Recruiting

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

I don't think that's the problem

At the skill positions and in general, overall talent and speed is not among UConn's current problems? Really? So, it's only coaching. Great, easier to fix.

 

[kris1]

There is enough talent on this roster to win 8-9 games. Talent doesn't always win. There are a number of factors that go into being a consistently successful program. There are plenty of 4 and 5 star busts. We are not (and may never be) Alabama. We aren't getting those elite recruits. Let's be honest, a 5* recruit is rarely looking for a school to get a quality education. Geographics, conference alignment, stadium, exposure, coaching, offensive/defensive system, admissions, etc. are certainly all factors. You consistently win with 2-3 star kids. Those are the kids you have to coach up because those are the kids that stay in your system for 4-5 years. There are plenty of school who have won consistently with equal or lesser talent then UConn. Boise St, North Dakota St, Navy, BYU, USF, come to mind. Look, Newsome is the highest rated recruit UConn has ever had. Personally, I think he's underachieved in his three years. Not because of his performance, he's going to finish pretty high on UConn's all-time list when it comes to production. I think he's underachieved because the coaches have not taken advantage of his talent. They haven't been able to develop ("coach up") consistency in the offensive line. They haven't been able to develop a QB who can read defenses, make quick decisions and get the ball out. They haven't developed another RB or second and third WRs who can keep defenses honest. They haven't developed pass rushers or LBs that fly all over the field. The haven't developed guys in the secondary who can read a QBs eyes, recognize routes and react to a ball in the air. They haven't developed special teams that teams need to game plan for. Teams literally don't have to spend 1-second on punt or kick coverage because there's no reason to.

You don't need 4-5 star talent to win consistently. You need coaches who are GREAT teachers. Coaches who take what they have, utilize their talents, coach up their weaknesses, trains them physically and mentally to compete EVERY play. A coach who can develop a culture where players are held accountable to higher expectations. Playing time is earned through hardwork, preparation, and competition daily. You can't develop depth or continuity without allowing every player to compete on a daily basis for a chance to play. As a coach, I tell my players make my job putting the line up together difficult. It's never easy to sit a player who's competed for playing time. But, it's easy to coach when I know I can pencil that player in and there's no drop off in production because they've competed and prepared for their moment to shine. Talent doesn't guarantee wins. Talent gives you a chance to win. A great coach finds a way to win with the talent he's got.

At this point, it's pretty clear that HCBD is not a great coach (right now). Unfortunately, you can't fire the players. Does that mean Diaco should go? I don't get to make that decision. But, losing games the way they have and seeing players regress is not a good sign that he has a finger on the pulse of this team. The players deserve better. I get the felling the players are starting to feel like they were sold a bill of goods.

 

[UConnDan97]

There is enough talent on this roster to win 8-9 games. Talent doesn't always win. There are a number of factors that go into being a consistently successful program. There are plenty of 4 and 5 star busts. We are not (And may never be) Alabama. We aren't getting those elite recruits. Let's be honest, a 5* recruit is rarely looking for a school to get a quality education. Geographics, conference alignment, stadium, exposure, coaching, offensive/defensive system, admissions, etc. are certainly all factors. You consistently win with 2-3 star kids. Those are the kids you have to coach up. Those are the kids that stay in your system for 4-5 years. There are plenty of school who have won consistently with equal or lesser talent then UConn. Boise St, North Dakota St, Navy, BYU, USF, come to mind. Look, Newsome is the highest rated recruit UConn has ever had. Personally, I think he's underachieved in his three years. Not because of his performance, he's going to finish pretty high on UConn's all-time list when it comes to production. I think he's underachieved because the coaches have not taken advance of his talent. They haven't been able to develop ("coach up") consistency in the offensive line. They haven't been able to develop a QB who can read defenses, make quick decisions and get the ball out. They haven't developed another RB or second and third WRs who can keep defenses honest. They haven't developed pass rushers or LBs that fly all over the field. The haven't developed guys in the secondary who can read a QBs eyes, recognize routes and react to a ball in the air. They haven't developed special teams that teams need to game plan for. Teams literally don't have to spend 1-second on punt or kick coverage because there's no reason to. You don't need 4-5 star talent to win consistently. You need coaches who are GREAT teachers. Coaches who take what they have, utilize their talents, coach up their weaknesses, trains them physically and mentally to compete EVERY play. A coach who can develop a culture where players are held accountable to higher expectations. Playing time is earned through hardwork, preparation, and competition daily. You can't develop depth or continuity without allowing every player to compete on a daily basis for a chance to play. As a coach, I tell my players make my job putting the line up together difficult. It's never easy to sit a player who's competed for playing time. But, it's easy to coach when I know I can pencil that player in and there's no drop off in production because they've competed and prepared for their moment to shine. Talent doesn't guarantee wins. Talent gives you a chance to win. A great coach finds a way to win with the talent he's got.

At this point, it's pretty clear that HCBD is not a great coach (right now). Unfortunately, you can't fire the players. Does that mean Diaco should go? I don't get to make that decision. But, losing games the way they have and seeing players regress is not a good sign that he has a finger on the pulse of this team. The players deserve better. I get the felling the players are starting to feel like they were sold a bill of goods.

Amen!

To those who constantly talk about our lack of talent, I'd like to focus your attention to Wyoming. They hire Bohl, and they are instantly a top 25 - top 35 team. And I can guarantee you that we have more talent than they do, all over the roster.

In the immortal words of @noeynox, "coaching matters"...

 

[noeynox]

Amen!

To those who constantly talk about our lack of talent, I'd like to focus your attention to Wyoming. They hire Bohl, and they are instantly a top 25 - top 35 team. And I can guarantee you that we have more talent than they do, all over the roster.

In the immortal words of @noeynox, "coaching matters"...

Football is alot about confidence and belief. Guy like Bohls tells his kids, do it my way and we will win. He is in year 3 also i believe and you could see it chiming together. i happen to have watched thwm on a few occasions both this year and last. You could tell these kids believed in Diaco. But then you have a game like Navy, where a win was squandered away with bad coaching, plain and simple. Then you have games like Syracuse, and UCF, and you start to doubt what the coach is saying as well as your own ability.

I give this guy one more year. Let's see the players he recruited take the field. let's see his qb, his 2 running backs, his safeties and corners. He "knows" what he has in the bullpen. To quote Bart Scott, "can't wait".

 

[Hoophound]

Amen!

To those who constantly talk about our lack of talent, I'd like to focus your attention to Wyoming. They hire Bohl, and they are instantly a top 25 - top 35 team. And I can guarantee you that we have more talent than they do, all over the roster.

In the immortal words of @noeynox, "coaching matters"...

Bingo. The fact we were in position to win several games tells you the talent is there. Even now, at 3-6, you can look back and say we should be 5-4. Cuse and Navy were totally on Diaco. From there, look at UCF as a game we clearly could have won with a good coach and we are 6-3. Houston was a loss, but we showed we could compete with them and even scare them if BS could throw a 20 yard pass. USF was a game until they figured us out and ECU drubbed us because the wheels have finally fallen off. We could easily be 7-2.

It is amazing how fast slow players look when playing in the right scheme. It is amazing the holes a crappy OL can open when taught how to do it. This team has plenty of pieces to compete. It is the coach. Let's bring in a new guy to open the Donovan Williams era and take another shot at this rather than crapping on our roster.

The level of incompetence we've seen has proven that the players haven't had a fair shot to win games for themselves. Put yourself in their shoes. Would you think it was fair if some of these losses were pinned on you? Would you be able to swallow that we lost to Navy and Cuse because of you?

 

[Storrsbred]

The problem with not replacing the coach is his in the game management. The results of better positioning coaching can still be rendered moot with the in game craziness or lack of awareness or situational incompetence .

 

[ktuck911]

Recruiting/selling kids UConn is not Diaco's weakness. Gameday coaching is. Part of the blame goes to his staff too - which is 100% on Diaco to fix.

Agreed

Recruiting is most definitely a problem for Bobby-Boy D. Not impressed with the talent level he has brought in.

Recruits might come if (nice red pants Bob) Diaco does a better job of utilizing the talent he has in live games. He and his staff just has to do a better job. We give away winnable games with the stuff we run...

 

[freescooter]

I don't think the talent is that bad either. It isn't Alabama but it ain't Wesleyan either. But you need to use the talent you have to its best advantage and we don't. The idea for a UConn is to compete for the AAC title often, become a top 35ish program on a regular basis. If you do that consistently sometimes you'll over perform and be top 20 or even better. But first and foremost you need a guy who can take the pieces and make things work. Diaco chose to throw away his first year arguing it was necessary to go forward. I thought it was a terrible idea then and I still think it was the wrong way to go. It was also unseemly how he threw his predicessor under the bus. I don't care how bad he was. You simply don't do that. In hind sight it's easy to see that he didn't have some master plan. He was just clueless then as he is now.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Uconn is in a tough spot. It's not easy to recruit top players to a program that is currently stuck in the G5. Especially when the coaches promote a generally unappealing brand of football. Uconn needs to recruit players from the same pool as Cuse, Temple, RU, BC, but tries to do it with one arm tied behind its back.

While I find Diaco's Personality fascinating, I was not a fan of Uconn hiring him when they initially did. After The Pasqualoni Debacle your program desperately needed leadership and experience at the top. Not only that, they needed a jolt of excitement to engage a fan base weary of losing. What they got was a former blue collar linebacker who coaches like he believes Hayden Fry's Offensive game plans at Iowa were far too progressive for this team. He might say all the right things, run a generally clean program, and develop good kids, but his brand of football as a product is bad entertainment. There is a referendum every week on his product when you see the emptiness of the stadium.

I'm not sure that financially the AD could absorb letting Bob go this year, but on the other hand the damage to the program another 4-5 win season could do might outweigh any check they have to write. If they do pull the trigger they better be looking at offensive guys with former HC experience. I know people don't like the idea of guys with questionable pasts, but considering the position Uconn finds itself in they may need to swallow hard.

If you hire this kind of coach, you do so with the knowledge that he will be on an incredibly short leash. Guys like Briles and Sark come to mind immediately. Both are likely chomping at the bit to redeem themselves and would likely seriously entertain the position. Possibly wait for the firing season to see if any offensive guys like Rich Rod, Helfrich, or Dan Mullen get cut loose. If not look any of these guy then you look for an offensive innovator at The CUSA/MAC/Sunbelt Level. UConn is at a critical junction in its history, They are fighting for the relevance of its program. 41-3 at 2-5 ECU should not be good enough for anyone.

Disagree completely. Pasqualoni was the pinnacle of experience. What UConn needed was energy and excitement. Diaco looked the part. He certainly has energy. He was a Broyles award winner at Notre Dame...just like Tom Herman was at tOSU. He was the right kind of guy to hire. He has made many structural improvements, but I think he underestimated what is needed to win in the G5. That he'd need to structure his offense and defense around a talent level that wouldn't match what he had at Notre Dame or Iowa.

Right now, I'd say they need a HC from a lesser program. Maybe P.J. Fleck, he's been a very good recruiter but will probably get better offers. Les Miles wouldn't come to UConn. Lane Kiffin is certain to get one of the big time jobs. So who exactly is UConn supposed to hire?

My take: Benedict will talk to Diaco, and some staff changes will be made. Probably DC, maybe OC.

 

[ktuck911]

I don't think the talent is that bad either. It isn't Alabama but it ain't Wesleyan either. But you need to use the talent you have to its best advantage and we don't. The idea for a UConn is to compete for the AAC title often, become a top 35ish program on a regular basis. If you do that consistently sometimes you'll over perform and be top 20 or even better. But first and foremost you need a guy who can take the pieces and make things work. Diaco chose to throw away his first year arguing it was necessary to go forward. I thought it was a terrible idea then and I still think it was the wrong way to go. It was also unseemly how he threw his predicessor under the bus. I don't care how bad he was. You simply don't do that. In hind sight it's easy to see that he didn't have some master plan. He was just clueless then as he is now.

+1000000% bro! BRAVO.. Spot on... which makes it frustrating... the truth, as bad as it is, hurts...
Diaco showed/shows his inexperience big time. That's something I don't think any of us expected since he came from might ND with top credentials to back him... Like it or not he's digging his own grave with the decisions he's making. Diaco - prove us wrong bro. Turn this thing around by 2017. ZERO excuses next year....

 

[Excalibur]

Amen!

To those who constantly talk about our lack of talent, I'd like to focus your attention to Wyoming. They hire Bohl, and they are instantly a top 25 - top 35 team. And I can guarantee you that we have more talent than they do, all over the roster.

In the immortal words of @noeynox, "coaching matters"...

That was my line . . .


And it's still true. And while whaler is right that there is a ceiling based on talent, there just isn't that much difference between a team that's ranked in the 50's and winning 7-8 games in the American, MWC or MAC, and a team ranked in the 90's and going 4-8 or 5-7 in that same conference.

 

[Excalibur]

I don't think the talent is that bad either. It isn't Alabama but it ain't Wesleyan either. But you need to use the talent you have to its best advantage and we don't. The idea for a UConn is to compete for the AAC title often, become a top 35ish program on a regular basis. If you do that consistently sometimes you'll over perform and be top 20 or even better. But first and foremost you need a guy who can take the pieces and make things work. Diaco chose to throw away his first year arguing it was necessary to go forward. I thought it was a terrible idea then and I still think it was the wrong way to go. It was also unseemly how he threw his predicessor under the bus. I don't care how bad he was. You simply don't do that. In hind sight it's easy to see that he didn't have some master plan. He was just clueless then as he is now.

Diaco isn't the first guy to do a complete tear-down after taking over a losing program. Many coaches have done it successfully. And everything that he said about the culture coming out of the P era was objectively correct.

 

[Caronimo]

I just created a new thread and it was deleted. I don't want to type as much here. Bottom line is the guy made excuses about PP's players sucking, but they are actually our best players. His recruits pretty much all suck and now he has no excuse. If we can afford the buy out clause, he needs to go.

 

[huskymedic]

I just created a new thread and it was deleted. I don't want to type as much here. Bottom line is the guy made excuses about PP's players sucking, but they are actually our best players. His recruits pretty much all suck and now he has no excuse. If we can afford the buy out clause, he needs to go.

Here is your original thought. Same actual discussion was active here w/ same title.

I think this is the biggest factor in deciding if Bobby Boy should be fired or not (besides the buy out clause etc.). I could be wrong, but the better players on the team are not even his recruits. First he blamed having scraps from the PP era, then he blamed lack of play makers and improving (despite bad records) and now I don't think he has any excuses. If he can't recruit then he can't coach at UConn... Because we all know he is a terrible in game coach.

 

[Exit 4]

I think three things keep Bobby here next year, even if they finish with another win.

i) He will argue he has assembled talent that is all redshirting this year in Skanes, Hopkins, Vickers, Herring, Coyle and D. Williams and that he deserves a chance to play that talent next year. Furthermore the talent may walk if he leaves putting the program further behind.
ii) He will concede to making more coaching changes and philosophy changes.
iii) We don't have the $ for the buyout + salaries for the next coach.

 

[Excalibur]

I think this is the biggest factor in deciding if Bobby Boy should be fired or not (besides the buy out clause etc.). I could be wrong, but the better players on the team are not even his recruits. First he blamed having scraps from the PP era, then he blamed lack of play makers and improving (despite bad records) and now I don't think he has any excuses. If he can't recruit then he can't coach at UConn... Because we all know he is a terrible in game coach.

Stated a bit less harshly, we have yet to see a true impact player come from Diaco's recruits (save perhaps Diggs, and Peart has some potential). However, his classes include the 2014 throwaway class, then redshirt freshmen (a few true sophomores) and freshmen who are currently redshirting. So you really have only one full class even seeing the field at this point.

That said, the 2015 class looked a bit weak based on offers/interest from other programs, and the 2017 class is not shaping up great from that standpoint either. The 2016 (currently redshirting) class is significantly more impressive, and in terms of other FBS offers as good as anything that P put together.

 

[UConnJim]

Look at the rosters of schools in the AAC (excluding Navy). UConn has the fewest WRs on the roster at 11 in the AAC! Compare this to 17 at Temple, UCF, and Memphis, 16 at ECU, Houston, and USF, 14 at Tulsa and Tulane, 13 at Cinci, and 12 at SMU. If you combine the numbers of RBs and WRs on the roster, UConn is tied for last with SMU at 18. Compare this to 26 at Houston, 25 at UCF, 24 at Temple, 23 at Memphis and USF, 22 at Tulsa, and 21 at Cinci, ECU, and Tulane.

If you dig deeper, out of our 11 WRs on roster, 4 were walk-ons and 2 are currently red shirting. Out of our 7 RBs on roster, 3 were walk-ons and 2 are currently red shirting. In other words, we have 5 active WRs and 2 active RBs that were brought to UConn on scholarship!

Our QB depth doesn't look much better. We have 5 QBs on the roster, but only 3 were brought in as scholarship players and one is a senior. We need to bring in more skilled QBs.

Our offense has been awful, but we don't have depth at the skilled offensive positions and it starts with recruiting.

 

[TKs]

Amen!

To those who constantly talk about our lack of talent, I'd like to focus your attention to Wyoming. They hire Bohl, and they are instantly a top 25 - top 35 team. And I can guarantee you that we have more talent than they do, all over the roster.

In the immortal words of @noeynox, "coaching matters"...

"Wins matter" Bohl at Wyoming started out 4-8 first year, 2-10 second year (uh-oh), started out 2-2 this year after losing a game they should have won to E. Michigan. Fan base wanted him gone (In over his head, offense needs to be changed, hired wrong guy, etc, etc). Wins 4 straight including close win over Boise St and he is now a God and can run for Governor! "Wins matter"

 

[tiger paw]

Did anyone after navy-Virginia-Syracuse-UCF -think to themselves " wow are those teams really good , how can we ever compete with them ? . they are no better than us. But successful teams all seam to have at least 1 elite game changer. Speed is lacking at UC. watch any SEC team you notice the difference right away. Will BD be able to land that kind of speed ? Give him credit for his energy + positive attitude. Game day management will come with experience. However all of his hires for assistants are his friends from past jobs. You never heard him say he looked + hired the best guy out there. Will he be able to fire any of these guys when necessary ? Or is he too loyal to them ?

 

[huskymedic]

However all of his hires for assistants are his friends from past jobs ?

I don't believe WR Coach Erik Campbell and BD were ever on the same staff -- but Campbell did work for Kirk Frenetz @ Iowa for a number of years.

If they are true friends - they make the decision for you for giving them the opportunity. They all know how the industry works. Hiring people you worked with on other teams or mentors (coaching tree) have worked with is really not out of the norm in college/pro sports. UConn/BD is not unique in that respect.

 

[Confident Carl]

Caught the Husky Walk before the UCF game for the 1st time in years. Last one I was at was an Edsall/Scott Lutrus team. Kept thinking to myself this years team looks like a High School team compared to that Edsall team. Had a bad feeling about our chances in the game after that. FWIW

This year's team has been extremely dissappointing on many fronts. One area where they stack up well is strength, size and conditioning. To say this team looks like a high school team is an incorrect characterization. Saying at times this team PLAYS like a high school team would be a more accurate assessment.

 

[Ldandy]

Disagree completely. Pasqualoni was the pinnacle of experience. What UConn needed was energy and excitement. Diaco looked the part. He certainly has energy. He was a Broyles award winner at Notre Dame...just like Tom Herman was at tOSU. He was the right kind of guy to hire. He has made many structural improvements, but I think he underestimated what is needed to win in the G5. That he'd need to structure his offense and defense around a talent level that wouldn't match what he had at Notre Dame or Iowa.

Right now, I'd say they need a HC from a lesser program. Maybe P.J. Fleck, he's been a very good recruiter but will probably get better offers. Les Miles wouldn't come to UConn. Lane Kiffin is certain to get one of the big time jobs. So who exactly is UConn supposed to hire?

My take: Benedict will talk to Diaco, and some staff changes will be made. Probably DC, maybe OC.

Diaco has done some good things. He has rebuilt much of the program's infrastructure that was lost during Pasqualoni's reign of terror. That said I still don't believe Diaco was the right choice for the program at the time of hire. At a critical juncture in the program's history they might have benefited more from someone with proven results running a program as opposed to someone who simply seemed like the polar opposite of Pasqualoni. I'm sure Bob's a good guy, and I bet the kids genuinely care for him, but after 3 years he has shown little growth as a HC. He still makes baffling game day coaching decisions, which to me has little to do with the talent he has in Storrs versus what he had at ND.

 

[UConnDan97]

"Wins matter" Bohl at Wyoming started out 4-8 first year, 2-10 second year (uh-oh), started out 2-2 this year after losing a game they should have won to E. Michigan. Fan base wanted him gone (In over his head, offense needs to be changed, hired wrong guy, etc, etc). Wins 4 straight including close win over Boise St and he is now a God and can run for Governor! "Wins matter"

I saw the majority of their game against Boise. Wyoming is a good football team. And it's clear that they are absolutely maximizing what little talent they have.

Can we say the same???

Coaching matters...