Yesterday was one of those days. You know, where the team plays like ass so you get up disgustedly from your chair to go do something else, only you can't really let go of the game so you check up on it and lo and behold, they've done some good things so you sit back down and they immediately screw things up, and you get up and leave again and you come back a bit later only to watch them blow the golden opportunity they were handed while you were away....and so on. And the only possible conclusion is that you're jinxing the team by having the TV on. That was me yesterday. If I hadn't turned on the TV and just taken a nap, maybe things would have gone differently, you never know. I mean, we didn't do a damn thing right against UNC until I moved from the recliner to the couch, at which point I stayed frozen in one spot until we scored the tying touchdown. It's all about the superstitions, I tell you.
I forget exactly what it was that caused me to leave at first. All I know is I saw nothing go right, everything go wrong, and every time the online box score showed me a glimmer of good news, like "first and goal on the 1" I'd turn on the TV just in time to see a loss of three yards on fourth down. (And I could see that play developing the moment Verica got the snap. I swear Mikey is the most predictable play caller ever. Verica hadn't moved two steps before I figured out what he was going to do and what the result would be. Ugh.)
And what did I say? Turnovers! Don't do it! And what did they do? Turnovers. Take away the Verica picks and the game is completely different. Wake only had one scoring drive of longer than 60 yards. Great field position otherwise. One of those interceptions was entirely Will Barker's fault. When you're the tackle, and you have a choice of whether to block the inside or outside guy, on which side is your help? Gah. Way to double-team the end and let the 'backer come flying free. The other first-half one happened when the TV was off, so the TiVo will tell me the story later, after which I will hit the DELETE button.
The defense did not suck as bad as "28-3 at halftime" would indicate, but stepping it up when you're down 25 is too late. The offense set them up to fail, but someone needed to make a play and nobody did. And I'm looking at Glaspy in particular for letting that second touchdown go. Looking up at the ball trying to find it for the interception when the receiver is streaking behind you......that is supposed to happen to freshmen. Then we shake our heads and go "damn freshmen" and at least we know they'll mature and get better. Glaspy is a fifth-year senior. The hell he should be making Football 101 mistakes like that.
What's it all mean, then?
- Tampa. Incredibly enough, we're still in the running and three things need to happen: 1) Win out. 2) Miami loses twice. 3) UNC loses once. #1 is obviously easier said than done, but it's possible: Clemson and VT are both extremely vulnerable. #2 is probably the easiest. I'll be surprised if Miami gets through both Techs unscathed, and they might lose both. They finish up with NC State, though, so it pretty much has to happen in the next two weeks. #3 is the hardest, I think. UNC's last two games are NC State and Duke. If Good Maryland doesn't show up to beat them next week, it'll essentially flush our Tampa trip down the toilet. Ahem.....F- ...Fear....fear th....f....fear the turt.....I can't say it. Go Terps. God, I feel so unclean.
- That's the sunny side. Now for the cloud. It's bigger. Next game is a must win if we even want to go to the 9th-pick game in Washington, let alone the Orange Bowl. I mean, do you really want to have to go into Lane Stadium needing a win to be bowl-eligible? Such is life in the ACC, where your postseason possibilities can range from BCS bowl to no bowl at all with only two games left. I'd like to think the bye week will help, but a fat lot of good a bye week did before Duke. I don't understand why our level of preparation is inversely proportional to the amount of time we're given to prepare.
Showing posts with label glaspy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label glaspy. Show all posts
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
season preview: defense
I really feel like watching at least some of that South Carolina-NC State game (that's right, I'm actually depriving myself of real, actual football so that I can get this stuff posted, just for you.) So it will be a toss-up as to whether the USC game preview goes up tomorrow morning or tomorrow afternoon. Leaning toward afternoon so these season previews, which I really did spend some time on, don't get shoved to the bottom, unread and unloved. In that vein, by the way, here is the link to the offense preview.
DEFENSIVE LINE
Let’s squash any misplaced over-optimism right now, once and for all: At absolutely no point during this year will the defensive line be better than it was last year. Chris Long was a destroyer of offenses. The line could have been made up of Chris Long and two cotton candy statues and I would have called it a 5 out of 5. Jeffrey Fitzgerald was not a cotton candy statue, and he is also gone. When the defense trots out against USC, the three biggest guys in blue will all be different players than last year.
And freshmen abound. At either the first or second spot on the depth chart, there is a redshirt freshman at each position. Notably, there is Matt Conrath (#94) slated to start at one of the ends. This was going to be Sean Gottschalk’s (#99) spot, but he has not been consistently practicing due to an “undisclosed health issue.” He may be Wally Pipp’d right out of a starting job, because Conrath has been lighting up the newspaper articles and message boards with his play this fall. Long himself had terrific things to say about Conrath, and that was without even seeing him in a game. There’s a great deal more experience with the rest of the starters; Alex Field (#93) on the other end and Nate Collins (#98) in the middle were the top reserves and played in every game last year. Collins is an exceptional athlete overall; the guy actually played some quarterback in high school and acquitted himself well for a 270 pounder. (He’s bigger now.) But Groh likes redshirt freshman Nick Jenkins (#96), too, and we could see a lot of Jenkins this year. Last year Collins rotated with Allen Billyk and got about 35-40% of the snaps, and a similar rotation may be in the cards, with Collins taking over Billyk’s role.
So there’s really plenty of reason to believe that this line will perform quite well. Chris Long was one of those rare players who could change a game by himself from the trenches, and none of these guys are that level. But they’re good players in their own right. Counterintuitively, the 3-4 system demands better line play than the 4-3; because there are fewer of them, it’s harder to cover up poor play. A weak defensive tackle can be helped out by the stronger one in a 4-3, but if the 3-4 nose tackle is no good, the linebackers can’t help until the play is already four yards downfield. That’s why Groh rotates nose tackles more frequently than the ends. Yes, the starting ends were dominant last year, but they’re not this year, and Groh’s still looking for that near-even split of playing time at tackle. Fortunately, this looks like a group that can handle itself.
Rating: 3 out of 5.
LINEBACKERS
Always the stars of an Al Groh defense. Like the tight ends, just fire up the conveyor belt and bring on the next great Wahoo linebacker. This year, it’s Clint Sintim (#51), who is the defensive half of our preseason all-ACC selections. His side of the field will be damn near impossible for teams to run on, because next to him is Jon Copper (#54). Oh, and then there’s Copper’s fellow inside ‘backer, Antonio Appleby (#58). These three have started every game together since the beginning of the 2006 season. By their powers combined they are awesome – the best linebacking corps in the ACC, and that’s only three of four. The other outside spot will be manned by either Denzel Burrell (#45) or Aaron Clark (#41). Probably both, actually. Burrell is a junior and Clark is a senior, and both have similar waited-for-their-turn stories because in front of them was Jermaine Dias, who was a three-year starter at that spot.
Expect there to be rotation at all linebacker spots, because otherwise the conveyor belt will come to a screeching halt. If you call Clark the starter, then all four starters are seniors, and suddenly Denzel Burrell will find himself the graybeard of the bunch. There’s only one other junior linebacker, which is Darren Childs (#49), who’s got all of five plays under his belt. Jared Detrick (#55) and John-Kevin Dolce (#59) are the other backups, and only Detrick has anything you could call experience – he got into 11 games last year as a true freshman. These guys will rotate into the game so Groh can get a look for next year.
Rating: 4 out of 5. The only Butkus Watchlist guy is Sintim, but Copper is the leading tackler.
SECONDARY
Another position of strength, especially at corner. Vic Hall (#4) and Ras-I Dowling (#19) make up one of the better tandems in the conference. This is mainly due to potential more than past performance because unlike linebacker, there are no seniors in the two-deep at corner. Hall is one of the team’s best athletes. Dowling was a true freshman last year and had the kind of season where the coaches almost feel forced to put him in more and more. He earned last year’s Bill Dudley Award as UVA’s best first-year player, and scraped up a couple all-freshman honors in the conference and the nation, too. Dowling’s got a bit of a leg injury, which could put Dom Joseph (#23) on the field some against USC, but he’s still listed at the top of the depth chart. (By contrast, Gottschalk doesn’t appear.)
At safety, there’s Byron Glaspy (#22) and then questions. Glaspy has two years of starting experience under his belt, which is nice. Brandon Woods (#17) has two years of special teams coverage play under his belt, which is cause for a few questions. But he and Glaspy are the only two upperclassmen playing safety. This isn’t really as huge a deal as I’m melodramatically making it sound, because he’ll be helped immensely by playing next to a guy as experienced as Glaspy, and it’s not as easy for an offense to exploit a weakness at safety (if Woods turns out to be one.)
The depth here is pretty young. Besides Joseph, there’s Chase Minnifield (#31). Minnifield has the Pro Bowl bloodlines; his father, Frank, was a long-time cornerback for the Cleveland Browns. Both those two are redshirt freshmen; the rest of the secondary depth chart are sophomores. Experience is thin after the starting four, and even the starting four aren’t as experienced as you’d like.
Rating: 3 out of 5, but the potential exists for a boost, if Dowling and Hall maximize their athletic ability and stay healthy.
PUNTING
It’s Jimmy Howell (#8). He’s the only guy on scholarship. Um, John Thornton (#4) lives on the Lawn, so, awesome for him. But he won’t be doing any actual punting.
FRESHMEN ON THE FIELD
DE Matt Conrath
NT Nick Jenkins
CB Dom Joseph
CB Chase Minnifield
IN A NUTSHELL
Defense had better be the strength of this team, because it’s sure not likely to be the offense. The offense has pieces to the puzzle, but just as many question marks. On defense there are only two new starters once you get past the line, and that line itself isn’t bad either. The offense is poorly equipped to make any dramatic comebacks that require scoring more than once, so the defense cannot let the team get into any holes. They should be very strong against the run, and even a little bit of a pass rush would give the corners all they need to keep opponents’ passing games in check. Last year, most games were pretty low scoring – this defense even frustrated the flashy Texas Tech offense – and that looks to continue this year.
DEFENSIVE LINE
Let’s squash any misplaced over-optimism right now, once and for all: At absolutely no point during this year will the defensive line be better than it was last year. Chris Long was a destroyer of offenses. The line could have been made up of Chris Long and two cotton candy statues and I would have called it a 5 out of 5. Jeffrey Fitzgerald was not a cotton candy statue, and he is also gone. When the defense trots out against USC, the three biggest guys in blue will all be different players than last year.
And freshmen abound. At either the first or second spot on the depth chart, there is a redshirt freshman at each position. Notably, there is Matt Conrath (#94) slated to start at one of the ends. This was going to be Sean Gottschalk’s (#99) spot, but he has not been consistently practicing due to an “undisclosed health issue.” He may be Wally Pipp’d right out of a starting job, because Conrath has been lighting up the newspaper articles and message boards with his play this fall. Long himself had terrific things to say about Conrath, and that was without even seeing him in a game. There’s a great deal more experience with the rest of the starters; Alex Field (#93) on the other end and Nate Collins (#98) in the middle were the top reserves and played in every game last year. Collins is an exceptional athlete overall; the guy actually played some quarterback in high school and acquitted himself well for a 270 pounder. (He’s bigger now.) But Groh likes redshirt freshman Nick Jenkins (#96), too, and we could see a lot of Jenkins this year. Last year Collins rotated with Allen Billyk and got about 35-40% of the snaps, and a similar rotation may be in the cards, with Collins taking over Billyk’s role.
So there’s really plenty of reason to believe that this line will perform quite well. Chris Long was one of those rare players who could change a game by himself from the trenches, and none of these guys are that level. But they’re good players in their own right. Counterintuitively, the 3-4 system demands better line play than the 4-3; because there are fewer of them, it’s harder to cover up poor play. A weak defensive tackle can be helped out by the stronger one in a 4-3, but if the 3-4 nose tackle is no good, the linebackers can’t help until the play is already four yards downfield. That’s why Groh rotates nose tackles more frequently than the ends. Yes, the starting ends were dominant last year, but they’re not this year, and Groh’s still looking for that near-even split of playing time at tackle. Fortunately, this looks like a group that can handle itself.
Rating: 3 out of 5.
LINEBACKERS
Always the stars of an Al Groh defense. Like the tight ends, just fire up the conveyor belt and bring on the next great Wahoo linebacker. This year, it’s Clint Sintim (#51), who is the defensive half of our preseason all-ACC selections. His side of the field will be damn near impossible for teams to run on, because next to him is Jon Copper (#54). Oh, and then there’s Copper’s fellow inside ‘backer, Antonio Appleby (#58). These three have started every game together since the beginning of the 2006 season. By their powers combined they are awesome – the best linebacking corps in the ACC, and that’s only three of four. The other outside spot will be manned by either Denzel Burrell (#45) or Aaron Clark (#41). Probably both, actually. Burrell is a junior and Clark is a senior, and both have similar waited-for-their-turn stories because in front of them was Jermaine Dias, who was a three-year starter at that spot.
Expect there to be rotation at all linebacker spots, because otherwise the conveyor belt will come to a screeching halt. If you call Clark the starter, then all four starters are seniors, and suddenly Denzel Burrell will find himself the graybeard of the bunch. There’s only one other junior linebacker, which is Darren Childs (#49), who’s got all of five plays under his belt. Jared Detrick (#55) and John-Kevin Dolce (#59) are the other backups, and only Detrick has anything you could call experience – he got into 11 games last year as a true freshman. These guys will rotate into the game so Groh can get a look for next year.
Rating: 4 out of 5. The only Butkus Watchlist guy is Sintim, but Copper is the leading tackler.
SECONDARY
Another position of strength, especially at corner. Vic Hall (#4) and Ras-I Dowling (#19) make up one of the better tandems in the conference. This is mainly due to potential more than past performance because unlike linebacker, there are no seniors in the two-deep at corner. Hall is one of the team’s best athletes. Dowling was a true freshman last year and had the kind of season where the coaches almost feel forced to put him in more and more. He earned last year’s Bill Dudley Award as UVA’s best first-year player, and scraped up a couple all-freshman honors in the conference and the nation, too. Dowling’s got a bit of a leg injury, which could put Dom Joseph (#23) on the field some against USC, but he’s still listed at the top of the depth chart. (By contrast, Gottschalk doesn’t appear.)
At safety, there’s Byron Glaspy (#22) and then questions. Glaspy has two years of starting experience under his belt, which is nice. Brandon Woods (#17) has two years of special teams coverage play under his belt, which is cause for a few questions. But he and Glaspy are the only two upperclassmen playing safety. This isn’t really as huge a deal as I’m melodramatically making it sound, because he’ll be helped immensely by playing next to a guy as experienced as Glaspy, and it’s not as easy for an offense to exploit a weakness at safety (if Woods turns out to be one.)
The depth here is pretty young. Besides Joseph, there’s Chase Minnifield (#31). Minnifield has the Pro Bowl bloodlines; his father, Frank, was a long-time cornerback for the Cleveland Browns. Both those two are redshirt freshmen; the rest of the secondary depth chart are sophomores. Experience is thin after the starting four, and even the starting four aren’t as experienced as you’d like.
Rating: 3 out of 5, but the potential exists for a boost, if Dowling and Hall maximize their athletic ability and stay healthy.
PUNTING
It’s Jimmy Howell (#8). He’s the only guy on scholarship. Um, John Thornton (#4) lives on the Lawn, so, awesome for him. But he won’t be doing any actual punting.
FRESHMEN ON THE FIELD
DE Matt Conrath
NT Nick Jenkins
CB Dom Joseph
CB Chase Minnifield
IN A NUTSHELL
Defense had better be the strength of this team, because it’s sure not likely to be the offense. The offense has pieces to the puzzle, but just as many question marks. On defense there are only two new starters once you get past the line, and that line itself isn’t bad either. The offense is poorly equipped to make any dramatic comebacks that require scoring more than once, so the defense cannot let the team get into any holes. They should be very strong against the run, and even a little bit of a pass rush would give the corners all they need to keep opponents’ passing games in check. Last year, most games were pretty low scoring – this defense even frustrated the flashy Texas Tech offense – and that looks to continue this year.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
fluff is less fluffy
One really nice thing about the offseason giving way to "fall" practice ("fall" being kind of a silly word - have you been to Virginia in August?) is that the fluff pieces put out by the local papers get less fluffy and more newsy. You can get a pretty decent look at how the defense will be shaking out this season just by reading these articles here.
First, a look at nose tackle. Junior Nate Collins is more or less the man here, replacing Allen Billyk as the starter. Collins is one of the reasons I'm not going "OH NO defensive line OH NO" despite the much-mentioned loss of all three starters. Collins got in on his fair share of snaps last year and contributed also his fair share of tackles to the nose tackle total of 69, which in a 3-4 defense is saying something. So we're OK there. More exciting for the future is the emergence of Nick Jenkins. The article is about Collins, but Groh is talking good things about redshirt freshman Jenkins and hopes to use Jenkins this season in Collins' role from last year, which would mean seeing quite a bit of him on the field.
Next we go to the defensive backfield for a look at safety, where Byron Glaspy holds down the spot with a lock and key - Groh himself says Glaspy has "ownership" of the position. As a former walk-on, Glaspy is a great story, having become a starter his freshman year and never looking back. He will definitely be one of the defensive leaders this season.
Before I link you to this next article, I have a rant. And I'm not complaining, mind you, because thanks to the world of half-assery that is the NCAA eligibility rules, we get an extra kicker, and that's a good thing because the more kickers on the roster, the less the chance that they all will totally stink.
Here's the deal: Yannick Reyering, before he came here from Doitchland for his tour of duty as a Wahoo soccer player, played some for a German semi-pro team. The NCAA said, whoa there, and then said, das ist nicht so gut, you nicht play. End of eligibility. UVA appealed, and Reyering got three years of eligibility returned to him. Those ran out after this last season. BUT HE'S STILL OK TO PLAY FOOTBALL? Again, not that I'm complaining. We got a kicker out of it. But I don't understand why we can't get a soccer player out of it. What is the point of denying eligibility in one sport only, I wonder?
Whatever. Here's the article. It's a gripping, tearjerking tale, if you hold on to an onion really tightly while you read.
Other notes gleaned from the articles linked above:
- The inside track on the non-Glaspy safety position belongs to junior Brandon Woods. The article calls him a "converted wide receiver" but he hasn't played that position since 2005 (a redshirt year) and played on defense in high school besides. He is competing with Matt Leemhius, Rico Bell, and Corey Mosley.
- Besides Reyering, there are five other walk-ons joining the team: LB Brady Stovall, K Robert Randolph, C John Maghamez, WR Johnny Pickett, and QB Kyle McCartin, the older brother of '09 verbal Connor.
Programming note: I'd intended to have the UNC season preview up tomorrow, but it's been a LONG week at work, especially today, and I don't want to bother writing it up tonight. Tomorrow afternoon is a recruiting update, so UNC will run Sat. or Sun., and the rest of the ACC will finish up next week.
First, a look at nose tackle. Junior Nate Collins is more or less the man here, replacing Allen Billyk as the starter. Collins is one of the reasons I'm not going "OH NO defensive line OH NO" despite the much-mentioned loss of all three starters. Collins got in on his fair share of snaps last year and contributed also his fair share of tackles to the nose tackle total of 69, which in a 3-4 defense is saying something. So we're OK there. More exciting for the future is the emergence of Nick Jenkins. The article is about Collins, but Groh is talking good things about redshirt freshman Jenkins and hopes to use Jenkins this season in Collins' role from last year, which would mean seeing quite a bit of him on the field.
Next we go to the defensive backfield for a look at safety, where Byron Glaspy holds down the spot with a lock and key - Groh himself says Glaspy has "ownership" of the position. As a former walk-on, Glaspy is a great story, having become a starter his freshman year and never looking back. He will definitely be one of the defensive leaders this season.
Before I link you to this next article, I have a rant. And I'm not complaining, mind you, because thanks to the world of half-assery that is the NCAA eligibility rules, we get an extra kicker, and that's a good thing because the more kickers on the roster, the less the chance that they all will totally stink.
Here's the deal: Yannick Reyering, before he came here from Doitchland for his tour of duty as a Wahoo soccer player, played some for a German semi-pro team. The NCAA said, whoa there, and then said, das ist nicht so gut, you nicht play. End of eligibility. UVA appealed, and Reyering got three years of eligibility returned to him. Those ran out after this last season. BUT HE'S STILL OK TO PLAY FOOTBALL? Again, not that I'm complaining. We got a kicker out of it. But I don't understand why we can't get a soccer player out of it. What is the point of denying eligibility in one sport only, I wonder?
Whatever. Here's the article. It's a gripping, tearjerking tale, if you hold on to an onion really tightly while you read.
Other notes gleaned from the articles linked above:
- The inside track on the non-Glaspy safety position belongs to junior Brandon Woods. The article calls him a "converted wide receiver" but he hasn't played that position since 2005 (a redshirt year) and played on defense in high school besides. He is competing with Matt Leemhius, Rico Bell, and Corey Mosley.
- Besides Reyering, there are five other walk-ons joining the team: LB Brady Stovall, K Robert Randolph, C John Maghamez, WR Johnny Pickett, and QB Kyle McCartin, the older brother of '09 verbal Connor.
Programming note: I'd intended to have the UNC season preview up tomorrow, but it's been a LONG week at work, especially today, and I don't want to bother writing it up tonight. Tomorrow afternoon is a recruiting update, so UNC will run Sat. or Sun., and the rest of the ACC will finish up next week.
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