Concerning the celestial mechanics of defensive tackles
Why elite talent at defensive tackle "just means more."
In my last spring football roundup about the Georgia Bulldogs I introduced a hypothesis that takes things another level beyond my space force theory, which you can find broken down in this article:
Later on this offseason I’m going to arrange some of these “space warfare” essays into a single post linking them like chapters for easy perusal. It’ll be like an online book subscribers can always access.
This article may fit in as an additional chapter or an addendum.
I’ve long had to note that having great defensive tackles is particularly valuable in college football, but I think I’ve overlooked how predominant it really is. Now I’m leaning toward the conclusion that while “space force” is definitely a useful way of summarizing how key positional matchups really matter in college football, there are two positions that matter most for fielding elite players and one of them isn’t a “space force” position. It’s defensive tackle.
Ironically, it’s been the inclusion of Bill Parcells’ “planet theory” into the equation that results in this tweaked positional hierarchy. There are only so many athletic 300 pounders in the world. I’ve come to accept this is an essential component to the game’s dynamics.