Just One Tweak: Episode III
We have a spirited and growing community of readers that do a great job of adding to the running conversation. To recognize a few of these, we have asked them each to write a guest post about what they’d tweak to ensure the Buckeyes got (yet another) shot at redemption in ‘08. Joe Fox got things rolling two weeks ago, with the GoBucks89 getting his turn last week. Today, TLB, one of site’s first commenters, gets his crack.
“Always take the offensive…Never Dig in.”
Those are the words of the Great General George S. Patton.
It’s tough to find fault with a team that has lost 3 games in 2 years, however those 3 losses have all come about with a lack of aggressiveness on the defensive side of the ball. It has more to do with the philosophical approach by the co-defensive coordinators than with the dreaded SEC speed. The physical ability of the players at Ohio State is as good, if not better, than anyone they meet on the field. The difference between winning and losing those 3 games has been the inability of the defense to dictate the way the game is played.
If you look at all 3 games, the defense, which has shut down just about everyone else they have played (including holding The Hun to less than 100 total yards) has been unable to get off the field. The opposing offenses have been able to control the clock and pick up key 3rd downs. And, as GoBucks89 has pointed out, the lack of turnovers is due to a lack of aggressiveness with the overall game plan.
We can continue to win 11-12 games a year playing the bend but don’t break style, avoiding giving up the occasional big play or we can tweak our style and impose our will on our opponents.
Simply put, we need to blitz more (can you believe I would subscribe to that theory?) (Ed: TLB is the nephew of a famous NFL defensive coordinator.). I’m not asking for a fire blitz every play, but we should have the ability to send linebackers, corners and safeties whenever we want, wherever we are on the field. Perhaps we could even send an LB and drop a DE into coverage….or maybe give a look like everyone is coming, and then drop off into coverage. Very rarely do teams have multiple big-play receivers, so our corners should be able to handle one on one coverage, especially if the pass rush is getting pressure on the QB.
This can work with the run as well. Walk the safety up, move the linebackers around, send 7 guys when you key a running play. It’s getting tiresome watching out linebackers, who are supposed to be some of the best in the country, making tackles 5-6 yards down field because they are reacting to a play rather than exploding into the line and forcing the runner to abandon his initial point of attack. We saw it against Florida with their long drives done mostly with short passes and against Illinois as they ran the clock out gaining 5-6 yards every running play.
We must begin to force our opponents to play our game. Force them to change their style. Force them to alter their game plan and confuse their leader. We have a lot of starters back on the defensive side of the ball, so adding a few wrinkles shouldn’t be a problem.
Coach Tressel can only live on the 2002 National Championship for so long. If no philosophical changes are made, he will be a prime example for another quote by the great General: “All glory is fleeting.”
I dont know how much relevancy you will give this comment but to add to your line “We saw it against Florida with their long drives done mostly with short passes” I have a nice story to go along with that. Last year before the OSU-FL national title game two of my friends played the game on NCAA 2007. The friend that was Florida winding up winning the game due to his strategy of ’short passes’ as he watched the linebackers drop into coverage. Also the final score of the NCAA 2007 game…41-14. The friend who was OSU believes to this day it was his fault OSU lost that game. I know its a video game but i couldnt help posting this when I saw your insight.
Buckeye30, it was your friend’s fault we lost that game. It is your duty to cause him physical harm in the name of Buckeye Nation.
“No Buckeye ever won The Game by dying for his team. He won it by making the poor dumb Wolverine die for his team.”
Or something like that. Nice Job, TLB.
Amen brother.
Ohio State, it seems, always won by forcing the opponent out of their game. In the loses, we have been forced out of ours in a embarrassing fashion. Ohio State shouldn’t have to get into shootouts to win games. When the going gets tough, I hardly ever recall seeing a delayed safety blitz or anything like that. It seems as if the defensive coordinators have a different philosophy that other coaches, where they blitz only when the defense knows its coming or its safe.
Who gets the blame? I don’t know. Someone. It’s not so much the players, even as they have difficulties executing the defensive plays.
Even if I don’t agree with the “Coach Tressel can only live on the 2002 National Championship for so long.” I think beating Michigan every year is just as important and twice as likely as winning national championships.
Good insight TLB. Love the milataristic analogies. Never thought about it alot but it makes perfect sense about confusing their leader. Do we have a future defensive coordinator in the making……..
We did try some different blitzes in the national championship this year, but we abandoned them when we got down by two scores. I agree completely with TLB here, but LSU was just the better team, UF was a fluke where we came in unprepared….
TLB, it’s too bad the Bucks don’t have Greg Lloyd or Kevin Greene, huh?
Buckeye30,
Can I have your friends address? I’d like to send him a bill for travel expenses.
Buckeye30,
If you come back and say that the opening kick off was returned for a touchdown and #7 hurt his ankle…well then its your Buckeye given right to kick his a$$!
No that part didn’t happen but if it had I’d have to believe that I’d make a killing betting on games off of that X Box. On September 12 before OSU heads out to L.A. to play the Trojans I’ll ask them to play the game and give a prediction.
The Madden game usually has good luck predicting the Super Bowl winners, but blew its prediction this year: Pats 38, Giants 30. I don’t know if they have a similar program to pick the college bowl winners, but I’d like to see it done.
As a Steelers fan, I hold an attacking defense that causes disruption and plays for turnovers dear to my heart, so I’m in complete sympathy with the author, but Ohio State does not have the type of talent at corner or safety to reliably blitz the way TLB wants. Antonio Smith against Florida was a major liability, and could not be trusted in one-on-one coverage (both observing him in practice and watching game film from ‘06 bear this out). I’m not suggesting that the game plan employed against Florida was the right or even most desirable one, and OSU did a terrible job of making adjustments, but sending seven or eight players against Florida would have made the score even worse. I still hold to the belief that the losses to LSU, Florida and Illinois were lost up front, on the line of scrimmage.
I think we’re adequate at the defensive end position, which is a big part of a blitz package’s success. I don’t believe Gholston was anything like the player some hold him out to be, but a Will Smith-type player fits that mold, and hopefully OSU can get that kind of contribution and level of play out of Mobley or someone in the class of 2009.
The linebackers are adequate to the task, but big, physical corners who can run, and safeties with speed and intelligence are key, and I don’t see that on the roster right now. They’re good, but not “let’s send seven or eight, and leave our DBs on an island” good.
As much of a reputation for aggressiveness as Patton has, he was also a keen student of the capabilities of the materials he had on hand. Look at his slow, deliberate reduction of the fortress of Metz in ‘44, and you’ll see a general who would like to do one thing, but is limited by circumstances and the tools available in such a way that he has to do the other.
No offense Joe, but did you not see Malcolm Jenkins and Donald Washington on the roster? I mean 6-1 208, and 6-1 188 are about as big of corners you are going to find. Most teams don’t have 3 superstar receivers, so they should be plenty to keep in man while the linebackers or rest of the secondary play zone and we blitz a few people…
Welcome to Penn State’s world. Our defense has had some of the best players in the nation, but our schemes don’t let them use their talents. Ya know?
Applying pressure and dealing with pressure are such huge factors in determing success at every level of football. The Giants beat a highly favored team for many reasons, but two big reasons were the Pats O-line’s inability to handle the pressure and Giants O-line’s ability to handle the Pats attempt at pressure. A large part of this were the lineman on both sides, but both teams utitlized their blitz packages. The Giants generate a good pass rush with their front 4 but why stop there? Blitzing only added to the Patriot headaches.
Florida and LSU brought pressure and we had issues protecting the passer. On the flip side, Leak/Flynn appeared awfully relaxed picking apart the defense. Playing read/react zone d against Indiana works, but try it against top notch teams and your linebackers are making tackles 6 yards down field (2nd and 4 all day long…ouch). I’ll take the risk of applying some heat (see Streets on Springs) rather that watch a team like Illinois punch us in the face with 10 minute 4th quarter drives. Give up a big play, get the ball back, score, and on side kick it if necessary. Not ideal, but at least your defense is fresh (and pissed).
“No offense Joe, but did you not see Malcolm Jenkins and Donald Washington on the roster? I mean 6-1 208, and 6-1 188 are about as big of corners you are going to find.”
Yes, Ryan, I can read the roster as clearly as you can, but you’ve emphasized only one of the three characteristics a defensive coordinator needs at corner to effectively send seven or eight men on a blitz. You need big, physical and speedy corners. Both are big, but Jenkins split half his time toward the end of the season at safety (because we’re not as good as we hoped we would be at that position). Washington is not physical. I’m not totally sold on Washington’s game speed, either. Jenkins is a better safety than corner, and I imagine he’ll play at safety in the NFL.
“Most teams don’t have 3 superstar receivers, so they should be plenty to keep in man while the linebackers or rest of the secondary play zone and we blitz a few people…”
As Illinois, Florida and LSU all clearly demonstrated, you don’t *need* three superstar receivers. You only need sufficient time for your receivers to break free from coverage, and all three teams were able to do that because we don’t get sufficient pressure on the quarterback, especially from three of the four front-line positions. That weakness exposes the DBs, who can’t knock a receiver off his route or run with him well enough to lock him down.
I don’t understand the mentality that says “I can’t get enough pressure with my front four, so I’ll send two or three linebackers in the hope that they’ll get to the quarterback before he can toss a five-yard out.” OSU tried that against Florida and got burned repeatedly.
All three games were lost up front, and the covering DBs were exposed. Until OSU gets some quality play out of both DE spots, and gets at least one tackle who can pressure well up the middle, they have to play in safe mode.
Folks can cry “scheme, scheme, scheme” all they want, but if you don’t have the proper ingredients, you can’t cook.