D-Line Play

[John Galt]

It's not nearly as interesting to most as dissecting a Mitch Leidner spiral (or lack thereof), but I've been pretty disappointed in the play of the defensive ends this year. Cockran has been around for 5 years and was supposed to have NFL potential, and we heard rave reviews about Hank Ekpe during spring and fall camps. The result? Both have been outplayed by an 18 year old, 2-star recruit who is really an OLB and has been on campus for 3 months (Julian Huff). Alex Keith is a senior and has been quiet, and Elmore was a pretty celebrated recruit and hasn't really stood out yet.

Bottom line, we're going to need our d-ends and the pass rush to improve significantly if we are going to win tomorrow and get 4-5 wins in conference play.

 

[jaymil]

I disagree that Keith has been quiet. I think he has been our best DE so far and has made some big plays. I'm on board with the rest of your comments though. It seems like when we HAVE gotten pressure, it has either been because of Huff, Richardson, or we blitzed. Our DE's need to step up (Cockran and Ekpe specifically) and get pressure on the QB without having to blitz. It would make our D that much better.

 

[balds]

Hard to say with so many variables (how they are blocked, what their responsibilities are, contain Boyken, etc.) My guess is that 96 will be getting some extra attention, which should help. Alex Keith has been a monster the past two games when he is in. Claeys defenses have historically been designed to avoid letting anything outside and bringing pressure from other disguised places. While they haven't stood out, I don't recall many instances of QB's getting outside for big plays.

 

[killme]

I expected us to play a lot more man and bring an extra rusher much more than we have, so far. Now that the secondary is banged up, I expect even less man coverage. I do think Keith has been our best, so far, but also think our scheme is focused on contain over splash plays. With the potential for inexperienced players in the secondary to miss assignments, it will be interesting to see what Claeys draws up this week. A freshman QB? He might be licking his chops. Plus their best lineman (LT) is out!

 

[John Galt]

I expected us to play a lot more man and bring an extra rusher much more than we have, so far. Now that the secondary is banged up, I expect even less man coverage. I do think Keith has been our best, so far, but also think our scheme is focused on contain over splash plays. With the potential for inexperienced players in the secondary to miss assignments, it will be interesting to see what Claeys draws up this week. A freshman QB? He might be licking his chops. Plus their best lineman (LT) is out!

My thoughts exactly. Hopefully this is the week we dial up the pressure and cause some turnovers.

 

[die hard gopher]

Kierh has been good but Ekpe really seems overhyped. With Elmore, he is a guy that can have a big impact without having his name called a lot due to his ability to set the edge.