In terms of defining the problem, there seem to be five camps on this:
1. It is all the fault of Coach Cushing (recruiting, training, and game prep)
2. It is all the fault of Coach McCall (play-calling)
3. It is all the fault of the O-Line Players (not winning one-on-one match-ups)
4. It is all the fault of CT (holding the ball too long)
5. It is the combined fault of all, part, or none of these groups but not the fault of any single one. The fault is such that no group or person is more or less at fault (note that the word "responsible" was not used but "at fault") than any other or than the whole.
As regards the severity of the situation, there are also various camps with two extremes:
1. The O-Line is such a disaster, we will be lucky to win another game
2. The O-Line is not where we want it to be but that just puts us in the same category of most other schools. A really good O-Line is a rarity in college football.
As regards the solution, there are three camps:
1. Fire Coach Cushing now to send a message of accountability
2. Start working to find a replacement for Coach Cushing and fire him at the end of the season
3. Don't fire Coach Cushing because he is really not the problem
There are also some outliers about firing Coach McCall and Fitz but I am not tracking those.
To try and bring some order to this chaos of opinions, I am asking myself the following questions:
1. Has the problem on the O-Line persisted through several iterations of O-Line players?
2. Has the problem of sacks and beleaguered quarterbacks persisted through several quarterbacks?
3. How many of our O-Linemen have been drafted into the NFL during the Cushing era?
4. We had 8 sacks on Saturday. All other things being equal, if the total had been 2 instead of 8 sacks, how high is the potential that the outcome of the game (an NU loss) would have been different?
5. We got stuffed on two third and shorts. All other things being equal, if we had made those first downs, how high is the potential that the outcome of the game (an NU loss) would have been different?
6. If the sacks are the fault of CT, then is it not just as logical that the lack of running game is the fault of JJTBC?
I am not trying to make anyone believe that I am not biased and do not have an opinion on this. I obviously do and my questions are slanted in that direction. However, just because I am biased does not mean that my questions are invalid.