Nickoe Whitley the key to the defense?

[SouthernPigskin.sixpack]

Hey guys, how good do you think the secondary will be after the losses of Slay, Banks and Broomfield? Obviously, Nickoe Whitley will need to elevate his level of play this fall.

http://www.southernpigskin.com/sec/view/whitley-is-the-key

 

[LandArchDawg]

About the same because we hardly utilized the secondary last season, especially toward the end. If Nikoe can be back to where he was his sophomore year, that can make all the difference.

 

[boatsandhoes]

Justin cox will be fine at one corner, he has as much talent as anyone in SEC. He will still have to learn the speed on the fly some. The other one is the question mark I feel with either hughes, Love, or Calhoun learning the ropes. If we can develop a more consistent pass rush with Autry, Ryan Brown, Chris Jones, or from up the middle it will make a world of difference in helping out the secondary.

There is a world of difference in having to cover for 3 secs as opposed to 4-5 secs from snap.

 

[DirtyDog]

I concur. Pass rush is the key. No push up front will result in a fire sale. If we can get more push out of the DL without blitzing LBs or safeties, then we'll be fine. The CBs won't have to cover as long and our actual blitzes will be that much more effective. Let's hope that our DL makes a step up as we expect.

 

[horshack.sixpack]

Hey guys, how good do you think the secondary will be after the losses of Slay, Banks and Broomfield? Obviously, Nickoe Whitley will need to elevate his level of play this fall.

http://www.southernpigskin.com/sec/view/whitley-is-the-key

I think Whitley will do well. I suspect that the injury just accelerated that moment in life that we all have in which we realize for the first time that we aren't invincible. That can be a good thing bringing more discipline and focus, although we may never see him knock himself, or the other guy, out on a hit again...

 

[GANGBANGDOG]

More pressure up front (will happen). Cox will be the 2nd coming of Slay, but probably better. If Whitley gets back to the headhunter style, the D will be just fine.

 

[kired]

Screw being a headhunter - in his first two years Whitley made some of the most athletic INTs we've seen at MSU. In particular I'm thinking about the one against Auburn and Arkansas in 2010. Unfortunately he may have been our biggest weakness in the secondary last year.

I honestly think he could be a difference maker in the Ok State game. As much as they throw the ball around, he could easily get a couple of picks if he's back to the Whitley of old.

 

[NCDawg.sixpack]

He did make a good interception in the 2010 Arkansas game. but he also got beat for the long TD pass after Relf's fumble deep in their territory. That probably lost the game for us. But, to give him credit, he knocked the heck out of the Georgia RB at the goal line, causing the fumble, which probably won the game for us. He's a good player-just hope he can get more consistent.