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Subject: Kicking it with Georgia's Todd Grantham(Int. w/ Chris Low ESPN)...
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Posted by: DAWG '88 on Fri Jul 30 2010 3:02:21 PM
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Kicking it with Georgia's Todd Grantham
July, 30, 2010 Jul 309:20AM
By Chris Low
Todd Grantham got a glimpse of the hand he was dealt in the spring.
The first-year Georgia defensive coordinator will get a more
definitive look beginning Monday when the Bulldogs open preseason
practice.
Their challenge is pretty straightforward: to return the edge to
Georgia’s once-proud defense. The Bulldogs were 10th in the SEC last
season in scoring defense and have given up 34 or more points in 10
of their 26 games over the last two seasons.
I caught up with Grantham recently to get his thoughts on the
upcoming season, his first in college football since 1998 when he
was the assistant head coach/defensive line coach at Michigan State
under Nick Saban.
Where will the hottest battles be this preseason?
Todd Grantham: The corner position will be interesting. Brandon
Boykin, Vance Cuff and Branden Smith will all play, but they will be
battling it out for the two starting spots. At safety, we have
Bacarri Rambo starting at one, but [junior college transfer] Jakar
Hamilton and Nick Williams will be a good battle at the other
safety. We moved Darryl Gamble from inside linebacker to outside
linebacker, and we’ll see how that turns out with Cornelius
Washington. I’m also curious to see what freshmen T. J. Stripling,
Dexter Morant and Brandon Burrows do at linebacker and how they fit
in. On tape, I like Stripling at our will linebacker position
[weakside linebacker] behind Justin Houston. We’ll see how it plays
out when everybody gets here.
How much will you experiment this preseason, especially given the
move to the 3-4?
TG: I come from pro football, and you’re going into the game with 21
or 22 guys on defense, and that’s it. What you learn is that you
have to be flexible, and we will be. If somebody goes down, I’d
rather play the next best guy instead of the next guy at that
position, and there’s a difference in that. We’re going to find out
which guys can play different roles.
What will be key for you up front defensively?
TG: We’ve got to develop a rotation up there, and those guys have to
be relentless. DeAngelo Tyson will start out at nose, and Kwame
Geathers is behind him. We also have Justin Anderson moving over
from the offensive line. If those other two guys come on, it might
give us a chance to move DeAngelo around and see what we can do with
him at end. I just believe you have to play a lot of guys up there.
You expend so much energy playing in the defensive line. If a guy
feels like he has to play 60 plays, he’s going to coast. But if he
knows he only has to play 35, he will give you more and knows when
he gets tired that he’s going to come out and the next guy’s going
in. We’ve got to find a way to develop that kind of rotation. If you
don’t, when the fourth quarter comes around and it’s time to win the
game, your best guys are going to be tired.
What kind of outside linebacker will Houston be in your scheme after
recording 7.5 sacks last season at defensive end?
TG: I’m expecting a big year out of him and have talked to him about
that. Everybody on your team isn’t the same, and he’s got to be one
of those guys who rises above for us. We need to expect more out of
him. You have to manufacture production from your linebackers in the
3-4, particularly your outside guys, because that’s where you
generate your pass rush. I think Justin is made for the 3-4, and
it’s a very good fit for him. That showed up in spring ball with
some of the things he did.
Georgia was tied for next to last nationally last season with 12
forced turnovers. How do you turn that around?
TG: It starts with the quarterback. In pro football, we did a study,
and the guy who fumbles the ball the most is the quarterback. He’s
also the guy throwing the ball, so the more you can do to disrupt
him, the more you’re going to create turnovers. You can do that a
lot of ways -- disguising what you do, by bringing pressure, four-
man and six-man rush, and the biggest thing is the disruption of
routes. You can’t allow free access. If you disrupt them and jam
them, they’re not always going to be in the spot they’re supposed to
be. There’s no question that we need to create more turnovers.
Again, going back to the NFL, the teams that were plus-1 in turnover
margin over the last 11 years won 80 percent of their games.
Will you call the defensive plays from the booth or be on the
sideline during games this season?
TG: I’ll be on the sideline. You have more time to get the calls in
when you’re on the sideline. You have more time to think about what
you want to do, and you also get a better feel for the players down
there. I was on the sideline in the NFL and am used to it. You get
used to watching the game from down there and seeing everything
develop from down there.
What do you hope the Georgia fans see in this defense?
TG: What I want them to see is improvement and that we’re
aggressive, fundamentally sound and relentless in our pursuit of the
ball. I want them to see a defense that doesn’t give up explosive
plays, a defense that plays with a swagger. I know this, that the
Georgia fans have a passion for defense, the “Junkyard Dawg” defense
that is so famous around here. I anticipate working toward giving
them the things they have a passion for.
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| Kicking it with Georgia's Todd Grantham(Int. w/ Chris Low ESPN)... -- DAWG '88 Fri Jul 30 2010 3:02:21 PM |
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