I think the issue concerning grades is to teach the players how hard it is to be great. We saw our team last year there's no question they were playing as hard as we could. We lost 5 games by a total of 22 points. But coach Herman sees that and is pushing them harder. It's true we raised our gpa under coach Strong but the kids need to realize their new hc is a member of Mensa. Because of that I don't think he's messing around when it comes to classwork.
Winter Workouts 2017
- Thread starter Godz40Acrez
- Start date
I think the issue concerning grades is to teach the players how hard it is to be great. We saw our team last year there's no question they were playing as hard as we could. We lost 5 games by a total of 22 points. But coach Herman sees that and is pushing them harder. It's true we raised our gpa under coach Strong but the kids need to realize their new hc is a member of Mensa. Because of that I don't think he's messing around when it comes to classwork.
It's all about being trusted to take care of every little detail. If you can't be depended on to go to class, turn in homework on time, prepare for a test how can you be depended on to go to film sessions, get in position on time, or prepare for your opponent.
I look at this list and I would like to ask how in the h*ll did Pitt and OSU get on this list? FL and MI are overrated so that's four. Why is South Carolina on this list? NCS is nobody special and they'll be no match at all for Clemson so that's five. I don't know why Clemson is on this list. Auburn and South Carolina don't even belong on the same field with them. Auburn is another overrated team the little ol Big XII rolled them in the SB. They are living off the season where on a fluke they came within 20 seconds of winning a nc a few years ago. I think that makes 6.
As for the other schools. FSU, TX, and the GA schools deserve to be on this list. As a principle I don't like to talk up OK
But seriously they are playing tOSU and in Columbus. They should be on this list. During the bowl season the Big X proved they are the most overrated conference in the country, I call them the little ten, they don't deserve no roman numeral. MI is allegedly a tough game and tOSU isn't? Wth?
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Seriously guys, who do you think will be playing on the other side of the ball this season? Every new coach comes and decides to move some guys from offense to defense and vice versa. Who do you think it will be?
Todd Orlando’s Defense
Charlie Strong’s base defense at Texas was a 4-3 Under and the Longhorns would create that front in a variety of different ways from 4-3, 3-4, and of course 3-3-5 personnel packages.
Todd Orlando’s base defense is a true 3-4. Now he’ll mix and match a few different fronts and basically line up his DL wherever he thinks they’ll be needed to clog lanes, occasionally mixing in four-down looks as well, but the underlying front is three down. In particular, Orlando likes to play a 0-technique nose and two 4i-technique DEs and enjoy the benefits of having four linebackers off the ball who can play wide and off the football and move around in the backfield or on the blitz.
The other big difference from Orlando’s nominally 3-3-5 defense (that’s the package they spent the most time in at Houston) and Charlie’s is in the coverage behind it. Charlie Strong based out of single-hi safety coverages and had his DBs play a lot of man coverage outside. Todd Orlando’s base coverage is quarters and he uses single-hi coverages mostly as a changeup or for the fire zone blitzes he regularly dials up.
Quarters is a very flexible base coverage that has lots of different iterations, much like Orlando’s fronts.
One of the benefits of quarters coverage is that the defense can play two different coverages to either side of the field. Orlando uses 2-read a lot against twin receivers to the field, a pattern matching coverage that can become cover 4 or cover 2 based on the route distribution, and uses the nickel as an underneath zone/run support player.
On the boundary Orlando calls a lot of “robber” or “sky coverage” where the corner has to play deep over the receiver and the safety helps on inside routes like the post and supports the run. He’ll also mix in normal cover 2 and Tampa-2 as options for obvious passing downs.
Although we haven’t seen them in Austin in quite some time, these are all really common coverages in the Big 12. What isn’t as common is that Orlando will regularly blitz while playing quarters, a privilege afforded by the 3-4 defensive structure. Either outside linebacker or inside linebacker is liable to join the DL as the fourth pass-rusher while everyone else plays one of Orlando’s quarters calls.
Finally there are the fire zones, which were an essential component to Manny Diaz and Charlie Strong’s defenses and will remain a key piece of the puzzle for Texas moving forward.
Orlando vs the Big 12
Although the Big 12 is down nationally and doesn’t field defenses like you see in other Power-5 conferences, not even the SEC West will stress a pass defense like a round robin trip through the Big 12 can. Orlando’s first priority at Texas may be to get his linebackers up to speed in the fundamentals where they’ve lacked for the past two years, but he’ll also have to tweak his approach to survive and thrive in this league.
[V]irtually every team in this league has embraced vertical passing as a core element to their strategy. The execution level has gotten high enough that every time teams run a play like this, all of the pressure is on the defense to avoid a single mistake that could mean six points.
The teaching on the back end has to be excellent to avoid mistakes, match the routes well, and provide enough depth to play nickel and dime sub-packages and continue to do so if there are injuries. Those are tall orders and Texas really struggled in that regard this past season.
Where Orlando could have a leg up on the rest of the league is his ability to execute rule #5 – Don’t give the QB all day to throw – at a high level. However, if you have DL that are hard for OL to keep their hands on and blitzing linebackers that can come like a ton of bricks off the edges or inside, you can disrupt the whole process by not allowing the QB to see the routes or get a good ball off cleanly.
Don’t be shocked if Orlando decides to tweak his scheme to get as much pass-rushing on the field as possible in order to create leeway for his young secondary. One such route would be taking a DE off the field and creating a 2-4-5 nickel package. That would allow Texas to play both Malcolm Roach and Breckyn Hager on either edge and bring even greater variety with their blitzes.
Texas hired a good defensive coach in Todd Orlando and the success they’ve had in their secondary amidst serious turnover suggests that his assistants Jason Washington and Craig Naivar are very worthy additions as well. If they can get a young defensive backfield up to speed on fundamentals in this scheme, they may find that they have the tools and support from the offense to adjust to the Big 12 and even offer a clinic on how to play defense in this league.
[Much more of this article at IT]
Thanks for this it's very informative for a fan like me. I can't wait to watch Todd Orlando against the Big XII defenses. I saw his defenses against top notch offenses like FSU, OK, and LV. The LV game really impressed me they flat out shut down Heisman winner Lamar Jackson that night. It's easy to say in February but I think if Tom Herman is the coach I think he is, if Todd Orlando turns out to be the dc I think he can be we could dominate the Big XII the way Stoops has and I may not even take that long. Imo, every Big XII dc is stealing from his employer. I mean we were all frustrated with Vance Bedford but he wasn't any worse than the other dc's.
Looks like they are working hard. Most importantly, it looks like there is a lot of competition.
E$PN ranks Big 12 teams by QB and RB groups....
QB
1. ou: Snowflake Mayfield might be the top returning quarterback in college football. He's twice finished in the top five of the Heisman Trophy voting and broke the FBS passing efficiency season record last season. The Sooners have depth behind him, too, with Austin Kendall and former Texas A&M transfer Kyler Murray both returning.
2. Oklahoma State: With 28 career starts, Mason Rudolph will enter 2017 as one of the most experienced passers in the country. Among quarterbacks who also threw for 4,000 yards last season, Rudolph threw the fewest interceptions (four).
3. Kansas State: Jesse Ertz was among the most improved players in the Big 12 during the second half of last season as he quietly finished third in the league in QBR. Ertz was the only Big 12 QB to rush for more than 1,000 yards last season, as well.
4. TCU: If [Kenny Hill] can find consistency, Hill has the talent to be among the top quarterbacks in the league. The future of the position is in good shape, with TCU signing ESPN 300 dual-threat QB Shawn Robinson last week.
5. Texas: Shane Buechele's freshman season got off to an incredible start as he torched Notre Dame in his first career game. But Buechele faded down the stretch in conference play as Texas failed to reach a bowl, leading to Charlie Strong's firing. Buechele might still be Texas' QB of the future. But he'll have to prove it by beating out Austin native Sam Ehlinger, who was one of the country's top QB signees last week.
6. West Virginia: This ranking... will hinge on Will Grier being the same quarterback he was those first six games as a freshman at Florida. After backing up Skyler Howard last season, Chris Chugunov figures to be the favorite... to do the same behind Grier this fall.
7. Bailor: Zach Smith struggled last year as a freshman but he had a breakout performance in Bailor's bowl game in the rout of Boise State. The QB battle between Smith and Arizona transfer Anu Solomon will be one of the more interesting ones in the conference.
8. Texas Tech: [T]he reins of the Tech air raid will be handed over to Nic Shimonek. The Iowa transfer shined in his lone significant action last season, throwing four second-half touchdowns in a victory over Kansas.
9. Iowa State: After taking over the starting spot from Joel Lanning, Jacob Park played well, throwing 12 touchdowns to just five interceptions. Back as well, Lanning gives Iowa State an experienced backup and a change-of-pace, run-first option behind center.
10. Kansas: The Jayhawks... are in better shape at quarterback than they have been in some time. Carter Stanley gave the offense a spark after taking over... late in the season. But the one to watch will be former Washington State QB Peyton Bender, who arrives in Lawrence as the No. 3 juco QB in the country.
RB
1. West Virginia: Justin Crawford is the Big 12's leading returning rusher after a 1,184-yard junior season that earned Offensive Newcomer of the Year honors. Kennedy McKoy was one of the conference's more productive freshman backs in 2016 and Martell Pettaway showed his potential.
2. TCU: No returning Big 12 running back put up more total yards from scrimmage than Kyle Hicks. His production (1,459 total yards, 14 TDs), versatility and leadership are invaluable for the Frogs. The return of Shaun Nixon gives their offense a serious boost.
3. Bailor: Lost in Bailor's late-season swoon was all the attention Terence Williams should've earned. He rumbled for 1,048 yards and 11 TDs as a sophomore.
4. Oklahoma State: The most productive freshman running back in college football last season was Justice Hill. He was truly the Cowboys' missing piece on offense. Hill needs some help, though, after three seniors graduated.
5. Texas: When Chris Warren III gets 100 percent healthy from the season-ending knee injury he suffered, the 250-pounder will be one of the Big 12's most dangerous running backs. The question is who will back him up? Kyle Porter, Kirk Johnson and ESPN 300 signee Toneil Carter will compete this spring, and Tom Herman called Daniel Young the steal of their recruiting class.
6. Kansas State: If Alex Barnes can become the Wildcats' consistent leader at running back, they'll move up this list. He averaged 7.9 yards per carry and produced two 100-yard games to end his redshirt freshman year, but Barnes received more than 10 carries in a game just once in 2016.
7. Iowa State: If Mike Warren gets back to playing like he did in 2015, the Cyclones have all they need for a potent run game. Warren has a lot to prove after a disappointing sophomore season, and David Montgomery and Kene Nwangwu will keep pushing him.
8. ou: Abdul Adams, Rodney Anderson, Trey Sermon, Marcelias Sutton, Kennedy Brooks. One or more of these guys will be the Sooners' next big star at running back, and several others need to make significant contributions in 2017. Sermon and Sutton coming in as midyear enrollees ensures OU will have some fierce competition in spring ball.
9. Texas Tech: Da'Leon Ward came on late in the season as a true freshman, which was encouraging, but here's the problem: Ward, Demarcus Felton and Justin Stockton combined to average 78 rushing yards per game last year. [P]erhaps junior college transfer Desmond Nisby can become the power back the Red Raiders lack.
10. Kansas: Incoming signees Octavius Matthews (E$PN's No. 1 ranked juco RB) and Dominic Williams have an opportunity to make a serious impact right away for the Jayhawks. They'll compete with Taylor Martin and Khalil Herbert, who played limited roles in 2016, as well as former Arkansas transfer Denzell Evans.
QB
1. ou: Snowflake Mayfield might be the top returning quarterback in college football. He's twice finished in the top five of the Heisman Trophy voting and broke the FBS passing efficiency season record last season. The Sooners have depth behind him, too, with Austin Kendall and former Texas A&M transfer Kyler Murray both returning.
2. Oklahoma State: With 28 career starts, Mason Rudolph will enter 2017 as one of the most experienced passers in the country. Among quarterbacks who also threw for 4,000 yards last season, Rudolph threw the fewest interceptions (four).
3. Kansas State: Jesse Ertz was among the most improved players in the Big 12 during the second half of last season as he quietly finished third in the league in QBR. Ertz was the only Big 12 QB to rush for more than 1,000 yards last season, as well.
4. TCU: If [Kenny Hill] can find consistency, Hill has the talent to be among the top quarterbacks in the league. The future of the position is in good shape, with TCU signing ESPN 300 dual-threat QB Shawn Robinson last week.
5. Texas: Shane Buechele's freshman season got off to an incredible start as he torched Notre Dame in his first career game. But Buechele faded down the stretch in conference play as Texas failed to reach a bowl, leading to Charlie Strong's firing. Buechele might still be Texas' QB of the future. But he'll have to prove it by beating out Austin native Sam Ehlinger, who was one of the country's top QB signees last week.
6. West Virginia: This ranking... will hinge on Will Grier being the same quarterback he was those first six games as a freshman at Florida. After backing up Skyler Howard last season, Chris Chugunov figures to be the favorite... to do the same behind Grier this fall.
7. Bailor: Zach Smith struggled last year as a freshman but he had a breakout performance in Bailor's bowl game in the rout of Boise State. The QB battle between Smith and Arizona transfer Anu Solomon will be one of the more interesting ones in the conference.
8. Texas Tech: [T]he reins of the Tech air raid will be handed over to Nic Shimonek. The Iowa transfer shined in his lone significant action last season, throwing four second-half touchdowns in a victory over Kansas.
9. Iowa State: After taking over the starting spot from Joel Lanning, Jacob Park played well, throwing 12 touchdowns to just five interceptions. Back as well, Lanning gives Iowa State an experienced backup and a change-of-pace, run-first option behind center.
10. Kansas: The Jayhawks... are in better shape at quarterback than they have been in some time. Carter Stanley gave the offense a spark after taking over... late in the season. But the one to watch will be former Washington State QB Peyton Bender, who arrives in Lawrence as the No. 3 juco QB in the country.
RB
1. West Virginia: Justin Crawford is the Big 12's leading returning rusher after a 1,184-yard junior season that earned Offensive Newcomer of the Year honors. Kennedy McKoy was one of the conference's more productive freshman backs in 2016 and Martell Pettaway showed his potential.
2. TCU: No returning Big 12 running back put up more total yards from scrimmage than Kyle Hicks. His production (1,459 total yards, 14 TDs), versatility and leadership are invaluable for the Frogs. The return of Shaun Nixon gives their offense a serious boost.
3. Bailor: Lost in Bailor's late-season swoon was all the attention Terence Williams should've earned. He rumbled for 1,048 yards and 11 TDs as a sophomore.
4. Oklahoma State: The most productive freshman running back in college football last season was Justice Hill. He was truly the Cowboys' missing piece on offense. Hill needs some help, though, after three seniors graduated.
5. Texas: When Chris Warren III gets 100 percent healthy from the season-ending knee injury he suffered, the 250-pounder will be one of the Big 12's most dangerous running backs. The question is who will back him up? Kyle Porter, Kirk Johnson and ESPN 300 signee Toneil Carter will compete this spring, and Tom Herman called Daniel Young the steal of their recruiting class.
6. Kansas State: If Alex Barnes can become the Wildcats' consistent leader at running back, they'll move up this list. He averaged 7.9 yards per carry and produced two 100-yard games to end his redshirt freshman year, but Barnes received more than 10 carries in a game just once in 2016.
7. Iowa State: If Mike Warren gets back to playing like he did in 2015, the Cyclones have all they need for a potent run game. Warren has a lot to prove after a disappointing sophomore season, and David Montgomery and Kene Nwangwu will keep pushing him.
8. ou: Abdul Adams, Rodney Anderson, Trey Sermon, Marcelias Sutton, Kennedy Brooks. One or more of these guys will be the Sooners' next big star at running back, and several others need to make significant contributions in 2017. Sermon and Sutton coming in as midyear enrollees ensures OU will have some fierce competition in spring ball.
9. Texas Tech: Da'Leon Ward came on late in the season as a true freshman, which was encouraging, but here's the problem: Ward, Demarcus Felton and Justin Stockton combined to average 78 rushing yards per game last year. [P]erhaps junior college transfer Desmond Nisby can become the power back the Red Raiders lack.
10. Kansas: Incoming signees Octavius Matthews (E$PN's No. 1 ranked juco RB) and Dominic Williams have an opportunity to make a serious impact right away for the Jayhawks. They'll compete with Taylor Martin and Khalil Herbert, who played limited roles in 2016, as well as former Arkansas transfer Denzell Evans.
BM has already had two concussions and I can't stress enough that he is one more concussion away from retirement.
True that but one thing I've noticed in today's college football is that concussions is one thing they can not ignore. He had two six weeks apart in the 2015 season. One more and no doctor in OK no matter how much he loves sooner fb, will clear him to play, it would destroy his credibility with his peers.
You know bubba2023, you can let a fb player play when he does serious physical damage to another human being negative public relations be damned.
But, when he gets hurt they get all concerned and care about his safety, and mental health. Think about that.
Tom Herman Aint Messing Around
Spoke to a source regarding coach Tom Herman’s demeanor in practice this week and it sounds like any honeymoon period is over. I’m told Herman has been extremely involved in the coaching and extremely intense this week. To put it very mildly, he’s been challenging the manhood of the players and, again to put it mildly, demanding that they step up to that challenge…sometimes make such ‘requests’ with some colorful language. The source said that one player actually had the guts to miss a class…that didn’t go well. “After what happened to him, the players were pretty much like, we’re never missing a class.”
[TFB]
Spoke to a source regarding coach Tom Herman’s demeanor in practice this week and it sounds like any honeymoon period is over. I’m told Herman has been extremely involved in the coaching and extremely intense this week. To put it very mildly, he’s been challenging the manhood of the players and, again to put it mildly, demanding that they step up to that challenge…sometimes make such ‘requests’ with some colorful language. The source said that one player actually had the guts to miss a class…that didn’t go well. “After what happened to him, the players were pretty much like, we’re never missing a class.”
[TFB]
I read somewhere that a WR was jogging in a drill and Herman came over...ignored the WR and ate the ass out of the coach.....
Thats great news to me....that will pay off in the end.
Thats great news to me....that will pay off in the end.
