Chip Kelly: "Missed tackles are a personnel issue"

Chip Kelly got on Sirius XM's College Sports Nation today and was asked about the issue of missed tackles in college football.

Numerous defensive coaches around the country have noted missed tackles during their post game press conferences as part of the reason for losses.

Kelly explains that teams that aren't as good defensively can blame it on tackling, but he see's it differently. He sees missed tackles as a personnel issue.

"I don't think there's anybody in the country, no matter where you are, that says 'Ya know, tackling, lets not worry about that today...lets not do it." Kelly said.

"I think that the teams that don't tackle well just don't have as good of players as the teams that tackle well. It still comes down to a personnel game. I don't think there's a college coach, or a high school coach or a pro coach in the country that doesn't work on tackling."

"It's like saying on offense, 'Well they don't block very well so they must not work on blocking'. I think every offensive line coach is doing chutes and boards every day in their individual drills and I think every college coach in their individual drills is doing tackling."

"I think that there are a lot of athleticism on the offensive side of the ball," Kelly explained. "Sometimes, maybe the credit should go to the offensive players who are pretty good at making people miss. I think everybody works on it, it's a fundamental. I think it just comes down to a personnel thing"

Kelly explains that a lot of the issues have to do with the formations being stretched sideline to sideline instead of playing with nine guys in the box where it would be much easier to tackle. He notes that when players are stretched sideline to sideline, many individual match ups get exposed.