Why are Memphis, Navy and Cincinnati in the top 21 in preseason rankings and UConn is 125? | Page 2 | The Boneyard

Why are Memphis, Navy and Cincinnati in the top 21 in preseason rankings and UConn is 125?

freescooter said:
What history. Navy went 15 years without a winning record, then went 5-6 years before Johnson came. Johnson Actually scheduled much like we are now, lesser D1 opponents with a handful of major programs. Much like Army is doing now too. Those schools have different problems with recruiting but found coaches who can use the use the talent they get very effectively.
Expand ...

They do have a national championship, multiple top 10 finishes, and 2 Heisman winners. It may be ancient history, but it is history.
 
We went from giving up a historically bad 50 pts/game in 2018 to 40.5 pts/game in 2019. So there's that.

Can't believe it's even a question why we're still ranked near the bottom. Other than some brief stints of competency last year (Illinois, Houston, UMass, ECU), we're still ridiculously awful. That perception won't change until we finally prove otherwise on the field.
 
I am convinced UConn will be in the top 100 if they play this fall
The talent, size and speed is much better - that will give them at least 2-4 more wins
 
.-.
Why worry about it?

It doesn't affect basketball and UConn is a basketball school....I doubt that Duke worried much about going 2-9, 1-10, 0-12, and 1-11 in four successive seasons.
 
Stainmaster said:
Why are y’all feeding the troll?
Expand ...

I was thinking the same exact thing. He even tricked Bizlaw into a response.

Don't feed the trolls, folks...
 
LoyalFanCT said:
I just looked at the FB preseason rankings published by our new partner CBS Sports Network. Our former conference teams, Memphis, Navy and Cincinnati are ranked among the highest FBS teams. We are five from the absolute bottom. Excuses aside, why are we so low? These other teams have had ups and downs over the years, just like UConn. If an opening comes up in the ACC or B10 are we going to be pushed aside again? What will we be doing different so we are in the top 21 too within a few years?

www.cbssports.com

College Football Rankings 2025-26 Rankings

Get the latest College Football rankings for the 2025-26 season. Find out where your favorite team is ranked in the AP Top 25, Coaches Poll, CBS Sports Rankings, or Playoff Rankings polls and rankings.
www.cbssports.com www.cbssports.com
Expand ...
Did UConn win games in the offseason that I don't know about?
 
billybud said:
Why worry about it?

It doesn't affect basketball and UConn is a basketball school....I doubt that Duke worried much about going 2-9, 1-10, 0-12, and 1-11 in four successive seasons.
Expand ...

Duke didn't put together a losing streak in basketball to accompany their poor football.

Duke is now making more money from football than from basketball which enhances their entire athletic department.
 
The answer is always...RECRUITING.

Using Rivals Team Ranking..

2015...last in AAC
2016...last in AAC
2017...10th in AAC
2018...11th in AAC
2019...last in AAC
2020...best class in years....7th in AAC...#79 nationally
 
.-.
Palatine said:
Duke didn't put together a losing streak in basketball to accompany their poor football.

Duke is now making more money from football than from basketball which enhances their entire athletic department.
Expand ...

Yeah..I wasn't thinking of the basketball performance since, I think, there will be a return to the basketball elite. And it won't take long.
 
I get a little tired about reading how we are not in a talent rich area. So what? If you could only recruit within 50 miles of your campus that matters. Otherwise it is an excuse not a reason. We had pretty consistent top 35ish teams in the early 2000s and went to multiple bowls. Memphis was awful. Did they suddenly move to a better recruiting area and we went to a worse one? Navy had Occasionally mediocre and mostly awful teams for 25 years. Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas State not Hardly in high school hotbeds. As for location, I think some people have never been to some of these places. And haven’t heard of the internal combustion engine.
 
Iowa State has 10 Florida kids on the roster...Georgia kids, Wisconsin kids, etc.

Recruiting is national...you just have to pull in decent athletes. You have to pull them...sell them on your program. It is more difficult to go to a far region...but Iowa State does it.

FSU sits in a prime area...yet their 2020 class had 13 signees from out of Florida...Alabama, Louisianna, Tennessee, Arkansas, Georgia, and Mississippi.
 
I saw Kansas State mentioned - that program used a ton of jucos to build the program something UCONN is unable or unwilling to do.

There are certainly a ton of factors working against the program right now - lack of administrative support, no conference, lack of fertile recruiting area nearby to name a few.

But despite those there is no reason UCONN cant be a top 50-60 program.

How to solve:
- relax admission requirements for 20 % of roster spots.
- hit JUCO circuit hard
- hire young, dynamic coach who runs a 21st century offense. Administration has thrown the program in the dumpster so salary pool will never be high. Find a head coach in lower ranks who has had success.
 
.-.
One scholarly paper actually featured Randy Edsall...:

College applicants who are granted admission to the University of
Connecticut had, on average, high school grade point averages of B+ or better, scored an average 1221 points on the SAT,and ranked in the top 15 percent of their high school class.

Despite this selective admission. profile, no football player recruited by Edsall had ever been denied admission to the school. 173

Additionally, Edsall frequently met with the school’s vice president of enrollment management and planning to discuss
admitting all the football recruits. 174

One would not encounter much trouble inferring from these reports that Edsall probably rallied to admit many student-athletes who were inadequately prepared to succeed at the University of Connecticut.

 
billybud said:
One scholarly paper actually featured Randy Edsall...:

College applicants who are granted admission to the University of
Connecticut had, on average, high school grade point averages of B+ or better, scored an average 1221 points on the SAT,and ranked in the top 15 percent of their high school class.

Despite this selective admission. profile, no football player recruited by Edsall had ever been denied admission to the school. 173

Additionally, Edsall frequently met with the school’s vice president of enrollment management and planning to discuss
admitting all the football recruits. 174

One would not encounter much trouble inferring from these reports that Edsall probably rallied to admit many student-athletes who were inadequately prepared to succeed at the University of Connecticut.

Expand ...
The flip side to this is that RE knows who he can get in and who he can't. If it is down to a 4* with questionable grades and a 3* with better grades, he goes with the 3* because admissions won't bend. That is not his fault, that is the line Susan drew in the sand years ago. Kids who fit the mold of can't get in went to Temple and other schools. I know this as a fact.

IF the new President were serious about a winning football program, he would give RE discretion on bringing in 4 kids a class that might not have the grades/ACT/SAT scores, but can make a difference on the field.

Remember, ND sucked for years until Kelly made it a point for admissions to help the football program, not hurt it. Since the relaxation, look at the job he was able to do.
 
billybud said:
Iowa State has 10 Florida kids on the roster...Georgia kids, Wisconsin kids, etc.

Recruiting is national...you just have to pull in decent athletes. You have to pull them...sell them on your program. It is more difficult to go to a far region...but Iowa State does it.

FSU sits in a prime area...yet their 2020 class had 13 signees from out of Florida...Alabama, Louisianna, Tennessee, Arkansas, Georgia, and Mississippi.
Expand ...
Edsall is getting much more recruits from Ga Fl SC TX...then the previous staff.
 
billybud said:
One scholarly paper actually featured Randy Edsall...:

College applicants who are granted admission to the University of
Connecticut had, on average, high school grade point averages of B+ or better, scored an average 1221 points on the SAT,and ranked in the top 15 percent of their high school class.

Despite this selective admission. profile, no football player recruited by Edsall had ever been denied admission to the school. 173

Additionally, Edsall frequently met with the school’s vice president of enrollment management and planning to discuss
admitting all the football recruits. 174

One would not encounter much trouble inferring from these reports that Edsall probably rallied to admit many student-athletes who were inadequately prepared to succeed at the University of Connecticut.

Expand ...
Seems like the scholarly paper referenced something Jeff Jacobs wrote when P came in and said he could recruit to those guidelines. He didnt either. Lost a great middle linebacker that went to Temple among others.
 
billybud said:
One scholarly paper actually featured Randy Edsall...:

College applicants who are granted admission to the University of
Connecticut had, on average, high school grade point averages of B+ or better, scored an average 1221 points on the SAT,and ranked in the top 15 percent of their high school class.

Despite this selective admission. profile, no football player recruited by Edsall had ever been denied admission to the school. 173

Additionally, Edsall frequently met with the school’s vice president of enrollment management and planning to discuss
admitting all the football recruits. 174

One would not encounter much trouble inferring from these reports that Edsall probably rallied to admit many student-athletes who were inadequately prepared to succeed at the University of Connecticut.

Expand ...
Might want to put scholarly in quotes. To draw that conclusion off of one superficial statistic is fifth grade scholarly.
 
My point is that we mistake college athletes as a representative portion of a school's student body....and we know pretty much that they aren't.

Somebody try to convice me that Kareem Hicks' (UNC) Wonderlic of 11 makes him college material.....or CJ Spiller's (Clemson) score of 10 or Oscar Davenport's score of 6...Darren Davis (Iowa State) with a 4, was illiterate. Rashan Gary, 5 star at Ohio State scored below a janitor level.

NFL RB's average about what is needed for a security guard and DB's average about what is needed for a craftsman.
 
Last edited:
.-.
Geography is a killer.

If you ask someone in the South what football team they follow, the answer will be “Roll Tide” or “LSU”.

If you ask a Northeasterner the same question, the answer will be “the Pats” or “the Giants”.

Our margin for error is small. To succeed in college football, a Northeastern school needs some luck and nearly infallible leadership. We’ve had neither.
 
The academic standard issue is just foolish policy. No one thinks less of Duke or Michigan or UNC's academic profile because they lower their standards for a handful of players. Hell, UNC outright gave athletes the answers to tests. Lowering the standards is an issue in the minds of a handful of administrators because it is perceived as a loss of power.
 
metsfan2323 said:
Because UCONN hired PP instead of Mark Whipple. One decision changed everything.
Expand ...
Really? Whipple didn't seem to do well wherever else he went. I agree someone else could have done better....but not Whipple.
 
ShakyTheMohel said:
Really? Whipple didn't seem to do well wherever else he went. I agree someone else could have done better....but not Whipple.
Expand ...
Maybe he was just sayin' anyone else would have been a better hire.
 
.-.
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
168,271
Messages
4,560,889
Members
10,451
Latest member
WashingtonH


Top Bottom