Two big problems going forward

[Yaller Jacket]

Not that there aren't more.

1) Lack of a pass rush. For the umpteenth year in a row, we have way below the norm of sack and hurries. I believe our inability to stop teams from scoring with little time left is a symptom, not the disease. I think if a team decided mid game to start throwing on every down, they would still move the ball down the field on us. Since that only happens at the end of the halves, it appears to be a separate problem. Most teams can get pressure when they know other teams will pass, but not us.

2) Inability to focus when we play unranked teams on the road. We'll show up against Miami and VT, but not the rest of our league. I believe if we had played Pitt and UNC on the road and Virginia and Duke at home, the results would have been reversed. Someone has to convince our players that if we are not in high gear, we're just middle of the pack teams ourselves.

 

[Jmonty71]

The lack of pass rush comes from a DC with a predictable, lethargic and in motivated defense. We did not run stunts. We couldn't disguise a blitz, if our lives depended on it. The tackling was lackadaisical. All of these are issues that come from bad coaching. Roof should of been fired 2 years ago. I knew it was a bad hire, from day one. The whole defensive scheme and mindset needs changed. The D should be attacking. We aren't. The D should be the hammer hitting the nail. We were often the nail getting beat by the hammer.

On a side note: I think, as a team, they need to learn how to act like one. I didn't see that, this year.

 

[Whiskey_Clear]

Fire Roof and hire @Jmonty71. He knows all the problems and has all the solutions. Our savior is found.

 

[Jmonty71]

Fire Roof and hire @Jmonty71. He knows all the problems and has all the solutions. Our savior is found.

I couldn't do any worse than Roof. Thanks for your vote of confidence. But, I already run a department in a large company. I'm set...job wise.

 

[Jacket in Dairyland]

I don't think any of us are under the illusion that WE could coach better than ANY of the coaches, or that we have ALL the answers. However, this is a blog to spark conversations and celebrate or vent on whatever happens. At this point we are all very frustrated, for various reasons. Criticizing coaches who make hundreds of thousand and millions of dollars on this public forum is part of their job description . The result of their efforts ( or lack thereof) are on display and open to being judged by all of us. We bought a ticket or watched on TV. We have opinions. We care. Let's not start in on each other! Comments like " so you think you can do better", or "you have ALL the answers" are irrelevant and unnecessary, IMO.

 

[Whiskey_Clear]

I couldn't do any worse than Roof. Thanks for your vote of confidence. But, I already run a department in a large company. I'm set...job wise.

Mmmhmmm

 

[TechTravis]

I have been as disappointed with Mike Pelton as any position coach I can think of. He was supposed to be one of the top coaches at his position and a dynamic recruiter. I've seen very little of either during his tenure here...

 

[TechTravis]

I don't think any of us are under the illusion that WE could coach better than ANY of the coaches, or that we have ALL the answers. However, this is a blog to spark conversations and celebrate or vent on whatever happens. At this point we are all very frustrated, for various reasons. Criticizing coaches who make hundreds of thousand and millions of dollars on this public forum is part of their job description . The result of their efforts ( or lack thereof) are on display and open to being judged by all of us. We bought a ticket or watched on TV. We have opinions. We care. Let's not start in on each other! Comments like " so you think you can do better", or "you have ALL the answers" are irrelevant and unnecessary, IMO.

I do actually wonder sometimes if I could do Sewak's job better than him. But I believe he might be the worst coach at his position in the country, so...

 

[75southjacket]

I would put no passing attack up there with no pass ruah

Not that there aren't more.

1) Lack of a pass rush. For the umpteenth year in a row, we have way below the norm of sack and hurries. I believe our inability to stop teams from scoring with little time left is a symptom, not the disease. I think if a team decided mid game to start throwing on every down, they would still move the ball down the field on us. Since that only happens at the end of the halves, it appears to be a separate problem. Most teams can get pressure when they know other teams will pass, but not us.

2) Inability to focus when we play unranked teams on the road. We'll show up against Miami and VT, but not the rest of our league. I believe if we had played Pitt and UNC on the road and Virginia and Duke at home, the results would have been reversed. Someone has to convince our players that if we are not in high gear, we're just middle of the pack teams ourselves.

 

[Whiskey_Clear]

I don't think any of us are under the illusion that WE could coach better than ANY of the coaches, or that we have ALL the answers. However, this is a blog to spark conversations and celebrate or vent on whatever happens. At this point we are all very frustrated, for various reasons. Criticizing coaches who make hundreds of thousand and millions of dollars on this public forum is part of their job description . The result of their efforts ( or lack thereof) are on display and open to being judged by all of us. We bought a ticket or watched on TV. We have opinions. We care. Let's not start in on each other! Comments like " so you think you can do better", or "you have ALL the answers" are irrelevant and unnecessary, IMO.

You have your opinions and I have mine. True about the program, the fanbase, and individual members of the Swarm.

When we win a lot of members here disappear. When we lose they suddenly reemerge and claim to be football experts. Make astounding assertions that are laughable. Like "Team X played us with 9 men in the box". "PJ just keeps running play C". Neither of which were at all true in the game! I truly wonder what the hell these folks think they are seeing. I'm pretty sure it's just frustration of negative plays feeding into certain false stereotypes about our program they have bought into despite evidence to the contrary.

Then there are the folks that with certainty assert coach so and so is horrid at X,Y,Z. But they literally have never witnessed anything to give them insight into the actual coaching those guys actually do. They appear to base it off whether we won or lost in a given game or season.

Now I'm no different in my own personal knowledge of the jobs our staff does or doesn't do. I suspect Roof is a pretty decent coach since he's been doing it a while. He might be getting more from our guys than 90% of other coaches would. Maybe that number is reversed.

Point is I don't know or claim to. While many others do baselessly. I will counter those baseless assertions as same.

Could we do better with a different DC? Maybe. Can we hire a better one? Maybe so maybe not. Some of the lack of sound fundamentals I've witnessed from replays lends me to suspect we aren't doing as good as we could teaching different position groups.

And I've heard multiple times that either CPJ, or Womack, or Roof etc., haven't been able to hire the assistants they really most want to help teach and install their respective schemes. This critique appears to have the most evidence to back it. But no one outside the program has the inside knowledge to affirm or contradict this assertion with any individual coach. And I find assertions to the contrary to be banal.

Chances are some changes will be made. To what extent I do not know. Hopefully to the betterment of the program. The people making these decisions are far more able to make them than anyone on this board, now that Mbob is gone and assuming Bud isn't directly involved.

 

[Whiskey_Clear]

I do actually wonder sometimes if I could do Sewak's job better than him. But I believe he might be the worst coach at his position in the country, so...

Based exactly on what???

 

[DvilleJacket]

I have been as disappointed with Mike Pelton as any position coach I can think of. He was supposed to be one of the top coaches at his position and a dynamic recruiter. I've seen very little of either during his tenure here...

When I learned we had a DT coach from Auburn I was very excited. I just knew he would turn someone like Kallon into beast. Guess I know why Auburn didn't want him now.

 

[Towaliga]

I don't think any of us (except JMonty) are under the illusion that WE could coach better than ANY of the coaches, or that we have ALL the answers. .....

FIFY

 

[TechTravis]

Based exactly on what???

Consistently below average line play? With the exception of 2014, and parts of 2016, I can't think of a time I'd consider our offensive line a "Strength." And we've had some quality recruits there in the past. I see guys continually being beaten on blocks and pass protection is often laughable. It's not a good offensive line. Do you see something different? I'm genuinely curious.

 

[Whiskey_Clear]

Consistently below average line play? With the exception of 2014, and parts of 2016, I can't think of a time I'd consider our offensive line a "Strength." And we've had some quality recruits there in the past. I see guys continually being beaten on blocks and pass protection is often laughable. It's not a good offensive line. Do you see something different? I'm genuinely curious.

Yes I have seen us dominate teams. When we struggle on the Oline it's usually due to a lack of depth and attrition rather than poor fundamentals from that group.

For example. Keep our preseason starting 5 OL, including Marshall at OT, healthy all year. If you can wave that magic wand I feel very confident we wouldn't have struggled on O half as much this year despite playing a QB starting for the first time.

But we don't live in that perfect world. Marshall couldn't play. That forced us to move our most versatile imo, and possibly our best OL, from guard to OT. Then we were forced to start SD and play him near every down rather than situationally. Then we rotated other OTs etc but weren't ever able to find our sweet spot on the OL.

That's what I saw. A lack of experienced depth. Now cite me some examples of deficiencies in fundamentals. What specifically do you see us doing incorrectly that causes us to "miss blocks"?

 

[Jacket in Dairyland]

You have your opinions and I have mine. True about the program, the fanbase, and individual members of the Swarm.

When we win a lot of members here disappear. When we lose they suddenly reemerge and claim to be football experts. Make astounding assertions that are laughable. Like "Team X played us with 9 men in the box". "PJ just keeps running play C". Neither of which were at all true in the game! I truly wonder what the hell these folks think they are seeing. I'm pretty sure it's just frustration of negative plays feeding into certain false stereotypes about our program they have bought into despite evidence to the contrary.

Then there are the folks that with certainty assert coach so and so is horrid at X,Y,Z. But they literally have never witnessed anything to give them insight into the actual coaching those guys actually do. They appear to base it off whether we won or lost in a given game or season.

Now I'm no different in my own personal knowledge of the jobs our staff does or doesn't do. I suspect Roof is a pretty decent coach since he's been doing it a while. He might be getting more from our guys than 90% of other coaches would. Maybe that number is reversed.

Point is I don't know or claim to. While many others do baselessly. I will counter those baseless assertions as same.

Could we do better with a different DC? Maybe. Can we hire a better one? Maybe so maybe not. Some of the lack of sound fundamentals I've witnessed from replays lends me to suspect we aren't doing as good as we could teaching different position groups.

And I've heard multiple times that either CPJ, or Womack, or Roof etc., haven't been able to hire the assistants they really most want to help teach and install their respective schemes. This critique appears to have the most evidence to back it. But no one outside the program has the inside knowledge to affirm or contradict this assertion with any individual coach. And I find assertions to the contrary to be banal.

Chances are some changes will be made. To what extent I do not know. Hopefully to the betterment of the program. The people making these decisions are far more able to make them than anyone on this board, now that Mbob is gone and assuming Bud isn't directly involved.

I guess it's like politics : do you take ( or waste) the time to call out those you consider " misguided" ( to use a polite word), or do you just shrug them off and think to yourself "a__hole"? In my opinion, and mine only, your response to what they post gives it more credence than it is worth. And secondly, coming from someone who has over 6,000 posts it seems a bit sanctimonious. Almost as if you are a moderator. I read almost all of your posts, and I don't think, from what I have read, that you are sanctimonious or wish to moderate. We all have our levels of expression, engagement, interest and involvement. It's a college sport we are discussing, not the threat from North Korea. Some of us only want to criticize and complain, some just jump on the bandwagon. Personally, I let those I consider insincere, or misguided, or even aggravating, just pass me by. You are definitely NOT in that category.

 

[Ash]

I think if a team decided mid game to start throwing on every down, they would still move the ball down the field on us.

Absolutely. UNC blew us off the field doing this in 2014 and 2016. I fear playing any spread team, worried they will figure out that is all they have to do against the way our D is coached.

 

[Whiskey_Clear]

I guess it's like politics : do you take ( or waste) the time to call out those you consider " misguided" ( to use a polite word), or do you just shrug them off and think to yourself "a__hole"? In my opinion, and mine only, your response to what they post gives it more credence than it is worth. And secondly, coming from someone who has over 6,000 posts it seems a bit sanctimonious. Almost as if you are a moderator. I read almost all of your posts, and I don't think, from what I have read, that you are sanctimonious or wish to moderate. We all have our levels of expression, engagement, interest and involvement. It's a college sport we are discussing, not the threat from North Korea. Some of us only want to criticize and complain, some just jump on the bandwagon. Personally, I let those I consider insincere, or misguided, or even aggravating, just pass me by. You are definitely NOT in that category.

No I'm not in that category. I'm fairly opinionated myself, few will argue that. I actually do let some comments, those I find to be baseless, off point, or lack value pass by.

When I see bandwagons starting to form off posts that I think lack merit, those I typically contend with. Likewise posts that feed into the false narratives of our schemes, program, or school.

And if you find my posts to be "sanctimonious" or irritating. Please feel free to utilize the ignore feature. Or as you assert, just let my posts, pass you by and disregard them.

 

[TechTravis]

Yes I have seen us dominate teams. When we struggle on the Oline it's usually due to a lack of depth and attrition rather than poor fundamentals from that group.

For example. Keep our preseason starting 5 OL, including Marshall at OT, healthy all year. If you can wave that magic wand I feel very confident we wouldn't have struggled on O half as much this year despite playing a QB starting for the first time.

But we don't live in that perfect world. Marshall couldn't play. That forced us to move our most versatile imo, and possibly our best OL, from guard to OT. Then we were forced to start SD and play him near every down rather than situationally. Then we rotated other OTs etc but weren't ever able to find our sweet spot on the OL.

That's what I saw. A lack of experienced depth. Now cite me some examples of deficiencies in fundamentals. What specifically do you see us doing incorrectly that causes us to "miss blocks"?

I saw us struggle to get any push against Jacksonville St. I see guys look lost in pass pro. I'm not sure when this year you saw this OL "dominate." Maybe for a bit against Tennessee, but Tennessee was a garbage can fire. Again, I'd love to be wrong about this, but I haven't seen anything that leads me to believe that Mike Sewak is good at his job. If you disagree, that's fine.

 

[Whiskey_Clear]

I saw us struggle to get any push against Jacksonville St. I see guys look lost in pass pro. I'm not sure when this year you saw this OL "dominate." Maybe for a bit against Tennessee, but Tennessee was a garbage can fire. Again, I'd love to be wrong about this, but I haven't seen anything that leads me to believe that Mike Sewak is good at his job. If you disagree, that's fine.

So not citing any particular poor fundamentals just a lack of overall success and based on this season alone. Ok