Edsall: “Today’s Players Aren’t As Mentally Tough”- Gets Mocked By Local & National Media

[CL82]

I would gladly travel and pay to watch an Amish football team. Probably wouldn't be all that fast, but those dudes are strong as hell.

"Stay down English!"

 

[BlueDogs]

I’m ok challenging mental toughness, character and commitment. Not ok with blaming kids for lack of physical talent. That’s on the coach for bringing them in. Randy did the former. The meathead AD did the later. Perhaps both need a bit of self awareness in recognizing that their words matter and should be chosen with more care.

 

[Ellington]

First rule of college coaching...NEVER blame the players. RE has used them as human shields during these past two seasons.
I need to see the IMPROVEMENT over the past two and a half years and if there is none, well then it's either you didn't recruit well enough or you didn't develop well enough. We are on strength coach #2, so there is a clue and OC #3.
Now we have turned to an inexperienced staff ( at some critical positions) to save salary and with it come further limitations in development of talent.
Secondly, the other 129 FBS schools are pulling from the same talent pool. Therefore, quit whining and get back to work.
Thirdly, PLEASE cut out the trips to the way back machine. Don't need to hear how these guys aren't Donald Brown! WE KNOW THAT! Orlovsky ain't walking in that door! Hire an experienced QB coach (like you had way back then) and coach these young QBs up!
This HC and AD might be the absolute worst in getting their message across and inspiring the fan base. No idea how or when to use the media.
It's tough enough to bleed blue without these guys making a funk of the entire deal.

 

[Redding Husky]

Anyone who has been in teaching a long time can tell you the kids today are far different than the kids of the 1970’s. And mostly not in a good way.

I don’t blame the kids today. Blame lies with the parents and our society.

 

[Huskygamble19]

He couldn't see that players are different from over a decade ago? I thought he was coaching somewhere through all that. Maryland and the like. Then why did he take the job? Because of the guilt he felt from the way he left? Sorry Randy.. Times change and you have to also. Your former era is gone. Get over it.

 

[Uconnalliance]

It's Edsall's job to figure it out. The guy never takes responsibility for anything.

He’s headed to our dream job... unemployment

 

[polycom]

12/2

 

[Northbound]

I'm not a RE fan, but he is 100% correct here - but it's not about gaming and social media - but it is about facing adversity and wanting to compete and win.

The kids I coached in college we exactly like he described. I was an asked to be an assistant by the head man and players were just clueless. I asked them what did they want out of their year before the season and not one kid, NOT one said win games. They said have fun. We had guys more concerned about where we were eating after away games than the damn game itself.

Reality is that the staff there did a piss poor job recruiting and establishing a culture. Plus there wasn't enough talent to sit guys and compete so the players know that they have you by the balls. What are you going to do sit the best guys because they are screw offs - It is a miserable situation for a coach to be in - I couldn't do it any longer. I also realize that it was up to me to find a way to get these guys to change, but at some point you need to have guys that care as much as the staff does so you're coaching sets, technique, skills and not constantly encouraging guys to give effort in practice. It's next to impossible to get guys to care about outcomes, they either care or they don't.

I came home everyday and wanted to kick the dog it was absolutely horrible.

 

[polycom]

I'm not a RE fan, but he is 100% correct here - but it's not about gaming and social media - but it is about facing adversity and wanting to compete and win.

The kids I coached in college we exactly like he described. I was an asked to be an assistant by the head man and players were just clueless. I asked them what did they want out of their year before the season and not one kid, NOT one said win games. They said have fun. We had guys more concerned about where we were eating after away games than the damn game itself.

Reality is that the staff there did a piss poor job recruiting and establishing a culture. Plus there wasn't enough talent to sit guys and compete so the players know that they have you by the balls. What are you going to do sit the best guys because they are screw offs - It is a miserable situation for a coach to be in - I couldn't do it any longer. I also realize that it was up to me to find a way to get these guys to change, but at some point you need to have guys that care as much as the staff does so you're coaching sets, technique, skills and not constantly encouraging guys to give effort in practice. It's next to impossible to get guys to care about outcomes, they either care or they don't.

I came home everyday and wanted to kick the dog it was absolutely horrible.

Cool how about you recruit better kids or kids who cared about winning more. RE is stupid here. Nick Saban wouldn't even go this far. But sure keep defending a loser.

 

[Chief00]

This is why Randy needs to retire, sit on his porch and kick kids off his lawn. How can someone with this attitude successfully recruit kids?

 

[The Funster]

RE needs to shut up. He's not wrong for thinking this, he's wrong for expressing it publicly. There has to be trust with the players and hanging them out to dry like this (again) does nothing to foster that trust. He's greasing the skids for his way out the door. The sooner the better at this point. I thought he was a good rehire. I thought he'd have unfinished business but he's pretty much capitulated. He's not a coach any more.

 

[Waquoit]

He's not wrong for thinking this, he's wrong for expressing it publicly.

Of course he's wrong. Kids today have a different set of challenges than the old farts had. Anyone thinking they have it easy and are soft are giving themselves too much credit. Randy needs to concentrate on coaching football and leave the life lessons to others.

 

[Chief00]

RE needs to shut up. He's not wrong for thinking this, he's wrong for expressing it publicly. There has to be trust with the players and hanging them out to dry like this (again) does nothing to foster that trust. He's greasing the skids for his way out the door. The sooner the better at this point. I thought he was a good rehire. I thought he'd have unfinished business but he's pretty much capitulated. He's not a coach any more.

To me one of the first signs it wasn’t going to work was his morning practices and his narrative that it was better for the kids’ class schedules, etc. Everyone knows that’s a good time for a 60 year old (him) not a 20 year old. Again, Randy not being upfront.

 

[LBird33]

I wonder if he wants to work himself out of the kid with this stuff

 

[LBird33]

Job

 

[Waquoit]

Just hit me. What better life lesson is there to learn than "It's not what you know, it's who you know"? The players get that reinforced every day when they see a guy getting paid $100K to tweet.

 

[huskyrob1]

RE needs to shut up. He's not wrong for thinking this, he's wrong for expressing it publicly. There has to be trust with the players and hanging them out to dry like this (again) does nothing to foster that trust. He's greasing the skids for his way out the door. The sooner the better at this point. I thought he was a good rehire. I thought he'd have unfinished business but he's pretty much capitulated. He's not a coach any more.

I've been saying that for a while, I can't wait. I think it's worth a million bucks to fire him this afternoon. It makes a huge statement that UConn is serious about fixing football, and it gives UConn a jump on candidates who are immediately available or to talk to candidates who are not. It also makes any players thinking about transferring to wait and see. Benedict would do it in a heartbeat if he had the backing of the new president and the BOT.

 

[PackTheRent]

Nick Saban started at LSU about the same time as RE 1.0 with UConn. Saban won with the "pre-video gaming" kids back then at LSU and wins now at Bama. I think Edsall does a decent job trying to get these guys to attend class and focus on the long-term, because he knows 99% of them will never get invited to an NFL camp. But to blame the on-field performance on the parents of the players is so weak. These kids have good parents who got them through the tough times and kept them focused.

 

[Hoophound]

I think Benedict believes in Randy. No inside info, I just get the impression from his recent comments that he believes in Randy's process.

 

[ktuck911]

If we were 6-1 or 5-2 right now I wonder how this thread would go???

 

[gioff2323]

Cool how about you recruit better kids or kids who cared about winning more. RE is stupid here. Nick Saban wouldn't even go this far. But sure keep defending a loser.

he did. Monday. Watch the presser.

 

[gioff2323]

Just hit me. What better life lesson is there to learn than "It's not what you know, it's who you know"? The players get that reinforced every day when they see a guy getting paid $100K to tweet.

I

Of course he's wrong. Kids today have a different set of challenges than the old farts had. Anyone thinking they have it easy and are soft are giving themselves too much credit. Randy needs to concentrate on coaching football and leave the life lessons to others.

I gotta say I hope you are in the minority - of fans and coaches. My kid plays CFB. The ONE thing important to me was he find a guy who would provide lessons for the next 40 years, not the next 4.

 

[BlueDogs]

I


I gotta say I hope you are in the minority - of fans and coaches. My kid plays CFB. The ONE thing important to me was he find a guy who would provide lessons for the next 40 years, not the next 4.

This is true. I’m glad he is working on building character. I think as a function of schooling that is precisely what’s important. Anybody can and should build on that. Where I draw the line is dumping on kids innate talent as a leader. That’s a you problem not a kid problem. Ergo why I find the meathead’s comments much more troubling.

 

[Waquoit]

The ONE thing important to me was he find a guy who would provide lessons for the next 40 years, not the next 4.

And you think HCRE is that guy?

 

[Tenspro2002]

As if we needed any more evidence of what a dinosaur this guy is.

College football today is about flash, explosiveness, and drawing eyeballs. Edsall coaches as if it's about crew cuts and 3 yard handoffs up the middle.

We can be bad, or we can be boring. But please, dear God, can we stop being both?