Agreed. If things are like last year, it is going to take some time for the defense to get going. The coaches and the players needed some time to figure things out. We have a lot of people back but I doubt the defense will be stellar early.
Agree
The pass rush should be excellent. The pass defense, at least against WRs, should be excellent.
But the main problem was our lb stepping backwards on snap count which means no downhill attacking so instead of a los play we tackle the Rb for a 5 yard gain. That was my thing with whit. He made a crap load of tackles but they were all after 3-6 yd gains. Bam told us they were taught to do that and after Pitt game it was changed to being aggressive and stepping forward and then shy and Guthrie came on hard after that. Our run defense improved drastically after that. New lb s but I ain’t worried if they attack. Tyrell, army and Williams will do well. Also if we were in nickel u could have Trill there at 6’2” 210 also which is almost lb size. I think our defense makes big steps forward this year.
That might be part of it but for the first half of the year, we tried to play with 2 linebackers as our base defense even if we were facing teams using a fullback and 2 TEs. We were vulnerable to power run attacks and got worn down big time. That approach directly led to losses against Pitt and Clemson. They beat us running the ball. We could not stop the run.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I remember Guthrie and Whit solidified as starting Mike and Will going back to spring ball. They were obviously less committed to Army at the Sam which is why we ended up 4-2-5 out of fall camp, but I have a hard time stomaching that a 4-3 base install didnt happen until 7 games into the season. It's not entirely clear that's what happened, bit there was a marked shift in run defense when we started seeing 4-3 sets with Shy in the mix which didnt happen until after the Pitt game. Hindsight is 20/20, but dang...that seems so obvious.
Agree that Guthrie and Whitner won starting jobs in the spring. I think the staff went into the 2018 season wanting to stay with a 4-2-5 look for everything all season long.
Yes totally. I believe u and I were clamoring for more shy and they finally listened lol. It’s gotta be basic knowledge to play 3 especially against power teams.
All facts on this post.
I’m sure he was just as motivated last year when he had *checks notes* 2 yards on 2 carries.
I’d focus more on a healthy and intact offensive line.
See with your logic, not your biases.
This post isn’t as Zen-like as you think it is.
Let's just say I'm cynical of the motives of human beings.
