ASU Football: Defense looking to improve before No. 6 USC

(Photo via Rebecca Striffler/WCSN)

Arizona State Football focused on getting back to the basics at Tuesday’s practice. Coming off a discouraging 34-13 performance against the No. 12 ranked Utah Utes, ASU coaches wanted players to relearn the fundamentals, heavily emphasizing on technique and not falling into bad habits. Defensive line coach Robert Rodriguez preached to his players not to be lackadaisical on Tuesday so it won’t show up on Saturday.

The Sun Devils’ defensive line, widely considered the most robust position group entering the season, has been their biggest weakness in production. ASU is last in the Pac-12 in sacks, and overall quarterback pressure has been almost non-existent. Rodriguez understands the lack of production falls on him as a coach, but the change has to come from more disciplined play.

“When you find good success getting to the quarterback, you take the credit. So, when you don’t, you have to take the blame,” Rodriguez said. “I’m the first in line to say that it hasn’t been good enough. Desperation does some bad things to pass rushers. They start looking past the man in front of them. …Our technique goes right out the window.”

Rodriguez highlighted the Oklahoma State game, mentioning how the initial pressure from the defensive line was excellent. However, once ASU started to fall behind, all the techniques and teachings from coaches seemed to dissipate. The performance in the trenches was the predominant cause of the collapse, which would haunted the Sun Devils further, losing the following two weeks.

Rodriguez understands that ASU isn’t a “blitz-happy” team, so the coaching staff is asking a lot from its four-man pressure to beat five to seven guys on the offensive line, but he also understands the conservative playstyle can’t be use as an excuse. There are still plenty of one-on-one opportunities for his players that they haven’t been able to take advantage of.

“There’s always opportunities to pressure the quarterback, but we haven’t done it at a high enough rate,” Rodriguez said. “It starts with the way we’re attacking. Our technique is very good versus that, and we’ve made good players better. When we step away from those angles, that technique, the hand placement, it shows.”

Injuries have plagued the Sun Devils, especially on the defensive line. Redshirt senior defensive end Michael Matus had an ACL injury at the beginning of fall camp, and redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Omarr Norman-Lott was injured against Eastern Michigan, losing both Matus and Norman-Lott has hurt the defense.

The overall key loses and play in the trenches has hurt ASU’s defense, especially against the run. ASU’s run defense has been one of the worst in the Pac-12 and has already allowed some infamous performances, including a 305-yard massacre on the ground by Eastern Michigan. Similar to the pass rush, Rodriguez wants to see a more technical-sound play from the defense to help alleviate the challenges of defending the run.

“To stop the run, it takes 11 people, but it starts up front and what we do isn’t easy,” Rodriguez said. “There are some guys that are upfield that try to avoid contact. We don’t, we initiate contact, and they’re taken on double teams. Six hundred pounds versus three hundred pounds as long as it takes. It’s hard to do to keep your hands extended and your feet driving, but that’s our job.”

Defensive coordinator Donnie Henderson made the same weight reference when referring back to the run defense. Like Rodriguez, he talked about how the defense needs to play more in tune with one another. While one player might get beat, there should be another ready to take his place and attack.

“When they have seven hundred pounds on three hundred pounds, somebody’s getting moved. When you say that, you still have to have a linebacker come down and take the double team off. Also, once the linebacker takes the double team off, you have to have a safety or DB there to keep everything inside,” Henderson said. “It’s going to be team defense.”

Henderson knows how to win at a high level, and even with a problem as rampant as the run defense, it only takes a simple solution.

“We got to do a better job at tackling, and that’s what it comes down to,” Henderson said. “That’s the biggest thing right now. Everybody needs to be where they’re supposed to be when the ball is snapped.”

These bad habits have become detrimental to the overall team’s play, making some of these rudimentary lessons harder to comprehend. The 40-year coaching veteran knows that he and the staff can hammer home how indispensable technique is in winning. It’ll still take the players’ total commitment to team defense if ASU wants to pull up the upset against the No. 6 ranked USC Trojans in the LA Coliseum.