Can we finally admit that going to Boyle was a mistake?

[J187Money]

See Puyol, B. PK.

RS burned 11th hr/ 12th game. Sitting this year. No shot we need him to go to a bowl game in game 12 in'13

Exactly. People acted like it was a crime. Turned out to be a non-event.

 

[huskymedic]

No need to get an attitude. I was referring to players like Xavier Hemingway 275lbs. Edsall never had guys that light play significant minutes. Overall, I do believe that our previous lines were bigger. Working on a paper. Needed a break so I calculated the avg heights and weights between 2010 and 2013. We are about 7lbs lighter and we don't have any really big boys Zach Hurd 325lbs and of course Hemmingway is way to small for D1.

2010 (Fiesta Bowl)

LT Mike Ryan 6-5 /335lbs
LG Mathieu Olivier 6-6 / 294lbs
C Mo Petrus 6-2 / 302
RG Zach Hurd 6-7 / 325
RT Adam Masters 6-4 / 298

2013

LT Bennett 6-9/307
LG Greene 6-5/308
C Mateas 6-4/315
RG Cruz 6-4/309
RT Xavier Hemingway/Dalton Gifford 6-5/273|6-5/309

2010
Avg height 6-4.8
Avg weight 310.8lbs

2013
Avg height 6-5
Avg weight 303.5lbs

If you include RT Kevin Friend @ 6-6 317 who is back now (and arguably RG Tyler Bullock @ 6-4 316 for Cruz) the weight delta is smaller. I think today was the first time the OL was as projected for the season?

 

[Carl Spackler]

Boyle got hit harder today than he's probably ever been hit in his life, and he played like it. He is what he is, and he's not the reason we've lost the past three games he's been in. He's played like exactly what he is - a 19 year old true freshmen with potential on a terrible team.

We've lost the past three games he started, because our defense - since the Michigan game, has been putrid.

 

[uconn34]

Freescooter; serious drivel, do you actually watch any of the games? If you do please restrain yourself from drivel

 

[uconnbill]

Why not go back to the best QB on the roster - Whitmer?

That solves what? We know what he can do, and it isn't that much. I would rather play Boyle and have Cochran back him up or play a couple of series and then switch.

 

[Palatine]

Whitmer has peaked. And the peak was pretty low.

Playing Boyle will deliver dividends next year.

 

[Exit 4]

It hasn't worked out, but it wasn't a mistake. We need to try to catch lightning in a bottle. At least Boyle is getting some real experience hopefully will be better for it next year and thereafter. I am also happy to see so many true freshman on the field. Our pitch to potential recruits is immediate playing time and for most recruits that is attractive.

Winning programs can wait on redshirts, losing programs shouldn't put anything on the shelf.

Next week I would start Cochran. He deserves a chance too. He should know the playbook better and from what little we saw today he seems to make quicker decisions and delivers with more touch and accuracy.

Long term, seems to me we need a few Juco players, particularly on O-Line and D-Line.

 

[BoatShow]

You can only blame the line so much. Kid sits in the pocket forever then gets sacked..well.

 

[mcs333]

One of the sacks and the INT when he was hit, was because he held e ball too long. Each about 4 seconds. Boyle has a strong arm but has trouble reading the D. He had multiple open receivers short over the middle but continues to lock on a receiver and throws into double coverage. He looks and plays like a freshman. Hopefully he will get better with experience but that really is an unknown.

 

[Waquoit]

Whitmer has peaked. And the peak was pretty low.

Playing Boyle will deliver dividends next year.

I don't disagree. But my thinking is that we need to play guys based on merit, not on spec right now. Best players play, reward effort and production.

 

[rich1122]

Agreed burning his redshirt was not worth the risk. No QB, especially a true freshman, was going to help us win games with this OL. It is hard to be A QB when you get no time to throw the ball.

Brief Risk/Reward Analysis:

Risks
Lose a year of development
Gets injured because of OL
Loses confidence because he will not win behind this OL (nobody can)

Rewards
Win a game? I don't know can't see any rewards because the OL sucks and no QB can win when he is constantly on his back.

The reason we suck this year is so obvious that I think it bores people so they look for other scapegoats, the QB, the DC, the OC. The OL is why we suck. We have no depth, we are undersized, and have limited talent.

PP is at fault for not recruiting big OLinemen.

These are for the most part Edsall's linemen.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

It isn't a recruiting problem on the OLine. If George DeLeone coached you for two and a half years on something, you would suck at it too.

 

[freescooter]

Freescooter; serious drivel, do you actually watch any of the games? If you do please restrain yourself from drivel

Sorry I offended you Mrs Boyle. Did I watch the game? Seriously? 7-21-2 47 yards 2 sacks. Kid is totally unprepared for this level of football. Totally. Should have been obvious to the staff and my guess is that it was. They went into this hoping they were wrong. But they weren't. He's completed 42% of his passes, thrown 5 interceptions, no touchdowns, his qb rating is 74.3, which is the lowest in the country and it isn't even close, he's been sacked 13 times in 3 games. And those are just the stats. If you actually watch him, its really clear he has no clue what to do back there. He holds the ball way too long. he has on several occasions stepped into the rush and on others dropped back beyond his protection. I've seen the occassional true frosh quarterback. Boyle is less well prepared than any I've seen.

One other point...very few quarterbacks play as true freshmen. There is a reason and its because the jump to this level and the complexities of college offenses are just too great to master in less than a year. This idea that somehow this season will pay dividends down the line is mad. Nobody does this because it is simply a bad idea. A quarterback in particular is better as a 5th year senior than a true freshman. That is almost always true. And the Dan Orlovsky comparison is simply not relevant for a few reasons, but the main one is that Edsall had little choice but to play him. The original starter left the team right before the start of the season. And the guy who replaced him got hurt, too. That was at a time when we had minimal depth and didn't even have a full complement of scholarship players. Totally different situation than now. And for what its worth, Orlovsky didn't have a single game where his stats were as bad as Boyle's have been. 9 tds against 11 interceptions. QB rating of 93.7. If you watched him, he was way way way more prepared. Play Whitmer. Or play Cochran. Put Bolye back on the scout team and let him learn the game.

 

[Marty Jackson]

He is no more ready to be a D1 starter at this level than my Aunt Sadie is, and I don't even have an Aunt Sadie. Blowing this kid's redshirt was a crime. He isn't anywhere close to ready. My concern is that this experience ruins him for the long term. He has some skills but he is far from the complete package at this point. No pocket presence, high on all his short throws. He's going to get a wide receiver killed one of these days. The decision to go to Boyle was either a complete panic move or a complete PR move, but it was not a sound football move. The season is a disaster and we just need to get through it. Sit Boyle down and either go back to Whitmer or go with Cochran. Neither are going to turn things around but maybe Whitmer gets us a win against Temple or Memphis.

we're 0-3 since firing coach P. I guess that was a mistake as well.
Bring P Back!!!!

 

[Section138]

Here is my take on 'burning' redshirts.... all you're saying is that UCONN will be unable, in the next 4 years, to recruit a qualified QB... you throw him in there and you have 3 years to search for a successor.. I 'hope' this is possible.. If it's not, there are bigger problems.. I mean really is that 1 year going to make much of a difference.. really..?? I understand using a redshirt if you have a quality player in place, but if you don't, and he gives you a better chance to win, get him in there.. you have 3 years to get someone else in the program.. Jury is still out on Boyle's long term performance. He's not ready now, but has the tools.. I never thought Chandler was the sole issue, but he certainly contributed to the problem.. With the way this squad is playing, RG3 wouldn't get it done either... In the grand scheme of things, having Boyle play this year didn't harm anything... the only thing it has accomplished was to confirm that he's not ready yet... that's it... now recruit a QB..you have a few years to get it done...

 

[J187Money]

If EJ Manuel had not been at FSU you would have redshirted Winston? Clearly if we had a very good starter you don't do this. But we need to figure out who can run this team next year.

 

[metsfan2323]

Whitmer has peaked. And the peak was pretty low.

Playing Boyle will deliver dividends next year.

I don't think its fair to say Whitmer has peaked. Whitmer played every game behind a GDL coached line with no running game, that is an impossible situation for any QB.

 

[tduconn]

Regardless of why Orlovsky played his play as a freshman/sophomore wasn't to dissimilar than Boyles, and he was playing a schedule mostly comprise of CUSA-MAC teams, with one or two BE teams thrown in.

Much easier schedule, same freshman jitters. On the way to games with friends, question was "how many int's" does Dan throw this game? Said not as a criticism, but the competition for Dan was all he could handle as a freshman.

I have no qualms with playing Orlovsky or Boyle........what ever the circumstances or necessities caused them to be thrown to the wolves.

I also like the idea of playing Boyle and Cochrane. I don't care how many years you practice against your team mates.......not the same. Look what happened in 2011. Had 3 QB's with 1-3 years practice experience. They all stunk. in real game situations.

At least now we have the potential of having 3 QB's with game time experience........somebody will be hurt........at least now we have QB's that have been battle tested.

 

[UConn07]

Blowing this kid's redshirt was a crime. He isn't anywhere close to ready.

Didn't realize Boyle gave up the 62 points on Saturday. He is most likely going to be the starter next year. That said, he should have played if he was the best in practice. No question. Now, I posted yesterday I want to see Cochran and I still do. I want to see what he can do in games. Games are different than practice as we've seen so far. Get it on film. Analyze and make a decision based on it moving forward.

 

[huskysupporter]

I don't think its fair to say Whitmer has peaked. Whitmer played every game behind a GDL coached line with no running game, that is an impossible situation for any QB.

I think Whitmer is a known commodity. He started for a year and a half. He mad some mind boggling decisions with the football. With that said, he very well might be the best QB currently on the roster. But I want to see the others have their shot. Cochran is next up, not Whitmer. He certainly should be in the competition next season.

 

[Jax Husky]

I think playing Boyle is one of the few things the staff has absolutely gotten correct this year. Yes, he looks unready right now. We know that. I am ok with a 7-28 day when we are 0-7 with the hopes that the 100s of snaps he is getting will have him ready for next year.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Anyone remember Troy Aikman as a rookie with the Cowboys?

That turned out okay.

 

[freescooter]

I think playing Boyle is one of the few things the staff has absolutely gotten correct this year. Yes, he looks unready right now. We know that. I am ok with a 7-28 day when we are 0-7 with the hopes that the 100s of snaps he is getting will have him ready for next year.

Problem with that approach is that it pretty much tells the rest of the team we don't care if we win this year. It is all about next year and the year after that. And if that's the thinking of the coach, why should say Kevin Friend who won't even be here give a damn? They aren't trying to win, so why should I put much effort into trying to win? As nelson posted on another thread, college is about winning now and going 3-9 is better than 0-12. You don't get the first pick in the draft for going 0-12. Teams need to learn to win.

This team is a mess for sure. But you don't just give up if you're the coach. Leaving Boyle in "for next year" pretty much says that's what is happening.