Misses Tackles and Bad Angles
The Georgia Bulldogs run defense has been a concern for few weeks now. They had been giving up more yards per carry that coachKirby Smartis accustomed to. That came to a head Saturday, as LSU gained more than twice as many yards on the ground as UGA.
One of the biggest problems for Georgia defending LSU on the ground, was big plays. The majority of those plays came due to missed tackles or bad angles.
On the last play of the first quarter,Clyde Edwards-Helairetook the handoff against a Georgia run blitz. Free Safety Richard LeCounte met the LSU running back in the hole. He missed the tackle, and the result was a 47 yard gain down to the Dawgs 7 yard line, leading to LSU’s first touchdown.
In addition to missed tackles, bad angles were the culprit that allowed some big LSU runs. LinebackerNatrez Patrickwas seen taking bad angles on several LSU running plays.
One of the worse examples ofNatrez Patricktaking a bad angle, was on a 3rd and 9 in the second quarter. He was assigned to spy on Tiger’s quarterbackJoe Burrow. He took a bad angle to his right and got caught in traffic as Burrow ran to the left and gained 9 yards before Natrez recovered and shoved him out-of-bounds.
Ultimately LSU went for it on fourth down and converted. Another play in which UGA payed for Patrick taking the wrong angle, was in the fourth quarter. The Dawgs badly needed a stop to keep it a two score game.
On the play, running backNick Brossettestarted to the left, and Dawgs’ linebackerMonty Ricestepped over to plug the gap. Instead of maintaining his lane integrity, Patrick followed Rice to the left messing up the run fit. Brossette cut back to the right and picked up a backbreaking 1st down.
Freshman edge playerBrenton Coxalso had a crucial error, as far as bad angles are concerned. LSU ran read option as quarterbackJoe Burrowheld the ball near the belly of his running back. Cox came crashing down out of control after the running back.
Burrow pulled the ball away and raced out of the backdoor to his right for a colossal 59 yard gain that essentially ended the game.Brenton Coxhas shown flashes as a pass rusher but has to play smarter.
The Dawgs interior and edge defenders often pushed their way into the LSU backfield on Saturday. However they had issues disengaging from blocks to make the plays.
Team are certainly going to test the Bulldogs run defense until they prove they can stop it. Coach Smart and defensive coordinator Mel Tucker need to start 320 poundJordan Davisat nose tackle and moveJulian Rochesterfrom nose tackle to defensive end in place of Ledbetter to help plug the gaps.
The Georgia defensive staff would also be better off if they would settle on two starting inside linebackers in the base defense, rather than rotating so many guys. Money Rice andTae Crowdershould he those starters with Natrez Patrick being benched.
Add us as a preferred source onGoogleLoading recommendations... Please wait while we load personalized content recommendations