D-line... And o- line | The Boneyard

D-line... And o- line

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We have the worst D-line in the NCAA. Possibly one of the worst o- lines as well. Those are our biggest issues. That and we have a 2 headed monster at qb. Play one damn qb... Last night was like a freakin try out.
 
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We are trying to transition from a 4-3 to a 3-4. We don't really have the ends for a 3-4, and I'm not sure we have the linebackers either. Didn't notice much blitzing last night. I also thought the online was much improved. Losing the first game sucks. Always does.
 
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Thank you. That was nice to hear. I'm sure they all work hard, I know my son does. Let's hope they just improve.

Take it with a grain FB Mom. We get amateur hour after a loss sometimes. BYU is a very good and very mature team, probably the best we will face all year and our lines did a very respectable job. Those of us with level heads who have followed this program for years saw a huge improvement in our line play compared to the previous 3 years. These kids will only get better ad the season progresses.
 

UConnDan97

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Thank you. That was nice to hear. I'm sure they all work hard, I know my son does. Let's hope they just improve.

Even with all the chatter on the board over the last two days, I think the one thing that will not be questioned is the fact that ALL of the kids gave full effort and nobody quit. The kids made us all proud, even in the fourth quarter when the outcome was already determined, and they kept giving it their all.

We'll all look back at this moment and laugh in a few months, when we are winning our bowl game... :cool:
 
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We have the worst D-line in the NCAA. Possibly one of the worst o- lines as well. Those are our biggest issues. That and we have a 2 headed monster at qb. Play one damn qb... Last night was like a freakin try out.


We get that your upset but this is just hyperbole.
 
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We don't have remotely close to the worst d line in the NCAA. I think some are misunderstanding the role of 3-4 d linemen. It is to hold the point. It's not about shooting gaps. The ends and NT take on blockers and the linebackers clean up. Unfortunately, the linebackers didn't always get the memo.

A lot of Hills runs came on good coverage by UCONN and defenders were down the field in coverage (we can get into a discussion on why Coach Diaco didn't feel the need to use a spy, especially since he rarely sent in extra rushers).
 
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Thanks for your comment FB Mom. As for the OP, all I can say is where has he been? These are the worst D and O lines? The past few years I used to get calls and texts from other FB Moms crying about how GDL and PP were ruining and demoralizing their sons. Coach Foley and his D counterpart will have the lines improving throughout the year. Stay positive.
 
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We have the worst D-line in the NCAA. Possibly one of the worst o- lines as well. Those are our biggest issues. That and we have a 2 headed monster at qb. Play one damn qb... Last night was like a freakin try out.

I thought both lines played ok, certainly the oline was better than last year.

Keep in mind, that the BYU oline was ranked top 20. I thought the guys did ok. Pressure needs to come from so where though.
 
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We don't have remotely close to the worst d line in the NCAA. I think some are misunderstanding the role of 3-4 d linemen. It is to hold the point. It's not about shooting gaps. The ends and NT take on blockers and the linebackers clean up. Unfortunately, the linebackers didn't always get the memo.

A lot of Hills runs came on good coverage by UCONN and defenders were down the field in coverage (we can get into a discussion on why Coach Diaco didn't feel the need to use a spy, especially since he rarely sent in extra rushers).


Husky that's a good point. I don't remember much if any blitzing and the linebackers left a lot of room for the under routes. The LBs had most of the tackles tho.
 

Dooley

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DLine - it's simple football. We are a 3-4 now. That means our DL is more of a push/gap contain role than a penetrate/pass rush role. Our LBs are free to roam to stuff the run, pass protect or rush the QB. Our DL looked like they were playing contain against Hill. The problem was that Hill is really good and their guys have been playing in that offense for years. It's a very complex offense: a read-option spread-option hybrid of sorts. And it's run at light speed to keep defenses on their heels. Other than a few breakdowns, I thought the D played well...especially in the 2nd half after they had a full half of football to adjust. But to place blame on our DL is absurd. Hill is fast and when he had to scramble, once he escaped the pocket, he had a second option: tuck and run or dump off to a nearby receiver.

OLine - there were a few breakdowns during the game on pass protect but that happens in football. Overall, I thought the unit showed some promise. We were able to run the football fairly well and probably would have had more yards rushing had the score been closer. Calling them out like this after a game that they played okay is equally as absurd. BYU brought extra pressure on a lot of obvious passing downs so when their defense brings more guys than what we have in to block, you're going to have trouble.

QB - I suspect that this will be addressed at some point this season. I think that the only time it became a big issue was during the drive that Cochran drove the offense to around the BYU 20, then Whitmer was brought in and it seemed to have stalled the offense. I didn't like that decision either - hopefully, the hard-and-firm decision to bring in Chandler every 3rd series will be laxed in future games that we have a good drive going.
 
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I know with Foley the line will get much better but there is a way to go. Based on standard of PP/GDL era it was better but think we need to aim higher than PP/GDL level as 72 yards with a 2.3 average is not very good and when we were trying to pass our way back into game was when our protection was at its worse and BYU backed off in 4th quarter. That being said I expect to see improvement every week as these coaches seem to do what is needed to get better but would give the line a C- for the first game.

For D line I think Diaco will make adjustments with scheme and personnel to cover lack of mobility of D Line against dual threat QB's. Think will see a much improved defense by time we play first AAC game against Temple later this month.
 

Husky25

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Well it's good thing tho thread was started. It not as if the exact same things are being discussed in a half dozen other threads.
 
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We are trying to transition from a 4-3 to a 3-4. We don't really have the ends for a 3-4, and I'm not sure we have the linebackers either. Didn't notice much blitzing last night. I also thought the online was much improved. Losing the first game sucks. Always does.

I noticed two blitzes where we sent 2 LBs, or 5 total. Each time, everyone was picked up and Hill threw from the pocket
 
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I noticed two blitzes where we sent 2 LBs, or 5 total. Each time, everyone was picked up and Hill threw from the pocket
The only I guy I saw lining up at end that looked like he could be a legitimate pass rush threat was Carrezola. I have a hard time watching away from the action live, so there may have been others.
 

zls44

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It was so great to see competent/good OL play for the first time in years.

What was the common thread? Mike Foley running the show.

Checkers. Not chess.
 
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