Watched the defensive play-by-play, mostly in slow motion. I was looking for defensive line play mostly, but I made some general observations.
Kongbo is slow to fire off the line every single play. It's very noticeable when he comes out and you see Vereen play the end. He has to get quicker, and if he does, he could be a force.
Shy Tuttle was unblockable. I didn't notice him in there until the second half, but when he came in, he was pushing double-teams into the backfield. There was one play in particular where Tuttle and Mackenzie pushed their blockers into each other and and we easily got to the quarterback. Now that Tuttle is seemingly healthy, I think we'll see him a lot more, and our defense will be soo much better.
Quay Picou and Alexis Johnson got snaps in the second half, and they seemed to really struggle shedding blocks. When Virginia Tech scored that last touchdown, their line got so much push on us, it was inevitable they would score. I know that's what mop-up duty is for, and I know those guys are young, but it tells me how important the health of our line is.
Jumper struggled. Goodness. I know he takes a lot of heat on here, but when you watch him in slow-mo, it's even more glaring. Coach Jones said that the Mike and Will linebackers are interchangeable in this system, so I'm hoping that Maybin gets the nod to play Middle, and McDowell gets the start on the outside. I think the staff will give Jumper a chance against Ohio, but they'll do what's necessary when Florida comes to town. This might be by design as well. Because if Florida sees Jumper starting, they'll try to take advantage of it. So if we let them think Jumper is our guy until gameday, we might take away some of their plan.
Last thing, we're so fortunate to have Sutton and Maybin. Outstanding football players. They'll really be missed next year. Just my thoughts.