Auburn 'light-years ahead of where we were last year' at linebacker

[RunInRed 16,380]

Cassanova McKinzy and Kris Frost have a clear hold on the top two linebacker roles.

...

"With those two, specifically, Coach Johnson's got a lot of information, I know he feels good going into the season with the information he has," Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said.

...

"I think I had 12 linebackers at one time last year in spring ball, full speed, and this year, the most I ever had was six," Johnson said in June.

The key difference for Auburn is that this group of linebackers has been game-tested in Johnson's 4-2-5 defense, with three of the top four players back in the fold.

And having two clear starters doesn't hurt.

"I think Coach Johnson would say we're light-years ahead of where we were last year with our linebacker situation, because he knows more about them," Malzahn said. "He's got some flexibility with our other guys, too."

http://www.al.com/au...head_of_wh.html

[Mikey 16,566]

Light years ahead is definitely where we need to be!

I think I had 12 linebackers at one time last year in spring ball, full speed, and this year, the most I ever had was six," Johnson said in June.

That's progress! 12, or even nine, is not a workable number. Six now, something can be done with six.

[Dom1ni0n 51]

Finally some needed depth and size at this position. Expecting big things from Cass and Frost as starters as well as Swain off the bench.

[AUcivE09 582]

Cass and Frost looked like LB's on the field last year and made some great plays at times. They just didnt seem to have the needed discipline 100% of the time. IF they can get anywhere near the football discipline Josh Bynes had then we could be looking at our best LB corp since the 2008 defense.

[aucanucktiger 1,791]

Light years ahead is definitely where we need to be!

I think I had 12 linebackers at one time last year in spring ball, full speed, and this year, the most I ever had was six," Johnson said in June.

That's progress! 12, or even nine, is not a workable number. Six now, something can be done with six.

uh...what?

[gravejd 3,270]

First time these guys have played in the same D in back to back seasons. Amazing how KNOWING what you should do instead of THINKING about what you should do can help a defence out. I'm betting on major improvements across the board on D just because the guys know what they should be doing.

[auburntiger1987 759]

Light years ahead is definitely where we need to be!

I think I had 12 linebackers at one time last year in spring ball, full speed, and this year, the most I ever had was six," Johnson said in June.

That's progress! 12, or even nine, is not a workable number. Six now, something can be done with six.

uh...what?

Too many hands in the cookie jar. Trying to find the right combo with 12 guys is hard. A 3 deep at both LB's provides depth and a direction

[McLoofus 35,182]

Light years ahead is definitely where we need to be!

I think I had 12 linebackers at one time last year in spring ball, full speed, and this year, the most I ever had was six," Johnson said in June.

That's progress! 12, or even nine, is not a workable number. Six now, something can be done with six.

uh...what?

Too many hands in the cookie jar. Trying to find the right combo with 12 guys is hard. A 3 deep at both LB's provides depth and a direction

Also, in case canuck was curious about Mikey's previously stated concerns about numbers, he's made a good point that 9-12 LBs on the roster means nothing. If you DO have that many guys who are truly in the mix, that means that the top guys aren't significantly better than the bottom guys. Unless you have 9-12 blue chip LBs on your roster (read: you don't), then no separation between the top and the bottom is bad.

Having 6 LBs on the roster who have separated themselves from the pack, though, is progress. And it will allow CEJ to focus on coaching those guys up and getting them a few more reps, as '87 said. This is where another year in the system, familiarity between coaches and personnel, athletic ability and football IQ all start to become a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.

I'm sure we'll still be found wanting a bit at the end of the season, but this is great news. This isn't loudmouth Trooper Taylor claiming that DeAngelo Benton will break all of Auburn's receiving records. Gus is not prone to hyperbole.

So Cass and Frost are two of the six. Who are the next four? Swain, Flowers, Garrett, Mitchell, Toney, Williams and/or Davis? It will be a luxury if we get to redshirt Davis.

[1TexasTiger 55]

But I thought we needed more linebackers? It seems to me that Ellis is saying they needed a chance to develop in the system.

[gravejd 3,270]

I didn't read Ellis's comments as he had 6 that separated themselves. Just that he didn't have more than 6 available at any given time. In other words....not a good thing! I believe Flowers, Mitchell, Swain all missed the entire spring and Cass missed must of it if not all.

[McLoofus 35,182]

I didn't read Ellis's comments as he had 6 that separated themselves. Just that he didn't have more than 6 available at any given time. In other words....not a good thing! I believe Flowers, Mitchell, Swain all missed the entire spring and Cass missed must of it if not all.

Yeah, I re-read and I think you're right. Just hearing what I want to hear, I suppose

Still, Gus's comments remain encouraging.

[auburntiger1987 759]

Being light-years ahead of where you were cant even be read as bad. But whatever floats your boat.

[N2AUtigers 5]

Just an injury prone position. 6 is not great but not extremely bad when you only play two at a time. I Think if the top two and 3 out of the remaining 4 stay healthy, I think we may actually be proud of our LBs at the end of the year. Been a minute since that's happened .