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I have hesitated to post at all really, mostly because I don't like making rash judgements nor simply venting to keep my snow-flake from melting. Without a doubt, as a person who loves TECH, there has been some pain to endure thus far this season. Pain is weakness leaving the body, or so I have been told. That is pretty much what is going on right now within the GT family. The player's and coaches' resolve is being tested. Our fandom is being tested. We all need this weakness to leave us in order to make it through the near future. There is no magic pill. There is no magic play we need to run more. There is no magic player on the roster who needs to touch the ball on 90% of snaps from scrimmage.
At this point, in my estimation, we have a single core issue, and several smaller ancillary things that could be improved upon. That single core issue is that our opponents are able to sustain blocks on us at the point of attack, while we are unable to sustain blocks on them. That disparity is the root cause of the majority of our issues. IMHO our secondary is pretty good. However, you could put the NFL pro bowl secondary out there (I am not joking right now) and they might cover a little better than our kids, but they wouldn't be able to shut down a throwing offense (like UNC) with the time and clean pockets their QB was provided. Do any of you ever watch a game with a stop watch? The allowed time disparity between opposing QBs making decisions with eyes down field and ours is not even close. That can be nearly impossible to overcome, especially when the underneath defenders have been committed to the rush (to no avail).
I like the sound of the comments made surrounding our off season work. Kids are lean and fit. With that said, we are a small team, pretty much across the board, with the exception of the defensive secondary. As a program, we have chosen a style of play. At the current moment in time, we do not have the body types along the LOS to thrive in that style. We need length on both sides of the ball and we need girth. Unfortunately, we have neither. The UNC team looked like giants against us, like a varsity going against a JV. Our kids are very tough and they are warriors, but there is just so much one can do when the guy you are going against has 8 inch longer wingspan, 30 more pounds than you, pretty good feet, and practicing his craft just as hard as you are.
We can go round and round about play calls, rotating QBs, clock management, kids dancing on the sideline, untimely penalties that extend drives etc etc, but all that means very little until the core issue gets fixed. We might be able to steal a game here and there, but we will not be able to sustain winning streaks of any kind.
Generally speaking, it looks to me like our kids have been well coached. There aren't a ton of busts, tackling has been better than I am used to seeing, and our kids play with a ton of effort despite a lack of results to inspire confidence. I think CGC is taking the exact correct approach to his team's situation, just focus on getting better every single day and play with great passion. We have some pieces in place at the skill positions, if not experience, that should be very competitive once things equalize at the LOS. As long as the kids are learning, improving, and playing with great passion, while we find the right kids for our system over time, I will hang with this group as I personally get stronger by letting this pain leave my body.
At this point, in my estimation, we have a single core issue, and several smaller ancillary things that could be improved upon. That single core issue is that our opponents are able to sustain blocks on us at the point of attack, while we are unable to sustain blocks on them. That disparity is the root cause of the majority of our issues. IMHO our secondary is pretty good. However, you could put the NFL pro bowl secondary out there (I am not joking right now) and they might cover a little better than our kids, but they wouldn't be able to shut down a throwing offense (like UNC) with the time and clean pockets their QB was provided. Do any of you ever watch a game with a stop watch? The allowed time disparity between opposing QBs making decisions with eyes down field and ours is not even close. That can be nearly impossible to overcome, especially when the underneath defenders have been committed to the rush (to no avail).
I like the sound of the comments made surrounding our off season work. Kids are lean and fit. With that said, we are a small team, pretty much across the board, with the exception of the defensive secondary. As a program, we have chosen a style of play. At the current moment in time, we do not have the body types along the LOS to thrive in that style. We need length on both sides of the ball and we need girth. Unfortunately, we have neither. The UNC team looked like giants against us, like a varsity going against a JV. Our kids are very tough and they are warriors, but there is just so much one can do when the guy you are going against has 8 inch longer wingspan, 30 more pounds than you, pretty good feet, and practicing his craft just as hard as you are.
We can go round and round about play calls, rotating QBs, clock management, kids dancing on the sideline, untimely penalties that extend drives etc etc, but all that means very little until the core issue gets fixed. We might be able to steal a game here and there, but we will not be able to sustain winning streaks of any kind.
Generally speaking, it looks to me like our kids have been well coached. There aren't a ton of busts, tackling has been better than I am used to seeing, and our kids play with a ton of effort despite a lack of results to inspire confidence. I think CGC is taking the exact correct approach to his team's situation, just focus on getting better every single day and play with great passion. We have some pieces in place at the skill positions, if not experience, that should be very competitive once things equalize at the LOS. As long as the kids are learning, improving, and playing with great passion, while we find the right kids for our system over time, I will hang with this group as I personally get stronger by letting this pain leave my body.
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