- September 6th, 2006, 11:07 am
#28822
Very interesting look into how our new LB Corps is coming together from today's fishwrap:
LU linebackers a good fit for the 3-4 defensehttp://newsadvance.com/servlet/Satellit ... th=!sports
ByChris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
September 5, 2006
Normally the quiet one, Stevie Ray Lloyd popped up after making a huge hit against Saint Paul's last Thursday, looked at the vociferous Liberty student section and raised his arms above his head.
Lloyd didn't get to play much at Virginia Tech, but he understood the vibe that a good student section could give a stadium. He felt it every home Saturday in Blacksburg, when the noise from the Lane Stadium faithful would ebb to an earsplitting crescendo.
Lloyd and Liberty's other three starting linebackers - Manny Rojas, Brandon Duke and Nick Hursky - were in the middle of a monster game Thursday. The Flames held the Tigers to 57 yards of offense, 30 coming in the last 10 minutes against Liberty's second- and third-stringers, and the Williams Stadium crowd appreciated the effort.
And when Lloyd flapped his arms upward, the crowd echoed the junior's level of excitement.
It was only one game, but all indications are that LU's move to a 3-4 defense is going to be a success. So Lloyd, and the rest of the linebackers, should get used to the adulation.
"That was my first game starting at linebacker in three years," Lloyd said. "Just getting out there and starting in my hometown and getting a chance to bring the excitement back to Lynchburg and this university, I was just so excited."
The four linebackers' skill sets and personalities completement each other and make for perfect fits in Rocco's 3-4 scheme.
Rojas is the brash one on the inside, barking out checks like a quarterback calling an audible, then settling in to take the first jarring hit from a guard at the line of scrimmage.
That leaves Lloyd, the other inside backer, free to concentrate on slowing an opponent's pass game or hitting a running back who busts up the gut.
"Those two inside backers are going to have a lot to say about how good this defense gets," Rocco said. "If they're out there humming and getting all over the field and yards inside are tough to get, we're going to have a really good defense and a really good season."
Rocco said those two were tailor made for the punishing nature of working the inside in the 3-4. The problem was that Duke and Hursky were both inside linebackers in the 4-3 last year, leaving Rocco precious few options for the two outside spots.
"On the outside, you're really looking for taller, rangier guys who can rush the passer," Rocco said.
Rocco will have such a player at his disposal next year when Virginia transfer Vince Redd, who is 6-foot-6 and 265 pounds, can give the Flames help on the outside.
Until then, the rapidly improving Duke and Hursky will tide Rocco over.
Because of his speed, Duke plays on the open side of the field, concentrating more on the short passing game. Hursky's responsible for "boundary defense," namely cutting down running backs at the sideline on the short side of the field.
Hursky, a sophomore, made 58 tackles last year playing at all three linebacker positions. He won the weakside outside linebacker job after a month-long battle in training camp with Derek Lisko and continues to impress with his progress.
"They both had phenomenal camps," Rojas said. "I was a little worried about Nick moving from inside to outside, but he's taken to the change real easily."
Duke, at 6-0, 210, doesn't have the size of a protypical strongside outside linebacker, but he makes up for it with instincts and hustle.
"I feel like I'm still learning," Duke said. "I like the defense. I like the versatility it gives us. It's just a real headache for offenses. They know we're coming, but they don't know where we're coming from."
Rojas is the unquestioned leader of the group, but Lloyd made inroads with his new teammates during the spring and summer by inviting them to his father's farm in Forest for some quality team-building time, otherwise known as old-fashioned fun.
Lloyd's father, who attends just about every Liberty practice, cooked meals for the group (which included more than just the LU linebackers) and solicited their help on day-to-day tasks around the farm. "All fathers (put you to work), what are you going to do?" Rojas said.
Afterward, players would fish, shoot guns and ride four-wheelers, the kind of fun Lloyd used to have when he played at Jefferson Forest.
That chemistry has translated quickly to the on-field product, and with two linebackers still growing into their positions, the upside of the group is considerable.
"As they get trained more and more in the defense, they'll get better and better," Rocco said.
- By Purple Haize
- By ECC29