2008 tOSU Defense discussion (official thread)

[Kickdown02]

The DTs will be much improved as well. Larimore and Worthington will be that much better.

 

[DaddyBigBucks]

Our DT's were on a carousel. Larimore, Abdallah, Denlinger, Worthington... will any of them or any two of them stand out this offseason? Plus, will Barrow contribute more next season and maybe rotate in with Wilson as Heyward and Rose do?

Barrows gone now...

As for the DT's I've already weighed in, but I'd just like to observe that the play of the DL in '02 was much better than we expected pre-season. We could see the same kind of 'unexpected' improvement this season, though it would not be unexpected by me. I wouldn't be at all surprised if one of our DT's became the next Tim Anderson.

 

[BobcatBuckeye13]

Barrows gone now...

As for the DT's I've already weighed in, but I'd just like to observe that the play of the DL in '02 was much better than we expected pre-season. We could see the same kind of 'unexpected' improvement this season, though it would not be unexpected by me. I wouldn't be at all surprised if one of our DT's became the next Tim Anderson.

Whoops, I hate it when I blank like that.

 

[cjmik_75]

No our d-line will be a lot better than last year IMO. Wilson won't be as dominant as Gholston but if he stays healthy he has the potential to have 10 sacks! Remember he was the first pick in last years draft in the spring game OVER gholston the players gata know something there... Our DT's will be stronger, bigger, and more quipped to compete. Not to mention the mix of Heyward, and Rose also being bigger and faster (which is scary considering both players are HUGE). Next year our dline has the potential to all be over 300 pounds at one point. Rose,Larimore,Abdullah,Heyward is what i'd like to see on 3rd and 3! This line will be one of the best IMO next year as will ever section of our defense.. Great to be a buckeye! off to class I go... GO BUCKS O-H!

 

[martinss01]

We have great safties so why not leave our best CB at his natural position...

not sure thats the way i would have said that. we have great talent at safety. but neither of them are greats yet. jenkins was moved to safety to address our inexperience at the position every bit as much as it was to allow him to affect the entire field. with coleman and russell both having a full season + under their belt i expect to see jenkins at cb very close to full time.

Well, why don't we just exploit the depth of our LB's and make use an occasional 3-4 with Terry on the outside lining up near the line or even down on the line as a third DE so to speak? You can leave in Homan to play as a MLB/OLB as he can play both, with Laurinaitis and Freeman on the other side. The versatility in my mind is excellent with this set up, especially with the speculations we have about our DT's. Now I'm not saying to leave the 4-3, but this could be a way to add speed on the rush, or more coverage while making use of talent and throwing a wrench into the opposing offenses gameplan.

none of the current lb's have proven then can move up, put a hand down and rush the qb like a de since carp. why not a 3-4? simple really. there isn't a team out there that would look at our dline and say, "we gotta double him". not to mention all of our lb's struggled getting off blocks last season. with a 3-4 we have 5 o linemen against 3 d linemen which means 2 are coming free at the point of attack. if i can't count on my dline to eat blockers and my lb's to get off blocks and make plays anyway. this isn't the d for me.

 

[BobcatBuckeye13]

not sure thats the way i would have said that. we have great talent at safety. but neither of them are greats yet. jenkins was moved to safety to address our inexperience at the position every bit as much as it was to allow him to affect the entire field. with coleman and russell both having a full season + under their belt i expect to see jenkins at cb very close to full time.



none of the current lb's have proven then can move up, put a hand down and rush the qb like a de since carp. why not a 3-4? simple really. there isn't a team out there that would look at our dline and say, "we gotta double him". not to mention all of our lb's struggled getting off blocks last season. with a 3-4 we have 5 o linemen against 3 d linemen which means 2 are coming free at the point of attack. if i can't count on my dline to eat blockers and my lb's to get off blocks and make plays anyway. this isn't the d for me.

I think our DE's are gonna suprise you. But the talk about Terry was what made me think of this. Again, I don't want to switch to a 3-4, this would just be a 3-3-5 with a LB instead of a CB or SS.

 

[bukIpower]

yeah "great" was a little too kind of words but I think Jenkins is such a dominant corner with his combo of speed and size and thought he was not used correctly last year. Next year though with an improved D-line and stronger saftey play you're right Jenkins Should be at home at CB.

 

[BGriffBuckeye]

MY THOUGHTS................ so take it fwiw:

Depth, 3 deep with my desired weights. I want to go more in detail on the Defensive Line because that is where I see the most need for improvements. The Linebackers and Secondary is pretty self-explanatory, with a few minor changes.

DE: Lawrence Wilson (6'6" 275) - Cameron Heyward (6'5" 275) - Keith Wells (6'6" 235)
- Wilson is a super speed rusher... he is definitely the starter at on DE spot when healthy. I'd like to see cam slim down a bit, lose about 10-15lbs and gain some more speed... and that all comes with maturity and playing "faster" once he gets a strangle hold on the defensive schemes. Wells comes in and sees some time, but will wait until his true Soph. year to platoon with Cam once Wilson is a high NFL draft pick after this year.

LEO: Thaddeus Gibson (6'3" 245) - Solomon Thomas (6'5" 250) - Nathan Williams (6'5" 245)
- Gibson takes over for Gholston here at the LEO position. He is an animal rushing the passer with speed to burn. He and Wilson give us A LOT of speed on the edge. He needs to beef up to about 240+, so I put 245 as my ideal weight for '08. Thomas, by all accounts, impressed on the scout team and was said to be Gholston's understudy, so he's here behind Gibson. Williams has said he was recruited for this position, so he's behind Thomas coming in. I am a little uneasy with having Thomas and Williams here w/o having any PT at all, but that is what the Summer is for and Thomas looks ready for some.

DT: Robert Rose (6'5" 305) - Doug Worthington (6'7" 300+) - Nader Abdallah (6'4" 300)
- IMO, rose has gotte too big for DE, lost some speed (though maybe some of this came with the injury), and right now is not big enough for DT. So, I think he needs to get to about 300lbs, maybe a little over. He is at 290 right now, so some more time in the weight room and good diet should do it. Same goes for Worthington. He is too tall to only weigh 285lbs. Abdallah played well and should see some time here too.

DT: Dexter Larimore (6'3" 305) or Todd Denlinger (6'3" 290) - Garrett Goebel (6'5" 275)
- Denlinger did a good ob this year, when he wasn't banged up, and Larimore showed well too. Whoever steps up get the spot opposite Rose. I guess who could say this is the "leverage" designated spot for DT with the former wrestlers battling for PT. Goebel is too good to not see the field his Freshman season so I am sure he sees time.

Basically, what I have been getting at, is we need beef in the middle and speed on the edges. We get dominated on the lines with DT's that are 280lbs and it showed vs. LSU in the BCS CG. We need guys that can hold there position, get pressure and not get pushed around.

LB: Curtis Terry (6'2" 235) - Etienne Sabino (6'3" 230) - Tyler Moeller (6'1" 210)

LB: James Laurinaitis (6'3" 245) - Austin Spitler (6'3" 235) or Mark Johnson (6'4" 240)

LB: Marcus Freeman (6'2" 235) - Ross Homan (6'1" 235) - Brian Rolle (5'11" 215)

CB: Malcolm Jenkins (6'1" 205) - Chimdi Chekwa (6'1" 185) - Travis Howard (6'1" 185)

CB: Donald Washington (6'1" 190) - Andre Amos (6'1" 180) - James Scott (5'10" 175)

FS: Kurt Coleman (5'11" 190) or Eugene Clifford (6'2" 190) - Jamario O'Neal (6'1" 205)

SS: Anderson Russell (6'0" 205) - Aaron Gant (6'0" 200) - Nathan Oliver (6'0" 210)

Redshirts: LB Andrew Sweat (has said he may start out at FB and then switch over to LB, but I highly doubt they waste a year of his at FB unless we absolutely need him there), DL Willie Mobley (a year of conditioning and to see where he fits in along the DL), DT Shawntel Rowell (a year of conditioning would do him well), S Zach Domicone (with his size/speed he could see time on special teams early), ATH Orhian Johnson ( offense or defense?)

 

[cbrian815]

very nice post

I think that Robert Rose goes down to 275 or 280lbs and plays the DE spot this year. jmo, Go Bucks

 

[PlanetFrnd]

MY THOUGHTS................ so take it fwiw:

Depth, 3 deep with my desired weights. I want to go more in detail on the Defensive Line because that is where I see the most need for improvements. The Linebackers and Secondary is pretty self-explanatory, with a few minor changes.

DE: Lawrence Wilson (6'6" 275) - Cameron Heyward (6'5" 275) - Keith Wells (6'6" 235)
- Wilson is a super speed rusher... he is definitely the starter at on DE spot when healthy. I'd like to see cam slim down a bit, lose about 10-15lbs and gain some more speed... and that all comes with maturity and playing "faster" once he gets a strangle hold on the defensive schemes. Wells comes in and sees some time, but will wait until his true Soph. year to platoon with Cam once Wilson is a high NFL draft pick after this year.

LEO: Thaddeus Gibson (6'3" 245) - Solomon Thomas (6'5" 250) - Nathan Williams (6'5" 245)
- Gibson takes over for Gholston here at the LEO position. He is an animal rushing the passer with speed to burn. He and Wilson give us A LOT of speed on the edge. He needs to beef up to about 240+, so I put 245 as my ideal weight for '08. Thomas, by all accounts, impressed on the scout team and was said to be Gholston's understudy, so he's here behind Gibson. Williams has said he was recruited for this position, so he's behind Thomas coming in. I am a little uneasy with having Thomas and Williams here w/o having any PT at all, but that is what the Summer is for and Thomas looks ready for some.

DT: Robert Rose (6'5" 305) - Doug Worthington (6'7" 300+) - Nader Abdallah (6'4" 300)
- IMO, rose has gotte too big for DE, lost some speed (though maybe some of this came with the injury), and right now is not big enough for DT. So, I think he needs to get to about 300lbs, maybe a little over. He is at 290 right now, so some more time in the weight room and good diet should do it. Same goes for Worthington. He is too tall to only weigh 285lbs. Abdallah played well and should see some time here too.

DT: Dexter Larimore (6'3" 305) or Todd Denlinger (6'3" 290) - Garrett Goebel (6'5" 275)
- Denlinger did a good ob this year, when he wasn't banged up, and Larimore showed well too. Whoever steps up get the spot opposite Rose. I guess who could say this is the "leverage" designated spot for DT with the former wrestlers battling for PT. Goebel is too good to not see the field his Freshman season so I am sure he sees time.

Basically, what I have been getting at, is we need beef in the middle and speed on the edges. We get dominated on the lines with DT's that are 280lbs and it showed vs. LSU in the BCS CG. We need guys that can hold there position, get pressure and not get pushed around.

LB: Curtis Terry (6'2" 235) - Etienne Sabino (6'3" 230) - Tyler Moeller (6'1" 210)

LB: James Laurinaitis (6'3" 245) - Austin Spitler (6'3" 235) or Mark Johnson (6'4" 240)

LB: Marcus Freeman (6'2" 235) - Ross Homan (6'1" 235) - Brian Rolle (5'11" 215)

CB: Malcolm Jenkins (6'1" 205) - Chimdi Chekwa (6'1" 185) - Travis Howard (6'1" 185)

CB: Donald Washington (6'1" 190) - Andre Amos (6'1" 180) - James Scott (5'10" 175)

FS: Kurt Coleman (5'11" 190) or Eugene Clifford (6'2" 190) - Jamario O'Neal (6'1" 205)

SS: Anderson Russell (6'0" 205) - Aaron Gant (6'0" 200) - Nathan Oliver (6'0" 210)

Redshirts: LB Andrew Sweat (has said he may start out at FB and then switch over to LB, but I highly doubt they waste a year of his at FB unless we absolutely need him there), DL Willie Mobley (a year of conditioning and to see where he fits in along the DL), DT Shawntel Rowell (a year of conditioning would do him well), S Zach Domicone (with his size/speed he could see time on special teams early), ATH Orhian Johnson ( offense or defense?)

I can't wait to see what this D does to other teams.

Nice work with this post, BGriff. I could argue for maybe a small change here or there, but what's the point?

 

[powerbuck65]

This is how i see it. Not many changes Cameron Heyward and Lawrence Wilson if he is healthy at the d ends. Thaddeus Gibson seeing time there as well, with Doug Worthington, Dexter Larimore, Nader Abdallah and Todd Denlinger rotating at d tackle. Marcus Freeman and Ross Homan if healthy will be at outside backer and of course James Laurinaitis in the middle. Malcolm Jenkins and Donald Washington at the corners with Chimdi Chekwa seeing action as well, Kurt Coleman at strong safety and Anderson Russell at free safety.

 

[EidoloN]

scary defense combos! better than '02...?

 

[bukIpower]

Not till Tressel is giving a speech and holding that Crystal Ball.....

 

[Bestbuck36]

Its been said before but I'm still astonished everytime I look at it, thats some seriously filthy depth

I cant wait for the Hoot and Holler drills come spring ball! I hope Beanie, JL and the rest are all healthy this time around.

 

[BuckeyeMafia]

Pretty much put a bow on it and call it #1.

Hopefully with the key additions, and small loses, our defense can thrive again, without having to save the offense at times- and at the tiems they couldn't do it.:(