The Akina Factor- A Treatise

[couchman]

Fantastic read Doperbo,

I'm pumped about the prospect of Akina bringing some unpredicatble elements to the defense. I especially like the thought of Jammer and others being able to unload vicious hits and take some picks the opposite way out of the occasional zone set.

As has been alluded to in this thread, I can't help but imagine our talent in the flex defense, and wonder if Akina will eventually be a DC for us. I'm in no hurry to send Reese to pasture- -and I wonder if Akina to DC is pure specualtion.

Is there any evidence to suggest Reese is near retirement?

 

[close to jumping]

A fine thread you guys have going here. DrJ associating me with pongo and the aggie dental-MD was uncalled for, but I digress.

I'm completely okay with joining the choir of others who sing the praises of Akina for a few reasons. One, he seems to be an angry, hungry SOB, and we don't have enough firebreathers on our current staff. Two, what harm can it do? I haven't built up huge expectations for him with the secondary. They were good before he got here and I don't see why it should change now. I'm more than willing to cheer the guy on.

Nonetheless, you tie him in here with something that befuddles me a bit. It appears as though you feel that he'll somehow be a key in helping us beat OU. While I hope you're right, I'm a bit of a skeptic on how great his impact will be in that game.

We were beaten badly by OU and the secondary certainly took their lumps, but I don't think they had a great deal to do with the initial steps in that game which led to our destruction. We got beat in the first quarter by our LB play and our offensive ineptitude. I have trouble understanding how Akina is going to help dramatically in either area. Beating OU this year will not depend on the play of our secondary or the coaching of Akina. It will depend on what almost every game this year will depend upon, our LB play and our offensive execution.

Here's hoping that not only Akina has his ducks in a row for the OU game, but so do our other coaches. Here's hoping we come out to deliver the blow that game early, and that Akina helps his group deliver blows all year long.

 

[DallasHorn34]

Great read Doperbo, I agree that should go in the Classic posts.

Hook'em Horns

 

[AugieBall]

we have the Locker Room for good posts of this nature, I think. I guess that would be LHG's judgment call. Great thread, though.

CTJ,

I think Akina's system will allow our secondary to play a little bit more with their eyes on the QB. So while you correctly observe that our LB play was our chief problem on defense, having a secondary that knows where the ball is going must help a little in damage control.

As for offensive execution...*sigh*...repeat to yourself "at least we have more talent than they do...at least we have..." Well, you get the point.



Florida: the land of fake tits and real ********

 

[DrJ]

Look, any post that has the word "Treatise" in the title and has generated so many compliments from so many of the Hornfans.com luminaries simply must be moved to the Classic Posts.

Please, LHG!?! I really liked your chili last year....

 

[Doperbo]

LOL.
Thanks for the lobby Dr. J, it is much appreciated, but I'm sure LHG has more pressing matters to attend to than poor old Doperbo languishing around on the second page {grin}. From reading the reports it would appear that merely recovering from the fiery gastronomical assault that DWP's team unleashed on the chili cook-off participants this year may take some time in and of itself.

Seriously, I resurrected this thing tempoprarily, and finally I would hope, only to give some sort of answer to dfl, since this afternoon is the first that I have had free in what seems like a very long time, and I did not want it to seem like I disregarded his input. Much the contrary.

dfl- I understand your take. I also agree. However to that I say true, true, and unrelated. I can't speak for the offense in any capacity. That was never within the scope of my premise. I suppose we could see a shootout scenario where our offense rolls, as does theirs, but to be honest that possibility does little more than give me indigestion. I hope it doesn't come to that.

As far as LB play, I stated right up front I had little hard knowledge as to what, if anything, Akina might be able to change in the front seven. I did surmise that several new wrinkles, which Bull has obliquely referenced in his radio conference, might be employed as they relate to stunts and zone blitzes. I think this contribution is not small, for the aforementioned reasons in my post, and I think it would come primarily from Akina. If, instead, we all watch the well televised and occasionally effective safety and corner blitzes with the majority of the game enmeshed in man-to-man and nickel/dime packages to compensate for LB play, which he has also alluded to, then I will stand corrected. I will also likely be just as unhappy with the results as all of you guys. I stated at the outset that mine was a factually shaky premise, but one I feel bears weight based on the few data points we have.

1. Fact- Mack is loyal to his staff, letting no one go since he has been here- though that has been questioned by more than a few. Withers departure left one spot from him to fill.

2. Fact- Mack had a very wide pool to choose from.

3. Fact- Akina was lured into a less than lateral move. Factor in package/money/prestige/personnel conflict etc. ad nauseum. He still went from Defensive Coordinator to defensive backs coach.

4. Fact- He has knowledge of a defensive scheme designed to stop primarily pass oriented and spread style offenses. He has also been pretty damn good at it.

5. Fact- There are only a few other men in the NCAA, other than himself, who understand the nuances of this defense. This he specifically stated during the acerbic discourse with Mackovic when he suggested MacDuff for his replacement.

6. Fact- Mack was embarassed- to use his own words during the post-game talk after aTm- by the debacle against OU. He has lost more sleep over it than all of the posters on this board combined, I would wager.

7. Fact- This leads to the major obstacle in the Big12 South and by far the biggest red-letter date that any UT team has had in some time- including some of the UNL showdowns in the last few years.

Supposition. Mack hired Akina to help shut down OU. Whether this will be successful or not remains to be seen. I stand by the premise though.

I mean, on the surface you are completely correct. If our Offense rolls unstoppably like back in the halcyon days of #34 and our front seven play excels to the point that Griffin runs into DD at the line of scrimmage every other down instead of Jackson 30 yards downfield, then no, it really doesn't matter. If, however, this does not occur and some zone blitzes and defensive stunts designed specifically to plant Hybl on crucial third downs make the difference, then I am all for it.

BTW- thanks for throwing a touch of controversy into the mix, you trogolodytic bastard.


Doperbo

------------------------------
Don't play me close... I' ll have this mic up in your midsection.
-Phife. A Tribe Called Quest.

 

[Capt. Hook'em]

Is it just me, or isn't it refreshing to be discussing the merits of various defensive alignments and strategies in the offseason rather than bemoaning the complete lack of athletes on defense (as we did so often during Mackovic's tenure)? It's good to know that we at least have the ability to put fast, athletic players on that side of the ball now. We still have a ways to go to be a dominating defense, but just get out an old game tape from 1992-1997 and it will make you appreciate how far we've come.

"If you have the best personnel and you get the breaks, you win. It's that simple."
-Darrell K. Royal

 

[ActionUT]

Spot me 11 paragraphs, and I am with Texanne.

"We Don't Rent Pigs"
Lonesome Dove

 

[marley]

kchorn,

We did that against NU a couple of times without Akina; so, with him, I'd say we've got an even better chance.

And, to the question of how much input Akina will have, I'd think he'd have plenty. After all, he is an assistant coach.

But we're all forgetting that it was Carl Reese that took a terrible Mackovic defense and turned it around into a credible defense in one year. Bull is still the DC; not Akina. Akna's the new kid on the block in charge of the defensive backfield, not the new DC. That job is already taken.


----------------------------------------------
The Link
"Where Ricky's favorite entertainer hangs out"

 

[kchorn]

Marley - you are correct about the Nebraska games, and that also is a very valid point, imo, regarding the contribution that Bull Reese has made -- and continues to make -- to the resurrection of the UT football program.

The two top-ten finishes in the final rankings by the Horns' defense in the past two seasons is an indication that Reese already has the defense where we would like to see the whole team located.

I'm with you, Marley - but in the meantime, we're struggling with three problems (actual or perceived) that I hope Akina can help to resolve:

(1) Our defense did not shine against the Top Ten teams last season;

(2) We have yet to win our first two games (much less our first four -- to make it to the OU game unscathed) under Mack, and

(3) The Horns' linebackers are taking the brunt of the criticism for whatever role the defense may have played in regard the two factors mentioned above.

I think Akina can help in these areas. While I am a devout fan of Horndfl's (I'm not sure about Close To Jumping, his alter ego), it seems to me that Akina already has played a role in regard to the linebacking situation -- if he had anything to do with moving Lee Jackson to "rover", and IF I understand correctly (and I certainly may not) that we may see more of Jackson at that spot this Fall than we will see from any of the current strongside linebackers.

If my understanding is correct, that would seem to be a substantial change from the approach we tried last season -- and it certainly would fit the notion that we might do a better job this time around of disguising our defenses against both the pass and the run (not to mention enhancing our capacity to zero in on the appropriate target).

What the two remaining linebackers do in our new defensive schemes would seem so intertwined with the responsibilities of the four starters in the secondary and the hybrid role of the "rover" that it seems illogical to think that Akina (who would have been the defensive coordinator at Arizona) would have no input regarding what D.D. and Rawls -- assuming they start -- will be doing on the field.

My guess is that Akina also had a hand in determining that D.D. and Rawls should be the starters (at this juncture) at the two remaining LB positions -- and that he has not yet seen any better candidates with the appropriate speed/strength combination needed for the defense he and Reese have in mind. Whether DJ could make a dent in that mindset remains to be seen.

Hook 'em.