Ultimately, UNI would like to improve on last year's numbers and force more turnovers. The Panthers had a modest 15 takeaways for 11 games in 1998. One way to make things happen is to pressure the quarterback, but Niemann won't know just how much he can turn his defense loose until he's seen his defenders practice for several weeks. Individual matchups will play a key role in where and when UNI can attack. Those are two of the questions you have to address every time you decide how much you're going to blitz in a give week.
Every week is different.
No matter what the weekly package includes, Niemann is confident his veterans won't hold anything back. The Panthers figure to start five seniors and at least two veteran juniors on defense in 1999. Those guys are going to be the personality of this football team when it's all said and done, and they play with pretty charged-up attitudes. Niemann wouldn't have it any other way.