Daily Bullets (June 4)

One Man Away

An interesting observation here on what the defensive x-factor could be.

The main difference between the 2013 unit that ranked ninth nationally and the units that finished 76th, 70th, and 67th was that in 2013, the Cowboys had first-round cornerback Justin Gilbert, who picked off seven passes. The Pokes always have safeties and linebackers who play tight between the hash marks, and they have at least one DL who can cause problems up front. But they haven’t had a CB who could be trusted to deny a quadrant of the field in that period.

If Baker can fill that need, this defense could surprise people with what it’s capable of when freed to outnumber teams elsewhere on the field. Moving the sticky-fingered Richards (six INTs in two seasons at CB) to a position where he can keep his eyes on the QB in deep zone could be advantageous. [SB Nation]

Expecting Baker to sniff Gilbert-levels of production doesn’t seem reasonable but solid play is.  Baker filling that hole and Ramon being “Good Ramon” will be beyond crucial to determining the line between blow outs and track meets this fall.

Overshadowed

All the talk on defense is about the secondary, but Robert Allen points out the defensive tackle position needs work. So much so, there’s other contingencies in place.

On the defensive line, Oklahoma State was working some added three-four fronts as defensive analyst and former Notre Dame, Georgia, and NFL defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder is steeped in 3-4 defensive knowledge and able to lend that out to defensive coordinator Glenn Spencer and the defensive staff.

Spencer has to hope that the 3-4 look is a scheme the Cowboys can use to switch up offenses and not one that has to be used out of necessity because of lack of depth at defensive tackle. [GoPokes – $]

He goes on to say that four to five tackles are needed for the current defense and they feel solid about three of them (Darrion Daniels, Trey Carter and DQ Osborne). $50k for an analyst seems like a worthwhile backup plan if none of the candidates develop.

OSU and NCAA Notes

Tram has OSU in four of his top ten best Big 12 games….Receiver commit C.J. Moore and Tulsa Union will be on ESPN this fall….Tommy Tuberville apologizes for slamming Lubbock….Harbaugh designed uniforms Michigan will wear this fall….After five years, Washington State is now a Leach-team

I’d love to see Cam McGriff after lifting with Rob Glass.

Known for his high-flying dunks @cameron_mcgriff is ready to take his game to the next level in 2017-18. #letswork #okstate pic.twitter.com/Wiv4oz9Sor

— Cowboy Basketball (@OSUMBB) June 3, 2017

The official “baseball’s over so let’s start to pine for football season” season is now commencing.

[HeroSports]

Rickie’s five strokes back going into the last day, but check this gem.

Here. He. Comes.

A second straight birdie for @RickieFowler. #QuickHits pic.twitter.com/bjlLHXFXBm

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 3, 2017

What You Missed on PFB

• The Pokes’ closed the season out in a tough loss to ORU yesterday
• Glenn Spencer landed a three-star safety from Louisiana yesterday
• Check out the recruiting reload from yesterday
• 100 Days of Summer: get to know an impact defensive end