Defensive stats

[msstate7]

Rushing yards a game = 82.5 (8th in country)

Passing yards a game = 319 (117th in country)

Total yards = 401.5 (52nd in country)

Points per game = 16.5 (14th in country)


Pass defense hasn't been good. Are we gonna improve here?

[Eric Nies Grind Time]

We played great the first three quarters. I believe we held them to 209 yards in the first 3 and then they had 219 in the fourth quarter.

I am hoping that the fourth quarter was just due to the prevent defense and not anything getting exposed.

[mic]

4-0 and 1-0 in the west are the stats that matter the most.....

[engie]

Let's keep in mind our starting FS hasn't played since early in the UAB game either. LSU didn't expose anything until we went prevent with a 3 man rush and quit hitting them in the mouth up front...

[messageboardsuperhero]

The secondary hasn't exactly been good- but in their defense, we've been in the lead over 90% of the time in pretty much every game this year. So teams are forced to throw on us a bunch every week because 1) they are down big for most of the game, and 2) they don't have a prayer in the running game.

Again, the secondary hasn't played well enough, but there aren't 116 pass defenses in the country that are better.

[ShotgunDawg]

Let's keep in mind our starting FS hasn't played since early in the UAB game either. LSU didn't expose anything until we went prevent with a 3 man rush and quit hitting them in the mouth up front...

Speaking of which, even if he had a hamstring injury, I would think with the week off, he would be back for A&M. Don't ya think?

[Political Hack]

Speaking of which, even if he had a hamstring injury, I would think with the week off, he would be back for A&M. Don't ya think?

he was dressed for LSU.

[preachermatt83]

he was dressed for LSU.

he played a few snaps in the LSU game.

[Alldawg]

Rushing yards a game = 82.5 (8th in country)

Passing yards a game = 319 (117th in country)

Total yards = 401.5 (52nd in country)

Points per game = 16.5 (14th in country)


Pass defense hasn't been good. Are we gonna improve here?


This is a classic example of a bend but don't break defense. Granted, I would like to see the passing yards down, but IMO the points per game is the only thing I look at on defense. If you can keep them below 20, Dak is going to make damn sure the offense scores more than that.

[Big4Dawg]

Also consider who we have played.

Coming into our games, LSU & UAB were running the ball 75% of the time, and it's what they do best.

We are stacking the box and daring them throw. It's what we are giving them, so they are going to do it. I'd rather see #8 and #117, than #50 and #50. We are making teams one dimensional. Do you really think we are going to play all of corners man with no safety help against A&M and Ole Miss? Think again.

[CadaverDawg]

Brad Edwards just said that MSU's weakness is their secondary, and they will not match up well at all with A&M because of that. Basically said we matched up well with LSU, but have no shot at A&M.

Thoughts?

[DawgHouseUnited]

I'm sure there are some numbers guys who can find it, but what would those stats be without the Prevent D of the last 5 mins @ LSU? Or the homeruns that we got burned on while playing rotate-a-thon earlier this year?

[LiterallyPolice]

Brad Edwards just said that MSU's weakness is their secondary, and they will not match up well at all with A&M because of that. Basically said we matched up well with LSU, but have no shot at A&M.

Thoughts?

I'm concerned about that matchup... but it is obviously is only half the equation; how does their defense match against our offense? Not well. Honestly, if you a D coordinator planning for us, do you plan to stop the run or pass first? I have no idea.

[Irondawg]

All questions about our secondary will be answered in 2 weeks. We're either ok there or it's a huge issue.

Raw talent it not the issue, I know on at least 2 if not 3 of the big plays it was a pure technique error of falling asleep or falling for a double move.

I think we'll see a total different attack against TAMU like we played against OM last year where we got physical at the line with their receivers which really can disrupt the short passing game.

[starkvegasdawg]

Brad Edwards just said that MSU's weakness is their secondary, and they will not match up well at all with A&M because of that. Basically said we matched up well with LSU, but have no shot at A&M.

Thoughts?

Aggies are the team that scare me the most the rest of the season. Yes, even more than Alabama, although they are a very close second. Dare I say 1b? People can explain it away any way they want to but the fact remains our secondary has been torched on the deep ball this season. Had the receivers from USA been able to catch it would be even worse. And I hope no one is blaming it on being in a prevent defense. A prevent makes sure nothing gets behind you. We have been letting receivers get behind us on a regular basis. This is just our DB's getting beat deep. Our defense is more designed to play a smash mouth run team like LSU and Arkansas.

What I want to see is how good the Aggie QB is when he has Smith, Jones, and McKinney chasing him like he owes them money all game. So far, they have played nobody and he has been able to sit back there and pick a defense apart. Don't think that will happen against us.

We know what Alabama has in Amari Cooper. He has shown to be uncoverable in a phone booth and Blake Sims has been able to get him the ball. They also have a stable of elite RB's that force you to play honest. They've struggled some this season as a team but the fact remains they are one of the best in football.

TSUN - Meh...Not too worried about the deep pass from them because CBS has to throw the ball twice to get it more than 20 yards downfield. Plus, they have a horrible offensive line so I expect our defense to be receiving mail in their backfield from living back there during the Egg Bowl. Their receivers won't have time to get deep. Playing prevent against them will just mean dropping our safeties an extra 5 yards off the ball.

Auburn - far from impressed me so far. Their run game is nowhere near what it was last year and Marshall is still not an elite QB in my opinion. He's good but certainly head and shoulders above other QB's in the SEC.

If we get past A&M next week then the only game I will truly be worried about the rest of the season is Alabama. Not to say we couldn't lose to other teams on our schedule, but I think if we come to play those other teams are going to have a very hard time against us.

A little more discussion than just A&M, I know. I got carried away.

[West Houston Dog]

1)our secondary is the weakness of the defense. Been surprising and at times pathetic. Thought they had really turned the corner late last season. But UAB buried that belief.
2)agree we match up better against LSU than A&M their offense vs our defense
3)dont agree we dont have a chance. we are at home, we can do some major offensive damage too... if our secondary gets their head out of their les miles they can get the job done. but right now, the passing teams like A&M, a Auburn Bama and Ole Myth too can do some major damage to/if our secondary doesnt get it together. UAB torched Calhoun 2X and Redmonds int whif cost us a 75-80 yrd td. LSU ate Jamerson Loves lunch Sat night...he gave up 2 tds late(the last one he did have position but didnt bat away) and gave up the big pass down the sidelines to set up LSU for another td(believe i have this right not having seen the replay). These three have got to rebound like they did last year after the A&M loss in College Station. Hopefully Justin Cox will be back and in pass coverage to assist .

IF we are going to have a great season , the secondary MUST step up. We all had concerns on our OL, and THEY stepped up big time Sat night.....

[NorCalDawg]

Brad Edwards just said that MSU's weakness is their secondary, and they will not match up well at all with A&M because of that. Basically said we matched up well with LSU, but have no shot at A&M.

Thoughts?

I like our chances, but I think it's going to be a shootout.

They are #1 in the conference for total offense and we're # 3. We've both played similar schedules so far, although I think our OOC has been slightly more difficult. They are #1 in passing and we are # 5. They are #5 in rushing and we are #2. As we all know, we've played a lot of 1B and 1C in those first 3 OOC games. What I can't say, is how much they have played their 2nd and 3rd string in their games.

We should be able to move the ball pretty well on them and I believe Collins will have a good game plan and our secondary will be up to the task, but with a team like aTm they're going to score some points. Keeping pressure on Hill will be the key and the secondary has to make sure to keep everything in front of them.

Oh, and tackle, tackle, tackle.

[sandwolf]

.....what would those stats be without the Prevent D of the last 5 mins @ LSU?

LSU had 430 total yards of offense......341 passing, and 89 rushing. 159 of those yards (140 passing, 19 rushing) came in the last 3:43 of the game, which is when we went to the prevent defense.

So 37% of their total yards and 41% of their passing yards were all generated during the final 6.2% of the game, when we were running the prevent.

[Political Hack]

our matchup versus A&M is better than A&M's matchup against us.

They can't stop the run or pass. We will make them 1 dimensional. plus, we still have more turnovers than we do TD passes allowed. I'll take that in the A&M game too.

[Ralph]

Aggies are the team that scare me the most the rest of the season. Yes, even more than Alabama, although they are a very close second. Dare I say 1b? People can explain it away any way they want to but the fact remains our secondary has been torched on the deep ball this season. Had the receivers from USA been able to catch it would be even worse. And I hope no one is blaming it on being in a prevent defense. A prevent makes sure nothing gets behind you. We have been letting receivers get behind us on a regular basis. This is just our DB's getting beat deep. Our defense is more designed to play a smash mouth run team like LSU and Arkansas.

What I want to see is how good the Aggie QB is when he has Smith, Jones, and McKinney chasing him like he owes them money all game. So far, they have played nobody and he has been able to sit back there and pick a defense apart. Don't think that will happen against us.

We know what Alabama has in Amari Cooper. He has shown to be uncoverable in a phone booth and Blake Sims has been able to get him the ball. They also have a stable of elite RB's that force you to play honest. They've struggled some this season as a team but the fact remains they are one of the best in football.

TSUN - Meh...Not too worried about the deep pass from them because CBS has to throw the ball twice to get it more than 20 yards downfield. Plus, they have a horrible offensive line so I expect our defense to be receiving mail in their backfield from living back there during the Egg Bowl. Their receivers won't have time to get deep. Playing prevent against them will just mean dropping our safeties an extra 5 yards off the ball.

Auburn - far from impressed me so far. Their run game is nowhere near what it was last year and Marshall is still not an elite QB in my opinion. He's good but certainly head and shoulders above other QB's in the SEC.

If we get past A&M next week then the only game I will truly be worried about the rest of the season is Alabama. Not to say we couldn't lose to other teams on our schedule, but I think if we come to play those other teams are going to have a very hard time against us.

A little more discussion than just A&M, I know. I got carried away.

Agree with your entire post.

[Tdawg]

Brad Edwards just said that MSU's weakness is their secondary, and they will not match up well at all with A&M because of that. Basically said we matched up well with LSU, but have no shot at A&M.

Thoughts?

That's what I'd expect to hear. We can mitigate A&M's WR threats somewhat if we can get a good rush on the passer. Our LB corps should help us dealing with the short stuff and we'll need our DL to help our DB's on the deeper stuff by getting a good pass rush. If we can't get a push with our front 4 then our secondary could have a long day. The good news is that when we put Smith inside he either gets a push up the middle or occupies blockers giving our edge guys a good opportunity to get upfield. I would expect to see a lot of Smith on the inside.

[99jc]

That's what I'd expect to hear. We can mitigate A&M's WR threats somewhat if we can get a good rush on the passer. Our LB corps should help us dealing with the short stuff and we'll need our DL to help our DB's on the deeper stuff by getting a good pass rush. If we can't get a push with our front 4 then our secondary could have a long day. The good news is that when we put Smith inside he either gets a push up the middle or occupies blockers giving our edge guys a good opportunity to get upfield. I would expect to see a lot of Smith on the inside.

What. We can't let him beat us. If we pound on him every play we will win. Let someone else try to beat us.

[Alldawg]

Suprised you passed the smell test in this thread. I swear there are some sensitive noses on here. If you don't agree with the majority like the thread you started, they start sniffing in the air for trolls. If only they could distinguish between their own farts and trolls it would make it simple around here. God forbid anyone going against the grain.

[TUSK]

What. We can't let him beat us. If we pound on him every play we will win. Let someone else try to beat us.

Not a bad idea... Cooper has got to cool off sooner or later though...

Put your #3 DB on this guy (White, #2, WR): http://i.huffpost.com/gen/1391307/thumbs/o-DEANDREW-WHITE-facebook.jpg

and McKinney (sp?) on this guy (Howard, #89, TE): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pz7c5eYftf4

[IMissJack]

Well the secondary better get used to it, because when OC's see those stats, (which will probably be worse after the A&M game), they are going to throw often.