Alabama Begging for 2015 Opponent | Page 4 | The Boneyard

Alabama Begging for 2015 Opponent

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Jax Husky said:
Lol at all in here thinking Bama wants to find a decent opponent. They will fill this spot with Middle Tennessee State. UConn does not need to play Bama any time next year. This team should challenge themselves, but not in front of 100,000 in Tuscaloosa.
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I don't know anyone worth a salt of competive spirit that doesn't want to go toe to toe with the best, on the biggest stages there is, for whatever it is they are competing in. I disagree with this whole heartedly. If we've got a team of saps that would back down from the challenge - nothing would piss me off more. Even with our transition players from 1-AA to 1-A, which I wrote about before going to the Orange Bowl to face Miami - they didn't back down from the fight. They got destroyed by a superior team, but they fought. Last season we went to UCF, and the players laid down and died, and did it laughing and with smiles on their faces. It was sickening.

This attitude just pisses me off, they need to challenge themselves. No Sherlock, that's a given. Ugg. Now I'm all pissed off again.

My goal for this season - is simple - to see UCONN football played by UCONN football players again. Start to finish. Win or lose.
 
Love the passion Carl, just don't agree with the folks here that would be all for a money game at Bama. If we are operating on the principle that a home and home could be scheduled, then things change for me. I do think either way, that Bama is about 90 spots better than UConn in the rankings right now. PP has absolutely devestated our recruiting and development to the point where we now have a bunch of 1AA players in the program again.
 
Jax Husky said:
Love the passion Carl, just don't agree with the folks here that would be all for a money game at Bama. If we are operating on the principle that a home and home could be scheduled, then things change for me. I do think either way, that Bama is about 90 spots better than UConn in the rankings right now. PP has absolutely devestated our recruiting and development to the point where we now have a bunch of 1AA players in the program again.
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That's a !t mindset and just a bit over dramatic on the level of talent on the roster right now.
 
Jimmy Serrano said:
Diaco's defense was shredded by Bama because ND was simply out manned and out classed. Everyone that had any knowledge of college football knew that game was going to be ugly. They got their pants pulled down. There's no shame in that. Diaco couldn't rouse that locker room to get motivated for a NC game yet he's work his magic with a UConn team in Tuscaloosa? Hey I hope you're right.
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In Diaco's defense (no pun intended), ND's offense didn't exactly help them out either. I was one of the people that knew ND was going to get destroyed because they were only in that position because everyone ahead of them lost. I just think that now that Diaco has control of the entire team not just defense, the game can be a lot less ugly. At least that's the hope, but I'm also a realist and know that a blow out is probably in future if this game were to happen unless UConn can pull of a Utah defeat of epic porportions or go to the hurry up spread (Satan can't figure those out yet).
 
If we pull off the upset we get into a P5. Schedule the damn game
 
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Jimmy Serrano said:
That's a !t mindset and just a bit over dramatic on the level of talent on the roster right now.
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Totally agree. PP did a lot of things wrong, but he did have a eye for talent. The only downside was he was always looking for "prototypical" players instead of players to fit the system. All in all, I think PP did a decent job recruiting.
 
UConnDan97 said:
I don't know if it's been mentioned, but according to this (as of last night), Alabama is in discussions with Southern Miss to fill the vacancy:

http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsport...015-schedule-hole-right-now-wed-take-anybody/

The update is on the bottom of the article...
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If this is legitimate our athletic department should seriously consider offering to visit Tuscaloosa as a one-off at the same price that USM would ask, maybe even throw in a home and home basketball deal to sweeten the pot.
 
Jax Husky said:
Love the passion Carl, just don't agree with the folks here that would be all for a money game at Bama. If we are operating on the principle that a home and home could be scheduled, then things change for me. I do think either way, that Bama is about 90 spots better than UConn in the rankings right now. PP has absolutely devestated our recruiting and development to the point where we now have a bunch of 1AA players in the program again.
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You're not helping my anger level.

The chances of this thing ever getting scheduled are/were slim, but if Warde didn't at least make a call - I would wonder why. I would guarantee the answer why, wouldn't be what you say.

FWIW: This roster of "1-AA" players - your label, not mine - were up by 2 TD's on a top 25 ranked Michigan team last season, until their level of individual and team discipline and focus and character showed up late in the game, and they crumbled. These players have the ability to compete, that's what was so damn sickening about last season. Our players that did not have the ability to compete with that kind of program played with more heart, discipline, and determination and fight than they played last season.

Keep that in mind, the next time you think this way - backing down from a top level opponent - chicken . THe only thing that held this program together last season in hindsight, was that somewhere, deep down, those players last season coming through from 2011-2012, still had an ounce of pride somewhere that they were only holding out for - to compete with Michigan. After that, they caved. Completely and entirely.

Throw blame around all want as to who and why. It's all piss in the wind anyway. It's over. It should be at least. When a football team fails everyone is responsible. When a football team succeeds everyone is responsible. When change in leadership at the top level is necessary, it needs to be made, and it was. Leadership exists below the top level though. Harder to get rid of an entire roster of players.

If any bit of the attitude that pervaded this program last season is carried over, especially when adversity hits, or even more difficult - SUCCESS - and hit it will, we will have great difficulty at having a successful season.

I'm looking forward to finding out what kind of shape and attitude and preparation this team is going to show up with next week.

I got to check the forecast, get out sailing. Pissed off.
 
DoctorWho85 said:
Totally agree. PP did a lot of things wrong, but he did have a eye for talent. The only downside was he was always looking for "prototypical" players instead of players to fit the system. All in all, I think PP did a decent job recruiting.
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If he brought in talent, they are apparently still in their RS Freshman form. That was my point. We may have talent, but they are currently small, weak, and slow. Our OLine (right now) would not even make it out alive.
 
Jax Husky said:
If he brought in talent, they are apparently still in their RS Freshman form. That was my point. We may have talent, but they are currently small, weak, and slow. Our OLine (right now) would not even make it out alive.
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There's a huge difference between a true/red shirt freshman and a 1AA player. I would go as far as to say a lot of freshman in a 1A school are about the same as a 5th year senior in a 1AA school. Referencing the Oline it a moot point. The Oline has been terrible for 3 years and literally cannot get any worse than it was last year. GDL ruined the group mentally and PP let them get lazy. Maybe a bunch a fresh faces on the line is exactly what this team needs right now.

Edit: I'm not saying we're up to speed yet. I don't know. All I know is what Diaco is telling us. It seems to me that Diaco is at least correcting the S&C mistakes of the past. We may not have the size of other teams, but at least it seems we'll actually be better conditioned for games.
 
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S Miss doesn't exactly open up another recruiting area, but whatever. This was never going to happen anyway.
 
Jimdish255 said:
S Miss doesn't exactly open up another recruiting area, but whatever. This was never going to happen anyway.
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If Alabama is really that desperate then I would at least hope that WM gave Battle a call. I know it was a long shot, but I would like to hear that there was an attempt to schedule Bama.
 
If Alabama called Warde today and said come down and play us at Bryant-Denny and we will give you nothing, I hope he says "YES!" before the question can get out. UCONN should be going after these types of games and opponents, not FCS (or lower) schools from the northeast. Would UCONN lose the game? Most definitely. But maybe just maybe UCONN fans would travel well (just like the ND and Michigan games) and the team can put up a fight for some of the game. That's how you turn around the negative perception of UCONN football...not by scheduling Holy Cross types and calling it a great day for New England rivalries.
 
Dooley said:
If Alabama called Warde today and said come down and play us at Bryant-Denny and we will give you nothing, I hope he says "YES!" before the question can get out. UCONN should be going after these types of games and opponents, not FCS (or lower) schools from the northeast. Would UCONN lose the game? Most definitely. But maybe just maybe UCONN fans would travel well (just like the ND and Michigan games) and the team can put up a fight for some of the game. That's how you turn around the negative perception of UCONN football...not by scheduling Holy Cross types and calling it a great day for New England rivalries.
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We would need expenses and payment for the lost home game, which compared to what Bama makes for home game, it's not much. There is still a business component to scheduling.
 
I would also like at least a phone call.

Be that as it may, unless a contract is signed, we will probably never know. It's not my worse fear, necessarily (but it is quickly gaining steam), but if Alabama announces a game for 9/15/15 vs. Arkansas-Little Rock, I hope the anti-Manuel crowd suppress their rage long enough to consider that a call may have been made and went unanswered or that other programs got the jump on UConn.

Manuel does not negotiate through the media. He's developed that MO throughout the time he's been at UConn. I hope others will give him the benefit of the doubt in this case as well if it doesn't work out to many fans' wishes.
 
Husky25 said:
I would also like at least a phone call.

Be that as it may, unless a contract is signed, we will probably never know. It's not my worse fear, necessarily (but it is quickly gaining steam), but if Alabama announces a game for 9/15/15 vs. Arkansas-Little Rock, I hope the anti-Manuel crowd suppress their rage long enough to consider that a call may have been made and went unanswered or that other programs got the jump on UConn.

Manuel does not negotiate through the media. He's developed that MO throughout the time he's been at UConn. I hope others will give him the benefit of the doubt in this case as well if it doesn't work out to many fans' wishes.
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Yes - when all is said and done, I just hope there's a "I made the call. I tried" and then we all move on.
 
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John said:
Yes - when all is said and done, I just hope there's a "I made the call. I tried" and then we all move on.
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There won't be. No one uses the media like that. When was the last time you read a press release in this industry that announced a negative of this kind?

What would the opening line even be?

"Ladies and Gentlemen, thanks for coming. I'd like to announce that the University of Connecticut football program will not be playing Alabama in the 2015-16 football season, but in a win-win for the two athletic programs, they will not be getting their a$5 kicked in Gampel on February 4, 2016 either. Go Blue."

Somehow I can't see that happening. Maybe it's just me.
 
Dooley said:
If Alabama called Warde today and said come down and play us at Bryant-Denny and we will give you nothing, I hope he says "YES!" before the question can get out. UCONN should be going after these types of games and opponents, not FCS (or lower) schools from the northeast. Would UCONN lose the game? Most definitely. But maybe just maybe UCONN fans would travel well (just like the ND and Michigan games) and the team can put up a fight for some of the game. That's how you turn around the negative perception of UCONN football...not by scheduling Holy Cross types and calling it a great day for New England rivalries.
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Troy often puts up a good fight against SEC schools but no one is ever going to invite them to the SEC. We need a balanced schedule that enables the team to win, stay healthy through the season, go to bowls and represent well against the P5. All are important goals, not just being a plucky, sacrificial lamb for as many P5 money games as we can get. We also need home games (some expected wins and some competitive) to continue building the fan base. If we have a schedule with at least 6 home games that includes an OOC slate with one FCS (obviously at home), one MAC/Sunbelt level, one competitive P5 and one reach P5 (probably on the road or neutral) that should provide a reasonable chance to show the program OOC and, hopefully, prepare the team for success in conference.

Warde could probably schedule 4 P5 games per year in short order if he wanted. Of course, those games would be more on the road than home because we don't have any leverage (i.e. seasons generally of 5 and, perhaps, 6 home games only if the P5's are at the lower end of the spectrum) and would leave the team probably pretty beat up if we schedule up too far going into the conference slate. Even most true power programs schedule at most one other power for a TV game, one relatively likely win against a competitive school and a couple they should almost never lose so they can be prepared but in good shape going into the conference - both physically and in the national standings.
 
Husky25 said:
There won't be. No one uses the media like that. When was the last time you read a press release in this industry that announced a negative of this kind?

What would the opening line even be?

"Ladies and Gentlemen, thanks for coming. I'd like to announce that the University of Connecticut football program will not be playing Alabama in the 2015-16 football season, but in a win-win for the two athletic programs, they will not be getting their a$5 kicked in Gampel on February 4, 2016 either. Go Blue."

Somehow I can't see that happening. Maybe it's just me.
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Didn't we do that with the Notre Dame at Fenway game that went to BC?
 
kibblesnbits said:
Troy often puts up a good fight against SEC schools but no one is ever going to invite them to the SEC. We need a balanced schedule that enables the team to win, stay healthy through the season, go to bowls and represent well against the P5. All are important goals, not just being a plucky, sacrificial lamb for as many P5 money games as we can get. We also need home games (some expected wins and some competitive) to continue building the fan base. If we have a schedule with at least 6 home games that includes an OOC slate with one FCS (obviously at home), one MAC/Sunbelt level, one competitive P5 and one reach P5 (probably on the road or neutral) that should provide a reasonable chance to show the program OOC and, hopefully, prepare the team for success in conference.

Warde could probably schedule 4 P5 games per year in short order if he wanted. Of course, those games would be more on the road than home because we don't have any leverage (i.e. seasons generally of 5 and, perhaps, 6 home games only if the P5's are at the lower end of the spectrum) and would leave the team probably pretty beat up if we schedule up too far going into the conference slate. Even most true power programs schedule at most one other power for a TV game, one relatively likely win against a competitive school and a couple they should almost never lose so they can be prepared but in good shape going into the conference - both physically and in the national standings.
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Doesn't have to be a formal announcement, I'm just thinking a little casual aside during a conversation with the press. I'm not talking a press conference here.
 
1husky said:
Didn't we do that with the Notre Dame at Fenway game that went to BC?
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If UConn did this, you can prove it by finding a press release from the school, far easier than I can prove a negative. In all the articles I read at that time, nowhere is Manuel quoted.
 
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Husky25 said:
If UConn did this, you can prove it by finding a press release from the school, far easier than I can prove a negative. In all the articles I read at that time, nowhere is Manuel quoted.
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So we didn't float a story to the press about how we were trying to get a game with Notre Dame at Fenway which Notre Dame denied and then several months later announced they were playing against BC? Normally, I would agree with you and say no one uses the media to announce that hey "I made the call I tried" and then we all move on, but in this case I'm pretty sure that's exactly what we did.
 
1husky said:
So we didn't float a story to the press about how we were trying to get a game with Notre Dame at Fenway which Notre Dame denied and then several months later announced they were playing against BC? Normally, I would agree with you and say no one uses the media to announce that hey "I made the call I tried" and then we all move on, but in this case I'm pretty sure that's exactly what we did.
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Not in any article I pulled up, which are not hard to find...neither is the Boneyard thread, which while it took on a life of its own, is not an official UConn source.

Here's the original Boston Globe Article

It says the Red Sox Brass were trying to organize it for 2014 and Connecticut fits the mold being only 85 miles away. The ND at Fenway idea was not originally floated by UConn.

Subsequent articles have Swarbrick throwing cold water on the idea (with UConn) and quote Former "Head Coach" Pasqualoni as saying that Warde Manuel is working hard on the OOC schedule, but really made no indication that he knew what the heck Manuel was doing. Besides, I would, will, and had at that point begun taking whatever Former "Head Coach" Pasqualoni had to say with a grain of salt regardless.
 
John Greene said:
As much as I would love to see the Huskies running out on the field at Bryant/Denny, I can't see it happening. Bama fans I know (which is a lot) have complained about the OOC home schedule for several years and, despite our BB prowess, would see a UConn FB game as a step below any of the TX or FL AAC teams. Heck most would rather play Tulane where there at least some ancient history and could therefore justify the game.
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I guess this puts Holy Cross off their radar also.....:) Just say'n...
 
cu73etr said:
Lets go to Bama. At this point it doesn't matter to have a home and home. Any national exposure would be great! You never know, upsets really help put teams on the map and the "play any one at any time" mindset doesn't hurt either when conferences are looking for a new football team!
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You are so right. Getting your ass kicked-- 40 to 3, might not be something easily forgotten "when conf. are looking ....." I'm sure thar Warde and Diaco are smart enough to follow and stick with a less reckless plan. "Any national exposure ...." Wow! The air down here isn't that bad- really, come down.
 
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