LSU's O stunk. Jefferson was completely un-effective. Bama D was the real deal. They flew, as a team to the the ball. They hit with authority and there were no missed tackles. Really same with LSU. No breaking of tackles, poor angles, whiffing in space etc.... They played mean on D. Nasty and with swagger.
Both teams played sound, fundamental football. Not a lot of miscues on either side.
I think for NU to contend, with alleged lesser talent, the only way to really close the gap is sound football. If we can't get turnovers, don't give any. Work on better pursuit angles (ironically Barrett Ruud commented in 2003 that was really what Bo helped him do), gang tackling, forget the highlight real hits and hold onto a guy. Contact needs to equal tackle. We whiffed, missed or allowed way to many yards after first contact. Playing sound football is, IMO, easier to fix than competing for the top tier talent.
It also proves to me that defenses win championships. Even with less than prolific or threatening offenses.
Looking at the two teams, at least for me, it is hard to "judge" talent. The glaring issues to me was the discipline. No wasted effort, no let down. They played from whistle to whistle, hard. Something that NU has not done. They also, Bama, put together a complete 4 quarter game (again NU no). They stuck with a script and did not deviate from what was working.
Coaching staff of Bama way more experienced across the board than NU and it showed, IMO.
Called a game on both sides that played into the strengths and abilities of their players (Bama). Again something that at times is missing from NU.
