GOLD AND BLACK ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 27, ISSUE 5 41
Miles
Jallow
Scouting The Defense
Analysis
P
urdue's most talented, most experienced
players reside in the linebacker room,
so it fits well that Nick Holt's scheme is
one that's designed to take advantage of such
strengths. Markus Bailey may be the team's
best player, even if he's entering only his second
season as a starter, as a near complete-package
LB with great instincts, physicality, intelligence
and athleticism as well as a dogged pursuit of
perfection. All of it was on display this spring in
Holt's D, which allowed Bailey to use that ability
to be instinctive to make plays, whether it was
being in the right drop in zone coverage and
reading the QB to create turnovers or flowing
to the ball in the run game. Maybe even a better
sign for the defense, though, was Ja'Whaun
Bentley showing up in holes to slow the run.
After a down season last year coming off an ACL
injury and then dealing with apparent other
nagging injuries, Bentley wasn't the type of play-
BY STACY CLARDIE
Photos
by
Tom
Campbell
