The Monday Morning Wash
by John Berkowitz on Oct 11, 2010 7:12 AM PDT
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PrintSo what is wrong with the Huskies? They go down to LA and upset the Trojans. They return home and lay an egg against Arizona State. Why can't this team turn in consistent performances from week to week?
If you ask a few assistant coaches from around the league who are familiar with the Huskies they will tell you that the problems start up front. Washington's lines don't have enough talent and depth at this point to compete with the majority of the schools in the conference day in and day out.
It takes three to four years of consistent recruiting and development to rebuild an offensive line. The Huskies technically are in the first year of that process but there is hope on the horizon. Erik Kohler who missed the game with Mono may be the Huskies best offensive lineman.
Kohler is a member of a talented class of seven frosh who are being developed to make an impact in the near future. Colin Porter could get his first start against Oregon State this week. I actually find it strange that they didn't go in that direction against ASU.
Washington wins when they score thirty or more points per game. The defense while far from exceptional has played well enough to give the team a good chance to win in four of five games. This team wins when Jake Locker has a good game. It can beat better teams when he has a great one.
It was evident early that Jake wasn't going to win the ASU game on his own. The coaches should have relied more on a power running game that featured the running of Polk and Callier and was led by the blocking of an extra tackle and FB Austin Sylvester.
It would have been interesting to see what Polk and Callier could have done combining for 40 or more carries. They could have controlled the ball, ran the clock, and limited ASU's time of possession. Running the ball more would have taken a lot of pressure off Jake. Sark didn't recognize it and it seems that running the ball is secondary to passing in his offense.
Arizona State isn't a bad team, but they certainly aren't a great team, or even necessarily a better team. They had a better game plan and adapted to the weather better than the Huskies did. They got ahead early, eliminated mistakes, and made the Huskies chase them.
On a rainy night in Seattle running the ball right at ASU was the right call. Sark needs to start relying more on his running game. He needs to run it until the opposition can show they can stop it. With a set of talented running backs on the roster throwing the ball on second and five shouldn't be the first option in the playbook.
Notes
OSU WR James Rodgers is definitely out for the game and possibly the season with a knee injury. Results won't be known till Tuesday. If you are a Beaver fan it doesn't look good but Rodgers could qualify for a medical red shirt.
Oregon didn't play its best game of the season against WSU but the win coupled with a Alabama loss has the Ducks ranked #2 in the nation behind Ohio State. QB Darron Thomas injured his right shoulder against WSU and is expected to be fine. RB Kenjon was knocked cold during the game and was hospitalized with a concussion.
OSU QB Ryan Katz completed 30-of-42 for 393 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Arizona.
Pac Ten Power Ratings
1. Oregon...Did they bring their A game to Pullman? Will Thomas play next week?
2. Oregon State...Big win on the road for the Beavers but they may have lost James Rodgers for the season.
3. Stanford...Gutty last second win over the Trojans.
4. Arizona...Tough loss at home.
5. California... Solid performance against UCLA.
6. Arizona State...The Devils played well and will win more than they lose this year.
7. Washington...A missed opportunity on a rainy night.
8. Southern Cal...Two tough last second losses in the last two weeks.
9. UCLA...Cal exposed them for what they are...a team with too many holes and not much offense.
10. Washington State...This is a team that keeps improving every week.
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In the Trenches
I could see a glaring difference between the ASU defensive lineman compared to what we have at this point. ASU was rotating several huge interior lineman. They all looked the part of the classic wide body that you need inside. Who do we have in that position? Tamu is the closest to one of those but that’s only one guy. Patoae is a true freshman. Everette Thompson looks more like a defensive end and…well you can see my point. Just like John said we are woefully behind in the depth and maturity so necessary for that critical position.
Washington Husky Football-"Hear the bark, feel the bite!"
Taamu is the only guy on the defensive line at this point with a Pac Ten skill set. Some of the younger guys need time to develop.
UW Dawg Pound - SBN Seattle
by John Berkowitz on Oct 11, 2010 8:10 AM PDT up reply actions
Recruiting
John, would you think about giving us a new recruiting update in the future, including the big guys still on the radar we should watch for down the stretch of the season?
I can do that this week
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by John Berkowitz on Oct 12, 2010 10:48 AM PDT up reply actions
Recruiting
Thanks. It might be a nice mid-season reminder for us that there are things (hopefully) to look forward to.
Emotional Letdown?
I think that could have been the case.
Washington Husky Football-"Hear the bark, feel the bite!"
Certainly part of it...
or if you read the end of the game thread…it’s all Sark and Holt. They’re pretty much useless and should be fired 18 months into a complete overhaul.
fired?
You would have fired Don James and Jim Owens also!!! Similar records. We wouldn’t have many legend coaches if you were in charge. Armchair QBs are even worse.
Your panties are bunching.
I’m pretty sure he is being sarcastic and referring to what another blogger said.
"Legends are made on the shores of Lake Washington"
"BOW DOWN TO WASHINGTON"
Yep, blame those dang Tyees.
That’s why we’ve been losing for a decade, because we sold out to the Tyees. If we’d just go back to the way things use to be, give all that extra money back to the fans, we’d be just as good as we were in the Owens/James years. This is our punishment for selling out.
"Legends are made on the shores of Lake Washington"
"BOW DOWN TO WASHINGTON"
Just in case . . . .
SARCASM ALERT!!!
"Legends are made on the shores of Lake Washington"
"BOW DOWN TO WASHINGTON"
PSEUDO FANS
I never stooped low enough to insult another Husky fan no matter how weak the support.
I probably should have used TYEE-SEAHAWK as even I admit there are some great TYEEs. I even know some.
My objection was to the disgruntled SEAHAWK fans who showed up in 1976 still wearing the bags over their heads and bringing their booing tradition with them. They came disguised as Husky fans but were truly TYEE-SEAHAWKS.
Attended for 36 years prior to 1976 and never heard a Husky player booed.The booing started in 1976 with the advent of the TYEE-SEAHAWKS.
As for PSEUDO fans like LEAR PILOT et al, I will list below the record of Jim Owens and Don James first two years:
JO- 1957 3-6-1 1958 3-7-0
DJ- 1975 6-5-0 1976 5-6-0
Please note TYEEs didn’t show up until 1976 thanks GOD or they would have been fired.
I don’t think it was an emotional letdown. I think it was a matter of a team waking up with too many holes to fill on that particular Saturday.
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by John Berkowitz on Oct 11, 2010 8:11 AM PDT up reply actions
yep
Having Kohler out was a big blow to the OL. Having Aguilar out exposed the reality that our WR group isn’t as deep as we’d hoped – James Johnson doesn’t appear to be 100% yet. Having Locker battling a flu bug that had him sucking oxygen on the sidelines limited his ability to carry the team.
Good teams have enough quality depth to overcome issues like these – we are not a deep team. Having Kohler out for a while with mono is going to be a problem.
I hope Katz doesn't have a night like that aginst us.
but with little pressure, I think he will. The key remains the same as it has all year, stop the run (Jaq Rogers) and force Katz to beat you with his arm. On O, RUN the ball until they prove they can consistently stop the run.
I hope Jake is healthy by this saturday.
If they don’t get pressure…it could be a long day.
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by John Berkowitz on Oct 11, 2010 8:17 AM PDT up reply actions
no surprise that Washington didn't do anything different against ASU
the USC win is the anomaly. which is why my jaw hit the floor when you predicted a UW blowout victory.
WASHINGTON IS NOT A GOOD FOOTBALL TEAM.
SARK IS NOT A GOOD PLAYCALLING HEAD COACH.
These are Facts.
I said in week one that Sark needs to quit being pass-happy and run the damn ball. Polk has always been the key to UW’s success this season, not Locker. How does Sark not know this? His playcalling is borderline incompetent, except USC- but was that really Sark or Locker? (Meanwhile, Kiffin’s playcalling continues to improve as he called a masterful game against Stanford.)
So let’s stop drinking the kool-aid and riding this roller coaster every week.
Washington is a Basketball school until further notice. Period. All Hail Romar!!
by 206 on Oct 11, 2010 8:00 AM PDT via mobile reply actions
Jaw hitting floor
I would probably make that call again.
A couple of factors…rain, illness, loss of three offensive starters, poor game plan.
Lockers lack of mobility and the staffs reluctance to run the ball out of a power formation sealed the deal in this one.
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by John Berkowitz on Oct 11, 2010 8:16 AM PDT up reply actions
Huh?
You’re kidding right when you point out those are liabilities for us? First, every team has issues every game. Illness isn’t acceptable because Polk and Callier are not sick so Sark could have handed them the rock a ton, and rain…? Huh? That’s our advantage – throw in night game and how does that affect us negatively but NOT a team from Arizona????
Holt gets a lot of criticism but honestly, this team is losing with a garbage offense. Locker is turning out to be the most misused talent I’ve ever seen. Sure he’s sick on Saturday ,but with the other tailbacks this is unacceptable. The fact that we aren’t even using a fullback or a tight end for random plays to keep the D honest is also a joke.
Finally, I think you’re off your rocker for having us ranked higher than SC and even UCLA. Week in and week out, we are not better than those teams. We are 9th right now until we can beat Texas in Texas.
To be honest there isnt a servicable tight end or fullback on the roster
perhaps the development of hartvigson and the younger fogerson will make that an option in the future but right now it is about getting the best personnel on the field. Also I can see wanting to run the ball more but what has already been pointed out over and over is the fact that this offensive line is very mediocre while the strength of ASU is certainly it’s defensive front seven. If you don’t have a healthy quarterback in the rain which is of course a disadvantage to the passing game against a team that stops the run it is going to be hard to score a team that is adept at stopping the run
we are not a deep team
Losing Kohler and Aguilar and having a limited Locker were major liabilities for this team simply because we don’t have the quality depth to overcome those losses and limitations.
While I was advocating us running the ball more, go back and look at a replay of the game – we weren’t blowing ASU off the line. It was creative play-calling that was getting us a lot of our yards. Had we lined up more often in standard I-formation sets and tried to run right at ASU they would have adapted. Our play-calling is balanced because it has to be – the run and the pass depend on each other, and neither are good enough on their own right now against decent teams to be consistently successful. And that comes down to our issues on the OL. When our best linemen (arguably) is a true frosh, you know that we have some major rebuilding to do in the trenches.
While I was advocating us running the ball more, go back and look at a replay of the game – we weren’t blowing ASU off the line. It was creative play-calling that was getting us a lot of our yards. Had we lined up more often in standard I-formation sets and tried to run right at ASU they would have adapted.
Exactly.
We did beat USC didn’t we?
Illness isn’t acceptable?
Over 30% of the team was suffering from the flu…you saw what it did to Jake…what do you think it did for the other guys?
Like Sark says…this team doesn’t have a lot of margin for error….or what he didn’t say but I will…illness…this team is paper thin.
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by John Berkowitz on Oct 11, 2010 8:11 PM PDT up reply actions
After last Saturday
I’m approaching every game with a pre Sark mind set. Expect the worst, enjoy the odd anomaly.
It isn't that bad
He is totally pass first and run second…I don’t like that.
I do think that they have figured out how to use Locker but Jake didn’t have the energy to pull it off on Saturday.
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by John Berkowitz on Oct 11, 2010 8:31 AM PDT up reply actions
Ding! And Ding!
John, I totally agree….and I’m getting really tired of the old mantra of “give the coaches time to get their players in..” It’s stupid logic when,as you point out they HAVE players getting it done…but,for some unknown and unaddressed reason aren’t using them fully! I’d say “40 carries” for the two would’ve been about right where they should’ve been… (ie.Chris Polk,Jesse Callier etc.) It’s like a bad dream repeating itself…let’s get real here in fantasyland! Just once, “outcoach” someone! (and Lame Kiffin doesn’t count) .The staff…is now 2 years old….time to take off the diapers!
Wait, didn't he ...
… outcoach Kiffin? That doesn’t count? Please outcoach someone, but the someone you outcoached isn’t enough? Come on. And what if they pounded the ball on the ground over and over to no avail? Would that be a better game plan? I’m as disappointed as anyone with the loss, but the second guessing is getting ridiculous.
DEPTH PROBLEM
With only two experienced RBs one a freshman we can’t afford to take a hit in that position. Need to keep both healthy.
Rebuilding
You guys are nuts if you think there isn’t rebuilding to do. Sark has had one recruiting class. Rebuilding is the reality that we live in and yes I understand the frustration but look at who and what preceded him. The worst five years in Husky Football history.
Washington Husky Football-"Hear the bark, feel the bite!"
Hindsight is magic, and the body of work is building for Sark
It is easy to second guess play calls and things when they do not work. Also easy to look back and say he should have done one thing or another. Much more difficult to do that in the moment. I agree he should have run the ball more, the fake field goal never had a chance, and in bad weather it is about field position so your punter should get more action.
Sark is pass happy, given his pedigree you would expect that, but rushing and defense almost always determine the winner. I hope he learns that. If he does not, he will never be better than a .500 coach or so. Remember Cody Pickett?
On the other side, Locker is the reason we run fairly effectively now. Do not succumb to the illusion that this group can consistently pound the rock against Pac 10 defenses. All the teams we face focus first on Jake, and are willing to give up a few yards to Polk and company. Increased carries might not translate more yards. Saturday looked like we should be pounding it, I was yelling for it too, but maybe it was an illusion. We will never know. As long as we have the Oline we have, pounding it will be largely unsuccessful. Note what happens on short yardage when we try to run. Just a thought.
Sark's background
Sark is pass happy, given his pedigree you would expect that
Really? Sark was the OC at USC in ‘07 & ’08 – here’s what their offenses were like:
2007: rushes – 517; run ypg – 197.2; passes – 460; pass ypg – 237.7
2008: rushes – 503; run ypg – 194.9; passes – 388; pass ypg – 259.9
That’s actually quite balanced. Has that changed now that he’s head coach here?
2009: rushes – 390; run ypg – 139.0; passes – 397; pass ypg – 236.5
2010: rushes – 172; run ypg – 169.6; passes – 173; pass ypg – 229.8
He’s been a little more pass-happy here, but not by a lot. Is that because he was instructed to be more balanced at USC by Carroll, or has he changed his approach a bit based of his perception of the talent on hand here?
I’d prefer to see a little more emphasis on running the ball, but it’s not like Sark is running a particularly pass-happy offense here. You mention the Pickett years – we were passing waaaay more often then that Sark is now, so that’s not a valid comparison.
Thanks for the stats
Interesting. Maybe it is just my perception, but it seems as if we go to the pass more often. You hit the nail in a reply to a post further up. We are not good enough to run or pass the ball consistently, and decent play calling has kept us looking maybe better than we are.
That was the point of my post, but you said it better. I really think Jake makes other coaches focus so much on him that they are willing to give up a few yards to the runners.
The Pickett referral was simply to remind that a team that is too one dimensional on the pass side rarely wins consistently.
Good response.
Very true
a team that is too one dimensional on the pass side rarely wins consistently
Same can be said for any one dimensional offense, running or passing, balance will always keep a defense honest.
"Legends are made on the shores of Lake Washington"
"BOW DOWN TO WASHINGTON"
Sark playcalling based upon personnel available
You gotta think that Sark is a little more pass happy at UW because our line isn’t going to come out and blow anybody off the ball, we don’t have the personnel to be a power running team (except for Polk), so he has to set up the run through the pass. A lot of our longer runs are draws by Polk out of the shotgun. If we lined up in the I formation and tried to bull over teams Polk would probably only be averaging 3 ypc. The fact that Polk’s ypc is so high has to be a testament to Sark’s playcalling.
206..
As I posted in last posts section Sark should continue to be a play caller. After last week where you calling for Sarks head as a play caller? Everyone was applauding sark for his masterful job of keeping USC off balance, Who would you rather see call plays? Nuss? Is he better than Sark? NO Way. SHould we be running the ball more yes, I agree but as our team grows I think Sark will grow as a play caller and head coach. By the time Sark has his talent needed to compete for a Pac Ten title his play calling will be better. I would rather see the kinks worked out now.
For me it is the trade offs of having a young first time head coach. At times there will be head scratching decisions but all in all he has proven to me as a worthy head coach..
My question to you guys is like the Seahawks in the 2005 Super Bowl year Holmgren used the passing game to set up the run. I see the Huskies and Sark doing the same. If we ran the ball over and over from the beginning I do not think now with our line situation we would have the push that we do. But because we start out throwing and are known for passing under Sark I think that is part of the reason for why our running is game is so great. Just my opinion…
can't agree with the Seahawks comparison
My question to you guys is like the Seahawks in the 2005 Super Bowl year Holmgren used the passing game to set up the run.
I disagree. That Seahawks team had two dominant OL manning the left side of the line in Jones and Hutchison and decent players at the other 3 spots. That team could establish the run without needing the passing game to soften things up. Yes, there was balance there and both the pass and the run games benefited from the success of the other, but that Seahawks team could count on their running game a lot more so than this Husky team.
While Polk is a stud and can gain a lot of yards after contact, his success comes in part from deception and the play-calling flow of the game rather than Sark being able to line up in an I-formation and take it right to a defense. This isn’t like the USC teams that Sark had – we just don’t have the horses up front to consistently control the line of scrimmage and gain 5 yards when the defense knows the run is coming. And that Seahawks team could do that – run an off-tackle play to the left and know that Alexander was likely to get his yards running behind Jones and Hutch, or on counter plays to the right when defenses overloaded the left side.
Agreed
We run the ball well when it’s not necessarily expected, but we can NOT run the ball when the defense is expecting a run. Our goal line offense is the perfect example.
"Legends are made on the shores of Lake Washington"
"BOW DOWN TO WASHINGTON"
Agree
You are right we did have the “horses” as you said that year. I guess I was going with the overall coaches mentality. It seems Sark like Holmgren as philosophy is to set the run up with the pass not the other way around. The seahawks could have done it the other way but these huskies cannot do that but I also think they dont want to run first then pass. I think Sarks mentality is to pass first to set up the run.
Sark's philosophy
I don’t know if we really know his philosophy yet. I pointed out in a post above what his breakdown of run to pass was while the OC at USC, and he was a little more focused on the run there. Was that due to outside pressure from Carroll or was he playing to the talent on-hand? I suspect the latter.
I doubt Sark will ever be so focused on the run that we see a 2:1 ratio of run to pass – he’s probably always going to want a fairly balanced approach because so much of his playbook is built off of keeping defenses off-balance with play-fakes like play-action passes and draw plays. But I do think that when this team has a strong OL that we will see games where he’s happy to let a strong running game be the focal point.
Completely agree with this.
If the line is better next year, there’s no reason the team won’t be, even without Locker.
Recruiting
Sark has the recruiting savvy to rebuild this program. Give him the time to make it happen. Recruiting is HUGE!
Washington Husky Football-"Hear the bark, feel the bite!"
James Rodgers redshirt
Tough break for a terrific talent, but can you redshirt after 5 games? I was thinking that Quizz might go early to the NFL when his brother finished. Now maybe he will stick around for his brother’s extra year. What are the medical redshirt rules?
He missed enough time earlier in the season to qualify for a medical redshirt.
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by John Berkowitz on Oct 11, 2010 12:48 PM PDT up reply actions
And to make things even less complicated, he didn’t redshirt at OSU—he played as a true frosh. You know, that year where we ran the fly sweep every other play?
And I guess it might just be semantics, but it will actually be a medical hardship waiver he’ll be applying for, should he wind up being out for the year. I guess it’s a little different than the whole redshirt, greyshirt scene. We got one for Sammie Stroughter after he had a horrible bout with clinical depression and a lacerated kidney. Hope that if he needs one James gets one.
I think that’s a more likely scenario. But a boy can dream, right?
I suppose it all boils down to what he thinks an extra year and some grad credits will do for him. I’d hate for him to never see another game in an Oregon State uniform, but I completely understand that I probably have. Damn shame too—he was SHREDDING Arizona.
I wonder the same thing about Kohler.
It’s going to take him 4 or 5 weeks at a minimum to get back to full strength. At that point, is it even worth playing him if he can get the season back?
yeah, mono is a beeyotch
I had it when I was at the UW too, and it completely knocked me on my butt for 2 weeks. Even assuming Kohler is getting more aggressive treatment for it, he’s still going to be catching up with his conditioning and strength work, because I guarantee he’s not getting any of that in right now while he’s got mono. You have to wonder at what point he’ll be close to 100% again. I would guess before the season is over, but for how many games?
It is usually a 3-4 week thing minimum
If he is back this weekend it will be a miracle.
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by John Berkowitz on Oct 11, 2010 7:39 PM PDT up reply actions
one thing that annoys me about sark
it seems like we’re never getting the truth from his statements to the media or on twitter. remember when he said that the team was “miles ahead” of where it was during camp last year? some of the guys he has raved about are either struggling or not even seeing the field
You saw what he was saying against Syracuse and USC. This staff is struggling with the veterans right now which is usually par for the course.
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by John Berkowitz on Oct 11, 2010 7:40 PM PDT up reply actions
yea but we saw similar performances early last season
against idaho and usc. it seems like we haven’t progressed that much in the last year
We returned something like 18 guys right?
This staff is struggling with the veterans right now which is usually par for the course.
It takes time, this is Sarks second season in his first stop as a HC. He’s doing what he can with a bunch of woefully undercoached guys.
There's a lack of talent...
…to a certain extent in the upper class’s. That can only be fixed with time. Sark has really only had one full class that’s his own.
Washington Husky Football-"Hear the bark, feel the bite!"
Doesn't that sound familiar?
Seems I hear that every year…at least once weekly. Don’t you think constantly blaming “lack of talent” is an old canard? I mean, aren’t the entire list of players on a roster all “his own”? I know he wasn’t here when they signed…but I don’t think excusing inept coaching is anything but what the doctors call “enabling” bad or distructive behavior? No, tough love requires the TRUTH and it hurts sometimes…like it hurts to watch this team squander talent that frankly, while “lacking” in depth,experience etc has some freakish gems! ( Polk,Locker etc.) the best of which were NOT signed by Coach Sark but Coach Winlessham! The blame if any, needs to be shared ….and the MEN who are making big $,$$$,$$$.00 annually earn the majority of it in my opinion…not the kids. Time to get real. I actually remember when this school brought in Coach Winlessham…I thought: “give this guy a chance” and all that kind of wishful thinking…then, after the first season of disturbing game day trends showed themselves ….I said, “give the guy another chance”…“he needs to at least have a spring ball of his own before being so judgemental”! Well, guess what? He sucked in the first season….and never didn’t suck! Kept repeating the same sucky game day patterns…followed with the same sucky excuses…I’m all for the reality of it taking time to build a program up! But, please don’t insult my intelligence with politicianesque bullshit about the “lightyears” of improvement the teams made over just last year and then play with LESS ENERGY! Is there a solution? Maybe…but it won’t be realized until/unless Coach Sark learns to run the damn ball with some balls! Tough love baby!
So Willingham's players ...
… the ones he guided to an 0-12 season, were 5-7 in Sark’s first year. They’re sitting at 2-3 now. Their schedule is significantly more difficult this year. In terming this Sark’s team, top to bottom, you must give the coaches credit for the improvement made with essentially the same guys. I’m not sure what more Sark, Holt and co. could possibly do to make bottom of the PAC-10 linemen competitive in one season. They scheme around the lack of size and talent as best they can. I agree with many of the earlier comments … “just pound the rock” is significantly more difficult than it sounds.
Do what I did...."just say no to the Kool-aid"!
I don’t mean to be mean but….you’re suffering from a really extreme case of UW Kool-aid toxicity! Where to start? First, 0-12 was the crowning achievement of (why I call him Win-less-ham!) Coach “Tie” . NOBODY ….EVER….. was able to pull defeat out of the jaws of victory like him. What’s more, he celebrated mediocrity like success…using saavy cliche’s like our current president in the “other” Washington does…while, the actual truth is ignored. Second, last years 5-7 record should have been at least 7-5 and any honest fan would agree. So, let’s get real….Tough love baby! Time to drop the diapers and “pound the rock”!
Ok....So,what's your point?
Are you defending Jakes play in the “ASU disaster Part 2?” or, subconsciously trying to make yourself feel better about the obvious troubles in Huskytown? If it’s about the one game last Sat.? I agree. I’m not slamming Jake for anything…well, actually that’s not totally honest. I am getting a bit sick of watching him go down when he can take it backside to the house or throw it over everyones head! What I"m trying to point out is the total lack reality going around these days.. coaching sucked at BYU !(preparations,play calling etc.) and they didn’t look like they had the “attitude for the altitude”? Syracuse led 10-0 way too easily… Nebraska? (let’s not go there…) USC was a great job of coaching and playing…(finally, everybody feels good again!) ASU Part 2! (Steven King…?) Just so I keep it simple for those looking for a way out : His jersey number is #1 and his name is “Chris Polk”. Figure out how to give him the slightest hole and he will make you look like a genius…it really is that simple.
Agree with you on Polk
I’m just trying to mellow out the roller coaster ride of emotions people have on the team. One week we are brilliant, the next completely inept at every position and need to fire someone. We played a good ASU team and came out looking a little flat and lethargic which was later explained by illness. Is it the ultimate excuse? No. But it needs to be factored into why we looked the way we did.
I do agree with you on Polk, find a way to get him the ball with even a little room and good things happen. The man is a stud. The problem so far has been creating that room.
ASU
We played a good ASU team…
This is something that I think a lot of people have been glossing over. ASU is a pretty good team – they should have beat Wisconsin, they were playing toe to toe with Oregon and simply shot themselves in the foot with turnovers, and lost a close one to OSU at home.
Yeah, this was a team we all circled as one of our better chances for a win on the conference schedule, but that was as much hope as it was reality. ASU is pretty good, and clearly Erickson is further along in rebuilding that program than Sark is at the UW (no surprise given that Dennis is in his 4th season there).
His jersey number is #1 and his name is "Chris Polk". Figure out how to give him the slightest hole and he will make you look like a genius…it really is that simple.
The “figuring it out” isn’t the hard part. Actually doing it, play after play, is.
exactly
This team doesn’t have the offensive line to overpower most teams and run the ball 40+ times per game effectively. I think we all would like to see Polk get the ball a little more than he is currently, the success in the run game right now depends a lot on creative play-calling and schemes and keeping defenses off-balance.
Now, the counter-argument to that would be that the more we run the ball and go right at defenses, the more it will build that mindset in our OL and the better we’ll be in the long run in terms of the run game. But what do we prefer – converting 3rd and 2 with swing passes or failing on 3rd and 2 trying to run the ball while developing for the long term?
REMEMBER ND
When we tried to run the ball on every play from the one yard line? You can’t be predictable in any league.
A really good point
Some look at the flu as just another excuse but I think it is pretty valid.
Questioning the play calling and game planning is fair too.
His jersey number is #1 and his name is "Chris Polk". Figure out how to give him the slightest hole and he will make you look like a genius…it really is that simple.
I completely agree with that.
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by John Berkowitz on Oct 12, 2010 11:12 AM PDT up reply actions
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