Photo by Lindsay Caudle, TexAgs
Texas A&M Football
Under Pressure: How Texas A&M plans to contain UCLA's Josh Rosen
UCLA’s Josh Rosen is considered among the nation’s elite college quarterbacks.
He has a strong arm. He’s smart. He’s accurate.
And the Aggies want him throwing the football in Saturday’s season-opener at Kyle Field.
That’s because if he’s throwing it, the Bruins aren’t running it.
Texas A&M was ranked fourth in the nation in pass defense last season. No doubt, the Aggies were talented in the secondary, but that lofty status was more of a byproduct of a weak run defense that was ranked 108th.
Opponents didn’t pass as much because they didn’t have to.
The Aggies want to change that. They need to change that. They have to change that.
Defensive coordinator John Chavis said they will change that.
“The one thing we’ve got to do is stop the run first,” Chavis said on Tuesday. “Then we’ll rush the passer. If we don’t stop the run … We’re going to. We’re going to be a much improved run defense.”
Alex Parker, TexAgs
Shaan Washington and the rest of the Aggie linebackers must do a better job of stopping the run in the opener against UCLA.
In each of the last three seasons, the Aggies have ranked 108th or worse in run defense.
Meanwhile, UCLA was a respectable 59th in rushing offense behind Paul Perkins, who rushed for 1,343 yards in 2015.
Perkins has departed for the NFL, leaving Plano native Soso Jamabo, who rushed for 404 yards last season, as the Bruins’ primary rushing threat.
But the real danger the UCLA rushing game poses – and why A&M must be better against the run – is that it can open up more passing opportunities for Rosen and the Bruin receivers.
Perhaps, it’s no coincidence that in four of the five games in which Rosen exceeded 300 passing yards the Bruins also rushed for more than 150.
Though in fairness, Rosen had some poor games in which the Bruins ran well and threw for 319 yards against Nebraska’s horrid pass defense in the Foster Farms Bowl.
A&M junior safety Armani Watts led the Aggies with 126 tackles last season.
He’s confident that the Aggies’ defensive linemen and linebackers will be so improved against the run that he won’t have to make nearly as many stops.
“I am 100-percent sure they will be able to stop the run this year,” Watts said. "I’ve had funny talks with them and said, ‘I don’t want that many tackles this year. You’ve got me, son?’ 'Yeah, I’ve got you.’"
“Their mindset this year is they want to stop the run. They hear all that ‘defense can’t stop the run. The defense can’t stop the run.’ So, it put a fire in them in summer workouts and even in the spring. That’s what we’ve been emphasizing on. Nobody runs through our defense. Not this year.”
That’s a bold statement.
However, if Watts is right, that would certainly help against Rosen.
UCLA allowed a mere 14 sacks in 2015. It stands to reason the Bruins’ successful running game slowed down the opponents’ pass rush.
Alex Parker, TexAgs
All-American defensive end Myles Garrett will face off with talented UCLA LT Conor McDermott on Saturday.
A&M hopes to put UCLA in obvious passing situations, so the front four can rush with reckless abandon.
The matchup between A&M All-American defensive end Myles Garrett and All-Pac 12 left tackle Conor McDermott, a 6-9, 310-pound senior, is perhaps the game’s most intriguing contest.
Garrett will gain an edge if the Bruins cannot run effectively. McDermott will if they can.
The same goes for A&M senior Daeshon Hall against UCLA right tackle Kolton Miller.
“As a pair, we’ve got the two best defensive ends in the country,” Chavis said. “I said that last year, and they backed me up. I think they will do the same thing this year.
“Both of those guys are great players. There’s no question about that. I wouldn’t trade them for any other two I’ve seen. We feel good about their ability to go play the run. We feel good about their ability to rush the passer.”
They won’t have to rush alone, though.
“We are a pressure team,” Chavis said. “We’re not going to sit back and rush three or four. If they decide they’re going to keep a lot of people in, we may rush just three. If they’re going to get a lot of people out, we may rush six. It’s kind of pick and choose and see.
“We’ve got good pass rushers up front in our front four. When we start adding the linebacker zone and some of the secondary blitzes, it gives us a good package to create pressure.”
He has a strong arm. He’s smart. He’s accurate.
And the Aggies want him throwing the football in Saturday’s season-opener at Kyle Field.
That’s because if he’s throwing it, the Bruins aren’t running it.
Texas A&M was ranked fourth in the nation in pass defense last season. No doubt, the Aggies were talented in the secondary, but that lofty status was more of a byproduct of a weak run defense that was ranked 108th.
Opponents didn’t pass as much because they didn’t have to.
The Aggies want to change that. They need to change that. They have to change that.
Defensive coordinator John Chavis said they will change that.
“The one thing we’ve got to do is stop the run first,” Chavis said on Tuesday. “Then we’ll rush the passer. If we don’t stop the run … We’re going to. We’re going to be a much improved run defense.”
Alex Parker, TexAgs
Shaan Washington and the rest of the Aggie linebackers must do a better job of stopping the run in the opener against UCLA.
Meanwhile, UCLA was a respectable 59th in rushing offense behind Paul Perkins, who rushed for 1,343 yards in 2015.
Perkins has departed for the NFL, leaving Plano native Soso Jamabo, who rushed for 404 yards last season, as the Bruins’ primary rushing threat.
But the real danger the UCLA rushing game poses – and why A&M must be better against the run – is that it can open up more passing opportunities for Rosen and the Bruin receivers.
Perhaps, it’s no coincidence that in four of the five games in which Rosen exceeded 300 passing yards the Bruins also rushed for more than 150.
Though in fairness, Rosen had some poor games in which the Bruins ran well and threw for 319 yards against Nebraska’s horrid pass defense in the Foster Farms Bowl.
A&M junior safety Armani Watts led the Aggies with 126 tackles last season.
He’s confident that the Aggies’ defensive linemen and linebackers will be so improved against the run that he won’t have to make nearly as many stops.
“I am 100-percent sure they will be able to stop the run this year,” Watts said. "I’ve had funny talks with them and said, ‘I don’t want that many tackles this year. You’ve got me, son?’ 'Yeah, I’ve got you.’"
“Their mindset this year is they want to stop the run. They hear all that ‘defense can’t stop the run. The defense can’t stop the run.’ So, it put a fire in them in summer workouts and even in the spring. That’s what we’ve been emphasizing on. Nobody runs through our defense. Not this year.”
That’s a bold statement.
However, if Watts is right, that would certainly help against Rosen.
UCLA allowed a mere 14 sacks in 2015. It stands to reason the Bruins’ successful running game slowed down the opponents’ pass rush.
Alex Parker, TexAgs
All-American defensive end Myles Garrett will face off with talented UCLA LT Conor McDermott on Saturday.
The matchup between A&M All-American defensive end Myles Garrett and All-Pac 12 left tackle Conor McDermott, a 6-9, 310-pound senior, is perhaps the game’s most intriguing contest.
Garrett will gain an edge if the Bruins cannot run effectively. McDermott will if they can.
The same goes for A&M senior Daeshon Hall against UCLA right tackle Kolton Miller.
“As a pair, we’ve got the two best defensive ends in the country,” Chavis said. “I said that last year, and they backed me up. I think they will do the same thing this year.
“Both of those guys are great players. There’s no question about that. I wouldn’t trade them for any other two I’ve seen. We feel good about their ability to go play the run. We feel good about their ability to rush the passer.”
They won’t have to rush alone, though.
“We are a pressure team,” Chavis said. “We’re not going to sit back and rush three or four. If they decide they’re going to keep a lot of people in, we may rush just three. If they’re going to get a lot of people out, we may rush six. It’s kind of pick and choose and see.
“We’ve got good pass rushers up front in our front four. When we start adding the linebacker zone and some of the secondary blitzes, it gives us a good package to create pressure.”
Never miss the latest news from TexAgs!
Join our free email list
SPONSORED BY