New Era
Lane Kiffin talked today about how the advent of the spread offense forces defenses, especially linemen, to rotate more.
``Our numbers have to be different on reps,'' Kiffin said. ``We let those d linemen play the whole time (before). People weren't spread out as much. You have to play more d linemen because the ball gets thrown all over the place and they're turning and running all the time.''
Hey kiffy, would that apply to the linebackers also? How about taking a day to teach the db's that they can turn back to look for the ball once in while.
Nickel D, Nickel D, Nickel D......... Rex Ryan style...
Our (USC) defensive woes are reaching the limits of our collective patience. When will coach Kiffin and his father come to the realization that our defensive schemes are ineffective and not working! I tired of hearing the lame excuses;
• We are not running the Tampa 2
• We need to tackle better
• We are really young
• We have injuries
• We face too many spread offenses
These are all legitimate issues which plaque all teams over the course of a season, but why do continually present a predictable, unprepared defense. USC traditionally has made adjustments at halftime to counter what the opposition is presenting. The last two years we perform worse in the 2nd half, where are the adjustments? Here are the deplorable facts:
NCAA Division 1 / Bowl Subdivision (FBS) National Team Report (as of 10-05-11)
• Total Defense USC ranked #67
• Rushing Defense USC ranked #37
• Passing Defense USC ranked #100
• Scoring defense USC ranked #68
• Red Zone defense USC ranked #110
• 3rd Down efficiency Defense USC ranked #95
The next ridiculous comment is always; well we do not have the same “USC” talent…really? If you look at the last four years of Rivals recruiting rankings, USC ranked #1 ahead of Alabama, LSU and Florida.
Interestingly, Boise State has an average class ranking of #72 in recruiting classes and have only landed one 4 star recruit over the last four years, yet they continue to develop and coach their kids up to be a top ten team regularly.
USC has the athletes and the talent to pressure the offenses we encounter, but we choose to play a soft let them move down the field defense. Alabama, LSU and Florida amongst others play fast and aggressive with the same type of athletes USC has and are rewarded with tough to penetrate and highly rated defenses.
Will someone please step up and inform the USC brain trust that our defense is pathetic!
A long time, loyal but frustrated Trojan alumni.