Why don't our DB's turn around and look for the ball?

[FollowTheLeader]

I've been patiently waiting for someone to step up and answer this simple question.

There's always a thread talking about how terrible the dbs are and they never look back for the ball and that's a coaching problem and not a talent problem and Martinez can't coach and Banks is terrible because you never saw that from a defense before he got here and blah, blah, blah.....

Any former DB's on here willing to answer this? Or how about some folks that remember what it was like playing as a kid and running from something? Or how about somebody that ran track as a sport of choice?

What happens when you look back? Does it effect your speed or balance? Of course it does. And if you don't understand it, Google it. There's thousands of articles on football DB play and turning back for the ball. Sure great DBs with tons of speed can do and inecept the ball and thats fun to watch, but it's a problem that has ALWAYS been a discussion in college football.....it's nothing new.

If you don't have the speed to keep up with someone you're chasing down, looking back slows you down and you run the risk getting beat. If you're already not keeping up with the receiver, you don't look back

I know some of y'all need to keep finding excuses to justify your calls for Banks and Martinez to be fired, but find some legit reasons that are not reasons that plagued football for years.

And based on all the heat that's on Milton right now, I thought we blame the kids for not playing up to the standard, not the coaches who are supposed to develop them.

 

[supersmo18]

I've been patiently waiting for someone to step up and answer this simple question.

Then you haven't been paying attention. It's because Willie Martinez is a garbage DB coach, and that's been said MULTIPLE times in MULTIPLE threads. He's had this pattern everywhere he's coached. He keeps getting hired, fired, and re-hired, all with the same results. I do not understand .

 

[VAWL FAN]

Our dbs on deep routes are very often with the receivers when the ball gets there.I don't think it's a speed issue in most cases but more a technique and lack of instincts issue.

 

[K-town Vol Fan]

Could be they are instead teaching them to watch for their hands to start going into the catching motion and then trying to rake their hands. Nothing wrong with this technique but it leaves you vulnerable to PI calls and obviously won't get as many ints.

 

[Jauan't Some?]

I think it's a matter of the athleticism/confidence of the individual players and the technique that is coached.

It's obvious that if a DB does not have confidence in his ability to stay in phase without having eyes on the receiver, then he will be hesitant to turn his head for fear of getting burned. On the other hand, an overconfident DB can be just as bad. Hadden's recent play has been less confident and it's caused him to miss some opportunities. While a guy like Slaughter played with a ton of confidence last year and had mixed results. We all remember him making highlight plays like the high-point interception against Kentucky last year, but some receivers were able to use his overconfidence to their advantage and make him bite on double moves and such.

I recently read some coaching material from a DB camp that specifically teaches DBs to keep their eyes on the WR and read his cues in order to react to a ball in the air, sometimes you'll hear this referred to as "playing through the receiver's hands". It's a constant battle between DBs and WRs trying to read one another's cues to anticipate what their next move should be. The best receivers can trick a DB with their eyes and hands into not reacting to a ball in the air. I don't know if Martinez explicitly coaches his guys to play this way, but it definitely seems like some of them are attempting this technique.

It all looks very simple from the comfort of your couch on saturdays, but these guys are playing constant mind games to gain advantages.

 

[Volfan76]

EZ

 

[BanditVol]

Then you haven't been paying attention. It's because Willie Martinez is a garbage DB coach, and that's been said MULTIPLE times in MULTIPLE threads. He's had this pattern everywhere he's coached. He keeps getting hired, fired, and re-hired, all with the same results. I do not understand .

Is he a good recruiter?

 

[DaddyChad]

Is he a good recruiter?

He’s not that good!

 

[Alumni_06]

Is anyone friends with any of the reporters? This would be a great question to have them ask when given the opportunity

 

[Tman44]

Why don't they turn around?

Willie Martinez loves to tell his DBs the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. Salty.

 

[fossilfiction]

Dead ass serious they look like this in coverage at times

 

[JoeMiltonsAgent]

2018 UCF 211ypg 50th

2019 UCF 199 ypg 26th

2020 UCF 299 ypg 121st

2021 273 ypg 90th

2022 289 ypg 127th

2023 177 ypg 31st ( albeit a small sample thus far against UVA AP and a FL that didnt need many forward passes to win)

I've not seen a defense yet that has Martinez associated with it crack the top 20 in pass defense.


Flirted with it a couple times when he was here with Jones. Teams ran the ball so well against the Vols under Jones they generally didn't need to pass as much though.

Thats my excuse for wanting Martinez gone.

Beyond that, seeing mind numbing mistakes by his position group in the form of either blown coverages, lousy tackling, or lacking the general instict of looking for the ball in the air. These seem to happen on a weekly basis and get highlighted since they are the last line of the defense.

 

[volroadwarrior]

So predictable. Lose a game. Find scapegoat. Fahr Martinez. Fahr Banks. Fahr Joe. Fahr Huepel. Fahr.................................. Yes we know the drill.

 

[Memphisvol87]

So predictable. Lose a game. Find scapegoat. Fahr Martinez. Fahr Banks. Fahr Joe. Fahr Huepel. Fahr.................................. Yes we know the drill.

this is the rare occasion volnation is right about. He’s got a history of this and already failed once here. Our dbs are not being coached correctly and it shows.

 

[vegasvolfan]

I've been patiently waiting for someone to step up and answer this simple question.

There's always a thread talking about how terrible the dbs are and they never look back for the ball and that's a coaching problem and not a talent problem and Martinez can't coach and Banks is terrible because you never saw that from a defense before he got here and blah, blah, blah.....

Any former DB's on here willing to answer this? Or how about some folks that remember what it was like playing as a kid and running from something? Or how about somebody that ran track as a sport of choice?

What happens when you look back? Does it effect your speed or balance? Of course it does. And if you don't understand it, Google it. There's thousands of articles on football DB play and turning back for the ball. Sure great DBs with tons of speed can do and inecept the ball and thats fun to watch, but it's a problem that has ALWAYS been a discussion in college football.....it's nothing new.

If you don't have the speed to keep up with someone you're chasing down, looking back slows you down and you run the risk getting beat. If you're already not keeping up with the receiver, you don't look back

I know some of y'all need to keep finding excuses to justify your calls for Banks and Martinez to be fired, but find some legit reasons that are not reasons that plagued football for years.

And based on all the heat that's on Milton right now, I thought we blame the kids for not playing up to the standard, not the coaches who are supposed to develop them.

Pretty sure that’s been said for the past 2 years.

 

[lifeisdeep]

2018 UCF 211ypg 50th

2019 UCF 199 ypg 26th

2020 UCF 299 ypg 121st

2021 273 ypg 90th

2022 289 ypg 127th

2023 177 ypg 31st ( albeit a small sample thus far against UVA AP and a FL that didnt need many forward passes to win)

I've not seen a defense yet that has Martinez associated with it crack the top 20 in pass defense.


Flirted with it a couple times when he was here with Jones. Teams ran the ball so well against the Vols under Jones they generally didn't need to pass as much though.

Thats my excuse for wanting Martinez gone.

Beyond that, seeing mind numbing mistakes by his position group in the form of either blown coverages, lousy tackling, or lacking the general instict of looking for the ball in the air. These seem to happen on a weekly basis and get highlighted since they are the last line of the defense.

Don’t you know? Coaches can’t be expected to actually teach the players anything or bring in better players. They’re just getting paid millions to hang out with them and cheer them up when we’re getting our asses handed to us.

 

[Woodlawn VOL]

We need to find a Db coach that teaches playing the ball and getting interceptions. All that keeping head down and watching arms gets you is a penalty. Our secondary doesn’t make many interceptions because we don’t find the ball. We don’t jump routes. If a DB is running stride for stride with a wide receiver 30-40 yards downfield he needs to look for the ball. When your not looking to make a play on the ball and you touch him much at all your getting flagged. If you are making a play on the ball you are givin more leeway by the refs generally. Also if you are not looking and the throw is a little short the wide receiver will stop or slightly come back for the ball and the DB will run right into the receiver and get flagged. When if you were looking for the ball it would be a easy interception. This actually happened to us once in the Virginia game. Like I said, Heupel needs to tell Martinez to change techniques, his is not working. GBO

 

[The Tall Gguy]

Same question I've asked for 20+ years

 

[OrangeEtBlanc]

I find our lack of interceptions the past 2 years to be concerning. We just don’t seem to have any ballhawks who can make a big play. I feel like we are going with a “bend don’t break” philosophy, but that only works when they force the FG instead of TD and when the O isn’t flailing so badly that our tired Defense isn’t right back on the field after a long previous drive.

 

[BruisedOrange]

Even back in the early '70s when less than 1/3rd of our plays were passes, and me playing at a low high school level, whenever I was running a double-move route, I would bring my eyes up toward an imaginary ball and start lifting my hands to make the defender turn to look for the pass before making my second cut. And I think I learned that from an article about Lance "Bambi" Alworth in the mid-60s!

If you imagine how much more sophisticated receivers and defenders and offenses and defenses are today, 50+ years later, then everyone should be able to appreciate the OP's point.

I do think a rule change is in order when a defender runs into the receiver on a severely underthrown pass. Tough judgement call sometimes, but no way an offense should get bonus points for terrible execution.

 

[djwes]

Its poor corner technique, when I have kids that can match up (typically my best 2 defensive athletes) we will try to jam their preferred receivers hard off the line, (combing with aggressive line pressure to force a faster decision by the opposing QB), get in sync and get their head turned when the receiver makes their move. I coach the light hand contact when turning and key is to get their arms up and out toward the ball. Tends to minimize the PI calls against us and we pick up a few OPIs when receivers get handsy.

We spend a lot of time on pedal technique, good hip turn and quick accelerating while tracking the ball.

If they have a really speedy wide out we will play a little of a cushion, work not biting on the early part of the route but still same basic technique.

 

[cherokeeeVOL]

Discussed here a good bit: Our DB's are going to have to learn to look back

 

[VolForLife83]

I think it's a matter of the athleticism/confidence of the individual players and the technique that is coached.

It's obvious that if a DB does not have confidence in his ability to stay in phase without having eyes on the receiver, then he will be hesitant to turn his head for fear of getting burned. On the other hand, an overconfident DB can be just as bad. Hadden's recent play has been less confident and it's caused him to miss some opportunities. While a guy like Slaughter played with a ton of confidence last year and had mixed results. We all remember him making highlight plays like the high-point interception against Kentucky last year, but some receivers were able to use his overconfidence to their advantage and make him bite on double moves and such.

I recently read some coaching material from a DB camp that specifically teaches DBs to keep their eyes on the WR and read his cues in order to react to a ball in the air, sometimes you'll hear this referred to as "playing through the receiver's hands". It's a constant battle between DBs and WRs trying to read one another's cues to anticipate what their next move should be. The best receivers can trick a DB with their eyes and hands into not reacting to a ball in the air. I don't know if Martinez explicitly coaches his guys to play this way, but it definitely seems like some of them are attempting this technique.

It all looks very simple from the comfort of your couch on saturdays, but these guys are playing constant mind games to gain advantages.

Too much of a coincidence with Martinez and our dbs doing this under him. Surely thre aren't thre only dbs UT recruits

 

[sgtwebb1]

As a former high school DB, I can tell you it boils down to coaching.
Of course, opponents coaches & players watch game film.
Of course, they scheme their play-calling to take advantage of the other teams weaknesses & tendencies.
Our DB's tend to stay tight on WR's, and obviously aren't trained to turn to look for the ball, or watch the WR's eyes for the "turn signal" as my DB coach used to call it.
Therefore, all the opposing WR/QB have to do is throw slightly short, and voila! Pass interference. Time & again we see it.
Prove me wrong.

 

[Pride85]

Hiw many time is this question going to be asked and answered by the numerous and very varied explanations. Every week it is asked. The reason is not going to change unless the basic philosophy of the DB coaching does, either changing coaching style or changing coach.