Virginia Tech has their fair share of head scratching moments in what is rapidly becoming a lost football season. Saturday's 43-45 four overtime heartbreaker of a loss to the Duke Blue Devils included plenty more: rotating quarterbacks with Michael Brewer playing well, just five touches in the first half for Travon McMillian, chasing points, the onside/knuckleball kickoff, and punting from the 40 down 4 after a long completion to Ryan Malleck set up a 4th-and-short. Those blunders have left Hokie Nation confused and frustrated.
Unfortunately, there is one thing that is no longer a surprise; opposing offenses clearly understand how to attack the Hokies' defensive scheme and personnel. The Duke offense lacked an explosive playmaker like Jamison Crowder. Instead Cutcliffe, a master of identifying defensive tendencies through film review, developed a game plan almost entirely focused on attacking the personnel and scheme flaws I have pointed out throughout the season. Let's go down the checklist.
- Use formation to dictate the defensive alignment (to the Bear). Outnumber the defense at the point of attack using counter and isolation concepts on designed quarterback runs.
- Use formation to dictate the defensive alignment (to the Bear). Leave the edge defender isolated. Run speed option.
- Use your best route structures; especially rub route concepts, to beat man coverage. When your quarterback identifies outside leverage, audible to a quick slant coupled with a play fake to freeze the inside help for the corners.
In each of Virginia Tech's losses, the opposing offense exposed the defense via one of these three concepts. Duke's offense was uniquely designed to exploit all three concepts. By emphasizing these three points, Cutcliffe developed a game plan that sustained long drives, kept Duke quarterback Thomas Sirk upright, and made plays at every critical moment.
The Hokies just are not good right now on defense. The secondary made numerous mistakes with leverage and technique. Mook Reynolds was picked on early. Adonis Alexander was lackluster in run support and later was replaced by Desmond Frye after an alignment error contributed to the long Shaun Wilson touchdown pitch in the third quarter. Even the reliable Chuck Clark was completely frozen on a fake screen for Duke's game winning wheel route throw to Erich Schneider. The inside linebacker position is in dire straits. Deon Clarke and Andrew Motuapuaka are not generating pressure when they blitz, and were exposed in pass coverage when Foster only rushed four. Time and time again, Duke's tailbacks, I repeat tailbacks, looked like Craig "Ironhead" Heyward blocking Motuapuaka on quarterback sprint draws. The defensive line's tendency to get too far up field and take themselves out of the play is being used against them. Outside of stopping the traditional zone runs by Duke's trio of tailbacks, the defensive line didn't disrupt offensive rhythm. I didn't feel like anyone of the defensive line had a strong game beside Ken Ekanem. Ekanem was the only defensive lineman to generate any pressure, and nobody up front was more consistent in pursuit throughout an otherwise stale effort.
Most distressing is a general lack of pursuit across the board. The Hokies tackling has improved, however when Sirk got to the second level, you didn't see multiple guys running into the picture. Too often, the alley defender was left to fend for himself one-on-one. For a defense predicated on speed, this unit looks slow right now. Yes, there are personnel weaknesses. Yet, there are some good veteran football players that are not playing good football right now, and their poor performance only is exacerbating those personnel weaknesses in other spots.
Designed Quarterback Runs Against the Bear
Sirk was Duke's leading rusher going into this game, so it was no surprise that the Blue Devils were going to run him heavily against a defense that has struggled against designed quarterback runs all season. Duke came right out and used the quarterback counter-lead that East Carolina used to such great effectiveness several weeks ago. It starts with the vulnerability of the Bear front. Foster seemed to shift the defense into the Bear often when Duke used a tight end. Duke then is able to outnumber the Hokies by pulling a guard and using a tailback as a lead blocker away from the strength of the formation.
Tell me if you have heard this one before. The left tackle blocks Ekanem down (who gets cut by his own teammate Baron and topples over). The right guard pulls and kicks out Clarke. Sirk fakes a handoff to the tailback, who leads into the hole to isolate on Motuapuaka and drive him to the outside. Sirk follows him into the hole where he is untouched for 6 yards until Alexander and Brandon Facyson bring him down. The defensive lineman has to resist the down block. The edge player has to squeeze the trap. Most of all the mike linebacker cannot be blocked so easily by a tailback.
As the game progressed, Duke abandoned the counter step and instead ran the play like an old sprint draw. The offensive line draws the defensive line up the field. The tailback fakes the hand off and then isolates on the mike linebacker.
Duke has the advantage of six blockers and a runner versus six defenders in the box. The Hokies try to adjust by curling a defensive end back to the inside. Dadi Nicolas loops to the inside, and the Duke right tackle drives him down field. The defensive tackles are allowed to run up field through their outside gaps. The tailback plants Motuapuaka right on his tailbone. Virginia Tech dominated the ACC by being the most physical and best schemed defense in the league. Duke is out-scheming and playing more physically than the Hokies on this play. It wasn't an uncommon occurrence, as Sirk followed his tailback for nice chunk gains inside most of the night.
The Speed Option Strikes Again
The one thing the Hokie defense did effectively was stop Duke's tailbacks on zone runs. The trio of Shaun Wilson, Jela Duncan, and Shaq Powell only combined for one big run the entire game. Unfortunately, that run was a backbreaker, and it featured another concept Tech's opponents have exploited the Bear front with this season; the speed option.
Ohio State's only success in 2014 against the Bear came on the speed option. On a speed option against the Bear, the edge defender has two choices—he can either take the quarterback or the pitch. The rover is aligned inside the tackle box, and the free safety has to play deep in center field. That distance leaves the edge defender isolated. If the edge defender takes the pitch, the quarterback can turn up quickly in the natural bubble created between the three-technique defensive tackle and the edge player for a solid gain. If the edge defender takes the quarterback, it leaves the safety with a ton of distance to cover to take the pitch man. So far this season, Ohio State, N.C. State, and Duke have been able block their tackles down to cut off pursuit by Motuapuaka, option Clarke, Ekanem, or Nicolas, and then get huge chunks of yardage while the Hokies' safeties scramble to catch up. Duke used motion to compound the Hokies' problems by confusing Adonis Alexander and causing him to align wrong.
The Blue Devils motion the tight end across the formation. Chuck Clark is playing shallow and picks up the tight end. Alexander also motions across with the tight end, leaving the Hokies with four defenders against four blockers and two runners to the play side. Foster mentioned Alexander's alignment error in the post-game press conference. I think Andrew Motuapuaka may also be aligned incorrectly. In the bear, the mike usually aligns behind the nose tackle or shaded slightly to the field side of the nose. Motuapuaka also looks to be over-shifted to the motion, although only Foster would know for sure.
Duke runs speed option to the bottom of the screen. Nicolas slow plays the quarterback and forces the pitch, then tries to recover. The Hokies are in man coverage so the corners are running off with the receivers. Motuapuaka gets cut off. Alexander is way out of position and then makes a pretty feeble looking attempt to force Wilson out of bounds. Wilson then breaks Terrell Edmunds' ankles for a touchdown. Even with the vulnerability in alignment, the Blue Devils don't score because of the Bear. They score because of freshman mistakes. Alexander has played above and beyond expectations this year, but Saturday wasn't his best effort. After this bust, coupled with several coverage busts earlier in the game, Alexander found himself replaced by Desmond Frye.
Young Defensive Backs and Man Coverage
The two questions that I've been asked the most since the game concluded are "why don't our defensive backs turn around and find the football?" and "why won't Foster run zone instead of isolating young players in man coverage?"
As I pointed out when I previewed the matchup with Ohio State, the Hokies use two forms of leverage coverage. On inside leverage technique, the defensive back is trying to prevent the receiver from breaking to the inside of the field. This technique requires the defensive back to align to the inside and keep eyes focused on the receiver. The defensive back's alignment triggers a sight adjustment for the receiver. Instead of trying to run a slant or a post, they will switch to a fade or an out route. At the snap, the defensive back isn't looking at the quarterback. Instead, back to the football, he shadows the receiver on the inside and keeping his body between the receiver and the football. If the receiver cuts outside, the defender jumps the route. If the receiver threatens the defender's cushion deep, the defensive back turns and runs in a chase position, again keeping his body to the inside of the receiver and between the quarterback and his target. The defender keeps his eyes on the receiver. His key is the receiver's hands. When the receiver looks for the ball and starts to raise his hands, the defender knows that the hands will take him to the football. The defender attacks the hands in the attempt to deflect the pass by getting in the path of the football. In the worst case scenario, the defender can make contact with the hands to prevent the catch even if it results in a pass interference. Brandon Facyson displays perfect inside leverage technique.
The use of inside leverage requires the "man coverage" defender to only defend half of their space. The outside release fade is a lower percentage throw than a slant or a post, and by using inside leverage, a defender takes away the more dangerous half of the field. There are downsides to the technique. First, it is almost impossible to get an interception because the defender is defending the man and not the football. Second, underthrown balls often result in a pass interference penalty. Finally, if the quarterback is accurate and the receiver has good ball skills, they can often make the catch despite perfect defensive back technique.
Outside leverage is more of a type of matchup zone than a man coverage. In outside leverage, the corner stays to the outside of the receiver and looks back in at the quarterback. If a corner is in outside leverage, he should have safety help to his inside against slants and posts. The corner stays to the outside and tracks the receiver on his outside hip. From this position, if the corner gets a good jump on a slant route, he may get an interception. (See Jayron Hosley's game winner against Miami in 2010.) When a corner can show true man coverage and maintain outside leverage, he can bait quarterbacks into throws outside where the interception is easily made. This is exemplified by Kendall Fuller's interception against Cincinnati in the Military Bowl.
This is what they are taught to do. Inside leverage combined with pressure causes incompletions. Outside leverage with the threat of pressure rushing the quarterback's throw causes interceptions.
These leverages and zone coverage requires strict adherence to technique and discipline, neither of which tend to be strong suites of young players. The Hokies started two true freshmen and a redshirt freshman against Duke, and fundamental breakdowns of these techniques resulted in several big plays for the Blue Devils. The biggest culprit wasn't the defender in direct coverage. Instead, Duke caught the Hokies playing outside leverage and used play-action to freeze freshman Adonis Alexander so he couldn't provide inside help against the slant route. Duke's second touchdown showcases the breakdown perfectly.
The Hokies are in the Bear against a four wide receiver look. At the bottom of the screen, Mook Reynolds is aligned to the field side on slot receiver Max McCaffrey. Mook is showing outside leverage. His shoulders are turned to the inside and he is looking at the quarterback at the snap. McCaffrey runs a slant and Reynolds gives him a free release to the inside then runs on his inside hip.
Now, watch again with your focus on Alexander, who is aligned as a deep safety to the boundary side. This is man free, and Alexander should have inside leverage support for Reynolds. Alexander's alignment is a big screwy. (I would think in man free he should be head up over the Duke center.) Alexander steps to his assignment, and then Alexander sees the run fake from the Duke quarterback. He bites, and then tries to recover back to the outside. He can't get there in time. Sirk delivers an accurate throw and McCaffrey makes the touchdown catch.
Alexander is a young player. He is an aggressive run supporter who, frankly, has needed to be aggressive in run support due to Tech's inability to stop the run much of the season. He is going to be a really good player, and with a little more seasoning this is likely an interception. Outside leverage makes the corner look really bad when the safety doesn't get there. Ask Kendall Fuller after Kyshoen Jarrett took a poor angle on inside support on Tyler Boyd's long touchdown in the 2014 Pitt game.
For a corner, you know they were beaten in outside leverage when a receiver catches a pass deep and to the outside. For most of the season Duke relied on slants, screens, and rub routes to move the football in the passing game. Cutcliffe went against tendency and ran several "sluggo" (fake slant and go) routes to try and slip behind Hokie coverage. Normally reliable veteran Brandon Facyson tried to jump a slant route, and instead got burnt deep by Anthony Nash.
This is the perfect play call by Duke. Torrian Gray has an outside coverage "robber" going on, where Facyson shows outside leverage and soft coverage at the snap. Facyson and Gray expect that Nash and Sirk will sight adjust and run a slant. Facyson takes one backwards then jumps the slant. Nash sells it and then bends back outside fading away from Alexander trying to come over the top to help outside. Sirk had this route structure open several times and he overthrew the ball. This time, he gets it close enough for Nash to haul it in after a bobble. Gray and Facyson rolled the dice and got snake eyes.
Rub Routes for the Win
After Alexander was pulled in the third quarter, Desmond Frye took over at his safety spot. I saw Donovan Riley getting work at the corner spot replacing Terrell Edmunds, and Anthony Shegog got some work in dime packages. The defense steadied against Duke's passing game until overtime. Duke went back to their film review of the Hokies and used a trips rub route concept to bust the Hokies' leverage zone on the goal line.
The leverage look works really well in short yardage on the goal line when the offense uses two receivers. The defense shows man coverage, and the offense will often cross receivers to set a pick (the "rub") to get one open. Instead of chasing the receiver, the two defenders take a zone and match up on the receiver that comes into the zone. Here is a great example from the Military Bowl.
The Hokies' defense faces a third-down-and-goal situation from the six. Focus on the top of the screen. Foster has three defenders: Kendall Fuller on the slot, Kyshoen Jarrett behind him and slightly outside, and Greg Stroman lined up near the sideline. Note each player's body position at the snap of the football. Fuller almost has his back to the quarterback and is inside of the slot. Jarrett is deeper, but also has his back to the quarterback. Stroman bails out from his alignment quickly, but he is angled inside, almost looking at the quarterback.
To the quarterback, this looks like man coverage, but it is really a zone. Almost every route combination that could be run into the end zone is effectively covered as long as each defender plays their responsibility correctly. In this case, the slot receiver runs to the flat, and the outside receiver runs a deep crossing route. When the receiver cuts to the inside in front of Stroman (No. 3), he runs right into Jarrett (No. 34). Fuller (No. 11) has the receiver in the flat, but if the slot wheels deep, he runs right into Stroman who would be in perfect position to intercept the pass (similar to Donovan Riley's interception against Florida State in 2012). As result, the quarterback has nowhere to go.
The Hokies seem to use this concept most often in goal line and short yardage passing downs when they expect a quick throw. Ohio State picked up on that tendency and decided to flood the leverage zone by motioning an extra receiver. The Buckeyes beat the Hokies to death by using the two static receivers to set picks to free the motion man wide open in the flat.
The Hokies' adjustment against this concept was for the static wide corner to play outside leverage and take the motion man, with the motion defender and the slot defender playing inside leverage against the double slant/pick. Cutcliffe anticipated the adjustment and instead picked the motion defender with one slant route and breaking the outside slant off and running a corner route. Let's take a look.
The inside slant route wedges himself into Mook Reynolds and drives him back into the path of Brandon Facyson motioning across. Edmunds jumps the motion man in the flat. Facyson gets picked, and Nash is wide open for an easy pitch and catch. The frustration in the body language of Tech's young defensive backs is palatable. Reynolds and Edmunds look into the back of the end zone with their hands clenched and jerking. You can almost hear them screaming "how is he open?"
On Duke's game winning two-point conversion, the Blue Devils used the same rub route concept from a different formation. Instead of a tight end away from the play, Duke had a split end aligned wide. This time, the Hokies made an adjustment. They were in a base front instead of the Bear front, which freed up Chuck Clark to be an extra defender on the flood side.
That wasn't the Hokies only adjustment. On this play, Facyson doesn't motion across. Instead, Desmond Frye motions across from his free safety spot. Mook Reynolds is aligned wide and takes the short flat. Edmunds takes the corner route deep. Chuck Clark is the extra defender and takes the inside slant. Frye is motioning across to undercut any throw to Clark's man, who is posting up Clark like a center in basketball. If Sirk tries to force a throw, there is a chance that Frye can pick it off and head the other way.
Instead, Sirk runs. Everything that happens is emblematic of this awful season. Dadi Nicolas gets blocked by a tailback. The tailback goes to the ground and pulls Nicolas down in a clear hold. Nicolas, instead of getting up and making a play, lays on his backside and yells to the official for a flag. Motuapuaka scrapes and overruns Sirk and falls down when Sirk (who isn't Barry Sanders) cuts back. Ekanem and Maddy try to pull Sirk down at the goal line, and Sirk wins. It just isn't good enough.
This is pretty much the defense at this point. The outcome of Virginia Tech's remaining games will be determined by the ability of the offenses of the Hokies' opponents to exploit these weaknesses. Boston College is abysmal offensively; however they have the blocking scheme that could open things up for quarterbacks Jeff Smith and Troy Flutie. Georgia Tech is going to be Georgia Tech. North Carolina creates all kinds of matchup problems with big receivers, Ryan Switzer's quickness, and the outstanding running ability of Elijah Hood and quarterback Marquise Williams. Virginia has been decent offensively against every opponent except for Boise State. Bowl eligibility seems like a huge question mark, and unless Foster decides it's time to throw Carson Lydon and Tremaine Edmunds into the fire there aren't many available personnel changes that can change the chemistry of this battered defensive group.
TKP's own Mark Umansky took a poignant photograph of athletic director Whit Babcock in the south end zone tunnel at the end of the game.
Hokies AD Whit Babcock was doing a lot of thinking and pacing in the South Endzone tunnel right after the game. pic.twitter.com/pi29UzFZQX— Mark Boomansky (@markumansky) October 25, 2015
The pained, thoughtful expression on Babcock's face spoke volumes about the state of the program. It can conclude this review better than I can. Let's hope that next week leads to better things.
Comments
Damn dude, worst part is your second to last paragraph which makes it sound like there is no hope even with personnel changes. Gonna be drinking way to many beers on 4 more occasions this year methinks...
What's really hard to accept on that two-point conversion is that three guys had a shot at the QB and didn't get it done when a play was needed.
I don't think the defensive players trust each other right now. It's like they are trying to cover each other's mistakes and in turn making their own.
This.
I don't know anything about the locker room at all. But from the outside, it seems like there is something not quite right simmering just underneath the outward appearance of the players on defense.
I seem to recall hearing something about some discontent prior to the season - I thought it had something to do with the CJ Reavis/Melvin Keihn thing.
On offense, I see we have two guys that are leaders of the team - Sam and Brewer. But I don't know if we have the same strong, positive leadership on defense right now.
Not hard to believe. Had a few moments where the coaches admitted they don't know what the other coaches are doing, why not the players?
Agreed on the on-field defensive leadership, but I did see Facyson seek out Bucky after his drop on the 3rd down slant pass that would have extended the drive late in the 4th quarter. I'm not sure what he said, but Bucky went out and caught that beautiful TD pass from Brewer to tie the game up. I'm just hoping we can figure enough out on D to get 3 more wins.
More than anything in French's assessment, this spoke volumes to me with regards to the state of mind of the defense's leadership:
"Dadi Nicolas gets blocked by a tailback. The tailback goes to the ground and pulls Nicolas down in a clear hold. Nicolas, instead of getting up and making a play, lays on his backside and yells to the official for a flag."
A freshman not playing to the whistle ought to be a 1 on 1 mentoring moment with the position coach afterwards (ideally some of the same with his peers as well). But for one of the unit's experienced leaders to do that, way unacceptable. Frustrated? I get it. Not playing until the whistle is blown, that's something that should be a given. Frustrated? Finish the play angry. Sitting and calling for a flag just gets you...a highlight for the other team.
Have to defend Dadi on this. I just watched the replay and he was tackled as he lunged for the QB. The play was over when he hit the ground; the QB was past him.
Okay, very glad to hear it. I wasn't able to watch the game, only listen to it.
He absolutely was tackled. It should have been a call. The QB was even with him when his butt hit the turf. But, he didn't try to get up. He turned his head to the official (bottom right side of the screen) and waived his arms for a flag. While he is absolutely correct, he can't scramble to Sirk when Maddy and Ekanem made contact and try to help pull him backwards when he is laying on the ground. Sorry, this goes against everything coaches teach about hustle from flag football up. You play through the whistle.
Sad to see this happening. I said it after the Miami game, too. These guys seem to be more intent on playing the officials than the opponent.
On a related note, where the hell is the fire to defend your teammates? Brewer gets knocked down and the Duke D-lineman is standing over him, wagging his finger in Brewer's face? No penalty called, which was egregious, but where were the linemen to defend their QB? That crap wouldn't have been tolerated if Jake Grove was on that line. Don't draw a penalty, but remind the opponent which side of the field belongs to him. Then knock him on his ass really hard on the next play.
Actually, I would have loved to see one of our OL just fucking clock that D lineman blindside. Dirty? Yup. And exactly what we need to get some spit and vinegar back into our team.
But let's be honest, the lack of fire is a symptom, not a disease. It all flows from the top, and the top is tired.
Would have never happened back in the day. I'll never forget when LOLUVa hit Glennon late in victory formation and Duane Brown was there in a split second to defend his QB.
Again, I get the frustration, but it concerns me that the players may be buying into the 'refs have cost us the game' hype. While in cases I may agree, that's a dangerous (and almost universally unsuccessful) attitude to take when you're on the gridiron trying to win a football game. Play to the whistle.
I really think they need to sit out Dadi for his own health and well being. He's playing because we have no one else, but he's no where near 100% and is now playing as a former shell of himself and his once high energy motor.
He can't wrap up and he's learning bad habits. Think this is another case of a VT senior giving up their body playing through pain and in the end it's going to hurt his future and it's really not helping our team right now either.
I think this gets back to the ref problem that has plagued us since the effin 90s. Why don't the refs make calls against opposing teams (especially fucking Duke)!?!? Is Duke a more reputable football program than us??? Why do teams like that get to pull shit moves and not get called whereas if ANY one of our guys do anything remotely close...instantaneous yellow. How? How the fuck are able to do it? How the fuck are they able to do it and not get called??? I wanna know. I really want to know.
Okay..conspiracy theory time here...for those of you who aren't interested...avert your eyes
isn't it pretty well known that Frank sends in a review of game film with bad calls to the refs? Does everybody do that? If not, does that mean Frank is one of the only coaches who sends film in to the ref association complaining about bad calls? Do you think that creates a bit of tension among refs? Is it possible that refs call games more in our opponents favor as a big 'middle finger' to Frank since he's always ratting them out?
I mean, refs can't be perfect. They're gonna get calls wrong. That's the nature of the game. Do you think, just maybe, that they feel slighted by Frank sending film to the organization with all their fuck-ups? Wouldn't that make them resent Frank and want to punish him any way they can?
Maybe that's why we get bogus calls against us. Maybe that's why other teams get away with far more than they should.
Maybe we're all just wearing O&M glasses and the officiating doesn't really have any real bearing on the game and we're all just grasping at reasons to justify our team's shortcomings.
There's really no way of knowing. All I do know is that there won't be major changes to the officiating of college football games in the coming years so we better get used to being penalized for doing stuff outside of the rules. If the ref doesn't call the foul our players better keep fighting their tails off until the whistle. Otherwise they just look bad and they'll be ridiculed for it. Man up and play some football. You're not going to get every call. You're also going to get away with stuff every once in a while. It all comes out in the wash. Don't complain and just work your tail off. In the end, you'll win more games with that mentality.
But how long have coaches been allowed to turn in reviews of bad calls? The stripes have been both penalizing and non calling opposing teams since the late damn 90s! O&M shades or not you can't argue that if our TB EVER pulled down an opposing players leading pass rusher or our leading pass rusher buried an opposing QB and waved the finger WE'D get fucking called! How come nobody else does or rarely does? Why is it perfectly ok and acceptable for them to do it and not us?
Every week, all coaches send a list of what they saw as bad/incorrect calls to the ACC. What happens from there, I don't know. Sometimes blatant errors result in some punishment, but I think that is very rare. But this is not a "Frank is doing this and it's pissing us off" thing.
There were a lot of really bad calls/non-calls on us the other night, but I think it gets blown out of proportion when we're having a bad year. I'm sure they missed some to our benefit, too, though I didn't see them and that may be because of my rooting interest.
There are actual studies that show complaints regarding officiating is inversely proportionate to the number of wins a team has. People only talk about officiating when they're losing.
There have been some egregious officiating mistakes this year, just like there are every year. I have noticed no more and no less than I noticed during the years we were winning 10+ games a year. The only game that I thought was particularly notable for poor officiating was ECU.
There's always going to be errors by the officials. But let's be clear: we are not 3-5 because of the officials. We're 3-5 because we are a bad, poorly coached football team.
Indeed. I've had a few gripes, and certainly had some on Saturday evening. But you're 100% right. Good teams overcome those things because they're good enough to win even if everything doesn't go their way.
I agree with you guys. I summed that all up in my last paragraph. I threw the theory out there more as devil's advocate than anything. My last sentence in that post shows my perspective on the topic.
Thanks for the input but you'll understand that I still have unanswered questions.
unfortunately I'm unable to answer your questions. Sometimes I feel like we get hosed by the refs. ECU this year stands out in my mind. But then I remember that probably every team that loses a game every weekend can point to at least one bad call the ref made in the favor of the other team at a "critical" point in the game. I think we all do it. It happens everywhere. I don't really think there is anything special (not special?) about VT as it relates to officiating bias.
I'd volunteer to do the in-depth and extensive research required to figure it out, but in the end I doubt anybody on here would take it seriously. I think someone else (that would be taken seriously) should do it. But again, I doubt that will happen. Maybe one day
In other news, water is wet.
Obviously the winning teams / fans are going to complain less about the conditions that they were victorious in. A bad call in a victory is an annoyance. A bad call in a loss is potentially the reason the team didn't win. And nobody has the time to conduct the necessary study to see whether or not officiating stacks up against any particular team more than others. That would require tracking officiating in every game, and assign an "impact" rating to calls & non-calls, as well as noting whether they were errors or discrepancies.
But like you said, bad calls tend to average out over time and the difference between winning and losing over several years almost always comes down to the overall quality of the team.
I think that is untrue. It may be true for this site and the majority of HN are unwilling. But someday somebody might do it.
So it isn't impossible.
As a ref I assure you, the ACC supervisor of officials is reviewing the game tapes with his staff every week and grading every single snap. Coaches sending in film of plays they'd like a second look at goes all the way down to high school now that Hudl is a thing. This is really really unlikely as an answer, Frank hardly goes off on the officials on the field and seems to interact with them the way we prefer so I wouldn't buy into this one.
Trust me as an official, we are going to watch all of our mistakes and try to learn from them. A coach asking us to look at something isn't going to bother most officials, since it's happening either personally or from the CFO anyway.
Good summary. The most frustrating part of his season is when the defense does enough to win, the offense does not. Against Duke the offense did enough to win, and the defense did not. To me most troubling was Motuapuaka. He generated absolutely no pressure in a blitz. He rarely fought through blockers to make tackles. He gets pancaked on his butt by tailbacks. And he missed an open field tackle on the last play of the game to give Duke the win in OT.
I feel like I see Motuapuaka either over run or get blocked almost every play. Problem is we don't seem to have any one better at this point. I miss Chase Williams.
Me too. When he went down in last year's Pitt game, I anticipated the defense becoming less than its usual self for that season. But I kept telling myself 2015 is the payoff because Motuapuaka would then have the game experiences of the 2014 season. Even Bud Foster gave me hope when he said during the off season that Andrew Motuapuaka has improved as a player. Man, what happened?
I can't place much blame Motuapuaka at all. Every single QB designed run he had to first shed an O-lineman (sometimes was dble teamed), then somebody coming out of the backfield AND THEN get to the QB. By then the QB is past him and he's diving at his heels. With him being the only backer within 5-7 yds of the center, what is he supposed to do? Some adjustments were made and he was able to make some plays, but damn, you cannot expect him to fight through that every single QB draw, that's totally unrealistic.
I think you need to rewatch the first 2 clips, there is no O-lineman for Moto to shed, he simply got taken out of both plays by a RB both times, once even getting sent flying backwards on his butt
Did you watch the film clip above? He gets straight planted by a tailback. No one else comes at him to throw him off balance or anything. The TB comes straight at him and puts him on his butt. I don't ever remember seeing this from Hokie LBs in the past. He has played decent in some games but isn't up to what we have come to expect from Hokie LBs of the past. The game isn't all on him obviously but he doesn't generate any pressure and is easily blocked.
These are hand-picked plays where he SHOULD have made the play. Yes, there were plays where he didn't have multiple blocks to shed to make the play, but there were just as many where he did.
They were hand picked b/c they came at crucial times.
Oh, I forgot that the entire game depended solely on the 4 critical plays highlighted and the rest of the 70-80 snaps were completely meaningless.
How about the last play of the game. He went flying past Duke's QB untouched without even laying a hand on the guy. He just flat out missed. That isn't the first time either.
Exactly my point. ...The above discussion is about the film above in which so much emphasis was placed in the comments that followed. There were plenty more important plays than just the ones that are highlighted above. I totally agree his play hasn't been up to Hokie standards and that he is missing plays that have been made in the past and should be made. But my initial point was that he was put into many situations based on his location the D formation in which he had to fight through numerous blockers to get to the ball carrier (which is good film work/game planning and execution by Duke's O to force that). Sometimes he's going to make the plays and sometimes he won't, doesn't matter who the Mike is.
I'm just getting the vibe from other posters who assume he should be making every potential tackle that comes within 5 yds of him and that' just unrealistic. I agree he missed plays, but there were a ton of other missed opportunities left on the field (see young secondary) that could have prevented us being in your said situation to begin with.
Besides, it should have of no surprise that Duke's QB was going to be a threat to run via set QB runs... He was/is the team's leading rusher, yet he still put up 100+ and repeatedly exploited AM in the middle.
There has to be something between Vince Hall and Moto.
I agree there is plenty of blame to go around, but when a mike LB gets put on his ass by a RB that's a big problem, even the radio broadcasters were talking about how Moto has got to do a better job when being blocked by RBs
FWIW, I agree with what I think you're saying. I do think that AM had a very visibly bad game against Duke. However, when gaps are as big as they were and you got no help against a blocker it generally means your DT got sealed and/or outside OLB got sealed or was sent somewhere else.
We like to trot out the "look at him getting blown up by a RB". Give any blocking RB a 4-5 yard head start and you're going to have a hard time dealing with him. Should AM work on this skill? Absolutely. Does he need to get better at POA? Yes, please.
But I refuse to believe this is one guy of 11 the culprit in these plays. We are getting cut through like butter. When this happens and you are undersized in the LB corps... predictably bad things are going to happen.
"Give any blocking RB a 4-5 yard head start and you're going to have a hard time dealing with him."
Sometimes it happens to the best of them.
The point is that in these situations the Mike has to stonewall that RB and clog up the running lane. Better yet they beat the RB to the spot and avoid the block all together. These are simply crystal clear examples of Moto not getting it done 1v1 against a "weaker position".
Those other situations you refer to aren't relevant because like you said, Moto might not be expected to make a play in those situations. What everyone is seeing is a pattern of Moto not making plays when the opportunity presents itself or the defensive scheme relies on him doing so.
I'm sure he's working his ass off to improve but right now he's simply not effective. Obviously Foster's opinion is that Moto is the best option we have right now. Perhaps he expects that Moto will get more comfortable and more effective with more experience. Perhaps we have only worse / less effective players behind him. Either way I think its fair for the fanbase to try and analyze what's going wrong with our defense (or offense) for that matter.
On the last play, Bud put the players in position to make a play. No one did.
During the Beamer ere, 95% of the time, we would have had a stud LB step up and deliver a crushing hit. A good chance that they hit causes a fumble that gets returned for 2, winning the game.
In years past, we would have guys dish out hard, violent hits. I can't think of a single hit or tackle this year that was delivered with purpose. Not only do we lack the swagger, but we look just damn meek and timid.
Completely agree. Our defense just seems passive this year.
The bright spot is the young guys are hitting. Mook and Adonis have both come up aggressively and smacked somebody a few times. I thought Lydon had that same intensity in his limited playing time as well.
The fact that our secondary is hitting harder than our defensive line or linebackers is a problem though. Our senior leaders on defense have left a lot to be desired unfortunately.
Agreed. Gone is the former Blue Collar mindset with chips on players' shoulders because they were passed up and looked over, but given a chance to flourish at VT. Refer to the "Where are the dogs?" post from last week.. Who are the nasty boys on this team?? Not any dirty plays, but strong hardnosed, I'm gonna knock the snot out of your nose and make you think twice about lowering your shoulder again. This team has lacked this since VH, XA, and KamBam, or even further. Teams don't feel threatened by VT's D anymore. Big hits are contagious. They fire up the rest of the D and resonates to the O as well. I remember the days when the ENTIRE stadium (almost) stood and yelled for every single possession on D because honestly, our D was exciting and fun to watch. Now it's only happening in critical situations. Defense is no longer an event, but just a part of the game at VT.
I can't get the image out of my head of Duke's QB, Sirk, laying on top of Luther Maddy (flat on his back) in the end zone to win the game. There is no way that Sirk should have been able to go one on one with a DT and blow him up like that. That last play of the game was sickening. Bud needs to take the lunch pail back.
Not a bad motivational tactic. Maybe give it to Brewer or Rogers.
I'd absolutely give it to Brewer this week.
For his long drive that kept the defense off the field.
Rogers needs something to carry his hammer around in.
I know I speak for myself and others when I say that we've been spoiled by VT's success on the field over the past 15 years. I was on a plane last night talking to a Baylor alum, and it's night and day seeing where the 2 programs are, from 15 years ago till now. I agree with French; this team just isn't very good. The coaching gaffs and excuses are becoming routine, and the player performances are luke-warm. The guys on the field aren't getting it done; I say "next man up". Get someone in there who is hungry...(I'm looking at you Carson.). I really, really hope we can get to a bowl. But, I also really, really want to see a different product on the field next year. Whit is going to earn his paycheck here in the next 6 months.
A player staying on the ground while the play is still going and looking for a flag? Been seeing that a lot lately.
The recruiting philosophy has changed over the past 5 years and we are more worried about a recruits stars than his heart and passion for the game. I can't remember, if ever we have had such poor play by the inside LB's and I can't believe the guys on the bench can't play better than what we have on the field. If they can't, then I go back to my recruiting statement. This season is pretty much a bust. The bowl streak will end and so will the careers of some coaches.
It would be nice to see Frank say he is retiring after the season now, so we as the Hokie Nation can salute him at the UNC game for everything he has done for our school. He deserves to cheered no matter how this season ends.
You mentioned Tremaine Edmunds as a potential solution. I think it's clear that Motu has had some issues (although he was good from Pitt to Miami). But Deon Clarke seems to have had a significant dropoff this season. He was a key playmaker in the Bear last year, now he's a liability. It's disappointing when you get to a players senior season and look for them to be a leader and they come up empty. Unfortunately, it is not an infrequent occurrence, especially for under-performing programs like VT has become.
After what happened in Miami, I was frankly surprised that Clarke didn't face some kind of punishment. I wouldn't be opposed to either being sat down.
The whole game or his sitting down, bewildered on the critical 3rd down play?
It may be impossible for you to know, but it seemed like Mihota got a lot of snaps in place of Dadi in the 2nd half. Was Dadi hurt or benched? How did Mihota look?
Mihota has a tendency to play with a high pad level, however I thought he was pretty solid, especially against the run. He just doesn't have the edge speed to get around the tackle and then bend inside. That limits him to bull rush or stunting to the inside on X stunts with the DT.
Dadi's play is most vexing. I think everyone realizes that his hand is wrecked. But, his hand isn't the issue when he is running way up field and then not busting his tail to get back into plays, or when he is getting washed inside with ease. For all the grief Ekanem has caught this season (see Summers, James along with Sirk's final 2 point run), I felt like he has been much more stout against the run and better in pursuit than Dadi. He has been targeted much more often because he plays opposite of Maddy and teams are running away from Maddy.
During one play early in the second quarter, Dadi got up real slow and headed to the sidelines to sit on the bench surrounded by a bunch of trainers. After that he was in and out a decent bit.
Am I seeing things or does Motu take a skip/stutter step before he blitzes? He seems to be hesitant when he blitzes, slowing him down and making it easy to pick him up.
I call him bunny, because his first move is a hop. Drives me nuts!
Speaking of Tremaine, he had that big hit on the kickoff return that was probably the hardest hit of the game. As far as Clarke is concerned, I noticed he tries to commit to a play but rather than staying aggressive and attacking its as if he starts trying to then diagnose the play again and becomes timid. I would much rather him commit and stay committed and be aggressive, wrong or right.
The last time so many returning defensive starters regressed was 2012.
Maybe it's time Bud Foster admits that Andrew Motuapuaka is no Cody Grime. But as French pointed out, who on our current roster has the skills and experience to relate Motuapuaka?
I just have to ask this question out loud; since most people agree that Bud Foster is a defensive guru:
"Maybe it's time to adjust the defensive schemes to match what our young players can actually execute during the game?"
*CTRL-F "Alexander"*
17 results
Yuuuup.
French-- How difficult would it be for Foster to go plain vanilla and bring it back to day 1 or year 1 for him? I know the guy loves to be exotic and bring all kinds of looks but when we bring 5-6 and can't even get to the QB why continue to do it?
Frankly, I think the opposite is the issue. Young players have forced him to be vanilla and predictable. The offenses know what is coming and are using formations and motions to get exactly what they want. There was a little bit of shifting against Duke, but I would love to see VT align in Bear and then shift out of it pre-snap, or vice versa. Just give the defense a different look.
I would be willing to bet that if you went back and watched the film, if VT was in Bear, you could count the guys in the box. If it was 6, it was highly likely Sirk was checking to that QB lead. If it was 7 in the box, there would be a pass using some kind of rub. I am sure Bud knew what was coming. Right now, I don't think he has any other options.
This is my thought. I don't think Bud is so stubborn that he wants to run the bear again and again, until it works. I think that, given what he's seen in practices and whatnot, he believes this is our best chance to win a game. Even if that best chance isn't particularly high.
The lack of pre-snap shifting is one thing I have noticed, even as a novice, and have wondered why we aren't trying harder to disguise what we are doing
hmm good take.. didn't think of it that way but it makes a ton of sense. Just re-read some post game stuff from Bud and sounds like the young guys were not even doing the simple things like technique and positioning properly.
Thanks for the response!
Any chance of salvaging anything out of this season rests on the shoulders of the offense. Brewer is going to have to outscore opponents and pray for a critical stop or two by the D to make the difference. I think we're going to see a lot of this type of score down the stretch. Maybe not 45-43, but I see a lot of 31-28 type scores in our future. The difference between 3-9 and 7-5 is in the hands of Scot Loeffler and Michael Brewer.
Yes it is and I think those two are capable of getting it done as long as they don't let Motley get involved in the process. I have no idea why Motley was rotated in during the first half. Especially after Brewer marched the team down for a TD on their opening drive. Motley shouldn't have been coming cold to throw on our 2-pt conversion attempt either.
There were some really, really stupid play calls in that game. I really think Lefty was so intimidated by what they defense looked like on paper that he overthought himself.
Yes there were and the one time he called three straight run plays he doesn't have McMillian in the backfield. Hopefully Trevon has proven himself enough to be in there for more than 5 runs during the first half next week. Even when the play isn't blocked 100% cleanly, he's pushing the pile and gaining 3 to 4 yards each carry.
The reality that I might not see Virginia Tech in a bowl game just set in. This has never happened before for as long as I've been a fan (which, granted, isn't all that long in the grand scheme of things.....but long enough)
Such a strange feeling. Is....is this what UVA fans feel like?
Kind of, except you would feel much more pompous and smug as well.
Also, you might be sporting more formal clothing than the occasion calls for.
It's not really the same thing, as VT is accustomed to going to bowl games.
Maybe we shouldn't have moved Trey Edmunds to running back?
I am 100% convinced that Devin Vandyke would be the mike if he had not messed up his shoulder. That kid was perfectly suited for the position even though he was undersized.
It is a far cry from the anvil mike linebackers like Hall, DelRicco, and Hawkes
100%
BTW, spoke to Ronny and Devin is contemplating a return. Apparently his should is recovering and he may give it a shot. That and $5 will get you a grande machia-whatever at Charbucks
This really is the result of a cascading effect centered around poor recruiting from 09-12. I remember in 2012, Herbstreat was saying "the big question mark is who will be Tech's back this year, they have no one". Most of thought at the time that we always reload on backs, Michael Holmes is going to be just swell.
Offensive recruiting failures forced us to put Trey into an unnatural position. Two years ago it was "who is going to play DE", everyone thought that we always reload on that position so it won't be a factor, Dadi is going to be great (never mind that he is just way undersized).
This spring it was, well we don't have to worry about C J Reevis, we're DBU, we always have the talent.
We lack depth everywhere.
I was watching a few games from the '99 season. It was Sith and Kendrick getting most of the reps, but who was it getting experience during trash time? Lee Suggs. There was a time where our #2 could beat most #1s.
The last 4 seasons have felt like someone has pulled the drain plug.
what a mess>>>>>
Did anyone at the game notice the bench right after that ABSOLUTELY UNCALLED FOR TD run that put Duke up 21-10? I saw Coach Beamer and Coach Foster both sit on a bench by themselves in earnest conversation.
I've been going to games for over 45 yrs and I've never seen that in the middle of the 3rd quarter. Felt weird.
I noticed this too, it really kind of summed up this season for me. I think they are genuinely baffled as to why the players can't execute what they are practicing
So questions to French / other staff members.
1. Seems to me that you're not questioning scheme at all from Bud, but purely execution. You can argue the fact that we have young personnel and whether or not it makes sense to dumb down the defense to compensate for that, but generally speaking, for the down / distance situation, you agree with what Foster calls. That makes me think it's a players fault / execution that the defense is giving up yards and touchdowns all years.
2. Conversely, it seems to me folks are a bit split on offense. Not only are they questioning execution, they are questioning scheme. So that's, for sake of argument, half on players and half on coaches (Lefty). Some schemes are good and help set up other plays (a la 34's big run against NC state), but at times if you run a jet sweep with Rogers in the backfield, you're not fooling anyone.
Is this about accurate?
EDIT: I ask because it seems to me that our O has been hot and cold all year; hot like this past Saturday and against Perdue, and cold a la Pittsburgh. However, our D can't seem to stop anything all year long and has been consistently getting torched.
Ergo, I propose that Bud IS trying to get too cute this year based on how limited we are on D experience / talent wise. Make no mistake, Bud has made wine out of water several times, but he can't expect everyone to execute like they're all 5th year seniors all the time. However, on offense, we expect them to run our offense like they are 5th year seniors ALL the time and if not, expect our coordinator to dumb it down accordingly. Is this just an inherit bias in our Hokie eyes?
I think questions on O are why does our biggest threat on O right now only get 5 touches in the 1st half and why if you're going for 2 (bad call) do you put in Motley? Our personnel usage on O can be a head scratcher and then end of regulation clock management, ouch. But that said, the O did enough to win. We lost primarily because our D couldn't get it done primarily in OT.
1) Not true. I think mixing up the scheme more would help protect some of those weak personnel points. But, when you listen to Bud's comments, if guys can't even get lined up, it makes it difficult to shift, move, adjust, and hide coverage more often when they don't do it correctly when they only do it a few times a game.
It is a delicate balance. Bud's defense is like Paul Johnson's offense. GT can't change everything in one week and start running I formation. Forget about assignments; muscle memory itself just doesn't work like that. The scheme has worked for a long time, and has worked as offenses have changed as Bud makes adjustments. I think the lack of good linebackers has finally caught up. Some haven't panned out. Other recruiting misses (Stephone Anthony) have hurt. Clarke was really the only highly recruited guy in recent years that Bud landed since Bruce Taylor. Minor and Edmunds were well thought of. The book is out on them, but neither are mike LBs.
I mean, look at where Alexander was lined up on that long run. That is nowhere near where he is supposed to be. If you watch that clip, watch Chuck Clark. He's focused on the slot guy and doesn't peak around to check on Alexander as he creeps further and further out of position. If Clark sees him, he probably corrects it (Clark seemed to be directed traffic all afternoon). AA can't be so dependent on Clark at this point in the season. So, yeah, tough to change up the calls a lot when your last line of defense is so frequently misaligned.
Your overall point was that Cutcliffe was on point (on fleek, apparently) with his alignment game. He got Bud where he wanted him to be. That was the feeling in the back of my mind before the game, at halftime and before each OT.....that these coaches just had some time to think about setting up their counterpart and Cutcliffe/Montgomery was going to win that battle.
I absolutely agree with you... We need to seriously recruit some 5-star linebackers over the next few cycles... the lack of quality there is telling....
Mostly joking when I say Joey Slye to Mike. Guy has 5 tackles on the 14 non-touchback kicks this year all around the 25 yard line - Talk about hitting holes aggressively. Plus we've done QB->SS, QB->TE, CB->WR, etc. so why not K->MLB?
He has looked mighty good on KO coverage
That tweet, man... that tweet
That's the look of a man who knows he doesn't have a choice but to ask a living legend to step down at season's end.
They ran that same damn QB keeper up the middle. Even without the benefit of film review I was able to turn to my buddy and say "I think that is the 8th time I've seen that play today."
On offense too, we had to work for every single yard, grinding long drives down the field. It appeared to me that Duke got more big plays and was able to chunk their way downfield. Epitomized by the drive to tie it in the 4th. 2 plays later for Duke they are bombing it out, nearly getting into field goal range with 1 pass play.
I think defensively, the whole does not equal the sum of its parts. We got skill guys on the line underperforming, we got a middle linebacker that is doing his best but is just not good enough to anchor the defense (think Vince Hall, Xavier Adibi, Grimm). And when you are missing a 5 star All-American DB you are going to suffer a big dropoff.
I have always said that Frank should get the chance to play out his last year of his contract. The man is an icon and has built this program. However, looking at the state of things this year and adding it to the last few years, I would not be surprised if he stepped down after this year for the good of the program. Sometimes the king needs to fall on his sword, and I think Frank does that rather than make things ugly.
Don't agree with Bud's Defensive scheme, I was at the game or if you saw on TV he leaves that middle wide open for slants all day. I was calling every 3rd down play "slant to the middle" few seconds later first down Duke. This all or nothing defense is is biting our @SS and I can't figure out why we keep doing it. Is there any college football geniuses out there why we keep sending our outside LB's on blitz on each down and leave Moto to get the ball carrier? Why can't we run a traditional 4-3?
going to take a guess and say we don't have the players that fit the 4-3.. and even if we did changing a defense in 1 week or 2 would be extremely difficult.
but yes getting tired of seeing same results week in week out.
Bud has said a few times he has no interest in teaching a two-gap defense. It is what it is. This is what a system looks like when you don't have players to play the system.
last i looked Baron was 260, Dadi 220... I just don't know how effective these guys can be, specially with Dadi messed up in his hand. Sadly seeing Dadi play with a bad hand makes me thing we'll never see JPP (Giants) play in the league again. But who knows, prayers for JPP.
I'd honestly like to see Baron and Dadi on the same side... and swap these guys either in tandem or in whole with Sobczak and Mihota/other DE name escaping me. Just to see how we do with a bigger package up front.
It seems clear to me that a larger DT might help our MLB. We're not getting that much penetration as is... why not try it?
Too much run support is a feature of Bud's defenses... when you don't have shut down corner with two additional talents playing frequently... the run support looks like the culprit.
Seems like we're close to acommodating for weaknesses... but we might just need some personnel changes to get over the hump.
If we don't get a larger DL, I'd like to see what a specimen like Edumunds would do in the whole. I know he is young but couldn't he handle #29 from Duke?
Great work French- thank you.
Hard to tell, but a lot of this looks like effort and concentration which goes back to coaching. May a little recruiting but mostly coaching.
State of the program
Oof.
It seems like losing Fuller really hurt us in the secondary in terms of coverage and leadership. I doubt Alexander lines up wrong on the speed option play with Fuller in. It seems like the talent is there, it just needs to get over freshman mistakes. It sucks, but that's how it is, they will get better as time goes on.
What really frustrates me is the bizarre personnel decisions on offense. I get it, Motley can run, but if you stick him in just to run, it won't work. If you put him in for two plays that go nowhere, then put Brewer in for the third and long, what can you really expect? Its not doing any good for anyone it seems.
What is the rational for throwing Motley in for two plays? Or for throwing Edmunds in for a third and short when McMillan has been doing well all night?
Watching the Panthers put in Artis-Payne on that third and short near the end of the game, it felt like Lefty snuck in to call a play.
Hey French, long-time TKP follower but first time adding two cents into the conversation. First off, I really appreciate your film reviews, it essentially puts into words what me and my dad talk about during the plays/timeouts every game in Lane.
First, do you see there being any benefit to putting Tremaine and Carson in at the Mike and Will spots the next four games? I know it comes down to experience, but I have not seen this poor of all around linebacking play from the Hokies in the 16 years I have been watching them. The Will LB is supposed to be able to scrape and fit on the majority of those plays and Deon is getting washed out of most plays or ineffectively blitzing off the edge. And I turned to my dad when watching Motu get de-cleated by a running back on another QB draw saying, "This is officially the low point over the past 20 years for the VT defense." The mike, is my experience playing LV, is supposed to plug gaps while trying to rip through blockers and make tackles. Out of the 500 defensive snaps so far this year, I can count on one hand how many times I've seen Motu do that.
I have faith that with Brewer back and five true weapons on offense (McMIllan, Rogers, Ford, Malleck, and Hodges)that the offense can put some points up, but without already looking to next year like most (I don't want to think about another offseason, those are torture), do you think we could benefit by putting those two in at LB to provide a spark for the defense? I know that the young secondary problems won't be solved in a week and DLine isn't going to drastically improve (at least without Marshall fully healthy), but LB's are the lynchpin of the defense and Clarke and Motu just aren't even remotely getting the job done. Their open field tackling is extremely lackluster and I think I have seen two combined form tackles from them combined all year.
Most interesting off all is that Beamer said after the Pitt game that Tremaine would probably get more snaps but hasn't beyond special teams. I know LB is the hardest position to be a Freshman in on defense, but all I want to see is somebody that's willing instead of catching blockers to rip through them and drive a QB/RB off their feet.
Insightful. Forward looking. Thorough. Nicely done on your first post.
When I first started reading I immediately thought your avatar was a self portrait.
I am a firm believer that the best guy should play, always. That is why the Lawson talk is silly. There is nothing that we have seen to suggest that Lawson is better than Motley right now, much less Brewer.
That being said, both Lydon and Edmunds have been impressive on special teams. Both are bigger. Lydon didn't look out of place in a handful of repetitions against ECU. At the very least, if both guys are playing north and south they wouldn't be getting driven out of holes. I will defer to the coaches here, but with Clarke largely ineffective and Motuapuaka having these kinds of games more often than not, a change has to come. This is getting to Lyndell Gibson levels of bad.
Thanks for the encouragement HorseOnATreadmill, and unfortunately my body dimensions are less like Adibi and more like a 10lb lighter version of Cody Grimm with a lot less skill.
Also, I 100% agree with you French on the sentiment of playing the best guy, and I don't watch film or practices like Foster so I really have to trust the guy that gets paid the big bucks to make those calls. But I also believe that while Clarke and Motu have a far better understanding of Foster's schemes, there has to be something said for a guy who wants to get North to South and arrive in a bad manner. Just seems like there are some guys that are natural LB's, and Motu is least natural playing linebacker I personally think we have and engages blockers at a head-scratching rate.
And I have tried to block Lyndell's play out of my mind, or I just tend to get him confused with Barquell Rivers.
But are we to Jake Johnson levels yet?
Poster child for why we can't recruit MLBs.
Not sure if Bud dropping this kid stone cold. Or if it our idiot fans ridiculing him (still). But I promise that both are trotted out before every stud 4-5* LB we try to recruit.
Why bring athletic skills to Tech. You'll get laughed at by their fanbase who has no idea what the MLBs are supposed to be doing. And when the pressure gets too much Bud will drop you like a bad habit. Good luck making the NFL from South Alabama.
Unfortunately, his failure to succeed and Bud's statements that he needs a supremely intelligent, great athlete to play LB in his scheme is a failure of the coach. Also our scheme doesn't translate to the NFL, so why would 4 or 5* athletes want to play for him.
Tremaine Edmunds is a Backer (Clarke's position) and Lydon is a Mike (Moto's position)
Personally I would've started Edmunds over Clarke after Clarke's performance in the Miami game, and especially after his game against Duke. Backer blitz right now goes something like this 1) Clarke runs into a blocker, bounces off, then stands around waiting for the QB to scramble in his direction. Then he gets bulldozed by the blocker.
Even if Edmunds doesn't know where to go or what to do, send him on a run blitz every play. He'd generate more pass rush that Clarke and Moto combined.
Lydon over Moto is tougher call. Moto seems to know what to do.. and he makes plays.. sometimes.. he just doesn't do it consistently. Lydon on the other hand can probably do what a Mike needs to do, but may not be fast enough in reading keys yet, which is just a recipe for being out of position / ineffective. The bigger issue here is both ILBs are playing poorly... really hard to play two freshmen LB's and protect them both with limited roles. One guy you might be able to cover for.
Deon Clarke is the best LB'er we have ever had at knocking down passes. But I think he's fallen in love with this tactic. Seems he often hesitates on his blitzes to read the QB and time his jump.
Here's the other side of that coin...if 3 freshmen can't get lined up on defense, what happens when we have 5 of them in there?
Assuming you mean Mike and Backer. Tremaine would be a waste at the WHIP spot with how infrequently we use it.
Simply exploited our weaknesses, young secondary and linebackers. If the teams ahead were smart they would do the same thing.
"the body language of Tech's young defensive backs is palatable"
Not to me....in fact, it left quite a bad taste in my mouth
I was baffled by Bud's inability to adjust to the 3rd down crossing route. I don't know what he was doing running delayed blitzes with Motuapuaka. Motu was never going to get there in time, and it seems like he knew it; half of the time, he just kind of hung out behind the Dline hoping he could jump and bat something. Dropping him into the short zone would have at least given Sirk something to think about about, but we almost never did that.
Awesome analysis as usual.
What if the coaches already know that Beamer is being pushed out this year and Bud is sabotaging the team because he's not happy about it? (/s)
But he wasn't likely going to get pushed out until they started losing consistently.
The cold truth is -------> THERE IS NO ANSWER TO THIS NIGHTMARE.....
Personel changes are moot --> maybe get a young guy experience for the future but....
BETTER results? Likely NOT. The talent is WEAK.
How many teams have we faced that had a bye the week before?
If DFrye could handle the coverage, why hasn't he been playing? Same with Riley? We have guys who know where to line up and how to play. AA and Terrell aren't much better. AA had a couple of games go well, but he's otherwise been exposed. Are we going potential over tried and true? Maybe I'm missing something.
Frye was a liability the first couple of games. In a handful of plays against Purdue, Frye got toasted twice. Meanwhile Alexander had a standout game. As the season moves on, Alexander has to stay mentally tough and work on improving every week. Otherwise, Frye may be starting again soon.
Anyone else have the feeling this was the game that gave us a shot to make a bowl? I hope the team fights like hell in every remaining game but I just can't see us beating GT or UNC given our defensive struggles.