How did the defense get it turned around?

Welter

Beckwith

Much better tackling. Very few missed tackles

DT have improved. Teams are no longer gouging us between the tackles. Also, Beckwith is becoming a force at MLB.

I think many have forgotten we lost one of our best playmakers on D (Thomas) or we would be even better.

Quentin Thomas looked good in his return today. The Ends are playing much better and Beckwith is attacking the gaps. Honestly, we really have been good all year. We lost out on jump balls against Auburn and Miss State hit some big plays on broken plays where everyone was chasing Dak. If the offense can at least chew up clock, this defense can be the best in the conference. We have some different challenges upcoming though.

Beckwith plugging the right gaps, game sllowing down for young players. Biggest difference IMO is getting Welter out and letting Beckwith get enough reps to get comfortable. His name was called a lot tonight.

When MLB goes from a liability to a playmaker, it changes the entire defense.

What was beckwiths stat line? Double digit tackles? Each one being a hard hit

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There's just no way Welter would've made that play on 3 and 2. Even if he gets there, which isn't a given, he not thumping that dude like he ran into a brick wall.

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That was one of the most impressive plays of the night in my opinion. He stopped him cold. Freaky

I was the first one (okay, one of the first ones) to point out that we were giving up big plays, quarterback runs and missing lots of tackles while #31 was on the sideline.

However - it is clear that Beckwith is a big part of it. Kwon and Hunter have been solid since the beginning. Dwayne Thomas was probably our other top 3 defender and he has been replaced by Adams since his injury.

But, other than Beckwith's emergence (and he's had growing pains, too) - it is the more confident, aggressive, consistent play by the DL. The youngsters, particularly, Lacatoure, Godchaux, as well as Rasco have stepped up their game and are playing better as a unit, regardless of which 4 are in the game.

I think the DT rotation, improved LB play, better execution of the defensive gameplan and BETTER TACKLING have all been factors in this significant improvement.

It's not like we doubted the talent - there is zero question that we have as much talent as any team in the country. But youth and inexperience comes at a cost until quality, relevant experience is gained.

Learning to enjoy fierceness and swagger. It's crazy to say that without the physical discipline taken into consideration, but watching Kwon, Jamal Adams, and Beckwith tonight they looked more like the LSU defense we've been known to field.