KEYS TO SUCCESS FOR GRANTHAM’S D

Aggressive. Attacking. Tenacious. Physical. These are just a few of the buzz words coming out of Athens since new defensive coordinator Todd Grantham arrived in the Classic City. What does this and the installation of Grantham’s 34 defense REALLY mean for the DAWGS defense and the DAWG Nation? It means pressure on the offense…coming from virtually anywhere on the field…without the offense being able to easily detect it.

That sounds great. So why doesn’t everyone choose to employ this style of defense. Simply…they don’t run it because they can’t run it. Either you don’t have the athletes to pull it off or you don’t like taking that many chances and opt for another strategy that is a bit less risky. In a scheme based on pressure, you generally have to give something to get something. If you bring an extra man on a blitz, you are gambling that the pressure generated will equal a big play or disrupt the offense enough that they cannot execute well enough to hurt you before they can take advantage of the opportunity you have presented them in coverage or schematic vulnerability. Regardless of where the pressure is coming from on any given play, the rest of the defense is placed under a lot of stress. For this scheme to be successful, you must be able to overpower and out-man your opponent with superior athletes and “get them before they get you” or you have be strong at every level of the defense to rise to the challenge time after time…every series…every game.

That’s the way I understand the 34 defense to work. Without a doubt, this approach focuses the bright spotlight on certain positions more than others, so I want to point out the positions that I believe will be key in the success of Grantham’s highly anticipated defensive strategy in our series:

KEYS TO SUCCESS FOR GRANTHAM’S D

Glory, Glory.