Bob Diaco continues work rebuilding UConn, Huskies ranked No. 120 (Orlando Sentinel)

[kemba]

It means that an absolutely awful team was way better than what Diaco put out there with essentially the same guys.

One game better.

Not essentially the same guys.

 

[freescooter]

Nope. Not at all. Has nothing to do with Warde. But what did he show you last year that makes you confident that he's got what it takes to bring the program back to respectability never mind competing for championships? We had a team that didn't show up during the final weeks of the season. Basically quit. Compare that with Weists final 4 games. If ever a team should have quit it was that group. And I was not a Weist guy. They had been ru. Out of the building by Buffalo one of those joke teams. Where 0-9 and down 3 scores on the road. But managed to battle back over the final 3 games under an interim coach. Under Diaco in a marginally better situation, 2-6 they basically folded their tents and went home. You can make all kinds of excuses if you want but to me the way that team quit leads me to be very skeptical of Diacos leadership. He needs to show me a lot more than another 2-10 and blame the former regime before I'm sold that he isn't just some slick talking Harold Hill clone.

 

[J187Money]

Agreed. TJ showed more than Diaco so far. Diaco has done nothing yet that translates to on the field results. I'm just going to wait until I bury him. He inherited a mess.

 

[Stainmaster]

Nope. Not at all. Has nothing to do with Warde. But what did he show you last year that makes you confident that he's got what it takes to bring the program back to respectability never mind competing for championships? We had a team that didn't show up during the final weeks of the season. Basically quit. Compare that with Weists final 4 games. If ever a team should have quit it was that group. And I was not a Weist guy. They had been ru. Out of the building by Buffalo one of those joke teams. Where 0-9 and down 3 scores on the road. But managed to battle back over the final 3 games under an interim coach. Under Diaco in a marginally better situation, 2-6 they basically folded their tents and went home. You can make all kinds of excuses if you want but to me the way that team quit leads me to be very skeptical of Diacos leadership. He needs to show me a lot more than another 2-10 and blame the former regime before I'm sold that he isn't just some slick talking Harold Hill clone.

This is where I differ. All you're doing is projecting your own skepticism onto the players. If his lack of leadership was that bad, we'd have a much bigger exodus of transfers than just Jefferson Ashiru. I'm not in the locker room and I have no inside information, but I have a hunch that Diaco is a lot more highly regarded by the players than by the fanbase.

 

[BNich]

This is where I differ. All you're doing is projecting your own skepticism onto the players. If his lack of leadership was that bad, we'd have a much bigger exodus of transfers than just Jefferson Ashiru. I'm not in the locker room and I have no inside information, but I have a hunch that Diaco is a lot more highly regarded by the players than by the fanbase.

I get a lot of flack on here from some for following recruits and players on twitter. Many of their comments, should shed some light on how they feel about the staff and the direction of the program. I see/read a lot of positivity and positive vibes from not only current players, but past players and recruits. In my mind the future is surely bright. I think he is rallying the troops and we will see a different team this season.

 

[tjhusky]

So the 3-9 huskies would beat the 2-10 huskies.

Big deal.

Its not about being the best 2 or 3 win team. Its about winning championships. That's what Bob D is focused on.

... And who was the QB that won 3 games in 2013????

So if you remove CC from 2013 we win 0 that year.
Removed CC from 2014 we win 2.
Simple math, we were better in 2014 than in 2103. Not good, just better.

 

[Carl Spackler]

To further confirm that indeed we were that bad


Here is a qb rating from espn. Many think its the most important position on the field. There are 129 entries.
http://espn.go.com/ncf/qbr

Oh. Don't need to tell me that. Thought you might have meant something else.

 

[freescooter]

... And who was the QB that won 3 games in 2013????

So if you remove CC from 2013 we win 0 that year.
Removed CC from 2014 we win 2.
Simple math, we were better in 2014 than in 2103. Not good, just better.

Agreed that Cochran made a difference but here's the thing...Diaco couldn't decide between Cochran and the other 2. Don't give me the 1 play from injury stuff. Every player is 1 play from ending his career. If that's your mindset as I said before skip football and check to see if the local elementary school needs a hopscotch coach.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

Agreed that Cochran made a difference but here's the thing...Diaco couldn't decide between Cochran and the other 2. Don't give me the 1 play from injury stuff. Every player is 1 play from ending his career. If that's your mindset as I said before skip football and check to see if the local elementary school needs a hopscotch coach.

Scoot,

None of us were viewing the practices in the spring and summer of 2014. I believe that it is pretty safe to say that BD had a better understanding of Casey's concussion issues than any of us did prior to the announcement of his retirement. I also believe that it is pretty safe to believe that Boyle was fighting through some nagging injuries the entirety of last season.

With the offensive line in the condition it was in last season, it may have been safer to have our QB's cliff diving than taking live snaps during games. It is very plausible that Diaco knew even with the limitations Whitmer had as a QB, losing him would have set us back years so what our head coach viewed as the best situation was convincing CW that even if he did not earn the starter's role, there would be sufficient playing time for him to make sticking around for the season worthwhile.

 

[SubbaBub]

You guys are clueless on this one.

Message board posting expectations mean nothing. You and Subba can say that UConn should beat up on Villanova until you are blue in the face. It won't make it true.

Were you two in a coma the last month of last year?

Maybe in fantasy lands teams go from being terrible to really good with no transition - but here on Earth you don't just flip a switch and boom you are good.

A coma would have helped. No, my belief is partly out of necessity as only an idiot would buy into a season that bad knowingly. And it wasn't just the record.

The other part is the idea that these are kids and kids can improve quickly. I think it was a few details keeping the team from having more success. Details that had more to do with coaching, learning assignments and executing that it did with athletic talent.

If we get better at not whiffing on blocks, stop fumbling the ball, stop losing contain outside and getting better leverage on drive blocking, then the team will look a whole lot better. Enough to bear Nova, Army and the other poor teams on the schedule.

Only the outside speed at LB has me concerned from a talent standpoint. And the general QB play, of course.

Hopefully optimistic that I'm right on this.

 

[Stinger92860]

That game was an anomaly. Horrible weather, Christmas shopping season, and a game that "featured" 2-9 vs. 0-11.

Friends and relatives attended.

Yet SMU found it in themselves to play to win on the road.

 

[Stinger92860]

Scoot,

None of us were viewing the practices in the spring and summer of 2014. I believe that it is pretty safe to say that BD had a better understanding of Casey's concussion issues than any of us did prior to the announcement of his retirement. I also believe that it is pretty safe to believe that Boyle was fighting through some nagging injuries the entirety of last season.

With the offensive line in the condition it was in last season, it may have been safer to have our QB's cliff diving than taking live snaps during games. It is very plausible that Diaco knew even with the limitations Whitmer had as a QB, losing him would have set us back years so what our head coach viewed as the best situation was convincing CW that even if he did not earn the starter's role, there would be sufficient playing time for him to make sticking around for the season worthwhile.

When you look back on it, Diaco "recruiting" Chandler was important.

 

[sdhusky]

Yet SMU found it in themselves to play to win on the road.

We crushed Memphis on the last day of the season the year before. Something like 45-7. They had only won 2 or 3 games. It looked like Memphis quit.

How did that turn out?

 

[whaler11]

A coma would have helped. No, my belief is partly out of necessity as only an idiot would buy into a season that bad knowingly. And it wasn't just the record.

The other part is the idea that these are kids and kids can improve quickly. I think it was a few details keeping the team from having more success. Details that had more to do with coaching, learning assignments and executing that it did with athletic talent.

If we get better at not whiffing on blocks, stop fumbling the ball, stop losing contain outside and getting better leverage on drive blocking, then the team will look a whole lot better. Enough to bear Nova, Army and the other poor teams on the schedule.

Only the outside speed at LB has me concerned from a talent standpoint. And the general QB play, of course.

Hopefully optimistic that I'm right on this.

So you are only a fan if the team is good? Ok, if you have to pretend they aren't bad to justify paying attention I guess that makes sense.

I will warn you if BS gets hurt they could be worse than last year record wise...

 

[tjhusky]

So you are only a fan if the team is good? Ok, if you have to pretend they aren't bad to justify paying attention I guess that makes sense.

I will warn you if BS gets hurt they could be worse than last year record wise...

Last year we started with 3 QBs and after losing CC we had two QB's to choose from and TB was injured.
This year, at least starting out BS, GA (juco I like on film but we can agree on unknown), healthier TB, decent frosh TD.
We have more depth and hopefully (we will have to wait and see) a step up across the board compared last year.

Plus we are all waiting to see what the 2015 OL does in real games. A year older, a full season of experience, coaching and strength. They should be a plus factor for any of the QB's.

 

[whaler11]

Last year we started with 3 QBs and after losing CC we had two QB's to choose from and TB was injured.
This year, at least starting out BS, GA (juco I like on film but we can agree on unknown), healthier TB, decent frosh TD.
We have more depth and hopefully (we will have to wait and see) a step up across the board compared last year.

Plus we are all waiting to see what the 2015 OL does in real games. A year older, a full season of experience, coaching and strength. They should be a plus factor for any of the QB's.

Doesn't change the fact that if BS gets hurt they might be worse.

Backup at a JUCO, player who has been awful, and. true freshman. No guarantee they are better than Whitmer.

 

[freescooter]

I've been following UConn football since long before D1 days. So I really hope I'm missing something but I didn't see anything after the introductory pressed that led me to think Diaco had a clue last year. He seems like a very likable guy who is way way out of his depth as a head coach. I am seriously concerned that if we don't see real progress this year we may become one of those joke programs that cause people to say, "well we play UConn so that's at least one win." We've gone 4 years without a winning season. Were staring at 5. That is a long long time in college football. we might already be one of those programs. And as I said I didn't see anything from last years performance that makes me confident this coach has a clue. We saw odd personnel decisions. How many times do you leave your best receiver on the bench on 3rd and long? We saw disorganization on the sidelines and dreadful clock management. Strange decisions in play calling. Bizzare press conferences like UCF and the pre season stuff. All very worrisome because if Diaco is not the guy we may be pushing a decade of futility and the worse it gets the harder it gets to restore the program.

 

[Stinger92860]

We crushed Memphis on the last day of the season the year before. Something like 45-7. They had only won 2 or 3 games. It looked like Memphis quit.

How did that turn out?

I hope history repeats.

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

Doesn't change the fact that if BS gets hurt they might be worse.

Backup at a JUCO, player who has been awful, and. true freshman. No guarantee they are better than Whitmer.

There is no guarantee that BS will be better than Whitmer.

 

[whaler11]

There is no guarantee that BS will be better than Whitmer.

True but seems to be a pretty high chance.

 

[Confident Carl]

I've been following UConn football since long before D1 days. So I really hope I'm missing something but I didn't see anything after the introductory pressed that led me to think Diaco had a clue last year. He seems like a very likable guy who is way way out of his depth as a head coach. I am seriously concerned that if we don't see real progress this year we may become one of those joke programs that cause people to say, "well we play UConn so that's at least one win." We've gone 4 years without a winning season. Were staring at 5. That is a long long time in college football. we might already be one of those programs. And as I said I didn't see anything from last years performance that makes me confident this coach has a clue. We saw odd personnel decisions. How many times do you leave your best receiver on the bench on 3rd and long? We saw disorganization on the sidelines and dreadful clock management. Strange decisions in play calling. Bizzare press conferences like UCF and the pre season stuff. All very worrisome because if Diaco is not the guy we may be pushing a decade of futility and the worse it gets the harder it gets to restore the program.

Players know:

http://the-boneyard.com/blog/senior...-of-uconn-im-jealous-im-not-a-freshman-audio/

http://www.courant.com/sports/footb...-super-bowl-notebook-0129-20150128-story.html

I might be missing something but I don't see anything in your post that leads me
to think you have a clue about the future of UCONN football under Bob Diaco.

If you listen to the players (the horses) they will give you clues!

 

[Husky25]

Yeah it is a big deal. It means that an absolutely awful team was way better than what Diaco put out there with essentially the same guys. In order to play for championships you have to put your best guys on the field and put them in the best position to win. He did none of that last year. And I don't buy the first yeR head coach excuse. That is all it is--an excuse. James Franklin took an awful program and made it competitive his first year out of the box. I saw Vandy and I know how woeful they were. Diaco better show something and do so quickly. Nobody will convince me that we lacked the talent to beat the living les of Army USF orSMU. Jeez! If so maybe we should go back to the Yankee conference and put hoops in the Big East

The irony (may not be so much ironic as a loosely tied coincidence) is that UConn was one of Vandy's six wins that got them bowl eligible in 2011 for the privilege to play Cincinnati, who beat UConn in the last weekend to prevent UConn's own bowl eligibility. The fact remains that Vandy's roster in 2011 was not as depleted as UConn's was last year.

Defections and injuries forced UConn to play with the equivalent of an FCS roster for much of the year. Talent is the combination of natural ability and preparation. Was there talent on the team? There were pockets, so the cupboard with technically not bare, but there was not enough talent and/or experience at important positions to overcome the lack of manpower. The shortfall is no where near as pronounced this year.

 

[Duncan Idaho]

The irony (may not be so much ironic as a loosely tied coincidence) is that UConn was one of Vandy's six wins that got them bowl eligible in 2011 for the privilege to play Cincinnati, who beat UConn in the last weekend to prevent UConn's own bowl eligibility. The fact remains that Vandy's roster in 2011 was not as depleted as UConn's was last year.

Defections and injuries forced UConn to play with the equivalent of an FCS roster for much of the year. Talent is the combination of natural ability and preparation. Was there talent on the team? There were pockets, so the cupboard with technically not bare, but there was not enough talent and/or experience at important positions to overcome the lack of manpower. The shortfall is no where near as pronounced this year.

A Line anchored by two OT that are foreign born and didn't pick up the game until relatively late
Starting a backup qb that was prone to turnovers.
Letting go a starting rb and Williams who is now headed to Utah
Lost a starting wr to transfer
Lost your probable starting TE to God knows where who was the only decent blocker with size on the
roster.

 

[tjhusky]

Obvious there are two camps on this board glass 1/2 full vs there is no glass.

 

[whaler11]

Obvious there are two camps on this board glass 1/2 full vs there is no glass.

Conf Carl isn't a camp?