Sewanee Stang wrote:Maybe ShanDerrick Charles? He was great as a freshman.
Yes. And that was the last player who had this level of shake to his game.
In that season, none of the other backs could run the ball. All of a sudden Charles got the ball and it was magic, 200 yards. I was reminded of it when Bentley was ripping UNT up, and then McDaniel would get in the game and all of a sudden it was a loss of 4 on the play.
When the defense has to stay in their lane to protect against a cutback, it opens up the opportunity to follow the original running play a lot easier. When a RB isn't a threat to switch the point of attack, everyone can just run to the play and swarm. What makes players like Lavine and Zach Line so effective, is that they know where the hole is going to be, be patient for the hole to develop before you show your hand, and then hit the hole full force.
McDaniels is doing what Line did early on - doesn't have the patience, goes a direction before the hole opens, and allows everyone to swarm. And doesn't quite have the speed to cut back against the swarm.
Bentley shows a great combination of patience, speed, and athleticism. And that is very reminiscent of Charles.
Posted: Mon Sep 21, 2020 4:10 pm