Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Spare a nickel? This D can, it’ll have plenty
BOCA RATON — The concept of a nickelback is not foreign. It’s neither novel nor remarkable. But it could be the answer for FAU’s defense in stopping Conference USA’s offenses.
The nickelback, the fifth defensive back on the field, will be a fixture for the Owls as they transition to defensive coordinator Chris Kiffin’s 4-2-5 defense. Last season, FAU’s base defense employed three linebackers. This season, the Owls will trot out nickelback Herb Miller to help slow offenses.
Miller, typically lined up inside the numbers, will be asked to do a number of jobs for the Owls defense. He’ll be responsible for chasing quick slot receivers and crashing the run game, diagnosing plays before they develop and blitzing the quarterback. In order for Kiffin’s 4-2-5 scheme to work, Miller (or backup Quran Hafiz) must be the linchpin.
“If they’re comfortable with who’s out there, it opens up our defense,” Miller said. “You never know what we’re doing, so it’s very important.”
Miller grabbed the nickel position during the spring after the Owls first tried Ocie Rose at the spot. Rose has since moved back to safety.
Last season, FAU’s defense ranked 123rd in the country (out of 128) in scoring defense and 124th in total defense. Its pass defense was 110th.
FAU’s system transition is part of a larger one in college football as teams try to solve spread offenses. In 2016, college football teams averaged 30.0 points per game, part of a steady rise since teams averaged 27.0 in 2009.
The advent of spread offenses has made that possible, though FAU coach Lane Kiffin believes defenses will eventually adjust.
“I don’t think anytime soon like this year, but people always talk about things go in cycles,” Lane Kiffin said. “Once you find something new, everyone spends all offseason focusing on that, and they eventually catch up to it.”
Seven of FAU’s eight conference opponents run a spread offense, with FIU running a pro-style set. Western Kentucky led the country in scoring last year (45.5 points per game). Louisiana Tech was second (44.3). Middle Tennessee State ranked 12th (39.7). The Owls face all three teams in 2017.
For FAU, the first step in slowing those attacks is sacrificing size to inject more speed.
“I think there’s been a lot of people move that direction,” Lane Kiffin said. “You realize that the bigger, runstopping guys nowadays, there’s some games where they can’t even play. Any part of the game is not run like that, the entire game is spread. I think it’s why guys do recruit smaller, faster guys.”
Miller, who spent his first two seasons in Boca Raton as a cornerback, is listed at 6-foot-2 and 190 pounds. He started 12 total games in 2015 and 2016, recording one interception on the outside. Lane Kiffin said Miller had two “really good days” on Tuesday and Wednesday this week.
Hafiz, a freshman from Jacksonville, is listed at 6-feet and 185 pounds. He enrolled early this spring and is one of the freshmen most likely to play this season.
“You have speed on speed,” Miller said. “We
don’t see nothing but spread offenses in Conference USA.”
Chris Kiffin (linebackers coach) and Corey Batoon (safeties coach) will share the title of defensive coordinator this year, but Kiffin will still call plays for the defense. Kiffin and Batoon both came to FAU from Ole Miss.
Lane Kiffin likened their relationship to his with
Steve Sarkisian at USC, when they were both assistant coaches under Pete Carroll.
“They do everything together,” Lane Kiffin said. “It’s almost similar to Sark and I’s situation where we were together for five years as assistants. They were together this whole time at Ole Miss. Corey’s specialty is the back end. So those guys work together, thought it was just fitting that we gave him that title.”
Wisconsin was FAU’s only opponent to crack the coaches’ poll Top 25 on Thursday, checking in at No. 10. Conference USA’s Louisiana Tech received four votes, ranking No. 53.