4th of 7 columns on the top positional
units in college football
When I think
about a great defensive line, dominating a football game,
I picture the “big uglies,” digging their scarred hands
into the ground with blood dripping down their arms; it’s
a cold fall day, you can see their breath through their
beat up facemasks, and John Facenda’s voice is in the
background, talking about the power of man, and their
ability to become gods…That’s football, my friends.
Aside from the
offensive line, for my money, no unit is more important to
a team’s success than the defensive line. Their job is to
not only rush the passer, which gets all the press, but to
control the running game, which is what dictates the
success or failure of the other units. So, when I was
looking at rosters, spring scrimmage reports, and my tea
leaves, looking for the best defensive line unit in the
nation, I didn’t have to get far down the preseason top
ten. If you have a great d-line, you can be an elite
team, and if you aren’t an elite team, odds are, your
d-line isn’t very good.
So, with 5
viable contenders for this crown, which direction do I
go? Do I take the team with the best starting 4 in
Oklahoma? The deepest d-line in USC or go with a wildcard
like Georgia or Texas? Or maybe even slide a team in with
a ton of potential, like Miami. As much as I can
appreciate the importance of a team’s starters, and OU’s
are great, when you rotate linemen, like every major
college program does, who comes in to give those studs a
break, is huge. So, my Best of the Bunch DL award goes to
the USC Trojans.
Before
going any further let me clear up one question that is
often asked: Is Shaun Cody a DE or DT? I have the answer
folks —
the answer is yes. There’s no doubt, Cody is an elite 4
position player on the defensive line. That’s part of the
reason that USC’s line is so strong. Who are the stars of
this line? This year, he’s probably going to see more
reps at tackle, but in the NFL, the sky’s the limit.
It all starts
with Shaun Cody. He’s a brute, whether it’s on the
inside, or outside, and is the backbone of the defensive
unit. Then you have fellow senior, Mike Patterson. A
fireplug of a DT, he’s lightning quick off the snap, and
one of the best interior pass rushers in the nation.
These are your big names. Look for them next April.
Moving to the
lesser known names, it starts with big Manuel Wright.
He’s a sophomore, who’s probably not going to start
inside, but should prove invaluable in their rotation,
allowing Cody back outside in certain situations. Poor
Manuel, he misses one practice with an illness, and
because of another future star, Lawrence Jackson’s high
level of play at end, and he lost his job. Back to
Jackson, he’s a 265-pound redshirt freshman, who all but
owns the DE spot on Cody’s side. The other end position
will be handled by a platoon of two players, junior
Frostee Rucker and true freshman Jeff Schweiger. Another
DE with starting potential, Chris Barrett, was hurt in
practice (shoulder) and isn’t in the mix (pending an MRI).
That’s what happens, when a 390-pound offensive lineman
falls on you.
Moving back
inside, you of course have Wright, a starter without a
spot. He’ll figure heavily in the mix at DT. Rounding
out the unit is redshirt freshman Sedric Ellis, who’s very
Gary Patterson-like in his game. It’s a scary group, but
that’s without even mentioning sophomore DE/DT Travis Tofi,
and big junior DE La Juan Ramsey, either of whom would
start for plenty of D-1 teams.
Here is just a
taste of the options the Trojans have: They can go big,
with Cody on the end, with Wright, and Patterson in the
middle, and edge rush specialist Frostee Rucker manning
the other outside position. That’s a great d-line. They
can go small, with Cody and Patterson in the middle,
Frostee and Lawrence Jackson on the ends. Yep, it's
another great line. Then of course, they can go really
big, with Patterson and Wright inside, Cody and 285 junior
LaJuan Ramsey on the ends…a great big line.
That is one
versatile unit, and these unlimited combinations to keep
players fresh, and offensive lines both guessing and worn
down, is what sets them apart. No team in the nation can
put out the myriad of personnel combinations, along with
the talent level, that USC does.
What’s
the opening day starting unit? All indications are it
will be Ricker and Jackson on the ends, with Cody and
Patterson in the middle. That enough, warrants
consideration for the best of the bunch DL, but when you
mix in at least 4 other starting-caliber players on the
roster, it makes the decision to name the Trojan d-line as
the best, easier than I thought as I started researching
the article. The line is awesome and even after Patterson
and Cody are gone to the NFL next year, it shouldn’t
really miss a beat. With a deep 2004 recruiting class of
d-linemen, they will just reload.
