B1G Coaches talk anonymously about conference foes...
- Thread starter Frabjous
- Start date
I'll save folks a click...
“(Pat) Fitzgerald has that thing as good as they can probably ever get."
"Fitz is talking about how frustrated they were after last season, and they still went to a bowl. No one else could do that in that environment."
"They go out and get their guys and teach them their way. That might not work at any other school in the league, but they seem to have it figured out."
"The offense can be tricky to deal with at times. They motion well, and they read pretty well, but they can’t hurt you passing the ball. They haven’t been able to create as many legit pass options as they need."
"We’ve looked at their pre-snap work for a couple years now; they keep changing up their communication and the players seem to pick it up quickly."
"Defensively, they do some great stuff. They put guys out there who can adjust quickly. You see them using their eyes. That’s sort of a smart-kid school thing, but they really do read and react extremely well; they don’t get confused by your stuff before the snap."
"The quarterback (Clayton Thorson) is back and is experienced enough to where they can run a lot of things well. He’s slowly improved year over year, making better decisions.”
“(Pat) Fitzgerald has that thing as good as they can probably ever get."
"Fitz is talking about how frustrated they were after last season, and they still went to a bowl. No one else could do that in that environment."
"They go out and get their guys and teach them their way. That might not work at any other school in the league, but they seem to have it figured out."
"The offense can be tricky to deal with at times. They motion well, and they read pretty well, but they can’t hurt you passing the ball. They haven’t been able to create as many legit pass options as they need."
"We’ve looked at their pre-snap work for a couple years now; they keep changing up their communication and the players seem to pick it up quickly."
"Defensively, they do some great stuff. They put guys out there who can adjust quickly. You see them using their eyes. That’s sort of a smart-kid school thing, but they really do read and react extremely well; they don’t get confused by your stuff before the snap."
"The quarterback (Clayton Thorson) is back and is experienced enough to where they can run a lot of things well. He’s slowly improved year over year, making better decisions.”
Well, there you go : "they cant hurt you with their passing attack." Let's see if this year, NU can prove this wrong. Didn't Fitz say something along the lines of : This year, NU will go as far as the OL will take them...? maybe edit to say OL and receivers....
By passing attack, meaning downfield. That's where we must improve.
The comment about the passing game speaks volumes. Amazing that we won 17 games in two years given that assessment. Let's hope this year changes some perception. It all starts up front.
Riley Lees, the (Wildcat) nation turns its lowly eyes to you.
I hate when so-called experts say that NU has reached its ceiling. Or that Wisconsin is far and away the best at winning with less than elite talent. We do more with less than the Badgers. And the ceiling they speak of is bullshit. Sometimes I wonder how smart some of these coaches are.
GOUNUII
I wonder what our perceived ceiling was before Gary Barnett arrived at NU. Or after we won the B1G in back-to-back seasons.
Duke game? Yes. Sitting in my block? Yes. Purple Party? I don't know. Feel free to exert a bit of social pressure.
I'd say "mostly" glowing, rather than all. Lots of positives overall. But given that we have one of the top, if not the top QB in the league, the comment about not having a passing game is either a knock on recruiting at those positions (seems unlikely given the other comments) or pretty poignant criticism of the OL coach and the receivers coach.
Yes game. TBD on night before. Happy to tailgate too.....
Really? I thought it was rather patronizing.
Got it as good as he can get. Sounds like GCG.
Whether or not you agree with the coaches' assessment that there's a ceiling at NU, it's complimentary for them to think Fitz has reached maximum potential. And fellow coaches might just have a pretty good appreciation for just how difficult it is to consistently win at NU, no?
No, that's not how I read it. Seems like either highly patronizing or backhanded compliments that suggest NU can't be considered a serious program with serious aspirations that other programs have. That we should be happy with what Fitz has done so far and can't possibly expect more.
I don't buy in to the "difficult to consistently win" schtick... Not after what Stanford has accomplished. What Barnett showed was possible here. You know, that was the same crutch that everyone used about how we could never expect to go to the Rose Bowl, never expect to win the B1G, and in hoops, never expect to go to the NCAAs. It's all bull, and I'm sorry if I don't see the "compliments" as glowing. I'm actually slightly offended by them, if you want to know the truth. But, I can see how those who think we are doing as well as we can right now or think that this is as good as we should reasonably expect would think of them as glowing.
No. In every meaningful respect the college game is moving in a direction favorable to NU. Add the increased name recognition CCC brings to the school, and a few years of recruiting with 2 QBs in the NFLand the new facilties, and in about 2020 we should be able to assess our ceiling under Fitz. Till then, any assessment is premature.
GOUNUII
As a biased NU fan, I'm right there with you. However, trying to put myself in the shoes of an outsider, I think I can see where they are coming from. If Fitz can really take NU to another level, then do it. Prove it. Win a Big10 title. Win a division for crying out loud. I think we get exactly the respect we deserve at this point - and I also agree with ECat that these comments are tepid praise at best. Go blow the doors down Cats and make people change their tune!
Just because it's hard doesn't mean it isn't the expectation or aspiration. Fitz, the coaches, the Ryans, Phillips, Morty, and others don't want to simply be "competitive" with all the support thrown behind the program lately. You may think it's just "coachspeak" when Fitz talks about competing for titles, but it's legitimate.
(REAL FANZ WANTZ IT MOAR!!!)
This is spot on. I don't blame them for the underwhelming "praise" at all. It is exactly what we deserve.
I just don't see it as remotely glowing. And I for damn sure hope that Fitz doesn't feel like he's being complemented, and instead sees it as offensive and motivating as Hayden's "I hope we didn't hurt any of your boys" comment. And that's how I liken these comments. I don't think Coach Fry meant it as we took it. But, it didn't make it any less biting and denigrating and inspiring.
In one meaningful respect the college game is moving in a direction unfavorable to NU: with increasing concern about CTE and the long term consequences of even one concussion, parents of high-achieving kids are steering boys away from football, and so a smaller pool of players for elite schools like NU. This is what I'm hearing from friends with sons, anyway.
Last edited:
Again, a strawman, right on cue. Didn't say that Fitz and others are satisfied with where we are. If they were, I'd want Fitz fired, and I wouldn't be happy with Morty or Phillips (and I'm actually quite thrilled with them).
My issue is that you think the compliments are glowing. I see them as, how did theC put it, tepid at best. Backhanded and patronizing more precisely. If Fitz sees them as glowing and isn't as bothered by them as I am, then there's a problem.
Yeah, yeah, the real fanz want it moar (sic) as much as ex-staff need to be snarky and contemptuous of all us un-football-edumacated simpletons.
These are, at best, backhanded compliments.
With Taj Fitz now coming into tangible reality, what should be, again, a very good D, one of the B1G's best QB/RB combos, and the B1G's second-most tenured HC, it is now time for NU to step up and win the West. Yep, Wisconsin is very good. And so may be Neb,, Minn. and I_wa. But is time for NU to take the next step.
No Pac 12 coach anonymously talks this way about Stanford whose academic and character requirements are not dissimilar. ( OK, for those board mavens that believe Stanford's academic cache, NorCal weather, blonde co-eds, recruiting catchment area, less strenuous (and occasionally even dodgy) acceptance practices, etc. make becoming Stanford impossibly hard for NU : sorry, I simply don't believe this. Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor ?? )
It's time. Looking at you, OL and WRs...
PS . Just read Ethan Bonner post on the Rock. Had not seen that when I posted this...
With Taj Fitz now coming into tangible reality, what should be, again, a very good D, one of the B1G's best QB/RB combos, and the B1G's second-most tenured HC, it is now time for NU to step up and win the West. Yep, Wisconsin is very good. And so may be Neb,, Minn. and I_wa. But is time for NU to take the next step.
No Pac 12 coach anonymously talks this way about Stanford whose academic and character requirements are not dissimilar. ( OK, for those board mavens that believe Stanford's academic cache, NorCal weather, blonde co-eds, recruiting catchment area, less strenuous (and occasionally even dodgy) acceptance practices, etc. make becoming Stanford impossibly hard for NU : sorry, I simply don't believe this. Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor ?? )
It's time. Looking at you, OL and WRs...
PS . Just read Ethan Bonner post on the Rock. Had not seen that when I posted this...
They are glowing, considering the expectations/beliefs of the coaches giving the compliments. That doesn't mean they're correct, nor that it's my expectation/aspiration, yours, Fitz's, or anyone else's who are actually involved with the program in any way. The constant chest pounding is kind of silly and, in my eyes, seeking out ways to be offended.
EDIT: For instance, should Stanford fans have been complaining when another coach called their recruiting "unbelievable" in last year's PAC-12 rendition of the same piece?
My wild guesses:
“(Pat) Fitzgerald has that thing as good as they can probably ever get."
---Jim Harbaugh
"Fitz is talking about how frustrated they were after last season, and they still went to a bowl. No one else could do that in that environment."
---P.J. Fleck
"They go out and get their guys and teach them their way. That might not work at any other school in the league, but they seem to have it figured out."
--Kirk Ferentz
"The offense can be tricky to deal with at times. They motion well, and they read pretty well, but they can’t hurt you passing the ball. They haven’t been able to create as many legit pass options as they need."
---James Franklin
"We’ve looked at their pre-snap work for a couple years now; they keep changing up their communication and the players seem to pick it up quickly."
--Paul Chryst
"Defensively, they do some great stuff. They put guys out there who can adjust quickly. You see them using their eyes. That’s sort of a smart-kid school thing, but they really do read and react extremely well; they don’t get confused by your stuff before the snap."
---Lovie Smith
"The quarterback (Clayton Thorson) is back and is experienced enough to where they can run a lot of things well. He’s slowly improved year over year, making better decisions.”
---Urban Myer
“(Pat) Fitzgerald has that thing as good as they can probably ever get."
---Jim Harbaugh
"Fitz is talking about how frustrated they were after last season, and they still went to a bowl. No one else could do that in that environment."
---P.J. Fleck
"They go out and get their guys and teach them their way. That might not work at any other school in the league, but they seem to have it figured out."
--Kirk Ferentz
"The offense can be tricky to deal with at times. They motion well, and they read pretty well, but they can’t hurt you passing the ball. They haven’t been able to create as many legit pass options as they need."
---James Franklin
"We’ve looked at their pre-snap work for a couple years now; they keep changing up their communication and the players seem to pick it up quickly."
--Paul Chryst
"Defensively, they do some great stuff. They put guys out there who can adjust quickly. You see them using their eyes. That’s sort of a smart-kid school thing, but they really do read and react extremely well; they don’t get confused by your stuff before the snap."
---Lovie Smith
"The quarterback (Clayton Thorson) is back and is experienced enough to where they can run a lot of things well. He’s slowly improved year over year, making better decisions.”
---Urban Myer
I wonder sometimes what our long term history and present would be like should the AD and administration had given Ara P more support before he bolted for ND?
One coach commented that our passing offense did not threaten many teams
The following is just an observation but it seems that our opponents can isolate a WR on our DBs, creating one on one match ups on deep routes but NU's deep routes always seem to be thrown into coverage with over the top help
The following is just an observation but it seems that our opponents can isolate a WR on our DBs, creating one on one match ups on deep routes but NU's deep routes always seem to be thrown into coverage with over the top help
That seemed to be the game plan against us. Cover our receivers one-on-one and blitz like hell. Thorson and Carr made them pay last year, as Carr always found a way to get open and Thorson delivered the goods. This year, we have Nagel and Dickerson who will get open, and Lees can blow the top off the coverage if the safeties cheat or blitz.
That is going to be the strategy until the line can protect better. We saw this with TS as well. The guy was always banged up and frequently rattled by the pressure. TS and CT have been sacked a lot. You can say they were slow in making decisions but you need time.
That's what happens without a consistent deep threat to "take the top off the defense."
Latest posts
-
-
-
NU softball takes down SFU 7-2 in NCAA Regional game- Latest: FeralFelidae
-
