After having done the offensive side of the ball last week, today we begin the "Up & Down" for Syracuse's defense. I will begin with the defensive line, which I believe (besides the O Line) is the most important part for head coach Greg Robinson. The key for this group will be to be united from the get go and be strong enough not to be a negative for the squad.
The Up:They have nothing to lose. That is a reality when you get to the bottom of it all. This group doesn't have much pressure on it, at least not compared to the offensive line. So they should he working at their pace and making sure that they just do what they need to be doing and there shouldn't be a problem. As I said before, as long as this group isn't a liability for the SU defense they will be fine.
The Down:Not enough go to guys. Arthur Jones is going to be good, but how much can he play being double and triple teamed game in and game out. Not all season long, and that means that the SU squad needs to find another man on that D Line to step up and make the plays when needed to give Jones some breathing room. The team will have an ex LB in Vincenzo Giruzzi and a player that has not been a regular in Nick Santiago along with a player that could step it up in Brandon Gilbeaux. Who is going to be the one that gives a hand to Jones, I am not sure, but it will be interesting to see.
The Up:The Tackles. Jones is going to be a name that is going to be talked about in the conference, and I am sure that every Big East foe will have to game plan around his presence. I wouldn't be surprised to hear that Arthur Jones is voted as the best defensive player for Syracuse and one of the best in the conference. Along with him Santiago is eager to be a starter and prove his worth and with a lot of O Line focusing on Jones he might just get some good paths to the ball carrier.
The Down:The Ends. One is an undersized player, Giruzzi, who is not in his right position, moving from outside linebacker to DE. All in all they will play well, but not well enough to help out a department that needs to be steady in order for the Orange to be a good team. I think that the ends for this line won't be able to enough to make the opposing teams plan around them, making Jones' work even harder. I would not be surprised if the two players that are starting for SU will be replaced by the second stringers in order to help out the tackles.
The Up:The reserves. I think that while there is no big time talent right now, with playing time and working the second stringers might just turn out to be very good. If there is a negative touch around that is that probably the best reserves for the Orange are tackles and not ends. If others can also improve it might just help out this group in bringing more of a stable defense on the field.
The Down:Last year they were better. Like it or not, last season's D Line was better and they couldn't do much against the offenses they faced. Now, without Jameel McClain (DE) and Tony Jenkins (DT) they will have a strong schedule and more pressure as this could be the farewell for their head coach. And while people say that players do not think about this, there is no way that this group of players can not realize what they are going towards with the 2008 season.
The Up:Stay to the basics. I know this sounds like coach's talk, but if the group of players can just focus on the basics they might surprise some teams. The Orange have to take advantage of the fact that the winnable games are in the first third of the season and so the teams might still be adjusting themselves. Work on the basics, keep the team in the game and hope the offense can do their job and, who knows, things might just come out for the best.
The Down:No pressure means no defense. The pure and simple reality is that if this team can not put down the ball carrier or sack the quarterback the whole unit will have to stay on the field a lot longer and get tired out and lose the game for the team. With so-so back seven if the defensive coordinator has to blitz too much, the Orange might just have played themselves out of a game, so it is up to the line to rush well, and I just don't see that happening.
That is it, I finish the "Up & Down" for the defensive line for the Orange. Tomorrow we will hit the linebackers, and what they have going up and down for them. I think, as you can see by what I said in this blog, that to me the D Line needs to step up if Syracuse wants to have any chance to pull off some upsets. Unfortunately, the more I looked at this line and the more I looked at the player, the more I just do not think it can be possible, especially when it comes to Big East play.
After having done the offensive side of the ball last week, today we begin the "Up & Down" for Syracuse's defense. I will begin with the defensive line, which I believe (besides the O Line) is the most important part for head coach Greg Robinson. The key for this group will be to be united from the get go and be strong enough not to be a negative for the squad.The Up: They have nothing to lose. That is a reality when you get to the bottom of it all. This group doesn't have much pressure on it, at least not compared to the offensive line. So they should he working at their pace and making sure that they just do what they need to be doing and there shouldn't be a problem. As I said before, as long as this group isn't a liability for the SU defense they will be fine.
The Down: Not enough go to guys. Arthur Jones is going to be good, but how much can he play being double and triple teamed game in and game out. Not all season long, and that means that the SU squad needs to find another man on that D Line to step up and make the plays when needed to give Jones some breathing room. The team will have an ex LB in Vincenzo Giruzzi and a player that has not been a regular in Nick Santiago along with a player that could step it up in Brandon Gilbeaux. Who is going to be the one that gives a hand to Jones, I am not sure, but it will be interesting to see.
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