By human being standards, Devin Taylor was massive at the beginning of last season – 6-7 and 248 pounds. It was his junior year as a South Carolina defensive end and second year as a full-time starter. He had six sacks and 8½ tackles for loss last season, after having 7½ and 13 as a sophomore, and his career totals increased to 15½ sacks and 27 tackles for loss.
Taylor currently is tied for fifth in USC history in sacks and ninth in tackles for loss. (Eric Norwood leads both categories, with 29 sacks and 54½ tackles for loss.) So from a success standpoint, it made sense that Taylor, who redshirted as a true freshman, considered skipping his fifth-year senior season and entering the 2012 NFL draft.
But by NFL defensive end standards, Taylor was not particularly massive at the beginning of last season. So, as USC defensive line coach Brad Lawing simply put it, “He came back to get bigger, which he needs to do.”
He did it. By the time spring practices rolled around, Taylor was listed at 6-8 and 267 pounds. In the bowl media guide, he was listed at 6-7 and 260, compared to 248 in the guide published before the season. Taylor is still listed at 6-8 and 267 – a positive sign for his pro prospects. He is currently ranked the No. 41 overall prospect, No. 8 defensive end and a projected second-round pick by NFLDraftScout.com.
He made the right decision in returning to school – while, as the draft and NFL training camps have showed, cornerback Stephon Gilmore and wide receiver Alshon Jeffery made the proper call in turning pro early. With a big senior year, Taylor could push himself into the first round, as fellow defensive end Melvin Ingram did last season, when he was also a fifth-year senior.
“I expect him to have a heck of a season,” Lawing said.
To prepare for it, Taylor said he added 30 pounds to his bench press and 40 to 50 to his squat.
“I’ve progressed tremendously, a lot more than even what I thought I was going to do,” he said.
Taylor could thrive in Lawing’s third-down alignments with three or even four defensive ends on the field at once. The three-end alignment with Ingram at tackle was effective last season, particularly because Jadeveon Clowney was the third end, making it impossible for opponents to effectively focus on Ingram, Clowney or Taylor, because the other two were so good.
“It pretty much just made more speed on the field,” Taylor said. “We’re already a fast front, and putting more defensive ends on the field made it just that much faster, which made it harder for teams to kind of ID someone or pick up and block us. I think what (Lawing) wants to do pretty much is put the best four athletes on the field to get after the quarterback.”
That is one way of putting it. Lawing stated it like this when talking about why he will probably rely on more ends (and their speed) during pass-rush situations rather than using a heavy “push-the-pocket guy” tackle, which is the role senior Travian Robertson occupied last year ...
“I’m going to change my philosophy a little bit this season,” Lawing said. “If you’ve got legs, you use legs. If you’ve got a big (butt), you use that (butt) and get push. So I’ve got some legs.”
Some other notes related to USC’s defensive line, which should be one of the Gamecocks’ strongest position groups and will try to give Vanderbilt quarterback Jordan Rodgers (Aaron’s younger brother) fits when the teams open the season next Thursday ...
** Taylor and Lawing said Clowney is doing a nice job of juggling his multiple roles. Lawing will use him as a traditional end, and also stand him up or put him at tackle in pass-rush situations. Last season, Clowney’s knowledge of the plays was lacking, which is typical for a true freshman.
“The difference between him last year to this year, as far as seeing everything now, is the game has much more slowed down to him,” Taylor said. “He’s able to read plays more and actually act off of it rather than probably just playing off of talent.”
Said Lawing: “He’s done good. And I have asked him (to do more). He was a freshman last year and when you’re a freshman, after the first two or three days, you’re like, ‘I didn’t even know this much football existed.’ It gets tough on them. I’ve always said it: When you slow the game down, then it becomes easier to play. When you’re unsure and things are happening for the first time, the game is so fast. I think the game has slowed down for him because he’s more confident in what he’s doing. He’s made a lot of strides, but we are asking him to do a lot.”
** The only true new starter on the defensive line is tackle Byron Jerideau. Yes, Clowney didn’t start at all last season, but he played in enough important situations to be considered a starter of sorts. Yes, tackle Kelcy Quarles didn’t start from the get-go, but he took over for the final six games of his true freshman season and had to learn on the fly.
“(Quarles’) fundamentals were very average last year,” Lawing said. “He was a true freshman, and early he was just trying to survive. He got better as the season went along and he became a starter. His production got better.”
** Lawing needs his backup ends, Chaz Sutton and converted tackle Aldrick Fordham (whose natural position is end), to be effective enough that they can play in the three- and four-end alignments during those pass-rush situations. Has Lawing seen enough from Sutton and Fordham to believe they can help USC in those spots?
“I’m hoping they can because I like to get speed on the field in passing situations,” Lawing said.
USC ranked No. 25 nationally last season with 31 sacks, and the trio of Ingram (10), Taylor (six) and Clowney (eight) were responsible for 24 of them. It will be interesting to see who, if anybody, emerges as a reliable third end to complement Clowney and Taylor, whose collective size and speed pose a difficult challenge for offensive lines.
link: http://www.postandco...mentId=blogDest
Taylor currently is tied for fifth in USC history in sacks and ninth in tackles for loss. (Eric Norwood leads both categories, with 29 sacks and 54½ tackles for loss.) So from a success standpoint, it made sense that Taylor, who redshirted as a true freshman, considered skipping his fifth-year senior season and entering the 2012 NFL draft.
But by NFL defensive end standards, Taylor was not particularly massive at the beginning of last season. So, as USC defensive line coach Brad Lawing simply put it, “He came back to get bigger, which he needs to do.”
He did it. By the time spring practices rolled around, Taylor was listed at 6-8 and 267 pounds. In the bowl media guide, he was listed at 6-7 and 260, compared to 248 in the guide published before the season. Taylor is still listed at 6-8 and 267 – a positive sign for his pro prospects. He is currently ranked the No. 41 overall prospect, No. 8 defensive end and a projected second-round pick by NFLDraftScout.com.
He made the right decision in returning to school – while, as the draft and NFL training camps have showed, cornerback Stephon Gilmore and wide receiver Alshon Jeffery made the proper call in turning pro early. With a big senior year, Taylor could push himself into the first round, as fellow defensive end Melvin Ingram did last season, when he was also a fifth-year senior.
“I expect him to have a heck of a season,” Lawing said.
To prepare for it, Taylor said he added 30 pounds to his bench press and 40 to 50 to his squat.
“I’ve progressed tremendously, a lot more than even what I thought I was going to do,” he said.
Taylor could thrive in Lawing’s third-down alignments with three or even four defensive ends on the field at once. The three-end alignment with Ingram at tackle was effective last season, particularly because Jadeveon Clowney was the third end, making it impossible for opponents to effectively focus on Ingram, Clowney or Taylor, because the other two were so good.
“It pretty much just made more speed on the field,” Taylor said. “We’re already a fast front, and putting more defensive ends on the field made it just that much faster, which made it harder for teams to kind of ID someone or pick up and block us. I think what (Lawing) wants to do pretty much is put the best four athletes on the field to get after the quarterback.”
That is one way of putting it. Lawing stated it like this when talking about why he will probably rely on more ends (and their speed) during pass-rush situations rather than using a heavy “push-the-pocket guy” tackle, which is the role senior Travian Robertson occupied last year ...
“I’m going to change my philosophy a little bit this season,” Lawing said. “If you’ve got legs, you use legs. If you’ve got a big (butt), you use that (butt) and get push. So I’ve got some legs.”
Some other notes related to USC’s defensive line, which should be one of the Gamecocks’ strongest position groups and will try to give Vanderbilt quarterback Jordan Rodgers (Aaron’s younger brother) fits when the teams open the season next Thursday ...
** Taylor and Lawing said Clowney is doing a nice job of juggling his multiple roles. Lawing will use him as a traditional end, and also stand him up or put him at tackle in pass-rush situations. Last season, Clowney’s knowledge of the plays was lacking, which is typical for a true freshman.
“The difference between him last year to this year, as far as seeing everything now, is the game has much more slowed down to him,” Taylor said. “He’s able to read plays more and actually act off of it rather than probably just playing off of talent.”
Said Lawing: “He’s done good. And I have asked him (to do more). He was a freshman last year and when you’re a freshman, after the first two or three days, you’re like, ‘I didn’t even know this much football existed.’ It gets tough on them. I’ve always said it: When you slow the game down, then it becomes easier to play. When you’re unsure and things are happening for the first time, the game is so fast. I think the game has slowed down for him because he’s more confident in what he’s doing. He’s made a lot of strides, but we are asking him to do a lot.”
** The only true new starter on the defensive line is tackle Byron Jerideau. Yes, Clowney didn’t start at all last season, but he played in enough important situations to be considered a starter of sorts. Yes, tackle Kelcy Quarles didn’t start from the get-go, but he took over for the final six games of his true freshman season and had to learn on the fly.
“(Quarles’) fundamentals were very average last year,” Lawing said. “He was a true freshman, and early he was just trying to survive. He got better as the season went along and he became a starter. His production got better.”
** Lawing needs his backup ends, Chaz Sutton and converted tackle Aldrick Fordham (whose natural position is end), to be effective enough that they can play in the three- and four-end alignments during those pass-rush situations. Has Lawing seen enough from Sutton and Fordham to believe they can help USC in those spots?
“I’m hoping they can because I like to get speed on the field in passing situations,” Lawing said.
USC ranked No. 25 nationally last season with 31 sacks, and the trio of Ingram (10), Taylor (six) and Clowney (eight) were responsible for 24 of them. It will be interesting to see who, if anybody, emerges as a reliable third end to complement Clowney and Taylor, whose collective size and speed pose a difficult challenge for offensive lines.
link: http://www.postandco...mentId=blogDest
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