Teddy needs to fact check his stories. Obviously Van Hoose will be returning and starting at CB next year.
Fitz Interview
Fitz Interview
Fitz's Interview with Tribune
- Thread starter corbi296
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Interesting article. Good point, I think, about keeping the coaches and the biggest admission I have ever hear about the union thing being a distraction. I have always believed that led to a team that was not well prepared or united.
great article
Teddy kept coming back to "the same staff...really?"
Fitz is stubborn. His staff appears to have some pop warner guys but fitz mortgaged the entire program on a few stiffs who cant coach or teach. I hope im wrong but its very unfair to the players since they expect excellence.
Teddy kept coming back to "the same staff...really?"
Fitz is stubborn. His staff appears to have some pop warner guys but fitz mortgaged the entire program on a few stiffs who cant coach or teach. I hope im wrong but its very unfair to the players since they expect excellence.
Re: great article
Yawn!
I guess nobody can stop you from thinking fitz is always right. Once you open your eyes, you will confirm that at least two coaches have never produced here, and it is killing the team.
Yawn!
I guess nobody can stop you from thinking fitz is always right. Once you open your eyes, you will confirm that at least two coaches have never produced here, and it is killing the team.
Re: great article
I don't think Fitz is right at all in this situation. I have said a number of times that I think a change or two on the coaching staff would have been beneficial in order to shake up the team and change the message. But I can also easily see that we don't have "Pop Warner" coaches and actually know what goes into coaching at the FBS level. You're just making it up or, as I previously put it, "have no idea what [you're] talking about."
I just talked to a "source." Its a very, very good one.
This was a reporter error. Van Hoose will 100% be back. No question.
This was a reporter error. Van Hoose will 100% be back. No question.
Of course he's coming back. Teddy just made a mistake and no one at the Trib caught it.
Posted from Rivals Mobile
Posted from Rivals Mobile
Re: great article
No. You dont know the proper form of english expression being used. Your literal brainwaves always seem to stump you. You also strugglewith metaphors but not as bad.
Ok, for you, i dont litterally mean that we have coaches whose skillset are pop warner. Also, do you understand the expression "barbie tantrums" or should i explain? Good grief!
No. You dont know the proper form of english expression being used. Your literal brainwaves always seem to stump you. You also strugglewith metaphors but not as bad.
Ok, for you, i dont litterally mean that we have coaches whose skillset are pop warner. Also, do you understand the expression "barbie tantrums" or should i explain? Good grief!
Re: great article
Not sure why I even do this anymore. I'm out. There's nothing to be gained here.
You really think I was taking that literally? There's a reason I put "Pop Warner" in quotes. I ensure you that I have a pretty solid grasp of the English language.
Not sure why I even do this anymore. I'm out. There's nothing to be gained here.
The questions he asked are going to come up all year long. Fitz is either going to look like the biggest bonehead for keeping some undesirable coaches or he is going to look genious.
And imo if thorson doesnt develop...i will have minimal hope. And if Fitz is wrong, i hope he fesses up and refunds our money.
And imo if thorson doesnt develop...i will have minimal hope. And if Fitz is wrong, i hope he fesses up and refunds our money.
Deering, I'm a bit confused why Fitz thought it was necessary that he and the staff take practice time away to "explain" union issues. We all have heard and know that NU players are smart kids, which likely could research these issues or possibly meet with a advisor or professor who were knowledgable on union issues. Surprised to hear that Fitz thought that people were wondering why his excellent assistant coaches weren't receiving offers from other programs and that he feels that his teams are always well prepared. Don't think either statement is true.
A new Fitz-ism - "I'm pretty much non-societal". Yeah!
And then this - "Maybe that would be more fun, but I don't care about fun". Well, coach, fans pay money to sit in the stands because it's "fun". 0-0 halftime scores are not fun (happened twice this past season). You're starting to sound like a grumpy, crotchety old man.
He says in one paragraph that the union thing was a big distraction last year, and then in another he says he feels no pressure in football because "we've always been prepared". You can't have it both ways, coach. You essentially put a chunk of the blame from last season on the distractions and wasted time involved in "managing and educating a team" and said that Trevor's "tank was on empty" at the start of the season. That doesn't sound like a team that was prepared heading into the season, so don't say you've always been prepared. Maybe you should feel a little pressure in football....it's not always a bad thing.
And then this - "Maybe that would be more fun, but I don't care about fun". Well, coach, fans pay money to sit in the stands because it's "fun". 0-0 halftime scores are not fun (happened twice this past season). You're starting to sound like a grumpy, crotchety old man.
He says in one paragraph that the union thing was a big distraction last year, and then in another he says he feels no pressure in football because "we've always been prepared". You can't have it both ways, coach. You essentially put a chunk of the blame from last season on the distractions and wasted time involved in "managing and educating a team" and said that Trevor's "tank was on empty" at the start of the season. That doesn't sound like a team that was prepared heading into the season, so don't say you've always been prepared. Maybe you should feel a little pressure in football....it's not always a bad thing.
Re: great article
Like i said in my post, i hope im wrong. Certainly i hope our coaches are experts who prepare and develop our team to an acceptable level. Ill take fitz at his word that we have had inconvenient injuries and that the coaches have been burdened by union talk. Certainly phillips bought those excuses so lets take fitz at his word that it was the union fault for losses.
The fans wanna know.
This post was edited on 2/21 12:36 PM by Turk
Like i said in my post, i hope im wrong. Certainly i hope our coaches are experts who prepare and develop our team to an acceptable level. Ill take fitz at his word that we have had inconvenient injuries and that the coaches have been burdened by union talk. Certainly phillips bought those excuses so lets take fitz at his word that it was the union fault for losses.
The fans wanna know.
This post was edited on 2/21 12:36 PM by Turk
One more ugly season and Fitz won't have to worry about firing staff members. The whole staff will be fired. I would like to keep Hankwitz, but he might get caught up in the mess.
fitz should save all his excuses
Fitz normally says its the coaches fault but when he gets pressed about the coaching, he blames injuries and union talk.
Lets see what 2015 brings. The fans wanna know. Ill take fitz at his word that the season blowed due to union talk and injuries and not due to his staff.
Fitz normally says its the coaches fault but when he gets pressed about the coaching, he blames injuries and union talk.
Lets see what 2015 brings. The fans wanna know. Ill take fitz at his word that the season blowed due to union talk and injuries and not due to his staff.
Re: fitz should save all his excuses
I recall that Greg Colby, our former DC, always blamed the defensive failures on the players, it was never due to his coaching.
Re: fitz should save all his excuses
Could that possibly be one of the reasons he was fired as DC by Pat Fitzgerald and ended up as head coach of a D-II program where he posted an 11-44 record then was fired after two seasons at Illinois as DL coach?
This post was edited on 2/21 1:06 PM by gocatsgo2003
Could that possibly be one of the reasons he was fired as DC by Pat Fitzgerald and ended up as head coach of a D-II program where he posted an 11-44 record then was fired after two seasons at Illinois as DL coach?
This post was edited on 2/21 1:06 PM by gocatsgo2003
My guess is they didn't just have questions. The union issue was a fireball here on the board and I see no reason why it might not have been on one the locker room. It's a polarizing and personal issue. I'm glad we never heard of fights breaking out but I would be surprised if there wasn't tension. If I learned in five years that there were receivers who were pissed at Trevor for helping squash the movement, it wouldn't surprise me as a social reality and it would explain to me why for the first time in many years the QB and receivers never seemed to really be on the same page. Fitz as a manager had to cool the union movement and cool the two opinions of the union movement all while managing the egos of some very competent 18 to 21 year old. I bet they had some pretty heated discussions.
As far as the coaches, I think you have a good point that we never heard of anyone trying to hire them away from NU. OTOH not every job offer is public and for all we know someone might have gotten something to stay.
People don't hear of asst coach job offers unless a coach decides to take one. They certainly don't notify Willycat every time they receive an offer.
Willycat bitch #156: We don't hear about our coaches receiving job offers
Who knows how many jobs our assistant coaches turned down over the years?!
Willycat bitch #156: We don't hear about our coaches receiving job offers
Who knows how many jobs our assistant coaches turned down over the years?!
Or perhaps...
H.S. football was the appropriate level for his football coaching acumen. Hey, even John "Punt" Pont ended-up coaching football in some poe-dunk, backwater high school in rural Ohio after he got the pink slip from NU.
Talent shows... And lack of talent shows even more.
H.S. football was the appropriate level for his football coaching acumen. Hey, even John "Punt" Pont ended-up coaching football in some poe-dunk, backwater high school in rural Ohio after he got the pink slip from NU.
Talent shows... And lack of talent shows even more.
Re: Or perhaps...
I have a question for all the McCall critics. Why in the heck would Trent Green's kid walk-on here if he thought he could not be developed as a quarterback? He had lots of other choices. McCall did a great job with Colter-Siemian until both of them got injured. When Siemian could run a little bit (vs. Notre Dame), he was pretty darn good. Oliver may just not be good enough. Alviti, who is undersized, may not be the next Dan Persa. Thorson would seem to hold great promise. Let's see how it all unfolds this year before we rip a guy who has developed some pretty good QBs here.
I have a question for all the McCall critics. Why in the heck would Trent Green's kid walk-on here if he thought he could not be developed as a quarterback? He had lots of other choices. McCall did a great job with Colter-Siemian until both of them got injured. When Siemian could run a little bit (vs. Notre Dame), he was pretty darn good. Oliver may just not be good enough. Alviti, who is undersized, may not be the next Dan Persa. Thorson would seem to hold great promise. Let's see how it all unfolds this year before we rip a guy who has developed some pretty good QBs here.
Re: Or perhaps...
I don't really remember anyone criticizing McCall because of his QB coaching. Clearly he can coach QB's, if you look at his track record at NU and at BGSU.
What I question with McCall is his play calling at times.
I think the biggest coaching issues right now are the OL and WR. The OL has not been solid in years, and as Glades has pointed out, we do not seem to pump out the NFL quality linemen that we did under Walker. If Coach wants to keep the staff intact, not sure why we aren't moving Heffner to OL (where he has tons of experience and has had success) and Cushing to TEs. WR is perplexing to me. We seem to have had more talent there in recent years than we ever did, but the production has not been there - particularly this past year. I still don't know what happened with Kevin Johns, but our WR quality took a clear dive when he left for Wilson's staff.
I don't really remember anyone criticizing McCall because of his QB coaching. Clearly he can coach QB's, if you look at his track record at NU and at BGSU.
What I question with McCall is his play calling at times.
I think the biggest coaching issues right now are the OL and WR. The OL has not been solid in years, and as Glades has pointed out, we do not seem to pump out the NFL quality linemen that we did under Walker. If Coach wants to keep the staff intact, not sure why we aren't moving Heffner to OL (where he has tons of experience and has had success) and Cushing to TEs. WR is perplexing to me. We seem to have had more talent there in recent years than we ever did, but the production has not been there - particularly this past year. I still don't know what happened with Kevin Johns, but our WR quality took a clear dive when he left for Wilson's staff.
Re: Or perhaps...
Immobile qbs can make an o-line look worse than it is. Looked pretty good vs. Irish. I think play-calling was questionable at times on some 3rd and shorts and 4th and shorts. Great pass call on third and short with 3:00 left saved the Wisconsin victory. With an o-line that doesn't feature a bunch of 300-pounders, calls need to be more creative, I agree. Lots of injuries to WRs. I thought Prater developed pretty well last year. Too many drops by WRS and not enough separation but is that due to coaching or talent? I will be more on board with staff changes if things don't get better this year. In 2013, we had a couple of fluke losses, and 2014 was derailed somewhat by injuries and maybe union hangover, but excuses need to end this year. Beat Stanford!
Immobile qbs can make an o-line look worse than it is. Looked pretty good vs. Irish. I think play-calling was questionable at times on some 3rd and shorts and 4th and shorts. Great pass call on third and short with 3:00 left saved the Wisconsin victory. With an o-line that doesn't feature a bunch of 300-pounders, calls need to be more creative, I agree. Lots of injuries to WRs. I thought Prater developed pretty well last year. Too many drops by WRS and not enough separation but is that due to coaching or talent? I will be more on board with staff changes if things don't get better this year. In 2013, we had a couple of fluke losses, and 2014 was derailed somewhat by injuries and maybe union hangover, but excuses need to end this year. Beat Stanford!
Re: Or perhaps...
Heffner spends time helping with the OL as it is right now. We need to get our OL to play "meaner," without taking ridiculously soft pass sets. That can be changed without changing coaches.
We also lost Lou Ayeni in 2009. I would much prefer to see Ayeni come back to coach our WRs than Johns. Just sayin'.
You don't recall all the bitching throughout the season about how we must not have a backup QB developed if Trevor was still playing, then when those calls got even louder after Oliver's performance against Illinois? They were pretty loud.
Heffner spends time helping with the OL as it is right now. We need to get our OL to play "meaner," without taking ridiculously soft pass sets. That can be changed without changing coaches.
We also lost Lou Ayeni in 2009. I would much prefer to see Ayeni come back to coach our WRs than Johns. Just sayin'.
Re: Or perhaps...
Are you sure Fitz gives him full control of play calling? Fitz is a control freak.
Re: fitz should save all his excuses
I never know what to believe. Last year he was saying it was the closest team he ever had. Now, before you say he was being clandestine so people didnt know, how do we know he isn't doing it again? Maybe the team is still rife with dissension.
Coaching - will not change - documented
Players - we will get some key players with more experience but lose some too. - a wash at best.
Injuries - we can hope for an improvement.
So our key to the season is "don't get injured", I guess.
I never know what to believe. Last year he was saying it was the closest team he ever had. Now, before you say he was being clandestine so people didnt know, how do we know he isn't doing it again? Maybe the team is still rife with dissension.
Coaching - will not change - documented
Players - we will get some key players with more experience but lose some too. - a wash at best.
Injuries - we can hope for an improvement.
So our key to the season is "don't get injured", I guess.
I was disappointed in this interview
Before the season, there were those who said that the union thing was a huge distraction, that Colter had damaged the program by his actions, and that it would result in poor play on the field. Then you had Fitz, who repeatedly used the line that the players were more unified than ever as a result of the discussion and that it would provide positive impact.
I said before the season, that a good season would vindicate Fitz's contention that they were unified and fans who contended it wouldn't provide a distraction, and a poor season would have vindicate all those who thought it would. The reality is neither side can be proven right - there are way too many factors that go into a season to point at just one. Even if you say "it was a factor" - how do you know what that factor was and how much it contributed either way? Did the unified team pull together to beat Notre Dame? Did the not-sufficiently-coached team show up unprepared for 2 QBs against Cal? Who the hell knows?
And so, I was really disappointed for Fitz to come out and now blame the union distraction - seemed like an excuse and makes him look like a liar in the last preseason.
Before the season, there were those who said that the union thing was a huge distraction, that Colter had damaged the program by his actions, and that it would result in poor play on the field. Then you had Fitz, who repeatedly used the line that the players were more unified than ever as a result of the discussion and that it would provide positive impact.
I said before the season, that a good season would vindicate Fitz's contention that they were unified and fans who contended it wouldn't provide a distraction, and a poor season would have vindicate all those who thought it would. The reality is neither side can be proven right - there are way too many factors that go into a season to point at just one. Even if you say "it was a factor" - how do you know what that factor was and how much it contributed either way? Did the unified team pull together to beat Notre Dame? Did the not-sufficiently-coached team show up unprepared for 2 QBs against Cal? Who the hell knows?
And so, I was really disappointed for Fitz to come out and now blame the union distraction - seemed like an excuse and makes him look like a liar in the last preseason.
Re: I was disappointed in this interview
I don't know what to expect anymore except uncertainly. If you were to challenge Fitz now about the statement last fall, he'd say, "hey, I couldn't say anything then, it would put the season at risk". So who knows what and when is the truth, ever.
For a period of time there, I was really enjoying that (I thought) we had a "no BS", long-term coaching solution. And I really hoped that the things in which we struggled in the early days of 06/07 would "improve" as PF got his feet under him. Now I get the impression that I just don't know if he is ever telling the truth, regardless of whether it is because he is being strategic with our opponents. Strategy aside, it would be refreshing to read/hear something from our coach that was the truth as he knew it.
Also I think we really don't do much of anything better on offense or the kicking game than we did at the beginning, and the defense, while surely better, is still prone to occasional, inexplicable blow-ups like Iowa last year.
Overall, last year's team was roughly on par with the 07 squad, a couple of nice wins, a couple of bad losses 5/6 wins total, no bowl. The difference is the trend - in which the 07 team was followed by two of our best years, arguably ever, vs and uncertain direction at the moment.
I don't know what to expect anymore except uncertainly. If you were to challenge Fitz now about the statement last fall, he'd say, "hey, I couldn't say anything then, it would put the season at risk". So who knows what and when is the truth, ever.
For a period of time there, I was really enjoying that (I thought) we had a "no BS", long-term coaching solution. And I really hoped that the things in which we struggled in the early days of 06/07 would "improve" as PF got his feet under him. Now I get the impression that I just don't know if he is ever telling the truth, regardless of whether it is because he is being strategic with our opponents. Strategy aside, it would be refreshing to read/hear something from our coach that was the truth as he knew it.
Also I think we really don't do much of anything better on offense or the kicking game than we did at the beginning, and the defense, while surely better, is still prone to occasional, inexplicable blow-ups like Iowa last year.
Overall, last year's team was roughly on par with the 07 squad, a couple of nice wins, a couple of bad losses 5/6 wins total, no bowl. The difference is the trend - in which the 07 team was followed by two of our best years, arguably ever, vs and uncertain direction at the moment.
Re: fitz should save all his excuses
Fitz is running the coaching equivalent of a Ponzi scheme right now...it wasn't the union, it was something else. During the season, "that's on us as coaches," until postseason evaluations come up, then everyone gets a raise. Now it's the union until that's a hot button again, then it will be the lunar new year and the earth's rotation.
Just let it be about accountability.
Fitz is running the coaching equivalent of a Ponzi scheme right now...it wasn't the union, it was something else. During the season, "that's on us as coaches," until postseason evaluations come up, then everyone gets a raise. Now it's the union until that's a hot button again, then it will be the lunar new year and the earth's rotation.
Just let it be about accountability.
Re: I was disappointed in this interview
"Unified/divided" versus "distracted/focused" are two different elements. There is no doubt the union was a distraction given the team time and energy that had to be allocated to dealing with it. Perhaps it was ultimately unifying or divisive, but that's hard to gauge from outside. You can be perfectly unified, but you'll still be stinky if you sit around spending practice/meeting time discussing NCAA/Union issues instead of talking about and practicing the things that help you win football games.
You can be a highly unified calculus study group, but you won't do very well on your calculus exams if you spend your study group time and energy on civics.
Posted from Rivals Mobile
"Unified/divided" versus "distracted/focused" are two different elements. There is no doubt the union was a distraction given the team time and energy that had to be allocated to dealing with it. Perhaps it was ultimately unifying or divisive, but that's hard to gauge from outside. You can be perfectly unified, but you'll still be stinky if you sit around spending practice/meeting time discussing NCAA/Union issues instead of talking about and practicing the things that help you win football games.
You can be a highly unified calculus study group, but you won't do very well on your calculus exams if you spend your study group time and energy on civics.
Posted from Rivals Mobile
Re: fitz should save all his excuses
Did the staff get a raise? No matter what he says, he'll get criticized. That comes with 5 win seasons and losing to the Illini. Not sure what you want him to say? He has said the coaches didn't do the job last year numerous times. When you struggle there are typically a lot of things that are part of the blame. Coaching is front center, but injuries, distractions, player talent, and yes even bad luck contribute. You can argue the coaches can be blamed for all things too if it suits your fancy, but they are part of the equation. Personally, I could care less what he says and am far more interested in the steps he takes to change certain aspects of preparation.
Did the staff get a raise? No matter what he says, he'll get criticized. That comes with 5 win seasons and losing to the Illini. Not sure what you want him to say? He has said the coaches didn't do the job last year numerous times. When you struggle there are typically a lot of things that are part of the blame. Coaching is front center, but injuries, distractions, player talent, and yes even bad luck contribute. You can argue the coaches can be blamed for all things too if it suits your fancy, but they are part of the equation. Personally, I could care less what he says and am far more interested in the steps he takes to change certain aspects of preparation.
Re: I was disappointed in this interview
"As I look back and reflect upon the experiences that our young men went through and our entire football program went through, that's what jumps out to me is their maturity," Fitzgerald said. "As we visited throughout the whole offseason, I believe there's no more unified football program in the country. We've been through more since probably January than most, and it's been nothing but a positive and nothing more than unifying in our locker room and throughout our entire football program. So I think we're a leg up from that standpoint.
"And as I look at where we go in the future, hopefully that will just be something that we can draw upon."
In all fairness, I understand why you wouldn't say "we really had to spend more time on this than we wanted to and it will probably affect preparation"
This post was edited on 2/24 10:17 AM by villox
This distinction was really lost when you look at the way it was portrayed in the quote:
"As I look back and reflect upon the experiences that our young men went through and our entire football program went through, that's what jumps out to me is their maturity," Fitzgerald said. "As we visited throughout the whole offseason, I believe there's no more unified football program in the country. We've been through more since probably January than most, and it's been nothing but a positive and nothing more than unifying in our locker room and throughout our entire football program. So I think we're a leg up from that standpoint.
"And as I look at where we go in the future, hopefully that will just be something that we can draw upon."
In all fairness, I understand why you wouldn't say "we really had to spend more time on this than we wanted to and it will probably affect preparation"
This post was edited on 2/24 10:17 AM by villox
