Louisville vs WVU

[billybud]

Coaches talk out of one side of their mouth..the side reserved for coach speak. They put players on the field that get results...not that would illustrate a tackling "how to" seminar.

Spence...WVU's has three strting linebackers listed at 215....Bama starting three are 265, 260, 245

[billybud]

Bobby Bowden was an old fashioned guy who really believed the old platitudes...Bobby always had someone else coach the defense. He could be the president but he needed the hard men to coach defense. Bobby authors books, Mickey builds defenses.

Andrews was a hard man. What he said in public had nothing to do with how he told his players to play. A FSU defender was supposed to play all out with his hair on fire on every play. Mickey was a Bear Bryant player and a Wayne McDuffie kind of guy. McDuffie was the toughest SOB to ever coach for FSU (and people just think Rick Trickett is tough).

Jimbo doesn't sound like a tough guy...but he is West Virginia tough. He states that sometimes playing is having a higher tolerance for pain and he benches guys who can't practice because of pain. He won't play a very talented WR who doesn't like to block.

[WoVeU]

WVU's other D problem is size. Force = mass*acceleration and Kinetic Energy = (mass*velocity^2)/2. You can give up mass if you bring the speed and acceleration...but both of those require you to move according to the kinematic treatment of position (that being, the change there of.)

Spence, BB, Donovan, Lombardi, and Andrews are all exactly right.

It is a matter of talent and scheme to get you to the ball. When you have both you get there that much faster! Fundamentals will get the opponent on the ground most all of the time...really great fundamentals pretty much every time. Force and nastiness will help adrenalize you to the action and bring a bigger hit. Speed and strength will, of course, add to the impact as well! If you have much of the latter you can bring a big hit and might not bring the guy down. Now an FSU guy just brought that hit 3.5 yards from the LOS (line o' scrimmage) and the Wofford guy at 4.5 yards. But the FSU guy has another guy 2 to 3 steps behind him and another 1/2 step behind that one. While Wofford has another guy 3 to 4 steps behind the first guy...and most likely the next guy is up the field some 12 yards and over 10 yards toward the middle because he was parked there (to BB and WoVeU's dismay) due to Cover 1 or 2. Now, how much damage you leave in your wake and how much memory imparting you had on the opponent is advantage nasty, hard hitting, and athletic. The latter brings exponential returns and ROI! ANd the game gets more downhill as you go! I never once had a running back come back to the huddle and say, "Jonesy, did you see that text book form tackle that LB layed on your boy!" But I have heard, "Don't send me around that end like that again...unless Smith or Jones is pulling to give that guy plenty of what he is trying to give!"

I think given mass appeal and growth and even evolution of the game...in Lombardi's day you could more readily disseminate a broad statement like, "ALL...blocking and tackling!" Because the guys who chose to play this game, were drawn to it, came into it with plenty of innate nasty! Increasingly over the last 40 years you can ping on a few tin chests before you find a nice thud suggesting the yellow brick road need not be taken to training camp!

[Spence]

Coaches talk out of one side of their mouth..the side reserved for coach speak. They put players on the field that get results...not that would illustrate a tackling "how to" seminar.

Spence...WVU's has three strting linebackers listed at 215....Bama starting three are 285, 260, 245

That is the problem. They have three free safeties playing linebacker. That is either a recruiting problem or a philosophy problem. Linebackers should be no smaller than 230. A 4.4 40 isn't required for college, but they need quick feet and a good 15 yard burst. AJ Hawk ran a 4.5 and he is doing fine with the packers. Anything under 4.8 is fine for any linebacker except the "Will" backer and he should be 4.4 to 4.6

[WoVeU]

Bobby Bowden was an old fashioned guy who really believed the old platitudes...Bobby always had someone else coach the defense. He could be the president but he needed the hard men to coach defense. Bobby authors books, Mickey builds defenses.

Andrews was a hard man. What he said in public had nothing to do with how he told his players to play. A FSU defender was supposed to play all out with his hair on fire on every play. Mickey was a Bear Bryant player and a Wayne McDuffie kind of guy. McDuffie was the toughest SOB to ever coach for FSU (and people just think Rick Trickett is tough).

Jimbo doesn't sound like a tough guy...but he is West Virginia tough. He states that sometimes playing is having a higher tolerance for pain and he benches guys who can't practice because of pain. He won't play a very talented WR who doesn't like to block.

And this is how you run an Army...even one that only advances a pound of leather to the front lines! And you have pointed precisely to the reason I have always preferred Colonels and E-9's to Generals! And also pointed to a notable part of the one reason I prefer not to be the #1 man, but prefer #2!

[WoVeU]

Coaches talk out of one side of their mouth..the side reserved for coach speak. They put players on the field that get results...not that would illustrate a tackling "how to" seminar.

Spence...WVU's has three strting linebackers listed at 215....Bama starting three are 285, 260, 245

That is the problem. They have three free safeties playing linebacker. That is either a recruiting problem or a philosophy problem. Linebackers should be no smaller than 230. A 4.4 40 isn't required for college, but they need quick feet and a good 15 yard burst. AJ Hawk ran a 4.5 and he is doing fine with the packers. Anything under 4.8 is fine for any linebacker except the "Will" backer and he should be 4.4 to 4.6

I am debating still, and can't know...but I think there was a hole! And it could be, given the defensive success, too many O schollies were given. Add in a 7 man hole to fill and this could readily be the case. I do know, the scheme has called for a few pounds lighter with more speed (which you have all witnessed) and know that few teams lean on the returns of their weight program more than WVU! The aforementioned and having to start kids a year earlier with a year's less experience and weight gain is a problem.

*But the eye don't lie, I know for a fact they aren't moving and the scheme is different!

[Spence]

Linebacker isn't a position where just speed is required. You need "big speed" If you play a team that plays run and shoot you can beat them with 215-220 backers playing them like DB's in the nickel or dime, but a traditional defense requires linebackers that are 230+ with better than 4.7 speed.

[billybud]

Having very fast stoppers at linebacker, especially against modern spreads, allows control of the gaps while also limiting plays to the outside. When you have a Nigel Bradham (FSU MLB) now playing at 255 with a 4.56 40...you have a big mobile stopper in the middle. A guy who can control the gap and drop into coverage.

As someone posted, having speed allows for more defenders around the ball and less opportunity for an offensive player to break free.

[donovan]

It is really hard for us to find something to disagree upon. Speed is good...Size is good...Strong is good...Attitude is good...Tattoos.... I bet we all agree.

Speed seemingly stops the option. Tebow in Denver ran last Sunday a lot of yards. Fox does not think that can continue. Hard hits, speed and the attitude of the defense will not allow a QB to endure that very long. All NFL players seem to have these "qualities." College not always which makes for an interesting game. Trying to match up weaknesses and strength.

If size alone was an issue, BYU' s Samoan roster would win every game, they don't...not so much speed and not the attitude...big and gentle. One of the reasons the military schools no longer are as dominant as they were is because they lack size compared to other schools. I think the SEC schools do well because a lot of their players have all four of these qualities and more Attitude than most...not sure this is always good off the field. (Hard to buy a suit with their size.)

Speaking of Boise's upcoming game with TCU here is what Petersen said,(this is hardly an iconic quote) "“To me, they’re just like they’ve always been — extremely athletic, really fast, well coached, they play hard,” Boise State coach Chris Petersen said. “It’s a different level (than we have been facing).” Hmm..He must read this message board, hard to think he could come up with this original thought on his own.

[billybud]

Tattoos must make you faster and more athletic. I notice that the top athletes who are drafted in basketball and football are heavily tatooed.

Or is Billy once again mixing up correlation and causation?

[donovan]

Tattoos must make you faster and more athletic. I notice that the top athletes who are drafted in basketball and football are heavily tatooed.

Or is Billy once again mixing up correlation and causation?

No you are not...for once you are getting it right!

[Spence]

Tattoos must make you faster and more athletic. I notice that the top athletes who are drafted in basketball and football are heavily tatooed.

Or is Billy once again mixing up correlation and causation?

That was Ohio State's decided advantage, then they got caught getting them for free and we have no speed on offense - and no one to call offensive plays except off tackle left and off tackle right out of the iso. We need our Tats back.

[Derek]

WVU's other D problem is size. Force = mass*acceleration and Kinetic Energy = (mass*velocity^2)/2. You can give up mass if you bring the speed and acceleration...but both of those require you to move according to the kinematic treatment of position (that being, the change there of.)

Indeed.

[donovan]

WVU's other D problem is size. Force = mass*acceleration and Kinetic Energy = (mass*velocity^2)/2. You can give up mass if you bring the speed and acceleration...but both of those require you to move according to the kinematic treatment of position (that being, the change there of.)

Indeed.

Certainly has been my understanding....

[billybud]

Jim Gladden, a defensive coach for three decades at FSU, was interviewed today...some of his comments about recruiting are peryinent to this discussion...

"We have done a very good job in my opinion in the last three years of bringing that talent level back up and right now I'm very impressed at what we have on that defensive front. At the defensive end spot, my whole deal was toughness and speed. If he can't run, he can't play at the level you want him to. You want guys that can play fast, stronger and bigger guys that can run. If he can't run, don't sign him. "