FOOTBALL Mid-Season Takeaways
- Thread starter Matt Dossett
- Start date
Not crazy about the fan bashing.
This program has accomplished nothing of note in over a decade.
No, going 3-1 in conference is not some titanic accomplishment when you're 4-3 (although maybe if you're of the mind that "winning football games is hard" and bowl streaks are noteworthy if you just repeat "WE'RE BOWL ELIGIBLE!!!" into the mirror 100 times a day!).
He's part right, its not the players fault. They deserve better. They deserve better coaches, and they deserve a better AD.
This program has accomplished nothing of note in over a decade.
No, going 3-1 in conference is not some titanic accomplishment when you're 4-3 (although maybe if you're of the mind that "winning football games is hard" and bowl streaks are noteworthy if you just repeat "WE'RE BOWL ELIGIBLE!!!" into the mirror 100 times a day!).
He's part right, its not the players fault. They deserve better. They deserve better coaches, and they deserve a better AD.
I have no problem shining the light on the fanbase - not anything that hasn't been said and repeated by various posters, but I would say the fans deserve better as well. The results on the field are what has brought the fanbase to this point. Fans have the impatience that our AD and our President should have.
The real fans are the ones that are coming to the games. Last time I checked, none of our fans called a QB run on a 3rd and 7 with an injured QB. Also, last time I checked, we were down by 3 to FIU with 30 seconds left and they forced a backup to try to throw deep into coverage when the play should have been a setup to kick a FG to go into OT. No fan made that call. The problem is coaching, particularly on the OL, WR's and OC positions.
To call out or fans is BS period. We aren't the problem. If they aren't showing up. Look at the bad marketing, bad coaching and lack of a product that can compete with the local SEC teams.
Also, there is no such thing as a trap game for us. We know what ODU is and what they can do. The goal is to survive another week. That's it.
To call out or fans is BS period. We aren't the problem. If they aren't showing up. Look at the bad marketing, bad coaching and lack of a product that can compete with the local SEC teams.
Also, there is no such thing as a trap game for us. We know what ODU is and what they can do. The goal is to survive another week. That's it.
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I'm glad that I'm in the minority that can go to the games, celebrate wins, and still hope for change in coaching at some point in time. I've never seen a group more miserable after a win...
Under this staff - a win like Charlotte is like being served tea on the Titanic. A momentary diversion on your inevitable trip to the bottom.
We need meaningful forward progress to turn this thing around.
I still don't know what to make of this team. I figured by this time, I'd have a clear idea of what we are but I don't. So that probably means we are what we have been for the past 9 years, an average football team.
The difference this year is we have won two games that we typically lose...I find it amazing that we have won 4 games with this team...they simple are not very good, in fact, almost unwatchable (on offense) at times.
It all goes back to recruiting. We are signing guys who in many cases we are the only D1offer they got. You could see this coming from a mile away 2-3 years ago. We have very little legitimate D1 talent on this team.
Yep. We are continuing that trend this year too. We got a plethora of commitments earlier this year but almost all of these guys had very low D1 offers and even below that. The type of player we have been recruiting is pretty concerning.
Just wait until a former Blue Raider QB strolls into MBoro after Thanksgiving with UAB and hangs 50 on us.
I posted a long rant about this about a month ago. It's the heart of the problem with this program.
And it's not looking up. We're well on our way to another middling at best CUSA finish on signing day. Got 19 wide receivers though.
I think the X's and O's are sound - TF's system is proven to work, and we're seeing the best defense we've had since Manny left.
There's just not enough talent on the roster to execute at a consistently high level, and no quality depth so that when injuries inevitably hit, the backups aren't CUSA level players.
If Massaro had an cojones, he'd demand Stock jettison some deadweight on the staff and get some guys who are accomplished recruiters.
So I just talked with a former player who was at practice yesterday. He said that we are so injured that we are rotating in some new players for 4 games so they can still redshirt. Now you can pick any 4 games to use them and that's what we're doing. He said that there were a lot of folks on the sidelines not able to practice. We are super banged up right now. That kind of explains the major inconsistencies we're having. It seems obvious I know but apparently it's worse than we might have thought.
The X's and O's are not sound at all on offense. The play calls have sucked 85% of the season. We run when we should pass and vice versa. 3rd and 7 and we run the QB who is still injured? Yeah, dumb play calling. TF used to adjust and now he's not budging which is why we are not moving the ball.
His system works, it's worked for us in the recent past. It's never going to be a team that can air raid one play and power I the next, but for the most part, it's effective at generating points at our level.
It may be possible that there's just not enough high quality talent to run his offense. Injuries (it seems we're always injured), lack of depth, players who just aren't talented - all contribute to it.
The alternative is to believe he just got dumb overnight.
I don't think Franklin has just gotten dumb but could it be that defenses have caught up to his brand of the spread/air raid; especially since his philosophy is so widely disseminated?
I'm old enough to remember when Bear Bryant dominated the $EC and TTU dominated the OVC (and MT IIRC) with the wishbone. Defenses caught up and the only time you see anything close to the wishbone today is in special situations and from some high schools who are successful because of their uniqueness (applies to the single-wing also).
Remembering from Coach Earle's BkB coaching class: Not so much what you run but whether you have talent, how well you adapt your scheme to your talent, and how well you execute what you do run.
I'm old enough to remember when Bear Bryant dominated the $EC and TTU dominated the OVC (and MT IIRC) with the wishbone. Defenses caught up and the only time you see anything close to the wishbone today is in special situations and from some high schools who are successful because of their uniqueness (applies to the single-wing also).
Remembering from Coach Earle's BkB coaching class: Not so much what you run but whether you have talent, how well you adapt your scheme to your talent, and how well you execute what you do run.
It always comes down to execution. Many times one player doesn't execute his assignment which causes the play to fail.
It's well known that other teams knew exactly what the 1990's Cowboys were going to run on offense but defenses couldn't stop them.
It's well known that other teams knew exactly what the 1990's Cowboys were going to run on offense but defenses couldn't stop them.
It hasn't really worked since 2009. 2016, we had numbers and we won 8 and got destroyed by freaking Hawaii. in 2017, the offensive production dropped and we still got 7 wins with a bowl win. We clearly didn't dominate and we didn't win the important games.
This year, we've won 2 big games but the D was more responsible for that than the O. It's not just the system, it's the ability to adjust. He's on the sideline not up in the booth. He can't see what's happening so how does he adjust? Here's the answer. He doesn't, which is why we are where we are.
This year, we've won 2 big games but the D was more responsible for that than the O. It's not just the system, it's the ability to adjust. He's on the sideline not up in the booth. He can't see what's happening so how does he adjust? Here's the answer. He doesn't, which is why we are where we are.
He definitely needs to be in the booth especially with a seasoned QB on the sideline. A young QB sure, maybe.
But he's missing obvious mismatches. We've had quite a few times where there is a DB on the outside receiver and no one on the inside with only a safety back deep on that side. And we run the ball. That's an easy WR screen..actually lots of routes you can run out of that to get 5 to 10 yards. Franklin is missing them being on the sidelines.
But he's missing obvious mismatches. We've had quite a few times where there is a DB on the outside receiver and no one on the inside with only a safety back deep on that side. And we run the ball. That's an easy WR screen..actually lots of routes you can run out of that to get 5 to 10 yards. Franklin is missing them being on the sidelines.
Exactly MT01.
I'll also add the absence of a true TE to keep a blitzing D honest as well. If you're watching it from our TV perspective (booth view), It's also obvious that a TE would be open about 90% of the time on a drag or post route. Moving a LB or 2 out to cover would open up a potential run lane as well. Watch the GT in 2012. We threw to our TE on that one play and GT's D had to keep him in check for the rest of the game. That's about when Benny started running wild. It might not have solely caused it but it was a factor. Things opened up more after that first quarter play.
We used 85 on a TD play last year. Why not throw him in there? SMH
I'll also add the absence of a true TE to keep a blitzing D honest as well. If you're watching it from our TV perspective (booth view), It's also obvious that a TE would be open about 90% of the time on a drag or post route. Moving a LB or 2 out to cover would open up a potential run lane as well. Watch the GT in 2012. We threw to our TE on that one play and GT's D had to keep him in check for the rest of the game. That's about when Benny started running wild. It might not have solely caused it but it was a factor. Things opened up more after that first quarter play.
We used 85 on a TD play last year. Why not throw him in there? SMH
If Franklin leaves after this year (his contract is up) - I would be totally OK bringing Buster back
