Expectations for the 2021 season

WreckinGT

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jacketup said:
Typical. Throw out an opinion with no facts.

I didn't say he had nothing but FCS talent, I said he had FCS level talent in spots. Groh complained about how small our D front seven was. I remember his quote that "Football is a big man's game"

From the NFL drafts of 2011-2014---players he would have coached--we had one defensive player drafted--Attaochu. Who recruited him? Al Groh. So my point remains, the talent level was poor, as it was after 2009 and until this year.

Facts, not some condescending unsubtantiaated opinion--like your post.
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In Groh's last game he had 7 players available that played in the NFL and four other former 4 star players as well. Of the others who didn't fit into that category, nearly all of them had offers from other P5 programs. That was after Attaochu was already gone. That isn't FCS level talent.
 
jojatk

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WreckinGT said:
Im not so sure about that. His position group has ranked 123rd/127 teams and 130th/130 teams in his two years so far. Sure he was dealt a tough hand to play with. If he is the best offensive line coach in college football like many here are convinced of then that seems like a pretty poor result. His last two years at UCF as an OC were two of the worst offenses in the country. Because he coached at Bama though he apparently walks on water. I have yet to understand that.
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Nearly everyone in the college football world understands that he’s been working with guys who were not skilled at the kind of blocking we need to play in an offense that focuses more on the pass than we did under CPJ (no criticism of CPJ or his staff or players here at all so don’t read any into it). CPJ recruited guys who were skilled at what he needed, as he should have. Almost nobody outside the GT fan base expected our OL to be anything but what they’ve been the past couple of years. Those guys who were capable have been learning and improving. We’ve brought in transfers and recruits who are more suited to what we want to do now.

I personally believe we will see a decent jump in ranking for our OL this year as the season progresses (barring lots of injuries). I don’t know if Brent is the best OL coach in college football or not. I believe him to be a terrific OL coach, though, and I’m excited to see what happens this coming season.
 

WreckinGT

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jojatk said:
Nearly everyone in the college football world understands that he’s been working with guys who were not skilled at the kind of blocking we need to play in an offense that focuses more on the pass than we did under CPJ (no criticism of CPJ or his staff or players here at all so don’t read any into it). CPJ recruited guys who were skilled at what he needed, as he should have. Almost nobody outside the GT fan base expected our OL to be anything but what they’ve been the past couple of years. Those guys who were capable have been learning and improving. We’ve brought in transfers and recruits who are more suited to what we want to do now.

I personally believe we will see a decent jump in ranking for our OL this year as the season progresses (barring lots of injuries). I don’t know if Brent is the best OL coach in college football or not. I believe him to be a terrific OL coach, though, and I’m excited to see what happens this coming season.
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If you truly believe last years talent was so awful that a great OL coach couldn't make them better than 5th worst in the country then im not sure why you think its going to get drastically better this year. We haven't recruited all that well at the position and Cochran can't do everything by himself. We didn't have a single player that graded well last year, including Johnson and Williams who never played in the previous offense and weren't recruited for it.
 
Milwaukee

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WreckinGT said:
Im not so sure about that. His position group has ranked 123rd/127 teams and 130th/130 teams in his two years so far. Sure he was dealt a tough hand to play with. If he is the best offensive line coach in college football like many here are convinced of then that seems like a pretty poor result. His last two years at UCF as an OC were two of the worst offenses in the country. Because he coached at Bama though he apparently walks on water. I have yet to understand that.
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😂
 
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Milwaukee

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WreckinGT said:
If you truly believe last years talent was so awful that a great OL coach couldn't make them better than 5th worst in the country then im not sure why you think its going to get drastically better this year. We haven't recruited all that well at the position and Cochran can't do everything by himself. We didn't have a single player that graded well last year, including Johnson and Williams who never played in the previous offense and weren't recruited for it.
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😂
43831B26-88B2-467F-B296-F58E018DCB12.jpeg
 
bobongo

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WreckinGT said:
The world of Milwaukee:

Criticizing a coach who's position group has the been the worst in college football the past two years: crazy.
Wanting the same OL coach to run the team on Saturdays while the head coach twiddles his thumbs somewhere: perfectly reasonable.
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I agree with you that there's nothing in Brent Key's resume' that is indicative of coaching brilliance except for the fact that Saban hired him and he stuck around for three years coaching the best OL talent in the country. The deduction that he's a great coach is theoretical conjecture based mostly on that fact alone. But this year we have not one, but two transfers who are purportedly NFL prospects on the OL and the proof will be in the pudding. Heretofore, it's reasonable that mulligans have been granted, but there are no excuses this season. It's put up or shut up. There should be a big leap forward for the OL and the whole offense, or some people need to get gone.
 
jojatk

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WreckinGT said:
If you truly believe last years talent was so awful that a great OL coach couldn't make them better than 5th worst in the country then im not sure why you think its going to get drastically better this year. We haven't recruited all that well at the position and Cochran can't do everything by himself. We didn't have a single player that graded well last year, including Johnson and Williams who never played in the previous offense and weren't recruited for it.
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Where did I use the word awful? I did not use that word nor any others to indicate I thought our talent was awful. Don't try to ascribe specific negative terminology to me that I didn't use. If I had meant they were not talented I would have said so. I actually said that the players CPJ recruited were skilled but at different things than what we needed. It takes time to learn new things and some of them are apparently good enough and talented enough athletes to do so. I'm not sure why this concept is so mystifying.

This year we will have an OL group that's a bit different than last year with some different players suiting up for us than were recruited for our primarily run oriented offense. I believe, from being told by many coaches over the years, that OL is a position that requires more teamwork than any other position group. I assume people like Ralph Friedgen count as experts so when he and others tell me that I believe them. So now we are in year three and finally getting year two’s worth of spring practices so our OL guys can continue to work together I absolutely do feel like we should see improvement. I think we have a few players who suit what our coaches want to do much more closely than we did the last couple of years and others who the coaches feel have made the transition from our previous system well enough to be contributors this year. I think actually having spring practice this year, which we really didn't last year, will pay huge dividends especially for a guy like Mikey Minihan who I expect to be much improved over last year. I also expect that Jordan Williams will have a much better season at RT and that Devin Cochran is a significant upgrade at LT. And it appears there's a spirited battle for the LG position.

I don't expect our OL to be great. I expect them to be much better than last year. That still leaves a lot of room for improvement and I also expect our OL to keep getting better and better.
 

Heisman's Ghost

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BilldGopher said:
Dropping by to see how the rebuild is going?

Like for many programs 2020 totally derailed the Gophers off their banner year in 2019.

This is the 5th year under Coach Fleck and we hope to leave 2020 behind and pick up where left off in 2019. Of course we open with tOSU at home...similar to if Tech were opening with Clemson. Yikes.

This is Year 3 for the Jackets under Coach Collins. Getting an identity yet? Recruiting improved? Excited for Fall 2021? An inquiring Gopher mind...
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Take this with a huge helping of salt. I went on the college football news website to investigate how the teams below the big 5 are looking this spring. Anyone can find stuff about UGA, Clemson, Notre Dame etc. but I was interested in those that will make or break this season for the Jackets. This is what they said:
130 teams ranked from worst to best with those we play and their rankings along with short quotes from college football news.

Northern Illinois #121 Pretty bad but it gets worse. They are considered to be worst team in their conference and it is not even close.

Duke #80 About all the Blue Devils have going for them is a veteran offensive line. That is about it. Surprised they were rated this high.

Tech #74 I thought we would be ranked higher but it is better than where we finished 2020 which was #82. The reviewers thought this to be the best Collins team across the board BUT still picked 6th in the Coastal and with major question marks on the defensive line. For perspective the teams ranked next to us was #75 Arizona and #73 Louisville (Yeah, I am thinking the same thing)

UVA #64 They say the Cavaliers offense is loaded and the defense has "some" talent but still shaky. I thought they would be ranked below Tech to be honest.

Virginia Tech #47 Both lines are said to be "OK" not great but serviceable. Losing quarterback Hooker could be a big problem. Lots of attrition and other losses. An inconsistent team with controversy swirling around the coach. Surprised they are this high to tell the truth.

BC #42 All 5 offensive linemen return as well as the quarterback who gave us fits last year. Should be better overall. Tend to think this rating is about right maybe a tad too high.

Pitt #36 Pickett back at quarterback which is the major reason for this ranking. He has most of his skill players back as well particularly the two tall receivers that ate us up last year. Defense has lost a lot. I think this ranking is overly generous for what I thought was a pretty mediocre team last year excepting the defensive line.

Miami #23 This is all about King's knee injury he suffered in the bowl game. Perry entered the portal so quarterback could be a major question mark. Offensive line has everyone back with loads of talent on defense. The reviewer wrote that "Miami has no excuses". To which I say, be patient they will think of something. #23 is about right to me if King is healthy, not so much if he is not.

Notre Dame #12 Strong on defense and deep in talent just about everywhere. The reviewer thought the Irish lost too much on offense to be in the top 10. Seems about right to me.

UNC #7 Entire offensive line is back along with most of the defense and quarterback Howell. Losses at receiver and running back. The portal proved to be a blessing for them getting the five star running back from Tennessee as they lost both of their star running backs from last year. This is a team that has historically underachieved but they may well be a top ten team. We will see.

UGA #5 Thought their ranking would be higher to be honest. They are characterized as having the talent to take it all but questions remain about Kirby. No excuses really with a weak SEC East that is theirs for the taking. All they have to do is beat #1 Clemson and #2 Alabama. Piece of cake.

Clemson #1 Surprised by this ranking but the defense is loaded and the Tigers have the usual slew of star receivers to complement Uiagalelei at quarterback whom it all rides upon. The real sleeper team to watch out for is Oklahoma.

For the Jackets, I disagree with some of these rankings, especially the ones on Pitt, UVA, and Virginia Tech as I am skeptical they are legit. Still the fact remains we are ranked below every team on the schedule but Duke, Northern Illinois, and Kennesaw. We have our work cut out for us going by these rankings. I think we have a good shot at beating Pitt, BC, Virginia Tech, UVA, as well as the three ranked below us. Win three of the aforementioned four middle teams and we have a 6 win season and a bowl. Not too shabby.
 

MacJacket

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Heisman's Ghost said:
Take this with a huge helping of salt. I went on the college football news website to investigate how the teams below the big 5 are looking this spring. Anyone can find stuff about UGA, Clemson, Notre Dame etc. but I was interested in those that will make or break this season for the Jackets. This is what they said:
130 teams ranked from worst to best with those we play and their rankings along with short quotes from college football news.

Northern Illinois #121 Pretty bad but it gets worse. They are considered to be worst team in their conference and it is not even close.

Duke #80 About all the Blue Devils have going for them is a veteran offensive line. That is about it. Surprised they were rated this high.

Tech #74 I thought we would be ranked higher but it is better than where we finished 2020 which was #82. The reviewers thought this to be the best Collins team across the board BUT still picked 6th in the Coastal and with major question marks on the defensive line. For perspective the teams ranked next to us was #75 Arizona and #73 Louisville (Yeah, I am thinking the same thing)

UVA #64 They say the Cavaliers offense is loaded and the defense has "some" talent but still shaky. I thought they would be ranked below Tech to be honest.

Virginia Tech #47 Both lines are said to be "OK" not great but serviceable. Losing quarterback Hooker could be a big problem. Lots of attrition and other losses. An inconsistent team with controversy swirling around the coach. Surprised they are this high to tell the truth.

BC #42 All 5 offensive linemen return as well as the quarterback who gave us fits last year. Should be better overall. Tend to think this rating is about right maybe a tad too high.

Pitt #36 Pickett back at quarterback which is the major reason for this ranking. He has most of his skill players back as well particularly the two tall receivers that ate us up last year. Defense has lost a lot. I think this ranking is overly generous for what I thought was a pretty mediocre team last year excepting the defensive line.

Miami #23 This is all about King's knee injury he suffered in the bowl game. Perry entered the portal so quarterback could be a major question mark. Offensive line has everyone back with loads of talent on defense. The reviewer wrote that "Miami has no excuses". To which I say, be patient they will think of something. #23 is about right to me if King is healthy, not so much if he is not.

Notre Dame #12 Strong on defense and deep in talent just about everywhere. The reviewer thought the Irish lost too much on offense to be in the top 10. Seems about right to me.

UNC #7 Entire offensive line is back along with most of the defense and quarterback Howell. Losses at receiver and running back. The portal proved to be a blessing for them getting the five star running back from Tennessee as they lost both of their star running backs from last year. This is a team that has historically underachieved but they may well be a top ten team. We will see.

UGA #5 Thought their ranking would be higher to be honest. They are characterized as having the talent to take it all but questions remain about Kirby. No excuses really with a weak SEC East that is theirs for the taking. All they have to do is beat #1 Clemson and #2 Alabama. Piece of cake.

Clemson #1 Surprised by this ranking but the defense is loaded and the Tigers have the usual slew of star receivers to complement Uiagalelei at quarterback whom it all rides upon. The real sleeper team to watch out for is Oklahoma.

For the Jackets, I disagree with some of these rankings, especially the ones on Pitt, UVA, and Virginia Tech as I am skeptical they are legit. Still the fact remains we are ranked below every team on the schedule but Duke, Northern Illinois, and Kennesaw. We have our work cut out for us going by these rankings. I think we have a good shot at beating Pitt, BC, Virginia Tech, UVA, as well as the three ranked below us. Win three of the aforementioned four middle teams and we have a 6 win season and a bowl. Not too shabby.
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This is an A+ offseason post. Well done!
 

Heisman's Ghost

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MacJacket said:
This is an A+ offseason post. Well done!
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Thank you. The hard part was finding a site that said anything about the teams other than the usual suspects. The rankings were just someone's opinion but for the most part reasonable. I think we are better than 6th in the Coastal (now that is borderline insulting) but we will see.
 

Heisman's Ghost

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Heisman's Ghost said:
Take this with a huge helping of salt. I went on the college football news website to investigate how the teams below the big 5 are looking this spring. Anyone can find stuff about UGA, Clemson, Notre Dame etc. but I was interested in those that will make or break this season for the Jackets. This is what they said:
130 teams ranked from worst to best with those we play and their rankings along with short quotes from college football news.

Northern Illinois #121 Pretty bad but it gets worse. They are considered to be worst team in their conference and it is not even close.

Duke #80 About all the Blue Devils have going for them is a veteran offensive line. That is about it. Surprised they were rated this high.

Tech #74 I thought we would be ranked higher but it is better than where we finished 2020 which was #82. The reviewers thought this to be the best Collins team across the board BUT still picked 6th in the Coastal and with major question marks on the defensive line. For perspective the teams ranked next to us was #75 Arizona and #73 Louisville (Yeah, I am thinking the same thing)

UVA #64 They say the Cavaliers offense is loaded and the defense has "some" talent but still shaky. I thought they would be ranked below Tech to be honest.

Virginia Tech #47 Both lines are said to be "OK" not great but serviceable. Losing quarterback Hooker could be a big problem. Lots of attrition and other losses. An inconsistent team with controversy swirling around the coach. Surprised they are this high to tell the truth.

BC #42 All 5 offensive linemen return as well as the quarterback who gave us fits last year. Should be better overall. Tend to think this rating is about right maybe a tad too high.

Pitt #36 Pickett back at quarterback which is the major reason for this ranking. He has most of his skill players back as well particularly the two tall receivers that ate us up last year. Defense has lost a lot. I think this ranking is overly generous for what I thought was a pretty mediocre team last year excepting the defensive line.

Miami #23 This is all about King's knee injury he suffered in the bowl game. Perry entered the portal so quarterback could be a major question mark. Offensive line has everyone back with loads of talent on defense. The reviewer wrote that "Miami has no excuses". To which I say, be patient they will think of something. #23 is about right to me if King is healthy, not so much if he is not.

Notre Dame #12 Strong on defense and deep in talent just about everywhere. The reviewer thought the Irish lost too much on offense to be in the top 10. Seems about right to me.

UNC #7 Entire offensive line is back along with most of the defense and quarterback Howell. Losses at receiver and running back. The portal proved to be a blessing for them getting the five star running back from Tennessee as they lost both of their star running backs from last year. This is a team that has historically underachieved but they may well be a top ten team. We will see.

UGA #5 Thought their ranking would be higher to be honest. They are characterized as having the talent to take it all but questions remain about Kirby. No excuses really with a weak SEC East that is theirs for the taking. All they have to do is beat #1 Clemson and #2 Alabama. Piece of cake.

Clemson #1 Surprised by this ranking but the defense is loaded and the Tigers have the usual slew of star receivers to complement Uiagalelei at quarterback whom it all rides upon. The real sleeper team to watch out for is Oklahoma.

For the Jackets, I disagree with some of these rankings, especially the ones on Pitt, UVA, and Virginia Tech as I am skeptical they are legit. Still the fact remains we are ranked below every team on the schedule but Duke, Northern Illinois, and Kennesaw. We have our work cut out for us going by these rankings. I think we have a good shot at beating Pitt, BC, Virginia Tech, UVA, as well as the three ranked below us. Win three of the aforementioned four middle teams and we have a 6 win season and a bowl. Not too shabby.
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Sorry Gopher, had I been thinking I would have noticed where they put Minnesota and I just know you would have liked to see where they placed Wisconsin since you seem to like the Badgers so much /s/
 

Heisman's Ghost

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UgaBlows said:
Not counting uga of course, there is no team that i want us to beat more then Pitt, and i’m sick of Kenny Pickett!
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Understandable. He is like the pretty boy quarterback on the other team in high school that thought he was the best there ever was until he got gobsmacked by a defensive linemen or linebacker. Being a defensive back (back in the day in school) I understand the sentiments. We have a burgeoning rivalry now with players and coaches on both teams that do not like each other. Good. Our games with Pitt tend to get "chippy" as the players like to say. I am all for it. Time to get an attitude. "Get your mind rite" as the Miami players used to say.
 

SOWEGA Jacket

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The problem for many GT fans is a thing called gold colored glasses. That article doesn’t surprise me at all. Yes, we all agree we have a huge upside with the 2 years of recruiting and the transfers, but so far, outside of Gibbs, none of it has shown up on the field. Brown was the lone bright spot in year 1 and he is gone. Gibbs was the lone bright spot in year 2. Why would anyone think we are better than UVA, VT, Pitt, or BC? They all have proven strengths that we have all seen whether it’s a QB, an OLine, or defense. What is our strength? As of today we don’t even know if we have one. Ideally, Sims turns into one of those QB’s that VT has turned out, our OLine turns into what BC has, and our defense does something. I think we have the ingredients but let’s see how it tastes. Until then I know the taste from the past 4 GT seasons.
 
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