Goode to Go
September 17, 2009 02:30 PM | General
September 17, 2009
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – If linebacker Reed Williams’ right foot is not good to go this Saturday against Auburn, it’s good to know that West Virginia is good to go with Najae Goode.
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| Linebacker Najae Goode played the entire second half at middle linebacker against East Carolina last Saturday.
All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks photo |
Did you get all of that?
Goode had a pair of tackles and a pass breakup as Williams’ fill-in at middle linebacker last Saturday against East Carolina. Goode has experience (he played in all 13 games last year as a freshman, producing 12 tackles and an interception), he’s got size (6-foot-1, 231 pounds), and he’s got speed (4.5 forty-yard dash).
He is also one of the strongest players on the team (500-pound bencher), plus, he comes from great bloodlines. His father, John, played in the NFL with the St. Louis Cardinals and the Philadelphia Eagles. An older brother, Tariq, played in the Arena Football League and another brother, Wakeem, is playing at Hampton.
Goode said he will be ready in the middle as soon as his name is called on Saturday.
“My mental preparation will be just like I’m starting the game,” Goode said. “If someone goes down, basically it’s just like you are starting the game.”
What that entails, according to Goode, is a lot of video tape study this week.
“As many times as we can get in there, before class, after class … because a team like this, once they get up on you and the stuff they run, it can be confusing,” Goode said. “They beat Mississippi State pretty good.”
Creating confusion is a big problem with Auburn’s offense. There is probably not enough time during the week for Goode to prepare for everything that the Tigers will throw at him.
Not only does he have to worry about orbit motions and oddball formations, he’s also got to be keenly aware of Auburn’s personnel groupings.
“They run three or four guys out of the same spot and they move around a lot,” Goode said. “As a defense that can be a nightmare, but all we are doing is listening to what Coach Casteel tells us, reading our keys, and going from there.”
Auburn has two outstanding tailbacks in Ben Tate and Onterio McCalebb. Tate is a bigger, more powerful back who can get tough yards between the tackles. McCalebb is smaller, shiftier and more of a slasher. Both have the ability to get into the end zone: Tate has scored 14 career touchdowns in 37 games and McCalebb has already scored twice in two games.
“We’ve got to watch those guys because they’ve got some good running backs,” Goode said. “They can hit it on any play.”
Unfortunately, the problems don’t end with Tate and McCalebb.
Auburn can bring in former quarterback Kodi Burns to run the Wildcat, where the WVU defensive coaches have watched Burns run the power and off-tackle plays. They also suspect that Auburn may put in some play passes for Burns off of those power plays.
“We have to recognize who is in the game and prepare like we did in practice,” Goode said. “A lot of coaches get you with that kind of stuff. You can’t be looking into the backfield.”
With so much being made about the Wildcat, particularly in the pros, Goode believes the Wildcat is only as good as the players running it.
“It’s really about players and their capabilities,” he explained. “The kind of player they have dictates what they will do on offense. They can line up in anything, but it’s still the same play. It’s just reading what you have got to read and then taking it to the ball.
“They’ve got a few guys they can throw in there at quarterback and all of them are pretty good,” Goode added. “You’ve just got to make sure you take care of all of your assignments.”
What can be so frustrating, especially with an athletic quarterback like Burns, is the defense can do everything right – correctly identify the play, beat their blockers and get into a position to make a tackle, and then Burns will use his athletic ability to escape contain and turn a loss into a big play. Goode has gotten a close look in practice at what athletic quarterbacks can do with Pat White and Jarrett Brown.
“It looks like (Jarrett) is running in slow motion and then he’s eating up about 10 yards a step. That just adds another threat to the offense and is something the defense has to worry about,” Goode said. “The easiest team to play against is a team that either runs the football all game or passes the football all game. When you add a quarterback that can throw and run, it’s just another assignment that somebody has to pick up on.”
For his part, Goode believes his teammates have confidence in him to get the job done.
“I’m ready to step up now,” he said. “Last year I had to do the same thing in a few games. This year, they know now that we can play together – they’re not looking back to see if I can do this or that, they just expect me to make plays and that’s what I thinking going into this game.”
Saturday will be an electric atmosphere at Jordan-Hare Stadium with more than 85,000 expected to be in the stadium. Goode said the players will naturally be excited, but he cautions that they will also have to channel all of that energy in a positive fashion.
“For a defense, you can never be too juiced up. You thrive on energy and you thrive on good plays. You need that energy at the point of attack and we’re going to try and use it.
“But, you’ve got to keep your head about you,” he continued. “You can’t play too fast and you can’t play too slow. Coach always says you’ve got to use your eyes and use your head.”
If Najae Goode can manage to do that on Saturday, then West Virginia’s defense could very well be Goode to go.
