Purple Dogs look to get more complex on defense
Fayetteville will vie to achieve a more complex scheme on defense this season as Daryl Patton’s pupils pick up the intricacies of the 4-3 defense after a mid-season switch from the 3-5 last year. Patton viewed the gamefilm from his Purple Dogs’ 37-16 win over Shiloh Christian in a preseason scrimmage last Monday. Patton said the most notable improvement that needs to be made is simply making swifter reads.
“Defensively, we’ve got to line up a little faster and recognize formations quicker and get our calls finished,” Patton said. “We had a mix-up in the secondary and we’ve got to get that corrected. But I liked the fact that we swarmed to the football. You have to like the fact that we created a lot of turnovers. There were a lot more positives than negatives but we’ve got to get those mistakes corrected.”
Patton said he was impressed with his depth in the secondary, an area he labeled as the Purple Dogs’ strongest on defense.
“I was real impressed with Bentley Banister,” Patton said. “I thought he took some major steps to let me know that he wanted to play on Friday nights. I like all of our starters and with Coy Holmes and Kellen Summers spot playing. Reid Murray is another guy who can help there so I feel real good about our depth in the secondary. It’s better than we’ve had.”
Fayetteville defensive coordinator Wendell Harris said that depth will bolster a solid secondary group. But Harris said the experience factor in the defensive backfield is the biggest asset.
“We’ve got more experience there,” Harris said. “It’s a tough place to play. If I make a mistake as a defensive tackle usually only the coach and myself will know. If I make a mistake at corner everyone in the stadium knows. They’ve got have a short memory because it’s a tough place to play. Experience will help them.”
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