Will the New Mexico State Aggie defense look different in 2011?
It will be the first full season with veteran coordinator Dale Lindsey at the controls. Lindsey took over last year three games into the schedule, which allowed head coach DeWayne Walker to oversee more of the team.
The last two years the Aggies have been fairly basic defensively. Last season they could have been classified as a zone team, going primarily out of a quarters package where the four primary defensive backs each looked to cover a quarter of the field.
"We were vanilla," Lindsey said.
This year at camp the team has been mixing it up more in the secondary.
The Aggies have been running a cover-one - man-to-man coverage with the free safety in a deep zone; a cover-two - two safeties deep and either man-to-man or zone coverage underneath; and a quarters coverage over half the field - rotating the zone to the overloaded side of the formation and going man-to-man on an isolated receiver.
Of course, such coverage will mean little if the team can't get to the quarterback.
Expect the Aggies to at least try and blitz more this season.
"Well sure," Lindsey said when asked if he'd like to bring the blitz more often. "Ideally everybody likes to rush four guys and get the quarterback down, although that's not really the way it works. You've got to find a way to attack
the protection and get some one-on-ones and when you do, your people have got to win them."
It seems the Aggies have the personnel to blitz more frequently.
The defensive line is thin in depth and will likely need help getting into the backfield.
Linebackers such as B.J. Adolpho and Boyblue Aoelua are small, quick and hard hitters.
And the defense's strength could lie in the secondary, where cornerbacks such as Jonte Green and Jeremy Harris have the skill to cover opposing receivers one on one when the Aggies elect to bring extra pass rushers.
"Other corners too," said the 6-foot-2, 180 pound Harris regarding the secondary's depth. "D.J. (Darien Johnson), (Courtney) Viney. And we got some freshmen."
No one will doubt Lindsey's experience, a coach who's been around football forever.
Drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 1965, Lindsey was a nine-year pro linebacker and has had 20 years of NFL coaching experience.
His NFL tenures came mostly as a linebackers coach while he had a stint as defensive coordinator of the San Diego Chargers from 2002-03.
He's coached All-Pros and deep into postseasons, and it doesn't take long to find him on the Aggie practice field - typically barking instructions in his gruff tone. Lindsey is old school.
"He's a crusty vet," Walker said. "He's rubbed off on our guys. And if we want to be a scrappy group, we need that."
