Early look ahead to Bob Diaco's first UConn team - Jim Fuller

[sportsart]

Jim Fuller takes a look at Diaco's team.

http://runwayramblings.blogspot.com/

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Not so much a look at Diaco's team as at who is returning. I think it is very fair to expect immediate results from Diaco.

 

[Chin Diesel]

For Christmas I'm wishing that no reporter ever prints that McCombs has excellent/breakaway speed.

He has average BCS RB speed. We've all seen him run down on multiple occasions.

 

[Husky68]

Already immediate results, his coaching changes have met with your displeasure, a good start indeed.

 

[Sean]

If you expect Diaco to win immediately because of that article, you clearly don't understand how important the lines are in football.

 

[Tdaley]

For Christmas I'm wishing that no reporter ever prints that McCombs has excellent/breakaway speed.

He has average BCS RB speed. We've all seen him run down on multiple occasions.

Very true. He in fact was way too slow to be a kickoff returner. He was one of the reason we had a putrid kickoff return team. McCombs has quickness to make would be tacklers miss him, but he is not a fast running back.

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

If you expect Diaco to win immediately because of that article, you clearly don't understand how important the lines are in football.

Yep. I believe it stated in the article that for once, our playmakers, and not the line, is the strength of the offense. That scares the shiite out of me. I know, ideally you are strong in both areas. But.....if given the choice where one was a strength.....I'd much prefer the line be the strength. You can't win with terrible line play. See UConn, past 3 years.

 

[Carl Spackler]

We are going to have the youngest trenches next season that if I'm not mistaken, we've had since about 2005-2006 seasons, which weren't that good. The majority of players on the O and D lines that got us the post season win vs. South Carolina and the Fiesta Bowl loss vs. Oklahoma and plowed the way for Donald Brown in that win in Canada (still a crazy, crazy box score stat line in that game - we scored what 38 points or something, and had I think a total of 4 forward passes in the game) those guys were multiple year starters that came in about that time and played young.

We can only hope that the young guys projected to be starters, have the same potential to grow under Foley's coaching, that those guys before them had. Our starting center and projected tackles and guards have already had their versions of the 2005 and 2006 seasons. Hopefully 2014, will be much like 2007 and so on through the cycles of football. .

 

[IMind]

For Christmas I'm wishing that no reporter ever prints that McCombs has excellent/breakaway speed.

He has average BCS RB speed. We've all seen him run down on multiple occasions.

I don't think you're wrong, I think he'll have a big year next year. It's sort of the arc of our RBs in the past. Combined Foley back where he's supposed to be, Max taking some of the burden off of him... this year and next. His 4.21 yards/carry this year were pretty damn good all things considered.

 

[Carl Spackler]

The most important thing about McCombs is that he became a real leader. Whatever his role in the game plans turns out to be, will be far less important than what he does as a leader.

 

[sportsart]

The most important thing about McCombs is that he became a real leader. Whatever his role in the game plans turns out to be, will be far less important than what he does as a leader.

You are absolutely right. No matter what the situation, I saw him on the sideline excited and energetic. I'm surprised at the 4.21 per carry number. After the way things started to have a number like that isn't as bad as people made his season look like.

I think with Foley's expertize in smash mouth football, and HCBD saying he wanted his lines to be aggressive (or something to that effect), we are in good shape.

What better way to take advantage of a young, inexperienced OL, than to have Casey at QB with his quick reads and release, and to have a good old fashioned smash mouth style running game.

 

[Carl Spackler]

Big difference between excited and energetic, and being an effective team leader. Being one of Diaco's werewolves is just being a player. The players in this program, need to continue the steps they started taking as individuals, as leaders, as a team, late in the 2013 season and carry that through the offseason. DIaco's influence on this team directly is only going to come in short bursts during spring workouts and then when we get to fall camp.

 

[sportsart]

Big difference between excited and energetic, and being an effective team leader. Being one of Diaco's werewolves is just being a player. The players in this program, need to continue the steps they started taking as individuals, as leaders, as a team, late in the 2013 season and carry that through the offseason. DIaco's influence on this team directly is only going to come in short bursts during spring workouts and then when we get to fall camp.

Carl...you know what my point was. Regardless of the situation, Lyle didn't have his head down and was trying to fire people up. That's Diaco's style.

 

[bobbyinaz]

Yep. I believe it stated in the article that for once, our playmakers, and not the line, is the strength of the offense. That scares the shiite out of me. I know, ideally you are strong in both areas. But.....if given the choice where one was a strength.....I'd much prefer the line be the strength. You can't win with terrible line play. See UConn, past 3 years.

While I am not a fan of Colin Cowherd he uses a stat every year when doing his pre-season predictions that is very telling. He says that when a school has a starting O-line that returns players with 50+ starts in total they are very good where as when the O-line has less than 50 cumulative starts they struggle. Since defenses play such an attacking style today you have to be able to protect the QB and that comes from experienced linemen.

This is the main reason I think we may struggle next year even with the playmakers we have.

 

[Carl Spackler]

Carl...you know what my point was. Regardless of the situation, Lyle didn't have his head down and was trying to fire people up. That's Diaco's style.

Hopefully you have a little better understanding of what my point was. The kid, IMSHO, needed a certain kind of fire lit under his ass, as this entire team did mid-season, and however, whoever, whatever way it happened, it did happen, and the kid came out as a captain on the other side, and this team that we all knew could win games, started winning games. It's up to him to keep that title for 2014, but he earned it in 2013. Very proud.

 

[sportsart]

Hopefully you have a little better understanding of what my point was. The kid, IMSHO, needed a certain kind of fire lit under his ass, as this entire team did mid-season, and however, whoever, whatever way it happened, it did happen, and the kid came out as a captain on the other side, and this team that we all knew could win games, started winning games. It's up to him to keep that title for 2014, but he earned it in 2013. Very proud.

Carl...it hurt my eyes to read that paragraph, but the first line was clear. No one will ever have a better understanding of what you say, and Lyle didn't need anyone to light a fire under him.

 

[Carl Spackler]

Carl...it hurt my eyes to read that paragraph, but the first line was clear. No one will ever have a better understanding of what you say, and Lyle didn't need anyone to light a fire under him.

Look I don't expect you to understand what I'm writing now, because you didn't understand it then. There is simply a big difference between being an effective team leader, and showing lots of emotion, energy and passion. The knowledge, experience and lessons it takes to be an effective team leader, is what football is all about, and it's something that needs to be guided, taught, and learned in a number of different ways. The emotion, energy, the passion however a player expresses it, is just the love for playing the game, it's not being a leader. I never once questioned McCombs love for the game.

 

[sportsart]

Look I don't expect you to understand what I'm writing now, because you didn't understand it then. There is simply a big difference between being an effective team leader, and showing lots of emotion, energy and passion. The knowledge, experience and lessons it takes to be an effective team leader, is what football is all about, and it's something that needs to be guided, taught, and learned in a number of different ways. The emotion, energy, the passion however a player expresses it, is just the love for playing the game, it's not being a leader. I never once questioned McCombs love for the game.

Maybe we should have a reality show started that follows Lyle around to prove he is a leader. You minimized my comments about Lyle showing emotion and energy on the sidelines and implied that doesn't prove he's a leader.

He's a leader Carl. Let's just leave it at that and move on. Yeesh...

 

[joey3$trike$]

It will be interesting who BD picks as his captains, and how much playing times the rb's split. This is the first time that I have no expectations for this team. I'm not sure if I'm excited or annoyed at that statement. I guess I should do what BD says and enjoy the holidays and welcome in the new era of Uconn football. This is an exciting time, enjoy your families everyone.

 

[metsfan2323]

If you expect Diaco to win immediately because of that article, you clearly don't understand how important the lines are in football.

Casey and the emergence of Gifford mitigate the concerns about the O-line.

Overall our line play was atrocious this year, it can't get any worse, and for that reason I expect it to improve.

I expect Diaco to win immediately not because of that article, but because with Casey and our receiving crew we should have one of the better passing attacks in the league. Our schedule next year will also likely be softer than this year. We already know:

Stony Brook < Towson
Army < Buffalo
Boise < Michigan

If TJ can win 3 out of 8 while searching for a QB and taking over mid-season for the clown crew, Diaco should be able to at minimum win 6 out of 12 when we have already found a QB.

Diaco is on record many times now that he will not ask the players to do anything they can't do, so there should not be a need for any grace years to implement a complex system that requires a Diaco prototype.

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

Casey and the emergence of Gifford mitigate the concerns about the O-line.

Overall our line play was atrocious this year, it can't get any worse, and for that reason I expect it to improve.

Be careful with this. People said the same thing about the QB play going into 2011...........honestly if we win 6 games next year I wouldn't be disappointed. I wouldn't sign for 6 wins either, but the line is such a huge question mark.

 

[metsfan2323]

Be careful with this. People said the same thing about the QB play going into 2011...........honestly if we win 6 games next year I wouldn't be disappointed. I wouldn't sign for 6 wins either, but the line is such a huge question mark.

I would be very worried about the line if we didn't have Casey. I have seen enough of Casey to feel confident that they just need to be able to hold their ground for 3 seconds and the ball is out.

Rutgers has a talented line and they were creating havoc when we play them, but it didn't matter because the ball was out too quickly.

 

[chris06052]

While I am not a fan of Colin Cowherd he uses a stat every year when doing his pre-season predictions that is very telling. He says that when a school has a starting O-line that returns players with 50+ starts in total they are very good where as when the O-line has less than 50 cumulative starts they struggle. Since defenses play such an attacking style today you have to be able to protect the QB and that comes from experienced linemen.

This is the main reason I think we may struggle next year even with the playmakers we have.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

If you expect Diaco to win immediately because of that article, you clearly don't understand how important the lines are in football.

Our first Diaco apologist. The same people that are all in on Diaco are already making excuses for why he won't be successful before he coaches his first game.

We don't have time for a rebuilding year. The last coach won the last 3 games and the last two weren't even close. If the next coach is taking a step backward, than Warde made a bad decision.

The conference sucks and is getting worse and Pasqualoni's recruiting was not bad. The cupboard is not bare. A losing record is not acceptable.

 

[Palatine]

Rutgers has a talented line and they were creating havoc when we play them, but it didn't matter because the ball was out too quickly.

This cannot be minimized. Three step drops and getting rid of the ball on time make a huge difference. Inn the final games under TJ, the offensive line looked better because he didn't expose their weaknesses (and Foley deserves some credit). This is know in college football circles as coaching. It really does make a difference.