Big Ten Breakdown 2012: Purdue Boilermakers, Part 3, Defense

I began by taking a broad overview of the Purdue program, what it has done over the last five years and what that might tell us about what the Boilers will do this season.

Last week, I scanned at the 2012 Purdue offense and how it projects.

This week, I'll look at the 2012 Purdue defense.

Defensive Overview

2011 scoring defense: 26.8 PPG (ninth in the conference)

Total defense: 395.7 YPG (ninth)

Rushing defense: 4.29 YPC (T-eighth)

Passing efficiency allowed: 125.05 (seventh)

Average scoring defense conference ranking over last five years: 7.8

Best scoring defense conference ranking over last five years: seventh (2007, 2008 and 2010)

Worst scoring defense conference ranking over last five years: ninth (2009 and 2011)

Returning starters: DE Ryan Russell, DT Kawann Short, DT Bruce Gaston, DL Brandon Taylor, LB Will Lucas, LB Dwayne Beckford, CB Ricardo Allen, CB Josh Johnson, DB Normondo Harris, S Max Charlot

Open positions: DE, LB, S

Defensive formation: 4-3

Defensive philosophy: versatility

Defensive Breakdown

Purdue returns nine starters, including a defensive lineman that has a chance to push his NFL draft stock into the first round. The Boilers also have a returning all-conference cornerback and a strong core of senior leaders.

The problem is that Purdue under Danny Hope has been here before, yet the final results have not been as impressive as the individual pieces.

In three years as head coach, Hope's defense has never ranked above No. 7 in conference scoring defense. This was despite having the most sacks in the conference in 2010, the fourth-ranked rush defense in 2010, Ryan Kerrigan's dominating senior year, experienced safeties, experienced linebackers, etc.

Presumably due to this underachieving, Hope has replaced three of his four defensive coaches, including his defensive coordinator.

His new DC is Tim Tibesar, who comes to West Lafayette via the Canadian Football League, where he was the DC for the Montreal Alouettes. Before that, he served under Bill Snyder at Kansas State.

In his introductory conference, Tibesar (via JConline) said he "wants Purdue’s defense to be multiple—show different looks." In other words, there may be some 3-4 sprinkled into the base 4-3, along with a number of different packages and coverages.

Are Tibesar and the new coaches the answer? I don't know, but there are quality defensive players on the Purdue roster.

The real question is, will the pieces add up to more than the whole?

Defensive Line

Purdue can have a dominant defensive line.

Three of its four starters are returning. Two of the returnees are multi-year starters. One of the returnees is an all-conference honoree that is looking to move into the first round of the NFL Draft.

That all-conference honoree is senior defensive tackle Kawann Short. Last season, Short was fifth in the conference with 17.5 tackles for loss and tied for sixth with 6.5 sacks. Short could have a huge year if his fellow returning starters can make their presence felt at the line of scrimmage.

As for those linemates, junior Bruce Gaston will be the other defensive tackle. He has two years of starting experience under his belt. Short and Gaston, with a combined weight of 615 pounds, will be difficult for opponents to move.

The ends will be sophomore Ryan Russell, who grabbed 11 starts last season—one sack, 4.5 tackles for loss—and senior Robert Maci, who missed most of last year with a foot injury. Also, Maci will be a rush linebacker in 3-4 formations.

Juniors Brandon Taylor and Ryan Isaac, JUCO transfer Greg Latta and sophomore Jalani Phillips make up the Boilers' somewhat minimal depth.

As JCOnline noted, the defensive line should be one of the "strengths of the Boilermakers" this year. The problem is it has been the "strength" of the defense before.

Big Ten Position Group Ranking: Seven

Linebackers

One of the biggest issues with Purdue's defense during the Danny Hope era has been the linebackers' lack of improvement and mediocre play.

Dwayne Beckford is a perfect example. The would-be senior had a strong sophomore year, prompting predictions of future all-conference honors. However, last year was up and down, and now, after multiple poor decisions, a bowl-game suspension and a pulled scholarship, Beckford, according to CBSSports, has been reinstated.

Arguably, Hope can't be blamed for Beckford's off-the-field indiscretions, but he does have to take the blame for his failure to improve.

Junior Will Lucas started games on both the weak side and in the middle last year. He was third on the team in tackles behind Beckford and departed linebacker Joe Holland.

The other likely starter is sophomore Joe Gilliam, who grabbed one start last season. However, senior Antwon Higgs and sophomore Mike Lee will push for playing time. Higgs was listed as the third starting linebacker on the post-spring game depth chart, though Beckford's absence played a part in that.

Finally, former quarterback Sean Robinson is raw at the position, but will supply some depth.

Big Ten Position Group Ranking: Nine

Secondary

The Boilers feature one of the more underrated cornerback tandems in the league in junior Ricardo Allen and senior Josh Johnson. Allen, aside from being a video game fanatic, has been named a second-team all-conference honoree two years in a row. Also, junior nickelback Normondo Harris started five games in 2011.

However, Purdue has to replace both of its safeties.

Max Charlot will probably man the strong safety position. He has starting experience and should be a reliable option.

Meanwhile, the other safety position will be occupied by one of three sophomores: Taylor Richards, Landon Feichter or E.J. Johnson.

Feichter is the most experienced, having started one game last year. Nonetheless, Richards was at the top of the spring game depth chart.

As with every other position group, there are quality players in the secondary. The issue, once again, concerns the big picture.

Big Ten Position Group Ranking: Eight

Defensive Outlook

The 2010 Purdue pass defense ranked eighth in the Big Ten, while the scoring defense ranked seventh. This was with Ryan Kerrigan running wild in opposing teams' backfields.

Last year, with Kerrigan gone but the secondary returning en masse and nine starters returning overall, the scoring defense ranked ninth.

Obviously, Danny Hope recognized that he had a problem. That was why he turned over his defensive staff, opting to only retain linebacker coach Donn Landholm.

Will the new faces make a difference?

I don't know, but until those new faces prove me wrong, I have no reason to believe the Purdue defense will finish any better than middle of the pack, which would make it slightly better than last season.

Coming next Wednesday, an overview and breakdown of Purdue's specialists, schedule, recruiting class and a prediction as to where I think the Boilermakers will finish the 2012 season.