Spring game thoughts

[forensicbuzz]

depends what's in the bottle....

Bourbon.

 

[g0lftime]

Collins is doing things his way and let's face it, football practice isn't that fun especially when the academic side is really not much fun. If it works then it will lead to more success and if not the caliber of players will be better for the pro style game when he's gone. I hope he is successful even though I still have concerns about some of his staff. This is a defining year in terms of whether we are improving and we should be better.

 

[Sheboygan]

Collins is doing things his way and let's face it, football practice isn't that fun especially when the academic side is really not much fun. If it works then it will lead to more success and if not the caliber of players will be better for the pro style game when he's gone. I hope he is successful even though I still have concerns about some of his staff. This is a defining year in terms of whether we are improving and we should be better.

I agree it is a defining year that will indicate the trajectory of the program in the years to come.......upward toward more success or downward toward irrelevance. To those who say CGC needs ( at least) one more year to show improvement , I disagree. I am not suggesting ACC champions as a goal for this year, but a .500 won loss record would be a huge indicator that things are at least moving in the right direction. IMO, Pnaude and Thacker should be under scrutiny this year.

 

[TruckStick]

I think everything except wins have been there for success. I can't wait to see the new athletics building start construction.

 

[ncjacket79]

I agree it is a defining year that will indicate the trajectory of the program in the years to come.......upward toward more success or downward toward irrelevance. To those who say CGC needs ( at least) one more year to show improvement , I disagree. I am not suggesting ACC champions as a goal for this year, but a .500 won loss record would be a huge indicator that things are at least moving in the right direction. IMO, Pnaude and Thacker should be under scrutiny this year.

I don’t think I have seen a single post that has said we don’t need to see improvement this year.

 

[Augusta_Jacket]

I don’t think I have seen a single post that has said we don’t need to see improvement this year.

Agreed. It's the metric to judge improvement that seems to be the sticking point.

 

[Supersizethatorder-mutt]

I don’t think I have seen a single post that has said we don’t need to see improvement this year.

I think everyone sees the need for improvement, but some apparently do not think that improvement must result in more wins. IMO, anything less than .500 this year is not improvement at all, regardless of better talent and schemes.

 

[LargeFO]

I think everyone sees the need for improvement, but some apparently do not think that improvement must result in more wins. IMO, anything less than .500 this year is not improvement at all, regardless of better talent and schemes.

I do think we need to hit 6-6 and get a bowl (regardless of prestige).

 

[Jmonty71]

I think everyone sees the need for improvement, but some apparently do not think that improvement must result in more wins. IMO, anything less than .500 this year is not improvement at all, regardless of better talent and schemes.

I don't think asking for 6-7 wins, is over the top. Heck, last year, we basically beat ourselves, in 3 games, just with mistakes. I think limiting turnovers and mistakes is 3 wins, in itself. Improvement is vague. I would like to see better execution and less mental errors.

 

[alagold]

Until we see who actually is ON THE FIELD the 3RD GAME, I can't give a guess on record .If Sims/Gibbs/R.Johnson is out or a position is hit is hit badly by injuries (like DT), we will struggle.

 

[SOWEGA Jacket]

I don't think asking for 6-7 wins, is over the top. Heck, last year, we basically beat ourselves, in 3 games, just with mistakes. I think limiting turnovers and mistakes is 3 wins, in itself. Improvement is vague. I would like to see better execution and less mental errors.

Kinda agree. We did absolutely give away a lot last season. We have so many areas where we could easily improve (kicking game, penalties, turnovers, and game management) but does improvement mean more wins? As another pointed out, every team we play is also trying to fix their weaknesses so we can’t just say if we fix X then we’ll beat Y. And what worries me the most isn’t the players being better, but it’s the game plan being better. Last year I don’t think we put our skilled position players in the best situations to make plays. Handing the ball to Gibbs 8 yards behind the LOS and then hoping he makes magic isn’t a solid plan. Watching the top offensive coordinators all season you can see why those guys make bank and get job offers. They get people open and they design plays to get them the ball. Time for Patenaude to run more than the basics.

 

[Sheboygan]

I don’t think I have seen a single post that has said we don’t need to see improvement this year.

My point was that it needed to be in wins and losses .......at least .500 W/L

I think everyone sees the need for improvement, but some apparently do not think that improvement must result in more wins. IMO, anything less than .500 this year is not improvement at all, regardless of better talent and schemes.

Kinda agree. We did absolutely give away a lot last season. We have so many areas where we could easily improve (kicking game, penalties, turnovers, and game management) but does improvement mean more wins? As another pointed out, every team we play is also trying to fix their weaknesses so we can’t just say if we fix X then we’ll beat Y. And what worries me the most isn’t the players being better, but it’s the game plan being better. Last year I don’t think we put our skilled position players in the best situations to make plays. Handing the ball to Gibbs 8 yards behind the LOS and then hoping he makes magic isn’t a solid plan. Watching the top offensive coordinators all season you can see why those guys make bank and get job offers. They get people open and they design plays to get them the ball. Time for Patenaude to run more than the basics.

I watched P'naudes video last week. He's got the coach speak part down real well, but we all know that is NOT what defines a good coach. For me, what has been missing on offense is consistency. Regardless of opponent last year, there seemed to be a lack of cohesion and continuity, caused by excessive penalties, inexperience of many players and play selection....in a word - disorganized. We seldom, if ever, looked like we were clicking on all cylinders. Way too many 3 and outs kept our D on the field too much. That needs to change this year.

 

[GoJacketsInRaleigh]

I don't think asking for 6-7 wins, is over the top. Heck, last year, we basically beat ourselves, in 3 games, just with mistakes. I think limiting turnovers and mistakes is 3 wins, in itself. Improvement is vague. I would like to see better execution and less mental errors.

If the schedule didn't include 5 top 15 teams I would agree. We should definitely be better than last year though

 

[danny daniel]

My point was that it needed to be in wins and losses .......at least .500 W/L



I watched P'naudes video last week. He's got the coach speak part down real well, but we all know that is NOT what defines a good coach. For me, what has been missing on offense is consistency. Regardless of opponent last year, there seemed to be a lack of cohesion and continuity, caused by excessive penalties, inexperience of many players and play selection....in a word - disorganized. We seldom, if ever, looked like we were clicking on all cylinders. Way too many 3 and outs kept our D on the field too much. That needs to change this year.

I agree with your post. We have transitioned from a team O to a QB dependent O. Our consistency will be tied to the QB consistency, either good but somewhat inconsistent or really bad inconsistent (like the last two seasons). We should definitely do better than what we have seen in the last two seasons. I believe our OC knows a lot of football but his focus seems to be looking for the matchup and not calling plays to progress the ball down the field to maintain possession. I am afraid we are stuck with an uncomfortable degree of inconsistency.

 

[ncjacket79]

I agree with your post. We have transitioned from a team O to a QB dependent O. Our consistency will be tied to the QB consistency, either good but somewhat inconsistent or really bad inconsistent (like the last two seasons). We should definitely do better than what we have seen in the last two seasons. I believe our OC knows a lot of football but his focus seems to be looking for the matchup and not calling plays to progress the ball down the field to maintain possession. I am afraid we are stuck with an uncomfortable degree of inconsistency.

Our offense, and every offense if football, has always been QB dependent. We just expect different things now than we did in the 3O. Not even sure what your second point is. Looking for matchups to take advantage of is how you progress the ball downfield.

 

[stech81]

If the schedule didn't include 5 top 15 teams I would agree. We should definitely be better than last year though

Y'all need to get over the schedule thingy It's the same every year.

 

[ncjacket79]

Y'all need to get over the schedule thingy It's the same every year.

I do agree with this. Teams are up and down year to year but this is our normal schedule. We need to build a program to compete at that level. Not sure we are quite there yet but feel we are close.

 

[GoJacketsInRaleigh]

Y'all need to get over the schedule thingy It's the same every year.

It's a fact though. We can make significant improvements this year but still not be ready to beat top 15 teams. Look beyond the W/L record in the building of the program. And I'm glad he's not scheduling 3 easy OOC wins with UGAg every year to make himself look better.

 

[Sheboygan]

It's a fact though. We can make significant improvements this year but still not be ready to beat top 15 teams. Look beyond the W/L record in the building of the program. And I'm glad he's not scheduling 3 easy OOC wins with UGAg every year to make himself look better.

Many of us "die-hards" can look past the W/L and see other measures of progress. The issue with NOT improving the W/L record becomes one of perception by the the media and by not so "diehard" fans/recruits we are trying to attract. At some point - if the W/L doesn't start to get better- all the "404, ATL, Waffle House, Money Down, dancing on the sidelines, etc. , starts to lose it's appeal and seem fake. Unfortunately, IMO, college football is SERIOUS business and VERY competitive. It's vital to be perceived as a "winner", or at least on a measurable path to be one, because we are living in a short attention span society. Heaven help us if Ga. State , or Kennesaw start drawing away our fan base because they want to see "winning" football.

 

[Augusta_Jacket]

Many of us "die-hards" can look past the W/L and see other measures of progress. The issue with NOT improving the W/L record becomes one of perception by the the media and by not so "diehard" fans/recruits we are trying to attract. At some point - if the W/L doesn't start to get better- all the "404, ATL, Waffle House, Money Down, dancing on the sidelines, etc. , starts to lose it's appeal and seem fake. Unfortunately, IMO, college football is SERIOUS business and VERY competitive. It's vital to be perceived as a "winner", or at least on a measurable path to be one, because we are living in a short attention span society. Heaven help us if Ga. State , or Kennesaw start drawing away our fan base because they want to see "winning" football.

I agree with you that we need to, at some point, improve the W/L or else we risk setting ourselves back further. I just don't think 2021 is the tipping point yet. I believe the media will give CGC this last year to build and then start judging him more harshly in 2022. If we are competitive in our games, and don't look lost on the field as we have many times the last two years, then I believe even with 4-5 wins there will be a buzz about this team heading into 2022 that we are ready to make that next step into winning again.