Te'o/Gray >>>>>> Rest of the D

[Riddickulous]

This is a fact, people.

 

[tankjeep]

our defense is mediocre at best and that's being kind

 

[IRISHinKC]

I thought when we punted the last time, MSU was gonna go right down the field. I was thinking here we go again. They saved the heartache for OT.

 

[Ultimate Penn St. Hater]

Awful

 

[tonyroberts4life]

They are far from awful. Everyone is so quick to criticize this defense ( that is typically on the field 3/4 of the game) They did everything they could to win the game. Held up at the end of regulation and did what they were supposed to do in o.t. Feet got tangled on the winning play, otherwise they had it covered

 

[irishfan]

Iam Williams isnt too bad

 

[TinyT]

I don't understand why safeties are being asked to cover wideouts in nickel, when we have a perfectly good corner, in Blanton, who could do it better.

 

[OlympiaIrishFan]

Who knows, we had alot of problems today.

 

[Riddickulous]

Blanton needs to start. Darrin Walls sucks.

 

[NDFANnSouthWest]

walls had a bad game...apparetly he was hurt (per BK)

 

[NDFANnSouthWest]

overall I thought the D did well...that had key stops during the game.

the two safeties need some help...depth....

 

[GoIrish41]

I think our OLBs are the problem. Most big plays in the run game have been on the edge all year.

 

[no.1IrishFan]

I think our OLBs are the problem. Most big plays in the run game have been on the edge all year.

YUP!

 

[RyCo1983]

Teo wrapping people up and actually making tackles instead of always going for the knock out shot would help too.....

 

[no.1IrishFan]

Teo wrapping people up and actually making tackles instead of always going for the knock out shot would help too.....

Yeah, I love his intensity and how hard he works to get at the ball carrier but he needs to work on wrapping up a bit. Once he combines his ability to hit with his ability to tackle he'll be unstoppable.

 

[Pohaku]

Teo wrapping people up and actually making tackles instead of always going for the knock out shot would help too.....

32 tackles and 18 of those solo isn't good enough. Also 3.5 TFL for 18 yards is unacceptable. These three games have shown that Manti needs to step up his game to be on par with the REST of the defense. He is an every down linebacker so he needs to make every single play.

Sorry I couldn't pass this up it was too funny hehe.

 

[tankjeep]

32 tackles and 18 of those solo isn't good enough. Also 3.5 TFL for 18 yards is unacceptable. These three games have shown that Manti needs to step up his game to be on par with the REST of the defense. He is an every down linebacker so he needs to make every single play.

Sorry I couldn't pass this up it was too funny hehe.

stats are great and all, but the big play at crucial times is what is needed. manti may miss a few of those big plays. i'm willing to live with that, but he does need to wrap up more often then not. but i get your point too.

teehee.

 

[fairkidz]

wrap them up and tackle somebody!

 

[iamtrulyblessed]

They are far from awful. Everyone is so quick to criticize this defense ( that is typically on the field 3/4 of the game) They did everything they could to win the game. Held up at the end of regulation and did what they were supposed to do in o.t. Feet got tangled on the winning play, otherwise they had it covered[/QU Ok I agree with you. Yes they missed alot of tackles and during the whole game, Aaron kept saying Teo needs to wrap up. The line wasnt putting enough pressure on the quarterback at all, they werent closing up the middle in times of BIG plays that resulted in touchdowns. They pretty much gotta step it up.......I wouldnt say they were awful, but they all needed to be on their game yesterday and they weren't.

 

[Irish Houstonian]

The D is fine and has many good players other than Teo and Gray. EJ, Carlo, Ian Williams, KLM are all playing well.

Our problems with big runs almost always involve Zeke or B. Smith taking the wrong angle or being out of position.

 

[jason_h537]

Everyone sucks after we lose and the guy on the bench is always better. That sums up this entire thread

 

[kmoose]

The D is fine and has many good players other than Teo and Gray. EJ, Carlo, Ian Williams, KLM are all playing well.

Our problems with big runs almost always involve Zeke or B. Smith taking the wrong angle or being out of position.

I'm not in favor of crucifying the defense, but they are far from "fine". They just gave up 500+ yards, to ONE guy, last week. Then, they let MSU go through them like a hot knife through butter, late in this week's game. They aren't horrible, but they sure as hell ain't "fine". My impression of the D, so far this year (especially when comparing them to last year) is that they finally look competent. But they still are only average, at best.

 

[RyCo1983]

32 tackles and 18 of those solo isn't good enough. Also 3.5 TFL for 18 yards is unacceptable. These three games have shown that Manti needs to step up his game to be on par with the REST of the defense. He is an every down linebacker so he needs to make every single play.

Sorry I couldn't pass this up it was too funny hehe.

He's doing great stat wise...but if you have watched 5 minutes of the Irish defense you can clearly see that T'eo is not wrapping up to the best of his ability...hell that goes for pretty much the entire defense!

I can't wait for Lynch and Tuitt to light a fire in a year or two

 

[Old Man Mike]

Well here comes another random guy's unwanted opinion: I think that generally speaking we're pretty good on defense. We have a few horrible deficits that bite us all the time. 1). our "closing speed" is really terrible with the exception of our corners [who despite what some would like to say about them are pretty good and often under the duress of inadequate QB pressure]. 2). Ian Williams is really good. When he leaves the field for a blow, you can really tell it, even though the other guys are trying their guts out on the D-line. 3).The linebackers are good when it's a middle run, but are very erratic when flexible change of direction is required of them. 4). Statistics aside, I feel that Carlo has played at least as consistently as Manti [and I really didn't want to believe that.] Our middle linebackers are supposed to shuck guards and when one gets into Manti it has sometimes been an ugly ride. I'm willing to give him the out that he battles so wildly in these situations that the bulldozer can decleat him, but, I dunno. 5). Our defense has in fact risen up quite a few times when we needed them and gave the offense a chance to win the game. Why else were we in position to do so?-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------This defense needs depth, functional depth not on-paper depth--and almost everywhere. Kelly's recruiting will get us there. This defense REALLY needs closing speed and consequent QB and Flat pressure. Think Lynch, Atkinson, Counsell, et al. It's coming folks. What we've got is good, not bad. What's coming is a step up --- but a little patience please, and a little support for our warriors who are giving it all they have.

 

[jason_h537]

We do lack speed on the outside and that was exposed when MSU went sideline to sideline.

The Dline depth is is getting very sad. Pete Sampson posted something like when all 3 starters were in Michigan averaged about 3.3 YPC, when any backup was in that number was over 9 YPC

Motta is not a bad player, he is just not ready to play yet. Unfortunately thats all we got. He made some stupid plays and took poor angles but he also made a couple.

Te'o has missed some big tackles so as great as he is, people need to get up off their knees

Gray and Calabres ahve played great. Both are studs.

 

[Sherm Sticky]

We do lack speed on the outside and that was exposed when MSU went sideline to sideline.

The Dline depth is is getting very sad. Pete Sampson posted something like when all 3 starters were in Michigan averaged about 3.3 YPC, when any backup was in that number was over 9 YPC

Motta is not a bad player, he is just not ready to play yet. Unfortunately thats all we got. He made some stupid plays and took poor angles but he also made a couple.

Te'o has missed some big tackles so as great as he is, people need to get up off their knees

Gray and Calabres ahve played great. Both are studs.

You are spot on with Motta...He is a true sophomore and is very green. It would be great if Jamoris was healthy and Motta could come in on nickle or dime situations.

 

[Junkhead]

Gray is solid, a stud in the making. He showed flashes of that last year. Motta needs time. We really need Slaughter back this week, he looked pretty damn good vs PU. Teo has great instincts, but missed one major tackle (that I saw) and is being crucified for it. Part of the problem that I've seen, is that, even though better conditioned, the D is not used to being on the field so much. We need better D depth to keep up with the Kelly high tempo offense.

 

[Irish Houstonian]

I'm not in favor of crucifying the defense, but they are far from "fine". They just gave up 500+ yards, to ONE guy, last week. Then, they let MSU go through them like a hot knife through butter, late in this week's game. They aren't horrible, but they sure as hell ain't "fine". My impression of the D, so far this year (especially when comparing them to last year) is that they finally look competent. But they still are only average, at best.

The whole "one guy" analysis is disingenuous. When your QB and RB are the same person, the team's entire yardage will be isolated to him. ND gave up 500+ yards *total*. Obviously not great but there were many mitigating factors. There were turnovers and 3-and-outs that put the defense on the field for many more plays than should have happened. That and one 85 yard run. At one point wasn't Michigan like 1 for 7 on third downs?

Our problem is that they're on the field too long. Over time even the best defenses in the world will wear down and give up a big play. It's just a matter of time.

 

[IrishinSyria]

Our problem is that they're on the field too long. Over time even the best defenses in the world will wear down and give up a big play. It's just a matter of time.

Exactly, and its "schematic" that they're on the field so long...the Kelly offense is emphatically not about ball possession. Our defense is actually doing just fine, according to the Kelly system. It's our offense that's the trouble...we have yet to break 30 points in regulation. This is ok if you're a coach whose team is consistently top 5 in the NCAA in ball possession (say, Charlie Weis) but its TERRIBLE if you run a high tempo offense and your coach ranked last in the NCAA in ball possession last year (Brian Kelly).

Blaming our defense right now is like blaming the field medics that people died on D-day. Sure, maybe every once in a while they screw up, but their role was not to be perfect. It's our own big guns that have to start firing.

 

[kmoose]

The whole "one guy" analysis is disingenuous. When your QB and RB are the same person, the team's entire yardage will be isolated to him. ND gave up 500+ yards *total*.

You're right. Giving up 258 yards on 28 carries, to ANYONE, is indicative of the defense being "fine". Take out the 87 yard run that he busted, and he only gained 171 yards on 27 carries. That's "fine"?

Look, I'm not arguing that the defense is lousy. I'm merely saying that the defense is average, at best. And average, at ND, isn't "just fine".