Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Checking the list

I often make a list of off season topics to chew on sometime between now and August. Here's what I have so far.
  1. Finish the recruiting drill. Gonna be a big class. Lots of committed talent. Now that the staff is rounded out and filled in, Richt and Co. need to finish strong.
  2. Renew all driver's licenses and make sure all scooters are up to code.
  3. Answer the questions on offense - QB battle for supremacy!!, who takes Boss Andrews' place??, and develop a deep rotation of wide receivers that can block downfield (as well as catch the football, of course).
  4. Answer the questions on defense - second spring of Pruitt's secondary transformation should involve less attrition and more confidence, right?, the departures of Wilson and Herrera leaves both big holes at ILB and much opportunity, bolster the defensive line depth.
  5. Keep Nick Chubb away from pedestrian crosswalks.
  6. Continue to develop the new special teams' identity. This past season saw great strides in both production from special teams as well as an improved mindset. But there's always room for improvement (ahem! Kick it deep!).
  7. Build a championship culture in both attitude and practice.
That last one is pretty vague I know. But my thoughts are that while the media and fans point to Richt/Pruitt stealing personnel and ideas from Saban, what is actually taking place is a new and improved mission statement towards winning. The nearest model to emulate, by both association and proximity, is in Tuscaloosa.

I would suspect that even as early as GDay we will see that this phenomenon we refer to as The Pruitt Effect is just beginning to take root. So how soon will it truly bear fruit?