Playing on the defensive line has the same three core concepts as the rest of the defense: assignment, alignment, technique. After that, it’s about pure willpower, a love of contact, and perhaps more than any other position in any other team sport, effort.
Call the defense
Chris Ash felt confident enough in Jay Niemann to let him own the defense, and to an equal extent Shane Burnham. Burnham’s group had autonomy with virtually everyone returning from a group that really flashed potential from it’s younger players, so the hope was they could set the tone for the rest of the program’s #10strong.