Bateman On Pass D, Gray, Rucker, Pressuring QBs & More
CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina defensive coordinator Jay Bateman met with the media Monday to field questions about his unit’s performance in a 59-39 victory over Virginia on Saturday night at Kenan Stadium.
While the Tar Heels’ offense moved the ball at will, the Cavaliers also had a prolific night, too. Wahoos’ quarterback Brennan Armstrong set a record versus UNC passing for 554 yards and four touchdowns. The previous high versus a Carolina team was 483.
UNC did register three sacks and held UVA to 21 rushing yards on 22 attempts.
Below is video of Bateman’s entire presser as well as the complete transcript from what he had to say:
Q: On Cedric Gray’s performance vs UVA…
BATEMAN: “I thought he played great, he’s improving every week, he’s got a really high ceiling. He’s got a lot of skills for an inside linebacker, but I think he’s also got real pass rush ability, and that’s important for us. He did a great job in coverage, I’m really glad he’s here, I thought he did great.”
Q: On the run defense and pass defense against UVA…
BATEMAN: “A year ago when we played them, we got done, and we started really examining, especially in the offseason, I feel like we really didn’t defend anything. I felt like a year ago when we took away the run, they threw it, when we took away the pass, they ran it, and we ended up not defending anything. In the offseason, some of the decisions we made on how to play them, especially some of the personnel groups they give you, it was like look, we’re gonna take away the run, and try to play man coverage. I thought that was really important to us because that at least made us, hey look guys, this is what we’re gonna have to take away, this is what we’re gonna have to defend now.
“I thought in the first quarter we did a really good job, I thought in the second quarter our corners got beat, we got drilled outside a little bit. At halftime we came in and said now look, we gotta go play some more split safety coverage, and a little bit cover two and some of those things. I think after that we got it back on track. I think the plan was good, I think it really limited what they could do in the run game, especially with all the jet-sweep stuff they like to do, I felt like we had really good edges for that. It was kind of like pick your poison. I knew going in we weren’t gonna hold them to 21 yards passing. The quarterback is a really good player, they got really good receivers, they got a really good scheme.
“I don’t remember the exact number, we got somewhere around 30-40 snaps of empty personnel with no backfield. When they’re doing that stuff they’re gonna complete some balls with a quarterback like that, but I’m certainly not happy. Now it becomes look, these are the fundamental errors we made in coverage, these are some of the mistakes we made in coverage, we gotta fix those, and we’ll start with that on Tuesday. I think the plan was good, the way the first quarter went, and the way the third and fourth quarters went is kind of how I thought it would go, the second quarter was awful. That’s kind of how I look at it.”
Q: On what Cedric Gray brings to the linebacker position that he wasn’t previously getting…
BATEMAN: “I think he gives us a little bit more of what Chazz gave us, as far as a longer, bigger body with some of the pass rush stuff. I think he’s a really, really good cover guy. When we first signed him, we thought he could maybe play safety. He was a receiver in high school, and I think most of his early high school offers were at receiver, so I think there’s that. He’s a sophomore that keeps getting better, every day at practice when we come off the field I say ‘man, he’s good.’
“He is really smart. Football makes a lot of sense to him. Cedric Gray plays Mike and Will probably as efficiently as Gemmel would, to be able to handle both spots. I think Cedric has a really bright future. He's a little bit longer, matching up on that tight end that looked like a Power Forward. He’s got a little bit of a longer body, some of those kind of thoughts, and I thought he played really well when he was in there.”
Q: On the versatility of Kaimon Rucker…
BATEMAN: “You know it’s funny, we had one blitz in the package, and I told him during the week, I said ‘Kaimon, if you’re in for this,’ it was a coverage component, this was a Chris Collins play. ‘If you’re in at this position, and I call this, you have to act like your hamstring is pulled.’ He actually did a really good job. Kaimon I think has improved tremendously in coverage. When he first got here, he had never been asked to drop in his life, so he’s improved tremendously in coverage, but I think his number one skill is pass rush.
“What we try to sell the outside backers on is when you have value in coverage, what that means is they can’t tee off on you, and double team you. I think that was important, especially early in the game against Virginia, was we had him and Tomon (Fox). We were trying to have Tomon and Rucker rushing as much as we could, and I think when they’re both in there, and they both have the ability to drop in coverage, it kept them from being able to double team both of them. Kaimon has lined up and played four positions for us this year, and I think he’s got the chance to be a really, really good player.”
Q: On what you do as a defensive coordinator when a QB like Sam makes a tremendous jump in his game with his rushing ability…
BATEMAN: “I think my first reaction would be good luck. I think in the Summer, going up against him, we noticed very quickly on how much he improved running the football, and I think he’s doing a great job, Sam’s a great player. I think any time you add the run component to a quarterback, it makes it really, really hard to play defense.”
Q: On how to get more pass rush throughout the game…
BATEMAN: “I think early on, I thought our pass rush was really good. I thought they did a really good job on changing their protections, and really made it hard for Kaimon, Tomon, Des (Evans), and Chris to get there from the edge, and kind of forced us to be inside pass rush conscious. A lot of the pressures we like to use against those protections were hard because of the empty stuff, so it was hard for us to get it quite right, and that’s when we started having problems.
“I thought at halftime we came out and said we’re gonna play a little bit more in coverage to give the pass rush a little bit more time, and I thought when that happened, the pass rush improved. We had three sacks, but when they drop back as many times as they do, you need to have more like six sacks to be efficient in your pass rush. We got to get a little better pass rush from the inside guys, and I’ve got to do a better job creating opportunities for the edge guys.”
Q: On the halftime adjustments working all season…
BATEMAN: “I think we go into halftime and we say look, we went into the game expecting them to attack us this way, and they’re attacking us this way, and so this is the components of our defense that help us defend this kind of attack, that’s the nuts and bolts of it. I think the bigger issue right now for us is the second quarter, being able to adjust on the sideline to things that we’re seeing, instead of having to go in, and sit in front of the board, and me say ‘look, this is how we need to play this.’ I think that’s the step I want to see our kids take right now.”
Q: On what he sees from how Georgia Tech has progressed…
BATEMAN: “I think they’re much further along from where they were when they got there, and they were making the transition offensively. I think the two running backs are great players, I think Jahmyr Gibbs is a great player, one of the best backs we’ll play. I think the two quarterbacks, they both have played, are very similar athletic guys, I got a lot of respect for both of them. Number ten was a kid last year that was on all the freshmen All-American kind of stuff.
“We spent a lot of time in the offseason looking at him, and then Yates is a kid, we looked at him in recruiting, and I just think, he won a state championship, he’s just a winner. Runs around, makes plays, competes his tail off. I think they got really good skill at running back, they have two really athletic quarterbacks, and I think where they’ve made the biggest improvement is o-line. They’re just bigger, able to move people a little more, you have to do a great job in the run game.
“The two receivers out there are guys that when you play one-on-one coverage, are able to beat you, so it’s gonna be a challenge. I think this will be the first offense we’ve played with a tailback that’s a real difference maker. You got to really get in there and sometimes just saying hey, this guys going to tackle him ain’t good enough, you gotta get your best tacklers to the ball, and I think that’ll be a challenge for us.”
Q: On the benefits of a three-safety package, and if he has thought about using it…
BATEMAN: “We have a little bit of it too. We probably played it forty snaps last year, we’ve already played it four, or five snaps this year. I think the benefit of it is you add a second level to your coverage. With all the RPOs, all the intermediate throws that put conflict on your deep defenders, you kind of have a guy there, or two guys there that can kind of sit on those routes, and then defend the run. I think offensive coordinators nowadays run it for five and that’s not enough, I can throw it for twelve.
“I think when Iowa State kind of started it, it was in the Big 12 where people were scoring 40-50 every game, it kind of slowed the offenses down. It made them earn the run game a little more, and then you’re able to go play run defense, and get off blocks, and all those things that make football special. I think it’s definitely got a place. I mean, NFL teams do it a little bit, not as much because the RPO game isn’t as big in the NFL with the o-line rolls. It’s really built to defend RPOs and try to slow down the passing game. It certainly has a place, we’ve used it some. I think for us, we have enough things right now that we work on that that we feel good about, but it’s certainly something that we have every year we look at and consider it as an option.”
Q: On if UNC’s offensive quick scores impact the ability to make sideline adjustments on defense…
BATEMAN: “No, I mean I like when they score fast, scores are good. I think it’s more just our kids being able to see the big picture on some things. I do think we’re way better than we have been. I think the other part of it is just us getting together as a staff and saying ‘hey look, this is what I want to do, what do you guys think,’ and kind of hashing it out, and then going in there and saying ‘oh look, okay this is what we’re gonna do.’ I think we’ve had some pretty good plans, obviously Virginia Tech wasn’t a good plan initially, but we kind of settled down once we changed things there.
“I think we’ve done a really good job since I’ve been here, like the initial, the first quarters been pretty good. I think when people have adjusted to how we’re defending them, we’ve got to do a better job with that, and okay look, if we’re taking this away, this is the next thing they’ll go to instead of having to go in at halftime, and add to it, so that’s our next step.”
Q: On what he’s seen from Desmond Evans…
BATEMAN: “I think he’s playing a lot. I think he’s playing the right amount right now. We want to get him more reps, I think more reps will come for him. He has been a great run defender, and I think the pass rush will come. I think with young d-lineman, a lot of times the hardest thing is being good in the run game, and then transitioning pass rush. With Des, it’s trying to get him to understand when he can steal a pass rush snap. When it’s 2nd and 9, and the offensive tackle, and the other guys on defense are telling us it’s a pass, like getting a pass rush and go. He’s playing really well right now, I think the sacks will come.”