1. What will the new defensive scheme look like, and how long will it be before it really takes hold?
Rodriguez and first-year defensive coordinator Marcel Yates won’t reveal the exact structure of the defense, and Rodriguez said installing the system is “further down the list of importance” behind technique and fundamental work. He also stressed that the changes Arizona needs to improve defensively go beyond schematics.
The Wildcats ran a 3-3-5 system during Rodriguez’s first four seasons. Yates ran what was called a 4-2-5 at Boise State, although the fourth lineman was more of a hybrid end-linebacker.
“We were four- or five-man rush more than we were three-man rush,” Rodriguez said. “Everybody runs an odd front, everybody runs an even front and everybody runs something in between. It’s not a scheme per se.
“The 3-3-5 has been very successful for a long, long time. But it’s not new or as different as it used to be. So you have to make adjustments. To paint it as a coach thing or a scheme thing is too convenient.”
Yates said tackling and causing turnovers will be major points of emphasis. But attitude and intensity will be just as important.
“If there’s one thing I want you to say about our defense it’s that we play hard,” Yates said. “We need to fly around, we need to finish plays.
“There’ll be breakdowns. They won’t know the defense as well as they should come the fall. But at least they can control how hard they play, and we can control how hard they play by staying on top of them.”
