LOL, many times my dad, brother and I would sit in the living room with the radio on listening intently to every play. I remember fond moments sitting on the end zone bleachers watching Spurrier throw to Casey. Fun times. We have been in the valley many years but Spurrier turned things around. It's great at the top and most want to get back there. Sadly, I'm beginning to get a little afraid that we are headed for who knows how long back to the middle of the pack for awhile. Georgia is Georgia. UT has one heck of a coach and UK has vastly improved. I know we will get some good recruits coming in next year but they will be raw. And if this scheme doesn't change, we're in for another ugly year. Question then will be, will new recruits have faith in coaches who seem to flunk at coaching D?
We were close to losing the usf game this year. Keep in mind it is highly likely the team had already checked out by the time Samford rolled around. Some have even said DM started to take over the D prior to that game, but I have no way of verifying that. This year, we have a new coach, new motivation, but still showing zero progress. Yes, I agree, last years D was bad, but not nearly as bad as this year.
Bingo! And how many 3 and outs have we gotten? Not many. And how many punts in the last 3 games? Maybe 3. But it's "correctable".
We have less talent than last year believe it or not. Like I mentioned in another thread, we lost 3 of 4 DL starters (Carter, Valentino and Newkirk), a first round draft pick in Kaiir, another starter in Diabate and arguably the best defender we had in Hopper. We needed to get a few bodies from the portal and we whiffed. That’s what you’re seeing.
Let's compare apples to apples, though. By the Sanford game, Mullen and the coaches had checked out. The whole team could feel it. If you compare our numbers the first 6 games of last season with the first 6 games of this season...there is no comparison...this defense is worse.
I agree with you that the defense is worse. I think we disagree as to why. I’m just answering the question about how bad we are. We forget last year’s defense couldn’t stop the same counter play from LSU. So worse in talent yes, but not worse in want to or ability to learn.
So what’s the answer? Half the things I read don’t seem to be true. We have different guys blowing assignments. We have rotated a lot. We have tried both man and zone.
Do you think Watson should be a starter? Do you think Dean would be playing if we had a viable option at safety right now? Do you think Cox and Gervon are playing like 5 stars? Do you think Ventrell has the athletic ability to be successful in the NFL? Do you think Gervon getting 50-60 snaps a game is by design? To answer your question, we aren’t talented enough to overcome players playing undisciplined ball and it seems to happen every play. When DEs are spinning in when they’re supposed to set the edge, when safeties are biting on window dressing instead of playing their assignments, when LBs can’t shed a block, what do you attribute it to?
We are very lucky to be 4-3. We could easily be 1-6. I understand that the talent level and, maybe, football IQ are not at the level that it should be. However, I watch some of the military academy games. Those guys are not the most talented but they play disciplined ball. It's how they are coached. Do your job. I bet they would force a punt before the fourth quarter. At this point, I'm willing to forego this season and treat it like a long spring. Find out which guys (younger or older) will play disciplined ball and which ones don't want to buy in. The thrill may be worth the squeeze in the long run for Gator football.
Talent wise the defense isn’t that bad. Maybe they don’t get the new scheme? Can’t really say. Some have brought up the 2007 team and the big improvement they made in 2008. That 2007 team was full of future NFL Draft picks who just happened to be babies that year. Is that what we are seeing with this year’s team? Are these same guys going to blow up big time next year and parlay that into high NFL Draft selections? Tough question to answer right now but I don’t see “dominant” in the cards for this bunch
We aren’t going to be dramatically better (maybe incrementally) next year on the backend of the defense in 3rd and long situations without a heavy dose of front 7 players SEC game ready with physical maturity not stats awarded to HS athletes. Even very good secondaries don’t hold up to constant barrages of passes if the front 7 can’t generate consistent QB pressure (see bama vs ut)
What I cannot understand is why hasn't Billy Napier himself done any thing NOTICEABLY good to change the defensive scheme? On 3rd and 8 were pictured on Twitter with our DBs like 10 yards off the receivers. That is inexplicable. Our Safeties are missing in action... expecting the DBs to chase the receivers all the way into the endzone? That is pure garbage scheming. We don't have the DTs to compete against the UGAs in our conference but we have the talent on defense to beat every team we've play so far this year. Our DC is not ready for the SEC... Napier has to change that up NOW, not at the end of the year.
Defense is partially strength. Partially talent. Mostly its about cohesive grouping. At some point you just get that group that plays without fear. That group that senses each other. Recruit all the 4/5 stars all you want but i would recruit teammates that choose to excel for others.
All depends on what they are being told to do at the snap, and distance to first, right? Didn’t hill get his two picks from sitting back deep but not immediately bailing? Kimber did the same for his.
