Defense

[AE 87]

Maybe it's because we are a more developed, more veteran group of players AND we are being more aggressive/doing some different things schematically.

It doesnt have to either or. I see both players winning one on one battles and stunts/alignments working. Definitely improved tackling.

Really funny to see the different sides of the old pro-Roof anti-Roof argument continue beating the tiresome, deadhorse argument.

This may be true. It just depends on whether there was a change in approach after the 2nd half of the TN game. I don't think the talent/maturity of the players changed that much after that game, so if there was a change in becoming more aggressive, as CPJ's comments suggested, our success would stem more from that then from a combination of factors, imo.

 

[FredJacket]

Normally, you "suffer" when you turn the ball over. Our defense deserves a ton of credit for our 2xEASY wins to open conference play. These numbers are impressive.

 

[Ibeeballin]

Nm

 

[AE 87]

Nm

Say it

 

[Ibeeballin]

This made me very proud watching this in-game. My biggest gripe about our defense has been our awareness and communication. Look at all the talking going on presnap. You can tell they have seen this play on film before. This is the type of stuff that good defenses are made of.

 

[YJMD]

This made me very proud watching this in-game. My biggest gripe about our defense has been our awareness and communication. Look at all the talking going on presnap. You can tell they have seen this play on film before. This is the type of stuff that good defenses are made of.

2014 vs Clemson comes to mind. Had a veteran secondary that year too.

 

[smathis30]

2014 vs Clemson comes to mind. Had a veteran secondary that year too.

2014 Clemson was also the single handed worst QB game i have ever seen from any team. Cole Stoudt had a negative QBR. Not that we didnt deserve the win, but lordy, clemson could not have done more to try to lose that game. we only scored 1 time on a real offensive drive. Deshaun Watson was only in for 1 and a half drives and still led clemson in passing that game.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

This made me very proud watching this in-game. My biggest gripe about our defense has been our awareness and communication. Look at all the talking going on presnap. You can tell they have seen this play on film before. This is the type of stuff that good defenses are made of.

I wish you had a wider angle shot and could see how much ground AJ covers to make this pick. He didn't just sit back and break on dumb throw like Cory did on his drop (should have been pick 6) at the end of the half. AJ was making plays all over the field. This was easily his best game as a Jacket. Very encouraging moving forward.

 

[Ibeeballin]

I wish you had a wider angle shot and could see how much ground AJ covers to make this pick. He didn't just sit back and break on dumb throw like Cory did on his drop (should have been pick 6) at the end of the half. AJ was making plays all over the field. This was easily his best game as a Jacket. Very encouraging moving forward.

There will be a wider angle on the breakdown I post tomorrow

 

[tech_wreck47]

Has anyone else noticed how the DT's are not being blown off the ball like in past years? Maybe it's because we are shooting gaps, and running stunt etc? Whatever the reason, that's a huge reason we have done so well, especially against the run. CPJ made mention of it in the CPJ show tonight. He said they played well, and even though they are making a lot of tackles that are filling up gaps. He would like them to start making some plays though. @Ibeeballin maybe you could brake down some of the guys inside. Btw, thanks for the videos you do!

 

[bke1984]

Yep, are now ranked 10th

Yeah it's crazy. It's a little inflated because of our TOP domination, but still a thing of beauty.

The yards per play is probably a better stat, where we are ranked 20th. Still better than anything we've had around here in a LONG time. I'm excited to see what this can do for us.

Our offense hasn't exactly been as dominant as it has in years past. As I mentioned elsewhere, we've had our shares of threes and out this year, but the difference is the defense has forced a three and out on the other end to get it right back to us. In years past those last two games would not have been as lopsided as they were.

Next game is going to be a BIG test. Off the top of my head I can't remember a time we've beaten Miami at Miami other than the 06 Calvin game when they were ranked 3rd in the nation...but that was before CPJs time. That was also the last game we played in the Orange Bowl, so I'm not sure we've ever beat them at [insert your favorite name for this stadium]. It's time for that to change...

 

[GTNavyNuke]

I love how our D has played so far.
We've played a bunch of crap O's so far.
What does this mean?
We play a real O in two weeks.
We'll soon find out.

Agree, while I think the D is better this year than last. We had trouble against poor Os last year; or on a positive note, we made the other team's O look really good.

I'll wait to see where we are when Football Outsiders comes up with D rankings after week 7. That is adjusted for the other team's performance. http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/feidef I hope we go from about 94th last year to 50th this year. These next 7 games are going to be tough. But we may surprise to the upside, we'll certainly have the opportunity.

 

[tech_wreck47]

Yeah it's crazy. It's a little inflated because of our TOP domination, but still a thing of beauty.

The yards per play is probably a better stat, where we are ranked 20th. Still better than anything we've had around here in a LONG time. I'm excited to see what this can do for us.

Our offense hasn't exactly been as dominant as it has in years past. As I mentioned elsewhere, we've had our shares of threes and out this year, but the difference is the defense has forced a three and out on the other end to get it right back to us. In years past those last two games would not have been as lopsided as they were.

Next game is going to be a BIG test. Off the top of my head I can't remember a time we've beaten Miami at Miami other than the 06 Calvin game when they were ranked 3rd in the nation...but that was before CPJs time. That was also the last game we played in the Orange Bowl, so I'm not sure we've ever beat them at [insert your favorite name for this stadium]. It's time for that to change...

It really is crazy, my favorite stat for offense and defense is efficiency. I just haven't seen one for this year yet.

 

[InsideLB]

This may be true. It just depends on whether there was a change in approach after the 2nd half of the TN game. I don't think the talent/maturity of the players changed that much after that game, so if there was a change in becoming more aggressive, as CPJ's comments suggested, our success would stem more from that then from a combination of factors, imo.

What I'm seeing on game film (UNC, Pitt) vs what we did vs TN is:

1. We are tackling much, much better. Breaking down more consistently, using good form, not gambling wildly to make a big play and let guys off for big yardage. Night and day difference.

2. Defending the screen. TN toasted us again and again with the screen. Our failure to defend it while staying aggressive loosened up our D considerably. We were better vs JSU, better still vs Pitt, and lights out vs UNC. Big time improvement.

3. Win the point of attack. We are getting more bodies to the point of attack. LB's are moving more decisively and are more consistent in their run fits. DL have been slanting and stunting more, and have been effective doing so (quickness to get to their assignment, correct location, getting off blocks, making tackles or clogging lanes). If you run it and it works you run it again, and lately it's been working. We recruited these smaller, quicker type DT's (Branch, Glanton, Cerge-H, etc.) so we could run this type of defense.

4. Pass rush + coverage. I wouldn't say our pass rush is formidible, but I would say it's improved and that there are more threats (St Amour, Simmons, Branch) on the DL to win one-on-one battles. Meanwhile the secondary is giving the DL time to make the QB uncomfortable or get a sack.

I just see that we're getting better and I like it.

 

[ibeattetris]

It really is crazy, my favorite stat for offense and defense is efficiency. I just haven't seen one for this year yet.

FEI and SP will come out after week 7. They used to release fei earlier with a big disclaimer that it was subject to big swings, but that wasn't the case this year. I know espn has their own efficiency and power rankings, but I have never looked into them personally. @AE 87 does some basic analysis via ypp off vs ypp def. Of course fei and other take things like field position and garbage time into account as well.

 

[AE 87]

FEI and SP will come out after week 7. They used to release fei earlier with a big disclaimer that it was subject to big swings, but that wasn't the case this year. I know espn has their own efficiency and power rankings, but I have never looked into them personally. @AE 87 does some basic analysis via ypp off vs ypp def. Of course fei and other take things like field position and garbage time into account as well.

The yards/play offense - yards/play defense (and Off YPP/Def YPP) rankings are in the Domination Ratio thread. Like the Points/Drive stat that I've been calculating for the last few years, these stats only include games against pwr 5 opponents.

I'm also going to wait until after our Miami game before I calculate the points/drive stat and ranking. I only calculate it for teams that have played more than 2 Pwr5 teams -- it's not perfect but it helps in adjusting for strength of schedule.

 

[PBR549]

Miami, Clemson, and uga all appear to be legitimately very good teams thus far. I don't think we have any games remaining against poor teams outside of maybe UVA....the rest all look solid and dangerous. And we never seem to play great at UVA so there is that also.

At least things should be exciting.

All three are factories and so is UNC. They all should have better talent than Tech. If we're close on talent it's only because our staff has done an extrodinary job which they have. We're also doing a great job developing what talent we have.

 

[Jmonty71]

2 chances for the D to win the game and 2 loses. Whenever its late in the game and our D needs to make a stop to win. They won't. End of story. They play timid and shy. They are coached to be timid and no aggressive. Until we get a real DC, in place. One that can adjust, in game. One that can mix defenses. One that can actually disguise a blitz, we will continue to be nothing more than mediocre. Welcome to barely making a bowl, this year.

 

[jacob]

Jon Tenuta where you at!!!?

 

[Jmonty71]

Jon Tenuta where you at!!!?

Not to that level. He didn't mix it up either. LOL. But, he was aggressive. Need an in between Tenuta and Roof.