Offense or Defense?

[anomander]

As of right now which side of the ball do you have more confidence in?

I know people are concerned with all the players lost on the defensive side of the ball, but I am still bullish on the D. I actually think they have a chance to be better then last season.

Here's my reasoning:

- Replacements are better. I'll take Thompson/Simmons over Robinson/Welsh all day long. Robinson and Welsh gave us no pass rush what so ever. Both Thompson and Simmons have the ability to rush the passer, especially Thompson, who could be in store for a coming out party. Losing Zeke hurts, but Arciniega could be an interesting as he will give some speed off the edge.
Even at LB I don't see a drop off. Dyshawn always had the potential, and was good for some splash plays, but he was wildly inconsistent. Losing Cam will hurt in terms of rushing the passer, but he was a liability in pass protection where he was routinely exposed. I also think Franklin is in store for a monster year and may be on the best MIKE's we've had in a long time. That will allow Hodge to move outside, and let Bennett and Thomas fight it out for the SAM. At very worst the unit will be an upgrade in athleticism, which is always good in the ACC.

-Coaching. The talent is clearly on the defensive side of the ball, led by Shafer helping with the defensive gameplan. I wouldn't trade Daoust for anybody in the country, and Lea is pretty damn good himself. If I want anybody on the staff breaking in young talent, it's these 2.

-imo the most important player on the defense this year will be Julian Whigham. We absolutely need him to step up. I really think he is better then what he showed last year, where he was flat out horrible. Don't forget he should a lot of promise as a true Freshman who got playing time, and as a Sophomore before he got injured. He needs to get his confidence back. We also need Wayne Morgan to finally live up to his potential on the other side of the field.

This unit is going to be very young. I'm actually predicting Marquis Blair to start as a true Freshman if he can get qualified. I also see Jake Pickard getting playing time as a true Freshman. It's tough saying a DT will play his first year, but we may need Steven Clark to do so. He looks like he is physically ready, but it's going to be a monster step up from his level of HS competition to the ACC. I could possibly see Troy Henderson getting some time as a back up to Hodge at the WILL.

It was a tough call in deciding which side to have more confidence in. On one side you have question marks in personnel, and the other side has questions with coaching. I do think the OL will be the surprise unit of the team, but there's just too many other question marks.


So which side of the ball do you like, and why?

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

I think the kickers will be good.

 

[jekelish]

I just don't know what to expect from the RB or OL positions enough to be able to say, and while I'm hopeful Hunt can get everything together there are just too many question marks about how we'll score this year.

And I also agree - if Blair qualifies, he starts from day one at safety.

 

[CUSU]

Much more confident in the defense. We have proven we can work with what we have, which we have not done on the offensive side of the ball. I do think or offense will be better than last year, but the defense is going to be the better of the two sides. We have an established system on defense that the younger guys have been able to practice up through.

 

[jekelish]

That's a very good point about the system. The offense has had to change so much over the past couple years, who knows what to expect?

 

[retro44]

I am hearing the cheerleaders will be a little younger too

 

[skytop44]

Just because it's been our bread and butter the last few years I would go with the defense. We lost a lot of experience and leadership but I feel like we've had a great system in place that once they get some experience the young guys will be able to step in and step up

 

[TheCusian]

For me, it's defense as well. For all the reasons you mentioned.

I am intrigued by the offense. A new system with a full offseason to implement, 2 guys with potential (Ish and Phillips), some steady guys at WR, and what should be a decent line. Hunt's play will be key. We also played some of the top D's in the country last year. I hoping our conference mates regress a touch (Clemson, Ville, and BC?)...

 

[OttoinGrotto]

I actually hope we're less confident in the defense if it means we punt less.

 

[anomander]

I just don't know what to expect from the RB or OL positions enough to be able to say, and while I'm hopeful Hunt can get everything together there are just too many question marks about how we'll score this year.

And I also agree - if Blair qualifies, he starts from day one at safety.

I actually think the OL could have a bounce back year. Let's not forget going into last year many thought the unit would be a strength. All the lost was Mackey from a group that had a very good year. Injuries really took a toll last year, and I think we started to miss Adkins/Perles. Whatever happened the unit shouldn't have been the disaster it was. Even before the injuries they had a tough time against Nova's DL that they had outweighed by 40-50lbs per man. I'm willing to call it a fluke. But before we discount the OL just look at the total games played by the core of the group. Trudo, and Foy will be 4 year starters. Robinson will be a 3 year starter, and Palmer will have played in 3 years. Asking Palmer to play RT a whole season is pretty concerning, but other then that, this is a group that has had more success, then they have had failure during their time as starters.

 

[Trueblue25]

Defense. Linebackers are studs. Deep on the line. Lot of young up n coming talent in the backfield from hudson/blair/cordy etc.

 

[Full_Rebar]

I say defense, and mainly because the coaches on that side of the ball have a bit of a track record. No idea what to expect from the offense. I think the OL will be better, but it still seems very thin, and I don't know if the offense can afford injuries to any starters. The defense seems a little deeper, and to have the incoming players who seem ready to contribute.

 

[OrangeTarheel]

Our offense performed so awfully last year that the defense gets the nod here. I like the reasoning for WHY the D will be great this year, just wish I could point to any part of our offense as a reason for hope. Maybe the new system ... again.

 

[anomander]

Our offense performed so awfully last year that the defense gets the nod here. I like the reasoning for WHY the D will be great this year, just wish I could point to any part of our offense as a reason for hope. Maybe the new system ... again.

I really think you could have some hope in the OL. This was a strength in 2012, and 2013. It should have been a strength last year. Either way I think this year will tell us if it was injuries that got the OL last year, or Adam. Personally I think they have the talent to be very good. Trudo, Robinson, and even Foy at times have been very good. There is just too much proven talent to have a year like last year. Even last year while the unit struggled, it was still decent protecting the QB. If this unit struggles again, Adam better get canned.

 

[baggerbob]

As of right now which side of the ball do you have more confidence in?

I know people are concerned with all the players lost on the defensive side of the ball, but I am still bullish on the D. I actually think they have a chance to be better then last season.

Here's my reasoning:

- Replacements are better. I'll take Thompson/Simmons over Robinson/Welsh all day long. Robinson and Welsh gave us no pass rush what so ever. Both Thompson and Simmons have the ability to rush the passer, especially Thompson, who could be in store for a coming out party. Losing Zeke hurts, but Arciniega could be an interesting as he will give some speed off the edge.
Even at LB I don't see a drop off. Dyshawn always had the potential, and was good for some splash plays, but he was wildly inconsistent. Losing Cam will hurt in terms of rushing the passer, but he was a liability in pass protection where he was routinely exposed. I also think Franklin is in store for a monster year and may be on the best MIKE's we've had in a long time. That will allow Hodge to move outside, and let Bennett and Thomas fight it out for the SAM. At very worst the unit will be an upgrade in athleticism, which is always good in the ACC.

-Coaching. The talent is clearly on the defensive side of the ball, led by Shafer helping with the defensive gameplan. I wouldn't trade Daoust for anybody in the country, and Lea is pretty damn good himself. If I want anybody on the staff breaking in young talent, it's these 2.

-imo the most important player on the defense this year will be Julian Whigham. We absolutely need him to step up. I really think he is better then what he showed last year, where he was flat out horrible. Don't forget he should a lot of promise as a true Freshman who got playing time, and as a Sophomore before he got injured. He needs to get his confidence back. We also need Wayne Morgan to finally live up to his potential on the other side of the field.

This unit is going to be very young. I'm actually predicting Marquis Blair to start as a true Freshman if he can get qualified. I also see Jake Pickard getting playing time as a true Freshman. It's tough saying a DT will play his first year, but we may need Steven Clark to do so. He looks like he is physically ready, but it's going to be a monster step up from his level of HS competition to the ACC. I could possibly see Troy Henderson getting some time as a back up to Hodge at the WILL.

It was a tough call in deciding which side to have more confidence in. On one side you have question marks in personnel, and the other side has questions with coaching. I do think the OL will be the surprise unit of the team, but there's just too many other question marks.


So which side of the ball do you like, and why?

I agree about the defense, but the big key to this years defense is having a healthy John Raymon, you can't teach his size, and athletic ability. I expect him to take all his frustration over the past lost years out on the opponents this year.

 

[javadoc]

Defense. Coaches are better on that side and we have some raw materials.

 

[OrangeAl]

We've reached the point on D where we replenish the system with new players. On O we've been scratching our heads trying to figure out a system to put players into. No question the D gives us more confidence right now.

 

[Doc5120]

Defense. I'm going on past track records and I think we upgrade at the DE position. Anytime you can get pressure on the QB, it makes the entire defense look better.

The right side of the O-Line concerns me. If they can keep it together, we should be alright. We have some talent at the skill positions, just need Hunt to get those guys the ball.