Spartan spring football: The D.O. defense

One of the common catch-phrases from 15-year radio commentator Kevin Richardson at San Jose State games the last few years, “and the Derrick Odum defense dials up another (flll in the blank).”

Odum has been San Jose State’s defensive coordinator the last seven years. His signature 3-4 defense can morph into a mix of 3-4, 4-3, and 4-2-5 depending on personnel and situation. It’s a defense that started from the bottom ranks with a now stout reputation. Ranked 125th (2018), 106th (2019), 26th (2020), 54th (2021), 32nd (2022), and 42nd (2023).

“I didn’t really know coach Odom before coming here,” said head coach Ken Niumatalolo. “I just knew his body of work and knew he’s a really good coach. The productivity of the defense spoke for itself.”

Along with coach Kevin McGiven, Odum is the other coaching holdover left from the Brent Brennan years. We can speculate why and how Odum remained, but it’s probably good enough to say Odum’s son is on the Spartan baseball team.

“Jeremiah is a freshman,” said a prideful Odum. “It’s kind of cool to be able to stay and watch. So yeah, that’s definitely a good thing.”

And it’s a good thing that McGiven and Odum remained as Sparta ambassadors with tribal knowledge to assist Niumatalolo’s transition.

Family

“I obviously didn’t know much of Derrick as a person coming in,” said Niumatalolo. “But just in these last three months, I feel like he’s been a lifelong friend.”

“Derrick does a great job with the defense,” said OC Craig Stutzmann on going up against the defense this spring so far. “They bring pressures and give different looks and different fronts and are already making it very tough on us, which is good we’re getting our medicine now.”

Odum is also quick to note even with a new staff that it doesn’t mean it’s a ground zero start with the departure of so many old faces.

Change is the way of the world that most people don’t handle well.

“We think the same way; approach the game the same way; our thought process is similar,” said Odum on the staff as a whole. “Our culture, togetherness and how we treat and nurture our players; we’re on the same page and we clicked right away in that regard.”

If one were to do a one-to-one comparison from the old staff to new, there is no drop-off in experience, knowledge and awareness. The outside world will catchup and appreciate a good change soon enough just as it was when Brennan started.

“I know most of these guys and worked with a couple of them in the past,” said Odum. “It’s good to reconnect and it’s definitely not foreign to guys on the staff in our new situation.”

Identity

With culture embedded, we can still expect a Derrick Odum defense to adapt and empower with any given personnel from season to season and even game to game.

There are also many cases of crescendoed development from Odum defenses over the years. In no particular order: Tre Jenkins, Ethan Aguayo, Cade Hall, Boogie Roberts, Frank Ginda, Kyle Harmon, Villiami Fehoko, and others are names that went beyond in-house recognition.

But today, the overarching NIL-effect is widening the gap of the have and have-nots that can only be addressed at “higher levels” beyond SJSU.

“I love this group of guys. They work so hard every single day and they love the game a football,” said Odum. “Sometimes, that’s not always the case with all the glamor of being recruited and the lure of such opportunities.”

There’s certainly a lot more to be said between the lines to these regards that’s beyond the scope at hand.

To the 2024 defensive identity, we can expect even more dynamic output. From having to constantly prove oneself and rising to unending challenges, expect a Niumatalolo team with an Odum defense to be one of deep pride and character - intangibles that are immeasurable and still in spades with the Spartans.

The early names that pop out this spring, primarily based on last season: Jay’Vion Cole, Soane Toia and Jordan Cobbs.

• Cobbs suffered a season-ending knee injury two games into the 2022 season and was a dynamo linebacker following in the light of other notable predecessors. 2023 was considered a re-transition year to align the physical to the mental and vice versa. 2024 should be Cobbs’ salvation.
• Cole is the top cornerback in the Mountain West. Following a year at Cal Poly, Cole had three interceptions, 10 pass breakups and held opposing receivers to low YAC output with the Spartans in 2023. Despite his size, his mindset is NFL-caliber.
• Toia’s been with San Jose State the last four years and is the epitome of development from being a rotational player as a freshman to a full-time fixture on the defensive line. Toia did entertain the transfer portal with a visit to Arizona, but withdrew his name and stayed (the transfer portal will open again after spring practices FYI).

“With the likes of a Cade Hall or a Junior Fehoko, I’ve talked to Soane about this being his defense,” said Odum. “Soane had that light bulb moment where he’s like, ‘Yeah, it’s my turn.’”

Odum expanded, “It’s the same thing with all the guys who’ve been nurtured through the system and now it’s their turn to help run it and they’re the ones looked upon with that responsibility and leadership.”

With all the hype and grandeur pulling at some student-athletes, believing and going through a trusted system and process takes a level courage and commitment, as it all can become challenging to rationalize and balance temptation and opportunity.

For Odum over the years, he’s continually shown purity in his intent. If these intangible human values were tangible, NIL would be obsolete.

The Spartans continue spring practices next week with the spring game on April 27th.