LB Preview 2014

[Cougarbib]

Bib, please explain what you mean by 60th.
But I think you are right. Alisa wouldn't see time at RB.

And why is BK playing LB? He's fast but not fast enough to cover RBs. Is he going to line up as a hybrid DE/OLB pash rusher in space? A fourth lineman coming off the edge rather than chewing up blocks like he was confined most of the time last year in the modified 2-5-4 D? Has he put his foot down and said he has to prepare himself for NFL by playing a DE in a 4-3 set up? Or are the LBs that thin/weak? Very interesting to see what spring ball shows. Maybe he should have played hoops to keep his weight down and speed up. We shall see.

I fixed it. My helpful phone apparently work corrected 60th to 6th. I meant 60th. Middle of 120+ D 1 teams.

IDK if BK is being moved. If so, I would guess OLB Pass Rusher.

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[SpiffCoug]

I'm guessing BK going to OLB is Bronco's way of going to a 4-3 without really going to a 4-3.

[stgeorgefan]

I had a different take on the article. I think our LB's will be average. I really like our CB and S positions, and I think they are the key to a improved defense next year.
2 things to chew on; Kafusi being rumored to go through spring ball at OLB. Alisa possibly moving to LB. If our returning guys were so good then why move Kafusi, why add Alisa? It's been 3 years since Alisa has played LB, is he going to walk in and be on the two deep? What does that say about our 2 deep?

Define average. Average would have our linebackers ranked about 60th or worse in D1. They will be better than that.

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Average as in how our LB core did from Wisconsin on last year. With a stronger CB and solid Safety core I expect those positions to help hide some inexperience.
We got a good look at a handful of guys after Jorgensen, Hadley went down. We all saw how much those guys meant to our defense. They are now the starters (minus van noy)..

Also; I'm not arguing why Alisa is moving, of course he won't get time at RB. The fact that he is buried on the RB depth chart but NOT on the LB depth chart is a telling factor. He'd stay at RB if we were stacked at LB.
We are shallow in the experience department, that allows Alisa and/or Kafusi to move over.

[stgeorgefan]

Coming in to last season we were shallow at the corner back position. Ended up playing two safety's at CB. You could say our CB's were average last year at best. I see the same thing this year wjth the LB's(though not from injury) through graduation.
I don't think the sky is falling, I just think they will be the weakness in the D. Luckily we look to have strong DB's and a decent D-Line. Could very easily be a top 25 defense with our schedule and Bronco as the D-Cord.

[stgeorgefan]

Confirmed by Bronco; Alisa and Kafusi will be LB's this next year.

[Cougs_Rule]

Confirmed by Bronco; Alisa and Kafusi will be LB's this next year.

Confirmed, like TSH on the jerseys? Apparently the wind wasn't blowing hard enough into his face. He needed to dig in his heels about something. Must be the off season and kind of boring.
This is like calling Paul Kruger a LB while at the U. Most of the time he was bull rushing or hand on the ground.
Oh well. No different than calling his D a 3-4 and running a 2-5 ALOT of the time last year. Have to work with the personnel you have. I'm not saying its a bad idea, just hardly see a 6-7 270 pound LB. I love that he will be out in space. He will be a feature next year. And if this helps create that, so beit.

[Cougarbib]

St George.

I agree that our linebackers fell back after key injuries. They were still above average considering who we played.

And our DBS showed much better than average - amazingly.

I was pleasantly reminded by this linebacker review that we have some decent talent to work with. They will be inexperienced and that will show at times.

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[stgeorgefan]

Confirmed by Bronco; Alisa and Kafusi will be LB's this next year.

Confirmed, like TSH on the jerseys? Apparently the wind wasn't blowing hard enough into his face. He needed to dig in his heels about something. Must be the off season and kind of boring.
This is like calling Paul Kruger a LB while at the U. Most of the time he was bull rushing or hand on the ground.
Oh well. No different than calling his D a 3-4 and running a 2-5 ALOT of the time last year. Have to work with the personnel you have. I'm not saying its a bad idea, just hardly see a 6-7 270 pound LB. I love that he will be out in space. He will be a feature next year. And if this helps create that, so beit.

The Paul Kruger comparison has seems to be pretty accurate. I have full faith in Bronco as a DC. FWIW Paul is a LB in the NFL. This could be a positive for Kafusi AND Byu..

[stgeorgefan]

St George.

I agree that our linebackers fell back after key injuries. They were still above average considering who we played.

And our DBS showed much better than average - amazingly.

I was pleasantly reminded by this linebacker review that we have some decent talent to work with. They will be inexperienced and that will show at times.

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I have a different opinion than you on the definition of average. Oh well, I don't have any proof or anything. Just gut observation.
I will agree that we have some talent in the "works" and it's all about inexperience. I think 2015 will be a very strong year for the LB's and 2014 will be a building year. My best comparison would be our LB core in 2011(van noy and hadley soph yrs). I guess i'm putting a premium on experience and seniority. Alani should have a great year as a multiple year starter, I just hope he can put on some lbs so he can be better suited to help in the run game.

[Cougarbib]

I put a ton of priority on experience. That is why you did not see me using any words like stellar, elite, phenominal, amazing.

I thing they will be solid - occasional flashes of brilliance - plenty of mistakes born of inexperience.

Prior to reading this article, I had a very - below average - bleak outlook on our linebacking corps.

I define average as ranking our linebackers vs the linebackers of every D1 team and if we end up at 62 - we be average.

If we end up at 50 - above average.

How do you define average?

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