Three's Company: College Football Teams Using a Three Man Defensive Line
3-4 defenses are becoming all the rage in today’s NFL, and as we speak, that wave is slowly heading down to the shores of college football.
Teams are realizing the shift that the game is taking, and they now see the need to have faster, more athletic players out on the field as opposed to big bodies.
Every team has a defense designed around the 3-4 look, but there are only eight BCS teams who will be utilizing a 3-4 set or a variation of it as their base defense this season.
Here’s a look at the teams that will be trying to stop opponents with just three defensive linemen on the field.
Alabama Crimson Tide
1 of 8
There will be some new faces on Alabama’s defensive line this season. The Tide lose big nose tackle Terrence Cody, as well as defensive end Brandon Deadrick, to the NFL.
At 6‘4 305 pounds, Marcell Dareus is the potential leader of this group, but there have been offseason question marks that leave his status in jeopardy right now.
Josh Chapman, the reported strongest player on the team, has been battling it out with sophomore Kerry Murphy to replace Cody in the middle. Both are big players that can do some real damage up front.
At the end positions, it should be Dareus, if he’s eligible, joined by senior Luther Davis. who had 11 tackles last season.
Georgia Bulldogs
2 of 8
The Bulldogs are making the switch to the 3-4 this season after finishing 10th in the SEC in scoring defense last year.
The move comes not because Georgia can’t stop the run; this has more to do with letting guys like outside linebackers Justin Houston and Cornelius Washington get an effective rush to the quarterback.
Houston and Washington have the chance to be superior pass rushers, but it’s up to the guys in front of them to really make things happen.
Demarcus Dobbs returns at end after starting every game last season. He should be joined by junior nose tackle DeAngelo Tyson, who was once a highly rated high school recruit out of Statesboro, Ga., as well as end Abry Jones, who made a serviceable showing in his freshman season.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
3 of 8
Jason Peters, Izaan Cross, and Logan Walls are all back, but gone is Derrick Morgan, last year’s all-star defensive end who was picked in the first round of this April’s NFL draft.
Morgan’s loss will be eased by first-year defensive coordinator Al Groh. who is switching the defense to a 3-4 alignment this year. The defense should fit the strengths of all three returning lineman.
Jason Peters, especially, has been been making some noise this spring. The junior defensive end has a chance to be a real difference maker in Groh’s new-look defense.
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Michigan Wolverines
4 of 8
Greg Robinson’s defensive line had its fair share of ups and downs throughout the 2009 season.
Depending on the week, the Wolverines would either put up a great performance, holding Iowa to 2.4. yards a carry; or a head-shake-inducing disaster, letting up 377 rushing yards to Illinois.
The group is a talented one with three potential All-Big Ten players in Mike Martin, William Campbell, and Ryan Van Bergen.
Martin is a strong junior player, who is capable of a dominating season. Campbell is a 325-pound nose guard, who many around the team feel has star potential.
Van Bergen is the most unheralded but yet still the steadiest member of the line.
The talented bunch will now see if they can accomplish great things without the departed Brandon Graham helping out.
Stanford Cardinal
5 of 8
Under new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, the Cardinal defense will switch from a 4-3 front to a 3-4 alignment this season.
This allows players like outside linebacker Thomas Keiser the chance to stand up and make plays.
In the middle of the new defense will be 300-pound sturdy senior Sione Fua. The big nose guard has the strength to really occupy blockers this year.
The ends, Brian Bulcke and Mathhew Masifilo, should occupy a fair share of offensive linemen as well. Both are former tackles who now have to learn the complexities of the 3-4 defensive end spot.
Texas A&M Aggies
6 of 8
A&M has been shuffling their guys around this spring, but recent developments indicate the line will consist of Eddie Brown in the middle with Tony Jerod-Eddie and Lucas Patterson at the end positions.
Coach Mike Sherman said the move was done to get their best three linemen on the field together.
All three have some real potential but the possible star of the group could be Jerod-Eddie. The junior has shown glimpses that he could be a real force this season.
Patterson also has a chance to a spotlight player, but he first has to get acquainted with his new position of defensive end.
Texas Tech Red Raiders
7 of 8
It seems like whenever there’s a coaching change, there’s bound to be a scheme change that goes right along with it. Tommy Tuberville takes control of the Red Raiders this season, and he’s now starting to mold the defense to his liking.
Tuberville, along with coordinator James Willis, is shifting the defense from a 4-3 scheme to a 3-4 scheme this year.
The undisputed highlight player up front for the Raiders is defensive tackle Colby Whitlock. The steady senior has started 36 games in his career, and he’s has been a constant workhorse since the day he arrived in Lubbock.
West Virginia Mountaineers
8 of 8
Starters Julian Miller, Chris Neild, and Scooter Berry all return for the Mountaineers this season.
Neild and Berry are experienced seniors, who have been rocks up the gut for the last few years. Miller, on the other hand, is a tall junior with a lot of upside as a pass rusher.
The 3-3-5 stack defense calls for guys to be strong up front and there’s no doubting this unit’s strength. They allow for the rest of the players on defense to really flow around and make plays.
Two key players to keep an eye on outside of the starters are Bruce Irvin and Will Clarke. The two defensive ends have been doing some great things in camp thus far.
Irvin is a junior college transfer while Clarke is a redshirt freshman, who used last year as a learning season.
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