And now, the defense.
Defensive Line:
Great game all in all, evidenced by the -1.1 yards a carry the SELA Lions put up. Led by James McClinton and his 5 tackles, who also had 3 for a loss along with a sack and a QB hurry. Frankly, he was all over the backfield, and combined with Todd Haselhorst (1 tackle for an 8 yard loss and 2 QB hurries) formed a solid duo inside. On the outside, John Larson had another great day (5 tackles, 2 for a loss) and Max Onyegbule had a sack for a safety as a speed rusher coming off the end, plus another 3 tackles (1.5 more for a loss). Russell Brorsen (4 tackles, .5 for a loss) and Jake Laptad (3 tackles, 1.5 for a loss) both put up solid efforts in garbage time.
Grade: A+
Linebackers:
Joe Mortensen is a player, in case you were unaware. He cranked out another game on Saturday and is quickly becoming both the leader and best player on this defense. Most press is devoted to Aqib Talib, McClinton and even fellow LBer MIke Rivera, but I Mortensen just might be the best of the bunch. He had 9 tackles, 3.5 of them behind the line of scrimmage, and was all over the field consistently. His partner in crime, Rivera, played pretty well himself notching 5 tackles, 1.5 of them for a loss, and a sack. James Holt had 5 tackles himself, 2 of them behind the line.
Grade: A+
Secondary:
Another defensive unit, another stellar performance. No interceptions this week, but DE Jake Laptad did have a pass-breakup. In the secondary, AT played great as usual, making 4 tackles and allowing few balls to be caught while he was covering them. Brian Seymour, a safety, posted 3 tackles as well, along with the combination of CB Chris Harris, CB Anthony Wright and S Patrick Resby posting 7 tackles. The depth those three provide is very important to our defense, all our young (Resby is the oldest, and he is a JUCO transfer and new to the system) and will lead our secondary in the coming years, so they need to play this year. Harris is currently starting opposite Talib, with Wright and Resby playing in reserve roles.
Grade: A
Tremendous defensive output overall. I will put up My Top 25 a little later on tonight, and then starting tomorrow we are concerned with the Toledo Rockets. The Rockets are 0-2, losing to the Purdue Boilermakers and the Central Michigan Chippewas. Yes, the same CMU team we dominated 52-7. It figures to be another blowout, although they did win last year.
ROCK CHALK!