New Approach Brings About Different Outlook

FORT COLLINS, Colo. – They were there from start to finish.

No matter how many plays there were on defense, the main quad on the Colorado State defensive front were in the game the bulk of the time. The group of Scott Patchan, Toby McBride, Manny Jones and Devin Phillips accounted for 47 starts, only McBride missing one.

Their backups played in a total of 32 games, including Mohamed Kamara, who was used as a pass-rush specialist and was the only one to appear in all 12 contests. Next on the list was James Mitchell, who played in nine games. Cam Bariteau appeared in six.

The starters were productive, leading the charge in terms of tackles for loss and sacks. But by the end of the season, all those snaps seemed to take a toll. Colorado State's defense surrendered 1,128 rushing yards the final four games.

Times are about to change.

"We rotate a lot of guys. We'll rotate nine, 10, 11 guys," defensive coordinator Freddie Banks said. "Our starters will be our starters, but we want our starters to be able to play hard and be able to finish in the fourth quarter. There's nothing like having another fresh dude coming in, knowing he's only getting two reps.

"Mukendi Wa-Kalonji gets two hard reps and if you screw up, you ain't going back in, but the tackle has to deal with those two hard reps, and then here comes Mo again. We want to play as many guys on the D-line who are ready, and we feel we have a bunch of guys that are ready."

The position room is one where the outside world looked in and felt the program had taken a critical hit, as only Phillips returns as a starter. The new staff came in, took a look around and is finding ways to use people. It may only be for a couple of snaps, maybe up to 20, but they add up by subtracting from the starter's workload.

Even if it's just a particular skill, it will help. Banks said Brandon Hickerson-Rooks kept telling he and defensive line coach Buddha Williams he as a good pass rusher. They tried him out and found out he wasn't lying. Just doing that, he can take a bit of the workload off of a CJ Onyechi or a Kamara, and their snaps later on just may be more effective.

Onyechi, who transferred in from Rutgers, said the theory is not just sound, but proven. If they ask him to play 70- snaps, he'll do it, but honestly, he said those final few may not be all he's got, or even all somebody else could give.

"The benefit of having fresh guys is you can always have a fresh pass rush in the game. In this league, there's a lot of run-heavy teams, but there are some pass-heavy teams," he said. "We need to have fresh pass rushers to go in, and I feel the young guys are doing their part to step in because they want to get on the field.

"I mean, I'll do whatever for the team. If I need to play quarterback, I'm going. But I feel having a rotation, one, takes a lot of pressure off me because I can't perform at 100 percent all game. My 75 percent will probably not be better than another guy's 100 percent, so I feel that rotation is very beneficial to us being a successful team."

Finding this out in the spring, there were a lot of younger defensive linemen in the program who were rejuvenated. Show somebody possible playing time, they're going to be energized. It's the dangling carrot which pushes them harder.

For Grady Kelly, who appeared in the final two games, the possibility meant everything to him.

"I would like to say I've always practiced the same, but I think there definitely is a different edge when you know you're truly training your body to compete against high level players, and you're training your body not just for yourself, but for your team," the redshirt freshman said. "I'd like to say I've always trained the same, but in the back of my mind there probably is a little more pep in my step, to be honest."

They'll need it, because like last year's scheme, the defensive line is expected to be chaotic. There will be clogging of gaps to allow linebackers to flow. They are expected to beat blockers, even double teams, and be in the backfield to chase down quarterbacks and alter the path of running backs.

Under Williams, they're hearing a new voice, and the techniques he's showing them have enlightened some of their play. For Kelly, it's his second teacher; Onyechi believes he's had a different position coach just about every year. Still, both of them feel their game has been altered by Williams' teaching.

For Onyechi, it was as fundamental as rebuilding confidence. For Kelly, it was pretty much fundamentals.

"Buddha has done so much from the smallest things, like tweaking my stance in the slightest way so my get-off is so much faster, to how to follow through with my eyes when I throw moves in my pass rush and how to get off with different techniques in taking double teams," Kelly said. "Every day it's like learning so much stuff and gaining so much knowledge from him. It's crazy."

Banks rattled off names of the players who he felt provided depth. It was the regular suspects, and it included Mitchell and Bariteau, who will be expected to play bigger roles. Hickerson-Rooks, who was getting lost in the shuffle at linebacker, now has a role. He said Wa-Kalonji, a redshirt freshman, has had a tremendous camp.

Banks is excited about the depth of the unit, and they've all seen plenty of practice time. Not just in groups, but mixed and matched. That's how it will happen in a game and having experience playing along side each other is just as important for them as it is for an offensive line trying to become tied together.

On top of that, Onyechi feels the group brings an element which will be tough to handle.

"I feel a lot of people communicate different, which is important to know. Some guys are kind of mute out there, and it's not bad, because they're locked in," he said. "Some guys are outspoken and want to know what you're doing, and I feel we have a good grasp of that now going into the season.

"I commend that last D-line; I know they did good things. One thing I can say, our speed is our main thing. We aren't as heavy at end, and our interior guys are like blazers. I'm racing Dev every day, and he's right there on my hip or beating me. We have a lot of speed on our D-line, and I think that's one thing that will surprise a lot of people in the Mountain West and lead to a great season."

In a few months' time, a supposed weakness is now being looked at as a valued group. It's beauty in the eye of the beholder. It's a change in the thought process. Start to finish, Banks is a firm believer the Rams will be better off at the end of the game and the end of the season.

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