After watching the film I still believe that New Mexico was a great game to have prior to the TCU game. The defenses are similar, and our offense will have realized they need to prepare better for blitzes and man to man pressure.

The TCU defense plays a manipulated 4-3, but instead of using a true defensive end, they use a smaller and faster player who can get a quick speed rush off the edge. They also use their strong safeties as both a strategic outside linebacker and a “rover” safety. Their rover is physical like a linebacker but can also match up with wide receivers and tight ends in pass coverages.

The TCU defense has speed at every position. Their most disruptive players are their linebackers. No. 41 Daryl Washington and No. 39 Jason Phillips make a lot of plays behind or at the line of scrimmage and are constantly in the backfield during running plays.

Their safeties, No. 3 Tejay Johnson and No. 29 Stephan Hodge, also make a lot of plays and are heavily involved in stopping the run. Because they devote so many players to stopping the run, their corners are put in a lot of man to man situations with little or no help.

This is a risky scheme, but with their speed they feel as if they can recover from concentration errors.

Defensive Line

The defensive line is not their strength. In recent years the Horned Frogs have had Tommy Blake and Ortiz speed rushing at the defensive end positions. This year those players have been replaced by solid linemen, but nothing close to Blake and Ortiz’s caliber.

The reason their defensive line has had success to this point in the season is because of their ability to get penetration.

Their tackles are very quick off the ball, and because of this speed, they are able to get underneath the offensive linemen and push them back into the play. They also do a great job of hitting gaps with enough force to create disruption in the backfield.

When tackles and ends are quick off the ball and get penetration, it can cause pileups in the backfield. For instance, if a tackle shoots a gap and hits a pulling guard and knocks him to the ground, it frees up a linebacker on the other end of the play.

Disrupting the pulling guards and blocking fullbacks is what these guys do the best and is why they are so solid against the run.

Linebackers

TCU’s linebackers are their strength. They only have two true linebackers. I haven’t seen a pair play as physical and emotional as these two.

No. 39 Phillips plays smarter of the two and is good at slipping blockers in open space and still being able to make a play on the ball. He also does a good job in his zone drops, finding the receivers near him and making a play on the ball.

While both players play downhill, No. 41 Washington is like a heat-seeking missile against the run. He is constantly in the backfield or at the line of scrimmage.

Because these two play downhill so quickly, they are often susceptible to over-pursuing the ball, leaving cutback lanes or even missing tackles. They are extremely aggressive against the run, which leaves them vulnerable to screens and play action. With the amount of plays these two make, it is crucial that we account for them on every play.

I like that these two players are emotionally invested in the game. The Frog defensive unit thrives on their energy and playmaking ability. I also like their unexpected trigger rushes to the quarterback. A trigger rush is when they are either fooled by play action or they wait until the offensive linemen have declared who they are blocking and then rush late.

I saw it work a couple of times in previous games, and I think it could be effective against our offense because our running backs often leak out into pass routes.

Safeties

TCU plays two regular safety body types and a “rover” safety, who plays an active role in stopping the run. From what I can tell the free safety is No. 4 Steven Coleman, and the strong safety is No. 3 Johnson. The rover is No. 29 Hodges, and he is the most physical out of the bunch.

Their safeties are often very close to the box, which makes it tough to run the ball. They also have enough athletic talent to recognize passes and recover into their zone or man coverage responsibilities.

This group, while not as talented as last year's group, is very good at what they do. They have good enough cover skills to match up well against a tight end. They also have the strength to step up against a pulling tackle or guard.

Last year Dennis Pitta and Andrew George both had good games, and I think this year our offense needs to work this matchup throughout the game. While the safeties are good, they don’t match up well enough against our tight ends.

I am saying it first: Dennis and Andrew will both have big games and will be used in a variety of different ways—split out, bubble screen, and goal line situations.

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