With nine defensive starters returning for Ball State University, the defense was supposed to be the unit to lead the team. Instead, the Cardinals gave up 512 yards of total offense to the University of North Texas in the season opening 20-10 loss.
"The whole defense didn't play worth a crap," defensive coordinator Doug Graber said.
Coach Stan Parrish said tackling was a weak point that needed to be addressed before Ball State takes on the University of New Hampshire this week.
"They smacked us when we caught it," Parrish said. "When they caught it we didn't smack them. It's all in the way you play."
Graber said the defense needed to take better angles to the ball carrier and that practices would emphasize tackling.
Senior defensive end Brandon Crawford agreed that it was basic mistakes that could be corrected.
"Everything's already set in place," Crawford said. "We just need to be better at what's expected of us. It's fundamental things."
The call to be more aggressive hasn't gone unnoticed during practice. Crawford said there was a definite difference this week.
"Coach about put someone out of practice today because they were being too aggressive," Crawford said. "Guys are doing what we should have been doing the whole time. You can feel it."
The guilty party followed through on a tackle after the whistle had been blown, which would have been flagged for a personal foul during a game.
In addition to the poor tackling against North Texas, Ball State's cornerbacks spent much of the night giving a large cushion to the wide receivers. That allowed Mean Green quarterback Riley Dodge to find many open players for quick passes. Graber said that wasn't by design.
"We just didn't play very well," he said.
Crawford said the quick passes also made it difficult for the Cardinals' pass rush to get pressure on Dodge.
"They never did a traditional dropback," Crawford said. "We had maybe one good pass rush."
Safeties Sean Baker and Alex Knipp led the team in tackles, but they weren't spared criticism from Parrish.
"It wasn't aggressive," Parrish said. "Our safeties missed 10 tackles and those are the bell cows of our defense. We didn't tackle and we didn't rally to the ball."
Opening night also marked the debut of Ball State's new 4-3 defensive alignment. Crawford said that had nothing to do with the defense's struggle.
"We've played it before," Crawford said. "This year it's just the base. It's working very well for us."
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