A co-op community for Arizona Fans
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Merkin wrote:^ gotta agree with that. Cats are still going to give up 35 or more every game, so Tate needs to be healthy in order to score 40 points.
Either Rhett or a true freshman? No thanks. Lightning does not strike twice to give the Cats another Khalil Tate as a freshman.
Definitely the overazpenguin wrote:OK, let's take it from this angle. Let's set the bar at 30 points per game given up by the defense. You taking the over or under on that?
azgreg wrote:I'm trying to think of the season that Stanford played a lot of freshmen on defense and got torched week in and week out. They returned everybody the following year and their D was near the top of the PAC. I'm praying for that model.
Under...around 20pts a game i think. The secondary is stronger than people give them credit for. They're a bit thin...but the D line is the key. If they can push and disrupt then it gives the guys in the secondary a chance. Most interested to see what happens, or who plays the Spurazpenguin wrote:OK, let's take it from this angle. Let's set the bar at 30 points per game given up by the defense. You taking the over or under on that?
So you think this will statistically be one of the best defenses of the last 25 years? Allowing 20 a game would mean we have a top 15-20 defense nationally.whatisee wrote:Under...around 20pts a game i think. The secondary is stronger than people give them credit for. They're a bit thin...but the D line is the key. If they can push and disrupt then it gives the guys in the secondary a chance. Most interested to see what happens, or who plays the Spurazpenguin wrote:OK, let's take it from this angle. Let's set the bar at 30 points per game given up by the defense. You taking the over or under on that?
No more 3 and outs on offense! What a motivational killer for the defense.ByJoveByJingle wrote:I think it depends on offensive tempo as much as anything. Our guys couldn’t get off the field on 3rd and 4th downs, but when your offense is playing a million miles an hour it also extends the number of plays a defense has to face every game. I’m hoping for sub-30 points a game, but not holding my breath.
How about all the 3rd and long conversions? That was a motivational killer for me.Merkin wrote:No more 3 and outs on offense! What a motivational killer for the defense.ByJoveByJingle wrote:I think it depends on offensive tempo as much as anything. Our guys couldn’t get off the field on 3rd and 4th downs, but when your offense is playing a million miles an hour it also extends the number of plays a defense has to face every game. I’m hoping for sub-30 points a game, but not holding my breath.
That was far worse than the offense. The defense couldn't get a stop, save the occasional turnover, for their lives. 3rd and long was a guaranteed 20 yard play for the opposing offense.OSUCat wrote:How about all the 3rd and long conversions? That was a motivational killer for me.Merkin wrote:No more 3 and outs on offense! What a motivational killer for the defense.ByJoveByJingle wrote:I think it depends on offensive tempo as much as anything. Our guys couldn’t get off the field on 3rd and 4th downs, but when your offense is playing a million miles an hour it also extends the number of plays a defense has to face every game. I’m hoping for sub-30 points a game, but not holding my breath.
ByJoveByJingle wrote:I think it depends on offensive tempo as much as anything. Our guys couldn’t get off the field on 3rd and 4th downs, but when your offense is playing a million miles an hour it also extends the number of plays a defense has to face every game. I’m hoping for sub-30 points a game, but not holding my breath.
Arizona
"There’s a lot of similarities between Texas A&M and Arizona. Kevin Sumlin was a great hire. You assume from Day 1 he’s been able to build a relationship with Khalil Tate, who really is a special talent, where Tate can believe in Sumlin’s track record of maximizing dual-threat quarterbacks."
"I don’t think Arizona will look like a team with a new coaching staff this fall. Most of their offensive talent is back; Sumlin can work with a lot of the concepts Rich (Rodriguez) used. Tate looked more aware of the offense as the year went on. I think he might run less with Sumlin and Noel Mazzone, at least by design, but he’ll be able to freelance. The running back (J.J. Taylor) is really explosive. This is a staff unafraid of creating a superstar and building around him."
"Keeping (defensive coordinator) Marcel Yates was interesting. It could be a short-term play to keep the roster and this year’s recruiting intact."
"I thought Kylan Wilborn was one of the best defensive players in our league last year. He kind of came out of nowhere. Those are the best kind of recruits. You see the potential, and then it develops into something completely out of the ordinary. He’s not the biggest guy. But he’s got such a quick first step, he’s hard to block. They better get some help for him, because they couldn’t tackle anyone last year. It was YAC (yards after catch/contact) for days last year against them."
"At Arizona, you can either go to L.A. or Texas to fill out recruiting, and obviously they can sell in Texas. Sumlin will be able to go as far east as Dallas and compete for talent. Can’t remember a time when Arizona could do that.
"Considering all that program was going through, to be able to hire a guy with a proven track record of recruiting and winning is huge. If you’re Kevin Sumlin, you can just as easily sit out and sit on your money from Texas A&M and not jump into the mess someone else created. But I also think Kevin looked at the roster and looked at Khalil Tate, and said, yeah, I can work with this."
"Khalil Tate is as close to what Rich had with Pat White at West Virginia as you can get. At this point in their careers, Pat was a more comfortable thrower. But Khalil is such a threat in the run game; if he gets to the second level, strike up the band. The more he improves in the passing game – where I can see Kevin making a significant impact on him, like he did with Johnny Manziel, who was raw when he got him – the more dangerous Arizona can be."
"Offense will not be a problem there. They’re going to make a lot of us in this league look bad. But measure that against their one-man defense, and you see why Tate can only do so much."
The bold is what I found most telling. Everything else was pretty chalk. But I am on the same page about Yates. Hope he proves me wrong.azgreg wrote:Arizona
"There’s a lot of similarities between Texas A&M and Arizona. Kevin Sumlin was a great hire. You assume from Day 1 he’s been able to build a relationship with Khalil Tate, who really is a special talent, where Tate can believe in Sumlin’s track record of maximizing dual-threat quarterbacks."
"I don’t think Arizona will look like a team with a new coaching staff this fall. Most of their offensive talent is back; Sumlin can work with a lot of the concepts Rich (Rodriguez) used. Tate looked more aware of the offense as the year went on. I think he might run less with Sumlin and Noel Mazzone, at least by design, but he’ll be able to freelance. The running back (J.J. Taylor) is really explosive. This is a staff unafraid of creating a superstar and building around him."
"Keeping (defensive coordinator) Marcel Yates was interesting. It could be a short-term play to keep the roster and this year’s recruiting intact."
"I thought Kylan Wilborn was one of the best defensive players in our league last year. He kind of came out of nowhere. Those are the best kind of recruits. You see the potential, and then it develops into something completely out of the ordinary. He’s not the biggest guy. But he’s got such a quick first step, he’s hard to block. They better get some help for him, because they couldn’t tackle anyone last year. It was YAC (yards after catch/contact) for days last year against them."
"At Arizona, you can either go to L.A. or Texas to fill out recruiting, and obviously they can sell in Texas. Sumlin will be able to go as far east as Dallas and compete for talent. Can’t remember a time when Arizona could do that.
"Considering all that program was going through, to be able to hire a guy with a proven track record of recruiting and winning is huge. If you’re Kevin Sumlin, you can just as easily sit out and sit on your money from Texas A&M and not jump into the mess someone else created. But I also think Kevin looked at the roster and looked at Khalil Tate, and said, yeah, I can work with this."
"Khalil Tate is as close to what Rich had with Pat White at West Virginia as you can get. At this point in their careers, Pat was a more comfortable thrower. But Khalil is such a threat in the run game; if he gets to the second level, strike up the band. The more he improves in the passing game – where I can see Kevin making a significant impact on him, like he did with Johnny Manziel, who was raw when he got him – the more dangerous Arizona can be."
"Offense will not be a problem there. They’re going to make a lot of us in this league look bad. But measure that against their one-man defense, and you see why Tate can only do so much."
Pretty good read, there's some good thoughts from the coaches in there.azgreg wrote:
32. Arizona
New coach Kevin Sumlin inherits a favorable situation for his first year in Tucson. The Wildcats return dynamic quarterback Khalil Tate and won’t have to play Washington or Stanford in Pac-12 crossover play. Also, USC visits Tucson in late September. With a friendly schedule and Tate returning, a trip to the conference title game isn’t out of the question. In addition to Tate, Arizona’s offense features running back J.J. Taylor and a solid group of receivers, headlined by Shun Brown on the outside. Sumlin and coordinator Noel Mazzone will have to do a little tweaking up front, but two returning starters and Michigan State transfer Tshiyombu Lukusa should keep this unit performing at a high level. Sumlin decided to retain defensive coordinator Marcel Yates, and that decision could pay off in a big way. The Wildcats have made progress under Yates, and nine returning starters provide hope for a big jump. Linebackers Kylan Wilborn and Colin Schooler, along with cornerbacks Jace Whittaker and Lorenzo Burns should push for all-conference honors in the fall.
https://athlonsports.com/college-footba ... tions-2018" target="_blankazgreg wrote:
Great info here...especially on the D line. Wilborn and Jalen Harris should be fun to watch this with the big boys on the insideANGCatFan wrote:David Kelly and Glenn Howell video breakdowns for Fox ch 11 on the offensive line and defensive line.
Yep, and the O line situation without Friekh will be even worse against Houston. I'm sure they'll just put their consensus All American D lineman wherever the best mismatch is. Sure hope our O line stays healthy.dmjcat wrote:Looking forward to next Saturday.
My biggest concern is the offensive line. Right now we have a frosh starting at left tackle, a transfer who hasn't played in two years at left guard, a walk on at center, and the right side of the line were last years backups. If the line doesn't gel quickly Tate will be running for his life. We will get Friekh back for the 3rd game, hopefully Eldridge gets over his injury issues.
The DL is my next biggest concern. I keep hearing about all of the new "Beef" on the DL. The only beef I have seen is a lot of fat. Between Taufahema, Irving, and Johnson the 3 of them need to drop a combined 100 pounds.
Here's to hoping that Eldridge recovers quickly and one of the 3 Gravity Challenged 300 lb DL's had a great summer in the weightroom. Boles needs some help on the interior.
Bear Down
even if you're in CA and can't make it, you can donate them (I know a lot of teachers for example who would love some free tix)Yep. Injured. Not sounding good.whatisee wrote:So what is todays bad news Scheer is talking about. Did we finally find out what's up with Eldridge?
Well shit...i hope it's not career ending. I think he had a chance of getting a NFL sniffUAEebs86 wrote:Yep. Injured. Not sounding good.whatisee wrote:So what is todays bad news Scheer is talking about. Did we finally find out what's up with Eldridge?
Side note: Does All Sports Tucson load slowly for anyone else? I use a mac and chrome and it is the slowest site on the interweb for me.DT Dereck Boles* (6-2, 306, Sr.)
NG P.J. Johnson (6-4, 335, Jr.)
DE Justin Belknap* (6-3, 259, Jr.)
STUD Kylan Wilborn* (6-2, 248, So.)
LB Colin Schooler* (6-0, 236, So.)
LB Tony Fields II* (6-1, 230, So.)
CB Lorenzo Burns* (5-10, 181, So.)
CB Jace Whittaker* (5-11, 189, Sr.)
S Tristan Cooper (6-1, 194, Jr.)
S Jarius Wallace (6-1, 180, So.)
S Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles* (6-2, 209, Sr.)
Chrome is a RAM hog.ANGCatFan wrote:Gimino on why we should have hope for the defense. Included is his guess at the starters on D:
Side note: Does All Sports Tucson load slowly for anyone else? I use a mac and chrome and it is the slowest site on the interweb for me.DT Dereck Boles* (6-2, 306, Sr.)
NG P.J. Johnson (6-4, 335, Jr.)
DE Justin Belknap* (6-3, 259, Jr.)
STUD Kylan Wilborn* (6-2, 248, So.)
LB Colin Schooler* (6-0, 236, So.)
LB Tony Fields II* (6-1, 230, So.)
CB Lorenzo Burns* (5-10, 181, So.)
CB Jace Whittaker* (5-11, 189, Sr.)
S Tristan Cooper (6-1, 194, Jr.)
S Jarius Wallace (6-1, 180, So.)
S Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles* (6-2, 209, Sr.)
I'm in this camp...if we can get any push along the front line then i think we'll be a much different team. Active and creating turnovers from our strong set of young LB'sazgreg wrote:I am extremely optimistic about our defense this year.