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How do we improve in 2014? (Defense)

Joe Theismann's Leg

Joe Theismann's Leg

Well-Known Member
It seems obvious to me that the D is in worse shape than the O, so I wanted to take a look at maybe projecting the D. I may be totally off here, and miss some guys so help me out if you see a mistake. Anyway, how does this D improve in 2014?

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Defensive Line

RDE- Markeis Reed (*Fr.)
RDE- Jimmy Gilbert (So.)

Like most teams, the RDE position is the primary pass rusher on the defensive line. CUD played this position very well for CU, but will be graduating. Rumor was that Markeis Reed was already up to 225 in August so I'd figure he'd need another 20 lbs in order to be able to start at his height (6'4''). It might be a very aggressive move, but we need pass rushers in a bad way. Now that he's redshirted a year, I don't see what holds him back from the RDE spot.

NT- Josh Tupou (Jr.)
NT- Tyler Hennington (Jr.)

Colorado doesn't list a NT on their depth chart, but just looking at the players kind of tells a story. One DT slot has much larger players than the other. I would assume that in their scheme, like other 4-3 schemes one DT's job is primarily to occupy blocks. Tupou started every game this season, and dropped a good 25 lbs before the season started. He's not great, but doesn't seem terrible either. Depending on if we acquire a JUCO NT or not, Hennington could be redshirted to add weight, but he seems to be an okay player.

DT- Justin Solis (Jr.)
DT- ??

LDE- Juda Parker (Sr.)
LDE- Samson Kafovalu (Jr.)

Obviously, the DL needs work. In fact, I'd say that it's arguably the biggest weakness on the entire team. Reed is an intriguing prospect, but he needs some more talent around him.

Linebackers

Mike (Inside)
Addison Gillam (So.)
Brady Daigh (Sr.)

Will (Inside)
?
?

Sam (Outside)
Deaysean Rippy (*So.)
Woodson Greer III (Sr.)

Addison Gillam was a stud for this defense. He started every game and the CU statkeepers credited him with 104 tackles prior to the Utah game. I counted 10.5 more tackles for him. (13 half tackles, 4 solo.) He also intercepted a pass. He looks like a stud, and the Mike position, with he and Daigh looks pretty solid. Deaysean Rippy is listed in the Sam spot because the team lists he, Greer and others as outside linebackers and everyone who's an OLB seems to be listed on the depth chart as a Sam linebacker. I would have figured Rippy would be a pass rusher but since he brings speed to the team he may be best in coverage with occasional blitzing. That leaves a hole at Will. With Webb graduating the only two players listed are freshman turning sophomores Olugbode and Severenson. K.T. Tu'umalo, who is popular on this board is also listed as an OLB so maybe someone will have to learn the Will position. JUCO players are also likely to help fill the ranks.

Cornerbacks

RCB- Greg Henderson (Sr.)
RCB- Yuri Wright (*So.)

LCB- Kenneth Crawley (Jr.)
LCB- Chidobe Awuzie (So.)

I actually think that the CB position is okay. Greg Henderson played well this season, intercepting 4 passes and getting a lot of tackles. For all the hell Crawley gets, he still started most of the season and appeared in all but one game. Wright had a redshirt year and the rumor was that he added some weight. Hopefully he lives up to the hype he generated as a recruit. He could take Crawley's job or be a nickel guy. Awuzie looked like a really good recruit this season. This might be our strongest unit.

Safeties

FS- Jared Bell (Sr.*)
FS- Marques Mosley (Jr.)

SS- Terrel Smith (Sr.*)
SS- Tedrick Thompson (So.*)

IMO, Bell played really well this season. 3 INT and a bunch of tackles. It seems like in HCMM's system the FS is given fairly big areas of the field and they're often forced into coverage so having a guy like bell who can play CB as well is a big help there. Smith redshirted this season so the senior should be able to return. In 2012 he was arguably the best defensive back on the roster. He had 70 tackles and a pick. The secondary isn't terrible, but there's room for improvement. There's a chance that in 2014 they could be a real strength for CU.

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so what do you guys think? Did I miss anyone? I usually skip over underclassmen or redshirt freshman if they're not on the roster... any ideas on where CU's defense might improve in 2014?
 
MiamiBuffs said:
A good off season practices and S&C.

Recruit more speed.
Click to expand...

This. If we can't get the kids for skill positions that have BOTH speed and size, then take speed I guess. Take a few that are projects that have speed and size, but not the skills yet. Grow the OL and DL in strength and fitness levels (can you teach them to have a 'high motor'?) Keep teaching them position, tackling, help them read offenses and defenses, give them even better football smarts. Lord knows we looked just clueless two years ago. This year the team looked like they knew what to do most times, but....didn't have the size or speed to always complete the plays. If PRich comes back I know that the whole team would be much more jacked about next year, but know that is very unlikely. For him to have an injury that made him think his career might be over to being a day one draft pick is pretty cool. I don't think I could tell my kid to risk that just for 'school pride'. If he was my kid, I would tell him to go pursue his real dream, which is done in the NFL. Either way, I think Sefo will be pushing the team in a big, big way this offseason. And working hard developing a bigger comfort zone with the other receivers.
 
The defense should be better. A DL of Kafovalu, Solis, Tupou would be old and experienced. Add in Patuvei and we're money.

Replace athletic liabilities like Bonsu and Orms with better athletes.

Overall we need to get bigger at LB. That's why we get ran all over especially on the goal-line. Our LB's just get pushed backed, Utah ran the same play 3 times for a TD on 1st and goal from the five. If Olugbode and Rippy could get into the 230lb range that would be awesome
 
I'd flip both of your DEs. Gilbert has a year of experience over Reed and Kafovalu >>>>>>>>>>>>>> Parker. And Thompson >>>>>>>>>>> Smith.

Honestly, we have some talent on defense. Giving up 50 points to every conference opponent can't fly next year.
 
White_Rabbit said:
I'd flip both of your DEs. Gilbert has a year of experience over Reed and Kafovalu >>>>>>>>>>>>>> Parker. And Thompson >>>>>>>>>>> Smith.

Honestly, we have some talent on defense. Giving up 50 points to every conference opponent can't fly next year.
Click to expand...

Baer should be coaching for his job next year IMO. Experienced secondary, experienced DL, and one of the best MLB's in the country being only a true sophomore...I'm expecting to see big improvements next season, especially if we land a couple JUCO DL who can play immediately.
 
beg and plead for CU admin to allow some JC transfers. We are desperate for help at D line and LB.
 
Agree with Duff on Smith at safety, kid tries hard but isn't talented enough. Where he could really contribute is using his agressiveness on coverage teams.

I think our DL will be better. We played a lot of guys who are still developing who should be bigger and stronger next year than this. There is a big difference between carrying fat and adding muscle. The extra year should help a number of them. Wilson had some good contributions as the year went on.

LB could be much better with Gillam having a years experience and development, Rippy bringing an upgrade in speed and athleticism. Hope what I'm hearing about Olugbode is true. With some added weight he could grab some significant playing time.

Hendo may have been our most stable defender this year, very reliable player at CB. Crowley is talented but frustrating. Chido stepped up big as a fr. Have no idea what to expect from Yuri coming back but he is a gifted athlete. If he has developed that talent he could also help a lot.

Any JUCO help we could get would be a plus but it makes no sense to plan for it until it is here on the field.
 
Linebacker - we mostly play 2 guys here and we should expect Gillam to get stronger and better in year 2, with Daigh as a solid backup who hopefully will come into Spring with a better conditioned body than he did last year.

Webb was a big hitter, but he left some room for improvement there more often than not. Greer started to get some of his PT, until he had an injury.
Olugbode is a guy the staff likes a lot and if he can get some good weight on, will be a key guy next year. I actually expect him to take a big step forward.

Any discussion of Rippy at this point is speculative and based purely on his recruiting lore. Like Connor Wood, your reputation from High School means nothing the day you step on a college campus. Rippy did not fare well at Pitt in year 1, clearly having some maturity issues. Hopefully, a change of scenery is DOING him good and he's on track to be an impact guy next year, but I don't think there's been one iota of confirmation of this. For this reason, we should just leave him as a question mark and see if he can prove he should be on the field. I've seen enough 4-star kids fail miserably here in the last 10 years, so please stop calling him our LB savior as I've seen on both Rivals and other threads. One thing is for sure and that is that natural abilities alone won't get you on the field under Baer and HCMM. You have to be assignment correct and you have to train and practice with a purpose. I sure hope that is the way Rippy is approaching his next 3 years.
 
The 1000 foot view tells me this defense should have a fairly high ceiling. Lots of our better recruits over the last 3 years will be starting and there is a legitimate all-Pac-12 talent in Gillam.

The reality of what we watched this past season was a MWC-caliber defense. But it feels like the talent is there to contend with mid-tier Pac-12 teams.
 
One thing that will help is a competent offense. In this conference, if you can't score consistently it puts too much pressure on the defense.

Some ways to improve will happen naturally by replacing Orms and a few others who are not really very good. We need the D line to be bigger and faster so we can actually get some pressure on the QB without having to blitz. The LBs will be good/better, as will the DBs.

Even as slow and undersized as we are, I'm encouraged by a few quarters or halves where we looked competent against PAC12 teams. I'm expecting the D to be better next year...it will be much better if we have a legitimate O line to take pressure off them.
 
BuffClass90 said:
One thing that will help is a competent offense. In this conference, if you can't score consistently it puts too much pressure on the defense.

Some ways to improve will happen naturally by replacing Orms and a few others who are not really very good. We need the D line to be bigger and faster so we can actually get some pressure on the QB without having to blitz. The LBs will be good/better, as will the DBs.

Even as slow and undersized as we are, I'm encouraged by a few quarters or halves where we looked competent against PAC12 teams. I'm expecting the D to be better next year...it will be much better if we have a legitimate O line to take pressure off them.
Click to expand...

Great point.

So even with the defense, a lot comes down to whether our OL can allow our offense to dictate the flow of the game next year.

But speaking strictly of defense, I believe the key is going to be whether our DTs can take a big step next year. If they're disruptive as upperclassmen after some struggles and inconsistency as underclassmen, it will completely change the overall performance of our defense. The back 7 and the DEs start looking a lot better if our DTs are playing on the other side of the line of scrimmage and commanding double teams.
 
Buffnik said:
Great point.

So even with the defense, a lot comes down to whether our OL can allow our offense to dictate the flow of the game next year.

But speaking strictly of defense, I believe the key is going to be whether our DTs can take a big step next year. If they're disruptive as upperclassmen after some struggles and inconsistency as underclassmen, it will completely change the overall performance of our defense. The back 7 and the DEs start looking a lot better if our DTs are playing on the other side of the line of scrimmage and commanding double teams.
Click to expand...

100% and even if they aren't dictating the flow. Something as simple as reducing 3 and outs makes a huge difference. Pick up a couple of first downs before you punt and you are changing field position. Much easier to stop a score when the opponent is starting from inside their 30 than when they are starting at mid-field. Also when you have the lack of depth we do makes a huge difference for the defense to get 5-6 minutes extra of real time rest on the sideline before coming back in rather than coming right back in still trying to catch their breath.
 
Finding a damn pass rush would help out alot. I agree with many of the points mentioned in the thread.
 
We are already better..........Parker Orms graduated. Great kid but should be at CSU Pueblo. Coaching staff did GREAT work with this group this year and I am looking forward to seeing what they can do with another year under their belts.
 
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SBP said:
We are already better..........Parker Orms graduated. Great kid but should be at CSU Pueblo. Coaching staff did GREAT work with this group this year and I am looking forward to seeing what they can do with another year under their belts.
Click to expand...
Sad but true...Parker is a great Buff but he is out of his element in the FBS...IMO.
 
I may as well point out that Parker Orms played as much as he did because he was the best guy we had. I wouldn't be so quick to wish him away.
 
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