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- Jun 12, 2012
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**Joseph Jackson recorded 8.5 sacks in his first season and Miami defensive coordinator Manny Diaz knows how naturally gifted he is, but said that the “little things” will be the catalyst towards his next step.
Diaz explained that it’s difficult to measure the effectiveness of defensive linemen, “because if you sack the quarterback once a game, you’ll be an All-American because you’ll have double-digit sacks, but you might give up 150 yards of offense by not being where you’re supposed to be in the run game.”
“That’s where you’re trying to find that level of consistency where he is blessed with skills and he can make a play and he’s shown that and should have confidence in it, but now can he be a down-to-down guy who knows all of the nuances of the defensive line position,” he added.
**Mark Richt said on Tuesday that he plans to have the QBs go “live” in the first scrimmage on Saturday, meaning the defense will be able to hit them. Diaz explained it’s something that not only help Richt when assessing his QBs, but also his defensive players.
“What happens in practice verbally is you touch the quarterback and you say ‘he’s down’ and they’ll feel good about themselves, but in a game he’s not ‘down’. Those quarterbacks, when they know they don’t have the force field around them, they behave differently. So I think it’s a good reality check for everybody. Not to mention it adds the element of the quarterback run game, so it forces guys to stay disciplined in their assignments,” Diaz said.
**Diaz was asked about LB Darrion Owens’ progress after he did not look like himself last season fresh off of a bad knee injury.
“We like the way he performed in our offseason program. We felt like he was sort of one of the top three linebackers in terms of effort and technique in our mat drill program. I think with him it’s his confidence. He’s moving around better and he’s a big, strong, physical guy. Now he’s got to trust himself to go and play like that. We’re trying to teach him to be a bully and to be a big, strong guy – I’ll be curious to see how he plays on Saturday,” Diaz said.
**LB Jamie Gordinier is beginning to be integrated back into team activities after a knee injury of his own that he suffered last fall camp. Prior to that injury, he was getting starter snaps in the rotation and Diaz likes his versatility.
“It’s like what we always do, we’ll throw everybody ack out there and give everybody a shot. He’s got position flexibility – he can play the Mike and the Will position. He’s a smart guy so he understands the position,” Diaz said.
**Without even being asked about him, Diaz brought up incoming freshman DeAndre Wilder, who is expected to arrive in May.
“We know Wilder brings a skill set that not a lot of guys in that room have, so now the battle for Mike and Will, and sort of the ‘batting order’ will really be determined in August camp.”
Diaz explained that it’s difficult to measure the effectiveness of defensive linemen, “because if you sack the quarterback once a game, you’ll be an All-American because you’ll have double-digit sacks, but you might give up 150 yards of offense by not being where you’re supposed to be in the run game.”
“That’s where you’re trying to find that level of consistency where he is blessed with skills and he can make a play and he’s shown that and should have confidence in it, but now can he be a down-to-down guy who knows all of the nuances of the defensive line position,” he added.
**Mark Richt said on Tuesday that he plans to have the QBs go “live” in the first scrimmage on Saturday, meaning the defense will be able to hit them. Diaz explained it’s something that not only help Richt when assessing his QBs, but also his defensive players.
“What happens in practice verbally is you touch the quarterback and you say ‘he’s down’ and they’ll feel good about themselves, but in a game he’s not ‘down’. Those quarterbacks, when they know they don’t have the force field around them, they behave differently. So I think it’s a good reality check for everybody. Not to mention it adds the element of the quarterback run game, so it forces guys to stay disciplined in their assignments,” Diaz said.
**Diaz was asked about LB Darrion Owens’ progress after he did not look like himself last season fresh off of a bad knee injury.
“We like the way he performed in our offseason program. We felt like he was sort of one of the top three linebackers in terms of effort and technique in our mat drill program. I think with him it’s his confidence. He’s moving around better and he’s a big, strong, physical guy. Now he’s got to trust himself to go and play like that. We’re trying to teach him to be a bully and to be a big, strong guy – I’ll be curious to see how he plays on Saturday,” Diaz said.
**LB Jamie Gordinier is beginning to be integrated back into team activities after a knee injury of his own that he suffered last fall camp. Prior to that injury, he was getting starter snaps in the rotation and Diaz likes his versatility.
“It’s like what we always do, we’ll throw everybody ack out there and give everybody a shot. He’s got position flexibility – he can play the Mike and the Will position. He’s a smart guy so he understands the position,” Diaz said.
**Without even being asked about him, Diaz brought up incoming freshman DeAndre Wilder, who is expected to arrive in May.
“We know Wilder brings a skill set that not a lot of guys in that room have, so now the battle for Mike and Will, and sort of the ‘batting order’ will really be determined in August camp.”
