AMHERST – We’ve all heard the saying.

“Solve your problems with aggression.”

It’s a Don Brown staple, but it’s also a legitimate attitude and mindset he’s tried to instill in his players and it’s working. We were lucky enough to catch practice on Saturday as part of our camp visit tour and boy. oh boy, this defense is quickly becoming the spitting image of Brown as a collective unit.

Fast. Physical. Loud.

Particularly during team periods, the communication and physicality was glaring. There were some pretty big open field hits for just the second week of camp and the sideline was electric. Brown has preached competition and the guys are taking it to heart. Receivers and defensive backs jarring after a catch or pass break up. At one point, junior Dorian Helm had a great tackle in space and you would have thought it just clinched a bowl bid based on the defensive sideline’s reaction. During a 7-on-7 period, linebacker RJ Edwards picked off Brady Olson in the end zone and took it back for a house call with teammates running and sprinting with him.

During one-on-one’s the secondary was in lockdown mode, rarely giving the receivers any time to breathe. That unit will unquestionably be the best on that side of the ball this season and it feels like they know it. The D’s are carrying themselves with swagger and backing it up.

In terms of big bodies that stand out in front of them, redshirt freshman Kofi Asare (6’5, 235) is a house. Defensive end and redshirt sophomore Tyson Watson and classmate (defensive end) Marcus Bradley are basically create-a-pro type guys in Madden. Now, obviously looking the part and playing the part are two very different things, but the size and nastiness is there already with those guys.

I was also impressed with the accountability and attention to detail during indy periods. Guys were yelling at other guys if a rep wasn’t done with full effort or if it looked ugly. Brown worked closely with guys on tackling drills and defensive back drills, but every single coach is on guys’ asses if there’s any let up. There’s no more “establishing the culture,” it’s well established. This team is working on details and truly trying to take the next step. Linebacker speed from sideline to sideline is also very noticeable too, which of course is another staple for a Brown defense.

Now, just to add the little dose of negativity into all this happy horse crap, in some goal line and inside-the-10 work, the running game dominated, which means the defensive line got pushed around a bit, but that kind of competition will only help. Iron sharpens iron.

Is it perfect? No. Does Saturday’s practice mean this team is going to win six games and get to a bowl game? Of course not. However, for a fan base desperate for optimism, this is no longer just a “rebuild.” Guys have truly taken on the mindset of their head coach whether it’s drills or team periods and if that intensity and effort can carry over, well then the Minutemen may be on to something here.