American Athletic Coaches Talk Anonymously About Conference Foes for 2019

[Husky68]

Ugh the one thing I try to forget is the coordinators. It’s more depressing than the recruiting.

An offensive line coach who got the coordinator job by default with almost no skill position talent.

Whatever the defense gains the offense is going to give back. They are so thin at QB/RB/TE that everyone is going to be in non-contact jerseys at practice.

Hard for offense to give back all the points an improved defense "should/could" save. 2019 defense gave up 50.4 pts per game as #129 and worse defense in FBS; if improved to just 120th would have given up 37.3 pts. The offense scored 22.2 pts per game and was 111th and if dropped to 121st would only drop to 19.8 pts per game.

Even the worst offense in FBS scored 13.5 pts per game (Rutgers).

So, with weak 2019 schedule (only one team rated by Massey as better then pre season #60) and such a bad defense against scoring last year and an almost equally bad scoring offense (ranking wise) looks like hard to give back any reasonable gains on better scoring defense in 2019 by the offense unless the offense does a Rutgers.

Just to show my bonafides, last year at this time I had UConn challenging for a bowl berth!

 

[whaler11]

This is bordering on new signature territory. You're either 1000% wrong or nostradamus. Leaning towards earlier, but let's see...

Never mind that GIT isn't triple-option anymore. And that Rose was a much better-regarded TE. The QB statement is insane on its face, but this is just your usual hyperbole, so I'll ignore it.

It's mid-August, and Whaler is on the negative train - season must be upon us!

it’s a bit of hyperbole but Davis would easily be the best TE on the roster and no kidding Georgia Tech changed their offense.

I’ll try to be more positive about a bad roster, inexperienced coaches hired by default because they don’t pay anyone and over a half decade of FCS recruiting.

That’s the winning formula! How could anyone be negative about that! Certainly Nostical has nailed everything - we should all be more like him.

Bucket hat closed fist brotherhood *fart noises*

 

[Drew]

This is bordering on new signature territory. You're either 1000% wrong or nostradamus. Leaning towards earlier, but let's see...

Never mind that GIT isn't triple-option anymore. And that Rose was a much better-regarded TE. The QB statement is insane on its face, but this is just your usual hyperbole, so I'll ignore it.

It's mid-August, and Whaler is on the negative train - season must be upon us!

Rose may have been a better HS TE prospect but nobody cares about that now.

Tyler Davis caught 22 balls for ~250 yards and 6 TD’s last year. Jay Rose caught 1 (!) ball last year for 17 yards. Not to mention Davis’ athleticism is infinitely better than Rose’s. There’s a reason TD had the opportunity to transfer to a school like GT and Rose is behind a former QB....

It’s ironic given how many TE/DE body types Diaco recruited his best one moved from QB to play TE.

Speaking of QB play- including Tyler Davis that was 3 (!) former QB recruits that UConn has turned into TE’s that were on the roster last year. If you want to know where a lot of our offensive problems stem from personnel wise, that’s a good place to start.

 

[CL82]

How in the world can you use 2020 wins a proxy for improvement? They don’t have a schedule.

Because wins is better than win?

Seriously, at this point I'll take any FBS wins where ever we can find them. Baby steps.

I'm hoping for 3 wins this year (which in and of itself is pretty depressing) but I fully agree that we have very little idea what we have for offense. There are some hints from REv2 that he's not unhappy, but that really all we have to go on at this point.

 

[whaler11]

Because wins is better than win?

Seriously, at this point I'll take any FBS wins where ever we can find them. Baby steps.

I'm hoping for 3 wins this year (which in and of itself is pretty depressing) but I fully agree that we have very little idea what we have for offense. There are some hints from REv2 that he's not unhappy, but that really all we have to go on at this point.

so if they beat 5 fcs teams because they can’t put together a 2020 schedule they are improved.

i’m going to wait and see what they actually do before assigning targets against a schedule that doesnt exist

 

[CL82]

so if they beat 5 fcs teams because they can’t put together a 2020 schedule they are improved.

i’m going to wait and see what they actually do before assigning targets against a schedule that doesnt exist

Note that I said FBS wins.

I strongly doubt we are scheduling 5 FCS teams for 2020. So far we have UMass, Illinois, Maine and Indiana. Have you seen anything else?

 

[billybud]

Note that I said FBS wins.

I strongly doubt we are scheduling 5 FCS teams for 2020. So far we have UMass, Illinois, Maine and Indiana. Have you seen anything else?

Those games, on an FBS team's schedule, would seem very winnable...

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Could we just bumped every single pre-season thread post 2010 just as a refresher for what happens around here?

I can't believe I'm even reading that some users think Pindell was a problem, and were bound to improve at the position? We've had a better than league average QB maybe what in two seasons in 15 years?

Put Pindell on the late 00s teams and I think we finish top 25 every year.

 

[ZooCougar]

This is true. We have killed the football program in favor of the orange bouncing ball so people can re-live the past and feel good. I do think we can build a formidable program with decent scheduling and if we can get some momentum. If Boise State in the middle of nowhere can do it, it's possible. albeit they at lest have a conference. I remain unrealistically hopeful in August until shiked and disappointed for the 9th year in a row.

I remain unrealistically hopeful in August until being shocked and disappointed for the 9th year in a row.

Boise State did it by taking non qualifiers that the Pac12 couldn’t take.

 

[Bubba1957]

Rose may have been a better HS TE prospect but nobody cares about that now.

Tyler Davis caught 22 balls for ~250 yards and 6 TD’s last year. Jay Rose caught 1 (!) ball last year for 17 yards. Not to mention Davis’ athleticism is infinitely better than Rose’s. There’s a reason TD had the opportunity to transfer to a school like GT and Rose is behind a former QB....

It’s ironic given how many TE/DE body types Diaco recruited his best one moved from QB to play TE.

Speaking of QB play- including Tyler Davis that was 3 (!) former QB recruits that UConn has turned into TE’s that were on the roster last year. If you want to know where a lot of our offensive problems stem from personnel wise, that’s a good place to start.

Nothing against Davis, he definitely improved over his time here, but he is in no way an infinitely better athlete than Rose. I don't know how you are measuring that. The two guys Diablo inherited (kid from Tolland and the tall kid) were both way better than Davis. Not even close. Rose is more in that mold. We will see.

 

[MilliniumPrince]

Our QB situation isn’t the greatest but at least we don’t have a running back/athlete playing quarterback. Both Beaudry and Krajewski will be able to pass better than Pindell and spread the field. Looking at things in retrospect I think Edsall buried Krajewski because he wanted to save Washington “from the streets.” RE mentioned that in several interviews and gave MW numerous chances to prove himself. Unfortunately, MW was released and transferred to Last Chance U.

Pindell was not the problem last year. Our WR couldn't separate from a sloth last season.

 

[billybud]

Pindell didn't have much time for the WR to separate from the defender downfield...

He was already being forced to move while the WR's were still locked on by the DB's.

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

If the Morgan and Harris kids can play we’ll be vastly better at LB. Unfortunately, that’s the only position group I can project a significant improvement in. The DL and secondary were so bad last year I can’t see how they’re going to get to the point of being adequate after one year.

We are going to be significantly worse at the QB, TE, and WR spots. OL might be slightly better but I don’t think they were good last year.

 

[UConnDan97]

If the Morgan and Harris kids can play we’ll be vastly better at LB. Unfortunately, that’s the only position group I can project a significant improvement in. The DL and secondary were so bad last year I can’t see how they’re going to get to the point of being adequate after one year.

We are going to be significantly worse at the QB, TE, and WR spots. OL might be slightly better but I don’t think they were good last year.

I think the DL gets better based on the extra year of growth, especially for Travis Jones, and also the move of Kevon Jones from LB to the line.

However, QB scares the hell out of me. To any folks that think Pindell wasn't a good QB: barring a real surprise with one of the new guys, they are going to make Pindell look like he was vintage Michael Vick...

 

[Bezzz]

Pindell didn't have much time for the WR to separate from the defender downfield...

He was already being forced to move while the WR's were still locked on by the DB's.

Speaking of Pindell
Still grinding.

 

[freescooter]

It is a tough job. Not sure why that seems to bother you so much that it is verbalized.

Why is it a tough job compared with say Temple which was only not the worst program in the country because Rutgers existed? Or Memphis which was dreadful until Fuentes arrived? Or Army which hadn’t had a winning season since Grant playedvthere it seems and prepares guys for the Army not the NF L... ditto Navy which had a few decades of awful football until Paul Johnson revived the Middie program, which btw has all the same issues as Army? Or Kansas when cross state rival KStae seems to have figured it out? BC was listed as a “ tough job” when Spaziane was there. Not so much lately. UConn has had more success than lots of these programs in the past. It has facilities equal to all better than most. It had an incredibly bad coach. Now rebuilding from that. So I’m curious. Was it not a tough job from 2000-2010? Was Temple not a tough job? Army? Navy? Memphis? That term seems to apply when things are going badly but not when they are going well?

 

[freescooter]

Yeah, that statement is preposterous.

That’s because it is perposterous

 

[kemba]

It's a tough job because of:
-Recruiting area
-No conference, and previously a conference we weren't a fit in
-Limited funds
-Invest more money in basketball than most/all(?) non p5 schools which means less investment in football
-Challenging academic requirements
-Weak fanbase-some truth, some perception here
-Off campus stadium
-2 historically bad head coaching hires
-Seen as a job with a limited ceiling


It was a tough job before, which is why announcers would fawn over Edsall every game. He overcame a lot of things and hopefully still can again. But now its even tougher. More challenges, things have been taken away, and some things that were real strengths back then aren't anymore.

 

[freescooter]

I get the love for Pindell but he was a running quarterback who occasionally threw the ball. You rarely win with those guys without overwhelming talent. His first thought was run. If he saw an opening he ran. If his first read was covered he ran. The really successful guys can move around to buy time when necessary, find secondary receivers and run as a 2nd option not a first instinct. I’m hoping Beaudry fits that category.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

I get the love for Pindell but he was a running quarterback who occasionally threw the ball. You rarely win with those guys without overwhelming talent. His first thought was run. If he saw an opening he ran. If his first read was covered he ran. The really successful guys can move around to buy time when necessary, find secondary receivers and run as a 2nd option not a first instinct. I’m hoping Beaudry fits that category.

His first thought was run because the offensive line and skill positions were horrible. Just so happened Pindell was a pretty athletic and shifty runner with the ball in his hands.

 

[uconnbill]

Congrats to Big Red @temery

You’ve cultivated the best mix of stupidity and polite trolling found anywhere on the interwebz.

It’s beyond amazing that lab rats learn from getting shocked in experiments but actual human beings don’t.

UConn’s best tight end is at a school that hasn’t throw a pass to a tight end in like a decade. And he’d also probably be the best QB on the roster too.

You are starting to sound like one of those old men who tells at kids for walking through his yard.

Step away from the keyboard/phone and breath. It's okay if you don't comment on every post on the board, really it is.

 

[whaler11]

You are starting to sound like one of those old men who tells at kids for walking through his yard.

Step away from the keyboard/phone and breath. It's okay if you don't comment on every post on the board, really it is.

aw did whaler give uconnbilly the sadz?

if you dont like to read things that give you the sadz you can fix that ya know. stay in a nice little bubble.

 

[uconnphil2016]

You are starting to sound like one of those old men who tells at kids for walking through his yard.

Step away from the keyboard/phone and breath. It's okay if you don't comment on every post on the board, really it is.

Couldn’t agree more.

 

[MustangMan]

Same narrative over and over. UConn is the one school in the AAC that couldn't possibly recruit good football players. Too hard to get kids to go to the only school in the conference with a long term track record of putting guys in the NFL, great facilities and an actual national brand name. Impossible. No one could do it.

The only AAC school that can put players in the NFL?

See NCAA data: Colleges most represented on 2018 NFL rosters | NCAA.com

 

[Stainmaster]

The only AAC school that can put players in the NFL?

See NCAA data: Colleges most represented on 2018 NFL rosters | NCAA.com

Stay in your lane.

 

[Banta55]

it’s a bit of hyperbole but Davis would easily be the best TE on the roster and no kidding Georgia Tech changed their offense.

I’ll try to be more positive about a bad roster, inexperienced coaches hired by default because they don’t pay anyone and over a half decade of FCS recruiting.

That’s the winning formula! How could anyone be negative about that! Certainly Nostical has nailed everything - we should all be more like him.

Bucket hat closed fist brotherhood *fart noises*

You had to be picked on as a kid ,absolutely ridiculous..

 

[freescooter]

His first thought was run because the offensive line and skill positions were horrible. Just so happened Pindell was a pretty athletic and shifty runner with the ball in his hands.

I don’t think last years line was awful. Average perhaps. But far better than Diaco had. Problem last year was on the other side of the ball and creating a situation where the offense had to score every series just to have s prayer of staying close. It wasn’t that good.

 

[SubbaBub]

We've learned that having no defense gives up 50 per game. The season will hinge on whether we have some defense and by having some defense results in something closer to 30 per game where the mistakes of the other bad teams on the schedule will translate into a few wins.


...emphasis on some.

 

[hardcorehusky]

I have now been to 2 practices. Here is my comparison versus last year:

QB- Pindell never went through his progressions and wasn't consistently accurate when in the pocket. Proof is in the tape and the fact he isn't in a camp.
Beaudry -etc - better pure passers. We won't have the D looking for a QB to run. This limits the offense but let's us use the playbook more. Push

RB - Mensah is a year older and better. Thompkins is good and Donevin hopefully gets to contribute - better

OL - year older and bigger - evolved from decimated on every play 2 years ago to better at run blocking last year to better pass blocking and better run blocking this year. - Better

TE - Davis was good but underutilized. Production this year should be better if QB goes through his progressions and throws to TE. - Better production even if not as good a player

WR - this group is different and it is hard to judge where they are versus last year's group. If they can get separation and have different guys open - then they will be more productive. Push for now.

DL - bigger and faster than last year just by being in the weight room. Ends concern me due to size and being ready. Better

LB - New personnel better than last year's personnel - Better

DB - personnel is older and wiser - Diamond Harrell is a game changer back there. Much better

Punter - is really good.

Kicker - last year wasn't so good - no idea who or what these guys are capable of - push

ST return and coverage - same kids- older, stronger and faster - I will say better

Coaching - Defense - Better at DC and every position coach including DL where same guy returns but has more tools to work with.

Coaching - Offense - mostly same coaches - concerned about Giufre as a play caller. Worse

Head Coach - has taken full control after last year's debacle. Has to win some more games and show improvement and they will. Better

This team won't be pushed around physically as badly as last year. The DL is a year away in the strength room to make me feel good about the D and I think the LB's are a year away as well. Spanos will have the players in position and we won't play 12 yards off the ball each play. We won't be 0-12, 1-11, 2-10 or 3-9. Worst case is 4 -8 and best case is 6-6.

 

[RSTuthill]

Regarding the receivers, they may not have to be wizards at separation. One of them may be uncovered on almost every play if the opponent is stacking the box to stop the run. Simply a numbers thing.