Central Michigan University Athletics
Robb Akey is in his third season as CMU's defensive coordinator.
Photo by: Andy Sneddon
On Defense, It's About Putting The Pieces Together
8/19/2021 11:51:00 AM | Football
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – Schemes, talent, experience, and game plans are one thing.
Heart and mojo are something else.
A good defense has all of those ingredients and more. And if there's a football axiom that is as true today as it was going all the way back to the days of Amos Alonzo Stagg, it's that championship teams are strong defensively.
"We've got all the pieces, there's no doubt about that," senior safety Alonzo McCoy said. "We've just got to focus on the details."
The Chippewas ranked eighth in the 12-team Mid-American Conference in total defense last season and surrendered a league-worst 297.2 passing yards per game.
Certainly, there were defensive highlights. CMU ranked second in the league with eight interceptions, was third with 18 sacks, and held opponents to a league-low 3.1 yards-per-carry average. The Chippewas also return MAC co-Defensive Player of the Year Troy Hairston II along with outside linebacker Troy Brown, one of the league's top talents.
All that said, the Chippewas need to improve on defense if they hope to contend in 2021.
"I can make it real simple: our pass defense stuggled last year; that's the bottom line," defensive coordinator Robb Akey said.
A lot of it, Akey said, is simple heart and aggression and putting in an honest day's work at practice in the dog days of August. No cheating, no shortcuts.
"Coach Akey really instills that we really have to fly to the ball and play with our heads on fire basically," senior safety Gage Kreski said. "The whole defense has that and if everyone's flying around and getting to the ball it's hard to lose. It's the heart (that) you bring to the table too."
The Chippewas, who open the season on Sept. 4 with a nonconference game at Missouri, are no different from any other team in the nation. They have identified where they need to improve and now it's a matter of fine-tuning and putting in the work.
"Everybody in the country's doing it, but it doesn't mean everybody in the country's doing it great," Akey said. "It's still a work in progress; I love the way our guys work, and I like the way they go about it.
"I know I've got a bunch of dudes who can play and the ones who can play are going to play and the ones who aren't ready yet, we've got to get them ready."
Heart and mojo are something else.
A good defense has all of those ingredients and more. And if there's a football axiom that is as true today as it was going all the way back to the days of Amos Alonzo Stagg, it's that championship teams are strong defensively.
"We've got all the pieces, there's no doubt about that," senior safety Alonzo McCoy said. "We've just got to focus on the details."
The Chippewas ranked eighth in the 12-team Mid-American Conference in total defense last season and surrendered a league-worst 297.2 passing yards per game.
Certainly, there were defensive highlights. CMU ranked second in the league with eight interceptions, was third with 18 sacks, and held opponents to a league-low 3.1 yards-per-carry average. The Chippewas also return MAC co-Defensive Player of the Year Troy Hairston II along with outside linebacker Troy Brown, one of the league's top talents.
All that said, the Chippewas need to improve on defense if they hope to contend in 2021.
"I can make it real simple: our pass defense stuggled last year; that's the bottom line," defensive coordinator Robb Akey said.
A lot of it, Akey said, is simple heart and aggression and putting in an honest day's work at practice in the dog days of August. No cheating, no shortcuts.
"Coach Akey really instills that we really have to fly to the ball and play with our heads on fire basically," senior safety Gage Kreski said. "The whole defense has that and if everyone's flying around and getting to the ball it's hard to lose. It's the heart (that) you bring to the table too."
The Chippewas, who open the season on Sept. 4 with a nonconference game at Missouri, are no different from any other team in the nation. They have identified where they need to improve and now it's a matter of fine-tuning and putting in the work.
"Everybody in the country's doing it, but it doesn't mean everybody in the country's doing it great," Akey said. "It's still a work in progress; I love the way our guys work, and I like the way they go about it.
"I know I've got a bunch of dudes who can play and the ones who can play are going to play and the ones who aren't ready yet, we've got to get them ready."
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