IU's Kirlew and Middleton
I’m really looking forward to seeing how our recently shuffled O-line handles IU’s two all world DE’s , Greg Middleton and Jammie Kirlew.
http://www.bigtennetwork.com/sports/football/story.asp?list_id=12&story…
“Along with Kirlew, the duo owns 36.5 career sacks between them, the highest total for a tandem in the country.”
IU’s rushing defense is #15 nationally, allowing 76 yards per game. I think our O-line is much improved and playing well, but Middleton and Kirlew are probably the best pair of DE’s we’ll face this year.
I think this is going to be a fun game to watch and a nice tester for our O-line.
September 25th, 2009 at 11:38 AM ^
I think they are both talented players, but Kirlew's 7.5 sacks this season were against a 1AA team in E. Kentucky, Akron (A Bad MAC team), and WMU (An average MAC team). That does not impress me all that much. Will it be a better test for our O-Line? Yes it will. But I think the duo end up with 1.5-2 sacks between them and we win by 17.
September 25th, 2009 at 11:47 AM ^
So you're saying we won't cover the spread?
/Irrelevant everywhere other than Vegas
September 25th, 2009 at 11:51 AM ^
Haha good catch. Im not a gambler so dont really pay attention to that at all. 21 is the spread correct?
September 25th, 2009 at 12:00 PM ^
It's been between 20 and 21 all week. I only know because of my Pickem league.
September 25th, 2009 at 12:39 PM ^
i'm hoping they won't cover the spread... offense.
September 25th, 2009 at 1:06 PM ^
While the competition argument is fair, how many sacks did Brandon Graham have against WMU? We shouldn't automatically discredit the kids output simply based on that.
September 25th, 2009 at 11:40 AM ^
The sacks don't concern me as much as how our OL holds up against them in run blocking. I'm hoping these two are a little overrated.
September 25th, 2009 at 11:56 AM ^
Wow. Despite Indiana's competition thus far, that's just impressive.
September 25th, 2009 at 12:20 PM ^
Here's the link showing who's on the watchlist (including Graham):
http://tedhendricks.com/09PR.htm
Lamarr "Guns don't kill people, I do" Woodley was a former winner.
I know these two haven't played a bunch of BCS schools this year, but I think making the watchlist shows that they can play some ball. Their nation leading 36.5 sacks over the last few seasons didn't all come against MAC teams...
September 25th, 2009 at 12:06 PM ^
BTW, just for you star-gazers out there
Greg Middleton was a 2-star DT not even ranked in 2006
Jamie Kirlew was a 2-star DE ranked #75 at his position in 2007
September 25th, 2009 at 12:38 PM ^
if the DEs were that sweet, they wouldn't be at IU. No disrespect to Terry Hoeppner and what he started to build at IU but it's not "the big time." Bill Lynch is just a younger version of Bill Mallory-meaning he may get them to an occasional bowl game but he won't win the state of Indiana in recruiting.
Kirlew and Middleton would be welcomed here in AA this year due to lack of DL depth but only one would start. The best thing to do to them is make them play technique. If they don't make a "big play" in the first quarter, the game will be over because they will start to press and go for big plays. That's when the spread kills you. Where last year we weren't good enough to take advantage (except a fluke 58-yard run by the quitter vs. Wisconsin), we are good enough this year and the results will be stunning.
September 25th, 2009 at 1:03 PM ^
Oh absolutely, bc it's not possible that kids can develop beyond their high school ratings or projections.
September 25th, 2009 at 1:46 PM ^
develop, it is just a statement of the fact that the media is making it out to be that UM is facing Michael Strahan and Lamar Woodley here. The fact is that they're not and let's get it out in the open...
If they were really great, we would've heard about them before this week.
September 25th, 2009 at 2:38 PM ^
Just because you haven't heard of them doesn't mean the rest of us haven't.....sorry.
September 26th, 2009 at 12:06 AM ^
but to read some of the bloggers here, you would think they are destined for the new College Hall of Fame. They're good, not great and that is all we need to know. Sorry to you...
September 25th, 2009 at 1:35 PM ^
I just checked this out myself and it looks like Kirlew has 2.5 sacks this season, not 7.5.
Check the link yourself
http://iuhoosiers.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/stats/2009-2010/teamcume.htm…
Middleton has 1 sack this season.
September 25th, 2009 at 1:38 PM ^
Can I not read? Or did the line about 7.5 sacks in the OP disappear? I'm confused haha
September 25th, 2009 at 2:38 PM ^
Knowing that this is IU, I'm gonna assume RR will try to take them out of the game the same way opposing teams scheme against Graham. Runs up the middle, exploiting their likely inferior DTs, and the usual zone read to take one of them out of the play from the start.
September 25th, 2009 at 6:02 PM ^
And then they'll counter that, and we'll counter their counter. And then they'll counter our counter to their counter. And then we'll win because we'll counter their counter to our counter to their counter.
September 26th, 2009 at 12:33 AM ^
Skinner: Well, I was wrong; the lizards are a godsend.
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