2025 Defense outlook

[TomCat88]

On defense, I think MSU could be a real monster as I believe it will be quicker/faster than it was last year and that will cut down even more on the gash plays. MSU did a good job of cutting those down from 22 to 23 to 24. Seems they struggled there mostly against the good teams, which only makes sense. I bet UCD, UTM, Idaho, USD and NDSU had significantly more gash plays than all the other teams (10 games) combined. Some of them were assignment issues, while others were just due to a lack of speed at LB and in the secondary. With Grebe and Daily at LB they have good speed. I think Dowler is faster than Ortt, but not sure about Taki vs Polidore. Also not sure of the speed of the incoming players. If McMillan is a corner that's a big speed increase. Boyd is also very fast as is Brendan Ross.

[technoCat]

I just hope that the guys taking over in the secondary learn the scheme and where to be and have good instincts. You see young corners with great speed sometimes use it as a crutch to make up for poor fundamentals. If they "get it" and can bring that speed to bear, we could have a lock down secondary. I do worry a little if we have the size on the back end to help support against the run and all the guys like to hit. One thing I always loved about Powdrell/Jackson/Polidore and of course Ortt was their willingness to come up and lay the wood.

[nanacat]

I just hope that the guys taking over in the secondary learn the scheme and where to be and have good instincts. You see young corners with great speed sometimes use it as a crutch to make up for poor fundamentals. If they "get it" and can bring that speed to bear, we could have a lock down secondary. I do worry a little if we have the size on the back end to help support against the run and all the guys like to hit. One thing I always loved about Powdrell/Jackson/Polidore and of course Ortt was their willingness to come up and lay the wood.

One of the JUCO guys said the school he was at ran the same scheme. Can't remember which player it was, but that was part of the draw to MSU he said.

[Catsrgrood]

While I’m not worried about the defense, I think it’s hard to say they’ll be better than this year.

On the DL we lose Grebe, but bring back everyone else on the two deep. They should be as good or better than this year as a unit.

At LB, I think Daily and Grebe could be a very good combo, but depth behind them is a bit of unknown and don’t forget who they’re replacing. Are Daily and Grebe as good or better than McCade and Danny U? Maybe. But unsure of that right now.

The secondary is the big unknown. No doubt there are some good players that have put in their time and are ready to show what they can do. But the fact remains that we lost our 2 starting safeties, the starting nickel and top 3 CB’s. Just too much of an unknown in the back end to say in January that we won’t see some kind of drop off there.

I have no doubt the defense will be good, and of course they could end up being better than this year, but that’s a lot of unknowns and new faces in the backend to know much at this point.

[MSU01]

While I’m not worried about the defense, I think it’s hard to say they’ll be better than this year.

On the DL we lose Grebe, but bring back everyone else on the two deep. They should be as good or better than this year as a unit.

At LB, I think Daily and Grebe could be a very good combo, but depth behind them is a bit of unknown and don’t forget who they’re replacing. Are Daily and Grebe as good or better than McCade and Danny U? Maybe. But unsure of that right now.

The secondary is the big unknown. No doubt there are some good players that have put in their time and are ready to show what they can do. But the fact remains that we lost our 2 starting safeties, the starting nickel and top 3 CB’s. Just too much of an unknown in the back end to say in January that we won’t see some kind of drop off there.

I have no doubt the defense will be good, and of course they could end up being better than this year, but that’s a lot of unknowns and new faces in the backend to know much at this point.

I think we'd all agree that it's impossible to know in January whether the defense will be better or worse than last year's team. But I think Tom is spot on when he says that the 2025 defense should be faster/quicker than the 2024 defense. As to the question of whether that will that lead to better overall results - we'll see in the fall.

[gtapp]

We have lost our entire defensive backfield (all 5) including IMO the best pair of safeties we have ever had. We do not have the talent to replace that. Maybe some of the young/new guys will develop but by next year? I like our young group but playing D back requires experience as much as talent. We will have to really improve our pass rush to make up for it or good passing teams are going to have some big days. We may have to just out score some teams.

[Bobcatsinmso]

While I’m not worried about the defense, I think it’s hard to say they’ll be better than this year.

On the DL we lose Grebe, but bring back everyone else on the two deep. They should be as good or better than this year as a unit.

At LB, I think Daily and Grebe could be a very good combo, but depth behind them is a bit of unknown and don’t forget who they’re replacing. Are Daily and Grebe as good or better than McCade and Danny U? Maybe. But unsure of that right now.

The secondary is the big unknown. No doubt there are some good players that have put in their time and are ready to show what they can do. But the fact remains that we lost our 2 starting safeties, the starting nickel and top 3 CB’s. Just too much of an unknown in the back end to say in January that we won’t see some kind of drop off there.

I have no doubt the defense will be good, and of course they could end up being better than this year, but that’s a lot of unknowns and new faces in the backend to know much at this point.

I think we'd all agree that it's impossible to know in January whether the defense will be better or worse than last year's team. But I think Tom is spot on when he says that the 2025 defense should be faster/quicker than the 2024 defense. As to the question of whether that will that lead to better overall results - we'll see in the fall.

I have a great deal of confidence in the defensive secondary to be as good or better in 2025. The guy that took over coaching that position was one of the all time greatest defensive players to wear a Bobcat uniform. his ability to train and coach tackling and speed were very evident last year.
Jody Owens, hope he stays and could eventually make it to D coordinator if he doesn't get poached down the line.

[catatac]

We have lost our entire defensive backfield (all 5) including IMO the best pair of safeties we have ever had. We do not have the talent to replace that. Maybe some of the young/new guys will develop but by next year? I like our young group but playing D back requires experience as much as talent. We will have to really improve our pass rush to make up for it or good passing teams are going to have some big days. We may have to just out score some teams.

[Lord Vigo]

My opinion.

Defensive End: Improved-- Grebe is a huge loss, but he also wasn't healthy for most of the season so it's not like what they're losing from 2024 is his full impact. Eiden, Crews, Solano, and Parsons are going to form a fearsome rotation.

Defensive Tackle: Improved-- The big loss here is Schmidt, but they already learned to play without him for the bulk of last season. Brott is one of the best DT's in the conference and Eckert returns next to him. Black is experienced depth and then there's a whole group of up and comers with tons of talent-- Sharbono, Marsh, Tanupo, Wiens. This group looks strong for years to come.

Linebacker: Push-- Daily and Grebe are both so talented that there's a chance this position is stronger in 2025 and given how many snaps they saw this last year it's hard to say that it will be much worse. I'm not worried about the depth with talents like Taylor, Bowles, Krahe, and Dethman on the come. They could easily add a transfer here if they're uncomfortable with the depth, but I don't think that's a "must."

Cornerback: Regressed-- I'm sure that the staff will continue to add to this position, but they're losing their top 3 guys in Woodard, Johnson, and Powdrell and thus will be relying quite a bit on young guys. I will say that if you include nickel in this position group, I fully expect Tayden Gray to be a force and to improve that aspect of the secondary.

Safety: Regressed-- Again, I'm sure that the staff will continue to add here, but they had one of the best safety tandems in the country and both players are gone. It helps to get Dowler back and one just hopes that he's 100% healthy and ready to start the season.

Overall: Push-- I think the defense will hold serve in 2025, which would be fantastic because they were unbelievably good in 2024. I'm pleased that their strengths start up front and along the line of scrimmage. I would way rather have a great front seven with some youth/weakness in the secondary than the other way around. The X factor here, to me, is how big of a step Daily and Grebe can make together. If they both level up, I think the unit as a whole could even be better than it was last year. It's rare at the FCS level to have two guys with their combination of size and movement skills. The question is whether their experience in 2024 adequately trained their instincts and will allow them to get their eyes to the right spot most of the time.

[TomCat88]

While I’m not worried about the defense, I think it’s hard to say they’ll be better than this year.

On the DL we lose Grebe, but bring back everyone else on the two deep. They should be as good or better than this year as a unit.

At LB, I think Daily and Grebe could be a very good combo, but depth behind them is a bit of unknown and don’t forget who they’re replacing. Are Daily and Grebe as good or better than McCade and Danny U? Maybe. But unsure of that right now.

The secondary is the big unknown. No doubt there are some good players that have put in their time and are ready to show what they can do. But the fact remains that we lost our 2 starting safeties, the starting nickel and top 3 CB’s. Just too much of an unknown in the back end to say in January that we won’t see some kind of drop off there.

I have no doubt the defense will be good, and of course they could end up being better than this year, but that’s a lot of unknowns and new faces in the backend to know much at this point.

I think we'd all agree that it's impossible to know in January whether the defense will be better or worse than last year's team. But I think Tom is spot on when he says that the 2025 defense should be faster/quicker than the 2024 defense. As to the question of whether that will that lead to better overall results - we'll see in the fall.

I have a great deal of confidence in the defensive secondary to be as good or better in 2025. The guy that took over coaching that position was one of the all time greatest defensive players to wear a Bobcat uniform. his ability to train and coach tackling and speed were very evident last year.
Jody Owens, hope he stays and could eventually make it to D coordinator if he doesn't get poached down the line.

Owens is one of my all time favorite players. I used to watch him at practice when he first got to MSU and would say to myself “he’s gonna be good” and then he started getting on the field and I was like “he’s gonna be great” and then a friend of mine who coached for 30 years went to a game for the first time in ages and said to me “who’s that 23 guy Owens? How come nobody is talking about him.” End of story.

[kevin donovan]

'IMO the best pair of safeties...' Polidore and Ortt were very good safeties, GTapp, but not better that than the Kenneth Qualls / Kane Ioane duo, do you think?

[gtapp]

'IMO the best pair of safeties...' Polidore and Ortt were very good safeties, GTapp, but not better that than the Kenneth Qualls / Kane Ioane duo, do you think?

You can't include Ioane, that's cheating!

[grizzh8r]

'IMO the best pair of safeties...' Polidore and Ortt were very good safeties, GTapp, but not better that than the Kenneth Qualls / Kane Ioane duo, do you think?

You can't include Ioane, that's cheating!

Best tackler in BSC history, bar none. And yes, I'll never acknowledge that scrub Robbie "Half-Tackle" Hauck as the BSC record holder. It's criminal the way Böbbæ instructed statisticians at WGS to pad Robbie's tackle stats.

[ruralcat]

I wonder how all the great defensive players that played in the Big Sky feel about Robbie Hauck being the all time tackle leader. Little Robbie couldn’t even hold the jockstrap of most those guys. Pathetic.

[kevin donovan]

"You can't include Ioane, that's cheating!"

I apologize GTapp. In fact, I did cheat.

[iaafan]

My opinion.

Defensive End: Improved-- Grebe is a huge loss, but he also wasn't healthy for most of the season so it's not like what they're losing from 2024 is his full impact. Eiden, Crews, Solano, and Parsons are going to form a fearsome rotation.

Defensive Tackle: Improved-- The big loss here is Schmidt, but they already learned to play without him for the bulk of last season. Brott is one of the best DT's in the conference and Eckert returns next to him. Black is experienced depth and then there's a whole group of up and comers with tons of talent-- Sharbono, Marsh, Tanupo, Wiens. This group looks strong for years to come.

Linebacker: Push-- Daily and Grebe are both so talented that there's a chance this position is stronger in 2025 and given how many snaps they saw this last year it's hard to say that it will be much worse. I'm not worried about the depth with talents like Taylor, Bowles, Krahe, and Dethman on the come. They could easily add a transfer here if they're uncomfortable with the depth, but I don't think that's a "must."

Cornerback: Regressed-- I'm sure that the staff will continue to add to this position, but they're losing their top 3 guys in Woodard, Johnson, and Powdrell and thus will be relying quite a bit on young guys. I will say that if you include nickel in this position group, I fully expect Tayden Gray to be a force and to improve that aspect of the secondary.

Safety: Regressed-- Again, I'm sure that the staff will continue to add here, but they had one of the best safety tandems in the country and both players are gone. It helps to get Dowler back and one just hopes that he's 100% healthy and ready to start the season.

Overall: Push-- I think the defense will hold serve in 2025, which would be fantastic because they were unbelievably good in 2024. I'm pleased that their strengths start up front and along the line of scrimmage. I would way rather have a great front seven with some youth/weakness in the secondary than the other way around. The X factor here, to me, is how big of a step Daily and Grebe can make together. If they both level up, I think the unit as a whole could even be better than it was last year. It's rare at the FCS level to have two guys with their combination of size and movement skills. The question is whether their experience in 2024 adequately trained their instincts and will allow them to get their eyes to the right spot most of the time.

I understand your take. I think a lot of our fans and fans everywhere use this thought process which I consider a safe way to think about it. Personally I think a lot of our fans are a little behind the curve on where we are as a football program.

Like with Mellott I’m going to have an unpopular opinion on this but while I think O’Reilly and Ortt were very good players I never thought either had the speed needed to be great. The one element that was missing last year was overall team speed on defense.

I agree with TC88 that speed will increase this year. I am also very confident that our staff which were all in new roles or just new last year is going to develop players much better than last year. Sean Herrin put out a tweet about 2-3 weeks ago that spoke volumes about the program and I’m now a firm believer based on that confirming what I was already thinking.

[Norsky19]

My opinion.

Defensive End: Improved-- Grebe is a huge loss, but he also wasn't healthy for most of the season so it's not like what they're losing from 2024 is his full impact. Eiden, Crews, Solano, and Parsons are going to form a fearsome rotation.

Defensive Tackle: Improved-- The big loss here is Schmidt, but they already learned to play without him for the bulk of last season. Brott is one of the best DT's in the conference and Eckert returns next to him. Black is experienced depth and then there's a whole group of up and comers with tons of talent-- Sharbono, Marsh, Tanupo, Wiens. This group looks strong for years to come.

Linebacker: Push-- Daily and Grebe are both so talented that there's a chance this position is stronger in 2025 and given how many snaps they saw this last year it's hard to say that it will be much worse. I'm not worried about the depth with talents like Taylor, Bowles, Krahe, and Dethman on the come. They could easily add a transfer here if they're uncomfortable with the depth, but I don't think that's a "must."

Cornerback: Regressed-- I'm sure that the staff will continue to add to this position, but they're losing their top 3 guys in Woodard, Johnson, and Powdrell and thus will be relying quite a bit on young guys. I will say that if you include nickel in this position group, I fully expect Tayden Gray to be a force and to improve that aspect of the secondary.

Safety: Regressed-- Again, I'm sure that the staff will continue to add here, but they had one of the best safety tandems in the country and both players are gone. It helps to get Dowler back and one just hopes that he's 100% healthy and ready to start the season.

Overall: Push-- I think the defense will hold serve in 2025, which would be fantastic because they were unbelievably good in 2024. I'm pleased that their strengths start up front and along the line of scrimmage. I would way rather have a great front seven with some youth/weakness in the secondary than the other way around. The X factor here, to me, is how big of a step Daily and Grebe can make together. If they both level up, I think the unit as a whole could even be better than it was last year. It's rare at the FCS level to have two guys with their combination of size and movement skills. The question is whether their experience in 2024 adequately trained their instincts and will allow them to get their eyes to the right spot most of the time.

I understand your take. I think a lot of our fans and fans everywhere use this thought process which I consider a safe way to think about it. Personally I think a lot of our fans are a little behind the curve on where we are as a football program.

Like with Mellott I’m going to have an unpopular opinion on this but while I think O’Reilly and Ortt were very good players I never thought either had the speed needed to be great. The one element that was missing last year was overall team speed on defense.

I agree with TC88 that speed will increase this year. I am also very confident that our staff which were all in new roles or just new last year is going to develop players much better than last year. Sean Herrin put out a tweet about 2-3 weeks ago that spoke volumes about the program and I’m now a firm believer based on that confirming what I was already thinking.

Speed is great, decisiveness/decision making and instincts are better. Ortt had that. Lots of fast athletes make poor angles and bad decisions. Having both would be NFL talent. QB's even more so. Dave Dickenson was a great example of decision making vs. great arm and speed. I agree with you though.....team speed matters.

[iaafan]

My opinion.

Defensive End: Improved-- Grebe is a huge loss, but he also wasn't healthy for most of the season so it's not like what they're losing from 2024 is his full impact. Eiden, Crews, Solano, and Parsons are going to form a fearsome rotation.

Defensive Tackle: Improved-- The big loss here is Schmidt, but they already learned to play without him for the bulk of last season. Brott is one of the best DT's in the conference and Eckert returns next to him. Black is experienced depth and then there's a whole group of up and comers with tons of talent-- Sharbono, Marsh, Tanupo, Wiens. This group looks strong for years to come.

Linebacker: Push-- Daily and Grebe are both so talented that there's a chance this position is stronger in 2025 and given how many snaps they saw this last year it's hard to say that it will be much worse. I'm not worried about the depth with talents like Taylor, Bowles, Krahe, and Dethman on the come. They could easily add a transfer here if they're uncomfortable with the depth, but I don't think that's a "must."

Cornerback: Regressed-- I'm sure that the staff will continue to add to this position, but they're losing their top 3 guys in Woodard, Johnson, and Powdrell and thus will be relying quite a bit on young guys. I will say that if you include nickel in this position group, I fully expect Tayden Gray to be a force and to improve that aspect of the secondary.

Safety: Regressed-- Again, I'm sure that the staff will continue to add here, but they had one of the best safety tandems in the country and both players are gone. It helps to get Dowler back and one just hopes that he's 100% healthy and ready to start the season.

Overall: Push-- I think the defense will hold serve in 2025, which would be fantastic because they were unbelievably good in 2024. I'm pleased that their strengths start up front and along the line of scrimmage. I would way rather have a great front seven with some youth/weakness in the secondary than the other way around. The X factor here, to me, is how big of a step Daily and Grebe can make together. If they both level up, I think the unit as a whole could even be better than it was last year. It's rare at the FCS level to have two guys with their combination of size and movement skills. The question is whether their experience in 2024 adequately trained their instincts and will allow them to get their eyes to the right spot most of the time.

I understand your take. I think a lot of our fans and fans everywhere use this thought process which I consider a safe way to think about it. Personally I think a lot of our fans are a little behind the curve on where we are as a football program.

Like with Mellott I’m going to have an unpopular opinion on this but while I think O’Reilly and Ortt were very good players I never thought either had the speed needed to be great. The one element that was missing last year was overall team speed on defense.

I agree with TC88 that speed will increase this year. I am also very confident that our staff which were all in new roles or just new last year is going to develop players much better than last year. Sean Herrin put out a tweet about 2-3 weeks ago that spoke volumes about the program and I’m now a firm believer based on that confirming what I was already thinking.

Speed is great, decisiveness/decision making and instincts are better. Ortt had that. Lots of fast athletes make poor angles and bad decisions. Having both would be NFL talent. QB's even more so. Dave Dickenson was a great example of decision making vs. great arm and speed. I agree with you though.....team speed matters.

I think what you and others are overlooking is the player development aspect of what MSU does. I think the reason Ortt was good is because his decision making was developed by our coaches. Players that are poor decision makers often have poor coaching.

[Norsky19]

My opinion.

Defensive End: Improved-- Grebe is a huge loss, but he also wasn't healthy for most of the season so it's not like what they're losing from 2024 is his full impact. Eiden, Crews, Solano, and Parsons are going to form a fearsome rotation.

Defensive Tackle: Improved-- The big loss here is Schmidt, but they already learned to play without him for the bulk of last season. Brott is one of the best DT's in the conference and Eckert returns next to him. Black is experienced depth and then there's a whole group of up and comers with tons of talent-- Sharbono, Marsh, Tanupo, Wiens. This group looks strong for years to come.

Linebacker: Push-- Daily and Grebe are both so talented that there's a chance this position is stronger in 2025 and given how many snaps they saw this last year it's hard to say that it will be much worse. I'm not worried about the depth with talents like Taylor, Bowles, Krahe, and Dethman on the come. They could easily add a transfer here if they're uncomfortable with the depth, but I don't think that's a "must."

Cornerback: Regressed-- I'm sure that the staff will continue to add to this position, but they're losing their top 3 guys in Woodard, Johnson, and Powdrell and thus will be relying quite a bit on young guys. I will say that if you include nickel in this position group, I fully expect Tayden Gray to be a force and to improve that aspect of the secondary.

Safety: Regressed-- Again, I'm sure that the staff will continue to add here, but they had one of the best safety tandems in the country and both players are gone. It helps to get Dowler back and one just hopes that he's 100% healthy and ready to start the season.

Overall: Push-- I think the defense will hold serve in 2025, which would be fantastic because they were unbelievably good in 2024. I'm pleased that their strengths start up front and along the line of scrimmage. I would way rather have a great front seven with some youth/weakness in the secondary than the other way around. The X factor here, to me, is how big of a step Daily and Grebe can make together. If they both level up, I think the unit as a whole could even be better than it was last year. It's rare at the FCS level to have two guys with their combination of size and movement skills. The question is whether their experience in 2024 adequately trained their instincts and will allow them to get their eyes to the right spot most of the time.

I understand your take. I think a lot of our fans and fans everywhere use this thought process which I consider a safe way to think about it. Personally I think a lot of our fans are a little behind the curve on where we are as a football program.

Like with Mellott I’m going to have an unpopular opinion on this but while I think O’Reilly and Ortt were very good players I never thought either had the speed needed to be great. The one element that was missing last year was overall team speed on defense.

I agree with TC88 that speed will increase this year. I am also very confident that our staff which were all in new roles or just new last year is going to develop players much better than last year. Sean Herrin put out a tweet about 2-3 weeks ago that spoke volumes about the program and I’m now a firm believer based on that confirming what I was already thinking.

Speed is great, decisiveness/decision making and instincts are better. Ortt had that. Lots of fast athletes make poor angles and bad decisions. Having both would be NFL talent. QB's even more so. Dave Dickenson was a great example of decision making vs. great arm and speed. I agree with you though.....team speed matters.

I think what you and others are overlooking is the player development aspect of what MSU does. I think the reason Ortt was good is because his decision making was developed by our coaches. Players that are poor decision makers often have poor coaching.

Nope, not overlooked....agree 100% with you that coaching matters. Not all players can absorb good coaching and translate it to success though.....

[iaafan]

My opinion.

Defensive End: Improved-- Grebe is a huge loss, but he also wasn't healthy for most of the season so it's not like what they're losing from 2024 is his full impact. Eiden, Crews, Solano, and Parsons are going to form a fearsome rotation.

Defensive Tackle: Improved-- The big loss here is Schmidt, but they already learned to play without him for the bulk of last season. Brott is one of the best DT's in the conference and Eckert returns next to him. Black is experienced depth and then there's a whole group of up and comers with tons of talent-- Sharbono, Marsh, Tanupo, Wiens. This group looks strong for years to come.

Linebacker: Push-- Daily and Grebe are both so talented that there's a chance this position is stronger in 2025 and given how many snaps they saw this last year it's hard to say that it will be much worse. I'm not worried about the depth with talents like Taylor, Bowles, Krahe, and Dethman on the come. They could easily add a transfer here if they're uncomfortable with the depth, but I don't think that's a "must."

Cornerback: Regressed-- I'm sure that the staff will continue to add to this position, but they're losing their top 3 guys in Woodard, Johnson, and Powdrell and thus will be relying quite a bit on young guys. I will say that if you include nickel in this position group, I fully expect Tayden Gray to be a force and to improve that aspect of the secondary.

Safety: Regressed-- Again, I'm sure that the staff will continue to add here, but they had one of the best safety tandems in the country and both players are gone. It helps to get Dowler back and one just hopes that he's 100% healthy and ready to start the season.

Overall: Push-- I think the defense will hold serve in 2025, which would be fantastic because they were unbelievably good in 2024. I'm pleased that their strengths start up front and along the line of scrimmage. I would way rather have a great front seven with some youth/weakness in the secondary than the other way around. The X factor here, to me, is how big of a step Daily and Grebe can make together. If they both level up, I think the unit as a whole could even be better than it was last year. It's rare at the FCS level to have two guys with their combination of size and movement skills. The question is whether their experience in 2024 adequately trained their instincts and will allow them to get their eyes to the right spot most of the time.

I understand your take. I think a lot of our fans and fans everywhere use this thought process which I consider a safe way to think about it. Personally I think a lot of our fans are a little behind the curve on where we are as a football program.

Like with Mellott I’m going to have an unpopular opinion on this but while I think O’Reilly and Ortt were very good players I never thought either had the speed needed to be great. The one element that was missing last year was overall team speed on defense.

I agree with TC88 that speed will increase this year. I am also very confident that our staff which were all in new roles or just new last year is going to develop players much better than last year. Sean Herrin put out a tweet about 2-3 weeks ago that spoke volumes about the program and I’m now a firm believer based on that confirming what I was already thinking.

Speed is great, decisiveness/decision making and instincts are better. Ortt had that. Lots of fast athletes make poor angles and bad decisions. Having both would be NFL talent. QB's even more so. Dave Dickenson was a great example of decision making vs. great arm and speed. I agree with you though.....team speed matters.

I think what you and others are overlooking is the player development aspect of what MSU does. I think the reason Ortt was good is because his decision making was developed by our coaches. Players that are poor decision makers often have poor coaching.

Nope, not overlooked....agree 100% with you that coaching matters. Not all players can absorb good coaching and translate it to success though.....

Which is why coaches talk to the players high school coaches and watch tape before offering. They know what to look for and MSU is getting the pick of the litter relative to FCS teams.