Question about A&M's CB's...

[Pumchavas28]

Why is it an level do DB's play up consistently even when the know they can't cover the WR deep without a cussion except for A&M....

I watched South Lake Carroll play up on that Miami team..... I've seen every NFL team (even with horrible CB's) play up on WR's... I've seen ttu play their CB's up on oSu..... I saw Miami's CB's play up on our WR's for 3 of the 4 quarters I got to watch..... I saw South Carolina play up on LSU's WR's.....

Why is it our CB's at A&M play back.... I thought it might have just been Gorrer & Peterson, but I saw Marquis & Arkeith play off also....

often 7 to 12 yards off before the snap.... with little to no help to take away the slant....

The LB's play too far in to take away the Slant & the Strong Safeties are too far off to re-route any QB's vision or pre-snap read......

Now Darnell aside from being the DC is also the LB's Coach... and with a 4-2-5, the LB's can't really play that far out otherwise TE's will kill the middle more than they already are.....

So I am looking at the 1 of 2 things to fix this......

1) Why doesn't Coach Clay have the Whip & SS play up to take away slant? Malone has the CB's so far off they are basically in a Cover 3 with the FS.....

2) Why not have the CB's play up & have the Whip & SS play that deep 3rd... At the snap of every ball we basically drop back into a Cover 4 or Cover 5 almost every play....


This is just something I've been wondering.......

I do however like the blitzes that have been called.....

[whitelightnin_23]

bend but don't break...:sad: :bored:

[Mezentius]

I have come to the conclusion that Fran plays to his system and not to his players.
It's almost like he would rather be clever than good and it appears that his defense (and I don't care if he has a coordinator its his staff so ultimately his defense) consistently just doesn't want to get beat...keep it manageable and we'll win 60% of our games and keep our jobs and be clever.

I enjoyed watching games on Saturday where the players dictated the system used and those players played.

Case in point...LSU game. LSU played to its strengths with a banged up QB...yes yes they have great atheletes.

I watched Spurrier do the same...while being completely outmanned on both sides of the ball he continued to let his players play.

Same with numerous other games around teh country...I mean did anyone watch the Georgia v. Alabama game? Both teams went to the mattresses in that one...both have flaws, niether is a great team, but man did those coaches unleash what they had. Good stuff.


We've looked for the last few games like our players are playing to the system rather than playing the game. It's like bureaucratic football or something...sad real real sad.

[whitelightnin_23]

It's like bureaucratic football or something...sad real real sad.

I think that pretty much sums it up...the most accurate description I have ever heard about the Fran era...

:rep:

[Pumchavas28]

I'd have to agree Menz.....

I've seen lesser schools like that Mid Tenn game against L-Ville not care & play their DB's up & just play...... And mind you L-Ville's WR's are beasts......

[Mezentius]

I'd have to agree Menz.....

I've seen lesser schools like that Mid Tenn game against L-Ville not care & play their DB's up & just play...... And mind you L-Ville's WR's are beasts......


People ask me all the time why the 1990 Holiday Bowl was so cool...it was that the defense in that game, hell the whole era played like flat didn't care about alignment, tendencies, probabilities, etc. etc.

Pum you hit the nail on the head...

They just came at you...blitz, no blitz it didn't matter. Someone was coming for you at 100mph.
We might have lost but we were never embarassed.

I mean play smart and cover folks but sometimes you have to let your players play...yes they'll lose sometimes but man it beats being stuck in a nether world in between winning and lossing for whole season.

I don't think it's just Fran, I mean RC seemed in over his head the last year or so as well as the spread took hold. It's like some folks are just so mystified by all the recievers, the shotgun, the options, etc that they won't react...they're shell shocked.


That's why I'm such a Bo Pellini fan...at the end of the day he will win and lose because of the players on the field. He coaches them up and then unleashes them on the opposing team. You may beat him but your lips will be bloodied and your eyes will be black.

[MarylandAG]

I've wonder about this as well. I've alway thought that jamming receivers at the LOS would disrupt an offense based on timing, i.e. tceh. Jam them hard at the LOS and disrupt the timing, maybe our record against them over the last decade would be different, who know. It does drive me nuts, how far off the WR they play, a 3-5 yd gain is almost automatically then only thing that can possibly screw it up is the WR dropping the pass because he can't believe how open he is. Who really know what goes on in there mind. Sometimes I think they do it to not get beat deep, but the thing is they get beat deep pretty consistently.

[Burnetaggie99]

If you go back and watch the MSU & Fresno game you will see us man up and play very well and then go back to zone. It was like we only used man to man to stop the bleeding then quit using it. Also in the tu game last year we went man to man quite a bit and we shut down tu Wr's quite well. Also the Safety's need to quite worrying about the run and getting pulled in on playaction. Gregg is known to do this alot.

[Pumchavas28]

If you go back and watch the MSU & Fresno game you will see us man up and play very well and then go back to zone. It was like we only used man to man to stop the bleeding then quit using it. Also in the tu game last year we went man to man quite a bit and we shut down tu Wr's quite well. Also the Safety's need to quite worrying about the run and getting pulled in on playaction. Gregg is known to do this alot.


I know & Miami noticed that too.... :sad:

[12th man fan]

bend but don't break...:sad: :bored:

Thank you...that's it.

Keep everything in front of you and don't give up the big play.:sad:

While they march the ball down the field on you at 10-15 yards at a clip, and then score. While your defense stays out on the field getting tired and your offense gets butt sores from the bench.

Between Fran and Darnell, I'm not sure there's an spec of testosterone to be found.

[KCAggie]

Does anyone else think that bend but don't break not make sense for a team who's biggest weapon is running the ball and controling the clock????

[Pumchavas28]

Does anyone else think that bend but don't break not make sense for a team who's biggest weapon is running the ball and controling the clock????


I agree.... This should be a tighter defense forcing the issue....

[12th man fan]

Does anyone else think that bend but don't break not make sense for a team who's biggest weapon is running the ball and controling the clock????

Nearly everyone here thinks that it makes no sense. To me, BBDB it makes no sense under ANY conditions, but ESPECIALLY when you have a running-based, ball-control type offense.

Of course, this assumes that you use your best runner(s) in your ball-control run oriented offense rather than let them sit on the bench or play decoy so your QB and tailback can try running outside against a fast defense.

Don't get me started.

[Burnetaggie99]

I also hate the 3-3-5 defense. It has to many holes. If you have ever watched WV or Tulsa then you know what I'm talking about. If tulsa would of played a 4-3 or 4-2-5 defense they wouldn't of got blown out so bad aganist ou. The 3-3-5 leaves running lines 3 Mack trucks could drive though. WV is a little bit better because they have great athletes but they still give up some yards. If anything this is WV downfall and why the will never win a title.

[CBag]

Also the Safety's need to quite worrying about the run and getting pulled in on playaction. Gregg is known to do this alot.

:stupid: Wow Burnett I thought your posts were to defend McGee at a moments notice if someone says he can't throw or find an open receiver. But you state Gregg has been known to do this alot, gimme a break.

Pumchavas you highlight it like it's the truth. The problem is not Gregg, he has played well since he has been at A&M and will continue to start every game. If someone wrote Miami knows we can't throw the ball after watching our first 4 games of the season, I could be wrong but would you be stating "I know & Miami noticed that too by putting 8 to 9 men in the box"?

First of all the safeties haven't been worrying about the run, and if you look Gregg doesn't have that many tackles compared to LB's and he is doing his job by staying back. I know it probably dissapoints some people that Gregg wasn't the one that got beat on both of those bombs in the Miami game. He has been beaten on a bomb only twice his entire career. The Mizzou game that people can't let go, and the Montana St. game this year. Other than that no bombs have been thrown on him. People act like nobody catches passes on people.

Geez we only have 5 sacks the whole year, and we are getting killed on screens and the softest zone in college football, Doug Flutie said our defense is something you would see in HS. We have not been playing man defense it's the same ole zone, bend but don't break D.

[Dustin00whoop]

Dbag, I don't think you fully understand that zone that we have been running. When that guy goes deep on a post over the middle of the field, that is the safety's zone & he has to be there. Devin wasn't. I'm not blaming him for everything, but he has been beat on that before.

You're right, he doesn't have as many tackles as the LBs, but that doesn't mean he hasn't been biting on the run. It simply means that the LBs aren't letting the RBs get all the way into the secondary very often.

[CBag]

Neither play was his man on the long pass plays against Miami. Yes he has been beat in the past but you would be surprised it's not as bad as people make it out to be. That pass was not in the middle of the field, when Pugh and Gorrer were beat on the play that set up the second TD he got over as fast as he could to stop the TD. The writer from the Houston Chronicle stated he saved the TD. The other deep pass was unfortunately on Pugh again to start the second half. So if you can tell me this year that a deep pass has been thrown over the middle on him besides the montana st game I would like to know.

Dustin I am going to respectfully disagree with you on what he does or doesn't do. His play has been fine and for a player that supposedly makes all these mistakes it's amazing how he keeps starting game after game and never leaves the field. Hey we all want the Aggies to win and the blame has got to go on somebody.

[Dustin00whoop]

My man, I never said he makes "all" the mistakes. And to be honest with you, I am to the point where I don't fault the defensive players. It is obvious that they are not put in the proper places to make plays, & that they aren't coached to be aggresive. I think all the talent in the world is there for this to a successful defense. D. Gregg, along with a bunch of other guys on that D, are warriors & could be play-makers if ever turned loose. Surely we can both agree on that.

[CBag]

Dustin it's cool, and I know you didn't say he makes all the mistakes, again we all just want the players put in positions to suceed and just let them play football. When we have commentators knocking our scheme then I think we have some serious problems. This is the week to step it up.

[Dustin00whoop]

Well, let 'em play man to man & I think you'll see huge improvements! All game, against Baylor, let 'em man up.

[CBag]

Agreed!!!!