re: Blake Baker HCTT tweet

A QB spy is one of the most overrated defensive techniques in college football. They hardly ever work but sound cool for sure. When you have a QB with exceptional speed like Milroe, Reed, or Sellars, aka as fast the player who is the spy, it simply doesn't work. The QB is always literally a step ahead when he begins to run since he knows where he is going. It is the same principle on WRer routes where the WRer is almost always ahead of the defender on pass patterns and the CB has to catch up. Plus, as I've claimed many times, Perkins is NOT a good tackler...he never has been. So you are counting on him to bring down a runner just as fast as he is in the open field...good luck with that.

What WILL work is to rush an extra player or two and clog the running lanes. Of course that can backfire if the QB is a good passer...however Reed, Milroe, and Sellars hardly qualify as such. What happens is all of a sudden the QB is slowed down dramatically because just like any fast RB he has no chance to get up to speed. You see that every week with LSU when one of the fastest RBs in college football Caden Durham can't get going without having a hole to run through. For the record, spies WILL work with average speed QBs like Jackson Arnold. Don't know if LSU switched to a spy in the 2nd half of the OU game but certainly Arnold was stopped pretty well in that game. IMO, House AND Baker both should have used that approach to stop the fast running QBsl

But if we have better players on the lines and edge and at safety, Perkins may be able to find his stride and be the player we know he can be. He has too much talent not to be a difference maker.

And I thought I was dumb

Upvote. Agree . Nit saying he isn’t a good player. Saying we did seem to play better on D side of ball after his injury. All I meant.

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The point of a spy is to mainly keep a running qb in the pocket.

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And if you keep Milroe in the pocket, he fricking sucks

True he is better RB then QB. Glad he is gone though he was a LSU killer.

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Ever hear of defenders using angles? Also, a spy doesn't have to make the tackle to affect the play.

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Uh, if the team is playing man, he better make the tackle because the other defenders don't even know who has the ball...they are worried about their WRer coverage. There is "no angles". Geez, once the guy breaks the LOS, he can go any direction. That is exactly why you need to stop the QB from moving forward to begin with.

Bonus response to WillFerrillIsKing: Yes, you are indeed dumb! Thanks for admitting it.

First, there is something called a "run blitz". That is basically what I'm talking about...and yes, I used the correct term "run blitz", not "passing blitz". You put more bodies across the LOS than can be blocked and gear those extra guys to cut off running lanes and FORCING him to throw the ball. Obviously, like any blitz, you take a chance on getting burned on passes. But the QBs I referenced are hardly Davey O'Brien candidates...at best, they are mediocre passers.

LSU did NOT lack talent up front. THAT is nonsense! LSU's DL was the strength of the entire defense. I do agree the safeties were basically just worthless. But as I've stated multiple times, LSU plays a decent amount of man to man. When the QB breaks the LOS, the secondary doesn't even know it since they have their backs turned to the play. And one spy isn't going to cut it. As far as Baker stunting up front, that was not the problem. I don't remember anyone taking themselves out of the play by looping around or whatever. The reason the QBs got all those yards were they had natural running lanes that most QBs have many times. Nussmeier even has them but refuses to run. You overload the LOS and force the QB to beat you passing...simple as that. I haven't seen any poster claim those QBs would be able to do that.

I think last year we just tried to build everything around Perkins and offenses could just avoid him every play, thus that defense didn't work. Next year we should have a lot more talent around him and it should free him up.

Assuming he returns.

He does need to work on shedding blocks though if he stays at LB. I would love him to be more of a STAR though.

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Hopefully not. He either sucks or the LSU coaching staff is clueless as to how to use him. We’ve been better at times on defense without him.

Also, I find it strange that you think Nuss is mediocre but Harold Perkins is a real quality player. I guess it’s not really surprising though.

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Getting more players that are talented and can play fundamentally sound defense, which is what we've done, allows you to get creative with Perkins.

He is a physically gifted player that doesn't have a true position due to size. I trust Baker to figure out what to do with him now that he has other positions filled with talent. We absolutely want him back.