Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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64 PRESEASON 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED I n the previous issues of Blue & Gold Illustrated, we discussed the specific responsibilities of the de- fensive linemen and the inside line- backers. In this edition, we take look at the back end of the defense. Secondary play is extremely im- portant to success in coordinator Mike Elko's defense. He explained why that is the case in the 2017 Foot- ball Preview. "Everything that [offenses] are do- ing is all about creating space," Elko told Blue & Gold. "That has made a huge emphasis on the safety position because those are the guys who used to be six yards from the tight end in this very boxy type of space — to now have moved to 12 yards by 10 yards in this huge open area." Here is a look at the basic respon- sibilities of each position in the Irish secondary: Rover: This position has a wide variety of responsibilities. The rover must be able to handle himself against the run, be a good zone de- fender, be effective in man coverage and serve as a pass rusher. Notre Dame is primarily a force defense, which means its perimeter players like the rover want to "force" the ball back inside to the linebackers if they can't make the tackle them- selves. They do this by aggressively taking on the lead blocker with his inside shoulder in hopes of redirect- ing the ball back inside. In the pass game, the rover spends a lot of time working the short to intermediate zones. Against screens and quick throws, the rover must quickly drive on the ball to make a tackle for a minimal gain. At times the rover will find himself in the box, so ideally a player big and physical enough to handle himself against bigger players is desired. Stud Safety: The Stud lines up to the wide side of the field and must have the athleticism to cover a lot of ground. That defender will either line up closer to the line or he will fill the alley from depth after the ball is snapped. He will have to fit against either the Mike linebacker or the rover. A "fit" refers to how a defender at- tacks a specific gap or area on the field. The Stud often fits behind the Mike linebacker or rover. He is responsible for making the linebacker correct by adjusting to the angle the linebacker takes, taking the opposite side. The Stud must be a sound tackler in space and be disciplined with the angles he takes downhill. He must be precise and correct with his fits, be- cause a bad fit by the safety usually results in a long run by the offense. There are times when the Stud — like the rover — is tasked with forcing the ball back inside. There are other instances when the Stud is actually the cleanup player and is fit- ting inside the rover. In the pass game, the Stud is re- sponsible for covering the tight end or slot receivers in man coverage, protecting the intermediate zones and handling inside receivers that break outside against a route com- bination where the outside receiver runs a deep route. Whip Safety: In many respects, the Whip and Buck linebacker are simi- lar positions, and so much of what was discussed regarding the Stud is true of the Whip. There are, however, some variations. The Whip will come down into the box and fit behind the Buck or the Drop end to the short side of the field. In coverage, the Whip is often the defender that drops to the deep mid- dle of the field. He must be able to help take away seam routes and post routes when playing in the middle, and when he's playing on the hash he must be able to get over to help the cornerback on outside vertical routes. Field Cornerback: The cornerback positions are essentially interchange- able. They are taught the same foot- work and hand techniques, but the responsibilities will vary depending on who is to the field and who is to the boundary. The field cornerback has to make more reads against coverage due to the fact that he will face more mul- tiple receiver alignments. He must be able to read the progression of the routes while keeping the quarterback in view, which is why the field cor- nerback plays less press coverage. Playing in space requires the field cornerback to be an effective space tackler, and he must be able to come up and handle the quick perimeter screen game. Boundary Cornerback: The bound- ary cornerback will find himself in more press situations and must be able to handle himself in more one- on-one coverage. If the boundary cornerback cannot win those matchups, the defense will struggle. He must also be a sound tack- ler, and be physical enough to aggres- sive come up and either make tackles or force the ball back inside. ✦ Secondary Responsibilities CHALK TALK BRYAN DRISKELL Bryan Driskell has been a football analyst for Blue & Gold Illustrated since April 2015. He can be reached at bdriskell@blueandgold.com. Above is the basic alignment of Notre Dame's five defensive backs in its 4-2-5 defense. FILE PHOTO