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Mcho40

Varsity Lurker
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Aug 28, 2014
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It’s been a few years since I’ve posted a message here. Yet, I can’t help but post in light of yesterday’s game.

I’ve long been a fan of CPJ, but for the right reasons. I always thought that he was very straight forward and down to Earth. Many saw him as the grumpy, stubborn old man that disliked the media and refused to start or get on a hype train (and it’s all true. It’s not like he’s perfect), yet if you ever listened to his former players during a post game or graduation - they all had nothing but praise.
Despite his reputation and his hard expression and often claiming that the personnel didn’t matter (he sasometimes he grabs whoever he sees) it was clear he deeply cared for his students.

When Geoff Collins was hired, I was hopeful like everyone else. I was pleased at his recruiting results. But I was disappointed time after time about his interaction with his students. Sure he was always Mr. Positive,but he always seemed fake. The polar opposite of CPJ. Honestly l liked the emphasis on “brand” and trying to build up excitement and hype around the program, but I didn’t like all of the gimmicks… do we really need a “money down?” Can we really not motivate and coach our players without all the props and surface level things?

Seriously, what’s the point of “above the line”. It’s clear we went into the game with a 1st string QB. Otherwise, wouldn’t he have put in Yates sooner? It’s a stupid gimmick that takes away from the competition and reward of being a starter.

When Gibs stayed in bounds at the end of the game, ruining any chances of setting up a field goal with a time out, where was coach? Was this not a clear coachable moment, a bad decision by a young and talented player? CPJ would have been all over him. Sometimes a little tough love or st the very least a little coaching is what is needed for people to grow.

Now to address something everyone brings up… in game execution/play calling versus recruiting. What do we want in a head coach? To be honest, I don’t mind having a head coach that’s less than ideal in tactically executing plays. As the Head Coach, he just needs to set the high level strategy and let more talented coordinators execute - but they doesn’t seem to be working. Is our OC any good? Honestly, I have no idea. To date, I’ve always disliked the play calling and thought it just didn’t make sense. It seemed to focus on doing the unexpected and “gimmicks” than just pounding out yards. Particularly in second and long and third and short situations. That being said, some of the designed plays did seem pretty good at getting a WR open…. If our QB and WR could just connect.

Don’t get me wrong - I already said I was a CPJ fan. I loved having a head coach that was repeatedly called a offensive “genius” and “chess master” in game after game. Love or hate the triple option - it was damn effective until the last year or two of Johnson’s tenure (I blame Notre Dame - their DC came up with a solid counter after hiring tons of staff to look at the option over the summer that 1year). At the same time, I often though CPJ could have used a PR person - a people person. He was great at the mechanics, but never seemed to value playing with emotion or hype - which fan support and player excitement I think need.

So I guess all that to say… I’m frustrated with Techs current situation and outlook. I don’t see Collins changing. I don’t really thing a new head coach would fix things either. We may just suffer several years of where football just isn’t fun anymore :(.

Why is it so hard to find a coach with charisma AND discipline? Honestly I think my ideal coach would be someone like Dabo Swinney….

anyways there’s my rant.
 
Mcho40 said:
haha I knew I would lose quite a few folks. I just think Dabo is quite charismatic and seems like a good coach.
Click to expand...
Dabo is not a great coach per se himself. But he is a great recruiter and has sense enough to hire great assistants. Of all our assistants right now, I personally think that Choice is the only one who really has a clue.
 
Supersize that order mutt said:
Dabo is not a great coach per se himself. But he is a great recruiter and has sense enough to hire great assistants. Of all our assistants right now, I personally think that Choice is the only one who really has a clue.
Click to expand...

Exactly! I would mind if Collins turned into more of a Dabo type. One that focused on brand/image recruiting (minus all the gimmicks) and he hired some brilliant coordinators.
 
Supersize that order mutt said:
Dabo is not a great coach per se himself. But he is a great recruiter and has sense enough to hire great assistants. Of all our assistants right now, I personally think that Choice is the only one who really has a clue.
Click to expand...
There’s more to coaching than calling plays. Collins may have created a fun culture that recruits want to be around, but it is apparently at the expense of discipline and accountability. We have looked consistently unfocused or unprepared for 3 years now, and that’s not about talent.

Dabo managed to do all of the above. Some of y’all still call him a clown because he’s goofy and has fun with his players, but he will also rip them a new asshole if they’re letting their teammates down with lack of focus.

After reading about our increased attention to detail this off-season, I was really optimistic that we would have turned a corner, but we looked like the same damn team from the last couple years, albeit with more talent on both sides of the ball. I hope to God we can make some strides as the season progresses, but I’m struggling to find reasons not to feel hopeless.
 
Exactly. You have to demand accountability from players. There is a time and a place to rip them a new one. UCS (used care salesman) doesn’t do that. There appears to be zero accountability within the program. Just juice, hype, and a used 1990 Corolla that may or may not be the next best thing in college football.
 
My biggest problem in the entire game was not being able to stop them on their final drive or the last 2 point conversion.

Our back 7 is supposed to be the best unit on the team. I'm not even sure I blame the coaches for the 2 pointer - an experienced secondary should know what to do in that situation.
 
cincytechie said:
Exactly. You have to demand accountability from players. There is a time and a place to rip them a new one. UCS (used care salesman) doesn’t do that. There appears to be zero accountability within the program. Just juice, hype, and a used 1990 Corolla that may or may not be the next best thing in college football.
Click to expand...
Wasn’t that what UCS was doing in his post-game hugfest with his players?

I like the UCS moniker. I kept trying to come up with something appropriate for CGC, like Constantly Generally Confused. UCS is much better.
 
00Burdell said:
My biggest problem in the entire game was not being able to stop them on their final drive or the last 2 point conversion.

Our back 7 is supposed to be the best unit on the team. I'm not even sure I blame the coaches for the 2 pointer - an experienced secondary should know what to do in that situation.
Click to expand...
They had one outstanding receiver and we were aware of him before the game. He was wide open the entire game. He was open for long gains throughout that final drive. If the seniors can't cover put someone else in. I realize part of the problem is the DL can't rush or stop the run.
 
It seemed like there was some frustration on the field late in the game. Juanyeh and Tre were arguing about alignment or something (and Tre seemed to be unhappy with something coming from the sideline), and left a receiver mostly uncovered in the last NIU drive. Lucky for us, he caught the ball out of bounds. But 1 and 3 continued to argue until the next snap. It was weird.

On our last drive, Gibbs drifted out of the backfield and was open underneath with some room to make something happen on two consecutive plays, and he seemed to be a little frustrated that he wasn’t getting looks, if I read the body language right.

Anybody else see this stuff?

JRjr
 
vapspwi said:
It seemed like there was some frustration on the field late in the game. Juanyeh and Tre were arguing about alignment or something (and Tre seemed to be unhappy with something coming from the sideline), and left a receiver mostly uncovered in the last NIU drive. Lucky for us, he caught the ball out of bounds. But 1 and 3 continued to argue until the next snap. It was weird.

On our last drive, Gibbs drifted out of the backfield and was open underneath with some room to make something happen on two consecutive plays, and he seemed to be a little frustrated that he wasn’t getting looks, if I read the body language right.

Anybody else see this stuff?

JRjr
Click to expand...
It appeared we had difficulties getting defensive play calls in. Typical of Thacker regime. Could also be the play calls are bad and the players know it.

I don‘t like the way we’re managing Gibbs. He’s got homerun talent but instead of letting Mason and Smith grind down the defense, we’re trying to run the same plays with him. I’d do to a 2 back set, but Goober and UCS are dead set on forcing the pass offense.

Lastly, we hyped up Gibbs too much, part of UCS over-hype strategy he’s just our #1 to hype followed by Sims. Gibbs and Sims can’t out-athlete defenders like they did in HS, that’s why we’re getting breakdowns. Also, seems like there’s too much “I” in Gibbs and not enough “Team”. I think this media blitz and NFL yammering we’re doing is distracting from practice and preps, too many guys trying to line their pockets with NIL deals than studying the playbook and buying into the hype.

We desperately need some O’Leary, Fridge type coaches and not these snake oil salesmen. The players need to be told to knock off the crap until they do something worth talking about. Winning dance contests and having a blast on waterslides do not win games.
 
Our far side CB was clearly frustrated and confused several times on the last drive. The safety was still trying to get him straight at least twice as the play started. An analysis of our timeout use last night indicates the indecision and confusion on our sideline. Man, when the NIU coach’s offense scored in the last minute he had no hesitation. We are going for two, no kids ran off the field, he quickly told the ref where to spot the ball. They lined up and ran their play for the win, albeit questionable.
 
vapspwi said:
It seemed like there was some frustration on the field late in the game. Juanyeh and Tre were arguing about alignment or something (and Tre seemed to be unhappy with something coming from the sideline), and left a receiver mostly uncovered in the last NIU drive. Lucky for us, he caught the ball out of bounds. But 1 and 3 continued to argue until the next snap. It was weird.

On our last drive, Gibbs drifted out of the backfield and was open underneath with some room to make something happen on two consecutive plays, and he seemed to be a little frustrated that he wasn’t getting looks, if I read the body language right.

Anybody else see this stuff?

JRjr
Click to expand...
I didn't but can't say that it would surprise me. Our coaching staff has no idea how to manage a game.
 
gnats67 said:
You lost me at Dabo Swinney. Collins is a great recruiter/promoter. HC? Remains to be seen but it ain't looking too good.
Click to expand...
ain't no remains to be seen.
Seen enough.
He stinks.
 
johncu said:
Dabo managed to do all of the above. Some of y’all still call him a clown because he’s goofy and has fun with his players, but he will also rip them a new asshole if they’re letting their teammates down with lack of focus.
Click to expand...
Dabo ain’t no clown. In his first game as HC (which was against us) a player was walking off the field after a TO was called. Dabo went to the player, made him go back on the field and run off. I thought then he was more than he seems, which has proved prescient.

What Dabo has done is to get everyone on the same page, from students to staff to boosters to fans to administration to players. That’s what’s needed, and damned hard to do.
 
Mcho40 said:
It’s been a few years since I’ve posted a message here. Yet, I can’t help but post in light of yesterday’s game.

I’ve long been a fan of CPJ, but for the right reasons. I always thought that he was very straight forward and down to Earth. Many saw him as the grumpy, stubborn old man that disliked the media and refused to start or get on a hype train (and it’s all true. It’s not like he’s perfect), yet if you ever listened to his former players during a post game or graduation - they all had nothing but praise.
Despite his reputation and his hard expression and often claiming that the personnel didn’t matter (he sasometimes he grabs whoever he sees) it was clear he deeply cared for his students.

When Geoff Collins was hired, I was hopeful like everyone else. I was pleased at his recruiting results. But I was disappointed time after time about his interaction with his students. Sure he was always Mr. Positive,but he always seemed fake. The polar opposite of CPJ. Honestly l liked the emphasis on “brand” and trying to build up excitement and hype around the program, but I didn’t like all of the gimmicks… do we really need a “money down?” Can we really not motivate and coach our players without all the props and surface level things?

Seriously, what’s the point of “above the line”. It’s clear we went into the game with a 1st string QB. Otherwise, wouldn’t he have put in Yates sooner? It’s a stupid gimmick that takes away from the competition and reward of being a starter.

When Gibs stayed in bounds at the end of the game, ruining any chances of setting up a field goal with a time out, where was coach? Was this not a clear coachable moment, a bad decision by a young and talented player? CPJ would have been all over him. Sometimes a little tough love or st the very least a little coaching is what is needed for people to grow.

Now to address something everyone brings up… in game execution/play calling versus recruiting. What do we want in a head coach? To be honest, I don’t mind having a head coach that’s less than ideal in tactically executing plays. As the Head Coach, he just needs to set the high level strategy and let more talented coordinators execute - but they doesn’t seem to be working. Is our OC any good? Honestly, I have no idea. To date, I’ve always disliked the play calling and thought it just didn’t make sense. It seemed to focus on doing the unexpected and “gimmicks” than just pounding out yards. Particularly in second and long and third and short situations. That being said, some of the designed plays did seem pretty good at getting a WR open…. If our QB and WR could just connect.

Don’t get me wrong - I already said I was a CPJ fan. I loved having a head coach that was repeatedly called a offensive “genius” and “chess master” in game after game. Love or hate the triple option - it was damn effective until the last year or two of Johnson’s tenure (I blame Notre Dame - their DC came up with a solid counter after hiring tons of staff to look at the option over the summer that 1year). At the same time, I often though CPJ could have used a PR person - a people person. He was great at the mechanics, but never seemed to value playing with emotion or hype - which fan support and player excitement I think need.

So I guess all that to say… I’m frustrated with Techs current situation and outlook. I don’t see Collins changing. I don’t really thing a new head coach would fix things either. We may just suffer several years of where football just isn’t fun anymore :(.

Why is it so hard to find a coach with charisma AND discipline? Honestly I think my ideal coach would be someone like Dabo Swinney….

anyways there’s my rant.
Click to expand...
I do agree with you that Collins does not seem to be the best game day coach. But our defensive line is still woefully undersized from the PJ era. And that is the main reason we lost—- even NIU was able to run the ball down our throats.
Collins has recruited some big time players on defense. They’re still young. Give them time to grow and we will finally have a defense that can give us a chance to win.
 
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