Spring Practice

[Lavoisier]

Well, the two things are ILB and OLB are quite different positions especially in a 3-4 (or 50 or whatever we are calling it), the other is that 6'2" 190 and 6' 190 is a huge difference in size.

 

[Madison Grant]

Don't know why some are freaking out about going to a small, quick defense. Bud Foster has been doing this for years. VPISU has regularly had 235 lb DEs and safeties moved into the OLB slot. I wonder if the same folks who are saying we can't play with defensive personnel this undersized are the same who'd kill for us to have VPISU's defense?

 

[Lavoisier]

I'm not "freaking out", I just said Thomas is really tiny for an OLB which he is. And you can't fairly compare sizes of a 4-3 like Foster's and a 3-4. A DE generally can be much smaller in a 4-3 and closer in size to a OLB in a 3-4. A 3-4 DE will usually be closer in size to a 3-tech in a 4-3. It's apples and oranges.

 

[tech_wreck47]

I'm more optimistic, b/c I actually think we've recruited several guys in the past couple years who are big, rangy DBs who may not have the quickness and speed to be great in coverage, but could muscle up and be really good OLBs in this scheme. Glass half full, I guess. But I usually am in the spring...

Agree, I think Bonds, Showell, and Jalen Johnson are guys who might be better suited at LB. I also think Oliver, Henderson, Juanyeh Thomas are guys who could play either safety or LB.

 

[tech_wreck47]

Don't know why some are freaking out about going to a small, quick defense. Bud Foster has been doing this for years. VPISU has regularly had 235 lb DEs and safeties moved into the OLB slot. I wonder if the same folks who are saying we can't play with defensive personnel this undersized are the same who'd kill for us to have VPISU's defense?

235 is a lot different than 195 though. People arent complaining about 235 OLB they are talking about guys under 200.

 

[ezbee]

I'm not "freaking out", I just said Thomas is really tiny for an OLB which he is. And you can't fairly compare sizes of a 4-3 like Foster's and a 3-4. A DE generally can be much smaller in a 4-3 and closer in size to a OLB in a 3-4. A 3-4 DE will usually be closer in size to a 3-tech in a 4-3. It's apples and oranges.

I don’t disagree about the OLB statement but there are 3-4 defenses that do have smaller DE’s. Takk McKinley is a good example. NFL.com has him listed at 6-2 250 which is very similar to Anree. (I do think he played at a bit heavier weight for the Falcons though) Vic Beasley played DE his rookie year at a pretty light weight as well. That being said, we don’t have a Grady Jarrett or Poe in the middle for the Jackets....

 

[tech_wreck47]

I don’t disagree about the OLB statement but there are 3-4 defenses that do have smaller DE’s. Takk McKinley is a good example. NFL.com has him listed at 6-2 250 which is very similar to Anree. (I do think he played at a bit heavier weight for the Falcons though) Vic Beasley played DE his rookie year at a pretty light weight as well. That being said, we don’t have a Grady Jarrett or Poe in the middle for the Jackets....

Falcons don’t run a 3 man front though. Tak and Vic both lined up outside of the OT or TE which is completely different than what our DE’s will be doing, our guys will be playing the 4 or 4i.

 

[ezbee]

Falcons don’t run a 3 man front though. Tak and Vic both lined up outside of the OT or TE which is completely different than what our DE’s will be doing, our guys will be playing the 4 or 4i.

Stop screwing up my argument with facts!

Originally had a longer post that described Quinn’s 4-3 under defensive style to show some 3-4 similarities but got tired of typing on my phone.

 

[Madison Grant]

235 lbs was referring to DE, not OLB. Some of the OLB have been around 210 lb converted safeties. Bottom line is Foster has had a lot of success using speed and aggression to compensate for the inability to 'outbid' SEC schools for the 250 5 star LBs

 

[Gold1]

This is a remarkable post, but all too typical of the fans on this board who are clueless about what it takes to have a successful program or are happy with mediocrity. I am not sure which it is.

O'Leary didn't "ha(ve) the benefit" of Hamilton and Godsey. He put a staff in place that RECRUITED. He understood the importance of recruiting players-- and coaches. Danny Smith-who I knew--recruited Hamilton. Danny was an energetic fun guy who resonated with kids--not some lazy grump.

During those years we were the second best team in the ACC behind FSU, which was a top 5 team. The "ACC is better now" is just another excuse in a long litany of excuses for Johnson apologists. We were a perennial top 25 team---and not that long ago. We were top 25 nationally; comparative ACC strength is irrelevant.

We could be there again with the right leadership, which we haven't had since Homer retired.

But go ahead. Embrace your excuses--and your losses.

Why do we have so many loser fans? Why do they come on this board and show pride in mediocrity that is clothed in excuses instead of demanding better? Embarrassing. It's not what the Institute stands for.

AMEN

 

[tech_wreck47]

235 lbs was referring to DE, not OLB. Some of the OLB have been around 210 lb converted safeties. Bottom line is Foster has had a lot of success using speed and aggression to compensate for the inability to 'outbid' SEC schools for the 250 5 star LBs

My bad, your post said he had 235 DE’s and S moved into the OLB slot, so I took it they might have been a DE or S in high and moved to OLB his system. But, that’s irrelevant because VT doesn’t run a 3-4. The DE’s in a 4-3 are playing outside the OT or TE so it’s easier to play at a lighter weight in a 4-3 than playing in the “trash” in a 3-4. Same with the LB’s in a 4-3 they will be off the LOS more so it’s easier to maneuver around the OL compared to playing almost on the LOS in a 3-4 where the OL can get on you easier. I don’t disagree you can play a little lighter and still be successful, but 190 is not just a little lighter.

 

[Supersizethatorder-mutt]

Since most on here probably can't access MyAJC articles, I am pasting the contents of one by Ken about the new "attack" defense. I like the comments of the various players----

Georgia Tech learning ‘attack-style defense’

georgia-tech

By Ken Sugiura

1

Grant Halverson/Getty Images
DURHAM, NC - NOVEMBER 18: Brant Mitchell #51, Lawrence Austin #20 and Corey Griffin #14 of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets tackle Daniel Helm #80 of the Duke Blue Devils during their game at Wallace Wade Stadium on November 18, 2017 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
Posted: 4:03 p.m. Thursday, March 29, 2018



After offseason video study and two sessions of spring practice, Georgia Tech linebacker Brant Mitchell offered his approval for the 3-4 defense being installed by new defensive coordinator Nate Woody.

After playing in a 4-2-5, an alignment in which he was on the field with one other linebacker, the 3-4 puts Mitchell on the field with three other linebackers.

“The more you can get of your own kind, the better,” Mitchell said with a laugh. “I like it. It comes with the defense being more aggressive and a lot faster. I think the guys seem to like it a lot.”

As Woody, previously at Appalachian State, begins his tenure at Tech, Mitchell isn’t alone in finding reason to get excited about the new defensive coordinator and two new position coaches, defensive line coach Jerome Riase and safeties coach Shiel Wood.

“A lot more upbeat, I would say,” defensive lineman Anree Saint-Amour said. “Everybody’s trying to push you to be the best. All coaches do the same thing. But it’s just a different way of getting it out.”

As a senior, Saint-Amour is again learning new terminology, plays and responsibilities. He’s also getting used to playing on a line with only three linemen as opposed to four.

At defensive end end, “I can move a little bit more, more tight up on the (offensive tackle) instead of outside all the time,” he said.

Saint-Amour, whose 2.5 sacks last season were most among returnees, said a big difference for him compared with playing defensive end in former defensive coordinator Ted Roof’s 4-3 is “just speed, getting vertical off the ball, off the snap, instead of staying on the line.”

In the 3-4 that Woody coaches, linemen are tasked with penetrating gaps to create pressure in the backfield, a tactic that helped Appalachian State finish in the top 25 nationally in sacks in two of the past three years. Improving the pass rush is imperative for Tech, whose best finish in the past three seasons for sacks was a tie for 107th.

“It’s different, but we’re learning fast, and we like the new coaches,” Saint-Amour said. “They’re really up-tempo and they’re pushing us the right way.”

Cornerback Lamont Simmons made a similar comparison between Woody and Roof, now a co-defensive coordinator at N.C. State.

“He’s very different, I would say that,” Simmons said of Woody. “Very aggressive. Everything’s different, but I like it a lot.”

Woody and his staff have been moving players to different spots to find best fits. Safeties have been at outside linebacker, a spot often called to blitz off the edge. Linebackers have been shifted along the four spots. Likewise the defensive linemen and the three line positions.

“It’s constantly changing,” Mitchell said. “So one of the things that coaches have told us is they’re going through a process of looking at the personnel and seeing who’s going to fit best at which position. Every day it changes.”

Going into his third year as a starter, Mitchell described the scheme as an “attack-style defense.”

“I feel like we love it as a whole,” Mitchell said. “I think there’s a lot of energy surrounding the defense right now, and it’s positive energy, and I think we can only go up from here.”

 

[Gold1]

Since most on here probably can't access MyAJC articles, I am pasting the contents of one by Ken about the new "attack" defense. I like the comments of the various players----

Georgia Tech learning ‘attack-style defense’

georgia-tech

By Ken Sugiura

1

Grant Halverson/Getty Images
DURHAM, NC - NOVEMBER 18: Brant Mitchell #51, Lawrence Austin #20 and Corey Griffin #14 of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets tackle Daniel Helm #80 of the Duke Blue Devils during their game at Wallace Wade Stadium on November 18, 2017 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
Posted: 4:03 p.m. Thursday, March 29, 2018



After offseason video study and two sessions of spring practice, Georgia Tech linebacker Brant Mitchell offered his approval for the 3-4 defense being installed by new defensive coordinator Nate Woody.

After playing in a 4-2-5, an alignment in which he was on the field with one other linebacker, the 3-4 puts Mitchell on the field with three other linebackers.

“The more you can get of your own kind, the better,” Mitchell said with a laugh. “I like it. It comes with the defense being more aggressive and a lot faster. I think the guys seem to like it a lot.”

As Woody, previously at Appalachian State, begins his tenure at Tech, Mitchell isn’t alone in finding reason to get excited about the new defensive coordinator and two new position coaches, defensive line coach Jerome Riase and safeties coach Shiel Wood.

“A lot more upbeat, I would say,” defensive lineman Anree Saint-Amour said. “Everybody’s trying to push you to be the best. All coaches do the same thing. But it’s just a different way of getting it out.”

As a senior, Saint-Amour is again learning new terminology, plays and responsibilities. He’s also getting used to playing on a line with only three linemen as opposed to four.

At defensive end end, “I can move a little bit more, more tight up on the (offensive tackle) instead of outside all the time,” he said.

Saint-Amour, whose 2.5 sacks last season were most among returnees, said a big difference for him compared with playing defensive end in former defensive coordinator Ted Roof’s 4-3 is “just speed, getting vertical off the ball, off the snap, instead of staying on the line.”

In the 3-4 that Woody coaches, linemen are tasked with penetrating gaps to create pressure in the backfield, a tactic that helped Appalachian State finish in the top 25 nationally in sacks in two of the past three years. Improving the pass rush is imperative for Tech, whose best finish in the past three seasons for sacks was a tie for 107th.

“It’s different, but we’re learning fast, and we like the new coaches,” Saint-Amour said. “They’re really up-tempo and they’re pushing us the right way.”

Cornerback Lamont Simmons made a similar comparison between Woody and Roof, now a co-defensive coordinator at N.C. State.

“He’s very different, I would say that,” Simmons said of Woody. “Very aggressive. Everything’s different, but I like it a lot.”

Woody and his staff have been moving players to different spots to find best fits. Safeties have been at outside linebacker, a spot often called to blitz off the edge. Linebackers have been shifted along the four spots. Likewise the defensive linemen and the three line positions.

“It’s constantly changing,” Mitchell said. “So one of the things that coaches have told us is they’re going through a process of looking at the personnel and seeing who’s going to fit best at which position. Every day it changes.”

Going into his third year as a starter, Mitchell described the scheme as an “attack-style defense.”

“I feel like we love it as a whole,” Mitchell said. “I think there’s a lot of energy surrounding the defense right now, and it’s positive energy, and I think we can only go up from here.”

Just view it in incognito

 

[Supersizethatorder-mutt]

Just view it in incognito

How do you do that? I have a gift subscription.

 

[Jim Prather]

AJC actually got clever and incognito does not work any more (at least on Firefox). I found that if you click on reader mode in your browser before the blocker screen pops up, then you get around the problem

 

[Silk3]

AJC actually got clever and incognito does not work any more (at least on Firefox). I found that if you click on reader mode in your browser before the blocker screen pops up, then you get around the problem

Where is reader mode?

 

[Jim Prather]

See the attachment... Hopefully it attaches...

 

[alagold]

In CPJs presser, he said that he had moved to OLB.

he is maybe the best tackling safety we have recruited in a while, go ck the films

 

[JacketFromUGA]

 

[ilovetheoption]

How do you do that? I have a gift subscription.

If you're using chrome, go up to the far right of your screen, and click the three dots, then hit "new incognito window".

And the ajc works in incognito in chrome.