Jim Calhoun and UCONN Football.

[Carl Spackler]

Playing defense to win.

Jim Calhoun. UCONN. Where would UCONN be without Jim?

I hope that writers catch on to this. I think Diaco is a brilliant football mind. I'd love to spend time with this guy in a room with a chalk board. He's embraced UCONN sports - and the culture and he's building it. I want him to stay. A long time. And win. LIke the coaches in all the other sports.

What is the spirit of UCONN sports? How did Calhoun build basketball? Geno?

Play strong defense, and score points when you can to win.

Who around here is old enough to remember the constant full court pressing defense that Calhoun used to build his program? Murray Williams. Cliff Robinson. John Gwynn off the bench to score points. I miss that in today's basketball game. I often wonder - when I do watch hoops - why we don't do it all the time?

IN football - UCONN has been about strong defense, running the football and when we can put a decent QB / RB on the field - we win titles.

It started in the 1980s. Look at the record books. Defense. It's always there. The most all americans we've ever produced came from Tom Jackson's recruiting era in 1-AA. Skip Holtz built and offense and got us our 10 win season, but didn't build the D and lasted only a short while. Where would Edsall have been, if he had not built the defense and managed to recruit Orlovsky?

THe guy - Diaco - has a recruiting plan that's working. I truly hope that higher ups at UCONN in administration are taking notes, and recording what works for our school.

THat is something that basketball people don't really get. THe sheer numbers and the kind of recruiting plan you need to have. IN basketball, if you get 1 game changing player a year - that's a great thing in recruiting. IN football - you need a dozen - every year and the roster isn't 15 - it's 105.

I hope that in 20 years, there will be Bob Diaco UCONN Football bobble-head figurines for sale

As for 2015. It's in the books. 6-7. Loss to Marshall in the St. Petersburg bowl to finish the season.

 

[Adios]

He's building it up to resemble a Big Ten program. Just some dumb decisions along the way.

 

[Carl Spackler]

He's building it up to resemble a Big Ten program. Just some dumb decisions along the way.

Oh, I wouldn't go that far my internet friend. Diaco is a linebacker. A smart one. A tough one. He's building a program that fits what UCONN is all about in sports, and I love it.

There is probably nothing that bothers Diaco more about today's performance than the tackling effort our defense put forth today. UGGGGG.

There is NOTHING that exhibits what a football team's level of preparation to play the game is other than tackling. Blocking 1-1 from the offense comes next. We all know where we are with that for UCONN. We are not good at blocking from all 10 positions other than the QB at UCONN right now, and haven't been for a while. But tackling?

Today was awful.

You got to make chest contact, center of mass, arms open - wrap, lock, and twist. I remember Diaco mentioning it at some point, and he used different terminology but it's the same damn thing. I don't give a about making a big hit. the job is to get the guy on the ground.

Fundamentals. We lost today, because we did not do the fundamentals of blocking and tackling better than they did.

 

[TouchdownHusky]

OMG, UConn is doomed with this thinking. JC was building a program in the eighties, this is 2015 and the game of football is dominated by high scoring. JC's defenses were aggressive, press you all over the court. Remember the '89-'90 team? They played at times like they had 7 or 8 defenders against 5. BD's defense is anything but aggressive. They have talent, but the scheme is too passive, too soft. Also, JC, in the early years, recruited the conference - the Big East with 3 teams in the final four. BD doesn't have a Big East level conference to recruit to. Sorry, but nostalgic yearning for old time football ain't gonna cut it today unless you are an Alabama who has the best player at each position, all at once.

 

[Carl Spackler]

OMG, UConn is doomed with this thinking. JC was building a program in the eighties, this is 2015 and the game of football is dominated by high scoring. JC's defenses were aggressive, press you all over the court. Remember the '89-'90 team? They played at times like they had 7 or 8 defenders against 5. BD's defense is anything but aggressive. They have talent, but the scheme is too passive, too soft. Also, JC, in the early years, recruited the conference - the Big East with 3 teams in the final four. BD doesn't have a Big East level conference to recruit to. Sorry, but nostalgic yearning for old time football ain't gonna cut it today unless you are an Alabama who has the best player at each position, all at once.

go back to whatever hole you crawled out of. Hopefully winter will come soon, to make you get in there faster and deeper.

 

[BlueDogs]

go back to whatever hole you crawled out of. Hopefully winter will come soon, to make you get in there faster and deeper.

Carl - you're usually pretty sane, but I really don't know how you can arrive at this view after watching the last 2 games. One thing JC was a master at is closing the season strong and leaving a team better than it was when it started. I cannot arrive at that conclusion with Diaco. Today was a a schit show of cosching incompetence, bad prep, and worst of all a complete lack of confidence in his players to make plays.

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

No offense Carl but I'm not in any facking mood for these type of Spackler threads.

 

[Carl Spackler]

Oh - did I make any of you actually think? I'm SOOOO sorry. Not.

You got to develop a plan to do things - like run a football football program - on multiple levels. Diaco was a micromanager last season. Edsall was a micromanager every season. I won't go farther back than that. Farther? Further? which is correct?

Diaco has grown this season. He's not an Edsall micromanager anymore, which means he can grow more than Edsall did at UCONN. He's got his recruiting plan - at UCONN - that works for our location, and the level we want to be at (top 25 in the country at division 1A)

What is the identity of UCONN football? Ask yourself.

Diaco is building it back up, and all I ever wanted of Edsall, was to build it further (farther?) than he had done. He was incapable.

Diaco has yet to demonstrate that he can't.

Players got to play. Coaches got to coach. And there has to be plan.

 

[TouchdownHusky]

go back to whatever hole you crawled out of. Hopefully winter will come soon, to make you get in there faster and deeper.

Hey Knute . . . Mr we'll run to the right. We'll run to the left. Please stop with the rah, rah, BS. Go back to the 1950's and watch some leather helmeted, no face mask, steel mill workers push and shove each other. Stay away from today's game.

 

[whaler11]

No offense Carl but I'm not in any facking mood for these type of Spackler threads.

As annoying as Spackler can be... he's pretty much right - if he could just be shorter about it...

 

[J187Money]

As annoying as Spackler can be... he's pretty much right - if he could just be shorter about it...

It wouldn't be any fun.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Oh, I wouldn't go that far my internet friend. Diaco is a linebacker. A smart one. A tough one. He's building a program that fits what UCONN is all about in sports, and I love it.

There is probably nothing that bothers Diaco more about today's performance than the tackling effort our defense put forth today. UGGGGG.

There is NOTHING that exhibits what a football team's level of preparation to play the game is other than tackling. Blocking 1-1 from the offense comes next. We all know where we are with that for UCONN. We are not good at blocking from all 10 positions other than the QB at UCONN right now, and haven't been for a while. But tackling?

Today was awful.

You got to make chest contact, center of mass, arms open - wrap, lock, and twist. I remember Diaco mentioning it at some point, and he used different terminology but it's the same damn thing. I don't give a about making a big hit. the job is to get the guy on the ground.

Fundamentals. We lost today, because we did not do the fundamentals of blocking and tackling better than they did.

A lot of words to say that UConn's players needed to execute better?

 

[sdhusky]

Hey Knute . . . Mr we'll run to the right. We'll run to the left. Please stop with the rah, rah, BS. Go back to the 1950's and watch some leather helmeted, no face mask, steel mill workers push and shove each other. Stay away from today's game.

Sucks to be Alabama.

 

[huskysupporter]

Sucks to be Alabama.

And Michigan State. And Iowa. And LSU. And Stanford.

 

[Palatine]

Playing defense to win.

Jim Calhoun. UCONN. Where would UCONN be without Jim?

I hope that writers catch on to this. I think Diaco is a brilliant football mind. I'd love to spend time with this guy in a room with a chalk board. He's embraced UCONN sports - and the culture and he's building it. I want him to stay. A long time. And win. LIke the coaches in all the other sports.

What is the spirit of UCONN sports? How did Calhoun build basketball? Geno?

Play strong defense, and score points when you can to win.

Who around here is old enough to remember the constant full court pressing defense that Calhoun used to build his program? Murray Williams. Cliff Robinson. John Gwynn off the bench to score points. I miss that in today's basketball game. I often wonder - when I do watch hoops - why we don't do it all the time?

IN football - UCONN has been about strong defense, running the football and when we can put a decent QB / RB on the field - we win titles.

It started in the 1980s. Look at the record books. Defense. It's always there. The most all americans we've ever produced came from Tom Jackson's recruiting era in 1-AA. Skip Holtz built and offense and got us our 10 win season, but didn't build the D and lasted only a short while. Where would Edsall have been, if he had not built the defense and managed to recruit Orlovsky?

THe guy - Diaco - has a recruiting plan that's working. I truly hope that higher ups at UCONN in administration are taking notes, and recording what works for our school.

THat is something that basketball people don't really get. THe sheer numbers and the kind of recruiting plan you need to have. IN basketball, if you get 1 game changing player a year - that's a great thing in recruiting. IN football - you need a dozen - every year and the roster isn't 15 - it's 105.

I hope that in 20 years, there will be Bob Diaco UCONN Football bobble-head figurines for sale

As for 2015. It's in the books. 6-7. Loss to Marshall in the St. Petersburg bowl to finish the season.

Calhoun's teams passed he ball.

 

[raf46]

Oh - did I make any of you actually think? I'm SOOOO sorry. Not.

You got to develop a plan to do things - like run a football football program - on multiple levels. Diaco was a micromanager last season. Edsall was a micromanager every season. I won't go farther back than that. Farther? Further? which is correct?

Diaco has grown this season. He's not an Edsall micromanager anymore, which means he can grow more than Edsall did at UCONN. He's got his recruiting plan - at UCONN - that works for our location, and the level we want to be at (top 25 in the country at division 1A)

What is the identity of UCONN football? Ask yourself.

Diaco is building it back up, and all I ever wanted of Edsall, was to build it further (farther?) than he had done. He was incapable.

Diaco has yet to demonstrate that he can't.

Players got to play. Coaches got to coach. And there has to be plan.

Your take on the hoops growth is right on point. the way the game is called today not only would make JC not be able to impose our defense, but makes the game today almost unwatchable. most times the hoops games have no flow. End to end to action is so rare now, that people forget how really fluid hoops is. Too many whistles, too many halts to the game.

 

[Carl Spackler]

Carl - you're usually pretty sane, but I really don't know how you can arrive at this view after watching the last 2 games. One thing JC was a master at is closing the season strong and leaving a team better than it was when it started. I cannot arrive at that conclusion with Diaco. Today was a a schit show of cosching incompetence, bad prep, and worst of all a complete lack of confidence in his players to make plays.

It was a reach with the concepts I wrote, but not far. Talk to Geno about what it takes to win championships. JC. KO. There are concepts that are sport specific, and there are concepts that are pretty much universal.

Diaco's plan? Through 2 years of observation? Entirely unconventional. But its working.

We had a huge letdown after the civil conflict. Took a while to recover, We had another one after beating Houston. Looked like they forgot how to tackle again, and they didn't overcome it. Florida beaches and bikinis.

Im glad Disco had this learning experience this year, rather in a future season, where the bowl game might be bigger.

Motivating and coaching from success, is a very poorly undestood thing, that the best coaches struggle with daily.

Diaco is a smart guy. He can look at the film from the past 2 games. He knows the team fell apart with football fundamentals.

Biggest misconception about football is thst its a game of physical strength. The physicality is the method of competing. Its a game of infividusl and collective will power and mental discipline to perform tasks individually and as a group while enduring physical and mental stress.

You need the strebgth, size and speed to determine competition level. Recruiting. Strength and conditioning.

After tht its all mental discipline on learning tasks, andvdeveloping plans and executing them.

All mental.

Diaco is a great motivator. He is still learning what it takes to keep a team motivated and focused from the winning side of .500.

Untilhe demonstrates he can't, there is nothing to talk about except how well the guy's unconventional plan has worked from season 1 to season 2, and look forward to season 3.

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

As annoying as Spackler can be... he's pretty much right - if he could just be shorter about it...

It's Captain Obvious stuff in a long winded post.

Diaco is building a program with an emphasis on defense and running the football.

Oh and he has a plan!

And basketball recruiting is much different than football.

Good thing we have Carl to point this stuff out.

 

[06029]

Diaco may be brilliant. He may have a great football mind. He may also be a great coach. And if he is, he is not staying at Uconn for a long time because 2015 FB is not the 1980's BB.

In the 1980's (and to some extent today), any school could win a BB national championship. A coach could build and maintain. Given the dominance of the BE in the 1990's, there was no up for Calhoun to move to, only a sideways alternative.

In FB, if Diaco brings Uconn to a New Years 6 bowl, no way he stays (the Houston coach is buying time for the job he probably really wants). The AAC is a stepping stone conference. There is ample room to go up from the AAC.

Now, this year was a surprise and the team exceeded my win expectation of 4 with a really nice signature win vs Houston. It is hard to not be encouraged and think that BD knows what he is doing. By the same token, there is enough ugliness in the team philosophy and execution that makes me a BD fence sitter because that is 100% coaching and head coach responsibility. I don't see the master recruiting plan that Spackler sees. I don't see the grind it out and win a couple that we shouldn't but lose a couple of close ones on the opposite side as the formula for winning conference championships. It is a formula for respectability not championships.

BD said the team needs to score more points. He did not say how he plans to get there. He also said that he felt Uconn would have won with a few better plays. Which could be interpreted that 10 points should be enough to win any game. And while the recognition is fine on 1 hand, the other statements suggest that what we saw this year is what you will get as long as he is the coach.

BD is a 5 year coach for Uconn. Either he continues to make my doubts go away and he moves to a higher profile gig, or the team becomes a middle of the pack 7-5, 6-6 perennial. And then he needs to be replaced.

 

[Carl Spackler]

It's Captain Obvious stuff in a long winded post.

Diaco is building a program with an emphasis on defense and running the football.

Oh and he has a plan!

And basketball recruiting is much different than football.

Good thing we have Carl to point this stuff out.

When everyone has their panties in a twist, and you got player and player family groupies posting radioactive bullsh-t, somebody has to be a voice of reason.

 

[FDNY99]

Diaco may be brilliant. He may have a great football mind. He may also be a great coach. And if he is, he is not staying at Uconn for a long time because 2015 FB is not the 1980's BB.

In the 1980's (and to some extent today), any school could win a BB national championship. A coach could build and maintain. Given the dominance of the BE in the 1990's, there was no up for Calhoun to move to, only a sideways alternative.

In FB, if Diaco brings Uconn to a New Years 6 bowl, no way he stays (the Houston coach is buying time for the job he probably really wants). The AAC is a stepping stone conference. There is ample room to go up from the AAC.

Now, this year was a surprise and the team exceeded my win expectation of 4 with a really nice signature win vs Houston. It is hard to not be encouraged and think that BD knows what he is doing. By the same token, there is enough ugliness in the team philosophy and execution that makes me a BD fence sitter because that is 100% coaching and head coach responsibility. I don't see the master recruiting plan that Spackler sees. I don't see the grind it out and win a couple that we shouldn't but lose a couple of close ones on the opposite side as the formula for winning conference championships. It is a formula for respectability not championships.

BD said the team needs to score more points. He did not say how he plans to get there. He also said that he felt Uconn would have won with a few better plays. Which could be interpreted that 10 points should be enough to win any game. And while the recognition is fine on 1 hand, the other statements suggest that what we saw this year is what you will get as long as he is the coach.

BD is a 5 year coach for Uconn. Either he continues to make my doubts go away and he moves to a higher profile gig, or the team becomes a middle of the pack 7-5, 6-6 perennial. And then he needs to be replaced.

It's funny you say that about middle of the pack...because that's what we got from Edsall for most of his career here at UCONN and people were more than ok with that.

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

When everyone has their panties in a twist, and you got player and player family groupies posting radioactive bullsh-t, somebody has to be a voice of reason.

We have people on here who actually think the OL didn't play poorly. You need to get out of the business of changing minds. You'll drive yourself drunk.

 

[noeynox]

Oh - did I make any of you actually think? I'm SOOOO sorry. Not.

You got to develop a plan to do things - like run a football football program - on multiple levels. Diaco was a micromanager last season. Edsall was a micromanager every season. I won't go farther back than that. Farther? Further? which is correct?

Diaco has grown this season. He's not an Edsall micromanager anymore, which means he can grow more than Edsall did at UCONN. He's got his recruiting plan - at UCONN - that works for our location, and the level we want to be at (top 25 in the country at division 1A)

What is the identity of UCONN football? Ask yourself.

Diaco is building it back up, and all I ever wanted of Edsall, was to build it further (farther?) than he had done. He was incapable.

Diaco has yet to demonstrate that he can't.

Players got to play. Coaches got to coach. And there has to be plan.

Dicaco needs to show he can consistently avoid burning timeouts by getting the plays in. I don't care if the breakdown is on the OC, the QB, etc. As a HC, he needed to fix that after the second game it happened. Two years in and this is still an issue.

I'd wait to see if he can fix that before I compare him to one of the greatest coaches of his generation. I like Bob, like how he got us back to .500, but I see some glaring holes in his coaching that may keep the team from reaching their potential if he doesnt improve them.

 

[BoatShow]

He called 2 timeouts yesterday that weren't used to ice the kicker or the end of the game.

 

[Pudge]

The day we listen to TouchdownHusky is the day we should blow up the RENT. Never impressed with the steps suggested to build & maintain a Winning Program that came from him.

First ... To play a Brand of throw the ball around demands a QB. And lots of speed. Diaco & HCRE started with Defense. That's the first step. Then we can try to be Iowa.