Mgobowl

January 18th, 2011 at 11:51 PM ^

I'm happy with it as long as it is flexible enough (scheme and personnel) to match up with pure spread teams. I can see the value in having the 3-3-5 as a change of pace, but not as an every down D.

 

Cheers to GMAT and him knowing how to run a real defense.

Umichmadness

January 18th, 2011 at 11:57 PM ^

thank you!!! finally back to the common and well-proven defense....now hoke is starting to roll..kept jackson and now the staff is coming together. More and more recruits are starting to pick up interest

vaneasy2338

January 19th, 2011 at 12:13 AM ^

on the lineup

DL:VanBergen/Washington/Martin/Roh

LB:Jones or Furman/Demens/Fitzgerald

DB:Floyd (like to see one of three freshmen corners step up)/Vinopal/Johnson/Wolfolk

Quite frankly, it doesn't look that bad to me. We'll see.

WolvinLA2

January 19th, 2011 at 12:19 AM ^

I'd put Cam Gordon into the line-up at LB, probably in place of Furman. 

I'd put Marvin Robinson in at one safety spot, probably for Vinopal.  Reports from pre-bowl practice said MRob was moved to FS and was picking it up very well.  He didn't get the start for the bowl, but he was pretty new to the spot.  A whole off-season might make all the difference.

vaneasy2338

January 19th, 2011 at 12:34 AM ^

I"m not sure Cam has a spot anymore. For one he is 207 lbs. That's good 20 lbs away from playing lb in this conference. Second, he just isn't a quick-twitch athlete. You saw that when he played at safety. Moving him to lb masks some of that, of course. I don't know why we thought the kid could ever play defense in the first place. Slow (abliet big) possession wide outs don't translate to the defensive side of the ball.

I think Vinopal is underrated. You put a good 10 pounds on him, and I think he would have one hell of a skillset. The kid is pretty fast, and on the quick side. Vinopal is the only safety I would trust in a two deep look as of now. I even think you could play him single high every once in a while, and I just don't see any other safety being able to do that.

WolvinLA2

January 19th, 2011 at 1:00 AM ^

I completely disagree with your assessment of Cam talent-wise. He'll be a solid LB. As for his weight, please go to the mgoblue roster and tell me how much Furman and Mike Jones weigh - the two you put in place of Cam.

Plus - for all you say about Cam, Furman is a complete unknown. We know he's fast and that's about it. Cam, for all his weakness (as a frosh) was good enough to start every game for us.

Monocle Smile

January 19th, 2011 at 3:18 AM ^

Vinopal is notably fast, especially for a tiny white dude. Not Denard or Shaw fast, but his speed is probably his second-greatest attribute (next to instincts...he's show he can actually step in front of a route, which we've been missing for nearly a decade).

fatbastard

January 19th, 2011 at 9:32 AM ^

Is a talented and fast kid.  He definitely will have a spot.  Nickel back.  Wide side linebacker.  Blitzer.  Even if only a sub at times this season, he's going to get significant playing time, and will likely be a starter in 2012 (if not 2011). 

vaneasy2338

January 19th, 2011 at 12:39 AM ^

who tackled Mike Leshoure (a potential first round pick) at the LOS in the one of the most important players in the ill. game, and is probably our best cover safety. God forbid he plays.

He often got caught a little too deep, but that's not uncommon for a freshman and is fixable.

WolvinLA2

January 19th, 2011 at 1:29 AM ^

Then who are our subs at DE? Wilkins could be one, but who else? DL is a group that rotates a lot. Maybe sub Black in for QW on passing downs, but on running downs, having him and MM in the middle would be lethal, combined with a 290lb DE in RVB.

Waffles

January 19th, 2011 at 2:05 AM ^

JIbreel Black should be a DE, not a NT.  Hopefully Hoke and Mattison can work some wonders with Campbell and get him ready to be our NT.  Roh - Campbell/Washington - Martin - Van Bergen.  That has the potential to be a very good line.

NateVolk

January 19th, 2011 at 12:15 AM ^

Based on what I am reading today about the defense and the coaching hires, Kevin Koger and Will Campbell got a second Christmas less than 4 weeks from the official one.  Campbell gets a defensive line specialist as head coach with a scheme that likely will utilize more tackles, plus a totally fresh start.  That slightly outdoes Koger who only gets a position coach who groomed Tony Gonzalez and a more mature seasoned Denard. Hope he can make do.

MaizeAndBlueManGroup

January 19th, 2011 at 12:23 AM ^

I love this day. I really hope Jernigan and Darian Cooper catch wind of this. IIRC, they were 2 of the DTs who expressed they did not want to play in a 3-3-5. Someone get them on the phone immediately.

mgoblue720

January 19th, 2011 at 12:57 AM ^

isn't that what the dc ran with ravens. maybe some concepts because he ran 4-3 with florida then a 3-4 with ravens. maybe a cameron gorrdon/ terrell suggs combo?

Monocle Smile

January 19th, 2011 at 3:21 AM ^

I feel schemes as a matter of formation are completely overrated.

The implementation and execution of these schemes is what matters.

This could be a 4-3 or a 3-4, depending on Roh's label. It will be the same damn defense. Get a grip, folks.

The departure of the 3-3-5 is merely symbolic...nothing more.

Newbie

January 19th, 2011 at 7:43 AM ^

3-3-5 is dirty word around here. That label had to go with RR. Whether we  still employ the D from time to time is irrelevant- don't get caught up in the semantics. Changing the culture is Hoke's first task. Bringing in Mattison has dramatically shifted the way our D is viewed, thus bringing Mr. Optimism back to the party.

LSAClassOf2000

January 19th, 2011 at 5:41 AM ^

We have the talent on this team to patch together a decent 4-3 already, I think. The 3-3-5 put a lot of people out of position and in places they had no clue about.

And to whomever mistakenly called Mattison "GERG" - only "GERG" can be called "GERG". There is no other "GERG". Some texts use "GERG" and "3 (rushing plays) - 3(passing plays) - 5 (yard line)" as the long form of the name, but they refer to only one person.

bing24

January 19th, 2011 at 10:51 AM ^

Thank god, now I don't have to watch Mike Martin fight through a triple team to pummel the QB. Just imagine that animal if we can get Big Will/Q just to take up a blocker or two, other teams will shit their pants preping for him!

I fully expect this to open the door for DL/LB recruits we weren't getting before because of the 3-3-5. I have no clue what our offense will be, but what I do know is that our defense will be MUCH better and tough.

Defense wins championships...GO BLUE!