Front 7=Beast. What about the CB's?

[UmphreakDomer]

i like our secondary next season, barring no more injuries. But, I'm nervous about getting torched through the air in 2012...i know thats out there in the looking glass...

who else thinks the #1 CB should be tops on the list for next season?

 

[GEORGIA DOMER]

i think BK will go get 2 of the top 15 cb and a top 10 if not the #1 rate mobile qb next year mark it down. give the man time he is going to tear it up recruiting at ND

 

[dannwo]

2012 may not be a great year; the games that are on tap for that fall are brutal.

 

[johnnykillz]

Secondary is one of those areas we need to be in tune with next year. There, and offensive line.

But, the front will help our DBs with pressure. Our safety should have quite a few INTs in a few years. The run game better be established or our guys are gonna tear them apart in the guessing game.

See "Sun Bowl 2010."

 

[UmphreakDomer]

i think BK will go get 2 of the top 15 cb and a top 10 if not the #1 rate mobile qb next year mark it down. give the man time he is going to tear it up recruiting at ND

i'm glad others are thinking about this. i pay attention, but some of you guys on this board are uncanny with your ability to make opinion and prophecy seem to go hand in hand!

i went to GVSU and was there for the BK runs to Alabama. I love what the guy can do.

Go Irish!

 

[Riddickulous]

Lo Wood should see a lot of time as a nickel back this season (2011).

 

[Big23Head]

A nasty front 7 could mask the inexperience, somewhat, to start the season. Schedule is nasty though.

 

[CanadianIrish]

2012 is going to be a more difficult year for us no matter what because we'll lose almost all (except for 5th years) of the guys from the big Crist/Floyd/Rudy class that was ranked so highly.

That having been said, I'm less concerned with our secondary given the strength of our front seven. We can play a lot of zone, and then coaching is more important than measurables. Our recruits are also tall, and while they aren't burners they should be able to do ok.

All that having been said, I wouldn't be at all opposed to having both of the Atkinsons in the secondary, I think that might even be a better route to the pros for the higher rated one who plans on playing offense.

 

[IrishFBfanatic]

The biggest concern is that we have 3 CB's coming into spring ball. Every year we see minor and major injuries. What if, and this is just a "what if", but what if gray or blanton tweak something? who can really step up? Does anyone else see BK attempting to move a WR into the secondary during the spring? We will get the reinforcements come summer, but those spring practices are crucial. Maybe it's just me, but i could see collinsworth moving to the secondary, or at least cross training between receiver and DB...

 

[Riddickulous]

2012 is going to be a more difficult year for us no matter what because we'll lose almost all (except for 5th years) of the guys from the big Crist/Floyd/Rudy class that was ranked so highly.

That having been said, I'm less concerned with our secondary given the strength of our front seven. We can play a lot of zone, and then coaching is more important than measurables. Our recruits are also tall, and while they aren't burners they should be able to do ok.

All that having been said, I wouldn't be at all opposed to having both of the Atkinsons in the secondary, I think that might even be a better route to the pros for the higher rated one who plans on playing offense.

George looked bad at safety in the AAA Game. He belongs at wide receiver.

 

[tommyIRISH23]

Josh Attkinson, Jalen Brown, and Bennet Okotcha from this years class.

2010 we had Lo Wood, and Christ Badger (S).

Jamoris Slaughter will be back 2010 along with Motta.

I think getting our 2011 recruiting corners involved in the system this year is crucial. I suspect they will get some in game experience when possible, especially since we are somewhat thin there as it is.

During the 2012 season our pass rush should be awesome, even without sending 5/6 guys. Our front 3 with a 1 LB attack should be enough. That schedule is brutal though, but winnable if Lynch(fingers crossed), Teo, Nix, Shembo, Ishaq, Rabassa...etc achieve even 70% of their potential.

 

[D-BOE34]

It seems to me that whenever you see ESPN raving about a great D-Front they mention the CB's being shut down/damn good. They go hand in hand. As long as we have athletes that can develop and stay disciplined we should be good.

DISCLAIMER: If front 7 meets the expectations

 

[irishff1014]

2012 will be tough but not as bad as every one thinks.

 

[Rack Em]

It seems to me that whenever you see ESPN raving about a great D-Front they mention the CB's being shut down/damn good. They go hand in hand. As long as we have athletes that can develop and stay disciplined we should be good.

DISCLAIMER: If front 7 meets the expectations

However a solid front 7 that can control the offense's running game can make the secondary look good/make their job easier. When a team has to be one dimensional like that, it takes pressure off the defensive backfield.

 

[chirodomer]

Our defensive line definitely helped the DB's this year. I will really get excited when we stop giving 10 yard cushions on the receivers!

 

[UmphreakDomer]

Our defensive line definitely helped the DB's this year. I will really get excited when we stop giving 10 yard cushions on the receivers!

^ AMEN!!

 

[Old Man Mike]

Next year we will field a great top five DB array [Smith, Motta, Slaughter, Gray, Blanton], BUT NO EXPERIENCE BEHIND THEM. All of us are going to have to pray for no injuries or the very rapid development of Wood et al.

I don't believe that Wood will be in the regular nickel, since Diaco liked Motta there. But it wouldn't be a bad idea. If we have no significant injuries "back there" our DBs will actually be a team strength. It's the front seven who must do their job of pressure.

If people like EJohnson continue to improve on "push", and Schwenke and Shembo are turned loose at appropriate times, and Fleming becomes an all-around stud [and even Tuitt shows he's such a pile-maker that Diaco has to get him in there----all of these concepts are not stretches], then our defense will be elite.

Defensive backfield is shallow but good. Losing Walls' great solidity is the only thing which worries me on defense right now---unsung and tough to really replace, but maybe Blanton will add Walls' consistency to his flash.

 

[jason_h537]

I have heard good things about Lo Wood. Okatcha and Atkinson will both get a shot at early PT. we need them to grow up really fast

 

[irishff1014]

There will be games we should win be a decent amout. when we are up big we need to throw some of these young guys out there so the can get field experience.

 

[NDTH91]

2012 will be tough but not as bad as every one thinks.

Thank you. The schedule looked really terrible a few years ago or even before last year, but look at it now. With usCrap, michigan, and miami not what we thought they were going to be, all of a sudden it doesn't look like so much of a gauntlet. Granted, there is still a lot of time before the 2012 season, but I can't see these teams being as good as we all thought they might be at this point. With Harbaugh gone and 2012 probably being the first year without Luck does anyone think that Stanford will be a top 10 team in 2012? It looks to me like Oklahoma is the only REALLY good team that we might have to face, and they might not even be a top 10 team by that point. In all honesty, and if things go according to plan next year, we could be favored in every game in 2012. It will be a year that is harder than most, but I don't think it's imminent death like some of us thought or are making it out to be.

 

[UmphreakDomer]

that michigan game after traveling back from ireland is going to be a doozy.

 

[irishpat183]

I can't say I'm on board with alot of posts on here about "our front 7 will mask the problems in the secondary". Not against good teams. They will expose us. And what happens in the second half when your front 7 is getting worn down? Two things to think about....

Not all teams we play will be a good matchup for our D. We need better players in the secondary. The underachieving Walls/Gray really set us back. I was expecting a lot more outta those two.

We need to stay healthy. We dont' have the depth back there to compensate for an injury to a Harrison Smith (pending he comes back) or a Slaughter.

 

[delt1147]

I do you think they will go after cornerbacks next year. I'm not concern though because a good front 7 can make a average secondary really good

 

[UmphreakDomer]

I can't say I'm on board with alot of posts on here about "our front 7 will mask the problems in the secondary". Not against good teams. They will expose us. And what happens in the second half when your front 7 is getting worn down? Two things to think about....

Not all teams we play will be a good matchup for our D. We need better players in the secondary. The underachieving Walls/Gray really set us back. I was expecting a lot more outta those two.

We need to stay healthy. We dont' have the depth back there to compensate for an injury to a Harrison Smith (pending he comes back) or a Slaughter.

i enjoyed gary's play this year. i thought he played smart and with intensity. i got nervous when i saw the ball going towards #2. but i loved D-walls as a person. underachieving is an appropriate word for his play.
if we go after a prototypical shut down corner, a revis island kind of guy, we'll be ok. no need to double team on that side of the field.

 

[jason_h537]

The underachieving Walls huh? His dad was just answering questions and said he could not lift his arm the whole year without injections. What an underachiever. SMH

 

[UmphreakDomer]

The underachieving Walls huh? His dad was just answering questions and said he could not lift his arm the whole year without injections. What an underachiever. SMH

whoa...
im not taking away his commitment, the defensive scheme, the turmoil the program was in, injuries, or stats. im agreeing with the fact that he didnt meet expectations. im sure he gave his all. im proud of him for that.
do you believe he met his expectation?
did clausen?
did walker?

 

[irishmarine]

I think Kelly will address it as needed. He said we would go after de's this year and look at the ones we have.

 

[Old Man Mike]

I thought Walls and Gray were rock solid whenever they got any help at all from the pass rush. Different commentators on TV said similar things in games in the second half of the season. DBs are always going to get beat sometime. Even the great ones. Our DB errors were much more frequent from the second safety position than the CBs. I trust that Motta and Slaughter will grow out of that and I saw improvement late in the season.

 

[Bogtrotter07]

George looked bad at safety in the AAA Game. He belongs at wide receiver.

Wow, that's great, he will be a wide receiver. We have Blanton and Gray back for 11 and that will give wood and a whole host of Freshman, (almost everyone coming in could play safty or cb) to gain experience.)

The two recent Texas recruits, (Cam and Bennett) will both light things up. And the other Texas cornerback is the most awesome talent in the rough you may ever see, his junior year injury is the only thing that has kept him off the top of everyone’s list.

Finally, Farley has the size, speed, and raw talent to be special. Just watch. And just watch what the coaching and strength training will do.

 

[NeuteredDoomer]

I can't say I'm on board with alot of posts on here about "our front 7 will mask the problems in the secondary". Not against good teams. They will expose us. And what happens in the second half when your front 7 is getting worn down? Two things to think about....

Not all teams we play will be a good matchup for our D. We need better players in the secondary. The underachieving Walls/Gray really set us back. I was expecting a lot more outta those two.

We need to stay healthy. We dont' have the depth back there to compensate for an injury to a Harrison Smith (pending he comes back) or a Slaughter.

Walls and Gray were super this year. Entire D was good (minus the Navy game).

"Not against good teams?" Did you read that ND had one of the toughest schedules in the country this year? I remember the EXACT play where Walls knocked out his shoulder. He came off the field with his arm dangling. I made mention of it either in the game day thread, or to my neighbor's dog, can't remember, but I definitely know I said "uh oh, he's injured" to somebody. He toughed it out. So did Gray.