Edsall's Thougts on UCONN vs. Maryland

[FillTheRent]

Interesting article in today's paper from the New London Day.

http://www.theday.com/article/20120910/SPORT07/309109974/1044

 

[BlueMAB]

"Now, I say this with no disrespect to the state of Connecticut, but there's just not a lot of Division I football players in that state. Down here, there are some high schools where there's as many Division I players as there are in the entire state of Connecticut.


I call bullsh-t

 

[SubbaBub]

Typical Randy awkwardness (cue the Randydance). Where he could have just said he had trouble recruiting players to CT and the local pool wasn't large enough compared to other schools, he instead puts his foot in his.mouth.

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[ZooCougar]

Inside draw, phony, 2.3 yards and a cloud of dust, eye discipline, fake honor, dinosaur.

My thoughts on Edsall.

 

[UConn07]

Typical Randy awkwardness (cue the Randydance). Where he could have just said he had trouble recruiting players to CT and the local pool wasn't large enough compared to other schools, he instead puts his foot in his.mouth.

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I actually find absolutely nothing wrong with what he said at any point of that article. I think everyone knows it's a FACT that CT high school football is subpar to Marlyand/DC/Virginia and I don't even think it's close.

 

[mattp]

i don't think there's anything wrong with what he said. posters complain all day here about how we wish we had more local talent, and many say to be successful we'll have to have more success recruiting from places like NJ, FL, TX and the mid atlantic, but when he says it he's putting his foot in his mouth?

 

[SubbaBub]

I actually find absolutely nothing wrong with what he said at any point of that article. I think everyone knows it's a FACT that CT high school football is subpar to Marlyand/DC/Virginia and I don't even think it's close.

Nor did I really. I was just enjoying the deer in the media headlights Randy and hoping someone would post the dance gif.

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[UConn9604]

I actually find absolutely nothing wrong with what he said at any point of that article. I think everyone knows it's a FACT that CT high school football is subpar to Marlyand/DC/Virginia and I don't even think it's close.

I agree, and I may be in the minority, but I have nothing but respect for the man and all that he did for our alma mater. I would love to see him go 11-1 this year and next.

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

I actually find absolutely nothing wrong with what he said at any point of that article. I think everyone knows it's a FACT that CT high school football is subpar to Marlyand/DC/Virginia and I don't even think it's close.

Yes, I would agree entirely with what you just said. But that's not what Edsall said. And FWIW, I don't think it's what he MEANT to say either. I think Subba is right.......it's just Randy being Randy. Awkward.

 

[TouchdownHusky]

Couldn't recruit . . . Connecticut and elsewhere. That's why it was time to go. Can't live forever on under-the-radar guys. Gotta recruit like the big boys.

 

[ScottBonz]

Rich1122 is teaching right now. He'll be home round 330 for your edsall gif viewing pleasure

 

[weyuo]

The problem anyone coaching UConn and trying to recruit CT kids is that there simply isn't a very big pool to pick from. I mean look at this state. There are counties in other states bigger than CT. LOL there's probably a couple ranches out west bigger than CT. Then add the fact that there are a lot of people in this state leary about football related injuries and whether they want their sons playing the sport in the first place and...... school systems looking at soccer as a less expensive alternative. Look at Suffield. For a while they had a combined team with Windsor Locks and I'm not even sure they have that any more. I'm not saying that there isn't legit Div 1 talent in the state, I'm just saying states like VA are bigger and have more kids playing football so they obviously have a bigger pool of players.

Now Randy could have done a better job reaching out to the high school coaches around here and obviously anyone coaching UConn has to see that it's got to be a regional thing because of the size of the recruiting pool you have. I give credit to Edsall for sticking it out for 10 years while UConn made the transition to BCS but he killed that credibility in the way he left and I won't let go of that. That was a real bush league move and he has to be held accountable. After UConn pounds them up here next year I'll let it rest.

 

[pj]

It's a fine interview. I'm happy with where he brought UConn football, I'm happy to have P to take us the next step, I do think he personally is more likely to succeed at Maryland than UConn with a built-in recruiting territory covering for his biggest weakness. So things worked out for everybody. That's great.

 

[TRest]

The problem anyone coaching UConn and trying to recruit CT kids is that there simply isn't a very big pool to pick from. I mean look at this state. There are counties in other states bigger than CT. LOL there's probably a couple ranches out west bigger than CT. Then add the fact that there are a lot of people in this state leary about football related injuries and whether they want their sons playing the sport in the first place and...... school systems looking at soccer as a less expensive alternative. Look at Suffield. For a while they had a combined team with Windsor Locks and I'm not even sure they have that any more. I'm not saying that there isn't legit Div 1 talent in the state, I'm just saying states like VA are bigger and have more kids playing football so they obviously have a bigger pool of players.

I guess Maryland should be resigned to the idea that Randy will have to coach in Texas or Florida next, due to the higher number of potential recruits.

 

[zls44]

Nothing he said was inaccurate.

That said, . On principle, .

 

[CL82]

Better quote:

"I hate losing, believe me, but sometimes the wins on the field don't come as quickly as you like because you have to make sure everything else is in place … and that's hard. It takes a lot of hard work and teamwork to get it done. We didn't have that here [last year]. We have that now. People understand the concept of team … when you get guys who don't care who gets the credit, then you're going to have opportunities to have success."

Classic Edsall, throwing last year's team under the bus. Apparently last year they didn't work hard or understand the concept of team.

 

[businesslawyer]

Spea

Better quote:


Classic Edsall, throwing last year's team under the bus. Apparently last year they didn't work hard or understand the concept of team.

Speaking only for myself, I really didn't give a crap about what Edsall said (as opposed to how he coached) while he was here. Given that, I could care less what he has to say these days.

 

[Carl Spackler]

This is a game that UConn needs to win. I really wish I felt better about our program going in to this game than I do. Coach P likes to say it's a 'show me' game.

Well, what they've shown me, is that I need to be worried. I don't like that.

 

[metsfan2323]

I call BS on this quote too. He says "nobody would have ever envisioned (listed things)". Sorry Randy you are wrong, that was the vision for everyone who has purchased season tickets. In fact many of us have a vision that is much better then what you accomplished here. Jim Calhoun and Geno have accomplished things that nobody would have ever envisioned, Randy (I'm full of myself) Edsall did not. This quote and the lack of talent in CT quote are the exact reasons why we are better off without him. Hey Randy, Navy beat Notre Dame too maybe they sucked that year.


"When you take a look at it now," he says. "You think of guys like Dan Orlovsky, who's still in the NFL, Donald Brown … a first-round draft choice … and four guys [Brown, Darius Butler, Will Beatty and Cody Brown] going in the top 63 picks [in the 2009 NFL draft]. Nobody would have ever envisioned those things happening, nobody ever would have envisioned winning at Notre Dame, and nobody would have ever envisioned UConn playing Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl in a BCS bowl.

 

[Adios]

If Boise State can beat the big boys, so can we. What a cop-out.

 

[businesslawyer]

I call BS on this quote too. He says "nobody would have ever envisioned (listed things)". Sorry Randy you are wrong, that was the vision for everyone who has purchased season tickets. In fact many of us have a vision that is much better then what you accomplished here. Jim Calhoun and Geno have accomplished things that nobody would have ever envisioned, Randy (I'm full of myself) Edsall did not. This quote and the lack of talent in CT quote are the exact reasons why we are better off without him.


"When you take a look at it now," he says. "You think of guys like Dan Orlovsky, who's still in the NFL, Donald Brown … a first-round draft choice … and four guys [Brown, Darius Butler, Will Beatty and Cody Brown] going in the top 63 picks [in the 2009 NFL draft]. Nobody would have ever envisioned those things happening, nobody ever would have envisioned winning at Notre Dame, and nobody would have ever envisioned UConn playing Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl in a BCS bowl.

I am really going to make an effort not to be dragged into Edsall discussions this week because, frankly, the game is too important for other reasons. But, that having been said, Metsfans' post I think very, very clearly sets the parameters for why there was so much negativity about Edsall while he was here that I and others disagreed with.

MF -- you post what you, and other season ticketholders, expected to happen and use it to call BS on Edsall. Now, I don't doubt that you and other season ticketholders, some of whom post here, did expect it. But please realize that you will not find a neutral expert, not one, who thought in 2000 that the program would have been where it was by the end of 2010. Not one. Every neutral observer you asked would think Edsall was not BSing with that quote, but what he was saying is pretty much factual.

Now, you are entitled to your own expectations, and I have no reason or need to fight about this this week, but please everyone on the "he was a mediocre coach" side recognize that, outside of the fan base that wanted more, the rest of the world would agree that it was surprising that we could accomplish by 2010 all the things Edsall points to in that quote. And, in real life, when you are close to a situation and a vast majority of neutrals has an opinion 180 degrees from yours -- well, it doesn't mean you are wrong per se, but it's worth examing why everyone else disagrees.

That's all. Thoughts about why I am being ridiculous are fine, but I am going to try very hard not to respond to them because personally I'd rather be focused on football.

 

[businesslawyer]

Nothing he said was inaccurate.

That said, . On principle, .

This sentiment, however, I do understand.

 

[Srqhusky]

I agree, and I may be in the minority, but I have nothing but respect for the man and all that he did for our alma mater. I would love to see him go 11-1 this year and next.

thank you ms edsall

 

[Adios]

It's a fine interview. I'm happy with where he brought UConn football, I'm happy to have P to take us the next step, I do think he personally is more likely to succeed at Maryland than UConn with a built-in recruiting territory covering for his biggest weakness. So things worked out for everybody. That's great.

Next step is hiring an offensive genius. And keeping our DC at the same time.

 

[metsfan2323]

If Warde Manual and Susan were interviewing football coaches for the head coaching job and the coach said "there are more D1 prospects in some schools in Maryland then there are in the entire state of CT" and also said "I will get you to the level of play Randy Edsall had you at", I guarantee that person would not get the job. We need more vision then that.