No matter whether modern defenses are running what they describe as three or four down lineman, they all have the same six man front with a nose tackle, a defensive tackle, an end, an edge player, a Mike backer, and a Will backer. The end is often known as a "heavy" five tech (based on the fact that they are shaded on an offensive tackle) to either the field/boundary or the strength of the offensive formation. It's more of a run stopping position in terms of being able to set the edge and keep things from bouncing outside but the player should also have enough athleticism to rush the passer. In fact, other than possibly having a little more length than the defensive tackle (known as the three tech since they are shaded on a guard) in order to better take on a taller offensive lineman and less explosion (to get penetration), there's not much to differentiate between two. For example, Texas A&M's Demarvin Leal is the Aggies' starting five tech end at 290 pounds but he moved inside and started at the three tech in last year's bowl game.
Five star commit Shemar Turner from DeSoto TX) High School is very much cut from the same cloth as Leal as he's listed at almost the same size (6-foot-3.5, 282 pounds for Turner versus 6-foot-4, 289 pounds for Leal) as when Leal came out of high school. Turner has played both end and tackle in DeSoto's four man front although he was more of an inside player for the Eagles in 2020.
Turner probably doesn't have Leal's flash but he comes low off of the ball like Leal and is usually able to generate favorable leverage via his lower pad level from the moment of initial contact. This is multiplied by the quick hands he has which he uses to beat opponents with punch or free himself up. Thus, he is a very good straight line player and also can set the edge as a run defender because he's so strong up top and plays with extension to control people or keep them from getting into his body.
He's also something of a run down defender because he is able to keep his head up and see where the ball is going. Once he gets started, he has good burst to the ball and his impressive upper body strength, strong hands, and long arms means that runners go down when he gets his hands on them.
Turner is not necessarily a change of direction guy as much is a force coming up the field or from behind after someone. It's very difficult to stalemate or redirect him due to his power and ability to run. Like Leal, he also has good bend which not only translates into him being able to leverage opponents on the line of scrimmage but also coming off of the ball and under an opponent's outside shoulder as an edge rusher.
Finally, Turner isn't one of those guys who has impressive physical ability that is more potential than reality at this point of his career. His burst enables him to generate velocity on his hits for fumbles and since he keeps his eyes up he finds the ball more often than not. He racked up 70 tackles as a sophomore and and 54 more as a junior for a playoff team and you know that opposing offenses probably tried to run away from him more often than not.
Overall, Turner is quick enough to play the three tech on the interior but strong and with sufficient bend and power to be a productive heavy five tech. If you need to know how valuable such a player can be, check out the Aggies' run defense stats this season with Leal playing that heavy five. Although he lacks the tackles for loss numbers that three tech Justin Madubuike put up last season, his ability to keep the linebackers and box safeties clean while filling playside gaps has enabled A&M to be the second best run defense in the SEC this season. Turner looks like that he could fill the same role in Aggieland while moving inside if they really needed him to.
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December 13, 2020 at 03:26AM
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Five-star Turner a versatile defensive lineman for A&M's defense - 247Sports
"five" - Google News
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