Honey Moon is Over

[ASweet3781]

Over an arc of years - contrasting us to Syracuse, BC, Rutgers, Maryland - UConn CAN recruit and play at a higher level in Hoop and be at a high plane in Football.

We can recruit and play at a higher level than those schools when we were playing in a Power 5 league with Power 5 TV money and resources. We currently can't offer that. Most of our recruiting pitches we successfully were able to make are gone. Which explains why we are witnessing what we are seeing in men's hoop and football and why most of the posts on those boards the last 2 years are aghast at the lack of talent on both rosters.

 

[gtcam]

The honest question is, are they actually better than they were the past two years? To go from losing 9-6 to a poor Missouri team at the bottom of their confernce to losing 52-12 to a poor Missouri team at the bottom of their conference would seem to indicate, well, no. Virginia is another example. I mean, at least with the previous two teams, ya, they stunk it up but at least they could D it up.

For sure those previous two teams never gave up 70 or even 50. Is this team actually better? Sorry, no. 49, 70, 52. Ouch.

This stinks of a Bruce Arena 2.0 kind of situation. Take a coach back who had past success. That is it. But just like BA 2.0, who stunk it up in his second stint, the same is going on here till this point. Sometimes inviting an old coach back who had success just is not a good idea. Hope time proves me wrong, really I do and this ends up NOT being a BA 2.0 type of situation in the long run. But till this point, it is.

Arena 2.0 didn't "stunk it up" - Klinnsmann stunk it up and Arena was a willing, through a sense of duty, unlucky last minute replacement - no way any new blood high caliber World Class manager was going to step into that mess - you are very wrong on that statement
BUT the 2 situations do have some mirror qualities - RE2 will improve the situation in the next 2 years or he will be gone.
The reason the prior teams didn't give up those points is that they had very high quality defensive secondary players and linebackers - this year the cupboard is bare - don't you think that makes a slight difference?

 

[Travelman6]

That is especially where we disagree. Klinsman was the best the USMNT could have hoped for and they got rid of him way too soon. But I do not want to digress.

 

[gtcam]

That is especially where we disagree. Klinsman was the best the USMNT could have hoped for and they got rid of him way too soon. But I do not want to digress.

If you think that I am speechless
I agree, lets not digress

 

[kemba]

What changed? You know the answer. And that answer has no solution.

The coach.

The conference too.

But the coach was the biggest thing and he's back now. And recruiting seems to have stepped up from Diaco. It takes time though.

 

[UCFBfan]

If you are questioning whether or not bringing back RE was a bad idea after 8 games, I have nothing to say to you. It’s ridiculous. This staff is game planning with players they didn’t recruit and don’t fit perfectly into their current system. They might fit after a year of being in it but for the most part, it’s not their players. Anyone who knows college football knows that you can’t judge a new coach on their first year or two. Until they get their players in and their systems up and running it’s stupid to call hiring that coach a mistake.

This isn’t a world where you can just turn it around with the snap of your fingers. This program has known only how to lose ever since RE left. They’ve done it in almost every possible way over the past 6 years. That alone takes work to erase. On top of that, the talent left behind, minus a handful of players, leaves it hard to make an instant turn around.

College football is becoming like most things in life. People want instant results and if it doesn’t happen they want everyone gone and to reset. It doesn’t work that way yet we see it time and again in sports. Anyone who follows soccer can tell you that this is becoming an epidemic in top leagues. You don’t win your first few games and your team is in danger of relegation, you get the boot. It’s stupid and to see posters here saying that hiring RE was a mistake because our team looked awful last night is also stupid.

We aren’t in the BE anymore and we will have to fight for recruits. However, I have more faith in RE being successful then I do in any of the other options out there. He has built this program from nothing and even when we had the ability to use the BCS lure, he still brought in under recruited players and made them studs. I have total faith he’ll get it done here again as well. However, it’ll take another season. Bottom line. If you can’t handle it, time to find a new team to bandwagon on.

 

[Scoe]

If you are questioning whether or not bringing back RE was a bad idea after 8 games, I have nothing to say to you. It’s ridiculous. This staff is game planning with players they didn’t recruit and don’t fit perfectly into their current system. They might fit after a year of being in it but for the most part, it’s not their players. Anyone who knows college football knows that you can’t judge a new coach on their first year or two. Until they get their players in and their systems up and running it’s stupid to call hiring that coach a mistake.

This isn’t a world where you can just turn it around with the snap of your fingers. This program has known only how to lose ever since RE left. They’ve done it in almost every possible way over the past 6 years. That alone takes work to erase. On top of that, the talent left behind, minus a handful of players, leaves it hard to make an instant turn around.

College football is becoming like most things in life. People want instant results and if it doesn’t happen they want everyone gone and to reset. It doesn’t work that way yet we see it time and again in sports. Anyone who follows soccer can tell you that this is becoming an epidemic in top leagues. You don’t win your first few games and your team is in danger of relegation, you get the boot. It’s stupid and to see posters here saying that hiring RE was a mistake because our team looked awful last night is also stupid.

We aren’t in the BE anymore and we will have to fight for recruits. However, I have more faith in RE being successful then I do in any of the other options out there. He has built this program from nothing and even when we had the ability to use the BCS lure, he still brought in under recruited players and made them studs. I have total faith he’ll get it done here again as well. However, it’ll take another season.
Bottom line. If you can’t handle it, time to find a new team to bandwagon on.

Hiring Edsal was the only choice we weren't turning this around in 1 season it might take another season after this year too and I dont ever recall having a honey moon.

 

[Scoe]

For those who were asking before the season started, eight games.

The beginning of the season showed hope because offense and special teams looked dramatically better. Most fans accepted it's a process and not every unit progresses at the same rate.

2/3 the way through season one and Edsall has put a choke on the offense, specials have slightly regressed and defense still stinks.

Edsall has puckered up each of the past four games becoming more and more conservative and trending towards a Diaco mindset of minimizing any risks.

It's 2017. You have to put 40 points on the board to be a 7+ win team and have a defense that creates turnovers as a means of keeping the other team of getting 41 points.

I guess we should have signed Diaco to an extension

 

[BugsyCT]

We don't stand an icicles chance in hell of beating BS College. By now half to 2/3 of the UConn fans that bought tickets have probably already sold them online, and it will be a home game for them, with 75 percent or better crowd support. We sold them a home game for a million bucks, and they're gonna slaughter us.

I blame Diaco and only Diaco for that.

 

[ZOOCONN]

Special teams have been average at best. But Edsall needs to amp up the recruiting for UConn. We have to give him a chance to get 2 recruiting classes under his belt. The need for team speed has never been more evident. I will say this, that this off season will be the most important in UConn football or at least in recent memory. The staff needs to do whatever it takes to get the 4-star guys because 2 and 3 star guys aren't enough for success. Edsall's overall record is below 500 avg. so even he will have to exceed any expectations.

the fact that you just said we need 4 star guys shows how little you know about recruiting. stars mean DICK, its how you develop the talent that you can get. thats the other thing, the talent they CAN get even if we were 7-0 we still wouldnt get 4 star kids. we are a G5 school that has been pathetic on the football field for close to a decade. we need to focus on kids that we can develop and turn into hidden gems. thats just where we are. edsall always did well with developing talent and i trust he will do the same now.

 

[huskyinfl]

We need to reestablish the Florida Pipeline. I went to a Venice High School game on Friday. There is so much size and talent. I was looking up the players on rivals and stunned to see mid level and low level G5 commits. From Bradenton south to North Port they could clean up the guys that need to sit a year and time to develop/ be coached. The big P5 coaches want to cherry pick all stars since they are under so much pressure to win now.

 

[shizzle787]

If you are questioning whether or not bringing back RE was a bad idea after 8 games, I have nothing to say to you. It’s ridiculous. This staff is game planning with players they didn’t recruit and don’t fit perfectly into their current system. They might fit after a year of being in it but for the most part, it’s not their players. Anyone who knows college football knows that you can’t judge a new coach on their first year or two. Until they get their players in and their systems up and running it’s stupid to call hiring that coach a mistake.

This isn’t a world where you can just turn it around with the snap of your fingers. This program has known only how to lose ever since RE left. They’ve done it in almost every possible way over the past 6 years. That alone takes work to erase. On top of that, the talent left behind, minus a handful of players, leaves it hard to make an instant turn around.

College football is becoming like most things in life. People want instant results and if it doesn’t happen they want everyone gone and to reset. It doesn’t work that way yet we see it time and again in sports. Anyone who follows soccer can tell you that this is becoming an epidemic in top leagues. You don’t win your first few games and your team is in danger of relegation, you get the boot. It’s stupid and to see posters here saying that hiring RE was a mistake because our team looked awful last night is also stupid.

We aren’t in the BE anymore and we will have to fight for recruits. However, I have more faith in RE being successful then I do in any of the other options out there. He has built this program from nothing and even when we had the ability to use the BCS lure, he still brought in under recruited players and made them studs. I have total faith he’ll get it done here again as well. However, it’ll take another season. Bottom line. If you can’t handle it, time to find a new team to bandwagon on.

LOL at anyone bandwagoning on UConn football in the first place.

 

[ktuck911]

When #22 for Mizzou trucked Brayden Brown like a grown man besting down a boy tells all we need to know. We're so young and inexperienced on the back end of pur D it's not even funny.
We gotta bring in a few JUCOs sprinkled in with a few GSs to help out next season.

 

[UCFBfan]

LOL at anyone bandwagoning on UConn football in the first place.

Wasn’t referring to folks bandwagoning on us. Meant it as them jumping on to a team that’s good. Honestly, whatever......that’s where I’m at right now

 

[hardcorehusky]

We can recruit and play at a higher level than those schools when we were playing in a Power 5 league with Power 5 TV money and resources. We currently can't offer that. Most of our recruiting pitches we successfully were able to make are gone. Which explains why we are witnessing what we are seeing in men's hoop and football and why most of the posts on those boards the last 2 years are aghast at the lack of talent on both rosters.

Here is what we can offer: a great education while only having to win your league and you have a better than 50% shot of making it to a New Year's Day bowl. You have a better shot than BC, Cuse, Rutgers, Missouri, and any 2nd tier school in a P5 conference of making it to that bowl. You will play for a coach who has sent over 20 guys to the NFL. You will learn to be a man, to be accountable and be part of a family that will last a lifetime. Plus we have the best ice cream on campus hands down!! The recruiting pitch is not that different from RE V 1.0

 

[whaler11]

Here is what we can offer: a great education while only having to win your league and you have a better than 50% shot of making it to a New Year's Day bowl. You have a better shot than BC, Cuse, Rutgers, Missouri, and any 2nd tier school in a P5 conference of making it to that bowl. You will play for a coach who has sent over 20 guys to the NFL. You will learn to be a man, to be accountable and be part of a family that will last a lifetime. Plus we have the best ice cream on campus hands down!! The recruiting pitch is not that different from RE V 1.0

Yeah, nothing is more attractive to high level athletes than access to ice cream that is 5-10% better than other ice cream.

BTW recruit - ignore that schools like Rutgers and Syracuse are playing Clemson and Michigan every week - IF we win the league and IF there isn't a better team in another G5 league you get to play in the Cotton Bowl against the 11th best team in the country.

 

[uconnbill]

It was a lousy game where everyone was off on UConn. Bryant was off, the receivers had at least 7 or 8 drops. The offensive line was decent until Missouri knew it would be a pass all the time and then just teed off. The defense was a mess the entire night. The defensive backs need to get stronger and remember to look back for the ball. No pressure from the defensive line was a shock and another reason why Missouri won so big. Again the defense stunk and they need to work harder on fundamentals like tackling.

Again we need talent, and speed to compete.

 

[UConnJim]

I think UConn football recruiting is similar to when RE was at UConn the first time. We never got 4 star recruits and almost never won recruiting battles against BCS schools, but we did beat non-BCS schools regularly. Have a winning football program and you will win more battles. As for QB recruiting, you can get solid QBs if you have a good offense as QBs want to start not sit on the bench at a P5.

It has been said repeatedly on this board, but it seems many forget. Kids in the northeast, with some exceptions, are not fully developed football players in high school and if you recruit them, you need to project where they will be in the future after a few years of development. RE 1.0 recruited athletes, red shirted them, and developed them. Unfortunately, we are seeing too many underdeveloped kids playing this year due to roster and talent holes and, guess what, they aren't ready. Heck, we have a 265 lb true freshman starting at OT! That never happened with RE 1.0.

As for the defense, anybody who is watching the games can see we don't have the right players to play a 3-3-5. Our front 3 are decent players, but not for a scheme that requires them to pressure the passer. Remember, Diaco's system was never about getting sacks. Joseph, in my opinion, has been tough and has played well, but the OLBs haven't done it this year. Sure, the DBs are giving too much cushion to the WRs, but they are very young and really shouldn't be seeing the field. I am confident they will get better with time as they improve speed and strength, and gain experience.

One final point. Who didn't expect this year to be difficult? I did, but I see so many things to be encouraged about. Shirreffs looked lost with Diaco's offenses and now he is pretty serviceable and having a good year under Lashlee. Our QB recruiting has been the best in years as we have multiple options to develop and I have confidence in Lashlee. The OL looks better than expected, although young. The freshmen RBs look good. Mensah looks like the fastest RB we have had since Joe Williams. And, recruiting seems to be more focused on recruiting athletes and speed over prototypes.

 

[Exit 4]

The freshmen RBs look good. Mensah looks like the fastest RB we have had since Joe Williams. And, recruiting seems to be more focused on recruiting athletes and speed over prototypes.

On the subject of RB recruiting, TOS has an interesting story dropping 7 new names we are looking at for RB. Six of the seven are 3 Star kids - and the one unrated kid is currently committed to a B10 school. I've only been able to watched the tapes of the two more prominent new names and both look pretty darn good. While I agree prototypes are out, one of the nice things about the leading candidates is they are 200 lb guys with compact frames. One recruit in particular is adept at both running between the tackles and catching the ball out of the backfield. Both can get a few yards after contact as well, although one shows a little more propensity than the other on that front. One is claiming 4.5 speed, the other 4.6. The tape does show one being able to run away from the field when getting to the third level. Its southern football, so the competition has size, so better measuring stick than our northern product.

For years we have struggled to find a true all purpose 200lb back so I find this encouraging.

Indications are Lashlee and Richardson are taking the lead on these southern RBs. Hopefully a couple of them get up here soon.

 

[UConnDan97]

Yeah, nothing is more attractive to high level athletes than access to ice cream that is 5-10% better than other ice cream.

BTW recruit - ignore that schools like Rutgers and Syracuse are playing Clemson and Michigan every week - IF we win the league and IF there isn't a better team in another G5 league you get to play in the Cotton Bowl against the 11th best team in the country.

You're not tailoring your message to the right audience.

We aren't going for the guy who's going to be a four year starter at OSU. We are going for the 3-star athletes who will be four year starters for us rather than a one year starter at OSU. And we're telling them that by getting those four years on the field, we're increasing your exposure on tv (which we get almost every week) and your chances of making it to the NFL, just like so many of our former players in the past. You can't make it big while riding the pine.

Oh, and if you make it big here, the entire state will love you and you'll still have opportunities to play in New Year's Six bowls, etc...

 

[Exit 4]

You're not tailoring your message to the right audience.

We aren't going for the guy who's going to be a four year starter at OSU. We are going for the 3-star athletes who will be four year starters for us rather than a one year starter at OSU. And we're telling them that by getting those four years on the field, we're increasing your exposure on tv (which we get almost every week) and your chances of making it to the NFL, just like so many of our former players in the past. You can't make it big while riding the pine.

Oh, and if you make it big here, the entire state will love you and you'll still have opportunities to play in New Year's Six bowls, etc...

Hmmm, how about you both are right. Edsall's pitch is playing time, football family, tv exposure is solid, I'll make you a better player and hey I've done this. Bonus pitch items; academics, nice campus and other sports are big here too - so campus life is interesting.

 

[CL82]

We don't stand an icicles chance in hell of beating BS College. By now half to 2/3 of the UConn fans that bought tickets have probably already sold them online, and it will be a home game for them, with 75 percent or better crowd support. We sold them a home game for a million bucks, and they're gonna slaughter us.

They'd have slaughtered us anyway. At least we are walking away with $1M.

For those who say REv2 isn't the answer, who knows you may be right but it is way to soon to know. At least he appears to be in control and making intelligent decisions. Regardless, we all ought to be rooting for him to be successful. I don't know if the program can survive another failed coaching regime.

For those who say we are hampered by the lack of P5 status, ya think? @ASweet3781, first, I hate your freaking avatar every time I see it. Second, the notion that UConn's recruiting pitch in all sports was solely, hey, come to our school and play against teams you've seen on TV is right out of Calhoun's playbook in his first few years here. That's not our narrative today. We can sell the university (don't underestimate the value of a degree from a top 20 public) and we can sell "our brand." We are a known entity with good TV coverage and a tradition of success in multiple sports. So, while recruiting would certainly be easier in the P5, it's not impossible here in the 'P6 purgatory.'

Now, I agree that it is very tough to recruit for football both because we have recruit out of region and because of the lack of recent success. We are banking on REv1's proven ability to find diamonds in the rough and polish them into pro players. That takes time. So we need to tough it out, hang on and hope for the best. It isn't going to be fun in the near term but there isn't any easier path forward.

 

[Pudge]

We can recruit and play at a higher level than those schools when we were playing in a Power 5 league with Power 5 TV money and resources. We currently can't offer that. Most of our recruiting pitches we successfully were able to make are gone. Which explains why we are witnessing what we are seeing in men's hoop and football and why most of the posts on those boards the last 2 years are aghast at the lack of talent on both rosters.

Silly

College Hoop just is not that. And for the most part, the Boneyard guy's start there. We can compete for National Championships. We have the mix and the culture. The Fanbase, however, is filled with New England curmudgeon types like you that whine far too much.

Football? We have the right guy in place. I wish we were getting the big $ like Rutgers. But I know - as a fan - they'll be getting 50-10 asskicks for a full decade. And they won't improve.

Honeymoon is one word.

 

[Excalibur]

Temple beat themselves and Tulsa is objectively awful. Nothing about those two games should have given us a reason to think that we had suddenly turned a corner. Yet people will still get sucked in . . .

 

[Pudge]

Temple beat themselves and Tulsa is objectively awful. Nothing about those two games should have given us a reason to think that we had suddenly turned a corner. Yet people will still get sucked in . . .

Why beat ourselves up on Wins?

We may get one more this year. But ... I think Edsall was just the right medicine for what we have; his staff was thoughtfully put together; and he is progressing in managing a mismatched roster. He's here for awhile. And he knows the territory and knows the way forward.

We ain't getting 4 stars stolen from a P5. We can get speed and less recruited high end talent. The fact that we have a 6-7 265 FR playing is the Beacon to what this about. Coach Em up.