Concern at running back

[Dmcnabbrules]

I am starting to be a little concerned about the reports on the running backs. I have heard very little about Smith making plays. Rumors are that Prine Tyson Gulley is still struggling holding on to the ball. George Morris might be a year away. Where does the staff go from here? It seems like it may be counter productive to ram the ball right into the line. I would love to see more screens and draws to create space and counter act blitzing. This team is going to struggle to find playmakers. Provo and bailey might look a little better after this year.

 

[IthacaBarrel]

AAM

 

[kcsu]

AAM

Is the best talent out of smith and gulley. I watched him a few times in hs and the kid is the real deal

 

[IthacaBarrel]

Is the best talent out of smith and gulley. I watched him a few times in hs and the kid is the real deal

Been told the same

 

[ejz555]

The concern should be with the OL...

 

[orangenauburn]

The concern should be with the OL...

but it should not be in reality.

Marrone and Adkins are 'OL' guys ... they have been recruiting for a few years now.

Every season is becoming groundhogs day ...

 

[anglerman]

but it should not be in reality.

Marrone and Adkins are 'OL' guys ... they have been recruiting for a few years now.

Every season is becoming groundhogs day ...

Do you guys realize your'e judging the offense based on 1 srimage 2 weeks in to camp? Does that really make sense? You do realize that the defense likely knows the plays? They did score 5 touchdowns.

 

[orangenauburn]

it is called over-analyzing HCDM post scrimmage comments.

Read Dave Rahme's article, and it is the same , different day: Groundhogs Day

 

[RF2044]

but it should not be in reality.

Marrone and Adkins are 'OL' guys ... they have been recruiting for a few years now.

Every season is becoming groundhogs day ...

Not how I see it. The majority of OL comprising the depth chart are either true frosh or redshirt frosh. Here's the list [in no particular order]:

Pugh [jr], Chibane [sr], MacPherson [jr], Alexander [sr], Trudo [fr], Foy [fr], Hickey [so], Curtis [fr], Emerich [fr], Knapp [fr], Palmer [fr], with Robinson [fr] and Philips [sr] sprinkled in--the majority of those guys are 1st or 2nd year frosh and Hickey as a soph who hasn't played yet. 7 out of those 13 are true-frosh /redshirt-frosh, one is a soph. Only three are seniors who won't be around next year [I'm not 100% certain about whether Philips is a sr or whether he has two years of eligibility left, in which case we'd only have 2 departing seniors].

The coaching staff has done a decent job of replenishing the pipeline at OL in recent classes. Now, that doesn't amount to if players like Trudo, Foy, Emerich, Hickey, Curtis, etc. don't step up and prove that they can be contributors this year. But my expectation is that we're going to FINALLY see improvement in the OL over the next 2-3 years with that nucleus of 1st and 2nd year guys. The question is: will said improvement deliver value THIS YEAR when we desperately need it.

 

[anglerman]

Not how I see it. The majority of OL comprising the depth chart are either true frosh or redshirt frosh. Here's the list [in no particular order]:

Pugh [jr], Chibane [sr], MacPherson [jr], Alexander [sr], Trudo [fr], Foy [fr], Hickey [so], Curtis [fr], Emerich [fr], Knapp [fr], with Robinson [fr] and Philips [sr] sprinkled in--the majority of those guys are 1st or 2nd year frosh [6 of 12], with Hickey as a soph who hasn't played yet.

The coaching staff has done a decent job of replenishing the pipeline at OL in recent classes. Now, that doesn't amount to **** if players like Trudo, Foy, Emerich, Hickey, Curtis, etc. don't step up and prove that they can be contributors this year. But my expectation is that we're going to FINALLY see improvement in the OL over the next 2-3 years with that nucleus of 1st and 2nd year guys. The question is: will said improvement deliver value THIS YEAR.

The truth is we don't know how good the offense is until they take the field against Northwestern. Don't get negative until there's a real reason to.

 

[SaltineWarrior]

I am starting to be a little concerned about the reports on the running backs. I have heard very little about Smith making plays. Rumors are that Prine Tyson Gulley is still struggling holding on to the ball. George Morris might be a year away. Where does the staff go from here? It seems like it may be counter productive to ram the ball right into the line. I would love to see more screens and draws to create space and counter act blitzing. This team is going to struggle to find playmakers. Provo and bailey might look a little better after this year.

While I agree with the general assessment that the OLine will be responsible for the majority of the success/failure of the running game, I think one player that hasn't been mentioned here that is clearly getting several touches and the opportunity to be successful is Broyld.

 

[BlazeOrange]

The truth is we don't know how good the offense is until they take the field against Northwestern. Don't get negative until there's a real reason to.

Yes, remember that "We talkin' 'bout practice". With limited practice time available, I'd imagine (hope?) that the playcalling in these semi-private scrimmages is focused on areas that they need to work on, so you'll tend to see more problems. They may briefly incorporate plays that will utimately be our bread and butter, but just enough to stay sharp.

Even if that isn't the case, you still have a certain amount of players involved who won't see the field during the regular season and the coaches aren't using any strategy to set up certain plays.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

but it should not be in reality.

Marrone and Adkins are 'OL' guys ... they have been recruiting for a few years now.

Every season is becoming groundhogs day ...

Yeah. We're giving them all the time in the world to make it happen. I have high hopes for Hickey, Trudo and think they'll all be solid someday but man, seeing something out of the oline is taking forever.

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

 

[RF2044]

Yeah. We're giving them all the time in the world to make it happen. I have high hopes for Hickey, Trudo and think they'll all be solid someday but man, seeing something out of the oline is taking forever.

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

Completely agree. Traditionally, SU has struggled to field quality OL, and it has been a position of relative weakness even when we had strong teams. One of the things I was most excited about when Marrone was hired was for how his NFL expertise coaching OL might help reverse that trend. I still think that he and Atkins will get the job done, but this position continues to lag behind every other positional unit in talent, depth, and performance.

But we're building better talent in the pipeline, and last year all four of the frosh OL the coaching staff brought in were redshirted--very important IMO to the long term development of OL talent. Hopefully the same thing will happen with the three OL prospects the staff brought in for the class of 2012.

Per my post above, the majority of our resources on OL are in their first or second year in the program, so fingers crossed that we are on the cusp of seeing a jump in performance that starts this year and continues over the next 2-3 years.

 

[OrangePA]

but it should not be in reality.

Marrone and Adkins are 'OL' guys ... they have been recruiting for a few years now.

Every season is becoming groundhogs day ...

They lost two starters to graduation and Pugh is hurt. The concern is understandable.

Plus, young guys like Hickey and Curtis have been hurt.

Health and experience will help matters.

 

[reedny]

No question the OL is an issue, but so are the receivers and the unproven talent (?) in the backfield. Let's face it, as RF has pointed out (and others), the OL is a WIP. Rather than tilting against windmills, until it arrives, we should be realistic about what we can do with our offensive personnel.

For example, last year, with teams stacking the box and a smallish TB, we had predictable trouble establishing the running game. We used Smith in 3d down situations ... but had very limited success. Therefore, if our OL simply doesn't have the push to open big holes up the gut -- especially with opposing teams stacking the box -- why would we turn around this year and start a ground-'n-pound style back? We've got to do something different.

Personally, I'd rather see AAM and or PTG handling the ball than Smith. Let Sales stretch the field, and get some production from the tight ends. Lemon is reliable over the middle. We need all these guys to produce to take the pressure off the OL and not expose our lack of a game changer in the backfield.

 

[RMH44]

Not how I see it. The majority of OL comprising the depth chart are either true frosh or redshirt frosh. Here's the list [in no particular order]:

Pugh [jr], Chibane [sr], MacPherson [jr], Alexander [sr], Trudo [fr], Foy [fr], Hickey [so], Curtis [fr], Emerich [fr], Knapp [fr], Palmer [fr], with Robinson [fr] and Philips [sr] sprinkled in--the majority of those guys are 1st or 2nd year frosh and Hickey as a soph who hasn't played yet. 7 out of those 13 are true-frosh /redshirt-frosh, one is a soph. Only three are seniors who won't be around next year [I'm not 100% certain about whether Philips is a sr or whether he has two years of eligibility left, in which case we'd only have 2 departing seniors].

The coaching staff has done a decent job of replenishing the pipeline at OL in recent classes. Now, that doesn't amount to **** if players like Trudo, Foy, Emerich, Hickey, Curtis, etc. don't step up and prove that they can be contributors this year. But my expectation is that we're going to FINALLY see improvement in the OL over the next 2-3 years with that nucleus of 1st and 2nd year guys. The question is: will said improvement deliver value THIS YEAR when we desperately need it.

Agreed, I loved Knapp's film...I really like OL with a mean streak. We've all heard good things about Emerich from camp. I have a feeling that Palmer will be a beast. Very good OL haul last year. Hopefully they all stay healthy and motivated.

 

[Czar]

Honestly, the best thing the staff could do is put a green O-Line in now and reap the benefits later. College lineman get better the more games they see. Bleed them in now, don't waste a year with a stopgap like Alexander starting.