Comets Can Score, Now They Need to Stop Somebody

If you want to understand the Austin Comets, start with two numbers. They scored 261 points last season. They also allowed 322. That gap explains why a team with a capable quarterback and a few proven playmakers went 5-6 and finished third in the East.

The offense is not the problem. Quarterback Aaron Everett threw for 2,705 yards and 22 touchdowns, and the Comets were rarely out of a game because of how he played. The trouble came at the other end of the field, where opponents kept finding ways to put points on the board.

An offense with options

Everett had help. Wide receiver Miles Carver caught passes for 657 yards and seven touchdowns, making him the favorite target near the goal line. Running back Miles Knox added 703 rushing yards and four touchdowns, giving Austin a ground option that kept the play-action game honest.

"We know who we are on offense," coach Lena Whitcomb said. "The question is whether we can give that offense more possessions by getting off the field."

That is the core of the Comets' problem in plain terms. A defense that cannot end drives forces the offense to answer, and the offense cannot always answer.

Where the defense stands

Defensive lineman Caleb Quarles led Austin with seven sacks, and he is the one name on that side of the ball opponents prepare for. The pass rush showed up at times, but it did not turn into the sort of steady pressure that changes games.

"One player cannot do it alone," Whitcomb said. "We need the people next to Caleb to make it harder for teams to slide protection."

The numbers suggest the defense had plenty of room to improve. Giving up 322 points meant the Comets spent much of the year trying to outscore the problem, and that works only when everything goes right.

What changes this year

The Comets' camp has focused on tackling and third-down situations. Those are not glamorous goals, but they are the places where a defense can claw back points without a roster overhaul.

Three things to track once the games begin:

• Whether the pass rush gets support beyond Quarles
• Whether Everett can keep up his touchdown pace if the defense still struggles
• Whether Knox and the run game can shorten games and rest the defense

Austin finished third in the East, which means the path to the top is not as far as the record suggests. A modest drop in points allowed could change several of last year's losses. The offense has already shown it can produce.

Comets fans have heard the "defense must improve" line before. This year the staff says it has changed the practice plan to put more emphasis on situational football, and the players have said they feel the difference. Whether that shows up on Sundays is the only part of the story left to be written.