Getting to know OU's even defensive front
Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables burnished his reputation as one of the top defensive minds in college football in large measure by experimenting with unique alignments and personnel groupings. In his first two seasons since returning to Norman, he has deployed opponent-specific game plans using different types of even and odd fronts on the defensive line. They’ve been met with varying degrees of success, due in part to the roster limitations he inherited when he took the job.
Heading into his third season at the helm, Venables has assembled personnel with better capacity to tailor OU’s defensive strategies in response to opponents’ weaknesses and the Sooners’ own strengths. Meanwhile, Venables’ protege Zac Alley took over as defensive coordinator in the offseason to complement the existing brain trust by mixing in some of his own ideas after running his own defenses at Louisiana-Monroe and Jacksonville State.
In this two-part series, we’ll examine the two defensive schemes we should expect to see OU use the most in the upcoming season, as well as their implications for personnel on the defensive line. First up is Venables’ bread-and-butter look, the 4-2-5.
Base defense: 4-2-5
Historically, Venables has built his defenses around even fronts designed to attack single gaps. OU based the vast majority of its looks last season out of such fronts. The image below is an example from the Oklahoma State game last season.
OU is using a four-man front in an “under” alignment:
Jacob Lacey (No. 54) is playing one-technique defensive tackle, lined up in the A gap to the strong side of OSU’s formation between the center and left guard;
Jonah Laulu (No. 8) is playing three-technique DT, lined up in the B gap to weak side between the right guard and right tackle;
Ethan Downs (No. 40) is playing five-technique defensive end to the strong side, lined up with his hand to the ground in the C gap outside the left tackle’s shoulder; and
Rondell Bothroyd (No. 80) is standing up in what we will call a nine technique, well outside the offensive tackle on the weak side of the formation.
What might this look like in 2024?
In the diagram above, the opponent is using 11 personnel, with the tight end and running back set to the right side offense’s formation. OU is in its 4-2-5 base defense with an over front. Here’s how the personnel assignments shake out in this particular hypothetical:
NT - No. 52 Damonic Williams
DT - No. 65 Jayden Jackson
SDE - No. 40 Ethan Downs
WDE - No. 32 R Mason Thomas
MIKE LB - No. 28 Danny Stutsman
WILL LB - No. 10 Kip Lewis
Cheetah - No. 15 Kendel Dolby
CB - No. 9 Gentry Williams
CB - No. 5 Woodi Washington
SS - No. 2 Billy Bowman
FS - No. 3 Robert Spears-Jennings
Notes on DL:
*Lacey’s retirement in the spring turned up the heat on Venables and his coaching staff to upgrade the defensive interior. They acquired the best DT on the transfer market, Damonic Williams of TCU, in response. Part of the appeal of OU for Williams had to be an opportunity to play in more single-gaps schemes. He now looks set to join Da’Jon Terry to create a formidable duo at nose tackle in OU’s even front. Freshman David Stone could get spot duty here as well.
*The Sooners need that NT rotation to thrive, as pickings look slimmer at three-tech.
Early word from preseason camp indicates the freshman Jackson has maintained his strong play in practice after dazzling the coaches in the spring. In fact, he might be in line for a starting spot right off the bat. That sounds promising for the future, but giving a rookie that many snaps on the interior of the DL doesn’t bode so well for the present.
DL coach Todd Bates could try to shore up the three-tech position by playing Williams there alongside Terry at NT; of course, that would limit Williams’ ability to contribute at NT. A better alternative: Gracen Halton finally seizes the position. The junior has the highest ceiling of the upperclassmen competing for the spot, and he would present a different type of threat to opponents as an interior pass rusher.
*On the edges, we can assume Downs has a spot as the strong side DE locked up. Productive Miami-Ohio transfer Caiden Woullard could give the Sooners a formidable one-two punch there, or DE coach Miguel Chavis could put him on the top line on the opposite side of the formation.
OU doesn’t lack for weak side disruptors, though. We should expect to see plenty of Thomas, PJ Adebawore and Trace Ford throughout the season.
*Bear in mind that the Sooners occasionally play something closer to a traditional 4-3 defense against especially beefy offenses. On those occasions, a SAM LB will replace the Cheetah and insert another pass-rushing threat into the lineup. This seems like a role for linebackers Dasan McCullough and Jaren Kanak.