Introducing, a new podcast hosted by yours truly that’s focused with Big 12 football, “The Expansion Candidate!”
For our first episode we had Coach Cody Alexander of Matchquarters.com on to talk about what makes Texas high school football so effective, how that affects Big 12 football, and the school of defense he learned from Phil Bennett and how it worked at Baylor.
Give it a listen and tell me what you think!
Not sure I have ever heard Phil Bennet referred to as a ground breaking DC.
He built a strong D alongside the Briles O while at Baylor, both of those are tricky tasks.
I wouldn’t use the term strong for any of his defenses at Baylor. His units gambled a great deal and looked to force turnovers and negative plays. They played much better ahead and I am trying to think of a game during Baylor’s run where I would say the defense won the game versus a good offense. Best might have been the 41-38 win at TCU in 2013, but I wouldn’t go as far as call that a good TCU offense. 2014 unit gave up over 40 three times and over 50 in another game.
They defended tons and tons of possessions though.
What’s wrong with forcing turnovers and negative plays? Especially when complementing an offense like Briles’?
They were much more sound on D than you’re suggesting also. They kept things pretty simple but they played press-quarters to pressure the offense.
Nothing wrong with trying to create turnovers and negative plays. I also never said they were similar to Mike Stoopes’ recent defenses at OU who were beat at times before the snap. Simply that Baylor was not a good or strong defense during this recent run. What I believe I said is I don’t recall their defense ever taking over a game and effectively winning a game when the offense didn’t put up a big number. Consider the 2015 loss to Texas at home to a bad Texas offense.
Far, far easier playing defense when teams panic trying to keep pace with the Bear offense. Teams that didn’t panic and forced them to defend both the run and the pass have had some success. Same can be said for any defense, but I guess it goes back to what is considered good defense. To me that would be something like protecting a twenty point lead late as they weren’t able to do against Michigan State.
Truth is it I am of the school of thought it has been more than a few years there has actually been a good defense over the course of a season in the Big 12. The big difference is the talent in the defensive lines and all the scheming in the world over time doesn’t cover an edge in talent up front if it is properly coached and used.
Well it’s going to be hard to find a game where the Baylor D obviously carried them during the 2013/2014 runs because no one ever stopped their offense.
There were certainly lots of games though in which the Baylor D made key stops or turnovers that prevented teams from keeping up with their offense, they executed their role in the team strategy very effectively.
Okie State held them to 7 points in Stillwater in 2013, TCU defensively shut them down in 2013 but Casey played terribly, they gave up 52 to UCF in the bowl in 2013, WVU held the offense to 27 points and just over 300 yards in 2014, and in the fourth quarter of the bowl game that year they gave up over 200 yards and 21 points in the fourth quarter to Michigan State to blow a 20 point lead. The Baylor offense that had gained over 500 yards in the first three quarters gained less than a 100 in the fourth when it mattered and that good defense that played strong got rolled up on three straight drives of over 60 yards each.
Not saying they were a bad defense, only they weren’t a good defense and there were examples of when they needed to get the job done in 2013 and 2013 and they failed to answer the bell.
They were definitely a good D in 2013, there aren’t any defenses in the modern era that don’t have stains on the legacy. This last Bama D was one of their best yet and Clemson still took it to them.
Three to four games a year aren’t stains it is 1/3 to a 1/4 your season.
Not just my thoughts, but friends who coach in college, but none of them wrote books so I guess they don’t count.
Bennett won two B12 titles and paired good D with an offense that most defensive coaches have struggled to work alongside.
Adjusted stats like his defenses and it’s a popular, cutting edge system that has overlap with systems like K-Dtate’s and North Dakota State’s.
You’re not going to find an elite resume for a defense at an offense-first, non-blueblood school in the B12.
I like that you were prepared for your interview. Funny how he had nothing really positive to say about UT or OU defenses.
OU defense has been average to at times bad since Mike Stoopes has returned and Texas has been a perfect example that athletes don’t immediately guarantee success especially if you can’t control the line of scrimmage.
No doubt. However, coaching, as in every field, politics are important. He’s angling for another shot at coaching in college kids, but he didn’t find anything good to say about the two biggest programs in the region.
Ha, yes.