I’ve been pretty consistent in what the major deficiencies are and why it’s hard to make McCall the fall guy for those problems. The problem with the offense for the last decade has been a woefully deficient OL in term of play and talent that in my opinion was largely the result of the previous OL position coach that was hired and retained by Fitz. This year that problem has been compounded by a hole in the QB depth chart that was the result of not landing a Plan A Recruit or not recruiting a scholarship QB in the last 5 classes since Thorson. McCall deserves some of the blame on that but so does Fitz. The OL problem has been addressed with a new OL coach and I am confident we will address the QB position this offseason. I see nothing wrong with scheme or play calling so I don’t believe firing MCCall will accomplish anything other than providing a fall guy for the pissed off fan base.
OK we probably can't expect immediate results from Anderson but I agree with your take. Seems like OL isn't an area where you can't plug in a new guy or coach and expect a turnaround. I haven't forgotten that we were worst in the league in sacks allowed, maybe in the country? Also re QB, it is the single most important role on the team, you can maybe swing and miss once, but not three years in a row. This year, our one and two were a walk on and a transfer, neither of whom were going to be all B1G, and the best scholarship guy has been limited effectiveness. The season is lost, I am tired/numb of the whole QB issue for this year.
Let me give you one other data point. I moved to Balt in 2013, and the Orioles, under Buck Showalter, were ascending with a good core of players. Showalter is a LONG time manager and knows what he's doing. They had a good team and won the division in 2016, and did ok first half of 2017, then collapsed in the 2nd half. In 2018 they lost 115 games. Was Buck Showalter a worse manager than 2016? Maybe a little, but not 42 games worse. But he was fired because he was ultimately responsible for the performance of the team, even though he didn't choose the players. I feel the NU offense, not the entire team, is a similar situation. The defense has also worsened, particularly due to their penchant of averaging 275 pass interference penalties per game, but most of the problem is the "worst in the country" offense. McCall won't be fired, because Fitz, but if he/Fitz just chalk it up to Thorson graduating/injuries, I really don't expect Anderson to be able to do enough to counteract that. People have figured us out, we have to adapt.
BTW, I LIKE a ball-control offense, so I don't object on the surface of the Fitz / McCall plan. My favorite season of this millennium was 2012. Run the ball/stop the run. I am already coining the nickname "Venric McGowan" but I don't expect any QB on the roster to be as effective a counterpart as Colter was (for Ecat).