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Run defense before and after Bronco.

by BroncoBot · 11/9/2010

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BroncoBot
Just saw these stats in the "Bronco Mendenhall is leading BYU's charge" article by D Harmon.



BYU's run defense



Before Bronco Hands On



Opponent Yards

Washington 128

AFA 409

Florida State 278

Nevada 239

Utah State 242

Total 1,296

Average 259.2





After Bronco Hands On

Opponent Yards

San Diego State 53

TCU 108

Wyoming 63

UNLV 22

Total 246

Average 61.5



Granted, BYU has been playing patsies, but that's a HUGE difference.



Mars was saying in a different thread that there is no difference in the pass defense. That's probably because hill was a pass prevent first kind of coach. He did NOTHING to stop the run (hence AFA 407 yards rushing but only 68 passing). Since Bronco has taken over, the opponents have picked up an average of 4 whopping yards/game. But the run has been shut down completely.



passing defense

266 UW (204 average)

68 AFA (123 average)

149 Florida State (214 average)

196 Nevada (238 average)

192 USU (193 average)

174.2 Average





After Bronco

220 SDSU (average 270)

273 TCU (average 230)

110 WY (average 158)

112 UNLV (average 161)

178.75 average (2 patsies, 2 decent passing teams)



I'll take my chances against a true freshman to beat us with his arm with a seasoned group of DBs. Stuff that run!!!!!
M
Mars
declocoug wrote:
passing defense

266 UW (204 average)

68 AFA (123 average)

149 Florida State (214 average)

196 Nevada (238 average)

192 USU (193 average)

174.2 Average



After Bronco

220 SDSU (average 270)

273 TCU (average 230)

110 WY (average 158)

112 UNLV (average 161)

178.75 average (2 patsies, 2 decent passing teams)

Thanks for finding these stats! I'm almost surprised that one of my theories actually seems to be correct (at least on the surface)... :D
I
Isola
Alright I took declocoug's numbers and added in what that team's average rushing offense is and compared them to how we did.

Opponent Yards

Washington 128 - 143 - (-15)

AFA 409 - 310 - (+99)

Florida State 278 - 197 - (+81)

Nevada 239 - 318 (-79)

Utah State 242 - 153 - (+89)

Total 1,296 - 1121 - (+11)

Average 259.2 - 224 - (+35) (15.6% above)



After Bronco Hands On

Opponent Yards

San Diego State 53 - 164 - (-111)

TCU 108 - 262 - (-154)

Wyoming 63 - 109 - (-46)

UNLV 22 - 97 - (-75)

Total 246 - 632 - (-386)

Average 61.5 - 158 - (-96.5) (61% below)



So under Hill we were giving up 35 yards per game or 15.6% above the opponent's average.



Under Bronco the defense has been holding teams a whopping 96.5 yards per game under their average or 61% below their average.



That is huge.
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frdbtr
I love these stats that everyone has posted. They really lead to where I am going with my post. Here are the scoring drives against FSU, UNR, and utah state



FSU Scored on 4 out of 4 drives in the second half....game over

Nevada scored on 4 out of 6 drives in the first half....game over (maybe with Max hall at QB we would have a shot in a game like that but not with a freshman QB who was still trying to learn the college game)

utah state scored on 4 out of 5 drives in the first half....Game over (see above Nevada analysis)



After Bronco takes the defense.



SDSU scored on 1 drive in 6 tries in the first half and 3 for 11 in the game...BYU wins

TCU scored on 3 out of 7 drives in the first half (two on short fields at the end of the half) and 5 of 12 for the game



Wyoming Scored on 1 of 5 drives in the first half (the one score was the fg that they got after the defense pushed them bac 7 yards. I didn't count the pick 6 since the defense was on the sidelines watching when that happened) and 2 out of 11 drives total



UNLV scored on 1 drive out of 13 tries.



The bottom line is, before Bronco our young offense found itself in huge holes against bad teams early and didn't have the ability to come back. After Bronco took the defense, the defense has kept us in games and allowed our young offense time to gell and still win games. Unfortunately we don't get do overs against teams because I am sure that we would beat UNR and utah state right now and I would give us a better then average shot against FSU as well. Bronco made the right move when he fired the defensive coordinator. I knew it then when he did it and I am even more sure of it now after we have seen the results.
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craigoscarson
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/entertainment/images/attachement/jpg/site1/20100726/00219b8247170db733912d.jpg" alt="" loading="lazy" style="max-width:100%">





(night and day difference.. in case you didnt' get the pic) Broncos D would have won us the Air Force and Nevada games...
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88Coug
Bronco's hands-on defense would have allowed us to possibly win at least two games we lost. AFA is pretty good this season, so we might have still lost (although BYU has always been good vs. AFA before this).



But the other huge problem that seems to be lacking in getting these early wins was the complete disaster on offense with the two QB experiment.



Give Heaps the job preseason and fire Hill preseason and I think we might be 6-3 or 7-2 right now.
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SpiffCoug
88Coug wrote:
Give Heaps the job preseason and fire Hill preseason and I think we might be 6-3 or 7-2 right now.

Personally, I think a decision should have been made by the end of spring ball.
M
Mars
craigoscarson wrote:
Broncos D would have won us the Air Force and Nevada games...

And Utah State. Along with naming Heaps the starter after last Spring.
M
Mars
frdbtr wrote:
Nevada scored on 4 out of 6 drives in the first half... game over (maybe with Max hall at QB we would have a shot in a game like that but not with a freshman QB who was still trying to learn the college game)

Max never won a game that BYU trailed by 14+ points.
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redneckjedi
Mars wrote:
Nevada scored on 4 out of 6 drives in the first half... game over (maybe with Max hall at QB we would have a shot in a game like that but not with a freshman QB who was still trying to learn the college game)

Max never won a game that BYU trailed by 14+ points.


He also never got us into that situation against teams like Nevada, for what it's worth.
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stuckinbig10country
If BYU is taking away the run by that big of a margin and forcing teams to throw the ball more and are only giving up 4 more passing yards per game I would assume that the defense its being more efficient in the passing game.



[ Post made via Mobile Device ] http://cougarcorner.com/images/mobile.png" alt="" loading="lazy" style="max-width:100%">
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frdbtr
Mars wrote:
Nevada scored on 4 out of 6 drives in the first half... game over (maybe with Max hall at QB we would have a shot in a game like that but not with a freshman QB who was still trying to learn the college game)

Max never won a game that BYU trailed by 14+ points.


Thanks for that Captain obvious. The point of that comment is that with a more experienced QB, we may have been able to keep up with that kind of scoring but not with a true freshman.
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frdbtr
stuckinbig10country wrote:
If BYU is taking away the run by that big of a margin and forcing teams to throw the ball more and are only giving up 4 more passing yards per game I would assume that the defense its being more efficient in the passing game.



[ Post made via Mobile Device ] http://cougarcorner.com/images/mobile.png" alt="" loading="lazy" style="max-width:100%">




that is a great observation. BYU is stopping the run without having bring extra players so they don't have to sacrifice pass coverage to do it. The entire defense is playing better. The run game is just so dramatic because we were worst in the nation one week and then close to best in the nation the very next week.
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craigoscarson
frdbtr wrote:
frdbtr wrote:
Nevada scored on 4 out of 6 drives in the first half... game over (maybe with Max hall at QB we would have a shot in a game like that but not with a freshman QB who was still trying to learn the college game)

Max never won a game that BYU trailed by 14+ points.


Thanks for that Captain obvious. The point of that comment is that with a more experienced QB, we may have been able to keep up with that kind of scoring but not with a true freshman.


Max kind of played like a true freshman when he got behind and was pressing. The Utah game was painful two seasons ago as was FSU last year. This is also one reason I get irked about Anae. He should know and be able to feel when his qb is pressing and keep that ball on the ground.



I firmly believe we win that game 2 years ago if Harvey got double the touches... then no Sugar Bowl... then no... then no... (that game really ended up costing us)
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frdbtr
craigoscarson wrote:
Mars wrote:
Nevada scored on 4 out of 6 drives in the first half... game over (maybe with Max hall at QB we would have a shot in a game like that but not with a freshman QB who was still trying to learn the college game)

Max never won a game that BYU trailed by 14+ points.


Thanks for that Captain obvious. The point of that comment is that with a more experienced QB, we may have been able to keep up with that kind of scoring but not with a true freshman.


Max kind of played like a true freshman when he got behind and was pressing. The Utah game was painful two seasons ago as was FSU last year. This is also one reason I get irked about Anae. He should know and be able to feel when his qb is pressing and keep that ball on the ground.



I firmly believe we win that game 2 years ago if Harvey got double the touches... then no Sugar Bowl... then no... then no... (that game really ended up costing us)


Max always seemed to play his worst games against utah. I don't like using that as an example when talking about his abilities to win games. I don't think he would have played as badly against a Nevada team that he would not have been intimidated by. Max was a cold blooded assasin against everyone but utah and TCU and for some reason he always looked terrible against just those 2 teams. But since people are misreading my intent by that post, substitute Max Hall for John Beck in that statement and then re-read my post. It has nothing to do with comparing Max Hall to Heaps, it is talking about experience.
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redneckjedi
I think one thing we may have mentioned in passing but not up front in this thread is that establishing the run is an important component of the passing game for most offenses (of course there are exceptions like Texas Tech under Mike Leach). If you can't run effectively, several things happen. First, the safeties aren't going to worry about run help as much, because most likely the LBs have it covered. That decreases the effectiveness of play-action and results in better coverage down field. Second, you are going to have longer to go for a 1st down because you either didn't get much running, and so your playbook gets smaller - and the defense knows it and can exploit it. Third, you are going to have less time to throw, because the defensive line can pin its ears back more and just get after the quarterback.



Now, if your passing game is still such that you can convert 2nd and 10s and 3rd and 12s on a regular basis, even with no run game to keep the defense honest, you'll be okay. I remember some games with Ty Detmer where it seemed like we always started out with a bad run or a sack or a hold on first down, and you still knew he was going to get a 1st down somehow. But most offenses aren't like that, and so a struggling run game generally means your offense spends less time on the field, gives up field position, and ends up playing from behind. That generally means more passing, as the run game has already proved ineffective and now time is an issue. Of course, then the defense can drop 8 into coverage, which makes passing that much more difficult.



I think that's the reason why Bronco put the focus back on run defense. I mean, he played secondary in college, right? If anything, he would favor a focus on run defense. But he knows that against most teams, if you shut down the run game, you disrupt the entire offense. He also knows that with the types of athletes BYU typically gets, it's going to be easier to shut down the run than the pass. I think focusing on the run is a great strategy, and I'm not surprised at all that they aren't giving up anything extra in the pass game by stuffing the run.



Also, Corby Eason's sack was freaking awesome, and I absolutely LOVE that play call. Now CSU, UNM, and Utah are going to have to worry about that in their game planning. Bronco is the man. :)
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Mars
redneckjedi wrote:
Corby Eason's sack was freaking awesome

Why- Did Bronco sign his balls? :P







I'm sorry, I just couldn't resist...
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redneckjedi
Mars wrote:
Corby Eason's sack was freaking awesome

Why- Did Bronco sign his balls? :P







I'm sorry, I just couldn't resist...


Well played. ;)
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