'Too much to handle': UWF football coach Kavell Conner brought in a new defensive structure. And so far, it's working

Twenty-six total tackles for losses.

Twelve of those tackles are sacks.

Ten quarterback hurries.

And it stems from the new University of West Florida football team’s new defensive scheme that defensive coordinator Kavell Conner has brought to the team. The Argos are utilizing a four-man defensive line front, compared to a three-man front that UWF had historically used.

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“It’s too much to handle. It’s a lot of pressure,” defensive lineman John McMullen said of the system. “The intensity (with the four-man front), it’s just what we’ve been breeding ever since the camp started. We’re going to be the frontrunners of the defense, and we’re going to do everything in our power to make everybody else’s job easy.”

While the Week 3 loss to Florida A&M proved to be difficult for the Argos, the defense still held its own early in the contest. UWF sacked FAMU quarterback Jeremy Moussa once, and hurried him six times in the contest.

The Argos held the Rattlers to just three points in the first half.

But during the first two weeks of the season, UWF held both Kentucky Wesleyan College and McKendree University to just a field goal apiece. That included some staunch stops when McKendree got within five yards of the end zone, threatening to score.

“Any time your players see something you say work, that gives you credibility. That gives us, as a coaching staff, credibility,” Conner said. “It gains trust with your players, right? They continue to trust you and believe everything you say.”

‘An easy decision’

Conner brings a wealth of defensive experience to UWF. Conner played four seasons at linebacker at Clemson from 2005-09 before being drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the 2010 NFL Draft in the seventh round. In three seasons with the Colts, he recorded 236 tackles, two forced fumbles, and one sack.

Conner also spent time with the San Diego Chargers, the Baltimore Ravens and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League before returning to Clemson in 2021 as part of the coaching staff.

After two seasons with Clemson, Conner followed head coach Kaleb Nobles – who spent 2021-22 with the Tigers – to UWF.

With all of his playing and coaching experience, Conner said he’s worked with both three-man and four-man fronts for defensive structures. A majority of the time, however, was with the four-man front.

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“I love getting those big guys out there in front of the linebackers, letting those boys play a little free, then unleashing those big fellas that can go out there and create chaos,” Conner said. “It was an easy decision. It was a no-brainer for me.”

McMullen called Conner a “player’s coach” given how long Conner played in college plus the professional ranks.

“He knows the blueprints. He knows everything that it takes to get there. You can tell he’s got a love for the game. He’d probably still be playing if could,” McMullen said. “Just to have a guy like that, it turns everybody up. It’s a great energy for everybody on the team.”

Right from the start, Conner knew he was going to institute the new defensive scheme.

Then he went and brought in players to support returners like Aidan Swett. One of those newcomers is McMullen, who transferred from Northern Michigan University.

“We already knew what we had in Aidan Swett, and how he could contribute and play. We surrounded him with guys who could play as well,” Conner said. “The guys that were here, we knew where they were fitted to it and how we could develop them. That’s all we focused on.”

‘A party in the backfield’

McMullen has made a big impact in the first three weeks in the season, as he leads the Argos with five sacks. He also had a quarterback hurry against FAMU. His success led him to being named the Gulf South Conference Defensive Player of the Week after the McKendree win.

With a new coaching staff plus some new players on the defensive line, McMullen said players quickly bought into Conner’s system.

And all the players have been supportive of one another, “trying to keep each other up, even on days where somebody might be lacking a little bit,” McMullen added.

“Coach (Conner) told us, when we started, that we were going to start out as a defensive line death row. Everybody bought into that from the get-go,” McMullen said. “Instead of us doing basic schemes with the same gaps, same formations – us mixing it up is what keeps those offensive linemen on their heels. It makes it harder for them to pick it up.”

It doesn’t just extend to the pass game, either. UWF’s defense has limited opposing teams’ run games. The Argos held KWC to just 128 yards rushing. Against McKendree, the Bearcats finished with minus-32 yards rushing on 30 attempts.

FAMU, so far, is the outlier with 163 yards rushing and a long gain of 73 yards. The Rattlers were the only team to score on the ground against the Argos.

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Week 2 at McKendree is the that stood out, however, with 14 total tackles for losses – seven of which were sacks.

“It’s a party in the backfield,” McMullen said. “And just from my experience … any time you get an offensive lineman where they’re guessing or they’re thinking about what they’re going to do next, you already won.”

“The big boys are always excited when they can get off the ball to have fun. They were pretty excited,” Conner said of the thrashing. “I don’t think any of them are content. We all know that there’s still work to be done, and it’s a long season. We just try to keep a grinder’s mentality, come out here and work every day.”

What it does for the linebackers

Conner called linebacker Will Breland “instinctual.” Breland sees the field well and has 10 tackles (6 solo, 4 assisted) as well as a quarterback hurry and a pass broken up in two games. Two of Breland’s tackles were for losses.

Breland missed the game at FAMU due to an injury sustained at McKendree.

Having four defensive lineman frees up the linebackers, Conner said. With a three-man front, an offensive lineman might have space to quickly advance to blocking a linebacker.

“That’s harder to do with four defensive linemen, obviously. If you do, somebody’s going to be free. You’ve got to stay on those double teams a little longer, and as a linebacker, you love to see that,” Conner said. “Now (a player like Breland), he can flow and scrape a little more freely. He doesn’t really have to worry about guys climbing and getting to his body too early.”

Moving forward

Conner said the “learning curve is still happening every day” as players learn more about the defensive structure. As the weeks go on, players are “fine-tuning” their skills. “There’s always something new to be learned,” Conner said.

“We go over it so that it becomes second nature, so it won’t make us hesitate in the game,” McMullen said.

After what Conner described as an “inconsistent” performance at FAMU with some positives and negatives to come out of the game, now the team “has got to respond,” he said.

Entering Week 4, the Argos are going to face a strong run game out of the University of West Georgia. The Wolves have Rajaez Mosley, who has 265 yards rushing in three games and two touchdowns.

When asked if he hopes the four-man front line will help suffocate any gaps to prevent long gains on the ground, Conner quickly quipped, “I surely hope so.”

“(West Georgia) has a great run game. Two great backs and a quarterback who can wreck a game pretty quickly. I’m hoping that it’ll smother some holes,” Conner said. “That’s ideally what we want to do. So, fingers crossed.”

And with one season left of eligibility after transferring in from NMU, McMullen – who had 146 tackles in 31 games across four seasons with the Wildcats, along with 16.5 sacks – it’s about picking up where he left off.

“I’m confident in my game. … As far as the pressure, it’s hard for people to put pressure on me because I don’t feel like anybody’s expectations are higher than my own,” McMullen said. “Just being here, with my timeframe, I’ve got one year left. I’ve got to make the most of it. I’ve been trying to bring it from the start.”

Ben Grieco is a sports reporter for the Pensacola News Journal. He can be reached on X (@BenGriecoSports) and via email at BGrieco@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: UWF Football: New defensive structure bringing early success to team