. I believe our defense, if healthy, can hold its own against their offense--provided that it is NOT left on the field an inordinate portion of the game by an unbalanced time-of-possession: unless our OFFENSE holds its own in this regard, we don't have the depth on defense to rotate enough guys in and out to avoid being worn down, pounded by their running game in the 2nd half.
I've gone on at length elsewhere, so I'll keep it short here: The Tide will do whatever they HAVE to do to take away our running game. No matter how you slice it, our only real hope is to break that open with a passing attack; it rests on Brantley's (at best) unproven arm, and the likewise unused WRs and passing-plays, to get a lead, break the multiple-men-in-the-box-"press", and put US in a position to run the clock while THEY try to pass in the 2nd half.
It's a nice "bedtime story", but how likely is it? Have any of us EVER seen John Brantley come up to the line and, recognizing the defense, check-UP to a long pass to the "hot" receiver? NO. The only long passes we've EVER seen from #12 have been pre-called by the coach, usually to open a drive at the beginning of a half--and the only one that has worked has been the ones under-thrown-but-adjusted-to by Dunbar (Thompson either drops it or trips over his own feet). So if this were to happen, it would only be because that was the plan from the start, practiced and now ready to unveil this week. I would LOVE to find out Saturday night that this was ALWAYS "The Plan", that they have been waiting and aiming at this since the summer when they looked at their team and the schedule--and that they CAN now flip the "ON"-switch for a well-practiced, multiple-formation passing attack, and reasonably expect it to succeed. I just don't...and without it, everything else I've warned of happens, inexorably: we can neither score enough, nor can we keep the ball long enough to rest our "D", who though valiantly hold us close, eventually get worn down: Alabama pulls away in the second half.
The worst part of it will be the "slow death" nature of the whole experience. If/when it comes to pass, we will know it by the end of the 1st qrtr. After that, it will be a painful, foregone conclusion that will be just absurdly frustrating to watch, marked by an endless succession of phrases by Gator fans like "If ONLY..." and "Why don't they..." and "He SHOULD have..." . As I said way back in early summer about Brantley himself, I say about this game and the whole team now: "Seldom have I more wanted to be WRONG about something."
(for a detailed analysis/breakdown of the above, while there are pieces of it here and there, I worked through most of it in two posts a page or two back on this very "Gameday Kentucky"-Thread)
