It’s cool. I was really wasn’t looking for or expecting examples.
@Cornicator has the propensity to make attempts to sway opinion toward his line of thinking with a sort of group think methodology. Like if he says historically left handed people are more apt to develop blood clots. It gives people the sense that he actually researched blood clots and left handed people. What I have seen is that it means he had 3 members of his family have blood clots and 2 were lefties. Therefore, historically speaking.....
Baylor - 2019 - 19 PPG, 4.8 yards per play allowed - running the 4/3
Baylor - 2020 - 29.2 PPG, 5.5 yards per play allowed - running the 3/4
Purdue - 2019 - 30 ppg, 243 yards passing allowed per game, 23 sacks - 4/3 - 12 games
Purdue - 2020 - 30 ppg, 256 yards passing allowed per game, 5 sacks - 3/4 - 6 games , run D was better, but turnovers and plays behind the LOS were dramatically reduced.
Georgia - 2015- 16 ppg, 4.8 yards per play - running the 4/3
Georgia - 2016 - 24 ppg, 5.3 yards per play - running the 3/4
Arkansas - 2016 - 30 ppg and a bowl team - running the 4/3
Arkansas - 2017 - 37 ppg and 4-8 - running the 3-4 - Fat Brett got fired
The success of the 3-4 is contingent upon the right personnel at various positions. In a sense, a 4-3 can mask some of your weaknesses better. Vs. the Run, you absolutely need a dominant Nose Tackle capable of occupying space and taking on Several blockers without giving ground.
Your defensive Ends need to be extremely versatile. They have to possess the strength and size necessary to take on offensive linemen and keep them off the inside linebackers. Carlos and Kahlil Davis were great athletes, and both will probably find a nice 3rd down niche in the NFL going forward, but they got exposed in the 3-4.
Your corners need to be big, physical, and capable of hanging out on an island. This is magnified if your roster doesn't include elite athletes at Outside Linebacker. The inside backers in the 3-4 have to be excellent in pursuit and be able to hammer dudes downhill. They have to be true "stop" guys in a hole.
Most teams struggle with the transition because they haven't been actively recruiting those dudes to fit the needs of the scheme:
1. Baylor didn't really have any of the necessary personnell. But I'm sure Aranda will get it fixed in the next 1 to 2 years.
2. Purdue had a good Nose in Lorenzo Neal, but their Outside LBs and secondary just got destroyed all year long. They had the smallest collection of DBs in the Big Ten. If Purdue plays Iowa in week 5 and Illinois without their 4th string QB, Purdue would've gone winless on the season.
3. A team like Georgia struggled early in the transition, but they recruit so well that a year later, they had a top 5 defense in the country.
- I think Michigan will be a lot like Georgia in the sense that the transition won't take long, but in year one they have some issues:
1. They don't have a nose. Its interesting to see Nebraska and Michigan after a few of the same Nose Tackles in recruiting.
2. If you look at a dude like Rayshaun Benny, who was a high level 4-Star recruit for Michigan. He was recruited by their old staff as a DT in the 4-3. He is quite simply NOT big enough to play the Nose. A recruit like Benny is probably definitely ready to play DT as a True Freshman in the Big Ten. I think he likely gets exploited early in the 3-4.
There have been some examples of teams that had a lot of success while shifting from the 4-3 to the 3-4. But they both had one strong characteristic. They had a lot of talent at Nose, OLB, and in the secondary. Those teams:
2012 to 2013 - Wisconsin
2015 to 2016 - LSU
That characteristic was Dave Aranda. Did Aranda just forget how to coach at Baylor in 2020? No. He walked into rosters that had the necessary talent for a successful transition at LSU and Wisconsin.
Also... one last thing about Michigan.
The Wolverines had 5 consecutive top 10 to 15 defenses under Don Brown, widely considered one of the top DCs in college football. The 2019 team sends 6 dudes, and legit dudes, to the NFL. 3 other NFL players decide to opt out for 2020. That means Brown has to rebuild a defense with 9 new starters without a spring practice and the covid clusterfvck in the Fall. Firing him was a ridiculous overreaction.
Now they have to hit restart again with this new scheme.