ATLANTA -- Gene Chizik built his coaching reputation on his prowess as a defensive coordinator, and through the early weeks of bowl practices Auburn’s defenders raved about the intensity he brings to the rule.
Precious little had been said about how Chizik’s scheme would differ from Ted Roof’s, at least until Auburn arrived in Atlanta for bowl practices at the Georgia Dome this week.
Chizik has simplified Auburn’s defense in preparation for the Chick-fil-A Bowl.
Rather than throw a series of wrinkles into Auburn’s base defense, Chizik has tried to get his players running to the ball rather than agonizing over their assignment on every snap.
“The way it looked like (under Roof), compared to now, it looked like we were running around,” backup cornerback Robenson Therezie said. “Now it looks like we’re just there. Coach Chiz puts us in the position to make plays.”
A simplified approach may have something to do with Auburn’s opponent in the Chick-fil-A Bowl on New Year’s Eve.
Virginia’s offense can be hard to read before the snap.
Before the Cavaliers set to snap the ball, they try to give the defense multiple looks to digest and try to keep the defense from getting in position against a certain formation.
Virginia averaged 396.83 total yards-per-game this season, an attack that ranked the Cavaliers 51st in the nation.
“Offensively, they are so tough to defend because there are so many motions and shifts and trades,” Chizik said. “They kind of get you out of sorts in terms of alignment.”
And Auburn is not a team that plays well when the alignment is not set. Too many times this season, opposing receivers broke free against either single coverage with no help over the top or wide-open deep down the field.
Chizik’s plan helps eliminate blown assignments.
He wants to get as many players swarming to the ball as possible. With that in mind, Auburn cannot have any uncertainty on the defensive side of the ball. Blown assignments create 1-on-1 opportunities for the offense.
“It’s more upbeat, everybody hustling to the ball,” defensive end Corey Lemonier said. “Chiz made it real simple for us. He wanted to make it easy for all of us.”
Chizik has not been at the helm of a defense in five years.
A few responsibilities have changed as he tries to juggle the duties of both the head coach and the defensive coordinator in preparation for Auburn’s battle with Virginia.
For instance, Chizik will most likely call the plays from the sideline for the first time in his career. In defensive coordinator stops at Central Florida, Auburn and Texas, Chizik was always perched high above the field in the coordinator’s box.
And that’s only one of the things that has changed. A head coach has enough duties to carry out without adding the pressure of being a coordinator.
“My hat’s off to him, to try to be the coordinator and the head coach, I know he’s working very hard,” Virginia head coach Mike London said. “Obviously, he made his name as a defensive coordinator.”
Chizik’s reputation as a defensive guru is well-known.
In 2004, he won the Frank Broyles Award as the nation’s top assistant for helping lead Auburn to an undefeated season, and he was at the helm when Texas won its national championship.
His resume is not lost on Auburn’s players. No matter how simple the defense is, Auburn’s defenders know they cannot be out of place.
Or Chizik will be there waiting to correct the mistake.
“You have to do everything right,” Auburn safety Erique Florence said. “He’s pretty much a defensive genius. Whatever he says is right.”
