Hey PK -- What would you say you do here?

[pacman 7,508]

17 minutes ago, Codaxx said:

Defense lacks playmakers. There are some good players on defense, but not playmakers. Ford has been solid there, but there isn’t a playmaker in the secondary or DL. 

Agree, it boils down to this.

Further compounding the issue, both units lack depth to rest starters and keep them fresh while also still adding value to the defense/offense.

The defense played tremendous last night but we got nothing from Buck/Jack against very good/experienced tackles. Zero TFLs or Sacks against an offense that requires you to stack negative plays.

After the tenure ended with Brown, and we moved on from Strong and Brown, we knew the roster was in shambles. We didn't have talent. Sark fixed that in most places this year. We still don't have depth, so we lose Junior and Neyor at positions we can't afford to lose talent and depth.

2023, we should have both talent and depth though we will still be a very young team. I still expect to be in the conference championship game next year.

Edited December 30, 2022 by pacman

[TwiceHorn 32,079]

For all our talk about out-talenting other teams, I still have this niggling feeling that we're operating with a bunch of sort of random 4-stars, acquired without much regard for scheme or roster fit, along with some poor development.

On the defense, it seemed pretty plain that we rotated in a lot of fairly subpar players, as noted above, to keep them fresh.  It does seem, however, that suboptimal rotations may have been on the field at inopportune times.

[Bobby_Batronic 1,994]

1 hour ago, TwiceHorn said:

So, what do we blame it on when the team plays a pretty solid overall game but just blows it on a handful of plays that cost us the game?

Coaching?  Talent?  Just being headfucked?

We have no margin on our roster, and often between our headsets. Games rest on a handful of plays because we tend to not win the majority of the rest of them .

1 hour ago, Laxtonto said:

Part of the “can’t get off the field on critical downs” is less scheme and more of a jimmy and joes problem.

We get killed on 3rd and 4th downs because when it comes to critical plays, most offenses has more dynamic guys that can win a one on one matchup than we have defenders that can lock someone down. We had a walk-on playing key downs off and on this season on D. Last year we had a statue at LB playing because he was still better than the other junk on the roster.

We are woefully weak at LB and EDGE and Safety is a concern. 2 more solid players at any of those 3 positions and the outcome of many of those critical downs swing the other way. 
 

We saw it last night with UW. When they absolutely needed a play we didn’t quite have enough true talent to overcome what they have on the field.

 

I will say this though, safeties weren’t as bad last night than earlier in the season.

 

PK did a great job this year, but next year I expect more. Year 3 for him and he should now have more of the type of guys he needs for his system.

Part of it is roster. But we gave up more than our fair share of 3rd and longs and 4th and mediums over the course of the year after winning the prior 2-3 downs. Situations where easy pick plays or dives up the middle against a spread defense don’t cut the mustard. 

 

PK did a great job at times this year. Something happened about KSU where our style of defense and a effectiveness went up a couple of notches. 

He still has a penchant for inane substitution practices, inappropriate situational defenses and trotting out ineffectual players en masse only to get abused for it. 

He shows promise, but lacks yin to his yang imoho. Someone to make him consistently right in the back end, and maybe someone above both of them to suggest that trotting DTD, Bush and Broughton in on 2nd and medium to short is not a winning strategy. 

The latter is a Sark function, and one he seems to need himself as Sark the OC makes some decisions that should have Sark the HC overriding.

[Loch Ness Monster 3,533]

Defense had no one that put the fear of God into an offense.

 

[bschoolprof 6,343]

We've improved from being a terrible defense to an average one, and at times above average. So PK deserves some credit there. 

Our biggest playmaker weakness is obviously at edge rusher - no amount of coaching is going to fix that. LB is shaky too.  

I was at the game last night and could see the whole field.  We do not play pass defense well at all. And it's not just talent. The writeup above about Lake handling the backend at Washington with PK being the front guy makes a ton of sense and might explain some of our issues. In zone, there's really poor (like no?) pattern matching. In man, we play soft bail so much, even in downs/distances that make no sense.  There were several 3rd and longs last night where easy, pitch and catch comeback routes were wide open because our guys were so far off.  A guy behind me must have read my mind and said "there's the comeback again for another easy completion." That's a scheme issue that directly contributes to us being unable to get off the field on money downs.  

Sadly though, PK and the defense  aren't really the bigger problem right now.  The offense is fucked, and has been for several games.  Still, even if Sark unfucks the offense at some point, two seasons in, PK strikes me as the kind of guy that's gonna lose some close games for you. I just don't see him building the kind of defense you need to win the SEC.

[HtownHorn 15,236]

8 hours ago, Codaxx said:

No idea. That is the great mystery of sports. Some teams just find ways to win (TCU this year). I wish I could put a finger on it, because I would have emailed the AD and figured this out 8 years ago 

Experienced college football players consistently make plays. This team was far from that.

[ousux 5,639]

Pass defense has been and still was an issue last night, and I honestly don't know if it's a coaching or personnel issue...but it's one that needs to be fixed before next season.

Maybe it was just me, but Jaylon Ford didn't seem like much of a factor last night. Seems he was much better with Overshown beside him? If he indeed chooses to declare for the draft it's because he has a feeling his stock won't be higher this time next year, and he may be right.

[LTtxfan 50,005]

Washington QB Michael Penix Jr. defeated the middle of Texas' defense

Joey Hickey        December 31, 2022 

Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. had a strong performance against Texas. His second half put the game out of reach.  The Huskies did a masterful job of spacing the field. As a result, Penix found wide open receivers all game.

The Washington signal caller feasted over the middle. He completed 18 of 19 passes in the middle of the field on attempts that traveled less than 10 yards. If that sounds familiar, it’s because Texas has been beat like that before.

The Longhorns struggles to defend shallow passes over the middle cost them against the Texas Tech Red Raiders earlier this year. Against a defensive coordinator like Pete Kwiatkowski, you’re not going to get many downfield chunk plays. You’re going to have to consistently complete short passes over and over. Penix executed to perfection.

Kwiatkowski had a great season for Texas. Opposing teams are going to score less points than they would against another defense as the Longhorns limit damage. However, Kwiatkowski’s group will need to find a way to disrupt to get stops late in games.

 

⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆

NO SHIT PK's group needs to get better defending passes over the middle... 🙄

[Bobby_Batronic 1,994]

On 12/30/2022 at 6:10 PM, ousux said:

Pass defense has been and still was an issue last night, and I honestly don't know if it's a coaching or personnel issue...but it's one that needs to be fixed before next season.

Yes. It’s both.

We have one LB who is competent at tackle football.

That’s still the case heading into the spring unless the portal delivers.

We also don’t play great zone defense or challenge receivers much inside as a matter of practice. Part is personnel, part is philosophical. 

It’s pretty clear to me that PK needs someone to make him right in the secondary, and someone above him to keep him on the straight and narrow with regard to calling situationally appropriate defenses. 

I understand that UDub probably presented the best offensive personnel we saw outside of TCU and Bama, but I don’t understand our reluctance to challenge them more on defense. Playing more aggressive coverages and attacking in the front 7 yielded good defensive performances against both of those opponents, and had rewarded us well starting in Manhattan. 

Actually sacking Penix had been nigh impossible this season, but there are advantages to getting him off his spot and making him throw under duress.

 

[Had Enough 2,120]

We still can’t get off the field on 3rd and 4th down, and do things like trot out Broughton, Bush and DTD as a package. Ford had an off night, likely because the Washington coaches involved themselves directly, and we had nothing at LB in addition to our ends being owned and our DB’s consistently giving up extra chain moving yardage on money downs.  
We played pretty darn good defense for about a quarter and a half. And then it was the usual shit that got us beat 4 other times this year combined with the offense doing much of the same. A competent opponent will do that to you, and ask you the questions you couldn’t answer during the season. We still didn’t have answers. Some of that is roster issues, some of that is stubbornness and some of that is poor evaluation in all three phases last night. 

UW long TD run was Broughton, Gbenda, and Ford just fyi. There is no Broughton, DTD, and Bush package. We don’t really run packages much. We sub to rest or adjust. Broughton got his butt blown into Gbenda and Ford blocked himself after taking a false step after a QB with less than 100 yards rushing. Ford had an another off night because the Dline probably had their worst/least effective game. Oline to the 2nd level a lot. No negative plays. That ain’t just DEs but DTs. Also, take it for what it’s worth but DTD was the highest graded run defender by PFF.

UW had a good offense. A good line. Capable players all over. A veteran QB with some talent. They simply won at the LOS.

Penix missed open WRs otherwise they probably score a TD early. Some of “playing pretty darn good defense” was lack of execution. Penix had quite a few incompletions but damn if he wasn’t on target on 3rd and 4th.

Now, if you didn’t notice all 4 CFP teams scored in the 40s. So please point out their roster issues, stubbornness and poor evaluation.

[Bobby_Batronic 1,994]

39 minutes ago, Had Enough said:

UW long TD run was Broughton, Gbenda, and Ford just fyi. There is no Broughton, DTD, and Bush package. We don’t really run packages much. We sub to rest or adjust. Broughton got his butt blown into Gbenda and Ford blocked himself after taking a false step after a QB with less than 100 yards rushing. Ford had an another off night because the Dline probably had their worst/least effective game. Oline to the 2nd level a lot. No negative plays. That ain’t just DEs but DTs. Also, take it for what it’s worth but DTD was the highest graded run defender by PFF.

UW had a good offense. A good line. Capable players all over. A veteran QB with some talent. They simply won at the LOS.

Penix missed open WRs otherwise they probably score a TD early. Some of “playing pretty darn good defense” was lack of execution. Penix had quite a few incompletions but damn if he wasn’t on target on 3rd and 4th.

Now, if you didn’t notice all 4 CFP teams scored in the 40s. So please point out their roster issues, stubbornness and poor evaluation.

Sigh. Yes. I know we don’t have “packages.”  We just like to make improbable substitutions of ineffective players in numbers. Often placing one ineffective player behind or beside another. DTD and Bush were manning the middle quite a bit together. If it was Glenda behind Broughton then so what? The names are wrong but the point is not. DTD grading out best against the run isn’t saying much. I didn’t see anyone actually filling many holes outside of Jerrin Thompson. 
 

Clearly UDub’s offense is legit. That wasn’t a question. Our deployment of personnel against them and overall keep them in front of us strategy was. Our DT’s looked pretty average rushing straight against their OL. It’s something we find ourselves doing a lot instead of playing some line games and giving guys angles and opportunity. You can’t do either to exclusion of the other, and we spent a goodly portion of the night doing the former despite the entire back half of the season suggesting that it and our sit and let them cut us to death approach wasn’t our best path to success on defense. 
 

I can’t speak intelligently about the rosters of the 4 playoff teams. I can’t name more than a handful of players off of any one team other than TCU. So I can’t sit there and point out the inanities of each particular staff. But you’re kidding yourself if you don’t think that some of their coaching dogmas, personnel favorites or tendencies didn’t contribute to the offensive fireworks in addition to plain old execution and lack thereof. 

And some of it is full participation, no holds barred, do or die playoff football where crazy things can happen, and often do in spades once that can of worms is opened.

Show me someone who thinks it’s not an issue in every program and that the playoff contenders are doing it all right and I’ll show you a coach too busy patting himself on the back to think critically about the game at a hand. 

Alabama had trouble running the ball this year and last, and Nick Saban kept a butt chinned moron as his OC. They’re in the middle of the greatest run of college football ever btw. I’m sure their fans can point to bad evaluations by even that staff. And legitimately so despite having more MNC’s in the last decade than we have conference titles dating back John Mackovic and beyond. 

[Had Enough 2,120]

Sigh. Yes. I know we don’t have “packages.”  We just like to make improbable substitutions of ineffective players in numbers. Often placing one ineffective player behind or beside another. DTD and Bush were manning the middle quite a bit together. If it was Glenda behind Broughton then so what? The names are wrong but the point is not. DTD grading out best against the run isn’t saying much. I didn’t see anyone actually filling many holes outside of Jerrin Thompson. 
 
Clearly UDub’s offense is legit. That wasn’t a question. Our deployment of personnel against them and overall keep them in front of us strategy was. Our DT’s looked pretty average rushing straight against their OL. It’s something we find ourselves doing a lot instead of playing some line games and giving guys angles and opportunity. You can’t do either to exclusion of the other, and we spent a goodly portion of the night doing the former despite the entire back half of the season suggesting that it and our sit and let them cut us to death approach wasn’t our best path to success on defense. 
 
I can’t speak intelligently about the rosters of the 4 playoff teams. I can’t name more than a handful of players off of any one team other than TCU. So I can’t sit there and point out the inanities of each particular staff. But you’re kidding yourself if you don’t think that some of their coaching dogmas, personnel favorites or tendencies didn’t contribute to the offensive fireworks in addition to plain old execution and lack thereof. 

And some of it is full participation, no holds barred, do or die playoff football where crazy things can happen, and often do in spades once that can of worms is opened.
Show me someone who thinks it’s not an issue in every program and that the playoff contenders are doing it all right and I’ll show you a coach too busy patting himself on the back to think critically about the game at a hand. 
Alabama had trouble running the ball this year and last, and Nick Saban kept a butt chinned moron as his OC. They’re in the middle of the greatest run of college football ever btw. I’m sure their fans can point to bad evaluations by even that staff. And legitimately so despite having more MNC’s in the last decade than we have conference titles dating back John Mackovic and beyond. 

Sorry, I was not aware that you knew we didn’t have packages since you said we did and then mentioned specific players.

Yes, I agree that all staffs do questionable shit. They all play favorites. They have preferences.
Just like the fans. They also know what they expect on a given play, know what kind of effort is given, etc.

UW threw shit at us in the manner you referenced about the CFP teams. Flea flicker on the first play? When have you ever seen that? Go for it on 4th from your own 30? That’s common. UW was playing to win just like the CFP participants.

I guess I’ll just always be amazed that everybody in the country has loads of depth that kicks ass or that starters that play every damn play. Even though that’s never really been the case and probably less so with the Portal.

[Bobby_Batronic 1,994]

41 minutes ago, Had Enough said:

 

Sorry, I was not aware that you knew we didn’t have packages since you said we did and then mentioned specific players.

Yes, I agree that all staffs do questionable shit. They all play favorites. They have preferences.
Just like the fans. They also know what they expect on a given play, know what kind of effort is given, etc.

UW threw shit at us in the manner you referenced about the CFP teams. Flea flicker on the first play? When have you ever seen that? Go for it on 4th from your own 30? That’s common. UW was playing to win just like the CFP participants.

I guess I’ll just always be amazed that everybody in the country has loads of depth that kicks ass or that starters that play every damn play. Even though that’s never really been the case and probably less so with the Portal.

 

Package was simply a way to describe what we were doing. 
 

Seeing a flea flicker early in the game where a defense is jacked to stop the run is a semi normal occurrence. Often in big games whether they be in a bowl or not. They’re going for it was brilliant. Shift around a bunch to convince us they’re just bluffing and then pull the trigger near the end of the play clock. Who does that? A smart as F coordinator. It might have even been an option. The bluff is on unless we get them to shift to this. 
 

Everybody plays to win. Some just don’t abide by the unwritten gentlemen’s agreements about the game. 
 

As for you last point…Texas is the perpetual rebuild. Lots of stars attached to recruits, but never seemingly the ability to stack meaningful contributors. At least not since before Mack packed it in as a recruiter 2/3s of the way through his tenure. 
 

Next year is the same. OL will be better. Probably QB and TE too. Definitive step back at RB, but that’s understandable. DT and CB are good. Special teams should be fine.  WR? Edge? LB or S?  Better be a portal hero or unusually ready frosh. Someone will probably develop too, but nobody has been flashing at those spots. 
 

[Had Enough 2,120]

 
As for you last point…Texas is the perpetual rebuild. Lots of stars attached to recruits, but never seemingly the ability to stack meaningful contributors. At least not since before Mack packed it in as a recruiter 2/3s of the way through his tenure. 
 
Next year is the same. OL will be better. Probably QB and TE too. Definitive step back at RB, but that’s understandable. DT and CB are good. Special teams should be fine.  WR? Edge? LB or S?  Better be a portal hero or unusually ready frosh. Someone will probably develop too, but nobody has been flashing at those spots. 
 

I won’t belabor this anymore beyond this post.

Flea flicker was play #1 not just early on. Never seen it on the first play. Sets the tone and is counter to Greg Davis first play WR screen for 2 yards with the D high fiving each other knowing they have the game plan.

Chasing stars is one of our problems. You need superstars but you also need role players. We lose our shit cause our roster isn’t stacked like Bama, Georgia, Ohio State. Until you get there, your backup units will not look ideal. We aren’t losing games because of our backups. Our problem is the stars aren’t consistent or the starters make limited impactful plays. Big 12 teams have been giving us hell with guys we wouldn’t take or would bitch non-stop about because they don’t fit the damn profile.

You’re probably right on next year. It’s possible that some returnees make great leaps. If we are developing like some people indicate we are, then that means more than one guy we’ve seen little of makes a splash next year. Some of this roster management takes time. There also seems to be a sentiment to jump to the portal. But it needs to be a no brainer like Neyor because you absolutely shortchange the future otherwise. In the meantime Sark needs to manage the game better to turn some of these Ls into Ws. And personnel decisions are down the list of problems associated with that.

[Bobby_Batronic 1,994]

2 hours ago, Had Enough said:

Flea flicker was play #1 not just early on. Never seen it on the first play.

Why wait? Again, some OC’s don’t adhere to the strictures of unwritten rules of the game. 
 

Running some gadget play early in big games is a staple for some coaches. Whether it’s play 1 or 3 doesn’t mean much to me. 
 

Bob Stoops’ Sooners typically ran some form of end around or other trick play in the first series against us pretty much every year to take advantage of our aggression. It usually worked too. 
 

Agree with much of the rest. 

[LTtxfan 50,005]

 

[Tex Long 4,663]

45 minutes ago, LTtxfan said:

Will the defense take a step forward?

Doesn't matter, the first game we play in which our opponent shuts down the offense, we will likely lose because... because Sark is unable - or maybe just unwilling - to adjust the offense and quit trying to force the O to overcome, but really because the D doesn't step up. Book it. Even if it's not true, some folks will say it only happened because Gary Patterson didn't put together a Game Plan for PK. Shoulda kept Gary. 

[LTtxfan 50,005]

Texas Football: Sarkisian hires Payam Saadat to replace Gary Patterson

by Andrew Miller9 hours ago

It looks as if Texas football head coach Steve Sarkisian has found his replacement for the recently-departed former special assistant to the head coach Gary Patterson. According to the Texas staff directory on Texassports.com, the special assistant to the head coach role that was previously occupied by Patterson is now shown as being filled by Payam Saadat.

Saadat is a longtime college coach that has nearly three decades of experience at the Division I level. Before he was a Division 1 college coach, though, Saadat was a linebacker for the Washington State Cougars in the early 1990s. That led him to get his first coaching gig, as the linebackers coach at Santa Monica College in 1995.

He started his college football coaching journey at the Division I level as an inside linebackers coach in 1996 and 1997. In 1997, Cal Poly was one of the better Division I-AA teams in the country, finishing up with a record of 10-1 under head coach Larry Walsh.

After spending two years at Cal Poly, Saadat took a job on staff at Western Washington, which he held until 2003. Saadat held various roles on Western Washington’s staff during his five years with the program, including LB/DL coach, special teams coordinator, and recruiting coordinator. Another role that Saadat held during his time at Western Washington was assistant strength and conditioning coach.

Saadat would hold the title of certified strength and conditioning coach from 1998-2008, which included the time he spent on staff again at Cal Poly in the mid-to-late 2000s.

During Saadat’s time at Western Washington, the defense rapidly improved in the late 1990s. In 1999, Western Washington boasted the third-best rushing defense in Division II and the 15th-best overall defense.

Texas football adds longtime college defensive coach Payam Saadat as special assistant

Saadat also had a positive impact on the special teams unit during his time at Western Washington, as it ranked in the top 15 in Division II multiple times in the early 2000s specifically in terms of kickoff return yardage and punt return yardage.

Ahead of the 2004 season, Saadat returned to Cal Poly in 2004 as a linebackers assistant. He helped to coach up the 2004 Buck Buchanan Award winner in All-American linebacker Jordan Beck. Cal Poly also rapidly improved as an entire defensive unit during the 2004 season, ranking first in Division I-AA in rushing defense.

For his efforts in 2004, Saadat was promoted to a full-time assistant coach. He would later become the defensive coordinator at Cal Poly in 2006 after Saadat helped that defense to another stellar year in 2005.

In 2005, Cal Poly led Division I-AA in total team sacks (62), which also happened to be a program record at the time. Cal Poly would remain one of the top 25 best in total defense in Division I-AA from 2006-2008, which encompassed the rest of Saadat’s time there as the defensive coordinator.

Following another successful stint at Cal Poly, Saadat followed head coach Rick Ellerson to join the Army Black Knights ahead of the 2009 season. He was on staff as Army’s co-defensive coordinator from 2009-2013, helping the Black Knights to some of their best seasons in the last 15 years on that side of the ball.

After Saadat’s stint at Army came to an end in 2013, he spent two years as Central Washington’s defensive coordinator (2014-2015) and then two more years at Cal Poly (2016-2017).

The last position that Saadat held prior to coming to Texas was as Portland State’s defensive coordinator. He started at Portland State in 2018, helping the Vikings post some stellar defensive stats during his first three years at the helm.

Portland State allowed fewer than 15 points per game during Saadat’s first three years as the defensive coordinator.

Saadat’s experience in the double eagle flex system at Army

Army ranked in the top 30 in the FBS in total defense and in turnover margin in 2009 and 2010. He helped to scheme up Army’s “double eagle flex” defense in the early 2010s. This is a defensive system that was originally pioneered by Dick Tomey at Arizona in the early 1990s.

In short, the double eagle flex defense is based on a 4-3 defensive scheme that places eight men in the box while running Cover 1 in the secondary. This defensive system is designed to confuse and disorient opposing offenses by throwing an array of different blitz schemes and pressure packages at them with a front seven that emphasizes athleticism and discipline.

Every linebacker must be able to effectively find the football while closing any gaps that open up along the defensive front. And the defensive line and strong safety are responsible for holding their gaps and making sure they can disrupt any blocking schemes the offense throws at them.

There are a lot of different delayed blitz schemes and stunts up front that are thrown at opposing offenses in the double eagle flex defense. The ultimate goal of the double eagle flex defense is to be able to have all gaps accounted for in run defense while drumming up some quick pressure in the pass rush.

I will say that the very nature of this defensive scheme, given that it often employs an eight-man box (thus isolating the corners on the outside) does put a lot of pressure on the DBs in pass coverage. The field and boundary corners are isolated one-on-one, with just one safety to provide help over the top.

Similarities between Pete Kwiatkowski’s defensive concepts and the double eagle flex system

Two aspects of the double eagle flex that stick out to me that are similar in concept between Pete Kwiatkowski’s defensive philosophy and the double eagle flex system have to do with the coverage and the emphasis of being aggressive up front.

When he’s got the ideal personnel in place in his defense, PK likes to throw a wide variety of different blitz schemes from the lineman, edge players, and linebackers to drum up pressure on opposing quarterbacks. PK’s defense also puts a lot of pressure on the corners that are often isolated in coverage on the outside.

Given how Patterson was able to have an impact on some of the different blitz packages and stunts that PK and the Longhorns ran last season, I think Saadat can add similar value to help Sark and the defensive staff in game-planning and preparation this fall.

Sark is clearly still putting an emphasis on finding new and more creative ways to drum up pressure on opposing quarterbacks while maintaining a strong front seven in run defense with the two special assistant hires he’s made the last two offseasons. I think this move can help Texas continue to improve the defense under PK, even with how impactful the Patterson departure is.

[texasdago 7,770]

I know nothing about this guy. Good or not?

[ousux 5,639]

Pay'em whodat? Idk why I've never heard of him, but double eagle flex sounds like a kinky move, not really a defense that strikes fear in the hearts of OC's around the country.

I'll be happy to be pleasantly surprised.

[Royale with cheese 1,491]

Special Assistant to the Head Coach, huh? Replaces Patterson in that role. Very telling that the two holders of this title are/have been defensive minds. Two things come to mind: First, Sark doesn't think he needs help with the offense (hopefully, he's right), and, second, maybe he realizes that PK isn't the be-all, end-all DC (hopefully Saddam will help as much as Patterson did, which I think was meaningful). 

[Reese Bennett 3,663]

Or maybe he realizes ex-head coach Choate is likely to get offers after this year and wants to shoot for immediate continuity at the LB spot if that happens.

[LTtxfan 50,005]

Some may be surprised that our 2022 defense ranked 28th in points per game allowed...

 

Interesting defensive stat that must improve in 2023 is  the passing ypg allowed...

 

 

Edited July 1, 2023 by LTtxfan
typo

[Had Enough 2,120]

So about those cornerbacks…………

[markstanco 12,788]

Yea I’ve just about Had Enough.

[The Earl of Texas 3,214]

NIL + Pay’em = 🏆

[Tex Long 4,663]

1 hour ago, The Earl of Texas said:

NIL + Pay’em = 🏆

The ultimate goal of NIL is to make the stay-or-go-pro decision financially rewarding for the "stay" option. Known buckage to stay, unknown and possibly lesser buckage to submit to the Draft. There are other considerations, of course, but with NIL, the school has control of its own set of purse strings.

Now, we just need to move from "student" to "employee" and we're really in business.

 

[LTtxfan 50,005]

🚨🚨  Warning... IAN BOYD  🚨🚨

Will the Longhorns Defense Take NEXT STEP in 2023? | Texas Football | Jaylan Ford  (1 day ago)  

[LTtxfan 50,005]

Since top defensive guys... 🤘

Jahdae Barron and Jaylon Ford Join The Horn at Big 12 Media Days

[LTtxfan 50,005]

Deep dive of defensive terms & formations

 

https://www.on3.com/teams/texas-longhorns/news/the-pete-kwiatkowski-defensive-glossary/

 

Edited July 28, 2023 by LTtxfan

[scottsins 2,047]

Some may be surprised that our 2022 defense ranked 28th in points per game allowed...

 
Interesting defensive stat that must improve in 2023 is  the passing ypg allowed...
 
 

Are those stats adjusted?

[Biff Tannen 46,168]

On 5/26/2023 at 9:38 PM, LTtxfan said:

Texas Football: Sarkisian hires Payam Saadat to replace Gary Patterson

by Andrew Miller9 hours ago

It looks as if Texas football head coach Steve Sarkisian has found his replacement for the recently-departed former special assistant to the head coach Gary Patterson. According to the Texas staff directory on Texassports.com, the special assistant to the head coach role that was previously occupied by Patterson is now shown as being filled by Payam Saadat.

Saadat is a longtime college coach that has nearly three decades of experience at the Division I level. Before he was a Division 1 college coach, though, Saadat was a linebacker for the Washington State Cougars in the early 1990s. That led him to get his first coaching gig, as the linebackers coach at Santa Monica College in 1995.

He started his college football coaching journey at the Division I level as an inside linebackers coach in 1996 and 1997. In 1997, Cal Poly was one of the better Division I-AA teams in the country, finishing up with a record of 10-1 under head coach Larry Walsh.

After spending two years at Cal Poly, Saadat took a job on staff at Western Washington, which he held until 2003. Saadat held various roles on Western Washington’s staff during his five years with the program, including LB/DL coach, special teams coordinator, and recruiting coordinator. Another role that Saadat held during his time at Western Washington was assistant strength and conditioning coach.

Saadat would hold the title of certified strength and conditioning coach from 1998-2008, which included the time he spent on staff again at Cal Poly in the mid-to-late 2000s.

During Saadat’s time at Western Washington, the defense rapidly improved in the late 1990s. In 1999, Western Washington boasted the third-best rushing defense in Division II and the 15th-best overall defense.

Texas football adds longtime college defensive coach Payam Saadat as special assistant

Saadat also had a positive impact on the special teams unit during his time at Western Washington, as it ranked in the top 15 in Division II multiple times in the early 2000s specifically in terms of kickoff return yardage and punt return yardage.

Ahead of the 2004 season, Saadat returned to Cal Poly in 2004 as a linebackers assistant. He helped to coach up the 2004 Buck Buchanan Award winner in All-American linebacker Jordan Beck. Cal Poly also rapidly improved as an entire defensive unit during the 2004 season, ranking first in Division I-AA in rushing defense.

For his efforts in 2004, Saadat was promoted to a full-time assistant coach. He would later become the defensive coordinator at Cal Poly in 2006 after Saadat helped that defense to another stellar year in 2005.

In 2005, Cal Poly led Division I-AA in total team sacks (62), which also happened to be a program record at the time. Cal Poly would remain one of the top 25 best in total defense in Division I-AA from 2006-2008, which encompassed the rest of Saadat’s time there as the defensive coordinator.

Following another successful stint at Cal Poly, Saadat followed head coach Rick Ellerson to join the Army Black Knights ahead of the 2009 season. He was on staff as Army’s co-defensive coordinator from 2009-2013, helping the Black Knights to some of their best seasons in the last 15 years on that side of the ball.

After Saadat’s stint at Army came to an end in 2013, he spent two years as Central Washington’s defensive coordinator (2014-2015) and then two more years at Cal Poly (2016-2017).

The last position that Saadat held prior to coming to Texas was as Portland State’s defensive coordinator. He started at Portland State in 2018, helping the Vikings post some stellar defensive stats during his first three years at the helm.

Portland State allowed fewer than 15 points per game during Saadat’s first three years as the defensive coordinator.

Saadat’s experience in the double eagle flex system at Army

Army ranked in the top 30 in the FBS in total defense and in turnover margin in 2009 and 2010. He helped to scheme up Army’s “double eagle flex” defense in the early 2010s. This is a defensive system that was originally pioneered by Dick Tomey at Arizona in the early 1990s.

In short, the double eagle flex defense is based on a 4-3 defensive scheme that places eight men in the box while running Cover 1 in the secondary. This defensive system is designed to confuse and disorient opposing offenses by throwing an array of different blitz schemes and pressure packages at them with a front seven that emphasizes athleticism and discipline.

Every linebacker must be able to effectively find the football while closing any gaps that open up along the defensive front. And the defensive line and strong safety are responsible for holding their gaps and making sure they can disrupt any blocking schemes the offense throws at them.

There are a lot of different delayed blitz schemes and stunts up front that are thrown at opposing offenses in the double eagle flex defense. The ultimate goal of the double eagle flex defense is to be able to have all gaps accounted for in run defense while drumming up some quick pressure in the pass rush.

I will say that the very nature of this defensive scheme, given that it often employs an eight-man box (thus isolating the corners on the outside) does put a lot of pressure on the DBs in pass coverage. The field and boundary corners are isolated one-on-one, with just one safety to provide help over the top.

Similarities between Pete Kwiatkowski’s defensive concepts and the double eagle flex system

Two aspects of the double eagle flex that stick out to me that are similar in concept between Pete Kwiatkowski’s defensive philosophy and the double eagle flex system have to do with the coverage and the emphasis of being aggressive up front.

When he’s got the ideal personnel in place in his defense, PK likes to throw a wide variety of different blitz schemes from the lineman, edge players, and linebackers to drum up pressure on opposing quarterbacks. PK’s defense also puts a lot of pressure on the corners that are often isolated in coverage on the outside.

Given how Patterson was able to have an impact on some of the different blitz packages and stunts that PK and the Longhorns ran last season, I think Saadat can add similar value to help Sark and the defensive staff in game-planning and preparation this fall.

Sark is clearly still putting an emphasis on finding new and more creative ways to drum up pressure on opposing quarterbacks while maintaining a strong front seven in run defense with the two special assistant hires he’s made the last two offseasons. I think this move can help Texas continue to improve the defense under PK, even with how impactful the Patterson departure is.

Patterson is back now too, no?  Or is that just unsubstantiated Chip Browning?

[LTtxfan 50,005]

1 hour ago, Biff Tannen said:

Patterson is back now too, no?  Or is that just unsubstantiated Chip Browning?

Bobby Burton confirmed that Patterson is indeed considering a return to Texas this season... expect an answer by time Fall Camp opens.

Btw...  GARE already turned down an offer to work for Lincoln Riley in LA this year.

[Hookem2147 22,033]

Pass defense needs to get better in several areas but there are a lot of reasons I am not a fan of just looking at passing yards allowed per game as an indicator of what kind of pass defense you had. Georgia ranked 61st in passing yards allowed if that tells you anything.

What is the game context? Were you up by 3 scores late and just let a team nickel and dime you down the field the final 4 minutes for 75 garbage passing yards to pad their stats (West Virginia game comes to mind here)? What is your non-conference schedule? Do you get 3 creampuffs that will pass for 125 yards like a lot of SEC schools or are 2/3rds of your warmup games against Bama and UTSA (who has a vey respectable passing game)?

Texas was 14th in opponents yards per attempt, 4th in yards per completion and 24th in opponent passer rating. All seem to indicate a respectable pass defense. There were other stats (opponent completion %, sack %) that indicate room for improvement.

[BurntOrange&White 41,864]

11 minutes ago, Hookem2147 said:

Pass defense needs to get better in several areas but there are a lot of reasons I am not a fan of just looking at passing yards allowed per game as an indicator of what kind of pass defense you had. Georgia ranked 61st in passing yards allowed if that tells you anything.

What is the game context? Were you up by 3 scores late and just let a team nickel and dime you down the field the final 4 minutes for 75 garbage passing yards to pad their stats (West Virginia game comes to mind here)? What is your non-conference schedule? Do you get 3 creampuffs that will pass for 125 yards like a lot of SEC schools or are 2/3rds of your warmup games against Bama and UTSA (who has a vey respectable passing game)?

Texas was 14th in opponents yards per attempt, 4th in yards per completion and 24th in opponent passer rating. All seem to indicate a respectable pass defense. There were other stats (opponent completion %, sack %) that indicate room for improvement.

Secondary will be better this year than last and that should help. I think the key will be converting pressures into sacks.....we need that to happen and it fixes everything.

[Cairn Horn88 8,502]

After the last few years, I’d love to see a defense that can put a stop to all of these 3rd downs that are converted into first downs, keeping our defense on the field….love to see more 3 and out for us.

[LTtxfan 50,005]

Since Defense related...   Scipio Tex

Big 12 Defensive Position Groups Ranked | Texas Football | Longhorns   (2hrs ago)

[LTtxfan 50,005]

August 1st

[4th and 5 5,006]

PK says “umm” constantly 

[LTtxfan 50,005]

Year 3 is big for PK

Stay healthy, and Brooks + Catalon should help our secondary in 2023.

Ford hopefully has another big year while Overshown's production needs to be replaced... LBs must improve in pass coverage this season.  

AntHill should really help create some big plays this year.  

Texas has to get a lot better pass rush production from our D-line and Ends...

 

Edited August 6, 2023 by LTtxfan
typo

[LTtxfan 50,005]

🚨🚨 Ian Boyd Warning 🚨🚨

 

[Tex Long 4,663]

41 minutes ago, LTtxfan said:

🚨🚨 Ian Boyd Warning 🚨🚨

 

Some unfortunate lighting choices there, Hitlerizing Herr Boyd.

[Codaxx 6,254]

1 hour ago, LTtxfan said:

🚨🚨 Ian Boyd Warning 🚨🚨

 

I wonder if this just a heavy set, that they will use vs run heavy teams like Bama and KSU or if this is a change. 

[LTtxfan 50,005]

If moving Collins out wider gets better effort and production from him, then fuckin' do it more PK.  

[Eskimohorn 5,682]

If moving Collins out wider gets better effort and production from him, then fuckin' do it more PK.  

Out of desperation two years ago, Collins needed to be playing end because we were getting gashed by simple off tackle plays and obliterated by counters. Ovie was a non factor on almost every play. Its why I thought PK was developmentally challenged.

But if Collins cant play inside, he cant play.

[KeysPhoneWallet 807]

Out of desperation two years ago, Collins needed to be playing end because we were getting gashed by simple off tackle plays and obliterated by counters. Ovie was a non factor on almost every play. Its why I thought PK was developmentally challenged.

But if Collins cant play inside, he cant play.

I think boundary edge let’s him do more pass rushing while also being stout enough against the run. He is an attacking type not a run stuffing type. He can also cover up hill and let hill make plays off his hip. I like collins and think he will be one of those guys that has success in the nfl and we all sit around wondering why we didn’t get anything out of him…

[LTtxfan 50,005]

39 minutes ago, KeysPhoneWallet said:

I think boundary edge let’s him do more pass rushing while also being stout enough against the run. He is an attacking type not a run stuffing type. He can also cover up hill and let hill make plays off his hip. I like collins and think he will be one of those guys that has success in the nfl and we all sit around wondering why we didn’t get anything out of him…

Yeah, Collins showed flashes of NFL talent in 2021.  Seems to play better outside in space where he can really use his athleticism... he gets stuck inside against doubleteams.

Maybe in 2022 PK was forced to play Collins out of position due to GARE's defensive backend secondary requirements??

Or hell, maybe Collins just had a sophomore slump??

Edited August 13, 2023 by LTtxfan

[Codaxx 6,254]

44 minutes ago, KeysPhoneWallet said:

I think boundary edge let’s him do more pass rushing while also being stout enough against the run. He is an attacking type not a run stuffing type. He can also cover up hill and let hill make plays off his hip. I like collins and think he will be one of those guys that has success in the nfl and we all sit around wondering why we didn’t get anything out of him…

That’s the one reason I think this is more of a package, than a shift in strategy on the front. Kind of odd to put your 317 pound DT/DE at Buck (boundary) and not Jack, if this will be a base defense. Buck tends to drop more than Jack in PK’s defense and is the smaller more athletic edge player. Seems this is a move acknowledging that the coaches are not comfortable with the young Bucks ability to hold up vs the run against high end OLs.  Instead of moving Sorrel to Buck and Collins to Jack, it’s easier to just have 1 guy learn a new position for a heavy package. Pretty sure Texas did this with Ojomo last year.  Bama is also game 2, so you know the coaches are already doing some prep for that game 

Edited August 13, 2023 by Codaxx

[LTtxfan 50,005]

While it is probably a package, getting Collins lined up a little wider will be fun to watch...

[Magus Ossis 2,997]

Are we playing anyone in the first two weeks that might warrant such a heavy "end" package based on the strength of their running game and their suspect QB, I wonder?