Notes: Roof addresses scheme

1. New Georgia Tech defensive coordinator Ted Roof for the most part avoided specifics about how he wants to play, but he made clear that he'll train the Yellow Jackets to play an aggressive style.

“You’ve got to stay on the attack,” he said. “With all the different ways that offenses are attacking defenses now, there is no more (sitting) back. You’ve got to force teams to get behind the chains. If you have to pressure to do that, then you have to pressure to do that, because you can’t get (continually give up four- and five-yard gains) because that kills the morale.”

Perhaps not surprisingly, last year at Penn State, the Nittany Lions tied for 15th in the country in sacks per game with 2.8.

2. Regarding scheme, Roof said a few things. First, he has coached in a variety of different schemes. Second, he's not tied to any of them, but more "to putting our guys in the best position they can to make plays." Third, the defense will have to be flexible due to the variety of offenses Tech will see, "but at the same time have a base to call home, so that when times get tough, kids always have something to go back to." Fourth, the 4-3 has been his base, he said, "but that's something that we're still evaluating. That's certainly going to be in our package."

He doesn’t sound like someone who will overload his players with complexities, an issue that hampered the Tech defense with former coordinator Al Groh.

“It’s about putting kids in the right spots, and it’s not so much how much defense you have, it’s how  much defense your players can execute,” Roof said. “That’s what’s important.”

3. One of the alignment challenges Roof will have to figure out is what to do with his linebackers. Tech has four returning starters – Jeremiah Attaochu, Jabari Hunt-Days, Quayshawn Nealy and Brandon Watts, and also backup Daniel Drummond. All four starters figure to be players Roof will want on the field.

“Our job as coaches is to get the best group on the field, whoever that is, however that is, whatever the position,” he said.

4. Roof said he's looking forward to playing opposite an offense that often dominates time of possession.

“That’s a stat that, you hear a lot of other guys say that it’s not that important,” Roof said. “Well, when we’ve got the ball, they don’t have it. That’s still important and it’s still a game of field position, but to be defensively on this side, it’s a wonderful thing, because I’ve been on the other side of it, too, where it was get a Gatorade to go (between possessions).”

One could reasonably deduce he was talking about his three years at Auburn, when he coached alongside then-offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn and his high-tempo scheme.

5. To leave Penn State, Roof had to choose to stop working alongside coach Bill O'Brien, a good friend whom Roof first coached with at Tech. They were on coach George O'Leary's staff together 1998-2001; O'Brien was running backs coach 1998-2000 and offensive coordinator in 2001. Roof was linebackers coach in 1998 and then defensive coordinator for his final three seasons.