The Spiders lost a lot of talent from last years team. However, we seem to have a lot of returning talent, especially with Seniors. We have Chad Wiggins, Brandon Waller and DeAnthony Muse on the DL. Tafon Mainsah, Brendan Coniker, and Micah Keels are returning standouts from last year. The future looks bright.
Returning Defensive Talent
- Thread starter Stonewall D
- Start date
We did lose a lot of talent from last year, but we also lost the scheme. I believe with what we return (Clyde, Waller, Wiggins, & Muse on the DL, Rubin and Caughell at LB, and Keels, Mainsah, Jordan, Johnson, and Conniker at DB) plus the new system, we may be better.
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Have heard from a reliable source that the defense is really excited about the new "attack" style defense. Rocco was more "read and react" but Huesman likes to dictate what the offense can and cannot do.
Waller
Clyde
Moore
Reynolds
Wiggins
Muse
Jackson
Ingle
Booker
Williams
Ritten
Gray
Cammisa
Ejoni
-------
Caughell
Rubin
Matthews
Day
Norris
-------
Mansah
JJ
Micah
Coniker
Johnson
Given the 4-2-5,wouldn't be surprised if frosh DB Vinson got the nod to play.With Dressler size at LB he may be another frosh to get the nod.
Clyde
Moore
Reynolds
Wiggins
Muse
Jackson
Ingle
Booker
Williams
Ritten
Gray
Cammisa
Ejoni
-------
Caughell
Rubin
Matthews
Day
Norris
-------
Mansah
JJ
Micah
Coniker
Johnson
Given the 4-2-5,wouldn't be surprised if frosh DB Vinson got the nod to play.With Dressler size at LB he may be another frosh to get the nod.
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... and Huesman never wants the opposing quarterback to be able to relax.
Agree, this D will be all about getting up the field and attacking, rather than laying back and reacting. Also, RH seems confident he will be able to keep guys on the field and avoid injury due to the change in philosophy on strength and conditioning. We have to keep the secondary healthy.
I am really looking forward to this year. I liked the D in 2008 and I am anticipating a resurgance.
The defense and special teams (Legg remains) are the keys to our season. We know the O will score against any opponent, so many weapons.
I'm looking forward to the new D-scheme. If special teams don't give up 10-20 yards of field position each time out and the new defense is lights out, the Spiders will be in the NC hunt.
I'm looking forward to the new D-scheme. If special teams don't give up 10-20 yards of field position each time out and the new defense is lights out, the Spiders will be in the NC hunt.
Mainsah says they will not play 7 yards off each receiver.
http://www.richmond.com/sports/star...cle_dbffffa4-7119-5358-8396-6cd4e6265b48.html
http://www.richmond.com/sports/star...cle_dbffffa4-7119-5358-8396-6cd4e6265b48.html
With a mild case of girth dearth, Spiders defense relies on speed more than size
Spiders defensive coordinator Adam Braithwaite, a former William & Mary defensive back, came from Chattanooga with head coach Russ Huesman.
Justin Rubin, intercepting a pass against Villanova last season, came to Richmond as a defensive back/linebacker. As a junior, he starts at LB in a 4-2-5 alignment.
Spiders coach Russ Huesman sees the CAA as a more physical league than the Southern Conference.
In the University of Richmond’s final preseason scrimmage Sunday, Deontez Thompson took a handoff, zipped through a wide gap on the defense’s left side, and cut toward the sideline. This looked like a long-gainer in progress.
It was not.
Linebacker Justin Rubin rapidly closed from the inside and made an ankle tackle that limited Thompson to a three-yard gain. Nevertheless, Rubin criticized his reaction time his post-scrimmage analysis.
“I’ve got to make that play a lot faster,” said Rubin.
Reacting quickly and running down plays before they become significant pick-ups is the way Rubin and Richmond’s other linebackers will operate this season, which starts for the Spiders Aug. 27 at Sam Houston State. UR is ranked No. 7 in the STATS FCS preseason poll, and SHSU is No. 3.
The plan is “fitting the gaps quicker rather than heavier,” said Rubin. “Rather than taking guys on with hands and everything, we’re trying to get into gaps.”
First-year Richmond coach Russ Huesman uses a 4-2-5 alignment that emphasizes speed, as Rubin's case illustrates. Rubin, a junior who is 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, came to UR from Southampton, Pa., with position undetermined. When he signed in February of 2015, Rubin was listed as a DB/LB.
He played outside linebacker last season. Omar Howard (6-1, 240 pounds) and Selton Hodge (6-3, 235 pounds) were UR's other starting linebackers as seniors.
Alongside Rubin at inside linebacker this year is Madison Day, a 6-3, 230-pound senior from Midlothian High. Day played lacrosse, not football, in his first year at Richmond. The Spiders lost linebacker Billy Caughell, a junior projected to play regularly, during preseason camp because of a knee injury that required surgery.
The Spiders’ defensive alignment will not change based on down-and-distance. Huesman intends to have five DBs on the field at all times for Adam Braithwaite, the defensive coordinator who played defensive back at William & Mary 1997-2001. Braithwaite came with Huesman, a former W&M defensive coordinator, from Chattanooga. Braithwaite is UR's third defensive coordinator in three years.
One of the five starting DBs for Richmond will always be a safety-linebacker hybrid, called a "dime" by the Richmond staff. Micah Keels, a 6-3, 190-pound junior, begins the season at that spot.
“It’s probably our most versatile player on defense,” Rubin said of the position Keels plays. “He’s got to cover guys man-to-man. He’s got to be dropping into zone (coverage). At times, he’ll even be supporting the run like our linebackers. (Keels) has a big role this year and I’m excited to watch him play.”
Huesman prefers speed. But he wouldn’t object to a bit more defensive beef as he transitions from Chattanooga and the Southern Conference to Richmond and the CAA. The Southern, Huesman says, is more of a “sideline-to-sideline league." In the CAA, between-the-tackles activity is a common mode of ball movement.
“We’re not real big (on defense). That’s what we are. There’s nothing we can do about it right now,” said Huesman, who was hired in December. “But this is very similar to the size we had at Chattanooga. So I’m not saying it’s bad.
“I’d like a little bit more girth, but we’ve got what we’ve got, and they’re good players. We’ll do some things movement-wise to help us out.”
joconnor@timesdispatch.com
(804) 649-6233
@RTDjohnoconnor
- BY JOHN O'CONNOR Richmond Times-Dispatch
- 40 min ago
Spiders defensive coordinator Adam Braithwaite, a former William & Mary defensive back, came from Chattanooga with head coach Russ Huesman.
Justin Rubin, intercepting a pass against Villanova last season, came to Richmond as a defensive back/linebacker. As a junior, he starts at LB in a 4-2-5 alignment.
Spiders coach Russ Huesman sees the CAA as a more physical league than the Southern Conference.
In the University of Richmond’s final preseason scrimmage Sunday, Deontez Thompson took a handoff, zipped through a wide gap on the defense’s left side, and cut toward the sideline. This looked like a long-gainer in progress.
It was not.
Linebacker Justin Rubin rapidly closed from the inside and made an ankle tackle that limited Thompson to a three-yard gain. Nevertheless, Rubin criticized his reaction time his post-scrimmage analysis.
“I’ve got to make that play a lot faster,” said Rubin.
Reacting quickly and running down plays before they become significant pick-ups is the way Rubin and Richmond’s other linebackers will operate this season, which starts for the Spiders Aug. 27 at Sam Houston State. UR is ranked No. 7 in the STATS FCS preseason poll, and SHSU is No. 3.
The plan is “fitting the gaps quicker rather than heavier,” said Rubin. “Rather than taking guys on with hands and everything, we’re trying to get into gaps.”
First-year Richmond coach Russ Huesman uses a 4-2-5 alignment that emphasizes speed, as Rubin's case illustrates. Rubin, a junior who is 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, came to UR from Southampton, Pa., with position undetermined. When he signed in February of 2015, Rubin was listed as a DB/LB.
He played outside linebacker last season. Omar Howard (6-1, 240 pounds) and Selton Hodge (6-3, 235 pounds) were UR's other starting linebackers as seniors.
Alongside Rubin at inside linebacker this year is Madison Day, a 6-3, 230-pound senior from Midlothian High. Day played lacrosse, not football, in his first year at Richmond. The Spiders lost linebacker Billy Caughell, a junior projected to play regularly, during preseason camp because of a knee injury that required surgery.
The Spiders’ defensive alignment will not change based on down-and-distance. Huesman intends to have five DBs on the field at all times for Adam Braithwaite, the defensive coordinator who played defensive back at William & Mary 1997-2001. Braithwaite came with Huesman, a former W&M defensive coordinator, from Chattanooga. Braithwaite is UR's third defensive coordinator in three years.
One of the five starting DBs for Richmond will always be a safety-linebacker hybrid, called a "dime" by the Richmond staff. Micah Keels, a 6-3, 190-pound junior, begins the season at that spot.
“It’s probably our most versatile player on defense,” Rubin said of the position Keels plays. “He’s got to cover guys man-to-man. He’s got to be dropping into zone (coverage). At times, he’ll even be supporting the run like our linebackers. (Keels) has a big role this year and I’m excited to watch him play.”
Huesman prefers speed. But he wouldn’t object to a bit more defensive beef as he transitions from Chattanooga and the Southern Conference to Richmond and the CAA. The Southern, Huesman says, is more of a “sideline-to-sideline league." In the CAA, between-the-tackles activity is a common mode of ball movement.
“We’re not real big (on defense). That’s what we are. There’s nothing we can do about it right now,” said Huesman, who was hired in December. “But this is very similar to the size we had at Chattanooga. So I’m not saying it’s bad.
“I’d like a little bit more girth, but we’ve got what we’ve got, and they’re good players. We’ll do some things movement-wise to help us out.”
joconnor@timesdispatch.com
(804) 649-6233
@RTDjohnoconnor
The question is are we going to be a bend but don't break type of defense? With smaller, quicker players are we going to be able to put pressure
on the QB or are we going to try to keep everything in front of us for short gains? In reading a lot of reviews from people at practice, I only hear about the
DBs running tight with the receivers, but rarely is it mentioned that we are creating QB pressure or blitzing. I wonder if on purpose Huesman is not playing all
his cards on defense and is making the offense a priority to running smoothly. I can not imagine that when you are small and quick that you don't blitz, shoot the gaps and try to put pressure on the QB. Would love to hear some other opinions from those who have seen our roster on the field in person.
on the QB or are we going to try to keep everything in front of us for short gains? In reading a lot of reviews from people at practice, I only hear about the
DBs running tight with the receivers, but rarely is it mentioned that we are creating QB pressure or blitzing. I wonder if on purpose Huesman is not playing all
his cards on defense and is making the offense a priority to running smoothly. I can not imagine that when you are small and quick that you don't blitz, shoot the gaps and try to put pressure on the QB. Would love to hear some other opinions from those who have seen our roster on the field in person.
I would say that we will end up being a pretty aggressive defense. Especially in that first game we are going to need to be able to create turnovers and make impact plays on defense. Blitzing causes those things and speed helps big time with that. I think Huesman is absolutely not playing all his cards right now and I love that.
In scrimmages to date, the defenses have been very vanilla. Typical for summer camps. We can bring pressure from a lot of different places. Our D-line won't be tasked with providing the pressure, but keeping the line busy while the smaller guys attack. Think of a wolf pack.
Watch what jmu did to him, we do the same thing and we are in business. Keep in mind Sam Houston is breaking in a new OC. The offense sounds like it will remain pretty similar but you have to think some of the calls and protection assignments with the linemen will be different. We need to take advantage of that and blitz a lot.
If I recall correctly, in response to a direct question at his Coaches breakfast in early August about the key to defeating SHST, Coach Huesman said our DBs ability to cover their WRs was the key...
of course blitzes etc. could make the DBs jobs quite a bit easier...
Go Spiders!
The Spider Gang Group Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/127760237246257/
of course blitzes etc. could make the DBs jobs quite a bit easier...
Go Spiders!
The Spider Gang Group Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/127760237246257/
Admittedly, he used it a lot against Briscoe in last game, but not his preferred style from what I have heard him say. I am misinformed?
certainly a team can put great pressure on a qb without the blitz and think that is what RH wants from his front line guys which allows the back 7 to cover well. am sure he will blitz some depending on how a game is playing out but if you can pressure with only your front, that is gold jerry, gold.
I suspect Coach was holding his cards close to his vest. He will be well aware of what his team and JMU did to Sam Houston last year.
Shout out to 32. Really, really appreciate your posts! We would be a much more ill informed motley crew of Spider fanatics were it not for the info you (and a few others) regularly provide. Keep it up!
Nice write up in RTD on LB Dale Matthews,DeMatha product on his Achilles recovery.
http://www.richmond.com/sports/heel...cle_6f1f62e9-3f1f-5e3a-a616-bc73d298b8d6.html
http://www.richmond.com/sports/heel...cle_6f1f62e9-3f1f-5e3a-a616-bc73d298b8d6.html
Have heard he was rushed back early last year and as a result it never recovered. Not sure how true that is but lesson hopefully for any future affected players is to let it heal fully. Tough loss - we could have really used that body
