D'Antoine Hood Gone

[BZ770]

http://www.auburnundercover.com/news/articles/2010/7/6/auburn-cornerback-is-leaving-the-program

Our Secondary was already thin.  Hope the Freshmen can step it up.

[Townhallsavoy]

Well, Mr Hood.  You final Auburn memory will be loafing off of the field only to be benched in a classic (if meaningless) bowl victory over the academic powerhouse Northwestern. 

[GH2001]

Just couldn't cut the mustard like Cousin Rod. I hate that he is from my HS as well.

[JR4AU]

Dude was a special teamer/nickle back.  Hate it when we lose any kidk, but probably best for all parties concerned. 

[djsimp]

It is what it is but I hate it for him. Like said, we really didn't need to lose any from the Secondary. I am wondering now if D Washington will stay at LB.

[Snaggletiger]

It is what it is but I hate it for him. Like said, we really didn't need to lose any from the Secondary. I am wondering now if D Washington will stay at LB.

D. Washington is a little light for teh backers, wouldn't you say? 

Besides, we didn't need him anyway.  We're rolling 10 deep....wait, what?

[djsimp]

D. Washington is a little light for teh backers, wouldn't you say? 

Besides, we didn't need him anyway.  We're rolling 10 deep....wait, what?

Wasn't it Washington who the coaches were moving up LB from the secondary? Now that Hood is gone, I would be willing to bet that this will change.

[Aubie16]

Wasn't it Washington who the coaches were moving up LB from the secondary? Now that Hood is gone, I would be willing to bet that this will change.

No. Demond Washington has always been in the secondary. He played a little Safety last year but I think he'll be a starting corner this year.

Darren Bates moved up to LB this spring and I suspect he will still stay there. He can play the Anterrius Williams role that Gene Chizik loves.

[JR4AU]

No. Demond Washington has always been in the secondary. He played a little Safety last year but I think he'll be a starting corner this year.

Darren Bates moved up to LB this spring and I suspect he will still stay there. He can play the Anterrius Williams role that Gene Chizik loves.

Don't know when it was updated, but Bates is still listed on the roster as a DB on the 2010 spring roster.  My personal feeling is that he'll be a DB, and the LB depth will come from the incoming Fr.  JMHO, YMMV.

[GH2001]

Don't know when it was updated, but Bates is still listed on the roster as a DB on the 2010 spring roster.  My personal feeling is that he'll be a DB, and the LB depth will come from the incoming Fr.  JMHO, YMMV.

I concur with this.

[djsimp]

Darren Bates moved up to LB this spring and I suspect he will still stay there. He can play the Anterrius Williams role that Gene Chizik loves.

There we go. So you don't think after Hoods departure that the coaches will re-think this move?

[JR4AU]

I concur with this.

It has been my hope that Auburn will get away from the 200lb LB of the Tuberville era, and with Bynes and Freeman we seem headed that way, along with those in the 2010 class.  

From the 2010 class (don't get too excited if I've missed some big news on one or two of these names), I think the depth issue at LB and DB has been somewhat addressed:

LBs: Jessel Curry 6'2" 215, Jake Holland 6'1" 228, LaDarius Owens 6'2" 225, Jawara White 6'2" 220.  (none of these guys fits that previous mold of a Safety playing LB.  I think they may have tried Bates out in the spring simply because some of these kids weren't on campus yet.  At a minimum, I think Jake Holland contributes immediately.  

Athletes that are potential DBs: Ryan White 6'0" 185, Ryan Smith 6'2" 208, Trovon Reed 6'0" 173, Shaun Kitchens 6'3" 211, Chris Davis 5'11" 175,

DBs:  Demetruce McNeal 6'1" 176, Jonathon Mincy 5'10" 175

If 3 or 4 of the above can CONTRIBUTE this season we'll be MUCH better off.  
 

[Aubie16]

There we go. So you don't think after Hoods departure that the coaches will re-think this move?

No I think playing as a coverage linebacker in Chizik's Cover 2 is his true calling. People talk about Tuberville's small linebackers, but that was very much a Chizik thing as well. I think in Chizik's perfect linebacking corp, you have 2 bigger guys and one smaller, faster linebacker. Think Antrerius Williams, Mayo Sowell type.

Bates had a phenomenal freshman year for what he was forced to do but the fact is he was out of position a couple times as a safety. He is very aggressive at the point of attack and that can play perfectly as the coverage linebacker. Once he continues to add some weight, he can be the guy that can cover the 3rd or 4th receiver, but can also step up in run support.

[Godfather]

No I think playing as a coverage linebacker in Chizik's Cover 2 is his true calling. People talk about Tuberville's small linebackers, but that was very much a Chizik thing as well.

Bates had a phenomenal freshman year for what he was forced to do but the fact is he was out of position a couple times as a safety. He is very aggressive at the point of attack and that can play perfectly as the coverage linebacker. Once he continues to add some weight, he can be the guy that can cover the 3rd or 4th receiver, but can also step up in run support.

Think Karlos Dansby. (One of my all time favorite players BTW)

[JR4AU]

No I think playing as a coverage linebacker in Chizik's Cover 2 is his true calling. People talk about Tuberville's small linebackers, but that was very much a Chizik thing as well.

Bates had a phenomenal freshman year for what he was forced to do but the fact is he was out of position a couple times as a safety. He is very aggressive at the point of attack and that can play perfectly as the coverage linebacker. Once he continues to add some weight, he can be the guy that can cover the 3rd or 4th receiver, but can also step up in run support.

I guess we could quibble over terminology...Darren Bates will be a Safety/Nickel Back.  In Nickel Defenses he'll sometimes be in basically a hybrid NB/LB role.  He'll still be a DB, but a DB with strong run support ability and assigment.  A role necessitated by today's spread offenses.  He will not be playing a true LB position in the base 4-3 unless we're severly injury depleted. 

[Aubie16]

I guess we could quibble over terminology...Darren Bates will be a Safety/Nickel Back.  In Nickel Defenses he'll sometimes be in basically a hybrid NB/LB role.  He'll still be a DB, but a DB with strong run support ability and assigment.  A role necessitated by today's spread offenses.  He will not be playing a true LB position in the base 4-3 unless we're severly injury depleted.  

We'll just disagree. We won't find out til fall practice and to a certain extent the first game but I believe when we are in our 4-3 Tampa 2 defense we'll see Stevens, Bynes, Bates and Freeman rotating as our main linebackers.

[JR4AU]

We'll just disagree. We won't find out til fall practice and to a certain extent the first game but I believe when we are in our 4-3 Tampa 2 defense we'll see Stevens, Bynes, Bates and Freeman rotating as our main linebackers.

Like I said, semantics.  Call him a linebacker, nickelback, safety, or fucking unicorn, I don't give a shit.  I've read all the things the coaches said about the move.  "Linebacker with a nickel mentality"  "Chizik said the team plans to play him in what will largely be a linebacker position this season."  

Here's the thing...all of the things talk about coverage responsibility.  In the run game there are 8 gaps to defend.  Almost nobody plays a true "2 gap" 34 anymore, meaning having DLs responsible for playing their man head up, and accounting for gaps on both sides of him.  Saban's vaunted 3-4 defense is more a hybrid 3-4/4-3.  So, names of positions are largely a matter of preference rather than actual function.  So, whether you call it a 3-3, 3-5, 3-4, 4-3, or 4-4, you have to have gap responsibility for each gap.  Since most defenses have 7 DL's and LBs total, then that extra player has to come from somewhere other than the front 7.  Usually a Safety.  Even if you're in a Nickel Package, you still have to account for all the run gaps, someone has to play contain on the backside and force in the ally.   In pass coverage, you have a man, or a zone responsibility.  It's not all that complicated.

Back to the original point of the thread...I doubt we miss Hood too much.  

[Aubie16]

It's not really semantics when you say:

He will not be playing a true LB position in the base 4-3 unless we're severly injury depleted. 

and I disagree. I think he will play a true LB position in the base 4-3 regardless of injuries. No big deal though, just a simple disagreement.

[JR4AU]

It's not really semantics when you say:

and I disagree. I think he will play a true LB position in the base 4-3 regardless of injuries. No big deal though, just a simple disagreement.

Yes, I was saying he won't be playing a true LB spot.  But whatever.  If it makes you happy to call him a true 4-3 LB, then by all means, have at. Just curious, is he going to be playing Sam, Mike, or Will?

[Godfather]

Ah San Diego...Drink it in, it always goes down smooth. Discovered by the Germans in 1904, they named it San Diego, which of course in German means "a whale's vagina".