SDSU’s Defense Remains Collected After the Collapse : Aztecs: Yielding 52 points to BYU doesn’t dampen confidence as they prepare for Miami.
SAN DIEGO — Maybe you expected panic?
Maybe you figured they would be putting in several hours of overtime this week, frantically preparing for their first encounter with a No. 1 team in the nation?
The San Diego State defense is certainly not bleary-eyed from film sessions after that 52-52 tie with Brigham Young. They are not overworked. And with Miami up Saturday, their heads are most definitely not spinning with crazy, nervous thoughts.
They are one group of cool cats.
“This week, we’re more laid back,” defensive lineman Eric Duncan said. “We’re more calm and collected.”
But . . .
Fifty-two points their last time out? Isn’t that a little eerie?
“Naw,” linebacker Andy Coviello said. “We’re ready. We’ve had a week off. That game is out of our minds.”
The only things missing this week are tall glasses of iced tea on the practice field. Or maybe the sunscreen.
Can a point-a-minute defense find happiness in the Orange Bowl? No problem, the SDSU defense says.
“I definitely think so,” Duncan said. “We’re used to playing against (Miami’s) type of offense since we play our offense every day in the spring and fall.
“And I think we’ll have a lot of confidence after last year’s game. We had a lot of intensity, and I think it will probably carry over into this year’s game.”
Those seem to be two things the Aztecs have going for them. Visions of last year’s near-miss, a 30-28 loss, still dance in their heads. And in case they forget, pictures of that game are plastered on the walls in the lobby of the coaches’ offices. And Miami’s offense is similar to SDSU’s. The Hurricanes, like SDSU, are a one-back team that attempts to stretch the field.
“Their favorite three formations are formations we’ve seen quite a bit from our own offense,” said Barry Lamb, SDSU defensive coordinator. “There is some similarity in running plays. They basically run the same plays our offense runs except for two plays, but they block them differently.
“Their philosophy of a zone running play is different than San Diego State’s zone philosophy. Their philosophy of a counter is different than San Diego State’s philosophy of a counter. And their run-draw is a little bit different than ours.”
SDSU’s defensive goals Saturday are to shut down the run and to stop the big plays.
“They’re going to make good plays,” Lamb said. “But they have the ability to turn good plays into great plays by making you miss in the open field or just by athletically beating you. We’ve got to be concerned with technique and execution, with finishing every play. Open-field tackling will be a key.”
SDSU has been able to tame the Miami running game in each of the past two seasons. In a 42-6 loss at the Orange Bowl in 1989, Miami had only 62 net yards rushing. In last year’s game, the Hurricanes had only 61.
How can it be done again?
“It’s basically just getting up the field,” Duncan said. “A lot of their runs are more finesse than coming right at you and smashing you in the mouth. Finesse allows the defensive line time to get upfield and create chaos in the backfield.”
The Aztecs are also expecting a week off to help their cause. They played for 11 consecutive weeks, and the last seven of those were must-win situations. Lamb said SDSU simply ran out of gas against BYU.
“You have to understand that with six minutes to go in the third quarter, we were in complete control defensively,” Lamb said. “We played well at the beginning of the third quarter. Then, we fell apart. No question.
“But (five) guys in that game haven’t been able to be spelled in seven games--Duncan, (dimeback Robert) Griffith, (free safety Damon) Pieri, Coviello and (linebacker Terrill) Steen. We don’t have backups. If Griff gets hurt, I’ve got to put in a third-string cornerback. And Griff and Damon play on special teams.
“Hey, it caught up with us.”
And that’s why Lamb isn’t madly scribbling new schemes for Saturday.
“You don’t do what we did for 2 1/2 quarters and then just have that happen to you without running out of gas,” he said. “The one thing that sticks out in my mind is that when Patrick (Rowe) goes down, our second-team guy (Darnay Scott) runs by their guys and scores a touchdown. When Marshall (Faulk) goes down, we put in a guy (Wayne Pittman) who has had three 100-yard games.
“We don’t have that yet on defense. We’re not even two-deep yet. Until we become more like our offense, unfortunately, we’re going to be susceptible to (breakdowns).”
The Aztecs will keep their attacking, aggressive style of defense against Miami. They will often blitz.
“Our package is nice for this week,” Coviello said. “Coach Lamb does a nice job mixing it up. We’ll bring heat every now and then.”
For the first time since 1986, two Aztecs--Duncan and Pieri--were selected to the All-Western Athletic Conference first team defense. But after allowing 767 total yards to BYU, the Aztecs dropped from 85th to 100th in the nation in total defense. They allow an average of 441.3 yards a game.
Still, Duncan said they are not consciously out to prove anything in Miami.
“It seems like when we’re trying to prove something, that’s when we sometimes go out and screw it up,” Duncan said. “(But) I think our defense, in the public eye, will always have something to prove until the day we consistently hold teams to seven points a game. We’re coming around, but people expect us to come around out of nowhere.”
Said Pieri: “We showed a lot of people throughout the BYU game that we can play defense. We just fell apart in the last quarter.
“For some reason, we can’t put a whole game together. But when we play a team like Miami, we’re going to have to. If we don’t, we’re going to lose. There’s no way around it.”
Not when you’re facing the top dogs in the nation.
