Really wanted a big. 6' 4" or better with Boldyreva leaving. Hoped for Jenna McClendon. Based on coaches play time philosophy we're going to have plenty of guards learning from the bench next year.

I rewatched most of the game last night.

It seemed like we stayed in a base 4 down, off man coverage most of the game. We did very little zone (ineffective) and just a few blitzes.

It was clear our DL was unable to consistently sustain pressure, so it was easy pitch and catch for WKU. Then, with a missed tackle in man, it was big gain after big gain.

Why did we not adjust from off to press man? Why the lack of zone blitzes? Why the lack of blitzing in general?

If they are just eating us up passing, then you have to adjust and we didn’t. Given CDM’s background, I expected the scheme and adjustments to be further along.

Also noticed a few upperclassmen that were lost a few times. I’m not calling out by name, but we had some guys that should be more aware costing us big time.

I’m curious if we see any improvements in this area. Talent is what it is this year. But adjustments and coaching points should improve.

jakeboldenbrp said:

Correction, COVID throws a wrench in my logic.

Since Nas, Jalynn, and CAB started their college careers in ‘21 they revert back to the original rule of 5 years to play 4 season. So you’re correct, all 5 will be out of eligibility after this season.

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You had me questioning my sanity for a moment lol. Was trying to think if they somehow got an exemption......

Assuming MT has 1 more open spot, taking a 2nd PG makes more sense. Not sure how much of a PG she is averaging 1.4 APG though

jakeboldenbrp said:

Im not an expert on this, but I believe only 2 will run out of eligibility after this season — Arike and Grannum.

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Correction, COVID throws a wrench in my logic.

Since Nas, Jalynn, and CAB started their college careers in ‘21 they revert back to the original rule of 5 years to play 4 season. So you’re correct, all 5 will be out of eligibility after this season.

MidTennFootball said:

Am I missing something? 4 signees but Middle has 5 seniors.....

I'm never gonna doubt this staff in it's ability to scout & develop, but taking a 2nd pg raises a bunch of questions, not the least of which is what happens at Center when Boldyreva graduates? Unless Mason just makes a big jump, puts some pressure to find a starter in the portal, which is really tough at the 5

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Im not an expert on this, but I believe only 2 will run out of eligibility after this season — Arike and Grannum.

jakeboldenbrp said:

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Was leaked during the football game yesterday but can confirm Kirston Verhulst verbally commits to the Lady Raiders!

5’8” PG from Bishop Miege in De Soto, KS. Averaged 14.5 ppg, 3.7 rpg, and 1.4 apg her junior season.

That totals 4 signees in the class of ‘25, and should be a full roster not accounting for potential transfers.

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Am I missing something? 4 signees but Middle has 5 seniors.....

I'm never gonna doubt this staff in it's ability to scout & develop, but taking a 2nd pg raises a bunch of questions, not the least of which is what happens at Center when Boldyreva graduates? Unless Mason just makes a big jump, puts some pressure to find a starter in the portal, which is really tough at the 5

ewglenn said:

CDM had some good commentary. Even this is a breath of fresh air. Took complete ownership of it, said there were injuries but everyone deals with that, pretty much just said no excuses. I think he will get it straightened out. Also eluded to he will be making some changes to people playing. It will be an uncomfortable week for the players I feel.

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I don't know man. There's something about DM that gives me a fake-it-till-you-make-it kind of vibe. Dude has a catchy saying for everything. That shit doesn't win games or mean anything. Can he actually coach and lead a program to a championship?

When is the last time he actually had success as a coach in CFB? What work exists out there to really give us any hope as fans? I don't see any. He has bombed out of the last three jobs he has had, and some might argue the success Stanford had while he was there really didn't have anything to do with him. Did Mason win ANYWHERE else besides Stanford?

Both coordinators are clear downgrades. Like, CLEAR downgrades. Not even up for debate. Mitch Stewart and Scott Shafer would eat these guys for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert. The team as a whole is clearly a downgrade at nearly every position group vs. previous years. Yeah it's year one but this wasn't a rebuild (DM's words, not mine). This program has good bones I thought? We needed heroics to beat a bad Tenn Tech team with their backup QB....

I've got a bad, bad feeling about how Mason's tenure is going to play out here. And once again, we've picked a terrible time to be a doormat.

This should tell us how bad our defense actually is. 26 points in 3 straight games. We do matchup a lot better against them though. Going to be a tough one to win but probably a better shot than the following week.

SpaceRaider said:

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CDM had some good commentary. Even this is a breath of fresh air. Took complete ownership of it, said there were injuries but everyone deals with that, pretty much just said no excuses. I think he will get it straightened out. Also eluded to he will be making some changes to people playing. It will be an uncomfortable week for the players I feel.

Login to view embedded media
Was leaked during the football game yesterday but can confirm Kirston Verhulst verbally commits to the Lady Raiders!

5’8” PG from Bishop Miege in De Soto, KS. Averaged 14.5 ppg, 3.7 rpg, and 1.4 apg her junior season.

That totals 4 signees in the class of ‘25, and should be a full roster not accounting for potential transfers.

SpaceRaider said:

16.8%

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Not going to say MT has a shot, but their 3-0 record goes like this:

ewglenn said:

They can’t keep the money if the join the MWC. The entire reason you don’t see conferences merging or dissolving is because the money is owed to the conference not the schools. The PAC is owed A LOT of money so helping buy those teams out of the MWC will still benefit OSU and WSU because they are having major money coming still. Plus they trim the deadweight in the process.

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That makes sense, thanks for clarifying.

Understand both sides opinion. Saying to myself I'm willing to give this coach & staff support this year. Even during this tough transition period. But if we end up 1-11 or 2-10 at end of year I honestly can't say I'll feel the same. I know a lot of you fellows are in your 20's to 40's & can hang in there a while. I'm not, seen mediocrity for a long time & ready to start seeing some improvement. Hopefully it will start developing by the 2nd half of the year.

I feel like the coaches may be trying to force their system when we don't have the players for it. Our offense is terrible but we start out trying to run the ball. By the time they figure out that doesn't work we are down three touchdowns. Why not start out opening up the run with the pass first. In goal line situations, why not roll Vattiato out and give him the option to run it in or pass, like Westen did to us? Instead we tried to run it in four times in a row and couldn't gain a yard.

Defense is much harder to figure out.

They may need to wait untill they get the players that fit their system instead of trying to force it now. If that's what are they doing.

The season has progressed about like I expected (expected a win against TTU, but I expected margin to be wider).

Expected to get blown out by Ole Miss and WKU. It's just where MT is right now. Expect another L against Duke & Memphis. .

As others have said, the season will be judged once you get into mid-October.

I'm not giving Mason a pass & believe some hard questions need to be asked :

1) Why did we not look explosive against TTU?
2) Why does MT have so many injuries?
3) How can we get playmakers the ball?
4) What needs to be done to stop teams on defense?

Ok. Now that I've slept on it, here are my thoughts.

I'm very much a knee jersey reaction guy, which is why I could never be an AD. I'm not patient by any means. Ask my wife how I drive and she will tell you.

But in reality, this will take time. Did I think we could win, yes, mostly. My blue goggles think we should've beat Ole Miss. But this really was the first true chance to see how we are vs our peers, our conference. And Lord there is work to do. But I'm willing to give CDM a chance. I predicted 5-7, so we will see. Like said before, let's see if there is improvement over the season (open field tackling doesn't need a new recruit to get fixed). I'm not gonna abandon ship on a first year head coach. Did I think we'd be more competitive, yes. I was hoping for 2-3 going into the bye. I don't know if that will happen now.

One thing I do know is when a game turns like last night, I'm no longer putting my 45yr old high blood pressure self through the stress and I'm changing the channel. Sometimes I wonder if i should avoid the board and Twitter too. 🤣

Went to Knoxville to see the youngest on Parents Weekend. Too bad we don't have Kent St on our schedule this year......

If Rick Stockstill were still here they would have only lost this game 27-41.

ewglenn said:

Name a coach who has beaten arguably the best team in their conference for years in a new coaches third game? I get the point of quick turnarounds but expecting to see a ton out of these first 5 games is really putting CDM in a tough spot. I would have expected the game to be more competitive but I am not shocked with where we are.

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Huh? I’m learning you’re one of those. Just the facts here…

1) Western hasn’t won this league in seven years. 2) In spite of DM doing and saying all the right things in the offseason this program is in shambles.

For those of us who have been around this thing since the beginning it’s a pretty tough pill to swallow while you watch your one rival keep taking your lunch and making us say thank you for the privilege. Whether DM is the person to resurrect this program or not I do not know. And frankly there may not be any saving this program. Under our university’s leadership we’ve become ULM or an Idaho (or maybe even Pacific). I would say there is better than a 50% chance MT ends up dropping down or dropping football altogether. These clowns have destroyed our athletics dept that significantly.