Defensive Front Ready to Shake Things Up

Antoine Smith was adamant about one fact: His defensive line was going to be active.

Colorado State's defensive line coach has not let up one bit, and, in fact, he's only grown more certain. Even through just seven spring practices he liked what he saw. He's liked it even more through summer work and heading into Thursday's season opener on the road at Fresno State.

The reason he's so confident stems from why the players are so confident.

"Coach Smith. It's his personality," defensive end Scott Patchan said. "He doesn't' change. He's the same person every day, and we've got to bring it every day too. He's a technician too. That's the whole reason I came here, to be with him."

It was a group which showed signs of improvement at the end of 2019, but Smith wants more. Much more. While the defense allowed fewer than 400 yards of total offense in each of the final seven games, they still finished ranked 104^th in rush defense, allowing 195.8 yards per game. Three of the final seven games the Rams allowed at least 190 yards on the ground, and twice they surrendered 91.

The 29 sacks were good for 47^th in the country, but the 68 tackles for loss ranked just 83^rd. Just from what they are being taught, the group can sense a difference which can lead to positive changes.

"Most definitely. I feel we are way more aggressive, way more sound up front," Ellison Hubbard said. "I think he's done a good job coaching us hard to get us where we are. He's pushing us to that max, where we're like, you know what? We need to play harder, because last year on film we just looked very soft.

"I think this system has us to be more aggressive. Now it's the defensive line, you get back there however you can, whether it's blowing people up or doing a game, whatever."

There are changes in personnel, too. Manny Jones is now playing inside, rather than at end. Patchen has been added to the mix after his stint at Miami, and the use of the Fox creates a hybrid end/linebacker who can put his hand in the ground or drop in coverage.

Mostly, it's the change in attitude. The goal is to have the offense playing behind the chains after every snap, and Patchan said the mental approach is just as important as what Smith is teaching them. Mix them together, and the transfer can see chaos ahead.

"It's more of an attacking front. I think it plays out a lot more to our advantage of just getting off the ball and being aggressive. I like it a lot," Patchan said. "You reset the line of scrimmage, so you're making it a different game. You're wreaking havoc on the offensive line, so you're really causing a lot of confusion up front. There are a lot of benefits to it."

The style is one of the reasons head coach Steve Addazio added Smith to his staff, and like the position coach, he's growing more impressed with what he's seen in practice.

Now he's excited to see it in action against a Bulldogs offense which was limited to 156 yards on the ground in a 34-19 loss to Hawaii, allowing three sacks.

"I think we have one of the best defensive fronts for sure in this conference. I think it's outstanding," he said. "These are talented guys. They're tough, and I think Antoine's done a great job to continue to develop them. I'm very excited about our defensive front. We can rush the quarterback, we have good pass rushers, we're good against the run and we have a little bit of depth."

Hubbard was one who felt the defensive line a year ago made some gains, but just not enough. He's no longer looking at what the ceiling may be for the Rams up front. No, the sky is the limit in his eyes.

What they expected to show against New Mexico just had to wait another week, but the anticipation has only grown with the extra time to prepare. When you want to prove something, there is no time like the present.

And Hubbard, he's confident the Rams will like what they see, because he assures folks this is not the same defensive front.

"I believe we're going to create a lot of chaos up front," he said. "People are going to be like, 'what D-line is this?' This is a whole new mentality. An attacking, aggressive, penetrating front is what we are."

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