BeastMan
08-06-2014, 10:05 AM
MSU lost 3 defensive starters to the NFL and had to break in a new coordinator. Many fans had worries about the defense going into last year. This is something I wrote on June 22nd of 2013. Enjoy. (Full text copy pasted)
Why MSU's Defense Will Be Better in 2013 (http://3rdand57.com/why-msus-defense-will-be-better/)
Why MSU?s Defense Will Be Better
by adminon July 22, 2013 in Uncategorized with 2 Comments
I can all but assure that MSU?s defense will be better in 2013 than 2012. Losing 3 NFL draft picks does not matter. Only returning 5 starters does not matter. Last year?s defense was in the bottom half (9th) in scoring defense in the SEC even with all that talent. If one was only going to look at those last three sentences, it would appear that this years squad will have problems. Hindsight is 20/20 so prepare yourself for this next sentence. Over half of MSU?s defense was playing the wrong position in 2012.
Before I get into this, I want to say that this is in no way a shot at any of these guys. They were/are all great representatives to MSU and sacrificed daily for the program. They just weren?t put in the best spot to succeed.
(1) Kaleb Eulls DE- I?ll be the first to tell you that he looked much better at DT this spring. That spot should lead to a big increase in production. Unfortunately, his production at DE was horrendous and I blame the coaches 100%. In 2012 he had 0 sacks. In 2011 he had 1. Over 2 years and 26 starts, MSU got 1 sack out of its starting DE. That stat alone is enough to justify Chris Wilson?s firing.
(2) Dewayne Cherrington DT- Another guy that just wasn?t put in a position to succeed. Cherrington very well could make the Raven?s roster (3-4 scheme) showing he has plenty of talent. The truth is that in Wilson?s scheme, we played a 3 and 5 technique DT. Your 3 technique is more or less a 3-4 NG type player (a middle clogger). Both Cherrington and Josh Boyd were 3 techniques. When they were on the field together, as they were most of the year, we had the most nonathletic (speed wise) DT combo in the conference. We saw what that did to our pass rush, coupled with a DT playing DE.
(3) Deonte Skinner WLB- Anyone that has seen Skinner over the last 2 years understands that he deserves to start. The guy is big and physical as they come. The problem last year was the he had to play on the weak side. This hurt the worst in games where we played spread teams. This put him matched up with WR?s and often took him out of the box. In this day and age, you need a hybrid guy (Matt Wells anyone?) to play WLB in a 4-3. Skinner, who is 240 pounds, is better suited for the box and the strong side. That is exactly where he?ll be this year and excel.
(4) Cam Lawerence SLB- I would like to say that I completely understand why we did this. Getting Benardrick McKinney at MLB was a move for the future. Doing that, it forced Cam to the strong side since he wasn?t athletic enough for the weak side. Although Cam was a cerebral as it gets, he didn?t give us that physical presence in the running game you need at SLB. His best position would be in the middle, as it was the year before.
(5) Corey Broomfield SS- He was easily one of my favorite CB?s MSU has had in recent memory. A 3 year starter at that. The problem was that Jon Banks and Darius Slay played CB too. The issue the coaches had was how do they bench a 3 year starter who has been a great leader and teammate? That?s a dang tough call but putting Broomfield at SS was arguably the worst personnel move on the defense. He was a good cover corner but a very below average SS.
(6) Nickoe Whitley FS- This one is kind of a stretch but I?ll use it anyway to prove my overall point. He wasn?t out of position but he wasn?t 100% from his Achilles injury. The main reason I put him on this list is since he wasn?t 100%, he needed some big time support from the other safety spot. Unfortunately, the other safety was completely out of position. Those two things combined together gave MSU arguably the most vulnerable safety combo in the SEC.
Now let?s take a look at what these out of position guys traded out for.
(1) From Kaleb Eulls to Preston Smith who led the team in sacks (4.5) in a limited role.
(2) From Dewayne Cherrington to Kaleb Eulls. His move inside brings instant athleticism MSU lacked last year on the inside.
(3) From Deonte Skinner to Matt Wells. Moving Wells to the WLB spot gives MSU that hybrid athlete they need to combat spread attacks.
(4) From Cam Lawerence to Deonte Skinner. Moving Skinner to SLB lets him play to his strengths on the inside instead of chasing 180 pound WR?s around.
(5) From Corey Broomfield to Jay Hughes. This move gets MSU a true safety in the defensive backfield. Not just any safety either; he?s like another coach on the field.
(6) From recovering Nickoe Whitley to healed Nickoe Whitley. He looked to be back to form in the spring showing the headhunter is still here.
The main take-away is that every single position has an improvement athletically from last year. Also has many more guys in their natural positions. My theory on stopping spread teams is that you need athleticism, cohesiveness, and communication. I think all these moves bolster each characteristic I named.
It?s crazy when you look back at this. All MSU fans wondering where the defensive problems were coming from and they were staring everyone in the face. Ultimately, the coaches are the ones that have to shoulder the blame for this. Putting guys in a positions to succeed is paramount. What could anyone expect when over half the starters were not in the correct position? Moving forward with Coach Collins and a better approach to what combinations should go together on the field should lead to much more defensive success in 2013.
Why MSU's Defense Will Be Better in 2013 (http://3rdand57.com/why-msus-defense-will-be-better/)
Why MSU?s Defense Will Be Better
by adminon July 22, 2013 in Uncategorized with 2 Comments
I can all but assure that MSU?s defense will be better in 2013 than 2012. Losing 3 NFL draft picks does not matter. Only returning 5 starters does not matter. Last year?s defense was in the bottom half (9th) in scoring defense in the SEC even with all that talent. If one was only going to look at those last three sentences, it would appear that this years squad will have problems. Hindsight is 20/20 so prepare yourself for this next sentence. Over half of MSU?s defense was playing the wrong position in 2012.
Before I get into this, I want to say that this is in no way a shot at any of these guys. They were/are all great representatives to MSU and sacrificed daily for the program. They just weren?t put in the best spot to succeed.
(1) Kaleb Eulls DE- I?ll be the first to tell you that he looked much better at DT this spring. That spot should lead to a big increase in production. Unfortunately, his production at DE was horrendous and I blame the coaches 100%. In 2012 he had 0 sacks. In 2011 he had 1. Over 2 years and 26 starts, MSU got 1 sack out of its starting DE. That stat alone is enough to justify Chris Wilson?s firing.
(2) Dewayne Cherrington DT- Another guy that just wasn?t put in a position to succeed. Cherrington very well could make the Raven?s roster (3-4 scheme) showing he has plenty of talent. The truth is that in Wilson?s scheme, we played a 3 and 5 technique DT. Your 3 technique is more or less a 3-4 NG type player (a middle clogger). Both Cherrington and Josh Boyd were 3 techniques. When they were on the field together, as they were most of the year, we had the most nonathletic (speed wise) DT combo in the conference. We saw what that did to our pass rush, coupled with a DT playing DE.
(3) Deonte Skinner WLB- Anyone that has seen Skinner over the last 2 years understands that he deserves to start. The guy is big and physical as they come. The problem last year was the he had to play on the weak side. This hurt the worst in games where we played spread teams. This put him matched up with WR?s and often took him out of the box. In this day and age, you need a hybrid guy (Matt Wells anyone?) to play WLB in a 4-3. Skinner, who is 240 pounds, is better suited for the box and the strong side. That is exactly where he?ll be this year and excel.
(4) Cam Lawerence SLB- I would like to say that I completely understand why we did this. Getting Benardrick McKinney at MLB was a move for the future. Doing that, it forced Cam to the strong side since he wasn?t athletic enough for the weak side. Although Cam was a cerebral as it gets, he didn?t give us that physical presence in the running game you need at SLB. His best position would be in the middle, as it was the year before.
(5) Corey Broomfield SS- He was easily one of my favorite CB?s MSU has had in recent memory. A 3 year starter at that. The problem was that Jon Banks and Darius Slay played CB too. The issue the coaches had was how do they bench a 3 year starter who has been a great leader and teammate? That?s a dang tough call but putting Broomfield at SS was arguably the worst personnel move on the defense. He was a good cover corner but a very below average SS.
(6) Nickoe Whitley FS- This one is kind of a stretch but I?ll use it anyway to prove my overall point. He wasn?t out of position but he wasn?t 100% from his Achilles injury. The main reason I put him on this list is since he wasn?t 100%, he needed some big time support from the other safety spot. Unfortunately, the other safety was completely out of position. Those two things combined together gave MSU arguably the most vulnerable safety combo in the SEC.
Now let?s take a look at what these out of position guys traded out for.
(1) From Kaleb Eulls to Preston Smith who led the team in sacks (4.5) in a limited role.
(2) From Dewayne Cherrington to Kaleb Eulls. His move inside brings instant athleticism MSU lacked last year on the inside.
(3) From Deonte Skinner to Matt Wells. Moving Wells to the WLB spot gives MSU that hybrid athlete they need to combat spread attacks.
(4) From Cam Lawerence to Deonte Skinner. Moving Skinner to SLB lets him play to his strengths on the inside instead of chasing 180 pound WR?s around.
(5) From Corey Broomfield to Jay Hughes. This move gets MSU a true safety in the defensive backfield. Not just any safety either; he?s like another coach on the field.
(6) From recovering Nickoe Whitley to healed Nickoe Whitley. He looked to be back to form in the spring showing the headhunter is still here.
The main take-away is that every single position has an improvement athletically from last year. Also has many more guys in their natural positions. My theory on stopping spread teams is that you need athleticism, cohesiveness, and communication. I think all these moves bolster each characteristic I named.
It?s crazy when you look back at this. All MSU fans wondering where the defensive problems were coming from and they were staring everyone in the face. Ultimately, the coaches are the ones that have to shoulder the blame for this. Putting guys in a positions to succeed is paramount. What could anyone expect when over half the starters were not in the correct position? Moving forward with Coach Collins and a better approach to what combinations should go together on the field should lead to much more defensive success in 2013.