We obviously don’t have a couple roquan smiths in the middle who can do it all. It’s Livingston job to make sure he’s calling the defense so the LBs are locked into man coverage often.
Regardless, I think their priority is stopping the run and allowing our DBs stop the mid to long range passing game. If teams are going to dink and dunk with TEs and RBs, I think they’re fine with that and will adjust when needed.
I think between you and
@Da Lama, you guys have the D end. Woods PFF'd decent, perhaps the score box people love him, but that early RB pass was bad and some other plays did not look great. Looking back, I think that opening gash deflated the D's overall confidence early, giving up rather than siezing momentum--but they built until the 4th Q. I'd say Bentley was solid/good, but not a clean sheet either. Also, it is not like an OLB/Buck/DE had a huge games--however, Hayes and others did make some plays. S play did not stand out either. Riley stepping up was huge, but CSC leaving after 3-4 plays was not in CU's plan. CU did shut down a short field and the 1st drive forcing FG's.
Certainly, NO D dominance by any means, but I see some building signs of Livingston's defense: quarter after quarter; half after half; and game after game. D gave up: 48 yards in 2nd Q; 120 yards in 3rd and 4th, ignoring the last drive which just had no business occurring. NDSU's 1st 4Q TD after CU's 8 minute drive was a downer. Also, without that last NDSU drive which is fixible, the D would not be taking as much heat.
Overall, I felt DLine played better overall against a team running all sorts of motion, misdirection, and attacking everywhere on the line. IMO, we have more and deeper talent in the D trenches and that showed on many plays. The LBs, S, and Nickle/Dime just have to link up better. I do not think it is lack of talent, rather coordination that comes with time and gameplanning. Also, NDSU played very mistake free on O.
That said, I like CU's chances against a True Frosh QB and a team with some film (last week, or last season: the Corn have not completely overhauled their O), even taking into account that they are probably bigger and/or may have better RBs than NDSU. Corn's offense may actually simplify some things for the D. Hard to win on the road, but that does not give me a huge concern given the disparity in last year's game. Also, our Oline was not completely exposed, and the O showed it can put up scores in bunches including the fluke INT. CU was 6 of 8 scoring, until their last drive when they should have ran out the clock. Last week, the best starting field position for the Buffs was the CU 28, overall average about the CU 22. I do not think that will happen again throughout the season!