FSU football: Why lack of confidence is biggest problem for the Noles

Defense

This defense has shown they are capable of getting stops, but it all comes down to execution.  I know everyone wants to fire Adam Fuller, but there are too many times I’ve seen players in a position to make a play and fail to do so.

The man can’t go out there and make tackles for them. Does he have areas he needs to improve as a coordinator? Absolutely, but let’s look at Louisville’s first offensive possession.

They did everything right on the first two plays, and it’s third and eight with Jarvis Brownlee matched up with Tutu Atwell, and Atwell beats Brownlee off the line of scrimmage.

Brownlee had a good game against UNC last week, but I think he underestimated the speed of Atwell here:

My question would be why are they not pressing all of the receivers here since they are pressing with the corners? One reason could be they were afraid of Atwell’s speed, but if you’re going to allow him to run by you anyway? What’s the point of giving such a big cushion?

The first play on Louisville’s second possession should have gone for a seven-yard loss, but it went for a 70-yard touchdown because Janarius Robinson and Akeem Dent miss the tackle. What angle was Robinson taking on this play? There’s nothing Fuller can do here because the tackle should have been made:

After this play, I think the guys checked out and the game was essentially over. However, I feel like had they gotten a stop on that first third-down it would have been a different ballgame.

There were other times in the game where guys second-guessed themselves. Raymond Woodie had a pass thrown in his direction that was a gift interception and he watched the ball for 19 seconds before finally making a move and breaking up the pass. The player’s bit on the Louisville fake handoff rollout plays every single time. Where is the game IQ?

These players don’t believe in themselves at all.