The View From Section 241 -- Navy

[freescooter]

Really uconndogs if a head coach needs someone to save him from himself you really have to wonder if he's ready to be a head coach.

This team has 2 winnable games at home the next 2 weeks. They need to be wins.

 

[uconndogs]

Really uconndogs if a head coach needs someone to save him from himself you really have to wonder if he's ready to be a head coach.

This team has 2 winnable games at home the next 2 weeks. They need to be wins.

He's a relatively young guy with his first HC gig. He has some strengths and weaknesses. Like any good leader he'll learn to address those weaknesses. If he doesn't, he won't have a job. I don't know the guy from Adam, but I would be shocked if he isn't very genuine and I think his players will run through a wall for him. Compared to some of the absolute scum out there, I'll see where this goes for a big before I fire the guy for some bonehead moves.

 

[Stinger92860]

He's a relatively young guy with his first HC gig. He has some strengths and weaknesses. Like any good leader he'll learn to address those weaknesses. If he doesn't, he won't have a job. I don't know the guy from Adam, but I would be shocked if he isn't very genuine and I think his players will run through a wall for him. Compared to some of the absolute scum out there, I'll see where this goes for a big before I fire the guy for some bonehead moves.

You are right and I hang my head in shame, but can we avoid a 3rd straight week with a bonehead move?

 

[Excalibur]

If you can't gain a yard, you don't deserve to win the game. How our captain and leader doesn't have the guys lined up ready to go is mind numbing.

The ball was never spotted. But keep blaming the QB . . .

 

[joey3$trike$]

The ball was never spotted. But keep blaming the QB . . .

Ron johns run was less than a yard,

 

[Nostical]

I doubt there was a UConn fan out there who wasn't thinking passing was the right way to go (or a BS run/pass option).

Absolutely. We were actually debating whether we'd get 2 or 3 plays run in 17 seconds. No one even suggested a running play with no time outs. Diaco says a pass play was originally called but with the timeout they had an extra opportunity to discuss various options--and it was the players who wanted to go with a running play. Frankly, considering Shirreffs had completed 6 of 6 on the drive and with his mobility, I simply don't believe Diaco. A roll-out and toss to a big tight end, or .....anything but a run.
But here's the thing. Diaco seemed to revel in calling the play he says the players wanted to run. But his job is to be the boss--he knows better. He's the adult with the experience to say no when his starting pitcher wants to stay in the game for one more batter. He should have been the coach. Instead he was one of the guys.

 

[UConnNick]

Don't underestimate the effect of the Army game at Yankee Stadium in 2014 on HCBD's thinking. With a chance to tie in the last minute at Army's six yard line, UConn's Chandler Whitmer threw a pick six.

Things like that stick with a coach. And you can be sure he will never run the ball on second and goal with no time outs and 17 seconds left again. Third and goal...maybe.

Whatever happened to the axiom that you put the last play behind you? They tell QBs when they throw INTs to put it behind them and move on. Same for DBs who get beat for TDs, and RBs that fumble. Why shouldn't that rule be equally applicable to coaches?

If coaches are going to recall every single play call they've ever made that went wrong, how will they ever be able to confidently put together and implement a game plan? They'll keep recalling negative plays, and sooner or later practically every conceivable play goes wrong. If you're storing these negative plays in your memory bank all along, pretty soon you'll be paralyzed with fear no matter what plays are being called, because you're going to remember when they went wrong.

I don't see how any coach can successfully call plays with that kind of stuff going on in their head.

Diaco needs to learn to trust his players. Shirreffs should have been trusted to get the play off in time, and if he had been we either score on that play or we at least had one and maybe two more plays left to score. Shirreffs is a seasoned veteran who's proven he can be depended on to manage the game. If you don't trust your players, it's tantamount to saying you don't trust your own coaching staff and yourself as head coach, because you don't think your players are adequately prepared to perform and execute their plays. If they're not up to the task, whose fault is that?

 

[Bubba1957]

The Navy punt that landed at our 20 and rolled inside our 5 changed the whole complexion of the game, in my opinion. Up to that point, we were being aggressive, assertive, and playing to win the game. Not getting, at the very least, a fair catch at our 20 was the first step up the timid conservative ladder that our coaching staff seems all too willing to climbing. A timid, conservative play that cost us 15 huge yards and sent our OC into uber conservative mode with 3 straight runs up the middle. Ironically, Navy reminded us that punt returns are actually quite an effective weapon when their guy returned our punt to our 20.

I'm not saying Navy wasn't able to put up a full field drive against us - they could have (and did). But let's make them at least work for it instead of ushering them inside our red zone with the game on the line.

I've said this 1000x in various threads over the years and I'll say it once again: this asinine way-too-conservative(scared) approach to punt returns has got to go.

More than anything this was the key play. Catch the punt and the whole game changes. There was no reason to give the ball back or give it back with that field position. Of course it would be nice if more than 1 guy ran down to cover once we had to punt.

 

[uconndogs]

I will say one more thing about our running game. Newsome and Johnson are nice college backs. Neither is explosive from the line of scrimmage and to my eye neither has breakaway speed. I don't think our OL is nearly the run blocking unit it was under Edsall and my sense is that college defenses have gotten much better up front over the years. That said, we haven't seen anything like a Brown or Todman in recent years (understandable as that might be) or a Dixon or Frey for that matter.

 

[freescooter]

I will say one more thing about our running game. Newsome and Johnson are nice college backs. Neither is explosive from the line of scrimmage and to my eye neither has breakaway speed. I don't think our OL is nearly the run blocking unit it was under Edsall and my sense is that college defenses have gotten much better up front over the years. That said, we haven't seen anything like a Brown or Todman in recent years (understandable as that might be) or a Dixon or Frey for that matter.

I agree with your characterization of our running backs. Average at best. I've been saying that for a while now. As a frosh I thought Johnson might be a next level guy but he really hasn't shown much since. I really think Newsome is more of a "3rd down" back. Obviously not limited to 3rd downs but he is best getting the ball in space not running between the tackles. I sort of agree on defenses though I also think that very few teams line it up and try to run you over any more so that might contribute too. And it seems like a century since we had a dominating offensive line.

 

[J187Money]

I agree with your characterization of our running backs. Average at best. I've been saying that for a while now. As a frosh I thought Johnson might be a next level guy but he really hasn't shown much since. I really think Newsome is more of a "3rd down" back. Obviously not limited to 3rd downs but he is best getting the ball in space not running between the tackles. I sort of agree on defenses though I also think that very few teams line it up and try to run you over any more so that might contribute too. And it seems like a century since we had a dominating offensive line.

I think of Newsome like Sproles. Screens / wheel routes / and spread running plays. I know he "likes" the contact, but doesn't survive it very often. Better than McCombs - and if he finds the crease and gets a step he is great, but we aren't creating enough space for him to be successful.

 

[freescooter]

I think of Newsome like Sproles. Screens / wheel routes / and spread running plays. I know he "likes" the contact, but doesn't survive it very often. Better than McCombs - and if he finds the crease and gets a step he is great, but we aren't creating enough space for him to be successful.

Fair enough. I think we are basically saying the same thing.

 

[uconndogs]

I think of Newsome like Sproles. Screens / wheel routes / and spread running plays. I know he "likes" the contact, but doesn't survive it very often. Better than McCombs - and if he finds the crease and gets a step he is great, but we aren't creating enough space for him to be successful.

McCombs had a good frosh year because he ran behind a pretty good OL, before GDL had time to completely and totally duckk it up. After that, he was a marginal talent. That the stupid twins road him they way they did speaks volumes about their total incompetence.

 

[Palatine]

This situation is very close to the end of the 2015 Super Bowl. Diaco decides to run the ball and he is an idiot. Pete Carroll decides to pass, and he is an idiot. In both instances they went against the "smart" play. If either one had worked we'd be talking about how they outsmarted the defense. Unfortunately, in both cases, the defense came up with the stop. Had Uconn thrown a pass and it had been intercepted, people would complain that his O-line outweighed the Navy defenders and he showed no confidence in them.

Wrong, in the Super Bowl there was plenty of time, Seattle still had a time out, and they had just run fro five yards on the previous play.

UConn had no TOs and hadn't run on any play of the drive except for scrambles.

The difference between the two end game situations are huge.