Change is far from a foreign concept for the LSU defensive unit.
Hiring Dave Aranda in January marked LSU’s third defensive coordinator in as many years — and with a new coach, always comes a new scheme.
John Chavis, who left for Texas A&M following the 2014 season, ran a 4-3 front. Then, Kevin Steele, who left for Auburn this offseason, replaced him with another pro-style 4-3.
Aranda flipped the script, offering a complex scheme centered around a 3-4 front. Eight months after his hiring and two games into the season, his players still have plenty of kinks to work out.
“We watched the film, and there were a lot of technique things that we got to get better at in the 3-4,” said junior defensive end Davon Godchaux. “This 3-4 is new to everybody, even [defensive line coach Ed Orgeron], so we got to just keep drilling it every day.”
For the upperclassmen, it’s their third time with a new system and playbook. But this time, a handful of Tiger defenseman were tasked with changing positions, and that’s where the increased difficulty lies.
“We work hard to learn everything fast,” said senior defensive end Lewis Neal. “We’ve had a new coordinator every year, so we have to learn everything, then we get to go out there and execute it to the best of our abilities. We just keep working hard every day.”
LSU’s defensive line tackled a 34-sack season last year, the most for an LSU defensive unit since 2012, but was shaken up by Aranda’s new schematics.
Godchaux, who was a two-year starter at defensive tackle, swapped to nose tackle before being forced to defensive end when senior defensive end Christian LaCouture suffered a torn ACL. Junior Greg Gilmore and sophomore Travonte Valentine are filling the void at nose tackle.
After playing in a 4-3 his whole career, Godchaux said film review from LSU’s season-opening loss revealed that the defensive front’s 3-4 technique was poor against the Wisconsin Badgers.
“I was a little sloppy my first game in the 3-4,” Godchaux said. “I had nine tackles, but there were a lot of things I could’ve [done] better. Maybe I would’ve had 12 or 14 tackles.”
Gilmore added that the line’s poor technique resulted in rushing lanes on passing plays that a more mobile quarterback could have taken advantage of.
Jacksonville State quarterback Eli Jenkins proved him right to the tune of 82 yards during LSU’s victory against the Gamecocks on Saturday.
LSU’s linebacker corps is also adjusting to the 3-4 after being heavily modified during the offseason. Sophomore Arden Key is now an outside linebacker after playing defensive end last year. Also, senior Duke Riley, a three-year backup outside linebacker, switched to starting inside linebacker.
The biggest learning curve was placed on Key, who transitioned from playing with his hand in the dirt to standing up as a pass rusher. In addition to having a new stance pre-snap, Key has to drop back into coverage for the first time.
As a result, Wisconsin junior tight end Troy Fumagalli continually exploited holes in the middle of LSU’s defense for 100 yards on seven receptions. But Key said he learned from his mistakes and was in better position when he dropped back against Jacksonville State.
“That’s definitely new for Arden — dropping,” junior safety Jamal Adams said. “He’s getting used to it. I definitely help him as much as I can if I see something formation-wise, I tell him he can go ahead and push out a little bit further or go inside a little bit.”
A project eight months in the works, Aranda’s 3-4 defense is still in the developmental stages, though Key and Godchaux agree that the front seven is inching closer to perfection after each repetition in practice and snap on game day.
“It’s a disguised defense, and you never know who’s coming or dropping,” Key said. “[Aranda’s] keeping it simple for right now, letting us get used to the 3-4, but I feel like we’re coming together as one, so I feel like he’s [fixing to] open up the playbook and let us have some fun.”