Army Game Thread

[junglehusky]

Well you can go ahead and give all the credit in the world to an Army team that lost to Yale. Some of us will deal with the reality of the situation which was the indifferent and amateur preparation and execution which prevented us from winning a VERY winnable game against a BAD opponent. And face the dire consequences of this continued downward spiral by the most important sport on campus.

I'm not saying we couldn't have been better prepared, clearly we could have. But I do not understand how that is the only thing to take away from this loss. As uh said this was a winnable game. We had a chance to tie late in the game (despite a bad call on the Army fumble) and everyone's acting like we were blown out like that Navy game at home however many years ago that.

PS - I am giving credit to army for improving since the Yale game. Teams do go up and down game to game, sometimes.

 

[UConnDan97]

The coaches clearly blew this game...Our D wasn't fully prepared early on.... and our playing calling on O was filled with a bunch of head scratching moments.... Army did it right... They took what our D gave them... that's why they won.... Us? For once, this season, it seemed that our OL had the advantage and could move Army around when they wanted to, yet, we neglected to take advantage of it... That's not on the offensive players... They run the play that the OC calls...

Ron Johnson (and DeLo) were guaranteed 5 yards per carry every carry. But we only ran it 16 times all game with running backs.
We can't get play calls into the team on time. Whitmer had to blow our second time out because of it. We failed to run an extra play at the end of the 3rd quarter because of it.
We kept trying to establish the screen pass, even though Army was waiting for it.
We kept trying to hit them with a longball home run, even though we struggled all game with it.
We had a mismatch with McQuillan, and only used it once. (EDIT: 3 catches by McQuillan, but boy it could have been more)
Our defense looked like they had never seen the option, like, ever.
Oh, and of course, the obligatory 1 series for Tim Boyle, so that we fully ensure that Whitmer has zero rhythm.

I could keep going. All of this lands on the coaches. I hope they own it. I hope they learn from it. And I hope they cut this out sooner rather than later...

 

[ASweet3781]

I'm not saying we couldn't have been better prepared, clearly we could have. But I do not understand how that is the only thing to take away from this loss. We had a chance to tie late in the game (despite a bad call on the Army fumble) and everyone's acting like we were blown out like that Navy game at home however many years ago that says.

"We had a chance to tie late.." "You are acting like we got blown out.."

If that's the standard and expectations you can live with for a game against a 2 win Army team on a neutral field where we had several thousands of our own fans make the trip than we just disagree on where UConn football should be at this point and what an acceptable effort and result is from our coaches and players.

 

[noeynox]

"We had a chance to tie late.." "You are acting like we got blown out.."

If that's the standard and expectations you can live with for a game against a 2 win Army team on a neutral field where we had several thousands of our own fans make the trip than we just disagree on where UConn football should be at this point.

Where UConn football is, is recovering from the debacle that was P. Four years in a row with no bowl. Not good. Where we think it should be doesn't matter. Its where we were.

 

[itgoeslike]

I was so amped up about the comeback I let my guard down for just a moment and got clocked in the temple by a familiar punch. . .

 

[sub legacy]

I'll go even further than you did. Not by a very very very long shot!

I really shake my head when I read the posts on this board. I really do. To the people who believe that we lost this game because of Chandler Whitmer, you should all go seek help from a medical professional. Seriously. Go seek help.

We are in a position to tie this game with a minute left ONLY because of Chandler Whitmer. I mean, ONLY because of Chandler Whitmer. The first pick shouldn't have been on him. We have coaches who can't seem to get a friggin' play call into the kid so that he has to blow our second timeout. He was yet again our leading rusher by a good 20 yards more than the second leading rusher. And he carried us on his back and practically willed us back to the tie. Then, he throws a pick as he's trying to finalize the miracle, and the boo-birds come out yet again.

I think I'm going to take a break from this board for a while, because I am no longer the craziest person here, and that scares me. The blame for this game lies squarely on the coaching. And I hope they are men enough to admit that in the press conferences...

I don't care what anybody says, that's on Whitmer. If that was a pick off of a batted pass or maybe bad routes, then I could give it a pass. But the play was well-defended and busted, and instead of throwing it away, he does what he usually does and tries to force a play when we're knocking on the door to tie it up. I agree, they were barely in the game in the first place due to bad defense and play calling, but with a chance to tie when we had no business even being in that position in the first place, he's got to be smarter. He has too much "experience" not to know better by now. The kid might display toughness and flashes of talent here and there, but he just simply does not learn from his own mistakes. Ever. I wouldn't even say he got overconfident on that play... he got selfish. He forced the ball to a receiver that wasn't open, and it ended up being the nail in the coffin.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Outside of injury is there any reason now to play whitmer ever again?

It's a sure fire way to get to 2-10?

 

[uconnsouth]

UNACCEPTABLE

 

[UConnDan97]

I don't care what anybody says, that's on Whitmer. If that was a pick off of a batted pass or maybe bad routes, then I could give it a pass. But the play was well-defended and busted, and instead of throwing it away, he does what he usually does and tries to force a play when we're knocking on the door to tie it up. I agree, they were barely in the game in the first place due to bad defense and play calling, but with a chance to tie when we had no business even being in that position in the first place, he's got to be smarter. He has too much "experience" not to know better by now. The kid might display toughness and flashes of talent here and there, but he just simply does not learn from his own mistakes. Ever. I wouldn't even say he got overconfident on that play... he got selfish. He forced the ball to a receiver that wasn't open, and it ended up being the nail in the coffin.

Yeah, you're right...he was "selfish".

Go get your head checked. Seriously. He threw a bad pick. Everyone on the planet knows that. He was trying to make one final play in a string of really good plays that he had made up to that point to even make a comeback possible, much less probable. He did it with precision in the air. He did it with his legs. He damn near knocked down three Army defenders in one play on a run at the 3 yard line. And all of that is wiped out of memory by the Boneyard faithful because the kid tried to make the umpteenth good play in a row and failed.

You all need to go get your heads checked...

 

[Chin Diesel]

Than get competent. And credible.

I can't even believe the incompetence I watched from all involved knowing they would have a lot of our fans and alumni there.

That loss was not talent. It was indifference and mentality.

Eventually Warde will get sick and tired of being sick and tired. Unless he leaves for Michigan first.

 

[Jimdish255]

The coaches clearly blew this game...Our D wasn't fully prepared early on.... and our playing calling on O was filled with a bunch of head scratching moments.... Army did it right... They took what our D gave them... that's why they won.... Us? For once, this season, it seemed that our OL had the advantage and could move Army around when they wanted to, yet, we neglected to take advantage of it... That's not on the offensive players... They run the play that the OC calls...

+1

 

[ktuck911]

Ron Johnson (and DeLo) were guaranteed 5 yards per carry every carry. But we only ran it 16 times all game with running backs.
We can't get play calls into the team on time. Whitmer had to blow our second time out because of it. We failed to run an extra play at the end of the 3rd quarter because of it.
We kept trying to establish the screen pass, even though Army was waiting for it.
We kept trying to hit them with a longball home run, even though we struggled all game with it.
We had a mismatch with McQuillan, and only used it once. (EDIT: 3 catches by McQuillan, but boy it could have been more)
Our defense looked like they had never seen the option, like, ever.
Oh, and of course, the obligatory 1 series for Tim Boyle, so that we fully ensure that Whitmer has zero rhythm.

I could keep going. All of this lands on the coaches. I hope they own it. I hope they learn from it. And I hope they cut this out sooner rather than later...

You guys remember who got the first carry of the game? Jazmar Claxx... And he got like 5 or 6 yards.... Right then and there I knew we had an opportunity to run the football a lot today.. and Whitmer's improvised runs....

 

[Chin Diesel]

I'm not saying we couldn't have been better prepared, clearly we could have. But I do not understand how that is the only thing to take away from this loss. As uh said this was a winnable game. We had a chance to tie late in the game (despite a bad call on the Army fumble) and everyone's acting like we were blown out like that Navy game at home however many years ago that.

PS - I am giving credit to army for improving since the Yale game. Teams do go up and down game to game, sometimes.

And Welcome to the Stockholm/Battered Wife syndrome.

UConn fans are clearly comfortable talking about how UConn was able to compete with a 2-6 Army team that has lost to Wake Forest and Yale so far this year.

Many fans have been beaten down as fans so hard they can't understand the reality the program is facing. Diaco and his staff are clearly over their heads as in game coaches. This is at least the third game this year (USF, Tulane and Army) where UConn's game planning and in-game coaching cost them a game. The personnel are on this team for the record to 5-2 or 4-3.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Yeah, you're right...he was "selfish".

Go get your head checked. Seriously. He threw a bad pick. Everyone on the planet knows that. He was trying to make one final play in a string of really good plays that he had made up to that point to even make a comeback possible, much less probable. He did it with precision in the air. He did it with his legs. He damn near knocked down three Army defenders in one play on a run at the 3 yard line. And all of that is wiped out of memory by the Boneyard faithful because the kid tried to make the umpteenth good play in a row and failed.

You all need to go get your heads checked...

Problem is that it's a play that he has unsuccessfully tried several times previously and had similar results to what happened at the end of this game. He's basically UConn's Tony Romo.

 

[mdkhusky]

first of all our talent is not a 5-2 team, we are young and have no consistent qb and so you will see wins like last week and losses like this week

 

[sub legacy]

Yeah, you're right...he was "selfish".

Go get your head checked. Seriously. He threw a bad pick. Everyone on the planet knows that. He was trying to make one final play in a string of really good plays that he had made up to that point to even make a comeback possible, much less probable. He did it with precision in the air. He did it with his legs. He damn near knocked down three Army defenders in one play on a run at the 3 yard line. And all of that is wiped out of memory by the Boneyard faithful because the kid tried to make the umpteenth good play in a row and failed.

You all need to go get your heads checked...

I get it. Of course even the best quarterbacks throw picks. My point is, that didn't have to be the "final play". They had plenty of time well into the red zone and probably a couple downs left. It wasn't fourth and goal with 0:03 seconds left. He forced a play that wasn't there when all he had to do was throw it away and live to play another down. I respectfully disagree, but he made a completely avoidable decision that contributed to the same problems rather than being part of the solution.

 

[sub legacy]

Problem is that it's a play that he has unsuccessfully tried several times previously and had similar results to what happened at the end of this game. He's basically UConn's Tony Romo.

You read my mind with the Tony Romo remark. I try to avoid making that comparison, but he really does give you every reason to.

 

[ktuck911]

You read my mind with the Tony Romo remark. I try to avoid making that comparison, but he really does give you every reason to.

Hey hey... Leave Tony out of this... He's 6-2 as a starter so far this year....

 

[junglehusky]

And Welcome to the Stockholm/Battered Wife syndrome.

UConn fans are clearly comfortable talking about how UConn was able to compete with a 2-6 Army team that has lost to Wake Forest and Yale so far this year.

Many fans have been beaten down as fans so hard they can't understand the reality the program is facing. Diaco and his staff are clearly over their heads as in game coaches. This is at least the third game this year (USF, Tulane and Army) where UConn's game planning and in-game coaching cost them a game. The personnel are on this team for the record to 5-2 or 4-3.

That may be the case, I don't know. But at most programs this side of Alabama, coaches have a couple years to demonstrate they can improve their coaching and play calling.

Also please note that I never said that losing to army or whoever is anything other than unacceptable. I'm only trying to draw distinctions between "loss in year one that makes the fan base sad" versus "loss that actually gets a coach fired", which admittedly is maybe a little too subtle for the boneyard.

 

[UConnDan97]

I get it. Of course even the best quarterbacks throw picks. My point is, that didn't have to be the "final play". They had plenty of time well into the red zone and probably a couple downs left. It wasn't fourth and goal with 0:03 seconds left. He forced a play that wasn't there when all he had to do was throw it away and live to play another down. I respectfully disagree, but he made a completely avoidable decision that contributed to the same problems rather than being part of the solution.

All Chandler Whitmer did in the 4th quarter (when he wasn't taken out for Boyle or the Foxx option) was the following:

He ran for 42 yards and threw for 116 yards and 2 TDs, including a laser strike to McQuillan on a friggin' 4th and 6.

You understand now? He almost ran for as many yards as our leading RB on his own in the 4th quarter alone, and he saved us on a 4th and 6 with a beautiful pass to McQuillan. With a lot of QB's, we aren't even having this discussion, because the game would have stayed out of reach. That's why I'm telling everyone to get their heads checked. Especially if they truly believe that Boyle was going to give us more than that...

 

[sub legacy]

That may be the case, I don't know. But at most programs this side of Alabama, coaches have a couple years to demonstrate they can improve their coaching and play calling.

Also please note that I never said that losing to army or whoever is anything other than unacceptable. I'm only trying to draw distinctions between "loss in year one that makes the fan base sad" versus "loss that actually gets a coach fired", which admittedly is maybe a little too subtle for the boneyard.

He's got at least another year before he can start seriously worrying about his job. One job-saving move might be benching Whitmer sooner rather than never.

 

[jdb50]

All Chandler Whitmer did in the 4th quarter (when he wasn't taken out for Boyle or the Foxx option) was the following:

He ran for 42 yards and threw for 116 yards and 2 TDs, including a laser strike to McQuillan on a friggin' 4th and 6.

You understand now? He almost ran for as many yards as our leading RB on his own in the 4th quarter alone, and he saved us on a 4th and 6 with a beautiful pass to McQuillan. With a lot of QB's, we aren't even having this discussion, because the game would have stayed out of reach. That's why I'm telling everyone to get their heads checked. Especially if they truly believe that Boyle was going to give us more than that...

What concerns me Dan is with all the football CW has played and coming out of a recent timeout, no one has told him to throw it away if it is not there? CW doesn't have this running in his own mind? The pattern has to be broken. The coaches had a terrible game but that pick 6 at this level of football with a veteran QB was unforgivable. It is time to play Boyle and Foxx only at QB.

 

[UConnDan97]

What concerns me Dan is with all the football CW has played and coming out of a recent timeout, no one has told him to throw it away if it is not there? CW doesn't have this running in his own mind? The pattern has to be broken. The coaches had a terrible game but that pick 6 at this level of football with a veteran QB was unforgivable. It is time to play Boyle and Foxx only at QB.

If after reading my post about what Whitmer did in the 4th quarter alone to give us a fighting chance has not changed your mind about whether or not his INT was "forgivable", then I don't know what else to say. You're all crazy, and I think I'll take that time out now...

 

[sub legacy]

If after reading my post about what Whitmer did in the 4th quarter alone to give us a fighting chance has not changed your mind about whether or not his INT was "forgivable", then I don't know what else to say. You're all crazy, and I think I'll take that time out now...

Problem is Whitmer has made game-ending decisions like that far too often over the years. All he had to do was throw it away and play another down if nothing was there. Instead, he got desperate and forced a play for no reason, which wiped out everything else he did right on that drive. I would give the special teams more credit for keeping us alive with the onside kick than him.

 

[ZOOCONN]

not surprised screaming to throw it out of the end zone

I was literally doing the exact same thing, out the back of the endzone! Just ended up staring at my tv with my hands on my head in disbelief.