Clemson Defense Loaded

An article from GreenvilleOnline.com about the Tigers defense, which finished 9th in the nation last year and returns 8 starters.

Two keys to the Clemson defense this year? The play of the linebackers and generating more sacks.

It's no secret that the majority of your tackles come from the LB position and the Tigers are looking at an entirely new corp of starting linebackers in 2008. There's talent, but little game day experience. If the LB's step up this has the potential to be a dominating defense.

The difference between 2nd and 10 and 2nd and 17 or so is enormous. Sacks lead to long yardage downs which lead to more time in the pocket which leads to pressure on the QB and OL which leads to punts. To many times last year the opposing QB escaped the Tigers pressure to either complete the pass or throw the ball away and save valuable yardage. It's a critical part of the defensive equation, not to mention often being a momentum changer.

How well the Tigers fare in these two areas will go a long way to determining whether this is a good defense or a great defense.