Toledo won the Mid-American Conference in 2017 with one of the best offenses in program history.
The script hasn’t been completely flipped — UT’s 2022 defense, while good, is not among its best ever. And the offense remains a big part of the equation.
But the rise of Toledo’s defense has played a leading role in the progression of the Rockets under head coach Jason Candle. Gone are the days of UT needing to outscore opponents in Big 12-style shootouts.
“After the 2017 season, we knew we were going to take some lumps on defense in ’18 and potentially ’19 because some of our better players were freshmen and sophomores — Dyontae Johnson, Desjuan Johnson, Terrence Taylor,” Candle said. “Those guys were playing as true freshmen and redshirt freshmen. You obviously want guys to have their own development path.
“But if your strength coach is worth a darn — and I think ours is really good — a 22-year-old man rather than an 18-year-old kid is going to look a little bit different. Those guys have grown up and played a lot of snaps. [Defensive coordinator] Vince [Kehres] and those guys have done a great job putting those kids in position to be successful. The defense has carried us through some tough moments down the stretch.”
In 2019 — the year before Kehres left Mount Union — the Rockets allowed 475.7 yards per game, 218.4 rushing yards, 257.3 passing yards, and 32.2 points, leading to the ouster of previous DC Brian George.
The improvement was as dramatic as it was immediate. In Kehres’ first season, Toledo allowed 362.2 yards per game, 129.2 rushing yards, 233.0 passing yards, and 24.3 points. The numbers have continued to move in the right direction.
2021
■ 350.2 yards
■ 151.4 rushing yards
■ 198.7 passing yards
■ 21.8 points
2022
■ 331.8 yards
■ 146.3 rushing yards
■ 185.5 passing yards
■ 25.5 points
“It’s been a roller coaster, just the ups and downs we’ve been through as a defense,” said fifth-year senior linebacker Dyontae Johnson, who earned defensive player of the game honors.
“Some of the changes we’ve made as far as the staff, we finally found the road to consistency the past few years. We changed our whole mindset the day coach Vince Kehres got here. We’re just blessed to have him. He changed the way we play, changed the way we saw the game.”
The signature performance came last Saturday in the Mid-American Conference championship game as the Rockets held Ohio University to seven points, 14 first downs, 262 total yards, 99 rushing yards, 0 of 2 on fourth down, and forced the game’s only turnover.
“I knew there were young players,” Kehres said. “I felt like they were talented guys. Obviously, if you follow the recruiting rankings, you knew Toledo had good football players.
“I was confident that it could be improved fairly quickly. I felt like we had the pieces in place if you watched tape from the previous year. Schematic adjustments and guys buying in were the two biggest factors.”
The pedigree was there. Kehres was a defensive end at Mount Union, where he won two national championships as a player for his dad, Hall of Fame coach Larry Kehres. He was then an assistant for 13 years before taking over as head coach in 2013. Kehres was 95-6 and won two more national championships.
The winning was great, but Kehres had the itch to challenge himself in Division I. He decided a few years before taking the defensive coordinator position at UT that if the right fit presented itself, he would leave Mount Union. Toledo and Candle, a long-time friend, made sense.
“It’s been very rewarding,” Kehres said. “Most coaches would say the most rewarding thing you experience is seeing a player develop and a group of players have success, and that you contributed to it.”
The three years haven’t been perfect, with Kehres, in true coach fashion, highlighting disappointments and frustrations before taking credit for the climb up the national defensive rankings. Once he moves to the positives, it’s largely about the players.
The molding of quality players included another critical factor: instilling self-belief. Toledo’s defense doesn’t just think it’s good, it knows that it’s good. The unit has bought in and executed at a high level.
“From the first day I met [Kehres], he told me he was going to make it more of a family feel,” Dyontae Johnson said. “He didn’t just want it to be a player-coach relationship. He wanted to have a different bond with players. He’s kept his word.”
First Published December 7, 2022, 6:15 p.m.
