Not sure what this title should be but I think: Back Off

[ZooCougar]

On the former, I personally believe that many on this board are making too much of this. By the time we reach conference play we will no longer be a two QB offense and my personal belief is that the staff already knows that neither of the two is the long term answer.

On the latter I strongly disagree. Down the road the added experience should pay significant dividends.

Dude, two QB systems are always dysfunctional. It's like deciding to always drive drunk, or having an open marriage. Why on earth do we have to give Whitmer more experience?

And yes playing 50+ players is excessive and confusing. Not sure that experience was all that valuable because it wasn't enough to do any good.

 

[Huskydog45]

I agree with NEforceUCONN. Way too much negativity. And for anyone to say "we duck*king sucked", just an embarrassing comment and someone who cannot analyze a game from start to finish. Just a fan who would be miserable no matter how the game is played and anything short of a win, will be miserable and apparently that quote is all the comes to mind? Thanks for in depth insight of the game.

Don't get me wrong, there are certainly plays and coaching decisions that can be questionned, but I will say the FG in the fourth quarter was the right call. Down 18 with 12 minutes left? Still possible for 3 possessions in that game I would say, no doubt. If they score on that drive where they were inside the 10, the game is an 11 point with what, 7 minutes to go. If they score there which certainly was a great opportunity to do so, I think the fans stay in their seats and who knows what happens the rest of the way. Get a stop with 5 minutes to go, down 11, who knows?

The 4 back running attack is obviously an improvement over last year and gives us many options there, the pretty solid offensive line play, the DBs not allowing any big plays downfield and the increased number of weapons at TE which appear to be an improvement as well. We also moved the ball pretty well as reflected by the total yards differential being only about 100.

Not a big fan of the 2 QB system and know not many are so the criticism is warranted there but for the "we duck*king sucked" comment, lets keep those comments off the board going forward.

 

[Marty Jackson]

If you are going to call me out...

A: Many of my complaints were about things like parking and the stadium and the lack of support (which you grant)... so since I was there and you weren't you'll have to forgive me if I don't much care what you think.

B: I don't think I posted much of anything about units or players - so I have no idea what that rant is about.

The insanity of the two quarterback system, bizarre decision making and what a coach says post game are all in play no matter how long he has been coach. Last I checked they were paying his entire salary this year - so while he may think it's great to screw around and treat games like exhibitions... they didn't price the games as exhibitions. It's nice that he thinks the kicker needs work from the right hash... I know it's almost impossible to simulate that in practice.

i think you've been labeled the 'Debbie Downer Poster Child' on the BY. Congratulations!!!

 

[J187Money]

Well at least we won't have complaints about Diaco nailing guys to the bench and never getting a chance.

 

[CTfan07]

Criticism at this point is unwarranted. Are there things to criticize? Of course. If you look for faults you will always find them, even when judging Belichick or Saban.

That being said, if you don't keep context in mind you will have a overly simplistic, unbalanced and childish view of the whole situation.

Here's the context:
-A first time head coach. He's going to make mistakes. Back off. Think of him as your employee and you are the AD. Are you going to micromanage the s*** out of him? I hope not. Every small in-game or press conference mistake is not a microcosm of the regime. I'll make my judgments as the year goes on. Do we look better coached in Game 6 than Game 1? Game 12 than Game 6? I know UConn fans are impatient and want to get back to winning, but it takes time. Is Diaco UConn's savior? I have no idea. It is far too early to tell.

-A program in a rebuilding stage. The previous regime was not successful in forming a strong team. The current players don't have a culture of winning. That takes time, effort and growing pains as well.

-The opponent. BYU is a good football team. Bronco Mendenhall is in his 10th year as head coach and his system is solidly in place. Their offense is very tough to stop because of its speed (they run plays quickly before the defense is set). They have a great quraterback, who can extend plays, create plays and make good decisions. The UConn defense is still learning the system under the new regime. 10th year offense with a Heisman trophy candidate at QB against a first year defense. It was going to be a tough task from the start. I thought the defense played well for the circumstances.

-Misfortune. DeLorenzo's fumble was untimely. If you're down 14-0 that quickly as a big underdog, your gameplan is likely undone.


There was a lot to be encouraged by and my hope is most UConn fans focus on those things

 

[Pudge]

If you are going to call me out...

A: Many of my complaints were about things like parking and the stadium and the lack of support (which you grant)... so since I was there and you weren't you'll have to forgive me if I don't much care what you think.

B: I don't think I posted much of anything about units or players - so I have no idea what that rant is about.

The insanity of the two quarterback system, bizarre decision making and what a coach says post game are all in play no matter how long he has been coach. Last I checked they were paying his entire salary this year - so while he may think it's great to screw around and treat games like exhibitions... they didn't price the games as exhibitions. It's nice that he thinks the kicker needs work from the right hash... I know it's almost impossible to simulate that in practice.

I don't care what you think either. You were CRAZY over the top. Just outlandishly extreme.

The Platoon? I thought Diaco's substitutions were as seamless as they could be. (No. I didn't like taking Cochran out when he led us all down the field ... However). I think we won't see this when we are in Game 3.

Whiners.

 

[JaYnYcE]

Unfortunately the "growing pains" aren't finished yet. This place will become even more insufferable. Lots of coaches and former D1 players reside on this board. They know how to get it done.

it's 2005-2006 again.

 

[whaler11]

i think you've been labeled the 'Debbie Downer Poster Child' on the BY. Congratulations!!!

Sorry. 13-25 wears on you.

 

[whaler11]

I don't care what you think either. You were CRAZY over the top. Just outlandishly extreme.

The Platoon? I thought Diaco's substitutions were as seamless as they could be. (No. I didn't like taking Cochran out when he led us all down the field ... However). I think we won't see this when we are in Game 3.

Whiners.

I don't care what you think either. You were CRAZY over the top. Just outlandishly extreme.

The Platoon? I thought Diaco's substitutions were as seamless as they could be. (No. I didn't like taking Cochran out when he led us all down the field ... However). I think we won't see this when we are in Game 3.

Whiners.

There are people here who make me rethink my opinions at times. No worries here though.

 

[metsfan2323]

it's 2005-2006 again.

Nah, those teams had poor QB play. Maybe its 2010 and we don't know it yet. That year started 3-4 (including a spanking by Temple and multiple QB changes) and ended in the Fiesta bowl.

 

[ZooCougar]

Nah, those teams had poor QB play. Maybe its 2010 and we don't know it yet. That year started 3-4 (including a spanking by Temple and multiple QB changes) and ended in the Fiesta bowl.

We have a good QB on the roster. He doesn't throw many picks, and he won three games for us last season.

Just a thought but maybe we should put the ball in his hands and let him go after it, instead of confusing the matter.

This actually slows down the development of the team. It's beyond awful.

 

[Marty Jackson]

Sorry. 13-25 wears on you.

It wears on all of us, at least those that are cheering for the team. Obviously, there are several rooting against the program to advance their idea of protecting bb...
Patience...

 

[whaler11]

It wears on all of us, at least those that are cheering for the team. Obviously, there are several rooting against the program to advance their idea of protecting bb...
Patience...

I've got patience for the results. I didn't expect UConn to win the game, nor am I holding Diaco to anything on the field past improvement in 2014.

I have two major complaints about Diaco from Friday which are both completely legitimate. You are being paid 2 million dollars - pick a quarterback. Don't surrender down 21 with time left in order to give your kicker practice.

I find his post game comments annoying, but if not for the other two issues I would have ignored them.

Every single coach in America has to balance their current results with building for the future - there is nothing special about Diaco's position.

As for the condition of the stadium bleachers and the parking patterns and personnel? An embarrassment that reeks of small time.

 

[kcc1442]

People...need to chill.....Be positive. I know we are still circling the toilette bowl but don't look down. Plenty of positives from last night despite the outcome that can be a tad misleading. Be chill and believe in the players and the bond they are forming. Don't be so negative and crucial of every minor aspect and then leave your seat in the 3rd quarter like many did out there. I don't understand you "some people" you want to be so crucial, yell scream and pitch a fit while not supporting the team till the end in order to see progress or possible success. Les Miserable......I swear some of you people seat in your seats and make comments like " I know we got the sack and fumble but our safety was totally out of place, I'm a bit concerned that Diaco is playing to many Safeties. I'm also a little perplexed about why Diaco hasn't taught our kids how to scoop and score off of that fumble, I mean we have D1 athletes don't we? And oh great here comes our 2 QB offense. Is Diaco an idiot?

 

[UConnDan97]

People...need to chill.....Be positive. I know we are still circling the toilette bowl but don't look down. Plenty of positives from last night despite the outcome that can be a tad misleading. Be chill and believe in the players and the bond they are forming. Don't be so negative and crucial of every minor aspect and then leave your seat in the 3rd quarter like many did out there. I don't understand you "some people" you want to be so crucial, yell scream and pitch a fit while not supporting the team till the end in order to see progress or possible success. Les Miserable.I swear some of you people seat in your seats and make comments like " I know we got the sack and fumble but our safety was totally out of place, I'm a bit concerned that Diaco is playing to many Safeties. I'm also a little perplexed about why Diaco hasn't taught our kids how to scoop and score off of that fumble, I mean we have D1 athletes don't we? And oh great here comes our 2 QB offense. Is Diaco an idiot?

Having concerns about the coach's game time approach and not believing in the players are two vastly different things. Vastly different.

I believe wholeheartedly in the players. I saw a team of guys that didn't quit. I saw a team with noticeable talent in a lot of areas of the field. Hell, I'm one of the few that actually believes that BOTH of our QB's are more than adequate to lead us to victory. But those positive feelings for the present and future shouldn't preclude me from having real concerns about Diaco's approach to a 2-QB system, or his admitted management of a game to simply get people an extra play, despite it not being the right thing to do (i.e., Puyol's FG, down a lot).

Do I believe that Diaco has been a great and positive influence on this team? Yes.
Do I believe that Diaco has all the tools to be a great coach for the University of Connecticut? Yes.
Do I believe that Diaco brought in a high quality assistant staff? Yes.
Do I think that he has some things to learn from the mistakes he made in game 1? Yes.
Do I wish he took more responsibility for those mistakes? Yes.

I'm still a part of Team Diaco. But that doesn't mean that I have to like everything he did...

 

[Stray_Dog]

How many years of coaching experience do you have? Have you ever built a program from scratch?

I have no coaching experience, never built a program from scratch, just wondering though, does Diaco have this experience???? Didn't think so! ...and who hired him? Not saying Bob Diaco won't work out but I am saying he certainly didn't work out with the effort I wanted to see on the field.
We lost to a good team that was 6 starters down - 6 We are using two QB's STILL???? An exhibition game, man, the only people that got their monies worth on Friday Night were the people who paid the bargain ticket prices $20.00 tickets - and for the season ticket holder, please sit down, strap up, and hold your nose, This one STINKS!!!

 

[kcc1442]

Having concerns about the coach's game time approach and not believing in the players are two vastly different things. Vastly different.

I believe wholeheartedly in the players. I saw a team of guys that didn't quit. I saw a team with noticeable talent in a lot of areas of the field. Hell, I'm one of the few that actually believes that BOTH of our QB's are more than adequate to lead us to victory. But those positive feelings for the present and future shouldn't preclude me from having real concerns about Diaco's approach to a 2-QB system, or his admitted management of a game to simply get people an extra play, despite it not being the right thing to do (i.e., Puyol's FG, down a lot).

Do I believe that Diaco has been a great and positive influence on this team? Yes.
Do I believe that Diaco has all the tools to be a great coach for the University of Connecticut? Yes.
Do I believe that Diaco brought in a high quality assistant staff? Yes.
Do I think that he has some things to learn from the mistakes he made in game 1? Yes.
Do I wish he took more responsibility for those mistakes? Yes.

I'm still a part of Team Diaco. But that doesn't mean that I have to like everything he did...

I have no coaching experience, never built a program from scratch, just wondering though, does Diaco have this experience???? Didn't think so! ...and who hired him? Not saying Bob Diaco won't work out but I am saying he certainly didn't work out with the effort I wanted to see on the field.
We lost to a good team that was 6 starters down - 6 We are using two QB's STILL???? An exhibition game, man, the only people that got their monies worth on Friday Night were the people who paid the bargain ticket prices $20.00 tickets - and for the season ticket holder, please sit down, strap up, and hold your nose, This one STINKS!!!

UD97. Believing in the players and the coach should go hand in hand, especially after GAME 1....yeah GAME 1.........You know what go ahead and be critical all you want. People have different personalities, don't try to project and make other people so negative though. IT WAS GAME 1. AGAINST a very good team. We didn't lose to Stony Brook. And really I believe if just two plays go different early on it is a very close game at the end. (Take away MD fumble and CC pick) Add a FG instead of CC pick and consider we would have kicked a FG down 14 not 21 instead of fake FG.

I don't know about you guys but I was at the game and then I watched the game on ESPN 3 the next day. After watching it and dissecting every play I had a much better feeling and outlook. I get the experience felt a little t y the other night but all sports are played game to game. The mistakes we made are very correctable, there is no need to start losing respect and faith in our head coach. GET FHCPP out of your mind and don't hold that against HCBD. I know I didn't even start losing faith in FHCPP till back to back losses to CUSE and USF mid way through year 2. It's a joke how excited some people get for the year and how highly the talk about a person and then how quickly they throw him under the bus.

 

[businesslawyer]

Having concerns about the coach's game time approach and not believing in the players are two vastly different things. Vastly different.

I believe wholeheartedly in the players. I saw a team of guys that didn't quit. I saw a team with noticeable talent in a lot of areas of the field. Hell, I'm one of the few that actually believes that BOTH of our QB's are more than adequate to lead us to victory. But those positive feelings for the present and future shouldn't preclude me from having real concerns about Diaco's approach to a 2-QB system, or his admitted management of a game to simply get people an extra play, despite it not being the right thing to do (i.e., Puyol's FG, down a lot).

Do I believe that Diaco has been a great and positive influence on this team? Yes.
Do I believe that Diaco has all the tools to be a great coach for the University of Connecticut? Yes.
Do I believe that Diaco brought in a high quality assistant staff? Yes.
Do I think that he has some things to learn from the mistakes he made in game 1? Yes.
Do I wish he took more responsibility for those mistakes? Yes.

I'm still a part of Team Diaco. But that doesn't mean that I have to like everything he did...

One can't like everything he did without consciously closing their eyes and being a suckup. But one can recognize it was his first game, and not one we ever had a material chance of winning, and not feel the needd to criticize everything down to the press conference.

It's not either or.

 

[HuskyBandDad]

In case some people here may have forgotten what things were like in the mid 1980's:

In his second game as head coach at UConn, Jim Calhoun lost to Yale. About a month later he lost to Hartford. Each occurred before losing our two best players (Robinson & Gamble) as academic casualties.

During his first season as head women's coach Geno won all of four Big East games and finished seventh in a nine school conference.

I'm confident that there were more than a few moments during those seasons where a fan could find something to complain about with the two new coaches and I do vividly remember (during the middle of the 1988-1989 season) hearing a few UConn fans griping that we made a mistake not hiring Tom Penders (who did everything but beg for the job for about four or five years prior to JC getting hired) as he was able to take URI to the sweet sixteen while we couldn't sniff the NCAA's.

There were fans who wanted Calhoun to retire in 2010 - 2011.

 

[tjhusky]

Who said this after an embarrassing UCONN loss on national TV?
"We didn't win the game, but there's nothing negative that comes from this," "To be here and to compete the way these kids competed, that says it all."

http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=310010201

 

[Marty Jackson]

I've got patience for the results. I didn't expect UConn to win the game, nor am I holding Diaco to anything on the field past improvement in 2014.

I have two major complaints about Diaco from Friday which are both completely legitimate. You are being paid 2 million dollars - pick a quarterback. Don't surrender down 21 with time left in order to give your kicker practice.

I find his post game comments annoying, but if not for the other two issues I would have ignored them.

Every single coach in America has to balance their current results with building for the future - there is nothing special about Diaco's position.

As for the condition of the stadium bleachers and the parking patterns and personnel? An embarrassment that reeks of small time.

you'd think after 10+ years, the university could figure out how to fix the small things regarding game day at the Rent. It's a great venue and with the right moves, could be an asset even if it's 20 miles off campus.

as for Diaco, he's not a finished product. He didn't come here with 10 years experience as a head coach. he has an approach, a system, and a style... Like anyone else, he's learning how and when to flex and tweak his system. there is no doubt he'll bump into some walls or obstacles. that's part of his development.

I think the two QB is him sticking to his approach in some way. will this approach work or will he continue if it doesn't? Is it just a way for him to keep both QB's buying into his approach until there is separation and he can make a decision without losing portions of the team? hopefully, whatever the plan, it moves to 1 qb sooner rather than later.

I like Diaco. but he has some development as well. Friday night was a lesson for the coach as well. He's smart and motivated. Let's assume he saw all the flaws we did, or at least has a staff that did. I'm guessing they saw things we didn't. Let's see if there are any adjustments. That would be a huge difference between this staff and the previous regime.

 

[junglehusky]

I haven't seen Diaco's contract, but I would venture a guess that picking a starting QB isn't in there. /justsayin

 

[Marty Jackson]

I haven't seen Diaco's contract, but I would venture a guess that picking a starting QB isn't in there. /justsayin

why would you 'venture' that guess?

 

[junglehusky]

why would you 'venture' that guess?

Just responding to whaler's comment -

I have two major complaints about Diaco from Friday which are both completely legitimate. You are being paid 2 million dollars - pick a quarterback. Don't surrender down 21 with time left in order to give your kicker practice.

Diaco is being paid to turn the program around and win games over the long term. I was just pointing out that's not the same thing as being paid to name a starter. I don't know the reason Diaco / Patterson switched to Whitmer in the middle of a drive, and I don't like it any more than other BYers, but my guess would be that neither QB is seen as good enough to be the fulltime starter and so far their results support that. Bringing up Diaco's salary on this point is mostly irrelevant.

 

[whaler11]

Just responding to whaler's comment -

Diaco is being paid to turn the program around and win games over the long term. I was just pointing out that's not the same thing as being paid to name a starter. I don't know the reason Diaco / Patterson switched to Whitmer in the middle of a drive, and I don't like it any more than other BYers, but my guess would be that neither QB is seen as good enough to be the fulltime starter and so far their results support that. Bringing up Diaco's salary on this point is mostly irrelevant.

It irrelevant to a point.

When you have an 8 figure contract to coach a football team part of what needs to happen is decision making.

Maybe neither has distingushed themselves enough to play exclusively... but if you are willing to treat at least one 2014 game as an exhibition what would be the point of playing Whitmer - he isn't going to help you win in the future.

The only reason to play Whitmer is if he helps you win now. If there is no difference why wouldn't you play the sophomore if your focus is development and the future?

The more time spent on the discussion only further enhances how insane it is to play them both. CC is good enough for the first two drives in the red zone but not the third and beyond? Is there an ounce of logic anywhere in that thought process?