Todd Grantham has done an amazing job with the Georgia defense. The idiots on television can say what they want about weak schedules, but the improvements we have seen this year speak for themselves. You don't have a top 10 defense in the country by luck. My question is whether or not this year's defense is the best of the Mark Ricth era, even better than the Van Gorder units. Take a look at this comparison of the national rankings for Georgia's defense during the 2002 SEC season, the 2003 SEC East Champion season, the 2005 SEC Championship season, the 2007 #2 final ranking season, 2009 (Willie's last stand) and this year:
Of the 9 major defensive categories I examined, the 2011 squad had the best national ranking in 5 of them. Arguably, this is the best defense since 2003 when the unit featuring David Pollack, Odell Thurman, and Thomas Davis helped the Dawgs win 10 games despite an offense that struggled all year. What sticks out even more is the deterioration under Martinez and the rebound under Grantham. Georgia finished second in the nation in 2007 because of the strength of the offense and the ability to get sacks, not because of their ability to cover receivers.
Can I honestly say this is the best defense of the Richt era? I don't know. But what I can say is Coach Grantham has returned us to the defense glory we once had and I don't see that changing with the very experienced group we having coming back in 2012.
Earl sent me this link today to a story about the Johnstown Chiefs, a minor league hockey team which takes its name from the team of the same name in the classic Paul Newman comedy, "Slap Shot". If you have never seen Slap Shot, shame on you. It is one of the greatest sports films ever made. Remembering Slap Shot got me thinking about what Georgia needs on defense to get that swagger back that the team had under Brian Van Gorder. How would Paul Newman's character have gotten the bite back into the Georgia D? With the Hanson Brothers, of course!
Georgia's needs its own group of enforcers, tough guys who step on the field and strike fear into the other team. In recent years, the most success has come at the safety position, where Thomas Davis and Greg Blue wreaked havoc on SEC receivers. But who will lead this new breed of Georgia defense? My first nominee is the man with best name in sports, Bacarri Rambo. Ask Mario Fannin if he likes going over the middle with Rambo flying around.
After Rambo, there is a long list of other guys ready to join the fight and bring the ferocity back to the Georgia defense. Guys like Akeem Dent, Justin Houston, Jakar Hamilton, and Alec Ogletree will all have their chance to make their mark this fall.
Maybe Grantham's boys won't take it this far, but knocking opposing teams around sure would be fun to watch.
Coach Richt announced today that Richard Samuel will indeed move to linebacker under Todd Grantham's 3-4 defense. Coach Richt said Samuel was anxious to make the move and I think this will definitely help turn his career around. While Samuel had some decent plays at running back, I think he always had the mentality of a linebacker. This play will go down as Samuel's most memorable on the offensive side:
When Earl and I went and saw him play at Cass in '07, he was definitely more impressive on the defensive side of the ball. We were there to witness what people simply called The Play, when Samuel blocked a 20 yard field goal attempt at the end of the half by jumping over the Sandy Creek offensive line. He then picked the ball up and ran it back for a 96 yard touchdown. If Samuel can bring plays like this one to Georgia's defense over the next two years, he will make himself one hell of a linebacker.
Of course, with Samuel moving to defense, it means he will not be scoring too many (if any more at all) touchdowns. With that, I am retiring the Richard Samuel Touchdown Pygmy Goat:
With new defensive coordinator Todd Grantham bringing the 3-4 defense to Athens, it is hard to know exactly what Georgia's defense will look like this fall. The early exits of Reshad Jones and Rennie Curran paired with the graduations of Bryan Evans, Prince Miller, Jeff Owens, and Geno Atkins means there are at least 6 starting jobs open. Here is my best guess at the current Georgia depth chart, before signing day and spring practice.
DE - Justin Houston, DemarcusDobbs - I expect both players to be starters under Grantham's system, however we may see Justin Houston move to a linebacker hybrid position.
DT - Deangelo Tyson - The graduations of Kade Weston, Atkins, and Owens leaves Tyson as the only experienced tackle the Dawgs have left.
ILB - Akeem Dent, Daryl Gamble - Dent should have one of these spots, but Gamble may move outside.
OLB - Marcus Dowtin, ??? - Dowtin will occupy one spot but the other spot is anyone's guess. Christian Robinson played well at the end of last season.
CB - Brandon Boykin, Branden Smith - Both players should improve in 2010. Look for Smith to really develop into a shut down corner.
S - Bacarri Rambo, Jakar Hamilton - I am so excited to see what Rambo can do as a starter. The defense was clearly better when he was on the field last season. At the other spot, I will give the early edge to the Juco transfer Hamilton, though a healthy Quentin Banks and freshman Alec Ogltree will also push for playing time.
I saw on one of the AJC blogs a reader post that suggested Georgia take a look at Mark Snyder to replace Willie Martinez. This was a new name that I had not heard mentioned in the conversation. Turns out, Snyder is currently available and has coached a national championship defense. Here are the details on Mark Snyder:
As a member of Jim Tressel's staff at Youngstown State, Snyder helped coach a defense that won 3 consecutive 1-AA national championships (1991-1993). Snyder was promoted to DC and eventually left Youngstown State to become defensive coordinator at Minnesota. During his time with Golden Gophers, the team twice broke the school record for sacks and average over 40 a year during that time. Tressel brought Snyder back onto his staff at Ohio State in 2001. Snyder's defenses helped Ohio State win back to back Fiesta Bowls and claim the 2002 National Championship. Snyder returned to his alma mater in 2005, taking over at Marshall. The team compiled a 16-31 record during Snyder's tenure. He resigned following the end of the 2009 season, despite Marshall reaching bowl eligibility for the first time since he took over.
Why he may be a good fit:
Snyder has experience leading defenses to national championships at multiple levels. After resigning at Marshall, he is currently available and after an unsuccessful stint as a head coach, may be ready to return to being a coordinator. As the picture above shows, he also has a reputation as a fiery guy, something former DC Brian Van Gorder was known for and something people often felt Martinez lacked.
One of the many questions facing the Dawgs in 2009 will be the play of the defensive secondary. After the losses of CJBryd (graduation) and Asher Allen (NFL Graduation), Georgia is left with only two senior players in the defensive backfield. One of those players, Bryan Evans, will be playing his first full season at a new position (since moving from corner to safety during last season). The other, cornerback Prince Miller, is expected to be the leader and replace Asher Allen as the shutdown corner for Georgia.
Prince Miller came to Georgia as part of the 2006 recruiting class a highly sought after athlete from the state of South Carolina. He was the 2005 South Carolina player of the year and led his team to 4 straight state championships. The 5'8'' Miller had offers from Georgia Tech, Florida State, Clemson, and others, but ultimately chose Georgia.
Prince Miller would make an immediate impact during his freshman season at Georgia. Playing in every game of the 2006 season, he was a star on special teams for the Dawgs. His signature play was a punt block that led to a Georgia score in the victory over UAB. For his efforts, Miller earned the title of "Special Teams Newcomer of the Year".
In 2007, Miller began to see more playing time as part of the defensive rotation. He earned his first start against Ole Miss and took over the weakside position opposite Asher Allen (starting 8 of the 13 games for the Dawgs). He racked up 24 tackles, 7 pass break ups, and his first career interception during the Sugar Bowl against Hawaii.
2008 was prince's breakout season in the red and black. Miller started 10 of 13 games for Dawgs at weakside corner, amassing 50 tackles, a sack, 2 tackles for loss, and 2 pass break ups. He also once again made his mark on special teams, this time as the Bulldogs' leading punt returner. He returned 9 punts for 191 yards (21.2 average) including this amazing play during the blackout game against Alabama:
In 2009, look for Prince Miller to provide leadership and be one of the defensive captains for the Bulldogs. The first test will come against arguably the best receiver in the country when the Dawgs face Dez Bryant and the Oklahoma State Cowboys. If Miller can keep Bryant in check, it should take some of the pressure off Brandon Boykin and freshman Branden Smith who will mostl likely be playing on the opposite side.
The debate about who is responsible for the demise of the Georgia defense has spread out of control this week. Many are calling for the firing of Willie Martinez (under whom the Georgia defense has seen a steady decline in points allowed per game over the last few years).
Others have claimed that injuries or a failure to develop a serious pass rush from the defensive end position are the culprits for the lack of defensive production. Despite these arguments, I believe the reason Georgia is struggling on defense (particularly in the red zone, where we are allowing touchdowns on 68% of opponents’ possessions as compared to 49% last year), is the lack of a playmaker at the safety position.
Let’s take a quick look back at some of the guys that made the safety position great over the last few years.
Sean Jones Jones was a vicious hitter but also a great shut down player in the secondary. He was also a key member of the special teams unit (see Auburn 2002 for proof).
Thomas Davis Davis came to Georgia as a linebacker, but became a breakthrough player as a safety his sophomore year in 2003. Who can forget the huge hits he laid in the destruction of LSU in 2004:
Greg Blue One of the hardest hitters I have ever seen. Blue wasn’t known for his coverage skills, but SEC teams knew that if they came over the middle he would be there to light them up:
Tra Battle A walk on who became a star for the Georgia defense. Despite his small size, Battle was a great tackler and also defended well in coverage. The Auburn game in 2006 stamped his name in the Georgia record books:
What do all of these players, along with Jermaine Phillips, Kentrell Curry, and Kelin Johnson, have in common? They all played the safety position with a linebacker mentality. In the current defense that Georgia uses (which is the same basic scheme under Martinez as it was under Van Gorder), we tend to rush four linemen and drop our linebackers into coverage. In the past, one of our safeties has pressed up with the linebackers to help stop the run and shut down passes over the middle. This is evident in guys like Thomas Davis being the team’s leading tackler from the safety position. These guys have also put themselves in positions to make game changing plays. Sean Jones’ 95 yard scoop and score at Tennessee in 2003 and Kelin Johnson’s opening play pick against Auburn in ’07 are great examples.
This year’s team is missing that guy in the secondary who strikes fear in the opponents’ runners and receivers. Rennie Curran seems to be everywhere at the linebacker position, but how often do we see CJ Byrd right there with him? Not very often. Reshad Jones has all of talent in the world to be a head hunter like Greg Blue, but he has proven time and again that he can’t make easy interceptions. And Drew Williams is a good player on special teams, but he does not have any business being our first safety off the bench.
While I am not completely against a change at defensive coordinator, I am aware that a coach can only do so much. If the players don’t step up to the plate and make the plays when they have the chance, the team will look like it has failed. What Georgia needs to do is rally around the team we have and find that swagger that once existed in the Georgia defense. We’ve got two games left in the ’08 season, let’s make them count.
In 2007, Miller began to see more playing time as part of the defensive rotation. He earned his first start against Ole Miss and took over the 