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WATCH Kirby Smart: 'Stomp on other people's throats when you get them down'
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WATCH Kirby Smart: 'Stomp on other people's throats when you get them down'
Georgia has one of the top defenses in college football, but Kirby Smart wants to see them force more turnovers and close out games better
Comments
Just asking. Could it be we are getting tired in the fourth quarter on offense because in the course of a game we are consistently trying to bulldoze between the tackles? It seems this would have to wear on the offensive lineman going against top caliber SEC defensive linemen. Also, did I hear it correctly, possibly post game, that we used the same five offensive lineman the whole game against aTm? If so, that would explain the linemen being tired. To hell with Tech! Go Dawgs!
Our D is one of the best in the country no doubt but who can blame them for being tired in the 4th quarter? They are on the field for what seems to be forever because our offense is sub par. Our defesive "struggles" in the 4th quarter are a direct product of our offense not being able to sustain drives in the 4th quarter..... A la 2 total yards and zero first downs in the 4th quarter vs Auburn.... It's amazing we haven't lost more games than we have with an offense that is this atrocious.
Yeah the defense is getting tired because of the offense. Especially last week against auburn. If the offense would stop with the 3 and outs in the second half, our defense would rank #1 in every category. Can't blame them for being tired. I know they keep bringing up about how much we rotate. We have to. The front seven is super tired at the end of the day, even the subs are tired. Like kirby said, get em down, keep em down. Get a little exotic on offense to make some first downs and win the time of possession in the second half. Stop with the RPO's right at stacked boxes, anybody could stop that, especially if our lineman are give out.
I'm surprised to be the first to say it, but I don't see our defense as tired whatsoever. We have 13 CBs on the roster - all of which can play good ball. We have similar depth at S and all the LB positions. The D-line play speaks for itself - Clark has been a force the last two weeks.
Our defense has been porous in the 4th QTR the past two games because of the soft zone coverage. The CBs give 10-13 yds buffer at the line! 2-deep safeties and LBs to the flats . . . completely opposite of the dominating defense that keeps teams suppressed for the first 3 QTRs. I understand the idea of defending against explosive plays . . . but Mond took A&M down the field, twice in just a handful of plays (nearly all of which essentially met the definition of "explosive" - being greater than 15 yards). That defense doesn't force the other team to burn the clock or timeouts, it generates momentum for the other team, kills our crowd and breathes life into theirs, and eliminates all chances for havoc plays (unless the front three can penetrate).
And - I really can't believe I'm saying this but - even LeCounte has played really well the last two games. I think his instincts are finally playing to what his potential has always been and he only missed a few important tackles against A&M. (Still want to see Cine on the field, though.)
Maybe the defense is getting tired enough in the 4th quarter despite the depth because of the offense failing to maintain enough drives.
Maybe that explains why the defense has gone into prevent mode the last three games, which allowed three offenses who couldn't do much of anything to all the sudden move the ball and score touchdowns.
If that's the reason, then all it should take is a few more long drives by the offense, a couple more scores and this team is capable of beating any team in CFB.
God please let Lawrence Cager get well enough to play against LSU...
It's all about the momentum. You can have it for 3 quarters, but if you start running the ball up the middle to eat the clock and they start stuffing you with consecutive 3 and outs, and then they score, ole "Mo" shifts to the other side. "Ole Mo" is fickle like that. And "Ole Mo" is hard to get back late in a game(see the NC game against BAMA)
. That's why you must "stomp on their neck" and put them away when you have the momentum on YOUR side. Score while you have Ole MO, don't try to milk the clock too early.
Mike, the 4th Qtr scores by Auburn and Texas A&M have more to do with UGA's Offense than it does the Defense. The cumulative effect of numerous 3-and-outs during the course of the game negatively impacts Dawgs D in two ways:
1) Fatigue. Yes, Lanning/Smart rotate D line & backers often, but it's not enough to offset the number of plays they're forced to defend. Auburn ran close to 90 plays vs. UGA defense (Dawgs ran 64). TAMU had a 62-49 play advantage prior to Dawgs final drive.
2) Scheme. This might be more critical than fatigue. Nobody can defend the entire field vs. pass & run equally well. So, every D has a vulnerability. What makes Kirby so good is his ability to disguise what our D is doing. However, the more we let a Jimbo Fisher or a Gus Malzahn LOOK at our D alignments/adjustments/personnel groupings, the greater their ability to see thru our disguises and find a hole. This explains why Auburn & TAMU suddenly began marching down the field in the 4th Qtr.
The performance of our offense and defense are intertwined. At this point, the only way to make the Defense better is to get the offense to sustain drives on a regular basis, thereby keeping the defense off the field. Go Dawgs!
Fromm and Coley need to "suit up" and get this thing rolling. Fromm has been off the mark way to much this year, yes some has to do with the drops, as well as not being on the same page as the receivers. This offense needs to improve their chemistry and get in synch. If that were to happen everyone would feed off each others success. With a little offense I really believe we can go all the way on the backs of this defense.
And the foot of Hot Rod.
AskBillyB........"The performance of our offense and defense are intertwined. At this point, the only way to make the Defense better is to get the offense to sustain drives on a regular basis, thereby keeping the defense off the field."
You said it In a nutshell, Billy B, a lot of us have been saying the same thing...our D is "tired," as Smart puts it, by the 4th quarter as the offense is not sustained...on the field for successive series of downs. The O must sustain drives past the 3rd down.....against LSU...must. Smart and Coley have to figure this out and fix it!! They talk and talk about it....but no fix. I will only say this once: is Coley capable of fixing the O? Also, he is UGA's QB coach. How good was he at these positions with Miami? GO DAWGS!
Jake Fromm didn't forget how to play football. He is thinking about multiple things, i.e., is his receiver going to be where he's supposed to be. I believe it was Gary Danielson that commented on Pickens slowing down just briefly on the slight overthrow by Fromm on the missed TD pass, the drops, and some other factors.
I think Jake's confidence is a little shaken, he needs to go back to instinctual football and do his job, stop worrying about others not doing theirs. Success breeds success, they will feed off each other if they can get in sync. The first three quarters of the NC and SECCG the last couple of years were a thing of beauty. I think we're capable of the same performance, can they execute it?
Still not certain why time is spent talking about the minor shortcomings of this defense when our offense is where it is. I get it, CKS naturally sees the defense first but they (HANKTON, Coley and CKS) better be spending the vast majority of their time and energy getting this offense running. This defense can get slightly better but our offense is anemic and has way more potential. If our offense performs against LSU like they have most games it won't matter if our defense gets it all right, we will lose. Period.
I hope our offense can also take criticism well. I wish more of those on the offensive side of the ball played with the same passion as Herrien, Cager, Swift, Pickens, Blaylock and maybe Fromm, Thomas and Mayes. Everyone else...suspect.
Mike - this all sounds good, but when you watch us the last two years, we never try to stomp the throats of our opponents. However, this week is a great time to try out this new philosophy.