We give up some of the easiest touchdowns in the country.
Former Hurricanes wide receiver Ahmmon Richards didn't hedge on it. He can live with getting out-schemed, he can live with a contested catch where a guy is all over the receiver and still loses, what he can't live with is the freebies.
"Fade balls uncontested. Ten-yard digs right in front of the safety's face, literally untouched touchdown. RPOs backside, untouched touchdown," he said. "Stop giving up the free touchdowns. Challenge the catch phase."
He pointed back at Lofton's catch/touchdown as the example. That's what a DB does: fight through the catch phase, and when the receiver goes to tuck it, punch at the ball.
We held Wake Forest to 20 and Central Michigan to three, and Clemson scored 13. Then Florida State scored 35, Pitt 23, UNC 35 and Notre Dame 31.
"You can't tell me Florida State has a better offense than Wake Forest," he said. "It seems like we had a better plan for them."
That's the part that bothers us. We're No. 1 or No. 2 in the country against the run and near the bottom nationally against the pass.
"You can't be first to almost dead last on the same field," he said. "I don't know how much longer you're going to say it's just the players."
He went further. When the results go like this for five straight weeks, players can stop believing a call works. They look at the sideline, get the call and think, I don't know about this. You don't want it to get there.
Ahmmon knows people will hate it, but he wants Omar Thornton back in there.
"You watch Keionte Scott last year. He wasn't always the one making the tackle, but he forces the run back inside, takes on pulling blockers, does the dirty work," he said. "You need a physical presence in there."
Thornton got benched for missing tackles.
Ahmmon's response: everybody out there is missing tackles.
At least Thornton brings thump, and he's playing under more control now. Zechariah Poyser got some nickel snaps too before he got banged up, and he belongs in the strong safety rotation either way.
Fitzgerald should be a free safety. Right now, quarterbacks are carving us in the middle of the field with in-breaking routes. 10 and 12-yard digs. Three-by-one sets where the route crosses right through the safety's space. Those should be interceptions.
Our safeties are reading the quarterback's eyes instead of the route concepts, so quarterbacks like CJ Carr just look them off. But the formation tells you things.
In a three-by-one set, when the backside receiver takes an inside release, he's almost always running an in-breaker. If it's a go ball, he releases outside every time, because the safety can help inside. Personnel, whether the tight end is on or off the ball and what concepts are even possible from that look all matter.
"Bryce Fitzgerald is a very smart safety. That's why he had all the interceptions," Ahmmon said. "He can feel the routes."
JJ Dunnigan is an All-American-level talent, but he's young. He just goes, and teams are using that aggressiveness against him, throwing looks that make him second-guess. That's normal for a young player. It's also why you want Fitzgerald's feel behind him.
Damari Brown was the one corner who showed up physically. He came up in the run game, tackled and finished, and he had a great pass breakup on third down, playing through the catch the right way. He got hurt, so we'll see where he is.
Ethan O'Connor had a walk-in pick-six on the first play of the game. He broke on it, then stopped. The ball floated on Carr. Think about what that does to the night.
Xavier Lucas is getting killed online, and Ahmmon says most of it isn't his fault. He's playing outside leverage on the boundary because he's supposed to have help inside. When the receiver breaks in, the safety isn't in the window. Lucas is left rallying after the catch.
"If you watch when they catch the football, he gets up and he's looking like, bro, where are you guys at?" Ahmmon said.
The FSU play where Lucas got beat twice in man was on him. This one wasn't.
Damon Wilson II is the billion-dollar question. When he's on, he's on. Then there are weeks you don't feel him at all, and Ahmmon expected more consistency from an older guy with SEC production at Georgia and Missouri.
The only play either of us remembered from him on Saturday was Wilson chasing Carr on a third down that Carr completed anyway.
Armondo Blount is a different case. He's been dealing with injuries, and I've been saying for a while that he belongs inside. He gives you run defense on the edge, which you needed after losing Mesidor and Bain.
Ahmmon agrees with the inside move. Right now Blount's pass rush is basically a bull rush with extended arms. There's no bend and no finesse, nothing like what Rueben Bain had.
"If he added a few more pounds and played D-tackle, he'd probably be one of the better D-tackles in the nation, because he can rush the passer," Ahmmon said.
Outside of Marquise Lightfoot, Ahmmon doesn't see a true productive edge rusher, and Lightfoot struggled to get home Saturday too.
The difference from last year isn't just sacks. Bain and Akheem Mesidor were forcing throwaways and early throws all season even before the sacks piled up. Right now, guys are getting hemmed up at the line too frequently.
Watch the full breakdown below:
Former Hurricanes wide receiver Ahmmon Richards didn't hedge on it. He can live with getting out-schemed, he can live with a contested catch where a guy is all over the receiver and still loses, what he can't live with is the freebies.
"Fade balls uncontested. Ten-yard digs right in front of the safety's face, literally untouched touchdown. RPOs backside, untouched touchdown," he said. "Stop giving up the free touchdowns. Challenge the catch phase."
He pointed back at Lofton's catch/touchdown as the example. That's what a DB does: fight through the catch phase, and when the receiver goes to tuck it, punch at the ball.
The numbers don't make sense
Ahmmon brought the stat sheet.We held Wake Forest to 20 and Central Michigan to three, and Clemson scored 13. Then Florida State scored 35, Pitt 23, UNC 35 and Notre Dame 31.
"You can't tell me Florida State has a better offense than Wake Forest," he said. "It seems like we had a better plan for them."
That's the part that bothers us. We're No. 1 or No. 2 in the country against the run and near the bottom nationally against the pass.
"You can't be first to almost dead last on the same field," he said. "I don't know how much longer you're going to say it's just the players."
He went further. When the results go like this for five straight weeks, players can stop believing a call works. They look at the sideline, get the call and think, I don't know about this. You don't want it to get there.
Fix the nickel
Notre Dame went after Bryce Fitzgerald in the run game early: end-arounds and short passes into his area, with tight ends getting hands on him. Fitzgerald isn't a thumper, and nobody expects him to get off blocks the way Keionte Scott did last year.Ahmmon knows people will hate it, but he wants Omar Thornton back in there.
"You watch Keionte Scott last year. He wasn't always the one making the tackle, but he forces the run back inside, takes on pulling blockers, does the dirty work," he said. "You need a physical presence in there."
Thornton got benched for missing tackles.
Ahmmon's response: everybody out there is missing tackles.
At least Thornton brings thump, and he's playing under more control now. Zechariah Poyser got some nickel snaps too before he got banged up, and he belongs in the strong safety rotation either way.
Put Fitz in the middle and let him read
This is where Ahmmon got into the film.Fitzgerald should be a free safety. Right now, quarterbacks are carving us in the middle of the field with in-breaking routes. 10 and 12-yard digs. Three-by-one sets where the route crosses right through the safety's space. Those should be interceptions.
Our safeties are reading the quarterback's eyes instead of the route concepts, so quarterbacks like CJ Carr just look them off. But the formation tells you things.
In a three-by-one set, when the backside receiver takes an inside release, he's almost always running an in-breaker. If it's a go ball, he releases outside every time, because the safety can help inside. Personnel, whether the tight end is on or off the ball and what concepts are even possible from that look all matter.
"Bryce Fitzgerald is a very smart safety. That's why he had all the interceptions," Ahmmon said. "He can feel the routes."
JJ Dunnigan is an All-American-level talent, but he's young. He just goes, and teams are using that aggressiveness against him, throwing looks that make him second-guess. That's normal for a young player. It's also why you want Fitzgerald's feel behind him.
The cornerbacks
Ahmmon gave the corners more credit than most people will.Damari Brown was the one corner who showed up physically. He came up in the run game, tackled and finished, and he had a great pass breakup on third down, playing through the catch the right way. He got hurt, so we'll see where he is.
Ethan O'Connor had a walk-in pick-six on the first play of the game. He broke on it, then stopped. The ball floated on Carr. Think about what that does to the night.
Xavier Lucas is getting killed online, and Ahmmon says most of it isn't his fault. He's playing outside leverage on the boundary because he's supposed to have help inside. When the receiver breaks in, the safety isn't in the window. Lucas is left rallying after the catch.
"If you watch when they catch the football, he gets up and he's looking like, bro, where are you guys at?" Ahmmon said.
The FSU play where Lucas got beat twice in man was on him. This one wasn't.
The pass rush has to show up
Everything on the back end gets easier with pressure, and we aren't getting enough.Damon Wilson II is the billion-dollar question. When he's on, he's on. Then there are weeks you don't feel him at all, and Ahmmon expected more consistency from an older guy with SEC production at Georgia and Missouri.
The only play either of us remembered from him on Saturday was Wilson chasing Carr on a third down that Carr completed anyway.
Armondo Blount is a different case. He's been dealing with injuries, and I've been saying for a while that he belongs inside. He gives you run defense on the edge, which you needed after losing Mesidor and Bain.
Ahmmon agrees with the inside move. Right now Blount's pass rush is basically a bull rush with extended arms. There's no bend and no finesse, nothing like what Rueben Bain had.
"If he added a few more pounds and played D-tackle, he'd probably be one of the better D-tackles in the nation, because he can rush the passer," Ahmmon said.
Outside of Marquise Lightfoot, Ahmmon doesn't see a true productive edge rusher, and Lightfoot struggled to get home Saturday too.
The difference from last year isn't just sacks. Bain and Akheem Mesidor were forcing throwaways and early throws all season even before the sacks piled up. Right now, guys are getting hemmed up at the line too frequently.
Watch the full breakdown below:
