The Hiring of Phil Elmassian The Remedy for an Ailing Defense

If you look at the statistics from this past season, Ferrum's defense last year was sadly lacking to say the least. Opponents scored an average of 39.4 points per game, and there was much damage done whether on the ground, or through the air.
Below are some graphs that will show the defensive struggles for 2013. Please click on any graph to enlarge it.













(Click on Graph to Enlarge)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have always been a proponent that defense wins championships. I thinks this past Super Bowl was a great example of this philosophy. For the Ferrum Panthers, these graphs illustrate that there is a lot of work to do on the defensive side of the ball. Fortunately, I think Ferrum should now be considered very strong where defensive coaching is concerned. In a recent conversation with Coach Dave Harper, he indicated how pleased he was to have coach Elmassian join the staff. Coach Harper commented that "while you may not always be able to have the best athletes, its important to have strong coaches"

In my opinion, Ferrum's defense will get markedly better, and I think the results will show up soon.
This does not mean that Coach Elmassian will perform a miracle in his first season, but his knowledge base is solid, and I think any athlete who has a chance to play under him will benefit from the experience. Given the chance to have input into the recruiting process, and given time to teach his defensive philosophy to the players, Ferrum will, in time, become much more consistently effective on defense.

This is a huge shot in the arm to Ferrum's program, and I for one, am very excited.