Patchan Works to Change His Label - CSURams.com

soerasu.blogspot.com

But first, Smith had to get his claws in him.

“I saw a high-effort guy who showed enough of a good first step that I thought I could increase his game in the pass rush. I built on that,” Smith said. “It took him a little bit of a time, a little bit of an adjustment. We’re a get-off front, and we play a different style of defense. I think the way I align him in pass rush, and I think the pass-rush philosophy of our footwork and our hands was something that was really different for him. It took him a little time, but you could see him slowly start to get better and better, and all of the sudden, he just took off.”

Patchan won’t give away any of Smith’s trade secrets; he said those belong to his coach. But he is proof they are effective when adapted. He stops with explaining it is a three-step plan, and while a lot of it is physical in nature, the intangibles are just as key.

Those, Patchan said, have really played a big role in his performance, as his 1.38 sacks per game rank third nationally (5.5 overall) and his 1.88 tackles for loss per outing (7.5 total) rank sixth in the country.

“It’s everything he brings to the table, and a big part of it too is preparation and understanding your opponent’s weakness,” Patchan said. “How does he set? Is he a puncher, does he lean, does he punch with his head? Does he bend at the waist? When he kicks, is heavy on his heels or is he on his toes? When he punches, are his hands wide or are they together? Does he punch with one arm or is he a double-arm puncher?

“It's those types of things to look for that I never really knew at Miami. He gave me the tools to really understand how to really attack my opponent. Now Coach Addazio comes over in pass rush all the time, and I hear exactly how he tells a good offensive lineman how to play. I come over and I hear the little tidbits he tells the offensive linemen, and then he’ll explain to the defensive linemen why they do that, and it only makes everybody better. When you understand your opponent better, you become better.”

Smith tells him at those times to listen to Addazio first, then come listen to him. At night, if his phone rings, it’s probably Patchan. He’ll ask about the practice plan the next day, and Smith can hear the pages flipping in Patchan’s notebook as they talk.

On game day, the coaches both just sit back and watch the show.

“I think his leadership, his approach to football – his maniacal approach to football; the way he prepares for games, the way he trains … He teams up with Manny and Toby, and those three guys with that same mindset permeates the rest of the defensive line,” Addazio said. “The culture of their defensive line becomes that hard-working, tough, great pride, coach-me-as-hard-as-you-can-coach-me type of thing. Guys, that’s what it’s all about.”

Addazio also noted with Devin Phillips out last week, there was no real rotation on the defensive front. Patchan played every snap, which is actually normal and definitely preferred. He told Smith upon arrival he wanted to play at least 60 snaps a game. He wanted to gain a rhythm and really pick apart his opponent, and an end doesn’t do that by coming in and out.

So Smith doesn’t take out Patchan. He lets Patchan take out Patchan. Down 21 points at Boise State, Smith said Patchan never flinched and played like the contest was scoreless. If one really watches, this is a kid who really is enjoying playing again and who he’s playing alongside.

“Oh yeah. It’s all the personalities that we have in our room, and especially the four of us on the field,” Patchan said. “It’s just a fun group of guys to be around. I’ve been around a bunch of good people, but we all get each other, and you have Coach Smith pushing the room. You have a bunch of individuals in there that really understand what the goals are, and we’re all on the same page at this point now.”