10/20: Addazio, Brantley talk about execution

By Adam Silverstein
October 20, 2010

Florida Gators offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Steve Addazio, redshirt junior quarterback John Brantley, senior center Mike Pouncey and senior safety Ahmad Black spoke to the media Wednesday as the team took a final look back on its close loss to the Mississippi State Bulldogs and ahead to its match-up against the Georgia Bulldogs on Oct. 30.

EXECUTE ON FIRST AND SECOND DOWN

Asked about how the offense has been evaluated since the Mississippi State game, Addazio said that the process is “always intense” and “ongoing” especially during the bye week. “You’re going to sit down as a staff and evaluate what you see on tape and you’re going to move forward the next day,” he said. “On a bye week, you sit back and kind of have a chance to almost take a deeper look at everything.”

And what has that deeper look revealed? “You got to be on schedule [for] first and second down. We’re actually pretty good converting on the downs you don’t want to be in; we’re actually pretty good on those downs,” Addazio said. “Obviously, in an ideal setting, you’re looking to get four or more yards on a first down call. We’ve got to be much more efficient on first and second down.”

Addaio, like head coach Urban Meyer, pointed out that lacking healthy running backs has been a hindrance to Florida’s offense recently. “The run game is a big part on first and second down. That’s something obviously we’ve been very good at [in the past]. So that becomes a factor, yes,” he said. “The injuries to the running backs are certainly a factor on first and second down. Not having the availability to practice with them during the week [hurts].”

OFFENSE GOING THROUGH CHANGES…OR IS IT?

Wednesday morning Meyer said that the offense would be tweaked before the Georgia game with a focus on execution and making sure the right personnel were on the field to make plays. Addazio expressed a similar sentiment but did not speak about wholesale changes. “What you do is you try to make decisions to put your players in the best positions they can [be in] to make the plays they need to make,” he said.

BLITZ PROTECTION AND PICK-UP

Another topic of serious contention after Saturday’s game was how well the offensive line was picking up the blitz and whether or not Brantley was handling it correctly in the pocket. Addazio believes both are doing well though he admits they could be better. “You can always improve. We just have to improve overall in our protection as a group,” he said about the OL. “When you get a lot of pressure like that and you’re throwing the ball in third down-and-long scenarios, they’re pinning your ears back, there’s no threat of run. […] I think John’s done a great job. He’s got to do a better job picking those up and handling all that. […] He does a good job of flipping protections and trying to get the protections slid to match the numbers.”

QUOTES (After the break…)

Addazio on why Florida is good on third-and-long: “I think Johnny’s done a good job throwing the ball there.”

Addazio on throwing the ball downfield: “We’ve thrown the ball downfield. We’ve thrown it downfield. [We] took a couple real shots at it last week. And we’ve taken it, I remember clearly throwing one downfield against Alabama. I can go back and recollect those long balls. You’re going to take your shots at it. When you take them, you gotta take them, and we did. But when you do, if you don’t connect on them, you’re behind [on] down and distance. We took those shots down the field last week, and we were not able to connect on those. We’ll continue to do that.”

Addazio on throwing to Brantley at wide receiver: “It’s always a possibility. All those things are always possibilities. The execution level that we’ve had with [freshman QB] Trey [Burton] operating the Wildcat has been phenomenal. We’re going to keep working at that and keep that going.”

Brantley’s general statement: “We have great plays. We just got to go out there and execute. We got to work hard during the week and try to get better.”

Brantley on if he’s surprised how poor the offense has played: “I’m surprised. I’m still not doubting it at all really to be honest with you. We just have to be able to execute. We know the big plays are there.”

Brantley on what he means to “execute:” “It’s little things. We could be a shoestring tackle away from hitting big. It depends. We just gotta just keep doing what we know, and we don’t really want to change things up and make things all new and confuse everybody.”

Brantley on if younger players need to step in: “The guys who are on the field are great players. We got great players here. It’s tough to say. We’re going to keep with our guys; we all got each other’s back. I trust all the guys who are on the field with me, and I wouldn’t want anyone else out there with me.”

Brantley on how injuries have affected the team: “We’re a little banged up. That’s what this bye week will hopefully do us well – get everyone healthy and help us fix those bugs we gotta fix.”

Brantley on if fans have been giving him a hard time: “Not at all. They didn’t notice me before, and they don’t notice me now.”

Brantley on if he has watched the film: “I’ve watched the games. It puts a little sick feeling in my stomach. You learn from those mistakes, write down those mistakes and move on to your next opponent.”

Brantley on putting the onus on himself: “I put a lot on me. I’m the quarterback of the team. It’s tough. Everyone would probably put it on themselves, but it’s not. With our team, we’re so close that we’re not going to point fingers. There’s no one person that’s messing up at all. We’re just going to stick together. We’re a close bunch, and I think we’re going to turn things around and keep fighting.”

Brantley on being wide open when lined up at WR: “It’s whatever. If I was a team, I wouldn’t really guard me either.”

Pouncey on what has changed offensively: “We obviously still have a lot of guys hurt that we’re trying to get back healthy, so I haven’t seen really any big changes in the offense.”

Pouncey on what needs to change: “The plays are there to be made, obviously we just have to do a better job executing and get better as football players.”

Pouncey on possibly getting redshirt junior WR Chris Rainey back in the fold: “He’s the best player on our team. We really need him. He’s an exciting player and as long as he keeps his mouth shut, keeps doing what he do, hopefully we’ll have him [next] weekend.”

Black on the issue against Mississippi State: “We just got to get off the field a little big quicker. We’re holding guys to points, but I think we should get off the field a little faster.”

Black on how to get off the field quicker: “[We have to] make sure we know our assignments, make sure we key in and lock in and know what we’re doing.”

Black on the importance of getting off the field: “We can’t sit on the field and just let offenses take control of the game by the clock. That’s one of the things that helps you win games, that’s controlling the clock.”

30 Comments

  1. Mr2Bits says:

    I found Adazzio’s quote here to be funny in that he just really doesn’t get it.

    “And what has that deeper look revealed? “You got to be on schedule [for] first and second down. We’re actually pretty good converting on the downs you don’t want to be in; we’re actually pretty good on those downs,” Addazio said. “Obviously, in an ideal setting, you’re looking to get four or more yards on a first down call. We’ve got to be much more efficient on first and second down.”

    Adazzio continually fails to realize that the goal in football is to score the most points, not pick up the most first downs. You’ll never find a team being successful without picking up yardage in chunks at times throughout the game, and you can’t pick up yardage in chunks if you don’t call plays designed to do so. Add to that, straight from the horses mouth(Meyer), he said we are failing on 19 percent more drives this year than in past years. These are ending in punts blah blah blah.

    Clearly we are not executing well on first and second nor third………The day Steve stops lying to Gator Nation will be the day people start respecting him more.

  2. g8ter27 says:

    Holy S%t! I as starting to think maybe Addazio was starting to get it that things needed to change some….nope everything is just fine and he line is doing great. John is doing a good job throwing down field…and if John was a defender, well…he wouldn’ cover him eiher….hmmm. It is 11 on 10 when he lines up at receiver and everyone knows it. Today I feel like something harsh needs o be said again, I think Steve A. is clueless. I am starting to have my doubts abou Brantley as well. Guys there are problems, lets admit we need an overall and get to work!

  3. Joe says:

    Hopefully the title is referring to Adazzio’s execution… Just kidding! Kind of…

  4. OG says:

    Addazio is starting to sound like the Zooker. Denial.

  5. G8trpls says:

    Florida has only gained 400 yards twice in the past 2 seasons, both vs. Kentucky….Everything is fine those 7 points vs. MSU, were plenty, keep up the good work, Steve.

  6. G8trpls says:

    versus SEC opponents ..I left out the most important part.

  7. OBgator says:

    I don’t know if we simply have no deep threat or if we are not trying. I know Addazio says we’ve thrown it deep. But throwing it once against Bama does not = throwing it deep, in the sense that it will instill some fear into the other team’s secondary. We have to consistently challenge people down the field by throwing it deep more than once a game. Of course, you can’t throw it deep with reckless abandon, but not even challenging the defense and letting them dictate the entire game by making you throw underneath every time is a recipe for disaster.

    I don’t know if JB has the ability to drop a pass over a corner and under a safety against two deep coverage, but sometimes you have to gain large chunks of yardage to open up the run game and have the safeties play further off the ball. Then again, even if JB throws a perfect ball, I don’t trust DT to catch it, and it seems like we only use Carl Moore as a possession guy.

    Seems like JB has been so scared to throw down field because of turnovers, so he throws it underneath….and we eventually punt or turn it over on a fumble.

    I hope to see a good mix of playcalling soon…one that mixes it up and forces the defense on its heels. We’ve been seeing too many predictable plays that are designed to go nowhere with perfect execution…go in reverse with poor execution. So of course, I hope we can execute the plays after a restful bye week.

  8. Gatorgrad79 says:

    Holy crap – Addazio is freakin’ clueless and we are going DOWN big because HE DOESN’T PLAN TO CHANGE ANYTHING, JUST TRY HARDER!!!

  9. Gatorgrad79 says:

    Yeah, OK JB, let’s “not change things up and like, confuse everybody,” cause for sure THEY REALLY LOOK LIKE THEY KNOW WHAT THEY’RE DOING NOW…NOT!!!!!!

  10. HardToKillGtr says:

    I, apparently, watched and recorded different games than Addazio is talking about. The Gators were the ones in orange jerseys in the last game, right?

  11. PS13 says:

    Addazio is insane. He’s trying to do the same thing over & over and the results are NOT changing. Insane.

  12. E-Pain says:

    “Brantley on if fans have been giving him a hard time: “Not at all. They didn’t notice me before, and they don’t notice me now.”

    ———–

    Kind of a sad quote, i feel like JB needs to stop pouting about being in Tebow’s shadow and step up! Leadership let’s go!

  13. zurbo says:

    guys, no need to get worked up over this anymore…..its over, we suck and everyone knows it. Urban doesnt care, and Addazio is basically some monkey throwning feces at the wall during game planning.

  14. Escambia94 says:

    Yep. Let’s stop getting worked up over this. Does anyone have JB’s Twitter or Facebook? Maybe we can encourage him to change the play in the field and do what he thinks is best to win the game. It may even help his woeful NFL draft stock.

  15. John S says:

    What bothers me about these quotes and Meyer’s comments is the fact that the O-line is not the focus. Picking up the blitz is just one thing they fail at. They get near zero push, can’t pass protect, and routinely commit crucial penalties/turnovers.

    I wish someone would ask Pouncey or Addazio why the O-line keeps getting knocked around like a bunch of overrated punks. That’s what needs to be said, then maybe they would man up and actually beat a defensive line for at least one game. Miami of Ohio knocked us off the line. Play calling sucks too, but Brantley won’t be able to do anything without confidence that his line will give him 3 seconds. Look at what Stafford and Branford produced when their lines sucked.

  16. npgator says:

    WOW! This is like a lynch mob! We still have 5 games left so let’s see what happens.

  17. 1955Gator says:

    Coach Meyer may be at that fork in the road. After his press conference where he implied changes in scheme and personnel, to let Addazio speak publicly with his Zook Talk, was not a good idea. Meyer has himself a big problem whether he knows it or not. There must be a different approach against UGA. If not a lot of that NC goodwill will be lost for good.

  18. Daniel M. says:

    Well said John S. The O-line is a mess. We might win a battle here and there, but as long as the O-line keeps getting pushed around, we will continue to lose the war.

    The moment Addazio utters the word “you”, my eyes roll back in my head. And he’s not even registering on my BS meter. No, he’s registering on my clueless meter. You? YOU? No Steve, I’m not running the GD offense.

    My only hope is that Urban is just refraining from throwing Add’z under the bus.

    My biggest question is who is an attractive candidate to be OC next year? I don’t know if Loefler has any play calling experience. I wouldn’t necessarily want him to get that job. I’d much rather see Urban target someone with OC experience. Someone that will sit in the damn BOOTH.

  19. Timmy T says:

    I had been clinging to hope that some REAL changes might take place before the Georgia game, but after reading this I fear we will see more of the same ineptitude on offense. It appears as if Meyer and Addazio’s heads are firmly buried in that proverbial sand, and they have no intention of pulling them out.
    Hopefully, I am completely wrong and the coaches are just sandbagging this week. Hopefully, they have been sitting in a room drawing up a whole slew of new plays that don’t include JB running the option. Hopefully, four or five DOWNFIELD passes have been scripted in. Hopefully, Chas has increased his accuracy on field goals, tenfold. Hopefully, we don’t get absolutely walloped by Georgia next week, but I have a really bad feeling inside that we will if we don’t “stir the sauce” and try a whole new recipe because the stuff we’re cooking right now, is straight up nasty tasting.

  20. Drew 4 Orange & Blue says:

    I think we should all give Meyer time in the off-season to make appropriate changes….I have faith that he will and you can’t really fire or even hint to firing/demoting your OC mid-season….I don’t like the personal attacks on Adazzio…I think he was the wrong pick for OC and is over his head but I think he’s a quality person and has done a lot for this program so enough of the personal insults

  21. G8rgr8 says:

    Remeber Addazio has done ALOT for Gator Nation, I do agree he is WAY IN OVER HIS HEAD and need to just coach the line and head up recruiting! Get Loeffler/Azzani up in the box and let someone call plays that can see the whole field! Addazio can still be Asst Head coach while actually succeeding at his duties!!!!

  22. Mr2Bits says:

    We need a pirate to right this ship and that pirate goes by the name Mike Leach. Think he would be a stout fit at OC for our offense. Mike loves to throw and run up the score in as few plays as possible whereas Adazzio only likes to see how many first downs he can get in a scoring drive (when we actually score).

  23. Escambia94 says:

    Addazio is probably a good coach, but he is probably swamped with OL coach and OC duties. Probably. Play calling aside, what is missing is execution on all sides of the ball and steady push by the O-line. Either Addazio needs to focus less on OC, OL duties and be the discipline coach, or he needs to focus on the o-line and share play calling duties. Or, I suppose, Urban Meyer can micromanage.

    Either way, the solution will need to come from this coaching staff using this playbook using these players. JB is not getting benched. We are not going to switch offensive strategy, maybe tweak it. We can’t throw down the field without better blocking, and receivers that can catch. We can’t open up passing without a running game, and the staff does not trust its vaunted freshman class enough to let them all flood the field before they are ready.

    Just be patient and let 2010 be the rebuilding year we thought it would be before we bought into the hype.

  24. Drew 4 Orange & Blue says:

    No kidding about the hype..it was just before the Bama game and many were complaining about where we were ranked and how we had won and dropped a couple of weeks….less than 4 weeks later how things have changed!!!

  25. Joe says:

    Reread Addazio’s comments again. What the hell is wrong with this idiot. He is obsessed with this stay on schedule crap. He firmly believes getting 4 yards on first down is the key to winning in the SEC. Hey Steve, you win by scoring more points not more first downs that means getting yardage in chunks (See Alburn) By limiting youself to calling only plays that will get you 4 yards at a time, you make every scoring drive 15-20 plays and take 6-9 minutes off the clock. You limit youself to at most 4-6 possessions a half and allow the defense to stack the LOS. Unless we get the ball inside the opponents 35 yrd line, I don’t see us scoring much more that 7-14 pts per game.

  26. SC Gator says:

    I don’t mind that this is a rebuilding year. If you think back to the 2005 team, they got blown out by Bama on the road and lost a close one to LSU. They didn’t lose to Miss St but Miss St was beyond terrible and finished with 1 SEC win that year, over equally hapless Ole Miss I believe. They took a bye week, adjusted and tweaked, upset 4th ranked Georgia, and executed much better all around (loss to the OBC’s first SC team in Columbia not withstanding) and built themselves up for a title run in 2006 which we obviously won.

    My problem is that nothing I have seen from the current offensive coaching staff, Addazio chief amongst them, convinces me that they have it in them to scrap and rebuild like that 2005 team did.

    Really, this bye week and the game vs Georgia is what determines if Addazio is something we can grudgingly put up with till someone takes him off our hands or if action is really going to be needed to dump him somehow before we lose everything gained over the past 5 years.

  27. g8ter27 says:

    I need help on this one. I am sure I am way wrong on this but I cannot think of one offensive coordinator who also coaches the offensive line. In fact, I cannot think of an O-coordinator who came from coaching the O-line. Anyone have a person here?

  28. HJUF79 says:

    “You got to be on schedule [for] first and second down. We’re actually pretty good converting on the downs you don’t want to be in; we’re actually pretty good on those downs,” Addazio said. “Obviously, in an ideal setting, you’re looking to get four or more yards on a first down call. We’ve got to be much more efficient on first and second down.”

    Lord have mercy on this team for the rest of the season…By the, what ever you want to call them, remarks above, I swear Addazio and Brantley must be smoking crack !!

  29. campyone says:

    Listening to Addazio is very very discouraging. He’s the OC of the 107th ranked offense in the country. That’s out of 120 or so teams. Yet if you listen to him things are really not bad, all we need is a tweak here, better execution there, we’re “pretty good” at 3rd down conversions, we’re “phenomenal” at something else, we throw the ball long (once against Alabama he tells us, as though that’s an adequate answer to why we don’t throw the long ball), etc. etc. ad nauseum. He seems pretty comfortable with most things we’re doing and what we’re trying to do on offense, which is pretty amazing for the OC of the 107th ranked offense in the country and one reason why I hope he’s looking for another job in January. I wonder how many schools would want to hire him as an OC if he’s fired? My guess is not a single one.

  30. hey…we don’t play well at night or in the swamp….so, we have a chance in jax against the dawgs!…..at this point i’ll hang on to any theory that leaves our fate in hands other than addazio’s!…..

Join The
Discussion

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Top
WordPress Appliance - Powered by TurnKey Linux