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(04-02-2018 11:24 AM)flushtheherd Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 11:13 AM)Chipdip2 Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 09:58 AM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 08:43 AM)flushtheherd Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 07:40 AM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  DL is going to need a LOT of help.

Here's hoping the speed at LB and scheme will help out that DL.

Yep. And hoping that the incoming Frosh have been working REAL hard.

In looking around the league there are only a handful of teams with returning experienced DTs. We return some experience and size in Ralph Holley. Findlay, Lance, and Aguirre were all highly rated out of HS, and are all big bodies with time in the program. French there to eat space, but I’m not a fan of converted OL at DT, not explosive enough.

DE returns enough experience and talent in Belbani, Assoua, and Fyad. One of the freshmen will step up. Carter and McCabe have good to go size. Ronnie Buford could be a special talent but needs to add weight to see the field.

I think this years LBer will be an upgrade. Bailey and Spillane had checked out, Brown will be missed.

I have no idea what happened to Spillane last season... he really didn't look like he had any fire left after the last PJ season... I'm just a casual observer so I could be way off there...

I bet he was playing through an injury but didn’t want to wear the hardware to give it away.

(04-02-2018 11:24 AM)flushtheherd Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 11:13 AM)Chipdip2 Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 09:58 AM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 08:43 AM)flushtheherd Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 07:40 AM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  DL is going to need a LOT of help.

Here's hoping the speed at LB and scheme will help out that DL.

Yep. And hoping that the incoming Frosh have been working REAL hard.

In looking around the league there are only a handful of teams with returning experienced DTs. We return some experience and size in Ralph Holley. Findlay, Lance, and Aguirre were all highly rated out of HS, and are all big bodies with time in the program. French there to eat space, but I’m not a fan of converted OL at DT, not explosive enough.

DE returns enough experience and talent in Belbani, Assoua, and Fyad. One of the freshmen will step up. Carter and McCabe have good to go size. Ronnie Buford could be a special talent but needs to add weight to see the field.

I think this years LBer will be an upgrade. Bailey and Spillane had checked out, Brown will be missed.

I have no idea what happened to Spillane last season... he really didn't look like he had any fire left after the last PJ season... I'm just a casual observer so I could be way off there...

Spillane is a classic backer playing in an aggressive, speed-oriented scheme. I believe several of us echoed that sentiment when he originally transferred.

I don’t think they checked out. Again, last year, the problem was not some mysterious, tragic issue that takes difficulty to diagnose. We went from a team that could consistently pick up large gains through our intermediate passing game to a team that had what little consistency in that phase broken by injury. That was the only major thing holding this team back, and it was maddening because there was no obvious fix. Every time something started working something else (or someone else broke) broke.

I’m much more optimistic about this upcoming season if we can solve that one issue.

(04-02-2018 07:40 AM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  

(04-01-2018 10:52 PM)BroncoPhilly Wrote:  Our offense will carry the team until we can rebuild the Defense-particularly the DL. We'll need to score a lot of points to win games, so the WRers who had their Mulligan season need to take it up a notch this year. And our OL needs to be at least as effective at pass blocking as they were last season and hopefully better.

DL is going to need a LOT of help.

This is discouraging. If a guy that is close to this unit says we need a LOT of help, I'm guessing it's in pretty rough shape.

(04-02-2018 04:57 PM)Stampede your face!! Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 07:40 AM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  

(04-01-2018 10:52 PM)BroncoPhilly Wrote:  Our offense will carry the team until we can rebuild the Defense-particularly the DL. We'll need to score a lot of points to win games, so the WRers who had their Mulligan season need to take it up a notch this year. And our OL needs to be at least as effective at pass blocking as they were last season and hopefully better.

DL is going to need a LOT of help.

This is discouraging. If a guy that is close to this unit says we need a LOT of help, I'm guessing it's in pretty rough shape.

This is why I’m super excited that Clark is still in the student coaching mix now! He can get these guys mentally and physically ready. That kid was giving 200% of what he had every play from my perspective! He convinces these guys to take on that intensity... look out!

(04-02-2018 05:11 PM)flushtheherd Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 04:57 PM)Stampede your face!! Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 07:40 AM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  

(04-01-2018 10:52 PM)BroncoPhilly Wrote:  Our offense will carry the team until we can rebuild the Defense-particularly the DL. We'll need to score a lot of points to win games, so the WRers who had their Mulligan season need to take it up a notch this year. And our OL needs to be at least as effective at pass blocking as they were last season and hopefully better.

DL is going to need a LOT of help.

This is discouraging. If a guy that is close to this unit says we need a LOT of help, I'm guessing it's in pretty rough shape.

This is why I’m super excited that Clark is still in the student coaching mix now! He can get these guys mentally and physically ready. That kid was giving 200% of what he had every play from my perspective! He convinces these guys to take on that intensity... look out!

Gotta look at a grad transfer. No real meaningful minutes return up front. You win in the trenches.

(04-02-2018 04:57 PM)Stampede your face!! Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 07:40 AM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  

(04-01-2018 10:52 PM)BroncoPhilly Wrote:  Our offense will carry the team until we can rebuild the Defense-particularly the DL. We'll need to score a lot of points to win games, so the WRers who had their Mulligan season need to take it up a notch this year. And our OL needs to be at least as effective at pass blocking as they were last season and hopefully better.

DL is going to need a LOT of help.

This is discouraging. If a guy that is close to this unit says we need a LOT of help, I'm guessing it's in pretty rough shape.

I read here back in the fall his perspective was skewed as a parent of a player discrediting such insight. What’s now changed that he’s so smart and others aren’t?

(04-02-2018 05:34 PM)ITalian83i Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 05:11 PM)flushtheherd Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 04:57 PM)Stampede your face!! Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 07:40 AM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  

(04-01-2018 10:52 PM)BroncoPhilly Wrote:  Our offense will carry the team until we can rebuild the Defense-particularly the DL. We'll need to score a lot of points to win games, so the WRers who had their Mulligan season need to take it up a notch this year. And our OL needs to be at least as effective at pass blocking as they were last season and hopefully better.

DL is going to need a LOT of help.

This is discouraging. If a guy that is close to this unit says we need a LOT of help, I'm guessing it's in pretty rough shape.

This is why I’m super excited that Clark is still in the student coaching mix now! He can get these guys mentally and physically ready. That kid was giving 200% of what he had every play from my perspective! He convinces these guys to take on that intensity... look out!

Gotta look at a grad transfer. No real meaningful minutes return up front. You win in the trenches.

Maybe there is another Ash out there... Lester has indicated the staff is still actively researching 5th year kids.

(04-02-2018 05:34 PM)gobaseline Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 04:57 PM)Stampede your face!! Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 07:40 AM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  

(04-01-2018 10:52 PM)BroncoPhilly Wrote:  Our offense will carry the team until we can rebuild the Defense-particularly the DL. We'll need to score a lot of points to win games, so the WRers who had their Mulligan season need to take it up a notch this year. And our OL needs to be at least as effective at pass blocking as they were last season and hopefully better.

DL is going to need a LOT of help.

This is discouraging. If a guy that is close to this unit says we need a LOT of help, I'm guessing it's in pretty rough shape.

I read here back in the fall his perspective was skewed as a parent of a player discrediting such insight. What’s now changed that he’s so smart and others aren’t?

What on earth are you talking about?

(04-02-2018 05:54 PM)Stampede your face!! Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 05:34 PM)gobaseline Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 04:57 PM)Stampede your face!! Wrote:  

(04-02-2018 07:40 AM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  

(04-01-2018 10:52 PM)BroncoPhilly Wrote:  Our offense will carry the team until we can rebuild the Defense-particularly the DL. We'll need to score a lot of points to win games, so the WRers who had their Mulligan season need to take it up a notch this year. And our OL needs to be at least as effective at pass blocking as they were last season and hopefully better.

DL is going to need a LOT of help.

This is discouraging. If a guy that is close to this unit says we need a LOT of help, I'm guessing it's in pretty rough shape.

I read here back in the fall his perspective was skewed as a parent of a player discrediting such insight. What’s now changed that he’s so smart and others aren’t?

What on earth are you talking about?

Last fall I read here Brindlee was passing along insight from his son that seem to counter other narratives and he was told that his perspective as a parent of a player
discredited that perspective. The specific topic was about depth or lack thereof.

So why now take him at his word?

Before the doom and gloom sets in understand that DT and NT are the hardest position to Recruit, and the MAC rarelly gets a P5 level player at DT with transfer exceptions like Steven Clark or Ash. In the MAC West alone only 3 DTs return and none were very good. So everyone is in the same boat at that position. It’s a hard position to fill.

Western returns a lot of players at DT, a couple will rise to the top and separate from the others. They’ll fill the position, and help stuff the run, but like most MAC level DTs they’re not likely to get much of a pass rush.

It's near impossible to find 6'4" 320 lb. nose tackles at the high school level that are also athletic. Those types get snatched up by the Alabamas of the world way before MAC teams can get in to talk to them. So we gotta work with what we got.

We've got decent size at the position (Aguirre 6'1" 300, French 6'5" 300, Finley 6'2" 290, Williams 6'3" 290, Holley 6'2" 280, Taylor 6'2" 295), just need to build technique, conditioning and intensity. And most importantly, stay healthy!

Sure we can say that DT is a weakness for the team, but every MAC team can say that.

(04-02-2018 07:27 PM)ColinApocalypse Wrote:  It's near impossible to find 6'4" 320 lb. nose tackles at the high school level that are also athletic. Those types get snatched up by the Alabamas of the world way before MAC teams can get in to talk to them. So we gotta work with what we got.

We've got decent size at the position (Aguirre 6'1" 300, French 6'5" 300, Finley 6'2" 290, Williams 6'3" 290, Holley 6'2" 280, Taylor 6'2" 295), just need to build technique, conditioning and intensity. And most importantly, stay healthy!

Sure we can say that DT is a weakness for the team, but every MAC team can say that.

I agree. The best chance a MAC team has at getting a dominating DT is a transfer or to get a 6’3” 240 DE and get them in the weight room and develop them. Drew Nowak comes to mind and Turner to an extent.

(04-02-2018 07:27 PM)ColinApocalypse Wrote:  It's near impossible to find 6'4" 320 lb. nose tackles at the high school level that are also athletic. Those types get snatched up by the Alabamas of the world way before MAC teams can get in to talk to them. So we gotta work with what we got.

We've got decent size at the position (Aguirre 6'1" 300, French 6'5" 300, Finley 6'2" 290, Williams 6'3" 290, Holley 6'2" 280, Taylor 6'2" 295), just need to build technique, conditioning and intensity. And most importantly, stay healthy!

Sure we can say that DT is a weakness for the team, but every MAC team can say that.

Intensity, and focus.

Two of the best DLmen we've had the last few seasons were transfers. Steve Clark out of Syracuse and 5th season transfer Richard Ash out of UM. It seems, at least for Western, that the transfer route has been more productive at DLmen than recruiting smaller players and building them up.

Didn't used to be the case for us-recall Paul Johnson on our late 1980's-early 1990's teams, who was brought in as a big FB and ended up playing DT/NG for us. Of course, that was a different age and a 250#, athletic DLmen could dominate if he had solid technique and attitude. Don't know if the same is possible today.

(04-03-2018 11:47 AM)BroncoPhilly Wrote:  Two of the best DLmen we've had the last few seasons were transfers. Steve Clark out of Syracuse and 5th season transfer Richard Ash out of UM. It seems, at least for Western, that the transfer route has been more productive at DLmen than recruiting smaller players and building them up.

Didn't used to be the case for us-recall Paul Johnson on our late 1980's-early 1990's teams, who was brought in as a big FB and ended up playing DT/NG for us. Of course, that was a different age and a 250#, athletic DLmen could dominate if he had solid technique and attitude. Don't know if the same is possible today.

We did pretty well back in the late 2000's early 2010's... When we had Drew Nowak, Travonte Boles and Freddie Bishop on the same line... all recruited by WMU.

(04-03-2018 12:09 PM)flushtheherd Wrote:  

(04-03-2018 11:47 AM)BroncoPhilly Wrote:  Two of the best DLmen we've had the last few seasons were transfers. Steve Clark out of Syracuse and 5th season transfer Richard Ash out of UM. It seems, at least for Western, that the transfer route has been more productive at DLmen than recruiting smaller players and building them up.

Didn't used to be the case for us-recall Paul Johnson on our late 1980's-early 1990's teams, who was brought in as a big FB and ended up playing DT/NG for us. Of course, that was a different age and a 250#, athletic DLmen could dominate if he had solid technique and attitude. Don't know if the same is possible today.

We did pretty well back in the late 2000's early 2010's... When we had Drew Nowak, Travonte Boles and Freddie Bishop on the same line... all recruited by WMU.

You know, we’ve never really recovered there since that year we had to do a 3-3-5 because we didn’t have enough warm bodies to field. We’ve had some good guys come through but never a dominate unit.

(04-03-2018 03:03 PM)RunningGame Wrote:  

(04-03-2018 12:09 PM)flushtheherd Wrote:  

(04-03-2018 11:47 AM)BroncoPhilly Wrote:  Two of the best DLmen we've had the last few seasons were transfers. Steve Clark out of Syracuse and 5th season transfer Richard Ash out of UM. It seems, at least for Western, that the transfer route has been more productive at DLmen than recruiting smaller players and building them up.

Didn't used to be the case for us-recall Paul Johnson on our late 1980's-early 1990's teams, who was brought in as a big FB and ended up playing DT/NG for us. Of course, that was a different age and a 250#, athletic DLmen could dominate if he had solid technique and attitude. Don't know if the same is possible today.

We did pretty well back in the late 2000's early 2010's... When we had Drew Nowak, Travonte Boles and Freddie Bishop on the same line... all recruited by WMU.

You know, we’ve never really recovered there since that year we had to do a 3-3-5 because we didn’t have enough warm bodies to field. We’ve had some good guys come through but never a dominate unit.

Nickel might work on Syracuse. Big body at NT to stuff the run. We have DEs that can get around their tackles. Rush an OLB and CB to keep things interesting.

(04-03-2018 05:40 PM)Brindlee2015 Wrote:  

(04-03-2018 03:03 PM)RunningGame Wrote:  

(04-03-2018 12:09 PM)flushtheherd Wrote:  

(04-03-2018 11:47 AM)BroncoPhilly Wrote:  Two of the best DLmen we've had the last few seasons were transfers. Steve Clark out of Syracuse and 5th season transfer Richard Ash out of UM. It seems, at least for Western, that the transfer route has been more productive at DLmen than recruiting smaller players and building them up.

Didn't used to be the case for us-recall Paul Johnson on our late 1980's-early 1990's teams, who was brought in as a big FB and ended up playing DT/NG for us. Of course, that was a different age and a 250#, athletic DLmen could dominate if he had solid technique and attitude. Don't know if the same is possible today.

We did pretty well back in the late 2000's early 2010's... When we had Drew Nowak, Travonte Boles and Freddie Bishop on the same line... all recruited by WMU.

You know, we’ve never really recovered there since that year we had to do a 3-3-5 because we didn’t have enough warm bodies to field. We’ve had some good guys come through but never a dominate unit.

Nickel might work on Syracuse. Big body at NT to stuff the run. We have DEs that can get around their tackles. Rush an OLB and CB to keep things interesting.

That year it was awful. The only great defenses WMU has ever had in my time watching were 4-3 defenses, and the only dominate defenses were this 4-3 style run by Shafer. For years we ran a 4-2-5, and while decent against many MAC teams, Toledo and NIU would routinely give us fits.

The schemes Fleck put in place are great for our needs and we should continue to stick with the basics. I don’t mind some gimmicks or variations, but you gotta run and stop the run to beat the top MAC West teams in mid-week MACtion in November.

When RichRod made UM run a 3-3-5 their opponents ran through them like crap through a goose.

Spoken like a true Michigan man. RR’s record would’ve been the same if it was a 4-3, 3-4, or any other defense.

(04-02-2018 07:27 PM)ColinApocalypse Wrote:  It's near impossible to find 6'4" 320 lb. nose tackles at the high school level that are also athletic. Those types get snatched up by the Alabamas of the world way before MAC teams can get in to talk to them. So we gotta work with what we got.

We've got decent size at the position (Aguirre 6'1" 300, French 6'5" 300, Finley 6'2" 290, Williams 6'3" 290, Holley 6'2" 280, Taylor 6'2" 295), just need to build technique, conditioning and intensity. And most importantly, stay healthy!

Surce we can say that DT is a weakness for the team, but every MAC team can say that.

Toledo is loaded at DT, but they are young. That group includes Derrius Mullins and Tyrone Chambers, each 6'5" 325 lbs.