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Josh Shirley Part Deux
Passion
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I think it was RoadDawg55 that launched a Josh Shirley thread a short while ago. Well, a ted miller interview with Justin Wilcox revealed some stats that must've escaped me. Very excited to see what Shirley does this year...one of the few players that actually gets me excited.
"As for the pass rush, that starts with junior rush end Josh Shirley, who Wilcox believes played better than was commonly thought among the Huskies fan base.
"He did a good job rushing the passer last year," Wilcox said. "He had six and a half sacks last year but he had the opportunity to have 12 or 13 if he would have finished better."
Shirley also forced six fumbles, tied for first in the conference."
Here is the link to the full interview: espn.go.com/blog/pac12/post/_/id/55749/whats-next-for-improved-uw-defense-under-wilcox
"As for the pass rush, that starts with junior rush end Josh Shirley, who Wilcox believes played better than was commonly thought among the Huskies fan base.
"He did a good job rushing the passer last year," Wilcox said. "He had six and a half sacks last year but he had the opportunity to have 12 or 13 if he would have finished better."
Shirley also forced six fumbles, tied for first in the conference."
Here is the link to the full interview: espn.go.com/blog/pac12/post/_/id/55749/whats-next-for-improved-uw-defense-under-wilcox
Comments
Maybe the motto this year should be FINISH.
#ThingsLosersSay
I would guess that his imaginary sacks that Wilcox is counting were the numerous times Shirley used his one move, run around the outside of the OT, and overran the pocket when the QB stepped up...
I dont understand the love affair with Shirley, he has one move, ONE. Run as fast as he can around the outside shoulder of the tackle in the hopes that there isnt a running play called in his direction and that the offensive tackle is Two Mississippi Ben Ossai slow.
Shirley puts extra pressure on our OLB on his side every play because if its a running play in his direction Shirley has either already taken himself out of the play and the OT is free to down block our OLB or Shirley ends up on his ass because he is about as strong as a CB against the run.
Shirley does one thing well. If he is unblocked and on the backside of the running play he does a good job of sliding down the backside of the line and chasing the RB.
Shirley takes a lot of flack, but he is our best pass rusher, and it is not even close. He's a big key in helping the defense improve. I don't think our secondary will be quite as good as last year, making an improved pass rush even more vital. Hopefully Shirley (and the rest of the DL) takes a step in their development. If they do, we should be pretty good on defense.