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

[huskysupporter]

Why does anyone think the coaching will be better this year?

I think the hope is that Coach Diaco has learned from his mistakes. He was a rookie head coach. That is the hope at least.

 

[freescooter]

And that is a huge concern. Except that another 2 win season means Bobby is a defensive coordinator someplace in 2016. So he can't talk about preseason games and not game plan and all the crazy stuff he did last year.

 

[Stainmaster]

Why does anyone think the coaching will be better this year?

Because we dread the thought of having to deal with the alternative.

 

[whaler11]

Diaco wouldn't get fired if they went 2-10.

 

[freescooter]

Oh I don't know. When Warde looks at 2016 opening in front crickets he's going to have to do something and when he docs that he might as well just get someone new.

 

[Duncan Idaho]

Again, what was Whitmer's final appearance in a Husky uniform like?

 

[Waquoit]

Because we dread the thought of having to deal with the alternative.

Exactly, we all hope he'll be better because he has to be.

 

[Carl Spackler]

Again, what was Whitmer's final appearance in a Husky uniform like?

What's your point? Seriously, I'm curious.

 

[IMind]

I think the hope is that Coach Diaco has learned from his mistakes. He was a rookie head coach. That is the hope at least.

This and my hope is the new offensive coordinator has some impact. Otherwise...

 

[HuskyHawk]

Nebraska had to come from behind to beat McNeese State last year at home. It happens to someone every year. I think it mostly happens because just as with college basketball, the top 1AA teams are often veteran units, and may be facing a young FBS team early in the season and catch them off guard.

UConn will be better. It's a game of inches. A few plays here and there change outcomes. The defense is good, and if the offense can move the ball at all, it will be even better. I think we have some solid RBs, decent TEs, and hope Shirreffs can execute well enough. He doesn't need to be Marcus Marietta, just complete some balls, scramble and move the chains with his legs and get an occasional red zone score...without giving the ball away like Doctor's office lollipops. The last is most critical. The OL literally cannot be worse.

The team I watched last year spotted several of our opponents a touchdown to start the game. Boise State was competitive but for their two defensive touchdowns. USF would be a win but for the opening gift TD. Tulane won on three turnovers in their territory. ECU was very competitive. The offense put the defense under terrible strain with turnovers and poor field position football. Don't underestimate the difference that two first downs and punt have over 3 and out and a punt. A few more plays or bad plays avoided could have meant 5 wins. This team is going to be better than that team.

 

[freescooter]

Here's something to ponder...the 2013 team would have blown last years club out of the building. Especially the team that played the final few games of 2013. The Bobster basically threw the season to put in his system. There better be a step forward this year. It is very easy to become one of those teams that never wins. It is very tough to turn it around once you get there. Consecutive bad hires could put us in a hole. If we see the same nonsense this year 2-10 or worse, and losing our first 2 really puts that in play, it might be time to just move on before the damage gets nearly insurmountable.

 

[sdhusky]

Here's something to ponder...the 2013 team would have blown last years club out of the building. Especially the team that played the final few games of 2013. The Bobster basically threw the season to put in his system. There better be a step forward this year. It is very easy to become one of those teams that never wins. It is very tough to turn it around once you get there. Consecutive bad hires could put us in a hole. If we see the same nonsense this year 2-10 or worse, and losing our first 2 really puts that in play, it might be time to just move on before the damage gets nearly insurmountable.

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.

 

[freescooter]

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

 

[J187Money]

Warde hired Diaco, ergo Diaco stinks.

 

[Duncan Idaho]

What's your point? Seriously, I'm curious.

To further confirm that indeed we were that bad

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

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

 

[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.