Football 101: Defense

Recently a poster on a BYU message board asked for some pointers on football and better understanding the game. I will from time to time post some basic explanations of the positions/game and feel free to ask, better to learn here than from the 16-year old girl behind you at the game.

Scheme:

BYU runs a 3-4 defense. In football, you typically do not say how many defensive backs are on the field. A 3-4 denotes that there are 3 down linemen and 4 linebackers, which leaves 4 defensive backs. Also common in college is the 4-3 (Utah), the 4-2 (TCU) and BYU's old 3-3-5 (run by New Mexico still.)

The 3-4 is most effective against the run, as the down-linemen (start plays with a hand on the ground) jam the line and allow the quicker linebackers to shoot the gaps. Each play usually has the 3 lineman and a single linebacker rush. On passing plays the other 3 linebackers will either play man or zone defense (with the exception of a blitz.)

Secondary:

A strong safety is usually the bigger of the two safeties. This player is generally the "enforcer" of the team, responsible for helping with the run and covering the TE deep. His job is to knock the guy silly essentially. He lines up a little closer to the line than the free safety. At BYU this position is also called the KAT and is manned by Dustin Gabriel.

The free safety, manned by Quinn Gooch, lines up a little further back and roams a bit more and is responsible for helping out the corners in the passing game mostly. They aren't required to be as good of hitters, but don't tell Gooch that. He led the secondary with 66 tackles last season.

The field corner, the only defensive position really up in the air at this point, covers more terrain and has to be able to shut down that side of the field. This position will likely be filled by Kayle Buchanan, who is a nasty hitter when healthy, or Brandon Bradley, a post-mission transfer from Louisville.

The boundary corner, Ben Criddle, is responsible for the other side of the field. Criddle was responsible for 47 solo tackles, second only to Cameron Jensen.

Linebackers:

In BYU's 3-4 defense, there are 2 middle linebackers and two outside linebackers. This is further broken down into SLB (Sam LB), WLB (Will LB) and MLB (Middle.)
The Sam linebacker, or strongside, in a general sense, covers the side of the field with the tight end, while the Will linebacker, or weakside, covers the side without the tight end, in normal formations.

The strongside is typically a bit bigger and stronger. This position belongs to Bryan Kehl at BYU who is quick and strong. He covers the TE for the first couple yards before the strong safety takes him over. He needs to be able to shed blocks from the fullback or tight end and get to the running back. A good SLB is hard to find because they need to be about as big as a middle linebacker but fast as an outside linebacker.

The weakside has more room to fly around and David Nixon does just that. They tend to have more room to maneuver so speed and agility are very important. Like the free safety, the Will Linebacker has room to roam and is responsible for the run and assisting in tackles.

The middle linebackers, or interior linebackers, are the meat of the linebackers. BYU's two starting MLB are not as big as Wagner/Jensen last year, but are quicker. Last year the starter combined for 182 tackles, so look for Markell Staffieri and Kelly Poppinga to make some serious noise this year.

Defensive Line:

BYU uses only 3 players up front. These include the Left Defensive End (LE), Right Defensive End (RE) and Nose Tackle (NT.) Simplistically, these guys are trying to get to the quarterback on a pass play or stop the run. The ends are a bit quicker and will try to get around the tackles or open up gaps for the linebackers to shoot through. BYU's starting line is Jan Jorgensen, Russell Tialavea and Ian Dulan, all sophomores.

My 3 Cents: In preparing this, I noticed that BYU has updated the roster with the 2007 recruits and some walk-ons I have never heard of. Check it out here.