back to the defense

[ccballer]

...To say that Hudman and Bonilla should not be in next year's starting lineup is absurd. Luckliy for us, those two guys made more plays on the team than anybody. We would have not been in any games if it was not for their saving tackles. You do not take two of the better guys out of a terrible defense and replace them with children or unproven transfers.

Granted, it is terrible that a safety is tied for the team lead in tackles, but he was. Bonilla plays with heart and grit on every down. Obviously, the old regime thought enogh of him to let him walk on and earn his way to a scholarship and then earn his way onto the field and then lead the team in stops! That should tell you enough right there. However, from what i understand, he has been doubted before and that is what really drives him. Ask the strength coach if he is a good kid and who the team believes can get it done. Do you want a senior who has put the time in and knows the defense in-and-out or some unproven kid to try and learn on the job. These guys are what is good about SMU. Let them help the solution to all the problems.

BAD DECISION TO REMOVE THESE TWO FROM OUR LINEUP!

[ponydawg]

BAD DECISION TO REMOVE THESE TWO FROM OUR LINEUP!

Don't worry, I don't think June Jones will get all of his ideas from what he reads on P-fans. I bet for 2 mill a year, he will come up with a few of his own ideas.


whoa.... Deja Vu.

[JasonB]

I hope that next year we are good enough on defense to have exactly 0 former walkons starting. Bonilla works hard, but he is slow and undersized. Doesn't work out toio well behind our slow, undersized defensive line.

[J.T.supporta]

hudman will start, as for bonilla playing with heart and grit, he might do that, but he plays way too much out of place.

hes the big play buster that we dont need on the field 60% of the time. he'll play, but i think JJ will find someone else to start

[Dutch]

Obviously, the old regime thought enogh of him to let him walk on and earn his way to a scholarship and then earn his way onto the field and then lead the team in stops!

Don't take this the wrong way b/c you obviously have some connection to him, but you're sort of arguing with yourself by saying he was good enough for the staff that got fired for non-performance.

[jtstang]

We would have not been in any games if it was not for their saving tackles.

Hmmm....1-11....saving tackles....hmmm.....

[mrydel]

We would have not been in any games if it was not for their saving tackles.

Hmmm....1-11....saving tackles....hmmm.....

I remember one against NTSU.

[ponyte]

One wonders if the players in question are that incapable or was the rest of the defense so pathetic that it placed these players in difficult situations. Last year we had more blown coverages than ever. That means others have to make up for the mistakes committed by their teammates. Did the D line look that strong most the year that our safeties were not put in open field tackling situations? Was the interior seven so strong that our safeties didn't have to play so much help on the run at the expense of the passing defense?

I know there are many that are very capable of evaluating talent but I witnessed a football player on defense. Bonilla hit people. I mean hit people. No little Bennett special arm tackles but hit people. That is what a football player does. And he did it with an interior seven underperforming and a secondary making more mistakes than a Spanish lecturer trying to explain donor economics.

One often judges talent not based on their capabilities but on their inability to correct an entire dysfunctional system. That tends to blame the individual for a system failure. Correct the system failure and one will correct a whole slew of players' incapabilities.

I would let JJ and his staff figure out who can play.

[jtstang]

One wonders if the players in question are that incapable or was the rest of the defense so pathetic that it placed these players in difficult situations.

As for the "keeping us in games" aspect that the first poster alluded to, I have my doubts that it matters.

And he did it with an interior seven underperforming and a secondary making more mistakes than a Spanish lecturer trying to explain donor economics.

A.

[couch 'em]

With Bennett's history of evaluating talent, we have no idea who on this team is any good. For all we know, our best talent could be riding the bench or being utilized in ways that don't fit their abilities.

[mustangbill67]

I wonder how many of our returnees would even have been offered by June? This is a major rebuilding project for the coming year. That being said, with June coaching and making player decisions, I believe we have a good chance at a winning season.

[SApony]

JJ did not do so bad at Hawaii his first year there with many players that were not his.

[Stallion]

Its so easy to bash Phil Bennett's recruiting classes once he's gone-isn't it? Some of the same posters doing it now are the one's that bitched at me for doing it the day they signed or committed including the kids that June Jones withdrew offers from.

[mustangbill67]

I am confident that Bennett and his staff did the best they could in recruiting under the circumstances. He attracted mostly average to below average CUSA level players who with a little luck and better overall coaching may have had a higher level of success. We would have been in a bowl in 2006 if some 1st and goals from the 1 had been converted. JJ is being paid $2 million a year to substantially raise the quality and productivity of the football program. The Bennett paradigm is gone. To me this means recruiting at the highest possible level for a mid-major team with no project recruits. Being able to look at the Rivals board and see mostly 3 star SMU commitments with a sprinkling of 2 stars and the occasional 4 star. So if that is your goal, it is a valid question to ask how many returning players fit the new system. It will take several years for the full impact of the JJ hiring to come to fruition.

[Big Hoss]

Bonilla was our most consistent linebacker by far last year. Just ask Wilton "All Out" McCray. Bonilla was tied for the team lead in tackles and he also made a key interception out in open space in the UTEP game.

Remember Jones can't replace every single player on our roster in a single year. He needs some key players from our current team to be able to step up next season, and guys like Bonilla will probably be the ones to fit the bill.