Despite the departures of offensive stars Matthew Stafford, Knowshon Moreno and Mohamed Massaquoi, the consensus among most fans seems to be that the key to the 2009 season will be the defense.
Hard to argue with that notion after Georgia's D was a disaster throughout much of last season, allowing 38 points or more six times.
Much to the chagrin of a vocal portion of the fan base, no major changes were made among the defensive coaches and three veteran starters -- Dannell Ellerbe, CJ Byrd and Asher Allen -- are all gone. So how does the defense expect to be a lot better in 2009?
Here are some thoughts from some of Georgia's defensive players...
Marcus Washington on the lessons of 2008...
"Last year was kind of a letdown, and I felt as if we let Georgia down because we did not perform the way a Georgia defense traditionally plays. You go back and you look at the defensive aspect of the games, and maybe if we did things a little differently, things would have turned out different. We've got to go in and refocus. We've got to make some stops. We've got to not give up big plays."
Reshad Jones on the most important change the D can make...
"I would say just turnovers period. As far as fumbles, knocking the ball out, interceptions, the overall turnovers. Turnovers help win ball games, give the offense better field position, stuff like that. I think we just need to focus on getting more turnovers."
Rennie Curran on the importance of attitude...
"We started off well last season but we lost our focus. Guys got hurt, but things like that happen. Now this season that we have everybody back, we need to just focus on the basics – running to the ball, executing on every play, not having mental breakdowns or physical breakdowns. We just have to focus on being as disciplined as possible."
Rod Battle on getting back to basics...
"It's just a renewed focus. The same stuff worked in years past, and we know what we want our style of play to be. We want to be a team that plays fast and physical, and I think if you do that, you make up for a lot of mistakes you make."
Akeem Dent on focusing on the little things...
"We're basically doing running, lifting, things like that, but when we do set out to do the drills, we go through with the blocking dummies and work on the fundamentals and the techniques, letting everyone have a chance to complete every drill. That's one thing we want to focus on this year is being able to wrap up and tackle to the ground."
Darryl Gamble on finishing plays...
"We had chances to make plays last year but they just weren't made. So it's really about taking advantage of opportunities, and I don't think we did good with that last year. We would be in the right places, but we've got to execute on what's there."
Battle on the defensive ends this season...
"If I was looking from the outside in, I would say (there's questions) and we realize that as a group. We're just trying to refocus as a group this offseason and try to make up some lost practices that we've all had. Hopefully we can get some momentum going at the position going into the season and hopefully be a bright spot."
Curran on what the young players can add this year...
"It's going to be great to see what those young guys have to offer. They're all bright-eyed and hungry to get on the field and they all love Georgia and are committed players. That's what we need more than anything is guys just ready to buy in and do things right. That's what I think we have in these young guys and I'm excited to see what they can do."
Brandon Boykin on what he expects from the D this year...
"I expect that Junkyard Dawg mentality that Georgia used to have back in the day. You can just tell the intensity in our workouts. We're not taking anything for granted this year. You can see the games where we gave up big plays against Florida and Georgia Tech, we're just trying to focus on not giving up those plays this year. We're doing everything this summer so when we come in the fall we don't run into a wall. I feel like as long as we stay hungry for the ball, we'll be fine in the fall."
So, how about you... what concerns you the most about the defense this season? What new additions do you think can have the biggest impact? What are your expectations when the D opens the season against high-powered Oklahoma State?
Thursday, July 16, 2009
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8 comments:
On Tuesday they replayed the SC - GA game from last year. We stopped them and then they adjusted as the game progressed. More often than not we did not make an adjustment to their adjustment. We probably should have lost that game. Of course the anemic offense would have been partly to blame also. Bottom line, the coaches have to adjust during the game. The longer we run the same defense year after year, the more the other team's coaches catch on as to how take advantage of what we give them.
I'm right there with you "anon". Our defensive scheming was woefully slow to adjust last year. I'm glad to hear our players will be working hard but until I see or hear something new from our defensive coaches you can count me skeptical.
I would love to see the D playing with the same intensity that they played in the 07 Auburn/UF/Hawaii games. With swagger, but also with fire in their eyes.
Wrap up, Reshad!
The getting to the ball mindset needs adjusting. Go back and look at the games - how many times did we have a player in position (actual hands on the offensive player) only to have him knocked off by a defensive teammate?
I don't know think swagger is what we're looking for here. I equate swagger to arrogance or overconfidence. Unfortunately, this elusive "swagger" concept is something our players have latched onto and even become obssesed with attaining. Our guys just need to go out and let our play do the talking. Period. Swagger or swerve can wait until the offseason.
I'm cautiously optimistic. I like what I'm hearing from the players and have a lot of confidence in Curran and Owens as leaders. Of course, talk is cheap, but you can tell they feel they have something to prove, and I have a feeling our D just might surprise some folks.
I think most would agree our interior line could be outstanding, and our linebackers have the potential to be great. So the question marks are at DE and the secondary. If our DEs have a big year I think the secondary will be just fine. (That is a big IF). But I like our chances, actually.
As far as swagger... go back and watch the Hawaii game... there is a palpable difference in attitude compared to what we saw last year. (Of course, it helps when you have a Marcus Howard sacking the QB every 3rd snap). Now the question is, what comes first, the attitude or the performance? You could argue either side of that, but I'm convinced they work together hand-in-hand. And I'm thinking this squad will be improved in both categories.
I sure would have been happier to hear RJ talk about wrapping and tackling than about turnovers....
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