^Think there’s something to the boundary pass observations. Safer for sure. And I suspect that the spread to run is definitely at play, with a preference for throwing wide to let the big WR block instead of running into a congested middle. I get all that strategy wise. But where I see it bogging down is in the red zone. Teams are more prone to blitz there, and you have less room to work. That leads to vulnerabilities and getting behind the sticks on second and third down. And it seems to me the risk of playing side to side there isn’t as effective.
Teams with fewer vulnerabilities on defense, like Notre Dame and Clemson, will present fewer weaknesses to exploit. I don’t see us getting the advantage against those teams playing side to side. Just as last year, the way you attack Clemson is straight ahead, even with big Dex stuffing the middle. I think they’re better on defense from what I’ve seen. Boulware was stout but he was a liability in the pass game. We hurt them last year when we got him isolated on Samuels and a few other. Went and saw the Irish whack the Holes this weekend, and I’m impressed by Notre Dame. That close early GA loss is looking better and better.
