ASU Football: Quarterback Competition is Overrated
The big storyline this offseason for ASU football has been the hiring of a new offensive and defensive coordinator.
With changes to two major coaching positions, that means that the on-field product should change as well, and for ASU football that might not be that bad. While a new offensive coordinator and a new starting-caliber quarterback in Blake Barnett, a new starting quarterback competition has begun.
But the quarterback competition shouldn’t be what people are focusing on this offseason.
The fans should be focusing on the defense. Yes, quarterback is an important position, arguably the most important position on a team, but it doesn’t make or break a team. If you look at who have been some of the best teams in the nation the past few years in the FBS they all have one thing in common, a good defense.
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Arizona State the past two seasons have not had a good defense. Both years they were ranked as one of the worst in the nation. With the hiring of new defensive coordinator Phil Bennett, the program hopes that the defense will improve.
If the defense can improve, that will jumpstart the offense. Not having to put up 50 points a game in order to have a chance of winning would be a nice bonus for the offense.
An easy way for the defense to be vastly improved is to learn how to tackle in the open field. Too many times last season the Sun Devils were caught giving up huge amounts of yardage due to a missed tackle. Instead of a fourth and 1 it turns into a first and ten because of a missed tackle.
In the end, the quarterback competition will be the main focus of the summer. The position is just all too important to a team for it not to be the focus. But fans may find themselves wishing they paid more attention to the defensive side of things if the defense hasn’t improved that much from last season.