2019 Texas Defense

[BabaYaga 15,374]

[Bodacious Bevo 3,612]

20 hours ago, GoldAppleCorps said:

Orlando's D uses the defense's main (practically only) advantage to its maximum - the fact that they don't have to be set at the snap!

OC's like to sit up high and read the defense. They radio down to the sideline, hand signals (or other bizarre placards) occur, the QB makes a check, and the play is run. Orlando likes to set his line up, then wait and have everybody run someplace else! The QB is left on his own to figure it out looking across the LOS at a bunch of facemasks. It's almost impossible to do on the fly!

Now, imagine you're the Center, trying to set your protection or scheme. There's a large DT right in front of you (0-tech), or staggered just off your shoulder (1-tech). Outside of that, there's just a bunch of motion. Are those Safeties spun down to blitz? LB's? Is a DE at the 4i-tech? Why are 3 players over the same gap? Should we slide protect? Keep the RB in or swing? Bring the TE in tight? Ack! Everyone moved again!

When everyone on the field, except the biggest and strongest, is capable of playing sideline to sideline, you can do this sort of stuff. It doesn't matter if they're playing against an OT. They just run around him, or occupy him so their buddy can flash by. It's the same concept as the spread offense, just on defense. The difference is, if the opponent gets it wrong, they get to hear "Texas Fight!" played.

"Take the shortest route to the (ball). Arrive in ill humor." -Bobby Clarke (sort of)

This might be common knowledge at this point, but the Super Bowl was a perfect example of the impact that this can have. 

The Pats D waited until the McVay's mic in Goff's helmet cut off with 15 seconds left on the play clock to get set in their defense. Without McVay to help him, Goff was pretty bad and the Rams offense put up 3 points. 

[BonzoMontreaux 1,114]

Going to be interesting to see how this year's unit plays out.  I just want to make it through the year without seeing seniors getting suspended.  

[Goodman 3,274]

8 hours ago, HOOK'EMHOOAH said:

D'Shawn Jamison is gonna bring a lot of athleticism to the defensive backfield. If he's not starting at some point, I expect him to be the first player off the bench for one of the corner spots.

He's not reached his ceiling yet but he's a bad ass and will be on the field a lot this year.

[runthebone 8,134]

On 7/25/2019 at 6:59 AM, Thetexashammer said:

Foster, Sterns, and Jones sounds like a law firm. A scary, pipe hitting law firm.

The Texas Hammer would know

 

[LTtxfan 49,405]

Thx to @Machinator for this recent IT info:

DEFENSE 

WE SMARTER, Y'ALL. 

The Texas defense lost a lot of experience (only three returning starters, however shall we cope?) but gained Football IQ on the second and third levels of the defense. 

At linebacker, Joseph Ossai and Jeffrey McCulloch are intelligent football players. When your two primary linebackers can digest game plans, it opens up options for the staff. The best counter to modern offenses putting players into conflict isn't telling your players what to do pre-snap, come hell or high water. It's creating flexibility within your structure so that they have agency to counter the offense in real time. 

If you make a study of the B-Backer/Rover relationship (or Mike/Rover/Nickel when we go Dime) in Orlando's preferred schemery, it involves a great deal of communication and cohesion between the athletes to know who is attacking which gap, who is dropping, and what offensive sets might trigger "automatics" (meaning, when the offense lines up in X formation and that guy motions, we know what's coming - y'all jump it). I will not besmirch the old LB corps as they gave their best for Texas, but Wheeler and Johnson, whatever the starting experience lost, were players best pointed in a direction pre-snap and told to go. Ossai and McCulloch offer intellectual flexibility and, despite their size, some athletic flexibility to go with it (both have a knack for dropping into passing lanes, for example). 

At safety, Texas returns their backfield brain in Brandon Jones (who missed four games last year and was hobbled in more) while sophomores BJ Foster and Caden Sterns will actually know what the hell is going on in the broader defense and not just rely on instinct anymore. An overlooked subtle asset is Chris Brown, who understands multiple spots and has coach-on-the-field attributes. Texas is smarter back there. The other benefit of a surfeit of safeties is that when you play them all (Dirty Dime time), you can actually narrow responsibilities for the guys you want near the ball (Foster, Overshown) freeing them to play fast and wreck things while giving more agency to third level players like Sterns and Jones who excel at covering ground and QB mind-f'ing. On field Football IQ goes up right along with team speed and quickness. 

As for cornerback, Cook and Green are green, but does anyone think they have less situational awareness than Boyd and Davis? 

DL IN AGGREGATE

No individual player will be better than Charles Omenihu next year. But our defensive structure rewards aggregate play. Breckyn Hager was not ideal for the defense last year (injury related, attribute related) and his gap shooting only creates structural weakness if he can't garner 8 sacks and 16 tackles for loss to make up for the holes and overrun he created in the front. Chris Nelson was a stud against interior runs, but teams simply learned to double him or run away, except for the stubborn fools who ran at him on 4th and 2. He was a non-factor against the pass. 

In aggregate, the 2019 DL can match the effective production from last year while also creating the necessary infrastructure at the line of scrimmage to allow Texas to "go small" (if playing a bunch of safeties who weigh between 200-215 is small). What do I mean by effective production? Remember, Poona Ford's numbers (31 tackles, 8 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks) were just whatever as a senior. Poor statistical production. But his film and game impact? Man. He was the Big 12 DL of the Year for a reason. 

The keys are Roach and Graham being the classic 4i's that Orlando covets - stout enough to hold up against north south runs, but agile and hyper enough to be a problem in pursuit, extending outside zone runs to the sideline, providing enough pocket constriction to force the QB off of his spot and into the arms of the blitzing Ossai, Foster or McCulloch. Coburn and Wilbon should tag team the nose position sufficiently splitting snaps to roughly reproduce Nelson and I expect pass rushing packages on clear passing downs. Behind them, we have options. Jacoby Jones is an intriguing situational pass rusher who has a knack for getting to passers. Bimage can be Hagerish and give us some juice. Ojomo looked solid in the spring. Carson is already showing run stopping ability. 

[LTtxfan 49,405]

Also great IT info from @Machinator  

Joe Cook covered Todd Orlando's comments at the recent Texas High School Football Coaches Association meeting and they were revealing about how he feels about his defense and how it will be deployed. They are also very useful for assuaging sporadic fits of board paranoia that our starting defense will be a virtual base 4-3 with BJ Foster sitting on the bench and McCulloch, Ossai and Adeoye manned up on slot receivers and running backs. 

Let's tackle some key comments and I'll help you interpret the smoke signals:



Orlando gave a positive example rather than asking: "So y'all think we'll miss our Mike LB?" This is the underlying thesis of my 2019 season preview. We get way too attached to familiar starters and names and too often confuse tenure with talent. Longhorn media amplify that sense of loss by building up players that were replaceable. Did Texas lose 8 starters on defense? Sure. Outside of Charles Omenihu, how many will be missed? Did we downgrade, upgrade or push within our preferred schemes and what the defense actually wants to do out there with our new personnel? 

Orlando commented on the LBs:

Adeoye's "had a great summer." Jeff McCulloch a "veteran presence" Ossai "has played outside and can play inside" We have a lot of flexibility in this package, especially at the second level. 

Ossai will see snaps inside in certain defenses in certain situations and against certain offensive packages. We've always done this with the B-Backer and will continue to do so. Oddly, it was actually when Naashon Hughes was at his best. It should be noted that Ossai is pretty fluid and has a knack for getting good leverage on OL. As for Adeoye, "had a great summer" is a coaching platitude conveying hard work and effort. Adeoye has a role, but it's narrow - situationally and by opponent. McCulloch is as described and his on field IQ will be key in setting our front. 



 

 

Defensive scheme tip alert! How are we getting more team speed on the field? Hint: rhymes with wayfties. Like most defensive coaches, Orlando uses quickness and speed interchangeably. The last line is also telling: he doesn't know how it will come together until he sees guys play. Meaning, he thinks he knows what he wants to do (play lots of DBs), but needs live fire to test his assumptions. He wants to gauge players like Josh Thompson, Overshown, Adeoye against more conventional offenses, the back up DL, Coburn, Chris Brown. Orlando is going best 11 and within a scheme that is an aggregate determination created by the play of all units - not just one guy competing with another on the depth chart at a specific position. Think expansively. We can't play much dime (6 DBs) on normal downs if Roach-Coburn-Graham and Ossai-McCulloch don't kick ass against conventional runs. Similarly, we don't know where to slot BJ Foster (Joker, Nickel) if Thompson doesn't show substantial growth from last year. It's all interrelated. 

 

He's talking about the fact that Graham has a 700 pound squat, among other things. I'm high on Graham and Roach at the DE position and I believe they can be better than the Omenihu/Hager combo last year. Given that I love Omenihu, read between the lines. Don't underestimate how assets like Bimage, Carson, Jones, Ojomo factor in here as well. 20 hard plays from a quality back up is a big asset in this defense. 

 

Orlando at his most unguarded. He knows his ideal defense needs an interior disruptor a la Poona Ford because of the trickle down of benefits it creates. Space eaters have limited value. How many hard plays can Keondre go in a game? I'd reckon 40 until the weather changes and he gets friskier in 50-60 degree temps The reason Coburn is special isn't size. It's his first step. If anything, size has been a detriment to employing that quickness consistently.

 

If we needed a club over the head to get the point, this is the final takeaway and it's tied inextricably to his earlier quote about team speed. He's telling you what's coming. Todd Orlando is a smart guy who can hold multiple ideas in his head at once. He knows where the special players and the best depth on this team reside. His job is to integrate them into his defense and find work for the best athletes on the team. 

[USMCHorn 1,369]

Basically Orlando's saying that the 3-2-6 or "lightning" package may be where Texas achieves the "Best 11" on the field principle as opposed to the 3-3-5 or 3-4-4 schemes. Between the talent available on the defense and the schemes offenses in the Big XII use, I say he's right. The question he needs answered is can the 3-2-6 stop the run. 

[LTtxfan 49,405]

15 minutes ago, USMCHorn said:

Basically Orlando's saying that the 3-2-6 or "lightning" package may be where Texas achieves the "Best 11" on the field principle as opposed to the 3-3-5 or 3-4-4 schemes. Between the talent available on the defense and the schemes offenses in the Big XII use, I say he's right. The question he needs answered is can the 3-2-6 stop the run. 

Good stuff.... I like that Texas has enough flexibility in defensive personnel that they can delay lining up until ball is about to be snapped.  This really screws up offenses that like to get early pre-snap reads and then have their coaches signal in changes to try to counter what the defense is about to do.

Was funny as hell that New England defense did a similar thing to Rams in Superbowl.... waited till McVay's mike was off each play (last 15 seconds of play clock)  before lining up and daring Goff to figure out what the hell the Patriots defense was gonna do. 

Goff had to feel like "What the fuck ?"  😁

Edited July 27, 2019 by LTtxfan

[markstanco 12,653]

Can somebody confirm that hagar is gone?

[Walden Ponderer 12,639]

11 minutes ago, markstanco said:

Can somebody confirm that hagar is gone?

Affirmative. Went the way of BC, Tumbleweeds, and Peanuts.

[markstanco 12,653]

Affirmative. Went the way of BC, Tumbleweeds, and Peanuts.

Are you sure? I hope you are correct.

[Walden Ponderer 12,639]

Just now, markstanco said:

2 minutes ago, Walden Ponderer said:

Affirmative. Went the way of BC, Tumbleweeds, and Peanuts.

Are you sure? I hope you are correct.

I promise on the graves of Mary Worth, Belle Starr, and Frank and Earnest.

[markstanco 12,653]

I promise on the graves of Mary Worth, Belle Starr, and Frank and Earnest.

Okay I hope so. A retarded straight line running LB not coming back seems like a positive.

[LTtxfan 49,405]

11 hours ago, markstanco said:

Can somebody confirm that hagar is gone?

Nope.... Not Gone

4.6 out of

1. 

[SA-KC_Horn 1,296]

18 hours ago, USMCHorn said:

Basically Orlando's saying that the 3-2-6 or "lightning" package may be where Texas achieves the "Best 11" on the field principle as opposed to the 3-3-5 or 3-4-4 schemes. Between the talent available on the defense and the schemes offenses in the Big XII use, I say he's right. The question he needs answered is can the 3-2-6 stop the run. 

Alligator roles work, duh.